OWER OPICS. Service Times. Thursday Luncheon Programs. VOL. 48, No. 23 November 7, 2012

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1 VOL. 48, No. 23 November 7, 2012 OWER OPICS Thursday Luncheon Programs Nov. 8: Nov. 15: Nov. 22: Nov. 29: Jodi Cotton, singer Thanksgiving Luncheon, honor 90+ year old attendees. The Praise Singers will provide the special music. Thanksgiving Day - No Lunch but join us in the Sanctuary at 9:00 a.m. for our annual Community Thanksgiving Day worship service. Karen Bartling, Delaware Co. Extension Chorus Coming in November/December: Nov. 10: Slime Time Fall Fest - 2-4:00 PM Nov. 11: Stewardship Sunday Nov. 13: UMW Lunch & Meeting - 10:30 AM Nov. 14: UM Men s Breakfast - 7:00 AM Nov. 17: Youth Rake Leaves Nov. 19: Charge Conference - Riverside UMC Nov. 22: Thanksgiving Day Worship - 9:00 AM Nov. 23: Office Closed Dec. 1: Hanging Of the Greens Dec. 5: Last Issue Of Tower Topics for 2012 How To Contact Us High Street UMC 219 S. High St. Muncie, IN FAX: Church: info@munciehighstreet.com Pastor Mendenhall: dalemendenhall@munciehighstreet.com Pastor Gilbert: dgilbert@munciehighstreet.com Pastor Overmyer: cbovermyer@munciehighstreet.com Deborah Musick: deborahmusick@munciehighstreet.com Tower Topics is a bi-weekly publication of High Street UMC. Send items for Tower Topics to Lori Gibson, editor, by mail or to rebelnomo@munciehighstreet.com. Please put Tower Topics in your subject line. Articles cannot be taken over the telephone! HIGH STREET UNITED METHODIST CHURCH Church: Fax: info@munciehighstreet.com Service Times 8:30-9:30 Traditional Worship 9:45-10:45 Sunday School 9:45-10:30 Chapel Worship 11:00-Noon Contemporary Worship Traditional Worship Broadcast at 11 a.m. on WXFN AM WHAT S INSIDE... Charge Conference... page 3 Children s Church Lectern... page 3 Cheeseballs For Sale... page 7 Church Calendar... page 5 Dolls!... page 7 High Street Travelers... page 6 Orchestra Sunday... page 6 Preschool Update... page 4 Slime Time Fall Fest... page 3 Thanksgiving Day Service... page 6 UM Men s Breakfast... page 3 UMW... page 6 Wondering About God... page 2

2 Wondering About God by Pastor Dale Mendenhall Dear Friends in Christ, I ve been thinking about Richard Mourdock, Sandy the devastating storm, and a young woman who posed a question to one of our staff members. The young woman questions believing in God because she wonders how God could allow so many awful things to occur in this world. It s an age-old question and one that goes at the heart of what we believe about God. That young woman can t be encouraged to believe in God when Mourdock makes his now infamous statement regarding rape, pregnancy, and abortion. It s unfortunate that he used the two words God intended. Clearly God does not intend people to violate other people. But we do have the power to make our own choices and sometimes those choices are destructive of self and others. Mourdock would have been better served (ala Leslie Weatherhead) to say that given the terrible circumstance of rape and impregnation, one then needs to make a choice about what to do about the pregnancy. He apparently believes the child should be carried to term and delivered. Others would support abortion in the case of rape. The point I want to make here is how unfortunate and misleading it is to attribute God s intention to something that is clearly wrong and destructive (whether one aimed to make that claim or not). The same applies to those insurance companies entitling natural disasters as acts of God. If we should not blame God for destructive acts committed by human beings, what can we say about those natural disasters? No human being created Sandy; although we did build in its path. (And there are some claims about the human effects upon our climate.) But no person decided Sandy was the thing to do. Realizing that profound theological books have been written on such topics, let me briefly venture my thoughts in a nutshell. The first chapter of Genesis portrays God creating out of chaos. I believe God is still creating. I believe there is still chaos. And what we have witnessed across our East Coast has been chaos. It s not an act of God. It s chaos at work. I would tell that questioning young woman not to attribute to God anything for which we would convict and imprison a human being for doing. I would point that young woman to the many people who have been responding often generously and often heroically to the devastation wreaked by Sandy, and I would assert that in all that God is at work. He s raising up those people. I would tell that young woman that God doesn t cause everything that happens but nothing that happens ultimately defeats God and his love for us witness the cross and resurrection. And I would point that young woman to the many passages of Scripture wherein we hold onto the promise of creation at peace, sin defeated, chaos overcome, and life finally becoming what God originally intended. Yours in Christ, Pastor Dale 2.

