Pastor Greg s Gandering

Size: px

Start display at page:

Download "Pastor Greg s Gandering"

Jordan Hawkins
5 years ago
Views:

Sept 2013 THE UNITED CHURCH OF BROOMFIELD an Open & Affirming Congregation of the United Church of Christ The Center of Our Lives Pastor: Greg Garland Assistant Pastor: Sandy Cheatham 825 Kohl

org Pastor Greg s Gandering So it s been a busy summer with two family reunions, one on my side and one on Shelly s side which included house guests for a week.

Cluster is reading. It has been hard ground to plow, but so far it has reaped a good harvest. The book is The Future: Six Drivers of Global Change, by Al Gore.

Starting with the hopeful part, the first driver of future global change is a very democratic, perhaps anarchistic, global consciousness that is developing through the ever increasing web of

1 Sept 2013 THE UNITED CHURCH OF BROOMFIELD an Open & Affirming Congregation of the United Church of Christ The Center of Our Lives Pastor: Greg Garland Assistant Pastor: Sandy Cheatham 825 Kohl Street, Broomfield, CO Pastor Greg s Gandering So it s been a busy summer with two family reunions, one on my side and one on Shelly s side which included house guests for a week. And there was traveling to Vegas to see Santana, Sylvan Lake, the Tetons and Yellowstone and then to Steamboat, But also this summer I have been trying to plow my way through a book that Clergy Cluster is reading. It has been hard ground to plow, but so far it has reaped a good harvest. The book is The Future: Six Drivers of Global Change, by Al Gore. I have managed to plow through almost half of the book and 3 of the 6 drivers and I find the book giving me great hope and great despair. Starting with the hopeful part, the first driver of future global change is a very democratic, perhaps anarchistic, global consciousness that is developing through the ever increasing web of connections provided by such things as the internet, smart phones, tablets, etc., that is linked all at once into each other and serve as extensions of our own memory and consciousness. For better (a democratic global consciousness) or worse (the NSA and Google knowing our every move) this new global consciousness may have the ability to produce a global creativity and a new kind of power that the world has ever known. Whereas the print revolution brought us such changes as the scientific revolution and the emergence of nation-states (such as the United States); the digital revolution will change our world in unimaginable ways that will accelerate change and breakdown boundaries including national boundaries. It may also provide an offset to the next driver of global change in the future. The second driver of global change is a new balance of power. It is a balance that is not between nation-states, such as were rebalanced in the great wars and the cold war, but a power struggle between nations and multi-national corporations that have no national loyalty and are more powerful than most nations. Even in our own country there is unified corporate movement to Look Inside. Sept Anniversaries & Birthday s Moderator s Moment Circle of Concern / UCB Wall of Prayer /Says Sandy 3 Small Groups & Activities Youth Underground Attendance & Offering News from the Preschool KSK Update CE News 5 7 OKTOBERFEST sept & oct calendars 7-8 Service Hours: 9AM Sunday School 10AM Service of Celebration (Continued on page 6) 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 Sept 2013 Your Church Leadership Greg Garland - Pastor Jane Shelton - Moderator Jay Malec - Vice Moderator Nancy Crimmins - Clerk Carolyn Crouse - Financial Gary McKee - Treasurer Corey Hill, Marti Pratt - Members at Large Kevin Ripley - Trustees Chair Carol Bliss - Worship Chair Laura O Kelly - Spiritual Care Chair Carissa Fralin - Christian Education Chair Kathy Plomer - Mission Chair Heather Ottem - Fellowship Chair Moderator s Moment ave you ever been reluctant to attend H something you have been invited to? ell, I found myself dragging my feet W over an invitation to attend a theatre production about a month ago. I was invited to attend The King s Table in Aurora by one of my USPS customers. (She was one of the dancers in the production) I asked a few friends to go with me but they had other commitments. So, with much trepidation, off I went by myself. As I walked around Aurora Central High School from the parking lot, I saw a lady with a walker being dropped off by a side door of the school. She was told by one of the performers that she couldn t enter that entrance because the performers were changing into costumes and make-up sessions were in progress. I was asked to help this lady (a total stranger) make it to the front entrance of the school. This is how I met Crystal. By the time we got to the front entrance, Crystal was the one helping me and had taken me under her wing, introducing me to all kinds of people Jerry & Marlyce Buderus 9/5/1970 Matt & Shannon Hancock 9/7/2002 (she seemed to know everyone). She introduced me as her new friend. Her friend and driver, Gwen, joined us in the third row at the front of the auditorium. The show was terrific and had a beautiful message of Hope for living in this world. I felt so welcomed by those 2 ladies and I certainly hope I get to see them again in 2 years when The King s Table comes back to Denver. his story made me think of how T intimidating it could be for people to come and visit our church. I am trying much harder to reach out and take our visitors under my wing. Please help me in welcoming our visitors and let them know why you attend UCB. ongratulations to our congregation for C raising over $15,000 for the Building Better Access project! The concrete has been poured for the walkway, the rock landscaping shoveled, the new door to the Fellowship Hall installed, and by the time you read this, the hand-railing will be attached. The last part of the project is to remodel the nursery room restroom to make it accessible. The new wheelchair ramp got some traffic this past Sunday with the potluck in the Fellowship Hall after the worship service in our park. We are still accepting donations for this project as the final cost was just over $20,000. I want to encourage everyone to take part in the many activities and programs beginning in September. I ll name a few: Kickoff Sunday that signals the startup of Sunday School for children and adults is on September 8th. UCB will have a booth at Broomfield Days on September 21st and we need volunteers to work the booth. Our Fall fundraiser, Oktoberfest with a gift basket auction is on September 29th, Blessing of the Animals service is on October 5th, and the Crop Walk is on October 6th. Why not pledge money for a participant or walk in the Crop Walk yourself? If you need more ideas on how to get involved at UCB, see me. Jane Martin-Shelton, Moderator Birthday s 10 Helen Austin Virginia Hoyle 15 Earl Reuter 21 Kevin Conn 24 Wayne Sissel 25 Pat James Lora McGimpsey If we missed your b day please contact the church office.

