Sunday, February 10, 2008 – The First Sunday in Lent
Dear Centenary Church Family:
We will gather in our Sanctuary for Worship this Sunday at 10:15 AM on The First Sunday in the Season of Lent. I will share a special word with the children, after which those in Pre-K through 12th Grade will be invited to participate in Sunday School classes. My morning Message, What Are You Giving up for Lent?, will be based on the Gospel reading from Matthew 4:1-11. We will also share in the reading from Psalm 32. Our Harris Ringers will play a Sonatina in C by Muzio Clementi, arranged by Martha Lynn Thompson. Our Chancel Choir will sing Go Not Far from Me, O God (from “Christus e Miserere”) by Zingarelli. Our Celebration of Found Coins is designated for the Greater NJ Annual Conference Media Center.
As Church Council Chairperson Jim Iacone indicated in the February edition of The Lamplighter, members of the Centenary Church Council will be available immediately after our Worship service this Sunday to share in a brief presentation on our current financial situation, and to answer any questions you may have.
TGIF Intergenerational Dinner and Lectionary Discussion and a lot of fun together will meet this Friday, February 8 from 6:30-8:30 PM. A barrel offering is taken to defray the costs for the meal and materials. Persons of all ages are invited and encouraged to attend.
Centenary Book Club will meet at 7:30 PM this Friday, February 8, in the Sunshine Room (following the TGIF Meal). We will discuss Midwives: A Novel by Chris Bohjalian The Centenary Book Club is open to men and women ages 18 and older. See you there for some great discussion and review.
PANCAKE BREAKFAST
Saturday, February 9, 2008
8:00 – 11:00 AM
Only $7.00 per person
Children 10 and under – $5.00
Proceeds will be designated to
Centenary United Methodist Church
to support ministry and mission outreach programs.
A Memorial Service for Sue Ann Markwood, the daughter of Doris Miller and former daughter-in-law of Dorothy Brown will be held this Saturday, February 9 at 2:00 PM in our Sanctuary. The Centenary Family is invited to join with Sue Markwood’s family in celebration of her life, and then share together in a time of fellowship and light refreshments following the service.
ADULT CLASS OFFERS SPECIAL LENTEN PROGRAMS: During the Lenten season, Centenary’s Adult Class will be offering two Easter-themed programs.
Easter is a celebration of spring and new life. Join us at 9:00 AM in the Sunshine Room on February 10, 17, and 24 as we discover the real inspiration behind the customs, symbols, and special music that have come to mean so much during the Easter season. Learn the history of Lent and Passion Plays, the tradition of Sunrise Services, and the stories behind such great Easter hymns as The Old Rugged Cross, Christ the Lord is Risen Today, and Because He Lives. The resource we will be using for this study is Ace Collins’ book, Stories Behind the Traditions and Songs of Easter.
Then, for the three Sundays leading up to Easter (March 2, 9, and 16), we will be investigating the evidence for the resurrection of Jesus. Of the many world religions, only one, Christianity, claims that the founder returned from the grave. The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the very cornerstone of Christianity. But a dead man coming back to life? In our sophisticated and science-minded age—two thousand years after the first Easter—can we still take such a claim seriously? As our primary resource of this study, we will be using Lee Strobel’s book, The Case for Easter: A Journalist Investigates the Evidence for the Resurrection. The author was educated at Yale Law School and was the award-winning legal editor of the Chicago Tribune and a spiritual skeptic until 1981. He also has written The Case for Christ and The Case for Faith.
Wednesday Evening Lenten Bible Study
Behold the Lamb of God
February 13-March 19 @ 7:30 PM
Pastor John Painter will lead a six-week Wednesday evening Lenten Bible Study from 7:30-8:30 PM beginning on Wednesday, February 13, and continuing through Wednesday, March 19. The focus of the study will be Behold the Lamb of God based on the readings from the Revised Common Lectionary.
In this study written by Simon Peter Iredale, we are reminded the season of Lent is more like ascending the Himalayas than going for a pleasant walk in the park. Iredale invites us to explore together the foundations of our faith and through reflection and prayer see how strong these foundations are in our hearts. As he guides us through the Lenten texts, we pass through three gardens.
