Sunday, June 22, 2008 – The Sixth Sunday After Pentecost
Dear Centenary Church Family:
REMINDER: Worship & Summer Sunday School are at 9:30 AM beginning this Sunday!
This Sunday, June 22, 2008 — The Sixth Sunday After Pentecost
9:30 AM Worship & Summer Sunday School
Children’s Message: Michael Savoia
Preacher: Dr. Giselle Esquivel Cordero Theme: The Road to New Hope
Celebration of Found Coins: ClothesLine Ministry
10:30 AM Fellowship Time
Summer Worship & Church School at 9:30 AM Begins on June 22: From Sunday, June 22, through Sunday, August 31, Worship and Summer Sunday School will be held at 9:30 AM. (There will be no Sunday School classes on July 6.) Please make note of this seasonal change in our Worship and Sunday School schedule for the Summer. On Sunday, September 7th, we will resume our Sunday morning schedule with Worship and Sunday School for Pre-K through 12th Grade Youth at 10:15 AM. The Adult Class will continue to meet at 9:00 AM.
Gatt Quintet Concert: On Friday, June 20th at 7:00 PM The Asian Indian Christian Church (AICC) Building Committee will be hosting a special fundraising concert with the world renowned men’s choir, The Gatt Quintet. This concert will take place at the Wesley United Methodist Church (1500 Plainfield Avenue) in South Plainfield, NJ. The concert is open to all. An offering will be received for the AICC Building Fund.
A celebration in honor of Raritan Valley District Superintendent Veronica P. Palmer will be held this Sunday, June 22, beginning at 5:00 PM at Christ United Methodist Church in Piscataway. All clergy and laity from the district are invited to attend as we recognize the leadership that Rev. Palmer has given to the Raritan Valley District for the past four years, and for the love of our Lord Jesus Christ which she has shared with us all. A fun time is planned with lots of laughter, a bit of serious reflection, followed by a light buffet.
You are invited to sponsor the time of coffee and refreshments following our Sunday Worship service. Please consider sponsoring a refreshment time and signing up for one of the many available weeks on the 2008 Refreshment Chart in the Narthex. Information on what you need to provide is available on the information sheet attached to the Refreshment Chart. Thank you for providing hospitality on a Sunday morning.
Centenary will next be serving dinner at the Ozanam Shelter on Monday, July 7. Please check the information on the bulletin board in the Narthex and sign up to assist with food preparation or serving. The July Menu: Baked/Barbecued Ribs, Potato Salad, Baked Beans, Cookies, and Ice Cream Bars. For further information, please contact Glenna Gundell (732-463-1431) or Mary Ellen Heim (732-548-2587). Thanks.
Please faithfully use your offering envelopes during the Summer, and at every possible opportunity to help with the progress our Church is making in underwriting our ministry and mission this year. God is good to us, and one by one we can make a difference in sharing the gospel story, if we work together in the days ahead.
Thank you in the name of Jesus Christ for making ministry possible.
Information Still Requested About Our 2008 Graduates
2008 College and High School Graduates: We continue to seek any additional information about those Centenary members and friends who graduated from college or high school this year. Please call or e-mail (CentaryUMC@aol.com) the Church Office so we may continue to share in the joy of their accomplishments with the Centenary Church Family.
Thanks to Centenary Early Learning Center
New Landscaping at Rear Entrance and in Courtyard
We are grateful to the Centenary Early Learning Center for underwriting two major landscape projects on our Church grounds. Please take the time to look at the new landscaping at the entrance to the building from the rear parking lot, and also the terracing in the playground area of the courtyard. With the approval of our Centenary Board of Trustees, the Early Learning Center chose to undertake these projects to control soil erosion, as well as to provide for beautification of these areas. Thank You!!
Some Thoughts for This Week:
Kindness has converted more sinners than zeal, eloquence, or learning. – Frederick W. Faber
The duty of every Christian is to be Christ to his neighbor. – Martin Luther [adapted]
Our faithfulness will depend on our willingness to go where there is brokenness, loneliness, and human need. If the church has a future it is a future with the poor in whatever form. – Henri J. M. Nouwen, Sabbatical Journey
Perfection, in a Christian sense, means becoming mature enough to give ourselves to others. – Kathleen Norris
We are rich only through what we give, and poor only through what we keep.
The thing about life that so many persons do not suspect is that it gives us something only if we are always giving something of ourselves first. – Eugene Kennedy, Free To Be Human
Don’t prepare the path for the child, prepare the child for the path. – Anonymous
Better than being the head of the family is being the heart of it. – George Bergman
A perfect summer day is when the sun is shining, the breeze is blowing, the birds are singing, and the lawn mower is broken. – James Dent
Our experience of God’s unconditional love must be shaped by the Scriptures. God’s written Word must take hold of us…The Word we study has to be the Word we pray. – Brennan Manning, The Ragamuffin Gospel
The best sermons are lived, not preached.
I’ve learned that whenever I decide something with an open heart, I usually make the right decision. – Maya Angelou
Courage is not the towering oak that sees storms come and go; it is the fragile blossom that opens in the snow. – Alice Mackenzie Swaim
It is a tragedy if we die inside while we are still alive.
If being involved in others’ failures through love and caring brings us personal suffering, so be it. We follow a crucified God, who truly suffered for love rather than retreat to the power of unmoved self-sufficiency and detachment. – Sidney Callahan, With All Our Heart and Mind
The really happy person is one who can enjoy the scenery on a detour. – Anonymous
It’s better to ask some of the questions than to know all the answers. – James Thurber
True charity sees the need, not the cause. – German Proverb
No day is dark when the Son is present.
Next Sunday, June 29, 2008: The 7th Sunday After Pentecost / Youth Sunday
9:30 AM Worship and Summer Sunday School
Centenary United Methodist Youth will provide leadership for today’s service
Lectionary Readings: Genesis 22:1-14 Romans 6:12-23
Psalm 13 Matthew 10:40-42
10:30 AM Fellowship Time
Prayer for the Week of June 22: Almighty God, giver of all things, with joyful hearts we give you thanks for your great goodness. Your love stirs anew within us as we count our blessings today. Thank you for a night of rest, health to greet a new day, shelter over our heads, and food on our tables. Thank you for giving us people to love and to love us. Thank you for our community of faith where we hear your saving gospel message preached and taught in our midst. Thank you for Jesus and for revealing through him your grace-filled message and your invitation to follow his way in the world. Thank you for calling us to a way of life that is challenging and fully worthy of our efforts. We are grateful that you are in charge of this world, O God, and we are honored that you ask us to serve you. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.
Pastor John Painter is on Renewal Leave through Saturday, June 28: Administrative and pastoral care coverage is being provided by Assistant Pastor Terrilisa Durham Bauknight. You may call the Church Office at 732-548-7622, or call Pastor Bauknight directly at 908-419-4101 (cell phone)