It's Almost Time!

I'm getting very excited about our event on Saturday. Tickets are all sold, auction items have been logged in and the bidding has started. We already have over $1200 in bids! Whoo hoo!

I want to thank you all for being supportive of this event. I especially want to thank those who’ve helped who aren’t even going on the mission trip.

Although a lot has been done so far, we still have a lot to do! 

THIS WEEK Ironing! Anytime the church is open or after, PLEASE let me know if you can iron tablecloths!! The ironing board is set up in the far right room of the lighthouse area. This is an especially good opportunity for your support if you have not brought in donations. We have LOTS of tablecloths to iron. (I can't stress this enough) Bring your own iron and ironing board if you can. Let me know when you can help. 

Saturday Morning: Arrive at 9:00 to help set up. And rehearse the entertainment. Hopefully we'll be done by noon, if not before. I will expect you to be able to stay the entire time. Other than setting up the sanctuary, auction tables, and coat check areas, we will be talking about how we will be serving dinner. 

Saturday Afternoon: Come on back to church at 4:30 dressed in black bottoms – skirt or pants and a nice white top (with sleeves). Also, closed-toed shoes are required for when we are serving. (You will be in the kitchen at some point.)

I will also expect EVERYONE (Parents and Youth) to help clean up and set up for worship on Sunday. If we all work together it won't take very long. 

You have all worked so hard already, thank you! If you have any questions or concerns PLEASE let me know!

Your sister in Christ,

Nancy

Are you doing anything special for Lent?

Since Ash Wednesday, I've been going to a website called Journey to the Cross. On this site, they provide a daily devotion for Lent. I find that some days, these devotions are just what I need to keep me focused on God that day, and help me to prepare for the joy that is Easter. Here is an excerpt from Friday's devotion:

"How can you tell?"

That's a fair quesition whenever someone makes a prediction of what is going to happen, or even when they give an explanation for what is happening now. 

There are signs for those who will see them.  Take time now to watch for the signs God has for you.

Mark 1:14-15

After John was arrested, Jesus went to Galilee and told the good news that comes from God. He said, "The time has come! God's kingdom will soon be here. Turn back to God and believe the good news!

from Bruce Reyes-Chow

I am a procrastinator. I like to tell myself that I do better under pressure. The truth is, I like to put things off until the last minute when a deadline is staring me down and I have to get it done. The pressure of a due date is enough to get me moving and finish the project. 

Faith is sometimes like that. Sometimes there are things that happen that jolt us into the realization that to follow Christ is to live differently; not tomorrow, not next week, but today. Unlike writing a paper, though, it's not about the adrenaline rush and performance under pressure, but the reality that God calls us every day to be different and better than we were the day before. And that is not something we can put off until tomorrow. 

If you'd like to participate in these daily devotions as well, I encourage you to visit www.d365.org/journeytothecross

What is Lent?

This is directly from the website BibleGateway.com:

Lent is the span of time in the church calendar that starts with Ash Wednesday and ends with Easter Sunday. Ash Wednesday commemorates the beginning ofJesus’ 40-day fasting and temptation in the desert, and Easter Sunday commemorates Jesus’ resurrection from the grave after his crucifixion.

Lent, then, is generally observed as a time for Christians to reflect, repent, and pray as a way of preparing their hearts for Easter. It is commonly observed by many Christian denominations—Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran, and others—although not every Christian church or denomination does so. Because Lent is not officially instituted in Scripture, observing it isn’t in any way a “requirement” of Christianity. However, Christians from many different theological persuasions choose to observe it as a way of focusing their thoughts on Jesus Christ during the Easter season.

How does one observe Lent? It differs from person to person and church to church, but some of the things Christians opt to do to observe Lent include:

• On the first day of Lent (Ash Wednesday), some Christians mark their foreheads with ash as a symbol of sorrow and mourning over their sin. (See Job 42 for an example of ash used as a symbol of repentance.)
• Special worship services, or additions to regular worship services, that focus in various ways on man’s need for repentance. This often takes the form of extra Scripture readings and prayer.
• Some Christians choose to give up a habit or behavior during Lent as an exercise in prayerful self-denial. This might range from something as simple as not drinking soda during Lent to a full-blown program of fasting.
• Some Christians commit to a special devotional activity during Lent—for example, daily Scripture reading, regular prayer for a specific person or topic throughout Lent, or volunteer work in their community.

The choice to observe Lent is a personal one—the whole point is to focus your heart and mind on Jesus during the journey to Easter. There’s no requirement to observe it, nor should you feel guilted into participating. However, millions of Christians around the world do observe Lent each year; if you’ve never done so, why not give it a try? Whether you observe Lent in a small or major way, you’ll be amazed at what happens when you devote a part of each day to reflecting on Jesus Christ and God’s Word.

We invite you to consider other ways that you can deepen your relationship with Jesus over the coming weeks. Whether you call it “Lent observance” or “daily devotions” or anything else, time spent reflecting on Jesus Christ is time well spent!

A Night Out is coming up soon!

