A Publication of Emmanuel United Methodist Church
The Mustard Seed
“if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain,
‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you.” Matthew 17:20b
November 2016
[email protected]
The Feast of the
Harvest, Saturday
November 12, 2016
4-7pm
The Feast of the
Harvest dinner is extra special this year
because it marks our 50th anniversary. The
ladies of the Prayer Quilt Ministry have
made a quilt to be given away on the evening
of the Feast. They will be accepting
donations for tickets. The tickets will be
placed in a drawing with an opportunity to
receive the quilt. You need not be present
for the drawing. The donation price is $1.00
each or 6 for $5.00. we will also be having a
silent auction for themed gift baskets. A free
will offering for the Feast will be accepted
with the proceeds going to the Community
Life Center Building Fund and proceeds
from the quilt and baskets will go toward
construction costs for the upper room in the
CLC. We will also be taking orders and
delivering to Maryvale residents for those
who are unable to attend. Carry-out is
available. Please invite family and friends as
we celebrate this community event. With
everyone’s participation we can make this
the best year yet!
Community
Monday November 21, 2016 at 7:00pm
at Christ United Methodist Church
in West Terre Haute.
Phone: 812-535-4218
Let’s Decorate the Church for
Christmas!
Sunday November 27 after worship we will
have a light lunch and then decorate the
church. We will be decorating the sanctuary,
the entry way and the Community Life Center.
The Hanging of the Greens Service will
follow that evening at 7:00 p.m. We will
have cookies and wassail after the Hanging of
the Greens service. Plan to stay and fellowship.
Ladies
Christmas
Celebration
Ladies, please mark your calendar for
Wednesday evening, December 7th. That
will be an evening to usher in the Christmas
season with great food and lively
conversations with old friends. Please
reserve Wednesday, December 7th at 6:00
pm. Please bring a salad, casserole or
dessert to share. Drinks will be provided.
Friends of Debbie
Kixmiller will
gather to celebrate
the upcoming birth of Baby Kixmiller. The
baby's mama is Samantha or Sam as she is
called by family and friends. The baby
shower will be Sunday, December 11th at
2:00 in the CLC. The soon-to-be mamma
and papa have chosen not to know the baby's
gender until birth.
CLARKS CORNER
Every year during the month of November,
we pause to celebrate the Thanksgiving
holiday. There are certain national stories
that are important to our country. There are certain
Biblical stories that are important to our faith. There
is value in telling these stories again every year, to
remind us of who we are and how we got here. They
help us reflect on why we do what we do today, and
help us get “back on track” when we forget where we
came from.
The first major British settlement in America was at
Jamestown, Virginia, in 1607. Jamestown was named
after King James of England. The first settlers came
for political reasons (to expand the British Empire)
and for financial reasons (to look for gold). 13 years
later, the Pilgrims settled in Massachusetts, arriving in
1620. They came for religious reasons. Thus, we see
that our nation originated from different groups who
arrived at different times for different purposes –
some political, some financial, and some religious.
The Pilgrims set sail from England on the Mayflower
on September 6, 1620, with 102 passengers and 30
crew members. Their goal was to sail to Virginia.
The Atlantic winds blew them off course. Instead of
landing in Virginia, they landed at Cape Cod,
Massachusetts on November 11, 1620. The trip
across the Atlantic Ocean was a miserable one, with
huge waves constantly crashing against the ship's
topside deck. The passengers suffered from shortages
of food and of other supplies. There were two deaths
on board the Mayflower, and there was one baby born,
who was named Oceanus.
After landing at Cape Cod, the Pilgrims wanted to sail
south to Virginia to reach their original destination.
But when the weather would not cooperate, they
decided to spend the winter in Massachusetts. To
establish legal order and to quell increasing strife
within the ranks, the settlers wrote and signed the
Mayflower Compact.
On November 27, an exploring expedition was
launched under the direction of Capt. Christopher
Jones to search for a suitable settlement site. They
were obviously not accustomed to, or prepared for, the
bitter winter weather they encountered. The
expedition was forced to spend the night on shore in
below-freezing temperatures with wet shoes and
stockings that became frozen.