3 Children s Church Lectern Sister Becky Kammeyer leads Children s Church during our 8:30 service in Room 305 and has led that worship service for many years. Sister Becky often encourages children to participate in worship and she needed a lectern custom-built for the size and stature of the children worship leaders. She shared this need with Craftsman and High Street Church member Brother John Robinson and the need was met. The lectern is 36-inches high and was introduced to the congregation during our Children s Sabbath service on October 14. The vision and creativity of Sister Kammeyer and Brother Robinson is greatly appreciated by our congregation. This lectern will serve the children of our church for many years to come. Pastor Daryl Gilbert On the Children s Sabbath, October 14, those of you in attendance at the first service saw our young children standing at a children s lectern. John Robinson made the oak lectern and a step-stool for the children to use every Sunday in Children s Church. We thank John for his many hours of work and for a lasting gift to present and future children. Becky Kammeyer 3. SLIME TIME! Kids of all ages will hear about the love of Jesus and have a great time as they play games and hear of God s love. Join us for Slime Time Fall Fest on Saturday, November 10 from 2:00 to 4:00 p.m. in Parish Hall. It s FREE! Games include: Goop Scoop Electra s Electric Hop Formula Flash Test Tube-A-Loom Toss Glow Toss Wiggly, Woobly, Welay HOSPITALIZED RECENTLY and giving High Street Church as their preference are Jane Freestone, Earl Williams. Evelyn Coulter, Jody Sparling, Jan Jenkinson (Ball Memorial Hospital). Youth Service Project The youth will be available on November 17 to rake yards. A sign-up sheet is at the Youth Bulletin Board in the main hallway. There is no limit to the yards they will rake and no price will be asked for raking. This is a way the youth can be a servant in Christ. Questions? See Elizabeth on Sundays! UM Men s Breakfast DATE CHANGE For November and December! The monthly UM Men s Breakfast will be held on the SECOND Wednesday of the month due to upcoming holidays. November 14 and December 12 will be the next dates. The gathering begins at 7:00 a.m. in Parish Hall with devotions, breakfast and fellowship. We dismiss by 8:00 a.m. All men of the church are welcome to join us! Charge Conference The North Muncie Cluster of which we are a part will meet under the leadership of our District Superintendent David Byrum to conduct our annual charge conference business on Monday, November 19 at 6:30 p.m. at the Riverside UMC. All members of the Church Council are members of our Charge Conference.

4 Angels On High Preschool Update We are tremendously blessed. I m not only considering the innumerable blessings in my life on a personal level, but I have a heart overflowing with thanksgiving for God s blessings on our Angels On High Preschool program. Last Tuesday we hosted our annual Fall Preschool Dinner and Costume Parade in Parish Hall...what a marvelous evening. Not only was every table full, but we watched families move to the side so that other guests arriving would have a place to eat with their own children. Our set-up, serving, and clean-up teams were incredible! Never have we seen such a strong show of support from parents! In addition to our preschool parents, we had several grandparents, Preschool Board members, and special High Street Church friends who worked throughout the evening in the kitchen. Our dishwashing crew was amazing! A huge thanks to Katy Williams who organized the occasion with great efficiency and grace. Thanks to everyone who made this a terrific fund raising event! We raised $780 for our preschool scholarships and overall budget! As we shifted from October to November, we also transitioned from a camping unit to a Space theme for our 3-, 4-, and 5-year olds. We have been learning fun songs about astronauts and reading our Letter S books full of shuttles, stars, and space suits! We re learning about the eight planets in our