Scripture: 2 Corinthians 5:16-18
“So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation.”
Dear Friends,
Does February drag for you? It does for me. It seems that everyone is either fighting a cold or hasn’t had enough sleep. The sky is gray and people’s minds tend to fog. But there is hope. Easter will come! The promise of the resurrection will be fulfilled. That promises us that in Jesus Christ we are made new.
Sunday morning, I was sitting up in bed praying before I got dressed for church, and I actually heard a bird sing! A bird was singing and there was still snow on the ground! It made me smile to think that on the first Sunday of Lent I heard a promise of Easter. We can claim the promise of Easter. In Jesus Christ we are made new.
We rejoice with Donna Marton on a new granddaughter, and we rejoice with the Rodgers family in the birth of their new grandson, Zane. Blair and I are now a great uncle and aunt. These three babies were born in different countries: USA, South Africa, and Canada! It’s been said that a child is God’s promise that the world will continue. It looks like God has some good plans coming along despite our fears for the future and February. There are some new people in the world.
So, as we fight the fog of February, try to throw off that sniffle, or battle cabin fever know the truth of the song, “In the Bulb There Is a Flower:” “In the cold and snow of winter there’s a spring that waits to be.” I like to think of it as a song of Lent that promises hope. If you are feeling gray, or foggy, or just groggy from lack of sleep, remember that in Jesus Christ life is made new. Take it from here,
Love, Wendy
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
PRESBYTERIAN READERS are meeting tonight (Wednesday, Feb. 24), a week later than usual due to the Ash Wednesday service last week. Join us from 7:30-8:30 p.m. in the parlor. Everyone is welcome, and you may invite friends from outside of church. Our book for February is “Life of Pi,” a fantasy adventure novel written by Canadian author Yann Martel. The story was inspired by Martel’s childhood friend Eleanor and her adventures in India.
JUBILEE CELEBRATION 2011 - Sign up by February 28 to help with the planning!
Southminster will be 50 years old on March 5, 2011. Plans are underway for a year of celebration beginning on New Year’s Day 2011.
The 50th Anniversary Planning Team needs your input and help - whether you have been a member or friend of Southminster for 50 years or 50 days. There are opportunities for long-term assistance on the Planning Team itself, or short-term commitment to plan one of the monthly anniversary activities or help with a single event. WE COULD USE A FEW GOOD MEN!!
If you are interested in joining the 50th Anniversary Planning Team or if you would like to assist with a particular celebration event, please contact Sue Clary (630-790-1109, or sueclary@sbcglobal.net ) or Pat Wiedner (630-858-0761, or pjwiedner@hotmail.com ) by Sunday, February 28, 2010.
WOMEN’S BREAKFAST: Always the first Monday of the month, the next one comes up next Monday, March 1. Meet at 8:00 a.m. at IHOP in Danada.
Each Wednesday in March (excluding Holy Week) you are invited to share in G.I.F.T. (GROWING IN FAITH TOGETHER). We meet at 6:30 for soup supper, clean up together, and then have a blended worship at 7:00. There will be both traditional and contemporary worship music, all of it honoring God. At 7:30 we have dessert and fellowship, and folks head home by 7:45. Your participation in G.I.F.T. will make a difference not only in our lives together in Southminster, but in your own spiritual growth as a person.
We are looking for adults and children to participate in our G.I.F.T. celebrations. Would you be willing to read? Play an instrument? Sing (by yourself or with a group)? Please talk to Wendy.
CHRISTIAN ED. NOTES:
HEIFER INTERNATIONAL MISSION PROJECT: *Cheep* *Cheep* Chicks, to many of us, symbolize spring, rebirth, childhood. But for some, chicks can mean more; they can mean survival. Southminster’s children will be collecting money to purchase chicks for Heifer International, helping to fight world hunger. Just $20 buys a flock of chicks for a hungry family, providing eggs and nutrition to the recipients. Please help your children collect change to aid in supporting Heifer, and consider donating. We will be collecting until Easter. Thanks!
EASTER EGG MADNESS: Help make the Easter party as tasty as possible and donate small candies (No Valentine’s candy or candy with peanuts, please) for the Easter egg hunt. We will be collecting candy until March 21 and will have egg-stuffing parties on March 7 and 21. All are invited! And don’t forget to mark your calendars for the Children’s Easter Egg Breakfast on Saturday, April 3, at 9:30 a.m.! There will be games (weather permitting), crafts, breakfast, and an Easter egg hunt. The breakfast wouldn’t be possible without your support!
