HC Newsletter NovDec 2013

IN THIS

ISSUE

2 HIGHLAND HEIGHTS highlandny.org

Photo by: André Walker

November-December

4 Pastor Subash Cherian

“HOLY DAYS”

5 Book Release

“POWER OF RECIPROCITY”

6 Ministry AD’s

7 Testimony

“Overcoming Cancer with Prayer & Diet”

8 - Sight & Sound Theatre “MOSES” Coming 2014

- International Christmas Celebration

10-11 - Coping With Depression

- Christmas For Kids - Tips For Preparing For The Holidays

- Christmas Eve Service -Watch Night Service - Advertise With Us

12 Pastor Valerie Surrett “Worship The King”

13 Highland Info.

14-15 - Business Section

- Go Digital

9 - Ministry AD’s - Recipe Column

BUILDING CLOSED THANKSGIVING HOLIDAY

Thursday, November 28

Friday, November 29

CHRISTMAS HOLIDAY

Wednesday, December 25

Thursday, December 26

NEW YEARS HOLIDAY

Wednesday, January 1

Thursday, January 2

MARTIN LUTHER KING HOLIDAY

Tuesday, January 21, 2014

highlandny.org HIGHLAND HEIGHTS 3 November-December

intended to be–holy days. Let us put thankfulness back in Thanksgiving and Christ back in our Christmas. There is so much to be done and with so little time, but never forget the heart of these holy days. Take time during these days to remember God’s blessings and thank Him for them. Take time to express your appre-ciation to God and say “Thank you, Thank you, Thank you!!” May our expression of a full, heartfelt gratitude to God become our greatest occasion for these days of festivities and joy. Moreover, may we also use this sea-son to say “thank you” to people. We can express our thankfulness to so many people in our lives for whom we are indebted to and who sometimes do not get to hear this from us very much. The Apostle wrote in his epistle to the Christians in Thessalonica, “We always give thanks to God for all of you and mention you in our prayers constantly.” (1 Thessalonians 1:2) So let our “holy days” not become a one day event, but rather a lasting theme for the remaining of this year 2013 and continuing to the next, so that we can be truly grateful to God for all the favors He has granted us. The giving of thanks to God is important because it honors God. Let the season of Advent awaken us to the im-mensity of God’s love and let us also savor the awe-someness of the greatest gift of our Savior’s birth. Let us take time to be thankful and rejoice that we have such a gracious Father in heaven, who so loved us, that He sent His Only Begotten Son as Savior. Let our thankful-ness be to God. Let our Christmas be about our Savior. The wise men did not stand in the presence of the pre-cious child and exchange gifts among themselves or just give gifts to others. We read that the gifts were “presented unto Him.” These men understood they were in the presence of “Emmanuel” (God with us). Let us enter a new season of thankfulness and celebration, not as a final close to the year 2013, but a season that ushers us into 2014 with a grateful heart. It is time to return to the real meaning of the coming season and to turn our holidays into holy days. May this holiday season truly be a holy time for all of us here at Highland Church.

s we approach the holidays, we need to re-mind ourselves to make God and His King-dom the central part of our Thanksgiving and Christmas tradition. We get so stressed out in the busyness of the season, that re-

membering its true meaning sometimes gets pushed to the sidelines. More and more, the people of God are be-ing pulled away from the real significance of the holidays and toward the outlandish world of commercialization, competition, consumerism and merchandising. Sadly, over the years, the true purpose of these festivals has de-teriorated to become something they were never meant to be! Holidays are the busiest time of the year. Apart from your ordinary busy day, you now have the added respon-sibilities of purchasing holiday decorations, baking, cooking, shopping, procuring gifts and all that accompa-nies the festivities. But these holidays were meant to be times to worship the Lord, to remember His goodness and to celebrate the themes and symbols that mean so much to us and that help make us who we are. Let us take time to make the “holidays” truly “holy days.” The word “holiday” comes from the word “holy day,” a term that originated with the church fathers to represent festivals of special significance during which people took time to celebrate and worship the Lord. So let us determine to make these holidays what they were

4 HIGHLAND HEIGHTS highlandny.org November-December

HOLY DAYS Turning the Holidays into true

Holy Days

By: Pastor Subash Cherian


ministry ads


The Lord was in every decision we made, every step we took, every corner we turned.

He was right there leading the way. During this time, we had a medical doctor overseeing Manny who took a naturalistic approach to his cancer. He would order PET scans every 6 months. The tumor kept growing, but at a very slow pace which was unusual for this type of cancer. On the last PET scan, it showed that the tumor was moving toward the Hyoid Bone which could have been disastrous. This concerned our doctor and he recommended that we consult an oncologist again. We were considering surgery, but when we spoke to the radiologist about it, he was so opposed to it and asked us to reconsider the radiation and chemo. Through much prayer and fasting we felt lead by the Lord to do the treatment and that He would direct us to the right doctor. I did not have peace about the type of chemo Manny would be getting, so I asked if there was an alternative. The doctor say “yes” and that Manny would be a good candidate for it. This gave me peace. The doctor also made some changes to the mask which made it more tolerable for Manny to go through with the radiation.

