“When the day of Pentecost came, all believers were gathered together in one place.  Suddenly there was a noise from the sky which sounded like a strong wind blowing, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting.  Then they saw what looked like tongues of fire which spread out and touched each person there.  They were all filled with the Holy Spirit…”  Acts 2:1-4a

Jesus continues to give the gift of his Spirit to all those who believe that he is the crucified and risen Lord.  We receive the Holy Spirit when we are baptized and again and again throughout our lives.  The Spirit gives each of us at least one gift that we are to use for building up the Body of Christ.  All gifts are important and necessary for the Church to be what God intends.  What gift(s) has God given you and how are you using it for the good of others?

On Sunday, June 6 during worship, we are going to celebrate the many ways the people of Aldersgate are employing their gifts in service in and through the church.  Following the second service we will head out to Braddock’s Bay for an all church picnic.  I hope you’ll be able to join us!

On Sunday, June 13 we have a very special event.  A 75 member youth choir from Northside UMC in Atlanta, Georgia will lead the music during our 9:30 AM service.  They will also sing an anthem at the 11 AM then leaving to go to the next church on their tour.  If you want to know more about this group go to www.northsideumc.org, click ministries and then click music.  You won’t want to miss it!

June 20 is Father’s Day.  That day, our youth will lead both services.  We will also be recognizing our High School and College graduates.   Be there!

Blessings, Anne

As I prepare to leave on our third mission trip to New Orleans to continue the work of rehabilitating homes destroyed by Hurricane Katrina, I am giving thanks for your generosity that helps make it possible.  This year we will have over $1000 to help purchase supplies that are used to make the homes livable again.

Generosity is a mark of the people of Aldersgate Church.  It also is a mark of the Christian faith and our response to the great generosity of our God who loves us so much that he came in human flesh to be one with us and ultimately to die and rise again for our sake. Generosity is based in our relationship with Jesus Christ.  In Roman 12:8, the Apostle Paul reminds us that “Whoever shares with others should do it generously.”

In May, we will have several opportunities to celebrate the generosity of others and to put into practice the generosity to which we are called.  May 2 is the annual CROP Walk where we raise money to fight hunger both locally and around the world.  May 9 is Mother’s Day, a time when we take time to thank our mothers for their generosity.  On May 23, we will celebrate Pentecost, God’s generous gift of the Holy Spirit.  (Don’t forget to wear red that day if you have it.)  On May 30, during the Memorial Day weekend, we stop to remember the generosity of those who have served this country in the military and especially those who have given their lives.

Throughout the month we’ll talk about the ways our generosity makes a difference in the lives of people as we Follow the Vision God has given to us.  I’m excited about the new approach we’re taking in our Follow the Vision Campaign!  (You can find more information about this on page 10)  It is already blessing me and I know it will bless you.

In Christ’s love and service,

Anne

Over the six weeks of Lent we have spent a lot of time looking at the last 24 hours of Jesus’ life on earth.  We have seen Jesus betrayed and denied by those closest to him.  We heard him falsely accused and condemned.  We’ve listened while the very people he came to save turned on him and demanded his crucifixion.  We have watched while he was brutally flogged, and then mocked, humiliated, tormented, and spit upon.  We have recognized our own complicity and sin.  It all seemed to culminate in Jesus’ excruciatingly painful death on a cross.

Yet there is great news!  As final as Jesus’ death seemed, it was not the end.  The tomb is empty!  Christ is risen!  In Jesus’ death and resurrection we see clearly that he has victory over sin, and evil, and death.  Jealousy, anger, cowardice, cruelty, even death itself are no match for Christ.  Paul writes, “Nothing can separate us from his love: neither death nor life…there is nothing in all creation that will ever be able to separate us from the love of God which is ours through Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 38-39)

This means if we are going through tough times, Christ is with us to help us through it or over it.  If we are struggling with a broken relationship, Christ can breathe new life into it.  If we or a loved one are dying, we don’t need to be afraid because Christ has victory over death and we can be sure of receiving life after death if we believe in him.

Christ is risen!  It makes all the difference.  Thanks be to God!

Have a blessed and holy Easter,

Pastor Anne

There are several different things on my mind as I write this article.

Thanks to all who participated in the 90 in 90 Challenge, to Jane Shukitis who organized the celebration on February 14, and to those who shared their service experiences.  The challenge period may be over, but our service must continue, if we are going to follow Christ each day.  Remember we are servants of Christ, serving as he calls us, not volunteers doing what we want to do.

I pray you are finding our Lenten study on the “24 Hours that Changed the World” meaningful.  Through March we will continue to focus on the last 24 hours of Jesus’ earthly ministry.  Palm/Passion Sunday (March 28) will mark the beginning of Holy Week as we celebrate Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem and his death less than a week later.  During Holy Week, there will be special services at 7:00 PM on Maundy Thursday (April 1) and on Good Friday (April 2).  I hope you will join us for all of these services that are intended to help us fully prepare for the joyous celebration of Easter on April 4.

By now you should be aware that we are going to New Orleans April 17-25 to continue the rebuilding effort there.  There will be mission trips to other places, but this is likely to be the last year we go to New Orleans, because the United Methodist Committee on Relief is running out of funds to support the work there.

It’s not too late to sign up to go, but you need to do so soon.  Don’t’ miss this great opportunity to serve.  Talk to anyone who went in 2008 or 2009 and you’ll discover how meaningful it was for them.  Contact me today for more information or to sign up.

The Nominations Committee is hard at work seeking those we believe God may be calling to special service within in the church.  If you are asked to serve, I encourage you to prayerfully consider if God is indeed calling you to that ministry.  If you sense God may be calling you to serve in a certain area, be sure to let me know soon.  “We have many parts in the one body and all these parts have different functions.  In the same way, though we are many, we are one body in union with Christ, and we are all joined to each other as different parts of one body.  So, we are to use our different gifts in accordance with the grace that God had given us.” (Romans 12:4-6a)  Many thanks to all who serve God in and through Aldersgate!

“I pray that out of his glorious riches God may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith.  And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.”  (Ephesians 3:16-19)

Pastor Anne