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March 2014 From the Pastor’s Desk...

247 Broad Street, Danielson CT 06239

860 774-3907

baptist.church@snet.net

Cheryl and I just returned from a great vacation. It was a refreshing time of family, fun and relaxation.

But – as every vacation is – it was not without its difficulties.

Once the clothes were packed and the car was loaded, usually a day’s prep time, the trip began. With a

major winter storm coming up the coast we were hoping that we could get beneath it before it hit with

full strength. Alas this was not to happen. The snow began to fall on Wednesday in North Carolina at

the rate of 2 inches per hour. Visibility was down to ¼ mile. Posted speed limit – 70 mph.

Actual speed, 40. Then, all stop. Three tractor-trailer rigs had to be pulled from their positions on a hill.

45 minutes, most people getting out of their cars to view the

process. Then, we were off again.

South Carolina. 90 minutes later. Ice storm. Speed, 35 mph. Trees

are downed over the lanes of Route 95 South. We weaved in and

out like the slalom skiers I had seen the night before at the Olym-

pics, avoiding trees, changing lanes back and forth for the next 60

miles or so. Finally 50 miles from the Georgia line, just rain.

Reaching our destination that evening in

Daytona, we collapsed from an exhaust-

ing day on the road, tired, sore, and

thrilled with the view out of our hotel

window.

The next 9 days were wonderful.

Lent. It is a time not unlike traveling through difficult weather, road conditions, and fatigue, only to find

at the end of the journey a place of celebration, refreshment and peace.

Lent. A time to wrestle with the difficult teachings of our Master, Jesus.

Lent. A time to look squarely at the end of his life, the issues involved and our place in the story.

We are about to begin a journey. I hope that this journey through Lent will be one of challenge,

anticipation, edification, and growth for us all. There may be obstacles in the road; there may be

moments of questioning and anxiety. But this is natural when we try to live the story and journey again.

I hope we will not meet any more snowstorms or ice storms on our Lenten journey, but if we do, we

will follow Christ through, because at the end of the road, there is an empty tomb and a celebration that

should change the world.

I invite you all to join in the journey, to come on the road of Lent, to live the story once again, to find

your place in it. Our journey begins March 5th with our Ash Wednesday Service at 7:00 PM. We will

travel together through Lent and I’ll look forward to celebrating with you when our journey ends on

Easter Sunday!

Peace/Shalom,

Pastor Greg

Sunday, March 2

10:30 am—Worship

with Communion

Wednesday, March 5

7 pm Ash Wednesday

Evening Service

Sunday, March 9

10:30 am—Worship

Sunday, March 16

10:30am—Worship

Sunday, March 23

10:30 am—Worship

Sunday, March 30

10:30 am—Worship

01, Stephanie Bellows*

04, Doris Davis Johnson

Cassie Guerin

12, Pat Rocheleau

16, Nancy Joly

18, Christy Gervais

19, Jerry Hemmig

Amber Passmore

20, Carol Savoie

Brooke Truesdale

21, Gina Mills

25 Jenn Rickey

Joan McCarthy

27, Sandra Marcheterre Rukstela

28, Nancy Beeman

31, Gina Mills

Remember: The last person to leave the church building should be sure that all doors and windows

are closed /locked, door alarms set. In addition, the Academy Street door into Fellowship Hall will

be kept locked during the Sunday worship service. Thank you for helping us take care of our

facilities.

Connections is published 11 times a year at The Cornerstone Baptist Church, and is put together by

a host of valuable volunteers. Please try to have articles and information to the office by the 15th of

the month, and no later than the 20th.

Pastor:

Rev. Greg Thomas

Organist/Choir Director:

Howard W. Curry

Administrative Secretary:

Kris Useted

In Worship

This Month

Page 2

March 2014

March

Birthdays

Ladies Luncheon

The Ladies Luncheon for March will be held on Tuesday the 11th at noon, at the Royal Buffet in Willimantic. Meet at the church at

11:30am to ride share. In case of inclement weather we will hold it the following Tuesday. As usual there will be a sign-up sheet in the

narthex. All ladies in the church are welcome.

Please Help The St. Francis of Assisi Food Pantry needs the following: Body lotion, bath soap, toilet paper, canned vegetables, and for the pets, canned dog or cat food. You may leave the items in the basket in the Narthex. Thank you!

It’s not too early to think about camp!

Camp Wightman:

Where real friends, real life and

real faith meet!

Camp Wightman has programs for ages 6 to 18 !

For a summer like no other! :

www.CampWightman.org

Register by March 31, to take advantage of 2013 rates.

Save the date!

The Fourth Annual Community Passover Seder

~A provocative afternoon of storytelling, ritual, learning, sharing, singing

and celebration!

Sunday , April 6th, 2014, 2:00—5:00 PM

Temple Beth Israel, 39 Killingly Drive, Danielson, CT More information to be announced soon.

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March 2014

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continued on page 7

The mission of the Cornerstone Baptist Church is to be an inviting Christian Community, striving together to strengthen our relationship with God and to reach out to our neighborhood and the world in the spirit of Jesus Christ.

(Adopted July 1997)

The Cornerstone Baptist Church Advisory Council Minutes (Minutes approved February 11, 2014)

January 14, 2014 The meeting was opened at 6:32PM, and was called to order by Caroll Marston. Followed immediately with an opening prayer by Pastor Greg and a devotional read by Donna Gilbert. What Have You Heard? No new items were mentioned Clerk’s Report The minutes of the November 2013 meeting were reviewed and accepted. Treasurer’s Report

The financial reports for November 2013 & December 2013 were reviewed The idea to create a new line item for the “transferring of funds” under CONTRIBUTIONS was discussed. Fuel and Gas expenses were broken down into separate line items in the report as well.

