Danby Church NewsApril 2020“Adding to and Building up the Kingdom of God”

2 Danby Church News April 2020

From Our Pastor...........................................2A Meeting Minute.........................................3 Area Coordinator Reports...........................4Prayer Vigil Schedule...................................6Ditch Diggers Wanted...................................7Easter Devotional..........................................8Private Prayer..............................................10Calendar.......................................................11

Danby Church Officers and Leaders2020

Pastor: Ed Enstine eenstine@aol.com 607.592.8276Administrative Aide Lynn Kingston-Harris office@danbychurch.org 607.272.1687

Administartive Council Chair: PaulaNelson sfcnelson@aol.comSecretary: MargieVanDeMark margievan@live.comTreasurer: PaulaNelson sfcnelson@aol.comFinancialSecretary JudyCuyle gnatcat87@yahoo.com Trustees Chair: CharleneTestut ctestut55@yahoo.comArea CoordinatorsHospitality: CharleneTestutSpiritual Development: SheilaEnstine ssenstine@gmail.comMissions: Judy&DaleHorton therose8641@yahoo.comStaff, Pastor Oversight Committee SPOC:Chair: KatyPrincePraise Team Leader: PupMartinez martinez789@yahoo.com

Webmaster: Janet Gray jsg4@cornell.eduNewsletter Editor: Janet GrayFacebook: Janet Gray

From Our Pastor!

Our Cover picture:Pastor Ed

What’s in this Issue?

God’s Grace and Peace to you all,

The disruption caused by the corona virus to the world’s systems, which so many trusted for hope and happiness, is as we write this driving people to despair and hopelessness. The faith we placed on false prosperity has been shattered. It is easy to point fingers and criticize but it doesn’t do a bit of good. For many folks a lifetime of work is posed to collapse. The illusion of being indispensable evapo-rates in a moment. Perspective is exchanged for panic. People forfeit common sense in a rush to build toilet paper forts of solitude. The END is upon us!

Or is it?

Our forefathers and mothers knew something our culture has forgotten: this world, other people, “”mother nature” doesn’t care what we want.

Life doesn’t always have a happy ending, We are not living in a Hallmark movie! The highest goal for a fulfilled life is not to be entertained and possess the latest tech toy and games. Life is not fair. We will be forgotten in the passage of time.

That is the reality of the world but it isn’t the reality of the Kingdom of God. We have currently cancelled church services but we will not forfeit God’s pres-ence and peace. As people trusting in Jesus Christ our vision should look beyond a false scenario painted by the world.

We will do what we can and follow the Lord’s leading to the best of our ability. Things won’t be the way they always were, but so what? We will pray and support one another and that is what really counts. Eventually the world will find a new normal. This virus will pass into history. The world will go on with or without us. We will service our friends and neighbors. This is our time to be a witness of calm and hope.

The world refuses to see the Kingdom of God but the Kingdom of God always sees the kingdom of the world. Our job is to open the eyes of the blind.

Do not fall to despair and fear. This is a special time to be alive and you are part of a very special people. Be careful, use common sense and follow good advice.

Pastor’s Message continued on page 5

3Danby Church News April 2020

This month’s issue of the Danby Church News is on the web at https://www.danbychurch.org/news.html!

A Meeting Minute News from your church leadership meetings

Adminstrative Council MeetingMarch 10, 2020

Present: Pastor Ed Enstine, Sheila Enstine, Paula Nelson, Margie VanDeMark, Judy Cuyle, Gloria Miller, Charlene Testut, and Katy Prince.Pastor Ed opened the meeting with prayer at 7:00 pm.

CLERK’S MINUTES: Motion by Gloria, second by Judy, to accept the minutes for February. Carried.

FINANCIAL SECRETARY REPORT: Margie made the motion, second by Gloria, to approve, carried.

TREASURER REPORT: Motion by Judy, second by Margie, to approve the report, carried.

OLD BUSINESS: Sheila said the 200th Anniversary planning will be coordinated by Janet Gray Charlene reported that the AED is here now, in the office, and signs will be placed around the building as to it’s location.

NEW BUSINESS: None

SPOC: Katy reported that they met for the first time and discussed membership, the Methodist agreement, and reviewed the upcoming year. Also discussed was whether to affiliate with another denomination in the future.

SAP: Pastor Ed said that this coming Sunday after service we will conduct a “charge conference” short meeting where a Meth-odist representative will sign off on our affiliation. We will continue with church services as Danby Community Church and not close (except as a Methodist church). Pastor Ed will order the NCD survey materials as it is time to do it again.

