March 2021 CONTACT Monthly Magazine of the Richmond Town Methodist Church For Private Circulation Only Redeemer On A Mission Luke 4:18–19 "The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor." INSIDE Pastoral Letter 03 News 05 Announcements 06 Praise and Prayer 08 Accepting Nurturing from the church 13 Thinking Through: What it means to be a Woman in God’s eyes? 14 Missionary Chronicles 18 Gratitude and Thanksgiving 21 Poem: Grace Defined 23 February Events 26 5 Bible verses to know on ‘Sacrifices’ 27 Area Bible Study Groups 28 RTMC Weekly Activities 29 Youth and Sunday School 30 PASTORAL TEAM Rev. Sebastian Ravi Kumar Senior Pastor cum D.S. Jesus replied: "'Love 9480216971 the Lord your God with all your heart and Rev. Vivek A. Gundimi Associate Pastor with all your soul and 9632729007 with all your mind.' This is the first and Rev. Ebenezer Isaac greatest Associate Pastor commandment. 9880602410 Matthew 22:37-38 CONTACT Richmond Town Methodist Church 4, Kingston Road, Richmond Town, Bengaluru 560025 2 Phone: CONTACT (080) 22210269/22272732 March 2021 Email: [email protected] / [email protected] Website: www.rtmc.church / YouTube Channel: RTMC AVT PASTORAL LETTER Dear people of God, Greetings, to all, we bless you in the name of our Lord and savior Jesus Christ who has called us to himself by His grace. It brings us great joy to serve the Lord along with you all. We continue to pray sincerely for a season of Spiritual renewal as we experience the Holy Spirit’s stirring in our hearts. We are living witnesses of God’s goodness and mercy. So, we praise and thank God for each of you, for your love, support and your partnership in the ministry of Jesus at RTMC. As we enter into a new month, we look forward with great expectation and anticipation for the magnificent move of God in our community. We thank God for the month of February and everything that the Lord has enabled us to do. Our theme for the month of March is ―Redeemer on a Mission‖. In the gospel of Luke chapter 4:18-19, we read Jesus declaring that one of the several aspects of his mission is to preach good news to the poor. In so doing, he echoes Isaiah’s theme of good news about restoration and the deliverance of God’s people. In the context of Jesus’ words in the previous chapter (Acts 1:8), the most important element of this mission involves the Holy Spirit testifying of Christ to all peoples. While evangelism is central to the mission of the Church, Luke also suggests that we should also not neglect the Spirit-empowered mission. Luke 4:16-30 recounts the opening scene of Jesus’ public ministry in Luke’s Gospel. Luke provides some key elements in Jesus’ ministry. Here Jesus applies the words of Isaiah 61 to his own ministry: The Spirit anointed him to bring liberation to those in need. First, his 3 CONTACT March2021 mission was to proclaim good news to the poor. Throughout Jesus’ ministry in the Gospel of Luke, he indeed emphasizes God’s care for the poor (Luke 6:20; 16:22) and the responsibility of others to care for them (12:33; 14:13; 18:22). (Sometimes he even miraculously provides food for hungry crowds.) Jesus also came to free captives and liberate the oppressed; while Jesus did not literally break people out of prisons, Jesus certainly freed those who were oppressed by the devil (Luke 13:12-14; Acts 10:38). Likewise, in line with Isaiah’s prophecy, Jesus came to heal the blind, like the blind man by the Jericho road (Luke 18:35). Indeed, He later healed Saul of both physical and moral blindness (Acts 9:18; 26:18). The announcing of good news in Isaiah 61, which Jesus quotes, points to us of God comfort to the suffering Israel with a promise of restoration. This is good news for the people of God, a message that God is ready to demonstrate his reign, or kingdom (Isaiah 52:7). In Jesus’s day, many Jewish people had settled again in their land, but they still longed for God to redeem, restore, and exalt Israel. Jesus, in his person, not only preaches that good news but embodies it, for he is the savior of the world. Jesus’s message in the Nazareth synagogue in Luke 4 offers a stark warning for us today. The Spirit has empowered us to cross cultural and other barriers with Jesus’s message, a message of concern for people, a message of justice, liberation, and salvation. To do so effectively, however, we must be ready to go beyond the assumptions of our own nation or culture, to side with whatever God declares in his word. Jesus wants to