Community Reflections

Transcription

1 Connect Grow Serve Share Community Reflections MAY, 2013 A publication of The Marysville Free Methodist Church Remember your baptism! Baptism is more powerful than I thought. That baptism can really help us live dynamically as a follower of Jesus each and every day is the thought that jumped out to me in my recent research for a sermon. Especially powerful to me were the words of Martin Luther the great church reformer of the 1500 s and the Protestant Reformation. He wrote, Ah, dear Christians, let us not value or treat this unspeakable gift so halfheartedly. For baptism is our only comfort and the doorway to all of God s possessions and to the communion of all the saints. To this end may God help us. For Luther baptism is no mere rite of initiation. Rather, baptism asserts enduring benefits both for daily life and finally for the approach of death itself. When Luther s mother was dying he wrote to comfort her and included baptism toward the end of his letter to her. He wrote: God has graciously called you. In the gospel, in Baptism, and in the Sacrament (of the Altar) you possess his sign and seal of this vocation, and as long as you hear him addressing you in these, you will have no trouble or danger. Be of good cheer, then, and thank him joyfully for such great grace, for he who has begun a good work in you will perform until the day of Jesus Christ. Similar words of comfort by Luther are seen in other communication to friends undergoing suffering. Luther s words echo comfort from The Holy and Blessed Sacrament of Baptism: This blessed sacrament of baptism helps you because God allies himself with you and becomes one with you in a gracious covenant of comfort. Through faith in what Christ has done the believer is a lord over death and the devil. This is a powerful idea and truth! You see Luther wrote that faith can be likened to butter in the sunshine. Faith can be fragile and wane with emotional ebb and flow. But, in the fact of your baptism you have an external reliable anchor outside of wavering emotion. Yes, one must have faith or trust in what God has done but the symbol of baptism is a positive visible and tangible sign for us to cling to in every circumstance. Baptism has value precisely because it embraces the entire life of the believer from baptismal font to grave and entails daily contrition and repentance to use the words of the Small Catechism. Luther is explicit on this point in the Large Catechism: Thus a Christian life is nothing else than a daily baptism, begun once and continuing ever after. For we must keep at it without ceasing, always purging whatever pertains to the old Adam, so that whatever belongs to the new creature may come forth. For Luther, the medieval practices and rituals were replaced by a renewed daily emphasis on the baptismal life as the life of repentance and faith. Each and every day and in every circumstance he would say to himself, I am baptized, I have been baptized. These words symbolized his trust in our saving God and God s revealed word which tells us that God is always with us. What a great practice to keep one s faith vitalized! Remind yourself, remind your children, of your identity in Christ. I am baptized. You have been baptized. You are baptized. You have been baptized. Come what may in this day; I will remember that I am a child of God. I will live to honor God. If you have been baptized then remember your baptism daily! If you have yet to be baptized and would like to be please let our pastors know. We have a service of baptism scheduled for Sunday, May 19 th. It will be a powerful anchor for your life. See you Sunday - Pastor Vic

2 C OMMUNITY REFLECTIONS Bible Studies / Support Groups P AGE 2 MEN S MINISTRY Men are important to God! On the 2nd Saturday of each month, at 8am in the downstairs Fellowship Hall, you can be part of a bunch of great guys sitting around a couple of big tables sharing breakfast, getting acquainted, and a brief devotional/scripture study/discussion, ending with prayer by 9am. On May 11th we ll follow up at 9:15am 11:45am with a service opportunity to serve some of our widows & shut-ins with a couple of small projects, finishing each before noon. Precepts last study before the summer break will be Thursday, May 16th. Look for this study group to return in the fall. If you have wondered What is Precepts? Precept Ministries establishes people in God s Word using Inductive Bible Study. Inductive means we use the Bible as the primary source of study to learn about God and what the Bible teaches. Precept studies and training workshops are designed to equip you with inductive study tools so you can discover truth for yourself. PARENT SUPPORT GROUP This is a parents network or support group for parents of Junior and Senior High Students. It will be a time for sharing struggles, ideas, and a time for praying for each other. We are going to meet the last Wed. evening of each month so mark your calendar for May 29th, from 6:45-8:15pm in the Fellowship Hall. Junior High Youth Group will still be going on during the parents support group. WOMEN S DISCIPLESHIP GROUP This group will be finishing their study on The Grip of Grace by Max Lucado on Thursday, May 9th. This group will finish their time together before breaking for the summer on Thursday, May 23rd with a Potluck. WOMEN S WEDNESDAY MORNING BIBLE STUDY Women s Wednesday morning Bible study meets weekly at Kathy Nyland s home starting at 9:30am through Wednesday, May 29th. During the next few weeks the ladies attending will have an opportunity to share about themselves. Outings and additional meeting times during the summer are being discussed. Sunday, May 12, 2013

