Newsbrief: 271

271.

I can’t believe it.

Look at that number again: 271!

That is how many items you all donated to Vista Del Camino last Sunday. What a blessing! What a gift!

Remember, all throughout the month of April every item that we donate to Vista Del Camino is matched with a $1 cash donation from the Finestein Foundation.

Which means that we really do need to look at that number again, but it also doubles as the amount of money that Vista Del Camino received in addition to your generous contributions. That is $271 that will help make a difference for the most vulnerable in our community.

AND, it doesn’t stop there. We have the entire month to continue collecting nonperishable food items for Vista Del Camino that will be matched with a financial gift from the Finestein Foundation. So that can of vegetables you donate will also bring in an extra dollar to Vista Del Camino. That box of cereal means an extra dollar. If you bring in a three cases of canned good (like one generous church member did) that is $36 for Vista Del Camino that is over and above the 36 cans that will go into the food pantry.

So keep those donations coming. You can find the Collection Bin in the Fellowship Hall and we’ll make sure it gets to Vista Del Camino before the end of the month so that your donation is eligible for the matching grant as well!

Yours in the Journey,

Rev. Brian

Newsbrief: SNAP Challenge

I have been participating in the SNAP Challenge this week.

And I’ve gotta tell you, it is hard.

SNAP stands for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, and it is more commonly known as “food stamps.”

The SNAP Challenge is a consciousness raising exercise, where for one whole week you have to live on the same food budget as those who receive SNAP Food Benefits. Which is to say, you are limited to a grand total of $29.43 per person to spend on food and beverages during the Challenge week. That translates to $4.20 per day, or $1.40 per meal if you avoid any snacks or extras (and you pretty much have to).

Like I said, it has been hard. It has also been eye opening.

The food I purchased for
the entire week of the SNAP Challenge.

I am fortunate that I have never had to worry about food. So it was a strange feeling to walk through the grocery store on Saturday evening buying my supplies for the week. For the first time in my life I was afraid I would not have enough food to eat.

In fact, shopping that evening was a startling experience. For one, it took me over an hour and a half to buy three small bags worth of groceries. It took so long because I had to walk up and down aisles pricing out different items before I could actually put anything in my grocery cart. I had to calculate “Do I have enough for fresh fruit and produce?” (yes, but not very much of them), “Can I afford a can of pinto beans or some yogurt to supplement my protein?” (no, I could not) and “How many meals can I get from a box of pasta?” (three, it turns out).

I also ended up having to purchase all sorts of items that I normally wouldn’t have bought simply because they were the least expensive items available. One of the reasons I am a vegetarian is because it forces me to be conscious of the food I eat and the things I put into my body. In general I try to avoid overly processed foods, particularly things with the dreaded “high-fructose corn syrup” in it. But not this week. Everything from a generic loaf of bread (marked down to $1), pasta sauce ($1.37), box of mac-n-cheese (69-cents), can of soup ($1.25), and even a can of peas (discounted to 59-cents) had high-fructose corn syrup added to it! Not only was I eating less food because of $29.43 limit (and I am, a lot less) but the food is significantly less nutritious as well.

My receipt. I intentionally left myself $3.50 for the week,
just in case I ran out of food and needed to
go back to the store for emergency supplies.

Oh, and many of our church members who are participating in the SNAP Challenge have jokingly mentioned to me that they are vegetarians this week…because they couldn’t afford to purchase any meat.

It is amazing to think of food as a luxury item. When I realized late last night that I had enough food to get me through the week I was honestly ecstatic. Now that will require making a third meal out of that box of pasta that I mixed with a jar tomato sauce and it will require me to continue eating some semblance of an egg sandwich every day, and hoping that the little bit of cantaloupe I have left doesn’t rot. I’m going to make it through this week, but I can’t imagine having to live this way. We have brothers and sisters who are hungry, who are hurting, and who aren’t living on $29.43 as a consciousness raising exercise…but rather because that is all they have.

Time and time again in the scriptures Christ Jesus asks us what we are doing for the hungry and the poor and as I’m finishing up the SNAP Challenge I am more convinced than ever that the answer is: Not enough.

Yours in the Journey,

Rev. Brian

Newsbrief: Habits of Faith

We are off and running.

