A publication of New Joy Lutheran Church, ELCA for partners in ministry, friends of New Joy and newcomers to our community

Transcription

1 Journeys Will Bevins Vicar...of a spirited community called by God A publication of New Joy Lutheran Church, ELCA for partners in ministry, friends of New Joy and newcomers to our community February 1, 2019 Volume 21 Issue 1 Lenten Encounters with Jesus Jesus returned from the Jordan River full of the Holy Spirit, and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness. -Luke 4:1 Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent, falls on March 6 this year. Christians around the world will receive the sign of the cross on their foreheads as a reminder that Jesus knows and loves us amidst our suffering and frailty. Lent s 40 days recall the trials of Jesus in the desert, and end with Holy Week, the remembrance of Jesus trial and execution. Even as we emphasize this holy season in the church, it may have little impact on our lives outside of New Joy. That said, I encourage us to consider how Lent forms us as Christians all year long. Frankly, I never paid Lent much thought, but a single Ash Wednesday in a hospital changed my understanding of this church season forever. That particular Ash Wednesday was my first as a chaplain at Johns Hopkins Hospital. In preparation, my department held an all-hands training, a rare event in itself. Our director opened the training: Ash Wednesday is the biggest religious festival we ll see all year. We need all our chaplains to be ready. Senior chaplains then taught us how to impose ashes, using each others foreheads for practice (what an odd thing to practice!). We signed up for shifts in the chapels to ensure coverage from sunup to sundown, and we created a daylong schedule that allowed at least one chaplain to visit every floor in our town-sized hospital. But why was Ash Wednesday so popular in the hospital? None of the senior chaplains claimed to know for certain perhaps they wanted us to see for ourselves but they said that hospital chaplaincy departments reported the same trend. Ash Wednesday arrived. My supervisor had scheduled medical students to shadow chaplains throughout the day, and at first I felt overwhelmed to have another duty on such a busy day. As the day passed, patients gratefully received ashes and prayers, reminders that they were not alone in their time of need; Jesus was with them. Many patients cried tears of relief, and when I debriefed medical students after visits, many of them cried, too. The medical students had witnessed, for the first time, how a patient s spiritual and emotional needs commingle with medical needs, and are sometimes even more acute. Beginning with his trials and culminating in his execution, Jesus chose to be subject to the range of human experiences, including suffering, so as to be the Savior who meets us where we are, no matter what we face, and that Ash Wednesday in the hospital, I witnessed Jesus presence amidst the suffering. Lent is the church s reminder that the Savior who rises in triumph over death at Easter is the same Savior who comes to us in our own suffering, temptations, and fears. I look forward to the journey we undertake together at New Joy this Lent and Easter, as our outreach ministries touch new lives, as we continue to gather and worship our risen Lord and Savior, and as we come to better know the Christ who knows us. I thank God for the vision of our community, to be a place of welcome, peace, and neighborly help, and pray the Spirit continues to lead us in our wilderness encounters. Peace, Vicar Will 316 W. 156th St. Westfield, IN (317)

2 From Your Ministry Board President... Alexa Helm The chill in the air outside is no match for the warm welcome inside New Joy s doors this season. Pastor Chris has officially taken his leave for deployment, but we have been gifted a great servant of Christ in our interim minister, Vicar Will. He is a great match for the spirit of New Joy, and he embodies the radical welcome we embrace. This is also a time of great excitement and revival at New Joy as we kick off plans to bring in a Learning and Discipleship coordinator, construct an outdoor pavilion and register many lucky kiddos for our Preschool opening this fall. Feel free to share your talents and ideas! It s so exciting to feel like we can spread God s word and love with the community. Help us spread this love, won t you? If there is someone you think needs a smile or some extra (New) Joy during these grey winter months, ask them to join you for a worship service or at Messy Church! Whether they take you up on the offer or not, they will know you cared enough to ask. If you personally haven t been around to see us lately, we miss you! Stop by and say hello, have some coffee and doughnuts and meet Vicar Will. We d love to catch up! Until we see you again, Grace and Peace in this new year, Alexa Helm New Joy Board President New Joy Outreach Information We are off and running in 2019! I can t even begin to tell you all how excited I am for the new partnerships and opportunities we ll have this year. In this first part of the year, we will serve Habitat for Humanity of Hamilton County twice (at the ReStore and on a repair day), we will prepare for our first week of hosting families in our building through Family Promise, we will collect and put together hygiene kits for our neighbors, we will have supplies for Open Doors spring cleaning project, we will volunteer on-site at Open Doors, we will serve our community a fabulous Easter Breakfast with an egg hunt AND build a playground for our brand new preschool! I don t know about you but when I look at these opportunities, Matthew 25 is pressed into my heart a little more. I m looking forward to living the gospel with you! Amber

