The Beacon
Newsletter
March 23, 2023 Volume 65, No 12
This Sunday: March 26, 2023
Fifth Sunday of Lent
Confessing our dry bones — Open our Eyes, Lord
After Jesus has called Lazarus out of the tomb, Jesus says, “Unbind him, and let him go.” What keeps us bound that we need to discard in order to experience new life? Ezekiel listens to God and dares to try - he prophesies to dry bones and they put on flesh and dance! How are we dry and lifeless and scattered about like bones in the desert? What miracle might God be whispering into our community?
Please read John 11: 17, 20-27 and Ezekiel 37: 1-14 to prepare.
Joshua Gale
Rev. Joshua Gale is the Executive Director of Just Neighbors Interfaith Homeless Network. Joshua was in Fort Wayne many years ago at Concordia Theological Seminary. He served as executive director of Lutheran Charities based out of Chicago. He has also worked in Philadelphia and in Lima, Peru with a mission for the housing insecure and expanding organizations to serve the most vulnerable in our communities. You may have come across Joshua through a local organization, as he plays an active role in several boards, including Indiana's Continuum of Care, the Fort Wayne Eviction Task Force, the Youth and Family Homelessness board in the Balance of State, and co-chairs the Complete Count Committee for the 2020 Census.
Sunday, March 26
9:30 a.m. Eat and Meet
10:30 a.m. Worship
Monday, March 27
Tuesday, March 28
Pastor Anna Lisa onsite.
Wednesday, March 29
Pastor Anna Lisa onsite.
9:30 a.m. Food Bank
Thursday, March 30
11:30 a.m. Worship Preview meeting
6:30 p.m. Choir Practice
Friday, March 31
Church Office closed.
Saturday, April 1
10 a.m. Sophia’s Portico: Barb Linden Celebration of Life
Remember to check the Breeze calendar for upcoming events and activities!
Weekly Announcements
Mark your calendars for Easter Sunday, Apr 9. We’ll host an Easter egg hunt for our families and the Preschool families. Bring candy (no peanuts!) for eggs by April 2.
Women's Birthday Lunch: We will meet on April 12 at 12:30 at the home of Ev Kilgore, 2505 Florida Drive. A simple lunch will be served — no need to cook! We'll have a chance to share stories and get to know each other better. All women are invited. Please RSVP to Ev by April 9 at 260-484-4741 or evkilgore1@gmail.com. Let her know about any special dietary needs at that time.
After 32 years of service with Beacon Heights Preschool we will sadly say goodbye to Judy Frederick at the end of this preschool year.
We will be having a gratitude and farewell party for her on June 4th from 2-3 p.m. and hope to see many of the folks who have been blessed by her compassion for kids and families over the years at the party.
Worship on 3/19/2023:
In-person attendance 69
Offering 3/12 $5,599.00
————————————
Food Bank on 3/22/2023:
9 Families served
27 Individuals in families
A Note from the Food Bank:
There are plenty of openings on the sign-up form for Staples Shoppers! Please contact Tom and MaryJane Coursen, Jan and Dianne Lung, or Lois Guess if you have questions. We still need volunteers for April 5 and April 12.
If you are considering donating food, please consider canned tuna (a current priority), egg noodles, pancake mix, or pancake syrup!
Meet & Eat
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 26: Joshua Gale will speak with us about Just Neighbors: Interfaith Hospitality Network. From their website: “Just Neighbors's mission is to serve homeless families by uniting religious congregations, community volunteers and local agencies in a cooperative effort to provide shelter, meals, and compassionate, professional support.”
Open House at Little PAL House (Phillip and Anna Lisa's house)
Joyfield Farm: 4898 E 1400 N, North Manchester
(your GPS will call is 4898 E Martin Rd, which will get you there, but there are no signs with "Martin Rd" anywhere)
Saturday, April 22 3-5pm
In addition to seeing how many Beaconers can fit inside this little house, enjoy the farm, chickens, big sweet dog, swings, slide...maybe there will even be something growing in the garden to see!
Follow this link to view Phillip's presentation about the house he and Pastor Anna Lisa live in.
Free Film Screening: The Color of Care
YWCA Northeast Indiana will be hosting a free film screening for The Color of Care on Tuesday, March 28th at Indiana Tech in The Magee-O’Connor Theater (Andorfer Commons building). Produced by Oprah Winfrey’s Harpo Productions, the film uses moving personal testimony, expert interviews, and disturbing data to reveal the impact of racism on health, serving as an urgent warning of what must be done to save lives. Learn more about the film here.
It’s Time to Register for Camp Mack!
Hello fellow campers! Camp Mack 2023 is already up and running with events, retreats, and preparing for Summer Camps. This summer, campers will explore FruitFULL Faith, an opportunity to learn about and practice living as God calls us to live. There are a variety of residential camps for the 1st through 12th grade students, along with specialty and eco camps. Please check them out at www.CampMack.org. If you are a new camper going to Camp Mack this year, you can receive a $50 discount on camp fees if you register by May 1st. Also, Beacon Heights wants to support our young people going to camp and will contribute $100 toward camp fees. When you register, there will be a place to enter a transfer code. Please contact Camp Rep Tom Bever or the church office to receive the Beacon Heights’s transfer code, which will deduct the $100. If you need additional financial assistance, contact Camp Mack by calling (574) 658-4831 for more information. If you have additional questions, explore options on the website www.CampMack.org or communicate with Tom Bever (tom.bever@gmail.com). Have a great summer!
Brethren Voices
Beacon Heights is a sponsor of Brethren Voices. It airs on Comcast 57 and Frontier 27 on the 2nd and 4th Sunday of each month at 4:30. You can also watch any of the episodes on Youtube. The April episode is a Mike Stern concert about peace in support of Friendship House in Hiroshima, Japan. Other recent programs that you might enjoy: March about the history and work of Heifer International, February about singer/songwriter Shawn Kirchner, December and January a 2-part series on Children's Disaster Ministries. Check them out!
Next Sunday: April 2, 2023
Palm Sunday
Compassion in our guts — Open our Eyes, Lord
Compassion means “to suffer with.” The ancient hymn found in Philippians 2: 5-11 reminds us of Jesus’ compassion for humanity, even to the point of death on a cross. It may be tempting to glance over this part of the text and focus on the exaltation of Christ and the unity of every tongue confessing that Jesus is Lord, but that confession is empty without compassion.
What do privileged Christians need to be emptied of in order to follow the example of Jesus? Can we “suffer with” the other at no cost to ourselves? (No.) What do we gain if we give up ourselves?
Please read Philippians 2: 5-11 to prepare.
Pastor Anna Lisa Gross
Published by Beacon Heights
Church of the Brethren
Editor: Melinda Long
Phone: (260) 482-8595
Email: office@beaconheights.net