baptism anyone? montecito january covenant...
TRANSCRIPT
Don Johnson, Senior Pastor [email protected]
Jon Lemmond, Pastor for Congregational Life [email protected]
Shawn O’Brien, Pastor of Youth Ministries [email protected]
Bob Gross, Director of Music and Technology [email protected]
Heather Shennum, Director of Children’s Ministries [email protected]
671 Cold Spring Road, Santa Barbara, CA 93108
Phone 805-969-0373 www.mcchurch.org
Baptism Anyone?
MCC offers both infant and adult baptism for
believing parents or young persons/adults who
have a conscious relationship with Jesus Christ.
Please contact any pastor if you wish to discuss
baptism or infant dedication.
Every morning in December I have been reading out of three books of the Bible. The first book is Paul’s letter to the Philippians. I have let Philippians 1:3-5 become my opening prayer for every day: “I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now.”
Partnership has been a recur-ring theme and experience in 2014 within MCC. Almost each week I have heard about some ministry opportunity you are involved in! The pro-ject that closed out 2014 was our new partnership with Cleveland School. It emerged in the most natural of ways; two M-4 projects on the school campus, seeing the fa-cility and meeting the teach-ers. Dr. Cynthia White saying thank you at the M-4 Thanks-
Over the Coffee Cup BY Don Johnson
JANUARY
2015 Montecito
Covenant
Church
many other organizations.
A new neighborhood initiative will begin on the 4th Thursday of each month, January – May from 10:00 a.m. -noon. It’s called the Five Wishes Workshop. This comes out of my involvement with Visit-ing Nurse and Hospice Care organization and the Alliance for Living and Dying Well (a collaborative group of end of life care providers in our com-munity). The Five Wishes program is a nation-wide initiative to create a living will letting loved ones know what you wish in the event of a medical crisis: who to make decisions if you cannot, what level of medical treatment you desire, how to handle your comfort level, how you wish to be treated, and what you want loved ones to know. See inside for more information on this.
Grace & Peace, Don
giving Service and at an MCC worship service. Friendships, trust and needs became known. Members, moved by the Holy Spirit, stepped up our involvement with the all-church winter coat distribution on December 11 and now there is a longer-term Cleveland School Ministry Team looking at more ways for us to partner with our community.
That is the way the Santa Barbara Century Ride began and our work with BiCi Centro (a local bicycle initiative that trains people in basic bike repair and gets them a bike of their own). Habitat for Humanity’s new chairman is Jon Martin from MCC (along with Dean Given on the board). Many of you are involved in the Santa Barbara Rescue Mission, Young Life, International Students Incorporated, Transition House, Boy Scouts, Al Anon, Santa Barbara County Jail, and
WORSHIP SCHEDULE 10:00 a.m. The sermons through February 15 will be a series based on the book of Philippians. As MCC has been focusing so well on welcoming others, this little book unpacks what our life together should look like. While we will still be reading the “B” cycle of lectionary readings from the book of Mark, we will be preaching out of Philippians.
January 4 Epiphany Sunday Thanks and Prayer Philippians 1:1-18 Holy Communion Luke 2:22-40 Compassion Offering
January 11 First Sunday After Epiphany Citizenship Philippians 1:19-30 Mark 1:4-11
January 18 Second Sunday After Epiphany Just Like Jesus Philippians 2:1-11
John 1:43-51
January 25 Third Sunday After Epiphany Working Together Philippians 2: 12-30
Mark 1:14-20
ANNUAL CONGREGATIONAL MEETING Wednesday, February 4th at 6:00 p.m.
What is a congregational meeting? It can be many things and sometimes pretty boring. But at MCC we do congregational meetings differently. First of all we eat! We love to eat together. So, on Wednesday evening, February 4th we will gather together in the Family Life Center at 6:00 p.m. for a meal. At 7:00 p.m. Linda Lindberg, Chair of the church, will call us together for a time of worship, witness, prayer, and vision-casting. We will celebrate what has happened in the life of our congregation in 2014 and look at where God is leading us in 2015. We will hear reports, vote on new officers and council members, vote on a ministry budget, and receive questions. You do not need to be a member to attend the dinner or the celebration, but any voting matter requires membership. Plan to celebrate the year completed and plans for the year to come.
Coffee Fellowship Hour Rotation We all enjoy our time of fellowship after worship on Sundays and here is the schedule
for January and February. When it is your week, simply bring a plate of treats. After
the Service, take your dish from the patio kitchen and place it on the patio table.
Please exit the service a few minutes early to ensure the table of treats is ready as the
congregants exit. After the coffee hour, please clear the table, tidy up and wash out
the coffee pots.
