March_26_Tie_That_Binds - First Christian Church

First Christian Church, 402 E. Noble Ave, Guthrie, OK 73044
Notes from Cathy
office to sign up today!
March Giving
$50,000
$45,000
$40,000
$35,000
$30,000
$25,000
$20,000
$15,000
$10,000
$5,000
$0
Monthly Budgeted Giving
Budgeted Giving
24-Hour Prayer Vigil We still have five spots left! If you
haven’t had a chance to sign up to
April 11 – 12
participate please call the church
6 p.m. - 6 p.m.
Sunday Worship
307
Sunday School
80
Children-31 Youth-5 Adult-44
Communion to Shut-Ins19
Budget Receipts 3/23/14
$11,833
Amount Budgeted per week $9,298
Amount Budgeted to date $111,575
Budget Receipts to date
$100,762
Budget Expenses to date $108,717
Actual Giving
Dear Church,
Last Saturday the Chalice Chimers had a workshop to practice their Easter Music.
They have the toughest director. Just ask them. It seems she picked out incredibly
difficult music this Easter. They are rising to the occasion, kicking and screaming,
but nonetheless, rising. They should be very proud of themselves. You will want to
be in attendance Easter Sunday morning. The Introit is going to be unbelievable,
and I mean that in the best possible way. This Sunday, the Chalice Chimers will be
ringing, “How Deep the Father’s Love for Us”. It is one of our favorite
contemporary hymns. The melody is haunting and the words are inspirational. We
will display them on the screen as we ring so you may experience them. Our
Chancel Choir will be singing “10,000 Reasons (Bless the Lord).” Practices for the
Passion Cantata to be presented on April 6 are down to one and a dress rehearsal. I
went over the narration with Shawn Mason, our narrator, so it looks like it is a
reality. It is so interesting to be able to view the process of a cantata from start to
finish. I listen to about 50 hours of musical recordings and choirs. The music is
chosen. The choir begins to sing and listen to the cd’s we make for them. They form
opinions regarding the music. That is the interesting part. We continue to work
through musical challenges and eventually deem a piece ready for presentation.
Sometimes I determine a piece is not going to make it and it is repurposed. I write
the narration and have it edited and checked for readability. The narrator is chosen
and given the task of learning it. The whole presentation has to occur at the crest
of the wave, before it has a chance to wane, but not before it gets to its peak.
Timing is the key. It reminds me of baking. If you take the bread out before it is
done it will fall. If you allow it to remain in the oven a bit too long it is dry and
sometimes charred. It is not an exact science, but there are guidelines. So it is with
creating a beautiful piece of music that will inspire and stir the hearts of the
hearers. We offer our talents and creativity to God as our way to say thank you for
giving us these talents and a place to use them. It is our joy to sing in this choir and
our privilege to work in this church family.
Blessings,
Cathy Clark
The Tie That Binds (USPS 577280) is published weekly except for the last week of December by First Christian
Church (Disciples of Christ).
POSTMASTER: Please send address changes to First Christian Church, 402 East Noble Avenue, Guthrie, OK 73044
Periodical Postage Paid at Guthrie, Oklahoma 73044
402 East Noble Avenue
Guthrie, Oklahoma 73044
www.fccguthrie.org
(405) 282-4080 Fax (405) 282-4088
DIAL-A-DEVOTION: 282-8515
DR. DENNIS CLARK, Senior Pastor
KAREN ALLEN, Minister of Christian Education
Binds
We are a family of faith
sharing God’s love by
reaching out, touching lives
and building relationships.
Dennis’ Diary:
“Do You Read
Bumper Stickers?”
March 26, 2014
Volume 50, No. 12
I am always intrigued by bumper stickers on the back of cars while I am traveling the many
miles and time spent alone in my car. Some are clever, thoughtful, challenging, humorous and
sometimes Biblical. I read a list recently that gave seven clever “Bible Bumper Stickers”:
1. My Other Vehicle is a Chariot. 2. Have You Hugged Your Pharisee Today? 3. I’d Rather be
Fishing for Men! 4. I Brake for Blinding Lights on the Road to Damascus. 5. If You Can Read This, You’re
Standing in Donkey Doo. 6. Just Say No to Tax Collectors. 7. Don’t Laugh, at Least This Donkey is Paid For.
I especially like the last one since my chariot has over 150,000 miles on it now and it has been paid off for a
while. One of my favorite quotes I have seen on a bumper sticker is the old phrase, “Does God seem far away?
Who do you think moved?”
