Evangelical Free Church Newsletter June A FINAL NOTE FROM PASTOR RANDY MADISON From our Hearts to your Home...

Transcription

1 Evangelical Free Church Newsletter June 2015 A FINAL NOTE FROM PASTOR RANDY MADISON From our Hearts to your Home... WOW! How can two people have so many different thoughts and conflicting emotions? However, that is us! It is difficult for Elizabeth and me to say "good-bye". Over the past several weeks as we have moved closer to May 31, I have found myself shedding many tears as I have gone through a series of "lasts": my last elder meeting, my last staff meeting, my last lunch or conversation with some of you, my last Easter sermon, my last Memorial Day, and now I find myself face to face with my last day in the office and my final sermon. "How did I get here? How did time go so fast? It seems like just yesterday I was walking through the church doors unloading boxes not packing them and carrying them out. Wasn't it just a moment ago I was saying 'hello' not 'good-bye'?" Yes, saying "good-bye" is difficult for both of us! Our hearts and minds are filled with sadness and yet gladness (great joy and gratitude) for the privilege of God allowing us to serve Him and our Evangelical Free Church family for almost 20 years! As we step out into the next chapter that God will make clear to us I find my heart filled with anxiety and yet anticipation; fear and yet peace; questions and yet His promises. THANK YOU for inviting me to serve here. Thank you for all the wonderful years, relationships, and memories of serving Christ together! It has been a great journey with all kinds of God-sightings and glimpses of God's grace! William Bridges writes in his book, Managing Transitions, "Before you can begin something new, you have to end what used to be. Before you can learn a new way of doing things, you have to unlearn the old way. Before you can become a different kind of person, you must let go of your old identity. So beginnings depend on endings. The problem is, people don't like endings. Yet change and endings go hand in hand: change causes transition, and transition starts with an ending." He adds later that "endings" lead to "new beginnings"! I am looking forward to hearing about the new pastor this church will call and the exciting new things God will do for His kingdom through each of you as our church goes through this transition. I don't want to be overly dramatic but I feel a little bit like Paul, when he visited the church at Ephesus for the last time on his way to Rome. After he finished reminding, encouraging and challenging the elders the Scripture says, "he knelt down with all of them and prayed. They all wept as they embraced him and kissed him" (Acts 20:36, 37). I have wept with many of you as we have said "good-bye". Me, "Mr. non-hugger", has actually been embracing my church family! Our church family will be in my thoughts and prayers! As I said on Easter, "for a Christian there is no such thing as 'goodbye'." We have an eternity to look forward to together in the presence of our Lord. So instead of "good-bye" for me it is, "see you at the last Trumpet" (1 Corinthians 15:51, 52; 1 Thessalonians 4:16). And now I commend you to God and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up and to give you the inheritance among all those who are sanctified. ~ Acts 20:32 Journey Off The Map takes your kids to uncharted territory where they will begin to understand that obedience to God can lead them beyond the expected. So, toss the map, stick close to your guide, and prepare to listen for God s direction in this journey that is unknown to us, but known by Him. Watch for sign-up in information on how you can help! Take the Journey Into An Exciting VBS This Summer

