From Pastor Don

By Pastor Don Bryant

7/19/10

The five Sunday Evening of August we will have the wonderful experience of Vacation Bible School.  What a wonderful opportunity we have to teach the children of our church and

community about Christ and His abounding grace.  While we have had several people come forward and volunteer to plan, lead, and teach in our VBS we still need the help and support of all at our church for this ministry to reach its potential.  For the next few Sundays you will have the opportunity to volunteer in many ways.  Many different gifts will be needed as we prepare for this adventure. 

   The origins of Vacation Bible School can be traced back to Hopedale, Illinois in 1894. Sunday School teacher D. T. Miles, who also was a public school teacher, felt she was limited by time constraints in teaching the Bible to children. So, she started a daily Bible school to teach children during the summer. The first Bible school enrolled forty students and lasted four weeks. A local school was used for classes, while an adjoining park was used for recess. (Moll, Kaye, “Standard Publishing’s VBS Celebrates 80th Birthday," Lookout Magazine, March 30, 2003.)  From this beginning it soon started to be an outreach mission of churches in cites as they reached out to the children of the slums to show Christ’s love.  Most early Vacation Bible Schools were not held in Churches.  Soon churches begin to realize the important ministry this was for all children. 

   Please be in prayer for this special ministry of our church and remember this special admonition that God gives to all of us.

  “Only be careful, and watch yourselves closely so that you do not forget the things your eyes have seen or let them slip from your heart as long as you live. Teach them to your children and to their children after them.  Remember the day you stood before the LORD your God at Horeb, when he said to me, "Assemble the people before me to hear my words so that they may learn to revere me as long as they live in the land and may teach them to their children.”    

                           Deuteronomy 4:9-10 NIV

                                   Pastor Don

From Pastor Don

By Pastor Don Bryant

6/21/10

 Several years ago I attended a workshop on Church growth by Dr. Lyle Schaller, a very well known writer and consultant on this topic.  The main thing I like about Dr. Schaller’s information was the very simple advised he gave and how it would work in a congregation of any size.  One of the main items he encouraged was that a church should plan for several special worship

services each year.  Some of these occur very naturally as a part of the church year.  Christmas, Easter, Thanksgiving and others are times when we offer special worship experiences and have higher attendance and a greater number of guests attend worship.  In our communities all people are aware of these special holidays and their significance within the churches.  During these times churches should make their worship times known to the public and be keenly aware of those visiting these special services.

   Dr. Schaller encouraged us to plan other special times of worship that would have a broader appeal to the unchurched of our communities.  These should be times when someone not accustomed to attending church would feel at ease and welcomed.  

   This coming Sunday, June 27^th we have such a service planned.  It will be a service of music by “Hearts Journey”, a Christian musical group from Wichita.  They will sing a variety of Christian music for us. 

A special offering will be taken in appreciation of their shared talents and faith..

   Preceding the service the Disciple’s Men will serve breakfast from 9 – 9:45 a.m. in the fellowship hall.  Encourage your friends to come and share in this special time.  Make sure you come and welcome all our special guest.  I know this is a different style of worship than we are use to each Sunday. While we all become creatures of habit sometimes we need to stop and listen for the voice of God in new ways. 

   The Apostle Paul reminds us,

“Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Ephesians 5:18-20 (New International Version)

                          Grace and peace,

                           Pastor Don

From Pastor Don

By Pastor Don Bryant

5/24/10

   This Sunday we will celebrate Memorial Sunday in our church.  This is a time when we remember those from our church who have passed away this past year.  We will celebrate their lives and contributions to service of God.  One of the questions we should ask ourselves is, “What kind of legacy will we leave during our lifetime?” 

   There are several ways we can make a difference for our church.  First we can maintain our regular worship attendance and financial support of the church.  This is the very heartbeat of the church.  Another is to find areas of service in and through our church.  The church is an organization that needs the use of many volunteers with many different skills.  Included in this newsletter are some suggestions of ways you can help in service to your church.  There are many other ways to help and we can use any of your talents.  But most of all you can befriend those with whom you worship and serve.  Get to know our new members and our guest and you may entertain angles unaware.