Lent is a time for us to reflect on our personal relationship with God through Jesus Christ. In a video we
watched Sunday at church “The Skit Guys” talked about God becoming an approachable God. In the powerful
ending to the “Son of God” movie my Sunday School class watched on Sunday afternoon you leave with the
feeling that we as Christians can conquer the world – with the love of Christ, not force. One of the reasons we go
to church is to be inspired and challenged by the Risen Christ to go into the world. We are doing ourselves a
favor by going to church to be in His presence, not vice versa.
My sermon this Sunday from the Gospel of John is one of my favorite passages in the entire Bible,
John 11:23-27. My message is entitled, “The Comforting Savior.” When my 2 ½ year-old sister died in 1959 my
ministry began to be shaped by this passage. Now that I have
Ministry Opportunities for the week
conducted
915 funerals/graveside services in 45 years I understand
TUESDAY, March 25
more
completely
what it means to have a comforting Savior. I hope
8:30 a.m. – MDO/Preschool
to see each of you at 8:30 or 10:30 this Sunday.
1 p.m. – Women’s Bible Study
Peace and Comfort,
3:30 p.m. - Campfire
Dennis
WEDNESDAY, March 26
7:30 a.m. – Breakfast Club
11:45 a.m. – Lenten Lunch @ Community Church
5:30 p.m. – Christian Education Team Meeting
5:30 p.m. – Girls Choir Rehearsal
6:30 p.m. – Choir Rehearsal
7 p.m. – Christian Outreach Team Meeting
THURSDAY, March 27
8:30 a.m. – MDO/Preschool – Picture Day!
SATURDAY, March 29
9 a.m. – Harbinger Women’s Meeting (Duncan)
SUNDAY, March 30
8:30 a.m. – Celebration Service
9:30 a.m. – Sunday School for all ages
10:30 a.m. – Worship Service
Pastor’s Class
Mark your calendar for Sun. April 6! This class is for children in
grades 2nd through 6th. We will explore what makes our church
unique and spend time answering any questions you may have
about our faith. Join us at 1 p.m. for this informative and fun class!
Quirky Quotes
The only people with whom
you should try to get even are
those who have helped you.
Hospitalized at this time: Joan
Dreessen. Preparing for surgery: Jim
Anthis. We continue to pray for our
church family: Mary Albertson, Karen
Bock, Ruth Ellis, Jim Willbanks, Roy
Weathers, Myrna Laughlin, Barbara
Smith, Virginia Bostwick, Joan Jones,
Maxine Yost, Kenny Bock, Peggy
Kingery, Ferdy Waner, Phil Morrow,
Angie Byte, Conna Dewart, Ada
Dilley, Don Bross, Karen Yancey and
Joyce Carter-Eitson. Our friends and
family members: Emma Kring, Wendy
Martin, John Mixon, Jack Bond, Joy
Elder, Eleanor McCutchen, John Ray,
Kelly Malone, Jack Thompson, Donnie
Savory, Bertha Taylor, Viola Yamnitz,
Van Hudson, Lila Dilis, Dorothy
Engelking, Scott Uselton, Patti Myner,
David Barnes, Donna Jo Carrillo, Earl
Johnson, Jack Hughes, Sherry Hall,
Kathy
Gallaway,
Geraldine
Henderson, Rhonda Lovelace, Jimmy
Blair, Hollie Chappell and Brian
Downing. Our Military serving
overseas, including: Kyle Keath. The
church we are praying for this week:
Northwest OKC Christian and their
pastor, Donna Gilchrist.
Spring has sprung and we're on our way to learning about new
life, and all of the beauty of God's wonderful world! We will end
the Month of March with Spring pictures and March birthdays
on Thursday. Next Tues. is April Fool's Day, so we'll have some
crazy dress up fun, and I may have to do some practical jokes on
the staff and the children. Happy Spring!
Ms. Betty
Youth Group News
YOUth Sunday final planning THIS Sunday at
6 p.m.
7th
For Boys
– 12th grades
Sat. April 5
5:30pm
For Girls
– 12th grades
Sunday, April 13
@ 11:45am
6th
Parents of College Students
We are collecting addresses for college care packages. If you
are a student or have a child who is, please call or stop by the
office to let us know their current address. We will be mailing
these mid-April and want to be sure we include everyone in
our FCC family!
Easter Lilies
If you would like to purchase an Easter Lily to
decorate the sanctuary for Easter Sunday, please fill
out the form below and turn it and your payment in to
the church office or place it in the offering plate by
April 13. The cost is $11 each.
