BELLVIEWS. March First Presbyterian Church of Dallas Center FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH DALLAS CENTER, IA. In This Issue:

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1 March 2018 Page 1 BELLVIEWS FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH DALLAS CENTER, IA March 2018 In This Issue: We at FPC have a vision to Know Jesus: To listen to his story, to sing his praises, To paint His portrait for all to share Pastor s Message 2 Church Mouse Greeters/Fellowship Liturgists/Deacons Birthdays Anniversaries 3 4 Announcements Christian Education 8 Church Calendar Church Information 9 10 UPCOMING EVENTS: March 6 Local Food Group March 11 Daylight saving time March 25 Palm Sunday (OGHS) Begins Holy Week General Office Hours 9:00 a.m. 12:30 p.m. Monday-Thursday First Presbyterian Church of Dallas Center Pastor s Office Hours 8:00 a.m. Noon Monday, Wednesday and Thursday

2 March 2018 Page 2 Christian Discipleship & Gun Violence: What Are We Called to Do? I was sitting in the church office when I heard the news: another school shooting had occurred. A young man had brought his assault rifle to school and begin shooting teachers, students, and administrators at will. Amidst the horror, pain, and shock of yet another horrendous act of violence against the innocent, the same questions and calls for action began almost immediately. Why so quickly? Because, though this continues to happen with greater frequency, very little has been done to address the meaningless violence. People are frustrated, angry, hurt, and scared. We want answers. We want a fix to the problem and are united in our desire to stop these acts of mass violence from occurring again. But that s where we get stuck. Our solutions tied to our ideology are as divided as our polarized political system. All you have to do is watch the posts on social media where liberal and conservative ideologues go back and forth NOT simply arguing matters of political ideology, but attacking each other s intelligence, values, patriotism, faith, and the like. How can we ever really talk about a solution to these important issues when there is no respect, no listening, no valuing, no caring for one another. The I m right, You re wrong, and if you don t think like me you re a stupidhead, approach to discussing these issues is not only meaningless, but extremely divisive. The question we face as followers of Jesus Christ, is this: What are we called to do in the midst of and in response to this mass violence? Do we pick a side in the gun control debate? Do we advocate for legislative action to curb the violence? Do we pray every time one of these horrific events happen and leave it at that? There s a meme going around social media that assumes that the Christian response should be to put prayer back in the schools. But the reality is that your right to pray at school was NEVER taken away. Forcing those from other faiths and those who are nonreligious to pray to a Judeo/Christian god is what was removed and rightfully so. So what do we do as Christians? There are legislative actions that can be taken in both the areas of gun control and mental health care - the two areas that are at the top of the national conversation - that can help curb mass violence, but these actions are not solutions to the increasing violence. They can help alleviate some of the symptoms and make these occurrences less frequent, but they are not the fix. The root cause is embedded in our culture. There is no one thing behind the violence. For instance, we live in a society that glorifies violence in our movies, our games, our heroic stories. We are captivated by the drama of Game of Thrones, love our first-person shooter war games, and idealize the strong, violent, vindictive hero whose idea of justice is death to his enemies. We think the stories are harmless but are they? Watching my son spend day after day shooting people in his video games, or watching battle scenes in the latest movies, and telling me that he wants to one day be a special forces soldier because it looks awesome is something that I am concerned about. Killing another human being looks awesome? I can control what he watches and the games he plays, talk to him time and again about the inherent evil of violence, try to discredit the notion that war (whether viewed as just or necessary) is glorious and patriotic, but the ideology I work to parent against is engrained in our cultural ethos. Or what about the fact that we have a particular view of what it is to be a Man in our culture. (continued on page 7)

