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Our church is currently working through the process to officially become an ONA church! |
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Annual Meeting The annual meeting will be
held Sunday, February 10th at 11:00 am. On this Sunday, we will have one
combined service at 10:00 am. The meeting will be held immediately following and
no luncheon is planned. Denominational meetings will meet after the traditional
service on Feb. 3rd.
As part of our new vision,
mission and goals our church is committed to sending 3 people a year to
“Partners in Ministry” leadership training.
“Partners in Ministry” is a three year training program.
Classes are offered every quarter. You
can simply take one course or you can strive to complete the three year
training. If you complete the full
three years then you will be a certified lay leader in the church.
This not only means that you will be a valued asset for our own church,
it also means that you will be qualified enough to lead a small church in need
of a minister. Imagine that!!!
Training three people a year in the partners in ministry course.
In 10 years our church will be filled with several church leaders who are
qualified themselves to lead a church. This
will certainly prove to be a valuable asset for our church.
Don’t worry if the three year commitment scares you.
We encourage everyone to take any course they want.
Just one course will be better than no course at all.
The first course is
starting NOW!!! January 12th will be
the first class in “Old Testament 1.” The
church will pay for the cost of your course including paying for any books
needed. The classes will be held in three go and we welcome even more. This class will be held every Saturday for 8 Saturdays. If you would like to join us for this class please contact Pastor Brad A.S.A.P. GAS! I was trying to come up
for a clever slogan for this project and all I could come up with was “help
give God gas” but that did not seem to sound right.
So there is no catchy slogan just a simple need.
We estimate that we will spend somewhere in the ball park of $600-$800 in
gas during our two summer mission projects.
We will be driving a few loaded vans to DO
I HAVE ENOUGH MONEY FOR
STEWARDSHIP? In the biblical
world stewardship was about household management. Somebody had the task of
supervising workers and taking care of the finances. Joseph had a steward, as
did Abraham, and on a larger scale, the kings of
The overall sense
of scripture is that “stewardship” concerns not only material well-being,
but spiritual soundness. Stewardship is caring for the very gift of life itself,
caring for each other’s abilities, talents, time, emotions and the protection
of the earth and all that is in it. Stewardship makes
the assumption that we have blessings and abundance. And that’s where we get
tripped up, isn’t it? We spend so much time and energy trying to accumulate--
things, money, food, as if we are going into some perpetual winter.
Stewardship
isn’t just about giving to people in need either. It is about recognizing all
that we have, helping both ourselves and others know the abundance in which we
can all share right now. Jesus says in John 10:10, “…that we may have life,
and have it abundantly.” God wants us to enjoy this world and the next that He
created for us, and we can do that by giving back the portion He requires.
So what we need
to emphasize as good stewards is that God gave the world everything it needs. We
just need to learn how to share the abundance God has provided, and to do it
joyously and continually. When we
give our offering each week, we are not giving the money to a church, or to a
person, or to a certain demographic. We are giving back to God a portion of what
He has given us, as a testament of faith and thanks. In this traditional season
of Thanksgiving, let us pledge to give God what is rightfully His, and thereby
truly exercise our faith. Stewardship
Committee BOARD OF TRUSTEES As the holidays
have come to a close and we settle in for another winter season many projects
the Trustees want to accomplish will have to wait until spring. Thank you to Gary
Bennett who has agreed to fill a new term on the board beginning with the
February term. Trustees still have one vacancy for a new three-year term in
2008. If anyone is interested, please call Steve Ruggles at 330-793-2449. We
would like to give Gary Bennett and his crew a big thank you for cleaning the
carpets in the hallways before the holidays. We also want to send a tremendous
thank you to Tom Baker and Stu Hitchcock who have agreed to clean the Three new phones
have arrived and are going to be installed in the Kitchen, the As we move into
the New Year, we are going to continue to work hard at maintaining and
improving the look of our Church. Look in next month’s newsletter for our
2008 goals and see what you can do to help us achieve them.
We wish everyone a safe, prosperous, and blessed New Year! CHRISTIAN
ED -Summer
Plans Anyone? The first Sunday
in January seems a little early for discussing summer plans doesn't it?
Not for the Christian Education Board!
Summer was the hot topic at Sunday's CE Board meeting.