solar system and how we all orbit around the sun. But more importantly, we ve been thinking about how God took the time to make outer space so beautiful! After we visit the Ball State Planetarium next week with our oldest classes (wearing their cool glow-in-thedark space shirts we made), we pray that our November memory verses, Psalm 148:3-5, come to mind: Praise Him, sun and moon; Praise Him, all you shining stars. Praise Him, you highest heavens and you water above the skies. Let them praise the name of the Lord, for He commanded and they were created. Truly, everything He has made glorifies Him! Our youngest students in our 2-year old classes are thriving and growing already. They are comfortable in their classroom now, helping with the weather chart and calendar each morning during circle time. They are discovering that the day has a routine: there s a time for playing, a time for snacks, 4. and a time for singing and dancing. They are also learning that all the time is time for sharing and taking turns! Dawn Smith, Jill Thomas, and Shelby Morgan do a fabulous job designing activities for their students to practice shapes and colors. Each week they have crafts planned and they aren t afraid to get messy! Peek in Room G-2 whenever you re downstairs on a Tuesday or Friday morning your heart will be touched to see those little ones in action! November 12 will be the last day for our Samaritan s Purse Operation Christmas Child gifts to be collected. So many of you have already dropped off shoeboxes for us. Thank you! We will wrap and fill these boxes with toys, books, hygiene items, and other surprises for children throughout the world who have never before received a present of any kind. Operation Christmas Child is a delightful opportunity for our students to reach out and impact the life of another child their age in an impoverished nation. Feel free to join us by dropping off your own donations of balls, games, socks, hats, and soap or you can help us with the shipping and handling costs by leaving $7 (the charge for each shoebox) in our preschool mailbox in the church office. We ll let you know how many we mail! The 4- and 5-year old classes will be celebrating their annual Thanksgiving Feast on Monday, November 19. This anticipated tradition, started by Joan Pattison and Margaret Railey, was once an event for the entire preschool body and their families. In recent years, we ve had to narrow it down to our oldest classes in order to fit in Parish Hall with all the guests who attend. We ll soon be creating table decorations and painting placemats, counting reservations and then, making memories! Please plan to attend the 8:30 service on Sunday, December 2, when our Angels On High students sing. We hope to lift your spirits and warm your hearts with our voices a gift to you for all you share with us as our High Street Church family. With Thanksgiving, Julie Marshall, Angels On High Preschool Director

5 SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY SATURDAY November Help Needed For Tower Topics! Volunteers are needed to help assemble Tower Topics twice a month. We assemble it usually on Tuesdays, between 2:00 and 3:30. Can you spare three hours a month? If you can help, please call Sydney Wulff at or her at sydwule@aol.com Thanks!!!! :00 AM SHIP 10:00 AM UM Pastors 10:30 AM Blood Press. Chk 11:30 AM Thurs. Lunch 4:00 PM MJ Luick Comm. 5:00 PM Leadership Grp 6:00 PM Bishop Reception 6:30 PM Bishop Reception 7:00 PM Bishop Present. Noon TT Deadline 6:00 PM Kids Nite Out :30 AM Trad. Worship 6:45 AM Renovaré 8:00 AM SHIP 9:00 AM AAUW Setup 9:30 AM Coffee 9:30 AM Bridge for Fun 8:30 AM Staff 9:00 AM M & M s 10:00 AM AAUW Grp. 9:45 AM Informal Worship 10:15 AM Lunch Activ. 