Dear faithful readers,

If there is a catch phrase for the Great Fifty Days from Easter to Pentecost, it is the joy of beginning again. Not only did the 30 days between Epiphany and Ash Wednesday suggest rescheduling our Lenten booklet to provide more preparation time, the Great Fifty Days theme stood out even more. Why not publish a booklet for the season when Christians celebrate the resurrection of Christ, his post-Easter presence and the Christian movementís infusion with the Spiritís power?

"Think about that," as Larry Loughhead used to say from our pulpit. Think about what happened between Jesusí death and his resurrection. Think of the range of emotions: from dark despair to incredulous hope, from bitter defeat to joyous victory, from abandonment to reconciliation. So much that happened then is beyond our knowing; yet, we do know that their experience of the Risen Christ catapulted believers to the ends of the earth. During the first Great Fifty Days, believers experienced the joy of beginning again.

May that be so for us as we ponder the prayerful thoughts of our brothers and sisters at Calvary. May these devotionals point us toward the Risen Christ and forward to a new season of Spiritinfused mission and ministry. Giving thanks for all that Calvary has been in past days, and for all Calvary will become in days ahead, pray deeply and prepare for the joy of beginning again!

Grace and peace,
Bruce Greer
Interim Senior Minister