News of the Family from The United Presbyterian Church at Whitinsville

Transcription

1 The New Covenant News of the Family from The United Presbyterian Church at Whitinsville Inside this issue: Holy Week Schedule Volunteer Schedule 2 Birthdays 2 Men s Retreat 2 Pastor s Piece 3 Book Club 3 Coffee Fellowship 3 Financial Update 4 Peace of Bread 4 Second Sunday Social 4 Financial Peace Univ. 4 Jesus Christ Super Star Concert Yard Sale 5 Easter Flowers 5 KMHMC 5 Clothing Drive 6 Piece of Peace 6 Beacon of Hope Award Calendar 7 Annual Easter Festival Front 5 6 Back April 2017 Holy Week Schedule Jesus Christ Superstar - April 8 at 7pm Jesus Christ Superstar is a timeless work set against the backdrop of an extraordinary and universallyknown series of events but seen, unusually, through the eyes of Judas Iscariot. Come enjoy this concert. A freewill offering will support the Friends of Peace of Bread. Palm Sunday April 9 at 10:30am Join us for Palm Sunday as we remember the sacrifice that Jesus made for us on the cross and the love poured out on our behalf. This service will be structured around the reading of the Passion story and is a powerful way to enter Holy Week. Maundy Thursday April 13 at 7pm During our Maundy Thursday service this year, we will relive Christ s last days on earth and walk with him as he journeys towards the cross. The service will conclude with listening to a sung version of the Passion story and with the stripping of the cross. Good Friday April 14 Two opportunities for worship are available on Good Friday. Trinity Episcopal Church is hosting a traditional Good Friday Service at noon, and Pleasant Street Church is offering a contemporary service at 5pm. Easter Festival April 15 from 9:30-11am This year s Easter Festival welcomes children of all ages to join us for crafts, games, face painting, and a massive Easter Egg Hunt. We hope to see you there! The United Presbyterian Church at Whitinsville 51 Cottage St. (church) - 7 Spring St. (office), Whitinsville, MA Phone: Website: Office office@whitinpres.net Pastor Renn rev.renn.serna@gmail.com Office Hours: 12:00 PM - 4:00 PM Monday & Wednesday 8:00 AM - 12:00 PM Thursday & Friday *The church office is CLOSED on Tuesdays. Continued on page 4 In case of emergencies, please call

2 Page 2 ~ April ~ Ministries Apr 2 Apr 9 Apr 16 Apr 23 Apr 30 Worship Leader Welcome Center Z. Morin A. Reichert G. Shannon R. Thomas M. Thomas R. Thomas H. Platt J. Baker M. Spalton S. Santoro Greeter Offering Counters A. Castonguay J. Baker & G. Giemza K. Ireland- Bilodeau T. Schelin & G. Giemza T. Morin C. Frieswyk S. Mateer D & S Mateer M. Reynolds & M. Thomas M. Austin & C. Pilbosian April Birthday Corner Zadok Emerick 4/9 Andrea Whitney 4/17 Elizabeth Kloczkowski 4/23 Anniversaries Aaron & Renn Serna 4/24 John & Carol Pilibosian 4/27 Stepping Up: A Call to Courageous Manhood Friday, April pm Saturday, April 22, 9-3 pm Today, more than ever, the world needs godly men. Men who will step up and courageously lead at home, at church, at work, and in their communities. That s the message of Stepping Up. In a world where too many men are shrinking back, Stepping Up gives men vision and tools to live godly, courageous lives. Join us for this one day men's retreat and learn how to Step Up in your own life. Contact Chris Matchett at for more information. If the church office doesn t have you/your family s birthday/ anniversary information, let your church family celebrate your special days with you. Please call Alice in the office at or the office at office@whitinpres.net so we can include your birthday/anniversary dates in the Sunday bulletins and monthly newsletter. **Sunday Morning Worship Schedule** Adult Education Morning Worship Service Coffee Fellowship 9:30AM - 10:30AM 10:30AM - 11:30AM 11:30 AM For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I in the midst of them Matthew 18:20