Last Sunday we kicked off the “Habits of Faith” worship series. All through the Season of Lent we are seeking to grow in the faith by developing particular habits

You see, developing habits is how we can make new/important/different things become second nature (remember: it is second nature because it isn't something that comes naturally, but when we work at it and develop it then it becomes just as much a part of us as our heart beat or our lungs filling up with air).

The key to developing a new habit is to start small and do it every single day. You need both elements. You start small so that you can build your way up to your final goal. In my sermon last Sunday I mentioned that instead of starting off with the finished product (in my case, working out 30-minutes a day) I worked my way slowly up to it. I started small (working out for 5-minutes a day the first week) so that achieving my initial goal would be easy (and it was!) and then built up from there. I added 5-more minutes the second week, then 5-more minutes the week after that, then 5-more minutes the week after that until eventually I was working out for 30-minutes a day AND I had been practicing carving out the time I needed to work out every day. Now, over a year later it is completely second nature. I structure my evenings differently and I can’t imagine missing a workout.

We are trying to follow that same process with our habits of faith. We are starting small – give me 5-minutes every day this week. That’s it, just 5-minutes but make sure it is every day. Give me 5-minutes every day this week to do something that deepens your relationship with Christ, that brings you to a fuller understanding of God, that helps you to grow in the faith. It might be starting your morning with a silent meditation. It might be singing your favorite hymn. It might be spending 5-minutes each day in prayer or devotion.

For a number of people in our church they have decided to intentionally carve out time every day to read scripture. In fact, we have a new Bible Study class that will be meeting on Sunday morning at 9AM in the Arizona Room (please note the change, we’ll be in the Arizona Room) so that we can grow in the faith this Lenten Season by reading the four Gospels together. We are growing the habit of reading our Bibles and here is how: We are starting small and building our way up by reading 2 chapters every day. If you can follow that pattern, 2 chapters a day for the entire Season of Lent then by the time we get to the joyous celebration of Easter Sunday we will have finished all Four Gospels! How great is that! If you would like to join us this Sunday morning at 9AM in the Arizona Room please read through the first 14 chapters of Matthew…and trust me, if you take it a little bit at a time you’ll be amazed how far you come!

Yours in the Journey,

Rev. Brian

Newsbrief: Invitations

“There are 19 days until Christmas.”

That’s what Henry said to me this morning.

Leave it to my six-year-old son to keep a running count!

So if there are 19 days until Christmas, that means we have 18 days until our Christmas Eve Worship Service! And I need your help getting the word out.

Our Christmas Eve Worship Serive will be a family friendly affair (complete with a Christmas Carol Sing-A-Long and an interactive Children’s Sermon) so make sure to invite your kids or your grandkids, your nieces and nephews, your cousins and any other family member you can think of.

We’ll be sharing stories from scripture, but we’re doing it in a different way this year. So make sure and invite anyone who needs to hear the Christmas story once more and all over again and be touched by the beauty of scripture in a new way. Make sure to invite your friends, your neighbors, your postman, that nice person standing in line in front of you at the mall, and anyone else who can help us celebrate the birth of Christ!

The music is going to be spectacular on Christmas Eve. We’ll have congregational singing, our Celebration praise team is already hard at work on special music, and the Chancel Choir will make their glorious return on Christmas Eve! (The Chancel Choir will be rehearsing this Sunday immediately after worship if you would like to join us.)

In fact, you’ll want to get here early on Christmas Eve to make sure and get a seat (we’re expecting a full sanctuary) and to be a part of the music. The Christmas Carol Sing-A-Long will be a part of our Gathering Music in advance of worship. The Christmas Eve Service will start at 7PM, but we’ll start gathering and singing at least 10 minutes before that…more details to come.

So spread the word and countdown those days until Christmas Eve. I look forward to seeing you all on Monday December 24 at 7PM in the sanctuary. You know, and each Sunday in between too!

Yours in the Journey,
Rev. Brian

Newsbrief: Advent

Last week I was reminded of the writings of favorite old professor of mine.

His name is Dr. Kenneth Lawrence, but his students all knew him simply as “Lorenzo”.

He taught in the Religion Department at Texas Christian University, and I inherited my love for theology and the arts directly from him.

Dr. Lawrence served as Editor and Writer for Imaging the Word a three-volume arts and lectionary resource.