The Pilgrims spent the entire winter on board the
Mayflower, suffering an outbreak of a contagious
disease described as a mixture of scurvy, pneumonia,
and tuberculosis. When it ended, there were only 53
passengers still alive. Half of the Pilgrims had died.
Half of the crew died, as well. In the spring, they built
huts on shore, and on March 21, 1621, the surviving
passengers finally disembarked from the Mayflower.
The event that Americans commonly call the "First
Thanksgiving" was celebrated by the Pilgrims after
their first harvest in the New World in 1621. This
feast lasted three days, and was attended by 90 Native
Americans and 53 Pilgrims. The New England
colonists were accustomed to regularly celebrating
"thanksgivings", which were days of prayer thanking
God for blessings such as military victory or the end
of a drought.
Squanto, a Pantuxet Native American who resided
with the Wampanoag tribe, taught the Pilgrims how to
catch eel and grow corn and served as an interpreter
for them. Squanto had learned the English language
during his enslavement in England. The Wampanoag
leader Massasoit had given food to the colonists
during the first winter when the supplies brought from
England were insufficient. The feast was cooked by
four adult Pilgrim women who survived their first
winter in the New World (Eleanor Billington,
Elizabeth Hopkins, Mary Brewster, and Susanna
White, along with young daughters and male and
female servants).
When we read this story, we are reminded of a few
key points:
1. The first Thanksgiving was a time to give
thanks to God for their survival. The Pilgrims
were not ready for the harsh wintry conditions
they encountered. Half of their group died
from disease. This was a scary time. The
people who survived did not live because they
were smarter or more talented or more
prepared or because they had more faith.
They survived by the grace of God Who kept
them alive. They set aside three days to thank
God for saving their lives.
2. The first Thanksgiving was a time to give
thanks for the grace and the hospitality
extended to the Pilgrims by the Native
Americans. The Pilgrims would not have
survived without them. God saved them
through the Native people. They had
knowledge of the winter, the land, the crops
that could grow, and how to survive, which
the Pilgrims needed. Thanksgiving was a time
to thank the Native Americans for coming to
their rescue.
3. The Pilgrims were an adventurous people.
They were willing to take a huge risk to leave
England and journey thousands of miles to
America, knowing that they might not ever see
their loved ones again, and might not survive.
They were probably driven by a mixture of
fear and hope, desperation and faith,
uncertainty and adventure. They were
entrepreneurs. They were willing to make
huge sacrifices to find a better life. They had
a deep faith in Jesus and were moved to pray
and thank God for saving their lives.
Their first year in America probably did not go as they
had hoped or planned. They had to adapt. They had
to learn lots of new things. They had to adjust their
lives to fit the new world they were now living in,
while remaining grounded in their faith in Jesus,
rooted in the scriptures, and interdependent on one
another. These are good lessons for us to remember
today.
As we celebrate Thanksgiving this month, what are
we thankful for? Are we still willing to make great
sacrifices today? Are we willing to set out on great
adventures, stretching our faith, and willing to face
new situations, like our Pilgrim forebears before us?
Do we realize that we need each other? Thanksgiving
is a story of people from different countries, different
continents, different races, and different sexes
working together. Thanksgiving is a story of
immigration where the first Americans welcomed
some of the first Europeans with grace, generosity,
and hospitality. Thanksgiving is a story of success.
So, as we sit down to our Thanksgiving meals this
year, we are reminded to be thankful to God, to be
thankful for those around us who have helped us, and
to take risks of faith and to make sacrifices for Jesus.
We are building on the story that began almost 400
years ago. Jesus saves us to do something. God
rescues us to go somewhere. The Holy Spirit is
preparing us for something special. Where will God
lead us to go this year?
Rev. Clark Cowden
ADMINISTRATIVE COUNCIL MEETING
Wednesday October 26, 2017
Members present: Jug Thompson, Marsha Thompson,
Mike Allee, Kathie Drake, Rev. Clark Cowden, Beth
Keyes, Nancy Coletti, Carla Whitesell
Meeting was opened with prayer and minutes of last
meeting were read and approved.
