January 2010 Baptist Light

Dear Friends,
Often we think of the New Year as getting a fresh start. The New Year presents an opportunity to put the past behind us and to forge forward into a time with new promise and possibilities. Perhaps the New Year is the ultimate “positive thinking” device. It allows us to start over, make new resolutions, and hope beyond hope that this year will be different – that this year we can actually keep the resolutions that we make.
If you have made, are intending to make, or are even considering making New Year resolutions, let me extend to you my heartiest congratulations! For many, there is the sense that they’ve made resolutions before, they haven’t worked, so why bother even trying. Certainly we can understand their perspective. However, to make resolutions, or to be thinking of making resolutions is to say, “I’m going to try anyway, despite my past experiences. I am not going to give up on myself. I want to change. I can change.”
What kind of resolutions have you made? A while back I came across an article entitled, Things We Can Learn from a Dog. The author lists a bunch of things dogs do that help them enjoy life. Maybe in this list are hidden some good resolutions to consider:
· When loved ones come home, always run to greet them.
· Be loyal.
· Allow the experiences of fresh air and the wind in your face to be pure ecstasy.
· Take naps and stretch before rising.
· Run, romp, and play daily.
· Eat with gusto and enthusiasm. Stop when you’ve had enough.
· Never pretend to be something you’re not.
· If what you want lies buried, dig until you find it.
· When someone is having a bad day, be silent, sit close by and nuzzle them gently.
· Avoid biting when a simple growl will do.
· On warm days, stop to lie on your back on the grass.
· On hot days, drink lots of water and lay under a shady tree.
· When you’re happy, dance around and wag your entire body.
· No matter how often you’re scolded, don’t buy into the guilt thing and pout . . . run right back
and make friends.
· Delight in the simple joy of a long walk.
Resolutions are about change. Resolutions are about evaluating our lives, seeing some things that don’t quite fit us anymore, and desiring to make adjustments that will help us enjoy life better. Resolutions fit many areas of our lives including our physical well-being, our emotional well-being, and certainly our spiritual well-being. Of this I am certain – all of us can grow spiritually no matter how long we have been a Christian. And often it requires of us some change in our attitudes, our behavior and our spiritual practices such as prayer, worship, and other spiritual disciplines.
Where is it you want to change in 2010? What is it you want to do so that you enjoy your life more, enjoy your family more, and enjoy God more? Whatever you decide, know that God is with you. And should you falter in keeping your resolutions, don’t give up. Rather, start over and give yourself another chance.

Happy New Year,
Pastor Jim

American Baptist History

The following information was presented in an article by our Executive Minister of the American Baptist Churches of Wisconsin, Dr. Arlo Reichter. I believe he got it from the Dakota Baptist. This history tells us a bit more about who we are as American Baptists, and how God has led us for the past 300 years.
· American Baptists were the most important influence in attaching the Bill of Rights to the
Constitution.
· More than any other denomination, we pioneered Black Education in the South after the Civil War.
· By 1911, we had helped establish 1,100 bilingual churches, most of which eventually established
their own ethnic denomination.
· We were the first denomination to begin doing Campus Ministry.
· It was one of our churches that began the first Vacation Bible School.
· We were the first denomination to elect a woman president, Helen Barrett Montgomery.
· Prior to 1920, over 50% of the Protestant churches west of the Mississippi were constructed with
some borrowed funds from our Home Mission Society.
· At the time of the Second World War, we stood with Japanese Americans as they were put in
detention camps, when that was not a popular thing to do.
· ABC pastor Walter Rauschenbusch was called “The Father of the Social Gospel” because he
was a prime mover in Child Labor legislation.
· Our denomination has been present at the beginning of each phase of the Ecumenical
movement and continues to be supportive.
· Ours is the most effective Mission Program on earth! More people are won to Christ per
dollar spent, per missionary sent, than any other group doing mission work anywhere. That is
because we pioneered indigenous leadership everywhere.
· We are the only major denomination where there is no majority of any ethnic or racial group.
We have quite a history as American Baptists. We have something to be proud of, and something to build upon, as we share the Good News of Jesus.
(By the way, be sure to check out the latest news of our American Baptist Churches of Wisconsin. The latest updates are posted each month on the hallway bulletin board under the “Church Family” section.)

Why Go To Church?

A church goer wrote a letter to the editor of a newspaper and complained that it made no sense to go to church every Sunday. “I’ve gone for 30 years now,” he wrote, “and in that time I have heard something like 3,000 sermons. But for the life of me, I can’t remember a single one of them. So I think I’m wasting my time and the pastors are wasting theirs by giving sermons at all.”
This started a real controversy in the “Letters to the Editor” column, much to the delight of the editor. It went on for weeks until someone wrote this clincher:
“I’ve been married for 30 years now. In that time my wife has cooked some 32,000 meals. But, for the life of me, I cannot recall the entire menu for a single one of those meals. But I do know this… they all nourished me and gave me the strength I needed to do my work. If my wife had not given me these meals, I would be physically dead today. Likewise, if I had not gone to church for nourishment, I would be spiritually dead today!”
When you are DOWN to nothing, God is UP to something! Faith sees the invisible, believes the incredible and receives the impossible! Thank God for our physical AND our spiritual nourishment. – submitted by Jodi Isom

Annual Reports

Many of you lead ministries, and we are truly grateful for your service to and through our church. Each year our church prints an Annual Report that includes written reports from those who lead ministries. If you lead a ministry in our church, please write your annual report and submit it to either Lori Bowers or Pastor Jim no later than January 10, 2010. Thank you!

Ministry Council

We are grateful to our Ministry Council and their service. Barb Moravec and Becky Luebker have concluded their service. New to the Ministry Council in 2010 are Cathy Strohmeyer (a one-year term), and Becky Zoglman (a three-year term.) Cathy and Becky join current members: Trudi Woods, Julie Delikowski, Tom Romnek, Pat Lewis, and Mike Kesselhon ( who was elected to a new three-year term.) Please keep our Ministry Council in your prayers.

Donations Needed

The following is a list of items that we need donated to our church. If you can donate any of the items, please drop them off on the table in the church kitchen. Thank you.
· Bottled juice for fellowship hour
· 55 gallon garbage bags
· Tall kitchen bags
· Dawn dish soap
· BarKeeps Friend (sink cleaner)
· Boxes of Kleenex
· A wall-mounted Pencil Sharpener

Wisdom (submitted by Barb Moravec)

· When you get to your wit’s end, you’ll find God lives there.
· People are funny; they want the front of the bus, the middle of the road, and the back of the
church.
· Opportunity may knock once, but temptation bangs on the front door forever.
· Quite griping about your church; if it was perfect, you couldn’t belong.
· If a church wants a better minister, it only needs to pray for the one it has.
· Peace starts with a smile.