As we begin a new year in our “Life Together” at Resurrection, all of us on the staff would like to express our heartfelt gratitude for all of you, our partners in ministry. It is a joy and a privilege for us to work with you here in this place, and we are especially grateful for your kindness and support displayed in the monetary gift you gathered for us at Christmastime. Thank you!

Lent is quickly approaching this year. Ash Wednesday is February 6^th, and Easter will be on March 23 – one day shy of the earliest it can be. When I talked about the liturgical church year in my sermon the weekend of the Epiphany of Our Lord, I described each of the church seasons as a time of invitation. The word “Lent” comes from an Anglo-Saxon word that means “springtime.” Lent then is to be a holy springtime of the soul – an invitation to reflect on the quality of our relationships: with God, with others, even with our own self.

Relationships is a prevalent theme among us these days at Resurrection. In the first two World Café events, there were repeated references to the importance of relationships for welcoming others into the body of Christ and for nurturing faithful discipleship. These relationships take on many forms: one-on-one, in small groups, large fellowship events, and in worship. I hope you will join us for one or both of the remaining World Café events to help us further explore how we are doing in fulfilling our congregation’s Mission Statement (on February 9 and March 3 – see additional information elsewhere in the Bell Ringer).

It is important for us to nurture relationships, not only for our personal benefit, but also to help draw others into relationship with God. It is a truism that for a congregation to successfully navigate the turbulent waters of growing larger, it must paradoxically grow smaller. We Lutherans love paradox. The answer to this one is through small groups. We have made a commitment to small group ministry at RLC through the ChristCare Series, developed by the folks at Stephen Ministries. You can find information here in the Bell Ringer about signing-up for new groups launching this month. ChristCare is our primary model for small groups, but it is not the only one. If you are interested in starting a group other than a ChristCare group, please talk to one of the program staff and we will do our best to help resource the group.

The theme of relationships is even found in our strategic planning process: Life Together. This is a grant initiative of the Indianapolis Center for Congregations that seeks to support strategic thinking and acting within congregations. As we move through this spring, we will be drawing to a close the “strategic thinking” phase of the grant. In April, we will submit a plan for the “strategic acting” phase. Much has yet to be decided and discussed before that plan can be submitted – and, of course, we will do that in relationship – dialoguing and listening to one another so that we might discern the will of God for our congregation.

It is certainly the will of God that we draw closer – to God and to one another – and Lent is an invitation for us to do just that. Please join me on this journey of faith together.

First Communion Class . . . .

Lent signals the beginning of our class for children preparing for their First Communion. The class will begin Feb. 10^th, and will meet immediately after the 10:45 Sunday morning worship service. This fun and fast-paced half hour is for both the child preparing and his/her parents. Most of the preparatory work is done, then, at home. At the completion of the six weeks, an individual interview session is held with Pastor, child and parents meeting together to determine if the child is ready to commune. Their First Communion will be Maundy Thursday, March 20^th.

The following 4^th & 5^th graders, as well as other youth not yet prepared are welcome. Please contact the church office if your child’s name should be added to this list.

Chad Burton Benjamin Fleet

Madaleine Fleet Eric Mullinix

Benjamin Poore Alexis Rasmussen

Emily Welch Kenna Welch

Feb. 6^th at 7:00pm

A service of

repentance and renewal

with imposition of ashes

Lenten Suppers at 5:30 . . . .

Simple Lenten Soup Suppers will begin Feb. 13^th at 5:30pm in the Fellowship Hall prior to the 7:00 Lenten Vespers.

Please come and enjoy a simple meal and good fellowship. A free-will offering will be taken at the door.

If you are interested in organizing an evening soup/salad meal, please contact Teresa Hoffman or Margie McCoy. We are requesting to keep the meals simply soup and salad.

Lenten Vespers at 7:00 . . . .

A quiet, meditative time for worship using the hauntingly beautiful music of Holden Vespers, with piano and flute. This brief, 40 minute service will feature reflective music, time for prayer, and a short meditation on a reading of Scripture. Let this time be a “still point” for you in this contemplative season.

New Member Class at 7:45 . . . .

