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The Echoes Contributions AUGUST 2020 July 26, 2020 In This Issue Be Flexible .............................................3 CHURCH OFFICE HOURS General Fund Change of Plan .......................................4 Monday-Friday Week 8 Budget ....................... $83,376.00 Spilled Milk, Now What? ..........................5 8:30am - 5:00pm Week 8 Totals ......................... $80,374.60 Go with the Flow .....................................6 Just When You Thought… .......................7 SUNDAY SCHEDULE No Sunday School Faith Promise You Get What You Get… .........................8 Week 22 Budget ..................... $77,049.94 ECC @ A Glance ................................ 9-10 Worship Services Mission Spotlight: Faith Promise Missionary 9:00am & 10:30am Week 22 Giving ...................... $71,880.00 Conference Update for 2021 .............10 Children’s Programming Reopening: August Programming Updates ..........................................11 ages 2-5th grade ECC Statistics Immerse: The Bible Reading Experience ...11 10:30am Sunday, June 28 Virtual Community Opportunities .............12 Connect with Us Online! 193 August Sermon Series: Chisheled ............12 www.eccjax.com DEADLINES www.facebook.com/eccjax/ Sunday, July 5 @ECCJAX 171 If you would like to submit articles, Sunday, July 12 events or activities 171 for consideration AUGUST CALENDAR for the next issue of The Echoes, the SUNDAY MORNING WORSHIP Sunday, July 19 deadline is Friday, 9:00am 196 August 14. 10:30am (includes e-city kids and The deadline Facebook Live) Sunday, July 26 for submitting information for the BOY SCOUT TROOP 159 208 weekly e-newsletter is each Mondays at 7:00pm Wednesday at 5:00 pm. CWF CIRCLE MEETINGS Totals include estimated Please email all submissions ECC Tuesday, August 4 online attendance E-News to [email protected] Contact your Circle Leaders for with any coordinating artwork or specific details graphics. ECC Church Staff TEACHER DEDICATION SUNDAY Pete Ramsey, Senior Minister n a world that changes daily and Sunday, August 9 throws new obstacles and challenges Josh Colvin, Student Minister Iin your path by the hour, causing you CWF FACEBOOK LIVE – VIRTUAL Karissa MEAD, Worship to genuinely describe the status of your INSTALLATION & CIRCLE DRAWING Ministry Director life and daily happenings as “To Be Tuesday, August 18 at 7pm Determined,” isn’t it nice to know we’ve Serena Maerkl, Children’s Director got a back-up plan? Or even better, how about if we all understood that everything Brittany Kellar, Community & is going according to God’s plans no Thanks Connections Director matter what the nightly news says? In Thanks so much for your our mind it might be “TBD,” but in the Angela Hastings, Office Manager mind of the Almighty, it has already taken hospitality and kindness in hosting Kim Owens, Publications Director place because He said so! We hope you my son Bill’s memorial service. Mary Worth, Bookkeeper enjoy this month’s issue as we focus on – Pat Thompson the theme of trusting God more with the 2 Sherrie Boger, TLC Director unexpected things of life. Be Flexible by Pete Ramsey, Senior Minister uring my many years of youth, student and family was determined that keeping a schedule was not only useless, ministry, I was blessed and honored to plan and lead but frivolous and pointless as well. It was later that evening at several mission trips. One of my most memorable our campfire devotions I wrestled with the notion that I was not Dones was one of the first trips I led out to the American Indian in control. When it was my turn to share for the day, I mentioned Christian Mission in Show Low, Arizona. I had been before as how tense I was due to the lack of schedule and haphazard way a youth intern and worked alongside my “boss,” Roger Wright things were going, but ended by saying and admitting it was just a year earlier, but this was my time to lead it on my own, time to let go. I figuratively and literally took my schedule book and it was going to be the most organized, most efficient, most and threw it over my shoulder out into the woods – never to be effective mission trip ever! I did not intend to waste a single referred to again! second of the opportunity we were blessed with to work with I had learned many things from Roger the previous year in some amazing and beautiful kids from the Navajo reservation. planning for a mission trip. There were details relating to travel, I meticulously planned out our schedule, accounting for Navajo customs