Island In The Son United Methodist Church Beach Treasures February 2010 Page 1 ENOUGH Discovering Joy Through Simplicity and Generosity Contentment Is Key Do you have a tough time separating wants from needs? Do you sometimes feel consumed by the desire to have more? Do you ever look at your surroundings and feel overwhelmed by the sheer volume of things? When is enough, enough? Please plan to join us in worship where we will release these burdens, address our human tendency head-on, and learn how to consciously change our ways. Coming up in our schedule of events: Feb. 7 -------Cultivating Contentment Enough Small Group Study Continues Feb. 14 -----Defined by Generosity Enough Small Group Study Continues Feb. 21 -----Consecration/Commitment Sunday Enough Small-Group Study Ends Feb. 28 -----Celebration Sunday - Results Celebration and Consecration of New Year s Ministry Commitments Feb. 7, after worship: Bring your favorite HOMEMADE SOUP to our 3rd annual Souper Bowl Sunday celebration. Also bring a CANNED GOOD to be donated to the Timon s Ministries Food Pantry. Jolly Roger Home Group will meet Thursday, February 11, 2010 7:00 p.m. 13826 Jolly Roger St. Please read chapters 5 & 6 of Crazy Love in preparation for this meeting. We meet in the home of John & Shirley Forrester call John (739-9964) or Shirley (779-9826) for more information or directions. Enjoy FOOD, GES & SINGING at the SHROVE TUESDAY PANCAKE SUPPER! Tuesday, February 16 6:00 ~ 8:00 PM $5 ~ all you can eat! Evening Service February 17,, 6:30 PM EACH WEDNESDAY DURING LENT: Meditative Come& Go Communion 5:00-6:00 PM Lenten Series: Journey of Stones WHOOPING CRANE FESTIVAL Feb. 25-28, 2010, Port A Volunteers are needed every day, Friday through Sunday, to cook breakfast, make salads, take orders, fill plates, cashier and clean up. We also need baked cookies, cakes and pies. We have lots of fun and the Festival has many activities you will enjoy. PLEASE SIGN UP at the Opportunities table or contact Brent Curtis or Betty Bundy for more information.
Page 2 Page 2 United Methodist Women Special Event! Wednesday, February 10, 2010 Wesley Community Center (Malinda Faughn, Director) will host a tour of the facility and supply a room for a brief business meeting. We will meet at 10:00 a.m. at the center, located at 4015 MacArthur Street (west on Horne Street off of Crosstown Freeway, at the corner of Horne and MacArthur, 880-8300). The mission of Island in the Son UMC is to be a place where all can come to meet, know, and serve Jesus Christ. The first names listed are greeters and the second names are clean up. Feb. 7: Ole & Aurora Thorsen Bruce & Nancy Benson Feb. 14: Steve Black & Theresa Sharpe Kay Wiley & Marge Foster Feb. 21: Mike & Patty Baker Steve Black & Theresa Sharpe Feb. 28: Kay Wiley & Marge Foster Ed & Sue Stacey Please contact Sue Stacey for updates, substitutes, or information at 548-8216. Sunday Tech 1 Tech 2 1st Lauren Epstein Mary Gaczewski 2nd John Forrester Shirley Forrester 3rd Sunday Tech Team Schedule Michelle Gardineer Tom Gardineer 4th CJ Cummings McCarty Cummings 5th Steve Black Brent Curtis Does Your Spiritual Life Need a Boost? If your spiritual life is in need of a boost, the Walk to Emmaus may be just the thing for you. The Walk is a 72-hour experience of singing, worshiping, praying, and participating in small groups. You will experience the love and grace of God through acts of service and prayer offered by a vital and loving support community. The objective of Emmaus is to inspire, challenge, and equip local church members for Christian action in their homes, churches, and places of work. Walks are sponsored by the Coastal Bend Emmaus Community, the largest Emmaus community in the world, and they are held locally. 2010 women s Walks begin on February 11, July 29 and October 7. Men s Walks will begin April 29 and September 16. IITS has scholarship funds available. If you are interested in the Walk, need an application, or have questions about the Walk, please contact Betty or Lowell Thomas (361-980-8544) or by e-mail at lvandblt @grandecom.net. IITS Health Watch Our health report for December 2009: Prayers: We have celebrated several answered prayers in worship. Presence: December average attendance: Worship 131 Sunday School 10 Gifts: December YTD Received $20,472 $217,447 Expenses $23,348 $236,982 Net income -$ 2,876 -$19,535 Building Loan Payment (YTD): $29,735 Service: Meal service at Timon s Ministries; Christmas dinner for Grandma & family; Imagine No Malaria project
