News from Zion. News from Zion

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1 News from Zion News from Zion Z i o n e v a n g e l i c a l c h u r c h ~ S c o t t s b l u f f, N e b r a s k a F e b r ua ry, Z i o v i s t a b e a m. c o m W w w. z i o n s c o t t s b l u f f. c o m COMMUNION Sunday, February 3rd communion will be served in the chapel following the 10:30 service. F ro m t he pa s to r s d e s k... Love Is Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails. 1 Corinthians 13:4-8a NKJV A long, long, long time ago, a Christian named Valentinus sent a last note to his wife as he was led away to the lions. He was one of many Christian martyrs who paid the ultimate price rather than renounce his precious faith in Jesus. His note said simply, I love you. So the story has come to me... and Valentine s Day remembers both a Christian man s sacrifice and his love. So, it s really not just a day for couples but a day for all of us to pause and think about what true love is as we learn it from the God who is love and loved us so much that he sent his Son to die for our sins. The Apostle Paul does a good job of defining God s love for us and teaching us P l e a s e Ta k e n o t e... Mission Prayer Partners for February, Zion Radio Broadcast 10 - Ben & Becky Rivera/ Campus Crusade 17 - Zion CD/DVD Ministry 24 - Bud Acord/Muslims Get your newsletter first and in color if you receive it via . Just drop us a note at zion@vistabeam.com and we ll put you on our list. Give it a try for one month... if you don t like it, we ll happily switch you back. GREBEL & COFFEE Saturday, February 2nd 7 a.m a.m. PRE-ORDERS and HELP welcome. Sign up at the Welcome Center! Or call God s love in the verses above. This is how God loves us and wants us to love our spouses and our children, our friends and neighbors, our co-workers and classmates. It s more than cards and chocolates, or dinner and a movie it s a way of life. While a gift and a date night will enhance our dearest relationships, love also needs to be the everyday business of life for relationships that are healthy and growing. Interestingly it is those who most freely love others who find themselves most loved it s the gift that grows the more it s given away. Love is both the easiest gift to offer and the most precious treasure to find. Why not increase your treasure by giving away some of God s love today? Ash Wednesday Lenten Service 7:00 p.m February 13th at Plymouth Pastor Garry SUPER BOWL PARTY at the Schick Home/ th Ave. February 3rd ~ 4 p.m. Bring a finger food to share.

2 NEWS FROM ZION General Fund for DECEMBER, 2012 INCOME: Fund Raisers $ 1, Other Income 3, Sunday Offering 21, Uncategorized Income 3.60 TOTAL INCOME $ 26, EXPENSES: Bldg. & Grounds $ 1, Fund Raising Ministry 1, Mission Fund Office Staff Benefits 8, Staff Salary 6, Utilities 1, TOTAL EXPENSES: $ 20, TOTAL INCOME/EXPENSE $ 5, COOP RECEIPTS: Congratulations, Zion, on collecting $100,000 in receipts. We re well on our way to another. Great job, Zion! CALLING ALL LADIES!!! Ladies Guild Meeting -- February 4th, :00 P.M. We will have a special guest and will be working on the filling the Valentine boxes. If you d like to help fill a box, we d love to have you! There are 18 boxes to be filled. Examples: individual pkgs. of cookies, candy, crackers, coins for laundry...or anything an away from home college student would appreciate receiving. SEE YOU THEN! Page 2 Sympathies and condolences are extended to......the family and friends of Jamilee Henkel....Maureen Reiber and family on the passing of brother Don Walker....David Gompert and Becky Estrada & family on the passing of David s mother, Donna Gompert....the family and friends of Johnny J. Huber, Jr....the family and friends of Katherine Kaufman. Congratulations to......adam Harris on being selected Student of the Week in the Star-Herald....Joyce & Harold Kautz on their 57th Wedding Anniversary! If you were unable to attend the Annual Meeting on January 23rd, there are leftover Annual Meeting packetsin the foyer. Ask a deacon and they can help you. YOUR HELP IS NEEDED! The Ladies Guild is planning a Soup Supper on March 9th and will be making noodles on Monday, February 18th. We could use all available hands to help with this project! If you are unable to help by making noodles, we could use your help with supplies of flour and eggs! See any Guild member or call the church office , if you have questions. Thank you!!!!