YOUR
NAME_____________________________________________
11:45 a.m.
Wednesday, March 26
Community Church
Wednesday, April 2
1st Baptist Church
Wednesday, April 9
st
1 Southern Baptist Church
Wednesday, April 16
1st Christian Church
NUMBER OF LILIES ______ x $11= $______
TOTAL
( ) IN HONOR OF
____________________________________________________
____________________________________________________
____________________________________________________
( ) IN MEMORY OF
____________________________________________________
____________________________________________________
____________________________________________________
Keeping Up
With Karen
It’s time to spread the word as we narrow in on our search for a very
important addition to our ministry staff at FCC. We have posted our job listing for
our part-time Children’s Minister and you can view the listing on our website at
www.fccguthrie.org. We have also posted it on a number of other places in
hopes of attracting the person that God is calling to this position.
If you know of someone who is looking for a position that would utilize their
ministry skills as well as working with children, we would love to see a resume.
We are also hoping to find someone who has a strong background in volunteer
recruiting and leading as well as activity programming for children.
I have worked many hours in this area in the past six years at FCC and it is
full of excitement and ever-changing. There is always new curriculum to explore
and technology opens up new doors every day to reach this young audience.
Our church has a tremendous group of young people and I know it will grow as
we are able to put more resources into this area.
Some of you at the 10:30 service have probably noticed that I have been
missing the past several weeks during the second-half of the service. I have
been focusing on launching a new curriculum with our Kid’s Worship. As I’ve
mentioned in previous articles, it’s called “Elevate” and it has really captured the
kid’s attention. We are starting to get into a routine with it and I love the
response I’m getting from children as well as parents.
Last week I received a text message from a parent who said “thank you for
the new Kid’s Worship program, she is loving it!” and the message was a video
of her daughter doing the motions of “I will tell the truth!” She also relayed that
her daughter was able to share the Bible story as well.
The kids have done great with the reviews of each week’s material and I love
that they not only get a “life lesson” that’s simple and short to remember but also
a video Bible story that they can retell each week. So, here’s a challenge to the
parents this week… if your child has come to Kid’s Worship any of the past
three weeks, see if they can show you the motions for: “I will be patient,” “I will
tell the truth” and “I will be thankful!”
PRAYER VIGIL SIGN-UP
On Sunday, I had my son, Alex, help pass around the clipboard with the 24hour Prayer Vigil sign-up on it. When I asked Alex to help pass it around my
main goal was to make sure it made it’s way from one side of the sanctuary to
the other side of the sanctuary because sometimes our clipboard passing gets
stuck on one side or the other.
Apparently, somewhere in the translation, Alex believed his goal was to
completely fill-up the clipboard before returning it to my office on Sunday
morning. He did a great job of getting it moved from side-to-side in the
sanctuary and after the services he brought it to my office and said “there are
still five open slots, what am I going to do?” While I was thrilled that we were
that far along on the sign-ups and three weeks to go, Alex was perplexed that
he wasn’t able to finish his job. I love the faith of children!!! So, I promised him I
would list the timeslots in the newsletter and assured him that someone would
fill them in for him. So, we need Friday, April 11 at 11 p.m., Saturday April 12 at
5 a.m., 8 a.m., 1 p.m. and 4:30 p.m. For those who have never participated, the
timeslots are 30-minutes and you are asked to come to the sanctuary during
your timeslot. An elder is present in the narthex (sanctuary entryway), so you
are not alone in the building. It’s a time to pray, meditate and focus on God’s
presence during this Lenten season. If you can fill one of the remaining
timeslots please call the church office at 282-4080. Have a blessed week!