Even if you aren’t planning on joining us in Cincinnati or Washington DC this summer, we’d appreciate your help and support!

Here are some details:

Auction:

All of the youth who are attending the mission trip are expected to offer some sort of service that will take at least 2 hours of your time that we can auction off. (Those of you who are going on BOT trips might consider 2 services, or a longer service….) We’ve talked about this, so it should be nothing new. This service should be something useful for people to bid on. I need to know by Wednesday, March 7^th  what you will be offering as your service. Please fill out a donation form (available on the church bulletin board.) You will also need to make up some sort of certificate that the winner can take home, with your information on it and the specifics of your service. See me if you have any questions.

Families are strongly encouraged to donate or bring in a donation (restaurant certificates, sports tickets, sports paraphernalia, themed baskets, etc). These donations should be brought to Geneva by Wednesday, March 7^th. Please make sure that you fill out a donation form (found on the bulletin board.) If you have any questions or can’t bring in your donation by March 7^th, please let me know.

Entertainment:

All youth are encouraged to help with the entertainment that night – jokes, poetry reading, musical selections, skits, dances, songs (or other ways to entertain that you can think of.) I’d like all the selections we do that evening to be for the glory of God. Please choose your song, etc. wisely! Let me know if you want to be a part of the entertainment that evening, and we will set an audition time when it’s convenient for you. You can audition up until Wednesday, March 14.

I have 1 skit planned and 1 reader’s theater planned. Scripts will be available starting Sunday, February 19. Let me know by February 26 if you’d like to participate in either the skit or the reader’s theater (or both!) (or if you have your own skit in mind.) We’ll start rehearsals on Sunday, March 4.

Setting up/Serving/Cleaning up:

We will need some people to start ironing anytime the week before the dinner. (This might be a good job for those of you going on both trips!) We begin set up on Saturday, March 24 at 9:00.

When we come back in the afternoon (4:30?) to begin serving, we’ll wear a white shirt and black pants or skirt. Please consider what kind of footwear you will be wearing. (Close-toed shoes are required for being in the kitchen, and everone who is serving will be in the kitchen at some point) Extra high heels will be hurting your feet by the end of the night!

Everyone who is attending the mission trip is expected to stay and clean up afterwards. If we all work together, it gets done faster!

As we get closer to this event, you’ll be getting a lot more information. It’s going to happen sooner than you think!

Attitude is Everything

I am a firm believer in this much-used saying. We don’t always have the power to change our circumstances, but we do have the power to change our attitudes. When we change our attitude to reflect love, hope and faith, it can make all the difference in the world!

I came across this quote by Charles Swindoll, Christian author, and I wanted to share it with you:

The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life. 



Attitude, to me is more important than facts. It is more important than the past, than education, than money, than circumstances, than failures, than successes, than what other people think or say or do.



It is more important than appearance, giftedness or skill. It will make or break a company ...a church ...a home.



The remarkable thing is we have a choice everyday regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day. We cannot change our past ...we cannot change the fact that people will act in a certain way.



We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have, and that is our attitude ...I am convinced that life is 10 percent what happens to me and 90 percent how I react to it. And so it is with you... we are in charge of our attitudes.

Kudos!

Just a little message here to say how proud I am of you middle schoolers! You are always amazing me with your insights, your attitudes and your eagerness. I can always count on this group to volunteer, do anything that is asked of them, and to lead by example!

During Breakfast Club, I've heard there have been some awesome conversations with questions and answers and opinions and faith! That is so exciting for me to hear. This is an amazing time of learning in your lives, and I'm happy that you are understanding the importance of learning about God and growing closer to him as well.

This middle school group has stepped up numerous times to help serve and lead. With each act of service and each time you help lead kids' worship, you are showing what it means to be a true Christian. Your love for Christ is evident!

Merry Christmas!

One week left until we celebrate the birth of our Savior! I know I still have shopping and wrapping to do, dinner to plan and of course rehearse for the Nativity Play on Christmas Eve. This year, without any of my 'biological' kids around (Ian and Hannah) has felt different at our house. It was more difficult for me to 'get into the Christmas Spirit' with just my husband and I at home.

It just didn't feel "Christmas-y" until my whole family was together. Sure, I'd put up decorations and started listening to Christmas songs, but it just didn't feel right. Yesterday, I was reflecting on this. I realized how important it is for me to be able to share the joy of the Christmas holiday and the love of Christ with my family.

Then I got to thinking about all the people who DON't have family to share Christmas with. There are a lot of people who are alone for any number of reasons this holiday season. Maybe their loved ones are far away, maybe they've passed away or maybe they are just alienated from them. I feel very blessed to have my family here to give love to and receive love from this year.

You might know someone who might be hurting or sad or lonely this Christmas. I hope you can  remember those people who might be struggling through loneliness, poverty, illness or grief. Show them the love of Christ with a smile, a warm touch, a telephone call or a visit. Ask God to give you eyes so you can see these people whom you can love.

Blessings for a joyous Christmas,

Nancy