Consecration Sunday

Sunday, May 4

It’s that time of year when April showers bring May flowers, when the winter clothes can be stored for a couple of seasons, and thoughts and plans are in the making for summer vacation.  It’s that time of year when the members and friends of First Christian Church make financial commitments in support of the ongoing ministries of this faith community.  It’s that time of year when we count the abundance of blessing and grace God has bestowed upon us and give thanks.  Sunday May 4 marks this time of the year for commitment and celebration.

Worship will be celebratory as we recount the mighty and wondrous acts of God in and through this faith community this past year.

Worship will be a time of financial commitment.  Worship will be filled with a variety of expressions of gratitude and praise.

May 4 also offers an opportunity for a wonderful, fun-filled time of fellowship.  A “tasty” potluck meal will follow worship.  Beverages will be provided; bring your table service and your favorite spring dish to share!

 

An 8 Week Journey

On Sunday March 30, Brian Shaw began the eight week journey of “Sharing is Caring” by challenging us to listen to Mary’s story of an encounter with the risen Christ and the life-changing effect it had on her.  The “kick-off” luncheon following worship was attended by 50 people ready and willing to allow God’s spirit to empower a more effective sharing of the Good News of Jesus Christ.

Weekly Bible Studies will be held to nurture sharing through small group involvement. The scripture texts for the coming weeks are:

April 13   Luke 2:41-52

April 20   Matthew 28:16-20

April 27   I Thessalonians 5

May 4   I Peter 3:8-15

May 11   Acts 2:1-21

May 18   Acts 2:37-47

Three small groups are meeting:

Wednesdays, 6:30 pm
in the Library with Matt and Jen Reisetter

Thursdays, 9:30 am
in the Library with Liz Woodward

Sundays, 6:30 pm
in the Library with Brian Shaw

     You are welcome to join the exploration and conversation regarding the power of faith and our responsibility to share it. ÿ

Inviting You to Join
       the Adult Discussion Groups

A mentor of mine once pointed out that there are 168 hours in a week, and that many Christians only use one or two of those hours to "do church".  The rest of the time, they're out there trying to 'fight the good fight of faith' in a wayward culture that threatens to drag them down at every turn.  So, he pointed out, it's no wonder so many Christians have a limited spiritual effect in the world - they're running on empty tanks.

Well, even though it would just play a small part, our hope is that this Wednesday night discussion group will help to fill your tank a little, and that you'll be encouraged to face the world with the grace and truth of Jesus Christ.  It's not that "doing church" or being part of this discussion group is the only way you can fill your tank, but it is one way, and I want to seriously think about joining us ... the conversation will be even richer with you there!

     Until Wednesday,

     Matt ÿ

 

Thank You

To All Participants of Youth Sunday, April 13…

You all did a suburb job in church! The youth ringing the chimes did a splendid call to worship. All of the music that was performed was just fantastic. The actors in the skits did a marvelous job of speaking clearly and keeping up the energy. The deacons did a professional job of collecting offerings. The speakers did a great job of smoothly transitioning the service. Natalie gave a truly inspiring testimony for her senior sermon.

Thanks to the elders for going with the flow. Special thanks to Mary Jo Woody, Marilyn Miller, Tami Mauer, Jane Harding, and Liz Woodward for the various assistance that was given working with the youth or with filling in great ideas. Thanks also to the youth that assisted in preparing for youth Sunday even though they were not able to attend service. It is truly a joy to be able to see so many participants working together to share a meaningful and fun worship service. Youth ~ keep up the great work!
-Jeanine Fernandez
 

 

Christian Conference Center Turns 40 this year!

Did you know that over the past 40 years over 30,000 youth and adults have gone to camp on this particular Holy Ground?

Did you know that the land was originally farmland donated by Ralph McCague, a member of Central Christian Church in Marshalltown, Iowa?

Did you know that many of the youth who attended the first year of camp held at the Christian Conference Center are now proud grandparents and some of them have come back to Grand Camp with their grandchildren?

Did you know that when Chi Rho Rustic Camp first started, campers not only had to fix their own meals over a campfire, but had to build their own tent/shelter and use a solar shower?

Did you know that in 40 years we have added hotel-style rooms, 2 new meeting rooms, changed the main entrance of the building, added kitchenettes in the cabins and made the tents into huts?

Come on Saturday, April 26

10 am-4 pm

to learn more and celebrate the stories and ministry!