3 March 2018 Page 3 Fasting and Redemption Matthew 4:1-2 Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. He fasted forty days and forty nights, and afterwards he was famished. The tempter came and said to him. If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread. But he answered, It is written, One does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God. How does this comport with Pastor Adam s daily Lenten Devotions centering on Joyfully Expanding Christ s Mission? I know a Louisiana woman born and raised in India who faithfully and regularly practices fasting as her religion dictates. She relates that fasting allows her contemplative time to dwell on her life mission in both her temple and family life. Can we do any less? Although one or more days a week of fasting may not be feasible, through contemplative reading of our daily devotion, maybe we can take stock of our situations, meaningfully repent, and stop complaining. I m paraphrasing something I recently read whatever you focus on will expand within your daily experience. If you focus on joy, it will expand within your day-to-day experiences and amplify the goodness in your life. Does that not joyfully expand Christ s mission? Each of us has been touched in our lives by something we deemed to be dire. Did we turn to God in prayer or were we beaten down by adversity? How many of us focused on how terrible the situation was and thought that God had turned his back on us. News flash: God doesn t turn his back on us. We turn our backs on God. How many of us sought to look at our seemingly dire situations as teaching moments and remembered that God had our backs? That brings peace of mind and soul. Whenever we focus on the joy in our lives and know with certainty that God is there to support us, then we can concentrate on how best to serve Him. It releases us to joyfully explore what we want to do in helping our church. Thank goodness there is a wide diversity of talent in our church. I can just hear someone saying, I don t have any talent. Balderdash. Serving the Lord isn t a talent contest. It is the ability and talent that He has given each of us to do something that is uniquely ours, whether it be mundane or exceptional. In his message regarding the Lenten Devotions, Pastor Adam said, As a congregation, mission is at the heart of who we are. So where do each of us fit into this mission? It s kind of like our potluck dinners. Have you ever noticed the food always manages to be balanced, main course, sides, salads, desserts? Our congregation is pretty much the same way. Our many individuals diversified interests enable us to fit into our church s mission and when we focus on the good in each of our lives, we can joyfully expand that mission. We are now within the 40 weekdays preceding Easter, a time of prayer and discernment throughout the world. I remember years ago leaving the Ash Wednesday service. I had to stop for gas and as I went to pay, a woman joyfully smiled at me we each had an ashen cross on our foreheads. It was an unspoken bond of our faith. Others looked with cynicism, some appeared embarrassed, and others pointedly ignored us. For each of us, it was a mark that proclaimed we belong to God. Let us celebrate, contemplate, and joyfully move forward, The Proverbial Church Mouse

4 March 2018 Page 4 GREETERS for Mar/Apr Mar 04 Jon Kimple & Patty Howard/Cindy Kisting Mar 11 Stephanie & Jason Harris Mar 18 Chris & Eva Helps Mar 25 Carolyn Kinney/Mitch & Michelle Hansen Apr. 01 Jon & Brenda Johnson Apr. 08 Duane & Liz Heaberlin Apr. 15 Will & Erin Myers Apr. 22 Linda Nelson & Joel Myers Apr. 29 Tom & Connie McClure If you are not able to serve on the day scheduled, please trade with someone and contact the church. Deacons FOR Mar/Apr Mar 04 TBA Mar 11 Craig Ivers Mar 18 Denise Kelly Mar 25 Kurt Greiman Apr. 01 Abby Greiman Apr. 08 Stephanie Harris Apr. 15 Mallory Brown Apr. 22 TBA Apr. 29 Craig Ivers LITURGISTS For March Mar 04 Corey Coon Mar 11 Jim Gardner Mar 18 Laura Carman Mar 25 Debbie Snyder Anniversaries in March Mar 11 Joe & Marian Keller 1956 Mar 15 John & Lynn Chambers 1974 Mar 15 Joel Myers & Linda Nelson 2003 Mar 17 Tom & Connie McClure 1984 Mar 20 Doug & Ann Beavers 1993 Fellowship for Mar/Apr Mar 04 Troy & Paige Fenn Mar 11 Duane & Liz Heaberlin Mar 18 Mike & Donna McClure Mar 25 Ben & Denise Kelly Apr. 01 Mike & Darci Kidd Apr. 08 Niah, Maria, & Jim Howard Apr. 15 Will & Erin Myers Apr. 22 Kurt & Tina Greiman Apr. 29 Jordan Lint & Amanda Niebuhr-Lint If you are not able to serve on the day scheduled, please trade with someone or call Doug Beavers at Birthdays in march Mar 01 Reba Howd Mar 01 Levi Willrich Mar 03 Troy Fenn Mar 05 Charlie Rowe Mar 06 Mike Jones Mar 08 Al Clinkinbeard Mar 10 Brenen Harris Mar 10 Sean Kelly Mar 14 Riley Madole Mar 14 Amanda Niebuhr-Lint Mar 15 John Thomas Mar 16 Chris Helps Mar 17 Shelley Horak Mar 17 Mike Kidd Mar 17 Betty Deaver Mar 17 Tom McClure Mar 17 Alex Bodermann Mar 20 Laura Carman Mar 22 Gale Haldeman Mar 22 Irene Gardner Mar 25 Jeanette Bodermann Mar 25 Kenadie Heaberlin Mar 27 Linda Nelson Mar 27 Dylan Myers Mar 28 Keaton Fenn Mar 28 Jackson Lint Mar 29 David Shields Mar 30 Stanley Erickson Mar 30 Erin Lane Mar 31 Catharine Lane Mar 31 Tim Snyder

