Connections 1-25-12

Welcome Advent

A Look Back 2

Take Note 3

Here at St. Mark’s 4

Thank You Letters 5

Children’s Ministry 6

Youth Ministry 7

Blood Drive 8

Inside this issue:Inside this issue:

JANUARY 25, 2012 Issue 193

February sermon series teaches us

Life lessons in „Love at Last Sight‟

This first message will focus on learning to

be with the one you love. Giving your full

attention will ultimately help grow the re-

lationship.

Healthy relationships don’t just happen.

We need to see others through God’s eyes

and act intentionally.

The message this week will help you dis-

cover how risking awkwardness can put

you on a path to healing and health in rela-

tionships.

Our last message focuses on learning what

you really need in life, and what you need

to let go.

The Love at Last Sight sermon series is all about focusing on

what matters most in life: loving Christ and loving others with

Christ's love. Join us starting Sunday, Jan. 29 for new insight into

building loving, lasting relationships.

In this series, you will discover four life lessons — four "arts"

for relationship building.

The truth is, relationships are either growing stronger or

growing stagnant. The ones most important to you need to be

nurtured the most with love — at home, with family, with

friends or in business.

Relationships are not about initial attractions but about "last

things" — the experience you shared with someone the last

time you were with them; the words you spoke last week; and

the effort you made the last time you were with a friend, your

child or your spouse. These "arts" will work for you whether

married or single, a teenager or adult.

A Seminar for Men

March 2 & 3

Register Sunday mornings in

The Crossings or online at

www.faith-life.org

During the Jan. 22 message, Jody Skogen encouraged us to free

ourselves from the things in our life that bind us.

During the Jan. 15 service, Melisa Fitch was welcomed as a member of St. Mark’s and commissioned for interna-tional mission work. She will be returning to western Af-rica to serve with Mercy Ships for four months in Togo.

Saying good-bye to Pastor David

Dr. David Hagstrom sings the benediction (left) Sunday, Jan. 15 as one of his last official acts with St. Mark’s. David has taken a posi-tion as interim pastor

with a church in Parkersburg, Iowa. Dana Hag-strom, our director of Children’s Min-istry (above left), will join him soon.

New Bible study starting Jan. 29 Jesus: Image of the Invisible Through this new adult Bible study, we are able to take a look at Jesus and the many ways He revealed Himself to His friends and followers throughout the Bible... and how He continues to reveal Himself to us and through us every day of our lives. Uncover real, applicable life lessons and explorations into God's Word that will make discovering the REAL Jesus and all of His promises a reality. Study guides are $4 each.

Six Sundays / 9:45 a.m.

Volunteers needed for blood drive St. Mark’s is hosting a blood drive Friday, Feb. 17, and we

need volunteers to help sign up donors on Sunday morn-

ings Jan. 29, Feb. 5 and Feb. 12 and to help make re-

minder calls. We’ll also need help during the event signing

in donors, serving juice and snacks, and setting up and

tearing down tables. If you are able to help, please contact

Tammy Bradley, [email protected].

City-wide prayer event Jan. 31 St. Mark’s is joining eight other churches in city-wide

prayer, 7-8 a.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 31 here at St. Mark’s.

Blanket party rescheduled for Feb. 3 Join us Friday, Feb. 3 at 6:30 p.m. at St. Mark’s. We have

enough fleece for 25 blankets. If you would like to bring

extra fleece, you will need two pieces of fleece each 2 ½

yards long. The more blankets we make, the more people

we can keep warm this winter! For more information con-

tact Tammy at [email protected].

Now Whats Super Bowl party Feb. 5 Hey sports fans, join us at 4:30 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 5 for a

Super Bowl party at the home of Phyllis and Fred Hubler,

9422 Deer Ridge Dr. NE. Bring a side dish, salad, bread, or

dessert to share and your own beverage. Provided: hot

dogs with buns, relishes/condiments, table service and

utensils. RSVP to 393-7548 or [email protected].

Prayer Shawl Ministry to meet Feb. 6 The Prayer Shawl Ministry will meet at 7 p.m. Monday,

Feb. 6 in the Legacy Room at the church. Members

lovingly donate their time and talents to create hand-

knitted and crocheted shawls for those in need.

Christian Book Club to meet Feb. 9 Our new Christian Book Club will meet Thursday, Feb. 9 at

6:30 p.m. in the Beacon Room. Please join our next discus-

sion. For information, contact [email protected].

Naomi Circle meets Feb. 14 Join together in fellowship with the members of the

Naomi Circle. The Naomi Circle meets on the second Tues-

day of every month at 1:15 p.m. in the Anchor Room.

“Welcome to St. Mark‟s” starts Feb. 23 Learn more about St. Mark’s, our beliefs, and our minis-

tries, classes, small groups and service opportunities. This

course, plus Alpha, is the full New Partner program. When:

6:30 p.m. Thursdays, Feb. 23 and March 1. Contact: Marlys

Fruhling, 447-0100, [email protected].

