Maranatha, July 4, 2010

“The goodness you live will set you free.”
Desmond TuTu and Mpho Tutu

Sunday, the “4th of July/Independence Day”, we had a delicious brunch at Maranatha, with a large number of members in attendance and a few visitors. If you were away this week, we hope to see you next week!

In between bites, we celebrated birthdays and anniversaries coming up this week: one birthday, Patty Banes (7/8) and anniversaries, Jim and Sherry Stinson (7/7), Patrick and Mary Bones (7/8), Dave and Carol Grim (7/8), Gary and Patti Smith (7/9). Enjoy your special day!!

Prayers were requested for Susan Lewis and her daughter; her daughter lost a baby this last week. Lucy Batson will have surgery this week. Good news: Carol Maus is improving from her injuries, and the Wansley’s son has found employment.

Mark you calendar: the Maranatha Christmas Party will be held on Friday, December 10th, Tulsa Country Club. Pam Sherman let us know that we have made the reservation for the space on that date.

The July social will be attending the BABA performance on Friday, the 30th. Pam has reserved 20 tickets for those interested in attending and sitting together. Contact Pam if you want tickets.

Beginning July 11, David Carpenter, who teaches Disciple’s Study in the Church, will be our leader in a series that he refers to as “Disciple Bible: Introduction to New Testament Lite.” David will lead us for 8 weeks (in 4 week blocks), July 11th, 18th, 25th, and August 1st, then he will take a break for several weeks, leading us again for 4 Sundays in September. Invite guests to join Maranatha for this series of presentations.

See you on Sunday!

Richard Wansley and Meredith Davison, Presidents

Published in: on July 5, 2010 at 1:37 pm  Comments Off on Maranatha, July 4, 2010  
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Marantha, Sunday, the 4th of July – BRUNCH

Just a reminder that the 4th of July, will be a BRUNCH SUNDAY at Maranatha. Bring a dish to share with all, please. We will acknowledge birthdays, anniversaries, and have announcements, but in a shortened version. Also, we will not have a lesson, per se; I will be delivering a devotion on the topic of “freedom”. Bring visitors to enjoy the food, fellowship, and devotion!

Beginning July 11, at the request of many in the class, we will begin Maranatha’s own version of a “disciple’s bible study”. Our own David Carpenter, who teaches Disciple’s Study in the Church, will be our leader in a series that he refers to as “Disciple Bible: Introduction to New Testament Lite.” David will lead us for 8 weeks (in 4 week blocks), July 11th, 18th, 25th, and August 1st, then he will take a break for several weeks, leading us again for 4 Sundays in September. I’m not certain that we have done this form of teaching before in our class, but it was suggested by a number of members when we did our survey prior to setting up lessons for the year. Thank you, David, for agreeing to be our leader in this series. Spread the word to others who may wish to join us in July and then again in September for David’s program.

See you Sunday; have a safe holiday celebration!

Richard Wansley

Published in: on July 2, 2010 at 9:19 pm  Comments Off on Marantha, Sunday, the 4th of July – BRUNCH  
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Maranatha, June 27, 2010

“Today you are you, that is truer than true.
There is no one alive who is youer than you.”
Dr. Suess

We had a large class today; it was terrific! We celebrated several birthdays: Roger Rowe (6/29), Sue Madden (7/1), and Charlie Ninde (7/3), and some anniversaries: Lynn and Shari Goodwin (6/28) and Alan and Jane Smith (6/30). Happy Birthdays and Anniversaries!

Our greeters who also brought refreshments were Bob and Lynn Russell, and David and Brenda Worthington. Thanks!

We have a number of visitors this morning: Judith Shumway, Tom Walton, Alyce & Larry Meredith, and Rebecca Allen. You’re invited to return any time; thanks for visiting!

SAVE THE DATE: August 20, 2010 – The Maranatha 30th “Pearls” Anniversary Party. We will have a social hour and dinner at the Church, and share memories. Also, there is discussion of having a mission opportunity during the weekend. We want all members and alums to be at this celebration!

In July, the social event will be group attendance to BABA. Pam Sherman will provide details next Sunday.

Brenda Miller is collecting books for the Day Center and Meredith Davison is gathering unused soaps, coffees, and so forth collected by you from your stays at hotels.

Several joys and concerns were expressed. Mickey Maus reported that Carol is improving from her accident a couple of weeks ago. Sharon Bookout shared concerns for change in having a new principal at her school. Jim Embrey successfully completed his “war games” assignment. There were several people ask for thoughts and prayers for others who were without employment, as well as though new graduates who will be seeking employment in a difficult economy.

