There's a lot of pride to go around in the on-field accomplishments of two of Woodward Park's own. First, Tayler Williams and her softball team from Central High School played in the Division I Valley Championship softball game on Thursday afternoon against Clovis High School. Central fell to Clovis, 8-4, ending Tayler's high school softball career as a member of the Valley's second-best high school softball team.
Later today, John Hollett's Selma baseball team will play in the Division III Valley Championship baseball game. John's team has to go to Bakersfield to play South High School, but after talking with John on Thursday, he is very confident in his team's chances. In fact, John told me he'd motivated his team throughout their playoff run with a motto from something I'd said in a sermon earlier this year: "It is hard to discourage someone who is focused." John, after you guys bring home the title later today, I'm expecting to get a championship ring!
As a die-hard baseball fan, it is exciting to see our people being rewarded with great success!
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This weekend marks the 50th Anniversary of Yosemite Bible Camp in Oakhurst, California. There is a reunion at the camp this weekend. I am excited about speaking to the assembly at the camp on Saturday evening at 7:00 p.m. Mark McInteer, the Executive Director of the 21st Century Christian Foundation in Nashville, will be the keynote speaker on Sunday. The theme for the weekend is "Come Home to God's Mountain" and all the messages center around a significant mountain-event in Scripture. I have been assigned "The Mount Of Olives: Talking to God."
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Also this weekend, my family will be blessed to have John Wiegand with us. John is the outstanding song leader for the Pleasant View Church of Christ in Pleasanton and the editor for the Praise for the Lord hymnal, published by 21st Century Christian.
In addition to our shared passion for ministry, we share a passion for the game of baseball. John will be with us at Woodward Park all day on Sunday to lead singing for both of our assemblies.
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Keep several of us in your prayers this morning as we will be meeting with the director of a Women's Shelter in Fresno for at-risk women/mothers. There are 48 units in this facility, all of which are filled with mothers and children from abuse situations. Our desire is to begin a Wednesday evening program at that facility where members from Woodward Park will go down to provide Bible studies/classes for the women and the children. It is another opportunity before us to expand our witness throughout Fresno and I ask you to pray specifically that the director will receive our proposal with an affirmation for this ministry opportunity.
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Finally this morning, I hope you'll find some time this weekend to reflect on the ultimate memorial -- the memorial to the memory of Jesus Christ. As believers, we are privileged each first day of the week in our worship assembly to remember Jesus through the taking of the bread and the cup.
The irony of the Lord's Supper -- a memorial to Jesus, instituted by Jesus himself -- is that it stands in stark contrast to all other memorials. For instance, the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. is in memory of one of our nation's greatest Presidents, who has been dead now for 142 years.
The Lord's memorial, in contrast, is in memory of our Savior's love -- a Savior who is not dead but alive! What a blessing we have each Sunday to remember, not only the death of Jesus that provides for our redemption, but the life of Jesus who is reigning even now at the right hand of God. In memory of the Savior's love, we keep the sacred feast, not to a dead Savior but to a living One!