Here are some things for YOU to think about for summer . . . Church camp
season is already in the planning stages and it’s not too early to start
thinking about what camp would be right for your children from 2nd grade –
High School seniors. There are 3
day through 1 week camps that target outdoors, drama, music, swimming, sports,
and all types of things in addition to wonderful opportunities to explore how
God works within our lives and communities.
The CE Board has been able to work with other church groups and through
fundraisers so these camps are available at minimal cost to you.
Please see The Sunday School
programs for children 6th grade and under have been well received by the
children throughout the year! For
2008 the CE Board will sponsor Kid's Summer during the Contemporary Service
from Memorial Day – Labor Day. We'll
be looking for committee members to help us plan and conduct the services on a
rotating schedule throughout the summer. We'd
like at least 4 adults and 4 youth/teens to help.
A short planning meeting will be announced later in the winter –
please watch for details! We will be
working with the Pastor and the Council on planning and supporting Youth group
programs throughout the next few months. We
ask that you consider your ability to support these programs as an advisor or
sponsor. See The CE Board is
sponsoring the “Soup”er Sunday soup and games day at the church on Sunday
January 27th from 10:45 to 12:45. It
will be the perfect opportunity to fellowship with people of ALL ages.
See you there! The
Christian Ed Board would like to thank everyone for their support on the
Christmas Wreath raffle. Congratulations
to the winner Charlene Hughes. BENEVOLENCE BOARD There were six
members present at our meeting. Mother
Hubbard’s Cupboard served 23 families (47 people) for October, 2007. We had to make a
correction to our 2008 budget. Rev.
Tom and Kim Roof were not counted in our budget and should have been, so we
made some adjustments and they are now included in our 2008 budget. We had a very
successful Crop Walk this year. We
collected $445.00. Thank you to
all who participated and helped support our walkers. It was so nice to
have Tami Snowden and her daughter Tabi with us in November.
Her message touched our hearts. Through
the generosity of our congregation, we collected $1370.00 for the Love
Offering. Thanks for all of the thoughtful donations. We received a
thank-you from Hospice of the Valley for $625.00 and from Eastern Ohio
Association, United Church of Christ for $500.00, and Rev. Tom and Kim Roof
for our $325.00 contribution. We reviewed our
correspondence and closed our meeting with prayer. Finance Team Financial Report
– General Fund
YTD thru December
31, 2007: Income
$155,817.10 Expense $136,441.13 Credit
$
19,375.97 Giving Updates
for 2008 As you make your
2008 financial plans, please consider an increase in your giving to help our
church touch even more lives in the community this year. The biblical call for
tithing 10% of income to God can be a challenging goal for some givers. As
part of a plan to reach this target, many donors increase their offerings each
year by a percentage so that over time they can faithfully reach the ultimate
goal. If you currently contribute electronically and wish to raise your
donation amount, please fill out an updated authorization form (available in
the literature rack in hallway) and return the form to the finance office. Donations Update
In December, we
received over $2,000 in donations to help send our members on the 2008 mission
trip. Thanks to all who are so generous with your gifts that will allow us to
serve those less fortunate in the coming year! Thanks to Special Ops
Special
thanks to the Breakfast Club “special ops team” for their donation of
funds for blankets for needy families in December. This was a special way to
warm someone’s heart for the holidays. Also we appreciate the Collective
Souls special ops team for running the popcorn and soda fundraiser at the
movie nights in December. There’s nothing like movie-theatre popcorn and the
big screen to make an evening more special. Spiritual Life Board Thanks
to all who helped decorate the church for Christmas. The church was beautiful
in all its holiday splendor! Also, a record was set in 2007 for the shortest
time to take down decorations. Congratulations to all. Denominational
meetings will be held Sunday, February 3 after the second worship service. Special
thanks to Shawn Andrews and all the youth who helped paint the youth center
basement. A fresh coat of paint with a coffee house feel has livened up the
basement. BENEVOLENCE information
FRIENDSHIP
OPS The Friendship
Ops group usually meets the last Wednesday of every month at 2:30.
In January that will be on the 30th.
