ash wednesday february 18 - first presbyterian church of joliet · 2019-07-13 · alyssa noelle...

“Servants of

Jesus Christ—

Ministering

To One Another,

To Our Community,

And To Our World.”

805 Western Ave.

Joliet, IL 60435

815.727.9259

FAX 815.727.9348

[email protected]

firstpresjoliet.org

Sunday Morning Schedule

Worship—

8:30 & 10:35 a.m.

Children’s Worship—

8:30 & 10:35 a.m.

Coffee Fellowship—

9:30 to 10:30 a.m.

Adult Education —

9:45 to 10:30 a.m.

Sunday School —

9:40 to 10:30 a.m.

Nursery/Preschool Care—

8:30 to 11:30 a.m.

January 28, 2015

The Servants’ Light (USPS 560-720) is published monthly by First Presbyterian Church,

Joliet, IL. Periodicals Postage paid at Joliet, IL

Postmaster: Send address changes to The Servants’ Light,

805 Western Ave., Joliet, IL 60435-6998.

Ash Wednesday February 18

As we begin the Lenten season and prepare our hearts for the

great triumph of Easter, we think about how we can love God

more deeply. It’s a time of repentance, a time of daily prayer

and a time to offer acts of kindness that will help others and be a

sign of our love for God. The ashes of Ash Wednesday remind

us that our life on earth is temporary, but because God loves us,

we will live with him forever.

Dinner at 5:45 p.m.

Join us for a family style dinner of Chicken Parmesan, Green

Beans, Garlic Bread, Italian Salad with Assorted Dressings,

Brownies with Caramel Sauce, Coffee and Lemonade.

Freewill offering received.

Worship at 6:30 p.m.

Communion will be served.

Micah Manore is preaching on “Knowing God.”

Chancel Choir and Children’s Choir will be

leading us in worship.

Ashes are available for those who desire.

Children’s Choir will meet at 5 p.m. as usual for rehearsal.

Sunday, February 1. Come seeking

something more this Sunday in wor-

ship. Over and over the scriptures

encourage us to seek the Lord because

we will indeed find him. God wants

to share his guidance, will, and good-

ness with us. All we need to do is to be open, seek,

and find what God has in store for us. Come and wor-

ship with an open heart this Sunday. We will celebrate

the Lord’s Supper at both worship services.

The Chancel Choir is singing at the 8:30 a.m. worship

service. The Praise Team is singing and playing at the

10:35 a.m. worship service.

Sermon. Micah Manore is preaching this Sunday on

“Restless to Fulfilled.” The sermon text is Colossians

3:23-24. This week we will take a look at our work

life and reflect on what it means in our lives.

Simplify Series, Week 4. In this series we are thinking

about finding ways to unclutter our souls and our lives.

The challenge is to be intentional about dialing down

on some things to live up to our potential in Christ.

We can think about letting go of some things in order

to give ourselves to the best things. With that kind of

guidance and discernment we can more often live life

to its fullest.

The Lenten Season is Coming. During this Lenten

Season we are going to study the book, The God We

Can Know: Exploring The “I Am” Sayings of Jesus, by

Rob Fuqua. In worship and in small groups and

classes we will study six of the seven “I Am” sayings

of Jesus in the Gospel of John. We will see some brief

messages by Pastor Rob Fuqua, spoken in their settings

in Israel, through DVD video clips that accompany the

book and study materials. The books are $10 and we

will be taking orders this Sunday. You can also call

the office to reserve a book.

May you experience the blessings, grace, and presence

of God as you make your journey of faith this week.

In Christ,

The Pastor’s Corner—

Known to be in the Hospital: Kena Schreiner and

Ross Vanderventer at Presence St. Joseph

Baptized:

Deacon Robert Watson (Jan. 11)

Son of Justin & Suzanne Watson

Alyssa Noelle Nolan (Jan. 25)

Daughter of Mike & Mandy Nolan

Passing to Life Eternal:

Jack Ostrem (Jan. 11)

Margaret Duncan (Jan. 21)

January 25, 2015 Worship Attendance — 248

Stewardship Report

2014-2015 Budget: $783,026

Average Need Each Week

of 2014-2015: $ 15,058

Received 1/25/2015: $ 10,247

Received in 43 weeks: $576,157

Amount Needed from Reserves $ 10,000

Total $586,157

Needed to Date: $647,494

2014-2015 Bequest/Gift Income Received—

Total Received as of 11/19/2014 $1,086,958

Craig Herr, Senior Pastor

http://www.google.com/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&frm=1&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&docid=2VKqRzYDE_hX7M&tbnid=mMSz4KFwPzm0bM:&ved=0CAUQjRw&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.norwaycovenantchurch.com%2Four-church-family%2F&ei=FR34Ub_lF4qwygHg7IGIBA&bvm=bv.49967636,d.aWc&ps

Growing in Christ—

Adult Education Opportunities

Up until now we have focused solely on books of the Bible for our blog. Beginning in February we are going to

look at what Presbyterians and individuals of Reformed Faith believe using the Heidelberg Catechism and the

foundational biblical passages that form the basis for the beliefs stated.

