18 October 2007

Tired?

 

Lately I’ve noticed how tired many folks seem to be as they arrive for worship or midweek activities.  Work, school, extended family needs, travel, health crises, deaths and extracurricular activities seem to be taking a toll on the members of our community of faith.  Our world is moving faster and faster with ever increasing and relentless demands. 

 

While it is easy to understand the Biblical truths of working from rest (instead of resting from work) and abiding in Jesus so that we can bear fruit, it is much harder to escape the world’s whirlwind to implement them.  Let your Beloved community offer some respite and reinvigorating vision on the horizon!

 

Come to A Beloved Evening with Friends and Family.  Relax over dessert and beverages in a cabaret atmosphere.  Laugh with your sisters and brothers in Christ.  Be moved and inspired by the Beloved Band and the theatrical talents our special guests—Friends of the Groom—a professional theater company from Cincinnati, Ohio dedicated to communicating the Christian message to adults and children in unexpected, entertaining and challenging ways.  Celebrate our blessings and hear where Beloved is going in the future.  With such a mission focus, it is important that you are there!  Carve out some time for a bit of fun and allow Jesus to calm the whirlwind in your life!

 

Though not all our active congregation is present in worship each Sunday, we hope to see up to two hundred adults and children present for this special night!  Of course, friends are welcome as well and free childcare will be offered for those children under 6 who might prove distracting to others. 

 

Mark your calendars now: Saturday, December 1^st from 7-8:30pm @ Providence Presbyterian Church.  For more information, speak to Ben Copeland, Craig Doyon, Harris High, Tony Hodgson, Dick Reif or myself.  Don’t miss the inaugural offering of what we expect to become one of Beloved’s annual highlights of the year!  Reserve your spot today!!

    

 

J. Derek Harbin, priest

 

 

Around Beloved… Christian Formation for all ages will follow worship this Sunday.

 

 

Thanks to those who walked in the CROP Walk for world hunger and those who sponsored walkers.  Please bring your monetary pledges to give to your walkers this Sunday.

 

 

Each Wednesday morning, Donna Elyea and women from our area join together to pray for our community schools.  The local Moms in Touch group would welcome your participation!  From 9-9:45 prayers are offered for the students and needs of Ardrey Kell High School and from 9:45-10:30 the group prays for Community House Middle, Endhaven Elementary and Hawk Ridge Elementary Schools.  Meetings are held at South Mecklenburg Presbyterian Church (Bryant Farms and Blakeney Heath Roads).  To learn more, contact Donna.

 

 

Before the Friends of the Groom perform at our Saturday, December 1^st Beloved Evening with Family and Friends, they will offer a drama workshop from 2-4pm for the Charlotte community called Beyond Bathrobes: Drama and Storytelling for the Church.  This is a workshop for any adult or youth who likes, or thinks they would like, to express their faith creatively.  Those who come will be invited to participate in a variety of drama and storytelling activities, including five ways to perform a story in worship and creative uses of drama in worship.  Pre-register by clicking here.

 

Friends of the Groom is a professional theater company dedicated to communicating the Christian message in an entertaining and challenging format. The inter-denominational group is located in Cincinnati, Ohio, and normally travels in teams of two or three. Since 1980, they have performed plays, led retreat weekends, and conducted workshops in thousands of locations from Anchorage to Canterbury.

 

All Saints Sunday (November 4) will be here in two weeks.  During this service, we remember those who have died and gone to God’s heavenly feast since last year’s All Saints celebration.  At Church of the Beloved, we parade into worship with banners bearing our loved ones’ names, reminding us that they are “Christ’s Own Forever.”  The church provides the banner, while family members prepare the letters of their beloved one’s name to go on the banner.  If you have had a relative die this year, please contact the Development Office by October 25 so that you can learn how to prepare your banner for this special day.  Instructions will be sent via email following the October 25^th deadline.

 

 

In our ongoing effort to achieve financial independence, Church of the Beloved will be one of the non-profit organizations participating in the fourth annual Simon Evening of Giving at SouthPark Mall on Sunday, November 18^th.  For every $10 ticket to this event we sell, our church keeps $7.  The remaining $3 will go to the Simon Youth Foundation, which provides support and resources for at-risk children.  Packets containing tickets and additional details for this event continue to be available to COB participants after worship or by clicking here.

 

 

On Sunday, December 9 following Worship and Christian Formation, Beloved’s Fellowship Team will host a Brunch followed by a Christmas Workshop and Cakewalk.  The focus of the Christmas workshop will be small handmade items that children may want to buy for their parents, siblings, or perhaps teachers.  There will also be simple gift-wrapping available for their purchases.  If you would like to help in the preparation of food for that day, please contact Mary Reid (704.540.3057) or Janie Wooten (704.321.2466).  If you would like to assist the team that is making simple gifts (no special training or talents needed!) please contact Anna Moore here.  If you would be willing to donate baked goods for the cakewalk, please contact Betsy Fox here.  Sign up sheets can also be found in the hospitality area following worship.  All proceeds of the brunch, Christmas Workshop, and the cakewalk will go towards the Building Fund.  Look for more details to follow.

 

 

 

Beloved eNews publishes each Thursday.  News and calendar information should be submitted via email by the Monday preceding the publication date.

 

 

October 14…Attendance: 105; Worship Offering: $2606.  Income needed for ministry each week: $5,500 (fully funded) à $4,400 (requiring other funding sources i.e. fundraising events).  The financial goal of Church of the Beloved is to reach self-sufficiency (i.e. pay all expenses without income from outside sources) by 12/31/2008.

 

 

Scripture Readings for October 21…2 Timothy 3:14-4:5 & Luke 18:1-8

 

Serving at God’s Altar on October 21…Complete setup/complete teardown: Angel Army Team #1; Acolytes: Garreth Floyd, Adam Burnett, Holly Burnett, Clare Harbin; Offering Basket Passers: Trinity Atwood, Cecilia Atwood, John Mark Dygowski, Joy Dygowski; Offering Tellers: Craig Doyon (head) & Roey Southard (assistant); Presenters: the Heckmann family; Altar Bread Baker: Kris Leinenkugel; Lay Eucharistic Ministers: Penny Crawford & Wes Nichols; PowerPoint: Joseph Nichols & Paige Wilson; Reader: Joseph Nichols.

 

In our Prayers…click here

Upcoming Calendar…click here