5 March 2018 Page 5 Lenten Worship Series: The I Am Statements of Jesus (Feb 18 - April 1). Join us in worship during the Season of Lent as we discover Jesus through his own words. I am the Sheep & the Gate (John 10:7-14) March 4th I am the Resurrection & the Life (John 11:25) - March 11th I am the Way, the Truth, and the Light (John 14:6) - March 18th I am the True Vine (John 15:1) - March 25th Prayer List As part of our shared ministry, we continue to be in prayer with many in our congregation in their times of need. As our ministry continues, we hope to keep our prayer list current. If you would like the support of your congregation's prayer, please let Nancy Zehr, our church secretary, or Pastor Adam know to add your name or your family's names to the list. If your name has been on the list and you wish it to be removed, please also let Pastor Adam or Nancy Z. know. We want to keep this important part of our shared fellowship reflective of your present needs and situations. Thank you! Choir News! First choir practice is March 14th at 7:00 Discovering Jesus in the Wor(l)d A Lenten Bible and Discussion Gathering (February 19 - March 26). At 7:30p on the Mondays during Lent (following the community Safe Place Space from 7p-7:30p) you are invited to join us as we dive into Jesus I Am statements and put them into conversation with our contemporary world and our own lives. Each Monday s Scripture & I Am statement will correspond with the prior Sunday. Bring your Bible and some snacks to share if you like. (Note that on March 4th this group will meet at 8:30p.m.) First Presbyterian Online! Don t forget to keep up-to-date with the life and ministry of FPC using the church website: You can find information about church events, listen to Sunday s worship messages, look through photos, download forms and monthly newsletters, lift up prayer requests, and the like. Also find us on Facebook at First Presbyterian Church of Dallas Center or follow us on Twitter at First Presby. FirstPresbyDCIA. We re always open to feedback to find ways to better communicate the life and ministry of our congregation to each other and to the world around us. Brenda Johnson is now Treasurer and anything that would previously have directed to Sue should now go to Brenda. Her contact information is k.brenda.johnson@gmail.com or she can be reached at My address is 1009 NW 7th Ct, Grimes, IA Celebration of Communion Communion will be celebrated the first Sunday of each month. Additional Communion dates will remain for Christmas Eve, Maundy Thursday, & Easter services.

