Immanuel United Church of Christ May 2010

Fred’s Frazes…

“Hear, my child, your father’s instruction, and do not reject your mother’s teaching;

they are a fair garland for your head, and pendants for your neck.”- Proverbs 1:8-9 

I had a couple of scary encounters a couple of weeks ago when I was playing golf at a nearby golf course.

As most of you from this part of the country know, any body of water or marshland can be home to all kinds of wildlife, be they mammals, reptiles or birds. And if you’ve had the pleasure of my company on a golf course, you know that I spend a lot of time by the water hazards looking for my golf ball which never seems to go straight down the fairway. Anyway, as I was walking by the edge of one of the lakes carefully looking for my ball, I happened to look a few yards ahead of me. Good thing, because just ahead was a nice little 5 foot alligator sunning himself on the bank. Seems like the warm weather is drawing the critters out after a long, cold winter. It probably would have scampered off into the water had I come up on him, but nevertheless I gave him a wide berth and admired this creature that has survived through hundreds of thousands of years. Later on, I found myself in a similar situation, only this time I was very careful to keep an eye out for any large, toothy creatures. All of a sudden, as I passed an area with a lot of reeds and vegetation, something came out of the water right at me and scared the daylights out me. It took me a second or two to gain my senses and realize that it was a couple of birds (not ducks, but some kind of waterfowl). They were making all kinds of noise and flapping their wings furiously. Right before they flew into me they dropped to the ground in front of me and started walking away with their wings drooping and acting like they were lame. All of a sudden it occurred to me that they were probably leading me away from a nest – just like I used to see on the old Wild Kingdom television show with Marlin Perkins!  Once again I had to admire these creatures for their ability to survive, except in this case I particularly admired the lengths they would go to protect and care for their offspring. I couldn’t help but think to myself, sometimes animals do a better job of protecting their offspring than some humans do their children. 

I’m bringing this up now because we’re entering a season when we observe Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, graduations, Memorial Day, etc. Even the upcoming summer season is a time when we focus on the family through travel, vacations and family reunions. One of the things I constantly give thanks to God for is my family. By no means have I been the perfect father and husband, but I had no problem in providing my children with all the resources available to them through the church. I knew that the teachings and role models they were exposed to through worship, Sunday School, Vacation Bible School, Pastor’s Classes, mission trips, camps, conferences and retreats would make up for my deficiencies and give them direction in life later on. I also give thanks to God for my family of origin, who despite their lack of formal education and who started family life living in public housing, managed to climb out of poverty and rear four children who became productive, responsible and compassionate adults. Not only did Mom and Dad always make sure there was bread on the table, but they made sure that we were nourished by the Bread of Life.

One of the scariest thoughts I entertain is that we have so many parents today rearing their children without any kind of spiritual direction. We do a pretty good job of providing our children with food, shelter, clothing, education, entertainment, culture, recreation, etc., but even as church people we often fail to do as well in worship attendance, Christian education, fellowship, mission, stewardship, etc. In the coming weeks and months, as we consider ways to honor our mothers and fathers and ways to keep our children busy during the summer vacation, maybe we should reflect on what kind of job we’re doing at building family life. Maybe we should ask ourselves, what will our children say about us 25 years from now?

Animals do a pretty good job of taking care of their children. We can do better!

See you in church Sunday.

DELEGATES TO SOUTH CENTRAL CONFERENCE

The South Central Conference will hold its Annual Meeting in New Orleans, LA, June 4 – 6. Anyone interested in going and representing Immanuel needs to let us know as soon as possible. Monday, May 3 is the last date for the special rate quoted for the hotel. Reservations need to be made and a check sent from the church office in time to meet the deadline. Expenses for delegates representing our church are covered in the budget.

MEMORIAL SUNDAY OBSERVANCE & DINNER 

During our Sunday morning worship on May 16^th we will be honoring those who have passed away in the last year.  The Memorial Committee will have a memento for the families of the individuals we are remembering.  Following worship we will enjoy a BBQ chicken dinner prepared by our “Church House Cookers”.  Members are asked to bring a side dish and dessert.  Please make plans to join us on the special worship service and dinner.

