Pastor’s Message

"No, 'if your enemies are hungry, feed them; if they are thirsty, give them something to drink; for by doing this you will heap burning coals on their heads.' Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good."

- Romans 12: 9 - 21

What makes someone your enemy? Is it because of the way you think differently than they do on topics or ideas of our day? Is it because you look differently, live differently, have different aspirations for your life and family that they do? Have they wronged you and you have never resolved the conflict or events that have caused strife between you? The writer of Romans reminds us that if you have an enemy in your life you are called to not treat them badly, but instead help to give them what they need. Showing a sign of grace, compassion, that may not being shared in this time. The passage says that sharing such an act like this upon an enemy heaps burning coals on their heads. This is an opportunity to extend a connection to someone else, this allows us to see the person or humanity that is within this person. We are stepping back and loving our neighbor with our actions and heart. After such generosity you or they may see more clearly or differently after such gifts are shared and such connections are made. May you be as generous with those you struggle to work with or live with, so that it will come natural for you to share your gifts and blessings with everyone in and out of your life. None of us has earned the Gifts we receive from God and no one should be excluded from the work we are about as followers of Jesus Christ.

Thank you for the gift to the pastor and pastor’s family for Christmas. As I have done each year during my time at Dreisbach, I gave a portion of that gift to the Christmas Fund of the UCC (Veterans of the Cross) to honor, celebrate, and remember the pastors who have served at Dreisbach before me as a sign of gratitude and thanks for them and their ministry among you and beyond. My family also uses a portion of that gift to help a family in our area with a need or offer a gift of support or thank you. This year we provided a family meal for a neighbor family that has had a difficult 2020 in some cases and the father of the family works hard in the hospital setting. And with what ever was left of the generous gift went to help pay the electric bill for all the Christmas lights that lit up the night sky just off of Rt. 45 at my home.

Thank you for a generous gift from PMF Industries Inc. out of Williamsport, PA. Kara works with the spouse of one of the owners of this company and every year the leaders of the company tithe the profits of the business to area churches and ministries that are making a difference in their communities. And because, Kara shared with this family some of the things that Dreisbach is doing in our community and through our ministries the company decided to give Dreisbach a portion of those profits to be used in ministry ways. The gift to Dreisbach totaled $5,393.00 and the consistory has decided to split the contribution between the future work on the bell tower of the church and the CARE Fund. This gift will help the church to stabilize and secure the building in an important way and to serve and share with our community with the CARE Fund for this year and many more to come.

Blessings and Prayers for the journey,
Pastor Nate

Worship Schedule this month:

February 7th – (Theme of Week: Source of Strength) Isaiah 40:21-31; 1 Corinthians 9:16-23; Mark 1:29-39. First Sunday Fellowship Zoom!!!!. Souper Bowl of Caring Sunday, Donate food items or cash to our area food banks.

February 14th – (ToW: Compassionate Community) Transfiguration Sunday. 2nd Kings 2:1-12; 2nd Corinthians 4:3-6; Mark 9:2-9.

February 17th – Virtual Ash Wednesday Service 7 pm. Ashes kit can be picked up from the church. Joel 2:1-2,12-17; 2nd Corinthians 5:20b-6:10; Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21.

February 21st – (ToW: God’s Loving Paths) First Sunday of Lent and Intro to Theological Worlds and the 1st World. Genesis 9:8-17; 1st Peter 3:18-22; Mark 1:9-15.

February 28th – (ToW: Always Close) Second Sunday of Lent and 2nd Theological World. Genesis 17:1-7, 15-16; Romans 4:13-25; Mark 8:31-38.

Look Further Ahead

March 7th - (ToW: Beautiful Law) Third Sunday of Lent and 3rd Theological World. Exodus 20: 1-17; 1st Corinthians 1:18-25; John 2: 13-22. First Sunday Fellowship.

March 14th - (ToW: No Matter What) Fourth Sunday of Lent and the 4th Theological World.

March 21st - (ToW: Deep in Our Hearts) Fifth Sunday of Lent and the 5th Theological World.

March 28th - (ToW: Into Jerusalem) Palm Sunday.

April 4th - (ToW: Now What?) Easter Sunday.

Souper Bowl of Caring

February 7th is our Souper Bowl of Caring event. Please drop off food items to the church. Monetary/gift cards are also welcome and may be mailed or dropped to the church. All donations will benefit Hope’s Haven as they provide for those in need in our local area. Thank you for your generosity!

Helping Families in this time of Struggle

We are accepting food donations for area food pantries and missions to feed children of our communities. We are again undertaking the backpack mission with Mifflinburg Area School District. Bring your items to the church or your donations of money for some of our connected members who are able to get needed items at very discounted prices. This is a wonderful ministry that Dreisbach supports in dedicated ways for the last few years. Thank you for your generosity. Backpacks will consist of 10 items per child per week. We invite you to purchase the individually wrapped and individually sized items for disbursement.

# 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

Ash Kits

If you plan to take part in our virtual Ash Wednesday service we encourage you to stop by the church for an ash kit so that you can fully participate in the service. Ash kits will be available to pick up at the church the week before Ash Wednesday (2/17). If you unable to stop at the church but would like to receive a kit please reach out to Pastor Nate or Pam and we will try to arrange to have one dropped off to you.

Covid-19 Task Force

The Covid-19 task force has determined that at this time we will remain closed for in person worship. We hope to have all church staff vaccinated before we reopen. Several of our staff members have already been able to begin this process. The task force will continue to monitor the situation on a monthly basis.

Consistory

Thank you to our consistory officers for continuing to serve in their same positions in 2021 as they did in 2020. They are Scott Sanders as president, Tim Sones as vice president and Tammy Pierce as secretary. Your service to Dreisbach is so vital to the church and much appreciated!

Shower Chair & Tray

Sharon Houseknecht Rein has a bench seat shower chair with back that can be used in a tub or shower and also a tray to fasten onto a walker available free to anyone who can make use of them. Please contact Sharon (570-713-9503) if interested.

Devitt House

“Thank You” to each of you who so generously donated Christmas gifts for the residents of Devitt House. We had a rapid and overwhelming resonse from the congregation and received a kind thank you in return from the folks at Devitt House with their sincere appreciation for being remembered. Again our thanks for your participation.

Carol and Larry Snook

P.S. Several individual cards were received and have been placed next to the offering plate in the back of the sanctuary. Please check to see if one is for you the next time you stop at the church.

2021 Budget

A copy of the 2021 Missional Budget has been included with the newsletter.If you would like to have a copy of the line item budget emailed or printed for you please contact Pam Pfirman

February 2021