Insert A FREE Income Tax Preparation Everyone enjoyed the fellowship and food at the Winter Texan Celebration on January 10th. To all at the church, We really appreciated your generosity at Christmas time. We appreciate everything you have done all the time. God sent the people of this church as guardian angels. Jenny got her some pretty clothes. The Christmas dinner for us was awesome. Thanks from the bottom of our hearts. Grandma Ella Mae, Jenny and Cindy The Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) Program is offering free tax preparation to low to moderate income tax payers. This program is sponsored by the Weed and Seed Program at the Goodwill Center, 10501 South Padre Island Drive in Flour Bluff. Hours are Thursday and Friday, 6 PM to 8 PM and Saturday 9 to 2 PM, beginning January 23, 2010. Returns will be filed electronically at NO COST for anyone making $49,000 or less Bring Photo ID and all Social Security Cards for anyone you are putting on the tax form Bring all your documents required to file Children's Shelter Needs Items for Refugee Children Bokenkamp Children's Shelter is an emergency shelter for approximately 60 unaccompanied refugee children from Central and South America, ranging in age from infants to teens. These children have all experienced some form of traumatic separation from their families. Bokenkamp provides short-term care that will leave a long-term impact in these children's lives by offering shelter, education and spiritual care. Juan's Story: Juan is a bright, cheerful, determined 12-year-old from Honduras. His parents, hoping for a better life for him than the unending poverty, violence and hunger of their homeland, spent their life savings to send to live with relatives in America. He arrived at Bokenkamp after traveling on foot over 700 miles of punishing terrain to get to the United States. Along the way he survived violent attacks that left him fearful and withdrawn. When Juan arrived at Bokenkamp, he was malnourished, dehydrated and sunburned. His feet were raw from blisters and infected from where he stepped in prickly pear cactus. The staff cleaned and treated his wounds. His feet began to heal, but his psychological and emotional wounds took longer. Thanks to the staff s love and care, Juan made another journey -- from a fearful refugee to a laughing, happy child. He is learning English, to read and write in his native language, to play games, and to laugh and smile again. The process is underway to reunite him with family in the United States. At the Bokenkamp Point Store residents buy clothing, toiletries, toys and other items with points they earn by good behavior and scholastic achievement. Most of the residents are teen-age boys, and the store needs new or gently used clothing items for them, especially shoes. Betty Thomas volunteers in the store, and she will take your donations there. Please email her at lvandblt@grandecom.net or call 361-980-8544 if you have questions or wish to volunteer items or services at Bokenkamp. Thursdays, 7-8:00 PM (in the Children s Sunday School room) Facilitated by Cynthia Riewe
Island in the Son United Methodist Church Insert B Team meeting dates and times are based on information available at printing time. Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday 1 Worship Team 6 PM (Sand Dollar Room) Trustees 6PM (Office) 2 Leadership 6PM 3 4 5 6 7 9 & 11 10 Worship ENOUGH Small group study 8 SPRC 6 PM 9 10 UMW Tour of Wesley Comm Ctr 10 11 7 PM Jolly Roger Group 12 13 14 9 & 11 10 Worship ENOUGH Small group study Valentine s Day 15 President s Day 16 Shrove Tuesday Pancake Supper 6-8 PM $5 each 17 Ash Wednesday Service 6:30 PM 18 Faith Development 6 PM 19 20 21 9 & 11 10 Worship Consecration/ Commitment Sunday/small group study 22 23 24 Lenten Communion Service 5:00 PM 25 26 27 WHOOPING CRANE FESTIVAL > 28 9 & 11 10 Worship Celebration Sunday > Frank & Mattie Sauter (Prague, OK) have graciously donated some Community Pool Swim Passes for the Municipal Pool in Port Aransas for anyone who would like to use them - contact the church office, 749-0884. By the way, they say they are both very well, that they miss the folks at IITS, and hope these tickets may be a blessing to someone! Happy February BIRTHDAY to: 7... Marcia Limas 13... Lora Maddox 18... Carl Dillard Sam Marks Amber Ruddick 27... Joyce Tagliaferro 28... Martha Aucoin Happy February ANNIVERSARY to: 2/25 Thomas & Kimberly Forsberg Don t see your special day mentioned here? It just means we don t have it on record. Please let us know the date so we can update our database.
