January 2019 Newsletter

“Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving”. (Colossians 3:23-24 New International Version (NIV))

Pastor’s Message

I hope that your new year has gotten off to a great start. As we begin 2019 may the words from Colossians remind you that the work we are about as followers of Christ is not to show those around us we can do great things, but our best efforts are for God and the glory of God we worship. Remember the character and integrity that we carry ourselves may not always be seen by those around us, but it is seen by our God in heaven. So may that be our motivation for the coming year. We don’t follow God’s ways to prove anything to those around us, we follow God’s ways in order to show our gratitude and commitment to all that God has done for us and our world. Certainly, if we can bring change to others through our example that is a bonus and the fruits of our hard work and God’s blessing upon us through the Holy Spirit. Do it for God and not for others.

I want to thank Dreisbach for your generosity to me and my family. Also, thank you for the meaningful Advent and Christmas Seasons of worship. The choirs and readers were very meaningful and essential to our community celebrations and opportunities of worshiping the coming of Emmanuel, God with us, in the form of the Christ Child. Thank you to all the cookie bakers, craft leaders and all who attended the many opportunities to gather, serve, and to give. Dreisbach continues to share blessings and messages of hope and healing in times of need.

My hope is that the coming year will be an active year for Dreisbach. So, prepare to engage and grow with us, through committing yourselves to the work and mission of the church. Not for your benefit or the benefit of others seeing you doing it, but for the benefit and glory of our God. A God, who cares and loves us so deeply that He would send his only Son to us for our saving and for our redeeming. May God bless you in the coming year, and may you share those blessings with one and all in Christ’s name.

Blessings and Prayers for all God’s People,
Pastor Nate

Worship Schedule this month:

January 6th -- (Theme of Worship: Where is the Child?) Epiphany Sunday. Isaiah 60:1-6; Ephesians 3:1-12; Matthew 2:1-12. Join us for first Sunday Fellowship, Intergenerational Choir will rehearse.

January 13th - (ToW: Affirmed by Love) Baptism of Christ Sunday. Isaiah 43:1-7; Acts 8:14-17; Luke 3:15-17, 21,22. Intergenerational Choir sings in worship. Normal Sunday School to follow worship.

January 20th – (ToW: Extravagant Sign) Isaiah 62:1-5; 1st Corinthians 12:1-11; John 2:1-11. Congregational Meeting of yearly budget. Praise Group in Worship.

January 27th - (ToW: Good News, Good Ways) Nehemiah 3:1-3,5-6,8-10; 1st Corinthians 12:12-31a; Luke 4:14-21. Normal Sunday School to follow worship.

Look Further Ahead

February 3rd – (ToW: Prophet on the Edge) Jeremiah 1:4-10; 1st Corinthians 13:1-13; Luke 4:21-30. We will celebrate Souper Bowl of Caring Sunday during worship. First Sunday Fellowship following worship.

Souper Bowl of Caring

Souper Bowl of Caring Sunday is a ministry that has come out of the festive event of the Super Bowl football event (Feb. 3rd). The ministry is an active way that we remember that there are hungry people in our communities far and near. The Super Bowl is the 2nd biggest day of food consumption by Americans during the year. So in order to think about and act on food needs of our neighbors we will be inviting you to bring food items to church this Sunday in support of those who struggle to have enough to eat. The food items will be taken to Haven Ministries. If you want to learn more about the Souper Bowl of Caring program please take a look at the website, www.souperbowl.org.

GODLY PLAY

(A.K.A. formally known as Messy Church)

Last year many in the church explored our faith through our senses. The UCC Association is asking us have an event that shows other churches how to incorporate interactive worship into the life of a church in meaningful ways. In order to do that we are inviting anyone who wants to be a part of the event to join us on Sunday afternoon Jan. 20th @ 4 -6 pm. We will show and share with other local churches how we lead and experience God through activities, prayers, singing, crafts, and other hands on ways. We are going to call our events in the future Godly Play instead of messy church. We feel that some folks were scared off by the title, so we feel that the new title does a better job sharing what we are about through this experience together. Please come out and join us, as Dreisbach leads the way for brothers and sisters across our region in meeting and experiencing God.

Bad Weather Policy

In the event of inclement weather and we need to cancel services, please tune to WGRC 91.3. We will also post the cancellation on our Facebook page and website.