3 Page 3 NEWS FROM ZION T h a n k yo u! February 13, 2013, Ash Wednesday, 7:00 p.m. Host Church: Plymouth Church Preacher: Pastor Dale Brown Thank you to Zion Church for all your prayers and good wishes during my recent set back with my knee. Three weeks in bed, particularly during the holidays is a long time. Your calls, cards and prayers were a big help! Thank you to Pastor Garry and Pastor Andy for your pastoral care and prayers. I hope things will be better from here on. Gratefully, Bonnie Richard February 17, 2013, 7:00 p.m. Host Church: Hope Church (Bayard) Preacher: Andy Griess February 24, 2013, 7:00 p.m. Host Church: Salem Church Preacher: Ed Veldhuizen March 3, 7:00 p.m. Host Church: Zion Church Preacher: Rod Wetzig March 10, 7:00 p.m. Host Church: Emmanuel Church Preacher: Chuck Richardson March 17, 7:00 p.m. Host Church: Federated (Mitchell) Preacher: Garry Schick KCMI Broadcast for February is given in honor of Kim Bauer on her 48th Birthday on 2/22 and in memory of father George R. Bauer and grandparents, George & Molly Bauer and Carl & Elizabeth Loos from Betty Bauer and family. Thank you for sharing, Betty & Happy Birthday, Kim!

4 NEWS FROM ZION Page 4 ~ AWANA NEWS ~ The Staff started off 2013 with our annual Christmas Party on Saturday, January 5 th. We enjoyed a Mexican food buffet topped off with a choice of a piece of freezer pie Hershey s Chocolate, Turtle, Cookies n Crème, Lemon Meringue, etc. Everything was so yummy!!! Our time of fellowship is always filled with lots of laughter the White Elephant gift exchange always contributes to that! We had some gifts from past years exchanges reappear and there always seems to be one or two gifts usually because they are nice gifts and not true White Elephant gifts! that become very popular with which to end up! This year, it was a bag that included some fun dog toys/outfit, a gingerbread man headband and the reason it was so popular a variety of chocolate candy. When I announced that there would be unlimited stealing, that brought about some excitement especially between the dynamic duo tag team of Adam & Erik Harris. Uhhhh, did I mention that if the gift includes something that can be worn, a rule was made LONG AGO by a Commander other than me that you have to model it. Thus, the reason for all the pics with the gingerbread man headband! As you can see, the younger Harris brother was more willing to let me take his pic than the older! (I loved the tag on the side! It reminded me of Minnie Pearl!!! ) The following afternoon, the clubbers and staff gathered at The Playhouse Skating Rink and Fun Center for our first club meeting back in the new year. I, unfortunately, was unable to attend as I had a relapse with the cold/flu that I had before Christmas. I was told that they had a great time and NO INJURIES!!! A BIG thank you to Pastor Andy for giving the devotion! In this kind of setting it can be VERY CHALLENGING!!! We have three more clubbers that have completed 30 sections in their handbooks and are invited to the pizza reward party in April Congratulations to Hannah Boyd, MaCee Neu and Hope Schanaman. We also have several clubbers that are halfway to receiving 30 shares for bringing two guests to club. Keep up the great work clubbers! The end of the club year will be here before we know it!!! The event that we have coming up next is Bible Quiz for the T&T Boys and Girls at Monument Bible Church on Saturday, February 2 nd. This has always been such a rewarding event not necessarily because of the physical reward of a medallion, ribbon or plaque but the eternal reward received by hiding God s Word in their hearts! GO ZION!!! The following Sunday, February 3 rd is our Sports Day event. We change things up a little bit as we move our club start time back to 2:00 p.m. and end at 4:00 p.m. in order for families to get settled at home or wherever they will be watching the Super Bowl. At our Sports Day club meeting, we dress up in our favorite sportswear Bearcat, Bulldog, Tiger, Nebraska Husker shirts, hats or a team shirt from the clubber s AYSO soccer team, YMCA football or basketball team, summer baseball/softball teams. This is also when we shine the spotlight on our graduating student leaders. This club year we have a huge group five of them which is bittersweet because that means