The Beacon
Newsletter
March 2, 2023 Volume 65, No 9
This Sunday: March 5, 2023
Second Sunday of Lent
Calling - The Powers and Principalities that Blind Us
Sermon Title: God’s Eye
And Jesus will say "I was hungry, and you cut food stamps;
I was thirsty, and you bottled my water;
I was an immigrant, and you built a wall;
Without covering, and you destroyed my tent;
I was sick, and you gave me debt;
I was in prison, and you fought to keep me there.
~ The Center for Prophetic Imagination
The Pharisees, religious leaders who should have had a corner on compassion, were scornful of the formerly blind man, Jesus’ authority, and any implication that they might have blindness of their own. What blindness do white Christians have in regard to race? How does claiming “color blindness” (e.g. “I don’t see race”) keep us from acknowledging and addressing injustice? What kind of sight is Jesus calling us to have? How does “we aren’t the 1%, we’re not really rich” keep us from understanding our privilege? And just like when Jesus healed the man born blind, how do the cultural powers and principalities of our world thwart justice and healing?
Please read John 9: 1-41 to prepare.
Pastor Anna Lisa Gross
Sunday, March 5
9:30 a.m. Eat and Meet
10:30 a.m. Worship
Monday, March 6
Pastor Anna Lisa is away.
Tuesday, March 7
Pastor Anna Lisa onsite.
Wednesday, March 8
Pastor Anna Lisa onsite.
9:30 a.m. Food Bank
12:30 p.m. Ladies’ Birthday Luncheon (offsite)
7:00 p.m. Staff Relations meeting
Thursday, March 9
11:30 a.m. Worship Preview meeting
12:30 p.m. Spirit Journey Women
6:30 p.m. Choir Practice
Friday, March 10
Church Office closed.
6:30 p.m. BH Youth Coffee House
Saturday, March 11
Remember to check the Breeze calendar for upcoming events and activities!
Weekly Announcements
To those who requested a Lenten Devotional -- they have arrived! If you haven't done so yet, please collect your devotional(s) from your mailbox the next time you are in the church office.
If you did not request one, it's not too late! We have a limited number of each that we are glad to share on a first-come, first-serve basis. Contact the church office to find out what's still available!
MARK YOUR CALENDAR FOR THE TIN CAPS!
It’s not too early to mark your calendar for the Beacon Heights Tin Caps outing! We have 30 seats reserved for the Tin Caps game on Saturday, June 17 complete with fireworks afterward. If you want to reserve tickets, please let Ruth Ann Bever know. She will let you know the cost after she receives the information.
Please plan to join a reception after church on Sunday, March 12 for our new members: Tim and Beth Wages, and their daughters Lucy and Elissa.
Worship on 2/26/2023:
In-person attendance 69
Offering 2/19 $3,287.00
————————————
Food Bank on 3/1/2023:
27 Families served
71 Individuals in families
God, be our guide when we are afraid to open our eyes
And see where we are going, or what we have done.
Take away our stubbornness and defensiveness;
When we are paralyzed by fear may we be embraced by love.
On Sunday, March 5, we celebrate the second Sunday of Lent. We continue to ask, "Open Our Eyes to Our Neighbors, God!" The people throughout our city have lives full of pain and joy and struggle and celebration. Who and what have we tried not to see? Who and what does God call us to embrace?
Ladies’ Birthday Luncheon - March 8, 2023
What: A social time for any women from Beacon Heights and other friends. There will be food, fun, and fellowship, and we will especially celebrate anyone observing a March birthday!
When: Wednesday, March 8, at 12:30 p.m. Bring a salad, dessert, or something else yummy to share for lunch.
Drinks and dinnerware will be provided.
Where: Heritage Pointe Clubhouse at Villas of Heritage Lakes where hostesses, Lois Guess and Mary Whitehead live. Heritage Pointe is located at 5250 Heritage Parkway on the south side of St. Joe Road. If you are coming on St. Joe Road from Fort Wayne, turn into facility just before you go under 469. Another way is to take Maplecrest Road to St. Joe Road, turn left on St. Joe Road and turn into Heritage just after you go under 469. Do not turn into the main Living Center, but follow the road, two streets down to the clubhouse which usually has a large flag flying. There is plenty of parking space, but you may see other parked cars there for a different event.
RSVP: It would be helpful to have a general idea of how many people to expect, so please RSVP to Lois Guess (260-414-7228) or Mary Whitehead (260-409-2328). If you decide at the last minute that you can come, please don’t hesitate even if you have not reserved your spot. We hope to see many of you there, as we begin again the long standing tradition of the Beacon Heights’ Ladies’ Birthday Luncheons.
SIMPLE BREAKFAST
We're enjoying cooking for one another and sharing sometimes casual and sometimes focused time together before worship on Sundays! Meet and Eat began as the Search Team needed your reflections as they prepared the congregation's profile and developed a vision for the Beacon Heights pastoral team's time and priorities. We continue to Meet and Eat on Sundays at 9:30. Come early, on time or late - you are welcome to grab food and visit, or bring your plate and mug into the Parlor for a focused presentation. (Those in the Parlor get to see the folks joining on zoom, too.)
March 5: Phillip Zink explains "Little PAL House" - the small and ultra-sustainable house he designed and built.
Anna Lisa & Phillip’s “little PAL house” under construction.
March 12: John Long shares stories and insights from Brethren Disaster Ministries.
March 19: Sara (Fry) Hoover leads a Safe Church Training. All who volunteer with youth and kids, and all Board members, are strongly encouraged to attend. We'll begin at 9:15!
Looking ahead, we'll hear from Rev. Joshua Gale of Interfaith Hospitality Network, George Johnson-Coffey about ACPL's Audio Reading Program, Kyla & Brian Zehr about their European travels and pilgrimage, and David Radcliff of New Community Project.
Next Sunday: March 12, 2023
Third Sunday of Lent
Calling - The Powers and Principalities that Blind Us
Sermon Title: God’s Eye
We celebrate the baptism, membership and child dedication with the Wages family. John Harding shares a message from his mother Rebecca, about the fullness of following Jesus - more than a moment of conversion, we support one another in a lifetime of discipleship: bringing love, witnessing injustice, sharing the Kin’dom of God, and experiencing joy.
Please read Romans 5: 1-11 and Matthew 4: 12-23 to prepare.
John Harding, reading from the writing of Rebecca Harding
Published by Beacon Heights
Church of the Brethren
Editor: Melinda Long
Phone: (260) 482-8595
Email: office@beaconheights.net