3 Page 3 Pastor s Piece Easter is by far my favorite holiday, though my appreciation of it has matured over the years. When I first started going to church in high school, I loved the flowers just starting to bloom, the incredible music that was played during worship, and the laughter of little kids as they ran around collecting Easter Eggs from around the church. Now, I am struck by the amazing grace that was poured out for us on the cross. The stark contrast between the utter despair of Holy Week to the joy of Easter morning fills me with an undeniable sense of grace and draws me ever closer to my Savior. There is so much richness to the Christian story - walking with Christ during his last days, entering Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, sharing the last supper with him on Maundy Thursday, retelling the passion story of Christ being nailed to the cross. It moves me to tears seeing the church stripped bare on Maundy Thursday and knowing that it was my sin in part that sent Jesus to the cross. Then, to awaken on Easter morning to the empty tomb, knowing that Jesus has overcome death and forgiven my sins, fills me with such an indescribable joy. To know that our Savior loves us so much that he willingly suffered on our behalf so that we wouldn t have to, is such a gift. And to know that in Christ, we too can be born again and washed clean from all of our past sins and failures, there is just no feeling like it in the world! I would invite you to join us as we observe Holy Week and Easter this year. We have a number of worship opportunities for you to come and experience the story once again. This year for Palm Sunday we will be retelling the whole Passion story, starting with Jesus entering into Jerusalem and ending with Christ s death on the cross. This will be a moving time of scripture reading and song and will help prepare us to walk with Christ to the empty tomb. Our Maundy Thursday Service will be a little different this year as we ll be walking through the last days of Jesus life, starting with handwashing and communion and ending with confession and death. This will be a powerful way to relive the depth of suffering that Christ went through on our behalf so that we can better know the full joy of Easter morning. And then, of course, we have our Easter Celebration on Sunday morning where we sing of God s praises and celebrate the good news of the Resurrection. Our Easter Service will be a special one, filled with uplifting music, a message of love and a special time for the children. You don t want to miss it! There are many great opportunities to reach out and worship in the coming month, and I hope that you will consider inviting a friend and joining us. Easter, indeed, is a wonderful time of the year, and there is no better way to celebrate it than by lifting our voices in praise! Sign up at church to volunteer for Coffee Fellowship Women s Book Club for March will be Friday, April 21st at 6:30 pm. They will be discussing the book The Women of Easter: Encounter the Savior with Mary of Bethany, Mary of Nazareth, and Mary Magdalene by Liz Cutis Higgs. Contact the church office for more information.

4 Second Sunday Social April s Second Sunday Social will be provided by the Deacons in appreciation for everyone s work throughout the year, Sunday April 9th following the morning worship service. Peace of Bread It s our turn to serve at Peace of Bread Wednesday, April 19th We need help preparing and servicing the meal. Contact Gaye Shannon if you can help anytime between 3-7 pm, Apr 19th. Continued from front page Holy Week Schedule Continued Easter Sunrise Service April 16 at 6:45am The NAC Easter Sunrise Service will be held on the Whitinsville Town Common starting at 6:45am. Refreshments will follow at Trinity Episcopal Church. Page 4 Easter Celebration April 16 at 10:30am Celebrate the JOY of the Resurrection with us and remember the Good News of God's love. We have fantastic music planned and an uplifting message that the whole family will enjoy. This is a great service to invite your friends and family to, so consider bringing a guest. Financial Update Our Endowment Task Force has been working diligently for the past six months is nearing the end of their work and has put forth a recommendation to Session to establish a Reserve Fund and an Endowment Fund through the Presbyterian Foundation. These funds will help us meet any unexpected expenses that might arise and to help us plan for our future. The complete report along with some additional information on the Presbyterian Foundation will be available to pick up at the Welcome Center or from the Church Office over the next couple of weeks. We will be holding a Discussion Forum after worship on April 23 to continue our ongoing discussion about the ministry and mission of our congregation and to discuss this possible next step for our congregation. This is a great time to ask questions and share your thoughts with our church leadership. If you are unable to join us, please feel free to speak with the Session or members of the Endowment Task Force directly. We are excited to be in the position to plan for the future and to ensure the lasting legacy of our congregation through diligent stewardship and prayer. Thank you for all that you are doing to make this possible and keep on praying for God s wisdom to be revealed! Financial Peace University New Class Starting Soon We all need a plan for our money. Financial Peace University (FPU) is that plan! It teaches God's ways of handling money. Through video teaching, class discussions, and interactive small group activities, FPU presents Biblical, practical steps to get from where you are to where you've dreamed you could be. This plan will show you how to get rid of debt, manage your money, spend, save wisely, and much more! Dave Ramsey's world renowned program is coming to our church this Spring, and we want you to join us! This 9 week program meets 6:30 8:00 pm Thursday evenings, starting on April 20th and will teach you real world tools to gain control of your finances. The entire program costs $99 per family, and guests are invited to join for only $ Registration is required, so please talk to Leslie Reichert to signup. More information about the program and testimonies from those who have participated can be found at

