From time to time I like to reward my regular blog readers with a little insider information, ahead of church wide announcements. Here at the mid-mark for the season of Lent, with spring just around the corner and Easter close on the heels of that, here’s an update on what is happening here at Nativity.
Lent & Easter
- Message Series: This weekend and next we’ll be wrapping up our current message series, “No Offense.” I’ll be speaking this weekend and next weekend Brian Crook will be wrapping things up (following Mass) since Tom and I will be traveling. There is no message on Palm Sunday (given the extended reading of the Passion) and then we launch a new series on Easter Sunday we’re calling “Love Lives.”
- Holy Week & Easter Sunday: Holy Week begins on Palm Sunday, with something a little special this year. Bishop Adam Parker will be saying the 9am Mass and Bishop Mark Brennan will be celebrating the 12n Mass. Both bishops have been wanting to celebrate Mass in the new church and Palm Sunday seemed like the perfect time. The schedule for the rest of Holy Week can be found on our website, with all the traditional services. Easter Sunday we will again be offering three Masses, 9, 10:45, and 12:30, with seating in the main sanctuary as well as in video venues in the Theatre (old church) as well as the Pavilion.
- Rebuilt Conference: We are very excited about our upcoming church conference with parishes in attendance from across the country and elsewhere in the world. The conference will include some powerful speakers, incredible music and a few very special features. Be on the lookout for sign up to serve, which will fill up quickly when it is open. Insider hint: if you serve on Easter Sunday, you probably have a better shot of snagging a place at the conference. We will also be making available some limited number of tickets for purchase if there are any remaining seats after we close registration.
- Spring Special Events: Springtime always brings joyful events to celebrate. These include Ministry Weekend (April 27 & 28) Mother’s Day, always a beautiful celebration here at Nativity, First Communions (May 19th & 20th) and Confirmation (June 2 at two Masses, 2 & 5pm, because of the size of the group).
- Behind the Scenes Stuff: Springtime is always the time when we do some strategic planning with our staff for the next year (our year runs July 1 thru June 30), this is the time of year for the budgeting process (next to going to the dentist, the most fun of the whole year). We will also be determining all our summer projects inside and out. Springtime inevitably brings staff transitions and changes and we are anticipating a few of those this year. Insider alert: check out job availability on our web site, under about us/our team.
- Book Stuff: We continue to travel for Rebuilt, especially so this spring. We will be speaking in Dallas and LA, as well as a European tour that includes Munich, Frankfort, Berlin, Vienna, and Salzburg. We are heard from time to time on Sirius XM, and weekly on Catholic TV. We are also getting serious about a new book on money and the church (everyone’s favorite topic). Stay tuned for more on that, as developments unfold.
Other than that, there’s really not much going on.