2 From the Desk of Pastor Fidel Torres In the month of May we celebrated Mother s Day it was a special day that a number of mothers attended. I thank God that they learned from the morning s message. The life of Eve can provide a lot of edification for a woman: it can help bring into focus the correct perspective before God and in front of her family. I pray that this message will leave its mark on the hearts of the ladies in our church. On Sundays, I ve begun a series of sermons on leadership in the Christian life. All of us, to one degree or another, have been called to be leaders on some level in our lives, and as such we have responsibilities in God s sight. I pray that this series will also serve as a preface to beginning a careful study of the first epistle to the Corinthians. A number of our weekly activities were postponed over the last couple of weeks because we spent some time as a body visiting our sister church, Lexington s Camino de Vida church. To begin with, we attended a marriage conference and then celebrated Camino de Vida s ninth anniversary. It was very neat to see how a Hispanic church could reach that landmark and still be a healthy church. We celebrated and rejoiced in the joy of our brothers and sisters, and we give thanks to God for the life of Pastor Juan Santos, who has been God s faithful servant in planting that church. We ask that you continue praying for our summer projects: for the students that we ve recruited, that we can find a place to house them for the 8 to 9 weeks they are here, and for the health of all of us who are serving in the ministry. All of us have at one time or another been sick. Personally, I am thrilled that the cancer they diagnosed in me in 2012 is under control, and the doctor has reduced my dose of chemotherapy in half. I thank you for your prayers on my behalf. I thank you also for praying for my family: my daughter Jenyfher who graduated, and we are very pleased with God s grace in the lives of our children, who along with the church we have watched grow and take steps as they are borne up by the hand of God. Thank you for your support of our church; we pray that God will multiply that support and return it back to you and to those whom you love. Colossians 3:23-24 says, Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, 24 since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving Nathan Huyser, Director of Worship & Children's Ministries Hastings Evangelical Free Church ( C: / O: / nathan@hastingsefc.org NURSERY DATE 8:30 AM WORSHIP 9:45 AM SUNDAY SCHOOL 11:00 AM WORSHIP June 7 Angela Hewitt/Pam Aanas Chris/Stephanie Shade Dana Thompson/Sydney Brown June 14 Will/Megan Rathje Jasmine Khamouna/Jenny Messerer Anthony/Kara Jacobsen June 21 Mark/Patti Krueger Melissa Ostrander/Carol Hungerford Christy Vontz/Lexi Nordby June 28 Jennifer Kalvelage/Avery Armstrong Ruth Lemke/Dawn Conant Robbie Busking/Peg Engberg CHILDREN S CHURCH Date 8:30 AM 11:00 AM 1 st week Need Volunteers Nick/Lindsay Drake 2 nd week Stephanie Buller Need Volunteers 3 rd week Dan/Amanda Fitzke Maddie Hittner/Julia McConnell 4 th week Brenda Aipperspach Adam/Amy Hoagland 5 th week Need Volunteers Need Volunteers Would you prayerfully consider volunteering in the Nursery or Children s Church once a month or once every 6 weeks? The schedule is on a rotating basis for those who can help. Contact either the church office { } or Nathan Huyser { } if you want to help, have questions, or would like to be added to a substitute list. This summer we are offering a FAMILY SUNDAY SCHOOL CLASS. "The Righteous Shall Live by Faith" is a study designed for children AND adults and goes through the 10 commandments. Each commandment is studied specifically and generally as the themes of law and grace are taught. Small group discussions take place within the lesson time as well as at the end. The final group discussion time for each lesson is presented in a game format. The study will run from May 31st - August 9:45 in Room 1. *Kids in grades 1-5 will not have their normal Sunday School classes during this time. Children who are not part of the Family Sunday School will meet in Room 4 for large group Sunday School time.

3 Summer Sunday Morning Electives! 9:45 am This Summer we are going to try some new things as well as keep some the same. For Children s Sunday School, we are offering a Family Sunday School Class (Room 1) as well as a large group Children s Church (Room 4) at 9:45 am. Living Stones Youth Ministry will continue at 9:45 am in both the Youth Room (Senior High) and Room 11 (Middle School). Adults will have several elective courses to choose from as well as some of our existing Adult Bible Fellowships. The Contemporary Christian Issues (Fireside Room), BridgeBuilders (Room 5) and Bible Explorers (Fellowship Hall) ABFs will continue this summer. The Bible Explorers will host a study in the book of Galatians. The Contemporary Issues will host a study The 7 Churches of Revelation: A Day of Discovery video/discussion; The Young Marrieds, ConneXions and Truth Seeker ABFs will take a break for the summer and re-convene in the Fall. We are offering several elective classes, which are open for anyone to join! A Family Sunday School Class! The Righteous Shall Live By Faith A study for children AND adults on the 10 commandments. Each commandment is studied both specifically and generally as the themes of law and grace are taught. Small group discussions take place within the lesson time as well as at the end. The final group discussion time for each lesson is presented in a game format. An optional Family Devotional Guide is available for $9.50. May 31 August 9, meeting in Room 1. Begins June 7 th Getting to the Heart of Parenting video seminar 10 video sessions by Paul David Tripp focuses on heart change rather than behavior modification in children of varying ages. Each session also includes questions you can do at home with your children. Cost: $5 per family for a copied discussion guide. June 7 August 16, meeting in Rooms 6 & 7. Galatians Ever feel like you have to perform to earn God s acceptance? Want to learn how the gospel frees us from this? Galatians - Why God Accepts Us, features 11 sessions offered as an elective with the Bible Explorers class and with rotating teachers. No cost its free like grace! June 7 August 16, meeting in the Fellowship Hall The Tabernacle Have you ever wanted to understand the OT Tabernacle more and how it points to Jesus Christ? This 6 session video study will walk you through The Tabernacle Experience (set up here May 15-25) going into more detail with discussion questions. Participant guides are available for $8. June 7 July 19, meeting in Room 12 Vertical with Jesus: A 30-Day Journey to Impact Kingdom Living is a devotional prayer guide that encourages believers to focus upward--vertical--before doing the horizontal. You will not only learn about prayer for others, but do it! This is offered as a Women s study. 5 session class. May 31 June 28, meeting in Room 3. Be Jesus in Your Neighborhood "Developing a Prayer-Care-Share Lifestyle in 30 Days," this daily devotional will move an individual or a congregation to make praying for and sharing Christ with neighbors a way of life. The devotionals are written by practitioners who have seen many neighbors come to faith in Jesus. 5 Session Class. July 26 August 23

