2015 Dec Blaine Visitor - Blaine Christian Church
Transcription
2015 Dec Blaine Visitor - Blaine Christian Church
December 2015 Blaine Christian Church VISITOR Important Upcoming Events: With just celebrating Thanksgiving and seeing the beautiful snow on the ground, we’re reminded that Christmas is just around the corner. I love the season of Advent - it’s a season of anticipation and preparation. If you haven’t already, I encourage you to pick up your Advent Devotional booklet in fellowship hall at church. Each day focuses on a different Christmas Carol or song. Use it to help prepare your heart for Christmas and to help you anticipate the wonder of the gift of Christ. Our theme this year is “Believe.” Our Cantata on December 20th will focus on this theme. Our banner, so graciously made by Mary Lou Noble, reflects this theme as well. This Advent season, we have a choice. As we hear the story of Christmas, do we believe it? And if we believe it, will we receive it and live like it makes a difference? John 1:12 reminds us, “Yet to all who received Him, to those who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God.” What a tremendous gift - the best gift ever! What a reason to celebrate Christmas! Believe In Christ, Lynda Faber, Worship Chair Sundays - Worship at 8:30 & 11 am Sunday School at 9:45 am Choir Practice, 6 pm Mondays - Lois Ministries, 1:30 pm Boy Scout Troop 10, 7 pm Men’s Bible Study, 7 pm at Blaine Tuesdays - Men’s Bible Study, 7 pm at Little Eden Camp Dec 1 - Dine Out for BACN Dec 2 - Board Packet Deadline Dec 2 - Fellowship Hall RSVD Dec 3 - Elders, 4 pm Dec 4 - Stone Soup, 6:30 pm Dec 5 - Women’s Tea, 2 pm Dec 6 - Cupboard of Love Collection Day Dec 6 - Christian Ed Meeting, 7:15 pm Dec 7 - Potluckers, 5:30 pm Dec 9 - Annual Congregational Board Meeting, 7 pm Dec 11 - Shepherd Ministry, 9:30 am Dec 12 - Secret Friends Reveal, 11 am Dec 13 - Youth Breakfast, 9:40 am Dec 13 & 20 - Christmas Offering Dec 14 - Men’s Prayer & Breakfast, 8:30 am Dec 15 - Benzie Academy Dinner Dec 20 - BACN Collection Sunday Dec 20 - Potluck Brunch, 9-9:30 am Cantata Service, 10 am Christmas Program, 6 pm Dec 21 - Christmas Caroling, 4:45 pm Dec 24 - Christmas Eve Service, 10 pm Dec 25 - Merry Christmas! Dec 28 - Year end Contributions deadline FROM WHERE I SIT DECEMBER A man approached a construction site and noticed three workers shoving dirt out of a long ditch. He asked the first man what he was doing. The guy looked at him and sneered, with a “surely-you-can-figure-it-out” kind of look, and said, “Digging a ditch”. He then walked up to the next man and asked the same question. The reply was only slightly more-kind, “I’m makin’ a living. Just makin’ a living. Gotta feed the wife and kids, you know.” But when he asked the third man what he was doing, the guy answered with a great deal of excitement and pride, “Sir, I am creating part of a masterful set of irrigation channels that are going to turn this dry ol’ valley into a garden rich with produce to feed the world’s hungry!” It’s amazing, isn’t it, how much satisfaction we find when we look past the seemingly meaningless chores and minor failures of today and see the bigger picture of tomorrow! That’s especially true when that picture is one that serves the needs of others. When you are making jewels for the Lord’s Crown, as opposed to just polishing rocks, well… Our Long Range Planning Team has been working diligently since early in the year, listening and discerning, attempting to catch a vision and then distilling it down into manageable tasks. Lots of prayer has gone into this process. And my hope is that much excitement will follow. The Prophet Habakkuk says that God’s vision waits for an appointed time. And that even though it may appear to tarry, wait for it, because it will surely come. I am looking forward to see what the Lord will do in our midst in the days and years ahead! Yours in Christ, Pastor Bob ANNUAL CONGREGAIONAL BOARD MEETING Wednesday, December 9, 2015 7:00 pm in Fellowship Hall Mark your calendars and plan to attend. We need a quorum in order to complete the business of the church. Board Packet information and reports are due in the church office by December 2nd. Please have your reports print ready. Complete Board Packets will be available to pick up in fellowship hall on Sunday, December 6th. MONTHLY FINANCE UPDATE 2015 General Fund Budget: Monthly General Fund Need: Weekly Need: Received January 14,774.14 February 12,447.94 March 17,494.00 April 14,740.25 May 18,173.00 June 16,416.00 July 16,557.00 August 16,211.75 September 15,597.67 October 14,310.50 November 16,177.70 Total + / - $205,686.50 17,140.54 3,955.50 Over / Short - 2,366.40 - 4,692.60 + 353.46 - 2,400.29 + 1,032.46 - 724.54 - 583.54 - 928.79 - 1,542.87 - 2,830.04 - 962.84 -15,645.99 SERVING IN DECEMBER DECEMBER 8:30 a.m. Praise & Worship Service Birthdays Worship Leader - Sarah Esper Greeter - Wendell Temple Usher - Rita Temple 11:00 a.m. Traditional Service Elders - John Blight, Russ Tiller Worship Reader - Tom Brown Diaconate Servers - Mary Lou and Skip Noble, Steve Barth, Julie Zych Greeter - John Byers Usher - Linda Byers Diaconate Preparer - Shirley Felt CANTATA SUNDAY, DECEMBER 20th ONE SERVICE AT 10:00 AM POTLUCK BREAKFAST 9:00-9:30 AM SERMON SCHEDULE DECEMBER 2015 Dec 6: 1st Reading: Malachi 3:1-4 2nd Reading: Luke 3:1-6 Title: “I Will Send My Messenger” Dec 13: 1st Reading: Zephaniah 3:14-20 2nd Reading: Philippians 4:4-7 Title: “Rejoice Always” Dec 20: Cantata Sunday One Service at 10:00 am Dec 27: 1st Reading: Colossians 3:12-17 2nd Reading: Luke 2:41-52 Title: “After the Festival Was Over” 1 Sharon Blight, Phillip Putney 2 Michael Miller 6 Janet Copher, Kathryn Mathieu 7 Walt Kline 8 Charlotte Putney 12 Everett Zych 11 Brady Larimer 14 Jim Bekkering 16 John Byers 26 Erica Jager 28 Keith Jewell 29 Claira Putney, Shannon Gillison 30 Rebecca Tanner Anniversaries 2 Brian and Dodie Putney Dave and Sue Micinski 4 Don and Natalie Rau 6 Alfredo and Amber Cruz 15 Greg and Kathryn Mathieu 22 Don and Rita Leitz January Newsletter Deadline December 24, 2015 Information can be e-mailed or dropped off at the church office. DECEMBER FELLOWSHIP HOSTS 12/6 12/13 12/20 12/27 9:30 am Charlotte Putney 12:00 Noon Jager Family TROOP 10 Thank you to the Congregational Fellowship Committee for their help at our Veterans Day Dinner. We greatly appreciate all the work that went into this special evening. Potluck Breakfast 9:00-9:30 am DATES ARE AVAILABLE TO HOST! Check the list and sign up when you can. If there is no host signed up, feel free to serve coffee, juice or tea. Thank you from the Fellowship Committee. PIE DAY THANK YOU We would like to thank everyone that helped make our pie day successful! We made 856 pies and it was made possible with all our volunteers; from rollers to packers, delivery people, lunch and snack committee, dough makers and runners, clean up and set up and people to sell. What fun we had and look forward to next year. Sonja Reitan & Julie Zych CHRISTMAS TREES for SALE We are selling Christmas Trees at Northwoods Lodging on US-31 in Beulah. Sales have already begun and will go through Christmas Eve. 2015 YEAR END All year end bills, reimbursements, and contributions to be posted for the 2015 year must be received in the church office by December 28, 2015. Anything received after January 1, 2016 will be posted for the 2016 year. SHARING WITH OTHERS THIS SEASON SECRET FRIENDS REVEAL Saturday, December 12, 2015 11:00 am Our reveal party will be at Dee Lathwell’s home. We will bring one last gift for our friend to reveal who her Secret Friend has been all year long. After the gift exchange there will be a light brunch. Please call Dee Lathwell 882-5777 if you are unable to attend. If you can’t be there, please see that there will be a gift for your friend and a card to reveal your name. As you celebrate this season, think too about how you can share with someone else with a gift to Benzie Area Christian Neighbors, Habitat for Humanity, Love INC, or our Mission Discretionary fund. All these funds help those who are in need of help with basic living needs and with special circumstance in their lives. Checks can be made out and sent to the organization or to the church and marked in the memo for the fund you desire. These gifts may be given in honor or memory of someone as your Christmas gift for them. WOMEN’S CHRISTMAS TEA Saturday, December 5th 2pm Fellowship Hall This tea is for all the women of the church and will offer Christmas goodies, tea, fellowship and a Christmas devotion by Mary Lee. We will have special music by some Benzie Central choral students too. This is a wonderful gift to give to yourself and a friend as you look forward to Christmas. This special event is planned by Women’s Ministries. CHRISTMAS PROGRAM Sunday, December 20th, 6:00 pm This is always a special evening for our church as the children, teens and their families of the church present the message of the Christmas story in fun and creative ways. Participants will come at 5pm for snacks and to prepare for the 6pm presentation. All children and youth are encouraged to be Sunday school the next two weeks to practice. Following the program will be a time of fellowship and Christmas goodies. Mark your calendars and plan to come and enjoy this evening with our children and youth and their families! CHRISTMAS CAROLING Monday, December 21st, 4:45 pm Each Christmas season those that enjoy singing are invited to come and join others in Christmas