July 29 Mainstreeter Online

July 29, 2018  A Word from the Fill-in Guy A Rabbi in reference to our reading of scripture has raised this serious question, "What voice do you hear?"  This is not an academic question for what voice we hear in scripture will affect our basic outlook on our faith. Harry Emerson Fosdick, a great preacher of the last century, told in his biography of his great fear of God as a child because of how the scriptures were presented to him. God was presented as "out to get him" and that God was out to get him. As he grew and interpreted scripture in new ways, he came to appreciate God in new ways. Fosdick's great hymn "God of Grace and God of Glory" reflects these new understandings of a God who represented love, peace, and hope. It is my prayer that we will hear in our scriptures the voices of love, hope, and promise. Grace and peace, Dave  Announcements Calendar Worship Ahead August 5 - Communion Scriptures: I Corinthians 11:23-34 Theme: "Remember!"  The earliest record we have of the Lord's Supper is found in this our scripture for next Sunday. This passage gives an indication of some of the problems that the apostle Paul had with the church in Corinth.The problem that Paul addresses here indicates some in the church were turning the Lord's Supper into a time for gluttony and drunkeness. Central to what Paul has to say to the church in Corinth, and to us, is the importance of remembering what this sacrament represents, the self offering of Christ for others. Always in communion comes the word "remember".  VBS to Start August 6   Rolling River Rampage is fast approaching! Get ready for the ride of a lifetime with God! We are busy preparing the river camp for our rafters but we could use a few more people to act as guides to escort our rafters from station to station (1st and 2nd graders, especially), assistant guides and a few "floaters" to help out wherever needed. If you can be available on one or more of the mornings of August 6 through August 10, please sign up on the sheet in the vestry or lobby or speak to the director, Mavis Pyle, at 860-9792 or email at pylefamily@comcast.net   - submitted by Mavis Pyle Finance Update Welcome to our finance update. We are still running a bit short on our collections and are behind on our mission shares. I will speak to the congregation the third week of August. Here is a sneak peek at my speech. Naturally I want to discuss our general fund, how we are running short on our mission shares and other obligations. We are short even though we are not paying for a DCE (Director of Christian Education) position in 2018. After that I will give an update on our new building loan with the Foundation. It's a beautiful and functional addition. We had to borrow since construction was more than HON money pledged or raised. Our building debt is somewhere north of $350,000. This requires us to pay interest of over $1300/month just to keep even with the debt. I will stress that we all continue to contribute to HON until our debt is paid off. I would remind you of our importance to the downtown area. Our church is open seven days a week in community service, with facilities and volunteers helping with the neglected, homeless, addicted, hungry, or those in search of God. And that would wrap up my speech, especially since Pastor Dave had me assure him I would deliver it in 7 minutes or less. But there is one important update I need to talk about. Back to that DCE (Director of Christian Education) position that we have open, and are not paying for at the moment. Having the right person (or persons) filling the role will make a key difference in church growth. I might ask who is interested in church growth, and ask for a show of hands. If the right person (or persons) came along, would you be interested in supporting them? Or would you rather let that opportunity go and concentrate on paying down our debt before appealing for growth? Let me know your thoughts.  Funding a DCE would be a sizable increase to our budget, and I would need your increased support today as growth takes time. Imagine seeing a church with more families, children, and youth. Imagine being a contributor to this growth.     I've heard many stories about people who decided to increase their contribution to the church, particularly in areas they feel strongly about. And they have received additional blessings in return for their increased giving. Please let me know your thoughts. Thank you,   Joe Dechene Historic Tidbit With the upcoming 150th Anniversary celebration in September, the Anniversary Committee has gathered historic quotes to share, taken from Methodism in Nashua, 1831-1982, by J. Lawrence Hall. We will include one with each Mainstreeter Online.        Eight:   "A General Conference of the Methodist Church was held in Kansas City on May 10, 1939. This Conference carried an unusual interest and was attended by some 900 delegates and approximately 10,000 visitors. The three great Methodist Churches united. The Methodist Episcopal, the Methodist Episcopal South and The Methodist Protestant Church by agreement united and removed the 'Episcopal' identification and became known as the Methodist Church." Copyright © 2018 Mainstreet Online, All rights reserved. Going to the web site blog. Our mailing address is: Mainstreet Online 154 Main St Nashua, NH 03060-2731 Add us to your address book Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list.