Page 3 The Warmth of Winter As another Chicago winter stretches on, I ve been longing for spring. And isn t that how it is whenever we go through a wintry financial season? We can t wait for a better one to begin. In my mid 20 s, I inherited $60,000 from an uncle. I used the money to create my dream job, a newsletter for people who take golf vacations. The money enabled me to play some of the greatest golf courses in the world: Pebble Beach in California, the spectacular golf courses of Spain s Costa del Sol, and many more. Two years later I woke up to the hard reality that I had transformed that gift into $20,000 of credit card debt. I had become so acclimated to the life I was enjoying and so blind to what was happening with my finances that when the money ran out I just kept funding my adventure on credit cards. The next four and a half years, during which I paid it all off, often felt like one long winter. I couldn t wait for the debt repayment process to end. But along the way I found some encouragement reading about an affliction faced by the apostle Paul. To keep me from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations, there was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me (2 Corinthians 12:7). Boy, could I relate. My debt felt like the nastiest of thorns that had been twisted into my flesh. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me (2 Corinthians 12:8). Three times? How about a gazillion times? But he said to me, My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness (2 Corinthians 12:9). When I read those last verses I felt a tremendous weight lift from my shoulders. God had already used my financial difficulties to draw me into a relationship with him. But Paul s words told me there was an additional purpose for what I was going through. I realized God was using that time to teach me not to lean on my own understanding, to trust in his provision, and to help me develop more patience. Ultimately, that financial train wreck led me to my life s work: writing and teaching workshops on how to manage money according to the timeless wisdom of God s word. If you re in the midst of a difficult financial season, it s very natural to just grit your teeth, tough it out, and focus on getting to a better place. But my encouragement is to look for all that God wants to teach you during this trial. It s probably more than you think. What is he revealing about the true source of the problems you re facing? What does he want you to remember about his character and his concern for you? How might he enable you to use this tough time for the good of others? Whatever trial you re going through, you can rest assured in God s promise to provide for you and know that he has a purpose he wants to accomplish. The other night as I ran a bag of trash outside to our garbage can and turned to make my usual quick dash toward the warmth of our home, I glanced up and was stopped by the beauty of trees coated in fresh snow glistening under a full moon. I stood there for a moment just taking it in. Then I did something I do far too infrequently: I thanked God for the winter. By Matt Bell Posted: 18 Jan 2010 09:43 PST Attention! Now is the time for all good men and women to clean out those closets and garages and get ready for the Island in the Son Spring Fling Flea Market, SATURDAY, MARCH 6, 6 8:00 12 noon. This will be a golden opportunity to buy and sell each others gently used items. See Table Reservation form below. Saturday, March 6, 8-12 NOON TABLE RESERVATION FORM Clean out those CROWDED closets and that CLUTTERED garage and bring your items to SELL! TABLE FEE: $25.00 Please complete this form and return to the church with your fee (payable to Island in the Son UMC) by March 1. 1 PLEASE PRINT NE: # OF TABLES: ADDRESS: CONTACT PHONE # I understand and agree that any items brought, if not sold, will be removed from the church premises by me. SIGNATURE:
Come as you are Island in the Son United Methodist Church 15602 Highway 361 Corpus Christi, Texas 78418 (361) 749-0884 Email... islandintheson@yahoo.com Website... IslandintheSon.org Office Hours.. Monday-Thursday, 9 2 PM Ministers... All Members of the Congregation Pastor... Rev. Dana Hamilton Music Director... Sue Utley Bookkeeper... Annette Chapman Administrative Assistant.. Connie Harris Maintenance... George Costanzo WORSHIP SCHEDULE Celebration Worship Service 10 9 & 11 The Beach Treasures monthly newsletter is EMAILED to the majority of our recipients. To be added to the email list or to get a mailed copy, please call the church office. Thank you for helping us save resources and the environment. Page 4 ENOUGH February Sermons Discovering Joy Through Simplicity and Generosity Feb. 7... Two -Tents... Luke 12:15 Feb. 14... Defined By Generosity...Luke 8:37-38 Lenten Series: Journey of Stones Feb. 17 Ash Wednesday... Written in Stone...Exodus 32:1-24 Feb. 21... Rejected Stones"... Psalm 118; Mark 12:1-2 Feb. 28... Sticks and Stones...John 8:1-12