Risingsun First Church of God 7968 U.S. 23, Risingsun, OH 43457 Website: www.risingsunfcog.org Church email: fcogrisingsun@gmail.com Phone: 419-457-3971 Pastor Paul J Rutledge O c t o b e r 2 0 1 4 Pastor s Meditation October 2014 Inside this issue: Pastor s Meditation Overtime Trunk or Treat Youth Group Annual Congregational meeting s Brain Builders Pastor Appreciation Month Men s Retreat Women s breakfast Great Lakes Conference Annual Bazaar October calendar If you have an item to put in the newsletter, please submit it to Susie Hoffman by the 3rd. Sunday of the month. Susie s email address is fcogrisinsun@gmail.com Halloween 2014 is fast approaching. The church is gearing up for Trunk or Treat, and it sounds like we re going to do the activity a little different this year, utilizing the gym with games and activities. I enjoy giving candy to the kids that come to the parsonage for trick or treat. It s fun for me to see them having fun in their costumes, and the excitement at getting candy. I enjoy some parts of Halloween, but in other aspects, Halloween is not one of my favorite holidays. I m not a fan of the horror part of Halloween, I don t like haunted houses (paying someone to scare you makes no sense to me,) and Halloween is not one of my favorite holidays when it comes to getting a good costume. I m not a creative person, and I know I lack the creative gene necessary to be able to assemble, and for that matter, enjoy assembling, a really cool costume. This is one of the reasons you rarely, if ever, see me dressed up at Halloween. This is why you don t see me attending costume parties. When it comes to the costume, I got nothing! It s not always been that way. When I was a kid, dressing up was par for the course at this time of year. I planned on getting candy by any means necessary, so we ll have a costume. I had some input on costume, but the final decision on what I walked out of the house wearing was heavenly influenced by the adults. They re paying the bill for the costume, they re providing the material if you re going to do a homemade costume, and they re probably putting in the labor on it as well. I could be a super hero, a robot, somebody from Star Wars, or whatever it might be, but what I was always stopped with my parents or grandparents. They set the standard for how I walked out of the house. At the same time, I got to be someone or something that I admired, and thought was cool. At Halloween, kids are encouraged to dress up like someone they admire or aspire to be. The interesting thing is, the Bible talks about us dressing up as well. The Bible says grownups are supposed to dress up. Galatians 3:27 says, For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ (NAS). As followers of Jesus, we should admire and aspire to be like is Christ. Sounds logical, but when you really think about it, how do we dress up like Jesus? Do we put on a robe and a pair of sandals? Grow a beard? Grow our hair? 1
Pastor s meditation Continued from page 1. Webster s dictionary defines a costume as an outfit worn to create the appearance or characteristic of a particular period, person, place, or thing. We want to put on the characteristics of Christ, but we have to be careful. You ll notice the Galatians passage says we re supposed clothe ourselves with Christ. What does that look like? Colossians 3:12-14 tells us. Colossians 3:12-14 says: So, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience; bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you. Beyond all these things put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity. Being clothed with Christ is not about changing our external appearance, but it s about Jesus coming out in our actions towards others. Those actions come out because Jesus is in our hearts. We are holy, we are beloved by God, and because of these things, we are different people. This Halloween 2014, in addition to putting on a Halloween costume, let s show people we are clothed with Jesus. Treat people with the compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, patience, forgiveness, & love of Christ, who lives in us, and who we aspire to be. Let s make it point to leave the Jesus costume on 365 days a year, and do those things all the time. 1 Football Overtime left for 2014: Friday October 24th. Please be at the church by 9pm. We ll be doing Overtime in Christian Community Ministry Center (the Gym). We need adult chaperones to keep the students in the designated areas. We hope to keep everyone in the building this year. There s a sign up sheet on the clipboard. Please sign up if you can help. We re trying to get an idea of how many chaperones we will have. We also need pop (no diet) and water donations. *** Setup for OVERTIME will be Thursday Oct. 23rd. 4:30 PM (it takes about 1/2 hour) Please come and help. Many hands make work light! The Trunk or Treat committee decided to keep Trunk or Treat going this year as in the past. We are hoping to increase participation this year by challenging Sunday school classes to participate as groups and to spark on competition, a gift certificate for pizza will be awarded to the