“Some Thoughts on the Lenten Season”Lent is known to be the oldest ritual in Church. It came into existence as early as 130AD. The observation of lent began as a season of penance, driven by the example set by Lord Je-sus Christ during his 40 days of fasting in the desert where he overcame the temptation from Satan.It soon became a period of instruction for new believers. Till 600 AD lent commenced on a Sundaybut in AD 600 Gregory the Great (c.540-604) moved it to a Wednesday, now called Ash Wednesday,to secure the exact number of 40 days in Lent—not counting Sundays, which were feast days. Greg-ory, who is regarded as the father of the medieval papacy, is also credited with the ceremony thatgives the day its name. As Christians came to the church for forgiveness, Gregory marked their fore-heads with ashes reminding them of the biblical symbol of repentance (sackcloth and ashes) andmortality: "You are dust, and to dust you will return" (Gen 3:19).Tradition is discarded in modern times. The opposition to Lent as a ritual was stated as early as 16thcentury, when the Anabaptists opposed observing this, and many other rituals and festivals, claimingthat these were the handy work of Romans, and hence Christians should not observe those ritualsand festivals.Currently also there are differing views about observing Lent. I have a question, in opposing the ritu-alistic observation of Lent, are we throwing the baby out along with the bath water? Our Methodismis based on Scripture, Tradition, Spirit and Reason. I treasure the tradition that the church has prac-ticed to observe Lent as a rich ritual.Like all Christian holy days and holidays, it has changed over the years, but its purpose has alwaysbeen the same: self-examination and penitence, demonstrated by self-denial, in

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FROM THE PASTOR’S STUDY

San Marcos United Methodist Church

MARCH 2010Volume 31 Issue 3

KAIROSKAIROSKAIROSKAIROS

“Our mission is to know and ex-“Our mission is to know and ex-“Our mission is to know and ex-“Our mission is to know and ex- perience Jesus Christ and share perience Jesus Christ and share perience Jesus Christ and share perience Jesus Christ and shareHim with all others in the power Him with all others in the power Him with all others in the power Him with all others in the power and love of the Holy Spirit”and love of the Holy Spirit”and love of the Holy Spirit”and love of the Holy Spirit”

Missions Sew-A-Thon

The last sew-a-thon was so successfulthat we are planning another one forMarch 8 from 9;30-11:30 a.m. Nine sewers/ pinners showed up and in 2 hours, we finishedmaking 45 flannel diapers that will go to Haiti. Atthe coming sew-a-thon, we will concentrate onmaking the t-shirt dresses and boys shorts for Hai-tian children. Most of them have been left with onlythe clothes on their backs so I know theywill welcome something new and colorful.We all have a good time making theseitems that are so desperately needed inthat devastated country.Come join us - we always need more sewers andpinners.The Missions Committee will hold their next meet-ing on Monday, March 1 at 10:00 AM at Elsa Singhhome at 637 Bennett Avenue in San Marcos. Any-one interested in Missions is welcome and we es-pecially appreciate having our newest church at-tendees. It is a good way to meet people and get toknow each other in our church family and to get“involved” in our church missions.Elsa Singh“

We’re All God’s Family”

He prayed—it wasn’t my religionHe ate—it wasn’t my foodHe spoke—it wasn’t my languageHe dressed—it wasn’t what I woreHe took my hand—it wasn’t the color of mineBut when he laughed, it was how I laughedAnd when he cried, it was how I cried.We’re all God’s Family-Elsa Singh

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) preparation for Easter. 2Corinthians 13:5 says, “Examine yourselves tosee whether you are in the faith; test your-selves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is inyou—unless, of course, you fail the test?”We need to spend time with God examiningwhat manner of person we are. We need timesof brutal honesty. We need to take stock of ourtrue spirituality. We need to stop kidding our-selves and take a look at how much we arereally contributing, to our marriage, to our chil-dren, to our church, and to the community.Pastor Tae Kim

Daylight Saving Time

Mark Saturday, March 13 on your calendar tochange your clocks! At 1:00 AM Sundaymorning the time jumps ahead 1 hour as webegin daylight saving time.

Prayer Requests

Cindy Van VelzerVirgil GriffinSong, Bill, Kim, SusanGay, Betty, JisungPlease pray for our church

Lenten Studies

The Lenten studies began on Monday, Feb 22 andwill continue for six weeks, until Easter. There is aMonday group at 7:00 PM at Francee Colace’shouse and another group at 9:30 AM at the churchwhich will be let by Pastor Tae. There is still time tosign up. Study is “Watching the Disciples, LearningFrom Their Mistakes.” See or call Donna Blancheat 760-744-0785.

Happy Birthday! Happy Birthday! Happy Birthday! Happy Birthday!

MARCH

Tae Kim 2Mary Whistler 5Flo Ark 5Rose DeLeon 10Jun Suarez 15Georgianne Brewis 17Leonard Hull 27Elsa Singh 28

Happy Anniversary Happy Anniversary Happy Anniversary Happy Anniversary

Don & Nola Picht 21Roger & Merry Williams 27

God’s Plan

For those of us fortunate enough to have jobsand a home and food, let us remember that thereare those, even in the U.S. that don’t have thatgood fortune. Sharing and giving is all part ofGod’s plan for us, and the more we can share thebetter we feel and the more we get back. Make ahabit of buying one or two non-perishable fooditems when you shop and bring them to thechurch to share with those who are in need. If we

all

did just a little, there wouldn’t be much of aburden for any of us.

Ongoing Interfaith Food Drive

Interfaith still needs help with their foodpantry. Canned and packaged soups, non-perishable canned & packaged dinners, rice, ricemixes, pasta and pasta mixes canned meats,baby food, baby formula, dry beans, peanut but-ter, jelly and canned vegetables. Please pick upextras to donate when you are shopping! Manyhave lost jobs and times are hard. Leave your do-nations in the Narthex and they will be trans-ported to Interfaith.!

SAVE THE DATES!

♦

April 4, 2010 Easter Sonrise Worshipat 7:00 AM at the wooden cross be-hind the church.

♦

April 25, 2010 at 5:00 PM for theSpring Concert in the Sanctuary.