- Foothill Notes

Volume MMVIII Number 3 March 2008

Ministry vs. Job

Some people have a job in the church .
Others invite themselves into a ministry.

What’s the difference you ask?

If you are doing it just because no one else will, it’s a job.
If you are doing it to serve the Lord, it’s a ministry.

If you quit because someone criticized you, it’s a job.
If you keep on serving, it’s a ministry.

If you’ll do it as long as it does not interfere with your other activities, it’s a job.
If you are committed to staying even if it means letting go of other things, it’s a ministry.

If you quit because no one thanked you or praised you, it’s a job.
If you stick with it even though no one recognized your efforts, it’s a ministry.

It’s hard to get excited about a job.
It’s almost impossible not to get excited about a ministry.

If your concern is success, it’s a job.
If your concern is faithfulness and service, it’s a ministry.

If God calls you to a ministry, don’t treat it like a job!
Lord, strengthen your servants and move us to a true sense of ministry and service, through your grace and mercy.
Amen.

On Going Prayers: Betty and Ray Stephens, Carolyn Morris, Lee Fields, Ken Hoyt, Beth Kapustka, Erindale Cannon McGee, Ruth Wright, Don Weiss, Erika Gardner
The family of: Bev White and family, during their time of grief in Don's passing.
Our Special Interest Missionaries:
Susan and Bill Soldswich in Mexico
Terry and Evelyn Erbele in Lithuania
Please let the office know if there are any other prayer concerns, or if you wish to be removed from the Prayer List.

Prayers for all those affected by events of violence in Kenya and Pakistan.

Prayers for all people in the midst of natural disasters - and homeless in the midst of winter.

Prayers that all God's people may accept each other as God's children and work for a just peace, especially in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Prayers for God to continue allowing our church to ba a place where each person is valued and appreciated as God made us.

Prayers for all those in the throes of domestic violence and families of those suffering from addictions and freedom for those who suffer addiction.

Prayers of thanks for God's presence in our lives.

Prayers for our youth & church leaders.

Prayers that the Promise of God's love will be affirmed during this season of Lent and Easter.

March Lectionary
March 2:
1 Samuel 16:1-13 Psalm 23 Ephesians 5:8-14 John 9:1-41
March 9:
Ezekiel 37:1-14 Psalm 130 Romans 8:6-11 John 11:1-45
Isaiah 50:4-9a Psalm 118:1-2, 19-29 Philippians 2:5-11 Matthew 21:1-11
March 20 (Maundy Thursday)
Exodus 12:1-4, 5-10, 11-14
Psalm 116:1-4, 12-19 1 Corinthians 11:23-26 John 13:1-7, 31b-35
March 21 (Good Friday)
Isaiah 52:13-53:12 Psalm 22 Hebrews 10:16-25 John 18:1-19:42
March 23 (Easter Sunday)
Acts 10:34-43 Psalm 118:1-2, 12-24 Colossians 3:1-4 John 20: 1-8, 11-18 Matthew 28:1-10

Time-Proved Recipe
- by Pastor James

New life. How do you take old and make it new? How do you instill vigor into something that is tired and aged? We all look for that elusive “fountain of youth.”

Today’s focus is too often upon the physical as we stifle our spiritual vision. Many among us have escaped death’s grasp – whose attitude of life seems transformed. For them each day is a precious jewel. Each second of sight, smell and sound is another energized moment of their being. To live in the “now” is an almost extinct attribute. We worry about what our peers think – what society will say, and continue on the treadmill of “keeping up appearances.”

Jesus brushed away any such philosophy, threw away human masks, and lived a life of transparency. In his time (as well as ours) such behavior was extremely unconventional. We often see Christ dialoging with prostitutes, eating with lepers, selecting radical revolutionaries as disciples and dying with thieves. The Son of God put his teaching aside to play with children, defended guilty adulterers, and wept with women. If he was raised with social boundaries, we witnessed no bias or boundaries reflected in his life. The spirit Jesus is embraced in the words of Paul to his letters to the church of Galatia:

“For you are all children of God through faith … being clothed in Christ. Now there is neither Jew or Gentile, neither slave or free, neither male or female, for we are all one in Christ … and heirs according to God’s promise.” - Galatians 3:26-29

As we enter this month of Easter – a season of rebirth – of resurrection – and transformation, may we focus less on wardrobe and more on interaction. Interaction with life, with each other … with family, with nature … with ourselves, with our world … with concerns of need, with matters of God. Look past the makeup, the fashion, the haircut or the foreign accent. Put on the eyes of God. See everyone as a connection to the Creator and all as an additional blessing to your life. When you hear music, tap your toe, sing with abandon or get up and dance. If you witness tears, stop and yolk in the soul’s burden of sadness. Share in your lunches, distribute from your excess, and a become a gatherer of smiles. Discover the wonder of a “ministry of interruptions” for it is as our schedules are disrupted that life truly happens.

