#MM271  – Church, This weekend finds us near the midpoint of Lent, and among us is proclaimed a central story of scripture: The Prodigal Son. The characters in the parable have inspired many through the centuries, but one thing stands at the middle of it all: the reckless generosity of the father, welcoming all to the house where love is found. Come and feast with joy this Sunday along the Lenten way.

💜 Bulletin for 3-30-25: https://bit.ly/4jex6s7

💜 Lent Devotional: Lent isn’t just about fasting or taking a break from chocolate or other things we love. Part of the Lenten journey includes an invitation to embrace a spiritual discipline that deepens our faith and helps us repent (to turn back to God). Linked below you will find a Lenten daily devotional written by Pastor Paul and his weekly text study cohort. We hope it will be a helpful tool to en-rich your time between now and Resurrection Sunday (Easter): https://bit.ly/LentenDevotions2025

💜 Birthday Fellowship Hour: March 30 – join us for Fellowship Hour after the service for our renewal of Birthday Sunday to honor everyone who celebrates a March birthday. All are invited for refreshments and fellowship.

💜 If you’d like to give flowers in honor of a loved one, please use the flower envelopes (blue with white flowers) in the pews. The suggested offering is $20 per flower. The deadline to order is Sunday, April 13, 2024.

💜 Sunday School Reminder: Sunday School will resume on Sunday, March 30th with Lenten Pretzel Making.

💜 Save the Dates: Join us as we walk through the Lenten season together.
• Lenten Soup Supper and Conversation – 6:15pm on April 2.
• Holden Vespers – each Wednesday through April 9 at 7:00pm.
• Palm Sunday Service – April 13 at 10:00am.
• Maundy Thursday Service – April 17 at 7:00pm.
• Good Friday Service – April 18 at 7:30pm.
• Easter Service – April 20 at 10:00am.

💜 Special Request / Easter Basket Project – from Holly & Bill Maurer and Kate Funkner: About 10 years ago, Pastor Bobbie Davis Newhouse was our pastor at St. John Lutheran in Highland Heights. Pastor Bobbie has spearheaded the Cleveland Easter Basket Project for more than 25 years, benefiting the Metro Pediatrics unit and NICU. Last year over 400 baskets were distributed, all through the generosity of volunteers. Each basket includes a book because literacy is so important, age-appropriate toys, personal care items and treats. All this is made possible by Pastor Bobbie, despite the fact that due to an unfortunate accident she suffered a spinal cord injury and is confined to a wheelchair. If you are able to make a contribution to the project you can either: (1) write a check to First Baptist Church (the current project host), put Easter Basket Project on the memo line, and send to them, (2) just hand your contribution to one of us on Sunday and we will deliver to the church, or (3) use Go Fund Me to make a donation. Feel free to contact one of us with questions. Thank you for your sup-port and prayers for this very rewarding ministry!

💜 Lenten Food and Paper Product Drive: March 9 – April 13 benefiting the Tri-C East Campus Food Pantry. Paper products (e.g. paper towels, napkins) and food items are requested. Please place do-nations on the table by the church back entry.

💜 Book Club: We will meet next on Tuesday, April 8, 2025, at 7:00pm at the home of Nancy Pittard. Our book will be The Briar’s Club by Kate Quinn.

💜 Faith Circle: Faith Circle will not meet again until May, when it is warmer, and our snowbirds have returned to Cleveland. Our next meeting will be May 15, 2025; Jill Snellman will be our hostess.

Dear Church,

I hope this letter finds you well in the new year. As most of you are aware, Messiah has gone through some changes lately as we adjust our staffing to fit our budgetary commitments for 2025. I would like to take a moment to update you on the status of some of the different positions and how we can use your help as a congregation moving forward. 

First, Sheryl Trost volunteered to step down from the Community Faith Facilitator position in favor of focusing on Christian Education with our Sunday School program. While this will take her away from the Connections Team leadership, this has yielded a salary savings as part of the revised budget. The Connections Team will continue their mission with the existing committee members. 

Second, we parted ways with our long-time Custodian, Steve Newcomer. While we have really appreciated his years of service, the required budget cuts made it difficult to sustain a dedicated custodial position. Snow removal will continue under our current contract and the Council has an action item to explore lawn care alternatives. For inside the church, we've contracted with a professional cleaning company that will be in twice a month for a thorough review of the church. This new schedule will require a bit of an adjustment so I'd like to empower the entire congregation to take action to keep our church and building clean if you see an opportunity to do so. 

Third, the Council has authorized the search for a Property Manager/Rental Coordinator position. This new position will help coordinate the property and maintenance activities at the church as well as providing a meaningful focus on generating revenue from our outstanding facilities that will help support our congregation and mission into the future. The job description will be available in the church and online if someone you know is interested in this exciting opportunity. 

Finally, the rest of the church staff took a small pay cut so that we could maintain the important positions that directly affect worship. You may see changes to our bulletin, order of service and music presentation. I'd encourage you to reach out to the Council with any questions about these changes as we navigate our budget for 2025 and beyond. 

In order to better keep the congregation in the loop, I've started posting financial information and the Pastor's report on the bulletin board in the hallway outside the library. In addition, the new job posting can be found there as well. 

As always, your church council is available to answer any more particular questions. 

Best, 

Ben Johnson / Church Council President