United Church of Warsaw

  Thoughts from Kim, July 2008

Anniversaries provide a great opportunity to celebrate our past, whilst looking to our future.  Our forebears laid a foundation of Christian witness through devotion to God and service to others that is nothing short of remarkable.  Their legacy will be celebrated during the weekend of July 11-13, as we herald our 200^th year as a church family.  Our history tells a story of faith, courage, conflicts forgiven and healed, and a constant commitment to ministry modeled after the life of Christ – faith in action!

In response to our desire to be faithful to this legacy, your Session and Boards of Benevolence and Trustees are diligently and creatively looking at our ministry, asking:  How can we -

1.  Strengthen our Christian witness and church family life here at the United Church of Warsaw (Session)

2.  Continue our mission of outreach to those in need (Benevolence)

3.  Be faithful stewards of our resources by managing expenses, maintaining and responsibly managing our buildings, and inviting all to generously support the church (Trustees)

One reason this church has thrived for 200 years is its ability to adapt to the changing circumstances of life.  This is a lesson that will serve us well as we look to our future. The challenges of life in 2008 and beyond require new ways of being a church – new approaches to ministry and stewardship.  Fortunately, our church has a rich history of creativity, adaptability, and willingness to embrace new opportunities and challenges so that the love, compassion and mercy of God can be shared with others.

There is so much to celebrate – such exciting challenges and opportunities ahead of us.  We are truly blessed!  May we continue to be a blessing to others, as we walk boldly into the future.

With Love and Prayers

Kim

KEEP READING, TO SEE THE SCHEDULE OF EVENTS FOR THE 200TH ANNIVERSARY

United Church of Warsaw

“200 Year Anniversary Celebration” 1808-2008

July 11, 12, 13, 2008

Friday July 11^th: Open House at the United Church of Warsaw 1 PM – 4PM. Stop in and enjoy refreshments and a tour of the buildings.

Saturday July 12^th:  Community Celebration for the 200 Year Anniversary of the United Church of Warsaw.  Doors open at 6:00 PM.  Childcare will be provided for the entire evening.

Vesper Service starts at 6:30 PM in the South Church (Miller Chapel).  The historic Johnson Pipe Organ (1892) played by guest organist David W. Mislin

Guest Speakers in the North Church Sanctuary at 7:30 PM

Architectural History of the United Church of Warsaw presented by James Yarrington

The Abolitionist Movement as related to the Congregational and Presbyterian Churches presented by Harvey Granite 

Race and Religion in America presented by Rev. Geoffrey Black, NY Conference Minister (UCC)

Dessert Reception after presentations (approximately 8:15 PM).

Sunday July 13^th 10:00 AM Worship Celebration   Guest Preacher the Rev. Geoffrey Black, NY Conference Minister (UCC), Guest Organist David W. Mislin

A Family Picnic will immediately following Sunday Service, on the front lawn at the United Church of Warsaw.  Please bring a dish to pass.                                                                                                                        

  Thoughts from Kim, June 2008

It is hard to believe that we have now been working together as a ministry team for a year.  Time passed so quickly!  It seems like only yesterday Bill and I were packing up our belongings and getting ready for the big move from Scotland.  Now I am getting ready to spend Memorial Weekend planting a small garden.  Many things have happened for me, personally, during this past year – some good, some quite painful.  As a church family, we have had similar experiences of joys and sorrows.  “Peaks and valleys” are the nature of life; facing them together makes all the difference.

Again and again I hear many of you telling me that you pray, hope and dream that our church family here in Warsaw can be as strong and as healthy as possible.  The love and commitment expressed for our church is inspiring!  The people who study healthy, growing churches tell us that one of the most important components in a strategy to strengthen a church, is to have annual reviews/evaluations of the ministry, to see where we have been, what we are currently doing, and deciding where we go from here, by the grace of God. 

June will be our Annual Ministry Review month.  There are many different ways to approach an Annual Ministry Review, such as having small discussion focus groups, or inviting representatives of the congregation to discuss their experiences in the church, or making available detailed surveys for people to complete.  This year we will approach the review with a detailed survey.