6 March 2018 Page 6 COMMUNITY REFUGE 7p during Lent (February 19 - March 25) Come to me, all you who are struggling hard and carrying heavy loads, and I will give you rest." -Matthew 11:28 Our world is chaotic, noisy, violent, and broken, and so often we find ourselves buried beneath our own burdens and fear brought on by national tragedies, loss, the unknowns of life, and the weight of the world seemingly on our shoulders. During Lent, every Monday evening, FPC will open up the building from 7p - 7:30p to provide a place for rest, prayer, meditation, and contemplation. We will not host a worship service per say, but will simply make available our space to the community as a refuge and a resource. Light music will play in the sanctuary, a prayer box will be created to place prayer requests in, and people will be available to offer a listening ear. Guided meditation/prayer options will be available. At 7:20, for those who choose, we will lift up our prayers aloud and pray together (similar to our Joys & Concerns on Sunday morning). From 7:30p - 8p those who are interested are invited to stay for conversation that intersects our faith and Jesus' teachings with our contemporary world. We will be taking a look at the seven "I am" statements of Jesus from the gospel of John. No preparation is needed ahead of time. We invite you not only to take part in this opportunity, but to invite your neighbors and friends. Let them know that this resource is available to them. Come and go as you like.

7 March 2018 Page 7 (continued from page 2) If you re too feminine, too empathetic, seen as weak, not athletic, too emotional, or anything else that departs from the John Wayne, tough guy image, somehow your masculinity is called into question. As most of our perpetrators have been white men who have acted out their anger in violent ways, I wonder how our cultural view of masculinity might play a role in acts of mass violence? There is no one cause to the incidents of mass violence and no easy solutions. Changing aspects of our culture is SOOO much harder than passing any legislation. So what can we do as Christians? At High School Linkage last night, the youth explored their call from God. At the end of our gathering I asked them the question, What is our call from God in response to these mass shootings? We stepped away from the political debate and talked about what we knew; that many of the perpetrators of these violent acts seemed to have some commonalities. They were outcasts, often ostracized by their peers. Some came from broken homes. They were often those left out, chosen last, ignored, bullied (or perhaps became the bully themselves due in part to past trauma and neglect). Their violent attacks were, in their minds, a response to their being attacked first. Most were NOT mentally ill by clinical definition but were acting out their anger with violence. An important observation began to surface in our conversation. Where were the friends and family in the lives of these people? Where were the bringers of hope and peace for these individuals? Where were those who bent over backwards to love these too often neglected children of God? Where was the Church of Jesus Christ, the bringers of good news? We ve watched as our country has continued to grow farther and farther apart as community has been devalued and the individual has been put on a pedestal. Social media exacerbates this reality even as it seemingly connects more people than ever. We don t look for the left out, the lost, the broken, the outcast, at least not with the eyes of God s grace, but rather with judgment and perhaps apathy. We don t see all people as children of God, but only some. Our concept of personal responsibility has blinded us to our inherent communal responsibilities. The church should be on the forefront of portraying a different way: the way of Jesus. We should be on the forefront of de-glorifying violence and war and should lift up the sacrificial giver and the cross bearers. We should be promoting a masculinity that is not about a concept of physical strength or being the tough guy. We should be looking out for the lost, broken, and the lonely, not so that we can report these children of God to the authorities, but so that we can love them, and invite them to belong. Can we abate evil altogether? No, of course not. But evil tends to grow and fester when people have been cast aside and left alone in their pain. We are social beings, even introverts like this pastor. Being created in the image of God is inherently a communal identity. And the farther we grow apart from each other, separating ourselves from each other, the greater the foothold evil has to grow within us and amongst us. How about we choose to live in the light of Jesus Christ. How about we choose to see the least of these amongst us and build up our relationships and our capacity to love. How about we practice listening to one another, valuing one another, and being with and for one another. Unless we change our culture and our way of being together, no amount of legislation will prevent these violent tragedies from continuing. And I, like you, are united in my desire to never see another mass shooting again. Blessings to you, dear saints. I am ever in prayer for our nation, for our children, for our society. May God transform our lives each day to be more Christ-like, for in our savior we are given light unveiling a different way in this world - a way of selfless giving, of hope and love. With Peace, Pastor Adam