4 E-FREE Co-Ed Summer Softball Schedule Monday, June 1 9 PM Field 3 Monday, June 8 7 PM Field 2 Wednesday, June 10 8 PM Field 3 Wednesday, June 17 9 PM Field 1 Monday, June 22 7 PM Field 3 Wednesday, June 24 9 PM Field 3 Monday, June 29 7 PM Field 2 The team would love to have the church family come out to cheer them on! WORLDS OF FUN All Jr. & Sr. High students are welcome to attend our annual trip to Worlds of Fun in Kansas City. If you are going into the 7 th grade this Fall, you re invited. Join us June 2 nd & 3 rd. The cost is $140 plus money for 3 meals. Living Stones Student Ministries YOUTH MISSIONS TRIP INFORMATION Youth are planning a BBQ Fundraiser on Sunday, June 7 th. From 11 AM-1 PM. Free-will donation. Monies received will go toward expenses of their Summer Missions trip to South Dakota. We will be taking our High School students to the Cheyenne River Indian Reservation for a week of service projects and kids clubs with YouthWorks. If you are interested in attending either Worlds of Fun or the Summer Missions trip, please talk to Pastor Joel Stark or Amanda Teel ASAP! If you would like your monthly NEWSLETTER ed to you instead of sent through regular mail, please send an to the office at evangelicalfree@hastingsefc.org indicating so. Please check the kitchen for items that have recently been left from funerals, graduations, and other events. There are also several items on the coat rack outside the nursery area jackets, hats, gloves, coffee cups, toys, eyeglasses, jewelry, and more. Are you aware that you can give online? For details, go to our website Did you miss the worship service message? If so, we have audio messages on our website REVELATION sermon series notebooks. They re available at the Welcome Center if you still want one. A Prayer Walk is planned for Saturday, June 6 th, starting at 9 AM here at the church. For further details, contact Ruth Munnell.

5 Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday 1 7:00 Special Cong. meeting for IPM vote :00 am Prayer Walk Student Ministries Worlds of Fun trip 7 11:00 am Not Alone 11:00 am-1:30 YOUTH BBQ Fundraiser 8 9 7:00 Elder Board COMMUNION :00 Property Cmte. 17 MLH Diabetes Camp Hotshots :00 Quilting 20 Adult Missions trip to Harbor Home (Dave Percy) in Missouri Youth Missions trip to South Dakota June 14 th - 20 th 21 FATHER S DAY 11:00 am Not Alone JOURNEY OFF THE MAP VBS in the Park June 22 nd 26 th 30 ELDER BOARD: STAFF: OFFICE HOURS: Chris Shade, Chairman Matt Sass, Assoc. Pastor Joel Stark, Assoc. Pastor Monday-Friday, 8:30 AM-5:00 PM Rod Sorensen, Vice-Chairman Fidel Torres, Assoc. Pastor Nathan Huyser, Music/Worship Dir. Terry Gerber, Treasurer Amanda Teel, St. Min. Asst. Edith Wheeler, Office Mgr. evangelicalfree@hastingsefc.org Jake Birky, Secretary Audrey Mars, Receptionist Sanny/Ruth Munnell, Bookkeepers WEBSITE: James Carson Steve Atwater, Janitor Ken Pittz PHONE: Dan Thompson LOOKING AHEAD INTO JULY & AUGUST July 15 Quarterly Congregational Business Meeting July 23 Project Homeless Connect at 1 st St. Paul s Lutheran Church 10 AM-4 PM August 5 Rock & Roll Up Your Sleeve Red Cross Blood Drive 12 PM-6 PM August 16 Sunday School Promotion Sunday

6 Are you ready for the SUMMER? It s time to register for summer camp at Timberlake, and plan to have a great time! Go to choose the Register for Summer Camp 2015 tab. There you can pick which week you want to attend camp, then choose which camp you want to attend. Feel free to call camp with any questions These camps are offered each week June 7-July 24: *Railroad Town Camp for Grades K-3 (all grades are grade going into fall of 2015) These 2 night camps are the perfect introduction to overnight camp for the younger camper. You can choose the Sunday afternoon thru Tuesday morning or Wednesday afternoon thru Friday morning option. *Treetopper Camp for Grades 4-6 *Fort Camp for Grades 7-10 *Girls Horsemanship Camp Grades 4-10 *SALT Camp Grades 9-12 In Servant And Leadership Training (SALT), you stay for 2 weeks. Your first week, you are a SALT camper, you stay in a cabin with other SALTers learning firsthand how to serve, as well as going through selected portions of Timberlake s staff training materials. The second week, if you pass your interview, you re a Junior Cabin Leader (JCL) and with your campers 24 hours a day. It s real on-the-job training and you ll be able to invest completely in your campers and learn from your Cabin Leader. These camps are offered July 26-30: *Sr. High Camp Grades 9-12 *Boys Horsemanship Camp Grades 4-10 *Advanced Horsemanship Camp must be approved by Horsemanship Director