Caroling to our more shut in folks in the church family. This is a wonderful way to bring a musical greeting to some who would love to be in worship with us, but because of health reasons are unable to come each week. Please meet at the church at 4:45. Plan to add your voice to this group and help brighten the day of a church family member. There will be chili and hot chocolate following at the church. POTLUCK BREAKFAST Sunday, December 20, 2015 9:00 - 9:30 am The Congregational Fellowship Committee wishes everyone a very Blessed Christmas and all the best for the New Year. We invite you to join us for a Potluck Breakfast before the Christmas Cantata Service on December 20th. We will eat between 9 - 9:30 am. Clean-up begins at 9:30 am. Bring a dish to share and your own table service. CANTATA SUNDAY ONE SERVICE Sunday, December 20, 2015 at 10:00 am The choir will be presenting the cantata: “BELIEVE: The Truth of Christmas” during a combined worship service at 10:00am. Once again this will be a wonderful opportunity for the church family to all worship together and prepare their hearts for the birth of Jesus. The praise team will also help lead worship. Make this special Sunday part of your families’ Christmas celebration this year. CHRISTMAS EVE SERVICE December 24, 2015 at 10:0 pm On this holy night we will gather to celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, through music, scripture, communion and candlelight at 10:00 pm. It will be a special evening as we hear again the story of how God sent His son Jesus into the world as His great gift of love and the way to salvation for all those that believe in Him. This great gift of love calls for a response from us, to share this love with those we see each day. Plan to come and welcome Jesus once again into our world. GROUP FELLOWSHIP IN DECEMBER Lois Ministries - Mondays, 1:30 pm, Small Sanctuary Lois Ministries is a ministry for mothers and grandmothers. They meet in the small sanctuary and pray for family, grandchildren and great grandchildren. Call Shirley Felt if you would like to join the prayer group. 231-864-4420. “Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise; give thanks to Him and praise His name. For the Lord is good and His love endures forever; His faithfulness continues through all generations Psalms 100:4, 5 Men's Prayer & Breakfast - Monday, December 14, 8:30 am Meet at the Lighthouse Café in Elberta for prayer, breakfast and fellowship. Order and pay for your own breakfast. For more information, please call Skip Noble 352-7035. Lunch with Friends This group will not meet in December. Stone Soup - Friday, December 4, 6:30 pm Bring a dish to share; we will provide table service and drinks. Come for a great potluck dinner, short devotion and fellowship. Frank and Bonnie Putney at 4624 Joyfield Road are your hosts. Everyone is welcome to attend. Please call Bonnie at 352-4940 if you have any questions. Potluckers - Monday, December 7, 5:30 pm This group will be meeting at the Waterson’s home on Homestead Rd. Bring a dish to share and come for some good fellowship and then the choral concert at Benzie Central High School. Teapot Ministry Teapot Ministry is a visit with our Blaine Friends who may be homebound. The visit includes a tea party which we provide. To be a part of this ministry, please contact Bonnie Putney, 352-4940. The Benzie County Community Chorus Presents Our Christmas Concerts CHRISTMAS DINNER at BENZIE ACADEMY Tuesday, December 15, 2015 December 11th & 12th, 7:00 pm Frankfort United Methodist Church Christmas Dinner at the Benzie Academy will be Tuesday, December 15th. We are looking for volunteers to prepare and/or donate food items to go along with turkeys for this special luncheon for approximately 65 students. Please contact Steve VanDePerre or Nina Margetson for details. December 13th, 3:00 pm St. Andrew Presbyterian Church A free will offering will be taken. YOUTH NEWS Our Middle School/High School youth enjoyed a breakfast together on Sunday, November 22nd and a time of fellowship and study after breakfast. This is a monthly event prior to Sunday school in the youth area. The December date is Sunday, December 13th. They will also work on the Christmas program presentation. NEW WOMEN’S BIBLE STUDY COMING IN JANUARY “RESTLESS” by Jennie Allen This eight session Bible study will look at the life of Joseph and explore how gifts, suffering, places, people, and passions can help you see how valuable you are to God. The study will begin on Tuesday, January 5th with a morning and evening session offered. The study book is approximately $10. Please sign up at the church (or call the church) by December 15th to be part of this study. Invite a friend to come and do the study with you. 