MIDWEEK MESSAGE #238
Hello everyone, and welcome to Midweek Message #238! I hope your week is going well so far and you see God working in your life. Thanks for allowing this visit from me this week.
We had another fantastic day this past Sunday. Caleb and Gabrielle Corder were baptized at the YMCA immediately following the second service. Caleb is an engineer and Gabby is a kindergarten teacher at Gosport Elementary. Their daughter, Charlotte, is a real cutie.
Your educator of the week to pray for is Matt Cazzell. Matt is the principal of McCormick’s Creek Elementary School. Matt has been the principal at MCES for several years now. Pray that he will lead with wisdom and grace.
Are you sitting down as you read this? You may want to because this next news item just might blow you away! Our pitch-in for February happened after last week’s MM so I had to wait to share this with you. We had…wait for it…almost 70 at our pitch-in last week! I tried to count everyone but you know how moving parts are. I did count 67 but I may have missed a few who were out of the room at the time. But WOW!!! But what made it even “more better” 😊 was watching all the interacting that was taking place. I stood around and heard people introducing themselves to people whom they had never met. I heard some trying to remember names. I saw laughter and chit-chat taking place. Someone came up to me afterwards and said, “Thank you for doing this.” It was a staff idea and we will be constantly evaluating as we proceed into the future. What makes it fun to watch is I see people every week because I’m in both services. But many who come to first service never have a chance to see or meet those who attend the second and vice versa. The next pitch-in is scheduled for March 26th at 6:00 pm. Please mark your calendar.
YOUTH CORNER
Another event that happened last week but too late to include in the MM was the Voice of Democracy (VOD) program for the Spencer and Gosport VFW. Several of our young people participated and won. The VOD involves Grades 9-12 where the students have to put together a 3-5 minute speech on the theme of “Is America Today Our Forefather’s Vision?” Here are the results:
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- Spencer VFW: 1st place-Anna East. 2nd place-Eli Wood
- Gosport VFW: 1st place- Haley Amador
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Other youth news:
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- Did you know that Caleb and Rachel East have learned how to swing dance?
- Brodie Sutton, one of the seniors in ROOTS, is an amazing artist. His mother might have been proudly showing a drawing/watercolor of three dogs he did at the pitch-in. 😊They looked almost lifelike. Well done, Brodie! I thought about asking him to do one of me and making me look handsome but I didn’t want to deflate him for the impossible. 😉
- Eliza Chambers took 2nd place at the world’s largest gymnastics meet the weekend of February 21st. Way to go, Eliza! Mom may have said something about this.😊
- I heard we had a number of first time wrestlers this past week at the elementary wrestling camp that took place at OVMS. The names I know of at this point are Rob Anderson, Hudsyn Biggs, Aiden and Emma Collier, Jordan Mangia, Charlotte, Margaret and Thomas Pavich, Lincoln VanDerMoere and Tanner Wood. Am I missing any? Please let me know.
- Did you know Charli Wood was a cheerleader for the 7th & 8th grade basketball teams this past season?
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Did anyone see the mini excavator at the back of the lot by the parking area this past Sunday? That can only mean one thing! Let’s hope for dry and decent weather this week! Further update: they brought in some cement drains/tile/culvert on Monday morning. They removed the playground fence because they will be moving utilities in that area and installing the new electrical panel. Man, am I excited! Do you think we can put a bubble over the property to keep things dry? 😊
Usually the elders meet on the first Monday night of the month. This past Monday was no exception. We had a good meeting and something really good came out of that meeting. We have been in a transition of sorts, seeking to do some things differently. One of those is giving the men a sabbatical from serving as elders. Jeff Carlson was the first. He had been an elder since the inception of OVCF. His year off began in November. This April/May Wayne Akerson will be stepping down, especially since he has taken on a more intense role at work that will require a lot of travel. David Robertson will be next. But for that to happen we have needed men to step up and consider the role of being a leader. Three months ago, Tom Mangia approached me about being an elder. Our procedure is to invite them to sit in on and take part in a couple of elder’s meetings. They get to see how we operate and it also gives us a chance to see how they will fit as an elder. I also wrote an “Elder study” the elders work through. This past Monday Tom expressed an interest to us of coming on permanently as an elder. He has prayed about it and also talked to his family. He and I have had discussions and yes, one of them was over lunch. 😊 The policy at OVCF is to tell you of his desire. You now have two weeks to let us know if you approve or reject his name. If the latter is a concern, you are required to put it in writing and sign your name. NO ANONYMOUS LETTERS ARE ACCEPTED. If after two weeks there are no
glaring reasons why Tom should not be an elder, at the second service on March 23rd the current elders will lay hands on him and pray for him, his family and his service to OVCF as an elder. Please be in prayer for Tom and the elders as we continue to be good servants of Jesus and to OVCF.
Sunday’s message is “Remember…” from Deuteronomy 8-29. Wait until you hear the surprise I have for you Sunday! I look forward to seeing you then. Love you all much.
Pastor Bill
