CURRENT OFFICERS AND CONSISTORY MEMBERS
Vice President
Jim Stewart
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What About Relationships?
At a recent meeting with my mentor, the Rev Dr. Jane Hess, we talked about our churches and what is important to us. I mentioned community and relationships. We both agreed that both are important and that relationships are just another gift the church has to offer. One reason why relationships are such an important part of the Christian life is because God values relationships. That’s why we should value relationships as well.
God himself is relational
The Bible teaches that God has eternally existed as three persons in one divine being. The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit have been in relationship with each other forever. In Genesis 1:26, we read, “Then God said, ‘Let us make human beings in our image…’” Notice that God says “us”, not just “me”. This is why the Bible can say that “God is love.” God was able to express and experience love long before any created beings existed, because God encompasses three persons. Without going into detail on the Trinity, we need to understand that God is not a solitary being. The Father loves the Son and the Son, in turn, loves the Father. If God is relational, why should we think that we can go it alone?
The Old Testament shows that God values relationships
We can find many examples in the Old Testament scriptures that prove how important relationships are to God. For example, when God called Abraham (Genesis 12:2), he told him, “I will make you into a great nation.” God wasn’t content to establish a relationship with just one man. His purpose was to create a people – made up of families, clans, and tribes. God chose to bring redemption into the world through human relationships.
Another point of data from the Old Testament is the special care God shows toward people who are alone in the world. In particular, God’s heart is for widows and orphans. These are people who are the vulnerable and most subject to oppression and neglect, because they lack people who can provide a structure of support. So God told Israel in Isaiah 1:17, “Defend the cause of orphans. Fight for the rights of widows.” And Psalm 68:6 says, “God sets the lonely in families…” Relationships are important to God!
The New Testament shows that God values relationships
To begin with, God created the church. While the people of Israel were all related to each other, the church encompasses people from every national and ethnic group. The church includes everyone who is united to Jesus by faith in him. As a result, we are all united to each other as well. The New Testament calls the church a family. It compares it to a living body. Metaphors like this emphasize our interconnectedness as Christ-followers.
In light of this, the New Testament contains hundreds of verses that instruct us on how to live in relationships. There are dozens of “one another” statements that direct how we should live: forgive one another, be patient with one another, encourage one another, pray for one another, love one another, and many more. It is quite clear, then, that no one can be obedient to God’s Word in isolation. God’s design is for us to connect in relationships. That’s why he told us how to do it.
God never called anyone to a purely individual salvation
The New Testament teaches that salvation places each of us into a web of relationships centered on Jesus Christ. Ephesians 2:1-10describes our salvation in individual terms. We were dead in our sins. God made us alive in Christ. He saved us by his grace, through our faith, for a life of good works. But the rest of Ephesians 2 describes the relational aspects of this same salvation.
Ephesians 2:19-22: So now you Gentiles are no longer strangers and foreigners. You are citizens along with all of God’s holy people. You are members of God’s family. Together, we are his house, built on the foundation of the apostles and the prophets. And the cornerstone is Christ Jesus himself. We are carefully joined together in him, becoming a holy temple for the Lord. Through him you Gentiles are also being made part of this dwelling where God lives by his Spirit. When you’re connected to Jesus, you are also connected to his people. We are now members of a single family. We are citizens of the same kingdom. We are connected like stones in a house. In fact, as our lives are joined together, we become a temple. God lives among us by his Spirit – not individually, but in the unity of our relationships. Relationships are important to God. God’s people are completely out of step with his values and priorities when relationships are not important to us.
Yours in Christ,
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We offer our sincere condolences to:
* Betty Dickson and Family on the passing
of Peter Dickson, on October 1, 2018.
* Mary Rinehimer and Family on the passing
of Lonnie Rinehimer, on October 5, 2018.
We pray that God’s love and strength will sustain you in your time of need and sorrow.
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We have Gift Card Fundraiser through Great Lakes Scrip Center and includes tons of cards – from Advance Auto Parts to Wet Seal (young women’s clothing). By purchasing the gift card through Great Lake Scrip, our church earns a percentage of the sale price. They make great gifts for Christmas. Lisa will be taking orders Sunday, November 4th and Sunday, December 2nd, he will order them and distribute them as they arrive. If you have any question, please see Lisa Ceaser.
