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Friends-
This is a month known mostly for love of a romantic sort, as we celebrate Valentine's Day, named for a man who was known for love of a serving/sacrificial/friendship sort. Love of a romantic sort sells more chocolate and flowers. And I'm for both of those and certainly for romantic love. Still, love of a serving/sacrificial/friendship sort has shown to be a more impactful, lasting sort of love. It is the sort of love that Jesus modeled for us with his life, and certainly by his death. As his followers, we are called to model the same, with those we know, those we don't, and even our enemies. After all, you probably won't buy your enemies a box of chocolates. It would be a good month to do some research (think Bible reading and study) on the life of Jesus and how he modeled this love for us. (John 15:1-17 would be a good place to start). It would be good to consider how we might model this love in our own lives. We will be talking about some of the attributes of this love on Sunday mornings. Let's learn together how to be love to a very hurting, needy world. I love you all! (in a serving/sacrificial/friendship way, of course!) Gary Calendar Sundays - Every Sunday Worship Service - 10:30 a.m. in person and via Zoom. 2/2 - Communion Sunday and Installation of Church Board Members. 2/9 - Chili-Cook-Off and Dessert Bake-Off following worship. Mondays - Every Monday Ordinary Time Bible Study/Fellowship - 5:30 PM - various locations 2/3 - Tim and Judy Murphy's home Wednesdays - 2/19 and 2/26 - Bible Study via Zoom - 7 PM 2/19 - Prayer Time - 1 PM - Sanctuary Thursdays - 2/6 - Church Board Meeting via Zoom - 7 PM Zoom - Contact Gary at [email protected] for Zoom link Other News - Board Members for 2025 - The 2025 church board members consist of Rita Gillette as clerk, Dave Walker as treasurer, and Nathalie Lyford as financial secretary. The deacons are Judy Murphy, Brittni Zick, and Kyle Zick. They are charged with the spiritual side of the church. The trustees are Curt Moore, Bob Lyford, and Tim Murphy. They oversee the physical building and finances. The communion preparers are Hannah Foley and Angela Green. The member-at-large position has not been filled yet. Thanks to Dave and Barb Kohl for their service as they step down from the board. Also, thanks to Karen Lassa and Jessica Boezem for their service as communion preparers in 2024. Board Installation - 2/2- The board members will be installed during the worship service on February 2. Please pray for them and Gary as they work together to guide, lead, and care for our church. Feel free to contact them if you have questions, concerns, or ideas. Chili Cook-Off and Dessert Bake-Off - 2/9 - Sunday, February 9, is our annual Chili Cook-Off and Dessert Bake-Off. Plan on staying after the worship service for some great food and friendly competition. The sign-up sheet is in the fellowship room. There are a few spots left. If you have your heart set on competing and the slots are full for chili and dessert, add your name anyway! There are a few random things to bring to help fill out the meal. You don't have to bring anything to come. Just be sure to come! Come hungry and with discerning taste buds! Who will get your votes? ( We will be done in plenty of time for the Super Bowl) Ordinary Time Bible Study/Fellowship - This new study is up and running on Monday nights at 5:30 P.M. We study and discuss different topics each week and enjoy some hearty snacks. The location does move, so if you are interested, text Gary if you want to know where we are meeting. The February topics are: love your enemy, lay up treasures in heaven, let your light shine, and judge not. Wednesday Night Bible Study - 2/19 and 2/26- If you want to study the Bible from home, consider the Wednesday night study that meets via Zoom. Rita Gillette is the leader. This study meets at 7 PM. In February, it is only meeting on 2/19 and 2/26. Prayer - 2/19 - Anyone who wants to pray or be prayed for is invited to the sanctuary on Wednesday, 2/19, at 1 PM. Also, a reminder that books and magazines are set aside in the office about prayer. Feel free to take some home and return when you are finished. Announcements - Just a reminder that announcements will made via the newsletter or emails. If you need something announced, please let Gary know and it will be sent to everyone by email. This way, everyone gets the same information. Looking Ahead - 3/5 - Ash Wednesday - Lent Starts 3/8 - Daylight Savings Time Starts - Set your clocks ahead one hour. 3/16 - St Patrick's Day Potluck - The day before St. Patrick's Day is a Sunday, so why not have an Irish-themed potluck? Plan on staying on Sunday, March 16, for our first-ever St. Patrick's Day potluck. We might do a sign-up sheet so everyone doesn't bring corned beef! One person has already volunteered for that, so be thinking of other Irish-inspired dishes you might want to bring. Wear green that day, even if you are not Irish Friends-
