Washington Post. the. Pastor s Letter

Transcription

1 M A R C H N E W S L E T T E R the Washington Post Pastor s Letter Moving Stones Roll away your stone, I ll roll away mine/ Together we can see what we will find/ Don t leave me alone at this time/ For I am afraid of what I will discover inside Mumford & Sons, Roll Away your Stone I realize that the words to that song are perhaps better for Easter. But I like them for helping to discover who we are during wilderness walk of Lent. I like them because we walk together, finding support and nurture in God. We are at the edge of the wilderness time and are completely dependent on God for everything we need. Is that frightening? Oh Yes! Is it scary? Yes! But it will be so wonderfully and spiritually fulfilling walking together and with God! Jesus has us by the hand as we look inside ourselves. Remembering that in a few short weeks, after the introspection the stones will be rolled away, and resurrection will happen. God s got this! There is a prayer in Seasons of the Spirit: Traveling Companion God, journeys and new things can seem daunting, even overwhelming. Yet somewhere in our heart of hearts, no matter what, we know that you are with us as we venture forth. Remind us, throughout the journey, that your grace upholds our every moment. Amen. And so it begins! Ash Wednesday at. at Washington with Zwingli with the Imposition of ashes. Wednesday night Lenten services begin at 7:00 p.m. It will be good to worship in the quiet and peace of the evening at the end of a long day. Alone time, Yet together time with each other and with God. Priceless. I noticed, online, that CNN is going to be airing FINDING JESUS: FAITH, FACT, FORGERY, beginning March 5 th at 8:00p.m. I have no idea if this will be a good series and hesitate to recommend it, but I have found these things very interesting if you are interested in the historical Jesus. They use artifacts for each segment. March 5 th will be: The Pilate Stone; March 12, Raising Lazarus; March 19, The Childhood home of Jesus; March 26, The Tomb of Herod; April 2, The Bones of St. Peter; April 9, Doubting Thomas. Blessings Dear Ones, Together we will walk into the arms and the heart of Christ, our baggage in tow, our sins forgiven, brokenness healed. Grace and mercy abound! Pastor Mary

2 CONSISTORY MEETING February 1, 2017 PRESENT: Renee Henning, Larry Hummel, Dave Klossner, Charlotte Hartwig, Russ Torkelson, Emily Wild, & Tiffany Valentine. ABSENT: Kevin Quinn and Deb Losenegger. The meeting was called to order by Vice - President Renee Henning. SECRETARY S REPORT: Minutes from the January meeting were read. Russ made a motion to approve the minutes. Dave second the motion. Motion passed. TREASURER S REPORT: Offering received in January were $8,246 and $100 in miscellaneous monies. Expenses for January were $8,551 leaving a current net loss of $205 and a. YTD loss of $205. Charlotte made a motion of a corrected budget total of $116,484 to be $118,881. Renee second the motion. Dave made a motion to approve the treasurer s report. Larry second the motion. Motion approved. PASTOR S REPORT: Pastor Mary reported making many hospital and home visits. She s been invited to attend the installation of the new pastor of Darlington. BUILDING AND GROUNDS: Terry Beutel, Greg Wild & Pete Graber have been installing the camera and sound system to be used in the basement. CHRISTIAN EDUCATION, YOUTH & CONFIRMATION: Confirmands will be on a retreat February at Bethel Horizon near Dodgeville. They will be partnering with 1 st Congregational, Madison. MEMORIAL COMMITTEE: No Report. SUNSHINE: Doing good work. MISSION & STEWARDSHIP & EVANGELISM: We will be hosting Family Promise February Russ thanked Tiffany Valentine for all she does for Family Promise and welcomed her on the consistory. MUSIC & WORSHIP: Lenten Services begin March 1 at 7:00 p.m. We host Zwingli. OLD BUSINESS: There was a discussion on air conditioning. NEW BUSINESS: There was some discussion on how we can reimburse our treasurer for all the hours she spends doing the treasures report. She estimated she spends 100 hours for the year. This business was tabled until March. Charlotte made a motion Renee Henning serve as our new President. She declined the nomination. Renee made a motion Kevin Quinn be our new President. Larry second the motion. Motion passed. Russ made a motion to adjourn. Charlotte second the motion. We closed with the Lord s Prayer. Attendance for January was 114. March Meeting will be Tuesday, March 7. Marie Pagel, Secretary

3 GREEN CARES FOOD PANTRY NEWS January was a very busy month at Green Cares. The pantry provided food to 294 households 909 individuals! This is the first time we have served over 900 individuals. Of note, 116 of these individuals were age 60 and over. 51% of the individuals served in January were children or individuals over the age of 60. Have you heard of ALICE? No, not your neighbor Alice, but a United Way sponsored report completed in several states, including Wisconsin. ALICE stands for : Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed. We would recommend you review this study you can find it at These are two of the Wisconsin findings: Traditional measures hide the reality that 42 percent of households in Wisconsin struggle to support themselves. Forty-four percent of senior households in Wisconsin qualify as ALICE, well more than the 8 percent in poverty. Recently the New Glarus Elementary School students, parents, faculty and staff held a fundraiser for Green Cares. The fundraiser was coordinated by New Glarus High School Seniors. Not only was food provided to the pantry, they raised more than $2,400!! Here s a picture of one of the loads of food along with a High School Senior coordinator and New Glarus faculty members. Together we can make a difference! Bill and Kay Dickson, Green Cares Volunteers