Feb. 2 Eph. 6:21-24

Feb. 3 Questions 1-2








Feb. 12 Question 26








Feb. 21 Question 45



Feb. 25 Question 53




Daily Devotional Blog

“Bible Perspectives” Sundays, 9:45 to 10:30 a.m.

Woodruff Lounge with Jim Mullins

This class uses The Common Lectionary Bible pas-

sages each week. The format basically follows a three

question format.

1. What do these words mean?

2. What did these words mean to the original

hearers?

3. What do these words mean to us today?

“Simplify” Class Sundays, 9:45 to 10:30 a.m. Room 210 with Dale Ambler

We’ll continue our study using Bill Hybels’ book,

Simplify: Ten Practices to Unclutter Your Soul.

February 1 — "Restless to Fulfilled"

February 8 — "Isolated to Connected"

February 15 — "Meaningless to Satisfied"

(last class)

The class is also offered on Wednesday evenings,

6:30-7:30 p.m. through February 11.

“The God We Can Know — Exploring the ‘I Am’ Sayings of Jesus” Sundays beginning February 22

Sunday Mornings at 8:30 and 10:35 a.m. Sermon Series February 22: “The Great ‘I Am’” March 22: “The True Vine”

March 1: “The Bread of Life” March 29: “The Way, The Truth and The Life”

March 8: “The Light of the World” April 5: “The Resurrection and The Life”

March 15: “The Good Shepherd”

Wednesday Evenings: ZooM Plus a Newly Added Worship Service We are currently planning a Wednesday evening worship service during Lent

from 6:45 to 7:15 p.m. which will be different from the two Sunday morning services.

February 25: “Here I Am” March 11: “You Are the Light of the World”

March 4: “Take This Bread—Taste and See March 18: “The Sheep Follow, Trust”

That the Lord is Good” March 25: “You are the Branches”

Additional Services During Lent

April 2: Maundy Thursday, “The Gate” (Dinner at 6 p.m., Worship at 7 p.m.)

April 3: Good Friday Meditative Service (6 p.m.)

Thurs. AM Circle

2nd Thursday

(Feb. 12) 9:15 a.m.

in the

Fireside Room

Mary Circle

2nd Thursday (Feb. 12)

in the Fireside Room

Bring a sack lunch at

12 noon; dessert &

meeting at

12:30 pm

Meal Fellowship

Men’s Breakfast—February 6, 7:30 a.m. at The

Old Fashioned Pancake House on Jefferson St. in

Joliet.

The Dinner Out Group—February 11 (one week

early), 6 p.m. at Capri Sogno, 24102 W. Lockport

St., Plainfield. Call Mary Haas at 815-524-4624

or Sis Schmidt at 815-725-0544 by February 9 if

you are planning to join us, so a reservation can be

made.

Men’s Dinner Group—February 27 at 6 p.m. at

Giovan’s Restaurant & Pizzeria, 1804 N. Larkin

Ave., Crest Hill. RSVP to Bob Smietanski at

815-838-7616.

Church Life —

Small Groups & Special Events

At its regularly scheduled meeting on

January 15, 2015, the Session of First

Presbyterian Church, Joliet, voted:

—to elect Chris Wise as Clerk of Ses-

sion for 2015;

—to elect Tracy Norris as Church Treasurer for

2015 and Margaret Lucas as Assistant Treasurer;

—to approve any baptisms that may be requested;

—to amend the minutes of the Congregational

Meeting held January 11, 2015 to add Youth Elder

Carol Randolph as a member of Church Growth

Council Class of 2015, and Elder Karl Darley as a

member of Mission Council Class of 2017.

Don’t Forget:

All-Officer Retreat — February 21, 8:30 a.m.

in Hoffman Hall. Elders, Day Deacons and

Night Deacons will meet to make plans for our

ministry for the coming year. Please return

your RSVP card.

