S PA RTA. Inside This Issue:

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1 S PA RTA U N I T E D M E T H O D I S T C H U RC H NEWSLETTER March 2016 Inside This Issue: Bible Study on Finances 4 Calendar for March 2 Children + Youth 3 Church Council 8 Congregational Care 8 Contemplative Worship 3 Church Mouse 11 EVENTS AND SOCIALS 9 Grief Support 8 Handbell Festival 4 HOLY WEEK 1 Labyrinth 7 Lunch Bunch 8 MEMORIALS 10 Missions 10 Small Groups 7 United Methodist Women 6-7 World Mission Gift Shop 11 Worship 3 Youth Group 3 WEDNESDAY CONTEMPLATIVE WORSHIP 12:15 and 7:15 p.m. HOLY THURSDAY 7:30 p.m. GOOD FRIDAY The Stations of the Cross 7:30 p.m. HOLY SATURDAY-wait patiently for the morning. EASTER SUNDAY Celebration Worship 8:30 a.m. with communion and 10:30 a.m. Brunch at 9:30 a.m. Easter Egg Hunt at 11:45 a.m.

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3 YOUTH MINISTRY EVENTS SPRING DATES 2016 Mark your calendars and don t miss out! March 18 Lip Sync and Karaoke Night - see Melissa Lambert for details April 1 Line Dancing Family Event invite your friends and neighbors April (tbd) Bag Day -Township Garbage Cleanup FUNDRAISER May 7 Picnic and Labyrinth Introduction/Walk - w/pastor Janice May 27 FAMILY PROMISE dinner and visiting 7-9 p.m. June 18 Lakefront picnic and Watersports at Bud Larsen's June (tbd) Sussex County Miner's Baseball Game - Family Night VACATION BIBLE SCHOOL July worship at sparta umc Children and Youth Choir Please watch for singing dates! WORSHIP LEADERS SCRIPTURE READERS for March 8:30 a.m. 10:30 a.m. March 6 Muriel Godbersen Yvonne Roux March 13 Steve Sawicki Pat Harvey March 20 Debbie Gilone Karen Sutphen March 27 Harry Tappen Laura Kempson CHILDREN S MESSAGE ROTATION March 6 Debbie Dickerson March 13 Pat Schutz March 20 Sarah Kuhns March 27 Pastor Janice Contemplative Worship EVERY WEDNESDAY DURING LENT 12:15 pm and 7:15 pm Rather than giving-up something for Lent, why not add-in this quiet time? 3

4 Please join us for this special event Hudson Valley Young Ringers Festival The Hudson Valley Young Ringers Festival will be held at the Sparta United Methodist Church Saturday, March 12. It will feature six youth bell choirs from New York and New Jersey. The ringers, grades two and up, will rehearse five pre-selected pieces of music throughout the day. The day will end with a Benefit concert at 4 p.m. Don t miss it! The festival conductor is Abigail Gray. Mrs. Gray started ringing at a young age, and holds both a bachelor s degree and a Master s degree in Music Education. She has helped organized many area festivals and was a presenter at the 16th International Handbell Symposium in JeJu, South Korea. She has directed the handbell choir at the Presbyterian Church of Mount Kisco, New York, as well as the Riverside Ringers of the Riverside Church in New York City. The beneficiary of this festival concert will be Rainbows for All Children, an organization that supports children from ages 5 to 14, who have suffered a loss from death, separation, divorce, or abandonment. The local chapter of this national organization meets at the Sparta United Methodist Church. Coming Soon.. 4

5 small groups For STUDY AND FELLOWSHIP SUNDAY SCHOOL FOR ALL AGES 9:15 a.m. Confirmation Class with Pastor Janice 9:30 room 15 Sunday Lent Group Continues on Sunday Morning In March there will be three concluding sessions of the Lent Group meeting in the Wesley Room from 9:15 to 10:15. Some are reading the book 40 Days of Decrease A Different Kind of Hunger. A Different Kind of Fast, by Alicia Britt Chole, but we are also just generally talking about Lent. You are welcome to come and share how you are observing Lent or question what Lent is all about. The group will meet March 6, 13, and 20. Theology Video Series continues in Room 8 On Monday nights at 7 p.m. A People s History of Christianity, the Other Side of the Story by Diana Butler Bass. Buy a book and bring your thoughts! On Wednesday mornings at 7a.m. Men s Study and Reflection at the Sparta Diner! On Wednesday mornings at 9:30 a.m. Lectionary Bible Study Group Watch for details and texts in the weekly bulletin. MONTHLY UMW Book Worms Second Mondays at 9:30 a.m. Labyrinth and Lent Books in Narthex Bookcase The labyrinth in the back property is almost complete. There will be finishing touches in the spring. A path will be created to the labyrinth, but it is possible to walk it now. So take a labyrinth walk. Two books have just been added to the library about labyrinths. One is titled Walking a Sacred Path Rediscovering the Labyrinth as a Spiritual Practice by Lauren Artress. She is the founder of Veriditas, The World-Wide Labyrinth Project. The other book is Labyrinths from the Outside In Walking to Spiritual Insight A Beginner s Guide by Donna Schaper and Carole Ann Camp. The narthex bookcase also has other books concerning Lent, so be sure to browse there a little while. 5