4 THIS & THAT Lenten Worship Schedule Wed. Mar 1 Ash Wed. 7:00 p.m. Wed. Mar 8 7:00 p.m. Wed. Mar 15 7:00 p.m. Wed. Mar 22 7:00 p.m. Wed. Mar 29 7:00 p.m. Wed. Apr 5 7:00 p.m. Sun. Apr 16 Easter 9:15 a.m. (Communion) All Worship Services at Washington Reformation UCC Easter Flower Order Form If your would like to purchase an Easter Flower for our Easter Celebration, please let us Know by Sunday, March 26. We are purchasing the flowers from Pick N Save. Please indicate which Flower and how many you would like to order. The flowers are $7.50 each. Please make checks payable to Washington Reformation. Please give your Money & order form to Lori in the office. Please write in the number of flower(s) you want in the blank next to the flower. Don t forget to write in who it is given by. Lily Tulip Hyacinth Daffodil In Memory Of Given By In Celebration Of Easter Given By In Honor Of Given By Amount Due

5 SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY SATURDAY :15 am Worship Confirmation 12 9:15 am Worship Confirmation 19 9:15 am Worship/Baptism Confirmation 26 9:15 am Worship Confirmation 6 7 6:30 p.m. Consistory Every Sat Church 8-9 am Desi & Tara Breadon, They have a new addition to their family. Callum Gavin Breadon was born February 4th. He weighed 7 lbs 14 and was 21 inches long. Mia is his awesome big sister. Our Christian Sympathy To the Family of Michael Bidlingmaier, He Passed Away On February 3, 2017

6 1 Gary Gempeler 2 Taylor Gafner 3 Shery Zurfluh 4 Emily Wild 4 Maeci Roesslein 5 Evelyn Ritschard 5 Kinzley Boeke 8 Charlotte Hartwig 8 Carson Aeberhard 9 Dennis Cleaveland 11 Ally (Prigge) Kramer 12 Trent Siegenthaler 16 James Damon 19 Don Luchsinger 20 Jan Zimmerman 21 Amy (Ritschard) Ruffin 25 Shelli Roberts 26 Cory Ritschard 29 Courtney Foulker 30 Kenna Edge 16 Jason & Courtney Jeremiason 18 Bob & Shery Zurfluh 28 Tom & Karen Eyler Participants March 5 March 12 March 19 March 26 Acolytes Amber Horn Kaelyn Thoman Jaydan Hummel Logan Bauman Hannah Clark Addison DiCristina Miah Brokopp Sara Brokopp Liturgist Kaelyn Eyler & Lisa Aeberhard Jan Olson Kevin Quinn Joyce Hummel Nursery Joyce Halvorsen Karen & Sami Gierhart Joyce Halvorsen Kristine & Mia Wahl Ushers Gary Gempeler, Lonnie Arn, Raland Ritschard and Russ & Sue Torkelson Joyce Halvorsen & Gary Gary & Stephanie Gempeler Anthony & Brenda DiCristina David Ruegsegger, Larry, Steve & Brock Hummel Walt Bandi Gempeler Cleaning Greg & Emily Wild Jessica & Hayden Judd Gwen & Dwaine Thoman Nancy Studer Deb Losenegger Chili Day Raffle Winners: Quilt Lena Fink Fleece Blanket Bob Durtschi

7 March 5, 2017 First Sunday in Lent Genesis 2:15-17; 3:1-7 Psalm 32 Romans 5:12-19 Matthew 4:1-11 Scriptures for the Month March 12, 2017 Second Sunday in Lent Genesis 12:1-4a Psalm 121 Romans 4:1-5, John 3:1-17 Matthew 17:1-9 March 19, 2017 Third Sunday in Lent Exodus 17:1-7 Psalm 95 Romans 5:1-11 John 4:5-42 March 26, 2017 Fourth Sunday in Lent 1 Samuel 16:1-13 Psalm 23 Ephesians 5:8-14 John 9:1-41 Worship Service: 9:15 am : Ash Wednesday 7 p.m. Lenten Wednesday Worships 7 p.m. 10:30 am Office Hours: Tuesday Friday 10-1 pm You can contact us at: Office 608/ washingtonreformation@tds.net Your can find us on Facebook & We are on the web

8 WASHINGTON REFORMATION UCC N6026 CHURCH RD MONTICELLO, WI MARCH 2017 NEWSLETTER Lets Go Green! Here s an easy way to Help the environment & the church save on expenses. Sign up for delivery of the newsletter. ing is free! This is a great way to save paper and postage. (& Go green) Just sign up with Lori or send an to washingtonreformation@tds.net