february 2010 epistle

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THE EPISTLEVolume 15 Issue 2 FEBRUARY 25, 2010

On March 7 and 14 donations will be receivedfor One Great Hour of Sharing . This hasbeen a great tradition in our church for fivedecades. Once a year our denominationalong with eight other denominations collectsmoney for use among the poor and needy

worldwide. This has been one of the mainways our church has been able to reach outwith God s mission beyond our localcommunity.

Funds collected are used in 80 nations ingeneral areas: sustaining communities,disaster relief, and for refugees. Sixty percentof the funds are used for sustainingcommunities which involves fighting hunger,disease, illiteracy with healthcare, education,and agricultural development. UCC alone

raises $3 annually through One Great Hourof Sharing . Please help sustain thiswonderful tradition with a generous gift.Checks should be made out to FirstCongregational Church with a designationOGHS. They can be placed in the offeringplates for mailed to the church office. Thankyou for your support.

Lent began yesterday, Ash Wednesday. Forty

days and forty nights, as the hymn puts it, leadus into the wilderness with Jesus as he movestoward the cross. Lent prepares us for theGreat Three Days , Maundy Thursday, Good

Friday and the Vigil of Easter.

On Maundy Thursday, we gather at 7:30 PM forTenebrae, a service of shadows, as we move,through readings and the extinguishing of lights,toward the cross. On Good Friday, we gather atnoon for the Way of the Cross walk in thevillage and then for a service of prayer at 7:30PM. These two services help us to center on

what the core of our faith is all about: God s lovein Jesus Christ. They also prepare us for the joyof Easter Day.

Just as Jesus began his ministry in the desert; aplace with no frills or distractions, so Lent offersus forty days to get away from the usual and tofocus on the essential. This is good spiritualdiscipline for us as we seek to be more faithfulfollowers of Jesus Christ.

For the third time, Jean and I have just returnedfrom Silver Day where we spent four days ofquiet and rest. It is a place of retreat. It is a time

of renewal as we prepare for Lent. Thiswonderful ministry is offered to pastors andother church workers free of charge and it isindeed a blessing. We returned refreshed. Itwas just what we needed.

On the First Sunday in Lent, we sang as ourhymn of gathering, Marva Dawn s wonderfulCome Away from Rush and Hurry . It was a
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perfect commentary on the importance of takingtime to renew our spiritual lives and to focus onthe reason for our being. I urge you to take thewords to heart as you move quietly andpurposefully into this Lenten time.

Come away from rush and hurry to thestillness of Gods peace;

from our vain ambitions worry, come to Christto find release.

Come away from noise and clamor, lifesdemands and frenzied pace;

Come to join the people gathered here to seekand find Gods face.

-WORDS: Marva J. Dawn (1948-)

Take the time each Sunday to be with othersgathered to seek and find God s face.

Your pastor,

John

SUNDAY WORSHIP

February 28: Second Sunday in Lent

Genesis 15:1-12, 17-18Psalm 27

Philippians 3:17-4:1Luke 13:31-35Sacrifices

March 7: Third Sunday in Lent

Isaiah 55:1-9Psalm 63:1-8

I Corinthians 10:1-13Luke 13:1-9Suffering

March 14: Fourth Sunday in Lent

Joshua 5:9-12

Psalm 322 Corinthians 5:16-21Luke 15:1-3, 11b-32

Grace

March 21: Fifth Sunday in Lent

Isaiah 43:16-21Psalm 126

Philippians 3:4b-14

John 12:1-8Waste

March 28: Sundayof the Passion:Palm Sunday

Choral Service

WHATS COMING UP IN ADULTEDUCATION

SUNDAY MORNINGS

February 28, March 7 & 14 Historyof Lent and Lenten Practices

Pastor Cedarleaf will share with us the history ofthe Lenten season, as well as Lenten practices.

March 21 & 28

TBD

WEDNESDAY MORNINGSBIBLE STUDY

February 24March 31The Wednesday morning class will become aLenten Small Group and will meet at 10:30

noon, instead of the usual 11 a.m. start time.Classes are held in the Snow Room.
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BOARDS AND COMMITTEESUPDATES

MISSIONS CORNERWith the Lenten season now in full swing, ourBoard of Missions has been busy making plans tosupport three local agencies based on our themeof Breaking the Cycle of Violence. The agenciesinclude Determined Divas, Lewis Street YMCA,and Rochester Youth for Christ. Determined Divasprovides counseling, mentoring services andworkshops for teenage girls in the city ofRochester who are seeking positive alternatives totheir current lifestyles. Lewis Street YMCAprovides day care for toddlers and after schoolcare for school age children in downtownRochester. Rochester Youth For Christ provides

mentoring and spiritual guidance for youth in theWest Main Street area (see article below).Representatives from all three groups joined us atour worship service on February 7

th. At the

conclusion of their presentations, the congregationgave them a warm round of applause.