This ministry is important because it allows members and visitors to socialize and
connect. This opportunity only comes along every eight weeks so that no one person
is burdened each Sunday. If you are unavailable for your scheduled Sunday, please
consider bringing a plate of treats the following Sunday.
January 4 Gonella thru D. Johnson (Group 3)
*January 11 Covenant Retirement Communities Providing (Servers needed)
January 18 R. Johnson thru Michealsen (Group 4)
January 25 Mikhail thru O’Hara (Group 5)
February 1 Oftedal thru Schloss (Group 6)
February 8 Sharpe thru Toth (Group 7)
February 15 Trautwein thru Wright (Group 8)
February 22 Adams thru Coleman (Group 1)
Please mark your calendars.
* Covenant Retirement Comminutes (CRC) will be providing our treats for this
morning and we will need some people to help serve and clean up. Please let
Sandi in the office know if you are available.
Bring in your empty ink cartridges
Turn your old ink cartridges into cash for the church. In our first month
we were able to save over $20! These savings will be used to purchase
supplies for fellowship, office, and cleaning. Drop off your empties at
Sandi’s desk in the church office.
Cleveland Coats for Kids Update
Wow...thanks to your incredible generosity we were able to meet our goal of providing a brand new coat to the 384 children at Cleveland Elementary School. They were thrilled with their brand new jackets. And I am so thankful for all of your help and generosity. Here is a note from a woman who saw the kids that evening, after the kids had received their coats:
I wanted to share that we had our Kids Club Christmas party (our neighborhood outreach)
tonight and all the Cleveland children came in their new jackets! They were so excited to
show me and told me all about how every child in the school received one today - just
before the rain! They were so proud of the new jackets that they didn't even want to take
them off in the house ....even though they were sweating...It was adorable :).
I don't know how you orchestrated that, but I think it is really amazing. So practical and
the fact that everyone received one, no one is robbed of dignity. Such a great way to start
their holidays! Thanks for making it possible. This just about says it all. Thank YOU for making it possible. Thanks again for loving our neighbors at Cleveland school. ~Lisa Call
*********
Looking forward: At this school, 90% of the families are under the poverty line. The needs in this school are many. A tutoring program will be starting up in January. If you'd like to tutor or read to a child for an hour a week, please let either Lisa Call([email protected]) or Jon Lemmond ([email protected]) know. We look forward to building more relationships with these kids and this school. A team of MCC folks has formed and we'll be discussing how we can best come alongside this school. Want to get involved? Let us know!
Five Wishes Workshops On the 4th Thursday of
the month from 10-noon January 22nd, February 26th, March 26th
April 23rd, and May 28th
In conjunction with the Alliance for Living and Dying Well, we will be
holding free community workshops to help facilitate important
conversations about end-of-life wishes. Trained professionals and
volunteers staff all events to support community members in completing
advance health care directives. Notary services are available upon request.
To register for a workshop, please call 805-845-5314 or
Bible Study on the
Book of James
Sundays 9-9:50 a.m.
Fellowship Hall
January 25 - March 15
Led by Ken Wozniak
Ken has been teaching adult classes in churches for over 40 years. Whereas he has taught on a wide range of theological and ethical themes, he focuses primarily on New Testament study to inform belief and conduct. He has been a licensed minister for over 35 years. His formal training includes a Ph.D. in Social Ethics from the University of Southern California, a Master of Divinity from Denver Seminary, and a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Southern California. He has published a number of articles and books on various ethical themes.
FREE PARENTING SEMINAR (Dinner included)
Strategies for Parenting Children with Stress
Dr. Dean Given
Dr. Dean Given is co-director of Santa Barbara Behavioral Health,
a past-president of the California Psychological Association and
has served as Chair of the Cottage Hospital Department of Child/
Adolescent Psychiatry. He has been in practice as a psychologist
in Santa Barbara since 1984, with a subspecialty in the treatment
of anxiety disorders.
Wednesday, January 7, 6:30 – 8:15
Montecito Covenant Church 671 Cold Spring Road
For More Information Call 805-969-0373
The 13th Annual Santa Barbara Missions Conference
January 23 & 24 First Presbyterian Church: 21 E. Constance Ave.
This year’s featured speakers are Ray Bakke and Eugene Cho
10 great workshops with outstanding mission leaders, large tented exhibit area,
video contest, and tasty box lunches!
Register now for the conference by
going online at:
sbmissionconference.org
or by picking up and completing a
brochure at M.C.C. office.
We need cookie bakers for Saturday.
If you would like to provide a couple
dozen ‘homemade’ cookies, please
contact Roberta M. 964-9339 or
Sandi P. 969-0373.
