Newsletter
Volume 41 Number 2 February 24, 2010
From the Pastor
The season of Lent was originally a time of recovery for the church. We recognized that we had grown comfortable in the world as it was. Originally, the church was a powerless, marginalized community. Our treasure was the poor whom we welcomed; our strength was measured by our capacity to suffer for and with the sick and the oppressed; our distinction was that we loved one another.
Over time that changed. We became the powerful. We gained status. We lost our edge and began to measure our strength by the size of our buildings or our bank accounts. Over time we started to notice that there really was not much of a difference between a Christian and a good, prosperous, moral pagan. Lent seems to have been an attempt to remind Christians that we are called to follow Jesus, and that following Jesus involves renouncing the ways of power and prestige that govern the world.
Originally we think Lent grew out of a forty day period of fasting and prayer prior to baptism on Easter. The idea was that being a Christian involved a conversion, a literal change of heart, mind, and habit. We leave behind one world of possibility and enter into another one. We become different people, and this takes some time. So, they fasted and prayed and prepared for forty days, no doubt in memory of Jesus' own forty day fast in the wilderness.
Lent is still a time of intentional renewal, and I don't know about you, but I could use it. It is a time for Christians to learn again the different sort of people we are called to be and for the church to recover our own radical vision.
This Lent is special for Northside because it is the first one since our fortieth, and we are asking questions about who we are and who we are called to be in this community. I pray that Lent will be for us and for all the worldwide church a reminder that we are called to follow a truthful, demanding, gracious Lord, and that following this Lord will make us stand out in sometimes awkward and painful ways.
Grace and Peace,
Stan
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To My Friends at Northside
Thanks so much for your wonderful hospitality on Sunday and thanks for your ministry in the community and the world. It was a gift for me to be with you on Sunday and my prayers will surround you as you continue to journey "into the deep."
Peace and Love,
Michelle Shrader
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Lenten Book Recommended
There will be two groups for the Lenten Book Study, one which will meet on Sunday nights at 6 p.m, and another which will meet Tuesday nights at 7 p.m. Books have been purchased and distributed and additional books ordered at a cost of $20 if you have not received yours. The second order of books should arrive this week.
The book to be studied is The Seven Deadly Sins Sampler, edited by Daniel Born, Mike Levine, and Don Whitfield. This sampler is fourteen short story masterpieces selected for discussion and reflection on the seven deadly sins of Pride, Envy, Anger, Sloth, Greed, Gluttony, and Lust. As a preview, the first is Pride: "A Rose for Emily" by William Faulkner and "Good Country People" by Flannery O'Connor.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2009 Business E?]Waste Day
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
MS Farmer's Market
929 High Street
Jackson, MS 39202
8:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
Businesses can bring any unwanted electronics to the Mississippi Farmer's Market on Wednesday April 7, from 8:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Doing so will lighten the electronic waste from their offices in an environmentally friendly way!
Acceptable Items:
All Computer Components, Desktop Copiers, Fax Machines, Radios, Televisions, Cell Phones, Desk Phones, VCR Players, DVD Players, Electronic Games, Monitors, Keyboards, Printers, Laptops, Scanners, Stereos/Radios, Microwaves, Vacuums, Smoke Alarms. There is a $1 charge per monitor and $10 charge per television.
For more information on this event, please contact Kellye Smith at (601) 948?]7575, ext. 234 or email
ksmith@greaterjacksonpartnership.com.
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Youth Building Report
As of press time we are expecting the power to be turned on in the new youth building within a day or two. After that, following a few minor adjustments the final coat of paint will be applied, the building will be cleaned, and we will be ready to furnish it. Thanks to all who continue to supervise, plan, purchase furniture, and wait expectantly.
Let's pray for our youth and their families in this opportune time.
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New Hymnal Project
The next phase of the project will be to gather all requests for inscriptions in memory or in honor of friends or loved ones. If you would like one or more of your donated hymnals to be so dedicated, please make sure that the office knows this information by March 14.
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From the Wellness Ministry
Macular degeneration is a condition of the eye that usually is associated with aging (usually in persons over 50 years old). There is an "early form" and a more serious "later form" in which essential blood vessels in the back of the eye are destroyed which is vision-threatening. Usually the visual deficit is loss of central vision (can't see well what is straight ahead). Research is showing that certain nutrients are helping to prevent or lessen the problem including zinc supplements, Omega-3 fatty acid intake, and eating eggs regularly. As always, the decision to supplement is made between the person and their medical provider.