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April 2006 “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” John 20:21 Beloved Friends, Easter is a time of joyous celebration! This Easter Sunday will be very special for me. It is the fifth anniversary of me joining Unity Church of the Bay Area as your minister. As I reflect on these past five years, I am filled with memories of all that I have experienced with each of you. You have shown me how precious we all are, and you have been my teachers. A minister’ first ministry is always the most rewarding in the blessings it brings. Our journey together has helped me to know that my decision to become a minister was truly an answer to God’s call. I am reminded of the story of a small boy who was flying a kite with his grandfather. The kite soared into the sky. Then suddenly a low cloud hid it from their sight. After a few minutes the grandfather said to the boy, “Bobby, maybe some thief up in the cloud stole your kite!” The boy shook his head in disagreement. A few minutes later, the grandfather again said, “Bobby, maybe some thief up in the cloud stole your kite!” Again the boy shook his head. “But Bobby,” said his grandfather, “how can you be so sure that the kite’ still at the end of your string?” Bobby replied, “Because I can feel something you can’t feel. I can feel the kite tug at my string.” Easter is much like this. Sometimes, we want to clearly see the hand of God at work in our lives. Yet, sometimes God’s presence is not so apparent. Like the unseen kite, God is always with us. The tug we fell in our heart is the tug of God’s love. We can always trust that God will help us to realize and reveal our true nature, our spiritual nature. Life was never meant to be struggle. Lent has been a time to become aware of and release whatever stands in the way of true peace and joy. In 2nd timothy 1:7, we read, “God did not give us a spirit of cowardice, but rather a spirit of power and of love and of self-discipline.” This Easter I invite you to remember that God’s love for you is unlimited and unconditional. Know that God will provide you with the abundant resources you need to have a life filled with your deepest heart’s desires. Christ is eternal, alive in you! Happy Easter! One in Christ, MARK'S MUSINGS April is now upon us. The new growth in Nature reminds me to look within myself for new spiritual and personal growth. One is with my son, Ryan, who is becoming more of a teenager! The other is my business and openings to channels of God’s good. I have found fears in each area. I have seen recently how fear creeps into our lives. It seems we live in a society that tends to promote fear, and it sometimes affects me. Advertisers subtly use fear to influence us to look a certain way or have the right “stuff” to be happy. Our inner insecurities cause us to buy more and more. The news frequently reports stories of violent crime, natural disasters and environmental hazards (“Is your water safe to drink? Watch Channel X at 10:00.”) Our society’s reaction to the terrorist attacks has shown how as a country we can create and maintain a “fear consciousness.” 9/11 caused huge disruptions in the stock market, airline industries and the general economy which are just now beginning to return. We seem to embrace a consciousness of fear in order to be fully prepared for life. My point is that fear is a natural, normal emotion – neither good nor bad. Fear can be a motivator to protect ourselves in a threatening situation or make a necessary change. However, while fear may motivate us to change, living in fear cannot produce lasting change. Lasting change only comes through choice-through choosing love. This is why Jesus told us to…“be in the world, but not of the world.” It is easy to be influenced by the fear-based beliefs around us. Jesus wanted us to remember the power of God’s love within us to conquer the worldly fears. In 2 Timothy, we read “God has not given us a Spirit of fear but of power and love and good discipline…”, and John reminded us “Perfect Love casts out fear.” April 16th is Easter Sunday. Easter represents new growth and new beginnings. Let us take this month to become aware of when our thinking is fear-based and transform it through love. The choice is ours – Choose Love! Mark Groblewski HAPPY EASTER! BOARD TALK Welcome to our new members who joined Sunday, March 12th! Part of our tithe goes to two ministerial students each month ($100 each). This month Sandra Vanick and Janie Kelley are the recipients. Will Tuttle and his wife Madeline will be with us for a workshop, concert, guest speaking and personal sessions the weekend of April 8-10, 2006. See the informational page in the newsletter for the details of this special opportunity. The teams are doing well. Amy Groblewski is doing a great job as the sponsor for the Uniteens. Easter Services begin Thursday, April 13th with a Seder Service. The Good Friday service on April 14th will be The Seven Last Words of Jesus Christ with special music by Jill and Jack Kastle. On Sunday, April 16th, the 8:30 service will be a Communion Service and the 10:30 will be a Celebration Service. A Children’s Easter Egg Hunt will follow the later service. On April 23rd, after the service, there will be a General