Nov Sept 2012 2013 Prayers for Mary Jo Andrews who passed on July 26th - Mary Jo attended UCB years ago before

passing of Kevin s father Wyatt McKee, grandson of Gary & Nancy, who was in the hospital for an abscess on his

a few weeks before they remove his appendix.

mom who is in a lot of pain with bone marrow cancer Pat Diedrichs who passed into new life on Aug 17th Scout

Scouts & Leaders! Says Sandy from Assistant Pastor Sandy Cheatham 3 School has started halleluiah!

I only ask for your thoughts if you read it.

I m also proud to report I ve lost 2.5 pounds. This means, I ve stuck with my diet for a week, haha.

So, I ve been trying to not put off stuff and be more proactive. How about you?

As school starts, I ve also been working on our budget.

This makes me itchy as we start discussing church budgets and the stewardship campaign.

So, we are maintaining with hopes to catch up on our extra when an expected extra arrives.

Yet, we must keep on dreaming and striving to be more than we were the day before.

Christ did not maintain the status quo or ignore the difficult; he confronted it face on.

3 Nov Sept Prayers for Mary Jo Andrews who passed on July 26th - Mary Jo attended UCB years ago before moving to Estes Park Carissa Fralin s mother who was taken to ER with trouble breathing Jacobs family in the passing of Kevin s father Wyatt McKee, grandson of Gary & Nancy, who was in the hospital for an abscess on his appendix - he is now out of the hospital and the antibiotics have reduced the abscess - he is now waiting for a few weeks before they remove his appendix. Juli Bassman, Kevin & Pasha Ripley s daughter-in-law who had emergency gall bladder surgery Shannon Kelly s mom who is in a lot of pain with bone marrow cancer Pat Diedrichs who passed into new life on Aug 17th Scout Troop 511 which is chartered by our church was responsible for the new lines painted in our parking lot Thanks Scouts & Leaders! Says Sandy from Assistant Pastor Sandy Cheatham 3 School has started halleluiah! And, I have finished my ordination paper. I ll have 5 copies out by the newsletter. I only ask for your thoughts if you read it. I hope to be ordained on Pentecost Sunday this year keep me and ordination in your prayers. I m also proud to report I ve lost 2.5 pounds. This means, I ve stuck with my diet for a week, haha. I hope to report that I m near reaching my goal by next month. So, I ve been trying to not put off stuff and be more proactive. How about you? If not, we now have a new month and a new opportunity to make a change. As school starts, I ve also been working on our budget. It seems there simply isn t enough to go around this time of year. This makes me itchy as we start discussing church budgets and the stewardship campaign. I want to tithe but I m not there yet and when we tried to go up this year it proved difficult. So, we are maintaining with hopes to catch up on our extra when an expected extra arrives. This happens in life falling short of hopes and goals. Yet, we must keep on dreaming and striving to be more than we were the day before. This is how the world changes, for the good. Christ did not maintain the status quo or ignore the difficult; he confronted it face on. So, it is my hope that we confront our issues at home, at church, and within the community face on. Thus, I admit that the stewardship campaign makes me itchy as I feel I m not giving what I would like. So, I ll look once more where my money is going and possibilities to trim here and there. My goal that I have stuck with is to give more to the church than I spend eating out or using on entertainment whether at home or out (movies, books, etc.). I have succeeded with this goal for two years, perhaps I can add something else in?! I invite you to face a difficult task, something that makes you itchy face-on with faith. Move forward however you can and thank God for the ability to deal with what lies in front of you! Faithfully, Sandy

Book Club Update: The next meeting of the Book Club will be Friday, Sept 27th 7PM at the home of Pat James. We will be discussing The Principled Politician by Adam Schrager. Please join us!

