CALENDAR of EVENTS · Nursery Ruby Splittstoesser & Emma Lacefield Parish Nurses Aziza Awate, Kathie Pound, and Beth Riddle Connections Deadline: Submit announcements in writing to

It’s time to say, “Yes.” The temptation when wefirst hear these words of Jesus is to deny theyare speaking to us. “I’ve never killed anyone;I’ve never committed adultery or beendivorced. I (almost) never swear. So what doesthis have to do with me?” we might say.The answer is, “Everything!” Who among ushas not experienced a strained relationship witha family member or friend where we have hurtthe other and cheapened the relationship? Whoamong us has not lashed out with words ofanger against another?It’s time to say, “Yes.” Yes, we are in the midstof brokenness, each of us. God’s will for ourlives is to live in relationship with one anotheras a community in Christian love. And weknow that we fail to live in that will. Even ifour outward actions appear pure, our inwardthoughts tell a different story. Yes, we are sin-ners. That’s the truth.But it’s not the whole truth. And it’s time to say“Yes” to this greater truth – that the same Jesuswho calls for a radical discipleship is onewhose whole life and ministry was with tax col-lectors, prostitutes, and sinners. His life, deathand resurrection are all about freeing us fromthe power of sin. Somehow, we lose this “Yes” too often. We arequick to condemn, quick to judge, quick topoint out the brokenness of others, quick to seeour own sinfulness, but not so quick to hear the“Yes” of forgiveness for ourselves and for ourneighbor.It’s time to say, “Yes.” It’s time to rememberthat our confession doesn’t end with our saying,“Yes,” to our brokenness. The final word spo-ken is God’s “yes” to us. It’s a word of forgive-ness and grace: “Your sins are forgiven.”It has been said by some, “The church is to be ahotel for saints,” but Jesus says to us, “I tellyou, the church is a hospital for sinners, whereall may know my forgiveness and grace.”YES, INDEED!PrayerCreate in us clean hearts, O God, to say, “Yes,”to our sin and an even greater, “Yes,” to yourforgiving love; through Christ our Lord. Amen.

ConnectionsSt. Mat thew Lutheran Church – Connec t i ng Fa i th W i th L i fe !

CALENDAR of EVENTS

SAT., FEBRUARY 1510am-12pm Concord Room Reserved/

Al-Anon Meeting10am-1pm ECIRMAC 5:00 pm Holden Evening Prayer

SUN., FEBRUARY 16 8:30 am Worship 9:45 am Coffee Fellowship 9:50 am Sunday School 9:50 am Adult Forum

What is Sacred Music?led by Dr. Derick Cordoba

10:45 am Worship 4:00 pm Daisy Scouts 6:00 pm High School Youth GroupMON., FEBRUARY 17

8:30 am Morning PrayerGroup

TUES., FEBRUARY 1810:00 am Men’s Coffee

at Lincoln Square

7:00 pm Bell Choir 7:00 pm Gentler Yoga 7:00 pm ScoutsWED., FEBRUARY 19

5:45 pm Adult Bible Study 6:45 pm STM Choir

FRI., FEBRUARY 21 9:00 am March Insight

Newsletter Deadline 9:15 am Chairish Yoga 7:00 pm ReLit Discussion

ofThe New Jim Crow

SAT., FEBRUARY 2210am-12pm Concord Room Reserved/

Al-Anon Meeting10am-1pm ECIRMAC 5:00 pm Holden Evening Prayer

SUN., FEBRUARY 23 8:30 am Worship 9:45 am Coffee Fellowship 9:50 am Sunday School 9:50 am CONGREGATIONAL

MEETING10:45 am Worship 6:00 pm High School Youth Group6-8:00 pm Hops & Hymns at Riggs

Please check on your friends & neighbors during the winter months!

STAFF OF ST. MATTHEW LUTHERAN CHURCHPHONE: 367-1189 www.stmatthewurbana.org

Office Manager Gayla PellumNursery Ruby Splittstoesser & Emma LacefieldParish Nurses Aziza Awate, Kathie Pound, and Beth Riddle

Connections Deadline: Submit announcements in writing to the church office or by e-mailto [email protected] no later than 9:00 a.m. Wednesday. Thank you!

