THE
METHODIST CHIMES
Red Hook & Rowe United Methodist Churches’
Newsletter
February, 2012
OUR MINISTRY
"Let us not become weary, in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up." (Galatians 6:9)
Every good gardener knows that gardens need quality seed, cultivating, watering, weeding, and meticulous attention to soil conditions and temperature. But to have an especially beautiful garden, one needs to add generous amounts of tender loving care and nourishing plant food.
Ministry is like that: tender loving care, a fresh anointing, and a new perspective grow spiritually robust congregations.
One reality is obvious: God wants every ministry to bloom, flourish, and grow to bear fruit and to have strong roots. God wants All his people to be fed and loved and cared for. God wants us all to be "ministers", each in our own way. God has planted each of us in a specific place to do a specific form of ministry. And all of us working together as ONE can bear much fruit.
We are being called today to renew, reenergize, and maybe even revolutionize our ministry here at Red Hook and Rowe. In order to face this challenge we need to answer these questions:
- Am I willing to commit myself to the ministry of Christ through this church?
- One thing I would like to see at Red Hook/Rowe is…?
- The area of ministry that most interests me is…?
- Small groups I'd like to be a part of are…?
- Do I know what God wants me/us to accomplish in this ministry?
- How can I/we change, renew, reawaken, revitalize ministry here and now?
- What has Christ done for me? What am I willing to give to Him?
Think about these questions, and in some way share your ideas with me or another congregation member. We need your support and assistance. As we contemplate these questions, let us use this prayer:
"Master Gardener of my soul and ministry, Open my eyes to opportunities in my life and ministry. Open my affections to the unique beauty and possibilities of this place. And strengthen my skills to be your Junior Gardener - to plant, water, cultivate, weed, prune and harvest in this place. Amen"
At the heart of the Christian faith is our participation in the life, suffering, death, resurrection and ascension of Jesus Christ as Lord. The word became flesh, Jesus Christ was born into human, history and dwelt among us! He lived and taught, suffered and was put to death; but God "raised him from the dead and made him sit at his right hand"
It is through the suffering, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ that we are delivered from sin and death and through the Holy Spirit we are born into eternal life with God. There is NO EASTER without LENT! There is no celebration, resurrection, joy without the suffering, death and burial of Jesus Christ! There is NO HOPE and FAITH without the WHOLE STORY of Jesus.
We need to be aware of, in touch with, sensitive to all that took place that last week of Jesus' life. We need to experience the pain, sorrow, betrayal, denial, mocking and crucifixion of Jesus - if we want to really celebrate the Glorious Resurrection.
Let's not jump from Christmas to Easter. Experience all that God in Christ has done for you and me. This season of Lent is a time to share with others as they prepare for the celebration of Easter. Come and worship with us, not only on Easter Sunday but all during Lent.
Ash Wednesday - February 22 - At Red Hook UMC
Sunday Services of Lent will be "The I AM Sayings of Jesus.
Holy Week Theme will be "Angels Watch Over Me"
Don't miss any of these opportunities to experience how very much God loves us; how Jesus was willing to suffer and die for us and how wonderful it is to follow a living, loving Savior.
The peace of our Lord be with you all.
With much Love,
Pastor Dorothy
Prayer
Concerns
Dick Zeilman Haley Hines John Udry
Diane Rennie Jane Morgan Jean Behn
Kathy Browne Geoffrey Goodman Fran Baldwin
Bruce Link Joan Hill Erma Crouch
Terry Seymour Caleb & Grady Nelson Bridget McDonnell
Randy in Norwalk, CT Cynthia Morrison Sp4 Zachary McDonnell
David Groth Taylor Van Voorhis Ed Meyer
Dottie Grosso Jay Theilmann David & Jay Weston
Jack “Jay” Sundheimer Sr. Marie Melzer Gerry McCrum
Dick & Shirley Whitehead Allie Orlando Bill Van Voorhis
David Muller Richard Barrett Amy Johnson
Dorothy Bowes Stanley Forsey Pat Bowman
Bill & Ruby Allen Donna Orlando’s Father Tracy’s Co-worker
Chris Ely Steven Peck Marion ‘Sis’ Simpson
John Puzio David Dupont Moritz Poerschmann
Pastor Dorothy’s Sister, Betty & her husband, Bill
Nursing Homes/Rehab
Helen Saunders Paul Lacey Dorothy Marion Richard Purdy
To Place People on Our Prayer List –
A simple call to our church office puts a person on our congregational prayer list found in our weekly bulletin. Confidential prayer requests can also be made.
Prayer Group meets at Red Hook Lounge Wednesday mornings at 7:30 a.m.
PRAYER CHAIN:
The prayer chain is a vessel for individuals to use to have prayers said for anyone who is in need. All concerns are kept confidential. If you would like to use it, please contact Pastor Dorothy (758-6283 or 758-5015). She then will call Joan Murray, Joan Morrison and Alma Bowman to start the prayer chain. If you cannot reach her, please call Joan Murray (758-5189), Joan Morrison (758-5375), or Alma Bowman (758-9501). You need only to be as specific as you wish. We want only to be supportive and put in place the POWER OF PRAYER.