to be aware of, tips and tricks for the bus ministry, travel time each day, assigning clean up crews to the kitchen, a focused method of team selection and more. It was a great mapping out the details about the Bible story, song catalog for plan, but there was one key phrase I forgot to remember, and it our praise time and craft for each day. Our free day was even was the most important thing to keep in mind when planning a planned out with a scheduled stop for lunch followed by a mission trip. Two words. Two extremely important words every precise amount of time to spend at Box Canyon, a swimming trip leader, camp dean, program director, classroom teacher, hole located near our mission base. and a long list of other professions and positions of leadership, We were going to make a tremendous impact for the should know from their own experiences: BE FLEXIBLE!! Kingdom all because I had meticulously planned out every When I say “Be flexible,” it doesn’t mean I want to see you minute of the week. Everyone was going to completely pour touch your toes or bend over backwards, but it does mean for themselves out as a drink offering like the apostle Paul refers you to leave room for growth, expect the unexpected and let to in 2 Timothy. It was our time to serve with every ounce of God have control of all the circumstances. For the rest of that energy, every breath of air and every minute of the day! week, I was much more relaxed because I was not worried about Or that’s how I pictured it in my mind, and that’s how it every minute of the day, but rather was able to serve and love looked on paper…for about the first twenty minutes of our trip. and show kindness with no pressure to watch the ticking of the We left the church on time, but quickly got stuck in traffic clock. I learned to let God lead and to be flexible enough to make heading to Orlando. No worries, I had planned for some delays myself available and a willing servant for my Lord. That ended up and built some time in for them. We could surely make up being a great week and great experience for me for the rest of some time once we got to the airport….maybe not! The check my life in regards to planning trips and large events – be flexible in process for 30 people to confirm tickets, check luggage, and make yourself available to fill the role God has for you. get boarding passes took way longer than I thought (doesn’t Sounds like a good plan for today, doesn’t it? Imagine how anyone know how to PRE-TAG their luggage!!!), and along much more we might accomplish if we could be flexible and let with that our flight took a little bit longer as we had to divert God have a little more control of our day to day activities and away from some bad weather. Once we landed, someone’s purposes. Imagine the Kingdom impact we could make if we luggage was missing, getting dinner was not a 30 minute pit slowed down and took the time to be flexible and see everyone stop, but instead a 75 minute “adventure,” and our church as a Kingdom opportunity instead of a potential delay in your bus could barely reach 25 mph up the mountains of Arizona. day. We arrived late at night on campus and finally got everyone I encourage you to be more flexible when it comes to your settled down just after midnight – approximately two and a half faith and service in the Kingdom. I promise you the Lord will hours later than my precise planning had calculated! do more with you when you simply relax, let go and give Him Needless to say, it didn’t get any better the next day, and once control. we got to the reservation and began to live by “Navajo time,” it ENGLEWOOD CHRISTIAN CHURCH 3 THE ECHOES AUGUST 2020 Change of Plan by Karissa MEAD, Worship Ministry Director So. Many. Voices. My first listen of “Justice and Mercy” brought me to I’m not sure about you, but it seems like a million things tears because at the time I was struggling with how my happen every day to make the year 2020 more dramatic. plans had changed. I was convicted of my belief that I had It’s like a competition to see who can make it to the top of control of the situation, as well as my own lack of trust the 2020 mountain and come out as the highlight of the that God would take care of it. I was letting the stress, year. As those living in the world (and not of it), we desire the opinions and the fear overtake my heart and distract to be good stewards of the Kingdom work that needs me from my relationship with the Lord. With all this on my done without getting swept up in whatever is trending that mind, I heard this lyric: day.