Dear Centenary Church Family:

Bring Water for the Service of Reaffirmation of our Baptismal Covenant this Sunday: The First Sunday After the Epiphany is traditionally observed as “The Baptism of Christ” in the liturgical calendar. This Sunday, January 13, 2008, we will have the opportunity to share together in a Congregational Reaffirmation of the Baptismal Covenant during our 10:15 AM service of Worship (using The Baptismal Covenant IV in our United Methodist Hymnal). Our worship service will encourage us to recall our baptismal covenant with God. As we remember our Baptism, the visual symbol will be the basin and water. Water is a central Christian symbol that reminds us of the cleansing power of God’s presence, and of our own Baptism, in which God has claimed us for all time.

We invite everyone who comes to the service this Sunday, January 13, 2008, to bring with them a small container of water. It can be water straight from the tap; a portion of bottled spring water; or water from a different source. For example, if you will be traveling to a different part of the state, nation or world between now and January 13, you might consider bringing a small amount of water back from your travels. We will all be invited to pour our gifts of water into a single container Sunday morning, and from this mixture of many different waters from many different sources we will draw forth the basins of water that will be used during our Baptismal Covenant Reaffirmation.

Assistant Pastor Terrilisa Durham Bauknight will share a special word with the children this Sunday, following which those children and youth from PreK through 12th Grade will be invited to participate in Sunday School classes. My morning Message, Remembering Whose You Are, will be focused on Baptism and will be drawn from the recounting of Jesus’ Baptism in the Gospel of Matthew 3:13-17, as well as from Peter’s account to the other apostles in Jerusalem of his baptism at Caesarea of the family of Cornelius, a Roman official, from Acts 10:34-43. Following the Service of Baptismal Reaffirmation, during the Offertory, our Chancel Choir will sing Come to the Water by John B. Foley, S. J., using a choral setting by Jack Schrader. Our Celebration of Found Coins for January is designated for the Raritan Valley District Church Union.

Centenary Book Club—The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls: We hope will join us in the Sunshine Room tomorrow, Friday, January 11, 2008, at 7:30 PM for what will once again prove to be a great read and even better discussion and fellowship.

Food Collection—Sunday, January 20: 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 in the New Year. Please consider sponsoring a refreshment time and signing up for one of the many available weeks on the new 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 in the New Year. A new 2008 Flower Chart has been 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.

2008 Weekly Offering Envelopes Are Still Available on the table in the hallway beneath the Mission bulletin board (near the Men’s Room). Please check the boxes and take your packet of envelopes (arranged alphabetically) home with you…and please take a packet for a neighbor or friend, if you see it still there. Mailing out these offering envelopes costs quite a bit per set, so by taking them with you, you assist us greatly in reducing mailing costs. We expect to mail the remaining envelopes next week. If you do not find a packet of envelopes with your name on them and wish to have a set, please notify the Church Office, and Sue Brownlow, our Financial Secretary, will prepare a set for your use. We encourage everyone to use these envelopes to share their gifts with the church as it makes it much easier for our financial teams to maintain accurate giving records throughout the year. Thank you.

Annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebratory Service
Sunday, January 20th @ 3:00 PMat New HopeBaptistChurch
Members of the Centenary Church Family are encouraged to attend, as we gather to remember and celebrate Dr. King’s faith and commitment to civil rights, human justice, non-violence, and international peace.

Breakfast Fit for a King
1st Annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Breakfast
Monday, January 21, 2008
8:30 to 10:00 AM at the Pines Manor
The Metuchen Chamber of Commerce and the Metuchen-Edison-Woodbridge YMCA are joining together to offer an opportunity for the community to unite in celebration of this great man and his enduring message at the 1st Annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Breakfast. Musical entertainment will feature the uplifting and harmonious voices of local choir members who have come together to form the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Choir. The ensemble choir is the brainchild of the Rev. Mark McCreary of the Second Baptist Church of Metuchen. In conjunction with the breakfast, local middle school students were invited to submit an essay that addresses the question, “What does the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. mean to our community?” One winner from each grade 5-8 will be selected and invited with their families to the breakfast. These distinguished students will read their winning works, and each will receive a $100 savings bond. The keynote speaker for the breakfast is Jennifer Lewis-Hall, a network journalist, motivational speaker, author and proud Metuchen resident.
Please join us at the Pines Manor, 2085 Route 27 in Edison, on Monday, January 21, 2008 from 8:30 to 10:00 AM. Admission is $10.00, and reservations can be made by contacting the Metuchen Area Chamber of Commerce at 732-548-2964.