3 C OMMUNITY REFLECTIONS P AGE 3 Happenings Ladies Night Out At Starbucks Come and join us on Thursday, May 2 at 7:30pm at the Starbucks on 88th St., Marysville. This is a great time of fellowship and making new friends. If you are interested in jogging/running/walking to Starbucks, please let Kim Priest know. S.A.L.T.S. (55+) Seniors Actively Living To Serve 7 M Men s Aglow of Marysville SINGLE WOMEN (55+) GROUP Will meet on Sunday, May 19, 2013, 2pm, at Bonnie Nobriga s home. If you have any questions, please contact Bonnie. NURSERY 9am - 11am Our nursery is in need of sizes 1 5 diapers. If you could possibly donate a couple from your own inventory, that would help out tremendously. S.A.L.T.S. monthly luncheon for May will be May 14 at the Rhodes Ranch Restaurant located at Entsminger Rd., Oso. Cost is $ tax and tip. The Restaurant overlooks the Horse Arena. During lunch there will be activities in the arena that may include: Colt and Brood Mare exercises, walking of horses, spirited running. Following lunch we hope to see the brood mare barn with their foals. If you wish to carpool, please indicate on the sign up sheet. We will leave from the church at 11am. Also, we could use some Gold Fish Crackers and/or Graham Crackers for snack time. MEMBERSHIP CLASS SUNDAY, MAY 5, 2013, 6:00PM, PASTOR VIC S OFFICE Have you been wondering what it means to be a member of the Free Methodist Church? Please plan on attending this class - it does not obligate you to become a member. Please RSVP by calling the church office or marking on the Connection Card on Sundays. Childcare will be available by RSVP only.

4 C OMMUNITY REFLECTIONS P AGE 4 Happenings Wednesday, May 8, 7:15 pm at MFMC What is an Impact Briefing? The Pacific Northwest Conference Impact Briefings are annual gatherings of Pacific Northwest Conference pastors and lay leaders, held in six difference locations around the conference. What Happens at an Impact Briefing? Impact Briefing is an opportunity to learn more about what it means to be a leader in God s church as well as hearing about how God is at work in the PNWC family. Who is speaking at the 2013 Impact Briefings? The 2013 presentation team includes Geoff Smith- PNWC Administrator, Ben Sigman-Timberlake Lead Pastor, and Matt Whitehead-PNWC Superintendent. If you would be interested in attending, please RSVP by contacting the church office as soon as You are invited to attend A Women s Ministry Luncheon Guiding Light Saturday, May 18, :30 am MFMC Fellowship Hall Celeste Cranston Inspirational Speaker GUATEMALAN STOVES Bonnie Nobriga Special Music Tickets are available in the An update on the generous giving towards the stoves for Guatemala. As of Sunday, March 24 you have raised $8,267 towards the purchase of 70 stoves. Thank you so much for your generosity. Church foyer or see Fae Bradley Ticket cost: $10 Sign up to decorate a table Beautiful Beach-Themed Tables Marysville Free Methodist Church 6715 Grove St. Marysville, WA

5 C OMMUNITY REFLECTIONS P AGE 5 Volunteer Opportunities PROPERTY MINISTRY TEAM COORDINATOR PURPOSE OF THE PROPERTY MINISTRY COORDINATOR To coordinate the Property Ministry Team in overseeing the care, upkeep, and use of our buildings and campus in order to support the ministries and mission of the church. Strategic Focus Areas Coordinate cleaning, maintenance and care of the buildings and grounds. Formulate building use guidelines. A Few of the Team Leader s Ministry Responsibilities Meet with your team regularly to plan, implement, and evaluate activities to fulfill your purpose and strategic focus areas. Keep minutes of your meetings and any decisions that are made. You may want to delegate minute taking to a team member, or rotate the task each month. By the first of each month, submit a brief report to the church administrative manager, answering the following for the executive committee: This past month my team has made progress on these goals... My team needs input on this item, which I bring for discussion... KITCHEN COORDINATOR To organize and oversee the use of the kitchen, equipment and supplies. Responsibilities: To support and assist groups using our facilities. To be a gracious hostess and a Godly ambassador of our church, realizing that the job is not just to prevent damage or misuse of kitchen equipment, but also to be a witness for Christ to those we service. Some of the Duties: Oversee the organization and use of the kitchen/fellowship hall, supplies, and equipment. Implement processes to ensure the care of our kitchen/fellowship resources while allowing for convenient access and use. Oversee maintenance of equipment. Notify Administrative Manager of needed repairs. Keep kitchen stocked with basic supplies. FOOD BANK We need a special person with a real servant s heart to bring over to the Marysville Food Bank all the wonderful donations we receive. This would need to be done at least twice a month, maybe more, depending on the quantity of food we have received. For a complete description please see Debbie Johnson, Administrative Manager. Please see Debbie Johnson, Administrative Manager, for any of these volunteer positions.

