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14 Oct

October 14, 2011 |

Phil Whipple, bishop

A pastor contacted me, wanting to know what other churches might be doing in the way of an after-school program. Here is the inquiry:

“We are hoping and praying that our vision for an after-school tutoring program in parternship with our local school system will come to fruition shortly. However, I want to make sure I have as much information about such a ministry as I can. Do you know of any UBers or churches that are currently doing or have done such a ministry? I would like to pick their brains as it were.”

If you’re doing something along this line, please send me a note. I’ll put the pastor in contact with you.

12 Oct

October 12, 2011 |

Arek and Donna Delik (right) are endorsed UB missionaries serving in Poland. Donna wrote on October 10:

“Arek just talked to his father on the phone, and his father’s condition has worsened. He got very severe diarrhea and became very weak. They had to call the doctor to see dad at home. After the visit, the doctor referred him to the hospice. That means we have to prepare for the worst.

“We will really appreciate your prayers Arek’s dad and for us as well, especially for these 2 weeks (10/10 to 21/10) when we are having our Hong Kong mission team for the Chinese Culture Week. We pray that dad will get better and there won’t be anything happen to him during this time, otherwise Arek has to rush to Slupsk. We really feel that our enemy is trying to distract us from this particular time of ministry. Please stand with us in prayer.”

12 Oct

October 12, 2011 |

Sam Suman (right), pastor of Trinity UB in Fostoria, Ohio, writes:

“Trinity UB continues to enjoy spiritual renewal. The church just experienced another powerful move of God’s Spirit in a revival setting. After six weeks of concentrated prayer in preparation for the meeting, God answered in His promised power. Rev Gary Bond delivered his heart in music and in word, with God’s people responding in obedience. God’s people were faithful in inviting their families and friends and neighbors. Several have returned in the following weeks. We are trusting God to empower us to be a redemptive people in a city that needs Jesus so much!”

10 Oct

October 10, 2011 |

Ted Doolittle (right), senior pastor, Calvary Community Church (Saginaw, Mich.)

Calvary Community Church (Saginaw, Mich.) celebrated Faith in Action Sunday on October 9 by going out to various locations in the community to provide service to others. Our theme is “Don’t Just GO to church. BE the church.”

Several groups went into the community. We had groups that:

  • Distributed 9 volt batteries to every unit in an area mobile home park, along with a reminder to change the battery in their smoke alarms.
  • Did yard work and cut down a tree for an elderly man.
  • Picked up litter at the high school, middle school, elementary school, and township park.
  • Handed out free popcorn from a local service station.
  • Grilled hotdogs and handed them out for free at the local outside mall.
  • Visited the pediatric floor of an area hospital to hand out coloring books with crayons and puzzle books with pens, and entertain people with a clown.
  • Led a local nursing home in a singspiration. One couple led worship at another nursing home, which they already have been doing every Sunday.
  • Led worship in the community room of an apartment complex for senior citizens.

We also had groups which stayed at the church. One group prayed for and wrote thank you notes to 75 area physicians’ offices. Another group wrapped plates of homemade cookies for distribution to various community leaders. Another group made quilts for use by the Pregnancy Counseling Center.

10 Oct

October 10, 2011 |

October is always a time for denominational meetings. These groups will be meeting during the next two weeks, all in Huntington, Ind.

07 Oct

October 7, 2011 |

A special event will be held in honor of Rev. Charles and Doris Malson, who are celebrating their 70th wedding anniversary. Rev. Malson served many years as a United Brethren pastor in Michigan, and also as the Michigan Conference fulltime superintendent. The family invites you to join them for an ice cream social commemorating this milestone.

Date: November 19, 2011
Time: 3-6 pm. The event begins at 3 pm, with a program at 4 pm.
Location: East Washington UB church, 8051 S. Crapo Road, Ashley, Mich. 48806.

The contact person is Beth Palmer (daughter).

