Beverly Bailey, Editor The First Congregational Church of Stanton 305 North Camburn Street - P. O. Box 926 Stanton, MI 48888 989.831.5240 The Open Door is published monthly by the First Congregational Church of Stanton The Open Door March 2014 On rare occasions the northern lights are visible from Michigan. The northern lights are spectacular to behold. The northern lights shine every night, whether or not we can see them from where we are. Seeing God (or not) is quite similar. In this section every month we highlight something special. It’s sort of a “God Showcase” as we consider all that He is doing in and among FCC. If you have trouble sensing God on the move in your own life, maybe it’s because . . . well, maybe it’s like the northern lights. You have to be where they are and you have to be looking at them in order to see them. Sometimes it’s as simple as a daily devotion. Every month our Diaconate provides helpful booklets meant to encourage our relationship with God. Each day has its own Scripture, prayer, and devotional thought. The idea is that we tune our minds to godliness with each new day. If you want to see God on the move in your own life you can. Just go to where He is and look for Him. You’ll find Him alive and active; eager to move in your life beyond what you could ask or imagine! Copies of each of these are available for free on the info-carousel in the entry way. From the desk of Pastor Jamey Really Cool! Boring Doctrines—Part I There once was a lady who made teddy bears. Now if you’ve ever had a homemade teddy bear you understand that they’re nothing like the store bought kind. In fact, depending on the particular bear, you could potentially pay a lot more for the homemade specimen. Good ones require many hours of work and tend to have a look about them that instantly communicates a hand-sewn quality. This lady I’m telling you about made them very well. In fact, her teddy bears were not only valuable on the arts and crafts market, they were valuable to her personally. You see, she always put a great deal of care into each one she made. he loved each teddy bear and even gave many of them names. One day, a friend of the bear maker took ill. As a gesture of kindness, the bear maker took a sample of her special handiwork and gave it, as a gift, to her sick friend. Years later, that friend took ill again and passed away. he bear continued to live with the widower as one of the many possessions his wife left behind. Eventually, the widower began to fail and needed to move. In order to deal with all his belongings he held an estate sale. On that day, the bear maker stopped by the estate just to have a look at what might be for sale. It had been years since she had seen her little friend. In fact, she’d nearly forgotten she ever gave him away. As the bear maker was walking through the house, she spotted her creation sitting alone on the couch. At first she didn’t fully realize what she was seeing when, suddenly, it dawned on her. That bear looked awfully familiar. She picked him up and turned him over in order to have a look. As was her practice, whenever the bear maker finished another one of her special creations, she would always stitch her initials in the bear’s little bear bottom. When she turned this particular little guy over, she realized what she was holding—one of her very own handmade bears. (Continued on next page) Our Church at Work . . . From the Board of Trustees . . . More water in the basement . . . This is in the southeast corner of the youth room. This will need to be addressed in the spring when we hope to determine the cause of the problem. A BIG THANK YOU to Rick and Rob Baldwin for cleaning and salting our walks this winter, which has, sometimes, been a daily task. REVOLT Student Ministries MARK YOUR CALENDAR FOR THE. . . FISHING & HUNTING BANQUET Friday, March 28, 2014 - 7 p.m. Trinity Church, Stanton SPECIAL SPEAKER—Bill Simpson, Jr. Tournament Angler/Local Funeral Director Member of B.A.S.S., FLW Outdoors, Bass Federation, a local fishing clubs ~~~~ NO CHARGE - Bring a dish to pass DOOR PRIZES and MUSIC ~~~~ Teens, Women, and Men may call 989.831.5728 for Reservations   From the Diaconate . . . Dear Church Family: The Diaconate would like to invite you and your family to our Lenten Suppers, starting March 5 (Ash Wedneday) at 6 p.m. Please join us as we gather together to fellowship and learn. Please bring a dish to pass and your own table service. Beverages will be provided. It was SO good to be back in church yesterday (February 23). Really missed all of you guys. I want to thank everyone for the many prayers and cards I received following the stroke experienced on January 12. Having spent three consecutive weeks in the hospital, it was great to get home on Friday, January 31. I missed being in choir . . . and hope to return soon. I seem to be recovering satisfactorily after excellent care and therapy. Be Aware . . . That we spring ahead to Daylight Savings Time on Sunday, March 9. I feel so blessed. Thanks again! God bless! Woody