Church of Peace

United Methodist

JA NUA RY 2 014 P E AC E NO T ES
To encourage all people to believe and trust in the Salvation of Jesus Christ, in order to be givers and guiders of Gods eternal hope. (Church of Peace Mission Statement)

Church Office Hours: Monday & Wednesday 9am - 2:30pm Friday 10am-2pm Worship 9:30 A.M. Sunday School 9:45 A.M. (218) 736-6678 churchofpeaceff@gmail.com (office) tammy.churchofpeaceff@gmail.com (Tammy)

Maybe the most important question is: what happens if something prevents your favorite tradition from taking place? Lets say the weather is too bad for travel or someone is sick? Maybe your life becomes more demanding and you dont have time for baking or writing out cards. Do your stress and anxiety increase and your enjoyment decrease? Hmmand then what? Is all meaning lost? How do we get back to the basics to living in the moment? It was last year at this time that Dave and I returned from the Dear Church of Peace family, hills of South Dakota after hiking in Happy New Year to you their solitude and splendor. It was and yours! I hope this letter finds during this down time following you blessed by a season of the Christmas rush that we found memorable traditions. time and space to hear and feel the Before Christmas, I ways in which the Holy Spirit was promised that we would talk about working in our lives. favorite Christmas traditions. What I spent some time thinking are some of your favorites? How about this past Christmas season about Christmas dinner: do you and how different it was for my prefer turkey or ham? Do you open family and me. There was so much gifts on Christmas Eve or less time to do the traditional Christmas day? Do you go Christmas tasks in preparation for caroling? Send out a Christmas our celebration: the shopping and letter? Attend Christmas Eve wrapping, the baking and services with family? Do you enjoy decorating, sending cards, and of Christmas baking? How many of course, singing favorite Christmas you enjoy the day-after-Christmas carols. sales? This year, I felt a sense of Tradition a sense of loss of tradition, of time to find the familiarity, of expectation, of quiet center and maybe a loss of anticipation and excitementa time with God in the sense of knowing and being process. There was still a known.

Greetings From Tammy

busyness about the season, but my sense of tradition was thrown off. Maybe you found that to be true in your life as well maybe there was a change in the family system the addition or loss of a family member. Maybe health issues threw off the ways in which you were able to enjoy endless goodies. Maybe a loss of income changed the way gifts were given. Maybe Christmas Eve services were different than what you were used to or expecting and you didnt feel the same soulful connection as in years past. This loss of tradition caused me to pause, through weary eyes and heart, to take stock of where it was I had placed the emphasis of this celebration. And it made me wonder if I had missed the mark. I found myself pondering the end of another year, new beginnings, celebrating the birth of our Savior, fresh startsAnd I wondered if might get it right in the coming year. I cannot help but think of the words from Ecclesiastes: For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven. Scholars tell us that the presumed author, King Solomon, realized after much time seeking wisdom and knowledge and returning home broken, he needed to return to the Fountain of Living
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water he needed to return his focus to God. King Solomon recorded his own folly and shame as well as the lessons he had learned. He asked what profit has a man of all of his labors if everything he gets from his toil does not satisfy his soul, nor atone from his sins? Will our soul find rest if it is not from God? Are we so taken with the thoughts and cares of these worldly traditions that we have neither the time, the heart, nor the spirit to see Gods hands in the work around us? These past weeks, were we still too busy with tasks that we failed to feel the presence of God this Christmas season? What is it we are to do with the time before us? We have before us longer days, shorter nights and the

season of epiphany and Lent right around the corner. The New Year often brings with it a chance to take stock of the previous year and many of us make plans for wellintended change in the year to come. How shall we take stock of the year before us personally and as a church community? How can we better slow down from assigned tasks -- even if a beautiful and heart-warming tradition to reacquaint ourselves with God and to bask in his presence? Do we feel the JOY as we are reminded once again that our Savior has come to rule the world with peace and love? And, to bring about a new heaven and a new earth? And, to remind us that our greatest task in all the world is to love God and to love each other. God is in each one of us and we all have the power to make a

difference in the life of another. God calls us today to come to him, to share our joys and our disappointments with him, and to receive new life in and through him. My prayer for each of you in the coming year is that together we grow deeper in our faith, deeper in our understanding of Gods love for us, and deeper in our understanding of Gods purpose in our lives. Amen.