For Determined Divas we are soliciting gifts ofpersonal hygiene for young women who cannotafford these products. The Lewis Street YMCA isasking assistance in refinishing child s cubbiesand later on help building some storage facilities.Saturday February 20

th,a group of us will be

heading down to RYFC to scope out some smallscale building projects. (Feel free to join us at 9:30am in the church parking lot).

It is appropriate that this month s featuredorganization the Board of Missions supports isnone other than Rochester Youth For Christ, oneof the groups that we are supporting during Lent.Rochester Youth For Christ (RYFC) is located at 1Favor Street, Rochester, NY (near West MainStreet) in the former RIT gymnasium. The missionof RYFC is to provide mentoring and spiritualguidance to the youth of the West Main Street

area.

RYFC strives to meet its mission through threeprograms. The first program is an active Saturdaymorning basketball league. Participants of thebasketball program are required to attend a smallgroup discussion during the week where they areprovided a dinner and participate in discussion oflife and spiritual issues. Another successfulprogram is Bethel Express where children have a

hearty Saturday morning breakfast, get to playand have fellowship time. RYFC also providesthe children with mentors and time to worshipcentered on music and singing. As an aside thechildren of Bethel Express have indicated aninterest in singing at one of our Sunday worshipservices. A third program is SuccessfulPathways which is designed for teenage girlswho have children, are pregnant or who are atrisk for pregnancy. Successful Pathwaysprovides mentoring and a social work service foreach participant.

About 80% of funding for RYFC comes primarilyfrom private donations. The other 20% comesfrom local churches. Geoff Smith is the director,and can be reached at 256-5050 or atwww.yfcrochester.org. Dee Jackson is ourMission Board liaison to RYFC and hassubmitted this month s information regarding

RYFC.

Submitted byTed Avgerinos, Board of Missions Chair

Morning Circle will meet on Tuesday, March9 at 10 AM. A representative from Daystar

will tell us about this facility that cares forinfants and children whose developmentalhandicaps are too great for them to remainat home.
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FAMILY NEWS

Preschool & Elementary SchoolHappenings

Rotation Classes Learn About Lent andEaster

During February and March, our students willlearn about the Christian season of Lent andthe joyous holiday of Easter.

Junior & Senior High Happenings

Junior High Church School To TravelThrough the New Testament

Through the spring, our Junior High class willcontinue to work its way through the majorstories of the New Testament.

Confirmation Students Busy With Study,Mission Work and Seder Supper

Our confirmands, Brianna Sherry and SarahHoover, will be busy in March! On March 7,they will cook and serve the Sunday dinner tothe residents and staff of Bethany House, awomen s and children s shelter in Rochester.They have a breakfast with the Pastor onMar. 21 at 8:30 a.m. to continue theirdiscussions on what confirmation means andhow these students can become productivemembers of our local church. On Mar. 28,

they will cook and lead a traditional SederSupper for 20 people here at our church.

JYF Movie Night March 19JYF students are invited to come to church onMar. 19 at 7 p.m. for another fun-filled movienight. Sign up in Fellowship Hall!

Senior High To Learn AboutServanthood

The senior high class will begin a newseries of classes called, Servant orSucker? These classes will analyze wise

and compassionate ways to help the poor.

Senior High to Participate in ThirdAnnual 30 Hour Famine!

The senior high class will be feeding theworld on empty stomachs through WorldVision s 30 Hour Famine on Feb. 26-27.The money they raise will be used forhunger relief around the world, with aportion of all funds going directly to Haiti.During the famine, the group fasts for 30

hours but drinks plenty of liquids. They willbe spending time doing service projects andraising their awareness on world hungerand poverty through lectures and Tribegames. This year, the focus is on Ethiopia,as well as local homelessness. Over thepast two years, they have raised over$3,000. Please pray for them and continueto bless them with your encouragement andsupport.

NEWS FROM OUR YOUTH

HELP SUPPORT THE YOUTH MISSIONTRIP! ANNUAL SPAGHETTI &

MEATBALL DINNERSunday March 14; 5:00 & 7:00PM seating. $6 for Adults, $4for children 11 and under.Purchase tickets after church inFellowship Hall.