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THANK YOU TO EVERONE WHO MADE THIS A SUCCESSFUL SUPPER!!
Give yourselves a pat on the back, you deserve it!
2018 FALL TURKEY SUPPER REPORT
| Income: |
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| Ticket Sales |
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| Door |
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| Adult 327 @ $11.00 |
$3597.00 |
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| Children 11 @ $4.00 |
$44.00 |
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| Advance |
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| Adult 280 @ $11.00 |
$3080.00 |
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| Surplus |
$39.25 |
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| Donation |
$2.00 |
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| Total Income |
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$6762.25 |
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| Expenses: |
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| Bread Cubes |
$265.00 |
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| Turkeys, Cabbage, Paper Prod., Veggies, Celery, Broth, Eggs |
$1445.53 |
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| Decaf tea & coffee, drink mixes, paper towels |
$29.13 |
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| Bread |
$45.00 |
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| Total Expenses |
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$1,784.66 |
| TOTAL PROFIT |
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$4,977.59 |
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We will hold a bake sale during the Pork Dinner. Please help us provide your children with a good Christian education by donating baked goods for us to sell. The bake sales are our only fundraisers and we rely on them to purchase the curriculum for our Sunday School program and provide them with fun times like Christmas and Easter parties. Thank you!!
Sunday school will not be collecting for Turkey Suppers. Instead they will be collecting monetary donations for $5 gift cards to McDonalds. Deadline for doantions is November 18th. If you wish to make a donation, please see Lisa Rinehimer. Thank you for supporting the Sunday School’s missions.
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SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 17
We’ll be serving up a Pork Dinner, complete with homemade sauerkraut, corn, mashed potatoes, gravy, homemade applesauce, bread, dessert and beverage from 3 to 7 pm. Tickets are $11.00 for adults, $4.00 for age 6 to 11; 5 and under for free; or $11.00 for a take-out.
POSTERS are on the table in the Narthex. Please take some and paste them up wherever you can. This supper will need some extra attention and we need to get the word out.
TICKETS – Please see Allen Dennis or Steve Moyer for tickets and sell, sell, sell!
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Our Sunday School children, youth and the chancel choir will be performing a cantata “The Songs of the Season” on December 16 during our worship service. Please mark this special service on your calendar so you won’t miss our Sunday School’s heartwarming presentation.
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Hey all Youth ages 10 and up!
Come join our Youth Group for a fun trip to Maylath’s Farms for their Cornmaze, Hay rides, and other activities. All youth are WELCOME and you do not have to be a member of Emmanuel UCC. For those that are interested please meet us at Emmanuel this Saturday, October 13 at 1 PM. We are looking forward to having a great time!
 2018 Corn Maze Share on Facebook
We offer our sincere condolences to the Family of Lois Eigenbrod. Lois passed away on September 8, 2018. We pray that God’s love and strength will sustain you in your time of need and sorrow.
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Amid the changing colors of leaves, crisp fall air, pumpkin patches and Halloween costumes we find our-selves in the month of, October!
October in our church calendar brings many opportunities for church members and the communities surrounding us. World communion Sunday is October 1st were we will share communion with millions of others around the world. Also on that Sunday we will recognize our new members (8 of them!) into Emmanuel UCC! Disability awareness week is celebrated the week of October 8th, so let’s say an extra prayer for our disabled brother and sisters. The month ends with the 500th year anniversary of the Reformation. I will be discussing the Protestant movement that changed so much of the world during Sunday service on October 29th!
Bible study is meeting the first, second and fourth Thursday of the month. We are enjoying studying the Book of Acts, and will continue Bible study picking new topics as we go along. There is always a chance to come out for the Bible study and have fun learning more about the Word of God. Also, we had our first blessing and healing worship service. Look for more to come!
And of course, our Turkey Supper. The church has this event planned for October 21st. It’s not only a great eating opportunity, but also a great time of fellowship if you would like to help out in any capacity!
All of our church activity is of course centered around our worship services. Here are some uplifting scriptures examples of the promises of God: The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still (Exodus 14:14). He gives strength to the weary, and increases the power of the weak (Isaiah 40:29). but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint (Isaiah 40:31).
