The Urban Mountain Wireless - February 2009

URBAN MOUNTAIN WIRELESS

February 2009

Exciting News!!!!!!

During the next few months, the Hot Metal Bridge Faith Community will be remodeling their place of worship in the South Side. The Session of our church has offered to share our facilities during this time.

Starting Feb. 22, we will change our worship time to 10:00 AM and Sunday School to 11:00 AM. This change in time will allow the Hot Metal congregation to attend Sunday School with us if they choose. They will then have their worship service at 11:45.

Change is not always easy but

we have all been blessed by the relationship of our two groups in a variety of ways. Now we have this opportunity to show hospitality to our Christian brothers and sisters. Please support this by your attendance.

Q: The ark's top-story windows opened to the sky for light and air. How did Noah get light to the dark recesses of the ark?
A: He used floodlights.

Upcoming Important Dates:

Sunday, Feb. 8 11:00 Worship

Sacrament of the Lord’s Supper

Annual congregational meeting following worship

Sunday, Feb. 15 11:00 Worship

Tuesday, Feb. 17  7:00 PM

Session Meeting

Sunday, Feb. 22 10:00 Worship

First Sunday with Hot Metal Congregation sharing our home.

Wednesday, Feb. 25 Ash Wednesday Combined Service with the Hot Metal Bridge Faith Community. Time announced later.

Reminder from the Treasurer

Estimates of giving and per capita donations can be given at any time during the year. Please remember the church as you plan your budget and your charity donations. 

Q: Who was the wealthiest male financier in the Bible?
A: Noah. He was floating his stock while everybody else was in

liquidation.

Derrick’s Letter for February

I imagine I’ll write something like this several times while serving here. Every Sunday we bring our prayers before God. I am often struck by how much hurt is in all of our lives. We struggle with illness, either our own or that of a loved one. We struggle with job decisions. We struggle while watching others make life decisions that seem dangerous and unhealthy. In a real way, we struggle just to live life.

 Couple that with the news. I sometimes wish we didn’t have wall to wall news coverage. That, of course, wouldn’t make the challenges we face any less. The challenges of unemployment, war, poverty, and corruption would exist even without the 24 hour news cycle.

 So what does our faith say in the midst of these things? Personally, I believe that our faith is pretty useless if it doesn’t speak into the harsh realities of life. Jesus tells his disciples that “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world” (John 16:33). Our reassurance comes in the fact that the one we put our faith in is the One who has faced all of the pains this world has to offer, defeated them, and who now accompanies us as we manage our day-to-day obstacles.

 Perhaps equally important is the role we have in being Christ to each other. I often say that being in a church is being part of a community, a family. The worst feeling in the world is the feeling of going through life alone. In these rough times, we have countless opportunities to bear each other’s burdens and carry each other’s loads. I pray that we will have a fresh awareness of the needs of our brothers and sisters around us and that God will give us all the strength, resources and willingness that we need to a light in the midst of our neighbors darkness.

Peace,

Derrick