Karen
Sunday, March 30
CANDLE LIGHTER
Madelyn Eaves and Taryn Ward
KID’S WORSHIP
Andrew and Natalie Hardin
YOUTH HELPER
Mikayla Johnston
KID’S WORSHIP EXTRA
Sadie Porter and Courtney Turner
CHILDREN’S MOMENT
Janie Carey
SCRIPTURE READER
Rachel Ammons
JR. DIACONATE
Rachel Ammons and Katelyn Hinkle
VAN DRIVER
Bill Warner
ELDERS
8:30 – Rita Stowe
10:30 – AJ Griffin and David Ball
COMMUNION TO SHUT-INS
Charlie Stowe, Rita Stowe
and Jana Frey
WORSHIP LEADER
Shawn Mason
COMMUNION PREPARATION
Mitch and Charity McPeek
DIACONATE
(Please wear nametags when serving)
Nick and Shana Bench,
Kevin and Jana* Frey, Tom Janik,
Mitch and Charity McPeek,
Rod and Courtney Poplin,
Jason and Desi Rice,
Justin and Andrea Stevens
* Denotes team captain
USHERS
Joe Hall, Andy Anderson
and Tyler Shipley
GREETERS
Janie Hall, Sarah Anderson,
Margaret McNeely, Linda Cameron
BREAD MINISTRY
Sherry Canning and Carol Allen
NURSERY HELPER
Cherokee Rice, Lindsey Ball
and Rachel Ammons
VIDEO
Gene Wagoner and Darl Doles
SOUND
John Allen
VIDEO MINISTRY DELIVERY
Susie Janik
First Christian Church
(Disciples of Christ)
Dial-A-Devotion 282-8515
402 E. Noble, Guthrie, Oklahoma 73044
(405) 282-4080 Fax (405) 282-4088
Email – Office (secretary) fccdocguthrieok@coxinet.net
Dennis: Dclark@coxinet.net Karen: Karenkallen@cox.net
Shana: Shanabench@coxinet.net Cathy: cclark1951@gmail.com
Betty: missbetty_57@yahoo.com
Staci: stacicarey_chin@yahoo.com
Jeff: jball4@cox.net
April 2014
Sun
Mon
Tues
Wed
Thurs
Fri
Sat
Repeating Sunday Events: (unless otherwise indicated)
8:30 a.m. Celebration Service
9:30 a.m. Sunday School
9:30 a.m. Handbell Rehearsal
10:30 a.m. Worship Service
6 p.m. - Youth
1
2
8:30 a.m. – MDO/ Preschool
3:30 p.m. – Campfire
6
NO 8:30 service
Passion Cantata
11:45 a.m. – Bring-a-friend Potluck
1 p.m. – Pastor’s Class
7:30 a.m. – Breakfast Club
10:45 a.m. – Staff Meeting
11:45 a.m. – Lenten Lunch @ 1st Baptist
6:30 – Choir Rehearsal
6:30 p.m. – MDO Training
7 p.m. – Membership Team Meeting
7 p.m. – Property Team Meeting
3
4
8:30 a.m. – MDO/Preschool
6:30 p.m. – Campfire
10:45 a.m. – Retired Fellowship Friday
Flicks
7
8
9
10
11 a.m. – Staff Meeting
6 p.m. – Worship Team Meeting
8:30 a.m. – MDO/Preschool
3:30 p.m. – Campfire
7:30 a.m. – Breakfast Club
9:30 a.m. – Disciples Women
8:30 a.m. – MDO/Preschool
6:30 p.m. – Campfire
11
5
12
11:45 a.m. – Lenten Lunch @ 1st So. Baptist
6:15 p.m. – Elder Meeting
6:30 – Choir Rehearsal
7 p.m. – Board Meeting
24-hour Prayer Vigil
6 p.m. – 6 p.m.
13
14
15
16
17
Palm Sunday
7 p.m. – Women’s Bible Study
8:30 a.m. – MDO/Preschool
3:30 p.m. – Campfire
7:30 a.m. – Breakfast Club
11:45 a.m. – Lenten Lunch @ FCC
6:30 p.m. – Choir Rehearsal
7 p.m. – Outreach Team Meeting
Maundy Thursday
18
Good Friday
8:30 a.m. – MDO/Preschool
6 p.m. – Maundy Thursday Service
6:30 p.m. – Campfire
19
Youth Food Booth
Noon – 89er Parade
89er Week
20
21
22
23
24
Easter Sunday
11:30 a.m. – Retired Fellowship
Potluck
8:30 a.m. – MDO/Preschool
1 p.m. – Women’s Bible Study
3:30 p.m. – Campfire
7:30 a.m. – Breakfast Club
11 a.m. – Staff Meeting
5:30 p.m. – Christian Ed. Team Mtg.
