The "Family" Time of Year
In the church "Family Time" starts early this year.
Family photos for the church directory
Have you scheduled your photography yet?
Thur & Sat afternoons available Oct. 20-22
It's free. And we want everyone to be in it.
Family gifts to keep the church open and vital
How much does the church mean to your family?
Promise Sunday is Oct 23. Promise cards available then.
It's fair. And we want everyone to help.
Family Ingathering Kits to help with disaster relief
Have you decided which kits your family will bring?
Kits will be piled at the altar Sun Oct. 30 and dedicated.
It's fun. And we want everyone to be blessed.
Together we are the "Family" of God
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
Financial Relief - God's Way
Starting October 4th – “Managing Our Finances God’s Way” – with Stan Lovett
Friends, the economy is still staggering. Families are struggling. Good people trying to pay their bills, save their job, and get out of debt, just can’t.
The parish is offering the community a class called
“Managing Our Finances God’s Way,”
a program of Crown Financial Ministries.
Humeston Public Library for 7 weeks
Tuesday nights at 7:00 pm
beginning October 4th.
Every Mormon Trail person, couple or family is welcome
Best for couples both to come
All workbook costs are waived
Plain-English budget and debt management tools from Iowa Extension Services will also be available.
The program is beneficial regardless of one’s economic level, spiritual outlook, or seriousness of financial concerns.
Stan Lovett, whose training has been with Crown Financial Ministries in North Carolina, will be leading.
The speakers on the DVD (Rick Warren, Chip Ingram, Chuck Bently, Howard Dayton, and Ron Blue)are the truly inspirational heavy hitters in the field.
Pre-registration is appreciated but so not necessary.
Here and in a growing number of churches couples are gathering
1. to review God’s principles of family financial management,
2. to support one another in applying those principles when the going gets tough,
3. to find relief and financial freedom for themselves, and
4. to better glorify God with their lives.
Check the website (www.unitedtrinityparish.com) , or “Like” our page on Facebook (http://tinyurl.com/3otkuqf ) to keep up on the “Managing Our Finances God’s Way” announcements.
Friends, the economy is still staggering. Families are struggling. Good people trying to pay their bills, save their job, and get out of debt, just can’t.
The parish is offering the community a class called
“Managing Our Finances God’s Way,”
a program of Crown Financial Ministries.
Humeston Public Library for 7 weeks
Tuesday nights at 7:00 pm
beginning October 4th.
Every Mormon Trail person, couple or family is welcome
Best for couples both to come
All workbook costs are waived
Plain-English budget and debt management tools from Iowa Extension Services will also be available.
The program is beneficial regardless of one’s economic level, spiritual outlook, or seriousness of financial concerns.
Stan Lovett, whose training has been with Crown Financial Ministries in North Carolina, will be leading.
The speakers on the DVD (Rick Warren, Chip Ingram, Chuck Bently, Howard Dayton, and Ron Blue)are the truly inspirational heavy hitters in the field.
Pre-registration is appreciated but so not necessary.
Here and in a growing number of churches couples are gathering
1. to review God’s principles of family financial management,
2. to support one another in applying those principles when the going gets tough,
3. to find relief and financial freedom for themselves, and
4. to better glorify God with their lives.
Check the website (www.unitedtrinityparish.com) , or “Like” our page on Facebook (http://tinyurl.com/3otkuqf ) to keep up on the “Managing Our Finances God’s Way” announcements.
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
Faith is the confidence of things hoped for and the assurance of things unseen. (Heb 11:1)
We think of faith, living the faith, walking the faith. When we think of sustaining faith we know we are the people of God in the world every day. We know that God watches out for us and hears our prayers. And that is one fine and reassuring definition of faith.
But a more radical definition of faith is the “get out of the boat” kind of faith, like when Jesus, walking on the water toward the frightened disciples in the boat, spoke to Peter and said, “Come.” Peter, of course, obeyed and walked on the water, too.
