Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!

Transcription

1 Cascade Fellowship Chris an Reformed Church In Christ We Live, We Love, We Serve April 2015 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! II Corinthians 5:17

2 In this issue April 2015 Each year as March arrives, my family along with most people in northern climes, I imagine anxiously watches as the snow melts and the ground slowly appears. We study the ground each day, wai ng for the first sight of early spring flowers poking their heads through the dry, dead-looking dirt. Around our house, the first sign of color comes from the purple crocuses. There is nothing be er on a cold spring day than spo ng that first purple crocus popping through. We get inordinately excited about those first ny flowers, not because they are par cularly beau ful or spectacular on their own, but because of what they represent winter is done, spring is in view! A er a long, cold, dead winter, spring changes everything. How appropriate that we celebrate Easter in the spring, when so much of the world around us reflects the essence of Easter. The renewal and beauty of life especially coming out of a death-like winter speaks of our own renewal. As my family searches for those first flowers of spring, it strikes me how much we have in common with those ny, unimpressive crocus flowers. Like the crocus, dead in winter and blooming anew in spring, we were dead in our sins, but in Christ we are a new crea on. The ny crocus fights its way through the winterdry dirt, li s its face to the sun, and triumphantly blooms its one ny, not-very-impressive purple flower. Of course, the crocus bulb doesn t determine on its own to be reborn. It is simply doing what God calls it to do. And, ironically, it couldn t live and bloom at all without winter, that cold, dead period of rest. We, too, need to be in that dead, cold period of reflec on, becoming aware of the dirt we live in, in order to feel God call us to new life. Interes ngly, neither the crocus nor we would be able to rise through the dirt without the work of the sun/son. Addi onally, it is only in His power that we can bloom and endure in the face of surprising challenges like a morning of extra cold or an Reflec on... p. 2 My Hope & My Song.... p. 3 Youth Ministries p. 4 Who Needs Eggs?.... p. 6 Council Clips.. p. 7 Deacons Kiosk.. p. 8 Offering Schedule p. 8 unexpected snowfall. For a small, unpreten ous flower, the crocus is surprisingly hardy, as we can be, as long as we rely on the light of the Son. The power of the crocus is not in its brilliant color, impressive foliage, or strong aroma. It is in its triumph over death. Nor am I par cularly brilliant or impressive. But in Christ I, too, can rise above the dry dirt of my life and raise my head in the warmth of the Son, sharing my ny, unimpressive, but triumphant gi with a world in desperate need of hope. Melinda H

3 My Hope and My Song The phone call last night said my uncle's cancer appears to be spreading out of control. It looks like there's another funeral in our near future. In the last two years I have lost three uncles. Before that my father and three aunts. Uncle Dave is my last living uncle. Two aunts are le. And my mother. We celebrated her 90th birthday last Sunday! My point is, I am saying a lot of goodbyes and ge ng close to the head of the line in my family. It reminds me of that haun ng duet sung by Meryl Streep and Lily Tomlin in "A Prairie Home Companion the Movie." Goodbye to my mama, my uncles and aunts; one a er another they went to lie down, in the green pastures beside the s ll waters, and made no sound. Their arms that held me for so many years, their beau ful voices no longer I hear, they're in Jesus' arms and he's talking to them, in the rapturous new Jerusalem. And I know they're at peace in a land of delight, but I miss my mama tonight. The Lord's my shepherd and I'll not want, I have my mama my uncles and aunts, waters so s ll and pastures so green, goodness and mercy following me, goodness and mercy following me. The sad sen ment in this song is the reality of death. It comes to all of us, and the longer we live the more we have to bid good bye to those whom we love. The hopeful sen ment in this song is from Psalm 23. But that s not just sen ment. It's the reality of resurrec on and eternal life, confirmed by Easter Sunday's empty tomb! When I have to say goodbye to Uncle Dave, it will include a hear elt "see you later"! He will be in Jesus' arms and we will have the assured hope of resurrec on day to come. It's s ll hard to say goodbye, of course. I love life and I love my family and friends. But since Jesus died and rose again, and since I have given my life to Him, I know those who die in Christ will also live again, including even me. This is my hope and my song. Pastor Doug I am the resurrection and the life.

