PASTORS’ PEN

Nehemiah 4:6 “So they rebuilt the wall…for the people worked with all their hearts.”

February is the month of love…the month we celebrate “Valentine’s Day” and the romantic love found in the

heart between a man and a woman. However, it is not only their sentimental expressions or feelings one for an-

other, but most of all it also states the commitment, sacrifice, and desire of one person for another to be a blessing

to them through the attitudes and actions of their life. Valentine’s Day calls us to cherish and appreciate the

other person to whom we are sending the Valentine to. It is a matter of the heart!

The rebuilding of the wall of Jerusalem progressed well because the people had set their hearts and minds on

finishing the task before them. They possessed within their hearts a commitment and determination not to give

up, but to complete the task before them regardless of the hard work, sacrifice, and determination required of

them because of the oppositions and struggles they faced daily because God was worthy of their best effort until

the task was finished. Yet with struggles and pressures around them daily, they never lost sight of their purpose

and to whom their love and hearts were so dedicated.

Since September of 2012 we together have been about

finishing the task of the “Looking Up and Reaching

Out” Campaign of the renovation of the Downtown

Campus and the development and building of a new

ministry that will be accomplished through the new

Goshen First UM Church “GPS Building.” By the

way, just a side note… “GPS” is known in our world

to be a mapping device that helps lost people find

their way. Oh, how I pray that the various ministries

that will happen in and around the GPS Building will

truly help persons who have lost their way to be found

in Christ and redirected in His wonderful direction that will bless them.

The final stages in finishing and answering God’s Will in this building (like the Rebuilding of the Wall in Jerusa-

lem in Nehemiah’s day) is just ahead of us…together we can see the task finished. There will be steel ordered,

ground work accomplished, concrete work being done, walls put up, plumbing, blocks laid, electricity run, etc.,

but in all of the journey to finishing our task, let us not lose sight of our purpose—God’s Glory and lives being

changed by His power as all of us are used as His tools and instruments to accomplish it. Let it be said of us…

“they made a difference in the lives of others for the Kingdom of God…for the people worked with all of their

hearts.” The finish line is yet ahead of us. Let us press on to finish our task with joy and the pleasure of being

used by God for the building of His Kingdom here in Goshen. May this Spring see us finish this matter of the

Heart so that together we can see the Glory of God at work.

God Bless You All!

Pastor Ed

February 2013

The Gathering

COMING EVENTS

UPCOMING YOUTH EVENTS On Sunday, February 17th, the youth will have a “Soup and Sandwich”

Fundraiser at the Life Center at 12:00 noon. Donations are welcome. All

funds raised will be used for the 2013 youth mission trips. Everyone is

welcome!

On Friday, February 22, the youth will have a 30-Hour Famine and over-

night lock-in at the Life Center. We will experience what it is like to be

hungry and impover-

ished (even if it is only

for a night). This is an

eye opening experience

and one that should not

be missed. We will

also be collecting rice

bowls at this event so

we can send the col-

lected money to “Food

for the Hungry.”

MOVIE NIGHT We will be showing a free movie

at the Life Center on Sunday, Feb-

ruary 17, at 4:00 p.m. The movie

is entitled, “Cool Running.” Eve-

ryone is welcome. Free popcorn

will be served.

SUPER BOWL AND

CHILI COOK-OFF Don’t forget!! The chili cook-off

and watching the Super Bowl foot-

ball game will take place on Sun-

day, February 3, at The Life Cen-

ter. Doors open at 5:15 p.m. and

game kick-off is around 6:20 p.m.

We will be judging the chili, and

the chili with the most votes at half

time gets the high coveted trophy.

PRIMETIMERS The Primetimers will have lunch in the Garden Room of the downtown

campus on Tuesday, February 12, at 11:00 a.m. Lunch will be egg casse-

roles, fruit, and muffins from The Electric Brew for $5.00.

After lunch we will go see the Goshen College Chamber Choir perform.

“A Limitless Expanse” is a program of sacred and secular sounds and

poetry that celebrate our embodiment of God’s richness.

The bus will pick up at Greencroft at 10:30 a.m. All others will drive

themselves to the church. If you have questions, please call Bob Morris

at 534-2791.

WOMEN’S BIBLE

S T U D Y / F I T N E S S

CLASS All ladies are invited to experience

the women’s fitness Bible study

and workout as we journey through

the book, “Made to Crave.” This

will take place on Friday mornings

from 9:00-11:00 a.m., beginning

February 1, at the Life Center. For

questions, contact Bobbi Smith by

email at banglemy@gmail.com.