bring his followers into unity with one another, beyond all our ethnic, nationalistic or other prejudices. May we continue to carry on the mission of bringing the good news about God’s kingdom and caring for people’s needs. For the Savior’s sake, Pastoral Team 4 CONTACT March2021 NEWS ANNOUNCEMENTS THANKS We thank the RTMC Members for generously contributing towards all the needs of the Online Church ministry and we are also grateful to you for praying for the Ministry platforms of RTMC. WEDDING Congratulations to the newly married couple: Glen Winston Sukumar Wed Namrata Rachel Francis on 3rd February 2021 at Richmond Town Methodist Church, Bangalore. CHURCH REOPENS SERVICES The Church reopened after the Lockdown on 27th September 2020 for the 9:30 a.m. service by observing all precautionary measures in the context of COVID 19. We have resumed our Morning regular services and Dawn Services following the “Guidelines and Protocol for Church Services” circulated in all our RTMC Whats App Groups. ONLINE SERVICES The Church will continue to have Online/LIVE Sunday Services for its members. We will make available Online Services and Resources as there be need. Please visit our Website as we try to reach you: www.rtmc.church and YouTube Channel: RTMC AVT and also Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rtmc2/. 5 CONTACT March2021 ANNOUNCEMENTS OFFERTORY SUPPORT "Give Thanks by Giving Online." We have much to be thankful for! Give to make a special ―Thanksgiving Gift.‖ Even when the weather is bad and you can’t make it on a Sunday, you can fulfil your Offertory support! You can use the RTMC Online feature to give your offerings and funds. This creates a safer flow of cash for RTMC because we know when we can expect your support, and it allows you to participate in giving even when you can’t make it here. QR CODE: You could also scan the QR Code below to make your offerings towards the ministry of RTMC. 6 CONTACT March2021 ANNOUNCEMENTS You could also set aside your offerings and tithes and bring together when you visit the Church Office and also when you come for the Church Services in the forthcoming months in 2021. Do continue to pray that we will return to normal by His healing and grace - till then take all precautionary measures and stay safe. RECEIPTS We want to express our sincere thanks to you for your financial support towards the ministry of our Church through Tithes and contributions. Kindly collect your receipts kept at the Church entrance. E- TRANSFER As an added convenience, the Church offers the facility of e-transfer for tithes and contributes to the ministry of the Church. Kindly note the bank details and transfer intimation for the purpose. BANK DETAILS Name of the Bank: South Indian Bank / Saving Bank A/c Account Name: Richmond Town Methodist Church Account No.: 0108053000025806 Address: South India Bank, Brigade Road. IFSC Code: SIBL0000108 Kindly email the details of transfer to [email protected] or [email protected] in order to prepare receipts for the same. Acknowledgment: We thank Rev. Paul Royappa who ministered in the month of February 2021. We welcome Rev. Percis Peters and Rev. Jesu Karunkaran to the pulpit ministry for the month of March. 7 CONTACT March2021 Prayer Calendar March 2021 ―Prayer does not change God, but it changes him who prays.‖ - Soren Kierkegaard “May my prayer be set before you like incense; May the lifting up of my hands be like the evening sacrifice.” Psalm 141:2 March 1 Leviticus 20:26 Praise God for His Holiness. Pray for a fresh glimpse of His holiness and a deeper conviction of Sin in our hearts. March 2 Colossians 1:17 Praise God that He is infinite. Pray for a humble spirit to acknowledge our finiteness and be encouraged by His infiniteness. March 3 Malachi 3:6 Praise God that He is unchanging (immutable). Pray that we would depend on His unchanging faithfulness in the midst of challenging changes. March 4 John 5:26 Praise God that He is Self-sufficient and therefore our provider. Pray for increased God – reliance and less of Self- reliance for each of us. March 5 Job 11:7 Praise God that He is Omnipotent – all powerful. Pray for the intervention of His Power of behalf of those who are fighting injustice in our world. 8 CONTACT March2021 March 6 Isaiah 46:9-10 Praise God that He is Omnicient – all knowing. Pray for God’s wisdom to researchers medical personnel, statesmen, bureaucrats as they help our world out of the pandemic and its ensuing problems.