"Commandment number one of an truly civilized society is this:
Let people be different."
David Grayson, Journalist/Author
Johnnie Romo, class member, shared his perspective in this morning’s lesson, entitled "The Four Principles of Reintergration". It was a well thought out presentation sprinkled with Johnnie’s humor. Well done, Johnnie! Thank you!
We had a large number of members present this morning, including some whom have been away from the class for various reasons over the past month or so. It was great to have all of you there with your church family! We also had several visitors, including Bethany Willyard, Leona Hogue, and Mark Shoup. Hope I got the name correct. If not, please come back again and make sure you give me the correction. You’re welcome to be with on any Sunday and at any of our events!
We had a number of announcements. There will be an all-church potluck dinner on the evening of November 28th, beginning at 5:30pm, that will also include an intimate communion service. Thanksgiving leftovers are welcome. A Veterans Day Celebration, Thursday, will be held at the Elks Lodge (contact the Lodge to get more details).
November 13th is the date for the "Gourmet Dinner", announced by Lynn Russell. If you purchased this event at our last Christmas party, then you should receive an invitation, but contact Lynn for more information if you’re not certain that you’re on the list. It should be great! Speaking of the Christmas Party, mark you calendar for December 10th. Pam Sherman will share details in the future.
November 21st, the class will enjoy the Baytroupe production at the church as our next Social Event. Likely, we’ll plan to gather together after the production to share some social time. Contact Pam Sherman for more information.
Suzy Meredith-Orr announced that our next mission opportunity will be with Neighbor for Neighbor. Check with Suzy and/or the Maranatha website for additional information.
We had Joys and we had Concerns. The Wansley’s announced the birth of their newest grandchild (grandson), William James Wansley, born last Tuesday in Pretoria, South Africa. Skip Scott let us know that tomorrow will be the day that he finally has his long-awaited dental implants put in place (we look foward to seeing the results). Kate Thomas reminded us of the good work done by Tulsa’s social service, United Way agencies.
Bethany Willyard asked for our prayers in support of her continuing recovery. David Carpenter’s mother is seriously ill, and needs our prayers for her and the family. Sharon Earley’s stepneice, Megan, is having surgery. Judith and Ed Payton’s friend, Rebecca Brown, is suffering from cancer. Ginny LeDoux asked that we remember the heartaches of violence and abandoment that we have in our community. Please keep these people and their family and friends in your thoughts and prayers this week.
Rob Reck led us in prayer. Thank you, Rob; we appreciated your thoughtful words!
Advent 2010 begins on Sunday, November 28th. We have chosen an Advent study guide entitled, "Blessings of the Manger" for five Sundays including day following Christmas. Volunteers, either individuals, couples, or teams of members are asked to volunteer to help with these lessons. You will be provided the study guide as an outline for presenting each Sunday. Contact Meredith or me if you are interested in helping out. We’ve already got some potential volunteers but we need even more.
Next Sunday, November 14th, our lesson will be delivered by Dr. Paul Kent, Executive Director of Tulsa’s Habitat for Humanity. Don’t be surprised if Paul’s lesson is something other than simply a description of Habitat. As a former church pastor who has a doctorate in divinity, our invitation to Paul has been to teach the lesson of his own choosing. So, I’ll let you know Paul’s presentation title later this week. Thanks to Ed Payton for arranging for Dr. Kent.
Have a blessed week; see you next Sunday!
Richard Wansey
Maranatha Class Website 