4 Youth Ministries Working for Him in Haiti If you re not aware yet, the high school youth group is planning a mission trip to Port Au Prince, Hai this summer. A lot of prayer and planning has gone into the trip so far and there is more yet to come! We ve had some bumps in the road along the way, but we have definitely seen God at work leading us to this point. We ve partnered with Thornapple Community Reformed church for youth group this year, and we see this trip as the culmina on of a great year of ministry together. Students have been ge ng to know one another throughout the year and there s no be er way to end things than a joint trip to serve others. Why Hai? Well, both churches felt it was me to do an interna onal mission trip. As we began to look into various op ons, God clearly opened the door to Hai. Josh, the Youth Director at Thornapple, told me how his father -in-law, Randy, has led several mission trips in the past, including some to Hai. We contacted Randy about the possibility of him helping us lead our group in a trip to Hai. He was willing and very excited to do this, and we began to talk through some ideas. Things were coming together and it was clear God was orchestra ng things. Hai is a country that has been through a lot. There is a lot of poverty, especially a er the big earthquake in CRC missionaries are at work there, and we will work directly with them and stay at the CRC Ministry Center. The intent of this trip is to partner with people and churches already ministering to the people of Hai. We hope to work alongside them to minister to people there. Our plan is to do some day camps with kids. We hope to reach between Hai an kids while we are there. We will run both VBS and sports camps. We an cipate doing two of these at two different churches in Port Au Prince. We also plan to connect with some local youth group kids and do this ministry together. We will travel to some small mountain villages outside of the city and do our camp ministry with these kids as well. We are very excited about this trip and have definitely seen God at work in the planning! We are confident He is already at work in Hai and will use us to come alongside this ministry. We an cipate mee ng lots of amazing kids and youth. And, as is always the case on these trips, we an cipate coming back changed people! We are eager to see what this all looks like, but we need your help to make it happen! We have to raise a large amount of money to be able to provide this great ministry to the kids and youth in Hai. Please see the informa on on the facing page about the Dessert Dash and Auc on fundraiser. And please pray for us, for those already at work in Hai, and for the powerful Spirit of God to be at work in us and through us. Lisa G Youth Director

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6 Who Needs Eggs? I m sure you are all aware of the tradi onal context of the Easter egg. Most of us have enjoyed the fun of waking up on Easter morning and searching for those colorful li le gems cleverly hidden by the hare we call the Easter Bunny. Inside were all sorts of treats and prizes. Chocolates, candies, s ckers, small toys, encouraging messages or any other manner of trinket just wai ng for someone to come along and find what was hidden. However, did you know that there is another context of Easter eggs that is not so widely known? It has existed in our modern culture for over 30 years and it conforms to the same big picture principle of the tradi onal Easter egg, which is to find what was hidden. Have you ever played an Atari video game system? Are you a lover of mural artwork? Do you enjoy the films of Alfred Hitchcock? Have you ever been to a Disney theme park? If you answered yes to any of these ques ons, then you may be aware of this other context of the Easter egg without even realizing it. An Easter egg can also be defined as a hidden message in some form of media. Atari s Adventure video game in 1979 included the first ever Easter egg to be found by its players: the name of the game s programmer, Warren Robine. Famous mural ar st Diego Rivera included a depic on of himself in each of his works of art across the world. Alfred Hitchcock made cameos in his films. There are hidden Mickeys all over Disney theme parks. Each of these is an example of Easter eggs that people strive to find because they enjoy the search. It s fun to search for hidden things because you never know what you ll find at the end. So how can we apply this concept of searching for hidden things to our spiritual lives? I think each of has something unique hidden inside of us that is worth being found by someone else. It could be a hidden talent or a story. Maybe it s something that is not yet known at all. In someone who does not know Jesus Christ, that hidden message may be the Gospel itself. We ll never know unless we start looking and un l we make ourselves available to be found. In what ways can you search for hidden Easter eggs around you? In what ways can you make your own Easter eggs available to be found? Don L Worship Arts Technology Director at Cascade Fellowship July 6-10, 2015 Spring Hill Summer Day Camp Hosted by Cascade Fellowship For kids comple ng grades K-4th Registra on now open! Register at springhillcamps.com/experiences/day-camps/locations/ cascade-fellowship-crc-grand-rapids-mi