   On Sunday May 16^th we honored our high school graduates and announced the recipients of church scholarships for those continuing their education.  Many of these scholarships were made available because the donors left a portion of their estates to the church.  Have you consider your church when you make your estate plans.  The Christian Church Foundation and other agencies of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) can help you with these choices.  They can also help you save tax monies and may be able to help your earn a higher rate of return on you investments.  I will be happy to visit with you and help you find professionals who can assist you in your needs at any time. 

   Come as we share and remember those who have made a lasting presence in our congregation.

                                                                               Grace and Peace, 

                                                                               Pastor Don

From Pastor Don

By Pastor Don Bryant

5/10/10

The Gospel writer Luke is credited with writing two books in the New Testament.  The first is the Gospel of Luke and the second in the book of Acts.  The first is written to give an account of the life of Jesus and the second is to give a history of the church from its inception at Pentecost until the end of Luke’s writing. While we have the four Gospels that give us accounts of the life and ministry of Christ, we have only the book of Acts that gives us a history of the formation of the Church.  Actually it is the formation of the Church under the convincing force of the Holy Spirit.  We discover in the Book of Acts many times when the Church had to wrestle with issues of the day to discern what the Holy Spirit was shaping them to be.

   While the book of Acts gives us a brief history of the beginnings of the early church it is not the complete history of the church.  I remember while in seminary, training for the ministry, of a chapel message by one of our New Testament Professor.  Its tile was “The Twenty Ninth Chapter of Acts.”  Now if you were to open your Bible you would quickly discover that the book of Acts has only twenty eight chapters.  The theme of his message that day was the history of the church was continually being written by men and women of faith. 

   Last spring we celebrated our 125^th Anniversary as First Christian Church in Wellington.  Over the past year we have had many important events in the life of our congregation.  Our history is still being written.  The big question is will we allow our history to be one that is controlled by God’s Spirit.  Will we to wrestle with the issues of the day so we can be molded into the church God’s Spirit would have us become.  May we continually join with the Apostle Paul to continue in our journey to make a faithful history for the church.

   “Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.”

                                 Philippians 3:12 (NIV)

                            Grace and Peace, 

                           Pastor Don

From Pastor Don

By Pastor Don Bryant

4/26/10

What is the role and nature of the Church today?  It is a question that we should often ask ourselves and ask of the church.  During the month of May I will be preaching sermons from the book of Acts, the history of the early church and its struggle to emerge and develop in a life changing energy that would transform the world.  The church is still called upon to be the vigor in our time to bring about a just and compassionate world.   While we will be looking to the history of the early church we will seek to discover the mission of the church today and especially the mission of First Christian Church in Wellington.

    Listed below are the scripture passages and the themes for the days.  Some will be special days and celebrations within this time.

    May 2^nd  Acts 8:1-8. Phillip a deacon leaves Jerusalem because of persecution but shares the gospel wherever he goes.   How does the church respond to the pressures of society?

    May 9^th  (Mother’s Day)

Acts 16:11-15. The conversion of Lydia.  How does God use the gifts we have to offer?

    May 16^th (Graduation Sunday)

Acts 8:26-40. Phillips baptizing the Ethiopian Eunuch.  Why do Christians need to continue the study of the scriptures?

    May 23^rd (Pentecost Sunday)

Acts 2:1-21.  The Holly Spirit moves and the Church begins.  How should we trust the Holy Spirit to guide us as a church?

    May 30^th (Memorial Sunday)

Acts 21:1-9.  Paul visits Phillip & his daughters who proclaimed God’s message.  How do we pass the faith from one generation to the next?

    Come and join with me with your questions and observations as we explore God’s Word and seek His guidance in our life together as the Church.

                      Grace and Peace, 

                      Pastor Don

From Pastor Don

By Pastor Don Bryant

4/12/10

Sunday, April 25, 2010

To ratify new officers for the 2010-11 Church Year

See proposed officers listed on News Page.

When Jesus appears to his disciples following His Resurrection and prior to His Ascension, Christ would greet them with a gift of Peace.  In the midst of all the turmoil in their lives, He comes to offer them the gift of Peace.  The message of Christ to our world today is one in which we might know the true peace and hope.  This is possible because Christ’s Resurrection shows that He is truly Lord over both life and death.  We are resurrection people in the church.  Our lives are to be lived with meaning and purpose because we know that we serve a living God. 