Now to our original question: “How do you take old and make it new?” The answer – Place self doubt and worry on the back porch for the time being. Combine the following ingredients and share with someone in need: 2 ounces of concern; one cup of compassion; a dash of humor and a teaspoon of listening. Mix well in a large bowl of love. Place is a well greased pan of faith. Cook slowly in a warm oven of hope. * Wa La: A new life of zestful fulfillment and happiness. Enjoy!

Thoughts on 2008 Cascades Leadership Fair

By Gail Saxowsky

Marva J. Dawn, a theologian and author with Christians Equipped for Ministry, Vancouver, WA and adjunct professor of spiritual theology at Regent College gave the keynote address at the Cascades Presbytery Leadership Fair on Feb 23^rd. A woman who was using a walker because she has trouble with low blood pressure since the kidney transplant, who asks people to move closer to her because she has poor vision but wants to see the faces who she is talking with and yet a person whose voice and humor never faltered. A dynamic woman who has written several books and travels the world sharing her sensitive, wisdom and deep rooted sense of God.

The following are some excerpts from this event:

¤ The world is changing Church. There is a sense of vitality that she feels in other parts of the world with the Christian Church that seems to be missing in America. Churches that are growing and bursting in their spaces and have a hard time maintaining enough staff and trained professionals to provide the leadership.

¤ Marva doesn't accept the conflicts about tradition and contemporary in church. She claims the importance of rituals, those things that hold people together and let us know the presence of God. And we are living now, which is contemporary, and thus need to fit worship and education into today's world.

¤ Marva also spoke about church and community and how people need to see themselves as church, being a witness to the Grace of God and searching to always be surprised and amazed.

Baby Shower for Baby Ryan

Lori and Paul Scott have a new addition to their home, a newborn baby boy, Ryan. To support them during this time of celebration the church will host a Baby Shower Sunday afternoon, March 2nd at 3:00 at Pastor James' home.

The parsonage is only a block west of the church at 176 Stadium Drive S. All are invited (even the men).

PALM SUNDAY Celebration, March 16 – 10:50 a.m.

Seder Meal / Maundy Thursday - Combined with Falls City UMC March 20, 6:30 p.m. – The Hebrew Passover to Communion

Good Friday Service and Vigil of Prayer, March 21 and 22

EASTER / Resurrection of Our Lord – March 23:

Sunrise Service - 7:00 a.m. at Falls City UMC
Easter Celebration Worship, 10:50 a.m.

A Time to Learn — What’s going on between Israel and Palestine

By: Social Concerns Committee & Christ’s Church Women

The Christ’s Church Social Concerns Committee and Christ’s Church Women continue to sponsor a “Look” at Israel and Palestine, the birth place of Judaism, Christianity and Islam. Last Winter we studied “Peace” in relationship to these troubled lands. Now we will take a deeper look at current issues there.

The study continues on March 2nd and March 9th from 1-3 pm at church. Lunch will be provided. Please plan to stay for this excellent study. Contacts are Pat Jaffer and Jo Ann King.

- STARS OF TOMORROW -
TALENT SEARCH CONTINUES

The Outreach committee continues to explore the Polk County area for performers that will join us for the 3rd Annual Community Entertainment, a BENEFIT FOR ELLA CURRAN FOOD BANK on Sunday, April 6, 2008 at 3:00pm at Christ’s Church. Future stars in any of the performing arts are sought. The first year the performers were dancers representing 4 different widely diverse parts of the world. The second year featured instrumental performances of jazz, rock, folk and classical music from the youth of Polk County. This year we want to showcase youth and the young at heart in any of the performing arts; dance, magicians, jugglers, mimes, clowns, skits, etc. For further information call Jo Ann King 503-838-6603 or Jo Yeager 503-838-5969.