In seeking to find a way to share the beauty and fullness – really, the importance – of this Season of Advent I went back to the text Lorenzo wrote and edited and found these words waiting for me, waiting for us:

Life is filled with times of waiting; often a time of waiting overlaps with other periods of expectancy. Though many people do not want to have to wait for anything if it can be avoided, everyone has such experiences of waiting. We learn that times of incubation are necessary for the truly significant to come to fruition. Amidst all the small waitings of mundane life experiences are those most significant times of marked transitions, small or great transformations, goal fulfillments, culminations of processes and learnings. We continually experience incompleteness and await, hope, expect. We wait for some realization, fulfillment, salvation.

The season of Advent can be artful waiting. The lectionary readings variously proclaim the preparation, the expectation of the coming together of the Transcendent and the Earth, the diving fully present in the fully human. Almighty God deigns to be imminent, accessible, knowable. Paradox abounds in the scriptural readings of this season; in Advent we await the greatest mystery to be realized.

I hope you will join us each Sunday in Advent as we walk though this season of preparation and culmination. On the first Sunday in Advent we will decorate a Jesse Tree, an artful way of hearing once more the promises and prophecies of Christ Jesus as we eagerly await, as Lorenzo put it, “the greatest mystery to be realized.” I’ll see you on Sunday! 

Yours in the Journey,
Rev. Brian

Newsbrief: Let It Shine!

The letters went out in the mail today.

You’ll want to keep a look out in mailbox.

And make sure the check out the cool stuff inside, because we are kicking off our Stewardship Campaign and the letters went out today!

This year we are using the theme “Let It Shine!” and I couldn’t be more excited about our guiding image. In fact, I almost don’t want to give it away here in the Newsbrief…but that seems pretty silly given that the picture is posted there to the right, so here we go!

You’ll see our new Stained Glass Panels featured prominently in the Stewardship Letter and on the front and back of your Pledge Card. Just as the light shines through those Stained Glass Panels revealing their intricacies and beauty, so too does the light of God shine through us to reveal the power and presence of Christ.

Over the next three weeks we’ll be celebrating the good things that God has done, is doing, and will do through First Christian Church Scottsdale.

This Sunday is also All Saints Day in the broader life of the church. On All Saints Day we celebrate those saints among us (the ones who not only embody the faith so well, but who have passed that faith along to us) as well as those saints who have gone from this life to the next. We will remember the example of those who have gone before us and we will have a special time of prayer to remember those members and friends of our congregation that we have lost in the previous year. Through the service we will be reminded once more and all over again about the biblical call to live out our faith in the world as the saints of God.

The Sunday after (on November 11) we are honored to have as our guest preacher the Rev. Dr. Todd Adams – The Associate General Minister and Vice President for our denomination. He will bring us the good news from the General Church as well as stirring stewardship message.

Then the Sunday after that (on November 18) we will celebrate God’s glory and our faithful response with Dedication Sunday.

All of this is lined out in more detail in your Stewardship Letter. So keep a look out in your mailbox, and help us to “Let It Shine!” at First Christian Church Scottsdale!

Yours in the Journey,
Rev. Brian

Newsbrief: Renovation Celebration

Big things are coming on September 30th!

Ten days from now we’ll have our Renovation Celebration on Sunday morning September 30.

It will be our chance to celebrate all of the hard work that has gone into the Property Improvement Program over these last several months. And boy, does this place look great! (By the way, the shade structure in front of the Fellowship Hall was completed on Tuesday and it looks amazing!)

We’ve invited all of our contractors and work crews to join us Sunday September 30 for worship and a meal so that we can thank them and celebrate a job well done. We’ll also have a time of recognizing our lay leaders, volunteers, and church groups that have helped out along the way…particularly the PIP Team that has been meeting (dare I say, “religiously”!) every Monday for months and months to keep the project moving ahead. It will be a high-energy, spirit-filled, joyous celebration of what we have done, what we are doing, and what we will do in service to God here at FCC Scottsdale!

With so many guests at church that morning we’re asking folks to please wear your nametags that day. It is a wonderful way of showing hospitality to our guests and helping them to feel welcome. Folks from the Membership Committee will be there to help you find your name tag.

With such a special worship service we’re also moving some items around in the Order of Service as well. You can expect to see a tweaked Worship Bulletin that will include Gathering Music before the service, a redesigned opening sequence to start our service, and some other small changes along the way.

Renovation Celebration on September 30 is going to be fantastic! You can RSVP (to help us get a good count for the meal) by filling out the insert in this Sunday’s Bulletin or by dropping us a line here in the church office!