Hear the Joy * See the Hope * Feel the Love

Lost and Found

Are you missing sunglasses, readers, keys, earings, gloves, etc.,

or even a cellphone? Check out the table in Hoffman Hall this

Sunday for any items you may have left here at church.

The Matsiko World Orphan Choir is coming to Joliet! They will

be here at First Pres. in worship on Sunday, March 8. Interna-

tional Children’s Network (ICN) began its choir program in

2008, with the first U.S. tour of the Matsiko Children’s Choir.

The choir was here in August of 2013, and we very much en-

joyed their high energy performance. The Matsiko choir is com-

prised of 18 children from Peru, India, and Liberia who share

their lives and culture through song and dance.

Host families are needed for the nights of March 7-9. If you can

host an adult and 2-3 children, or if you can help in providing a

meal, please call the church office. This is a great opportunity to

get to know these amazing children better and to welcome them

to Joliet and to First Pres.

Praise Yoga is off next week (1st week

in February). We’ll resume Tuesday,

February 10 at 7 p.m. and Thursday,

February 12 at 8 a.m.

Yoga

Servants of Jesus Christ —

Ministering to One Another, to Our Community, and to our World

Since the inception of this ministry in October 2005, over 2,200

meals have been provided to members of our church family through your assistance.

Helping Hands would like to thank those listed below, who over the past six months

have provided meals, rides, and other services to members of our congregation. We

would also like to thank ZooM for joining us in providing meals as well. We can always

use additional people to help provide assistance. If you would like to help or would like more information

about this ministry, please contact Betty Jones at 815-729-0349 or the church office at 815-727-9259.

Rosemary Allen

Dale & Tari Ambler

Jean Bailey

Marvin Balsley

Don & Raelene Barnes

Stacy Becker

Al & Pat Benson

Gina Bonomo

Al & Jackie Brooks

Russ & Sue Brown

Sherry Buffington

Don & Mary Caisley

Dave & Becky Church

Clare Dhiman

Dale Endres

Caroline Gheorghiu

Pat Graham

Peg Hackett

Pat Haldorson

Bob & Mary Haas

Elizabeth Holman

Rich & Mary Jane Johnson

Dale Hammond

Kris Hayden

Jeff & Lisa Kasper

Mary Lynn Keir

Carol Kline

Pam & Keith LeVasseur

Darryl & Brenda McCormick

Diane Milosevich

Micah Manore

Diane Nelson

Martha Sayles

Carolyn Schaeffer

Cyndi Schwartz

Bob Smietanski

Jodi Steinberg

LuAnn Stepina

Emma Sticklen

Art Stratemeyer

Paul Zettergren

ZooM

Angel House Mission Special Offering

This is our third year for supporting Rhobi Mnaka,

Bhoke Mnaka, and Lucia Joshua, the three girls at

Angel House Mission in Tanzania we support. We

will start receiving a special offering to raise our sup-

port in February. We need to raise $4,680 ($1,560 for

each one) to support their education, housing, and

food for the year. You will remember how great it was

to face time and connect by live video feed to our mis-

sion team on Sunday morning last year, when they

were at Angel House Mission. We are hoping to be

able to connect with our friends at Angel House Mis-

sion with high quality live internet communication and

video in the first few weeks of February. This is a

wonderful and exciting mission for our church. Thank

you for your support.

Are You Excited About The Souper Bowl?

Every year the Souper Bowl of Caring organization encourages churches to take a collec-

tion for local food ministries on the day of the Super Bowl (who doesn’t love a good

pun?). As you leave the sanctuary this Sunday, there will be students with soup kettles

collecting donations. All the proceeds will go to Meals on Wheels and our partnership

with St. John’s Mobile Food Pantry. If every adult in service this Sunday threw $5 in the

kettles, we’d collect $1,000 for hungry people in our community!

Toronto 2015 — Sr. High Mission Trip

Last week I had a little announcement for the kids.

We get to serve in Toronto this summer! The date is

set, but not every detail has quite been ironed out yet.

Despite the fact that July is still a long way off, we are

already looking to raise some money to help the stu-

dents out with some of the costs. To that end, this

year the Student Ministry will be hosting our Palm

Sunday Breakfast. We will be collecting freewill

donations that will go toward the summer mission trip

to Toronto, and our goal is to raise about $3,000 that

morning. That said, there’s no obligation to give, and

the Palm Sunday breakfast will be a freewill offering,

just like it always is. Whether you can support our stu-

dents financially or not, join us on this very special

Sunday for breakfast with your church family.

