SIT AND BE FIT continues every Wednesday at 11:00 a.m. in the Conference Room. PJ Isaac is the instructor. Come and enjoy this exercise for the rest of us!

WEDNESDAY BIBLE STUDY meets every Wednesday at 7:00 p.m. in the Conference Room. We gather for study of the text for the following Sunday’s sermon as well as a time of sharing joys and concerns. Come join us.

ROOM IN THE INN continues every Monday night as twelve homeless neighbors join us in the Fellowship Hall for a hot meal and a warm place to sleep! Thanks for your help. You can sign up in the narthex or online at http://tinyurl.com/room-in-the-inn-charlotte . Please call Gary McLaughlin at 704-641-6647 with any questions or to let him know how you would like to help.

Our ONE GREAT HOUR OF SHARING offering will be received on Easter Sunday, April 4^th. Since 1949, Presbyterians have joined with other Christians to share God’s love with people experiencing need. Our gifts support ministries of disaster response, refugee assistance and resettlement, and community development that help people find safe refuge, start new lives and work together to strengthen their families and communities.

 Recognizing that the hope we have in Christ is lived out in our hope for one another, we respond with gifts that help our sisters and brothers around the world find the hope for a brighter future.

 The Presbyterian Hunger Program receives 36 percent of undesignated One Great Hour of Sharing gifts, while the Self-Development of People and Presbyterian Disaster Assistance each receive 32 percent.

 Other special offerings this year include Presbyterian Homes on May 9^th; Pentecost on May 23^rd; Grandfather Home for Children on June 20^th; Crisis Assistance Ministry on July 11^th; Peacemaking on Oct, 3^rd; Thanksgiving/Barium Springs Home for Children on Nov. 21^st; and Christmas Joy on Dec. 19^th.

We sent $2,227 to Presbyterian Disaster Assistance for HAITI RELIEF. Thanks for your generous support following the earthquake.

COMMUNITY LENTEN SERVICES continue  at Noon in our Sanctuary every Wednesday through March 24th. Following the thirty-minute service we’ll enjoy a light lunch in the Fellowship Hall.

 Peggy Bridgers will preach on March 10^th and Commonwealth United Methodist will provide lunch.

 Mike Harris will preach on March 17^th and Kilgo United Methodist will provide lunch.

 Garry Baldwin will preach on March 24^th and Midwood Baptist will provide lunch.

 On Easter Morning, April 4^th, we’ll gather in Midwood Park for our Commnity Easter Service at 7:30 a.m. Breakfast will follow worship at Kilgo United Methodist Church.

  During Holy Week our Community Service will be held on Good Friday, April 2^nd at Noon. We will not eat together on Good Friday.

 On Easter morning, April 4^th, we’ll gather for worship at Midwood Park at 7:30 a.m. Breakfast will follow at Kilgo United Methodist Church.

Tom’s Tidings

Dear Friend,

Did you know that 2010 is Loaves & Fishes’ 35^th anniversary? Established in 1975 as a single pantry at Holy Comforter Episcopal Church, Loaves & Fishes has grown to a network of seventeen pantries and served 102,638 people in 2009. “Believing that all people in our community should be able to meet their basic hunger needs and that we are called to share our resources, Loaves & Fishes’ mission is to provide groceries and support to people in crisis.” We can help by bringing extra food to Plaza on February 14^th and 21^st. Priority needs include canned meats, soup, canned fruit, peanut butter, and 100% fruit juices. With the double-digit unemployment rate in Mecklenburg County the need for this service remains great. Thanks for your help.

Elsewhere in the newsletter you will find the schedule for the rest of our 2010 special offerings.

On February 17^th, Ash Wednesday, our Community Lenten Services will begin at Plaza. I hope you’ll be able to join us for worship at noon each Wednesday and a light lunch at 12:30. (Maybe you can even “sit and be fit” for an hour before worship begins!) Lent evolved as a time for training of Christians, especially those preparing for baptism as well as those who were returning to the community of faith. It is a six week period for all of us to focus on what it means to be a follower of Jesus Christ. “The liturgies throughout Lent try to pry loose our fingers, one by one, from presumed securities and plunge us into unknown baptismal waters, waters that turn out to be not only our death tomb, but surprisingly our womb of life. Rather than falling back into nothingness, we fall back upon everlasting arms.” (p. 32, Liturgical Year, Supplemental Liturgical Resource 7)

Grace and Peace,

 Tom