Sullivan UMC—J. Michael Smith

The Tuesday-Wednesday Combo this Week

Shrove Tuesday is our chance to eat, have fun, and welcome the community with our friendliness.  Join us tonight between 5 and 7 for pancakes and sausage.

Ash Wednesday is a reminder that there is another side to us—we are much more than a social club or a party church.  We are a people who are deeply hungry for God’s presence in our lives.  We know that underneath all our friendliness and comradery, there are holes in our lives that only God can fill, burdens that only God can relieve, and dreams that only God can help come true.  We worship at 6 p.m. tomorrow in the sanctuary as a people of faith.

Personal Notes

As many of you know, my wife is Chinese.  And today is the Chinese New Year.  It is known as the “Spring Festival.”  In China, this holiday is the most important family day of the year—very much like Christmas in the western world.  Chinese families gather on New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day with the people closest to them.  Young Chinese from around the country and world travel home to be with their parents and grandparents on the Chinese New Year.  Gifts are exchanged.  And for 15 days, people go from home to home—visiting their relatives and friends.  

The Chinese New Year brings back many nostalgic memories for people.  For some, like my wife, who are far from home and unable to be with parents and other family members, this can be a difficult and lonely time.  One of the reasons we decided to retire in Urbana is because nearly 10,000 Chinese live in Champaign County.  For the last week, many of them have been attending programs, dances, and meals together as a way to experience the Spring Festival. 

Around our house, Jie will be alone all day today—working on her sermon and on a class she is taking.  I’ll be taking my brother to Springfield to get a thyroid biopsy—as he is not allowed to drive himself for this procedure.  Then I’ll be spending the evening in Sullivan enjoying the pancake/sausage dinner with my congregation.  Tomorrow I’ll be in Sullivan all day and lead and Ash Wednesday worship in the evening—while Jie leads an Ash Wednesday worship in her church in Mansfield.  On Thursday the two of us will finally be able to celebrate the Chinese New Year as we go to Lisle, where we will help our daughter fix the New Year’s banquet and enjoy the holiday with our family there.  It is good when we can jigger up the calendar a bit!

This is the Year of the Horse—a special year for our family as three of us were born in that year:  me, my wife (12 years later), and our daughter (another 24 years later.) Wishing all of you, from our house to yours—新年快乐–Happy Chinese New Year.   (Shee-nee-an Kwai lu)