6 CONTACT US 6715 Grove St. Marysville, WA Phone: (360) Web site: Office Hours: Tuesday Thursday 9:00 am 3:00 pm Monday & Friday: CLOSED 9:03 BREAKFAST GROUP Breakfast at Denny s, Island Crossing, the 1st and last Friday of each month at 9:03 am. Open to everyone who likes good food and fun fellowship. Marysville Food Bank We are collecting donations for the Marysville Food Bank. If you can help please place your non-perishable food items in the collection barrel in the coat closet area of the lobby. MAY BIRTHDAYS 1 Diane Safstrom 22 Kori Lundberg 4 Melanie Martin 22 Jim Ruesken 4 Jamie Tucker 23 Vicki Crenshaw 5 Kyrissa Morigeau 23 Marilyn Eufemio 7 Carol Belcher 23 Heather Lundberg 7 Benjamin Lundberg 23 Elton Nelson 7 Ron Sherritt 24 Tracy Gill 7 Emily Spores 24 Cheryl Rohde 8 John Safstrom 26 Rick Scriven 9 Andrew Anderson 26 Delaney Tucker 9 Zach Nordquist 30 Dan Lantz 11 Don Anderson 30 Bill Selia 15 Connie Adamson 31 Ken Taylor 15 Bethany Kanehen 15 Sandra Swanson 15 Audrey Wilhelm 15 Austin Young 16 Tanner Hanson 18 Miki Calbero 18 Helen Hussey 21 David Kerlee 22 Caedmon Calbero PRAYERS & SQUARES The Prayers & Squares Ministry Group meets on the 4th Tuesday of each month at 1pm in FH #2. The May Meeting will be held on Tues., May 28th What is Prayers & Squares? Prayers & Squares is an interfaith outreach ministry that combines the gift of a hand-tied quilt with the gift of prayer for someone in need. The essence of this ministry is in the prayers offered for the recipient; it is not about the quilts. Take Off Pounds Sensibly Meetings each Wednesday morning 8:00 am - 11:30 am in FH #2 Contact Irene Lecky for more information. Auto Ministry Saturday, May 18 8:00 am 1:00 pm If you have a small engine repair, please consider our Auto Ministry. To make an appointment, please contact Pastor Harv.

7 Marysville Free Methodist Church May 2013 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 1 8am TOPS 9:30am Bible Study at Nylands 5:30pm Legacy 2 9:15am Precepts 5pm Girl Scouts 7:30pm Ladies at Starbucks 3 CHURCH OFFICE CLOSED 9:03am Breakfast Group 5pm Jr. Hi & Sr. Hi. Girls Night 4 9:30am 2nd Service Worship 2pm Reception for Elliotts Worship 5 8:15 & 10am 6pm Membership Class 6 CHURCH OFFICE CLOSED 5:30pm Girl Scouts 7 1:30pm Staff Mtg 6:30pm HCP Mom s Night 7:30pm Preschool Advisory Mtg. 8 8am TOPS 9:30am Bible Study at Nylands 7:15pm Impact Briefing 9 9:15am Precepts 5:30pm Camp Fire 7pm Women s Discipleship 10 CHURCH OFFICE CLOSED 11 8am Men s Breakfast 9:30am 2nd Service Worship Worship 12 MOTHER S DAY 8:15 & 10am :30am SALTS Luncheon 1:30pm Staff Mtg. 7pm Worship Team Mtg. 15 8am TOPS 9:30am Bible Study at Nylands 5:30pm Legacy 16 9:15am Precepts 5pm Girl Scouts 7pm Exec. Board 17 5:30pm Set-Up for WM Brunch 18 8am Auto Ministry 9:30am 2nd Service Worship 11:30am WM Brunch Worship am TOPS :15 & 10am 5:30pm Girl Scouts 1:30pm Staff Mtg 7pm Guitar Group 9:30am Bible Study at Nylands 6pm VBS Plan Mtg. 6:45pm Parents Support Group 5:30pm Camp Fire 7pm Women s Discipleship 9:30am 2nd Service Worship Worship :15 & 10am Memorial Day Holiday 1pm Prayers & Squares 1:30pm Staff Mtg 8am TOPS 9:30am Bible Study at Nylands 9:03am Breakfast Group