4 4 Sept 2013 THE MORNING STAR CIRCLE WILL MEET AT EGG & I ON TUESDAY MORNING, SEPT 3RD AT 11AM. ALL ARE WELCOME! Men s Fellowship will meet Sat, Sept 7th at 7:30AM & Sat, Oct 5th at Great 7:30AM Please join us for food, fellowship, and great conversation. Book Club Update: The next meeting of the Book Club will be Friday, Sept 27th 7PM at the home of Pat James. We will be discussing The Principled Politician by Adam Schrager. Please join us! Gathering Circle will meet Sat. Sept 14th at 8:30 AM at the Super Mini Walnut Café 2770 Arapahoe Rd, Lafayette this is off of 95th & Arapahoe near the YMCA - west side of 95th we will carpool from church leaving at 8:10AM Please join us. UCB Youth will be joining with 7 other Metro area UCCs to do Youth Underground once a month. It will typically be the first Sunday of the month unless, of course, that is a holiday. Below is the information for this upcoming event: Next Underground youth: Sunday, Sept 8th, 5-7PM Talent Show Cameron UMC Bring your talents or just come and cheer on others Mission Trip March 24th-31st - New Orleans $425 per person Open to anyone who has finished 5th grade :) Let Sandy know if interested. Attendance & Offering July Offering: $9, vs. $10, budget (under by $1,518.00) Aug Offering: (thru 8/25) Adults / Kids July 28 = 55/14 Aug 4 = 60/9 Aug 11 = 60/11 Aug 18 = 61/4 Aug 25 = 56/16 $10, collected / $10, budget (over by $435.00) YTD Offering: (thru 8/25) $77, collected/$85, budget (under by $7,234.14) Need to know your pledge balance - please contact Gary McKee

Sept 2013 5 News from the Preschool submitted by Nancy McKee, Director Support our Preschool by purchasing E-Books again this year. Just $10 buys you hundreds in savings!

KSK Update Submitted by Linda Neville, KSK Director Where did the summer go?!! We are back in the swing of a new school year.

Our new Kindergarten Enrichment program, called Kindies, is going well. We do still have openings in our before and after program as well as Kindies.

We will continue our study on "The Harmony of the Gospels" studying the life of Jesus. All are welcome to join us. For more information, please contact Pat James.

5 Sept News from the Preschool submitted by Nancy McKee, Director Support our Preschool by purchasing E-Books again this year. Just $10 buys you hundreds in savings! CE News It's Sunday School Time! Sept 8th with a 9AM Kick-off Breakfast Use just a couple of coupons and you make your $10 back. In the process you help fund our preschool. It s a win/win! KSK Update Submitted by Linda Neville, KSK Director Where did the summer go?!! We are back in the swing of a new school year. Thanks to the church for getting the building and playground ready for our first days. As always, we welcomed new families and miss some of the children who aren't with us this year. Our new Kindergarten Enrichment program, called Kindies, is going well. We do still have openings in our before and after program as well as Kindies. We always appreciate when you send families our way! Pat s Adult Class - The Adult Sunday School class that meets in the Steele Commons Room will begin classes on September 8. We will continue our study on "The Harmony of the Gospels" studying the life of Jesus. All are welcome to join us. For more information, please contact Pat James. Your CE Committee has been working hard on Sunday School for this year. We have a strong program for children and two exciting adult class opportunities. For Children - This year's curriculum is "Spark" and focuses on Biblical stories every child should know. The children will begin each Sunday morning as a group for Assembly, to go over the morning's lesson. Then the children will go to separate classrooms, divided by grade, for age appropriate learning of the story. We have committed teachers, along with substitutes and weekly helpers. Adults - Dropping off your children for their class? Stick around and attend a class of your own! Sojourners Class - this is an exciting and creative class designed to get you thinking outside the box and talking about new ideas. For specifics on this year's curriculum, talk to Nancy McKee or Jane Shelton. Commons Room Class - this is a class designed around learning about the Bible - the region it came from and the times in which it was written. For specifics on this year's curriculum, talk to Pat James. Sunday School Kick-off Breakfast is September 8th at 9:00am. Hope to see you there!

6 Sept 2013 The Ramp is in! The wheelchair ramp to the lower level of our church is in!

The new rear doors to accommodate wheelchair access into Fellowship Hall have been installed!

New fixtures and grab-bars will be installed in the restroom downstairs to accommodate those in wheelchairs.

If you haven t donated - please do - if you have donated - thank you for your support. Way to Go UCB!

get passed legislation that favors corporate rights over social or individual rights. Yeah, that s the despair part.