That kind of faith is really stepping into the unknown. It is a step of obedience and it follows upon God’s unique and specific word of direction to a believer.
When such a word from God comes to you and you step out of your boat, you immediately find yourself in uncharted territory, with no guide but God.
That’s when faith gets scary. And that’s when Jesus truly proves himself. It’s scary because you’ve never been there before and you really have no plan. It’s assuring because you experience Jesus’ strong hand rescuing you, guiding you, blessing and using you in the most wonderful and unimaginable ways.
There’s sustaining faith which is 24/7. And there’s radical, “get out of the boat” faith whenever God speaks an individual word of specific direction. Be assured that God is with you wherever you are in your faith journey today. Have faith.
But a more radical definition of faith is the “get out of the boat” kind of faith, like when Jesus, walking on the water toward the frightened disciples in the boat, spoke to Peter and said, “Come.” Peter, of course, obeyed and walked on the water, too.
That kind of faith is really stepping into the unknown. It is a step of obedience and it follows upon God’s unique and specific word of direction to a believer.
When such a word from God comes to you and you step out of your boat, you immediately find yourself in uncharted territory, with no guide but God.
That’s when faith gets scary. And that’s when Jesus truly proves himself. It’s scary because you’ve never been there before and you really have no plan. It’s assuring because you experience Jesus’ strong hand rescuing you, guiding you, blessing and using you in the most wonderful and unimaginable ways.
There’s sustaining faith which is 24/7. And there’s radical, “get out of the boat” faith whenever God speaks an individual word of specific direction. Be assured that God is with you wherever you are in your faith journey today. Have faith.
GET FIT
A Fresh Start and Fall Schedules
With the beginning of school, September brings a fresh start for many of us. Our churches, schools and communities start up many programs. As you consider the options available, you might want to take a look at a) your life-style and b) your self-care practices and evaluate which ones would be most health-full for you.
What habits will you need to change or alter?
Do you want to schedule more time for physical activity,
or an intentional time of spiritual reflection or relaxation?
What about a specific night for a date with your spouse
or a time that the whole family spends together?
You can’t afford to be haphazard about self-care. Ask yourself these questions:
What is my greatest need?
Which one dimension needs my attention now?
Do I need to focus on
caring for my physical body,
strengthening my relationships,
stretching myself intellectually,
renewing myself spiritually, or
managing my finances God’s way?
What do you have to do in order to GET FIT? The parish offers 3 fitness programs.
Physical fitness – Yoga Monday mornings, and afternoon Aerobics starting soon
Spiritual fitness – A 7-month spiritual challenge beginning in October (TBA)
Financial fitness – “Managing Our Finances God’s Way” Small Groups, Oct 1st.
God..is gracious in everything he does. God gives a hand to those down on their luck and gives a fresh start to those ready to quit. (Psalm 145: 17b-18 The Message)
I invite you look at your fall activities with an attitude adjustment, with a picture of a fresh start. I hope that you will intentionally create a health-full balance for yourself, and that our parish programs might serve you well as you work to GET FIT.
[This article adapted from and article written by Kae Tritle, RN & Wellness Coordinator for the Iowa Annual Conference of the UMC, for the September issue of Lower Lights, the online newsletter of the South Central District.]
With the beginning of school, September brings a fresh start for many of us. Our churches, schools and communities start up many programs. As you consider the options available, you might want to take a look at a) your life-style and b) your self-care practices and evaluate which ones would be most health-full for you.
What habits will you need to change or alter?
Do you want to schedule more time for physical activity,
or an intentional time of spiritual reflection or relaxation?
What about a specific night for a date with your spouse
or a time that the whole family spends together?
You can’t afford to be haphazard about self-care. Ask yourself these questions:
What is my greatest need?
Which one dimension needs my attention now?
Do I need to focus on
caring for my physical body,
strengthening my relationships,
stretching myself intellectually,
renewing myself spiritually, or
managing my finances God’s way?
