Maranatha Class Website

Hello, Maranatha friends!

We are so grateful to Nancy Pittman for another wonderful lesson on Paul’s Letter to the Romans yesterday. She shared recent changes in Pauline scholarship that gave us much to think about. If you missed hearing her, you can find it later this week at http://www.bostonavenue.org/maranatha.html

Linda Larson, a popular teacher at Boston Avenue, will be with us the next two Sundays. Her lesson series, entitled, "Be Careful What You Promise," will share stories of people in the Bible.

Joel Panciera will then teach us during the six weeks of Lent. On those six Sundays, we will begin with his lesson promptly at 9:45, then conduct class business afterward so that he can rehearse the choir.

WELCOME to our guests, Mike and Laura Daniel and Rachel Tallent. We enjoyed having you visit!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY to Judy Harkins, Susan Rose, Sarah Maldonado, and Paul Giessen.

JOYS AND CONCERNS:

Please remember Meredith Wansley’s family in your prayers. Her brother-in-law’s nephew was one of the five men killed in the recent gas rig explosion.

Please keep David Cooley and his parents in your thoughts and prayers as they are dealing with a number of serious health issues right now.

THANKS to Mickey and Carol Maus and Dave and Melanie Shepherd for hosting, and to Pam Sherman for her prayer Sunday. Next week Sarah Maldonado and the Goodwins will be our hosts, then Jimmy Berg will lead us in prayer.

ANNOUNCEMENTS:

Many thanks to the Paytons, Worthingtons, Wansleys, and all who helped make the Chili Cookoff fundraiser a great event. The Worthingtons won top honors, closely followed by Ed and Josh Payton. Sid Clanton won third, and over $3800 was raised for missions

Discover B.A., which will take place March 4, will resemble a job fair, but will feature booths that share information about the various ministries, groups, and Sunday School classes in our church. Mickey and Carol Maus will represent Maranatha, and all are invited to a work party on Wednesday, February 21, to help Pam Sherman and Melanie Shepherd create our class’s display.

Helpers are needed to serve dinner at the Day Center for the Homeless on February 9. Please contact Richard Wansley if you are available.

The J.P.’s Royal Tea (an auction item hosted by Janet Purinton and Judith Payton) will take place on Saturday, February 10, for those who purchased it. Also, the post-Valentines Day gourmet dinner hosted by the Butterworths and Todds (also an auction item) is scheduled for February 17.

Hope you’re having a great week! We’ll see you Sunday –

Hello, Maranatha friends!

We had a great class last week. Our teacher, the Rev. Dr. Nancy Pittman, was wonderful – so knowledgeable and engaging! I’m sure anyone who heard her Sunday is looking forward to the second part of her lesson on Paul’s Letter to the Romans this week.

If you missed Sunday and would like to hear the first part of her lesson, you can find it at :
Maranatha 01-21-2018

If you enjoyed her lesson Sunday and would like to go back and listen to her lessons on Revelation when she taught us in 2010, here are those two links:
Maranatha 10-03-2010
Maranatha 10-10-2010

Also, for those who are interested, here is a link to the story on loneliness that Nancy mentioned in her lesson:
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/britain-appoints-minister-loneliness-tackle-social-isolation-n838291

ANNOUNCEMENTS:
The Chili Cookoff for Missions fundraiser is this Sunday evening from 5:00-7:00 in Jubilee Hall. Maranatha will be represented by two entries this year: 1) Ed Payton and his son Josh and 2) Brenda and David Worthington. We will also have two baskets to be auctioned – one with a Tulsa history theme and another filled with soups (complete with a pot!). Come enjoy great fellowship, bid for goodies and vote for our two entries!

The gourmet dinner auctioned off by the Allens, Campbells and Evans will take place this Saturday at 6:30 at the Evans’ house.

Thanks to Jim McCann for leading us Sunday, to the Chucoskis and Luks for hosting, and to Richard Wansley for our prayer. This Sunday the Mauses and Shepherds will feed and greet us, then Pam Sherman will lead us in prayer.

Joys and Concerns:

Jim and Angie are celebrating that their son Larkin has landed two excellent internships with nationally-known architectural firms. He will start the first one next month.

Ruth and Paul Giessen’s son Paul will also be starting a very interesting internship in the computer science field at Tinker Air Force Base soon.

Please continue to keep Ed and Judith Payton’s family, the Blevins family, and Wanda Williams’ family in your prayers.

Happy birthday to Bill Tankersley, Martha Blevins, Thad Leonard, Wanda Williams and Rob Morgan this week! We had no anniversaries.

Hope you have a great week – see you Sunday!

The Rev. Dr. Nancy Pittman teaching last Sunday.

Please disregard the earlier notification in the newsletter regarding services for Martha’s mother.

Services will be held Friday, January 19, at 11:00 am, at the First Methodist Church in a Okmulgee.

-Roger

Greetings, Maranatha friends,

In case you missed it, our class started yesterday with a rousing rendition of “Everybody Ought to Know Who Jesus Is,” led by some of our Chancel Choir members, then we all learned from Brenda Reed’s second “State of the n Church” lesson. Brenda shared that we do have some challenges with income and attendance, but no more so than most churches today. We are so blessed to have our endowments!

Phillips Seminary professor Nancy Pittman will teach us the next two Sundays – another blessing. Not many churches have the opportunity to learn from seminary educators. She will focus on Paul’s Epistle to the Romans – a valuable Bible study.

