The Red Oak Christian

MINISTER’S MOMENT

Page | 1

PUBLISHED BY RED OAK CHRISTIAN CHURCH (DISCIPLES OF CHRIST)GREENVILLE, NC 27834-7029

WWW.REDOAKCHRISTIANCHURCH.ORG

June 2017

In This Issue

Choir Information

Missions

Regional News

In-ServiceElder/Deacon List

Scripture Lessons for the Month

Prayer Concerns

Financials

BUSY!!! It looks like it’s going to be a busy summer; first there will be graduations and end of school functions starting the first week of June, Vacation Bible School June 12-16, not to mention Father’s Day on June 18th. And church camp begins June 9 and continues all through the summer.

June is just a busy month. Which is strange, because June used to be reserved for Weddings; it was considered lucky for a bride to be wed in June and we all slowed down. We even called summer days “those lazy days of summer”. Who cranked up the engine and said full speed ahead to summer?

Since we can’t go back to “Use to be” we must learn to cope with the ever increasing pace of our lives. Instead of feeling overwhelmed, I say we should celebrate! Instead of saying to ourselves, “There is just too much to do, we can create opportunities to be witnesses and proclaimers of the faith to a lot of people who are not churched.

VBS is time to invite our neighbors and friends and co-workers who have children to come for a week of Story-Telling, good music and great fellowship in a safe family-friendly church environment. The pressure to join is replaced with the call to participate in telling and retelling the stories of Jesus. Church Camp is another opportunity, for your children and grand-children and their friends to experience God in a very special place, (Camp Caroline). For a few days the campers learn important lessons of faith, community building, sharing, and simply being joyful in the midst of God’s good creation.

Then come home to Red Oak for Father’s Day. Many of us our fathers’ were important people in the life of this congregation and in the formation of the people we are today. So, we celebrate fathers’, and that should include all the men in our lives who had a positive influence in our development.

So, yes, June is going to be busy. I believe busy is good! Let us be busy in following our Call to be proclaimers of

God’s Good News to all the world. Love,

Pastor Craig

CHOIR NEWS ♪♪♫♪♩♬♫♬♫♬The Choir is taking a well deserved break for the summer. See you in September!

Messages from the Missions Team The emphasis for the Mission Team this year will be “Believe…Belong…Become”.  We chose this because you first have to believe that Jesus Christ is your Salvation, then accept HIM as your Lord and Savior to belong to the family of God, finally you have to become disciples to fulfill his command to go and serve others.

What have you done during the past weeks so Christ will be better known and loved in? Your family? Your vocation/work? Your church? Your community? Your world?

Reflect on these words: Christ has no body now on earth but yours, no hands but yours; no feet but yours. Yours are the eyes through which the compassion of Christ is to look out on a hurting world. Yours are the feet with which he is to go about doing good. Yours are the hands with which he is to bless know.- Attributed to Saint Teresa of Avila

Once your BELIEVE in Christ by accepting who he is and BELONG to him through baptism, you are marked as a child of God and given both grace and spiritual gifts for service. You must BECOME like Him and set the example of service to one another just as he washed the feet of the disciples.

Jesus commanded us to love God, love our neighbor and serve others out of this love (John 13:12-20, 34-35).

Remember to:Worship as the body of Christ-regularly.Pray as the body of Christ-fervently.Service in the body of Christ-faithfully.Get Involved!

Pentecost Special Offering May 28 and June 4

The Pentecost Offering supports Disciples new church development. Planning, nurturing and sustaining new congregation is part of the Disciples’ vision.

This offering supports the specialized ministry of new church development through both regional and general programs – with gifts for this offering divided between each. Fifty percent of gifts received by a region remain in that region, the balance supports the work of general, new church efforts.

Page | 2

OPPORTUNITIES FOR FELLOWSHIP

Register for 2017 Camp Go to campcaroline.org for more information.

Pastor Craig will direct Alpha/SAS in June and he will be Keynoting at Beta Camp in July. If you want to come and help out at camp as a counselor or share a special talent

with us, talk to me about Church Camp 2017. We can even manage to put you to work only a couple of days, splitting time with other counselors who can’t give us a full week.

Community Garden: Every third Saturday starting at 8am, the 3rd Street Community Center is open for volunteers to come and help in the Community Garden, to interact with the 3rd street

community, and to be a part of something bigger than ourselves. You don’t need special skills you just need to care. Share your caring this month, June 17th, at the 3rd Street Community Center.G THE HOMELESS: June 28 – Carol Gordon and Carla Smith

Youth NewsHooker Memorial Christian Church and Red Oak are working together to provide Youth Fellowship for ALL our youth (grades K-12). Youth Fellowship is going to be the 2nd and 4th Sundays of the month. In June: June 4th - end of the year party at Air U.

