Newsweekly for Sunday, January 7, 2018

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Worship this Sunday, January 7, 2018

Worship Series: Let it be declared

Worship Leader: Brendon Derstine

Song Leaders: Matt Hunsberger

Preacher: Kent Davis Sensenig

Children’s Story: Duane Miller

Scripture Readers: Dorothy Jean Weaver, Eliot, Katrina and Mona Swartz

Pastoral Prayer: Dayna Olson-Getty

Advent Candle Lighters: Schmidt/Stoltzfus/Yoder/Finnegan Small Group

Prelude/Offertory: Matt Hunsberger

Scripture: Isaiah 60:1-6; Matthew 2:1-12

Bulletin: 010718-Bulletin

 

Upcoming CMC Events

Sun, Jan 7                    “Speed Greeting” in the Fellowship Hall after worship

Sun, Jan 7                    Monthly Potluck following SS and Adult Ed, 11:45 am

Wed, Jan 10                 Women’s Bible Study, 8:30-10 am, Room 109

Thurs, Jan 11               JMU Pastoral Coffee Break, 4 pm, JMU HBS #4066

Thurs, Jan 11               CMC Seniors, 6:45 pm, Fellowship Hall

Mon, Jan 22                  Pastoral Gathering for Public School Employees, The Gathering

Place (841 Mt. Clinton Pike), 5:30 pm

 

CMC Events and Announcements

Christmas Peace Offering. Thank you to all who donated to the Christmas Peace Offering. Contributions totaled over $1600, which was given to support the Cheese Ministry benefitting local dairy farmers and food ministries.

Speed Greeting. This Sunday following the worship service Brendon Derstine will lead a “Speed Greeting” event in the in Fellowship Hall. This will be a chance to learn to know people at CMC, or to learn something new about the people you do know.

First Friday Art at CMC. Come out to Community Mennonite Church on Friday, January 5, 2018, from 5:00pm-8:00pm, to explore the pyrographic art of David Kreider (www.kreiderart.com) in his show “Art at the Edges and Bridges: An Artist’s Journey with Conflict and Transformation.” Music and refreshments provided.

CMC potluck is this Sunday, Jan. 7 after Sunday School. Please bring food to share and your own table service.  We could use help with clean up.  –Jennifer Ulrich

Church Office Hours. Regular church office hours are generally 9 am-4 pm on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday and 9 am-1 pm on Tuesday and Thursday.

CMC Women's Bible Study Beginning in January. Not everyone is available 8:30-10 am on Wednesdays, but we think some of us are.  CMC will sponsor a women's Bible study on Wednesday mornings beginning Jan 10th.  Our Bible study and conversation will relate to the scriptures included in the previous Sunday's worship service. The first series (Jan 10-Feb 7) will focus on Treasures in Clay.  The second series (Feb 14-March 21) will focus on Lent.  Childcare will be provided.  Please RSVP to the church office if you're planning to join us!

CMC Seniors Travelogue. On Thursday, January 11 at 6:45 pm (note starting time), the CMC Seniors will have our own travelogue with members from the CMC Seniors group who have enjoyed travels in 2017.  Travel with Dwayne and Pat Martin as they enjoyed the National Parks of the Southwest and the Oregon Coast.  Enjoy the adventures of Tim and Ruth Jost to Poland as they connected with Mennonite history, Sam and Vi Miller on their recent trip to Cuba with MEDA, spring tulips and travel to Holland and Belgium with Larry and Wilma Miller. The presentations and pictures will be kept to 15 minutes so we can travel "worldwide." We will meet in the CMC fellowship hall.  Bring finger foods to share.  Decaf coffee and tea will be provided.

Pastoral gathering with JMU faculty, staff and administrators. Pastoral Team will be providing coffee and conversation for CMCers who work at James Madison University on Thursday, January 11 at 4 pm in the Health and Behavior Studies building (HBS). We will meet near Erika Metzler Sawin's office, which is room #4066. If you plan to attend, please RSVP by contacting Joyce in the church office (433-2148 or cmc_office@cmcva.org). If you can't make it, let us know if you would like another opportunity like this later this year.