Special Presentation A.J. Duval spoke before the AC with a project proposal for his Eagle Scout project: He proposed the construction of:

Two (permanent) park benches to be placed outside on church property. Two or three portable handicap signs to take the place of the current signs. He hopes to begin working on the project this summer (2014).

The proposal was voted on and approval was given.

Dates to Remember Pancake Breakfast for Campership Fund March 8

th (time TBA)

Old Business Caroll will be meeting with our church’s lawyer to review the letters that have been drafted to send out to the adjacent property owners of the CBC and Howard Valley Church.

New Business The 2014 budget was reviewed

Caroll proposed to approve the 2014 budget and present it to the congregation at a special Annual Budget meeting on January 26, 2014

Anne Millard made a motion to accept the proposal; Debra Grandelski made a second motion to accept. The Advisory Council members in attendance voted to approve the budget.

Pastor’s Report Pastor Greg said the Howard Valley Community Church Christmas Eve service was packed. He would like to

specially thank Frank Brush and Bruno Gilbert for setting up heating and lights specifically for the service. He helped facilitate a Unitarian Universalist service. He conducted a worship service and Christmas story reading at Maple Courts He has been continuing to work on the Homeless Memorial in cooperation with Generations Health. Pastor Greg and Cheryl hosted Ministers and Spouses for an open house on New Year’s Day. He also hosted a get-together with the young ladies at Hawkings House. They enjoyed good food and afternoon of

playing video games on the Wii. He dabbled a little in songwriting; creating a choral response to the reading of the Song of Mary as read by Melissa

Card. The congregation responded in good voice.

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Pastor Greg met with the fledgling youth group for singing near the end of their meeting in early January. He looks forward to the chance to sing with them again.

He offers a tip of the hat to Sandra and Sheldon; the kids in our youth program seem to respond well to them. Weekly emails from the pastor seem to be well received. We currently have 97 recipients and almost 60% of

those individuals are reading the email on a regular weekly basis. Pastor Greg will be away from February 13

th-22

nd. He has spoken with Molly to provide one Sunday’s pulpit sup-

ply.

Education and Discipleship A new newsletter was created for the Sunday School program; It is being posted on the web site. The newly created Youth Group had a very successful fundraiser during the Advent season. The teachers and students are currently gearing up for Super Kids Sunday, which will be held on February 2

nd.

Events and PR It has been decided to try and host a monthly (“after worship”) coffee hours for the remainder of the winter and spring (to occur on the 3

rd Sunday of the month) and then to have weekly coffee hours during the warmer weather.

Missions There were no updates or new information to report

Pastoral Relations Several people who have issues with Pastor Greg will be meeting to with him, the PRC chairman and a mediator from ABCCONN to try and begin a dialog of understanding.

Property and Finance Pastor Greg and Jim Millard recently spent time cleaning up the remnants of the oil spill in the parsonage

basement. The church received a letter from the Connecticut Department of Transportation re: the sign we have posted on

Rte. 6. We were notified that the sign is improperly displayed and we need to contact the DOT office to apply for permission to post it.

Safe Church A background check was recently concluded for a new youth worker volunteer.

Sexton Purchasing a new toilet seat to replace the current seat in the upstairs bathroom Has identified several light bulbs that will need to be replaced.

Worship and Membership Gathering names for worship volunteers Cathy, Molly and Pastor Greg recently met to discuss ways the members of the AC can help “shepherd” church

families. Our next Advisory Council meeting is scheduled for February 11, 2014. The meeting was adjourned at 8:45 PM. Attendees: Pat Rocheleau, Pastor Greg, Jim Hilow, Donna Gilbert, Jim Milliard, Anne Milliard, Gina Mills, Mary Grandelski, Debra Grandelski, Kathy Hexter, Caroll, Marston, Sandra Rukstela, Molly Truesdale

Minutes—continued from page 6

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247 Broad Street

Danielson, CT 06239

March

2014

Phone:

860.774.3907

Fax:

860.774.6878

Email:

baptist.church@snet.net

Web page:

www.cbcct.us

Count your joys instead of your woes; count

your friends instead of your foes.

– Irish proverb

So often we think we have got to make a dif-

ference and be a big dog. Let us just try to be

little fleas biting. Enough fleas biting strategi-

cally can make a big dog very uncomfortable.

– Marian Wright Edelman

All too often we bemoan our imperfections

rather than embrace them as part of the proc-

ess in which we are brought to God. Cherished

emptiness gives God space in which to work.

We are pure capacity for God. Let us not,

then, take our littleness lightly. It is a wonder-

ful grace. It is a gift to receive. At the same

time, let us not get trapped in the confines of

our littleness, but keep pushing on to claim

our greatness. Remind yourself often, “I am

pure capacity for God; I can be more.”

– Macrina Wiederkehr, A Tree Full of Angels

I see the world gradually being turned into a

wilderness. I hear the ever-approaching thun-

der, which will destroy us too. I can feel the

sufferings of millions and yet, if I look up

into the heavens, I think that it will all come

out right. In the meantime, I must uphold my

ideals, for perhaps the time will come when I

shall be able to carry them out.

– Anne Frank, The Diary of Anne Frank

A silkworm was struggling out of the cocoon

and an ignorant man saw it battling as if in

pain, so he went and helped it to get free, but

very soon after it fluttered and died. The

other silkworms that struggled out without

help suffered, but they came out into full life

and beauty, with wings made strong for flight

by their battle for fresh existence.

– Sadhu Sundar Singh Copyright 2014 Logos Productions Inc. All rights reserved

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