5064 Lincoln St, Newton IA 50208
641-792-1266

Conference Center Info

 

Camp 2008

NOW is the time to register your youth for the summer camping ministry of the Christian Church in the Upper Midwest.  Information is posted on the bulletin board in the Division Street entryway. Registration deadline (to the church office) is April 26. 

Pee Wee Camp -Completed 2nd Grade
July - 3           (#1)
Junior Camps - Completed 3rd, 4th or 5th
Jun 9 - 14       (#2)	Jun 23 - 28     (#3)		Jul 7-12        (#4)
Jul 21 - 26      (#5)	Jul 29 - Jul 1   (#6)		(mini Jr. camp)
Chi Rho Camps - Completed 6th, 7th or 8th
Jun 9-14       (#7)	Jun 16 - 21     (#8)		Jun 23 -28     (#9)
Jul 7-12      (#10)	Jul 14 - 19      (#11)		Aug 4 - 9            (#13)
CYF Conference - Completed 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th
Jul 28-Aug 2  (#14)		Jun 16-21       (#15)
Jul 14-19         (#16)		Jul 28-Aug 2  (#17)
Post High - Age 18 -23
Dec 26-28    (#18)
Grand Camp K - 2nd grade and grandparent
Jun 5-6   (#20)		June 6-7   (#21)
Trec Camp
Jun 29-Jul 5    (#23)
Family Camp
Aug 8-10      (#22)
Equestrian Camp
Jun 21-26       (#26)
Couples Canoe Camp
Jun 22-24       (#27)
Adult Canoe Camp
Jul 20-25           (#29)

The Christian Church in the Upper Midwest presents…

	Transforming in Troubling Times
	May 1, 2, 3  2008 West Des Moines Christian Church Mainline churches are in distress The old ways aren’t working Congregations are struggling People feel overwhelmed by rapid change all around them.
These changes demand bold and decisive action.  The Congregation Transformation Task Group in the Upper Midwest invites all ministers to attend a three-day event, with three or more lay leaders joining the pastors on Saturday.  Each day will be enveloped by prayer, worship, dwelling in scripture, and journaling. Transformation is a spiritual, systemic, and strategic journey traveled by a congregation urgently striving to realize what God has called it to be and do. The journey requires we step out in faith.  We don’t know the destination.  But we do know God calls us to go forward, and guides us along the way. I am eager to attend this event as I believe it dovetails beautifully into the opening door before us concerning evangelism.  Information about this event was presented at the January Board meeting.  Two members have indicated their willingness to embark on this journey.  Are you interested?  Willing to attend the Saturday workshop?  More information is posted on a bulletin board in the narthex, take the information and prayerfully consider joining this journey in transformation. Registration deadline:  Sunday, April 13.  Let Liz know your interest soon!      -Liz ÿ

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Fill the Pantry

The emergency food pantry is in need of canned fruit, Jell-O and pudding.  Thank you for your willingness to help our brothers and sisters in need.

The “emergency food pantry” is looking bare.

Please consider a donation of:

v   Oatmeal

v   Cereal (Non-sugared cereals, please)

v   Peanut Butter and Jelly or Jam

v   Macaroni and Cheese

v   Spaghetti and/or Pasta Sauce

v   Spaghetti

v   Helper Meals (Hamburger Helper, Tuna Helper, etc…)

v  Money for Hy-Vee food cards and meat is always welcome

Each family helped through the Emergency Pantry receives 1 lb frozen ground beef and a $10 gift card to HyVee for milk, bread, or other items of need.  Monetary gifts may be made to the Emergency Pantry by noting on the memo line of a check “Emergency Pantry.”

Thanks for your help in helping us reach out in Jesus’ love.

First Readers Book Club

May’s Book Selection

My Sister’s Keeper by Jodi Picoult

Kate Fitzgerald has had leukemia since she was 2 years old, and her family conceived their next child, Anna, in hopes that her genetic makeup could be used to help Kate stay alive. Now Kate is 16, and Anna 13. Kate is getting worse, and Anna's parents want her to donate a kidney as one last chance for her sister. After years of surgery, trauma, and heartbreak, Anna rebels. She even finds herself a lawyer to plead her case. As the hearing approaches, Kate's condition worsens, their older brother Jesse's problems escalate, and Anna begins to wonder if she is doing the right thing. Jodi Picoult specializes in writing fiction about families in extreme situations. My Sister's Keeper alternates among several points of view, including the legal and ethical issues involved, as Picoult devotes her considerable novelistic skill to examining this controversial issue. ÿ

The next gathering will be
Thursday, May 22
C.F. Library (tentative location)

 

Kiwanis Club Honors Outstanding Citizens

Each year the Cedar Falls Kiwanis Club honors a group of Cedar Falls volunteers for outstanding service to the community. This year the volunteers active in the C. F. Community Meals were recognized.  Alyce Jenkins represented the “5th Tuesday Group” of combined volunteer work by St. Luke’s Episcopal, Valley View Baptist, Unitarian Universalist Society and First Christian Church.