Meeting to report on the Dream Team activities. On May 21st, Rev. Chris Chenoweth will speak at both services and will offer his Master Prosperity Workshop in the afternoon. There will be a potluck luncheon in between. UNITY CHURCH OF THE BAY AREA Jennifer Allen Unity Church of the Bay Area 2006 Saturday Workshop Series UCBA is pleased to welcome Will Tuttle, Ph.D., and his wife Madeleine for a weekend of uplifting music and inspiration. Opening the Intuitive Gate THE KEYS TO DEVELOPING YOUR INTUITION Saturday, April 8th ~ 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. Uplifting, philosophical, musical, inspiring, both challenging and reassuring this is a seminar that can change lives, as we invite Spirit to work its wonders on the ultimate frontier: the human heart. Dr. Tuttle’s insights include: § Discovering your unique ways of accessing your intuitive wisdom. § Effective inner & outer practices for developing joy and spiritual awareness. § Techniques using meditation, imagery, music, and art that inspire intuitive insights. § How to respond to the global “intuitive imperative” and meditate more effectively. § Ancient secrets for awakening the love, compassion, joy, and peace within. ____________________________________________________________________________ Dr. Tuttle will also be the guest presenter at the 8:30 and the 10:30 a.m. Sunday services on Sunday, April 9, 2006 at UCBA. His theme: Awakening Your Inner Genius ____________________________________________________________________________ Piano Passion Concert for a New World The Original Music of Will Tuttle Sunday, April 9, 2006 ~ 7:00 p.m. ~ Sanctuary Love Offering ____________________________________________________________________________ Individual Sessions for Personal Music & Arts Portraits with Dr. Will and Madeleine Tuttle Appointments available on Sunday afternoon, Monday and Tuesday, April 9-11, 2006 Sign up for your preference in the Gathering Room. ____________________________________________________________________________ Will Tuttle, Ph. D., pianist, composer, educator, and author, has performed and lectured widely throughout the United States and Europe. His doctorate degree with highest honors from the University of California, Berkeley. He has taught college courses in creativity, humanities, mythology, and philosophy. He has a broad background in Eastern and Western meditation traditions, and is a Dharma Master in the Zen tradition. He has created six CD albums of original piano music, as well as his acclaimed book, The World Peace Diet. Dr. Tuttle travels with his life partner, Madeleine, a Swiss visionary artist, providing seminars, concerts, lectures, meditation retreats and his individualized music and art portraits. For further information, contact Unity Church of the Bay Area: 2020 Anders Lane ~ Kemah, TX 77565 ~ 281-334-9114 ~ info@unityofbayarea.org ~ www.unityofbayarea.org YOUTH EDUCATION We had a wonderful Sunday school teacher training Sat., April 4th. Thank you to all the participants who gave of their time and energy to this fun morning. We especially appreciate Amy Groblewski for sharing her expertise on the learning styles portion of our training. We gained wonderful insights on our personal learning styles and the predominant learning styles of others. This will enhance our effectiveness and communication not only in our classrooms, but in the rest of our life as well. Last month, we were talking about faith in the elementary class and we walked on water! (pillows covered by a blue sheet on the floor work very well with a little imagination). It was a powerful lesson as we took turns role playing Jesus and Peter in the story about Jesus walking on water toward the disciples in a boat. I’m never sure if the lesson is really meant more for our students or for me! April will be a fun month for all of our youth. We will make palm crosses on Palm Sunday since that was so much fun last year. We will have an Easter egg hunt after the regular service on Easter Sunday. And our teens are planning a “lock-in” on Friday, April 28th which is going to be a lot of fun for them. We are so very grateful to all those that commit their time, energy, and prayer support to our Youth Education ministry. If you are interested in teaching or assisting in any aspect of our ministry team, please contact me at 281-339-2096 or leave a message with the church office for me to contact you. Youthful Blessings! God is Good ~ All the Time! The following composition by Tori Gellman, one of our Unity children, won an Area Award of Excellence in this year’s Reflections creative arts contest and has advanced to the State competition. It is lovingly dedicated to the memory of Carly Soares, another of our Unity children, who would have celebrated her 10th birthday on April 5. I Wonder Why People die? I wonder why people haft to die? Even if your young like me you could still die. For instance my friend Carly Soares died when she was seven years old and her name is on a brick in the butterfly garden at Ferguson Elementary. She was my best friend. Her brother Micheal Soares really misses her. He didn’t know her that well. Carly Soares’ ashes were kept by her mother. Carly Soares died of lymphoma but I think she died because she was