Dear Friends,
We at CCE have prepared for you three short devotions:
for Holy Wednesday, for Maundy Thursday, and for Good Friday.
We hope you will be inspired by them to praise God
for what He had done for us in Christ Jesus. To Him be the glory!
CCE staff
| by Tomáš Gulán |
Martin | Slovakia | March | 2021
PROGRESS REPORT
Dear Friends and Partners,
February was not an easy month for Slovakia. The COVID units in our hospitals are full and our COVID mortality rate per capita is the highest in the world. This pandemic is getting more and more personal, taking its toll on our friends and neighbors. The lockdown seems unending and our world broken to pieces beyond repair. In moments like these, a quote from Martin Luther comes to mind: “Even if I know that tomorrow the world would go to pieces, I would still plant my apple tree.” Yes, our faith gives us hope whatever the crisis, because it is based on God Almighty and his Son Jesus Christ. Therefore, amid this pandemic, we have planted our “apple trees”: Continue reading
Dear friends and partners,
The first month of 2021 has brought new hopes and old challenges. The pandemic is still not under control and the lockdowns still bring inconveniences to our lives. On the other hand, vaccinations are finally on the move and we all hope that soon our lives will come back to normal. Continue reading
Merry Christmas and Blessed New Year 2021
Hail the Light which enlightens everyone!
The Light shines in the darkness
and the darkness did not overcome it.
John 1, 5 and 9 (par.) Continue reading
The main theme of November is thanksgiving. For you, our American friends and partners, it is obvious – Thanksgiving has been your national holiday for more than a century. This year’s celebration was perhaps different because you were not able to meet your families and friends as usually; more vacant spots around tables and more leftover turkey for sandwiches. It was hard to see your loved ones only through a screen. However, there are still multiple things we can be thankful for. Continue reading
The Lutheran Elementary School students used art to thank war veterans for their service. They did so to commemorate Veterans Day which is annually observed all over the world on November 11.
The symbol of the red poppy flower, which became associated with this day, was used for the first time in a poem by a Canadian doctor John McCrae who had fought in Flanders (Belgium) during WWI. Even though McCrae served as a brigade surgeon, he could not reconcile himself to seeing his patients suffer. Writing poetry became a remedy to his pain. In one of his poems, McCrae described bright red poppies which grew on the places where the fallen soldiers had been buried. Afterwards the red poppy flower quickly became a universally recognised symbol of war veterans. Nowadays people of different backgrounds and nationalities who want to remember those fallen in war conflicts wear a poppy on November 11. Continue reading