One Great Hour of Sharing

Special Offering

Palm Sunday - March 16th

So what is One Great Hour of Sharing? If you’re like many of us, it’s one of those traditions you think everyone else understands, so you don’t ask. And a tradition it is—there are a fair number of congregations that will receive the offering for the sixtieth time this year. But even in those congregations I’ll bet there are people who don’t really know what it is.

It started in 1949, when a lot of Christian leaders, seeing the devastation that World War II had left in much of the world, recognized both a responsibility to our sisters and brothers and an opportunity to witness to a loving God. They organized an hour-long nationwide radio broadcast on the last Saturday evening in March in which some of the best -known stars of the day highlighted the needs and invited people to give through their church the next morning. The response was overwhelming, so the offering was held again the next year, as it has been every year since.

Over the years, the offering’s mission has grown from simply emergency relief and rebuilding after disasters such as wars, earthquakes, and floods to addressing many kinds of human suffering, from the sudden to the chronic. Increasingly it has included focusing on the root causes of this suffering, so that the solutions can be sustained after our attention moves on to other communities. At first most of this work was done through Church World Service, which was then the relief and development arm of the National Council of Churches.

Recognizing that the hope we have in Christ is lived out in our hope for one another, we respond with gifts that help our sisters and brothers around the world find the hope for a brighter future.

Christ’s Church offers Shelter while Fellowship House Looks for a Permanent Home

Greetings from Fellowship House!

This note brings loads of gratitude for your hospitality in offering Fellowship House space while it seeks a permanent home. The campus ministry that you started many years ago has grown into a truly ecumenical ministry, supported by not only the Presbyterians and the Methodists, but also the Episcopalians.

Fellowship House has been without a ministry center for over a year now since it sold it’s building on Main Street in Monmouth. Since that time St. Hilda’s has offered desk space in a shared office. Recently the Board at Christ’s Church invited Fellowship House to use some “dedicated” space in the basement of Christ’s Church. The cleaning up and painting of the Fellowship Hall as well as the kitchen has been FABULOUS! In addition, you have offered Fellowship House an office and allowed us to paint it as we see fit. We are truly grateful for your hospitality and are glad to be back to our roots while we wait on the Spirit for what is next for this ministry.

If there are any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me Ann Bowersox, Campus Minister at 503-838-6301.

Christ’s Church Begins Search for Youth Minister

During January’s Board meeting, Pastor James was given the green light to begin a partnership with Dallas United Methodist Church for a part-time bi-church Minister of Youth. During the last week of February the leadership of Dallas UMC agreed to partner with Christ’s Church, giving their pastor, Rev. Jeremy Hajdu-Paulen, and Pastor James the go ahead to begin the application process for this youth minister position.

This is exciting news for our youth and our church’s future as we begin an active attempt to grow a vital youth program for 2008 and beyond. We ask your prayers as we seek the right individual for the job. If you are aware of a qualified applicant, please direct them to the church office or Pastor James.

Come ... Dream ... and Plan!

Ministry & Mission Team Meeting / Tuesday, March 4, 7 p.m.

On Tuesday March 4 at 7 pm, members and friends of Christ's Church will gather to plan the program of our church for the next several months. Folks who are members of official committees such as Worship, Education, Missions, Social Concerns, Outreach, and Higher Education are all coming -- but you are invited, too, if you have a dream about what we as the body of Christ could be doing in our church and in our community. All are welcome!

We call this the Ministry and Mission Team Meeting. If you would like to share in the ministry and mission of Christ's Church, we hope you will join us to catch God's dream for us and our community, and begin to make that dream a reality.

Caught in the Act ...

What did you do on President’s Day? Shop? Take the Day off? Relax and watch TV? It isn’t unusual to find individuals working in and around our church. During any week you will find congregants working on the yard, cleaning the building, painting walls, etc.

But on Monday, February 18 – President’s Day, the whole family of Steve and Liane Moser committed their “day-off” to pruning, raking, mowing, trimming, sweeping (and the like) to make the church grounds shine like a new penny. We are thankful to all who assist in keeping our facilities in top shape, but on this day – at this time, we send a big note of “Thanks” to the Moser clan for their kind act of service!

Christ’s Church Methodist & Presbyterian United

- Foothill Notes

Ministry vs. Job

March Lectionary

March 2:

Time-Proved Recipe

Thoughts on 2008 Cascades Leadership Fair