Reconnecting
By Rev. John Wagner
When I received our invitation to the annual Renaissance Feast over at the Otterbein Retirement Community, the operative word for me was “feast.” I couldn’t help myself. I was looking forward to tables groaning under the weight of pies and potatoes and roast pork, with perhaps some entertainment thrown in, but this was not to be. Turns out it was a very formal affair, with perhaps thirty people of all ages in period dress, and authentic decorations, and an overall impressive attention to detail. As for the food, it certainly didn’t come all at once so we could simply stuff ourselves. The salad, beverage, main course and dessert were served with great fanfare, each brought in with its own processional that included dancers, musicians and small children carrying banners. We sang and raised toasts before every serving; the whole meal took nearly two hours to complete. I was amazed.
Many thanks to Rev. David Hilton for arranging for the staff to go, and to our own Herman Emmert for being such a wonderful master of ceremonies. And as it happens, I was not at all disappointed it wasn’t some kind of big holiday spread where I could gorge myself. Far from it… I think it satisfied a hunger I didn’t know I had. I would say we probably all welcome a bit of formality in our lives from time to time. Historical reenactments of this sort serve as a kind of re-connection to traditions we sense we ought to cherish, even if they are largely unfamiliar.
I also believe church meets this need in some respects. It can be a place where we behave a little differently, where we say and do things we wouldn’t do anywhere else, the kinds of things we know our parents and grandparents might have done. For example, the formal greetings and responses we use like “The Lord be with you,” and traditional prayers, and standing for the doxology and the Gospel reading. We even have our own processionals at certain times of the year. These traditions sometimes seem strange to outsiders, and we need to be conscious of that, but they also have great value. I believe they have the potential to move us out of our usual patterns, and I think deep down, this is why we show up in the first place. We are here to move out of our everyday patterns, retrieve some ancient wisdom, and get re-connected to the God who continually calls us into a life far greater than anything we’ve got going on our own.
On February 13th we celebrate Ash Wednesday, which is the official beginning of the season of Lent. It’s a time of renewal, but also a serious time that ends with the crucifixion of our Lord. To best honor this season I’d like to challenge us to make some fairly traditional commitments. There are just six Sundays, from February 17th to March 24th, and I would hope we all could consider attending adult Sunday School, even if it’s not our usual practice. Along with Rev. Hilton and some others I’ll be teaching a class in basic Christian doctrines, and I’m looking forward to stimulating discussions. I’d also like the congregation to try learning or re-learning the Apostles Creed, which we will be reciting Sunday mornings. And please think about some form of service during Lent. Maybe join the choir for a spell, or take a turn at Breakfast Club or the Hispanic Ministry. As for Christian witness, I’ve ordered some small cross shaped lapel pins we can pick up after church service – I’d like to challenge us to wear them every day and go public with our faith during this sacred season. Pastor David and I especially ask that you set a goal of inviting someone to church during Lent. Or maybe there is something else you have personally felt Christ calling you to do, or at least explore. This is the time.
We often talk about giving up something for Lent. How about giving up our normal life for a time, and making a formal and declared effort as a congregation to take up the Cross of Jesus and follow him all the way to Easter?
Call it a historical reenactment.
Peace,
John Wagner
Choral-what?!
by Barb Orth
Have you ever noticed “Choralfest practice” on the church schedule and wondered what it is? The short answer is a children’s music festival, but it’s so much more! Choralfest was started 27 years ago and FUMC was one of its original participants. Ten or so churches meet to choose appropriate anthems and each choir learns the songs at their own church. On the day of the festival we all get together and that’s when the real fun begins; imagine 100 children all praising God with song! On Choralfest Day the children come in the morning, practice, eat lunch, practice, have a snack, square dance, and practice again. You might think they would be worn out, but at 4:00 they put on a wonderful, inspirational worship concert for family and friends.
This year is especially exciting for our church; Reverend Wagner will be leading the prayers and we have several of our young singers attending: Allison Palmer (Urso), Ashley Hale, Bree Dickson, Evan Urso, MacKenzie Rutledge, and Matthew Palmer as well as some new friends who have been practicing with us. If you would like to attend this year’s concert, it will be held on March 9th at the Town Blvd Church of God. You will be blessed.
Palm Sunday Ecumenical Service & Potluck Dinner
Sunday, March 24 at Bethlehem Lutheran Church
You asked for it…and you’re getting it! Second Baptist Church and St. Paul’s United Church of Christ will join us at Bethlehem Lutheran for an ecumenical service followed by a potluck dinner (every family needs to bring a side dish or dessert to share; FUMC providing the meat entrée). The time is yet to be determined and will be published in next month’s newsletter as well as in the church bulletin. Mark your calendar and plan to be there.