This group gets together to send out birthday cards; get well cards,
and sympathy cards to members of our congregation. LUNCH
BUNCH The Lunch Bunch
will be getting together for lunch on January 29th at Dino’s
Restaurant in BULLETINS If
you have news to put in the bulletin or the news letter please contact the
church office 330-538-2983, or email
I
was trying to come up for a clever slogan for this project and all I could
come up with was “help give God gas” but that did not seem to sound right.
So there is no catchy slogan just a simple need.
We estimate that we will spend somewhere in the ball park of $600-$800
in gas during our summer mission project.
We will be driving fully loaded vans to CHURCH WINTER SAFETY TIPS
-Make
sure when you leave that the door shuts behind you.
A few of the doors seem to stick on the concrete and don’t always
close all the way. -If
you are the last one to leave the building after an event or meeting, please
make sure all the lights are off and that the doors are locked.
-Please
take your time driving around the back side of building in the snow/slush it
tends to get extremely slippery.
The
Jackson-Milton Elementary Student Council is participating in K105's Quest for
One Million Pennies to be donated to St. Jude's Hospital.
They will be collecting pennies the whole month of January.
Here at the church we will keep a penny jar on the counter in our WEB SITE If you have not been on our web
site check it out:
www.firstfederatedchurch.net
The newsletter is now also on
the web site, along with some links to some wonderful videos! The Choir gets
together on Wednesday nights at 7:00PM for practice.
We are always looking for new voices to join us.
It’s really a lot of fun! Christmas Time: Church Mouse
I really like this time of year. It’s
very busy around here. Wow the
church sanctuary is looking nice. Those
people really worked hard decorating. Oh
look at that new Christmas tree it’s beautiful.
I don’t see a mouse ornament, and there’s no popcorn string to munch
on.
What’s Pam doing here so late in this snowy weather?
Looking out the front window, who is out there setting up the camel that
the wind blew over?
Quiet! I hear someone in the
balcony on the computer. He’s here
all the time. Look at that picture
on the screen “The Baby Jesus”. I
like that screen saver with the glowing twinkling lights.
The poinsettia tree looks nice, something to climb up but nothing at the
top for me. The white one at the top
looks like a star was that Mary Sue’s idea:
Glad she didn’t fall putting it there.
On the clock it’s 10 P.M. who’s that guy in the attic setting the
cross timer?
Who’s that lady? Let’s see what she is doing, its 11:15 Sunday
service December 23rd she’s sitting in the pew folding Christmas
Eve bulletins. Hmm!
Did that guy get his seat in the third row on the right side?
Yep he did, he is always checking his watch while the preacher is giving
his sermon because he always has a roast in the oven.
Sometimes it is so quiet in this church “Peace and Quiet”.
Who’s that kneeling and praying at the cross?
Then there are times it is noisy. The
bang, bang of drums.
What’s that noise? The big
guy is carrying aluminum cans out, every penny counts.
The Pastors office light is on again, can’t sleep in here although
there is a pile of papers in the corner – a good place to hide.
It’s Christmas Eve
afternoon, Ann is getting ready to leave the church.
Who is that guy putting new candles in the candelabras for the Christmas
Eve Services?
Now who might that guy be? He
looks like a farmer, he has a water can, Oh, he’s watering the poinsettias.
Where is my water?
I hear a noise outside a couple of young guys shoveling snow and throwing
salt around like they are feeding chickens.
It’s late, tis Christmas Eve and this place is lit up like a Christmas
tree.
Everyone looks nice. Who’s
that lady in red? She looks like
Mrs. Claus.
The Praise Team really sounds good. And
how about that choir. Yes!
Praise the Lord for musical talent.
I really like the glowing of the candles that the people hold, it is so
peaceful, Silent Night, Holy Night.
What are those young people doing over there?
They are going to ring the church bell at midnight.
Hope all goes well. OOPS, Who
is that young lady getting pulled up by the rope?
Wait a minute, who’s the big guy pulling the rope?
Sure glad things all worked out.
It’s bed time Santa will be coming soon.
Hmm, I wonder if Little Billy is going to get something better than a
lump of coal this year? I
heard at the Christmas dinner Santa said he was bad and if he didn’t start
being good soon he was going to get nothing but coal for Christmas.
I hope he leaves some cheese for me even if it has holes in it.
I like Swiss Cheese.
MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL AND TO ALL A GOOD NIGHT |
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