getting to much love and it was getting all scrunched up in her heart and all the love exploded out and she now lives in our spirit. And my mother made up a song about Carly Soares and she played it on the piano at Carly Soares’ saramony and then they released some butterflys from the garden and one of them landed on Carly Soares’ moms heart and there were tears of joy everywhere. The End Victoria “Tori” Gellman ~10/2005 KID’S DAILY WORD by: Janie Neill Love is like a light. When we turn it one, it shines on all who are present. "For with you is the fountain of life; in your light we see light." Psalm 36:9 IMPORTANT NEWS FROM OUR DREAM TEAM! You are invited to attend a special meeting on Sunday, April 23, 2006, after the 10:30 a.m. Sunday Service! We will review the findings of our Dream Team as they have explored and searched our surrounding area for possibilities for our own church home. This informational meeting will help everyone to see every aspect of what is truly needed to own our own church. We established a Building Fund two years ago that now totals over $162,000. We have made great strides through your contributions in moving forward our dream of our own church home. We see that there are distinct possibilities for our own church home – buying an existing church, converting an existing building, or purchasing land for a new church. We researched thoroughly land in our area and the churches and buildings that have become available in the last year. We need you help and your opinion! To fully realize the vision of our own church home will require the full support of all who treasure and are committed to the vision of our church. As a church that fully empowers its members, we are all stakeholders in the future of Unity Church of the Bay Area. It will take each of us and our abundant resources to bring the vision alive. Everyone’s input is important. We need each of you to be present at the meeting so that we can consciously review where we are and where we want to go! Rick Flynn, Dream Team Leader NEW CLASS IN APRIL! Mondays, April 17 - May 22, 2006 Required text: Wisdom for a Lifetime: How to Get the Bible Off the Shelf and Into Your Hands, by Alden Studebaker. Book is available in the Bookstore. Join Dianne Marion, L.U.T. candidate, for this class specifically geared for metaphysical Christians. Many of us have not used the Bible as a focus for our spiritual journey for a variety of reasons. This six week introduction to the Bible discusses how to intelligently and metaphysically interpret the Scriptures. It is important for the Bible novice to explore the Bible with the right toolkit. Dianne will help in creating a new awareness of the Bible, introduce you to the “tools” in the kit, and help you to make the Bible an important part of your spiritual journey. EASTER WEEK AT UCBA - 2006 Easter Sunday, April 16th ~ SUNDAYS IN APRIL! April 16, 2006 Easter Sunday April 23, 2006 Prosperity Begins in your Mind! Reverend Stephen P. Horn April 30, 2006 Keys To Abundant Living! Reverend Stephen P. Horn TREASURER’S REPORT General Fund Income $ 13,377.69 Expenses -17,973.42 Net General Fund Income $ -4,595.73 Building Fund Income + 1,530.00 Total Income $ -3,065.73 Building Fund (CDs & Investments) $162,000.00 Unity Church of the Bay Area's tithe for February was $1,996.00. It was blessed and $100 each was sent to Janie Kelley and Tom Lee, ministerial students at Unity School of Christianity. A portion of the tithe $449.00 each was sent to the Association of Unity Churches and Unity School of Christianity. The remainder of the tithe for $898.00 was split evenly and disbursed to South Central Unity Churches Association, our AUC region and Positive Christianity.org, the internet ministry of Rev. Chris Chenoweth. Your continued financial support allows our church to grow and flourish and carry the message of positive, practical Christianity in the Bay area. Thank you, and thank you God! REBIRTH By: Ann Rasch The earth springs forth with blade and blossom Every being, tree and flower I choose this day to look around Not dwell on all I thought was wrong Today, there'll be no condemnation In this time of resurrection A SPECIAL THANK YOU! Saying “Good Bye” is never an easy to say, especially to you, the congregation of Unity Church of the Bay Area. When we arrived in Texas from New Orleans after Katrina, without hesitation you came to our rescue. You helped us settle into the community. You gave us furnishings for our home, appliances and a car to use. We also formed some very special friends. The list goes on and on. We will be forever grateful for the outpouring of love you shared with us. However, since we have bee unable to get employment in Texas, we need to move on. As of March 31st we will be relocating to Lafayette, Louisiana where we have jobs waiting for us. Our many “Thanks” go to all of you for your gracious generosity, and we will keep you in our prayers. George and Wendy Seibert Your newsletter contributions are welcome! Please submit them to the church office or e-mail them to info@unityofbayarea.org by the 15th of each month. We ask that articles not exceed 300 words. Our goal is to share your articles in newsletters as soon as possible.
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