Yours in the Journey,
Rev. Brian

Newsbrief: Three Things from the Music Director Search Team

The Music Director Search Team met last night.

They are doing tremendous work and I asked them how we might best communicate some of their progress to the congregation. And without missing a beat Michelle said, “Sounds like we need 3 Things!”

{For folks who don’t know I routinely ask our committees to come up “The 3 Things” from that meeting that they want to communicate with the church.}

So without further ado, The 3 Things from the Music Director Search Team:

1. We have created a Job Description that accurately and honestly lays out the expectations and qualifications for the position. We’ve also tweaked the name of the position in order to make it more precisely fit the job. We’re calling it the Director of Music Ministries. Doesn’t that sound exactly like what we are looking for!
   
   
2. We have created and distributed a Job Posting. This is different than the full, detailed Job Description. The Job Posting is the ad we are using to draw responses from potential candidates. It says a little something about our church and worship style, it lays out some of the general duties of the position, and lets folks know how to apply for the job. We’ve shared that Job Posting in all kinds of places. The Job Posting has gone up on College and University Bulletin Boards, it has been listed with professional associations in the area, and we have placed it electronically on relevant job finder websites.
   
   
3. We have established our plans and procedures for moving forward. Our online job posting went live at the end of last week and we’ve already received a dozen applicants. We are expecting many more in the coming weeks and our team is ready to begin reviewing resumes, making reference checks, holding interviews, and doing the good work that will help us to find the right person to serve as our Director of Music Ministries. 

I am absolutely thrilled with the Search Team that we have in place and with the progress that we are making. One request we have for you: We need your prayers.

I hope that you will pray for the Search Team by name (Sandi, Charlie, Al, Carrie,  Michelle, and Brian Frederick-Gray) and that you will pray for God’s guidance in this process and that you will pray for the Director of Music Ministries who will come and serve this church. We might not know precisely who that person is yet, but we have faith that God does and that our work will help bring that person here to FCC Scottsdale!

Yours in the Journey,
Rev. Brian

Newsbrief: Kick Off Sunday 2012!

It is Kick Off Sunday!

Things are jumping back into high gear here at FCC Scottsdale and we are going to celebrate it all on Kick Off Sunday.

After a nice summer hiatus we have so many things that are getting started again at the church…and some new things that we are adding to the mix as well!

So this Sunday we’ll have the full compliment of our Sunday School Classes. In addition to ourAdult Bible Study (led by Rev. Lloyd Howard) in the Arizona Room we’re also introducing a new class called “Superheroes of Faith” taught by Michelle Landerville in the Library. Our youth Sunday School classes will also be starting back up with Cari Shonk teaching the Elementary School Class in the Kid’s Club Room and Jeane Thompson teaching the Grades 6-12 Class in the Alpha/Omega Room.

We’ll also have our Women’s Circle Groups staring back up this month with Lydia Circle leading the way by having their first meeting this Sunday after worship. Then on Tuesday Dorcas Circle (9:30AM in the Arizona Room) and Adelphi (7PM at Jane Rosenfeld’s house) will meet and on Thursday Ruth Circle (Noon in the Arizona Room) will wrap up a busy week for DWM!

If you want to get a jump start on Kick Off Sunday then know that we’ll have folks all over the church campus on Saturday morning too! We’ll have a special Indoor Workday starting at 8AM as we refinish some of the woodwork in the Sanctuary and the Prayer Shawl Ministry will be meeting Saturday morning too.

And don’t forget, after moving to an alternative schedule during the summer months Worship and Wonder is back in full swing each week. This Sunday Daryl Marinkovich will be telling the story “Jesus and the Paralytic”.

So come join us this Sunday as we celebrate all that God is doing here at First Christian Church Scottsdale! We’ll sing, we’ll pray, we’ll study, and we’ll rejoice as we kick off the start to a brand new Fall Program Year. See you Sunday!

Yours in the Journey,
Rev. Brian

Newsbrief: Ten Years

We are sneaking up on 10 years.

Ten years. Double digits. A decade. Wow!

Susan and I are sneaking up on our 10-year wedding anniversary, which we will celebrate on September 1.

So this time next week we will be in San Francisco for a long weekend. I’ve never been to San Francisco so I’m excited to see the sights, eat some world class cuisine, and walk through the streets hand-in-hand with the love of my life. (For anybody wondering about Henry, his grandpa will be here in town with him so chances are pretty good you can find them at Chuck E. Cheese!)