6:30 p.m.- Choir Rehearsal
8:30 a.m. – MDO/Preschool
6:30 p.m. – Campfire
28
29
30
8:30 a.m. – MDO/Preschool
3:30 p.m. – Campfire
7:30 a.m. – Breakfast Club
11 a.m. – Staff Meeting
6:30 p.m.- Choir Rehearsal
Cantata
Children’s Easter Celebration
27
Happy 125th Birthday FCC
Mission Sunday
NO 8:30 service
25
26
All day – Mission Sunday Preparations
Birthdays
1- Jerred Young
Lesley Cotton
Shawn Mason
Alex Lunn
2- David Weuste
Andrea Stevens
3- Debi Shore
4- Delma Ward
6- Ella Gill
7- Emmie McPeek
8- Lia Williams
Ruth Underwood
Eryn Forsgren
9- Judy Ochs
Caroline Pierson
10- Jane Stewart
Vera Dick
Sid Sperry
11- Kevin Gant
Cathy Clark
Jim Anthis
Skylar Gill
12- Shylia Eales
Rylea Cowart
Cade Carey
Geoff Machtolff
Nancy Powell
13- Bob Davis
14- Jeff Martin
15- Nicholas Rice
Nathan Ames
Jacob May
17- Alex Allen
18- Greg Scheihing
Caitlin Williams
Stan Hinton
19- Roy Weathers
Harrison Thomas
LeRoy Barnes
20- Brody Hinkle
Peyton Walker
Wayne Graybeal
21- Nancy Van Auken
Rachel Evans
Jim Ross
Hannah Ross
Jacob Friese
22- Holden Ingram
23- Diane Biggs
Brandon Henning
24- Cindy Ayers
Dorothy Herbert
Taryn Taschereau
Raymond Miller
25- Sarah Bross
27- Melanie Ball
28- Carol Doles
Peyton Hayes
29- John Mobley
Conna Dewart
Nick Abbott
30- Clara Price
Abigail Ball
Star Marriott
Mathias May
It’s spring time and normally our women are looking forward to “It’s A
Girl Thing” where we decorate tables with amazing themes and test the
creativity of all those involved! This year, however, we are going to postpone our spring event and move it to early fall and want you to go ahead
and mark your calendars now so you can be prepping and planning. “It’s a
Girl Thing” will be Saturday, Aug. 23. We already have an awesome
motivational speaker lined up, who is an author and will speak about
dealing with the unexpected things in life!
We are hoping to “reinvent” the “Heart-to-Heart” ministry this year
and use “It’s A Girl Thing” as a kick-off event. After taking a break from
Heart-to-Heart this past year, we would like for all women to begin praying about their place in this ministry. We hope
to form groups of two or three prayer partner women over the summer and use August’s event to jump start the
program. We won’t do our ordinary “Heart-to-Heart” events of the past (other than “It’s a Girl Thing”) but you can
look forward to a Fall Women’s Retreat and some other fun outings for women’s relaxation and faith-building
experiences.
For now, mark your calendar for Aug. 23. Pray about joining Heart-to-Heart in August 2014 and ask a friend to join
you or be open to signing up over the summer and allowing God to place someone special in your life for a 9-month
journey of faith and relationship building! We have no doubt this ministry is going to change women’s lives!
If you have questions or already know you want to be a part, let Karen Allen know! You can e-mail me at
karenkallen@cox.net or call/text 615-2240.
Make Promises Happen is sponsoring a special $12 admission for
Frontier City on Sun. April 13 from noon to 8 p.m. Reservations are
limited and tickets must be pre-purchased. A portion of the ticket
sales will be donated to the Make Promises Happen program, which
allows physically and mentally challenged children, youth and young
adults to experience camp at Central Christian Camp each year. Meal tickets are also
available for $10 per person. All ticket orders are due by April 4 and picked up no later than
4 p.m. on April 11. Forms are available at the church office, on our website or reserve tickets
by calling the camp at 282-2811 or email tickets@centralchristiancamp.org.
A support group for caregivers of those battling Alzheimer’s will meet Sat. March
29 at 4 p.m. at the American Legion. There is no cost to attend and this month’s
topic is: “Encouragement Through the Journey of Caregiving.” To RSVP call 1-800272-3900.
April 6 – No 8:30 service
Bring-a-Friend
Join us
Potluck
for our
Passion
Cantata
&
6- Stacy & Donna Russell
9- David & Carrie James
11- Trey & A.J. Griffin
16- Casey & Melissa Gorrell
17- Randy & Shirley Mullino
23- Dennis & Myrna Laughlin
27- Robert & Pat Purviance
Ray & Catherine Turner
28- Jason & Sherri McCollough
30- BJ & Diana Cassady
It’s time for another Friday movie outing for our Retired Fellowship group. This time “Friday Flicks” will take
us to Kickingbird Theater and Interurban on Friday, April 4. We will plan to meet at 10:45 a.m. and go to
lunch and watch “God’s Not Dead.” If it works out that “Noah” is showing at the same time, the group may
choose to see either movie. Both movies are just about two hours long. Sign-up in this Sunday’s bulletin or
call 282-4080 and let Karen Allen know if you plan to join us for this month’s “Friday Flick” outing.