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124th Weekly Edition 2009 GRR CURRENTS |
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JOYS and PRAYER CONCERNS |
Laura Cook, daughter of Rev. Miles Cook, Park Hill CC, N. Little Rock, AR, has gone home! She will continue rehab from home. Check her progress: www.lauracookinfo.com. For Vivian Bryant: We are so blessed to have had such a sweet and wonderful woman of God working with us in the region since 1994. Vivian has been working part time with us since May as executive director of Disciples Women and liaison for MCMC. That position can no longer be funded past 12/31/2009. Vivian would prefer a “Card Shower” to an attempt to gather people for a farewell party, so consider this your opportunity to shower her with your love and appreciation! Cards or any tokens of appreciation can be sent to Vivian at: 5319 Cottonwood Road, Memphis, TN 38115 or to the region at P.O. Box 192058, Little Rock, AR 72219. Congregations across the region are free to contact her between now and the end of the year at 501-944-2163 if you want to do something special on your own. Thanks so much! |
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NEWS and EVENTS |
Covenant Christian Church, Byram, MS. Position available for Youth Pastor. To apply, please mail your resume and a letter of interest to: Covenant Christian Church (DOC), P.O. Box 720357, Byram, MS 39272 Accepting resumes until December 31, 2009 Contact: John Holifield, Minister 601-573-8030 or 601-760-6104 or 601 924-5095 Or Monica Fountain, Parent Volunteer 601-885-6876 or 601-573-8003 Click here to see full ad and details. Disciples Women. Articles for the DW newsletter ‘The Encourager’, are due in the regional office by December 15th. Email your articles to tina@grrc.org. Louisiana has the feature article this quarter. DW. As we continue to work on our Quadrennial Assembly service project to bring an end to human trafficking, I wanted to bring to your attention this new film, co-produced by George Clooney, that deals with the sexual exploitation of children. Called “Playground,” we have written to the publicist of the film to see if there is a possibility of having a showing at the theaters across from the Koury Convention Center in Greensboro during QA next year. Meanwhile, please help publicize this new film so if there is a showing in your area women might be encouraged to attend. Adonna Boman. http://www.nestfoundation.org/film/ Southern Christian Services for Children and Youth, Inc. The mission statement of SCSCY is: ‘In response to the love of Christ, Southern Christian Services for Children and Youth serves and equips vulnerable children and youth, assisting them in the process of becoming self sufficient and contributing members of society.’ Chris made his way to the P.A.L.S. program for homeless teens operated by SCSCY in Mississippi. We celebrate with Chris his accomplishments and his commitment to serve his country. Click here to read his full article. Sue Cherney, 860 East River Place, Ste 104, Jackson, MS 39202, 601-354-0983. Martha Grace Reese, author of the highly acclaimed Unbinding the Gospel: Real Life Evangelism, will direct research to discover, evaluate, and work with the dynamic of congregational transformation through faith development and faith sharing. The Lilly Endowment has awarded a major new four-year grant to support this second phase of the Mainline Evangelism Project, which will be called the Unbinding the Gospel Project. The purposes of the Unbinding the Gospel Project phase are: "The most important point of the Unbinding the Gospel Project will be to help churches and their leaders slow down and pray. We believe with all our hearts that if we will ask Jesus to use us, and if we follow humbly and simply, that Spirit can use us to reach tens of thousands of people who do not have a conscious relationship with Christ, or who are not part of a loving faith community. Congregations interested in being a part of the study may contact Reese at www.GraceNet.info. Available Now from Chalice Press: A Travel Guide to Christian Faith (by Dawn Weaks) has three components. The Before You Go booklet gives first-time seekers an easy-to-understand synopsis of the Christian faith. If they wish to learn more, the Traveler's Edition serves as a student workbook, while the Tour Leader is for the instructor. ·one (1) copy of the Tour Leader ·ten (10) copies of the Traveler's Edition ·ten (10) copies of the Before You Go To order, call 1-800-366-3383 or click here: A Travel Guide to Christian Faith Group Package. Cyrus N. White, President and Publisher, CBP/Chalice Press/Lucas Park Books FCC Slidell, LA is building a Community Center on their site in March 2010. The facility will be used as a mission outreach to the community. Disciples Volunteering is sponsoring the Blitz Build. If your church is interested in participating in the build, you can call Brenda Tyler at 317-713-2642 or go to www.disciplehomemissions.org/Volunteer/SpecialProjects/SpringBreak.htm FCC is asking for materials donations form churches, individuals, or companies. Click here to see the list of materials needed. Contact Josh Baird at 985-778-6915 or at joshbaird@hotmail.com if you can donate. Also, for more information, you can call Rev. Susan Lassalle at 985-643-8623. Black