•Pastor's Updates 2/14

Dear Church friends and family,

Please find the latest updates on the church.

Prayer Requests:

Please pray for Teri Hughes and her family as they are experiencing medical issues of various kinds. Please pray for Jean Huttel as she is recovering from surgery. We also ask prayers for David Lindsey (Ethelyn’s son and Dorothy’s brother) who has been diagnosed with Parkinson’s. Please pray for our church and its vision and direction as we respond to the Call to Action. Please also pray for those on the prayer list.

Special Worship·

February 22: Ash Wednesday with Imposition of Ashes at 7:15pm.·

February 26: “Forgiveness” by the Women’s Bible Study Group

On the Calendar:·

February 10: Midnight Run·

February 11: ERT Training at Carmel UMC 9-5· Men’s Breakfast:

Feb. 18th at 9am· Make A Difference Evangelism Training: Clove Valley Bible Fellowship 9-2 on Feb. 25.·

February 26: Super-Committee Meeting following worship. Please plan on staying as we will go through Mission, Sunday School, Worship, and some other church items in one shot. This is also the Scrips Gift Card deadline.·

Women’s Bible Study meets on Tuesdays at 7:30pm except on Feb. 14·

Adult Sunday School meets after worship this coming Sunday·

April 28: Rebuilding Together – need a hospitality tent coordinator

Midnight Run

The church is sponsoring a Midnight Run on February 10. Please bring in you items by January 29. Items you can bring: clothing (men and women’s large and extra large size, clean and gently used), men’s coats, thermal underwear, jeans, gloves, hats, sweatshirts/hoodies, sweatpants, socks, belts, new underwear, backpacks, blankets, boots/sneakers, hotel sized toiletries, toothpaste, toothbrush, mouthwash, washcloth, hand towel, shampoo, conditioner, deodorant, soap, lotion, lip balm, razors, shaving cream.

ERT Training at Carmel UMC

If the idea of being able to help communities who have experienced widespread natural disaster early on is appealing to you, please consider attending this training session at Carmel, UMC this Saturday. You need to pre-register. The district is especially interested in training people with chain saw operating skills and those who can tarp, muck out, and/or remove debris. I attended this training and found it very helpful. If you wish to register, please contact me.

Spiritual Discipline Partners

As Lent approaches, if you have been considering a particular spiritual discipline to practice during Lent, and you would like a partner to practice the particular discipline with, please speak to Nikki Edleman. She will be coordinating people who want to pray (like doing lectio divina), fast, read Scripture, etc. together.

Ash Wednesday is Feb. 22

This is when Lent begins, so please come by the church at 7:15pm for a brief service and imposition of ashes.

Make a Difference Evangelism Training:The Clove Valley Bible Fellowship is hosting an evangelism training event on Feb. 25 from 9-2. I posted a link to the promotional video for the program. No role playing. It sounds like a good, non-threatening way to get more information or more comfortable with sharing your faith in a non-objectionable way. Please let me know if you are going. I plan to attend this program and would love for others from the church to come as well. There is no fee for attending. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ajkGnNiBjY

Help Wanted:Needed·

a hospitality tent coordinator for Rebuilding Together ·

a VBS CoordinatorPlease speak to Pastor Sung if you can help.

Children’s Spiritual Formation Program:

Spiritual Life SkillsI have begun a program to help our children to put spiritual skills into practice in their lives. For January and February, I am asking the kids to practice: GRATITUDE. Letters on forgiveness are still being accepted to Jan. 1. The letters for Gratitude will be due on March 4. Special Note: I am giving a one letter credit to all the kids who attended the Christmas Eve service for being gracious hosts to the visiting kids. I didn’t hear one moan or groan when I gave out the gift bags to our visitors, and so some of you have already met your 2 letter requirement to attend the Fun Central party. Just make sure that you let me know if you had been at the Christmas Eve service to get your credit.For any child who has at least two letters, I will have a party at Fun Central in June to which they will be invited to come. It’s not an ipod touch, but I think it is still a good reward. But the greater reward will hopefully be that they continue to put these skills into practice. If there are any particular spiritual life skills that anyone would like to recommend, then please let me know.

Change in Committee Meeting Structure

The Church Council has decided to move to a new way to determine the ministries and programs of the church in 2012 that will decrease the need to meet during the week. We have set 3 dates on the calendar for all committees to meet after worship on those given dates. The first meeting is February 26. Please save the date. In essence, it will be a “super-committee” meeting. Worship, Missions, Sunday School, Nurture, and Hospitality Chairs will hold one meeting after another given time limits. We will have a brunch and everyone who can attend the meetings may stay for all of them. An agenda for the meeting will be provided in advance. We hope that this will put more decision-making power into your hands and make it less a decision of a few. I will provide those dates in the next weekly update.

Words for Today:

Therefore, prepare your minds for action; be self-controlled; set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed. As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy.” Since you call on a Father who judges each man’s work impartially, live your lives as strangers here in reverent fear. For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your forefathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect. He was chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times for your sake. Through him you believe in God, who raised him from the dead and glorified him, and so your faith and hope are in God. Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for your brothers, love one another deeply, from the heart. For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God.
--1 Peter 1:13-23

Sung Moy, Pastor
Poughquag United Methodist Church
21 Church St.
Poughquag, NY 12570

http://poughquagumcny.org
(O) 845-724-3912
(H) 845-462-4933

Work hard and cheerfully at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people.
Remember that the Lord will give you an inheritance as your reward, and the Master you are serving is Christ.--Colossians 3:23-24 NLT