I could go on and on, but if you need the strength, the encouragement, or the power, take a Bible and begin reading. There has been not one promise God has ever made that did not see fruition.
Speaking for myself and the folks at Emmanuel UCC, we cordially invite you to a worship service. Come because someone asked you, come because you need church in your life, come because you believe in the promise.
Yours in Christ,
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Anyone who is willing to bring some baked goods or other refreshments for the walkers is asked to please leave them on the counter in the Fellowship Hall on Oct 28. Your help is needed to “energize” the walkers before and “recharge” them after their walk.
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October 28
Emmanuel will again be the starting and ending point for our annual CROP Walk on October 28. Registration will be at 12:30 pm with the walk starting at 1:00 pm. The funds raised will be sent to Church World Service. Thirty-seven denominations and communions partner with CWS to provide sustainable self-help, development, disaster relief, and refugee assistance around the world.
I have registered our walk online at www.crophungerwalk.org/wapwallopenpa for anyone who would like to donate online. I don’t think we ever did this before, but it might be an extra way to raise funds. That information is on the donation envelopes, too.
As you may know, 25% of money raised comes back to us to fund the Wapwallopen Crossroads Ministerium Food Bank. We are currently helping one elderly gentleman and several families. They come regularly for food and are very grateful for the assistance they receive from us.
Youth and adults from our churches will be looking for sponsors. Please support their enthusiastic and dedicated effort to provide hunger relief by donating to the CROP Walk.
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October 18-20
Please remember that it is not necessary to be at the supper “forever”. If everyone takes a turn, we can all help each other and feel good about volunteering to support our church.
See Don Eroh or Allen Dennis for tickets to sell. There’s plenty for everyone, so get them and sell, sell, sell. The fall Supper is usually our best dinner fundraiser and is easy to promote. Why? Because people love to eat – especially good food!! And we’ve been complimented again and again about how really good it is!
We need people to cook the turkeys. Allen Dennis is the person to see if you can volunteer your time for this important item (what’s a Turkey Supper without turkey, right?) The turkeys arrive either at your home or at the church (depending on how you arrange it with Allen).
On Thursday evening at 6:00 p.m., walls are taken down and tables are set up. Then there is the cleaning and cutting up of the vegetables and for making the pickled cabbage.
Friday evening at 6:00 p.m. we make the stuffing which takes strong arms to mix thoroughly. Please come out Friday night if you can help.
Saturday morning at 8:00 am is when we clean the meat off the turkeys, which is easier to do if the turkeys are warm. Those of you who clean your own turkeys and then deliver them really help to speed up this process. Please remember to bring the turkey broth to make the gravy. After a short break, workers gather again at 2:30 pm to start heating everything up so it’s good and hot for serving our guests at 3:00 pm..
Then, of course, the actual event begins at 3:00 and goes to about 7:00 p.m. We can always use lots of hands for serving food, working in the kitchen, busing tables, and waiting on tables. By the end of the supper at 7:00 p.m., the workers, (many of whom have been there since 2:30 p.m. so that everything is all set to serve at 3:00 p.m.) are ready for a rest. That’s when it’s nice to have a clean-up crew come in. The tables all have to be cleaned off, tables and chairs wiped down, Sunday School rooms put back in order and the walls put back up. The large roasters and cook pots are washed and put away until the next supper. The kitchen cleaned and floors washed and vacuumed.
There’s a lot to do to hold a supper, but the work’s not hard when you’re having fun. And we do have a lot of fun, even if we are a bit frantic while serving our guests. It’s all part of the experience and we’d love for you to experience it, too.
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Dave Myers and Allen Dennis, members of the Emmanuel Cemetery Association are shown at the Pet Cememtery sign in the cemetery which provides a beautiful final resting place for your pet.
Sunday School students enjoyed hot dogs, chicken fingers and snacks together after the church service on September 9 for Rally Day.
Rally Day gives one an opportunity to promote Christian values and Christ-like services toward God and others.
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[Thanksgiving] I always thank my God for you because of his grace given you in Christ Jesus. For in him you have been enriched in every way—with all kinds of speech and with all knowledge— — 1 Corinthians 1:4-5 (NIV)
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