News--November 2009

Thank you for your support of the 2010 Stewardship Campaign! Members of the Stewardship Department will be working to develop the church budget for next year. The budget will go to the Board for review and approval on November 15 and to the congregation on December 6.

Rethinking and appreciating the ‘simple gifts’ God gives us, together we move forward in faith.

November and December bring many opportunities to serve and help others. “We can’t do it all, but we can do some things well.” That’s our approach as we focus our efforts. Here are the key programs needing our support as a congregation. Mike’s Kids—a missions program sponsored by the North Texas Area of the Christian Church—gathers toys and clothing for the children of refugee families in south Texas. The recipient agency is Good Samaritan Ministries in Los Fresnos, Texas. Please bring your gifts and place them in the banana boxes in the narthex at church. Boxes need to be filled early in December. The last day for bringing items for Mike’s Kids is December 13. To read more about the program, go to www.mikeskids.org .

Hands-On Local Service Opportunities at Metrocrest Social Services and Christian Community Action include the following: Metrocrest SSC – a) Special Fill-A-Box program involving your family providing specified food items for those in need at Thanksgiving and Christmas. Boxes and program details available at the church. Closing dates are 11/12 and 12/12. b) Family Volunteering at MSSC on December 7 and 8. Small children are welcome!! c) Gently-used coats are needed this winter. The closing date is 12/6. Christian Community Action agency in Lewisville needs:a) Holiday Food Drive for the Food Pantry. Please place food items on the cart in the north hallway at church. b) Toys for the Giving Tree Toy Drive. Select a gift tag from the tree at church. Then return the unwrapped gift and tag to SACC.

It’s the season of Thanksgiving and what a wonderful opportunity to reflect on the blessings that are all around us. A hymn that we traditionally sing during this time is “Now Thank We All Our God,” which was written in 1636, so very long ago. In a book entitled Then Sings My Soul, Robert J. Morgan writes that this hymn was written by Martin Rinkart, a Lutheran pastor in a village in Saxony. During the Thirty Years’ War, floods of refugees entered the city of Eilenberg and with them, a great sense of desperation. Outside the city, the Swedish army threatened death; inside the city, plague and famine threatened life. As the pastors of the city perished along with the rest of the population, Rinkart ultimately found himself the sole pastor remaining to conduct the many funerals and help guide the people. Rinkart was called on to negotiate the end of the war, and when hostilities ceased, he composed the hymn that we know and love for the survivors of the city.“Now thank we all our God, with heart and hand and voices, Who wondrous things has done, in Whom this world rejoices.” It’s a marvelous story and surely reminds us all of the many reasons that we have to be grateful. Life, faith, our church, family, friends, relative peace and safety—all of these things are precious. Thanks to God for the great love and mercy he shows us each and every day! Happy Thanksgiving, Lisa

What a great job our youth did with Trunk or Treat! We raised about $500 during the event. Special thanks to Leah and Michael Gordon, all the youth sponsors, and helpers.

There will be no youth groups or Kids Kafe on November 25, which is the evening before Thanksgiving Day.

Also, mark Saturday, November 28 on your calendar for shopping. We will go and buy additional gifts to help with the Mike’s Kids project.

A Thanksgiving Dinner with all the trimmings will be served at the seniors meeting on November 21! CYF members will be hosting the dinner as a fund raiser. Come and enjoy the food and fellowship.

“In keeping with the tradition started last year, we would like to organize another Thanksgiving Dinner cooked by our youth for the Seniors of the church. Last year we were able to use the proceeds from this dinner to buy a whole cart full of toys for Mike’s Kids!

The scheduled date for the event is Saturday November 21st @ 6PM. So we would need to start cooking about 3 or so. Let us know if we can count on your child attending.

If you have a special holiday dish that would be easy to make, please let me know. We will have a signup sheet for the dishes and hope everyone can help us out in supplying ingredients for at least one dish. Reggie & I will take care of the turkey!