Mifflinburg Backpack Project

We will again be collecting food items for filling backpacks for school children in the Mifflinburg elementary and intermediate schools. We are in charge of the month of March again this year. There will be 5 weeks that we will fill backpacks for the young people. We look forward to your generosity and support for this ministry that helps young people to have some of the healthy food items they need when they are not in school over the weekend. Items can be brought to the church and placed in the big green box in the back of the church at any time starting at the end of January and running through March. The number of backpacks filled has again increased this year. So we will need a record number of both financial donations and item donations to meet the needs. Below is a list of items needed for each backpack, each week.

# Mini macaroni & cheese (microwaveable) # Granola bars

# Mini Chef Boyardee or similar microwaveable food products # Fruit Snacks

# Snack-pack puddings # Mini Cereal Boxes

# Pop Tarts # Drink boxes/pouches

# Fruit Cups # Individual packs of Crackers

Consistory Summary

December 11, 2018 meeting

· Member of the All Hazards & Disaster Readiness/Response Ministry Plan committee attended meeting to share the work they had done in drafting the plan. A couple areas need to be shared and discussed with the Congregation related to security during the hours of worship and Sunday School. Details of this very extensive plan will be shared with the Congregation during the 5th Sunday in December during the Sunday School hour as well as at the Annual Congregational Meeting January 20, 2019.

· The 2019 financial budget was presented and approved. The narrative budget summary is included in the newsletter and will be voted on at the January 20, 2019 Annual Congregational Meeting. A line by line detail budget will be available for anyone who would want one as well.

· The Pillar committee structure is being fine-tuned and in 2019 Consistory members will act as liaisons with the various committees to help improve the communication flow back and forth.

· Pastor Nate shared he met with the new director of Love, Inc. and plans to see how our congregation may be able to assist this non-profit in its mission in our area.

Pastor Nate will meet with the Pastoral Relations Committee in January.One concern he has is how he is spending his time in church activities and ministry. Perhaps others members can help with some of the activities which would allow him more time to focus on things that other members may not be as capable of doing.This area continues to be a work in progress.

Harvey Cedars

Do you love the beach? Do you love Jesus? Are you entering 9th through 12th grade?(Sorry Jerry) If so, we hope you can join us for a fun-filled week at Harvey Cedars Youth Week July 15th through the 20th. More information is to come in the following weeks but we are currently looking to gather names of those of you who are interested in going. If any youth would like to bring a friend, we encourage you to do so! Please reach out to Kristy or Tim Sones by January 15th, 2019 to let them know the names of who will be attending and also provide the required $50 deposit for each student. If you are interested in more information about this amazing week or have questions about the total cost,

All-Church Retreat

Do you need a Winter Get-A-Way? Mark your calendars for the All-Church Retreat, March 1-3 at the Crystal Springs Retreat Center. Kevin Gillen will be with us again as our speaker.More details and registration packets will be available soon. If you have any questions, please contact Tammy Pierce.

2019 Altar Flowers

The 2018 Flower Chart has been posted on the bulletin board outside the office. If you would like to sponsor the flowers please sign the chart. The cost is $40.00 for both or $20.00 if you prefer to just do one of the arrangements. There are lots of openings in the upcoming weeks and months.

Upcoming Meeting

The next Prayer Shawl meeting will be Tuesday, January 15 at 6:30 p.m. at the church. All are welcome. If anyone is aware of a church member or friend who would appreciate a shawl, please talk to Diane Hackenberg or Tammy Pierce.

The Dreisbach UCC Prime Timer’s will be meeting at the Old Turnpike Restaurant, Thursday, January 17th at 12:30 p.m. Come an enjoy lunch and a time of fellowship. Lunch will be Dutch treat. Anyone 50 or older is welcome to join the group. A signup sheet is located on the table in the back of the church.

The annual meeting will be held on Sunday, January 20th. The narrative budget was mailed with the newsletter. A copy of the detailed line item budget is available upon request.

The Confirmation class will meet on Sunday, January 20th at 6:30 p.m.

The Membership Committee’s first meeting of 2019 will take place on Monday, February 4th at 7:00 p.m. If you’re curious about what the committee might be planning for 2019 please feel free to come to a meeting. Everyone is welcome!

Thank You

Seleca Robenolt would like to thank everyone for the many prayers, cards, and well wishes she received from all of Dreisbach.

Reverse Advent Calendars

Thank you to all who created “Reverse Advent Calendars” this Christmas season. Your generosity is greatly appreciated and will benefit so many in need.

Can’t Make It To Church?

There may be weeks when you can’t make it to church. Thankfully you can still listen to the service by calling 570-518-0013.