The gospels are filled with questions, ones that Jesus asked and ones that Jesus answered. But this question, from Matthew 18, is one of my favorites. Mostly because Peter doesn’t stop at his initial question, but offers a suggestion that ends up proving just how wrong he is. “Surely seven times is enough, right?” I can’t help but think that Jesus chuckled a bit before answering.

When God sees something that’s competing with our devotion for him, he wants nothing more than to remind us that anything worth pursuing can be found in him. We see him showing up in the Old Testament time and time again when the Israelites had turned from him and to their man-made idols.

Recently, I watched A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood, starring Tom Hanks and Matthew Rhys. It tells an inspiring story about the remarkable Fred Rogers (Mr. Rogers) that is based loosely on the real friendship that Rogers developed with journalist Tom Junod. In this fictionalized version of the story, Fred Rogers is approached by Lloyd Vogel, a hardened and cynical writer for Esquire. Vogel is commissioned to write a piece about Rogers, who seems to Vogel to be too good to be true. Vogel plans to get underneath to the real story of Mr. Rogers, exposing him as a fraud, or at least not as neighborly as he appears on television. But what happens is remarkably different.

Between now and Easter, when you enter the main doors of Sojourn East and take a left towards the auditorium, you'll pass three paintings. As you do, you may wonder if they've been completed. That's okay because they are a work in progress, created by our very own Kristin Kremer. We commissioned the paintings to provide some additional context during the Lenten season, and over the coming weeks, you'll hear more about them and what they represent. In the meantime, we thought it would be helpful to introduce you to Kristin and share her journey as we set out on our corporate journey through Lent.

I have fond memories of enjoying Groundhog Day with my family every year as a kid: not the holiday itself, but the 1993 comedy starring Bill Murray and directed by Harold Ramis...It seems likely that this film will have a much deeper resonance with the average viewer this year. After spending the majority of 2020 mostly at home, limiting contact with friends and family and getting accustomed to the same scenery day in and day out, we would be forgiven for having a difficult time distinguishing all the days that seemed to blend together. Or, as Stephen Colbert recently put it, “It goes 30 days hath September, it's been March since I can't remember.”