Please note: Names on the list for prayers will be posted for one month unless otherwise requested.Please contact the church office with any updates or extensions. Thank you.

Specialist Sean Splittstoesser,grandson of Ruby & Dan Splittstoesser

LCpl Nathan Brozak & 3rd Battalion India Company,

son of Beth KoplinskiRita, aunt of Cheryl Light-ShrinerCarmen, aunt of Cheryl Light-ShrinerSharon, aunt of Cheryl Light-ShrinerJohn Light, father of Cheryl Light-ShrinerPastor Tom HillertzZewdi Habtes, mother of Aziza AwateJim Lyons,

son-in-law of Gary & Cyntha HedgeConnie, friend of Chris BedfordSandy, friend of Jill & Dann DalyJeff Slade and his family,

friends of Liz SchwartzMarty Conatser, nephew of Liz SchwartzDebbie Siegler & family,

friends of Peg & John WarrinerFred Gould,

brother-in-law of Gary & June Volkening****************

Liam & Abigail Hall, grandson of CherylinStivers & great-nephew of Shirley Shaw

****************Gine Olney & family,

friends of St. MatthewNancy Ford & family, friend of Susan Cole****************Susan, friend of Chris Bedford****************Cavera family, friends of Garris GrahamEsther Kopmann, mother of Sandy Norris****************John Gantz Isabella GonzalezDanielle Deck Gerald & Judi SmithKathryn Harum Garris GrahamDon Saupe Brad HedrickRick Riddle Dorothy GrahamPr. Ed Schneider Alan TammenTom Galyen Karen DeBauche****************Remember our shut-ins:Elaine Ebeling

Please keep all the members of St. Matthew Lutheran Church in your prayers as we work together to find a new Pastor who is a good match with our congregation so we can continue working together to be God's hands in the world.

Prayer Requests

Welcome!St. Matthew

Lutheran Church is a fellowship of Christian believers

called to: grow in Christ, share the Gospel, serve God’s people.

Do come again to St. Matthew

Lutheran Churchwhere you

are always welcome.

Worship with UsSaturday, 5:00pm • Healing Service on the 3rd Saturday of the month

A relaxed & informal worship held in the Christ Chapel.Sunday, 8:30am

Spirited traditional worship that focuses on participation throughthe liturgy, the great hymns of the Church and corporate confession of our faith.

Sunday, 10:45amPraise & worship in an open & accessible style. Christ ChapelThe chapel is always open for individual or group prayer.

A Word from Stephen MinistryStephen Ministers are laypeople trained to provide one-to-onecare to people experiencing a difficult time in life, such as grief,divorce, job loss, chronic or terminal illness, relocation, or sep-aration due to military deployment. Stephen Ministers comefrom all walks of life and share a passion for bringing Christ’slove and care to people during a time of need. We are here to lis-ten. If you would like to hear more about our ministry or are inneed of a caring ear, please contact Sarah Jackson or the church office.

ALTAR FLOWERSThe flowers on the altar this weekend are in given in cele-bration of Mary Sandwell’s birthday with love from herdaughter and son-in-law, Vickie & Bryan Hart. Happy birth-day, Mary!Help make our altar beautiful! Celebrate a birthday, anniver-sary, someone’s life or just because. The 2020 sign up sheetis located on the bulletin board in the narthex.

Jesus Christis the same,

yesterday,

today andforever.

Hebrews 13:8

KICK OFF YOUR WEEK WITH PRAYEREach week a group of St. Matthew members gathers in the chapel forinformal prayer – Monday mornings, 8:30-8:50am. All interested peopleare cordially invited to take part in this short service. In addition, anyprayer concerns may be brought to our attention prior to that time. Requests in writ-ing can be placed on the chapel altar on Sunday, as weekend e-mails to the churchoffice do not reach us in time. Best, bring your petitions in person Monday morning.

WEDNESDAY ADULT BIBLE STUDY Our Adult Bible Study on Wednesday's between now andLent will focus on a variety of subjects led by Jack Frost.He will start with the following topics: Adjusting YourFocus, Hope In Troubled Times, An Open Letter To The Weary, Why Doesn't GodAnswer my Prayer, and others. Join us in the Augsburg Room at 5:45pm.