6 Children and Youth Reading Program Started by Sparta s United Methodist Women The Children and Youth Reading program has officially launched! It will use components of the National United Methodist Women s Reading Program Catalog along with some additions by the committee set up to oversee this program. In the Wesley Room, here is a special shelf just for children and youth, boys and girls. If you d like to suggest a book or donate a book, please see Ann Freeman Price or Pat Schutz. UMW will be in the Wesley Room after church on Sunday. Come see what we have and to hear more about the Reading Program. March 14 is the Discussion of Kalas Book: I Love Growing Older but I ll Never Grow Old J. Ellsworth Kalas was born in In 2011 he wrote this book at age 91, so he was well qualified experientially to write it. Come on Monday, March 14, at 9:30 and join the discussion. You don t have to have read the book. You just have to be day by day growing older. Book Worms Books for 2016 Here s the list for the year of There is one copy of each book in the United Methodist Women s portion of the church library. Sign the book out so we know where it is and so more than one person can read it. Be sure to join us whether you ve read the book or not. March 14: I Love Growing Older but I ll Never Grow Old by J. Ellsworth Kalas April 11: The Weight of Mercy by Deb Richardson-Moore May 9: The Invention of Wings by Sue Monk Kidd June 13: The Book of Forgiving by Desmond Tutu and Mpho Tutu July 11: The Orphan Train by Christina Baker Kline August 8: Underground Girls of Kabul by Jenny Nordberg September 12: On God s Side by Jim Wallis October 10: House of Purple Cedar by Tim Tingle November 14: Cured but Not Healed by Kymberley Clemons-Jones 6

7 SAVE THE DATE - SAVE THE DATE - SAVE THE DATE - WORLD LABYRINTH DAY May 7, 2016 United Methodist Women will hold a workshop on the labyrinth 10 am to 2 pm Don t Miss It - It will be a wonderful day! Walk the Labyrinth and Read about the Labyrinth As winter transitions into the early days of spring, right at Sparta United Methodist Church you can walk the labyrinth. Be sure to try it out. In the narthex are a few books and articles about the labyrinth. Borrow them and add to your knowledge about this significant spiritual tool. 7

8 more small groups WIDOW S WELL For those who have lost husbands within the past 3 years. March 18 at 11:30 a.m. Bring your lunch! FOREVER IN OUR HEARTS for parents who have lost children... Every Friday at 7p.m. UMW Holy Hookers (for all!) (knitting and crocheting group) Meets 1-3 pm Wednesdays in the Wesley Room. If you don t know how to do this, come and we will teach you. It s relaxing and fun! MAD (Mother s and Daughter Mad About Mission March 6th and April 3rd, 5-6:30. SUMC Church Council Meeting Update Following are highlights from the February 11, 2016 Church Council meeting: Two subcommittees of the Church Council were created: a Ministries Council and an Administrative Council. Each Council will meet quarterly, with one of the Councils meeting the second Wednesday or Thursday of each month or on an ad hoc basis as needed. An additional payment of $7,500 will be made on the solar panel loan. The budget for 2016 was approved. Church & Society is planning a prayer meeting for the worldwide refugee problem, which they plan on holding in the Pavilion. SPRC is reviewing and updating the Administrative Assistant s job description in preparation to advertising the vacancy. Pastor Janice will lead training on March 18 at 10 am for those interested in visiting and administering communion. A church wide Easter brunch potluck is being planned for March 27, a line dance and dinner is scheduled for April 1, and the Family Fun Fest will be held November 19 this year. Planning has begun for contemporary services to be held at 5 pm on the 2nd Sunday of each month, starting this summer. The next Council meeting will be May 11 at 7 pm. Tentatively, the Council on Ministries will meet March 9 at 7 pm and the Administrative Council will meet April 13 at 7 pm. Submitted by Muriel Godbersen, Recording Secretary 8