Gloria made the motion to adjourn at 7:45 pm, seconded by Sheila. Pastor Ed closed the meeting with prayer.

Respectfully submitted, Margie VanDeMark/ Church Clerk

Trustee Meeting

There was no Trustee Meeting for March

Charlene Tesut reports that an estimate has come in for the sign but none as been received yet for the Fellowship Hall doors.

A couple invited the pastor to come to their house for dinner after church one Sunday. The pastor accepted and went......he knocked at the door and the couple came to the door. The mom said, “Come in and sit in the living room with our son for a few minutes while we get dinner on the table,” so he did. In an effort to get acquainted with the boy he said, “So, do you know what we’re having for dinner?” The boy answered,” I think we’re having goat.” The pastor said, “Goat? Are you sure?” The boy said, “I’m pretty sure I heard my dad say, ‘It’s about time we had that old goat for dinner!”

Judy’s Joke Corner

4 Danby Church News April 2020

Area Coordinator Reports continued on page 5

Area Coordinator ReportsMission Update from Judy and Dale Horton

Hospitality Update from Charlene Testut

Sunday Worship Celebration @ 10 amSunday Adult Education Class on Judges @ 8:45amYouth Church @ 10:30am every other weekTuesdays and Thursdays, Communion, Conversation and Prayer 5-6pmWednesdays, Live Music & Conversation @ 7pmSweet Hour of Prayer, Saturday, 8amWomen’s Bible Study, Fridays @ 1pm

Charge Conference MinutesMarch 15, 2020

Jeff McDowell Finger Lakes District Superintendent from the United Methodist Church met with our congregation in a Charge Conference March 15, 2020 at noon to close the loop we had already taken to end the affiliation with the United Methodist church, a process we began October, 2017.

PRESENT: 20 voting members, 1 non-voting member According to the District Superintendent in order to disaffiliate, NYS law requires a vote. Jeff stated the Trustees from UMC will not charge a fee to disaffiliate. Charlene Testut made a motion, according to the Trustee signed document from the United Methodist Church, to disaffiliate. This was seconded by Katy Prince. The vote showed seventeen were in favor of disaffiliation from the United Methodist, with three opposed. The motion was carried. Charge Conference was ended with prayer.

60 boxes of clothing have been sent to St. Joe’s Indian School.

The March Chicken & Biscuit Dinner served 60 dinners and 40 carryouts, The April Chicken & Biscuit is a wait & see.

5Danby Church News April 2020

Do you have a question you would like to ask Pastor Ed? It can be about God, Jesus, the Bible, faith, the church, religion. Send your questions to Janet Gray @ jsg4@cornell.edu and your question (and answer) may appear in the next Danby Church News

Wash your hands! Always be ready to tell people why you have hope no matter what things may look like in this world. Pray ceaselessly and never forget that you are an eternal child of the most high God through Jesus Christ our Lord.

We will meet again! We will overcome through Jesus Christ.

Pastor Ed

Pastor’s Message continued from page 2

Spiritual Development Update from Sheila Enstine

Adult Small Groups: The Sunday morning adult study group is studying the Books of Judges and Ruth. The group meets from 8:45-9:45 am. All adults are welcome. The Women’s mid-week group meets on Fridays from 1pm to 3pm. This group is using Max Lucado’s “He Chose the Nails,” study guide and video.

Youth Church & Nursery: For March and April 2020, Youth Church will meet on March 8th, March 22nd, possibly on March 29th (with a surprise), April 19th and April 26th. There is no youth church on Communion Sundays (the first Sunday each month) or on Easter Sunday. The nursery will not be staffed on Easter Sunday. Otherwise, nursery care is available for babies through age 5 every Sunday.

Prayer Chain: Please contact Judy Cuyle at gnatcat87@yahoo.com or call 279-5089 if you would like to participate in this essential prayer ministry.

Prayer Vigils: Prayer Vigils: The first of three Lenten prayer vigils was held on Thursday, March 5th. The next two are sched-uled for Thursdays March 26th and April 9th . The vigils will be conducted remotely for 24-hours. Please see the suggested time segments elsewhere in this newsletter.

The March 26th vigil will focus on the world’s current crises, including the coronavirus, economic collapse, locust infestation in Africa, the fires and their effects in Australia, and political unrest in the Middle East. The focus of the April 9th vigil will be announced next week.