The recognition plaque is in the church office window. Take a moment to see it and offer an extra hug of appreciation to Alyce!
 

 

Year End Celebration

Date: Wednesday, April 30

Time:  5:30 pm

Where:  Fellowship Hall

Please join the youth, parents and staff of Logos as we celebrate the time we’ve spent together exploring and building our faith.  We will share a potluck meal with one another and Lampost Theatre will provide the entertainment for the evening.

Please bring a hot and cold dish to share and your own table service.  Drinks will be provided.  Call 266-5959 with questions.

As a congregation, you have supported this ministry in so many ways.  We hope you’ll join us.

 

Spring Fling Potluck

Yes, we are confident that Spring is coming and we are going to welcome it with a potluck after worship on Sunday, May 4.  Find your favorite recipes and bring a dish or two to share with others.  Bring your own table service and your delicious items to share. 

Beverages and desserts will be provided.

2008 Flower Calendar

The flower calendar for 2008 is been posted in the narthex. Sign up for a date to share flowers with your church family. Celebrate or commemorate a special date or give flowers “just because you want to.”

The church office will make a reminder call during the week preceding your scheduled date. Flowers can be ordered by the office from Bancroft Florist or you can order them from the florist of your choice. Flowers from your own garden are also welcome. Please call the church office if you have a question.
 

Acts of Service - Opportunities to Serve

In the narthex every Sunday are many opportunities to become actively involved in the ministry and service of First Christian Church.  Among those opportunities are communion preparation, serving communion during worship, lighting the candles before worship and extending a hand of fellowship as worshippers arrive on Sunday mornings.  If you have questions, please call Mary Jo Woody, Stephanie Weaver, Penny Lowman or the church office.

39’ers Plan for 2008   by Pat McGraw & Harriet Hahn

Reader X-Change

Share the good books you have read! A shelf in the library has been designated for this "Reader X-Change." Place on the shelf any book you would like to offer to others. Add a note about it for the next reader, if you like. When you take a book, drop $1 in the blue "Reader X -Change" box.

Elder’s Fund   Pam Taylor, Elder Chair

Thanks to those who contributed to the Elders' Fund collection that was taken the first Sundays of August and September. We have received $499.  The Elders' Fund is one of many ways we care for our church family.

The Elder’s will take collections the first Sunday of each month to replenish the Elders' Fund. This is an emergency fund that is available, confidentially, to members of our church family who might find themselves in need of resources to tide them over in an emergency or some other unexpected event.  While the fund is sometimes reimbursed by recipients, there is no obligation for, or expectation of, reimbursement.

Requests can be made to Liz, Matt, or one of the elders if you are aware of anyone who is in need of assistance.

 

Labels for Woodhaven  

The Campbell’s Soup Company has made a change in the Labels for Education program. Rather than collecting the front label portion, Campbell’s will now only take the UPC bar-codes. A listing of what food items apply and also a collection box is located on the table in the narthex. If you have been saving the front labels, bring them in as soon as possible. A final shipment of front labels will be sent the first week of November. Disciple Women collects the labels to support Woodhaven, a home in Columbia, MO, which serves persons with developmental disabilities.

Please keep those Campbell’s UPC barcodes coming!  (Remember, we no longer take front labels!)  And for those in Midwestern states, we collect Best Choice UPC barcodes also.

More details are available at our website www.nbawoodhaven.org.

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New Service Project -

The Disciples Women of First Christian Church will be collecting Campbell’s soup labels for the NBA facility of Woodhaven in Columbia, Missouri. 

NBA Woodhaven is a not-for-profit organization that serves men and women living with developmental disabilities. Woodhaven serves individuals ranging in age from 19 – 70 in 45 homes and apartments throughout Columbia.  Inclusion is a large part of Woodhaven’s pro-gram and the individuals are active members of the community.  They provide opportunities for God’s resources to get into the lives of God’s people.