A Minute About Money
Did you know you could fill out one envelope and have your pledge gifts automatically taken care of for you for the entire year? You can.
Our new offering envelopes allow you to use your credit or debit card to give your donations to the church and you may choose to fill one out each time or write a note asking the Finance office staff to automatically process your gift once a week, month or however you choose. You may also use your credit or debit card to give anytime you wish online, go to the “Give” page on our website and click “Submit Payment” and follow the instructions.
If you include your email address you will get an electronic receipt each time a transaction is processed—so you’ll have confirmation of your gift being processed . Each gift will appear on your giving statement as usual.
If you have questions or concerns and are interested in using this method, call the office to talk with Jaime or Debbie and they will be glad to help you.
February Funnies: Senior Citizen Texting Code*
ATD At The Doctors
BFF Best Friend Fell
BTW Bring The Wheelchair
BYOT Bring Your Own Teeth
FWIW Forgot Where I Was
GHA Got Heartburn Again
IMHO Is My Hearing-aid On?
OMMR On My Massage Recliner
OMSG Oh My! Sorry, Gas
ROFLACGU Rolling On Floor Laughing And Can’t Get Up
TTYL Talk To Ya Louder
*2012 HomeTouch Quarterly; newsletters mailed to homebound members.
Beckoning All Bakers
*Cookies needed Mar 3*
Those of you who enjoy baking and would like to make cookies for the “Care Packages for College Students & Military “ should mark your calendar to bake and bring cookies in on Mar 3(boxes will be packed that day then shipped).
We are asking for you to bake cookies that are small to medium in size (2” or less) and the quantity should be (8) baggies of (6) cookies each; the size & quantity is important as boxes only allow so much space and we wish the cookies to make it in one piece. Please contact the church office to let us know that you will be baking so we can make sure there is enough for all the packages.
If you have, or should have, a college student or military person that should be on our mailing list, please contact Imogene Orts or the church office. Also, if you know of an address change for your loved one let us know.
We are also accepting donations to help underwrite the cost of other items in the packages and the shipping costs, just mark an envelope with the project name.
Highview Partnership Ministry Project
The Highview Team plans to do the mid-year school supply drive again this year. Current supply needs have been gathered from the teachers to put together a list of requests. Those that would like to support this project can pick one or more items to purchase from the display in the North Foyer and return by February 10th. Some items make sense to purchase in bulk so cash donations can be used by the team to buy those items. If you cannot do the shopping but would like to donate toward the cause, someone from our team will do the shopping for you. Just note that your donation is for “Highview Supply Drive” and we’ll take care of it! Thank you in advance for your ongoing support of this ministry.
Lenten Sunday School Class
“Examining Our Beliefs”
Feb 17 “We Humans Need Help”
Feb 24 “Grace Explained”
Mar 3 “The Life of the Spirit”
Mar 10 “Why Believe? A Panel Discussion”
Mar 17 “The Church, Then & Now”
Mar 24 “Jesus Christ: His Life & Work”
This session of classes is open to all adults and youth, and is especially important for those new to the First Church congregation.
Ash Wednesday Service
February 13 @ 7:00pm
Mark your calendars for the Ash Wednesday service. This meaningful worship experience sets our hearts and minds to the spirit of Lent as we begin our 40-day journey to Easter.
Join us in the ancient ritual of the imposition of ashes as a reminder of God’s grace and love for us.
“Cold Weather & Power Cuts” In Nepal
Update from Dr. Les & Debbie Dornon, missionaries to Nepal working inthe Tansen Hospital
If you drove into a gas station and saw a pump which looked like this, what would you think?
In Nepal, it means that there isn’t enough electricity for the stations to be able to sell gas – unless they do it by hand pump! In most areas of Nepal now, “load shedding” is cutting power 12 hours a day to homes and businesses. People live their lives according to when the power will come on and off – and many now have inverters with batteries or generators to help get through the dark times! (Due to lots of problems, there is not enough electricity being produced to meet demand here.) It is also very cold these days – and people are dying of exposure in the areas which are usually warmer than they have been this year. Keep in mind that in Nepal, the altitude goes all the way from close to sea level up to Mt. Everest height. Here in Tansen, we are fortunate in 2 ways – we have only 6 hours a week of power cuts (that are announced, anyway! There are other cuts that are unexpected), and we have sunshine in the daytime to warm us up! (That’s a good thing – but it is still hard to get out of bed when the temp in the bedroom is around 55…) Today we sang in church, “Count your blessings, name them one by one…” There is so much to be thankful for! Thanks for your prayers!