Ely — Pastor Tara Doolittle REVOLT kicked off the month of February with a group of high school students taking a trip to the Ann Arbor/Ypsilanti area. We traveled to the Eastern Michigan University Convocation Center for a Saturday evening of contemporary worship music at the Rock and Worship Roadshow. Following the event, we spent the evening laughing while playing a card game and were quite surprised hotel security didn’t come knocking on our door to tell us to quiet down. Sunday morning, we attended a worship service at The Vineyard of Ann Arbor. The following Sunday, REVOLT students attended a youth rally at Trinity Church with over 120 other Christian teens from all over mid-Michigan. The evening included meeting new people, playing games, participating in musical worship, and hearing a challenging message on putting God first. What a blessing to have a great relationship with other area churches where we can feel comfortable coming together as one body in Christ! For our other two Sundays, REVOLT continued through the book we have been reading called Own It which is all about making our faith our own. We have successfully completed all but the final chapter which we will do the first Sunday of March. In addition to our study, students enjoyed some fun games including “penguin kickball.” This game required students to dress warmly for the chilling outdoor temps. Leaders saran-wrapped the students’ legs from the waist to the knees resulting in the students walking and running like penguins. It was quite hilarious to watch them waddle around the parking lot, trying to kick, catch, and throw the ball. Looking ahead to March, we could use some continued prayers. While we will spend some of our Sundays with our usual evening format, REVOLT is planning to travel to Women At Risk International (W.A.R.) in Grand Rapids on Sunday, March 30, for our Servant Sunday. This is an organization that works to help prevent and end human trafficking and transition rescued women into a healthy and healing life. Please pray that our students handle themselves maturely and respectfully and that they are impacted by the stories they will hear of God working through His children to bring redemption, rescuing, healing, and love to the world at large. Try These Chicken Nuggets! Pastor Jamey . . . (continued) The bear maker decided it was time to get this little guy back to his original home. Her friend had died, and the widower didn’t want to keep the bear anymore. At that point the bear maker made a decision. She bought the bear. She went to the person collecting money, and she paid her own money for what had originally been her bear. She bought him back and took him home. The bear that was hers in the beginning was now hers again. But she couldn’t just take the bear for, though he was initially hers, he now belonged to another. She had to pay the full price to make the bear hers again. This is a true story. The bear maker is Norma Bussell and the friends are Bill are Fern Hoffmaster—all members of our church. This, dear people, is the meaning of REDEMPTION. This important theological concept describes you and me. At one time, we all belonged to our father, the devil. He owned us. We were his. But, God . . . He wouldn’t stand for that. So, as part of a magnificent plan, he paid the exorbitant price to buy us back so we could get back to where we belonged. God redeemed us from our lost condition and Jesus, our Redeemer, did the paying. The price to redeem us? The life blood of a perfect person—a price God decided was worth paying just to get us back. Redemption is one of those doctrines that show how very special you are. You think about that. Mealtime Prayer Have someone read the following prayer: “For food in a world where many walk in hunger, For faith in a world where many walk in fear, For friends in a world where many walk alone, We give you humble thanks, O Lord. Amen.” Appetizer Why don’t chickens play sports? (Answer: Because they hit fowl balls.) Main Course Have you ever had someone call you a chicken? Can you think of a person who’s never been afraid? God knew that each of us would face times of fear. That’s why He gave us “nuggets of truth.” Guess how many times the Bible says, “Do not be afraid.” Is it 10, 50, or 70? (Answer: 70) What things does the world tell you to worry about? Read Isaiah 43:5; Luke 2:10; and Revelation 1:1-18. What do these verses tell us? With promises like that, you can give worries to God and leave chicken for the barbecue! “God creates out of nothing. Wonderful you say. Yes, to be sure, but he does what is still more wonderful: he makes saints out of sinners.” ― Søren Kierkegaard, Table Talk  How does knowing God is with you help? Why?  Was there a time this past week when you were afraid? What did you do?  Name one worry you can give to God right now? The Journals of Kierkegaard Vitamins and Minerals This bear pictured here is only an example of the sort of homemade teddy bears Norma made and is not an actual Bussell-Bear. “My peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” (John 14:27) For more family devotions like this one visit focusonthefamily.org From the Moderator . . . Simple Faith * Hard Work * God’s Word * Passion for Christ The Lord is my . . . song. Psa. cxviii. 