wining "trunk" as voted on by the trick or treaters. Now this competition is not limited to Sunday School classes! Grab your family, neighbors or come alone to win all that pizza for yourself. All you need is a costume and to decorate your vehicle to be in the running. Or just stop by for some cider and donuts! Oh and don't forget a "treat" if you don't want to be tricked by the Risingsun Trick or Treaters! Any questions? Ask the Trunk or Treat committee which consists of Stephanie Sibrel, Sandy Laborie, and Susan Bloemer. Sunday October 12th. Annual Congregational Meeting. A lunch will be provided after the 2nd. Service and then we will begin the meeting. What takes place at the meeting?... Council members give their yearly report and we will vote on new committee members. You must be a member to vote but, everyone can share their opinions. Please come and share in the "business" of the Church it is important and informative. 2
Brain Builders was held every Thursday from 11 am until noon for grades 2 through 6. Activities were provided including numbers games, math and logic games, and word games. The first session was on July 17 and there were no attendees. The second session was better with one child in attendance. After announcing brain builders at VBS, the attendance for the following weeks was 5, 4, 4, and 3. We were encouraged that the same kids came back the each week. The trainers were Shirley Smith, Becky Chalfin, and Alana Mellott. Thank you to those who also volunteered, but were not called upon to help. October is Pastor Appreciation Month! On Sunday, October 26th. A carry-in lunch following the 2nd service will be held in honor of Pastor Paul. Please plan on attending. Enjoy Great food and fellowship! Yacht Club Retreat: October 17-19 (Friday-Sunday) at the Ohio State FFA Retreat Center, Camp Muskingum, near Carrolton, OH About 3 hours southwest of here. Cost: $50 per adult, and $30 (or less for youth) that s for the whole weekend Please let Tim James, Pastor Paul, or Jeff Adams know if you plan on going ASAP. If you're of the male persuasion and have never had the opportunity to go on one of these retreats you should really try to go, they always prove to be filled with lots of fun, great food and fellowship. Upcoming events in Great Lakes Conference Sunday, October 5, 2014, 4:00 pm Madison Church of God Fellowship Hall Dedication 13730 County Road N65, Montpelier, OH 43543 Saturday, October 11, 2014, 8:30 am Companions on the Journey Psychosocial and Spiritual Care of Cancer Survivors. Sponsored by Blanchard Valley Hospital Spiritual Care. Great Lakes Pastors attend free. Blanchard Valley Hospital ekelly@bvhealthsystem.org Sunday, October 12, 2014, 10:15 am Movement Church Launch, Glenwood Middle School, 1715 N Main Street, Findlay, OH 45840 October 14, 2014 1:00 pm October 15, 2014 noon The Gathering, sponsored by Transformation Ministries Churches of God, General Conference Winebrenner Seminary http://www.cggc.org/ministries/transformational-ministries/the-gathering-2/ November 2, 2014, 9:45 am Launch of Wonder Ministries Church, Angola Gardens, 7001 Angola Road, Holland, OH November 22, 2014, 9:00 am 3:00 pm Reaching the Post-Christian Generation Christian Ministry Center, 700 East Melrose, Findlay, OH 45840 Sponsored by Church Life Commission 3
How exciting to be able to use the Christian Community Ministry Center this year for the bazaar! This year we have over 60 venders compared to last year less than 20. Vendors are from all over the area. I m sure there is something for everyone! If you aren t a shopper please stop in for lunch (11 am 2 pm), we will be serving homemade soups and sandwiches along with a variety of delicious desserts. 4
5 8:15 & 10:45 Worship 19 8:15 & 10:45 Worship 26 8:15 & 10:45 Worship 20 4 6-8 PM Youth Group First Church of God October 2014 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat October is Pastor Appreciation month. At the bottom of Each day contains a topic for prayer to pray for Pastor Paul 9:15-AM donuts, juice, 9:30-10:30 AM Sunday School Nursery: 1st. Terri Allen Sun. Sch. Cindy 2nd.Cindy Spiritual Accountability 12 8:15 & 10:45 Worship Nur. 1st. Louann S.S. & 2nd. Susan Congregational Meeting & lunch after 10:45 service Recreation & hobbies Nursery: 1st. S.S. 2nd. Restorative sleep Nursery: 1st. S.S. 2nd. Carry In Lunch Ministry rest 6 7 PM Emmaus Women group mtg. Mentoring Relationships 13 More Laughter 7 PM Emmaus Women group mtg. God s protection from 27 7 PM New Vision/ Discovery Zone Ministry vision 7 Time in Worship 14 Healthy diet 21 More Energy 28 Staff development 1 Financial Provision 8 Spiritual Rest 15 Personal encourgement 22 Physical rest 29 Outreach & evangelism 2 Time in God s Word 9 Pastor s Wife 16 Time for exercise 23 Preaching ministry 30 9 AM Bible Study Bazaar setup Personal Leadership 3 Time in Prayer 10 Pastor s children 17 Emotional rest 24 Overtime please be at the church by 9:30 pm to chaperone Leadership 31 Bazaar setup Clear directions from God for the coming year Hearing from God 11 Close friendships 18 Freedom from disease 25 Trunk or Treat Counseling opportunities