   However, Christ word to his disciples and us do not end their.  He reminds them that they are the one left to carry forth the message of hope and reconciliation in this world.  The followers are to be a person with a mission in the world.  As a church we are to continually be about doing God’s missionary work.  Missionary work does include ministries in other parts of the world but it also includes ministries in our own community.  Ministries should also be what we do with the church.  When we teach God’s Word through Sunday School, Logos, Youth groups, or other special studies we are helping build a foundation for a persons faith in Jesus Christ.  Gathering in

worship we are strengthened in grace by the spoken word, in songs, in prayers, in communion, and in fellowship with others of the faith.  Fellowship times and meetings give us the opportunity to share with others our faith journeys and questions.  These times should empower us to find the courage to share in both word and deed the love of Christ with others.

   May the following dialogue Jesus shares with his Disciples on that first Easter evening give His commission for us today.

“Again Jesus said, "Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you." And with that he breathed on them and said, "Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive anyone his sins, they are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven." John 20:21-23 NIV

                      Grace and Peace, 

                        Pastor Don

From Pastor Don

By Pastor Don Bryant

3/29/10

We come to the most exciting time of the church year, Easter.  Easter is the reminder that Christ is risen from the dead.  But Easter should not be an event in history but a living daily reminder that Christ is alive and active in our lives.  I know that many in our congregation have faced many difficult times in the past year, yet it should be hope embedded in the Resurrection of Christ that gives us a faith that reaches beyond life circumstances.  This is our reason for hope in the midst of all that is around us. In the Holy Week Easter Story, we are told and reminded of one who loved us and gave his life so that we might live in truth, freedom, and peace.  We need diligence to share the message of God’s love and grace each and every day.  It is in the sharing that the Easter becomes alive in us and in the midst of our world.  For as the early disciples discovered, the true power and hope of Easter lived only when they had the courage to proclaim in word and deed, the Lord is Risen!  Join with us as we proclaim this good news in our special services of this week.  May the words of Paul be a guide for your life in these days.

 II Corinthians 4

⁷But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. ⁸We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; ⁹persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. ¹⁰We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body. ¹¹For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus' sake, so that his life may be revealed in our mortal body. ¹²So then, death is at work in us, but life is at work in you…..

¹⁶Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. ¹⁷For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. ¹⁸So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.

 In Grace and Peace,  Pastor Don

From Pastor Don

By Pastor Don Bryant

3/16/10

This year for our Maundy Thursday celebration we will be having a Seder Meal in the fellowship hall.  The Seder meal is the way the Jewish people celebrate Passover. Passover is the oldest and most important religious festival in Judaism, commemorating God’s deliverance of the Hebrews from slavery in Egypt and his creation of the Israelite people. Passover is actually composed of two festivals, The Feast of Unleavened Bread and Passover (which is sometimes used to refer to the single day and sometimes to the entire span of both festivals).  The focal point of Passover is a communal meal, called the Seder (which means "order," because of the fixed order of service), which is a time of rejoicing and celebration at the deliverance for the Hebrews that God accomplished in the exodus.

It was at this meal that Jesus instituted the Last Supper that we celebrate with our Communion Service each week.  We will point out the probable times that Jesus gave us the Words or Institution for the Bread and Cup.  This is to be fun and festive meal and children are very much a part of the celebration. 

We will be having a full meal and we are needing people to bring certain food items that are easily found in grocery stores.  The special foods will be furnished.  Yes we will have the roast lamb but we will also have roast chicken (for those who do not desire the lamb).  The other food item needed are; Cran-raspberry juice, romaine lettuce, fresh parsley, deviled eggs, roasted potatoes, sliced strawberries, and angel food cake.  If you can bring any of these items please sign up on the sheet in the narthex or in the office. 

Plan on this entire celebration taking about 1˝ hours but remember it is a full meal.  We could also use help setting up and cleaning up afterwards.  Come and join with us for this festive meal. 

Grace & peace, Pastor Don

Remember our Good Friday service at 12:15 p.m. in the indoor chapel.