Our prayer was offered by Kendall Carpenter. Nicely done, Kendall; thanks. Reverend Bill Crowell completed his 4-part presentation on interesting, often overlooked Christians in our history who have made a difference to today’s modern world.

Next Sunday, the 4th of July, will be a BRUNCH SUNDAY. Please bring a dish to share with others. We are also looking for a volunteer to share a “freedom-themed” devotion. If you are interested in doing so, please let me know by Tuesday.

Don’t forget, next week is a BRUNCH SUNDAY! Hope to see all of you and your visiting family and friends at Maranatha!

Richard Wansley

Published in: on June 27, 2010 at 3:51 pm  Comments Off on Maranatha, June 27, 2010  
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Maranatha, June 20, 2010

Report for Sunday, June 20, 2010

It’s Friday, and I’m just now getting out our Report as you can see. It’s been a demanding week, and, regretfully it has precluded me getting this information to you prior to now. Sorry. Since it is so late, I’ll keep it short and to the point:

Sunday, Reverend Bill Crowell continued his presentation on “historical Christians”; his final presentation will be this Sunday, June 27th. It’s been a great series and hope to see all of you this week.

Birthdays: Mark Rounds (6/21); William Meyer (6/26). Anniversaries: Ray and Sharon Earley (6/21); Jerry and Ginny LeDoux (6/21); Mark and Susie Butterworth (6/24). Happy, Happy!

Greeters/Refreshments for June 20th: Debbie and Steve Jacoby, and Jeanie and Richard Payton. Thank you!

Next week’s greeters/refreshments: Bob and Lynn Russell (set up/guilty snacks), and Brenda and David Worthington (clean up/healthy snacks).

A couple of announcements: The Stone Bluff wine tour is tomorrow, Saturday. Contact Pam Sherman for more information. The dedication of the Interfaith House when the keys are handed over to Starla, the new owner, will be this Sunday afternoon, June 27th, 3pm.

Under joys and concerns, Mickey Maus explained that Carol had injured herself (fractures, scrapes, and bruises) in a bike accident last Saturday. Subsequent news from Mickey has let us know that she appears to not require surgery. Good news following bad news! Carol, you have our prayers and thoughts are with you; get well soon!!

Lynn Russell announced to Bob’s surprise that he had a new granddaughter. Bob knew the baby was due soon, but didn’t know until Lynn’s announcement, that she was born late on Saturday evening. Bob’s look of surprise and joy was priceless!

Denny Meredith-Orr delivered our prayer on Sunday.

See all of you this coming Sunday, and for those who can’t make it, I will be more timely in delivering my Report to you.

Richard Wansley

Published in: on June 25, 2010 at 4:00 pm  Comments Off on Maranatha, June 20, 2010  
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Status of Carol Maus

Message from Mickey Maus:

“We got some good news yesterday from the orthopedic doctor. Carol is not going to require any surgery on her elbow. The broken finger and the broken bone in her elbow are splinted at the present time, but should mend over the next couple of months. She will get the stitches out of her knee on July 2nd. The abrasions on her face and hands are now healing. She is going to spend the next couple of weeks in a recliner. I am rearranging my travel schedule to reduce my number of nights out for the next two months. We appreciate all the prayers, meals, and cards. Thanks.”

Published in: on June 24, 2010 at 10:39 am  Comments Off on Status of Carol Maus  
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Death of Pam Snodgrass’ mother

Please see the note below from Pam Snodgrass notifying us of the death of her mother. Pam’s E-mail address is: snodgrass.pam. Our thoughts and prayers are with Pam and her family.

"I know it has been a long time since we attended Sunday School, but I wanted our friends to know that my mom died this morning in Oklahoma City. I was able to spend the last couple of days with her and was there with her when she died. It was a very peaceful death. The graveside and memorial services will be in Oklahoma City on Monday and Tuesday. We don’t need anything other than thoughts and prayers.

Pam Snodgrass"

Published in: on June 18, 2010 at 4:44 pm  Comments Off on Death of Pam Snodgrass’ mother  
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Maranatha, June 13, 2010