What will be different for you in the new year? What hopes, dreams, or plans do you have? I'm not a new-years-resolutions kind of guy, but I do look back on the year past and look ahead to the year coming. I try to remember what I learned and try to consider where God might be guiding me. I do ask God to guide my steps and to set me on the path of his choosing. Of course, none of us is privileged to know the future. That's why we need to pay such close attention to knowing God, and to sensing his nudges, prompts, and whispered words. We don't know the future, but he does. We don't know the future, so it makes the most sense to get to know the One who holds the future in his hand. Knowing about him is not enough. The best thing each of us could do to ensure a good 2025 is to renew our surrender to God and ask for his help in discerning and following his way. We will mess up. We will miss some directions. But as we continue to submit to him, we can be sure he will get us back on track. The real question is, who do I want to please- him or me? I pray you have a great month and a great 2025! With you in his service, Gary CALENDAR Sundays - Every Sunday - Worship Service - 10:30 a.m. in person and via Zoom. 1/5 - Worship Service and Communion Sunday - Pack up and put away the Christmas decorations after worship - Bring your coins for benevolence if you forgot in December 1/19 - Worship Service followed by potluck and annual meeting. Mondays - NEW! - Every Monday Ordinary Time Bible Study/Fellowship - 1/6 - Ordinary Time Kick Off with Potluck - 5:30 PM - church basement Wednesdays - Every Wednesday Bible Study via Zoom - 7 PM 1/15 - Prayer Time - 1 PM - Sanctuary Thursdays - 1/9 - Church Board Meeting via Zoom - 7 PM Other News - Zoom - email Gary at [email protected] for Zoom link. Upper Room - The January/February copies of the Upper Room Devotional are now available. Be sure to get one and perhaps take an extra for a friend or family member. Packing up Christmas Decorations - 1/5 - The sanctuary has looked spectacular this Christmas season, but it is time to say goodbye to our decorations. Please stay after church on 1/5 to help pack up and put away everything. Grab some coffee and snacks, then we will work together to take care of that. Ordinary Time Bible Study/Fellowship - Everyone should have received an in-depth email about this new study that will start in January and continue to April 14. Anyone interested will come together on Monday nights for study, reflection, and fellowship. The topics will be various teachings of Jesus. The first night is January 6 at the church at 5:30 PM starting with a potluck. Some weeks will be in homes and some at the church. If you are interested in hosting at your home or the church there is a signup sheet in the fellowship room. You do not have to be a host to come. This will be a great chance to know Jesus and each other better. Talk to Brtitni Zick or Gary if you have questions. Prayer Time - 1/15 - Gather in the sanctuary at 1 PM to pray or be prayed for. Annual Meeting and Potluck - 1/19 - Plan on staying after worship on Sunday, January 19 for our potluck and annual meeting. Bring a dish or two to share for the potluck if you can. The meeting is an important time to discuss 2024 and look ahead to 2025 in the life of our church. Look for your minutes via email from the January 2024 meeting. Read them ahead of the meeting if possible. Everyone's input is important. We hope to see you on January 19. Thanks - Thanks to Diane Upton for refurbishing our Sunday morning kids bags. Just a reminder that those are at the back of the sanctuary. They are full of good things for little children to do during worship. If someone is visiting with kids be sure to mention it to them as well. Thanks to Gary's office at Anderson Gardens for donating our beautiful poinsettias this year. The poinsettias will be looking for homes after church on 1/5, feel free to take one. Thanks to Judy Murphy who headed up our Caledonia School Christmas project. It was a very successful drive and we so appreciate all that Judy did. We also want to thank Judy and Tim for hosting our Christmas fellowship in December. It was a fun time of food and fellowship. Update on our Christmas Families - From Judy: Your generosity for the Christmas family project was overwhelming! You provided gift cards, gifts, and cash to brighten the holiday season for two deserving families. Walmart, Target, Woodman's, and Aldi gift cards helped the moms get ready for the holiday. Some of the cash was used to help catch up on bills. The rest was used to provide gifts of clothes, toys, books, art supplies, and gift cards for the boys. The moms are very grateful to you for your support. God is so good! Announcements - Just a reminder that we are no longer doing announcements on Sunday morning. If there is an announcement that is not in the newsletter it will be sent out as an email during the week. If you have something you want announced, please write it down and give it to Gary. Or send him a text with your information. The one exception will be the annual meeting and congregational meetings. To follow our constitution we must verbally announce those at least 2 times before the actual meeting. Reading about Prayer - If you are looking for books or magazines about prayer, check the counter in the office. Winter coffee pop up with Music - Looking for something to do this winter? Anderson Gardens is hosting a coffee shop pop-up and free music this winter. It is inside of their Fresco restaurant but run by Megs Coffee during this time. The coffee shop is open from 11-3 each of those days. There are drinks, simple sandwiches, and baked goods to purchase. From about 11:30 - 2:30 is live music. The majority of the music is musicians from the Rockford Symphony. There is usually a couple of them playing at a time. Occasionally there are some other types of musicians. It is a very relaxing environment. People are chatting, reading or just listening to the music. There is no entrance fee and you don't even have to buy anything if you don't want to. The view outside is beautiful. Weekends can be a little busy. If you have any questions, talk to Gary or Jennifer. Looking Ahead - Chili Cook-Off and Dessert Bake-Off - 2/9 - Start working on your favorite chili or dessert recipe to prepare for another friendly competition in early February! It will be held right after church on Sunday, February 9. Look for a sign-up sheet later in January. If you don't want to compete, there will be other things that you can sign up to bring. Be sure to bring your appetite! |
AuthorGary Schwerin, pastor Archives
April 2025
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