8 March 2018 Page 8 CHRISTIAN EDUCATION CORNER Mark your calendars for Christian Ed. in ! Things to look forward to this year: Adult Christian Education New opportunities in Youth Ministry Lots of ways to get involved and volunteer WOW Nightly Schedule for : 5:00-5:45 Class time/confirmation 5:45-6:15 Activity/Music/Linkage 6:15-7:00 Dinner WOW is for kids who are in Kindergarten-12th grade. Active participation by at least one parent (grandparent or family member) of every youth is required. This participation is a critical signal to the youth that this program is important. Since the staff is voluntary, part time service by a large number of people is essential to keep the many activities going. At least as important, however, is the morale boosting effect of a parents' physical presence and visible support of the program. New this year: 5th/6th grade class! You can sign up to help in the following ways: Classroom Teacher, Activity Leader, Kitchen food prep/serving, Dishwasher, Vacuum/Clean-up, and Table Parent Registration is required if your children will be attending WOW this year, but guests are always welcome to join us! DATES TO REMEMBER: WOW 2018 Mar 14, 21, 28-NO WOW Apr 18-Last Night of WOW Apr 22-WOW Recognition Sunday School March 11-NO SUNDAY SCHOOL March 18-NO SUNDAY SCHOOL Apr 1-NO SUNDAY SCHOOL (Easter Sunday) Apr 22-Last day of Sunday school LINKAGE Linkage is our youth program for all middle and high school youth. Linkage involves a whole lot of fun, fellowship, community, mission, service, and learning. The middle school group meets at the church on Wednesday evenings along with WOW. The high school group meets at the church on Sunday evenings at 6:00 p.m.

9 March, Sunday school Worship Communion Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 11 Sunday school Worship Session A: Joe & Marian Keller 18 Sunday school Worship 25 Sunday school Worship Palm Sunday OGHS B: Jeanette Bodermann B: Kenadie Heaberlin 5 B: Charlie Rowe 6 B: Mike Jones 7 WOW B: Riley Madole B: Amanda Niebuhr-Lint Choir Practice B: Laura Carman A: Doug & Ann Beavers B: Linda Nelson B: Dylan Myers 21 Choir Practice 28 B: Keaton Fenn B: Jackson Lint Choir Practice 1 B: Reba Howd B: Levi Willrich 8 B: Al Clinkinbeard 15 B: John Thomas A: John & Lynn Chambers A: Joel Myers & Linda Nelson 22 B: Irene Gardner B: Gale Haldeman 29 Maundy Thursday B: David Shields 2 3 B: Troy Fenn 9 10 B: Brenen Harris B: Sean Kelly 16 B: Chris Helps Good Friday B: Stanley Erickson B: Erin Lane 17 B: Shelley Horak B: Mike Kidd B: Betty Deaver B: Tom McClure B: Alex Bodermann A: Tom & Connie McClure 31 Great Vigil of Easter B: Catharine Lane B: Tim Snyder

10 Bellviews March 2018 page 10 Church Address: First Presbyterian Church th Street PO Box 368 Dallas Center, IA Contact Information: Pastor: Rev. Adam Smith Cell: Church Phone: Church s Website: dcpresbyterian.org Pastor s pastor@dcpresbyterian.org Church s office@dcpresbyterian.org Class of 2018 Class of 2019 Class of 2020 Youth Elder Treasurer Clerk of Session The Session Doug Beavers Darci Kidd Jeani Shepherd Ann Beavers Abbey Drake Julie Kopecky Jeanette Bodermann Tim Snyder Gary Wilson Chloe Beavers Brenda Johnson Nancy Wilson Capital Development Committee: Dennis Britson, Trent Drake, Tina Greiman, Mitch Hansen, Duane Heaberlin, and Aaron Wilson Church Staff Pastor...Rev. Adam Smith Secretary..Nancy K. Zehr Choir Director.Jeani Shepherd Organists......Carol Arrasmith & Jeani Shepherd Pianists...Carol Arrasmith & Abbey Drake Class of 2018 Class of 2019 Class of 2020 Youth Deacon Board of Deacons Craig Ivers Jeff Van Houten Kurt Greiman Denise Kelly Stephanie Harris Abby Greiman