OFFERING ENVELOPES
Offering envelopes will no longer be mailed for the year. Please use the envelopes found in the church pews each Sunday for offering. Be sure to include your name on the envelopes, especially if giving cash. Thank You!
Church of Peace

SPECIAL OFFERING
The special offering for January will be going to Lakeland Hospice. Please be sure to include a note with your offering (either on your check or on the envelope) if you want to donate to the special offering.

CHURCH WEBSITE
www.churchofpeaceff.org
Our new website is now available online. Check back throughout the month to watch as it unfolds and expands with information. If you have comments about the website or would like to suggest additions or changes, please contact Tammy or Glenda.
JANUARY 2014

January Health Ministry News

cell changes that progress to cervical cancer have never had a Pap test or have not had one in the previous three to five years. Cancer of the cervix tends to occur during midlife. Half of the women diagnosed with the disease are between 35 and 55 years of age. It rarely affects women under age 20, and approximately 20 percent of diagnoses are made in women older than 65. For this reason, it is important for women to continue cervical cancer screening until at least the age of 70. Some women need to continue screening longer, so ask your health care provider whats best for you. What causes cervical cancer? Human papillomavirus (HPV) is found in about 99% of cervical cancers. There are over 100 different types of HPV, most of which are considered low-risk and do not cause cervical cancer. High-risk HPV types may cause cervical cell abnormalities or cancer. More than 70 percent of cervical cancer cases can be attributed to two types of the virus, HPV-16 and HPV-18, often referred to as high-risk HPV types. HPV is estimated to be the most common sexually transmitted infection in the United States. In fact, by age 50 approximately 80% of women have been
JANUARY 2014

January is Cervical Cancer Awareness Month:

More than 12,000 women in the United States will be diagnosed with cervical cancer each year, and more than 4,000 of women will die. Cervical cancer is the second most common type of cancer for women worldwide, but because it develops over time, it is also one of the most preventable types of cancer. Deaths from cervical cancer in the United States continue to decline by approximately 2 percent a year. This decline is primarily due to the widespread use of the Pap test to detect cervical abnormalities and allow for early treatment. Most women who have abnormal cervical Judy Lightowler, RN, MS, FCN you knit me together in my mothers womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Ps 139:13b-14a
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infected with some type of HPV. The majority of women infected with the HPV virus do not develop cervical cancer. For most women the HPV infection does not last long; 90% of HPV infections resolve on their own within 2 years. A small number of women do not clear the HPV virus and are considered to have persistent infection. A woman with a persistent HPV infection is at greater risk of developing cervical cell abnormalities and cancer than a woman whose infection resolves on its own. Certain types of this virus are able to transform normal cervical cells into abnormal ones. In a small number of cases and usually over a long period of time (from several years to several decades), some of these abnormal cells may then develop into cervical cancer. Precancerous cervical cell changes and early cancers of the cervix generally do not cause symptoms. For this reason, regular screening through Pap and HPV tests can help catch precancerous cell changes early and prevent the development of cervical cancer.

Health Ministry News Continued

In the Chinese culture, the New Year is the time dedicated to finish with the old and to start with the new. Their traditions include visiting friends and family to re-establish relationships, cleaning the house to prepare for the coming year, stocking cupboards with household provisions, settling all old debts, and putting forth their best behavior. All of these activities are to make the new year better and healthier. What are you going to do for your health this year? Are you going to keep all of your old habits and ignore healthier ones? For example have you considered limiting your meals at fast-food restaurants? Can you develop healthier choices at the grocery store? Will you improve your exercise habits by walking or joining a health club? Have you considered the health benefits of practicing self-care and a wellbalanced lifestyle? Any and all of these will guide you to a healthier life. Once you decide to make an improvement, you must first choose what area to change then make the commitment to see that change occurs. Many of us take the first step of making the promise to change our behavior or habit but find
Church of Peace

it difficult to take the actual steps and then follow through on the lifestyle change. To be successful when making the commitment to alter behavior you need to have dedication, strategy, and action. Until you have a plan and begin to follow it, change is only a verbal statement. The New Year is a good time to look at your life and determine what you need to change or improve. Start the year by considering your health. Follow the monthly tips from your parish nurse to see how you can become healthy, prevent disease, or minimize complications to your current health. Focusing on the future and a well-balanced life will help you participate more fully in the love and joy of your family. You crown the year with your bounty, and your carts overflow with abundance. Psalm 65:11 NIV Besides improving your physical health, what can you do to improve your mental and spiritual health? What are your interests? Do you like to talk with people, visit the homebound, tutor young children, or help with the disabled? Explore your community for organizations or agencies where you could

volunteer in those capacities and pick a project. Good health is more than eating right; it is sharing the love of Jesus Christ by sharing your time and talents. Giving of yourself benefits the recipient as well as you. It improves your mental health by focusing on others rather than yourself and grows your spiritual life as you demonstrate your faith, so start volunteering today!
This is a permanent law for you, to purify the people of Israel from their sins, making them right with the Lord once each year. Leviticus 16:34 NLT Happy Healthy New Year ---Judy Lightowler, RN, MS, FCN