that unless they choose to stay here locally for college, they will not be returning next club year. I will be interviewing Allison Stricker, Adam Harris, Tim Herman, Austin Kniss and Chad Nagasawa. We will not only be telling the clubbers what each one of them is involved in sport, band, speech, math team, etc. but talk about the challenges &/or rewards of being a Christian while participating. This is a great group of kids that will be terribly missed! (FYI: Since I have no preference as to whether the 49er s or the Ravens win, I will be cheering for the 49er s since I just turned 49 years old a couple of weeks ago. Bahahaha!!!!!!!) (Continued on page 5)

5 Page 5 NEWS FROM ZION (Continued from page 4) The last Sunday in February (the 24 th ), we will be inviting our grandparents to club for Grandparents Day. If they do not have an actual grandparent that lives locally, we always encourage our clubbers to adopt one or two! to bring. For being the shortest month of the year, we certainly do pack a lot in!!! February is also the month that we celebrate love, so we will have something around the 14 th for that as well. ~ COMMANDER COMMENTARY ~ As I just mentioned, February is the month that we celebrate love, make valentines for others to exchange, talk about hearts, etc. Unfortunately, my Commander Commentary is written this month with a very heavy heart for a couple of reasons... Recently, I had a conversation with a member of my AWANA staff. We got to talking about REALLY knowing and feeling God s love. Even though two members of her family had trusted Christ as their Lord & Savior one up to 30 years ago! they did not feel that God loved them. That is just so hard for me to wrap my brain around!!! I totally understand that God deals with us differently to resolve issues in our lives, i.e., something that one Christian had victory over in their 20 s another is not conquering until they are in their 40 s. However, to trust in Christ as our Savior, we have to understand that GOD S GREAT LOVE for us compelled Him to send Jesus to earth to die for us. PLEASE do not misunderstand me!!! I am not judging these individuals at all!!! It makes me sad and causes me to wonder what we are doing wrong as an AWANA club, as Zion Church, etc. that Christians are walking around not feeling loved by God??? My prayer is that we will allow ourselves to be used by God to be His Hand of LOVE extended to this hurting world. This past Sunday at club I felt an urgency to call an emergency meeting with the AWANA staff to discuss a couple of issues. One of the issues was the recent death of two young women in our community as the result of a car accident. I knew that one of them had definitely been a clubber here at Zion in her elementary years but I also checked on the other. The one I was sure of attended her entire 2 nd grade year and even completed her Skipper handbook in Sparks. The second young lady came as a guest one time in her 6 th grade year ( ) and one time in her 8 th grade year ( ). I told the Staff that I am not going to beat myself up over this but with the second young lady we had one opportunity to present the Gospel message. (Her record sheet did state that her salvation date was when she was 5 years old, so that brought me comfort.) However, like I told the Staff, it is SO CRITICAL to make sure that we go thru the Gospel tract that AWANA provides (or some other form) with every visitor that attends because it may be the only opportunity we are given if they do not turn into a regularly attending clubber. I know that GOD IS IN CON- TROL of life and death (I do actually listen to what I preach! but the dates and will forever be etched in my mind and will serve as a sober reminder of how very important our job is here at Zion AWANA and as Christians! I love you and most importantly, GOD LOVES YOU!!! Cheryl Rose, AWANA Commander

