There will be no yoga class tomorrow because our instructor has a shindig to attend. We will have class Saturday at 10:00 am.
Feedback Received
I received the following by email from a clergy colleague:
“I have spent some time in the last 8 years looking at church’s websites. This includes new churches, old churches, big churches, small churches, rich churches, poor churches.. you get the point.”
“The combination of your site with your blog makes your online presence better than most of the websites that are out there. Thank you!”“It is easy on the eye, easy to navigate, no dead links, and very good information.”
I appreciate the feedback from my colleague, but I also want to share the credit with you. Coffeyville First has realized the necessity of a solid web presence and I thank you for giving me the time to make it happen. I also need to give credit to Tony Wood, whose help has been incalculable.
John Wesley's Birthday Today
Today (June 17) is John Wesley’s birthday.
A more complete explanation can be found below. I’m not responsible if you get a headache.
Today (June 17) is John Wesley’s birthday under the old Julian calendar. In 1752, Britain adopted the Gregorian calendar by skipping 11 days, and so it could be argued that Wesley’s birthday is actually on the date we now know as June 28. (Another way to think of it is that in countries that had already adopted the Gregorian calendar by the time Wesley was born, it was June 28 instead of June 17.). Either way Wesley was born in 1703. You can read more about Britain’s switch to the Gregorian calendar at wikipedia.org. I found the reference to both dates at the website of The Methodist Church in Great Britain.
No Wednesday Gathering Until July 2
Jenny, Elizabeth and I are all taking some time off (we had a great time in Olathe/Kansas City), but I wanted to get a post up that we won’t be having a Wednesday Evening gathering this week, or for the next several weeks until July 2, 2008.
Reponding to People's Needs Hurts the Church
The Alban Institute, a respected think tank, research center and teaching center for the congregational life of churches. They have a new article provocativly titled: “How Responding to People’s Needs Hurts the Church.” It’s a good read and I highly recommend it.
Confidence Monitor in the Sanctuary Fixed
The problems with the confidence monitor in the sanctuary should now be resolved. Thanks to Brian Walker for helping with diagnostics and to Dave Larimore for most of the work of running the new cable.
Flood Buckets and School Supplies
The Vision Team and Outreach Committee had a joint meeting today. It was decided to try and fill 50 “flood buckets” to give to UMCOR for disaster relief. This project is meant to be done around the time of last years flood here in Coffeyville. The second project, of collecting school supplies for students of Community Elementary will begin sometime later this summer.
Quote of the Day: Warren Buffet on Hell
The June 3 edition of The Christian Century has a symposium titled “What to say about hell,” in another section they also have this quote:
“Capitalism without failure is like Christianity without hell.”
–Investment billionaire Warren Buffet, arguing that not every failing business or investment bank should be rescued, but that homeowners who were deceived about the terms of their adjustable rate mortgages should be helped.
[Chicago Tribune, May 5]
Taize Worship Service This Wednesday
We’ll be having a Taize worship service this Wednesday (tomorrow) at 7:15 pm.
Out With The New
Via Christianity Today (June 17, 2008, page 9):
By a ratio of almost 2 to 1, unchurched Americans prefer churches that look more like medieval cathedrals to the modern, utilitarian church facilities that currently are being constructed. This preference for the Gothic, found among both unchurched Catholics and unchurched Protestants, is even more pronounced among people between the ages of 25 and 34. ‘I don’t like modern churches, they seem cold,’ said one survey respondent. ‘I like the smell of candles burning, stained-glass windows [and] an intimacy that’s transcendent’ (survey by LifeWay Research.)
If we can figure out how to use it, this is good news for us.
Confidence Monitor Issue Located
This evening during youth group, Brian Walker and I managed to pinpoint the problem with the confidence monitor in the sanctuary (the screen visible from the choir loft and the pulpit). It’s the cable. What a relief, that’s the easiest and cheapest thing to fix.
T-Shirt Problems
We’re still having “early adapter tax” issues with the t-shirts. I’m going to take the link off the website. Don’t order any right now.