 |
|||||
|
|||||
|
 |
||||
|
NEWSLETTER November 2005 Beloved Friends, Count your many blessings, name them one by one, and it will surprise you what the Lord has done. These insightful words from a beautiful song in our hymnal speak well to the idea of Thanksgiving. Gratitude and thankfulness are ingredients of daily living that can strengthen our relationship with God and give us an appreciative lens through which we can view the world. A grateful heart is one that appreciates every aspect of life, even the instances when life seemingly presents to us a challenge. Helen Keller once wrote, “I thank God for my handicaps, for through them, I have found myself, my work and my God…” Turning stumbling blocks into stepping-stones of greater understanding and a deeper sense of peace and meaning is a wonderful way to approach life. It is the way of a spiritual seeker who wishes to live fully present in partnership with Spirit. Our co-founder, Charles Fillmore, wrote: “Words of praise, gratitude or thanksgiving expand, set free, and in every way radiate energy…You can praise a weak body into strength.; a fearful heart into peace and trust; shattered nerves into praise and power; a failing business into prosperity and success; want and insufficiency into supply and support…” We have within us all that we need to be the best that we can be. We can always find something to be grateful for. The kingdom of Heaven is here and now. It is glorified and multiplied when we choose to focus on the abundance that is ever present. This kingdom becomes visible through our praise and thanksgiving. We live in the kingdom of Heaven when we think, say and do the things that reflect the unlimited possibilities of God within each of us. We have much to be grateful for here in our church. We continue to grow and prosper and serve God through your generous gifts of time, talent and treasure. Praise and thanksgiving keep open the channels through which God's grace and abundant good flow to us. Jesus Christ always gave thanks in advance for the awareness of the healing, renewing and restoring power of God. As we enter into this great month of Thanksgiving, I invite you to count your blessings. Look for the good in every situation. God will reveal to you the hidden blessing so that you may claim the riches of the kingdom of Heaven, here and now! One in Christ, Reverend Stephen P. Horn
In our November edition it’s only natural for me to give thanks for my many blessings. I give thanks for the congregation at Unity Church of the Bay Area. You are truly amazing! When we established our Building Fund, I speculated how long it would take to reach our first goal of $300,000. I thought it might be 5 years or so, with our church size and our pattern of giving directly to the Building Fund. I was way off, too. Currently we have $132,000 funded – far above what my “rational” mind could comprehend. Thank you all for opening my mind, and thank you, God! I also acknowledge my working with a loving and dedicated Church Board. Your performance has been creative, imaginative, and persistent. Thank you for putting up with my jokes and teaching me how to be an effective leader. It has been my pleasure to work with you this year, and I look forward to the rest of my term! Thank you, Reverend Steve, for being willing to stretch this year with how you value your energy and time. You have been a tireless source of wisdom, understanding and confidence for me, continually setting the high mark to aim for in terms of service, devotion and sharing with others the power of Unity’s message. Well done! A special thanks to all those who serve on our Love in Action teams and those who give generously in being part of the Sunday service. Your love, dedication and willingness to just “jump right in” or “go the extra mile” is what makes our church so remarkable. I am appreciative of the support and energy given to me by my wife and son, Amy and Ryan. Amy, thanks for providing the necessary guidance in the beginning as only a past President could. Thank you, Ryan, for your patience with my schedule and being willing to be the “Sound Man” a few weeks ago. It’s really wonderful to have a Unity family! A final “thanks” to Myrtle and Charles Fillmore for being ahead of their time, and to Minister Dianne Plamondon for following her guidance in establishing our church in the Bay Area. Mark Groblewski
The Board approved shifting to the Building Fund an existing $10,000 CD that has been earmarked for savings to cover unexpected emergencies. This change will occur at the renewal date near the end of October. Countrywide Bank has approved our opening a money market checking account that pays 3.41% interest. This arrangement will allow us to place $20,000 from our non-interest-paying Wells Fargo checking account into this interest-bearing account. As we reach each $10,000 plateau, we can then purchase an additional CD. We are grateful for the twelve congregants who became members on Sunday, October 9th. Welcome to our loving church family. THE DREAM TEAM! NEWS FROM OUR ANNUAL MEETING! Our church continues to grow and prosper and serve not only our community but also the greater community in which we live. We are a tithing ministry, giving