Another blessing we received was the provision of a place to stay close to where Manny would be receiving his treatment. The Hope Lodge, owned and operated by the American Cancer Society provides free lodging for cancer patients and their care-givers. We were so thankful that our application was accepted. We were there for 8 weeks. The doctors there were so amazed when they heard our testimony. They could hardly believe that it was 27 months before starting treatment! Manny’s tumor (known to be a fast growing tumor) grew very slowly, Manny’s health was better now than before and all be-cause we trusted God and ate veggies. Today we can say that Manny is CANCER FREE! TO GOD BE ALL THE GLORY…and a heartfelt thank you to our Highland Church Family for all the prayers for Manny and me over the past few years.

testimony article

By: Manny & Ann Cangemie

OVERCOMING Cancer with PRAYER & DIET

t all started in August 2009 when my hus-band Manny saw a small soft lump on the left side of his neck. The doctor said it was only a cyst and for us to watch it. We would return to the doctor’s office every 3

to 4 months to have it drained. This went on for a little over a year until it wouldn’t drain at all. A biopsy was done and it was reported as cancer.

Immediately, appointments were made for Manny to start radiation and chemotherapy. A week prior to his ap-pointment, Manny had to be fitted for a mask which would cover his head, face and shoulders so his organs would be protected during the treatment. It was a huge, tight fitting mask and because of his claustrophobia he was unable to go through with the treatment.

For 27 months we stood on God’s Word and trusted the Lord. Because of the many testimonies we had heard of the Lord healing cancer by following a vegetarian diet, we decided to do the same. Manny did very well on this regimen. He lost the extra weight he needed to, his blood work was excellent and his energy level was high.


ministry ads

WHAT YOU NEED

1 lb. Breakfast pork sausage

1-1/2 Cups of hot water

2pkg. (6 oz. each) STOVE TOP Stuffing Mix

for Turkey

1 BUTTERBALL® Frozen Whole Turkey

(10 lb.), thawed

MAKE IT HEAT oven to 325°F.

BROWN sausage in skillet; drain, reserving 1/2

cup drippings. Add drippings to large bowl; stir

in hot water. Add stuffing mixes and sausage;

stir just until stuffing mixes are moistened.

STUFF neck and body cavities lightly with

stuffing. Truss turkey; place, breast-side up, on

rack in large roasting pan sprayed with cooking

spray. Spoon any remaining stuffing into sepa-

rate baking dish sprayed with cooking spray;

cover. Refrigerate stuffing until ready to bake.

BAKE turkey 3 to 3-1/4 hours or until internal

temperature of thigh is 180°F and breast and

center of stuffing are 165°F, adding dish with

remaining stuffing to oven for the last 30 min.

KRAFT KITCHEN TIPS Do not stuff turkey until ready to roast.

SERVING SUGGESTION

Balance this special-occasion entree with

smart side dishes. For example, choose a

mixed green salad and your favorite hot cooked vegetable. From: www.kraftrecipes.com

Roast Turkey with

Sausage Stuffing

recipe


PREPARE YOUR LISTS

- Make a list of who you’ll need to buy gifts for, i.e. family, friends and/or co-workers; items you’ll need to decorate with; food that needs to be pur-chased and any others items you’ll need to buy.

START PREPARING A BUDGET - How much can you spend on gifts, cards,

food, wrapping, decorating, etc.? Don’t leave anything out! By doing this now, based on your current pay, this will help you see how much you’re able to save per paycheck , and what you need to do to prepare to pay for the season now. It also gives you some insight into how much you can spend per person, event, decorating, trip, item, etc.

START COMPARING PRICES - You should start comparing prices now.

Most people think that it is best to wait until that last minute to catch a deal, summer is actually a great time to stock up on some Christmas items in stores before they start going into promo prices.

START A HOLIDAY (THANKSGIVING CHRISTMAS) CLUB ACCOUNT

- Another tip to start preparing now for the holi-day season is to stat a Holiday (Thanksgiving/Christmas) Account.

CONSIDER MAKING HOMEMADE GIFTS AHEAD OF TIME

- If you’re a little low on money this year, there is nothing wrong with homemade gifts, i.e. bak-ing; creating picture frames; making greeting cards with personalized photos; knitting blan-kets, hats or sweaters, etc.

BUY YOUR CHRISTMAS CARDS ONLINE

- One great tip you might not have thought of is to buy your Christmas cards now online.

