February 2012 Newsletter

Lent

Lent begins on Ash Wednesday, February 22. Lent is a time of preparation, similar to Advent. Most Presbyterians are more familiar with Advent, which is a time of preparation for the birth or incarnation of Jesus Christ, than they are with Lent. Lent is also a time of preparation, as we are preparing to celebrate the Resurrection of Jesus Christ. It is the period of 40 days, not counting Sundays, immediately preceding Easter Sunday. During this time we look within ourselves to see how we as individuals and a society fall short of God's vision for us. We seek to repent from our sins and grow spiritually as we await the time of the Cross and Resurrection.

During this time we need to remember that two things are involved in genuine repentance: ‘the dying of the old self and the coming to life of the new.’ The way to Easter is the way of the Cross. ‘Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?’ (Romans 6:3). New life with Christ involves a daily surrendering of the old life. The first step of this journey invites us to acknowledge our mortality and our sinfulness which is symbolized by the ashes on Ash Wednesday. In ancient times, people would wear a sack cloth and ashes as a symbol of grief and regret. The use of ashes reminds us of the words of Job, ‘I repent in dust and ashes.’ (Job 42:6)

In the sixteenth century, Ignatius of Loyola, wrote a series of daily spiritual exercises that are very helpful to turn completely from sins that we repeat. Ignatius invites us into a discipline of self-examination and repentance, with daily exercises that start each morning by reminding ourselves of the defects in our lives that we hope to change. At midday, we take an inventory asking how have we done so far today with regard to the changes we are seeking to make in our lives. At the end of each day, do a self-examination to see where we experienced a special awareness of Christ’s presence and transforming power, or to see where we felt absent from Him. The day closes by thanking God and repenting anew from those areas where we strayed.

These spiritual exercises direct our attention to Jesus, and to examine ourselves and where we need to repent. Lent offers us an opportunity to begin a daily practice of self-examination that can lead to significant changes in our lives as we follow the leading of God’s Spirit. Take time each morning and evening to take stock of where you are walking with Christ, and where you have not. A daily confession and commitment to repentance helps us as we walk day by day with Christ.

May you grow closer to God each day during this Lenten season, Ron.

A Reformation In Our Future?

Ron Horn was among 2000 people in Orlando at the Presbyterian Fellowship meeting that studied our future. Here is an excerpt of Ron’s report:

The highlight for me was the opening sermon by John Ortberg. You can watch this sermon on vimeo by going to this link: http://vimeo.com/35475572 . At this meeting, the Evangelical Covenant Order of Presbyterians was introduced as a new Reformed Body. There is still some work to do, but it appears that this will be a viable new denomination in the near future.

I want to share four of the nine values that form the basis for this new group:

1. We believe Jesus Christ must be at the center of our lives and making disciples of Jesus at the core of our ministry.

2. We believe the Bible is the unique and authoritative Word of God, that teaches all that is necessary for faith and life. The prominence of God’s Word over our lives shapes our priorities, and the unrivaled authority of the Bible directs our actions to be in concert with Christ’s very best for our lives.

3. We believe in living out the whole of the Great Commission – including evangelism, spiritual formation, compassion, and redemptive justice – in our communities and around the world.

4. We believe congregations should vigorously reproduce new missional communities to expand the Kingdom of God.

The new group also has prepared an expanded commentary on the Ten Commandments to make them directly applicable to life in the 21^st Century. Here is their restatement of the Commandments:

1. worship God alone, living all of life to His glory, renouncing all idolatry and all inordinate loves that might lead us to trust in any other help;

2. worship God in humility, being reticent in either describing or picturing God, recognizing that right worship is best supported not by our own innovative practices but through the living preaching of the Word and the faithful administration of the sacraments;

3. eliminate from both speech and thought any blasphemy, irreverence, or impurity;

4. observe the Sabbath as a day of worship and rest, being faithful in gathering with the people of God;

5. give honor toward those set in authority over us and practice mutual submission within the community of the church;

6. eradicate a spirit of anger, resentment, callousness, violence, or bitterness, and instead cultivate a spirit of gentleness, kindness, peace, and love; recognize and honor the image of God in every human being from conception to natural death.