3 Tell Your Friends! Tell Your Neighbors! New Joy Preschool is currently registering students for next Fall! Class sizes limited. See our website For all the Details! Preschool Playground Build Day March 23 Anyone interested in helping us build our new Preschool Playground is welcome to join us on Saturday, March 23, at 9:00 am. We have a playhouse to construct, slides to install in the hill, a sandbox to place and fill, balance beams to construct, and more! We want our preschool friends to have a wonderful place to play! Help us make this playground a reality! VBS TEAM MEETINGS It is not too early to start planning our Vacation Bible School week! There will be a VBS Team Meeting on Sunday, March 3, at 10:45 and another on Sunday, April 28, at 10:45 for anyone wanting to help out with this year s VBS week. Questions? See Dale Ressler

4 Messy Church Messy Church meets one Wednesday a month, beginning at 5:30 pm until 7:20 pm. Come when you can...leave when you must. Families of all ages are invited to come together, where they will enjoy a meal, worship and a variety of activity stations including crafts, science, drama, recreation, and more! Come join us! Our upcoming dates are: Wednesday, February 13 Wednesday, March 13 Wednesday, April 10 Ash Wednesday Service Wednesday, March 6 This year Ash Wednesday falls on Wednesday, March 6. There will be two opportunities for the distribution of ashes: 10:30 am Bible Study 7:00 pm Ash Wednesday Worship Service Holy Week Schedule Palm Sunday Sunday, April 14 9:30 am Good Friday Friday, April 19 Worship@ 7:00 pm Easter Sunday Sunday, April 21 Worship@9:30 am MIDWEEK LENTEN SERVICES During the season of Lent, we will hold three midweek Soup Supper Lenten Services. The dates are: Wednesday, March 20 Wednesday, March 27 Wednesday, April 3 We will begin the night at 6:15 pm with a soup supper, followed by a short worship service at 7:00pm. Everyone is invited to join us as we prepare our hearts and souls for this special time of the year.

5 Are you curious where the Holy Spirit might be leading you? Are you feeling a sense of call to serve the church in a new way? Are you curious about becoming a leader in the ELCA? Consider attending the Discernment Retreat to explore your calling and future ministry leadership. Spouses are encouraged to attend. Cost $90 (includes lodging and 4 meals) Registration Deadline: February 22, 2019 Location: Camp Mowana, 2276 Fleming Falls Road, Mansfield, OH Questions? Contact Rev. Laurie Miller, Lmiller@neos-ela.org If interested, please see the New Joy Church office for registration form. DISCERNMENT RETREAT March 1-2, 2019 Fri. 12 pm Sat. 2 pm Youth Group All students in grades 9-12 are invited to be part of our Youth Group! They meet most Sundays after worship. Here are the scheduled dates for the rest of the school year: Feb. 3, Feb. 10, Feb. 17, Feb. 24, Mar. 3, Mar. 10, Mar. 17, April 7, April 14, April 28, May 5, May, 12, May 19 and May 26. Questions? Contact Kasey Rewolinski or the church office, office@newjoy.org or TGIF Together Growing in Faith Any 4th-7th graders are invited to be part of our TGIF Group! They meet twice a month for fun and fellowship, and they also do service projects. They will meet, at New Joy at 4:30 pm on the following Sundays: February 10, February 24, March 10, March 24, April 14, May 5 and May 19. Come join the fun! We would love for you to be a part of the group! MINISTRY FAIR, MARCH 24 Mark your calendars for a celebration! On Sunday, March 24, we will highlight the many ministries of New Joy through a Ministry Fair! See photos from programs and events, and hear stories from New Joy Partners. Ministries include outreach to our community, mission trips, support for Sunday worship, and much ore! Plus, learn about new ministry partners such as Habitat for Humanity, and Family Promise, and other opportunities this year to show love for our neighbors and put the gifts we are given to work for others. Stay tuned for more information, and contact Vicar Will if you have any questions.

6 Easter Egg Hunt And Pancake Breakfast Open to the Community When: Saturday, April 13, 2019 Breakfast: 9: am 11: am ~ Egg Hunt: Starts Promptly at 9:30 am Separate Egg Hunt for Children Under 3 Where: New Joy Lutheran Church 316 W. 156th Street Westfield, IN Corner of Springmill & 156th Street Breakfast Includes: Pancakes, Bacon, Sausage, Fruit, Juice, Milk & Coffee A Free Will Offering will be accepted to help defer the costs of the Youth Mission Trip to Louisville, KY this summer There will be a Bake Sale, too!

7 FEBRUARY BIRTHDAYS 02/03 Adam Yoder 02/08 Glenn Hoffman 02/10 AJ Sparano 02/10 Kenten Weyant 02/12 Frank Suchomel 02/13 Tony Trullinger 02/23 Jennifer Castle 02/24 Nolan Bozarth 02/27 Brennan Canavan 02/27 Bill McAfee MARCH BIRTHDAYS 03/01 Dusty Janes 03/17 Greg Bozarth 03/04 Sam Rewolinski 03/19 Alissa Bandejas 03/04 Erik Susag 03/19 Lara Barrett 03/04 Esther Susag 03/19 Sasha Paul 03/04 Andrew White 03/20 Jane Montgomery 03/05 Morgan Seaman 03/23 Nancy Dickerson 03/05 Addison Studer 03/24 David Stovall 03/08 Noel Moon 03/29 Richard Higgins 03/11 Emily Blevins 03/30 Debbie Seaman 03/14 Everett Moyer APRIL BIRTHDAYS 04/02 Gabe Classick 04/03 Dave Heck 04/04 Colin Studer 04/04 Clair Weyant 04/06 Don West 04/11 Barb Berg 04/11 Alexa Helm 04/12 Lisa Simmons 04/13 Paula Classick 04/17 David Barrett 04/19 Lou Sparano 04/20 Lily Reier 04/21 Payton Seaman 04/22 Hattie Moyer 04/27 Silke Barrett 04/29 Elliot Clancy 04/29 John Nore 04/30 Delaney McAfee