From Pastor Don

By Pastor Don Bryant

3/1/10

Then Jesus returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. “Couldn't you keep watch with me for one hour?" he asked Peter.  "Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak."  Matthew 26:40-41 NIV

 Prayer is very important in the life of a Christian.  It is the way we keep in contact with God.  During this time of Lent we are called to pray because it is a season of soul-searching and repentance. It is a season for reflection and taking stock. Lent originated in the very earliest days of the Church as a preparatory time for Easter, when the faithful rededicated themselves. 

 By observing the days of Lent, the individual Christian imitates Jesus’ withdrawal into the wilderness for forty days.  It was there that he was tempted and yet through prayer found the strength to resist temptation.  We have several special times of prayer during this season.  One is the 24 hour prayer vigil our church will have on March 26 &27.  This is the week before Holy Week and helps us to remember Christ suffering, death and resurrection.  We will need 48 people to make our prayer vigil complete.  (The sign up sheet is in the church office during the week and in the sanctuary entryway on Sunday’s)  It would be great if we had 2 or 3 people praying at most assigned times.  Special Lenten Prayer calendars are available and help us remember to pray each day.

 Most importantly we need keep alert and rededicate ourselves to prayer so we can experience the true joy of the Easter story.

                        Grace and Peace,    

                        Pastor Don

From Pastor Don

By Pastor Don Bryant

2/15/10

This week we begin the season of Lent within the church.  Lent is the 40 days starting Thursday after Ash Wednesday and going through the Saturday before Easter Sunday.  The six Sundays of Lent do not count as they are considered min-Easters.  The forty days are a remembrance of the forty days Christ spent in the wilderness after His baptism and before he started His ministry. The number forty has many Biblical references: the forty days Moses spent on Mount Sinai with God (Exodus 24:18) the forty days and nights Elijah spent walking to Mount Horeb ( I Kings 19:18); God made it rain for forty days and forty nights in the days of Noah (Genesis 7:4); Jonah in his prophecy of judgment gave the city of Nineveh forty days in which to repent (Jonah 3:4): the Hebrew people wandered forty years traveling to the  Lent is the time when the church focuses upon Christ journey to the Cross.  Often we think of Lent as the time to give up something, desert, chocolate, or meat on Fridays but in recent years the emphasis has also adding something.  Lent is a good time to try something new each day, such as reading in the Bible, setting aside a certain amount of time to pray and mediate each day, or choosing to do some good deed each day.  Whatever one chooses to do in this season it should be with the aim of being brought into a closer relationship with God.  We have special Lenten prayer/devotional calendars and we will have special Lenten Bible Study on Sunday evening as we explore Christ teaching on the Sermon on the Mount.  Later in Lent we will have the 24 hour Prayer Vigil and a Seder Meal on Maundy Thursday as we remember the Passover Celebration and Jesus’ Last Supper with His disciples.  May this be a special time of spiritual growth for you as you make a special commitment to Christ and His Church.

Grace and Peace,  

 Pastor Don

From Pastor Don

By Pastor Don Bryant

1/18/10

   This Sunday we will have two major items in our worship service. We will have Laity Sunday and Blanket Sunday. Laity Sunday is the time our Lay People lead the worship service. Many of our members will be leading in many ways during this special worship service. In the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) we have always had the inclusive ministry in the life and work of the church. All members are “ministers” – entitled to interpret the Scriptures and perform all church functions. Come and be blessed by our own leading us in worship.

   We will be receiving our offering for Blanket Sunday this Sunday. This is a program of Church World Service that collects monies and distributes blankets to people in need in times of disasters. This has been brought to our attention with the recent earthquake in Haiti. People sleeping in parks and other open spaces need blankets for warmth and to lie upon. Each blanket cost $5 and we ask each person to give as many as possible. Special envelops are in the pew racks or if you choose to mail your donation to the church, please mark it “blankets.”

   We are receiving a special Week of Compassion offering for Haitian relief for the next few Sundays. The Week of Compassion is the organization of the Disciples of Christ that works with disaster aid. Please make your contribution to the church marked for  “WOC” or Haiti.” Let us show the compassion of Christ in this special time of need. “THANK YOU for your generous gifts of compassion. Please remind folks that 100% of what you give to Week of Compassion goes directly to Haiti Earthquake Relief efforts. 100%. We are doing an amazing thing here -- together. And this is only the beginning of the recovery. Let us continue on, in prayer, in hope and with courageous compassion.” - from the latest email update from Week of Compassion.