5 Page 5 Easter Flowers for Our Church W ould you like to help enhance the beauty of the church sanctuary for our Easter service? Bring some flowers or a plant to the church on Saturday, April 15th, between 10:00AM and noon. Place a marker with your name in the arrangement so that you can retrieve it easily after the service. Jesus Christ Superstar musical concert on Saturday. April 8 th at 7:00 pm at the United Presbyterian Church of Whitinsville, 51 Cottage Street. Huge Yard Sale April 29, :00AM to1:00pm to benefit the United Presbyterian Church of Whitinsville Furniture, Tools, Household Goods, Artwork, a large selection of Toys, Books, Games, Sports and Exercise Equipment, and Porcelain Dolls will be for sale on the lawn and inside the church basement. In addition, Lunch will be for sale inside the church basement as well as a Bake Sale hosted by the Kathryn M Huston Mission Circle. Donations Needed for Yard Sale Donations can be dropped off April 8 & April 22 from 9-12 Clothing Fundraiser Spring Cleaning? We need your clothes and small appliances. This drive is supporting the Friends of Peace of Bread. We are teaming up our clothing drive along with the UPC annual yard sale. People can bring their clothing and small appliances to the yard sale. Clothing should be clean and in a large plastic bag. Small appliances should come in boxes. If you can't donate on the day of the clothing drive, just contact the church office to make arrangements for a drop off or pick up We will have pickup trucks parked outside for your donations during the yard sale (April 29 from 9-1) Please complete the form below. All forms must be into the church office by April 13 to be printed in the bulletin for Easter Sunday, April 16th. Easter flowers will be donated by: (complete as appropriate) They will be in memory of: They will be in honor of: (cut out and drop in offering plate or mail to Church Office, 7 Spring St., Whitinsville, MA 01588, or information to office@whitinpres.org) (please print) Kathryn M Huston Mission Circle The KMHMC will meet at Suzanne Santoro s home on Friday, April 21, at one o clock. Harriet Platt is the Hostess for this gathering. Suzanne will continue leading the Bible Study on Love, one of the Nine Fruits of the Spirit. Come and enjoy the afternoon of fellowship! The Mission Circle will be hosting a Bake Sale at the Yard Sale on Saturday, April 25th! Any donations would be greatly appreciated! All proceeds will benefit a variety of mission causes! Please bring items on Friday evening from 6-8:30 PM. When the doors open Saturday, there is a mad dash for the Bake Sale. All food needs to be already priced to accommodate the public.

6 Page 6 "He provides them with security, and they are supported; And His eyes are on their ways. Job 24:23 Last Wednesday when I walking into Peace of Bread, Sylvia ran up to me and said, Wait until you see this! I immediately wondered what this was going to be. Every week at POB I m surprised and awed at the things God is doing there. I know I should always be in awe of what God is doing but I should never be surprised. Sylvia asked me to follow her, so back into the clothing room we went. All over the floor were bags of cloths. And I m not talking about a few bags, but at least thirty bags of donated clothes. Sylvia and I couldn t stop giggling. Just a few days prior we had come up with the idea of doing a clothing drive to support the Friends of Peace of Bread. We had just gotten the approval to do the drive the night before. We had to laugh because God not only knew what we were going to need but provided a starting point so we would know it was His plan to do the clothing drive. We will be collecting bagged clothing on April 29th from 9 AM to 2 PM during the United Presbyterian Church s yard sale. We will have pickup trucks parked along the side the church where you can put your donations. Our goal is to collect 600 bags of clothing or small appliances (those have to come in a box) so we can help support the work of Peace of Bread. After seeing what God did overnight we are thinking we will need a fleet of trucks to hold all the clothing that s going to be donated. Join us on Saturday, April 29 and let s watch God work. You can go to this link to make a pledge or learn more: Piece of Peace We have always, always been blessed by the generosity of our church family, countless volunteers & the community at large. We are so grateful for every prayer said, food item donated & monetary gift given. Lately our ministry at Peace of Bread & the Emergency Shelter have had so many incredible & generous donations graciously given to us, it has been incredible to see. We have been humbled & amazed to see God at work inspiring people to reach out & support our efforts. - Special thanks goes out to Whitney Place & Beaumont in Northbridge for their "Random Acts of Kindness Month" that donated food staples to our food pantry, clothing to our Free Clothing Room & many lovely blankets & afghans to our Shelter. - Special thanks to Woonsocket Glass Fabricators (one of our new volunteer groups) for donating 15 brand new comfy cots to our shelter! - Special thanks to UniBank for their generous "Employee Jeans Day" donation to our shelter. - Special thanks to the Blackstone Valley Chamber of Commerce for a huge food donation to our food pantry from their Business Expo. Every donation we receive, both big & small alike, is a true blessing. So much goodness to be thankful for. Peace of Bread Community Kitchen, Wednesdays 5:30 pm Beacon of Hope Award Congratulations to Mike and Laurie Sabourin along with the entire Peace of Bread Team who were recognized by the Knights of Columbus for their tireless service to our community through our free weekly meal on April 1st at a Reward and Recognition night. Thank you for making such a difference!