Pastoral gathering with faculty, staff and administrators of all public schools. Pastoral Team will be hosting a "lite supper" and conversation with CMCers who are employees of any local public school.  If you are interested in participating, and available on MondayJanuary 22nd at 5:30 pm (note the new date) at The Gathering Place (841 Mt. Clinton Pike), please RSVP by contacting the church office (433-2148 or cmc_office@cmcva.org).  Also, if you can't make it, let us know if you would like another opportunity like this later this winter. –Pastoral Team

Note from Jay and Sheri Hartzler: To our CMC family – Happy New Year! We are grateful for your prayers and emails, for “likes” on Facebook, and for the Christmas cards we recently received. We enjoyed spending five days with Jack and Gloria Rutt between Christmas and New Year’s and we look forward to seeing many of you the end of March when we are home for two weeks. Thank you again for the ways you remember us while we are so far away. May you feel God’s presence in your lives in this coming year. – Jay and Sheri Hartzler

Used Utility Cart. Elias Nafziger is creating a surgical training box for his senior capstone project. He is in need of a used utility cart in order to carry it. Please contact Elias if you have an old utility cart that you would be willing to donate for this project. Email: ehenrynafziger@gmail.com. Call or text: 540 414 5507.

Interested in Being an Usher? Four new people are needed starting in late January. Ushers are on duty once a month and head usher once a quarter. Be in touch with Jennifer North Bauman if you are interested or need more information. baumanj@emu.edu or 540-801-9304

Lent Devotional 2018. This year we are again jointly publishing a Lent devotional with three other Mennonite congregation (Shalom, Raleigh and Chapel Hill.)  If you are interested in writing for this project ,we'd love to include your reflection.  Please contact Pastor Jennifer this week for details: jennifer.davis.sensenig@cmcva.org.

Supporting Graduate Students. Each year CMC disburses a small fund equally among our CMC grad students who are in seminary or advancing their education at an Anabaptist/Mennonite institution.  Currently the fund needs to be replenished. Often these funds are matched by the school and make Anabaptist higher education more affordable for our students.  You’re welcome to contribute to our graduate school fund:  Make checks payable to CMC (Anabaptist Institution Scholarship in the memo line).  Pastoral Team

Nursery volunteers. The CMC nursery is looking for a few more volunteers to help serve the little ones in our congregation during the worship service hours.  If you are interested in helping out please contact Tiffany Showalter at tiffany.showalter@gmail.com or 540-421-3672.  If you are 18 or over, you must be an Approved Adult through Safe Church.  If you would like to volunteer but are not yet an Approved Adult, it's not too late to become one!

Children’s Sunday School Teachers for Spring Quarter: We are beginning to look ahead towards the spring Sunday school quarter, and invite you to consider learning with children at CMC. We need teachers and assistants for classes from age 2-Grade 6. Please contact Monica Hochstedler Carlson at m.carlson.piano@gmail.com if you are interested.

Looking for a Small Group? The CMC Small Group Committee has created a small group opportunity called the Open Circle. It will meet monthly on Second Saturdays at 6 pm in room 109 of the church. This group invites folks who are looking for a way to connect with others in the church through fellowship, discussion and mutual support. So if you are new to the congregation, new to the idea of small groups, or are not currently in a small group and are looking for a way to connect, you are invited. The circle is always open! Children are welcome and there will be snacks. Contact Adam Yoder for more information at yodera@yahoo.com or 540-810-3376. The next Open Circle will gather on January 13, 2018.

Sunday School Connection. Below is a weekly note for families of children (age 4 and up) who use the Shine curriculum. Each Sunday you will find faith nurture ideas that coordinate with the weekly Sunday school session plans. Note that these stories will not necessarily coincide with the CMC worship series during this quarter.