Would you welcome a “refresher” in the basics of the Christian faith as Lutherans articulate it? Do you have a friend who is searching who you could invite and accompany? Pr. Dave will lead the discussion in the Fellowship Hall during the Wednesdays of Lent, concluding at 8:30.

As you may have read in the Indianapolis Star, the Perry Township School Board approved a new 30-year lease with the Indianapolis Parks Department at its January 14^th meeting. As a part of the presentation, Dr. Joseph Wynn, the Director of Indy Parks, also mentioned that the Parks Department has continued its conversations with Resurrection, to explore the possibility of expanding the park’s parking space at the north end of the field adjacent to our property. If that were to occur, any future expansion of our own parking lot could then be connected to the Parks Department parking that is adjacent to our property and the Parks Department and Resurrection could share that Parks Department parking area. Several of the School Board members commented on the "win-win" nature of such an arrangement.

We at Resurrection are obviously aware of the "win" for us, as any future expansion of our facility would be critically hampered by the loss of present parking. We also believe that an improved and shared parking arrangement with the Parks Department would be a "win" for our community as well, as we always have desired to preserve the "green space" and recreation area of the park that neighbors our property.

In these coming weeks, we will continue the conversations with the Park Department to fine-tune the legal details of any arrangement that would mutually benefit us. Obviously, our congregation has not yet officially voted to expand. Any formal arrangement with the Parks Department will include deliberate actions of both the RLC Council and the congregation, after plenty of time for communication and dialogue.

It is with great hope and a profound sense of answered prayers, however, that we share this "update" on where we stand right now – a very different place than we stood only months ago. We are grateful for the work of our Future Facilities Ministry Team, as we indeed hope we are now free to begin in earnest, as a partner in our "Life Together" process, to discern where God is calling us into the future.

The next Men's Breakfast will be Saturday Feb. 9^th. We will be reviewing chapters 17 and 18 of the book, The Measure of a Man. Even if you haven't read the chapters you can still benefit from some great conversation and some bacon and eggs!

All men are invited so please consider joining us. Breakfast starts at 7:30am and the study and conversation lasts until 9:00am. Here's a New Year's resolution you can keep!

❆ Thank you for all of your prayers and support for me and my family during my husband, Dave Lawson’s final illness and his passing. Many thanks to Pastors Dave and Mitch for their hospital visits, and to Pastor Dave for his words of comfort at the funeral. – Dottie Lawson.

❆ Thank you to those who contributed food to our fall food drive for Hunger, Inc. We donated 475 pounds of food!

❆ Thank you January S.S. Discipleship Crew Members: Adrien Paquin, Bobbi Poore, Samantha Doughty, Jessie Edelman, Amanda Giorgianni, Scott Buie, Connie Wiernicki, and Ann Buie.

❆ Thank you for being adult leaders on the Faith Builders/Youth Group annual fellowship weekend skiing: John Toney, Lisa Doughty, Bill Messer, Chris Wise, Pr. Mitch, and Julie.

World Café

Upcoming Dates:

Saturday, Feb 9, 9:00am

Monday, Mar 3, 6:30pm

Come join the fun!

We are half way through the series of four World Café events that are part of the Life Together grant process. The World Café is a unique model of conversation to talk about questions that really matter. Each World Café event is looking at one of the four lines in our Mission Statement. The World Café is no stale, boring church meeting. It is a highly energetic event and people are surprised how quickly the two hours goes by. The conversations are held around tables of four or five people. In each successive round of conversation, people move to different tables and pick up the conversation with a new group of people. Here’s what some people are saying about our first two World Café events:

“It was wonderful to see how so many different people had so many great ideas and viewpoints to share. I look forward to attending the last two sessions and meeting more new people.”

“The World Café experience was very positive! In a very short couple of hours, I was amazed at how many wonderful ideas, hopes, examples, and opinions were shared. We were free to share things we felt RLC was doing well, and things we felt that RLC could do better. It felt as though we were all helping to energize a part of RLC's mission and vision statements.”

“We were impressed with the vision and expertise of so many members of our congregation. They also have the ability to lead us to the future whatever that may be.”

“The World Café provided a wonderful chance to engage in thoughtful conversation and learn a bit more about others in the process.”

“This is fun – I’m really sorry I missed the first one.”

