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Zion Lutheran Church - Sunbury, Pa “Called by faith to share Christ’s Love with all people”

www.zionlutheransunbury.com

Happy New Year ...May 2020

bring you many blessings

T

HE M

ESSEN

GER

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Sunday, January 5th 2nd Sunday of Christmas

Sunday, January 12th Baptism of Our Lord

Sunday, January 19th 2nd Sunday after Epiphany

Unified Worship: 10:30am

Sunday, January 26th 3rd Sunday after Epiphany

Annual Meeting of the Congregation Fellowship Lunch

Council Member Election

Adoption of 2020 Budget

Book Club meets Wednesday January 8

This month’s reading selection, Lilac Girls

by Martha Hall Kelly, will be discussed at our meeting at 1:30pm in the Parlor. Topic

leader is Julie Nevin. Upcoming

For February 12th, we are reading Educated by Tara Westover

2020 Offering Envelopes can be picked up

outside the church office.

Please fulfill your 2019 giving by

January 3rd

in order to be credited

for the 2019 tax year.

The Children’s Music Program will resume on

January 12th in room 109 on the ground floor. Re-hearsals are 9:05 to 9:20

Sunday mornings.

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If you are a member of the congregation, have a birthday in this month, but are not listed,

please email or call the church office.

Zion Evangelical

Lutheran Church

15 South 5th Street PO BOX 605

Sunbury, Pennsylvania

17801

zionsunbury@ptd.net www.zionlutheransunbury.co

570-286-6459 OFFICE HOURS-

Monday to Friday 9am- 4pm

STAFF

Rev. Richard Fangmann

Pastor

Amy Graham Music Director

David Reier Choir Director

Donna Deppen Administrative

Assistant

Keith Kurtz Joey Smith

Sextons

CONGREGATION

COUNCIL

Ben Heim President

Sam Deitrick

Vice President

Kim Crissinger Secretary

Cheryl Beeler Treasurer

January 1 Lee Broscious Carol Findley Chuck Hogan January 2 Angela Mordan Debbie Taylor January 3 Fred Keeley Skylar Stoneroad January 4 Audrey Brosius January 5 Etta Mendler Benjamin Smillie January 6 Tammy Lytle Audrey Whitman January 8 Rae Mitterling Chuck Porter Matthew Witmer January 10 Ellie Brouse Dana Jaegers Brad Moyer January 12 Alison Moyer January 13 Tom Fetter January 14 James Isenberg Carol Swank

January 15 Lee Clemens January 16 Derek Bussey Chloe Dvorshak January 17 Lorie Adams Duane Campbell January 18 Geri Hoffman LuAnne Rebuck January 19 Judy DePhillips January 20 Rita Pollard January 22 Shirlee Ballantine Joyce Willard January 23 Gary Kremser January 24 Margie Hopple January 26 Ruthann Auten Bryen Sampsell January 28 Grace Hogan Larry Moyer Mary Sowers Bentley Stoneroad

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Altar Set Up– Julie Nevin

Communion Set Up/Clean Up-

8:00 am: Cheryl Beeler/JoEllen Freida

10:30am: Siri & Mike Dock

Greeters- 8am: Linda Everitt

10:30am: Ned & Carol Swank

Tellers – Sandy Holub, Dee Zboray

Communion Assistants-

January 5 8am: Cheryl Beeler 10:30am: Firman Abdil

JoEllen Freida Bill Greis

January 12 8am: Chloe Dvorshak 10:30am: Julie Nevin

Gretchen Walter Kim Bussey

January 19 8am: UNIFIED 10:30am: Angie Heim

WORSHIP Holly Zimmerman

January 26 8am: Cheryl Beeler 10:30am: Mike Dock

Linda Everitt Wendy Young

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Think about all of the places that you have gone this past week: the time that you spent at home or may-be at the grocery store, your workplace, at school, your favorite restaurant or friend’s house. What did you do there and who did you see?

Now think about the last time you were at wor-ship. What makes that experience, that place, different? Is it the responsive reading we do or the songs we sing? Is it the rituals we observe, with the standing, sitting, and standing again? It’s easy to think that this is the differ-

ence, after all, in worship we do things that we do anywhere else. Yet St. Paul would disagree. It’s not what we do in worship that makes it special, but what God has done in Jesus on the cross.

Paul writes in I Corinthians 1-2: “ For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and him crucified.”

We worship on Sundays before the foot of the cross because it is there we are promised something quite surprising: In the face of bigotry, greed, violence, intolerance, and despair– God’s love wins! Within all of the uncertainties of life– God’s love wins! When we are confronted with hate– love disarms, opens up new possibilities, and leads to new life! This is the love that we just celebrated with the birth of a baby in Bethle-hem. As Jesus grew, he crossed boundaries that were meant to divide us by gender, race, and nationality. He broke the rules with his compassion by touching lepers and healing on the Sabbath. Jesus’ understanding and forgiveness offered freely, changed peoples’ lives!

Sometimes we forget in the busyness of this world, people don’t need another thing to do on Sunday mornings. They don’t need a lecture on ancient history, or the pressure of more rules to follow. People aren’t looking for more entertainment, more soccer games for our kids, another commitment to get us out of bed on the weekend. We are looking for something different than what they encounter at work, school, or home.

What people want and need, what we want and need, is to be sur-prised by a word of forgiveness, when we don’t deserve one. We want a community of people who care even when we are afraid to ask for help. We want to experience a love more powerful than the hate that surrounds us, and a family of faith that dares to cross boundaries/break the rules for compassions sake. These things can come, even in the messiness of hu-man interaction, at the foot of the cross. Join us there each Sunday in wor-ship. It can be a place like no other, by God’s Grace!