                           Grace and Peace,

                           Pastor Don

From Pastor Don

By Pastor Don Bryant

1/4/10

   Happy New Year! A new year is a great time for us in the church to take a spiritual inventory of our lives. One of the first questions we can ask ourselves is, “How has God blessed me this past year?” That is the easy part. The harder part becomes in sharing these with others. However, it is important to share because when we share them openly with others then those blessing become more encoded in our minds and hearts. The more we keep them to ourselves the lesser effect they have on our lives and others cannot read our minds

   Another part of a spiritual inventory is to seek those areas of our lives that separate us from God’s love and fellowship with others. Often these are harder for us to identify than other new years resolutions (like to loose weight, exercise more, or spend more time with family & friends.) Once again sharing and being open with others helps us see our needs and make those changes. Keep connected to God through your church in 2010.

Colossians 3:12-17 NIV

Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

                           Grace and Peace,

                           Pastor Don

From Pastor Don

By Pastor Don Bryant

12/20/09

     One of the things I love most about Advent and Christmas in the church is the music. It is great to hear the familiar carols sung so enthusiastically by the congregation and of course the special music of the choir, special groups and soloist. The music lifts our spirits and speaks to hearts.

   A few years ago while in Nebraska we had chosen to travel to my mother’s on Christmas day. This meant many hours in the car and we had intended to carry some of our Christmas CD’s to listen to on the way. In our haste we forgot to pick up the CD’s but I thought no problem they will play Christmas songs on the radio. Yes, they did play Christmas songs on the radio but very rarely was a traditional song or carol played. It was a very long trip.

   One of newer Christmas songs that I really like is “The Jesus Gift” by Gilbert Martin. It is one that helps remind me of the importance on this season and what gifts I should offer the Christ Child. The words are printed below.

Shall I gather emeralds,

   shall I bring him gold?
Shall I shower diamonds,

   white-hard, bright-cold?
Shall I spangle jewels like stars above?
Give him laughter, bring peace-filled

    laughter ,
Offer him warm laughter and love.

Simplest of gifts, gentlest of hearts;
   kindness he'll use as he leads .
So, give him these gifts,

   hand him your hearts,
Honor his birth and you'll need no
   Emeralds nor rubies, silver nor gold;
   neither bright diamonds, white-hard,

   bright-cold
Spangle not rich jewels like stars

   above;
You'll have laughter, sweet peace-filled

    laughter, simple warm laughter

    and love.

May your Christmas and New Year be filled with the love of God and grace of our Lord Jesus Christ.

                                 Pastor Don

Ps. I want to thank you for all your prayers, cards, and visits during my recent hospitalization and illness. Special thanks to all who filled in and made the December 6^th worship service go so smoothly. It is great to be a part of such a caring Church family. Don

From Pastor Don

By Pastor Don Bryant

12/7/09

     We are nearing Christmas in a year that has been very difficult for many in our country and around the world.  With the world economy in difficult times and conflicts that still are in many parts of the world.  Yet it was to much the same types of conflicts and crisis that the Messiah first appeared upon the earth.  Yet it was to a world in great need that God sent his Son.  But all the stories that surround the birth of Christ remind us of the stories of hope appear almost as a fable to great to be believed.  For it is in those times of chaos and cries that new life and birth can take place.  To a lowly pheasant Jewish couple, to an elderly Jewish priest and his wife who were with out any children, to shepherds out on the hillside protecting their livelihood and to common people who went about their daily lives under the oppression of an occupying government, the good news begin to take hope and life.  That is why we have the Advent season, to remind us that it often takes a while for us to prepare our heart and lives to hear and belief that the light has truly come into the world.  As those of the first advent discover life takes on a different meaning when lived in faith and hope.  The struggles of life are always with us but when lives can be lived with faith, the chaos can give birth to the new life of Christmas.

                                   Grace and Peace,

                                   Pastor Don