What do you have to do in order to GET FIT? The parish offers 3 fitness programs.
Physical fitness – Yoga Monday mornings, and afternoon Aerobics starting soon
Spiritual fitness – A 7-month spiritual challenge beginning in October (TBA)
Financial fitness – “Managing Our Finances God’s Way” Small Groups, Oct 1st.
God..is gracious in everything he does. God gives a hand to those down on their luck and gives a fresh start to those ready to quit. (Psalm 145: 17b-18 The Message)
I invite you look at your fall activities with an attitude adjustment, with a picture of a fresh start. I hope that you will intentionally create a health-full balance for yourself, and that our parish programs might serve you well as you work to GET FIT.
[This article adapted from and article written by Kae Tritle, RN & Wellness Coordinator for the Iowa Annual Conference of the UMC, for the September issue of Lower Lights, the online newsletter of the South Central District.]
Friday, August 5, 2011
Penny-Worth
In the book entitled, “The Externally Focused Church” by Rusaw and Swanson, the authors tell a true story.
“In 1987, Mike Hayes of Rochelle, Illinois, was a freshman, at the University of Illinois, and was trying to figure out how to pay for College. He wrote to Chicago Tribune columnist Bob Greene, asking each of Mr. Greene’s readers to send Hayes a penny. Greene took a liking to the idea and asked each of his several million readers to send Hayes a penny. Thousands responded. In less than a month, “Pennies for Mike Fund” contained 2.3 million pennies, which at that time would actually pay for four years of college.”
The Penny-Worth lesson for the Church the authors of the book are pointing out is that the church’s greatest impact may not stem from asking for great things from a few people, but from asking many small things from a lot of people.
Rev. Doug Anderson of the Rueben Job Institute for Pastoral Leadership has a saying, “One does not have to change everything to change everything!”
Sometimes the problems that we face in our communities, our families, our lives seem so over whelming. We feel like we cannot do everything, so we end up doing nothing. But the fact of the matter is that always we can do something, a Penny’s Worth at least.
What Penny-Worth thing is waiting for your penny today?
Who needs your last Penny of love? or forgiveness? or encouragement?
With whom can you share a Penny’s worth of grace?
In what local project can you invest a Penny’s worth of effort and goodwill?
And for the parish I’m also asking a Penny’s Worth, many small things from a lot of people – a daily prayer, a worship service, a Bible chapter read, one fitness or Sunday School class attended, a mission blanket purchased, a “God story” shared, a pint of blood donated, a shut-in visited, one invitation extended. What Penny-Worth thing will you bless your church with today? And be assured: whatever blessing you give will be returned many times over – pennies from heaven.
Credit where credit is due. I pretty much copied this article from Rev. Paul Smith, South Central District Outreach Minister, writing on page 3 in the July-August issue of Lower Lights, the District’s e-newsletter. But I changed the ending. Thanks Paul for your good article. Read Paul’s original ending here and scroll to page 3.
“In 1987, Mike Hayes of Rochelle, Illinois, was a freshman, at the University of Illinois, and was trying to figure out how to pay for College. He wrote to Chicago Tribune columnist Bob Greene, asking each of Mr. Greene’s readers to send Hayes a penny. Greene took a liking to the idea and asked each of his several million readers to send Hayes a penny. Thousands responded. In less than a month, “Pennies for Mike Fund” contained 2.3 million pennies, which at that time would actually pay for four years of college.”
The Penny-Worth lesson for the Church the authors of the book are pointing out is that the church’s greatest impact may not stem from asking for great things from a few people, but from asking many small things from a lot of people.
Rev. Doug Anderson of the Rueben Job Institute for Pastoral Leadership has a saying, “One does not have to change everything to change everything!”
Sometimes the problems that we face in our communities, our families, our lives seem so over whelming. We feel like we cannot do everything, so we end up doing nothing. But the fact of the matter is that always we can do something, a Penny’s Worth at least.
What Penny-Worth thing is waiting for your penny today?