Resources for Individual Growth: The Church offers several print resources. You will find them on display in the hallway to the sanctuary, on the table near the secretary’s office, and the brochure rack in the fellowship hall. The publications include:• The Upper Room daily devotional• One-year Bible reading plan pamphlets• Care Notes booklets• Today’s Christian Living monthly magazine

Resources for Sharing Your Faith: Check out the brochures from Crossway/Good News Tracts, “Love is…,” “A Love Worth Finding,” and “Unashamed.” These tracts present the Gospel in a clear, concise manner and are intended for one-on-one evan-gelism – aka sharing your faith. As we say in the Walk to Emmaus/Closer Walk community, “Make a friend; be a friend; lead your friend to Christ.” The tracts are good way to introduce the Person of Jesus Christ to family and friends. You’ll find them on the table near the Secretary’s Office.

Congregational Care: LaWanda Cook and Lyn Aiosa visit shut-ins by phone, and Paula Nelson works with Doug Nash to deliver floral arrangements, in celebration as well as in sympathy. Please let Sheila know if you are aware of someone we could bless with a prayer shawl or if you’d like to deliver a shawl yourself. Also, let us know if someone has transportation or other household needs.

Notice!!! A friend of the church has a large supply of yarn—some in the original wrappers—that she would like to donate to anyone who can use it, especially for knitting or crocheting the prayer shawls. Contact Sheila if you’re interested.

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7Danby Church News April 2020

Ditch Diggers Wantedby Dave McDermitt

East King road is a two-mile stretch of County road that extends west to east from state route 96B Danby rd to Coddington Rd. We have ‘adopted’ this road as part of the County adopt-a-highway program as a public service and witness to the community as there are 2 road signs that now bear the church name - one near the Sam Peter furniture store and the other near Coddington Rd. Currently, as an ‘adoptee’, we are required to clear roadside litter at a minimum of twice per year for a period of two years. (This is less than the four-times per year required for state highways). Two weekend afternoons, one in April-May and one in October, make the most sense for clean up as the weather is good and they appear to be event-free spots on the church calendar. There are some simple safety requirements as part of the adop-tion process which I am required to explain as the “designated coordinator”: all participants have to wear County-provided safe-ty vests and hard hats, and sign general release forms; there can’t be any horseplay - sorry; no walking in the road - again, sorry - I think; there are youth age minimums and specific adult to youth ratios, etc. The guidelines are listed online here:http://tompkinscountyny.gov/highway/guide This is a four-mile loop that is something two or more people can easily handle. Currently I drive this route about once per week to look for anything major, but it’s a remarkably clean roadside. If that continues to be the case, then maybe we should prayerfully consider adding a second road. There are openings listed on the County highway webpage and I think they would also consider county roads not listed; for instance, West Miller Road, which I walk occasionally, typically has a small amount of garbage in its ditches. It’s worth mentioning that a stretch of state route 96B from La Tourelle to near Fieldstone Circle is available, but it probably makes sense to start with a single county road and see how it goes since the state guidelines are more strict. If interested, please see me or email: davidmcdermitt@gmail.com

What Price a Sermon?One beautiful Sunday morning, Reverend Barnard announces to his congregation, “My good people, I have here in my hands three sermons...... A $100 sermon that lasts five minutesA $50 sermon that lasts fifteen minutesAnd a $20 sermon that lasts a full hour.”

Did you know we are now on Facebook? You can access us from your Facebook page (just search for Danby Community Church) or press the Facebook link on our church website: WWW.DANBYCHURCH.ORG. You don’t need to have a Facebook account to see our Facebook page, but you will need a Facebook account if you would want to “like” our page or post a comment.

8 Danby Church News April 2020

“Jesus said to [Mary Magdalene], ‘Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?’” (John 20:15a) Have you ever cried so hard you couldn’t see? I have. It’s pretty dangerous when you are driving a car or riding a motorcycle, by-the-way…

I was asked recently what I thought I would have been like if I had lived 2000 years ago when Jesus walked the earth. I imag-ine myself in love with Jesus like Mary Magdalene was. She was a sinner and Jesus saw right through into her heart and knew that she could love and be nurturing. She along with many other women took care of Jesus’ and the disciple’s needs while Jesus was teaching and preaching and healing. And, she loved him. She loved him so much that she is mentioned in Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John at the Resurrection of Jesus.

In John, she was crying so hard at the tomb of Jesus that when He came to her in His Resurrection, she didn’t even recognize him. Like I said above, I’ve cried so hard before that I couldn’t even see.When my mom was diagnosed with incurable cancer, I think I cried the hardest in my entire life!She was still recovering from surgery that wasn’t successful and I needed to just get away. I went to the nearest church that I knew and sat at the altar and cried and cried.