Peace,

Pastor Rich

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Report on Mission Mall 2019

Income: Gift Donations 3,446.00 Meals 409.00 Bake Sale 302.00 Crafts 608.50 Church funds for benevolent missions 3,000.00

Income Total------------------------------ $ 7765.50 Expense Total (supplies, food) $ 142.85 Grand Total Distributed $ 7,622.65

Thank you to all who contributed to Mission Mall by ‘shopping”

donated food for the Bake Sale and luncheon, made crafts and gifts and to the many volunteers who made the event possible.

Cottage Meetings 2020

There will be two more opportunities to take part in a Cottage Meeting during the month of January. What is a Cottage Meeting? It’s a relaxed, informal gathering of people to talk about the life and mis-sion of our congregation. Through these conversations, we are seeking to get to know one another better and to increased communication and involvement here at Zion as we share our plans, concerns, and hopes for the future. When and where are we meeting? Watch for more info in the bulletin and through emails beginning January 5

th. Hopefully, we

can have these available at various times throughout the year. Come and take part.

Special thanks are due to Super Climber Bob Zimmer-man, also Cindy Spang, Les Ranck, Dave Reier, Mike Dock, Jim Siegfried, & Pastor Rich who installed the

Christmas decorations. Also, very special thanks to Ben & Angie Heim and Steve Dagle who worked hard at getting

the trees lit.

We still need lots of help to take the decorations down on January 5 following the 10:30 service. Please pitch in!

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Tubing Trip at Big Boulder Our youth are in the process of planning a skiing/tubing trip

to Big Boulder on Sunday, January 26th.

We will leave following the 8:00 am worship service and return to the church early evening. Youth 6

th through 12

th grade, plus

friends are invited to take part. Church families and children are also welcome to join us.

While we haven’t gone in the last few years, in the past, this trip has always been a lot of fun. More information to come!

A few Sundays ago, Pastor Rich asked the children to identify pictures of the strong and powerful or the weak and power-less of our world. Even the children were able to identify the weak from the strong. On December 5th, members of Zion were given the opportunity to serve others in our com-

munity during the city's Late Night Shoppers Event. A cup of hot choco-late, some homemade cookies, or a bag of popcorn given with a greeting and a smile told others they were special and loved. Everyone expressed their appreciation. They were always surprised to find out that the goodies were given free of charge. There were no powerful or weak, friend or stranger, that night. There were only fellow children of God. Many thanks to our bakers, our greeters, and our servers. Thank you to our decorators Linda Everitt, Diane Fasold, Jim Crissinger, and Jim Fleming. All are invited to look for opportunities at Zion to reach out to our community “ with a very simple, yet life-changing message: “You are welcome here.” John 13:35 tells us, “By this all will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another”, whether giving or receiving cookies, hot chocolate -everyone left richer in spirit.

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2020

Lutheran Marriage Encounter Weekends

The marriage relationship is something that provides the great-est potential for happiness. Is yours living up to this potential? Please make 2020 the year you resolve to attend a Lutheran Marriage En-counter Weekend to learn how to maximize the joy and intimacy that God intends for your marriage!

The following Northeast US Weekends have been scheduled: * April 24-26, 2020 at Country Inn & Suites, Ithaca, NY. A hotel with lots of country charm in the beautiful Finger Lakes region of New York. * May 1-3, 2020 at Heritage Hotel in Lancaster, PA. A recently-renovated hotel, home of the unique, treehouse-inspired restaurant, "Loxley's." * October 2-4, 2020 at Comfort Inn Latham-Albany North--just 10 miles north of Interstate 90 near Albany, the vibrant capital of NY. * October 16-18, 2020 at Olmsted Retreat. A stunning, hotel-style re-treat Center in the Allegheny National Forest, 2 hours north of Pitts-burgh. Please see website: www.GodLovesMarriage.org for rate information-for each weekend. You may make your payment for the cost for your lodging and 5 meals for each of you plus the registration fee with your credit card, or you may mark the option to send a check. Scholarships are available for those in need who request them at the website. Regis-trations are limited by the size of the conference rooms, so to be sure to get the Weekend of your choice, sign up at your earliest conven-ience at www.GodLovesMarriage.org . For questions please contact NE US Directors of Lutheran Marriage Encounter, Fred & Julie Scham-ber, at fjschamber@comcast.net or 724-325-3166.

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Zion In Our Neighborhood

Zion participates in many ongoing projects in support of neigh-bors and our community at large.

Second Sunday Fellowship Group

will meet again

at the back of the Nave

on January 12 after the 10:30 AM service

to go for lunch at

Masser's in Paxinos.

Any questions, see Cindy Spang. Come join us for

food and fellowship!

Monthly Sunday Morning Book Discussion

resumes

January 26th at

9:15am in the Ground

Floor Confer-ence Room.

Our Projects for Winter 2020 SOUPER Bowl of Caring Food Drive

Sunday January 19 thru February 2nd Support our youth as they gather non-perishable food items and

money to contribute to Elijah’s Bowl, Haven Ministry, and other local food pantries!

We are hoping to gather 700 cans of food for our hungry

neighbors. Join us in fulfilling this goal.

Thank you to everyone who participated in our Seafarer,

Christmas Stocking, Glove/Hat Collection and Take-A- Tag projects! You are cheerful givers with big hearts!

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