monthly to God’s work in Unity and spiritual organizations. Our tithes for the year totaled $25,300! A great example of the power of tithing was seen in our Let Down Your Nets for a Catch Building Fund project. The tithe from this project tithe helped outfit over ninety children with school supplies for the year. We also contributed above and beyond our tithes in several areas. We voted in three new members to our Board of Trustees. Barb Clemons and Rick Flynn will serve three-year terms; Sylvia Hicks will serve one year to fill a vacancy. Our Board for the coming year will be Barb Clemons, Rick Flynn, Mark Groblewski, Mary Pat Gunn, Sylvia Hicks and Chris Kuhlman. We are grateful for the wonderful service that Gayle McFadden and Pauline Hitt have given through their work on the Board. Thank you! We established a Dream Team, headed by Rick Flynn. This team will actively explore possibilities for our vision of owning our own church. If you are interested in serving on this team, give Rick a call at 832-524-7987! Our church continues to prosper because of your generous giving. It is true that the expenses of running a ministry continue to rise. We are grateful for your generosity that allowed us to have a profitable year, with general revenue of $10,797. The Anniversary Gala was a huge success and created abundance to our Building Fund. After purchasing a CD this month, our Building Fund will total $132,000! We will be adding an early service in January of 2006. Our new service times will be 8:30 and 10:30 a.m. This additional service will give everyone an additional choice for Sunday mornings as well as offering a time of spiritual nourishment for our team members who give of their time in Youth Ed. If you have a special talent or desire to teach, lead a workshop or be involved with helping our church better serve its members and the community, please feel free to contact a Board member or Reverend Steve with your ideas. Each of you is an important ingredient in our ministry. Together we weave a beautiful tapestry * filled with the very life, love and wisdom of God. Thank you for an awesome year! We look forward to creating an even greater one in the year 2006 with your help! In gratitude and thanksgiving, Youth Ed Our children use excellent curriculum provided by our association of Unity Churches. Our teens are now studying the book The Simple Truth by Richard and Mary-Alice JaFolla, a wonderful book suited for both teens and adults covering Unity basics. Our pre-schoolers are using What A Wonderful World and our elementary classes are using Celebrate My God-Self. In addition, our teens are planning to “Light up the Lighthouse” this month by giving the rooms a new paint job. I am also very grateful for all of the dedicated souls who lovingly give of their time and energy in active support of our Youth Education program. We are looking for a few extra people to help out once a month in our elementary and pre-school age classes. If you are looking for a way to express your gratitude in this very special way, please give me a call at 281-339-2096 or leave a message at the church office. We are truly blessed in our service to our children and teens! Youthful Blessings, Unity Treasures Smiling sky and reaching field Cheerful hearth fire gleaming bright, Words that friendly thoughts impart, Hopes that glisten in the skies, Roads that brighten in the sun, The Angel Tree
We have reduced the price of our Clear Lake Area Coupon books to $30! These money saving books are good until the end of September 2006, and include many merchants in our area for food, goods and services. Why not purchase one for the Holiday season? You may also sign out books to sell to your family and friends at the Bookstore.
General Fund Income $ 24,963.67 Building Fund (CDs & investments) $112,000.00 Unity Church of the Bay Area's tithe for September was $1,692.00. It was blessed and $100 each was sent to Janie Kellley and Gloria Hardesty, ministerial students at Unity School of Christianity. Also $306.25 each was sent to the Association of Unity Churches and Unity School of Christianity. Unity Church Universal, Unity’s mother church, in Kansas City, Missouri was sent $ 612.50. Your continued financial support allows our church to grow and flourish and carry the message of positive, practical Christianity in the Bay area.
November 6, 2005 - Why Is My Soul Here? - Rev. Stephen P. Horn Sunday, November 20, 2005 Thanksgiving Potluck Lunch Following lunch we will…
A Special Thank You from our New Members from New Orleans! To the Congregation of Unity Church! All of you have opened your hearts and shared your abundance with us, and if we haven't personally thanked you, we are sorry for the oversight. You have welcomed us into your congregation with open arms, and we feel blessed to be a part of Unity Church of the Bay Area. Thank you, thank you, thank you for all the kindness and generosity you have showed us! God bless each and every one of you! Loretta Mims, George and Wendy Seibert
Katherine Campbell
Web purchases at Amazon.com made through our website creates a rebate for the church. Bookmark the Bookstore page at our website for your entry to shopping at Amazon. Thank you!
|
|||||