PLAN NOW TO ATTEND THECONGREGATIONAL

MEETINGNEXT SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 23RD

BETWEEN SERVICESYour input and attendance are important to St. Matthew!

ADULT FORUM – THIS SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 16THWhat music is Sacred to you? Is all "Sacred Music" Classical? Traditional? What about Jazz? Can it be Sacred? Did you know that Dave Brubeck, the world renown Jazzpianist wrote Sacred Music? Come and find out at the AdultForum at St. Matthew on Sunday February 16, 2020.at 9:45 am in the AugsburgRoom.Dr. Derick Cordoba, our New Life Band leader, will lead the discussion on "TheSacred Music of Dave Brubeck."Derick writes: Jazz has had a connection with the church from its beginnings.Although sacred elements have been part of jazz since its inception, it was 1959that saw the creation of a legitimate Jazz Service by Edgar E. Summerlin. The1960s and 1970s saw an explosion of interest in jazz within religious institu-tions. In this presentation, I explore the sacred and liturgical works of DaveBrubeck. Brubeck was quite adept in both styles and his writing reflects bothinfluences. These works are another facet to his brilliant career as we celebratehis 100th birthday.

NEW ORLEANS MISSION TRIP UPDATEWe have just returned fromanother successful adult mis-sion trip to New Orleans. Wespent the week working ontwo houses in the lower ninthward. Both houses werehomes that had been inhabitedby long time residents of thatarea that were forced to leaveby the devastation fromHurricane Katrina. Slowly these residents can return to their homes with helpfrom groups like ours.Thanks to the congregation for supporting this outreach program. A specialthanks to those that supported us with money, cookies, and all the prayers.

God’s Work, Our Hands – John Warriner

MEN’S COFFEE THIS WEEK!Our Men’s Coffee group meets twice a month! All available STMmen are invited to gather for a cup of coffee & conversation on thefirst and third Tuesday of every month. Our next meeting will beTuesday, February 18th at 10:00am in the corridor outside Common Ground FoodCoop at Lincoln Square in Urbana. Men of all ages are welcome & encouraged tojoin our discussions.

RELIT THIS WEEK!The February book is entitled “The New Jim Crow” by MichelleAlexander. This is a book that galvanizes the debate about race in thecriminal justice system in a way that has never been done so clearlyand persuasively before. In this work Alexander advances her mainthesis that the criminal justice system disproportionately and pur-posefully targets people of color, rendering them veritable second-class citizens in the same manner as the Jim Crow laws of the late nineteenthand early twentieth centuries. Join us on Friday February 21st in the AugsburgRoom at 7pm to discuss this read, have some dessert and enjoy the fellowship.

HOPS & HYMNS NEXT SUNDAY!The next Hops & Hymns gathering at Riggs is Sunday,February 23rd from 6 to 8pm at Riggs Beer Company. Comemeet other Lutherans from the East Central Conference, joinyour friends and family members, and raise your voice insinging hymns and fellowshiping together. Everyone welcome!

STM QUILTERS HAVE A BIG YEAR AHEAD OF THEMThe STM Quilters are busy working on the quilts for our HighSchool Seniors. It is a big task this year with 6 graduating. It won’tbe long before May is here. With God’s help we will get it done. Ifyou would like to donate to this awesome ministry Gift Cards toJoann Fabrics would be greatly appreciated. We meet at 9:00 a.m.on the 2nd and 4th Tuesdays of each month. If you are interested in joining us orwant more information please contact Peg Warriner, 217-369-5433.

LADIES... LET’S PLAY BUNCOPlay a fast paced game, win great prizes, and have a lot of fun.Please bring your drink of choice. The next BUNCO Nightwill be Thursday, February 27thth starting at 6:00pm in theAugsburg Room. No need to sign up... everyone is welcome. Wehave a great time! Join the fun & bring a friend!!!