Who needs your last Penny of love? or forgiveness? or encouragement?
With whom can you share a Penny’s worth of grace?
In what local project can you invest a Penny’s worth of effort and goodwill?
And for the parish I’m also asking a Penny’s Worth, many small things from a lot of people – a daily prayer, a worship service, a Bible chapter read, one fitness or Sunday School class attended, a mission blanket purchased, a “God story” shared, a pint of blood donated, a shut-in visited, one invitation extended. What Penny-Worth thing will you bless your church with today? And be assured: whatever blessing you give will be returned many times over – pennies from heaven.
Credit where credit is due. I pretty much copied this article from Rev. Paul Smith, South Central District Outreach Minister, writing on page 3 in the July-August issue of Lower Lights, the District’s e-newsletter. But I changed the ending. Thanks Paul for your good article. Read Paul’s original ending here and scroll to page 3.
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
Thoughts for Men
Got Family? Got Dreams? Got Problems?
There are two keys that will help you grow spiritually. These are very simple concepts.
1. You must invest in yourself. Simple right! Listen fellas, you have to be willing to invest your time, effort and money on your soul. To think a life and especially a spiritual life can be built without these elements is foolish.
Invest your money in things that strengthen your spiritual life. Buy a Bible. Give to the poor, your church, or your favorite Christian ministry. Your heart will follow your money for sure. Putting God first will not only help your soul. It will help you get yourself to a better financial point in your life.
Invest your time. Being isolated, especially from God, is a tough way to go. Attending worship, or meeting for study and service is certainly a worthwhile spiritual investment. We are all isolated in a sense. It is vital to stay connected. To stay inspired and motivated to grow you gotta stay in the loop with God
Invest your effort. This is the hardest of the three. Effort takes energy. But God’s spiritual energy can lighten your burdens. Prayer is an effort sometimes. Kindness, forgiveness, patience, and friendship all require effort. But such effort builds Christian character and produces Christian maturity. The investment brings great reward.
Are you tending to your soul?
2. You must put yourself in a growth environment. Surround yourself with a team of fellow seekers and you’ll never walk alone. Their understanding support and gentle encouragement will help you succeed. Teamwork wins.
Become a leader. Step up in your family or on your team and create an environment conducive to your spiritual growth. Come early to worship. Claim a ministry in the church or community. Organize a home prayer or Bible study. Travel together online or in person to inspirational places. Make sure every team member has access to these events and participates.
Focus on the fundamentals. Everything has certain steps or fundamentals that are essential for growth or to make something better. The fundamentals of spiritual growth are ancient, proven and powerful. Review and practice the basics with your team always.
Do you have a growth environment to connect to? Are you connecting on a regular basis?
I have yet to meet anyone who has built a successful spiritual life by ignoring these two basics. 1. Tend to your soul. 2. Travel together.
There are two keys that will help you grow spiritually. These are very simple concepts.
1. You must invest in yourself. Simple right! Listen fellas, you have to be willing to invest your time, effort and money on your soul. To think a life and especially a spiritual life can be built without these elements is foolish.
Invest your money in things that strengthen your spiritual life. Buy a Bible. Give to the poor, your church, or your favorite Christian ministry. Your heart will follow your money for sure. Putting God first will not only help your soul. It will help you get yourself to a better financial point in your life.
Invest your time. Being isolated, especially from God, is a tough way to go. Attending worship, or meeting for study and service is certainly a worthwhile spiritual investment. We are all isolated in a sense. It is vital to stay connected. To stay inspired and motivated to grow you gotta stay in the loop with God
Invest your effort. This is the hardest of the three. Effort takes energy. But God’s spiritual energy can lighten your burdens. Prayer is an effort sometimes. Kindness, forgiveness, patience, and friendship all require effort. But such effort builds Christian character and produces Christian maturity. The investment brings great reward.
Are you tending to your soul?