“I liked filling up the table covers with notes and drawings.”

– New ChristCare Groups –

Time to sign up!

On February 10^th we will commission four new ChristCare Leaders at the 8:00am worship service: Aaron French, Chris Hoffman, and Mark & Peg Copenhaver. These leaders will have gone through forty hours of training with Pastor Mitch in preparation for their ministry of leading a ChristCare group. They – along with some veteran ChristCare Leaders – will be launching new groups in February. Each group will begin with an eight-session series titled, Beginnings, which serves both to teach newcomers about ChristCare and to help new groups get off to a great start.

Here is some brief information about the new groups. For more details, or to learn more about ChristCare in general, see the ChristCare display in the Narthex across from the restrooms.

Aaron French (862-6541) – will meet every two weeks on Sunday evening from 6:00-7:30 in their home in Franklin Township. Aaron and Kathy are veteran ChristCare participants with two children and plan to have childcare at their home for group members during meetings.

Chris Hoffman (859-6853) – will meet the 1^st and 3^rd Thursdays of the month from 6:30-8:00 at the church. Chris and Teresa have participated in ChristCare groups previously.

Mark & Peg Copenhaver (834-1100) – will meet twice a month on Sunday evening (tentatively 6:30-8:00) in their home, or alternating in group members’ home. Mark and Peg have been interested in participating in ChristCare, but logistics have been difficult, so they wanted to provide a group for people who live further south (and anyone else who would like to make the drive – they live about 40 minutes from the church in Morgan County).

Mike & Chris Wise (887-5975) – will meet two Sundays a month from 5:45-7:15 in their home (west of SR 135 off Stones Crossing). Mike and Chris are veteran ChristCare Leaders, this will be their second group.

Barb Schlicher (784-6895) – meets the 2^nd and 4^th Sundays from 4:00-5:30 at church. Barb has been leading this group for a couple of years; the group has recently lost some members so they are looking for some new people to join them and start again with Beginnings.

Pastor Mitch Phillips (885-2331) – will meet two Fridays a month, tentatively from 7:00-8:30 at church and/or in group members’ homes. One of the outcomes of Pr Mitch’s sabbatical was a desire to be “in the trenches” with the ChristCare Leaders and lead a group himself.

During the weekend of February 2 and 3 the Youth will be collecting a noisy offering in stock pots for the annual Souper Bowl of Caring Sunday. This year our collection will help dig a well with Lutheran World Relief. To dig a well we will need to collect $1,000. We currently have a little over $500 with the help of Discipleship Hour Offerings. Remember each time you get a drink of water out of the faucet, somewhere there are people walking for hours to retrieve fresh, clean water. It would be great to dig a well; but it would be even better to help build an entire irrigation system for $5,000. Remember Souper Bowl of Caring weekend, February 2 and 3!

S.A.M.’s Club . . . .

Drive away the winter blahs . . . . join us for a steaming hot soup lunch, fellowship and games. See you at 11:30am on Feb. 18^th in the Fellowship Hall. All adults are invited.

Playtime Port Sign-up . . . .

Playtime Port ministers play with the children in the nursery during worship service or Discipleship Hour on Sunday mornings. They assist the paid staff with playing, reading, entertaining the children but never need to change a diaper! If you are interested in this ministry, please sign-up on the bulletin board in the Narthex!

Friendship Trek -

Jesus, Our Forever Friend . . . .

Grab your gear and join Friendship Trek, on an amazing hike through the Bible to meet Jesus, our forever friend. Kids explore five friend-filled Bible stories about Jesus. Each day will begin at Trailhead Opening where kids meet their Friendship Circles along with singing, praying, and beginning the day with Alex, our trail guide.

If you are interested in being a part of the Friendship Trek team, please contact Julie Peralta no later than February 15^th. The Friendship Trek team plans, organizes, and promotes VBS (Yes, you can be part of the team, but not participate in VBS daily.) Email julie@rlcindy.org or call the church office 881-7854. Vacation Bible School 2008 will be the week of June 9-13^th.

Saturday Pizza Pick-up . . . .