10:00 AM Westminster 9:45 AM Sunday School 10:00 AM Pastoral Staff 9:15 AM Wm Bible Study 12 Noon Slime Time 10:30 AM Coffee 12 Noon Mah Jongg 5:45 PM Handbell Reh. 11:30 AM Thurs. Lunch Westminster Set Up 11:00 AM 6:00 PM Kids Choirs 9:00 AM Mary Circle 1:30 PM Naomi Circle Village 2:00 PM Slime Time Contemporary Worship 4:15 PM Childcare Brd. 6:30 PM Praise Team Reh. 6:30 PM Advisory Grp. 4:00 PM Youth 4:30 PM Sr. 7:30 PM Sanct. Choir Reh. 4:00 PM Dale s Mtg. Riverside UMC MCL Cafeteria 7:45 PM Al-Anons 5:30 PM Women s Study 8:00 PM AA s :45 AM Renovaré 7:00 AM UM Men s Brkfst 8:00 AM SHIP Youth Raking Leaves 8:30 AM Trad. Worship 8:30 AM Staff 9:30 AM Coffee 9:30 AM Bridge for Fun 9:00 AM ElderLaw couns. 9:45 AM Informal Worship 10:00 AM Pastoral Staff 9:00 AM M & M s 10:15 AM Lunch Activity Noon TT Deadline 9:45 AM Sunday School 9:00 AM Ruth Circle 9:15 AM Wm Bible Study 12 Noon Mah Jongg 11:30 AM Thurs. Lunch 6:00 PM Kids Nite Out 10:30 AM Coffee 10:00 AM Travelers Trip 2:00 PM Travelers Preview Giving Thanks Dinner 11:45 AM To Warren, IN 11:00 AM 10:00 AM UMW Gen. Mtg 5:45 PM Handbell Reh. 6:00 PM Youth - Contemporary Worship 1:00 PM Archives Comm 6:00 PM Kids Choirs Thanksgiving Dinner 5:30 PM Women s Group 6:30 PM Praise Team Reh. 5:00 PM Parents Meeting 7:30 PM Sanct. Choir Reh. 3:30 PM Trustees 7:45 PM Al-Anons 6:00 PM The Grove 7:00 PM Staff/Parish 8:00 PM AA s :45 PM Handbell Reh. 9:00 AM Thanksgiving Day OFFICE CLOSED 6:00 PM Kids Choirs Worship Service 6:30 PM Praise Team Reh. 7:30 PM Sanct. Choir Reh. 7:45 PM Al-Anons 8:00 PM AA s 8:30 AM Trad. Worship 9:30 AM Coffee 9:45 AM Informal Worship 9:45 AM Sunday School 10:30 AM Coffee 11:00 AM Contemporary Worship 5:30 PM Women s Study 6:00 PM The Grove 9:00 AM Presch Set-up 9:30 AM Bridge for Fun 10:00 AM Pastoral Staff 10:30 AM Preschool Thanksgiving Feast 12 Noon Mah Jongg 6:30 PM Charge Riverside UMC 6:45 AM Renovaré 8:30 AM Staff 5:30 PM Martha/Mary Panera Bread 5:30 PM Missions :30 AM Trad. Worship 6:45 AM Renovaré 8:00 AM SHIP 9:30 AM Coffee 9:30 AM Bridge for Fun 8:30 AM Staff 9:45 AM Informal Worship 10:00 AM Pastoral Staff 10:15 AM Lunch Activity 9:45 AM Sunday School 12 Noon Mah Jongg 11:00 AM Presch. Chapel 10:30 AM Coffee 11:00 AM Presch. Chapel 11:30 AM Thurs. Lunch 11:00 AM 4:00 PM Presch. Board Contemporary Worship 6:00 PM Child Ministries 9:00 AM M&M s 9:15 AM Wm Bible Study 11:00 AM Presch. Chapel 5:45 PM Handbell Reh. 6:00 PM Kids Choirs 6:30 PM Praise Team Reh. 7:00 PM Sanct. Choir Reh. 7:45 PM Al-Anons 8:00 PM AA s Noon TT Deadline 1:00 PM UMW Exec. 5.

6 UMW All circles have open memberships and welcome guests! All meetings are at the church, unless otherwise noted. UMW GENERAL MEETING Tues., November 13 10:00 a.m. Program: Teamwork For Quality Living Mary Circle, hosting Come, bring your friends and enjoy! Please make reservations by calling Mary Swanger at Nov. 8 Nov. 9 Nov. 13 Nov. 20 Nov. 30 Dec. 4 Dec. 6 Naomi Circle - 1:30 PM Westminster Fellowship - 10:00 AM Ruth Circle - 9:00 AM Martha/Mary Circle - 5:30 PM at Panera Bread UMW Executive meeting - 1:00 PM Mary Circle - 9:00 AM Wesleyan Circle Christmas Tea - 4:30 PM DECEMBER 11 10:00 AM General Meeting Christmas Meditation / Preschool Singing Call Mary Swanger at to RSVP High Street Travelers TRAVEL PREVIEW EVENT Thursday, Nov PM in Parish Hall New 2013 Trips Announced! 2:00 PM: British Isle Cruise Photos 3:00 PM: New 2013 Monthly Trips & Registration 4:00 PM: Fall 2013 Trips, Panama Canal Cruise! Nov. 14: Boggstown Cabaret Waiting List! Dec. 12: Beef & Board Christmas Waiting List! 2013 Mar : May 5-17: Savannah Garden Tour & Biltmore Estate $1,099 per double occ. 7 days motor coach, 6 night lodging 10 meals, cathedrals, beaches, more! 10 Night Hawaiian Island Cruise on Royal Caribbean. Includes: round trip air, cabin in category selected, call for Great Destinations Travel for current pricing. 