 CONSISTORY HIGHLIGHTS 

The Consistory met on Monday, April 12^th with all members present except Bruce Oberhoff. Pastor Banda was present and opened with a prayer.  

The treasurer reported the bank balance as of 3-31-10 was $11,837.82. The Endowment Fund was placed into one year CDs to draw a better interest rate. The Mission Trip has $2,956.09 designated for it and will be placed into another account. The Parking Lot fund has $26,011.82 in it. Reports were submitted by Pastor Banda and Shay Meyer.   

Activities reported by various committees included:  renting a lift to replace burned out bulbs in the gym, the need to re-stain the backs of the pews from wear and the need for a work day or chore list; the Stew Supper helped draw more people out on Maundy Thursday; the idea of a permanent sign at the cemetery was discussed; Christian Education is planning to honor graduates and the Memorial Committee is planning Memorial Sunday. The Search Committee reported that profiles were returned which accounted for 488 members. They hope to have the profile out by the end of May. The Consistory will be in charge of selecting an interim pastor sometime later this summer.  

In Old Business the Consistory approved up to $5,000 for a survey as required by the city of Needville and plans in preparation for the new parking lot. In New Business the Consistory approved a roll-over line when our main number is busy at a cost of approximately $8 a month. Building requests were approved and Wider Mission dispersals were: $500 to Slumber Falls Camp, $500 to Houston Association and $1,000 to OCWM.  

Garrett Arrington brought up that plans are being made for a spaghetti supper as a fundraiser for the Mission Trip. The meeting was adjourned and Pastor Banda closed with a prayer. 

(Complete and officially approved minutes of this meeting will be available after the May Consistory meeting.)

IMMANUEL’S WOMEN’S GUILD 

The Immanuel’s Women’s Guild met on Friday, April 16, 2010 with 11 members and 1 guest present.  Shirley Wendt presented the program opening with Psalms 62:8 followed by hymn, “This is My Father’s World”.  She read an article written by an 8 year old boy entitled, “Explanation of God” followed by some humorous articles. 

Minutes were read and approved, correspondences were read.  The treasurer’s report was given by Erna Thielemann. 

President Richter thanked all who helped with Easter Breakfast and those who baked cakes for the nursing home. 

A motion was made and passed to give $50.00 for the “Relay for Life” walk.  Erna asked the president to check on cleaning of the brassware and to remind Roxie Graeber of the next cleaning in November. 

President Richter welcomed guest Mary Alice Arredondo. 

Birthday hymn was sung for Evelyn Gorka, Joline Gay and for “Over 90”, Albert McConnell. 

Prayer concerns:  James Karnei, Dave Miller, Roy and Barbara Steffen, Van Weidegardner, Caroline and Frank Macik, Viola Fuchs, Alice Petty and Julius Balcerowicz.

Meeting closed by joining hands and singing, “Blessed Be the Tie That Binds” and praying The Lord’s Prayer. 

Refreshments were served by Hester Bain.

BROTHERHOOD 

Our April meeting was a fishing trip in Rockport, Texas the weekend of April 9-11. There was something for everyone as 10 men spent the weekend fishing, eating, golfing, fellowshipping and telling some tall tales. The fishing was tough, but a few keepers were brought in and everyone agreed we’d like to do it again. Our next meeting will be held on Thursday, May 20^th at 7 p.m. at the church. All men are welcome to attend. 

SINGING WORSHIP WORKSHOP 

There will be a Singing Worship Workshop led by Choir Director, Barbara Ambrose on Saturday, May 15, 2010 from 10:00am – 11:30am in the St. Paul’s Presbyterian Church Sanctuary. 

Come work on improving your singing vocal technique on a fun Saturday morning.

Call 832-495-1821 or e-mail leggiero60@yahoo.com  To RSVP.

