Pastor Greg s Gandering

Transcription

1 January 2017 THE UNITED CHURCH OF BROOMFIELD an Open & Affirming Congregation of the United Church of Christ The Center of Our Lives Pastor: Greg Garland 825 Kohl Street, Broomfield, CO Pastor Greg s Gandering Success As we enter the new year it is a good time to do a bit of review and look at how successful we have been at being the body of Christ. The Rev. Dr. John Dorhauer, the General Minister and President of the UCC says that we need to find a new way of measuring the success of the church. The measurement of success that he suggests can be measured not in money or members gained but in people served The Church is the Church when lives are changed. It is the Church when it inspires people to use their time, talent, and resources to serve the common good. It is the Church when it helps people love themselves, their God, and their neighbor. [Beyond Resistance, p ] Given this metric I think we are a VERY SUCCESSFUL church. Of course, we are of service to those who come to services and are cared for by the Spiritual Care Ministry, but we also serve many families during the week at Kohl Street Kids and probably hundreds of people at the support groups that meet at the church. Then there are those who are served by the Mission ministry at Precious Child, and FISH and through supporting transitional housing. There are also those we serve through the groups I work with in Broomfield, the Association and the Colorado Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice. We are now talking about many hundreds of people that we serve. But there is that second metric that John reminds us of; the church is the Church when it inspires people to use their time, talent, and resources to serve the common good. It is the Church when it helps people love themselves, their God, and their neighbor. One of the things I really love about our congregation is how many people s daily lives are dedicated to serving other people and to sharing God s love. We are now talking about serving thousands of people. It is downright inspiring to think of how our congregation is changing the world. It should be noted that John doesn t totally ignore money and church members. He totally recognizes that it is the members and their contributions that provide the resources for a church to be a servant people. But you can have lots of members and money and still serve very few people. I think we represent the small(ish) church that serves a lot of people. So, I say it again, I think we are a VERY SUCCESSFUL church. BUT, so as not to rest on our laurels, or to limit our potential, let s do even more in the new year. - - Pastor Greg Look Inside. JANUARY Anniversaries & Birthday s 2 Message from the Moderator 3 EDUCATION & PRAYERS 4 Small Groups & Activities 5 January & February Calendar & Notes 6 Winter Sunday Hours: 8:30AM Adult Choir; 9AM Sunday School 10AM Service of Celebration Our Mission Statement Our Church is dedicated to the love of God as demonstrated by Jesus Christ and inspired by the Holy Spirit. We demonstrate our love of God through everyday living. Everyone is welcome to join us as we grow in our faith and in our relationship with God and each other through worship, teaching, caring and fellowship.

2 2 JANUARY 2017 Birthday s Daniel Clark & Chad Steinbeck 1/3/ Emily Joo 9 Nancy McKee 10 Kara O Kelly Tom & Heather Ottem 1/10/ Jeff Belval 20 Steve Brecheisen 21 Glen Hopson Pat & Laura O Kelly 1/12/ Ed Bunetta Caliegh Foshee 26 Tom Ottem 28 Tom Belval 29 Rachel Vorwerck If we missed your b day please contact the church office. Your 2016 Church Leadership Greg Garland Pastor Corey Hill Moderator Jennie Belval Vice Moderator Marti Pratt Clerk Alice Kidney Financial Secretary Gary McKee Treasurer Brian Conn, Peggy Diekhoff Members at Large - - Commi ee Chairs Larry Bliss/Nancy McKee Trustees Jonathan Wade Worship Lu Reuter Spiritual Care Bob Wathen/Mary Beth Jones Chris an Educa on Tom O em Mission Desi Hill Fellowship Worship Service Volunteer Sign-Up If you'd like to sign up to volunteer as Liturgist, offer a Kid's Time message or host after service snacks, we have a new way to do so. Just click here: Worship Help and simply follow the directions to sign up. It's easy and we appreciate all your volunteer efforts. And don't forget that you can put pen to paper and still sign up on the sheets hanging in the Narthex.

