An Invitation to the Observance of the Lenten Discipline. Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near. Matthew 3:2

Transcription

1 1 Contact: Church Secretary: Lay Leader: Marilyn Hartman Methodelma An Invitation to the Observance of the Lenten Discipline Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near. Matthew 3:2 Friends in Christ, every year at this time, we celebrate our redemption through the death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. Lent is a time to prepare for this celebration and to renew our life through the Easter mystery. We begin this holy season by acknowledging our need for repentance, and for the mercy and forgiveness proclaimed in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We begin our journey to Easter with the sign of ashes. This ancient sign speaks of the frailty and uncertainty of human life and marks the penitence of the community. I invite you, therefore, in the name of Jesus Christ, to observe a Holy Lent by self-examination and penitence, by prayer and fasting, by works of love, and by reading and meditating on the Word of God! Our Ash Wednesday Service this year will be on Wednesday, February 14th at 7:00pm in the Sanctuary. My practice is to repeat the Invitation to Repentance for the first few weeks in Lent because the attendance on Ash Wednesday is often sparse. Many in the congregations where I have served have told me they, were not into the ashes thing. Herein lies the challenge preaching repentance in Lent. We live in a culture in which most of us are not into the ashes thing! Our culture encourages us to have a positive self-image and not dwell on the negative about ourselves and what is going on around us. Therefore, even when we give a verbal commitment to seek to observe a Holy Lent, it flies in the face of a culture in denial of our need for repentance. continued Elma UMC 2991 Bowen Road Elma, NY

2 2 In response to the invitation to repent during the season of Lent, I think most of us will take a pass. It sounds like an invitation to have a root canal. Even if absolutely necessary, it s not something we embrace. Let me be honest. I have a difficult time acknowledging my own need for repentance, much less preaching to others about their need to repent. Lent is the season when we followers of Jesus Christ are called upon to do some uncomfortable things like take a hard look at our personal lives and our common life in the light of the Gospel of Jesus Christ in preparation to celebrate the incredible reality of Resurrection. God s love endures all things, even death, and nothing can separate us from God s love. Repentance is not about a human endeavor like pulling yourself up by your own bootstraps. Repentance is a gift from God made possible by God s intervention into our lives to transform our world. We are only able to repent because of the prior action of God coming near to us in Jesus Christ. Without God s intervention, we would be stuck in our own best intentions without hope that things would ever change or that we could change. If we can believe this incredible Good News which is the essence of the Gospel, then we are on our way to repentance, to being transformed by the One who claimed us in the waters of our baptism and who has not given up on us and the world that Christ came to redeem. Will we accept the invitation to observe a Holy Lent and follow the One who is always transforming our lives and giving us new hope, the One who is inviting us to be agents of God s steadfast love and reconciling presence in these divisive times? It is the invitation of Jesus who said, The time has come, the Kingdom of God has come near, repent and believe in the good news (Mark 1:15). As always, I can t wait to see you in church this Sunday! Pastor Wayne Weather permitting, the next Bible study at the Parsonage will begin Thursday March 1st Studying Luke-Acts (for 11 weeks) A Sign up sheet will be posted on the Christian Ed Table. The Sunday 9 am Bible Study will begin a Lenten Study TBA. Stay tunes for more information.

3 Missions/Outreach 3 Thank you to A loving church serving a loving God! Please take a few moments to read the thanks for our love and support from the many organizations we are able to help fund, through your generosity, on the Missions bulletin board. Mailings from these organizations as received throughout the year can be found on the table and are available for your perusal. World Day of Prayer-Friday, March 2 We will be hosting the World Day of Prayer for the Elma/ East Aurora community on Friday, March 2 at 10:00 a.m. Women and men of all faith traditions come together to observe a common day of prayer on the first Friday of March each year. Throughout the day they collectively pray all over the world, beginning with the first sunrise and ending at the last sunset. Their prayers follow the sun s path around the globe. This year s theme, All God s Creation is Very Good, was developed by women of Suriname, a country in northeastern South America, for the service of prayer and song. A free will offering is taken to support women s ecumenical ministries toward justice, peace, healing and wholeness. Refreshments and fellowship follow the service. If you would like to be a part of this inspirational service, as a participant, greeter or usher, please let Elaine DeLisle know. Thank you! FISH The FISH item for February is tuna. Mark your calendar: Orchard Park UMC will be hosting two fish fry fundraisers for Seneca Street UMC-March 9 and March 23. The SS members help cook, set-up and clean up to help support their church. They welcome your support by your attendance! Further information will be announced.