11,889 Gospel Opportunities Collected for our Great God! There have been a lot of roadblocks along the way this year to get here-health issues, financial challenges, time constraints, etc. Satan doesn’t like a ministry that spreads the name of Jesus and has thrown everything possible our way. Thank you for your commitment this year and now let’s stay tuned to see and hear what God does with these shoe boxes. Their journey is just beginning and the rest of the story has yet to be heard. I am honored to serve with each and every one of you. May God’s blessings and peace be with you, Laura, Samaritan’s Purse Area Coordinator Operation Christmas Child, NW Michigan Area SHEPHERD MINISTRY December 11, 2015 at 9:30 am The purpose of the Shepherd Ministry is to have a shared responsibility for the ministry at Blaine Christian Church by visiting the homebound and sharing Communion with them if desired. It may also include those who can make it to church, but might need a little more connection with the church. If you are a part of this ministry, or are interested in being part of it, please join us for a meeting in the upstairs classroom on December 11th at 9:30 am. GREAT DAY Thirty-eight women attended the “Hearing the Whispers of Jesus” retreat on November 14th. They enjoyed great study and discussion, singing, food and fellowship. A special thanks goes to Jill Geers who facilitated the morning and to the Christian Education committee for hosting this event. SUNDAY SCHOOL Our church offers Sunday School classes for ages 2years-adult that meet each week at 9:45am. There is also childcare for those under age 2 years if needed. Sunday School is a wonderful way to grow in your understanding of the Bible and to spend time with others in the church family. The children and teen classes will be using some of the Sunday School time each week to prepare for the Christmas program, so please try to have your children and teens present each Sunday. MEN’S BIBLE STUDY Two Men’s Bible studies are currently meeting through the church. One on Monday evenings, 7pm at the church. The other on Tuesday evenings, 7pm at Little Eden Camp in Onekama. For more information, talk with Gary Waterson. BENZIE AREA CHRISTIAN NEIGHBORS benziebacn.org DINE OUT for BACN December 1st Eat at partner restaurants and they donate 10% of your bill to BACN. This month’s partners are Dinghy’s in Frankfort or The Thistle at Crystal Mountain Resort. BACN COLLECTION SUNDAY December 20th Please bring canned goods and dry goods – consider giving potatoes, jellos, veggies, pie ingredients—Christmas Dinner ingredients! 2804 Benzie Hwy, Benzonia, MI 882-9544 Received in Congregations December 13 and 20 The invitation at Christmas is to believe again. The word from the church is to Believe in a deeper Hope that moves beyond “wrappings” of Christmas around us. We proclaim a Hope that brings Good News, Joy and Compassion for all of God’s People. One deeper hope made real in our MI region is to sustain Crystal Conference Center where children and youth find hope and Christ’s love in a community of faith that embraces everyone. Benzie Academy “Cupboard of Love” Collection Sunday, December 6th Benzie Academy, Benzie County’s Alternative high School has 67 students this year; half boys and half girls. December 6 we will collect items for the students – look for the blue tubs to put your offerings in. Winter is coming and hot chocolate, coffee, tea would be appreciated. Also needed are hats, scarves, gloves (work and warm), coats, sweatshirts/ hoodies and blankets. Benzie Bus passes/ punch cards for school and work make a good donation. Sarah Esper, Benzie Academy teacher, will be glad to answer any questions. Operation Christmas Child Thank you for all your donationstoys, toothbrushes, hats, school supplies and postage. Our goal was to pack 75 or more boxes at the packing party. With everyone’s help we packed 107 boxes! We also collected 104 boxes packed by individuals for a grand total from Blaine Church of 211 boxes! LoveINC Safe Harbor (Shelter for the Homeless) Love INC works with BACN in Benzie and North Manistee County. Safe Harbor is one of the ministries that is offered only by LoveINC. It takes many, many people to welcome, host, feed supper and breakfast, and spend a night at the center. The shelter needs more help at the Port City Warming Shelter December 5-11 and at the Manistee ISD Dec 19-Jan 1. Help would be greatly appreciated. Please call Robin Paulus at LoveINC 231-7236613 or Bonnie Putney at 231-352-4940. PREVIEW TO LONG RANGE PLANNING GOALS DOCUMENT BLAINE CHRISTIAN CHURCH NOVEMBER, 2015 Your Long Range Planning Committee (LRPC) believes it will be helpful to read this Preview before diving into the Long Range Goal Statements