Faith Talk. Mark 1:16–45: “Jesus calls disciples” Here are some ways to nurture faith at home based on this week’s story. (1) Read Mark 1:16–20. What did Simon and Andrew do after Jesus called them? (2) Jesus healed many people (Mark 1:32–45). This week, pray for people who are sick. Write their names on a paper chain. (3) Tell about a time you were sick and needed God’s help.

Did you know? The fish caught by Simon and Andrew were probably salted and dried to preserve them.

Prayer for the week: Help us, God, to work together to connect others to your love. Amen.

Children’s Bible Memory Passages This Quarter:

Early Childhood – Let the little children come to me; do not stop them; for it is to such as these that the kingdom of God belongs. – Mark 10:14b

Primary-Middler – People were bringing little children to him in order that he might touch them; and the disciples spoke sternly to them. But when Jesus saw this, he was indignant and said to them, “Let the little children come to me; do not stop them; for it is to such as these that the kingdom of God belongs. – Mark 10:13–14

COME AND SEE: LET IT BE. Now up and running on the "Community Mennonite Church: Today" bulletin board on the west wall of the fellowship hall – a double-poster photo collage from Advent, 2017. In addition, you'll find posted a reflection on the first year of the new millennium, a 12/29/2000 "Bishop's Mantle" column, "2001: A Place I Odyssey" and a CMC congregational report for Sept.-Oct. from the 12/4/2017 issue of Mennonite World Review.

YESTERDAY ONCE MORE. Across the way, on the "Community Mennonite Church: Yesterday" bulletin board on the east wall of the fellowship hall, you'll find photo collages with comings and goings from January and February 2011. Seems like only yesterday . . . Jim Bishop

 

Events and Announcements from the Broader Community

MWC Prayer Network. Please join us in a network of brothers and sisters committed to praying for our global Anabaptist family. Started as part of the preparation for the MWC Assembly PA 2015, the MWC Deacons Commission and Communications office are continuing this initiative to connect the global family so that we can lift each other up in prayer. For more information visit  https://www.mwc-cmm.org/prayernetwork?language=en.

Pancake Breakfast – Feb. 10, 8 AM to 11 AM, CrossRoads | Valley Brethren-Mennonite Heritage Center. Celebrate a new year at CrossRoads | Valley Brethren-Mennonite Heritage Center with a pancake breakfast and board games, card games, and the brand new "Mennonite Game," a card game all about making connections! Fill your bellies with our famous buckwheat pancakes, buttermilk pancakes, and a new oatmeal pancake recipe that is sure to be a favorite! Build a pancake stack, then ready those sticky fingers for a few rounds of Dutch Blitz, Spot It, Rummi Kub, or the brand new card game, "The Mennonite Game," created by a Goshen College alumni. Make a donation for the pancakes to support the mission and vision of the heritage center, then join in the time-honored tradition of game-playing in the beautiful 1820s log house on the CrossRoads campus. 1921 Heritage Center Way, Harrisonburg, VA 22801.

The 11th Annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration will be held on Saturday, January 6 at 3 pm at the Lucy F. Simms Center in Harrisonburg. The keynote speaker will be Rev. Dr. James E. Coleman, with music by local choirs. The program is presented by the Harrisonburg and Rockingham County NAACP and is free and open to the public.

Come see EMU Theater's production of The 39 Steps in EMU's Lehman Auditorium Sunday, Jan 7th at 7:30 pm, Monday, Jan. 8, at 10 a.m. in Lehman Auditorium or Sunday, Jan. 14, at 7:30 p.m. in the Mainstage Theater. CMC's connections include actor Dylan Peachey (son of Byron Peachey and Deanna Durham), musician Jim Clemens, and David Vogel on set and lights. The suggested ticket price for this special benefit performance is $10. All proceeds from the event help EMU students take the show to the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival. This is a hilarious, fast-paced play for all ages! More information can be found in this article.

The January ACRS gathering is January 8th, 2018. We will be viewing and discussing the new video teaser, “Being Mennonite In America,” the beginning of a documentary being produced by Burton Buller.​ PLEASE NOTE: The meeting will take place at the Park View Mennonite Church Fellowship Hall.