Irmgard Ebel	November 01
Jean Crover	November 03
Courtney Munda	November 03
Alex Koch	November 06
Heath Koch	November 06
Laura Scholz	November 06
Cindy Rowe	November 13
John Wilbanks	November 14
Gail Malott	November 15
Jacob Bryant	November 16
Melissa Rembecki	November 18
Lynne Jones	November 23
Jeff Koch	November 23
Darlene Ninemire	November 23
Charlotte Sasser	November 24
Missy Gondolf	November 26
Trina Burris	November 29
Josh Bryant	November 30

Proposed Dates for 2010 Camps

Here are the dates for next year’s summer camps and conferences. At this time there is some discussion about Chi Rho I Camp – these dates may change due to Lewisville ISD getting out later than the other districts. Also I have not included the Reconciliation Camp dates since it will have a different registration process and be limited to 60 youth. It will be for HS youth.

Discovery 1 May 29 – 31

Grand Camp June 4 – 6 (TBA) Slide at Camp in Athens

NEA CYF June 7 – 12

Chi Rho 1 June 7 – 12 (NTA)

TBA CYF June 14 – 19

Chi Rho 2 June 14 – 19 (NEA)

NTA CYF June 21 – 26

Chi Rho 3 June 21 – 26 (TBA)

JYF 1 June 28- July 2

Discovery 2 July 2 – 4

Niners July 5 – 10 (TBA)

Eighters 1 July 11 – 17 (TBA)

JYF 2 July 20 – 24

Eighters 2 July 25 – 31 (NTA/NEA)

Discovery and JYF camps have no area designation and are listed as Tri-Area so leadership is to be shared by all areas. I have not heard details yet. The Reconciliation Camp is in July.

Lyn Robinette—North Texas Area Administrative Assistant

Simple Gifts

'Tis the gift to be simple, 'tis the gift to be free,

'Tis the gift to come down where we ought to be,

And when we find ourselves in the place just right,

'Twill be in the valley of love and delight.

When true simplicity is gain'd,

To bow and to bend we shan't be asham'd,

To turn, turn will be our delight,

Till by turning, turning we come out right.

The song entitled Simple Gifts was composed in 1848 by an elder of the Shaker tradition, Joseph Brackett. The Shaker religious community was established by Mother Ann Lee in England during the late 1740s and was an offshoot of the Quaker sect. Shakers agreed with Quakers that the spirit of God could be discovered by each person individually, but desired a worship service filled with a greater exploration of God’s spirit. Shaker services were filled with singing, dancing, and spiritual visions.

Shaker communities in New England tended to be communal and emphasized the goal of perfection—even work was a manifestation of prayer and meant to completed with great care. The Shakers became known for their furniture design and construction, architecture, and other inventions. Today, Shaker creations are highly valued because of the incredible attention to sturdy craftsmanship.

A fitting theme for St. Andrew’s fall 2009 stewardship campaign, Simple Gifts is probably the best known example of Shaker song and was intended to be a dance tune. Although modern audiences are familiar with the first verse, the second and third verses are also compelling.

'Tis the gift to be loved and that love to return,

'Tis the gift to be taught and a richer gift to learn,

And when we expect of others what we try to live each day,

Then we'll all live together and we'll all learn to say,

(refrain)

'Tis the gift to have friends and a true friend to be,

'Tis the gift to think of others not to only think of "me",

And when we hear what others really think and really feel,

Then we'll all live together with a love that is real.

Thank You!

"You surprised us! Yes, you did!” We didn’t see that one coming, but what a nice day! Thank you for honoring us on Sunday, October 25, during the Week of Ministry observance for our denomination. Serving with you is a great privilege, and we are grateful for your care, support, and love. Randy and Anne Smithson

Meetings in November -- For Your Calendar

Board Meeting – November 15

The Church Board will meet at 12:45 p.m. on Sunday, November 15. The business session will include the presentation of the budget for 2010, the report of the nominating committee, and reports from departments.

Elders Meeting

On November 10, the Elders will meet at the church at 7:00 p.m. for study and prayer. Our Elders provide encouragement and assistance to members and others in need. They work with the Pastor to reach out to new residents in the community.

Food Pantry—Date Change for Volunteers

November 19 is the evening we will volunteer at the Food Pantry at Christian Community Action in Lewisville. This date is a week earlier because of the Thanksgiving holiday. Thank you for your commitment to serve in this vital community program.

Daytime Prayer Group—Prayer Pals

Prayer Pals will meet for lunch at noon on November 24 in the fellowship hall at church. The group prays for the sick and those in need in our congregation and in the community. Contact Nancy Daniel at the church office for more information.