Thank you for supporting the RLC youth once again this year by purchasing pizzas! The youth will be creating your pizza selection on February 2^nd and requests your pizza order be picked up on Saturday, Feb. 2^nd between 4:00-5:30pm. Please keep in mind the pizzas need be refrigerated and the church does not have enough refrigeration space to store pizzas that are not picked-up. Thank you again!

WELCA

Bible Study

The next WELCA Bible Study will meet Thursday, Feb. 14^th at 9:30am. All women are invited!

Lenten Film Festival

Community

Lent is a traditional time in the church year for reflection, repentance and renewal. It is particularly a time of intentional focus on the cross of Christ and its central place in our lives. Contemporary culture might be seen as an enemy of Lent, a tempting distraction from the central focal point of Christian life. A Lutheran understanding of the cross, however, would insist that the cross proclaims the truth that God is everywhere, even where we would least expect to find God. If God appears with his redeeming love, even in the sin and horror of the cross, in the despair of tragic death, might not we also find God anywhere in the world: even in the movies?

Four years ago, as a part of Pr. Dave’s sabbatical studies, we began a series looking at where spirituality and faith might be found in contemporary cinema, capped by a “Film Festival” during the Saturdays in Lent that examined images and metaphors of Christ in current movies. Pr. Dave has continued to host a “Lenten Film Festival” each year, picking exceptional films based on a common theme, usually including “classics,” some family-friendly films, and occasionally a few challenging offerings.

This year’s lineup of truly excellent films – all of them multiple award-winners – are again chosen with the theme of “community” as we continue here at Resurrection our “Life Together” grant process. The films will be screened in the Fellowship Hall at 6:30 (or immediately following our 5:30 worship) and will conclude with a brief discussion. Beginning with two older classic movies that examine the essence of community, we will move to two delightful family films, and conclude with two Heartland Film Festival winners from last year.

Note: If you are not able to join us for the screenings or discussion, you are welcome to pick up “discussion guides” at the church office which outline a simple process of “digging deeper” into spiritual themes in any movie. Two outstanding films with powerful themes of “community” that Pr. Dave wanted to highlight this year, but are not yet available on DVD, are “The Kite Runner” and “Lars and the Real Girl.” These two films may still be playing – don’t miss them!

February 9, 6:30pm “Cinema Paradisio” (1990 – Rated PG for thematic elements)

A celebration of youth, community, friendship, and the magic of movies. A famous film director returns to his childhood home in small Sicilian village, remembering his mentor Alfredo, the projectionist at the Cinema Paradisio.

1990 Oscar, Golden Globe Best Foreign Film – Cannes Grand Jury Prize

Directed by Giuseppe Tornatore, starring Philippe Noiret, Salvatore Cascio, Antonella Attili

February 16, 6:30pm “The Best Years of Our Lives” (1946 – Rated G)

Three WWII veterans return home to small-town America to discover that they and their families have been irreparably changed.

Won 7 Oscars, including Best Picture and Director, 1946 Golden Globe Best Picture

Directed by William Wyler, starring Myrna Loy, Fredric March, Dana Andrews, Virginia Mayo

February 23, 6:30pm “Charlotte’s Web” (2006 – Rated G)

Help comes from above for Wilbur the pig as Charlotte spins her web, connecting the community of animals and humans in this film adaptation of the children’s classic.

Won several film festival awards for best family film, visual effects

Directed by Gary Winick, starring Dakota Fanning, Julia Roberts, John Cleese, Oprah Winfrey

March 1, 6:30pm “Ratatouille” (2007 – Rated G)

A comedy with great taste – Remy the country rat arrives in Paris, dreaming of becoming a famous chef, while fighting the wide chasm separating the worlds of rats and humans.

Won 2008 Golden Globe Best Animated Film, multiple pending nominations

Directed by Brad Bird, starring Patton Oswalt, Ian Holm, Lou Romano, Brad Garrett

March 8, 6:30pm “The Ultimate Gift” (2006 – Rated PG)

Some things are worth more than money....trust fund brat Jason Stevens is sent on an improbable journey of discovery, as his deceased grandfather leaves him a way to find the “ultimate gift.”