6 NEWS FROM ZION CIRCLE OF PRAISE: Circle of Praise met Jan. 19th with 26 people present. We enjoyed a variety of finger foods for our meal. A short meeting was held afterwards to discuss the coming year. Note: Circle of Praise would like to invite all the adults from the church to our monthly get-togethers. We have a time of food, fellowship and fun each month. Look for the sign up sheet at the Welcome Center for our February meeting on the 16th at 6 PM. Our hosts for the evening will be Bob and Norma Busch and Amos and Violet Harris. Jeremiah House: We ordered pizza for the kids this week. We had 16 medium pizzas. There was none left. We had a smaller attendance due to the cold weather. Most of the kids walk to the Center. I am glad we didn't have the usual number of kids because we wouldn't have had enough pizzas. Wanda made her famous coconut no-bake cookies. Pastor Dallas really liked them along with the kids. Kathy and Chuck Jay came back to help the committee. We were glad to have them back. Since we had a simple meal, we had excess help. We have had such a good year so far. We hope we are touching the kid s lives in some way. They are a group of polite and well behaved kids this year. Next month we are planning to have chili and toasted cheese sandwiches. It was a hit a year ago. We ask that you pray for the kids to have a warm and safe environment. Serving for the Lord, Terry Martin LADIES GUILD: Zion ladies met Jan. 7 with 17 ladies present. The meeting started with a prayer and scripture from Bridget for the new officers for Two songs were sung and a short devotion was given by Elaine. The Secretary and Treasurer s report was read and approved. There was no old business. Page 6 In new business, the Soup Supper was discussed. It will be held March 9, Saturday from 5 to 7 PM. We will have noodle soup and butterballs, vegetable soup and ham & bean soups. Rye bread, vegetable trays and dessert bars will be served. Ticket prices will be $7.50 for adults, $5.00 for students 6-11 and children 5 and under $3.00. Monday, Feb 11 is tentative date to make noodles. We will put up posters and also advertise in the paper. In other business, Sunday, March 3 Lenten services will be here at Zion. The year books were discussed and will be given out at the February meeting where we will also fill the Valentine boxes for our students in college. We also discussed doing some fun activities at our meetings such as having a movie night. We ended the evening in prayer led by Janae. Our hostesses for the evening were Jane, Elaine and Teri. Missions Update Teri Erdman This month s mission s emphasis will be about Camp Rock. Camp Rock is a Christian camp for the Nebraska, Wyoming and Colorado tri-state region located at Redington, NE. Named for the "rock" landmarks which guided the pioneers through the area (Chimney Rock, Courthouse and Jail Rocks), Camp Rock has partnered with area churches for more than 60 years to Reach Others for Christ's Kingdom. Their mission s emphasis is to: Reinforce the efforts of churches in the Nebraska, Wyoming, and Colorado area to reach people with the Gospel and help them grow in Christ. Organize and offer quality events designed to help our churches evangelize and disciple. These events include camps, retreats, seminars, conferences, ministry trips, etc. (Continued on page 7)

7 Page 7 (Continued from page 6) Cultivate cooperation among believers by connecting energetic, passionate, servantleaders with committed Christians and with the spiritually curious. The main thing is: We are here to help people know Christ, and make Him known! Their new building was recently named after past director, Don Notz. Camp Rock has had a great answer to their prayer needs of They now have central heat and air conditioning in the Notz Building! And the best news of all: After much searching, interviewing and praying, they now have a new director for the camp. Their names are Art and Pam DeVos who have two children Hudson (4) and Ashton (8). They will be moving from Pennsylvania to their new home at Camp Rock early this February. Camp Rock s emphasis this year is a focus on having a monthly supported ministry rather than counting on income generating events as they have done in the past. This change was made in order to even out the peaks and valleys of their financial reports. It will allow a budget to be planned and followed through on. Camp Rock would also like more people to commit to regularly praying for their needs and share in their joys. They plan on keeping track of the volunteer hours of service to Camp Rock for According to an independent study, the value of a volunteered hour is worth $21.70! They are also looking for volunteers to help them this spring to get