BOARD OF TRUSTEES
The Trustees started the year by welcoming Jane Bier, Lois Chenkus and Rand Thomson as new members, and then electing officers for 2012. The Board of Trustees for 2012 consists of:
Mark Chenkus (Chairman) Jane Bier
Joe O’Han (Vice Chairman) Carol Boeck
Warren Skov (Treasurer) Lois Chenkus
Steve Tovcimak (Secretary) Ron Jones
Rand Thomson
Our job is to make sure that God’s house is properly maintained. Please don’t hesitate to report problems, make suggestions or offer your help to make our Church a better place
Rowe UMC resumes services February 5th
Sunday, February 5 12:15 p.m.
Carry-out soup and sub sandwiches provided by the Red Hook UMC Sunday School. Donations appreciated.
A CALL TO ACTION
The following announcement was made in church January 15.
The Methodist Church has projected that unless we change the way in which we operate today, the Methodist Church may no longer exist in 25 years.
In an effort to produce change that would prevent our extinction and make the UMC more relevant to today’s society, a new program has been developed to be offered to all UMC churches: “A Call to Action”.
To start the process in the Red Hook UMC, we must enroll. Before we do that, your Church Council is extending an invitation to any member who would like to join us in evaluating the process and the commitment necessary to participate in it. If you are interested in joining us, please tell Lois Chenkus, Fred Brammer, or the Pastor, and we will provide you with the materials available to date.
Fred Brammer for the Ad Council
Additionally, this is an excerpt from one of the two following web sites :
(
http://umccalltoaction.org/
http://www.umvitalcongregations.org/site/c.btJRL9NSJoL6H/b.7727161/k.BD6C/Home.htm
)
United Methodist bishops voted overwhelmingly Nov. 1 in favor of proposals to restructure the denomination and redistribute up to $60 million in church funds……
…….After the vote, Washington Area Bishop John R. Schol – who leads the bishops’ Vital Congregations Initiative – said he thinks overall the changes will better align the denomination to support vital congregations.
“Those are the congregations that are growing over time, reaching out to their communities, and they are engaging more of their laity in ministry,” he said.
“Some of the changes we talked about today are legislative, but there’s far more change that’s really about leadership at all levels of the church – bishops, general agency staff, local congregations – all beginning to say we’re going to do something different,” he said
________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
The UMW will meet on January 30th in the Church Lounge at 7 p.m., and elections will take place at that time. Women of both the Red Hook and Rowe Congregations are welcome to attend.
_____________________________________________________________________
ASH WEDNESDAY
The Ash Wednesday service will be Feb. 22 at our church at 7:30 PM. We will be hosting the congregation of St, John's Reformed Church and their choir will be joining ours for an anthem. The locations of the Wednesday night Lenten services will be announced next month.
_____________________________________________________________________
Our
Food Pantry has been serving an increasing number of families, a nd we were
blessed with a generous donation from Chartwell Foods on January 8th.
Food Pantry Jobs are available! Can you volunteer for just one – once a month?
* Every Saturday
night at 10:30, someone meets another volunteer in Hyde Park, who brings
that day’s baked and unused bread from Panera in Wappinger Falls. Usually,
* Every Tuesday and Thursday, meat is picked up from Hannaford for which the “sell by” date has expired and immediately placed in our freezer.
* Two Friday mornings a month, John Carmody (Tivoli) picks up day old bread and milk from Stewarts, and the milk must be put in refrigerator.
* Two Fridays a month, a small truck is driven to Hudson surplus food from the Latham Food Bank.
* Once a month pick up from Hyde Park (usually Thursday) of groceries / surplus from the Cornwall Food Bank.
* Every Sunday, at least 3 people (4 preferred) man our food pantry distribution. Starts ˝ hr before opening ( to prepare for frozen food distribution, as well as produce) at 1:00 pm. Record keeping is necessary for Food Bank requirements, and help is needed to process clients, oversee food distribution, and restock shelves. Pantry closes at 2:30, after which shelves are finally restocked for the next week.
* Once a month (before the 10th), a report is filed with the Food Bank with the total number of individuals served in the previous month (prerequisite for next month’s delivery).
* Once a month, an inventory of the Latham Food Bank is printed via e-mail. Several days later, our order is phoned in to Latham for the food we need and/or can afford ( usually 1,000 – 3,000 lbs). This is delivered to Kingston the following Tuesday and picked up by Phil Seymour and Bill Murray, Jr. It is then delivered to our church, where about 10 volunteers (more is better?) unload and store the food in about 2 hours.
How do we fund all of this?
Hand-to-Mouth-Weavers are really beginning to roll and sell products at; Elmendorf Farmer’s Market twice a month and later this year at Hardscrabble, Apple Blossom Festival, Holly Day Bazaar. Every Wednesday night and Thursday morning, the weavers gather in the Loom Room across from the Fellowship Hall, not only weaving, but doing all the prep work of the materials. Come see what you can do!! It’s fun, and they would love help!
In the meantime, back in the Fellowship Room, CL&O (Christian Life & Outreach) committee meets once a month to monitor all this activity, and also check on Coffee Hours (for which Joan Murray signs up volunteers). Soup and Sandwich times are set and organized. (The next one is February 12th --- put it on your calendar, and look for an up-coming Chili Cook-off in March ) .
Thanks for reading all this! Pat Brammer for CL&O
Sunday, February
Soup and Sandwich Lunch provided by the Church Life and Outreach
Red
Hook UMC
4 Church Street, Suite 2
Red Hook, New York 12571