2006 Heartland Film Festival Crystal Heart Award for Dramatic Film

Directed by Michael Sajbel, starring Drew Fuller, James Garner, Abigail Breslin, Brian Dennehy

March 15, 6:30pm “Bella” (2007 – PG-13 for thematic elements and brief disturbing images)

True love goes beyond romance...Jose, a former international soccer star sits on a beach and recalls a life-changing day with a waitress named Nina and the family and faith that transformed them.

2007 Heartland Crystal Heart, Grand Prize; 2006 Toronto Festival People’s Choice

Directed by Alejandro Gomez Monteverde, starring Eduardo Verastegui, Tammy Blanchard

RLC Parents and Kids . . . .

Lenten Family Faith Talk

Lent begins on Ash Wednesday, when Christians around the world gather to have the sign of the cross marked on their foreheads with ashes. The ash cross we wear on Ash Wednesday is a way of saying, “I am sorry for my sins, and I know I need to be forgiven.” When we look in the mirror, it is a reminder to ourselves that we need to be forgiven and to forgive others. Although Ash Wednesday seems like a serious day, it is also hopeful, because the cross reminds us that God loves and forgives us. Each day is a chance to start over.

During these next five weeks take time to read scripture, share in caring conversations, do a service project together, or create a tradition.

Some Scripture Suggestions:

♦ Psalm 25, 19, 34, 51, 138, 130

♦ Matthew 4:1-11; 25:31-46; 6:7-15; 7:7-12

♦ Luke 11:29-32

Service project that may become a tradition suggestion:

♦ Toward the end of Lent prepare Easter baskets for the homebound and deliver on or close to Easter.

Kids Club . . . .

All 1^st through 5^th grade kids are invited to join Kids Club on February 10^th from 12:15- 4:00pm. We will be having lunch at church followed by swimming at Indy Island. Adult volunteers are invited to help with transportation and join the fun. Sign-up across from Julie's office.

Faith Stepping Stone #6 Surviving Adolescence . . . .

All 5^th graders and parents are invited to five weeks of learning how to survive the adolescent years! We will meet on Sunday mornings from 9:30-10:30am in the RLC Fellowship Hall beginning on February 10^th.

2008

Summer Camp!

There is no experience like camp – meeting new friends, playing games, exploring the wilderness, and hearing stories told about God around a campfire. Check-out the brochure on the bulletin board across from Ms. Julie’s office; RLC youth who participated last year are featured!

Not sure if camp is for you? Plan to participate in Children’s Day on Saturday, June 7.

FaithBuilders will be attending Confirmation Camp at Lake Luther during the week of June 15-20.

RLC Parents and Kids . . . .

B2K . . . .

B2K (Birth to Kindergarten) is going to The Gymnastics Company on Sunday, February 24^th. We will meet there at 12:30pm for pizza followed by an instructor assisted session until 2:30pm. The cost is $5.00 per child, adults are free. Please sign-up on a bulletin yellow response form so we can have enough pizza available. As always, older siblings are welcome to come along. Map and directions are located on the bulletin board across from Julie's office.

Faith Stepping Stone #1

“My Baby” . . . .

All parents with babies 0-18 months, or anticipating a birth or adoption will continue the Faith Stepping Stone session on Sunday, February 3 (9:30-10:30am) for learning faith practices and getting to know other RLC disciples. Then on Sunday, February 10^th we will celebrate the blessing service during the 10:45am worship service followed by a potluck lunch in the RLC Fellowship Hall.

Fever Free Please . . . .

During the cold and flu season, please make sure your children are “fever free” for at least 24 hours before they use the nursery on Sunday mornings. Our Child Care Ministry Team cleans our nursery toys weekly, but this “fever free” policy will help reduce the spreading of colds and the flu. Thank you for your cooperation.

“Lord’s Prayer”

For the next 5-week Discipleship Hour rotation the children will be studying the Lord’s Prayer. Jesus’ words, recorded in both Matthew and Luke, were a response to a request from his disciples: “Lord, teach us to pray.” Jesus’ reply has become a central, virtually unchanged piece of our Christian worship. The prayer is spoken on behalf of others, and echoes with voices from the past, present, and future. The emphasis is on community rather than self. Through this concern for others, expressed in prayer, we can feel connected with God.