Perfect Attendance

In December the youth tied their record for highest number of youth with perfect attendance (25). Being at youth

every week is such a great accomplishment that I feel the following youth should be recognized. Please tell them

how proud you are of them next time you see them.

Brodie Bender, Bryce Bender, Brock Blankenbaker, Tyler Brinson, Noah Caouette, Andrew Charlton, Nick Clark, Payton Crume, Mitchell David-son, Julia Giddens, Cameron Groves, Ellie Groves, Tyler Groves, Katie Herschberger, Joel Honey, Cole Jordan, Tina Juroff, Melina Liras, Cooper Middaugh, Wes Middaugh, Harry Musser, Addison Niccodeumus, Sarah Smith, Cassidy Trammell, Garrette Wilde.

Brad Miller

Youth Pastor

Goshen First United Methodist Church

Youth of the Month – Sydney Bailey Sydney Bailey was January’s youth of the month. Sydney has been working very hard at

talking about her faith with others, encouraging friends to attend youth group, and even

starting to talk about things that she feels have held her back relating to faith. All of those

are big steps to take when you are a senior and I am very proud of her for doing all of that.

Also Sydney has begun singing in the youth praise band, participating in youth service

projects, and is taking lessons on how to better evangelize. Sydney is planning on attending

our summer evangelism trip to Myrtle Beach. It will be a great trip and I am confident that

Sydney is going to help many find Christ…not only on the trip but as she heads off to col-

lege in the fall. -Brad Miller, Youth Pastor

Youth Mission Project If you know me you know that I will take any opportunity I can to brag about the awesome youth at our church.

Last Wednesday all of the youth participated in mission projects.

▪ The junior high girls went to the downtown campus. They helped clean up after the TGIW dinner and then

played with, taught, and entertained the little kids that were there that evening.

▪ The junior high guys went door to door in the Goshen community collecting goods that were donated to

Goshen Interfaith Hospitality Network. They collected several bags of items while enduring the cold weather.

▪ The senior high guys stayed at the Life Center. They organized closets, cleaned walls, moved heavy items,

swept, and helped set up for the following Sunday.

▪ The senior high girls went to Goshen Interfaith and entertained the guests that were staying there that

evening. They played many games and had a great time.

The best part about all of this is that they did it with smiles, love, and grace. They were more than willing to help

in all these areas, and they did it without a single complaint. It was nice talking with each group afterwards

because they all had smiles on their faces as they shared the tales of their evenings.

We have an awesome youth group, and if you see any of them please tell them how much you appreciate them.

Brad Miller

Youth Pastor

THE LIVING WORD

This year’s Living Word

production promises to be a

great one. Things are already

beginning to take shape. One

of the things we are wanting to

do this year is update our set

with some very nice designs

that our own Cindy Howard has

provided us. We are also

hoping to use projection as a

significant part of the

production tool this year. As

you can imagine, a project like

the living Word takes a lot of

time and effort but it also

requires a significant amount

of money. One of the ways you can help is by becoming a sponsor. There

are different levels of sponsorship so it is something that everyone can

participate in. By becoming a sponsor, you will have your name in the

program. Soon you will be seeing an insert in the bulletin about the

different ways you can participate. We hope you will prayerfully consider

being part of this year’s production by becoming a sponsor.

Caring Ministry Emphasis in February What are Caring Ministries? This little story perhaps tells it best. A little girl was tucked in bed for the night, when it began to lightening and thunder. She became frightened and called out for her Mommy and Daddy. They came into her bedroom and comforted her, letting her know that she was safe and that the storm would soon be over. They told her not to be afraid, that God was with her and that He loved her. She said, "but I need love with skin on it." That is what a Caring Ministry is...God's love with skin on it. Presently, we have 12 ministries which are considered Caring Ministries: Card, Casserole, College Care, Flower, Funeral Din-ner, Nursing Home Visitation, Ninety + Birthday Cards, Prayer Chains (telephone and e-mail) , Prayer Shawl, Shepherd, Transportation. It is possible to sign up for any of these ministries at any time during the year and be God's love with skin on it. If you have any questions, please contact Pamela Kling, 361-4621, and she will direct you to the coordi-nator of that ministry or go online to our web site (goshenfirstumc.org) for complete contact info. (over)