Camp Rock up and going for their summer events: Summer Open House - May 18, 2013 Junior Girls Camp week begins June 3, 2013 Junior Boys Camp week begins June 10, 2013 Intermediate Camp week begins June 17, 2013 Senior Camp week begins June 24, 2013 Wilderness Camp week begins July 1, 2013 Camp Rock Volunteer Appreciation Dinner - July 19, 2013 Camp Rock Fall Banquet, Gering Civic Center - October 25, 2013 Linda Peterson, Missions Secretary NEWS FROM ZION Sunday School As we start this New Year, I am still reminded of a poem that came out in December just after the massive school shooting and I can't seem to get it out of my mind, and I think it's worth sharing with everyone. Twas 11 days before Christmas, around 9:38 When 30 beautiful children stormed through heaven's gate. Their smiles were contagious, their laughter filled the air They could hardly believe all the beauty they saw there They were filled with such joy, they didn't know what to say They remembered nothing of what had happened earlier that day "Where are we?" asked a little girl, as quiet as a mouse. "This is heaven " declared a small boy, "We're spending Christmas in God's house." When what to their wondering eyes did appear But Jesus their Savior, the children gathered near He looked at them and smiled and they smiled just the same Then He opened His arms and He called them by name And in that moment was joy that only heaven can bring Those children all flew into the arms of their King. And as they lingered in the warmth of His embrace, One small girl turned and looked at Jesus face, And as if He could read all the questions she had He gently whispered to her I'll take care of mom and dad. Then He looked down on earth, the world far below, He saw all the hurt, the sorrows and woe, Then He closed His eyes and outstretched His hand Let my power and presence re-enter this (Continued on page 8)

8 NEWS FROM ZION (Continued from page 7) land! May this country be delivered from the hands of fools! I am taking back my nation, I'm taking back my schools! Then He and the children stood up without a sound Come now my children, let me show you around Excitement filled the space, some skipped and some ran, All displaying enthusiasm that only a small child can And I heard Him exclaim and He walked out of sight, In the midst of this darkness, I AM STILL THE LIGHT. Tell your loved ones you love them every day. Tell your teenagers, even if they don't think they need to hear it anymore. We never know what tomorrow brings. Please know you child(ren) are loved here at Zion Sunday School. Happy New Year! Sharon, Robin, Deb YOUTH - I thought I'd take this opportunity to inform parents (and anyone else who is interested) what their students have been learning if they have been participating in our youth activities. Our senior high Bible study is currently at the beginning of a study of the book of Revelation. We are currently working through the first few chapters including letters from Jesus to seven churches. In these letters, Jesus tells these churches what he sees them doing that pleases him and what he sees them doing that dishonors him. As we are studying, I am asking the students to think of themselves as young men and women who will be leaders in the churches they attend as adults and take special note of the things Jesus wants to see and not to see in the way his church interacts with the world. The seventh and eight grade students who are attending my Sunday school class are studying through the book of Proverbs with me. In it we are learning that in every area of life, God wants young people to see that there are two paths that are set before them: The way of wisdom/righteousness which leads to life and freedom and the way of foolishness/wickedness which leads to death and slavery. God has given his word, parents, and the instruction of wise people to help young people find wisdom. On the other hand, pride, naivety, and Page 8 temptation lure young people toward foolishness. We have discussions each week about the different areas of life in which students have to make a choice between wisdom and foolishness and the rewards and consequences of those choices. I have been really pleased lately with how much more talkative the class has become as they have become more comfortable discussing these