It means that I’ll be out of the pulpit on Sunday September 2 (not this coming Sunday, but the one after that) and I’m thrilled that we will have Lori Head as our guest preacher. Lori works for Feed My Starving Children in Tempe – a Christian, global hunger relief agency that has a rather unique and pragmatic way of working to overcome hunger.

Our Youth Group, Young Adult Ministry, and members of the Outreach Committee have all volunteered at Feed My Starving Children in the past and I’m super excited that Lori will be here to tell the whole church more about the program and the very real ways that FMSC is putting faith in action.

I look forward to seeing you this coming Sunday at worship (we’ll be finishing off our August sermon series on “Living Out Our Faith”!) and I hope you’ll be here for worship on Sunday September 2 to hear Lori Head’s powerful testimony and be a part of an amazing worship service!

Yours in the Journey,
Rev. Brian

Newsbrief: Back Home

I’m back in the office after my vacation travels took Susan, Henry, and I all over the country. 

We had a wonderful time visiting the National Parks in Utah. We tent camped just outside of Zion National Park. It was Henry’s first real foray into tent camping and thanks to some nice (though hot) weather everything went swimmingly. We hiked, we toured, we played in the Virgin River, and we took a lot of pictures!

After five days in Zion we traversed over to Bryce National Park where we stayed in a beautiful cabin (Susan and I enjoyed sleeping in a real bed, but Henry insisted on using his sleeping bag!). We were there for three days and while two of them were cloud-covered days the third was absolutely spectacular. More hiking, more touring, and lots more photos.

After returning for Bob Huber’s Memorial Service (and please accept this big word of thanks for everyone who helped to make that service such a fitting and wonderful tribute for Bob) I flew out Friday afternoon to catch up with Susan and Henry and four generations of our family at a reunion in Cincinnati. We celebrated Susan’s grandmother’s 95th birthday, watched Henry run around with his cousins, ate some Skyline Chili, and yes took lots more pictures -- including this one of Henry at first Cardinals game at Busch Stadium on the St. Louis leg of our trip! 

My thanks to Al Beasely and the Rev Judy Green-Davis for filling the pulpit these past two Sundays. I’ll be back in the pulpit this Sunday with a special story about a rock, a trip, and the nature of God’s love. I hope to see you at worship this Sunday!

Yours in the Journey,
Rev. Brian

Newsbrief: Vacation

Next week I head out for two weeks of vacation.

Susan, Henry, and I will spend the first week in the National Parks of Utah. We’ll be tent camping just outside of Zion National Park for a few days and then we’ll head over to a cabin outside of Bryce National Park.

We are excited about this first leg of the trip. I briefly saw Bryce and Zion on a family vacation growing up. I was probably 12 or 13 and have only foggiest memories of the natural beauty of each place. Susan and Henry have never seen either one, so we are really in for a treat!

We’ll spend the second week back in the Midwest for an Annual Family Reunion with my wife’s side of the family. The original plan was to spend a long weekend at Kentucky Dam Village with about two dozen members of the extended family, but unfortunately Susan’s grandmother had a fall last week that resulted in a hairline fracture in her leg. Since Grandma Gray isn’t able to travel to the Family Reunion this year we’ve made the executive decision to bring the reunion to her!

So Susan, Henry and I will fly in to St. Louis then roadtrip with her parents, brother, and sister and our niece and nephew to Cincinnati, Ohio. We’ll still get to see the whole family and visit Grandma Gray, plus this way we’ll also get to enjoy some Graeter’s Ice Cream and Skyline Chili (yes, they make a veggie chili!).

For the two Sundays that I am out of the pulpit you are in for a real treat: Our very own Al Beasley will be preaching on June 15 and my dear friend and colleague the Rev. Judy Green-Davis (from First Congregational UCC in Phoenix) will preach on June 22.

I’ll be here with you in worship this Sunday, July 8 and then I’ll be out of the office until Tuesday July 24.

Yours in the Journey,
Rev. Brian

Newsbrief: Facebook Page

I am happy to announce: We are on Facebook!

Last night First Christian Church Scottsdale’s Facebook page went live.
If you use Facebook you can find us at www.facebook.com/FCCScottsdale or you can just click on that above!

When you are redirected to our Facebook page make sure and click the “Like” Button in the upper right hard corner (just below the big banner picture of our cross). When you “Like” our Facebook page it means that you’ll see updates from FCC Scottsdale in your Facebook stream, and have an easy way of keeping up with the comings and goings at the church!