4 4 Christian Education & Youth Ministry Souper Bowl of Caring MAKING A DIFFERENCE FEBRUARY 4, 2018 Hunger isn t just a Third World problem. One in six people in America (one in four children) live in food insecure households. (Source: United States Department of Agriculture) 100% of the money collected for Souper Bowl of Caring, is donated directly Fish of East Aurora. EUMC has been part of the movement to fight hunger and poverty in communities like our own, for the past 17 years. A simple prayer: LORD, even as we enjoy the Super Bowl football game, help us to be mindful of those who are without a bowl of soup to eat. Let us be mindful of this as we help fight hunger and poverty. If you would like to donate, please make your checks out to the church, putting Souper Bowl of Caring in the memo section. For the past couple of years, we have had a little competition as to which SOUP POT will get the most donations. Place your donation in the SOUP POT with the team you want to win. The SOUP POTS will be placed outside the Sanctuary in the Narthex with our young people encouraging you with who their favorite team is. We are: A Loving Church Serving A LOVING GOD! MINI & SENIOR Youth Retreat to Camp Asbury in Perry, NY Grades 5 th 12 th are welcome to participate in the Retreat. Place: Camp Asbury, Silver Lake NY Date: February Time Leaving Church: 9:00 on Feb. 19 th. Time Returning to Church: Between 3:00 & 4 p.m., Feb. 21 st. Parents: Please fill out a child infor mation for m (Insur ance information) and permission slip with Deb Coatsworth. A list of numbers, directions to the camp, parent names, and phone numbers of: parents, leaders, and the Camp we will be staying at, will be provided for parents. Any questions please ask Deb.

5 5 Catch the Spirit CATCH THE SPIRIT DISCIPLESHIP GATHERING Niagara Frontier District of the United Methodist Church February 24, am to 3:30 pm Clarence United Methodist Church Greiner Rd., Clarence, NY Theme for 2018 is Living Abundantly Scripture reference is John 10:1-10 Workshops, Fellowship, Vendors, Lunch Don t Delay - Space is Limited First Come. First serve. Registration Forms are on the Christian Education Table or can be accessed on the Website or on line Calendar Buffalo Choral Arts Society concerts with accompanist John Mitton: Saturday March 10, 7:30 pm, Annunciation Catholic church, 7580 Clinton Street, Elma Sunday March 11, 3:00 pm, Orchard Park Presbyterian, 4369 S Buffalo Street, Orchard Park Tickets: $15 BuffaloChoralArts.org UMW News All women are invited to help pack cookies for college students and military service people on Tuesday, February 6 at 11:00 AM. This will be followed by a soup/ sandwich lunch. Soups and dessert will be provided. Everyone attending is asked to bring a sandwich to share. Please give the address of your college student or military service person to Mary Schuetz in the office, or Cheryl Buechi before February 6

6 6 Anniversaries 2/12 Paul & Belle Jacobs 2/25 John & Elaine Hollander 2/25 Ray & Charlene Piscatelli Birthdays 2/3 Marilyn Hartman 2/3 Joyce Link 2/3 Wendy Zelasko 2/6 Lucas DeNies 2/6 Susan Wollen 2/7 Nancy Kester 2/8 Steve DeNies 2/9 Nancy Gradwell 2/9 Jill Seileman 2/10 Joseph Pudlewski 2/12 Shirley Haberl 2/12 Shirley Haberl 2/12 Sarah Hill 2/14 Judith Baumgartner 2/14 Pam Thauer 2/14 Erika Wargula 2/14 Sienna Wojnar 2/17 Connor McCutcheon 2/18 Eileen Holden 2/18 Andrew Jozwiak 2/20 Jennifer Fuer 2/20 Aidan Kelly 2/20 Logan Nolan 2/21 Ryan McGoldrick 2/21 Betty Wantuck 2/22 Ryan Zak 2/23 Kara Parete 2/24 Jenna Kegler 2/25 D Lynn Zurek 2/26 Gary Budzynski 2/26 Katherine Erhardt 2/27 Harper Nolan Lunch Bunch meets next on Feb 19, 2018 at 12:30 at the Olive Tree Restaurant in Lancaster. Please sign up so an accurate reservation may be made. Tuesday morning Bible Study meets at 9:30 in the Library. All are welcome, perfect attendance is NOT required. ELMA PAGE TURNERS meets the first Wednesday of the month at 7:00 PM in the Library. All are welcome. The next books are: Feb 7 The Girl With No Name, Marina Chapman, non-fiction March 7 God Help the Child, Toni Morrison Bricks Bricks for the Memorial Walk that leads from the Church to the Spiritual Labyrinth are still for sale. The bricks cost $100 and can contain three lines with 17 characters in each line. Forms are available on the wall rack outside of the Pastor s office or outside the church office. In order to receive a favorable price, we need to sell 10 bricks. See Shirley Schildkamp or Mary Schuetz for more details.