Join People's Day on January 15 with a march along Martin Luther King, Jr. Way beginning at 11 a.m. at the Emmanuel Episcopal Church. Appropriate signs or banners are encouraged. The formal program begins about 11:45. Bring some food and stay for the beloved community potluck at 12:30 p.m. Free parking is available in the JMU parking deck on MLK, Jr. Way. Spread the word with this Facebook event. https://www.facebook.com/events/192207481357703/

Todd Wynward, will be speaking and leading discussion on “Environmental Justice and Everyday Heroes” at Harrisonburg Mennonite Church on Wednesday, January 17, 2018 at 6:30 p.m. in Room 1. Wynward, from Taos, NM, is a wilderness educator, small-scale farmer, activist and licensed Mennonite organizer for watershed discipleship. He is author of Rewilding the Way, Herald Press, 2015. Everyone is welcome to attend!

Voces8 is coming to Eastern Mennonite School on Tuesday, February 27 at 7:30 pm. Tickets are $15 for general admission, $10 for students and seniors, $20 at the door. You can purchase tickets from Zach Bauman, Kerinna Good or Oliver Hertzler.

New Song Anabaptist Fellowship is moving from the former MennoMedia building, which has been purchased by Eastern Mennonite School, and are in the process of purchasing their own church building. They invite donations to help with their down payment. New Song members believe they have found a great facility and look forward to moving by the end of 2017. Thanks for your consideration of a gift in support of New Song! Contact Pastor Basil Marin at (540) 560-3747 or send to PO Box 163, Harrisonburg, VA 22803

Pastors and lay leaders are invited to the School for Leadership Training on "Broken Vessels, Thriving Pastors," January 15-17, 2018, at Eastern Mennonite Seminary, Harrisonburg, Va. We want to take a hard, honest look at the experience of being a pastor. How do we talk about thriving, or succeeding, in ministry, while at the same time coming to grips with the profound ministry models of clay jars and grains of wheat that fall into the earth and die? We as pastors and church leaders encounter brokenness on a weekly, if not daily, level. We live with brokenness in ourselves, in our families, in our congregations, in our neighborhoods, in our nation…and yet we take on the mandate to proclaim the incarnate God who entered, and is present, in the world that is at once broken, and God’s good creation. SLT 2018 will be a place where participants will hear from each other, and encourage each other. We invite you to bring your stories of brokenness, and your stories of how you confronted brokenness. Bring your jars of clay and your dying grains of wheat. Together we thrive. Learn more at https://www.emu.edu/seminary/slt/

Immanuel Mennonite Church, whose motto is “Real people following Jesus’ radical call to love and service” is seeking a part-time Christian Formation Coordinator with responsibilities for leading children’s Sunday school classes at IMC. Approx. 5 hours/week, two Sundays per month, stipend of $250/month. If interested, contact Pastor Matthew Bucher before January 12, 2018 by email (immanuelmennonitepastor@gmail.com) or phone (717-644-2078) for a job description.

The emerging Global Anabaptist Health Network (GAHN), affiliated with Mennonite World Conference, is recruiting a part-time social media/global communication specialist to connect Anabaptist health organizations and individual professionals around the world. Interested persons can contact Ron Yoder at 540-421-4205 and ronyoder@comcast.net.

Gift and Thrift, Inc. is looking for volunteers interested in supporting the mission of Mennonite Central Committee. Volunteers are a vital part of our mission. Many volunteer opportunities are available including donation receiving, electronic and furniture cleaning and repair, pricing and tagging of household items, sorting, hanging and tagging clothing, sorting and scanning books for retail and online sales, customer services and more! Individuals or groups with any level of time commitment (3-4 hours daily, once a week, monthly, etc.) are welcome. To volunteer, or for more information contact Gift and Thrift at 540 433-8844 or email volunteer.here.first@gmail.com. We would love to have you be a part of our volunteer community! Our goal is finding the right fit for you.

 

Community Mennonite Church
70 South High Street Harrisonburg, VA
office@cmcva.org
540-433-2148