Please label your cookies;
“For Saturday break time”
Do you shop at a market, or eat at restaurants? Our e-scrip program is an excellent
way to support our church without costing anything out of your pocket! Just go to
www.escrip.com and follow the links to sign up. It's quick and easy. Just insert
"Montecito Covenant Church" and our organization number "136559204" then list
your Vons card and/or one of the many other ATMs or credit cards. The
organizations will send from 1% to 10% of your qualifying purchases to our
church every month! Remember... this costs you nothing more yet benefits the
missions of our church every time you use those businesses. You can see a
complete list of participating merchants on-line at the above web address.
It's time to annually renew your E-Scrip contributions to church:
Please go to Vons or the store where you are registered and renew today.
What’s New at Vons
In order for your Vons purchases to generate contributions for MCC you must pay
by using one of the following methods: Debit Card, Check, Cash, Smart Check,
Vons Gift Card, WIC, or CalFresh.
Giving via
Good News!
The Gifts Arrived in Stony River
The teacher in Stony River, Alaska writes:
It's a miracle! All the gifts are here - three for every child! A family gift
and the Bibles [story books]. Praise God! Our planes are very hit and miss
so this was a GREAT surprise. The kids are going to be so excited!
Gratefully, Debi
Isn't that so exciting?!!! The program was scheduled for Dec 17 and it's
amazing that the 16 boxes not only arrived in less than a week after being
mailed but even more amazing is that all sixteen boxes arrived!
Truly amazing! Praise God! Thank you for your prayers! ~Jeanne Rodkey
MCC DIRECTORY/DATABASE UPDATE
MCC needs your updated information for 2015.
Complete the following and place it in the offering plate or return it to the church office.
If you do not fill one of these out you will not be included in the 2015 Directory
LAST NAME__________________________ YOUR FIRST NAME_______________________
SPOUSE’S FIRST NAME_______________________
ADDRESS_____________________________________CITY_______________ZIP___________
HOME PHONE________________________YOUR CELL #______________________________
SPOUSE’S CELL PHONE___________________________
YOUR WORK #________________________SPOUSE’S WORK PHONE___________________
YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS_________________________________________________________
YOUR SPOUSES EMAIL ADDRESS____________________________________________________
YOUR BIRTHDAY (m/d/y)___/____/______ YOUR SPOUSE’S BIRTHDAY_____/_____/_______
(The year is very important to our database, please do not omit.)
Children living at home (list oldest to youngest)
NAME BIRTHDAY (m/d/y) GRADE Email and /or cell#
_____________________ ______________ ________ ______________________________
______________________ ______________ ________ ______________________________
______________________ ______________ ________ ______________________________
______________________ ______________ ________ ______________________________
IMPORTANT INFORMATION: Please answer the following:
I would like to be included on the MCC Prayer/Info Chain. YES NO
I would like to receive the monthly newsletter via email. YES NO
I would like to receive the Prayer/Info Chain and Newsletter by Postal mail. YES NO
Are you involved with any MCC ministries? If yes, which ones?
________________________________________________________________________________________
I would like more information on serving in a ministry. YES NO
I would like information on becoming a member. YES NO
I would like to talk to a pastor about baptism. YES NO
What are other groups, outside of MCC, that you are involved/committed to?
________________________________________________________________________________________
Please do not publish the following information in the 2015 church directory:
____Name ____Address ____Home Phone ____Cell Phone ____Email address
M-4 Turkey Drive Update
With your support and that of the parishioners of Montecito Covenant Church, the M-4 Turkey
Drive has allowed over 2000 individuals, served by the Food Bank of Santa Barbara County and
Catholic Charities Food Pantry, to partake in a Thanksgiving meal that, otherwise, they would
not have had.
Because of you and others, we were able to collect 526 turkeys, plus 147 chickens, for the less
fortunate in our community. Additionally, we raised $7,670 in cash donations that will go
directly toward the purchase of food for all those who are hungry.
This wonderful act of kindness and compassion is something that, together, we can continue to
grow. Imagine, if together next year we could collect 1,000 turkeys and chickens, we could feed
over 4,000 individuals right here in our community. I am counting on your support.
Please accept my personal appreciation and gratitude for all that you have done to make this
year’s ‘Turkey Drive’ such a resounding success. May God’s blessings come upon you and your
family abundantly.
Very Truly Yours,
Martin Bell
OLMC ‘Turkey Wrangler’
We consider it a privilege to serve you as staff
members of Montecito Covenant Church. We
thank you for all your support and encouragement
in so many areas but more specifically, we thank
you for your generous Christmas gift to us!