Pastor Vern\'s Top Ten

1. Prime Timers Gathering in November The next Prime Timers gathering is on November 11 at noon in the North Campus café. Subs will be provided for this meal. Also we will be collecting items for the Salvation Army food pantry in anticipation of Thanksgiving needs, specifically cranberry sauce or jelly, cream of mushroom soup, bags of dry stuffing mix, gravy and green beans. Prime Timers is a fellowship gathering for everyone 55 years old and over (although no one will be turned away!). We look forward to seeing you there!

2. Christmas is Coming! We’ve been thinking about Christmas and we’re looking forward to a wonderful celebration of Christ’s birth! This year we are bringing back “Vintage Christmas” – our community-minded festival that will be held in our “backyard” on December 3 and 10 from 6-8pm. We’re looking for some volunteers to help us make this a wonderful time for everyone who attends. We need people to read, stoke the bonfire, help in the parking lot, serve as trail guides and more. If you can help out, please try to attend the information meeting on November 7 right after the second service in Room 2/3. And thank you!

3. Legacy Journey Class Rick and Sara Kent began a Legacy Journey class focusing on financial health this past weekend, but it’s not too late to join. The class meets on Sundays at 9:30am and it is suggested that participants have attended Financial Peace University at some point. This is a video/discussion group and Rick and Sara will be covering the following topics:
•November 7 "The Law of Great Gain"
•November 14 "Safeguarding your Legacy"
•November 21 "Generational Legacy
•December 5 "Called to Generosity"
For more information contact Pastor Marsha at marsha@northgatefmc.com.

4. Communion Please note that our next communion observance at North will be the weekend of November 6 and 7. We now have communion services the first weekend of every month. If you will be taking in the service from home or elsewhere online, please be sure to have your communion elements ahead of time!  

5. Great Day of Giving Each year at Thanksgiving we seek to focus on how God has blessed us as a church by blessing others. We do this through a special offering called the “Great Day of Giving” and then we share that offering between local agencies that provide help to people, a global missions project and a capital project here. This year the offering will be taken on November 20 and 21 and will go to: Genesee Cancer Assistance; the Mental Health Association; the Suicide Prevention Coalition; the new Gahanda, Rwanda Free Methodist Church sanctuary; and the playground being planned for our North Campus. Thank you for your generous giving to this offering.

6. Thanksgiving Meals for Migrant Families For many years now we have been packaging and delivering bags of groceries to migrant families living in our area. These bags provide the families with everything needed for a wonderful Thanksgiving meal. They also are an expression of our love for these families. Even though the leader of this project, Rosalina, has moved to Buffalo to be closer to family (insert sad face here!) she continues to return to Northgate and make this happen. Thank you, Rosalina! If you’d like to help with the cost of the groceries, it’s usually around $30 and you can note that your gift is for “Thanksgiving bags”. You can also help by praying for our local migrant families or with the distribution of the groceries. For questions, contact Pastor Chris at chris@northgatefmc.com.  Thanks!
 
7. Get to Know Northgate The first three Sundays of November the Northgate pastors will rotate leading “Northgate 101” at 9:30. This group will provide an opportunity to learn more about Northgate, ask questions of the pastors and also serve as the “Membership Class” for anyone who is interested in membership.  Sign-ups aren’t needed – and all are welcome, whether you are new to Northgate or have attended for many years!

8. Mothers Of Preschoolers (MOPS) MOPS is meeting this Fall in person! The group held a kickoff service this past Wednesday and there is a wonderful year planned.  One change to note is that MOPS will be meeting at our North Campus this year (8160 Bank St. Rd. Batavia) and meetings will be held on the 2nd Wednesday in the morning and the 4th Wednesday in the evening.  For more information contact Pastor Marsha.

9. Summer 2022 Mission Trip Being Planned Pastor Daniel is in the beginning stages of organizing a summer 2022 mission trip to Gyor, Hungary. He will be looking to take 5 or 6 people with him, including youth, and this team will be providing a Vacation Bible School for a group of kids at an orphanage in Gyor. Some of us did a similar trip a few years ago and I can tell you that it was a wonderful time of ministry. If you are interested in learning more, please contact Dan: daniel@northgatefmc.com.

10.  Join Pastor Daniel for Game Nights Pastor Daniel is hosting game nights at South, on Monday nights from 6-8pm. A variety of board games are provided, and people of all ages are invited to come and bring a friend. This is a great time to get to know some new people and form more connections in the Northgate family. For more information contact Pastor Daniel at daniel@northgatefmc.com.

To learn more about these opportunities, or to suggest an idea for a group or a gathering, or to inquire about reserving space at the church or the pavilion you can always email the office (office@northgatefmc.com) or call 343-4011. You can check out our website too (northgatefmc.com).

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You Can Count on This – Romans 2:21 – You, then, who teach others, do you not teach yourself? You who preach against stealing, do you steal? (Read Romans 2:17-29)

Paul doesn’t hold back as he addresses his Jewish audience. In this passage he tries to help them see that being of Jewish lineage doesn’t automatically make anyone “right” with God. Believing that it does can lead to a self-righteous attitude in fact. Paul’s point is that we need to have a heart that is right with God – not rely on our ancestry or our own evaluation of our behavior.

As Christians we can fall into a similar kind of problem. It’s not uncommon for people to think that they are right with God because they live in a predominantly Christian nation. Or because they come from a family where Christ was worshiped in former generations. Or because they know what’s right and wrong. If we are basing our salvation on any of those things, we are missing it. We need hearts that have been given to God, receiving His love for us poured out by the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross, and trusting in what Jesus has done for us.

When we trust in ourselves, as opposed to trusting in Jesus, we can become arrogant and proud and act like we are more holy than others, when in fact we are, in our hearts, still sinners in need of grace and forgiveness. When we humbly come before God and acknowledge our sinfulness and believe in Jesus, we are made new and truly become righteous and holy in God’s sight, even as we understand that He is making us righteous and holy in all ways.

Trust in Jesus, and not in self, and let God do His good work in you!

When you’re not sure what you can count on in the world around you, know this: You can count on God keeping his word.  So read what God has to say in scripture!  And count on it.

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