7 9:30 Sunday School 7:00 PM Session Prayer Meeting 4:30 PoB Bible Study 7:00 PM Lay Leadership 6:00 AM Men s Bible Study 8:00 AM Minor Prophets Bible 10:30 Worship Service 5:30 Peace of Bread Study 11:30 Coffee Fellowship 6:15 Peace of Music 9:00 AM Yard Sale Drop Off 9:30 Sunday School 7:00 PM Trustees 4:30 PoB Bible Study 7:00PM Maundy Thursday 6:00 AM Men s Bible Study 8:00 AM Minor Prophets Bible 10:30 Worship Service 5:30 Peace of Bread 12:00 Good Friday Study 9:30 Sunday School 7:00 PM Session Meeting 4:30 PoB Bible Study 6:30 PM Financial Peace University 6:00 AM Men s Bible Study 8:00 AM Minor Prophets Bible 10:30 Worship Service 5:30 Peace of Bread UPC SERVING 1:00 PM KMHMC Study 11:30 Coffee Fellowship 6:15 Peace of Music 6:30 PM Women s Book Club 9:00 AM Yard Sale Drop Off 9:30 Sunday School 6:30 PM Deacons 4:30 PoB Bible Study 6:30 PM Financial Peace Universit 6:00 AM Men s Bible Study 8:00 AM Minor Prophets Bible 10:30 Worship Service 5:30 Peace of Bread Study 11:30 Coffee Fellowship 6:15 Peace of Music 8:00-1:00 Yard Sale 30 Notes 9:30 Sunday School April 2017 Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday :30 PM PrimeTime :00 AM Minor Prophets Bible Study 7:00 Sermon Discussion 7:00 PM Jesus Christ Super Star 7:00 Choir Practice 9 Palm Sunday Passover 12 2:30 PM PrimeTime Good Friday 15 11:30 Second Sunday Social 6:15 Peace of Music Trinity Episcopal 9:30-11:00 AM Easter Festival 7:00 Sermon Discussion 5:00 PM God Friday 7:00 Choir Practice Pleasant St Church 16 Easter Earth Day 7:00 Sermon Discussion 7:00 PM Men Stepping Up 9:00 AM Men Stepping Up 7:00 Choir Practice :30 PM PrimeTime :30 Discussion Forum 7:00 Sermon Discussion 7:00 Choir Practice 10:30 Worship Service 11:30 Coffee Fellowship

8 NON-PROFIT United Presbyterian Church of Whitinsville U.S. POSTAGE PAID Permit No Cottage Street Whitinsvile, MA Phone: News of the Church Family from the United Presbyterian Church at Whitinsville whitinpres.org Our Annual Easter Festival is coming up on Saturday, April 15 from 9:30 to 11am and we'd love you to join us. Whether you are young or old, we need your help! Every year our church hosts this fun event for children of all ages, which includes an Easter Egg Hunt, cookie decorating, and egg dying. Children from our community and our church join us and it is a great way to share the love of God with those who don t know him yet. Volunteers are needed to help with refreshments, welcoming our guests, running the various activities and cleaning up afterwards. Donations of individually wrapped candy for our Easter Egg Hunt are also greatly appreciated! Please contact Gaye or shannons.jg@gmail.com and let her know how you can help!