WE CARE Below is a list of our church members who are in health care or assisted living. I would like to encourage

everyone to send cards or visit these members. -Pam Kling

Greencroft Healthcare, 1225 Greencroft Drive, Goshen, IN 46526

Marjorie Cox—Room 108

Gladys Bickel—Room 103

Charlie Sloan—Room 105

Jane Toth—Room 134

Carol Gilchrist—Room 103

Florence Guengerich—Room 240

Pat McKinney—Room 104

Agda Farber—Room 303

Elbert Groves—Room 550

Lena Kent—Room 512

Gordon DeWilde—Room 231

Evergreen Assisted Living, 1300 Greencroft Drive, Goshen, IN 46526

Irene Renner—Apt. 114

Heritage House, 1700 Waterfall Drive, Nappanee, IN 46550

Ed Koher—Apt. 145

The Maples Healthcare, 1332 Waterford Circle, Goshen, IN 46526

Ermadean Seltenright—Room 318

Waterford Crossing Assisted Living, 1212 Waterford Circle, Goshen, IN 46526

Phyllis Flora—Apt. 410

Leo Seltenright—Apt. 303

Jack Stump—Apt. 205

Stan & Barbara Leedy—Apt. 406

Gene Weaver—Apt. 815

Fran Jessup—Apt. 709 at “Emily’s House”

Courtyard Healthcare, 2400 College Avenue, Goshen, IN 46526

Laura Miller—Room 209

Walter Aschliman—Room 315

Bonnie Nicolai—Room 343

Warsaw Meadows Health Care, 214 S. Third Street, Warsaw, IN 46580

Wayne Smith

Non-Profit Org.

U.S. Postage

PAID

Permit No.136

Goshen, IN

First United Methodist Church

214 S. Fifth Street

Goshen, IN 46528

Phone: 533-9518

www.goshenfirstumc.org

www.goshenlifecenter.org

Address Service Requested

“Thanks for all the cards and treats you have given me for Christmas and my birthday! You lift my spirits when

you remember me. I enjoyed the Christmas Eve service. I am so glad I was able to attend.” -Frances Jessup

“I would like to say thank you publicly to Scott Nickerson. On the night of the College Football championship,

my truck battery kept dying on me. Despite multiple jumps, there was nothing I could do. My truck was stranded

at the Life Center and I had no way to get home. When Scott found this out he volunteered to remove my battery,

take it to the store, and replace it. Not only did he do that but he drove home (30 minutes round trip) to get his

tools. I forgot to mention that he missed most of the game and it was VERY COLD that night. It is because of

nice guys like Scott that our church is well loved in the community and people feel at home when they are here.

God Bless You Scott!” -Brad Miller

February 1

Shirley Myers

February 2

Mike Anderson

Barbara Lewallen

Amanda Eckelbarger

February 3

Mike Taylor

Hannah Sorrell

February 4

Olivia Salisbury

Lenette Burckhart

February 5

Jason Miller

A.J. Brinson

Tia Rice

February 6

Kelly Schrock

February 7

Mitch Day

Shanon Layne

February 8

Emily Good

Tony Beltran

Mitchell Davidson

February 9

Jacob Haimes

Robert Rock

Larry Solyom

Margie Weaver

Ron Howard

Jack Moser

Andrew Hughes

February 10

Ramona Reynolds

Robert Zawacki

Logan Ferris

February 12

Josh Fredrick

Charlotte Gran

Lynne Alber

Dan Schrock

February 13

Dave Brinkruff

February 14

Dennis Martin

Richard Myers

February 15

Paul Shidler

Hazel Sanders

February 16

Julia Herschberger

Gordon DeWilde

February 17

Jackie Hinckley

Karen Weaver

February 19

Charlie Payne

Mary Jo Cotherman

Mel Eash

Marsha Miller

Morgan Howar

February 20

Peggy Paflas

Rev. Ed Fritz

Kim Gunden

February 21

Yvonne Paff

Lela Gailey

February 22

Florence Guengerich

Kayleigh Crowder

Sydney Sheeley

Layla Miller

Stephanie Hughes

HAPPY FEBRUARY BIRTHDAYS!

February 23

Payton Crume

Peg Herring

February 24

Shirley Hansen

Emily Hodges

Barbara Leedy

February 25

Elexis Carroll

February 26

Larry Juday

Dave McCann

February 27

Norman Simmons

Doug Hansen

February 28

Cathy Webb

Darrell Eggers

Jennifer Howar

Vienna Griffith

Gabrielle Gunden

February 29

Kimberly Hart

THINK ABOUT IT “It’s not that I’m so smart, it’s just

that I stay with problems longer.”

-Albert Einstein

“Stubbornly persist, and you find

that the limits of your stubbornness

go well beyond the stubbornness of

your limits.” -Robert Brault

“He conquers who endures.”

-Persius