In the coming weeks, take time to explore prayer along with the children of RLC. Come join the S.S. Discipleship as they set sail learning about prayer through Games, Computers, Cooking, Art, Drama, and Movies. Jesus prayed often – in the morning, in the evening, at any time of day. He prayed for his disciples, for the healing and liberation of others, for strength and discernment in his ministry, and he took time to give thanks for God’s good gifts. During these five weeks of the Discipleship Hour rotation in Lent please take time to pray for the children, their families, and our Crew Leaders.

Home Devotions

How can I continue to strengthen my faith when away from church? Go to www.rlcindy.org and click on Home Devotions in the left column to be redirected to Ready-Click-Grow from the Youth & Family Institute. Here is an example from the Bible-n-Life section: Pray-Read-Talk Devos.

A Friend is a Friend is a Friend -

Pray: Lord, you are a loyal friend, always there for us. Help us become true friends, not simply fair-weather friends. We want to be the kind of loyal friends that the Bible encourages, friends that are there no matter what. Amen.

Read: A friend is always a friend, and relatives are born to share our troubles. Proverbs 17:17

Read it again.

Talk: 1. What is the Bible passage saying to you?

2. Why do you think this passage is important?

3. What questions do you have about the message?

4. How can family members (or friends) help each other live out the passage?

Remember the Taking Faith Home sheets that are in our weekly bulletins. These have daily bible readings, prayer suggestions, along with discussion questions.

Pilgrimage Summer Trip

Are you interested in designing our 2008 YG trip t-shirts? Please give your design to Julie Peralta no later than February 24! Remember our pilgrimage trip will include traveling to northern Wisconsin and a week of canoeing along with exploring the back country.

ELCA College Tour 2008

We are taking another ELCA college tour over Spring Break! We will depart RLC on Sunday, March 30 and return on Saturday, April 5. Our tour will take us to Augustana College (Illinois), Wartburg College (Iowa), Luther College (Iowa), Augsburg College, (Minnesota) St. Olaf College (Minnesota), and Valparaiso University (Indiana). If you did not receive detailed information and are interested in participating in the 2008 college tour, please contact Julie Peralta soon! Remember the deadline to register for the trip is February 24^th.

Adult Sunday 9:30 Discipleship Hour This Lent . . . .

Life Together:

SEX GOD by Rob Bell

Everyone knows we live in a sex-obsessed world. Here’s the last straw – now in church?

Yes, in church. Should not a faith community be the place with the most honesty and vulnerability and prophetic culture – calling things what they are? Should not a faith community be guided by the Spirit and by Scripture to critique what is broken in our culture and affirm what is godly? In recent years it seems that when the church addresses sexuality at all, it has been in the narrowly-focused and politically-charged context of homosexuality. Our own ELCA church body has been guilty of this; indeed, a commissioned study document on human sexuality is due later this spring, but many expect the only attention it will garner will be the paragraphs dealing with homosexuality.

As we continue our “Life Together” emphasis at Resurrection, is there a better way to discuss one of the most intimate and powerful experiences of community? We hope so. Pr. Dave will facilitate a discussion based on Rob Bell’s new book:

Sex God: Exploring the Endless Connections Between Sexuality and Spirituality

Sundays in Lent 9:30 Discipleship Hour In the Sanctuary

Interested? Perhaps this starred review from Publisher’s Weekly will help:

“Bell raises the bar with this evocative follow-up to last year's bestseller Velvet Elvis. "Is sex a picture of heaven?" he wonders. It's all about God and sex and heaven, he says: "...they're connected. And they can't be separated. Where the one is you will always find the other." Bell's book isn't a sex manual, an exploration of the differences between men and women or a marriage how-to, though all of that is here. Instead, it's the story of God becoming human, of humans mirroring God and love made manifest in the chaos of our humanity. Sex God is about relationships revealed in a way that elevates the human condition and offers hope to those whose relationships are wounded. In Bell's spare, somewhat oblique style, he addresses lust, respect, denial, risk, acceptance and more. His love for God and the Bible is clear, as is his ability to ask probing questions and offer answers that make readers think deeply about their own lives. He does a fine job using the Bible and real life to show that our physical relationships are really about spiritual relationships. This book joyfully ties, and then tightens, the knot between God and humankind.”