9 congregational care - events and socials March 18 at 10:00, Pastor Janice will be conducting a class to help Lay Persons (us) feel comfortable visiting and taking communion to persons who are homebound. Please come if you are interested. We will meet in the Wesley Room. Easter Brunch Pot Luck will take place on Easter Sunday, between the two services (9:30-10:15). Please bring enough food to feed your family and another so we have plenty of food. NEW MEMBER DINNER There will be a dinner on May 1st for those interested in learning about membership in the Sparta United Methodist Church. Please contact Pat Schutz (pat.schutz@yahoo.com or ) or Muriel Godbersen (mamage @gmail.com or ) for paperwork for the class. Friday Night - April 1 Dinner at 6:30, Dancing at 7 p.m. Mark your calendar and Invite a neighbor and friend. The Sunday Lunch Bunch a group for further socialization at 12:15 pm If you are interested in a church family meal, please call Wilma Smith, or Ginger Stecklein, Crafters for the Family Fun Fest Fridays from 1-3pm in the downstairs craft room (end of hallway). We need skilled and non-skilled crafters and we always need more buttons. Please come and bring your old buttons with you! 9

10 Missions and Memorial Gifts Gifts to the Memorial Fund have been used to enhance our worship and enable our ministry in many ways. In recent years, memorial monies have been used to purchase a new piano for the sanctuary, additional bells for the bell choir, to air condition the sanctuary, build the picnic pavilion behind the church, upgrade the fire safety system, provide a security system for the office, and more. A simple written statement left with your important papers can instruct your survivors to direct memorials gifts be given to your church. The statement should read as follows: To my Loved Ones: Upon my passing, I request that any donations from family or friends in my memory be given to the Sparta United Methodist Church. I would prefer such donations in lieu of flowers. This request may be included in my obituary and death notices. The statement should be signed and dated. Check this out! We are changing lives. WOW! 10

11 The Church and Society Committee of the Sparta United Methodist Church is connected to both the Conference and the General Boards of Church and Society. The job of the Church and Society Committee at all these levels In the United Methodist Church is to work on issues of social justice. WORLD MISSION GIFT SHOP A unique around-the-world shopping experience Scarves, handbags, baskets, jewelry, pottery Downstairs at Sparta UMC - Gifts for all occasions - coffee, tea, chocolate, puzzles, games, home décor Wednesday & Saturday Volunteer Shifts Available 10:00 AM to 12:00 noon or 12:00 noon to 2:00 PM Once a month or more often Thursday & Friday 1:00 PM to 4:00 PM Sunday 11:30 AM to 12:30 PM For more information, please contact Pat Johnson or Jack Carpenter, Co-Administrators OUR MISSION: to eradicate poverty wherever it resides by providing opportunity and support to artisans and farmers world-wide; to support anti-trafficking efforts to end human trade. The Mouse is busier than ever!!! Our January half-price sale was a huge success! Donations continue to arrive daily, so stop in soon to see new merchandise! Our next sale is the ever-popular Bag Sale, from March 16-19, meaning EVERY- THING you can stuff in a large grocery bag will cost you only $5.00. Imagine what you could get for $20.00!!! March 21st is our very busy, all day, Change-Over Day. The Thrift Shop will transform into Spring, with pastels, and bonnets and baskets and bunnies in every nook and cranny. 11

12 SPARTA UNITED METHODIST CHURCH 71 Sparta Avenue Sparta, NJ spartaumc.org Worship Every Week. Communion Service at 8:30 a.m. Choir and children s message at 10:30 a.m. Sunday School for all ages at 9:15 a.m. Contemplative/Meditation Service EVERY WEDNESDAY DURING LENT Come browse gifts from our Fair Trade Shop World Mission Gift Shop Wednesday 10:00-2:00 Thursday 1: Friday 1:00-4:00 Saturday 10:00-2:00 CHURCH MOUSE THRIFT SHOP Wednesday 10:00-2:00 Thursday 1:00-4:00 Friday 1:00-4:00 Saturday 10:00-2:00 (973) THE DEADLINE FOR THE APRIL NEWSETTER WILL BE March 15 PLEASE REMEMBER TO SUBMIT ANY ARTICLES BY DEADLINE 12