P.S. To see more photos and stories, please check our blog: http://dornonnepalmission.wordpress.com/
Remember, every third Sunday of the month we collect donations to support Les and Debbie’s work in Nepal. You may drop your donation in the collection jars or add it to your regular offering using your envelope; just write “Dornons” along with the designated amount.
Music Notes from Mary Ellen Clinard
MUSIC SCHOLARSHIP APPLICATIONS AVAILABLE
Our FUMC Music Scholarship Fund is now ready to receive applications. If you are a church member and your son or daughter (up through grade 12) is interested in taking private lessons on any instrument or voice and they are willing to share those gifts with us in worship, come pick up an application and guidelines in the office or check out the details on our website.
This is a great opportunity to “grow” young musicians and provide a life-changing experience for our children. If you have questions, please contact Mary Ellen.
1st Annual “Caroling Cup” Awards!
The Adult Choir had a multitude of outside singing opportunities during Christmas. Three of our choir members attended ALL of those events in addition to the programming here at church. In recognition of this dedication we created the “Caroling Cup,” a gold cup trophy that has the name of the award’s first recipients—Barb Balsmeyer and Jack & Sue Diefenbach! Each also got to take home a smaller version of the award. Please let these dedicated singers know how much you appreciate them and their love of service to others.
First Friday Concert Series 2013
FEBRUARY 1 MIKE HEMMELGARN, Comedian Juggler & Ventriloquist
We’re changing up the format to welcome the unique and crowd-pleasing talents of Mike and his cast of characters—Butterball the paranoid turkey, Rosie the Britney Spears wanna-be grandma, and more. There’s magic, music and audience participation in this high-energy show you won’t want to miss!
March 1 THE DEDICATION BAND
Old mountain tunes and Early American/British Isles melodies
This concert series would not be possible without the support of the Middletown Community Foundation, the Barnitz Fund, the Miriam G. Knoll Charitable Foundation and the congregation of First United Methodist Church, Middletown. Thank you! Thank you! Thank you for helping us make downtown Middletown a destination for the arts!
Community Corner
Off to a Great Start!
With new chairperson, Patty McGraw, the Community Ministries Council is jumping into the new year with both feet! Patty and former chair pro tem, Barb Balsmeyer, have been working together to get Patty acclimated to her new position. New CMC members have been added, Scott & Terry Hines, and the CMC as a whole is evaluating policies to make sure they are serving our neighborhood effectively as well as efficiently.
CMC leadership, along with the church staff, also met with an outside consultant, and expert in Urban Ministry, to further develop the mission, plans and strategies of our Community Ministries.
Around the Corner
We will again have a Garage Sale, coordinated by Sue Jutte and Scott & Terry Hines. Proceeds from this sale will go into the Benevolent Fund which is used to assist those in need with various financial burdens. So please, as you de-clutter that closet and begin to get rid of those piles in the basement and garage…bring viable items to the church—we’ll store them till the date is set for the sale!
SHALOM Update
January was very busy. We have a capacity to serve 30 clients and have had as high as 28! Currently there’s 22, including a family of 4 with 2 children, a mother & son, and a father & son. One of the boys turned 11 on Jan 18; Breiel Blvd Church of God, who was hosting that week, threw him a surprise birthday party. He received dozens of cards and many volunteers came out to celebrate.
Rev. Wagner is allowing us to open Epworth Hall on the coldest days and John Tack assists with lunch on these days. Flu shots have been administered by Mary Raab, volunteer Nurse. We’re now in our 10th year with 10 hosting churches and 8 other support churches. Thank you, First Church, for your continued support of this worthy mission.
February Birthdays
1… Matt Dixon, Hannah Dornon
3… Sandy Mills
4… Bob Sears, Beth Watson
5… Mark Frazer
7… David Wittman
8… Anita McLaughlin
9… Mary Davis, Lynda Goecke
10… John McDaniel
11… Roy Ickes, Gene Saylor, & David Wieneke
13… Jack Diefenbach, Marth Gill
14… Mary Roehll
16… Mary Ellen Clinard
17… Phyllis Richmond
19… Bill Alderton, Dean Prushing, & Helen Tucker
24… Joni Bachelor, Eric Young
28… Donna Burley
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