Good afternoon everyone: As a son and husband I often get unsolicited reminders from well meaning family members about this Sunday being Mother's Day. This morning my sister-in-law sent me a 'Friendly reminder, Mother's Day on Sunday...' text. Yes, Sunday is the magical day in May when all offspring are made to feel compelled by Hallmark and florists everywhere to heap expressions of gratitude on their mom's. I'd encourage you to join me and fight any cynicism you may feel about this weekend, and if you're able, make your mom know she's loved. In our service this weekend we're finishing up our series on Imperfect Families, and there will be some acknowledgment of mom's and women in general, and the message content will feature multiple voices reflecting on the parenting challenge, but Mother's Day has always proven to be challenging for churches. It's not a religious holiday, and for many, Mother's Day is a trigger for all kinds of negative emotions. So let's all give each other some grace as we try to bless the mom's in our lives. A couple of years ago I found this prayer: The Wide Spectrum of Mothering, by Amy Young . I think it does a decent job of capturing the range of emotions and feelings around Mother's Day. It's a beautiful prayer, so I commend it to you and hope that it might shape your thoughts this weekend. Church, keep leaning in, looking out for each other, and caring for each other. It's been a challenging week for many as we hoped to see public health measures diminishing by now, not ramping up. If you're hurting, lonely, or have a practical need - make it known and we'll do our best to be the church for each other. I'm blessed to be doing life and ministry with you! Greg Hochhalter, Lead Pastor At every stage in our public health emergency we have chosen to be active participants in minimizing the spread of COVID-19 and it's variant strains. At times this has meant limiting our freedoms in order to demonstrate care and concern for our community and to stand with our most vulnerable, including our medical professionals and first responders, but this doesn't mean we're closed or inactive! Creative leaders across our ministry have innovated and refused to focus on what we cannot do, but on what we can. While we wait until it's safe and responsible to gather as a large faith community again, we'll continue to prioritize:Online Worship Gatherings, Saturday's @ 7pm, and Sunday's at 10 am, at spac.ca; YouTube, Facebook Live, Roku, and Apple TV. Weekend service content is also available on-demand once it's streamed live.Life Groups - good things happen in large groups, but the best our church has to offer is what takes place in small groups. More information on Life Groups.Pastoral Care - if there is any way we can support you spiritually or practically, send us an email: [email protected]. If it's an emergency, call the Pastor On Call: 780-919-7563.Compassion Assistance/Support - if you're experiencing a crisis our would like to know about support groups or recovery ministries, call our church office main line (780) 467-8404.Kids, Youth, and Young Adult's - parental support and weekly kids content is available on the Kids Ministries page and updated weekly. For the latest on what's happening for Youth and Young Adults.Online prayer gatherings and themed events along with recent updates and happenings are in the weekly announcements.Bonfire Nights on the parking lot are temporarily suspended due to public health restrictions, but will resume immediately once restrictions are lifted. Our church office remains open with a small team available to serve you along with Strathcona Christian Academy administrators and teachers who continue to support students and families. If you're part of our church community, thank you for all the ways you've adapted and stayed engaged in these last few months. If you're new, or checking us out for the first time, welcome! You belong here. Greg Hochhalter Lead Pastor Words are powerful. Spoken words, especially words uttered by parents, a spouse, close friends or others we love and respect shape our lives. Some people thrive as a result of the words they've received, while others are haunted by the careless, mean-spirited words they've received. We all crave affirmation and long for a respected person to respect us and tell us we are good. Sometimes we want this so bad we are willing to do almost anything to get it. In Genesis 12, that is exactly what Jacob did when he and his mother, Rebecca, conspired to trick his father, Isaac to get what he wanted. Jacob pretended to be his older, twin brother so he could receive the blessing intended for the first-born son. This was not just any blessing like we would think of from today, it was a biblical blessing that spoke to a person's destiny, almost like a prophecy given by someone in a position of authority who was guided by God's grace and was able to bestow on another - it's a big deal, and it was binding. The actions and the deception of Jacob tore the family apart causing even further dysfunction. Words carry a tremendous weight, and if we receive critique rather than confirmation our life may be marked by some crippling wounds. Pastor Greg and Pastor Jeremy share a little bit about the environment they grew up in and talk about the words they heard... or didn't hear. Where there are gaps in their lives, God sent people to fill-in those gaps to replace what wasn't received. For many of us, we can't go back, but we can be people who step in and fill those gaps for others. We can be people of blessing looking for opportunity to step-in where kind words, affirmation and blessing may be needed. Wherever there is relationship and influence, there is room for blessing. If you missed last weekend's message or want to listen to any previous message, it is available on-demand. Join this weekend as the teaching team wraps-up the My Imperfect Family series as they talk about parenting grown adults and parenting younger children imperfectly. Why do so many believers bounce between faith and doubt...skepticism and belief? In this series we'll explain some of the reasons why, along with reassurance that skepticism and belief are not mutually exclusive. And we'll talk about why it makes perfectly good sense to bet the farm on Jesus. New series begins May 15 & 16.Becoming a member is about being part of a larger Christian community that enables you to grow and develop your relationship with Jesus . As a member you are agreeing to become a member of the community and live according to the way Jesus taught us. We are called to make disciples of Jesus... to love God and to love others and membership is a commitment to help create, lead and resource ministry environments. If you believe in what God is doing at Sherwood Park Alliance Church, take your next step and sign up to find out what being a member is all about. Register for the upcoming session... An interactive evening of honoring someone you've lost and encouraging each other through the journey of grief. Our time together will be online and you'll receive the Zoom link once you've registered. Register...