Volume XLV, No. 1Venice - Santa Monica Free Methodist Church

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eVol. XLV, No. 1

JANUARY2015

REFRESHEDHow are you starting out the new year? I hope you are starting out 2015 refreshed. Most of us had some time off from work at the end of the year, celebrated Jesus’ birth at Christmas and enjoyed the New Year holiday. I hope that it refreshed you. It was a good opportunity to see family and friends, celebrate Jesus and welcome in a new calendar year.

Christmas and New Years can also be a stressful time. It reminds us of broken relation-ships, family dysfunction, and financial difficulty. And if you caught a cold or flu, that can compound the stress! If you are like this maybe you are starting the new year more re-lieved than refreshed.

If so, refreshment is close. Jesus is always near. And when our spirit is refreshed, it has an effect on our total person. I remember one year when a friend and I were driving back to college at San Jose State University. It was hot in L.A. and the freeway traffic was really slow. Somewhere between L.A. and Santa Barbara, we pulled off the road. We bought some iced tea. I remember drinking it and feeling so much better! The combination of ice cold liquid, sugar and caffeine really lifted my spirits. And I thought to myself, “I didn’t realize how “down” I had become.

Let Jesus be your source of refreshment. “…put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator.” (Ephesians 3:10)

Pastor Jim MiyabeSincerely,

Children’s Choir, Steve Tuggy Advent Share, Adult Choir, Youth Christmas Caroling and Party.

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NEWS BRIEFS

Congratulations to Geoffrey & Sandra (Banu-elos) West who were married on September 9. May God bless you in your married life.

Senior adults enjoyed their annual Christmas luncheon on December 6. Thanks to everyone who helped with the program.

Our congratulations to Lange Gifford for her graduation from SMC Nursing Program. A Pinning Ceremony was held of December 18.

Congratulations to three couples who recently became engaged. God’s best to Shin Furu-kawa & Lange Gifford, Ricardo Mendoza & Richwell Galura and Randall Yumori & Grace Lee.

The Convalescent Hospital Ministry spread Christmas cheer to the its 38 patient rooms on Dec. 21st. The Senior Adult Ministry provided gifts of miniature flowers and Christmas carol-ing brightened the patients’ season.

Our youth handed out cookies to our neighbors around the church on December 13 and went Christmas caroling to many of our seniors on December 20. Thanks for being a blessing!

We held our Christmas Sunday worship serv-ice at the Venice Japanese Community Center on December 21. Special features included the Children’s Choir led by LiYin Tan and Sutut Tritasavit, the Adult Choir directed by Patty Chung, and the reading of the birth of Christ from Rory Baker. Thanks to everyone who helped on the program and who helped

set up/take down the VJCC. Special thanks to the VJCC for letting us use their facilities.

Christmas Eve Candle Lighting Service was held on December 24. It was a special night as we celebrated the birth of Christ. Thanks to Warren Hodges for singing “O Holy Night” and the Praise Team for leading us into the spirit of the evening.

Ryan Granucci was the speaker at the North-ern California PCJC Youth Retreat December 26–28.

Good to hear from Ministerial Candidate, Linda Akutagawa, who spoke in our worship serv-ices on December 28. Great message, Linda!

Several of our college age young adults at-tended the PCJC Genesis Retreat on January 2–4.

Good to see Chris & Yuko Wilkins, Caleb & Corey with us on January 11. Chris and Yuko shared about their ministry in Cambodia.

THIS MONTH

MOPS TO MEET: January 12 & 26“Mothers of PreSchoolers” (MOPS) ministers to moms with young children thru adult conversa-tion, valuable input, child care and tasty food. They meet the 2nd & 4th Mondays each month f r o m 9 : 3 0 t o 1 1 : 4 5 a . m . E m a i l VeniceMOPS@yahoo.com for more details or go to venicechurch.org and click on “Commu-nity Life’ and select “MOPS”.

AWANA CLUB NIGHTS: January 16 & 23The mission of AWANA (“Approved Workmen Are Not Ashamed”) CLUB is to help churches and parents raise children and youth to know, love and serve Christ. Come sign up your children for a GREAT time! Contact church office for more information. Club time: 7:00 p.m.–8:30 p.m.

