Got Debt?
A message from Pastor Holly Aastuen

If you are like a lot of people in the United States, you are experiencing or have recently experienced debt.
Though debt is something we all go through, it seems that more people than usual are experiencing burdensome debts.

Last week I heard on the radio that fully 1/3 of all Americans go into debt during the Christmas shopping season. The most common reason, they found, that people go into debt is because of advertising. Parents, especially, get the impression that they are not good parents if they don’t get their kids the latest things.

The funny thing is that those who receive the gifts don’t care what they cost. The ones who care most about the cost of the gift are the givers. Those receiving the gift are happy if they get what they’ve always wanted or sense that the giver put some thought into the gift.

Since debt is something many of us wake up to in January following the December shopping frenzy, we are offering a four-week course during the Sunday School hour on debt and how to get a handle on our impulses to overspend. Starting Sunday, January 8 and going through Sunday, January 29 we will be discussing the book Enough: Discovering Joy through Simplicity and Generosity by Adam Hamilton.

The book puts it this way: “Money has great power in our lives and, when used wisely, helps us meet our goals, provide for our needs, and fulfill our life purpose. But in recent years, many of us ignored this when managing and spending our money. We found ourselves spending tomorrow’s money today. The result of all of this was not greater happiness and satisfaction, but greater stress and anxiety.

“Enough is an invitation to rediscover the Bible’s wisdom on prudent financial practices. Find the keys to experiencing contentment, overcoming fear, and discovering joy through simplicity and generosity. This book could change your life by changing your relationship with money.”

I’m planning to preach a series of sermons on simplicity in January. Both the sermon series and the class are good opportunities for you to come and learn more about how to manage your money. Perhaps you could bring along a friend who is going through the same struggles, too.

Books are available in the office for only eight dollars. Make an investment in your future and give yourself a gift that will give you more peace and joy in the year to come.

On the journey,

A New Year of Growth:
Healthy Church Initiative
Come to church on Tuesday evening, January 24, to hear about where we’ve been and where we are going as a church. We have invited Dan Johnson, Director of Congregational Development, to come and speak to us about a new process in the United Methodist Church, a process aimed to help medium-sized churches grow in spiritual, numerical and missional vitality. The intentional two-year process includes congregational preparation; a weekend consultation; preparation and adoption of an action plan, on-site and telephone coaching; peer learning group participation; evaluation on spiritual, numerical and missional growth goals; and defining next steps for continued health and vitality. We will also be receiving the reports from our work in the congregation over the last year.