MIDWEEK MESSAGE #204
Hello and welcome to Midweek Message #204! Mother’s Day 2024 is history, at least on the calendar. The next big event is graduation and the end of the 2023-2024 school year. I would be remiss if I failed to tell you that I hope you had a relaxing and good Mother’s Day.
Speaking of graduation, this coming Sunday is our Graduate Recognition Sunday. Both high school and college graduates will be recognized at the 10:45 service. We have a pretty good number of graduates and I plan on telling a little bit about them in next week’s MM.
Don’t forget that immediately following the second service we will be having a pitch-in lunch and then a work day on the grounds. When someone owns a business they hear a lot about “curb appeal.” We are no different. Many times a person’s first impression of the church is the way the building and property are taken care of. One overtaken by weeds says, “We don’t care.” That doesn’t bode well for how they care about people. It is true that perceptions can be skewed but more often than not, such is the case. An effort was made a few weeks ago to begin sprucing up the area around our building but it was way too much for one afternoon and the number of people/amount of work involved. Pastor Ryan thinks a 2-3 hour work day with many hands will get the job done. The pitch-in is informal and the work part of it will last until about 3:30 or sooner if done. If you would like to help, it is appreciated. You may want to check with Pastor Ryan to see what tools are needed (if any).
YOUTH CORNER
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- Congratulations to Alli Anderson. Alli was part of the girls 4 x 800 school record holders at OVMS. This past Wednesday Alli, Mallory Owens, Lily Smith, and Bailey Kay set a new school record by completing it in 10:29:09!!!! Keep running Alli!
- Kathryn Anderson was chosen for GWEC (Governor’s Work Ethic Certificate). That honor is based on academic readiness; a GPA of at least 2.0; attendance of 98% plus of classes; one or fewer discipline referrals; and a minimum of 6 hours of community service or volunteerism.
- Berkley Groomer received some good news in the health department. After 3 rounds of blood being drawn and the doctors being concerned about her Vitamin D levels and something else medically termed (mom’s words), Berkley is in the clear! There is nothing genetic to be concerned with after breaking her arm twice within weeks. I love it when we can report a praise like that! 😊
This past week the S-OCS system honored their nurses for National School Nurse Day. Congratulations to Kim Floyd for being honored. She is the nurse for MCES.
One of the dangers many church leaders and many churches get into is forgetting where they came from. For those who have been Christ-followers for any length of time or for those, like me, who have been raised in the church since they were “knee high to a grasshopper,” it is easy to take for granted that others know what you are speaking about. I try hard to make sure those who don’t know a Bible story are not left out by me saying, “You know…” I will try to say, “For those of you who are not familiar…”
All that to lead up to this: something was brought to our attention recently that was a really good suggestion. Someone texted me about having Bibles pre-marked with Scriptures I will be using in a sermon so that those who are unfamiliar with the Bible will be able to find them. That was a really great idea to consider. Pastor Ryan, Diana and I got our heads together and came up with a plan we hope works. The church purchased Bibles for use on Sunday mornings that will be on the info table for use. Each Scripture to be looked up while I am preaching will have the page number listed in the bulletin and on the PowerPoint so it can be turned to and read as I am reading it. We hope this will encourage people to look up the Scripture but also lead to a desire to read and love the Bible even more on a personal level. Thank you Jenna Wells for the suggestion!!
As I mentioned at the beginning, Mother’s Day 2024 is history, but one event is not. Change for Life, a fundraiser for New Beginnings Pregnancy Resource Center (NB), began Sunday and goes until Father’s Day. Many of you are familiar with this, but if not, here are some details:
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- This is a major fundraiser for NB. I mentioned in last week’s MM that Becca Anderson, one of the board members, announced that in 2023 the Change for Life raised over $13k for the ministry.
- Baby bottles are provided on the info table. You may return the bottles here and we will make sure they get to NB.
- You may also support the fundraiser online at newbeginningsowen.org or through their Facebook page. Both have “donate” buttons set up for easy access.
- Keep in mind that NB does more than just help mothers of newborns. They provide clothing, diapers, formula, and more to moms, dads, babies, children and families. This, to me, is one of the most vital ministries in our community and favorite mission we support as a church family.
- If you have any questions or would like to help NB, please give them a call.
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Serving Owen County Together (SOCT) has been a welcome event in our community for the past 5 years. This is, if my calculations are correct, Year #6. One Saturday in June the whole community is invited to serve in helping the community. Booths are set up and clothing, shoes, food and more are open to the people to come and get what they need. Some local service agencies set up booths for you to know more about them. The organizational date is May 20th at 5:30 and the date for SOCT is June 15th with a rain date of June 22nd. If you would like to help please call the office or ask me.
That’s all for this week. I hope you have a terrific rest of the week. I look forward to seeing you Sunday. My sermon will be All In and the ladies under the microscope will be Hannah and Mary Magdalene. Don’t forget this: I love you all.
Pastor Bill