YOUTH FELLOWSHIP: Jan. 17, 24 & 25

Fellowship nights are fun and inspirational. Make sure your youth is a part of this faith building experience. For more details of all J a n u a r y Y o u t h E v e n t s , e m a i l youth@venicechurch.org.

CONVALESCENT HOSPITAL MINIS-TRY: January 18Once a month we minister to the residents at Santa Monica Convalescent Hospital at 2 p.m. Want to participate? Contact Wayne Ginoza at 310-963-4681 or wayne.ginoza@ca.rr.com.

TIRE OUT THE TYKES (TOTTS): Jan. 20TOTTS hosts activities for moms with children ages 0-18 months of age. Meeting 1st & 3rd Tuesdays at 9 a.m. at the Toddler House thru May. If you are interested in participating, p l e a s e c o n t a c t L e s l i e H u d s o n a t lesliedj@gmail.com.

SOCIETY MEETINGS PLANNED – January 25 & February 1The membership is called to our annual meet-ings on these two dates. January 25 will fea-ture the Ministry Reports, 2014 Financial Re-view, and the 2015 Budget proposal. Febru-ary 1 we will hold elections for our church leadership positions.

ADVANCE NOTICE

KOREAN DRAMA MINISTRY: Starts Feb. 8Join others to watch one episode of Pinocchio (Korean TV series) each week on Sundays from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Korean food will be served. (Dinner optional--$7 per person if you choose to eat.) Contact Jodi Yokota at 310-796-6957 for more details.

PCJC YOUTH MID-WINTER RETREAT: Feb-ruary 13–16“Rooted”, based on Colossians 2:6-7, is the theme for the conference youth retreat. It will be held at Tahquitz Pines. For questions go to youth@venicechurch.org.

ARE YOU PLANNING OUT YOUR YEAR? Plan for our significant spiritual growth oppor-tunities in the 2015: VJCC Festival June 27-28 Vacation Bible School July 6–10 Family Camp July 26-31

SHORT-TERM MISSION OPPORTUNITY! November 10-21Would God have you make a difference in the fight against human trafficking? The Novem-ber mission team with ZOE International still has openings. Contact Wayne Ginoza at wayne.ginoza@ca.rr.com or go to ZOE’s web-site: gozoe.org/ for information. You must register now to be included.

ANNOUNCEMENTS

HABITAT FOR HUMANITY CULVER CITY PROJECTWe are joining Habitat for Humanity to build a home for a deserving family in Culver City. We have pledged to raise $20,000 toward the

News Briefs SHORT-TERM MISSION: Please pray for those who are serving on short-term mis-sions: Sara Fong (U. of Tenn. with Inter-Varsity); Rob, Denise, Stephanie & Cori

Anne Tang (Thailand with ZOE Ministries).MILITARY PERSONNEL: Please continue

to pray for Keaton Frey (Navy), Robert Sugai (Army), Geoffrey West (Marines) and, in training, Andrew Sumida (Navy) who are serving our country in the military.

ADVANCED NOTICE

THIS MONTH

Announcements

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$150,000 needed for the project and will be helping with the actual construction in 2015. You can help serve by giving a donation and/or by signing up for a work day.FELLOWSHIP LUNCHEON SUNDAY: First SundayEvery 1st Sunday of the month is Fellowship Luncheon Sunday. Please join us after the 2nd worship service for a wonderful time of fellow-ship and for a delicious meal prepared by members of the Hospitality Ministry.COLLEGE FELLOWSHIP MINISTRY: Every Sunday “Teleios” meets at 12 p.m. All collegians/young adults are invited!GOD TIME: Scripture meditation & prayer from 7 p.m.-8 p.m. every Tuesday at the church. SUNDAY MORNING SCHEDULE Our two English Worship Services start at 8:45 a.m. and 10:15 a.m. The Japanese language

Worship Service starts at 10:15 a.m. English language Sunday school is held at 8:45 a.m. & 10:15 a.m. Japanese language Sunday school is at 8:45 a.m. Call the church office for more specific information on the youth and children’s schedule. MISS A WORSHIP SERVICE?Did you miss a worship service because you were ill or out of town? You can hear the mes-sages from our website venicechurch.org or order a CD. You can also access this newslet-ter (the “Seabreeze”) at our website and much, much more! (Please let Michelle Stultz in the church office know if you access the Se-abreeze off the web and don’t need one mailed to your home.)

