Ralston’s son who is struggling
SERMON NOTES: PRAYER REQUESTS
APRIL 10, 2011
Y People from Chain of
Lakes bring new guests to worship
this Sunday.
Y Virginia Schober, Amy
Moore’s Aunt, who is recovering
from a broken vertebrae and
needs to wear a halo until mid-
June.
Y Carole Lloyd as she
recovers at home after successful
surgery.
Y Nicholas LaMay,
Angelica’s nephew, who is living
with his father in Oregon and is
struggling to finish high school
because of anger and bi-polar
disorder. (on going)
Y Pray for Angelica Van
Iperen’s friends, Paul and Ruben,
and they struggle with infertility
and limited resources to treat it.
Y May all the activities we
are doing bring more people to
Christ and the church.
Y For Kevin Amundsen and
family who grieve the passing of
Wally Amundsen, Kevin’s dad. He
passed away on Friday, April 1.
Y For Bill Fink and family
who grieve the passing of Bill’s
father.
Y Pray for Jonathan and
Judith’s family as they deal with
work, childcare, and day to day
living.
Y Jacob Mielke a 19 year old
man who is struggling with cancer.
He is getting chemo at the Mayo
Clinic.
Y Peter Ralston, Faith
with addiction.
Y Donna Mc Cullen, Ken Mc
Cullen's wife as she goes through
more intense chemotherapy
treatment.
Y The Pastor Nominating
Committee of Community
Presbyterian Church in Plainview
as they discern who God is calling
to be their new pastor.
Y Gary Wassam as he looks
for a job.
Y Bill Fink as he looks for a
job.
Y Pray for continued
courage on Dwight Zvorak’s
recovery from alcoholism.
DEVOTION
This week we enter the most
important week of the year for our
faith—Holy Week. The events of this
week will be celebrated all across
the world. Billions of people will
remember what happened in
Jerusalem almost 2,000 years ago.
We might know the stories well, but
they are worth reading again. This
week we’re looking at portions from
Matthew’s gospel. If you would like
to read all of the Holy Week stories
in Matthew, read chapters 21-28.
As you read these stories may your
heart be ablaze with the power of
what happened during Holy Week!
Comments about the devotion can
be E-mailed to pastor@colpres.org
Monday, April 18
2 3
Read Matthew 21:1-11
When Jesus came into Jerusalem,
many people in the crowd were
thinking that Jesus was going to
overthrow the Romans. The people
put down their cloaks in anticipation
that a new king was coming. This
putting down of cloaks had
happened in the Old Testament
when the people welcomed Jehu as
king, 2 Kings 9:13.
The crowds were wrong. Jesus
didn’t come to overthrow the
Romans. He came to do something
more powerfully. He started a
spiritual revolution that continues to
this day.
One of the reasons the crowd turned
on Jesus is they misunderstood him.
They became disappointed and
disenchanted with Jesus and thus
were susceptible to being
manipulated by the religious
leaders.
Can you think of a time in your life
when you misunderstood God’s
intent? Was there a time when you
were wrong about something with
God?
Today as you pray, pray that you
and the community at Chain of
Lakes Church will always be clear in
our understanding of who God is to
us
Tuesday, April 19
Read Matthew 22:34-40
This is one of the central stories of
Jesus’ life, and one of my—Pastor
Paul’s—favorite stories in the Bible.
Jesus shared that the most
important law is to love God with all
of our heart, soul, and mind, and to
love our neighbor as we love
ourselves. This teaching is a
strainer through which the laws in
the Old Testament can be
understood.
This teaching of Jesus is so
important that it’s always worth
asking ourselves the following
questions: What are some ways that
you are doing well at loving God?
What are some ways that you could
do better at loving God? What are
some ways you are doing well in
loving your neighbor as you love
yourself? What are some ways that
you could do better?
As you pray today, talk to God about
these questions. Pray that we at
Chain of Lakes Church can keep
these questions before us.
Wednesday, April 20
Read Matthew 26:1-16
One of the questions that was
shared this past Sunday is why Judas
betrayed Jesus. His motivation was
money. He had become
disillusioned with Jesus and the
temptation of receiving thirty pieces
of silver was too much to overcome.
The church has traditionally been
very critical of Judas. But before we
go too far in condemning him, let’s
4
put ourselves in his shoes. What
would we have done if Jesus had
disappointed us and we could
receive money to betray him?
Perhaps we might not have betrayed
Jesus like Judas did—or perhaps we
would have—but all of us are
capable of being tempted like Judas
was. What tempts you right now?
With what do you struggle? The
good news is that God understands
our temptation and is willing to help
us.
Jesus never condemned Judas for his
act. We never read a place in the
Scriptures where Jesus judged Judas.
Jesus was disappointed with Judas,
but still loved him. This attitude of
Jesus is the same one that we
receive when we sin.
Instead of being afraid of God, today
throw yourself onto God and ask for
help with your temptations.
Thursday, April 21
Read Matthew 26:17-30
Tonight we at Chain of Lakes will
remember this story when we gather
for worship at 7:00 p.m. at the
Senior Center. Please come and join
us!
Friday, April 22
Read Matthew 27:24-56
The thirty-two verses share the most
sobering story in the history of the
world. To think that Jesus could be
2 3 4
executed by humans is difficult to community—will be touched in
ponder. worship tomorrow!

The murder of Jesus is the worst

event that has ever happened in the
history of the world. What could be
worse than the intentional murder of
God?

Today as you pray, please share

with God your sorrow on behalf of
humanity for what happened to
Jesus.

Saturday, April 23
Read Matthew 28:1-10
The story didn’t end on Friday. God
did not give on humanity despite the
intentional murder of Jesus. God
took Jesus from death. The worst
event in the world was transformed
into a celebration that billions of
people will enjoy on Easter Sunday!

The world changed because of the

resurrection. Tomorrow, I—Pastor
Paul—will share a sermon entitled,
“The Earthquake That Has Never
Stopped.” The earthquake that
Matthew wrote about in this story
was more than an event that could
be described by what happened to
the ground. Because of the
resurrection of Jesus a force entered
into the world that still shakes the
world today.

As you pray today, give thanks for

the resurrection! Pray for the
church world-wide as the
resurrection is celebrated. Pray that
we at Chain of Lakes—along with the