SEARCH COMMITTEE INFORMATION 

By now everyone should have received their Search Committee Questionnaire.  Please take time and fill it out and return it to the church office.  This information is very important in choosing the right candidates for the position of Sr. Minister.  Please limit your “Most Important (#5)” to no more than 3 choices. 

If you have not yet filled out the Church Profile Letter that was mailed to you last month, please fill it out and return it the church as soon as possible.

MISSION TRIP PLANNED FOR THIS SUMMER! 

We have a group of church members and friends of the church who are really getting fired up and excited about a mission trip to Mexico this summer to build not just ONE, but TWO casitas.  Each casita costs $3,000 to build, which includes lumber as well as a pre-poured foundation.  All the labor will be furnished by our volunteers.  At present we have enough money to build 1 casita.  We will need another $3,000 in donations to build the other casita.  We plan to have a couple of fundraisers to help with the mission trip.  We are asking our church members to make special “over and above” contributions to help with this mission trip and the building of these casitas.  If you would like to donate, please mark your donation either “Mission Trip” or “Casita”.  Thank you very much for making this ministry of love and service a reality for those who feel they are called to serve “the least of these”. 

2010 GRADUATES 

We will be honoring our high school and college graduates in May.  If you have a graduate in your family you wish to have honored, please contact the church office.

Youth Postings!
(4^th – 12^th)

May 2010 

Party:

4^th – 7^th grade it’s “party” time!  Your final youth gathering for the 2009-2010 school year is going to be on May 5^th (Cinco de Mayo).  I will be contacting those parents that have not yet done snacks/meals, or those that have only gone once (I’ve grabbed most everyone twice).  OR…you can always call me and volunteer…hehehe

DUES:

It has been eating my lunch, but I will figure out a way to have dues statements to you after May 5^th.  If you need to know before then I can look them up individually.  We still need dues to be paid up until your final night of youth.  Thanks!

05/05 -   “PARTY”                                                             

05/12 -   HIGH SCHOOL ONLY     

05/19 -   HIGH SCHOOL “PARTY”         

VBS 4 year olds to 5^th grade:

Please join us for VBS July 12^th-16^th for High Seas fun and adventure!

VBS completed 6^th grade & up:

We could use some help with VBS this year.  If you are interested in being a part of helping out by working in the rooms with younger kids, with music, recreation, etc. please see me or Stacey Schodek to see where you fit in.  We are especially in need of high school age youth (or older) to organize and execute the outside games/recreation time.  If you or anyone you know is interested, please get with us as quickly as you can.  Thanks so much!

Mission Trip:

July 17^th – July 21^st, 2010.  $50 due by May 2^nd to hold a spot for anyone interested.  This deposit will be refundable until July 1^st.  Next due will be $50 again by June 6, with the remaining due by July 11^th.  This mission trip is for 8^th graders up unless a parent participates with a younger aged child.  Our first fundraiser will be a spaghetti dinner to be held directly after church one Sunday.  That date has not been set yet, but will be shortly.  Be ready to start selling those tickets  Also in the works is a Fiesta dinner.  More details will be out as soon as I get them. 

Sunday School:

Now is the time to be considering where your gifts may lay for next year’s Sunday School lineup.  Please know that you are vital and needed to keep our Sunday school going at the highest level.  I promise you it is not necessary to be a bible scholar.  The only requirements are a love of Christ, children and the dedication to fulfill the months you sign up for.  (We always work with schedule conflicts).

High School:

We will meet May 5^th, 12^th and 19^th.  This is a couple of weeks longer than the other youth.  We will have our “party” on the 19^th.  I will be calling parents to help out with that.  Nothing major, but some extra snackies, etc. 

Questions or comments?  shay@meyerranch.net or (832) 595-4028.  Feedback always welcome.  Thanks!                                             Alternate contacts:  FaceBook:  Shay Prestridge Meyer / Twitter:  buttercupshay / (979) 793-7656 home