14. While there is no specific answer, the general answer is that those things (and many others) affect our bottom line. I know most people, me included, don’t like to talk about the church and money. However, there are sometimes when we need to talk about uncomfortable things, and this is one of those times. Let us think of God Himself becoming our song. This is the fullness and perfection of knowing God: so to know Him that He Himself becomes our delight; so to know Him that praise is sweetest, and fullest, and freshest, and gladdest, when we sing of Him. He who has learned this blessed secret carries the golden key of heaven—nay, he hath fetched heaven down to earth, and need not envy the angels now. —Mark Guy Pearse Thoughts for the Quiet Hour D. L. Moody, ed. (1900) I remember a few years ago there was a commercial for IBM that asked a question something like “How does the price of diesel in Iowa affect the price of rice in China?” While they never did answer that question, what IBM did was to get people to think about and realize that everything is connected. So along those lines, let me ask you a couple of questions. How does the weather in Stanton, affect the spreading of God’s word in Africa? Or how does Florida affect our church family here in Stanton? The brutal winter we are having has caused us to have to cancel church once and has caused a lot of people to stay home because of hazardous travel conditions. When you combine that to the number of people who go down south and become snowbirds each year, it is easy to see how donations to the church are down. Our times are in his hands. Being old in age often means being young at heart. Why? Because, with age comes wisdom, And wisdom increases trust, And trust fosters peace, And peace brings freedom— Freedom to glorify God by enjoying Him! Oh, to delight in God as children at play delight in living! A couple of weeks ago, Pastor Jamey talked to the kids during the children sermon about how sometimes we have to “face the facts.” Here are a few facts we as a church have to face: When we are forced to cancel church, we never really make up the donations for the canceled week; when people stay home because of bad roads or other reasons, we never really make up all the donations, and when people go down south for the winter, we never really make up all the donations they would give if they were here. So why do I mention this? Because it is a fact that our donations to our church are down and as our church’s moderator and treasurer, I am concerned and wanted to share those concerns with my church family. So what do we do about it? I’ll be honest; I don’t have the magic answer, but I do know a GREAT starting point; we can pray about it, let God speak to each of us and let Him lead us. In His service, Bill Simpson, Moderator 02 02 03 04 04 06 06 10 12 13 13 13 14 14 15 16 16 17 19 19 20 20 22 25 25 26 27 28 28 29 29 29 30 31 31 Jacob Baldwin Christine Skilling Arlene Greenhoe Carol Drobish Jacquelyn Swanson Brandy Bunting Beth Visser Malachi Herzog Samantha Nichols John Bookwalter Geraldine Burge Jammie Gorby Sharon Ritter Hannah Wilcox Heidi Terry Jack Jorgensen Carlton Miller Mary Lou Ely Susan Karr Patty Rockafellow Lynn Bowens Joyce Johnson Brylee Bunting Austin Heinlen Todd Wells Kate Zimbelman Michael Hansen Lee Ann Reese Florence Yutzey Brandon Stowell Jennifer Vander Schuur Dawn Wadle Amy Laper Josh Herzog Bill Miller Anniversaries 0 14 Richard/Diane Bannister 14 Lewis/Sharon Borton 21 Alan/Ronda Myers 24 Claud/Karen Tift 26 Norm/Marva Brummeler March 2014 Sun Mon Tue 3 2 Wed 9 10 11 am - Morning Worship 9:30 am - Adult Choir Practice 9:45 am - Morning Fellowship 6:30 pm - REVOLT YOUTH 5 11 6 pm Diaconate Board Mtg 16 17 Sat 6 7 1 pm 13 14 19 6 pm Lenten Supper 24 25 20 30 15 21 7 pm MARC Meeting 26 27 22 1 pm Winter Blahs! At FCC 28 7 pm OFD Meeting OPEN DOOR DEADLINE 8 9 am Chit Chat and Coffee 6 pm Lenten Supper SPRING BEGINS! 23 11 am - Morning Worship 9:30 am - Adult Choir Practice 9:45 am - Morning Fellowship 6:30 pm - REVOLT YOUTH 1 WINTER BLAHS! AT FCC 12 18 11 am - Morning Worship 9:30 am - Adult Choir Practice 9:45 am - Morning Fellowship 12:25 pm - Board of Trustees Mtg 6:30 pm - REVOLT YOUTH 11 am - Morning Worship 9:30 am - Adult Choir Practice 9:45 am - Morning Fellowship 6:30 pm - REVOLT YOUTH Fri ASH WEDNESDAY Lenten Supper 6 pm DAYLIGHT SAVINGS TIME BEGINS NOISY CHANGE Thu 4 11 am - Morning Worship 9:30 am - Adult Choir Practice 9:45 am - Morning Fellowship 6:30 pm - REVOLT YOUTH First Congregational Church of Stanton Worship Service: 11 a.m. Phone: 989.831.5240 Email address: [email protected] Website: www.fccstanton.org 6 pm Lenten Supper 31 Lent is a season of the Christian Year where we focus on simple living, prayer, and fasting in order to grow closer to God.