We have lots of big plans for the Facebook page – sharing announcements, posting photos, embedding videos, linking to articles, and building to each Sunday’s worship service – and if you are a Facebook user I don’t want you to miss it!

For our church members who are not on Facebook, no worries. We will continue using all of the other communication tools at our disposal to make sure that everyone is kept in the know on upcoming news and events at FCC Scottsdale. The monthly Newsletter, weekly Newsbrief, and Sunday morning announcements will all continue. I will still be posting articles to the church blog and we’ll be continue with regular updates on the church website as well.

FCC Scottsdale’s Facebook page simply gives us another avenue to communicate with each other and reach out to folks who want to learn more about our church. The Facebook page will be interactive, lively, and purposefully invitational.

The hope is that members will enjoy connecting with each other on the page and that visitors will catch enough of a glimpse of who we are that they can’t wait to come and see us on Sunday morning!

So what are you waiting for? Check it out at www.facebook.com/FCCScottsdale!

Yours in the Journey, Rev. Brian

Newsbrief: PIP Work Underway

It is happening.

The first round of contracted work for the Property Improvement Project is underway!

I am hesitant to mention too much more…because I wanna see if you’ll notice what is different!

I am willing to bet that you will, in part because the new work is so striking – I really love it! – and in part because it will most likely still be in the middle of the process on Sunday morning. So you’ll get to see the old and the new contrasting each other. Either way, it is terribly exciting to have the work crews here on the church campus and to watch our Property Improvement Project unfolding day by day.

This coming Sunday will mark the first Sunday when the Fellowship Hall is off limits for us. As construction is ongoing there we’ve shuffled some things around. Fellowship Hour after Worship will be in the Arizona Room for the next several Sundays, which means that the Sunday Morning Adult Bible Study has moved in to the Library. I’m sorry for the inconvenience, but it makes life easier for our work crews, and gives us a reason to have a great big celebration when the work is complete and we get to move back in to a newly renovated Fellowship Hall!

Thanks for your patience during this process. Thanks for your enthusiasm as all things become new again here on the church campus. Thanks for your support of the Property Improvement Project!

Can we fix it? YES WE CAN!

Yours in the Journey,
Rev. Brian

Newsbrief: YAMS

Have you heard about YAMS?

No, I don’t mean the starchy tubor that is often confused with the sweet potato. That is a yam.

I mean YAMS – Young Adult Ministry Scottsdale!

YAMS is just getting up and going here at FCC Scottsdale. Michelle Landreville and Jessie Jones of the Education Committee get all the credit for getting YAMS up and running.

We are heading to Lake Powell this morning. Can you make an announcement about YAMS on Sunday? YAMS is for anyone that has graduated high school in the last 10 years or so. If you fit that criteria please join our YAMS Facebook Page and come be a part of our YAMS activities.

The first official YAMS Activity is coming up next Friday (June 15) when the group heads out to Feed My Starving Children in Tempe from 8:00-9:30 pm. 

Feed My Starving Children is a non-profit Christian organization committed to feeding God’s children hungry in body and spirit. The approach is simple: children and adults hand-pack meals specifically formulated for malnourished children, and we ship the meals to nearly 70 countries around the world. Feed My Starving Children is an amazing program and I am thrilled that YAMS first activity will be a service project with such a worthy cause.

Yours in the Journey,

Rev. Brian

Newsbrief: Summer Reading List

At our weekly trip to the library to this week I signed Henry up for the Summer Reading Program.

It is an annual tradition at our house, made all the more special by the fact that this year Henry has decided that he’ll be the one who reads the books. He has just finished Kindergarten after all and he’s gotten quite good at this reading thing. For every five books he finishes he gets to go back to the library to have his Reading List stamped with the official library stamper and then he can pick out his prize. He got so excited about the whole thing that he tried to read 20 books on the first day just so that he could go back and get four prizes – he’s getting pretty good with the math thing too, I guess!

I grew up taking part in the Summer Reading Program at my home library in Round Rock, Texas and in fact it is something that I still do. When the summer months come I put together my reading list and then spend part of those June, July, and August days working through my stack of books.

This year my list includes: Thomas Long’s Preaching from Memory to Hope; John McClure’s The Four Codes of Preaching; Alex Roxburgh’s Missional Map-Making; J. Wimberly’s The Business of Church; and Dan Hotchkiss’ Governance and Ministry.