Please use north doors during week Please use the north doors (by the office) for entrance to

the building during the week and in the evening. The

south doors are open on weekdays only for special events

(such as funerals or the blood drive) and on Monday and

Wednesday evenings.

We need your help to fill Loving Hearts bags for the par-

ents of critically ill children hospitalized in the pediatric

unit of University of Iowa Hospitals & Clinics.

These bags are given to pediatric units where they are

distributed to parents and family members of hospitalized

children. Many of these families are from out of town and

would benefit from items such as a book or journal for

tracking appointments and keeping in touch with friends

and family. They might also use a journal for recording

doctor reports or thoughts and blessings. Books and cards

or activity books would also be useful.

HOW YOU CAN HELP

Pick up one or more tags or a condensed sheet of needs

from the board in The Crossings Fellowship Center Sun-

day, Jan. 29 through Sunday, Feb. 12. Please bring item(s)

purchased to the church on or before Feb. 12.

POSSIBLE ITEMS TO INCLUDE

Stationery or note cards, postage stamps, pens or pen-

cils, disposable cameras, prepaid calling cards, journals,

devotion cards, prayer books, activity books (crossword,

Sudoku, word find, etc.), decks of cards, snacks, hard

candy, travel-sized tissues.

Help fill Loving Hearts bags for parents at Pediatric UIHC

tel:319-393-7548

mailto:[email protected]


HEALTH CONCERNS Eunice Lee, recovering follow-

ing hospitalization Diane Popken Angie Schroeder Linda Wood

Wednesday, Feb. 1 (cont.) 5:00 PM Mission Team Leaders Meeting

Cornerstone Rehearsal

5:30 PM Alpha

Children’s Ministry

Confirmation

The Marriage Course

H.S. Leader Huddle

7:00 PM Crossways

7:15 PM The Edge

7:30 PM Chancel Choir

Youth Quake Celebration

Thursday, Feb. 2 12:00 PM Crossfire! Prayer Team

5:15 PM Celebration Rehearsal

6:30 PM Girl Scouts

7:15 PM Impact Rehearsal

Friday, Feb. 3 6:30 PM Tie Blanket Party

Saturday, Feb. 4 9:00 AM Choir Retreat

Sunday, Feb. 5 All Morning “Rewire” Registration

Blood drive sign-up

Tags for Loving Heart Bags

8:15 AM Crossways

8:30 AM Children’s Ministry

“The Story” Bible Study

9:30 AM Men’s Fraternity

9:45 AM Bible 101


Bible Study—Invisible Jesus

11:00 AM Crossways

6:00 PM H.S. Guys Discipleship Group

For complete listings, including small groups, Bible studies

and committees, refer to the St. Mark’s Calendar

at www.faith-life.org.

SELECTED EVENTS AT ST. MARK’S SELECTED EVENTS AT ST. MARK’S

Sunday, Jan. 29 All Morning “Rewire” Registration

Blood Drive Sign-Up

Tags for Loving Heart Bags

8:15 AM Crossways

8:30 AM Children’s Ministry

“The Story” Bible Study

9:30 AM Men’s Fraternity

9:45 AM Bible 101


Bible Study—Invisible Jesus

11:00 AM Crossways

11:45 AM Light Lunch Before Ann. Meeting

12:15 PM Annual Meeting

6:00 PM H.S. Guys Discipleship Group

Monday, Jan. 30 5:30 PM Harmony Ringers

6:30 PM Chancel Bells

6:00 PM Boy Scouts Court of Honor

Tuesday, Jan. 31 7:00 AM City-wide Prayer

9:00 AM Quilters

12:00 PM Crafters

6:00 PM Crossways

6:30 PM Café Orientation/Training

7:00 PM Financial Peace University

Wednesday, Feb. 1 6:00 AM Crossways

10:30 AM 50+ Board Meeting

Don’t forget to join us

Sunday, Jan. 29 for our annual meeting.

Light lunch 11:45 a.m.

Meeting 12:15 p.m.

Please call us at 447-0100 if you need care for your children,

ages 10 and under.

Thank you for your contribution Thank you for your generous contribution to our local

mission ministry. It is greatly appreciated. Those in the

culture of poverty, devastated by the epic flood of 2008

and still recovering, or who lost everything in the recession

of 2008-2011 will benefit from your generosity.

Pat Kane Executive Director, CrossRoads Mission

Thank you for visits and more Thank you…. For the visits, basket, flowers, afghan,

goodies, communion and just not giving up on us when we

were so needy!

Gloria and “Big Al” Anderson

Thank you for your support Many, many thanks for your support of the Cedar Rap-

ids/Marion CROP Hunger Walk! More than 235 people

from 26 congregations joined the October 9th event start-

ing from Thomas Park. The Walk raised nearly $21,000.

(Note: St. Mark’s gave $2,448.11). Any contributions or

sponsor records not yet turned in would still be welcome,

and may be taken to First Presbyterian Church in Cedar

Rapids or mailed to the walk treasurer at 712 Knoll St. SE,

Cedar Rapids, IA 52403.

