Lent is a particularly profound season in the life of our church and of the Church. If Advent is the catalyst of a long-awaited messiah, Lent is the climax of that story. Lent is a season when we as the body of Christ collectively and intimately reorient ourselves around the life and love, purpose and passion of Jesus Christ, culminating in His sacrificial death and – mystery of mysteries – His ultimate resurrection.
Lent is forty days of focus; a way for us to practice intention in our awareness of a God willing to do everything to win us back. It is the story of redemption and reconciliation, as is every story God tells, drawing us into the deepest darkness of our human depravity before throwing open the veil to invite us into the holy throne room of heaven. A full schedule of our Lenten services is below. And be sure to join us on Sundays in between the highlights and on our Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter pages as we narrow our gaze on the cross in Calvary.
- March 6 : Ash Wednesday service begins at 6:45pm. We will observe a sermon, followed by the imposition of ashes, an ancient tradition of ashes and oil to remind us of our humble dust beginnings.
- March 6 – April 14 : Kids Can For Christ, our Fountain Kids ministry’s annual Lenten mission is underway. We will be collecting canned goods until Palm Sunday for the Fountain City Ministry Center. We are asking each person (or family) to collect 40 food items during Lent for donation. Our goal is to collect one month’s supply of food. A cart will be available outside of the gym on Sunday mornings for Journey drop off and a table will be in the Narthex for Traditional drop off. Thank you for supporting Fountain Kids Ministry as our children learn service to their community in this project.
- Lenten Study : Join pastor Tom Ballard on Wednesday evenings at 6:30pm for the special Lenten study, Entering the Passion of Jesus by Amy-Jill Levine. Sessions will be on March 13, 27, April 3, 10, 24, and May 1. Dive deep into the history of the last days before the crucifixion in this six-week study. If you would like to join the class, please call the church office at (865) 689-5175.
- April 14 : Palm Sunday services at 8:30am (Traditional) and 11:00am (Traditional and The Journey Contemporary Worship) as we celebrate Jesus’ triumphant entrance into Jerusalem, the shadow of the cross looming over Him as He gathers in the praises of “Hosanna!”
- April 18 : Maundy Thursday service begins at 7:30pm. We will partake in Communion, remembering the Last Supper of Jesus with His disciples.
- April 19 : Good Friday Tenebrae service at 7:30pm as we settle into the gathering darkness of a world without Jesus Christ, considering the price He paid for our sins.
- April 21 : Easter Sunday! Join us for one of our Sunday morning services at 8:30am (Traditional) and 11:00am (Traditional and The Journey Contemporary Worship) as we celebrate and rejoice in an empty tomb, a resurrected Jesus, a living God!