I’d like to invite you to join me this summer in reading something beneficial for the life of our church…but I’m relatively sure academic tomes on theories of preaching or an experts take on congregational policy and polity probably aren’t what you had in mind!

So let me recommend one other: Jonah Lehrer’s Imagine: How Creativity Works. It is an “engaging study of creativity. Lehrer uses case studies like 3M’s and Pixar’s innovative corporate cultures and Bob Dylan’s songwriting habits to frame scientific findings about the brain and where creativity comes from” (from The Amazon Review of Books).

If you are looking for something to do this summer, check out Jonah Lehrer’s Imagine. I might not be able to entice you with a prize from the treasure chest or a voucher good for “One Free Donut” from the bakery down the street, but I can guarantee that it will get your creative juices flowing. And that is a pretty great gift in its own right!

Yours in the Journey,

Rev. Brian

Newsbrief: PIP Pledge Dedication

We’ve been building toward this Sunday for quite a while.

We’ve sung the song. We’ve chanted the refrain. We’ve heard the stories. We’ve read over the letters. We’ve seen Bob the Builder all over our church campus. We’ve had our congregational meeting. We’ve prayed about it.

This Sunday we will dedicate our Property Improvement Project Pledges.

Hopefully you received your PIP Pledge Card in the mail a few weeks back. Hopefully you have been praying for God’s guidance and God’s generous hand to lead us through this project.

We are seeking capital donations and pledges of $120,000. It is no small amount of money, but then again it is no small plan. We’ll be doing much needed updates and repairs to our church campus to help us continue to live into the mission and ministry that God has in store for us at FCC Scottsdale.

I’m extremely excited about our Property Improvement Project, and I am so grateful to our Property Improvement Team who has been guiding us through the whole process. In fact, I am so excited about it all that we are not going to waste any time on Sunday morning! The very first thing we’ll do in worship together this Sunday (right after the announcements) is receive and dedicate our PIP Pledges. Members of the Property Improvement Team will use fresh paint trays as the collection plates to receive your pledge cards and then we’ll offer a special word of prayer over those pledges, over the construction work that will begin shortly, and over the entirety of First Christian Church that we might be a place of blessing reaching out into the world.

So don’t forget to fill out your PIP Pledge Card. And if you forget to bring it with you on Sunday (like I always do!), don’t worry because we’ll have extras here waiting for you (I’ve already filled out a spare one!).

Our scripture reading this Sunday reminds us that Christ demanded, “My house shall be a house of prayer for all people.” Come join us at our House of the Lord this Sunday and help us celebrate all that God is doing with us and through us!

Yours in the Journey, Rev. Brian

Newsbrief: Mother's Day Prayer

In the lead up to Mother’s Day, this week is Christian Family Week.

Chalice Worship (our denomination’s terrific worship resource book) describes it like this, “Christian Family Week is observed the first or second Sunday in May for the purpose of strengthening family life.”

As such, all week long I’ve been sharing the following prayer with each committee and group that I meet with…and I wanted to share it with you too! This prayer likewise comes from Chalice Worship.

O holy and loving God,
your knowledge of each of us is infinite,
and your love for each of us is boundless;
you place us within human families,
and incorporate us into the beloved household of faith.
We yield ourselves to your providence and grace.
We rejoice that you have called us from our varying human backgrounds
to be brothers and sisters together in faith and devotion.
We renew our commitments to each other,
to mothers and fathers, to sisters and brothers,
to neighbors and acquaintances,
through Jesus Christ, our Savior. Amen.

Yours in the Journey,
Rev. Brian

Newsbrief Expanded: National Day of Prayer

Today is the National Day of Prayer.

In 1952, President Harry S. Truman signed a bill proclaiming a National Day of Prayer must be declared by each following president at an appropriate date of his choice. In 1988, the bill was amended so that the National Day of Prayer would be held on the first Thursday of May.

On this day, the people of the United States are encouraged to turn to God in prayer and meditation in groups and as individuals.

In this spirit I’d like to share with you the official Presidential Proclamation for the National Day of Prayer, 2012 and the 2012 Prayer from the National Day of Prayer Task Force.

The Presidential Proclamation reads:

Prayer has always been a part of the American story, and today countless Americans rely on prayer for comfort, direction, and strength, praying not only for themselves, but for their communities, their country, and the world.