The Annual Ash Wednesday Service
of the Centenary, New Doverand Wesley United MethodistChurch
Congregations Will Be Held on February 6 at 7:30 PM.
This year’s service will be held at New Dover United Methodist Church, 687 New Dover Road, Edison, NJ. Pastors Darryl Duer (New Dover UMC), John Kwon (Wesley UMC), Terrilisa Durham Bauknight and John Painter will share in leading this annual service marking the beginning of Lent. The choirs of the three congregations are preparing special music for this service. During the service there will be an Imposition of Ashes. There will be a time of fellowship and refreshment in following the service. Child Care will be available. Everyone is encouraged to come and share in this special service, as we begin our 40-day Lenten journey to Calvary’s Cross and the Garden of Resurrection.
For your planning this year, please note that Easter will be Sunday, March 23, 2008…only one day shy of the earliest it can ever occur (March 22). This accounts for the early date for Ash Wednesday, which is observed for the 40 days (less Sundays) prior to Easter.

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.

Some Thoughts for This Week:

The physical presence of other Christians is a source of incomparable joy and strength to the believer. – Dietrich Bonhoeffer

Telescopes and microscopes can display the design, but only the eyes of faith can see the Designer. – Charles Swindoll

Egotist: a person more interested in himself than in me. – Ambrose Bierce

It gets late early out there. – Yogi Berra

All truth passes through three stages. First, it is ridiculed. Second, it is violently opposed. Third, it is accepted as being self-evident. – Arthur Schopenhauer

Keep your face in the sunshine and you can never see the shadow. – Helen Keller

Like taking a morning shower, make the planting of positive thoughts a daily practice. – Neil Eskelin

Life is not measured by how many breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away. – Unknown

Do not pray for tasks equal to your powers. Pray for power equal to your tasks. – Phillips Brooks

Anything worth worrying about is worth praying about.

The person who says it cannot be done should not interrupt the person who is doing it.

Maturity doesn’t come with age or intellectual wisdom, only with love. – Ruth Casey, from A Woman’s Spirit by Karen Casey

Character is what you are in the dark. – Dwight L. Moody

It is easier to acquire a good reputation than to lose a bad one.

Not forgiving is like drinking rat poison and then waiting for the rat to die. – Anne Lamott, Traveling Mercies

You had better live your best and act your best and think your best today: for today is the sure preparation for tomorrow and all the other tomorrows that follow. – Harriet Martineau

If we neglect the present moment, we may throw away all we have.

Next Sunday, January 20, 2008:
9:00 AM– Adult Study – Nooma Series (Sunshine Room
10:15 AM– Worship & Sunday School (PreK Children through 12th Grade Youth)
The Second Sunday After the Epiphany / Human Relations Day
Youth Sunday: Members of our Centenary United Methodist Youth
Fellowship will plan and lead the service on a theme related to the
birthday observance of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Lectionary Readings: Isaiah 49:1-7 1 Corinthians 1:1-9
Psalm 40:1-11 John 1:29-42
11:30 AM– Fellowship Time (Room 20)
12:30 PM– Dreaming FellowshipChurchWorship, SS, Fellowship
(Sanctuary, Parenting Room, Chapel, Room 20, Sunshine Room)
3:00 PM– Martin Luther King, Jr. Service (New Hope Baptist Church)
5:45 PM– Junior Choir Rehearsal (Music Room)

Prayer for the Week of January 13: Gracious Triune God—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—in whose name we pray, and bless, and baptize: Come into our presence, into our lives with your heavenly power. We long to see you touching us as your Spirit touched Jesus. We want to hear you calling us your daughters and sons, your beloved children, as Jesus heard your voice. We are too often reserved, and seldom do we acknowledge those moments that are uniquely from heaven. Immerse us in Jesus’ baptismal story this week. Amen.

Painters’ Winter Vacation Plans: Tina and I will be traveling to Florida for a mid-winter vacation beginning next Friday January 18th. We plan to board the Auto Train in Lorton, VA, that afternoon and arrive in Orlando on Saturday morning. We expect to leave Florida by Auto Train on Friday, February 1st and arrive home in Metuchen on Saturday evening, February 2nd. During my absence, Assistant Pastor Terrilisa Durham Bauknight will be “on-call” for pastoral care emergencies. Please contact the Centenary Church Office if you have need of pastoral care. Or when our Church Office is closed, you may contact Pastor Bauknight directly at 908-419-4101 (cell).

In the meantime, I look forward to sharing with many of you in study, Worship and Christian Fellowship this Sunday at Centenary.

Shalom, John