themselves. We hope the Preview provides for you a context, and for some Statements, an explanation, in advance of questions that may enter your mind when reading those Statements. A complete document, including an introduction and the Long Range Planning Statements themselves will be available in the very near future. The LRPC has been meeting periodically since February, 2015. We have been striving to discern God’s will for the future of Blaine Christian Church. Our pondering, prayers, and deliberations have resulted in a list of long range goal statements that will be presented shortly to the congregation. As your committee articulated long range goals we concluded that it was important to keep them clear and uncluttered, with the focus on goals, and not the means by which they should/could be achieved. You will notice when reading the goal statements that they are very general in nature. That is by design, so the Boards and Committees responsible for implementation will have maximum freedom and flexibility to shape them in specific ways, calling upon their own experience, expertise, wisdom, and insight. However, as we developed goal statements, the deliberative process inevitably led to ideas we shared with each other regarding the attainment of those goals. So, the committee decided to attach those ideas in the form of “matters to consider” by the groups that will be responsible for developing action plans for achievement of these goals. In the final document, which you will soon have, they are not included as mandates, or even recommendations: they are simply matters that we would like others to consider. When you read the goal statements, you will notice that some of the topics included for future planning are already being done today. Their inclusion is not an oversight. Your committee simply desires that some of the most significant activities of the life of our church today are addressed for the future as well. There are also many activities carried out by the church today that are not included in the long range planning document. They are not considered unimportant by the committee by any means. We also believe that it is important for everyone involved in any way regarding the formation of specific action plans and strategies that develop from our long range planning document to carry with them the responsibility of stewardship throughout this important long range planning process. Indeed, it is essential for each of us to consider prayerfully how the resources we have been provided by God can be used to help us become the church that Jesus Christ desires us to be. Committee members are grateful for the leading and direction provided to us individually and collectively by the Holy Spirit in this endeavor. As the long range goals and related matters for consideration were developed, we didn’t vote. They were formed and articulated by considerable conversation and deliberation. Not all committee members are in favor of every statement in the document that will soon be available. There is clear consensus on each one, however. It should also be noted that survey results, conversations with committees, notes given to us, and comments from individuals, all indicated that the Blaine Church community is generally pleased and grateful for the quality of life and ministry experienced by our congregation. We did not feel called as a committee to recommend dramatic changes to how we live out our church life in Benzie and northern Manistee Counties. We on your Long Range Planning Committee thank you for the honor of serving in this capacity, and we trust that you will find the context provided by this document to be helpful when you read the long range recommendations themselves. Our Mission Our purpose at the Blaine Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) is to live and share the love of God as revealed in Jesus Christ through the guidance of the Holy Spirit. Together, we seek to learn, teach, hear, minister, support, grow and worship as a community of faith. As Christ’s disciples, we accept the call to reach out with God’s love to those outside the church. Thus, as part of the Church Universal, we intend to serve both the physical and spiritual needs of our immediate community and the world. To this end we commit ourselves to witness and serve in the fellowship and traditions of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). Blaine Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) 7018 Putney Road Arcadia, MI 49613 Rev. Robert D. Larimer, Pastor (231) 352-9148 www.blainechristianchurch.org email: [email protected] SUNDAY MORNING SCHEDULE 8:30 a.m. Praise & Worship Service 11:00 a.m. Traditional Service 9:45 a.m. Sunday School Coffee & Fellowship following services.