For over 20 years, NBA Woodhaven has participated in the Campbell’s Soup Labels-for-Education program.  During that time, churches, CWF groups and many individuals have provided enough labels so Woodhaven could acquire four 15-passenger, handicapped accessible vans.  While Campbell’s Soup is no longer offering the vans, they will help “purchase” more needed items for the men and women served by Woodhaven.  Computers, microwave ovens, emergency radios, flashlights with fluorescent lamps, and alarm sirens can all be “purchased” with your donated labels.

A full list of eligible labels will be distributed at the Disciples Women Circle meetings in April and is posted on the narthex bulletin board.  A container will be placed in the narthex to receive your labels.  Thank you!
 

Borrowing from the Church

Lots of items will be borrowed from the church this season for garage sales, receptions, family dinners, etc.  It is important to check with the church office before borrowing tables to make sure there is not a church event at the same time.  It is also important to return items in a timely fashion.  Sign up sheets are in the kitchen.  Restrictions are also listed on these sheets.  Thanks for your cooperation.

Important:  White tables may not leave the building!  There are several of the old-style tables that may be checked out for home use.

Cedar Falls Community Meal

This Community Outreach Meal is served at First United Methodist Church each Tuesday. Our church participates during months with “5th Tuesdays.” Sign up in the narthex to donate cakes, prepare, serve and clean up the meal.

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A Calling Ministry

Home Calling Ambassadors are a group of people who make “home visits.” This calling ministry enables home-bound and nursing home people to remain connected and a part of the total ministry of First Christian Church. There is an opportunity for you to join the calling team. Are you willing to reach out and touch someone’s life? If so, call the church office or contact Darlene Cannon.

Disciples Are There  ....

Johnny Wray, Week of Compassion Director wrote yesterday, “Week of Compassion's first priority continues to be getting adequate re-sources to partners, local interfaith groups and congregations that are assisting survivors in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama, but also in a growing number of communities across the country. The incredible outpouring of contributions to WOC is enabling us to do that quickly and strongly. Scores of Disciples congregations are now working to provide temporary shelter, food and pastoral care to thousands of the displaced. Disciples pastors, and members are volunteering at Red Cross centers, organizing local interfaith response efforts, offering homes as places of refuge, putting together health and school kits, and reaching out to survivors in a host of ways.”

Week of Compassion website for daily updates is: www.weekofcompassion.org.

If you would like to help with the recovery efforts for our brothers and sisters along the gulf coast, your monetary gift to WOC will be gratefully received and join the efforts of Christian Church members across our denomination to “make a difference.” 100% of the money designated for Hurricane Katrina will go for the recovery efforts. Make your checks payable to First Christian Church, marking “Katrina” on the memo line.
 

Receipts for Week of Compassion on Sunday, September 4 were $1878.67. Thank you for your generous spirit.
 

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Websites for Disciple Women

Want to know what’s going on with Disciples Women?  Check these websites often for resources, information, contacts and events:    www.discipleswomen.org  and  www.dreamonsisters.com

On Vacation ?

Remember to check the website  www.cedarfallsdisciples.org while you are away for current news of the congregation. ÿ

 

If You Don’t Do It, Who Will?

If you get it out, put it away
   (in its rightful place, please);

If you open it, close it;

If you spill it, wipe it up;

If it boils over, clean it up;

If it’s dirty, wash it;

If it can be recycled,
put it in the recycling bins;

If you break it or it needs fixing,
tell the office;

If you use the last one, tell the office
(or the LOGOS Kitchen Steward)

If you unlock it, lock it;

If you are the last one out,
turn off the lights and lock the doors.

If we all do our share,
our building will reflect our care!

Have you heard it all before?  Maybe your mother or dad said something similar to you when you were growing up.  However redundant, it is true. We all need to take responsibility for our building.  We cannot expect “someone else” to pick up after us. Who picks up the bulletin left in the pew?  Who tosses the used coffee cups in the trash and empties the half-full pop cans? Who wipes up the kitchen counters when something is spilled?  And the list goes on and on…

If we all do our share,
our building will reflect our care!

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First Christian Church Mission Statement

In response to the love of God through Jesus Christ, we of First Christian Church, Cedar Falls, seek...

U    To proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ in word and deed;

U    To gather as a community of faith to worship God with reverence, joy and beauty;

U    To nourish personal faith and commitment through study, prayer, fellowship and service;

U    To be a caring community of faith working with God's love for human dignity and justice in our neighborhood and around the world; To give visible expression to the oneness of Christ’s Church