issues in class. Our junior high group that meets on Thursday nights is learning the basics of the Christian faith. Our goal on Thursday nights is to have students invite friends who may not understand the Gospel message and make sure we teach them what it means to trust Jesus. This year I am slowly walking through all of the major teachings of the Christian faith in effort to help all the students understand what it means to trust Jesus and recognize they all need to make a personal decision to do just that. I am also teaching a similar type of series to our 3rd through 6th grade students during our Awana program on Sunday afternoons. Beyond the weekly meetings in which the focus is teaching our students the truths of the Christian faith, I'm also working hard to make sure our students know I'm interested in what goes on in their life away from church. We have students involved in all types of extracurricular activities. This has me moving from choir concerts, to basketball games, to swimming meets among other activities most weeks. In January, I had two firsts in terms of students' activities. I attended my first honor band concert and my first school sponsored bowling tournament. These activities are fun for me because I get the chance to see our students doing things they enjoy and at which they excel. I also enjoy seeing the way they interact with their classmates. Another thing I'm trying to do in order to build and strengthen my relationships with students is to plan activities designed simply to spend time together. In January, we planned two of these events. During the students' Christmas break, we got together at the church one night to play Gargon - one of their favorite games. At the end of the month, I invited my Sunday school class to our house for a movie night to give us an opportunity to spend time together and have a good time. My hope is that the relationships built between me and these students will make a real difference in how seriously they take the lessons I have for them during the week at Sunday school or youth group. Please continue to pray that God would take these efforts and use them to help our students grow in faith and wisdom as they take part in our youth activities. Andy

9 Page 9 NEWS FROM ZION Zion Evangelical Church Calendar February, 2013 SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY SATURDAY 1 2 GREBEL & COFFEE 7-10 A.M. 8:30 Worship & Praise 3 8:30 Heritage 9:15 Coffee & Fellowship 9:30 Prayer Team II 9:30 Zion & Emerald Ct 9:50 Take Twenty/Brothers 10:30 Worship & Praise 10:30 KCMI Broadcast 11:30 Communion/Chapel 2-4 Awana /Sports Day 4:00 Super Bowl Party@ Schicks 10:00 Bible Study/Village 7:00 Guild 4 10:00 Bible Study/Wel-Life 12:00 Ladies Bible Study 12:00 Men s Bible Study 7:00 Church Board Mtg 5 9:30 Staff Meeting 6:30 7th Grade Confirmation 7:00 Choir 7:30 8th Grade Confirmation 8:00 Sr High Bible Study 6 7:00 JR High Youth :30 Worship & Praise 8:30 Heritage 9:15 Coffee & Fellowship 9:30 Prayer Team III 9:30 Zion & Emerald Ct. 9:50 Take Twenty/Brothers 10:30 Worship & Praise 3:30 AWANA 4:15 Vespers/Residency 10:00 Bible Study/Village 11 10:00 Bible Study/Wel-Life 12:00 Ladies Bible Study 12:00 Men s Bible Study 6:00 Night 12 ASH WEDNESDAY 7:00 Lenten Service Plymouth 13 7:00 JR High Youth Circle of Praise 6:00 p.m. 8:30 Worship & Praise 17 8:30 Heritage 9:15 Coffee & Fellowship 9:30 Prayer Team IV 9:30 Zion & Emerald Ct. 9:50 Take Twenty/Brothers 10:30 Worship & Praise 3:30 AWANA 4:15 Vespers/Residency 7:00 Lenten Service - Hope Pastor Andy sharing 8:00 Noodle Making 10:00 Bible Study/Village 7:00 100th Anniversary Comm. Meeting 18 10:00 Bible Study/Wel-Life 12:00 Ladies Bible Study 12:00 Men s Bible Study 7:00 Jeremiah House :00 JR High Youth Valley Mobile Food Pantry 1:00 p.m. 22 4C s Women s Fellowship :30 Worship & Praise 8:30 Heritage 9:15 Coffee & Fellowship 9:30 Prayer Team V 9:30 Zion & Emerald Ct. 9:50 Take Twenty/Brothers 10:30 Worship & Praise 3:30 AWANA/Grandparents Nt. 7:00 Lenten Service - Salem Pastor Velhuizen sharing 10:00 Bible Study/Village 25 10:00 Bible Study/Wel-Life 12:00 Ladies Bible Study 12:00 Men s Bible Study 6:00 Night :30 7th Grade Confirmation 7:00 Choir 7:30 8th Grade Confirmation 8:00 Sr High Bible Study 6:00 KCMI Appreciation Banquet 7:00 JR High Youth 28