But from the perspective of a developing democratic global conscious mind, democracy, individual rights and social rights may still be alive and well.

conscious to the world consciousness and to the soul. The Global Mind that Gore refers to is part of that Spirit.

With the balance of power shifting to corporations the rights of individuals and society are decreasing and it takes little imagination to recognize that

no longer has a well functioning self-government. To use a phrase common in the computer software industry, American democracy has been hacked. The U.S.

6 6 Sept 2013 The Ramp is in! The wheelchair ramp to the lower level of our church is in! Most of the landscaping has been completed thanks to all the volunteers that showed to shovel and rake! The new rear doors to accommodate wheelchair access into Fellowship Hall have been installed! The new railing for the ramp has been installed and will be painted to match the fencing early next week! New fixtures and grab-bars will be installed in the restroom downstairs to accommodate those in wheelchairs. We are almost done with this project, but we are not yet done with the fundraising required to cover the expenses. If you haven t donated - please do - if you have donated - thank you for your support. Way to Go UCB!!! (Continued from page 1) Pastor Greg s Gandering control the Supreme Court and elections from President to State legislatures, as well as to write and get passed legislation that favors corporate rights over social or individual rights. Yeah, that s the despair part. From the perspective of nation-states, democracy may already be a thing of the past. But from the perspective of a developing democratic global conscious mind, democracy, individual rights and social rights may still be alive and well. Of course you may be wondering why this is all of interest to a group of clergy who are supposed to be interested in spiritual things. Let me give you two important reasons. First, it was the philosopher Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel who gave us the insight that there is a spirit or mind or consciousness that links the eternal conscious to the world consciousness and to the soul. The Global Mind that Gore refers to is part of that Spirit. The evolution of the Global Mind is part of the evolution of consciousness itself. Second, justice and God s will are at stake. With the balance of power shifting to corporations the rights of individuals and society are decreasing and it takes little imagination to recognize that those with the least are suffering the most; while those with the most are prospering. As we are all aware the U.S. no longer has a well functioning self-government. To use a phrase common in the computer software industry, American democracy has been hacked. The U.S. Congress, the avatar of the democratically elected national legislatures in the modern world, is not capable of passing laws without the permission from the corporate lobbies and other special interests that control their campaign finances. [Gore} And if the U.S. can t stand up to the multi-nationals how bad do you think it is for poor and developing nations. It is not that multinational corporations are evil;but corporations are concerned with profit, not with justice or living conditions or providing a quality standard of living or a safe environment. They are not interested in people except as a market or a commodity and love is not profitable; at least not on a quarterly statement. It goes without saying that those interested in building God s Beloved Community have their work set out for them. So much for the lazy days of summer. (LOL) Back to work.

Sept 2013 7 OKTOBERFEST Our UCB Our Oktoberfest UCB Oktoberfest celebration celebration is is on th Sunday, Sept th Sunday, Sept 29 28 after church after church $5 adult, A Bratwursts A Bratwursts

7 Sept OKTOBERFEST Our UCB Our Oktoberfest UCB Oktoberfest celebration celebration is is on th Sunday, Sept th Sunday, Sept after church after church $5 adult, A Bratwursts A Bratwursts lunch lunch $3 child, (hot dogs (hot for dogs those for who those don t who like don t brats) like brats) or $20 a family will be available In addition to our traditional brats lunch, we will have a basket auction... Some ideas from previous auctions Walking Denver, Turkey Dinner, Adult Beverage Basket, Smoked Salmon & Wine, Chocolate & Port, Game Day beverages & snacks, Junior Railroad Fan, Lunch Break, Italian dinner, Comfort Break, Basket, Italian Omaha dinner, Comfort steak dinner, Basket, Jewelry Omaha basket, steak. Do you have the idea now? dinner, Jewelry basket,. This Silent Auction is a Do Basket you have Auction the idea something now? that the winners take with them that day. This Silent Auction is a Basket Auction Please let Gary McKee something know your that planned the winners basket donation take with by them ing that to toptrack@msn.com day. Please let Gary McKee know your planned basket donation by ing to toptrack@msn.com

8 8 Sept 2013 Araproskokians... figures of speech in which the la er part of a sentence or phrase is surprising or unexpected; frequently humorous. (Winston Churchill loved them) We never really grow up, we only learn how to act in public. The United Church of Broomfield 825 Kohl Street Broomfield CO designed & printed courtesy of TopTrack, LLC

Pastor Greg s Gandering

Pastor Greg s Gandering Look Inside. Nov Anniversaries & Birthday s Moderator s Moment Circle of Concern / UCB Wall of Prayer /Says Sandy 3 Small Groups & Activities Youth Underground Attendance & Offering KSK & PS Updates -