PASSAGES. The Congregational Church of Goffstown. God with us. Love Came Down

Transcription

1 JA N UA RY FREE PASSAGES The Congregational Church of Goffstown Love Came Down God with us Many folks from the community came to join us as we proclaimed the real meaning of Christmas through our annual live nativity and carol sing-a-long. We welcomed many visitors into the church afterwards for fellowship, home-baked cookies and hot cocoa! Thanks to all who helped out in many different ways to make this outreach possible. You, the body of Christ, putting your faith in action, is a beautiful and God glorifying work at hand.

2 Pastor s Letter Pastor Le*er January 2015 Experiencing Intimacy with God Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of your law. (Psalm 119:18) Satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love, that we may rejoice and be glad all our days. (Psalm 90:14) I #ind great comfort whenever I read the psalmist divulge, to God and to us, his spiritual weakness and need. The intimacy with God I experience often #luctuates from year to year, month to month and day to day. So when I see the psalmist ask God to open his eyes that he might behold wondrous things in His Word (Psalm 119:18) or for when I hear the psalmist plead for God to be more satisfying than anything else in this world (Psalm 90:14), I can relate. Despite how desperate I am for intimacy with God, I often fall short in sensing His nearness. Why is that? Especially when I agree with the psalmist that For me, it is good for me to be near God; (Psalm 73:28). Experiencing Intimacy with God is the title of our Monday night group, which begins on January 12 th. My goal for the class is to answer the questions, Why do we fall short in experiencing intimacy with God? and How can we put ourselves in a place where we are more likely to experience the kind of intimacy with God we re seeking? As we attempt to answer these questions, we must #irst acknowledge that God has given us real and complete intimacy, by the work of His Spirit and in Jesus Christ. But experiencing that intimacy is something else. Our sinful nature keeps us from fully experiencing real and complete intimacy with our God in this world. Even so, the Holy Spirit can create a greater sense of our intimacy with God as we put ourselves in the path where He is most likely to be at work in us. As you enter the new year, I hope you ll yearn with me to experience greater intimacy with God. Not everyone will attend the Monday night group, but you can still place yourself where you are likely to #ind and grow in the greatest intimacy. First of all, if you haven t entrusted your soul to Jesus Christ, you must start there. The indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit comes through faith in Christ and is the ground of your growth. After that, the most likely places to #ind the intimacy you are seeking is when you are regularly reading God s Word, going to Him in prayer, surrendering your day to His agenda, and when you re present and worshiping with His body. It is so simple and yet so powerful. If you truly desire to grow in intimacy and God s grace, take a moment now to honestly evaluate how you re doing in each of these areas. Do you #ind yourself daily listening to God in His Word, speaking with Him in prayer, discerning His will as you go, and immersing yourself each Lord s Day in Christ s body? If not, what steps will you commit to right now to do so in 2015? Experiencing greater intimacy with God starts and comes about by the Holy Spirit, but it s also accompanied by a genuine desire from you. How great is your desire for intimacy with God?

3 Pastors Letter continued Here is my prayer for you and for me, from Ephesians 3:14-19: For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be #illed with all the fullness of God. Grace fully, Pastor Bob Missions Ministry News We ask you to continue to keep all of our church supported ministries in your prayers. As noted in our prayer list in the weekly worship bulletin, we ask for God s provision & protection of the following Ministries: Mt. Zion Christian School, Carenet Pregnancy Center, Joni and Friends disability ministry, Goffstown Police Chaplain Rev. Deb Grow, Rev. Matt Kantrowitz- prison ministries, Monadnock Bible Conference s Love in Motion- Haiti Ministries, Straight Ahead Ministries & Stacy Bruckner, as she ministers with them, Samaritans Purse Operation Christmas Child Shoebox ministry and our church s DivorceCare ministry. Christmas Wreath Update The proceeds from the christmas wreath sales this year came out to $ and were given to Joni and Friends disability ministry. Congregational Care News Our Next Church family, First Sunday Luncheon is Sunday, January 4th On the first (communion) Sunday of every month, we re going to skip coffee hour and have a meal together in Stark Hall. Please join us for the January First Sunday Fellowship Luncheon on January 4th. Bring a dish to share to this pot- providence meal and please join us if you are able.