JANUARY 2014

year, we journeyed in Lukes sandals and began to better see Jesus as a Savior for all people. Recall the parables of The Good Samaritan (Ch. 10), The Rich Fool (Ch. 12), The Great Banquet (Ch. 14), The Lost Coin, Lost Sheep, Lost Son (Ch. 15), The Some of you might ask how Rich Man and Lazarus (Ch. 16), the Gospels differ. During my time The Persistent Widow (Ch. 18), in seminary, I learned that to really and The Pharisee and the Tax understand Jesus, it is important to Collector (Ch. 18). These parables contained many surprises look at him through a number of different lenses. Imagine if I were and role reversals as humble to learn about you only through the outsiders received blessings and pompous rule-followers received eyes of your mother. How would reprimands. that portrait differ from the one Luke writes with a great painted by your very best historical perspective while taking friend? Or a sibling? Or a roommate? I suspect I would learn us on the travel narrative. We followed the extensive journey from some very different things about Bethlehem to Jerusalem. Lukes you. focus on genealogy from Adam The same can be said forward emphasizes that Jesus is about the Gospels. As we learn about Jesus from each perspective for all of humanity especially the outcast and lowly. we begin to better understand the This year we begin Year A of the Revised Common Lectionary and so will be studying the life of Jesus through the eyes of Matthew. Though we will focus on Matthew, Ive included all of the Scripture readings for your personal devotional time. person and ministry of Jesus. Last Scholars suggest that

Marks central theme is one of suffering and obedience that Jesus, Messiah and Son of God, obediently suffers as a servant to pay the price for our disobedience and sin. Jesus provides a model of sacrifice for his disciples both past and present. This year, we will come to better understand Jesus through the eyes of Matthew as the Jewish Messiah who brings to climax the salvation of his people. We will likely see a strong Jewish connection, but an equally strong denunciation of the Jewish leadership. We will find Jesus described as the new Israel, the new Moses, and as wisdom incarnate. Matthew also groups topics instead of telling a chronological story, such as the journey we made with Luke. Lastly, you will likely notice that Matthew emphasizes our mission as Gentiles. And so, without further ado

Sunday, January 5: Epiphany of the Lord (white or gold): Isaiah 60: 1-6; Psalms 72: 1-7, 10-14, Ephesians 3: 1-12, Matthew 2: 1-12 Sunday, January 12: 1st Sunday After Epiphany: The Baptism of our Lord (white or gold): Isaiah 42: 1-9; Psalms 29, Acts 10: 34-43, Matthew 3: 13-17 Sunday, January 19: 2nd Sunday After Epiphany (green): Isaiah 49: 1-7; Psalms 40: 1-11; 1 Corinthians 1: 1-9, John 1: 2942 Sunday, January 26: 3rd Sunday After Epiphany (green): Isaiah 9:1-4; Psalms 27: 1, 4-9; 1 Corinthians 1: 10-18, Matthew 4: 12-23
Church of Peace

SCRIPTURE READINGS
JANUARY 2014

January 2014-Church of Peace

Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat

Birthdays (Green) Anniversaries (Red)

5 6 7 8 9 10 11

9:00 am Fellowship 9:30 am Worship With Communion 9:45 am Sunday

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13 Administrative Council

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18

9:00 am Fellowship 9:30 am Worship 9:45 am Sunday School

Meeting 7:00 pm

19 Peter Fabian
9:00 am Fellowship 9:30 am Worship 9:45 am Sunday School

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25

26 Delores Lee
9:30 am Worship 9:45 am Sunday School 10:30am Fellowship

27 Jerry Fietek

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29 Charge Conference Time To Be Announced

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Certified Lay Minister Tammy Churchill Administrative Assistant Glenda Hoff Musician Bruce Walkup Sunday School Teacher Kevin Carr Sound Technicians Jerry Fietek & Dave Churchill Custodians Peter and Ruth Fabian
1500 South Cascade Fergus Falls, MN 56537

Fergus Falls, Minnesota 56537 1500 South Cascade Church of PeaceUnited Methodist