I imagine, though, that Mary went from sad, sad tears to happy, happy tears when Jesus said, “Mary!” (John 20:16) and she recognized Him. I also imagine she wanted to fly into his arms and hug him forever. How hard it must have been for her to restrain when he told her that she couldn’t hold onto him because he had not yet ascended to his Father in heaven (John 20:17). But she did and she ran and told the disciples of this encounter with Jesus.

When was the last time you told anyone about your encounter with Jesus? Sometimes it is hard, so very hard. We are afraid of being rejected by those we consider our friends. We are afraid of being called a hypocrite because maybe someone has caught us in a sin. We are afraid because we don’t really know how to introduce someone to our Lord who lives within our heart. Sometimes we’re just afraid on a human level.

Jesus knows our fears. He knows our hearts better, even, than we know. Jesus knew Mary Magdalene and He knows YOU. He loves YOU. He loves you more than you can ever even know. No matter what!

As we celebrate the Resurrection of Jesus (and we may well be celebrating it away from our church families because of the state of the world right now with the coronavirus going around), may you get up every morning, put on your Armor of God and know that Jesus loves you and he came, he lived, he died, AND he rose from the dead for YOU! “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his power. Put on the whole armor of God, so that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil… Stand therefore, and fasten the belt of truth around your waist, and put on the breastplate of righteousness. As shoes for your feet put on whatever will make you ready to proclaim the gospel of peace. With all of these, take the shield of faith, with which you will be able to quinche all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salva-tion, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

“Pray in the Spirit at all times in every prayer and supplication.” (from Ephesians 6:10-18) --Katy Prince

9Danby Church News April 2020

Interested on being on the team for the 200th Anniversary of the completion of our church building? There are some great ideas being presented such as beatification of the outside grounds, a gospel concert, a birthday cake, an ice cream social, connecting with the town historian, and more! If you would like to be a part of planning this historic milestone, please contact: Janet Gray @ janetgray@highlandfarmskennel.com or 607.273.3251

Did you know Jesus had a dog? This is “Ace “Gray and Rollie Boda in 2009.

10 Danby Church News April 2020

How to Spend an Hour (or More) in Private Prayer

You might be thinking that you’d like to take part in a prayer vigil, but you’re not sure how to pray for an entire hour. After all, we live in a culture of constant noise and distractions. Stepping away from all that and focusing on Jesus for an hour seems overwhelming. How can we remain alert in prayer?

One way is to follow the Lord’s Prayer from Matthew 6:9-13 and Luke 11:1-4.

Jesus didn’t intend for us to recite these words like ro-bots. The Lord’s Prayer is a pattern for the things we ought to include in our prayers.

First, using your own words, acknowledge God as holy, sovereign, and Father of all. If you can’t think of what to say, read some psalms from the Bible or sing hymns or choruses. Thank God for all that he’s done for you in the last 24 hours.Next, tell your Father that the most important thing you desire is that “His will be done.” This tells God that you trust His will as perfect and best.

Ask for provision, including food, housing, health, and shelter, for yourself and others. Confess your specific sins, ask for forgiveness, and forgive other people. Ask for wisdom to recognize temptations and ways to avoid doing more wrong. “Deliver us from evil” is a request for protection from all kinds of trouble and right now, deliverance from the coronavirus and economic devastation would be part of that request. I’m sure you can think of many other evils in this world and many people who need deliverance from spiritual as well as physical attacks. Speak to our Father about all of them.

End your time of prayer the same as you began, with praise – “psalms and hymns and songs from the spirit” (Ephesians 5:13). As bookends keep a collection of books upright, praising our Lord at the beginning and end of prayer keeps our requests “up-right” and focused on God.

Oh my! Look at the time! How quickly an hour of prayer goes by!

~ Sheila Enstine

Dear God, help us to walk in that mighty grace and tell Your good news to the world. All for your glory do we pray, Lord, Amen.

Father, thank You for the miracle of life — abundant life here, and eternal life with You in Heaven. Help us cele-brate that life every day as we seek You and follow Your plan for our life. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Virtual Prayer Vigil, April 9 Chicken and Biscuit Dinner, April 17 , 5-7pm

Lunch and Games, Monday, April 20 12:15pm - 2pm

Coming in May

Commemorating 200 years of the church building at the May 3rd church service

Danby Community Church1859 Danby RoadIthaca, NY 14850

www.danbychurch.orgWelcome Home!!

Here’s What’s Happening in April!

April 12