First, we will pass through the garden of paradise in Genesis and seek to understand how the events that Genesis describes affected every succeeding human generation. We will pass through Gethsemane, the garden of decision, and strive to understand what Christ has achieved for us through his suffering. When we reach Easter Day and the garden of Christ’s resurrection, we will discover that God gives us something—a new resolve, a sense of sins forgiven, and a deeper insight into God’s compassion for us.
Copies of the Lenten Bible Study text, Behold the Lamb of God, are available in the Church Office for those who will be participating in this series. As part of your Lenten discipline, you are invited to bring your favorite translation of the Bible and your copy of Behold the Lamb to participate in the readings and discussion on these six Wednesday evenings in Lent. Weekly attendance, while desirable, is not required…please come as you are able.
Food Collection—Sunday, February 17: Please bring cereals, staple food items in plastic jars or cans, and paper products to share with persons in need in our area. We are deeply grateful for your generous sharing. Special Appeal for Diapers and Infant/Toddler Food for Amandla Crossing: Your assistance is needed to provide diapers (sizes #4, #5 & #6…not pull-ups) and infant & toddler food for children at Amandla Crossing. Please bring the items to Centenary and leave them in the boxes provided in the Narthex. Thank you. —Your Mission Committee
Refreshments: Persons are invited to sponsor the time of coffee and refreshments following our Sunday Worship services. Please consider sponsoring a refreshment time and signing up for one of the many available weeks on the 2008 Refreshment Chart in the Narthex. Information on what you need to provide is available on the information sheet next to the Refreshment Chart. Thank you for providing hospitality on a Sunday morning.
Flower Arrangements for 2008: Persons are invited to sponsor flower arrangements for our Worship services. A 2008 Flower Chart is posted in the Narthex. Floral arrangements cost $25.00 each week to sponsor. Information is available from our Flower Chairperson, Linda Serentino (732-940-2135) or by calling the Church Office. Thank you for providing these beautiful tributes for our Sunday services.
Some Thoughts for This Week
Friends are angels who lift us to our feet when our wings have trouble remembering how to fly.
Hold fast to dreams, for if dreams die Life is a broken-winged bird that cannot fly. – Langston Hughes
Blowing out someone else’s candle won’t make ours shine any brighter.
When we are down to nothing, God is up to something.
Fear knocked at the door. Faith answered. And lo, no one was there. – Anonymous
All of us are watchers — of television, of time clocks, of traffic on the freeway — but few are observers. Everyone is looking, not many are seeing. – Peter M. Leschak
Evaluation of the past is the first step toward vision for the future. – Chris Widener
When the solution is simple, God is answering. – Albert Einstein
If you planted hope today in any hopeless heart,
If someone’s burden was lighter because you did your part,
If you caused a laugh that chased a tear away,
If tonight your name is mentioned when someone kneels to pray,
Then your day was well spent.
A ruffled mind makes a restless pillow. – Charlotte Bronte
The birth of Christ brought God to us; but it took the cross of Christ to bring us to God.
When you judge others, you do not define them, you define yourself. – Earl Nightingale
People do not care how much you know until they know how much you care. – Daily Bread
Everyone wants the world changed, but few are willing to change it themselves.
Prayer for the Week of February 10: We thank you, O God, for the words of the Bible where Jesus found strength to resist the tempter. We thank you that Jesus knew the power of temptation so that when we look to him we know we are accepted and understood. We thank you for this season of Lent where we can be purposeful about our struggle with temptation. We ask you to help us to practice a courageous honesty in examining ourselves in the light of your love. And we ask you to help us to go beyond self-examination to focus on your grace that accepts us as we are and begins to transform us. In the strong confidence of your unconditional love teach us to resist all that would stand in the way of our knowing you. Help us to say “no” to evil and to say “yes” to you. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Next Sunday — February 17, 2008:
9:00 AM– Adult Study – Stories, Traditions & Songs of Easter (Sunshine Room
10:15 AM– Worship & Sunday School (PreK Children through 12th Grade Youth)
The Second Sunday in Lent
Preacher: John D. Painter Theme: For God So Loved…
Lectionary Readings: Genesis 12:1-4a Romans 4:1-5, 13-17
Psalm 121 John 3:1-17
11:45 AM– Fellowship Time (Room 20)
5:45 PM– Junior Choir Rehearsal (Music Room)
I look forward to sharing with many of you in Study, Worship and Christian Fellowship on this First Sunday of Lent at Centenary.
Shalom, John