2. You must put yourself in a growth environment. Surround yourself with a team of fellow seekers and you’ll never walk alone. Their understanding support and gentle encouragement will help you succeed. Teamwork wins.
Become a leader. Step up in your family or on your team and create an environment conducive to your spiritual growth. Come early to worship. Claim a ministry in the church or community. Organize a home prayer or Bible study. Travel together online or in person to inspirational places. Make sure every team member has access to these events and participates.
Focus on the fundamentals. Everything has certain steps or fundamentals that are essential for growth or to make something better. The fundamentals of spiritual growth are ancient, proven and powerful. Review and practice the basics with your team always.
Do you have a growth environment to connect to? Are you connecting on a regular basis?
I have yet to meet anyone who has built a successful spiritual life by ignoring these two basics. 1. Tend to your soul. 2. Travel together.
Friday, July 1, 2011
June News & Notes
Garden Grove VBS
Held during the week of June 20-24, 5 youth and 9 leaders learned that God is our HERO. While studying about 4 youthful everyday heroes in the Bible whose names are never even mentioned we learned that we are God’s heroes when we 1. do the unexpected, 2. step out in faith, 3. save the day, and 4. stand for truth . For our mission project we raised $118 to purchase children's board games for The Child Life Program at Blank Children's Hospital.
I-Cubs Baseball and Randy’s Tail-gate Brats
79 members and friends of United Trinity Parish enjoyed I-Cubs baseball and Randy’s tail-gate brats at Principal Park on Sunday June 5th, following song services in both churches. The I-Cubs started off with a big lead, but lost it. Thankfully they came back to win the game in the 9th inning after blowing an 8-0 lead. The weather was perfect, and what fun to enjoy a lazy Sunday afternoon with so many friends. Already looking forward to next year.
Annual Conference
Kris Thomas and Pastor Dale represented the parish as delegates to the Iowa Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church June 4-7 at HyVee hall. There was a lot of worship and study time, which was really quite exceptional. The conference speakers were amazing, encouraging, inspiring. Among them were our own Bishop Trimble, Mike Slaughter, Bishop Peggy Johnson, Dale Batcheler, Norma Morrison, Cynthia Wilson, and our District Superintendent Bill Poland. Check out their impressive bios here. Or check out the online audio archive to listen to any of these amazing speakers. Kris and Pastor Dale recommend you at least listen to one of Mike Slaughter’s talks.
What? A Harvest Festival in June?
How can that be? It’s easy. Even we did it. Here’s how. Last September at the LeRoy Presbyterian Harvest Festival 40 or so folks purchased tickets for a family-style dinner at the McClung House. Well, traditionally this dinner happens right after Christmas, but for one reason or another it kept being rescheduled. Finally on June 11 we enjoyed a fabulous roast beef dinner, with, you know, that incredible brown tapioca pudding that comes as a salad and satisfies like a dessert, not that we didn’t have dessert, too. I’ll do Harvest Festival Dinner any time of year if it’s at the McClung House, you betcha.
Kids to Camp
Our 2010-2011 TUF Team (after-school) program ended in April, except for those 6 TUF-Teamers who registered for summer church camp. This year all of them attended the Christian Church Conference Center in Newton during the last week in June. Scholarships from the church and from the camp itself make it possible for anyone to attend. It is the commitment of both the parish and the camp that cost will not keep any child who wants to from attending church camp. Parish scholarship money comes from our Cans for Camp program, where members bring their recyclable cans and plastic bottles to the church for us to reclaim the deposit on.
The Use of Money
Following the reasoning in John Wesley's Sermon #50 Pastor Dale preached 3 sermons on the use of money. Wesley's 3-fold rule on the use of money is: Gain all you can, Save all you can, and then Give all you can.
But since Wesley's time the English language has changed a bit and those 3 words Gain, Save, and Give don't mean today quite what they meant to Wesley.
Gain Gain all you can means to work hard. It is the opposite of sloth or laziness, and does not refer, as entrepreneurs today might think, to building wealth.