4 Ministry of Discipleship News DivorceCare Success Our church took a bold, but Spirit led step in establishing a DivorceCare ministry last fall. Jean Biron, Laurie Hambleton, Ruth Perkins and Earl Pike got this new ministry up and running and were actively engaged in leading our #irst semester, which ended on December 17 th. After much discernment, we all agreed that we need to continue with this great ministry, offering a new session beginning on February 18 th. Jean and Laurie will lead the new group on Wednesday nights from 6:30-8:00. You can help anyone you know, who is separated or divorced, by inviting them to check out our DivorceCare support group on Wednesday nights. It provides a wonderful way to #ind healing, reconciliation and hope. Stepping Up Women s Fellowship NEW TIME Begins January 9th Catherine Conley has faithfully led the Friday women s fellowship and has agreed to continue on in the new year, now offering the group at a new time, from 6-8 PM on Fridays in the Parish House Chapel. The group will use Beth Moore s Stepping Up A Journey Through the Psalms of Ascent. DVD curriculum which is a 7 week study. The Psalms of Ascent (Psalms ) have been used for centuries as a way to #ind greater intimacy with God. Kid s Camp Vacation Bible School We plan to announce the theme and dates for our 2015 Kid s Camp Vacation Bible School during the worship service on January 11 th. Don t miss that announcement! While we have #illed all the director positions, the one position we still have yet to #ill is our overall Director. The Director oversees Kid s Camp from now until it s #inished, providing direction and support to all the area directors. Do you sense God calling you to serve as our 2015 Director? Please see Deacon Terry Paul or Pastor Bob for more information. Wondering About a Snow Closing? If a Christian education class or other event is canceled, you will receive an letting you know. Closings are also posted on the WMUR Storm Center. Worship services are almost never canceled (have we ever canceled one?) but please travel carefully, if you decide to venture out, and bundle up if there's no power.

5 Whatever you do, work at with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men. Colossians 3:23

6 Church News & January 2015 Birthday List January Birthday s Happy New Year from Henry Hunter 1/5 LUCRETIA CHABOT 1/19 JIM WOJDYLAK 1/5 GARY HOPPER 1/20 LYNNE CUPPLES 1/8 FRAN STEARNS 1/26 JOE MCLAUGHLIN 1/13 SAMMUEL BELANGER 1/28 VERA BROOKS 1/16 TROY MORENCY 1/28 DAVID CHABOT

7 Lost and Found Kid s Camp Director We ll be making several big announcements, on January 11th, about our 2015 Vacation Bible School / Kid s Camp. But in the meantime, we re looking for someone to be our Director. We ve filled most of the leadership spots, but still need someone to oversee, coordinate and keep us on track up to and during the week of Kid s Camp. Please see Terry Paul or Pastor Bob if you re interested in serving as Director for Women s Monthly Breakfast, Saturday January 17th, 9:00am-11:00am Stark Hall Dining Room Join in with other women of the church for this special time of fellowship, prayer & devotion, and also a time to make some crafts. Please bring along a food or beverage item to share with others. Speak with Marilyn Nolan for more information. The Congregational Church of Goffstown Gourmet Dinner Group Mexican Night is Saturday, January 17th at 6:30 p.m. at Don & Kristie Himsel s house. Dinner is buffet style, casual, Bring your own beverages. This is a great time to try a new recipe! Please R.S.V.P. by January 11 th to Kristie Palestino Himsel at kpalestino@gmail.com or Stacy Borden at sborden@hotmail.com Everyone is welcome! Hello from the editor: Thank you for looking at our monthly Newsletter! Please check out our for up- to- date sermons, calendars, & much more. Also, check out our church Facebook page at facebook/conggoff for a weekly preview of the sermon and current events. If you would like to share a notice or article for the February Passages issue please submit your info via to cat.conley@comcast.net by the deadline of Friday, January 23rd. We will be folding the Newsletter on Thursday, January 29, at 9am in the Parish House chapel. Please join us if you can! As we grow together in the Lord, may His grace be upon you, Catherine Conley

8 The Congregational Church of Goffstown 8 & 10 Main Street Goffstown, NH THE CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH OF GOFFSTOWN 8 & 10 Main Street Goffstown, NH Tel: (603) Web Site: CongGoff.org pastorgoffcong@gmail.com Facebook: facebook.com/conggoff 9:15am-10:15am Adult & Children s Sunday School 10:30am 11:45am Worship Service Coffee, Snacks & Fellowship