— Micah

Family Fun - ZooM Night!!!

Get ready to put some skates on, and have a blast with your friends, as we are going to Family Fun Zone

for a evening full of things that will make you smile. Invite a friend to join you for laser tag, skating, pizza

and to meet some of your ZooM friends.

When? February 4th, 5pm-7:15pm

Where? Family Fun Zone, 2333 Theodore Street, Crest Hill

Cost $5 a person. See you there.

For your Calendar:

February 11 - ZooM Valentines Night

February 18 - Ash Wednesday

March 18 - Pinewood Derby Car Clinic

March 28 - Easter Egg Hunt

April - Kids Musical - watch your email for

more information and details

Kris Hayden teaching about Peace during ZooM!

You don’t want to miss the Peacemenator in action.

ZooM Music— never too late to join us for

our next performance. Wednesdays, 5 pm

— Bo

Children’s Ministry

Update

UPCOMING EVENTS

Sunday School:

Every Sunday in February

except the 22nd. Join your

parents’ class.

Sunday Nights:

February 1st:

Heartbeat @ 4:30;

Super Bowl Party and

open Gym @ 5pm till end

of the game.

February 8th:

Normal Youth Group +

Mission Trip Meeting @

6pm

February 15th:

Normal Youth Group

February 22nd: No Youth

Group (Jr. High Retreat)

February 2015

Every year around February, I ask pretty much the

same thing: will you commit to praying for our

kids as they go on the Winter Retreat? Of the 28

waking hours we spend at Timberlee, 6 of them are

spent hearing God’s Word and worshipping. Pray

that our students hear from God and apply it to

their lives.

Exciting news for the summer: this year we’ll be

heading to Toronto for our summer service trip.

It’s open to any high school student who has

finished 9-12 grade. If you think your child would

be interested, make sure they and you are at the in-

formational meeting on February 8th. You’ll get the

scoop as well as applications to fill out. If you’re

interested but can’t make it, call the office to set up

another time to meet.

Micah

[email protected]

mailto:[email protected]

FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH

Craig M. Herr—Senior Pastor

Dale Ambler—Associate Pastor

Bo Mircea—Associate Pastor of Children’s Ministry

and Family Ministry

Dale Hammond—Pastor of Visitation

Micah Manore— Dir. of Youth Ministry

Kenneth Myers, Choirmaster

Diane Uden—Administrative Ministry Assistant

Sherry Buffington—Outreach Ministry Assistant &

Newsletter Editor

PERIODICALS

POSTAGE PAID

AT JOLIET IL

USPS 560-720

Address Service Requested

Newsletter Deadline—The deadline for

reserving space in the February 25 Servants’

Light is February 10. Please e-mail to

[email protected].

TO:

First Presbyterian Church

805 Western Ave.

Joliet, IL 60435l

New Column – What’s Going on Outside First Pres.?

Craig, Bo, Micah and myself pay close attention to not only what is happening inside the church but also to

what is occurring outside First Pres. One of the topics that is huge today – not just for us, but for churches in

general – is the growing number of unchurched adults in our country. In October 2014, the Barna Group, a

leading research organization that looks at faith and culture, published “Five Trends Among the Unchurched.”

Here is a summary of the 5 trends:

Secularism is on the Rise. “In spite of ‘Christian’ self-descriptions, more than 1/3 of America’s adults are

secular in belief and practice.

People Are Less Open to the Idea of Church. The unchurched are becoming less responsive to the church’s

efforts to connect with them. While personal invitation is still the best method, it too is declining in effec-

tiveness.

Churchgoing is No Longer Mainstream. Churchgoing continues to lose its “role as a normative part of Ameri-

can life.” Churchgoing is “increasingly unfamiliar to millions of Americans.”

There are Different Expectations of Church Involvement. “Today’s unchurched…reflecting their disinterest

in churches…would prefer attending some activity other than Sunday service.”

There is Skepticism About Contributions to Society. This area is particularly painful. “A substantial number

of the churchless have no idea what Christians have accomplished in the nation…49% could not identify a

single favorable impact of the Christian community.”

The culture is changing rapidly regarding church, but our call to be the body of Christ remains foundational. In

your prayers, ask for courage to how you will respond…how First Pres. will respond.

Blessings in Christ,

Pastor Dale Ambler

ash wednesday february 18 - first presbyterian church of joliet · 2019-07-13 · alyssa noelle...

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