Twenty-five percent of the money raised by the walk

will be divided among six local agencies that feed the hun-

gry: Churches of Marion Pantry, Linn Community Food

Bank, Catholic Worker House, Greene Square Meals Inc.,

Loaves & Fishes Food Pantry, and Willis Dady Emergency

Shelter. The balance of the money supports the work of

Church World Service, or other anti-hunger agencies desig-

nated by the donors.

Our funds are urgently needed to respond to the threat

of famine abroad and to increasing hunger here in Iowa.

Preventing famine by helping farmers collect and store

water and increase food production is far less costly, and

more humane, than responding to famine once it devel-

ops. Church World Service is helping communities in Kenya

create sand dams to retain water from the increasingly

erratic rains. Close to home, the non-partisan Iowa Policy

Project reports that about 382,000 Iowans are without

consistent access to sufficient, safe, nutritious food. Our

CROP Walk funds help support local emergency food pro-

grams.

We can multiply the impact of our CROP Walk dona-

tions by becoming advocates for hungry people. Your

voice is powerful when asking your members of Congress

to protect funding for federal nutrition programs such as

school meals, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Pro-

gram (‘food stamps’) and WIC, a program that provides

nutritious food for low-income pregnant women and chil-

dren to age 5. Sustaining the federal nutrition programs

would make our charitable contributions more efficient

and effective. Much “How To” information for advocates is

available on the ‘Bread for the World’ website at

www.bread.org. Thank you again for your CROP Walk sup-

port!

Ellen Fisher CROP Walk Treasurer

is now available on CD for only $12. Reserve your copy

by calling or emailing the church office, 447-0100 or

[email protected]

http://www.bread.org

Why Do We Pray Before We Eat?

Bible Quest Fun Fact Be the first to let Dana know the answer to this Bible Quest clue and you’ll get a special surprise.

What are we not supposed to do? (See Matthew 6:25-34).

Just before you eat a meal, ask:

Why do we pray before we eat?

When we thank the Lord for our

food, we recognize that God gives us

all good things (James 1:17). We

thank Him for our daily provisions,

for without them we couldn't even

live. Don't let mealtime prayers be-

come an empty ritual. Pause and

think of something specific to give

thanks for and/or take turns for the

next week letting each person make

up a new dinner prayer.

Family Devotion

Volunteers needed for Feb. 10 Family Movie Night

Have you ever wondered whether a book or movie

was appropriate for your child? Focus on the Family has

a great resource for families that’s worth checking out.

http://focus.tvguardian.com/pluggedin.html

You may find some of these comments helpful.

Calling all parents! Sign up to visit

your elementary

child’s Sunday

School or

Wednesday

School classroom

one time before the end of the

school year! You’ll be able to see

the fun ways your kids are interact-

ing with each other and digging into

their Bibles. It’s like having Open

House every week! We welcome

parents to stay and play!

We need popcorn poppers, game hosts, set-up/

clean-up crew, and an EMCEE for the second annual

Family Movie Night on Friday, Feb. 10. There will be

a special showing of the movie “Babe” here at church!

Email [email protected] if you can help out!

Focus on the Family offers book and movie reviews

http://focus.tvguardian.com/pluggedin.html


For those impacted by St. Mark‟s 6th – 12th Grade Ministry

8th through 12th graders, get your registration in for mission trip

All of St. Mark's! Please join us for our Youth Quake celebration Please join us on Wednesday, Feb. 1 at 7:30 p.m. in the Life Worship Center to hear all about the Middle School Youth

Quake and how God moved in mighty ways! (Keynote speaker Bill Younker is shown with our group below.)

Join us for The Edge Join us Wednesdays from 7:15 to 8:45 p.m. (except for the last Wednesday of the month) for The Edge, where you’ll

find great topics, messages, conversations, music and hangout time.

We’re heading to Louisville again this summer from June 16-24 to partner with the Youth With A Mission group. Don’t

miss this incredible experience! The early bird deadline has been extended to Wednesday, Feb. 1. Join us in reaching a

hurting generation in the inner city of Louisville. Prepare to be used by God to make an eternal difference in someone’s

life. Download the registration packet by clicking on the link on the high school page of our web site, www.faith-

life.org. Friends are always welcome, and scholarships are available.

Jody Skogen, director of youth ministries, [email protected] Stephan Peck, director of high school ministries, [email protected].

7th and 8th graders and parents: Mark your calendars! Don’t forget to put a reminder on your calendars about the Heart and Soul Retreat. The retreat is for all 7th- and 8th-

graders and is scheduled for the evening of Friday, Feb. 24 through Saturday, Feb. 25 at 11 a.m. More information will

be coming soon!

http://www.faith-life.org/Youth/HighSchool/tabid/51077/Default.aspx

http://www.faith-life.org

http://www.faith-life.org



Connections 1-25-12

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