We are pleased to announce that there are 10 of our youth heading to camp this summer. Two for the first time, Trinity and Robbie. The rest are repeat customers! As for adults, Red Oak is sending, not counting Pastor Craig, four adults: Thelma Gene Mills, Irem Ozay, Marshal Blazer and

Emily Benson.

Hold our campers in prayer this summer and their families as they go to and from Camp Caroline. AND a big WORD of thanks to Red Oak and to some Special Members and groups who helped insure no child was left at home!

Helping Hands CircleHelping Hands will not meet June, July or August.

Christian Men’s FellowshipThe men are going to the North Carolina Regional Men’s Retreat at Camp Caroline, Friday, June 2 through Saturday June 3. We will be working on our Cabin as we meet with other Men of faith in North Carolina.

Page | 3

Church Board News

Eldership News

VBS News

Lunch with the MinisterLunch with the Minister will continue in September.

The next Board Meeting will on Monday, July 10th at 7pm in the Fellowship Hall.

The Elders will be meeting on Sunday Morning, June 4th at 8:30 am.

The 2017 Vacation Bible School will be hosted by Hooker Memorial Christian Church starting on Monday evening (5:30 pm is our meal and the program begins at 6:30 pm) June 12 through Friday June 16th. Our Theme is: TELL ME THE STORIES OF JESUS and our decoration theme will be a Library Reading Room. VBS needs helpers to

be Liberians with the kids and to help out in music, crafts, games and the Opening and Closing Sessions. Contact Pastor Craig at 281-3721 or Melissa Blazer at 315-8767 (Christian Ed Team Leader) if you can help this year.

To sign up for VBS on-line, go to hm-cc.org. Hard copy registration Forms are available in the narthex.

PRAYER CONCERNS Please hold our sisters and brothers in prayer:

Page | 4

Coye Lewis Willard Kinsaul

Lewis Cook Karen Chamberlin

Ed and Joann Cavenaugh Gloria Boswell Pattie Mercer (Lou Joyner’s daughter)Shemar Jordan Grace Pate Mary Grace O’Brien (daughter of Grace Pate)Lou Joyner Mike Rasberry Ruth HaddockAl Hedgepeth

Year-To-Date Stewardship ReportLet these words from the scriptures guide you as you consider your financial gifts to the church in support of our programs and ministries: For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. Matthew 6:21.The following figures are given for your information from January 1 through May 21, 2017. Remember, faithful Christian stewardship is not based on the Church’s need to receive, but upon our

need to give as Christ commands.Total funds needed for 2017................................................$ 125,058.00Received for General Fund..................................................$ 52,799.95

For you know the generous act of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that by his poverty you might become rich. (II Corinthians 8:9)

Serving in JuneELDERSHIP DIACONATE FEED THE HOMELESS

Sandy Smith, Capt.Jeremy O’Konek

Wendy SmithSue HedgepethAlton Hedgepeth

Catherine Kirby-Grove

Carla SmithCarol Gordon

COMMUNION PREPARATION CHILDREN’S CHURCHJune 4 – Wendy SmithJune 11 – Sue HedgepethJune 18 – Alton HedgepethJune 25 – Catherine Kirby-Grove

Sarah Pittman – First Sunday

Scripture Lessons for June 2017Date Sermon Title Lesson

June 4, 2017 “That All God’s People Would be Prophets”

Acts: 2:1-21Numbers 11:24-30

June 11, 2017 “Go!” Matthew 28:16-20June 18, 2017 “Empowered” Matthew 9:35-10:1June 25, 2017 Minister at Camp Rev. Hylton Dunkley will be preaching

Page | 5

◄ May 2017 June 2017 July 2017 ►

Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat1

DAVID EDLENAVA PITTMANMIKE WORTHINGTON

2 CMF Retreat at Camp Caroline

WAYNE MILLS

3 CMF retreat at Camp Caroline

VICTOR RIVERA

4 PentecostEnd of the Year party for Youth at Air U4pm.

Pentecost Special Offering

5

CAM/SARAH PITTMAN

6 7 8 9

MELISSA BLAZER

10

TOD WILLIAMSJAY O’KONEK

11 12

Vacation Bible School5:30 pm HMCC

13

Vacation Bible School5:30 pm HMCC

14 Flag Day

Vacation Bible School5:30 pm HMCC

ALTON/SUE HEDGEPETH

15

Vacation Bible School5:30 pm HMCC

16

Vacation Bible School5:30 pm HMCC

GRANT BOSWELLWAYNE/EILEEN MILLS

17

18 Father's Day 19 20 21 Summer Solstice

DON/MARY CATHERINE JACKSON

22 23 24

Pastor Craig Leaves for Camp

LEWIS COOK25 Rev. Hylton Dunkley preaching

26

JOANN CAVENAUGH

27 28

BOBBY/SANDY HAZELTON

29 30

CAROL GORDON

Notes:

Page | 6