REVIEW YOUR RECEIPTS AND BILLS FROM LAST YEAR.

This will give you an idea of the amount you actually spent and how long it took to pay for it all.

TIPS ON PREPARING FOR THE HOLIDAYS

upcoming events

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4. Set aside differences. Try to accept family members and friends as they are, even if they don't live up to all of your expectations. Set aside grievances until a more appropriate time for dis-cussion. And be understanding if others get upset or distressed when something goes awry. Chances are they're feeling the effects of holiday stress and depres-sion, too.

5. Discover Small Joys. As the holidays unfold, tune into small joyful moments, for example: When you hear the laugh-ter of children, focus on how good that feels. When you eat a piece of pie, really taste it. In the moment, it tastes so good -- and in that moment, you're outside your grief. Also, look for op-portunities to laugh. When you're laughing, your brain produces endor-phins to boost the immune system. Give yourself permission to find things that make you laugh.

6. Seek professional help if you need it. Despite your best efforts, you may find yourself feeling persistently sad or anx-ious, plagued by physical complaints, unable to sleep, irritable and hopeless, and unable to face routine chores. If these feelings last for a while, talk to your doctor or a mental health profes-sional.

It's a disappointing truth: Holiday cheer can be difficult to come by if you're facing emotional pain caused by a loss. But ex-perts urge us to muster our inner strength-- to find bits of holiday joy amid the grief. 1. Acknowledge your feelings. If some-

one close to you has recently died or you can't be with loved ones, realize that it's normal to feel sadness and grief. It's OK to take time to cry or express your feelings. You can't force yourself to be happy just because it's the holiday sea-son.

2. Reach out. If you feel lonely or iso-lated, seek out community, religious or other social events. They can offer sup-port and companionship. Volunteering your time to help others also is a good way to lift your spirits and broaden your friendships.

3. Be realistic. The holidays don't have to be perfect or just like last year. As fami-lies change and grow, traditions and rituals often change as well. Choose a few to hold on to, and be open to creat-ing new ones. For example, if your adult children can't come to your house, find new ways to celebrate together, such as sharing pictures, emails or videos.

Coping With Depression During the Holidays

When Sadness Clashes With Celebration

7.

12 HIGHLAND HEIGHTS highlandny.org

By Pastor Valerie Surrett

November-December

ponent of the bitter drink offered to Jesus on the cross, symbolized the suffering He would one day endure for all of us.

Even with their limited revelation, the Magi perceived that in Jesus dwells “… all the fullness of the Godhead bod-ily.” (Colossians 2:9) And long before Jesus spoke these well-known words to the Samaritan woman at the well, the Magi understood that “ God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.” (John 4:23)

Therefore, let us who have received Jesus Christ as Lord commit ourselves to wor-ship Him fervently and reverently, offering ourselves to Him as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable unto him. (Romans 12:1) And if you have never experienced the wonderful joy of salvation through Jesus Christ, it is yours for the asking. Just call upon Him, for His word says in Romans 10:13, “For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

follow it to the Savior? The reason is sim-ple- the carnal, human mind cannot discern the value of spiritual things. “For the preaching of the cross is to them that per-ish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.” (1 Corin-thians 1:18) 2) They found Jesus because they were willing to follow the star. The Magi set out to follow the star, not knowing where it would lead them or how long the journey would take. Worship involves commit-ment, sacrifice and trust. It is much more than singing songs or an emotional reac-tion. A true worshipper does whatever it takes to be in the presence of God. “And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.” (Jeremiah 29:13)

3) They offered worship that was reverent and appropriate. When the Magi saw Je-sus, they responded, first by bowing, and then by offering gifts. By bowing, they acknowledged Jesus as Lord and Sover-eign. The gifts they presented to Jesus were those typically presented to a king in ancient times, and each had a specific meaning. The gold symbolized Jesus’ di-vinity and royalty. The frankincense spoke of Jesus’ role as Priest, and also symbol-ized worship (as incense) and sacrifice. Myrrh, used in embalming and also a com-

s Christmas approaches, our minds turn with anticipation to planning for the festivi-ties to come. We look for-

ward to gathering with family and friends, enjoying holiday delicacies, and giving and receiving gifts from those we love. But will we worship Christ this Christmas? Will the Lord Jesus occupy His rightful place as King on the day we call His day?

“After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Je-rusalem and asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.” (Matthew 2:1, 2) “On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and pre-sented him with gifts of gold, frankin-cense and myrrh.” (Matthew 2:11)

In these passages, the Magi demonstrate a timeless model of worship that we can apply even today.

1) They knew the significance of the star. Surely the star that guided the Magi to Bethlehem was visible to many in the night sky. So why did only a few Pastor Valerie Surrett

Worship Pastor

business section


HC Newsletter NovDec 2013

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