VACATION BIBLE SCHOOL: Thank you to all who have helped with our Christian Ed. ministries over the past year! It’s already February and time to look ahead to warmer months and the rest of 2010. It’s also time to start thinking about Vacation Bible School! Summer feels like a long time away, but it is not too soon to begin making preparations for this year’s VBS, which will be the last week in July, the 26-30 (Put it on your calendars!). We are looking for people to run, and assist, in each station, so if you love crafts, playing games, music, or just love to help our kids experience God’s Word, please contact someone on the Christian Ed ministry to learn more about it.
ACOLYTE Schedule:
February 28 - Jack Hecker
March 14 - Billy Petersen
March 28 - Maddie Frey
April 11 - Dakota Dolister
April 25 - Haley Jablonski
WHAT’S AHEAD IN CHRISTIAN ED?
Wednesdays in March (excluding Holy Week) - G.I.F.T. (6:30-7:30 p.m.)
April 3 - Annual Easter Breakfast (9:30 a.m.)
July 26-30 - Vacation Bible School (6:00-8:30 p.m.)
ADULT EDUCATION: Join us at 11:00 a.m. Sunday for our continuing Bible study. The lectionary passages for this week are Genesis 15:1-12, 17-18; Philippians 3:17-4:1; Luke 13:31-35. -Blair
YOUTH!
CASCADE MOUNTAIN SKI/SNOW TUBING TRIP leaves the church Friday at 4:00 p.m. Contact Blair for details.
No SNL this Sunday, February 28. See you next week.
YOUTH MISSION TRIP: Teen-agers, age 14 through college. Prayerfully consider your involvement in our Youth Mission Trip, June 13-19, to Rushville, IN. Contact Blair for details.
NOT just for youth!
TALENT SHOW AND SPAGHETTI DINNER is coming – Sunday, March 14, 5:30 p.m. Sign up your act for our Talent Show and sign up if you are planning to attend. Both sign-up sheets are in the Narthex.
SYS: Save Your Stuff for this year’s RUMMAGE SALE, May 15-16. Proceeds support the Youth Mission Trip.
From the PROPERTY MINISTRY:
Because of very large unplanned expenditures in 2009 for lighting systems and furnaces, our 2010 budget for capital expenditures is now $0. As you may know, one of our challenges for 2010 is to obtain funds to purchase a NEW LAWN TRACTOR to maintain the grounds. The current equipment is broken or in very poor condition. Southminster is now in need of a new tractor this spring before the grass begins to grow (and weeds). Graciously donated time (5-10 hours/week) and equipment in years past has spared Southminster from expensive landscaping fees. ($5000-6000/summer!) The Property Ministry would rather see this money go to local/international mission or important programs that reach out and help people. A 2010 tractor poster and fundraiser box will be in the Narthex on March 7 and 14 for the sole purpose of funding this special purchase in April. Please support this important fundraiser with a monetary donation and your prayers. Email or call John Sundquist for details: Sundquist_john@comcast.net or 630-469-2273.
MARCH FELLOWSHIP EVENT: 76 Trombones are calling your name! There is a sign-up sheet in the narthex for anyone who would like to attend the Lisle Sr. High School spring musical “Music Man.” We will attend the play on Friday, March 19, 8:00pm. Tickets are $8 for adults and $5 for students and seniors. You must order by March 7. Any questions please contact Karen Fitzgerald (cell phone: 630-738-8060).
QUILT MINISTRY is going to move to the third Wednesday of each month. (The next gathering will be March 17.) The quilters are glad to have received a sewing machine and iron but are still hoping to get an ironing board. If you have one you’re not using, let Sue Clary or Sue Knisely know.
The S.O.L.A.C.E. SINGLES group is planning to go to the FREE Global Flick (“Happy-Go-Lucky”) at the COD McAninch Art Center on Tuesday, March 23, at 7:30 p.m. We will meet for dinner at 5:00 p.m. at Giordano’s, 455 W. Roosevelt Rd., Glen Ellyn. The sign up sheet is in the narthex.
RECORDINGS OF OUR WORSHIP SERVICES: If you enjoy listening to the Sunday service again but can only listen on a cassette tape, please let Andrea Schmidt know (630-629-4526 or lizzie3@comcast.net). If no one is using the cassettes, we are going to phase them out because the service is available for viewing on DVD.