YOUTH MISSSION TRIP NEEDS YOUR

HELP!Our youth need to raise $9,000 to cover thecost of the mission trip. We are looking forsilent auction items for the upcomingSpaghetti dinner on March 14. If you havean item or service to offer please signup onthe rolling bulletin board in Fellowship Hallor call Brian Sherry at 233-1010.


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COMMUNITY AND VOLUNTEEROPPORTUNITIES

The Advent House will hold its annual DinnerDance and Auction at the beautiful Casa

Larga Vineyards on Friday, March 26th, 2010at 6 p.m. Don Alhart will be the master ofceremonies and Carol Ritter Wright willconduct the live auction. There will be

hundreds of wonderful items to bid on in ourSilent Auction. Music will be provided by"Ruby Shooz" for your dancing pleasure.Tickets can be obtained by calling AdventHouse at 223-6112. Don't miss out on this

exciting social event for a good cause!

FAIRPORT-PERINTON PRESCRIPTIONDRUG DROP OFF

Presented by

Fairport-Perinton Chemical PreventionAdvisory Council

In cooperation with the Fairport Police Departmentand Church of the Assumption Health Ministry

Whats in your medicine cabinet?Teens are abusing prescription drugs found at

home.Prescription drug abuse is on the rise. Medicationsleft over from prior surgery or pills on a nightstandare common in many households. Everyday 2,500

young people ages 12 to 17 try a painkiller for thefirst time. Fairport s 2009 Youth Risk BehaviorSurvey data shows 185 students in grades 9-12,and 49 students in grades 7-8 took a drugprescribed for someone else to get high some onmany occasions.

How can you help protect our youth?

The federal government has guidelines for disposiprescription drugs that may help curb drug abuse,accidental overdose, and protect U.S. water sourc

Do not flush unused medications downthe toilet or drain as chemicals maypollute the water supply.

Help our community and youth by properlydisposing of old/unused prescriptions.

First Wednesday of each month:January 6, February 3, March 3,April 7, May 5, June 2 and July 7

10 AM to 1 PM

Fairport Police Department1 S. Main Street, FairportFront or back door

Put unused prescription medication in a plasticbag. Please put needles in a separate bag forsafe handling.Be sure the name of the drug is still on bottle

Remove personal information if you desire, howevis not necessaryBring to Fairport Police Department during drop

off times

Visit our website, www.fairport.org/parents formore information on CPAC/drug

issues/prevention; or call Debra Tandoi, Co-chair, CPAC, 697-1817

Fairport-Perinton, NY

WHEN

WHERE

HOW


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OUR CHURC H FAMILY

WELCOME TO THE NEW ARRIVALMadilyn Grace Barbato was born February 7, 2010in Fredrich, MD. She is the daughter of Jason andLuara Barbato, granddaughter of Bill and GailAndrews and great granddaughter of Walt andBarb Adams.

CONGRATULATIONS!!James Weidman V, a member of Troop 325sponsored by St John of Rochester Church,completed requirements for Boy Scouts highestaward, the rank of Eagle. He is the son of Kellyand Jim Weidman.

Our Christian sympathy is extended to Leon andValentina Hill on the death of Leon s father, WalterF. Hill on Sunday, January 24, 2010.

Sympathy is extended to Diana DeBruycker andher family on the death of her husband, ArthurDeBruycker on January 20, 2010. A memorialservice for Art will be scheduled in the spring.

Art had been an active member of our churchsince December, 1984.

Our condolences are extended to the family ofLouise Deller who passed away on February 5,2010. A memorial service was held for her at ourchurch on Sunday, February 7, 2010. PastorCedarleaf officiated. Louise had been a memberof our congregation for approximately 45 years.

We would like to express our sympathy to JoeBowman and family on the death of MarthaBowman, his wife. Martha passed away onFebruary 5, 2010. Her memorial service washeld at our church on February 10, 2010, withPastor Cedarleaf officiating. Martha joined ourchurch in 1972 and was a long time member ofthe Morning Circle.

Our condolences are extended to the family ofKathy Woodworth, who passed away onFebruary 7, 2010 in Florida. Kathy was ourchurch s former organist.

REMEMBER IN YOUR PRAYERS

Barbara Cobb, Fairport Baptist Home

Barbara Eaton, Perinton Park Manor

Charlotte Jackson, Fairport Baptist Home

Les Warren, Fairport Baptist Home

EPISTLEDEADLINE IS3 PM MARCH

18th

february 2010 epistle

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