7. maintain chastity in thought and deed, being faithful within the covenant of marriage between a man and a woman as established by God at the creation or embracing a celibate life as established by Jesus in the new covenant;

8. practice right stewardship of the goods we have been given, showing charity to those in need and offering generous support of the Church and its ministries;

9. pursue truth, even when such pursuit is costly, and defend truth when it is challenged, recognizing that truth is in order to goodness and that its preservation matters;

10. resist the pull of envy, greed and acquisition, and instead cultivate a spirit of contentment with the gifts God has given us.

They are asking congregations, not just leaders, to covenant together with them to be committed to Christ, committed to following the Bible in their daily lives, missional, generous, and transformational. You can examine the covenant they are asking people to make here:

http://www.fellowship-pres.org/wp-content/uploads/Fellowship-Covenant.pdf

Copies of this covenant are available at the church.

As your pastor, I feel that our congregation could be transformed if we all agreed with this covenant, whether we join with the ECOP or remain in the PCUSA. So I strongly encourage you to review this covenant prayerfully and decide whether you can re-commit your life to Christ.

Lenten Season Prepares Us for New Life

Lent begins Feb.22 and brings us to our most Holy Days. Prepare for Resurrection and New Life. Daily devotions strengthen individuals and corporate worship unites us in Christ. Read Gen. 9:8-17.

Valentine’s Day Tea Set Before Valentine’s Day

The traditional Valentine’s Day Tea on Feb. 11 will be from 1-4 p.m. All community women are invited to join us for fancy treats and tea and coffee served in antique cups amid red and white decorations. Background music will surround the hours of visiting. Thanks to Deacons for arranging this annual gathering. Invite a friend.

Fellowship Changes Meeting Time

Women’s Christian Fellowship moved the meeting time to Feb. 4 at 1 p.m. at Sacred Heart Catholic Church when Lani Hotch will speak. The regular second Saturday date was changed to avoid conflict with our Valentine’s Tea.

It’s A Leap for Irma…Happy Birthday

For three years Irma Morgan celebrates her birthday for a week to be sure she gets the right date: she wasn’t born on Feb. 28 nor in March, but when there’s a Feb. 29 she gets to celebrate the right day. How many birthdays has she had? She said this one will be her 20^th---yes, the big 80. Dawne Thomsen arrived Feb. 1 for a two-week visit and sight-seeing. Irma will return to Haines later in the spring because she’s taking a 50-hour Stephen Minister training and will be commissioned May 13. Happy days to Irma.

Sermons In February: Study Ahead

Feb. 5, John 20:19-31, Jesus Appears to Disciples

Feb. 12, John 21:1-14, A Net Full of Fish

Feb. 19, John 21:15-25, Follow Me!

Feb. 26, Phil. 1:1-11, Thanking God

Share with HAL at Socials

Drop by to visit residents at Haines Assisted Living almost any time, but make a point of going to ice cream socials first and third Sundays at 2:00 p.m. Cribbage, too.

Loss of Loved Ones

Francis Smalley, 53, died Jan. 7 in Anchorage with family around her. Surviving are husband Patrick, children Ryan and Amanda, brother and two sisters. An attorney in her native Dominican Republic, she was a dental hygienist and managed the dental office of her husband on Main Street. A memorial service was held Feb. 4 at Port Chilkoot Bible Church.

Helen Fenn, 98, died in the Pioneer Home in Sitka Jan. 24. Sandra Martin, favored by a break in the weather, was with her mother in her final hours. A memorial service was held among her Pioneer Home friends. Prayers were offered at Haines Pioneer meeting Jan. 29, and at the Thursday Coffee Helen attended before she left Haines, Sandra presented a poem her mother gave her in 1998 to be read at her memorial. Helen was a true Pioneer, who had a good joke to cheer. She ran Helen’s Shop in Petersburg before moving the business to Haines where it was open on Main Street more than 50 years. Son Kenny lives in Juneau, and several grandchildren survive.