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THE FIRST CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH OF PITTSFORD 4340 S. Pittsford Rd. P.O. Box 207 Pittsford, MI 49271 Terry Bobzien, Pastor A Church Home for You and Your Family! |
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Join us in Faith, Freedom and Fellowship! Worship Services and Sunday School are held at 11:00a.m. every Sunday Join us for Vacation Bible School July 13-17, 5:30-8:30 p.m. PowerLab VBS starts with dinner for the family! |
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Issue: 23 – Spring March 2007
Pastor Terry Bobzien 517-523-2765 (Parsonage and Office) 517-499-5470 (Cell) 517-629-7381 (Albion Home)
Missions are on my mind this week. After picking up a missionary (whom our congregation supports) at Metro Airport and getting to know him a bit, then helping with the video presentation his last Sunday night in the area, I came away seeing how much genuine care he and his wife have for the precious people of their city in South America. They don’t just teach, they don’t just preach, they become deeply involved in the lives of the folks they can reach. Maybe I just stumbled upon the key to all evangelism: First, REACH. Next, TEACH. Finally, PREACH. If we care enough about people to help them in their daily struggles, we may in time have the opportunity to offer the best news of all—hope found in the life and saving grace of Jesus Christ. As Congregationalists, our wish is that all people live in dignity and security, besides having a relationship with God our Creator. I was so touched by Denise and Jeff Wilt’s presentation at Hudson last week. The interviews with all those who went on the trip made it abundantly clear that everybody who went to Nicaragua on that mission trip came back as different—and changed—people. See the article elsewhere in this newsletter for information on their appearance at our church on May 9. God’s Spirit has a multitude of ways to penetrate deep down into our soul, to improve, to change, to encourage and to create passion. Mission emphasis has served our congregation well for many decades. We remember that God loves all people, even those five thousand miles away. We see how gifted people like our missionary friends as well as “regular folks” can be vessels to carry God’s Good News to our neighborhood or around the world. Perhaps we will see a project in the near future that inspires a group from our congregation to plan a mission trip. I could be ready for a life-changing experience like that. I believe that some others reading this would, too. In the coming weeks, hold up in prayer the hundreds of thousands of people, fulltime missionaries and laypeople, who every year take God’s hope to a hurting world. God is good...all the time! God’s Richest Blessings, Pastor Terry
Wednesday, March 14, 7:00 p.m., Fellowship Hall, Revelation Study, session 6. Sunday, March 18, NO REVELATION STUDY. Pastor Terry will be out of town. Wednesday, March 21, 7:00 p.m., Fellowship Hall, Revelation Study, session 7. Sunday, March 25, 9:30 a.m., Fellowship Hall, Revelation Study, session 7. Wednesday, March 28, 7:00 p.m., Fellowship Hall, Revelation Study, session 8. Last of the series. Sunday, April 1, 9:30 a.m., Fellowship Hall, Revelation Study, session 8. Last of the series. The Deacons’ are getting ready for another fabulous Vacation Bible School this year! So far, three exciting series have been selected as the best possibilities for this summer’s VBS. Vacation Bible School curricula by Group Publishing, Augsburg and Concordia will be viewed at the April Deacons’ meeting, and a decision made to purchase the best fit for our congregation and community. The dates have not yet been set. If you are willing to help with this exciting outreach project this summer, please let Terry, Loretta or Becky know of your interest. It would also be helpful to know if there are any weeks that would be particularly difficult for you to participate. We can’t promise to accommodate everyone, but we’re eager to have as many of the congregation as possible to welcome, teach and feed the children. Vacation Bible School last year resulted in at least three families sending children to our Sunday School. It also raised our visibility on the community. We averaged 17 youngsters in the five days of VBS, with a peak of 25. With hard work, prayer and God’s Spirit leading us, we hope to add to that this year. Everybody needs to hear the Good News—starting with the little ones. “Let the children come to Me. For of such is the Kingdom of God.” Nicaragua Missions Program A group of our members attended a multi-church Lent Potluck in Hudson at First Congregational Church on Wednesday, March 7, after which Jeff and Denise (Gier) Wilt gave a colorful program about their mission trip to Nicaragua. The pictures were stunning, and a video with interviews of many of the other trip participants gave a real feel for just how life-changing a trip such as this can be. Denise and Jeff have offered to present their program for our Congregation, as well, on Wednesday, May 9. We’ll have a potluck before the program, and invite the community to join us all. The potluck will be at 