3 January Fellow UCB Members, Almost two years ago, we made a decision as a congregation to look towards the future of the United Church of Broomfield and begin a search for a Lead Co-Pastor. We assembled and entrusted a Search Committee of seven very hardworking and dedicated individuals with the task of representing a cross-section of our congregation, and asked them to find pastoral leadership to carry this church forward into the future. After roughly 19 grueling months of research, town hall meetings, documentation, interviews, prayers, and countless hours and meetings, I am pleased to formally announce that the Search Committee has unanimously recommended Rev. Michael Blackwood to the position of Lead Co- Pastor to the United Church of Broomfield! A message from the Search Committee: Rev. Michael Blackwood first felt called when he began working with children and youth in Sunday School. He enjoyed teaching and interacting with kids and youth; talking with them about the Bible, Jesus and religion. Michael felt his calling when talking with youth to help them navigate their questions and doubts. Michael entered seminary at Chicago Theological Seminary, but relocated to Denver and matriculated from Illiff School of Theology with a Masters Degree in Divinity. Michael is passionate about advancing and increasing dialogue surrounding religion and faith. Michael wants people to feel comfortable talking about religion in general, to be passionate about their faith, and to be okay with where they are on their spiritual journeys. Michael encourages others to have doubts, to ask questions, to discuss and debate scriptures, creeds and doctrines, because it makes all involved more comfortable, knowledgeable and most importantly, be more in touch with one another as humans. Michael believes "My purpose as an authorized minister in the UCC and as a Christian disciple is simply to love all others and share the good news in words and deeds." Please join the Church Council and the Search Committee in welcoming Rev. Michael Blackwood and his husband, Adam McCoy, to the United Church of Broomfield. I cannot tell you how amazed and humbled I am by the effort, love, and dedication put forth by our Search Committee. While they will tell you that the work has been rewarding, they may not be as quick to tell you how difficult this process has been at times. We challenged the Search Committee to fill a position that had almost no precedence in our conference, which left them without an obvious roadmap to success. We picked seven very diverse church members to be on this team, and the fact that they came to a unanimous decision on Michael Blackwood leads me 100% confidence they have found the right person to lead our church. I want to thank Jonathan, Kim, Brian, Beth, Aaron, Emily, and Lu for everything they have put into this process, and I hope you will take the time to do the same. With that, the final step in the process is for the congregation to meet Michael and to take a formal vote. Michael s Call to our church will be completely negotiated and understood before he is presented to the congregation on the weekend of January th. Michael will preach to our congregation on Sunday, January 15 th, and there will be a Congregational Meeting immediately following the service where we will vote to install Michael Blackwood as Lead Co-Pastor of the United Church of Broomfield. Your job is first to come and meet Michael at one or more of the series of Meet and Greets we have scheduled below. And of course, I hope you will plan to be present at church on January 15 th to hear Michael preach and follow-on with your vote. Thank you all for being patient with this process, and I look forward to seeing a full house on January 15 th! Michael Blackwood Meet and Greets (see signups in the church Narthex): Friday January 13 th 7:00 9:00 PM at the church Saturday January 14 th 9:00 11:00AM at the church Saturday January 14 th 5:00-6:30PM at the Hill Residence, Cocktail and Appetizer for the Progressive Dinner (13740 Silverton Dr Broomfield) Sunday January 15 th 10:00 AM church service presided by Rev. Michael Blackwood Sunday January 15 th 11:00 AM Congregation Meeting and Vote With Great Excitement, Corey Hill Moderator, United Church of Broomfield

4 Nov JANUARY Special thanks once again to our parents who helped get the kids to Sunday School for the Christian Pageant. In the New Year, we are working on a couple of projects...musically speaking for all groups. More to follow. Kohl Street Kids & Preschool NEWS Before and After School Care Tammy White, KSK director We are very grateful for the support of the church - we netted over $500 in our recent fundraiser thanks to your support! We are also now enrolling for both programs for the school year. Happy New Year! DBSA Depression and Bipolar Support Group Open to all those diagnosed with either depression or bipolar disorder. Families and friends are invited the fourth Thursday of the month. We will meet every Thursday from 6:30-8pm in the Steele Commons Room. *This is a peer support group and in no way is meant to be medical advice nor is it to replace individual therapy. Pat s Adult Class The Adult Sunday School class that meets in the front part of the Steele Commons Room will resume classes on January 8. We will continue studying the miracles and parables of Jesus. All are welcome to join us. If you would like more information, please contact Pat James. Prayers for Prayers for Jan Fausset who is in rehab recovering from pulled back muscles. She expects to be there through Christmas. From Keri- Prayers of joy & thanksgiving as Kevin & I welcomed our son, Nicholas Leslie Jacobs, into our lives on 12/26/16 at 6:29p, 6lbs 9.5oz, 20.5 inches long! Continued prayers for health & recovery as Nicholas had a difficult journey while joining us, still needing just a little bit of oxygen and having some challenge regulating his blood sugar & temperature. Mom & Dad are doing well & overjoyed! As are his big sisters!

5 5 JANUARY 2017 Men s Fellowship will meet: Sat, January 7th 7:30AM at The Egg & I Book Club Update: The next meeting of the Book Club will be Friday, January 27th at 7PM at the home of Louise Taylor. We will be discussing The Little Paris Bookshop by Nina George. Gathering Circle will meet Sat. January 14th at 9:00 AM at The Church for Meet & Greet with CO-Pastor THANK YOU FROM PASTOR GREG A very grateful thanks to the church for once again giving me such a gracious Christmas gift. I am so grateful to be able to serve our congregation and to have so many of you as an important part of my life. I promise to use that gift for something inspiring. Attendance & Offering Nov Offering: $11, collected / $11, budget (under by $75.08) Dec Offering: In Christ's love, Pastor Greg Adults / Kids Dec 4 = 53/10 Dec 11 = 56/6 Dec 18 = 78/11 Dec 24 = 94/9 Dec 25 = 27/ 1 $10, collected / $11, budget (under by $788.37) YTD Offering: (thru 12/30) $136, collected / $140, budget (under by $4,211.11) If you did not complete your 2016 pledge we can accept $ s towards those through Sunday, January 8th - please mark your check 2016 Pledge.

6 JANUARY Did you know That we're on Facebook? We here at the United Church of Broomfield are cool and tech savvy! Jump on the bandwagon and stay up to date and informed! Click the link and "Like" us. Another great way to keep up with what's going on here and in the UCC.