Phone: 989.235.2335
Email

If you are unable to attend and would like to give them a call, their number is 989.235.6525. Or send a card to:

Charles and Doris Malson
10928 Easy Street
Carson City, MI 48811

06 Oct

October 6, 2011 |

Steve Dennie, Communications Director

Churches frequently contact me for advice on technology needs, particularly in regard to the internet. Just yesterday, a church contacted me about their website. They need a new website, but also want some kind of online contact management system which several people could access (they are currently just keeping records in a Word document). Did I have any advice?

Those are basic needs for churches of any size–a website, and tracking people.

Our churches are using a lot of different things in both areas, from do-it-yourself tools to purchasing full-blown systems.

I told that church I would find out what some other UB churches are doing, especially in contact management, and get back with them. That’s what I’m doing now.

How is your website done? And what do you use to track people? Whether or not you’re happy with what you use, I’d like to know.

I created a form so you can respond.

I’ll compile results and post them on UBCentral.org. I’m sure it’ll be helpful to lots of churches that are asking the same questions this church asked of me.

06 Oct

October 6, 2011 |

The Huntington University Women’s Auxiliary will hold its 21st annual garage sale benefit October 21-22:

  • October 21: 3-8 pm
  • October 22: 8am – noon.

Attracting more than 50 donors, the sale will be in the Huntington University fieldhouse in the Merillat Physical Education and Recreation Complex. The proceeds will benefit the 2011-12 Auxiliary project. The goal is to raise $2000 to reupholster the furniture in the Roush and Wright hall lounges.

Donations for the sale will be accepted at the fieldhouse from 3-6 pm October 20, and 7-11 am October 21. Clean, usable items are to be marked clearly with reasonable prices. (Exception: jeans, slacks, shirts, blouses, skirts, sweaters, children’s clothes, shoes, and books do not need to be marked.)

Furniture, jewelry, household items, bedding, crafts, Christmas décor, records, games, office supplies, gardening and yard items, and even fresh plants or produce are especially useful.

Unsold items are donated to various charities, including Habitat for Humanity, Love INC., and the Salvation Army.

For more information, contact Pat Jones at 260-359-4061, Diane Frame at 260-356-7491, Judy Campbell at 260-344-1300, or Ruth Seilhamer at 260-672-8605.

06 Oct

October 6, 2011 |

Steve Dennie, Communications Director

Today, everyone’s focused on the death of Steve Jobs, co-founder of Apple. He’s a religious figure in that he started the Apple Cult. It started with Mac users, who (like me) could be extremely obnoxious in their evangelistic zeal. It has since spread to include iPod, iPhone, and iPad users. I am all of the above (though the iPad is actually my wife’s).

The Healthy Ministry Resources office has been entirely Macintosh since 1988. Prior to that, I produced the monthly United Brethren magazine on an AT&T PC with two 5.25″ floppy drives (no hard drive). I composed the articles in Wordstar, then sent the disc to a printshop, which printed out the typeset articles in long strips of heavy paper. I then spent up to two weeks doing layout, bent over a light table laboriously pasting everything down, with regular trips to the chiropractor.

When Denny Miller came to the office in 1987 as Associate Director of Church Services, he was already an Apple user. In mid-1988, he dragged me along to a computer store. I believe we went to look at Apple II computers. But instead, we were blown away by the insanely great Mac. I soon had a Mac II on my desk (2MB RAM, 40MB hard drive, monochrome monitor) and a LaserWriter Plus nearby. Within a month, with no training whatsoever, I learned this new computer, along with Pagemaker, and cranked out the October 1988 United Brethren magazine entirely on-screen.

The Mac, truly, changed my life. Or Denny did.

Today, every employee in the office uses a Mac. Gary Gates works here one day a week, and I believe he brings a PC laptop, for which he’s been given a special dispensation. We have a PC in shipping, because UPS requires PC software, and Finance Director Marci Hammel, in addition to her iMac, keeps a PC laptop open for banking purposes. But everyone else uses Macs entirely.

We basically do no training. And since problems are few, I provide support out of my back pocket. So, as a small office, the Mac serves us well. Bishop Whipple came to the office in 2009 as a veteran Mac user. Jeff Bleijerveld came from a PC office, but is now a devoted (but not yet obnoxious) convert. And now we’re working on newcomer Frank Y. It’s just a matter of time.

One more thing: we’ve not had a computer virus since 1991.