SOLA GRATIA WOULD LIKE TO PARTNER WITH YOUAre you a Thrivent member? Do you know someone who works withThrivent? Sola Gratia Farm has two projects we’d love to partner withsomeone on for Action Teams. One project is beautification of the farmwith perennial landscaping around some of the new buildings. The sec-ond project is a family-friendly event building bird nesting and perching structures.Contact Traci Barkley, [email protected] for more details!

FIRST FRIDAY FELLOWSHIPA new opportunity has started for St. Matthew members to gettogether out in the community. Our next First FridayFellowship will be March 6th and meet every first Friday of themonth at 7 am. We'll gather at the Harvest Market inChampaign where you can get a coffee, tea, or even some breakfast. Everyone iswelcome!

PRAYER SHAWL MINISTRY NEEDS YOUR HELP TO CONTINUE!Our prayer shawl knitter pool is dwindling. We are wonderingwhat to do about continuing to offer this ministry. We havegiven out 205 shawls to folks that have suffered illness, grief,etc. We currently have 8 shawls and some of us have more inthe works. If you would like to participate or help us keep this ministry going, pleaselet me or Gayla in the office know. Thanks, Mary Anderson, 344-3296

HELP SUPPORT OUR MISSION TRIP TEAMThe Adult Mission Trip 2020 Team will be going in February againthis year. We will leave on February 2nd and return onFebruary 9th.If you would like to support us financially, we could use some extra funding. Pleasecheck out the fund request envelopes on the easel in the narthex near the MissionTrip display. Many thanks to the folks who have already contributed to our trip.Even though we have places arranging work we don’t have the same housingarrangements and cost has increased substantially. Each participant pays motelswhile traveling and evening meal costs in New Orleans. Any help in this area wouldbe appreciated.As always, we appreciate everyone’s prayers and encouragement. Thanks to the StMatthew family we have been able to put a lot of people back in the comfort of theirown homes. God’s Work, Our Hands

– John Warriner

STM FOOD PANTRY The first full weekend of every month, we ask the mem-bers of our congregation to bring in items for our foodpantry. Our food pantry provides a week's worth of mealsto families within the community on a regular basis. Youcan pick up a full list of the items you can choose todonate in the narthex following our weekend service. Thank you all for your continued support to STM Food Pantry. We need torestock several items on our shelves. Cash donations are also welcome. Justindicate St. Matthew Food Pantry in the memo line of your check. Pleaseremember to take along this list of our needs. The following items are most needed at this time: vegetable soup, chickennoodle soup, canned pineapple, applesauce, canned peas, canned tuna,salad dressing, hot cereal, cornbread mix.

You are welcome to place items in the food box at any time throughout themonth also. If you have any questions about the Food Pantry or would like tobecome a volunteer to help make deliveries call the Church office at 217-367-1189 or Doris Gebauer at 369-6772.

STMFood Pantry

PREPARING TO BECOME: A MINI-RETREAT TO BEGIN LENTbased on the book Becoming Bread by Gunilla NorrisWe have understood from the beginning how dependent and vulnerablewe are. We have known that in order to live we will always have to receiveand care for the gifts of life. And we have also known that we must sharethese gifts. We are each given only so much time. And to make this timematter, in order to really live, we need to give, we need to receive. Bread,life, and love are fused in the soul of human experience. – Gunilla NorrisWHEN: Saturday, February 29 – 8:30 a.m.-noon (space will open at8 a.m. for those who want to visit with other participants before the retreat starts)WHERE: St. Peter's United Church of Christ COST: $15This retreat explores bread as an image for transformation. We will experience a wayof prayer that combines elements of lectio divina and Sylivia MacBeth's Praying inColor as we make "pocket journals" and Lenten kits with scripture, poems, images andmore to use throughout the season. We will end our time together with Communion. RETREAT LEADERS: Rev. Connie Tapp Bandy and Barbara England REGISTER by emailing Pastor Connie at [email protected] (payment dueon the day of the event by cash or check, please) or by sending your name and contactinformation, along with your check, to Community UCC, 805 S. 6th, Champaign, IL61820. Please indicate that you are registering for the retreat. Deadline to register isFEBRUARY 22.More details are on the bulletin board outside the chapel.