The survey has three parts.  Section 1 invites people to reflect on the ministry of the church as a whole – it is the “big picture” section of the survey.  Section 2 provides current board and committee members with an opportunity to reflect on their ministry in the church (this section is only filled out by current board and committee members).  Section 3 invites reflection on the Pastor’s ministry within the church family.  By inviting comment in all three areas of ministry, we have the best opportunity to gather helpful data that can assist us in planning responsible goals for our ministry in the coming years.

Members of Session, Trustees and Benevolence will receive a copy of the survey at the Tri-Board meeting on June 1st.  For those who are unable to attend that meeting, copies will be mailed to them.  Any member of the congregation can also participate in filling out the survey.  Copies will be available in the East Room on Sunday mornings for the first two weeks in June, or you can have them mailed to you by contacting the church office.

Two important details to note:  You must put your name on the form.  We will not read any anonymous forms (or John/Jane Doe forms).  Also, the deadline for completing the form is June 20^th.  Any forms received after that date will not be read.

Taking the time to reflect on our shared ministry will give the Spirit yet another opportunity to inspire us with the vision and resources to take our next steps together.  I invite you to enter into the process prayerfully – seeking God’s guidance and wisdom as we discern, together, God’s call for our church family here in Warsaw.

With love and prayers,

Kim

Thoughts from Kim… May 2008

“I have been reminded of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother…and in your mother…and…now lives in you also.” 2 Timothy 1: 5When the Apostle Paul wrote these words to a young pastor named Timothy, he was teaching future generations an important lesson about how the Christian life is shared. Timothy learned to love God because of the example of faith set by the important women in his life – as his grandma lived her faith, his mother’s life was changed and she, too, embraced the Christian life. Timothy learned about loving Christ by watching his mother. He didn’t read about it in a book, and there were no movies or DVDs to instruct and inspire…he watched the Gospel lived out in the lives of the people who loved him. He was transformed by their example.We often remember this scripture passage around Mother’s Day as a testimony to the transformational love that mothers and grandmothers bring to their families. But I suggest this passage has an even greater application – it applies to all of us.Most of us learned about Christ’s love not because of what we read or heard, but because of the way another Christian loved and welcomed us. We learn more by the example of others than by their words. If you speak with people new to the church, they will often tell of how it was a personal contact that made all the difference. You can hear a similar theme expressed when you talk with people who have left the church – usually it is because of an unpleasant encounter they’ve had with a member of the church that did not reflect the love and compassion of Christ. What we do speaks volumes about what we believe.

For this reason we must always pay attention to the example we are setting – people are watching! They look to the church to see what we believe – not so much by what we say, but by how we live our lives. When our words and actions do not match, people are turned off and walk away, and the church is labeled a haven for hypocrites. When what we say and how we behave is a match, lives are transformed by Christ’s love, compassion and mercy.

How do we bring Christ into the world? By living Christ’s example, and allowing the love and light of Christ to shine through our actions as well as our words. Circumstances provide ample opportunity to

practice this, be it on Sunday morning, through special circumstances (like reaching out to all the youth who come for youth group), or within our neighborhood, workplace, or family. It has been my experience that every challenge faced by a church also provides the chance to practice embodying Christ’s love, and when we miss the opportunity, the Spirit provides us with another chance to “get it right” – the lesson is presented over and over again until we master it.

Lois allowed Christ’s light to shine through her, and because of this, her daughter Eunice came to believe in the God who loved her and mercifully cared for her. Eunice lived that faith, and passed it on to her son Timothy one of the great pastors of the church. Timothy passed the light of Christ to countless more Christians.

What are we passing on by our example? Are we bringing more of the light of Christ into the world by how we live our lives, or are we inviting people to turn away because of our hypocrisy?

Once a church begins to “walk the talk”, the church begins to grow. Churches that fail to reflect Christ’s love stagnate. This principle is as basic as gravity, and, in my experience, always holds true.Spring is the time for new beginnings, and a good time for spiritual house-cleaning. If we find that we are not allowing the light of Christ to shine through us, either as individuals, or as a church, there is no better time to address this than now!

With love and prayers for our ministry together,

Kim