6. Jackie Everetts Blogspot Jackie is currently spending a year in Ecuador, attending school. You can follow Jackie s adventures and schooling through her blogspot: Christmas Orchestra The High Street Church annual Christmas Orchestra Sunday will be on Sunday, December 16 at the 8:30 a.m. worship service. Rehearsal will be held on Saturday, December 15 from 9:30 to 11:00 in the Sanctuary. Music for interested players should be available by Thanksgiving weekend. Please contact Andrew Crow through the church office, , or by arcrow@bsu.edu if you have questions or to let him know you intend to play. Thanksgiving Day Worship Join us for our annual Community Thanksgiving Day Worship Service on Thursday, November 22 at 9:00 a.m. in the Sanctuary. It is our custom to collect nonperishable food items for the High Street Food Pantry. As we look ahead to the holidays, we are asking for special donations to be earmarked for turkeys and hams. Also, letters of thanks and appreciation may be written to others. Please place these letters in a stamped, sealed envelope. During worship, you will have an opportunity to put these letters on the altar. The pastors will mail the letters for you on Friday. Bring your friends, relatives and neighbors to help us celebrate all which God has given us! Youth Highlights The youth raised $167 at the recent bake sale! SAF is at Riverside UMC this Sunday. The time is 4-7 PM. You can meet at Riverside at 4, or you can meet at High Street Church at 3:30 and we ll go over in the van. We ll return around 7:30 PM. Slime Time from 2-4 PM for children on Nov. 10. Let Elizabeth know if you can come and help! Parents Meeting Nov. 11 from 5-6 PM. Youth will be working on selections for Youth Council. Youth will be raking yards on Nov. 17. Sign up to have your yard raked at the Youth Table.

7 The High Street Food Pantry The High Street Food Pantry needs: Canned Fruit Applesauce Pasta with Meat Sauce (Spaghetti-O s, Ravioli) Cereal Instant Potatoes Your non-perishable donations may be left in the wicker baskets at the north door and High Street entrances. How We Help! People Helped: 442 Rent: $3, Utilities: 11, Prescriptions: 1, Misc.: 2, TOTAL: $19, Every day we get calls from people facing eviction or having power turned off. It s so hard when we have to tell them we don t have any funds to help. Thank you so much for being so generous and allowing us to help as many as we have. The need just keeps growing. High Street Memorials Raymond Cullers Carol Kundenreich Jim Jester Von Noel Paul Wimmer Ron Wilson In Honor Of: High Streeters Helping High Streeters 7. Dolls at Bake Sale December 9 Dolls and more dolls! Did you miss those wonderful handmade dolls we ve had for several years at the Bazaar? Beth (Wagner) Weber has sent us this years newest creations. See them in the Library Display Case across from the office. While we didn t have them for the Bazaar, we will have them for sale at the Ruth and Martha/Mary Circle Bake Sale on December 9, just in time for Christmas giving! Come pick out your favorite and give her a home! Thank You! I would like to thank everyone who worked on Friday and Saturday at the Bazaar Food Booth. And a big thank you to all who donated yummy sweets and the delicious food. It was very much appreciated!!! Bonnie Booher, Food Booth Chair Corrected Date for Trip to Warren, IN Our fall trip to Heritage Pointe Retirement Community in Warren, IN will be held on Wednesday, November 14. Join us at 11:45. We ll share fellowship and pumpkin pie with our friends there. Call the church office, , if you d like to join us! It s Cheeseball Time! The Koinonia Class will be selling cheeseballs again this fall. All proceeds will go to support Joy In the Harvest Ministries in Tanzania, Africa. Orders may be placed on Snday mornings at the coffee bar or ed to jcldale@gmail.com. There will also be a limited number of cheeseballs available for purchase without pre-ordering. The first date to get cheeseballs will be the Sunday before Thanksgiving, November 18. Help support Joy In the Harvest Ministries... and enjoy a yummy cheeseball!

8 HIGH STREET UNITED METHODIST CHURCH 219 S HIGH STREET MUNCIE IN RETURN SERVICE REQUESTED Non-Profit Org. U.S. Postage P A I D Muncie, IN Permit No. 679 NOVEMBER 11, 2012 STEWARDSHIP SUNDAY Scripture 2 Corinthians 8:24 and John 3:16 Extravagant Generosity Extravagant Generosity Is An Expression Of Your Heart Pastor Dale Mendenhall NOVEMBER 18 Scripture Romans 8:38-39 The Measure of God s Love Pastor Daryl Gilbert