During Lent in 2023, I was in my third trimester of pregnancy with our daughter, Corrie. As a way to both center myself mentally and ensure that I was taking care of myself and my baby physically, I went for many walks in our neighborhood throughout this season.
Around the middle of February, it was finally a bearable temperature outside, and the days had gotten long enough for me to squeeze a walk into my schedule with some regularity. It was at this time that I noticed all the trees I saw were bare. Some even held onto the last few brown leaves from the previous fall. As I was filled with anticipation to meet our baby girl, I started paying close attention to the trees. Since she was due in May, I took any sign of spring as one step closer to holding her in my arms. After a few weeks, it happened – I saw blooms on some of my neighbors’ Redbuds and Bradford Pears!
The following spring, though I was no longer pregnant, I still found myself looking for these trees to begin blooming. Something about the resurgence of life around me brought hope and excitement for the season ahead.
As we move through this time of Lent, I know that we will all be looking for reminders of God’s mercy and love for each of us. We all come to the cross with our own “brown leaves” – doubts, guilt, insecurities. The promise of Easter gives us the gift of grace. As we read in Romans 5:8, “But God proves his love for us in that while we still were sinners Christ died for us.” What a blessing it is to know and share this truth.
Morgan Jones, Associate Director of Meals on Wheels Oklahoma City
—– Easter Offering —–
For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves. – Colossians 1:13
Like most parents, Mark and Stacy McDaniel spent lots of time at the ball fields, watching their three children play the sports they loved. Mark and Stacy also spent lots of money so their children could have the clothes, shoes, and equipment they needed to participate in their teams. As each child outgrew their shoes and equipment, they placed them in the garage. The older the children got,
the bigger the pile of good, but used sports equipment grew.
Mark and Stacy wondered if they could find a way to share the gently used equipment with other kids who might need some help. Surely, the pile in the garage could be used for something better than taking up space. Cleats for Kids (C4K) was born from a pile of used equipment in the dark corner of their garage and a desire to make a difference in the lives of others. It was in 2011 that the work began to develop relationships with schools and the community to provide the equipment that would help to ensure students would have the opportunity to participate in life-changing sports.
The McDaniel family is a big believer in youth sports. More importantly, they know that when children and youth are given the opportunity to compete, they are healthier and develop the skills one needs to succeed in life. Since 2011, Cleats for Kids has helped students in schools in all 77 counties of Oklahoma. Over 390,000 children and youth have been blessed by the work of C4K. They not
only provide an opportunity to compete, but they bring the hope of possibilities to students with their tremendous generosity.
This wonderful ministry is a reflection of the grace of God at work in the world. God takes the discarded mess we pile in the corner of our lives and turns it into blessings. God’s grace redeems what is often considered used up and makes a new creation, filled with the renewed possibility for blessing life. The grace we celebrate at Easter, the grace that comes through the cross, is the power of God at work to renew His children so that we may love as He first loved us.
When you support the Easter Offering you become part of the life-transforming ministry of Cleats for Kids. To learn more about their program please visit cleatsforkids.org.
Donation envelopes are available during worship. Gifts may also be made by calling the Finance Office at 232-1371, by texting “STL EASTER” to 73256, or online by using the link below. All donations are tax deductible.
https://secure.accessacs.com/access/oglogin.aspx?sn=167551&f=5