Thanks to Glenna Arnott and David Cooley for hosting, and to Jerry LeDoux for our prayer yesterday. This week the Chucoskis and Luks will bring our snacks and greet, then Richard Wansley will lead us in prayer.

Please keep these in your thoughts and prayers (Caranatha will let us know if anything is needed):

Martha and Dan Blevins – Martha’s mom died Saturday morning. Her service will be held at 11:00 tomorrow (Tuesday) in Okmulgee and her parents’ church will provide food for the service. (Martha’s cell number is 918-346-7182, if you’d like to send a text.)

Judith and Ed Payton’s daughter-in-law Nikki passed away Sunday morning in Kansas City. Please keep them and their daughter Sarah in your prayers. (918-760-8834 – Ed, 918-724-3421 – Judith)

Wanda Williams, one of our newest members, reported that her son-in-law is still on life support, but is now opening his eyes. He suffered a massive heart attack about a month ago in Louisiana the day after he and his wife, Wanda’s daughter, brought their newborn baby home from the hospital. They also have a three-year-old.

Former member Mary Ellen Niblack – her mother Terri (also a former member) died last week.

Jennifer Hall is still undergoing treatment for metastasized breast cancer. She says she doesn’t need anything but prayer. (cell – 918-406-2949)

Pam Sherman thanked the class for prayers during her recent illness.

Kendall Carpenter shared a joy and a concern – her father Jack Wynn, celebrated his 92nd birthday yesterday, and her mom is moving to his assisted living apartment.

Please let Rick Evans or Roger Rowe know about prayer requests.

Welcome Joe Morgan, son of Scott and Debra Morgan.

Happy birthday to Kristy Hayes, Jimmy Berg (65 today), and David Worthington. We had no anniversaries this week.

Hope to see you Sunday!

Ed & Payton asked that we let you know that at 10:15 this morning their daughter in law Nikki dead peacefully at home in Kansas City.

Please keep them in your prayers. Their cell phone phones are Ed (918)760-8834; Judith (918) 724-3421.

Martha’s mother, Pat Miller, passed away this morning at OMM. She was surrounded by her family, husband Ray Miller and daughters Martha Blevins and Beth Martin.
The family is not in need of anything and her services are not set but will be in the Methodist Church in Okmulgee. Please keep Martha’s family in your thoughts.

Ed and Judith Payton have asked for our prayers. They are in Kansas City helping their daughter during their daughter-in-law‘s last days so that she may remain at home. Ed’s cell phone 918-760-8834 and Judith‘s cell phone 918-724-3421. If you do send them a text be sure and sign it since they do not have everyone in their contact list.

Dear Maranatha friends,

Welcome to 2018! We’d like to start the year with a big THANK YOU to last year’s excellent officers – they set the bar pretty high and we know we have big shoes to fill! We’ll do our best.

Your new officers met before class this morning, and we’re off to a good start. Teachers are scheduled for the year, and upcoming mission projects and socials (both class socials and auction items) will be posted on the board each week, along with information about our attendance and finances, to keep you “in the know.”

When our Caranatha leaders send out a notice of a class member’s need this year, they will be including that member’s cell phone number so that you can send a quick text to tell them you’re thinking of them, if you wish.

We’re also working on the Maranatha website (maranathaclass.org) to update it and make it easier to use. The site includes a members-only page that is password protected for privacy, and that page has a new password. Check with Barbara Meehan or Shari Goodwin, and they will gladly give it to you.

Our new class presidents, Rick Evans and Roger Rowe, introduced themselves and shared their history together – their years of friendship, work history together, and interests. This reporter didn’t write it all down, but I think the last statement was that Roger is an OU fan and Rick is wrong – or something like that. They also shared ideas for our class and our church. Rick ended by asking class members to sit near the front of the sanctuary for worship, if possible, to enhance our worship atmosphere.

Thanks to William Meyer for our prayer this morning, and to Rob and Andrea Davis and Suzanne and Andy Hood for our refreshments. Jerry LeDoux will give our prayer next week, and Glenna Arnott and David Cooley will be our hosts.

Welcome to our guests, Connie and Jim Morrison. It was good to have Karen Holmes, too, though she’s really not a visitor.

Happy birthday to Gary Smith, Ken Privett, Billy Pitts, David Rose and Kristy Hayes. No anniversaries this week.
Joys and Concerns: * Congratulations to Melanie Shepherd, who is retiring this week. She and Dave are celebrating with a trip to see Skip and Paula Scott in Belize. * Jeff and Julie Allen are also celebrating, as their son Taylor and his family are moving to Tulsa. * Jim Griffith is doing much better, but he will start chemo again this Thursday. He will get a lighter dose this time, and hopefully will tolerate it better. * Glenna Arnott asked for prayers for the family of her friend, Sharon Brenson, who has passed away.

Finally, thanks to Brenda Reed for her first of two lessons on the state of our church. She discussed staffing, endowment, and financial matters, then answered questions this week. She also talked about a staffing and systems study that Rick and Roger are currently doing for our church.

Next week she will talk about our church’s programs and ministries, and share any upcoming changes. It should be a most interesting session! Hope you can join us –

The recording of this week’s lesson has been uploaded and is available, along with hundreds of our class’s lessons since 2008, at this link: http://www.bostonavenue.org/maranatha.html.

We will have a meeting of the new 2018 officers tomorrow at 9am in our classroom. Everyone is welcome to attend!

We will be discussing schedules, roles, and needs while we are together.

In advance, we will not be planning to interrupt attendance in the 830 church service routinely.