IN SYMPATHY

Our condolences to the family of Mrs. Kazumi Fujiu who passed away on November 13.

May God be close to the Fujiu and Yamashita families.Our condolences to Mr. Craig (Chris) Morioka on the passing of his mother, Mrs. Ann Mo-rioka, on November 25. May God’s comfort be with the Morioka family.Our condolences to the family of Mrs. Anna Taka who passed away on November 29. May God give much comfort to the Taka family.

Our condolences to the family of Mrs. Kath-leen Yamada who passed away on December 12. Along with her husband, Hitoshi, she was a missionary in Belem, Brazil for many years.

MEMORIAL OFFERINGS

Thank Offering – C. Cluth

✢

MEMORIAL OFFERINGSIN SYMPATHY

CHILDREN’S MINISTRYCome out to Wii Night on January 30th at

6-9:30 p.m. Donations will support Habitat for Humanity. Open to kids K-5th grade.

Jan 10, 2015 (Sat) 7:00 PM to 9:30 PM - Youth Group: Bring in

the New Year in a special way.

Jan 17, 2015 (Sat) 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM - Turn Your Campus (Youth Conference) at BIOLA University. Hear great speakers, attend relevant seminars, hear some amazing spoken word, worship the Lord with a great band! $12 pays for registration and a yummy lunch. RSVP to secure a spot!

Jan 24, 2015 (Sat) 7:00 PM to 9:30 PM - Youth Group: Richie Takasugi will be speaking on Silence and Listening.

Jan 25, 2015 (Sun) 6:00 PM to 9:00 PM – For High Schoolers ONLY – Special Worship and Speaker at the O2Experience: Life, Death, Sex, & Romance at Calvary Chapel, Downey. RSVP needed for rides.

Venice Youth Shutterfly Page:

https://venicechurchyouthgroup.shutterfly.com/

Email: youth@venicechurch.org

JANUARY YOUTH NEWS

Christmas Service Children’s Choir

Youth Christmas Party

SeabreezeVENICE - SANTA MONICA FREE METHODIST CHURCH 4871 CENTINELA AVENUELOS ANGELES, CA 90066

TEMP - RETURN SERVICE REQUESTED

STAFF E-MAIL ADDRESSES & PHONE NUMBERS:Pastor Jim Miyabe pastorjim@venicechurch.org (310/822-8094)

Pastor Youngsu Park (Japanese Language) parksaka@yahoo.co.jp

Linda Akutagawa (Youth Co-Director): lindakut@yahoo.com (310/962-3529)

Audrey Hodges (CM Director)Venicekids@gmail.com (310/822-8094)

Ken Koshimizu (CM Assistant Director) kkoshimizu@verizon.net (310/822-8094)

Emiko Kuwata (Infant/Toddler Director)emkuwata@gmail.com (310/418-7791)

Michelle Stultz (Office Administrator) vsmfmc@linkline.com (310/822-8094)

Jodi Yokota (Bookkeeper)twotimothy212@yahoo.com (310/822-8094)

Venice-Santa Monica Free Methodist Church

Main Office: 310-822-8094 email: office@venicechurch.orgFax: 310-821-5474 http://www.venicechurch.org

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CAPERMIT NO. 214

CHECK OUT OUR CHURCH WEBSITE:

We’ve got a new online location at:

http://www.venicechurch.org It has our news and events!  This newsletter, “Seabreeze,” is also here.  Let us know if you receive the Seabreeze off the web and

don’t need one mailed to your home.  Also, Pastor Jim’s sermons are available there via Podcast or through its media player. Venice Youth (6th-12th grade ministry) has a new e-mail address! veniceyouth@yahoo.com