Jul-Aug 2018
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Grace MESSENGER UM Church Millsboro, Delaware July-August 2018 Volume 45 Issue 7 Ponderings from the Pastor Dear Grace Friends, So, here we go! As we all settle in together I know that you might be curious about a few things. So first, I am NOT unpacked yet! There are still many boxes of books in my office and at the par- sonage, but with prayer, diligence and the help of friends, things are slowly finding their appropri- ate places. And yes, there probably will be a forthcoming ser- mon series on possessions and de-cluttering—and perhaps Sunday even a de-cluttering challenge for all of us! Worship Please be patient with me as I seek to learn your names; do Contemporary not hesitate to tell me your name so that I can pronounce, 8:30 am spell and call you your preferred name or nickname. Naming is an almost holy thing, for our identity is wrapped up in our Traditional names. Naming is important in scripture--for God and Jesus 10:30 am call folks by name into relationship and service. To know someone’s name is to honor them and to affirm their sacred worth. And that is what I want you to know—that I value your sacred worth as a child of God. Summer Church Office Hours I preach from what is called the Revised Common Lectionary [RCL], which is a three-year cycle of weekly lections Tuesday-Friday [scriptures] and is built around the seasons of the Church Year 8:00 am - 3:30 pm [the cycle of the Church Year begins on the First Sunday of Advent], and includes four lections [scriptures] for each Sun- Friday - Pastor’s day, as well as additional readings for major feast days. I will Day Off primarily focus on one scripture for preaching each Sunday. Grow in Christ Through Grace, Faith, Love and Service During most of the year, the lections [scriptures] are: a reading from the Hebrew Bible [Old Testament], a Psalm, a reading from the Epistles, and a Gospel reading. The Gospel readings for each year come from one of the syn- optic gospels according to the following pattern: Year A is Matthew, Year B is Mark, Year C is Luke and readings from the Gospel of John can be found throughout the GRACE UNITED RCL . We are currently in Year B, which means that the METHODIST CHURCH Gospel will be predominantly from Mark. The RCL helps P.O. Box 566 preachers and congregations to hear and read a breadth Millsboro, De 19966 of scripture and keeps us from the temptation of only fo- 302-934-7969 cusing on a few texts. The RCL is a way of moving us www.gracechurchmillsboro.com through the Bible in three years. You can find out more Recorded Info Line about the at this link from Vanderbilt Divinity Library [a 302-934-5637 UMC seminary] https://lectionary.library.vanderbilt.edu/ faq2.php. I have already had the pleasure of gathering with the Church Staff: choir, of dining with our guests and servers at the Grace Karin Tunnell, Pastor Church Soup Kitchen, and with the kids and teachers of pastort@ VBS — what a blessing to be with each of you, and I look gracechurchmillsboro.org forward to our other Fellowship Gatherings. Pugs Sam- son & Delilah, Luke and Coby the cat are settling in as Dawn Zimmerman Dir of Family Ministries well and I thank you for your inquiries of their welfare. You [email protected] will find that I love to teach, to take lots of photos, I love to sing and ring bells, to paint and garden, to laugh and Megan Bunting, Admin Asst make cards and more. [email protected] Again, my heart is filled with gratitude for your warm and Ronnie Wootten, Custodian generous welcome - I’m excited to be at Grace and I look forward to the plans God has prepared for us! Editor: Jesus Christ In Christ’s peace and blessing, Asst Editor: Charlotte Hastings Pastor Karin Please feel free to contribute articles, news events or cartoons to The Messenger. E-mail your information to: [email protected] Articles for the September Messenger Are Due August 22, 2018 New Members William Davis Summer Longenecker Jennifer Lee Devan Hall Barbara Martin Craig & Janet Brown PASSING THE TORCH Fondest Farewell Warmest Welcome GGrace AAction PPartners I would like to thank everyone for your continued support of GAP, Grace Action Partners. We may be more aware in the cold winter months of needs in the community but the needs continue in the summer months as well. Possibly some of you may be wondering what is GAP? Grace Action Partners was formed many years ago, by members of Grace, to assist members of Grace and the community of Millsboro. As the word GAP suggests, the purpose of this mission is to stand in the GAP during a time of need. GAP assists families with electric bills, heat bills, rent, maybe a prescription, to name of few possibilities. We work with Love Inc (Love in the Name of Christ) in their outreach and we refer requests to Love Inc to be vetted for assis- tance, unless the assistance is for a Grace member or friend. GAP is not included in the church budget but is funded by donations from Grace members and friends. Donors and donations, and the names of those we assist, are kept anonymous. Dona- tions can be made by making a notation on your offering envelope of how much you would like to designate specifically to GAP. It can be a weekly, monthly or a onetime donation. Jesus said, “I was hungry and you fed me, I had no clothes and you clothed me”. GAP has been and is your chance to help keep the lights on or help someone keep the roof over their head. Your support has allowed Grace Church to be a blessing to many. Thank you for your continued support. And if you have any questions please get in touch with me, I would love to talk with you further about this local mission. Blessings, Judi Thoroughgood Thank You to Cari Ossman and Teena Milligan for Coordinating a Wonderful VBS! As We Know, Jesus Rescues! JOOY Ministry The JOY Committee has been busy preparing for a great Beach Party on July 28. Get your tickets this Sunday in the Lobby. Thanks, Pastor Karin, for this great picture!! Update from Your Finance Committee Budget: We ran further behind our giving versus our spending in the month of June. The deficit is in the $20,000 range. While the exact figures are not in, I wanted to write this report before I left for vacation. Stewardship: If you are like me, there are passages in the Bible that have a very particular and special meaning. For me, the 25th chapter of Matthew 34-36 is such a passage: “Then the King will say to the people on the right, come, you that are blessed by my Father! Come and possess the kingdom which has been prepared for you ever since the creation of the world. I was hungry and you fed me, thirsty and you gave me drink:” There was a time in my life that was pretty messed up, with my mother running away with another man. Unemployment, drinking, gambling at the track, and being one step ahead of the bill collectors were the order of the day. There was no church, no devotions, and no acknowledgement of our God at all. There was also the time that I was homeless on the streets of Union City, New Jersey. There were two things I remember most about my situation. The first, when homeless, was all the people that passed by without helping and avoiding any kind of eye contact. It was as if I did not exist. The second thing I remember is walking into a church and really wanting to be in that church or any church! As time moved on, the Lord took care of me, and I ended up with my father, who was a great person of faith. I can think of many times the Lord interceded in my life. As a result of my past, there happens to be two things that are very important to me. The first is being part of a church, and the second is stewardship or using our resources as a church to make a difference in people’s lives. I have had four churches in my life; Grace because I moved to Delaware, Bethany Presbyteri- an which was my first church that I walked to when I was 11, Southminster Presbyterian when I moved to Maryland, and Good Samaritan Presbyterian when I moved to Southern Maryland. Dur- ing my time in the Presbyterian Church I heard many squabbles over issues such as seating ar- rangement, type of music, stained glass windows, what time the services should be etc. All these things mean or meant nothing to me. What does mean something is when the person was hungry, did we give him food, or thirsty, did we give him drink? I am so thankful to be a member of Grace Church, where we do give food, drink, and shelter. I am thankful to walk into a church building and worship our Lord. I delight in putting a check in the offering envelop, knowing that some good will be done with those monies. I am so thankful that the Lord has blessed me in so many ways since the streets of Union City, New Jersey! Coming: Estimation of Giving Cards to be mailed late October early November Narrative and Number Budget to be mailed in late October early November as well Ken Zuiderhof Finance Committee Chair We are now recruiting for teachers, childcare, and administration for next year’s ESL programming.