8 The people of New Joy worship every Sunday at 9:30 a.m. at the corner of 156th & Springmill Rd. And no matter if you ve worshiped before in your life, or if this is a brand new thing for you, there s lots of room for you to explore your own life and your own faith -new or old- here at New Joy. If you want to talk about it, call ! You re always welcome! New Joy Lutheran Church is a spirited community called by God to extend a radical welcome, share a generous grace, nurture a transforming faith, and live God s promise. Extend Radical Welcome New Joy Lutheran Church is a spirited community that welcomes, values, accepts, and nurtures all people wherever they are in their relationship with God. Share Generous Grace New Joy Lutheran Church is a spirited community that freely proclaims that forgiveness, mercy, love, and salvation are free gifts of God s grace. Nurture Transforming Faith New Joy Lutheran Church is a spirited community that receives faith as a gift of God that transforms us and the world. Live God s Promise New Joy Lutheran Church is a spirited community that boldly lives in our Lord s promise of renewed and everlasting life. New Joy Lutheran Church, a congregation of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America New Joy Ministry Board Alexa Helm, President Debi Heck, Vice President Tim Clancy, Treasurer Sam Rewolinski, Secretary Tony Trullinger, Board Member Nancy Dickerson, Board Member

9 February 2019 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 1 2 Groundhog Day 3 4 1:00 pm Confirmation. 5 7:00 pm Program Ministry Teams 6 7 Prayer -HS 6:30 pm Golden Girls 6:45 pm Great Banquet 8 9 8:00 am Men's Breakfast 10 10:45 am New Mem- Ber Class 4:30 pm - TGIF :00 pm Mapleton HOA 6:30-4-H Club 13 5:30 pm Messy Church 14 Valentine's Day Prayer -HS :45 am - New Mem- Ber Class. 18 Presidents Day 19 7:30 pm Finance Team Prayer -HS 6:30 pm Women's Devotion :00 am Men's Breakfast 24 10:45 am New Mem- Ber Class 10:45 am Hygiene Kit packing 1:00 pm Confirmation 4:30 pm TGIF :00 pm Ministry Board Prayer -HS

10 March 2019 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat :30 pm Worship 10:45 am VBS Team Meeting 11:00 am Youth Gp. 1:00 pm Confirmation 10 Daylight Saving Begins 9:30 am - Worship. 1:00 pm Confirmation 4:30 pm - TGIF 4 9:15 am Mom's-in- 11 9:15 am Mom's-in- 6:30 pm 4-H Club 5 10:00 am Preschool Board Meeting 1:00 pm -Calendar/ Admin Meeting 7:00 pm Program Ministry Team Mtg 12 6 Ash Wednesday 10:00 Distribution of Ashes 7:00 pm Ash Wednes- Day Service :30 pm Messy Church 7 6:45 pm Great Banquet 6:30 pm - Women's Devotion 8 9 8:00 am Men's Breakfast Saint Patrick's Day 9:30 am - Worship 1:00 pm Confirmation. 18 9:15 am Mom's-in- 19 1:00 pm - Calendar/ Admin Meeting 7:30 pm - Finance Team 20 Spring Begins 6:15 pm Soup Supper 7:00 pm Lenten Service :00 am Men's Breakfast 9:00 am Preschool Playground Build 24 9:30 am - Worship 10:00 am - Ministry Fair. 4:30 pm - TGIF :15 am Mom's-in :30 am - Bible Study 6:15 pm - Soup Supper 7:00 pm - Lenten Service 7:30 pm - Ministry Board 7:30 pm - Band 6:30 pm - Women's Devotion 29 Break Starts Starts 30

11 April 2019 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 6 1 Break 2 Break 3 Break 6:16 Soup Supper 7:00 pm Lenten Service 4 Break 6:45 pm Great Banquest 5 Break 7. 8 Prayer K-8 6:30 pm 4-H Club :30 am - Bible Study 5:30 pm Messy Church 11 6:30 pm Women's Devotion :00 am - Pancake Breakfast & Easter Egg Hunt 14 Palm Sunday 1:00 pm Confirmation. 4:30 pm - TGIF 15 Prayer K :30 am - Bible Study 1:00 pm - Calendar/ Admin Meeting 7:30 pm Finance Team Good Friday 7:00 pm - Good Friday Service Easter 22 Prayer K :30 am - Bible Study 7:00 pm - Ministry Board 25 6:30 pm Women's Devotion :00 am - Men's Breakfast 9:00 am - Habitat for Humanity Repair Day 28 1:00 pm - Confirmation Trip to IMA. 29 Prayer K-8 30