Ministers Retreat 2010. The office of Black Ministries is happy and excited to announce that the Black Ministers Retreat of 2010 will be held March 1-4, 2010 in Goldsboro, North Carolina. Our host for this event will be Bishop Chester L. Aycock, Presiding Prelate of The Goldsboro-Raleigh District Assembly of The Church of Christ, Disciples of Christ International. This will be a historical moment for the office of Black Ministries, Disciples Home Missions, the Black Ministers Fellowship and National Convocation. In the thirty-five year history of Black Ministers Retreat, this will be the first time that this event has been hosted by one of the Assembly Churches. The Black Ministers Retreat is a national church event and is open to all clergy of the Christian Church, Disciples of Christ and the United Church of Christ. Please feel free to pass along the attached information. Karen Jones, Admin Asst, Phone: (317) 713-2672 or toll free (888)346-2631, kjones@dhm.disciples.org, Web site: http://www.discipleshomemissions.org Summer Collegium: a project in support of small congregations. All expenses paid nine-day conference for small church clergy and their spouses/partners. The deadline for postmarking applications is quickly approaching (December 15). The Summer Collegium is an ecumenical project fully funded through the Lilly Endowment and seeks to offer encouragement, education, refreshment and renewal to 25 small-church pastors each year. The dates of the Summer Collegium are June 23-July 1, 2010. Single clergy and locally ordained persons are welcome to apply. Our keynote this year is the Rev. Dr. Alice Mann, and music will be led by John Bell of the Iona Community in Scotland. Blessings and peace. Marilyn Johns, D. Min., Project Manager, Virginia Theological Seminary, 703-461-1760 www.vts.edu/education/collegium. Disciples' Bicentennial History Book and Workshops. There are less than two months left during the Disciples’ Bicentennial Anniversary! We would like to take this opportunity to remind you of the publication of The Disciples: A Struggle for Reformation, our bicentennial history (2009) authored by D. Duane Cummins. It is the successor to Journey in Faith, written by McAllister & Tucker in 1972. The reviews for Cummins' new volume are highly favorable, strong and solid. cumminsdd@gmail.com, 255 Sears Lane, Swanton, Maryland 21561, 301-387-8088. New Minister of Faith and Giving. A Disciples pastor whose church has demonstrated outstanding stewardship has been called to serve as the new Minister of Faith and Giving. Bruce Barkhauer, senior minister of First Christian Church (DOC) in Jeffersonville, Ind., will assume his new position beginning on Feb. 1. Click here to read full press release. Beth Sullivan Executive Assistant to the General Minister and President, Christian Church (DOC). |
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STAFF UPDATES |
From Barbara Jones: I will be on vacation returning to the office around December 6. From Rick Hamilton: This weekend I will be participating in the New Beginnings Cluster Meetings for Greater Little Rock. What an exciting time to be dreaming about New Birth for the church -- Advent! Sunday I will be at Antioch Christian Church in Tull, AR. Search Committees I am currently supporting: FCC Harrison, AR (Assoc/Youth) FCC Sherwood, AR Please contact me, in confidence, to inquire about any of the above Ministry Opportunities. From Michael Elmore: Friday I will be at FCC Monroe, LA as a part of their New Beginnings Process. Sunday I will be preaching at Westside CC and leading the Covenant Of Calling Service for Rev. John Kirby as Pastor of Westside CC. I continue to work with FCC Lake Charles, FCC Leesville and FCC Gulfport as they seek a minister. I would encourage you to check out the web page for The Academy of Spiritual Leadership, it is a wonderful program that has been developed over the past 12 years to develop Leadership, lay and clergy, in our churches http://www.la-umc.org/ssl/asl.php Search Committees I am currently supporting: FCC Leesville, LA FCC Lake Charles, LA FCC Gulfport, MS From Vance Moore: December 6 I’ll be at Christian Chapel CC in Port Gibson for the 3pm installation of Rev. Rufus Edwards as the newly called pastor. Come and celebrate with us! Search and Call: Currently I’m working with Highland Drive CC in Jonesboro. Highland Drive is in negotiations with a prospective candidate. Please keep church and candidate in your prayers as they discern God’s will. FCC in Newport, AR is also beginning the search and call process as they prepare for the retirement of their pastor, Pam Decker, at the end of 2009. Please keep us in your prayers. Westside Mission: December 7 I’ll be in Indianapolis meeting with Carl Zerwick, Office of Disciples Volunteers. We’ll be looking at ways to work together as we begin our “critical presence” approach to outreach and mission in the Great River Region. We’re booking groups for late spring and summer 2010. Come on down, there’s plenty of work, fellowship and opportunities to serve! WHERE DID YOU SEE GOD TODAY? From Sara Rozzell: Mid-Winter Mission will be January 16-18, 2010 at the Westside Mission Center in New Orleans, LA. Click here to see flyer and registration form. 2010 Summer Camp Dates: More youth dates available on the youth page at www.grcc.org. |