Pastor: Discussed the final chapters of “The Art of
Neighboring”: The Art of Forgiving. There is a
difference between excusing and forgiving. We are to
continue to be good neighbors even when it’s hard to
do. Refer to Romans 12.
Clark submitted his ministry report for October which
includes meeting with church leaders from both
churches, connecting with people through phone calls
and visits, participating in church groups with both
churches, following up with visits, making contacts in
the community, meeting with pastors in the area,
making visits at the hospital, in homes and rehab
centers, overseeing 2 funerals and 1 wedding. We also
discussed the “Brainstorming Session” which had
many good reports from those who attended. There
was a motion made to purchase a radio advertising
spot on WBOW for $320 for 50, 30second spots
during the week before Christmas. Motion was
passed. Another motion was made to hire a web
designer to create a new website for the church at a
cost of $700. This motion was passed also.
Treasurer: September EOM balance is $16,110.30.
All bills are up to date and paid in full.
Finance: Committee will meet on Wednesday
November 9 at 7:00pm to finalize the budget for the
2017 year.
Trustees: The floor in the upper room of the CLC is
down, the CLC air conditioner has been fixed, thank
you Jeff Orndorff. There was discussion about our
responsibility to the New Vermillion Cemetery. Jug
Thompson will be looking in to this more with the
help of John Fitzpatrick.
Feast: still need meat carvers, kitchen clean up went
well, steam tables and warming oven still need
cleaned. Beth Keyes is stepping down as Nurture
Committee chairperson.
Missions: The Student Food Bank at ISU is in need,
they will be looking into ways to help them. We will
be having our own Angel Tree this year to help a
family in need at Fayette at Christmas.
KHUSA: the program is going well so far this year,
Halloween treat bags have been made for each child
and mentors will be giving them out.
Meeting closed with prayer.
Next meeting will be 11/16/16
Join us in celebrating the
50th Annual
at
Emmanuel United Methodist Church
Saturday, November 12th, 2016
from
4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.
Our feast will include:
Turkey, Ham, Noodles, Mashed Potatoes & Gravy,
Dressing, Sweet Potatoes, Green Beans,
Cranberry salad, Rolls,
Desserts and Drinks!
A free will offering will be accepted with proceeds
going to the Community Life Center building fund.
Quilt drawing and silent auction for themed gift baskets
Emmanuel is located at 6076 US Hwy. 150 in West Terre Haute, IN
Phone: 812-535-4218
[email protected]
Carry-out is available.
Sun
Mon
Tue
1
Prayer Quilt
9am
*CLC
Exercise
5:15pm
6
“Yoga” 6pm
7
8
Prayer Quilt
9am
*CLC
Exercise
5:15pm
13
“Yoga” 6pm
14
15
Prayer Quilt
9am
*CLC
Exercise
5:15pm
20
“Yoga” 6pm
21
22
Prayer Quilt
9am
Wed
2
Praise Team
Practice
6:30pm
28
Hanging of
the Greens
Svc. 7pm
*CLC = Community Life Center
29
Prayer Quilt
9am
*CLC
Exercise
5:15pm
3
*CLC Exercise
5:15pm
Fri
Sat
4
5
10
*CLC Exercise
5:15pm
11
12
*CLC Feast
of the
Harvest 47pm
17
*CLC Exercise
5:15pm
18
19
*CLC – in
use
Small Group
PPRC 7:00pm 6:30pm
9
Praise Team
Practice
6:30pm
Finance
Meeting
7:00pm
16
Praise Team
Practice
6:30pm
Ad Council
7:00pm
23
Praise Team
Practice
6:30pm
*CLC
Exercise
5:15pm
27
“Yoga” 6pm
Thu
30
Praise Team
Practice
6:30pm
Small Group
6:30pm
24
25
Thanksgiving
*CLC in use
26
*CLC in use
12:00pm-
Mission Statement:
We at Emmanuel United Methodist Church invite all
people to a relationship with God through faith in
Jesus Christ by:




Celebrating in worship and prayer
Teaching God’s Holy Word
Witnessing God’s transforming love
Serving the church, community and the world
Emmanuel United Methodist Church
6076 US Hwy 150
West Terre Haute, IN 47885
Return service requested.
November 2016 Newsletter