7 Council Clips Ministering Elders Mee ng Date: March 17, 2015 Membership: received and approved memberships: Jeff & Danya Y and sons Malachi & Levi; Diane S and daughters Clare and Marta Professions of Faith: the professions of Joel K and Jenna O were heard, approved and accepted with gladness Reports from Pastors and staff received and discussed Sabba cal policy reviewed and recommended to Full Council for approval Youth Ministry Director posi on discussed Vice-All: Kevin C accepted a nomina on to replace Bruce A as Vice -All for remainder of council year. Thanksgiving: approved Pastor James request to be out our town Thanksgiving week to officiate at a nephew s wedding; Pastor Doug will lead worship Spring Hill: planning underway for summer camp through Spring Hill, scheduled for July 6-10 Summer Sermon Series: expository series based on Gala ans Care for Members: reviewed Care Group #3 Service Deacons Mee ng Date: March 10, 2015 Inclusion: We are seeking informa on and discussing ways to be more inten onally inclusive of our regular guests from Olivia s Gi, enveloping them and their caregiver, Bris ne. Involvement: We have been involved at CFCRC in serving on the joint Community CRC/Cascade Fellowship outreach team, the Youth Ministry Vision team, Health Interven on Services, visi ng care group members for rela onships and for deacon/ elder candidates, and those seeking assistance from the sharing fund. External Ministries: SD decided on the 10 outside ministries CFCRC will support through our External Ministries Fund in The new ministries are listed in the monthly newsle er and were announced with a le er in member mailboxes. Requested Announcements Volunteers in Service: Please Help! Are you looking for a service project for your small group, youth group or other groups? Volunteers In Service has had an increase in referrals for people who need help moving and with yard clean up. These are great ways for the faith community to reach out to our neighbors. If you would like more informa on please contact Debbie Jones dbjones@visgr.org or call ext. 16. Classical Grants for Students: Classis Thornapple Valley invites students from our classis (undergraduate or graduate level) who are planning to pursue full- me ministry in the CRC and who are in need of financial assistance for the academic year to apply for a classical grant. Applica ons must be received by April 24, For more informa on and applica ons, please contact Rev. James Kralt by at epcrcpastor@gmail.com or call Ada Chris an School Enrollment: Ada Chris an School is now enrolling. Join us for a Shadow Wednesday now through May 27. Call to schedule a shadow visit for a morning to experience our school first-hand. See the classrooms, meet the teachers, meet new friends and join us for lunch. To learn more or to schedule a visit, please call: (Preschool 3 s, 4 s, and Young 5 s) (K-8) GEMS Open Golf Event: Join us for a day of golf! Registra on for the 2015 GEMS Open is open un l April 16! Grab your teammates and support GEMS Girls Clubs on Thursday, May 14 at Quail Ridge Golf Club in Ada, Michigan. Not a golfer? Become a corporate or individual sponsor! Contact the GEMS Service Center at (616) ext for informa on or visit our website (gemsgc.org) and click on the Events link.

8 DEACONS KIOSK TREASURER S REPORT Month Received Monthly Gain/(Shortfall) Year-to-Date Gain/(Shortfall) January February SPECIAL OFFERINGS RECEIVED FOR FEBRUARY Growing with the Lord Building Fund Faith Promise Rafiki Foundation (Youth Offering) Christian School Tuition Assistance Sharing Fund External Ministries Cadet Boys Club APRIL OFFERING SCHEDULE FIRST OFFERING The first offering collected each Sunday morning is for Cascade Ministries. These funds go towards church budget expenses such as utilities, salaries, and ministry expenses. This also includes our support of the Christian Reformed Church denomination. SECOND OFFERING The second offering collected each Sunday morning supports ministries inside and outside our church. This month our service deacons carefully chose the ministries identified and described below. Date Special Ministry External Ministries Fund Sunday April 5 Sunday April 12 Sunday April 19 Sunday April 26 Faith Promise Mission Fund supports the mission efforts of our church both in support of our missionaries and short-term mission projects. External Ministries Fund See column on the right. The Growing with the Lord Building Fund supports the recently completed building expansion project. Christian School Tuition Assistance Fund provides financial support to parents who choose to send their children to Christian day schools so that no child will be prevented from attending. We committed this year to help 19 children attend Christian schools. Our External Ministries Fund supports 10 ministries chosen by the Service Deacons. This fund is established annually and is divided equally and distributed to the following organizations: ACCESS of West Michigan Alpha Women s Center Baxter Community Center Criminal Justice Chaplaincy Health Intervention Services Home Repair Services Partners Worldwide Roosevelt Park Ministries World Renew (formerly CRWRC) Use your weekly giving envelopes (write in EMF) or one of the blue envelopes provided in the seats. Give any time throughout the year. Christian School Tuition Assistance Fund Update Tuition Assistance Cascade Fellowship has committed to assisting 9 families to send 19 children to Christian schools this year. Thank you for your loving support! School Year Total Assistance Needed: Total Met: Collected in January: Collected in February: Tuition Assistance for The average cost of required tuition ( ) in local Christian schools is $7880 per child. Thank you for your help in supporting parents who desire to send their children to Christian schools. The Christian School Tuition Assistance Team will receive the third party recommendation in April to review and will inform parents of tuition assistance amounts in May.