Save To Wesley, Saving is the opposite of accumulating money or goods. It is restraint in spending. It is living simply with only the necessities of life and health.
Give Give is not about giving a percentage to God or the church, but understanding that it all belongs to God. It is about taking care of God's possessions entrusted to you in a generous manner, providing for the wellbeing of all creation in this order 1st yourself, 2nd your family, and with your "overplus" 3rd the household of faith, and 4th the rest of the world.
Held during the week of June 20-24, 5 youth and 9 leaders learned that God is our HERO. While studying about 4 youthful everyday heroes in the Bible whose names are never even mentioned we learned that we are God’s heroes when we 1. do the unexpected, 2. step out in faith, 3. save the day, and 4. stand for truth . For our mission project we raised $118 to purchase children's board games for The Child Life Program at Blank Children's Hospital.
I-Cubs Baseball and Randy’s Tail-gate Brats
79 members and friends of United Trinity Parish enjoyed I-Cubs baseball and Randy’s tail-gate brats at Principal Park on Sunday June 5th, following song services in both churches. The I-Cubs started off with a big lead, but lost it. Thankfully they came back to win the game in the 9th inning after blowing an 8-0 lead. The weather was perfect, and what fun to enjoy a lazy Sunday afternoon with so many friends. Already looking forward to next year.
Annual Conference
Kris Thomas and Pastor Dale represented the parish as delegates to the Iowa Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church June 4-7 at HyVee hall. There was a lot of worship and study time, which was really quite exceptional. The conference speakers were amazing, encouraging, inspiring. Among them were our own Bishop Trimble, Mike Slaughter, Bishop Peggy Johnson, Dale Batcheler, Norma Morrison, Cynthia Wilson, and our District Superintendent Bill Poland. Check out their impressive bios here. Or check out the online audio archive to listen to any of these amazing speakers. Kris and Pastor Dale recommend you at least listen to one of Mike Slaughter’s talks.
What? A Harvest Festival in June?
How can that be? It’s easy. Even we did it. Here’s how. Last September at the LeRoy Presbyterian Harvest Festival 40 or so folks purchased tickets for a family-style dinner at the McClung House. Well, traditionally this dinner happens right after Christmas, but for one reason or another it kept being rescheduled. Finally on June 11 we enjoyed a fabulous roast beef dinner, with, you know, that incredible brown tapioca pudding that comes as a salad and satisfies like a dessert, not that we didn’t have dessert, too. I’ll do Harvest Festival Dinner any time of year if it’s at the McClung House, you betcha.
Kids to Camp
Our 2010-2011 TUF Team (after-school) program ended in April, except for those 6 TUF-Teamers who registered for summer church camp. This year all of them attended the Christian Church Conference Center in Newton during the last week in June. Scholarships from the church and from the camp itself make it possible for anyone to attend. It is the commitment of both the parish and the camp that cost will not keep any child who wants to from attending church camp. Parish scholarship money comes from our Cans for Camp program, where members bring their recyclable cans and plastic bottles to the church for us to reclaim the deposit on.
The Use of Money
Following the reasoning in John Wesley's Sermon #50 Pastor Dale preached 3 sermons on the use of money. Wesley's 3-fold rule on the use of money is: Gain all you can, Save all you can, and then Give all you can.
But since Wesley's time the English language has changed a bit and those 3 words Gain, Save, and Give don't mean today quite what they meant to Wesley.
Gain Gain all you can means to work hard. It is the opposite of sloth or laziness, and does not refer, as entrepreneurs today might think, to building wealth.
Save To Wesley, Saving is the opposite of accumulating money or goods. It is restraint in spending. It is living simply with only the necessities of life and health.
Give Give is not about giving a percentage to God or the church, but understanding that it all belongs to God. It is about taking care of God's possessions entrusted to you in a generous manner, providing for the wellbeing of all creation in this order 1st yourself, 2nd your family, and with your "overplus" 3rd the household of faith, and 4th the rest of the world.
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