Hillcrest Presbyterian Church 833-1746 hillcrestchurch@gmail.com www.hillcrestpcs.com Hillcrest Calling Volume XXXXIV, No. 2 Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. I John 4:7 February 2015 Brothers and Sisters in Christ, Lent is a season of opportunity to reflect on the direction of our spiritual journeys. Thus, I invite you to attend a Lenten series based on Adam Hamilton’s 24 Hours That Changed the World: 40 Days of Reflection. This video journey to the Holy Land gives fresh insight into the Passion Week. You can check out the preview on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=NIOVIyeYR4o. Beginning February 22, we will meet for five Sunday afternoons from 4:30—5:30 pm. This is a great opportunity for you to make a short-term commitment to your faith formation --AND you don't need to worry if you can't be there for all 5 weeks. An additional bonus is that there’s no required reading, however if you wish to purchase the book I’ll order them on February 18. The price is $9.99; or you can purchase it on Kindle for $8.49. There will be a signup sheet on the Bulletin board in the Fellowship Center so I'll know how many to expect and if you want a book. From early times in the church, Lent has been a season of spiritual preparation for the Resurrection Hope of Easter. During the forty days of Lent we are invited to examine ourselves, repent of our shortcomings, and focus on God. So what’s with the ashes? From the earliest Scriptures people covered themselves with ashes as a sign of their sincere repentance. When our foreheads are marked with a cross in ashes it is a sign of both our repentance and our faith that Christ Jesus is our Redeemer. We will begin our Lenten journey on February 18 with an Ash Wednesday service. The service will be a contemplative prayer service for Wholeness and Healing from 6:30—7:00 pm and the doors will be open for silent meditation at 6:00 pm. This special worship experience will include music from the Taizé Community, and will also offer participants an opportunity to receive ashes and communion. The Souper Bowl of Caring is observed on Super Bowl Sunday. Its purpose is to encourage young people to help alleviate hunger in their local communities. Its vision is to transform Super Bowl weekend into America's largest youth-led weekend of giving and serving. 100% of the money is given directly to local charities of the group's choice. The youth will receive this special offering at the doors of the sanctuary following worship on February 1. H IL L CRES T CAL LI NG VO L UME XXXXI V, NO . 2 PAGE 2 Member Profile Dorothy Linhart Dorothy Linhart proves that people of any age can be baptized into Christ’s Church. Almost two years ago, Dorothy was invited to attend Hillcrest by George and Judy Smith. Although she grew up going to church she had never been baptized, so when Dorothy joined last year she was also baptized. Dorothy jumped right in to serve on the Outreach Committee. She enjoys meeting new people, so you’ll find her involved in activities such as the Conway rest stop mission. Even though she has rheumatoid arthritis, she still enjoys knitting, reading and quilting. And after making lap blankets with the Outreach group, she’d be interested in seeing us start a quilting group. Dorothy is the mother of three sons however her oldest died several years ago from a heart attack. Her son, Marvin, is currently living with her. She also has two grandchildren and one great-granddaughter. Possibly Dorothy will share her extensive marble collection with her because while many of us played marbles as kids, Dorothy kept hers and many more. This is a woman young at heart. Food Pantry Wednesday Bible Study Do you want to make your worship service more relevant? Study groups who have wrestled together with the upcoming lectionary passages report that worship has more depth and clarity of meaning. If you're available at lunch time, please join us for a Wednesday Bible Study based on the Lectionary starting Wednesday, February 11th from 11:30 am to 12:30 pm. Please support the continued outreach of the food pantry. The following items are needed: peanut butter Jelly Soup crackers meats vegetables gravy mashed potatoes spaghetti cereal You'll need to bring a Bible and your sack lunch. This group is open to all, so if you know someone else who might be interested, invite them! For more information, contact Rev. Teri. Of Note The church will provide dinner at the Mercy Ronald McDonald House on Monday, February 9. Please contact Bill Covey to volunteer. The Men’s Breakfast will be held on February 14 at the Golden Corral on N. Kansas, 8:00 a.m. Communion will be observed on Sunday, February 15 at the morning worship service. The Book Club will meet February 16 at 7:00 p.m. to review the book “The Fault in Our Stars” by John Green at 7:00 pm. February 14 5:00—7:00 p.m. $10:00 per person Menu: Chicken Parmesan, vegetable, dessert and drink Tickets may be purchased from any youth or from Cindy Covey. Hillcrest Presbyterian Church 818 East Norton Rd. Springfield, MO 65803-3646 Non-Profit Org. U.S. Postage Pd. Permit #1493 Springfield, MO Return Service Requested Thank You Note Here is an excerpt from a letter received from the orphanage in Taunggyi, Burma. The 2015 Church Directory is in the process of publication. If your information (address, phone or mobile number, e-mail) has changed since February 2014, please inform the church office. Prayers of the People Alberta (Bert) Bailey died on January 9th. She attended Hillcrest back in the fall. Our condolences to the family. Alex’ wife Kayla’s mother, Anita Green recuperating from illness. Our members at home: Earlene Deeds, Harold Hiser, Hazel Miller and Gusta Zweerink. Our members at nursing homes: Robert Vestal and Kathleen Wilson. Dear Jim & Nancy, A Happy New Year. We thank you very much for all the time thinking of means and ways to help us. It has been a great joy to receive your great help. The children are very happy to get these story books. Some books are quite easy so they can read and understand. They thank you again and again. Please continue to pray for our children so that they will grow up "straight" honest obedient and God fearing, because they are surrounded by all kinds of temptations. Thank God for everything: we'll see you again on January 2016. God Bless you and all our donors. —Your sister in Christ and the Orphans