6:00, and the program will begin promptly at 7:00. Bring a dish to pass and your family and neighbors. Denise and Jeff have a wonderful story to tell about the love of Christ offered to people in the second-poorest nation in our hemisphere. You’ll learn a lot from them, and your heart will be opened up. Join us at 6:00 on Wednesday, May 9, for a time of fellowship at the potluck and a program to warm your heart! The Trustees have voted to continue this summer with “Phase II” of the brick restoration and foundation repair of our church. Jean Martolock from On-the-Level Masonry will be back, working on the south end and a small section of the south/west wall of the church. If you would like to make a contribution, honorarium or memorial to the Restoration Fund, please make your check out to “The First Congregational Church of Pittsford”, noting “Restoration Fund” and mail to P.O. Box 207, Pittsford, MI 49271 “Attention Marian Gier”. Your assistance will be greatly appreciated! Projects and People... Some pretty spring Sunday morning in a month or six weeks, we’ll gather outside the front of the church to dedicate and admire the many improvements made there since last summer. Tuck pointing the east side and replacing all broken bricks and joints not only improved the appearance of our building, but helped to insure its structural integrity for decades to come. The Trustees have determined that more tuck pointing should be undertaken this spring and summer to continue this important project. See the article in this newsletter for information on how you can help. The area around the ramp has been greatly improved, with a new garden area given in memory of Richard Marshall by the Marshall family. The street side of the ramp will be much more attractive, thanks to these beautiful plantings and stone base. Thanks to the Marshall family for making this improvement! The garden behind the ramp and between the bell tower and the Fellowship front doors was in need of attention last spring. Thanks to Darlene Clark for planting many, many annuals there before Aimee’s wedding, and improving its appearance for the summer months. Thanks also, Darlene and Kevin, for painting the front door frame and decorative cornice over the Fellowship doors. Late last fall, Owen and Judy Glei provided new landscaping for the center garden, including several very nice ornamental trees and shrubs that will add color and should stay in good proportion to the area. Damon Glei designed the landscaping, and worked with his crew to complete the work just before the first cold weather arrived. Thank you to the Glei’s! One project that we expect to be completed soon will be new hand railings at our front doors. The old pipe railings were removed for the tuck pointing. Last Fall, the Unique Women graciously appropriated funds to purchase and install new handrails. In 2005 the Unique Women purchased new storm windows for Fellowship Hall, an important improvement for our energy conservation efforts. Thank you so much, Unique Women! A couple of troublesome projects in that same area were finished this winter. Dick Anspaugh and a friend changed the design of the ramps to remove the up-and-down bumps which had been there since the time of installation. It is now a much smoother surface for wheelchairs and walkers, and much less likely to cause a stumble. Dick and Brian Brocht also took on the (years-old?) problem of the front doors of Fellowship Hall being very sticky in the winter. They shaved part of the door jamb, and adjusted the bottom weather stripping, so the doors now open and close as smooth as could be! Great job, guys! When we dedicate the outside projects this spring, we will also dedicate a new photocopier in memory of Leona Gier. We offer a huge thank-you to Darlene, Denise, Deb and Doug, for purchasing the new copier on their own initiative. It will be welcome, as our former copier was 14 years old, and becoming unreliable. Thanks to the Gier family for their support of this congregation’s work! One near emergency was averted, when Robb and Gary arrived at the church during a power outage late last fall. Water was rising fast in the basement, and they started the generator so the sump pumps could operate. We narrowly averted catastrophe, as our brand-new furnace would have been in danger if there had been any delay. At the suggestion of Les Moose at the Winter Council Meeting, the Trustees investigated the options for a battery-backup sump pump. After looking at the options, an industrial grade sump pump was purchased, which can run for 7-1/2 hours on battery power. It will be installed soon, and provide an extra level of protection for our furnaces and hot water heater. If we have omitted any noteworthy projects, please accept our apologies. We’ll be pleased to acknowledge all of the hard work and dedication of our many talented and blessed people when we have the dedication service, to be scheduled in late April or early May.
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Office Telephone 517-523-2765. Church Telephone 517-523-2385. Terry Bobzien, Pastor, Cell Phone 517-499-5470.
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VACATION
BIBLE SCHOOL
Church
Restoration Fund