On this National Day of Prayer, we give thanks for our democracy that respects the beliefs and protects the religious freedom of all people to pray, worship, or abstain according to the dictates of their conscience. Let us pray for all the citizens of our great Nation, particularly those who are sick, mourning, or without hope, and ask God for the sustenance to meet the challenges we face as a Nation. May we embrace the responsibility we have to each other, and rely on the better angels of our nature in service to one another. Let us be humble in our convictions, and courageous in our virtue. Let us pray for those who are suffering around the world, and let us be open to opportunities to ease that suffering.

Let us also pay tribute to the men and women of our Armed Forces who have answered our country's call to serve with honor in the pursuit of peace. Our grateful Nation is humbled by the sacrifices made to protect and defend our security and freedom. Let us pray for the continued strength and safety of our service members and their families. While we pause to honor those who have made the ultimate sacrifice defending liberty, let us remember and lend our voices to the principles for which they fought -- unity, human dignity, and the pursuit of justice.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim May 3, 2012, as a National Day of Prayer. I invite all citizens of our Nation, as their own faith directs them, to join me in giving thanks for the many blessings we enjoy, and I call upon individuals of all faiths to pray for guidance, grace, and protection for our great Nation as we address the challenges of our time.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this first day of May, in the year of our Lord two thousand twelve, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-sixth.

The 2012 Prayer from the National Day of Prayer Task Force:

Heavenly Father,

Every good gift and perfect gift comes from You. You are a faithful God and Your mercy endures forever. You have promised to bless the nation that trusts in You. Our currency proclaims “In God We Trust,” but in our culture we are far from You.

In the words of the prophet Daniel, “We have sinned and committed iniquity, we have done wickedly and rebelled, even by departing from Your precepts and Your judgments.”

We come before You once more, seeking Your forgiveness and mercy. You, O God, are our only hope… Hear our prayer and, for Your honor’s sake, shine Your face upon this nation.

Give our leaders the desire to seek Your wisdom and the courage to follow Your guidance. Watch over the men and women of our armed forces as they sacrifice for the cause of freedom.

We give You thanks for all You have done for us, and we earnestly pray that You will help us become, once again, a nation whose God is the Lord.

In the name of Your Son, and our Savior, we pray this prayer. Amen

This day and every day let us be a people that pray for God’s mercy and grace, for God’s blessing and guidance, and for God’s will and ways to be made known in us and through us.

Yours in the Journey, Rev. Brian

For a nice history on the National Day of Prayer, click here.

For an interesting read on interfaith celebrations, click here.

If you want to learn about the counter-event, National Day of Reason, click here.

Newsbrief: PIP

Things are moving right along with our Property Improvement Project.

In fact, this has been a busy week on the PIP front – for folks who are wondering, yes, PIP stands for Property Improvement Project!

You’ll be receiving in the mail this week a letter from me about the Property Improvement Project. My letter outlines some of the basics of the project and it also includes our new PIP Brochure and a PIP Prayer Card.

Make sure to read over that PIP Brochure carefully. It spells out the rationale for our project, explains how we will go about funding the entire endeavor, and includes a handy chart to help folks figure out levels of giving. Plus, it looks really sharp and it is fun to read!

And make sure to keep that PIP Prayer Card as well. Our project will only be successful with the guidance and blessings of God. Your steadfast prayers of thankfulness and petitions for God’s guidance, God’s blessings, and God’s grace will be central to our PIP plan. I hope you’ll use that PIP Prayer Card – or any other daily devotional guide – to help you to pray for our church, our mission, and our ministries in the world all through out the Property Improvement Project…and beyond!

In other PIP News, this Sunday we will kick off a three week series where members of the church will be sharing with you their stories of our church and their reasons for supporting the PIP program. This time of sharing will happen right before our Sunday Morning Prayers of the People, and Cathy Lloyd will bring the first word.

The PIP Team continues to have their regular meetings on Mondays to make sure that things keep moving in the right direction. Next week you’ll receive a mailing directly from the PIP Team that will invite your prayerful consideration of a Capital Campaign Gift to support the Property Improvement Project.

If you have any questions about the PIP please feel free to contact me or any member of the PIP Team.

Thank you for your support! Thank you for your prayers! Thank you for being a part of the mission and ministry at First Christian Church Scottsdale!

Yours in the Journey, Rev. Brian