Sunday was a great time with wonderful fellowship, great speaker and good food. It was good to see friends we hadn’t seen for a long time and to welcome several new friends and visitors. Our visitors included Vickie Petree, Aaron Stuart and Susan Hendrex.
We had a lot of announcements including: Social on June 26 to Stone bluff. Meet at 9:45 in the church south parking lot.
Sharon Earley updated us on funds given to Project Transformation and asked the class for an additional donation of $200.00. It was voted and approved. She also asked for funds to place the Class Ad in the BABA Program which was approved.
Beverly North also needs volunteers to help feed us every Sunday morning. This Sunday we were treated to a wonderful treats by Keith and Sue Madden and Debra and Scott Morgan. Thanks so much to each of you.
We also heard from Carolyn Evans about Methodist Manors expansion. There will be a special program at Methodist Manor on June 26 at 2:00-3:00 pm. Call for reservations at 346-6663.
Our birthdays this week are Denny Meredith-Orr on 6/14 and Denise Klein on 6/18. Happy Birthday to both of you. There were no anniversaries this week.
Our joys and concerns were many: Rob and Andrea Davis have a new grandson: Art and Karen Campbell are sending Katie off to college and are being blessed with 2 new grandchildren: Frieda Reck is having surgery this week: Beverly North’s niece needs prayers: John Sherman’s cousin and Martha Blevins friend Vicki Shields have cancer and need our prayers. Please remember to hold these special persons in your prayers this week. Our class prayer was so beautifully given by Mary Elliot.
Our speaker was Bill Crowell and he was wonderful and will return with us next week. We will look forward to seeing each of you then and the safe return of Richard and Meredith.
God’s blessings to each of you.

Bob and Lynn

P.S. So many of you wanted Sue’s recipe for the granola dish, here it is:
Fruit Granola (Sue Madden served in Sunday School, 6/13/10)
Box of low fat granola large carton (about 16 oz) of Vanilla Yogurt
8 oz of Whipped Cream Cheese
1 table spoon of Splenda
Strawberries, Blueberries and Blackberries (other fruit would be equally as good)
Place granola on bottom of casserole dish. Combine Yogurt, Cream Cheese and Splenda and spread on top of the Granola. Evenly spread the fruit on top.
Note: I have saved a little granola and placed on top of the fruit. I have also added nuts to the top layer.

Published in: on June 15, 2010 at 6:30 am  Comments Off on Maranatha, June 13, 2010  
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Maranatha, June 6, 2010

“It matters not how strait the gate,
How charged with punishments the scroll,
I am the master of my fate.
I am the captain of my soul.”
William Ernest Henley (Excerpted from Invictus)

Several birthdays were recognized today, including Lisa Tallent (6/6), Teri Jennings (6/8), James Kilman (6/8), Julie Allen (6/12), and Debbie Pascoe (6/12), as well as one anniversary, Rob and Andrea Davis (6/6). Congratulations to all!

We had no visitors today, but welcomed alumni, Sherry and Jim Griffin back to the class and, we were all pleased to see Doug Tye this morning!

Our greeters this morning were the Pascoes and Lows. Pam and Karey Low provided great refreshments as well.

There were several announcements: June 26th will be next date for a social event, a trip to Stone Bluff. Contact Pam Sherman for additional information; also, she will have more details next week.

David Carpenter will be starring in “Love Letters”; check out your local entertainment sources to find the times and place.

There were concerns shared with the class, including for friends and family who suffer with cancer, the death of a friend, and a grandson who is having surgery. In these concerns, there was also one who with cancer who is showing promise toward recovery.

We celebrate the joy of Paul (and Mary) Staat for his confirmation by the Board of Ordained Ministries. Now, Paul enters a 3 year observation period leading to his ordination in the church. Congrats, Paul!

David Carpenter led us in prayer.

Reverend Bill Crowell taught a class on “A People’s History of Christianity”, focuses this Sunday on Justin Martyr and Perpetua. It was fascinating! Next week, Bill promises a “steamy love story” in the “people’s history”! BE THERE!!

Unfortunately, Meredith and I will not be in class next week. We will be working and visiting with family in Chicago, but will be thinking of all of you. Lynn and Bob Russell have graciously agreed to take our places in facilitating the class period on June 13th.

Please see below a note from Doug Tye to the class:

To: Maranatha Class

Thank for the many ways you have helped us during this very difficult time with our loss of Jennifer. Your thoughts, prayers, visits, calls and overall support have been very much appreciated and needed. Thank you to the group that put together that wonderful lunch before Jennifer’s memorial service on Saturday, May 22, 2010. While Jennifer and I had not been very good about getting to the class on Sunday’s since she became ill back in May 2006 we still felt we were a part of the class via all the e-mails and Mickey and Carol Maus keeping us updated.

One last very special thank you to Mickey and Carol Maus. They have been our dear friends since the day we moved to Tulsa in 1989. They have been there for me in some very diffucult times over the last four years during Jennifer’s illness, spending the very long hours and nights with me at the hospital, making sure Brett and Matthew were taken care of, and just being there to talk to.

Again, thank you everyone.

Doug, Brett and Matthew Tye

Published in: on June 6, 2010 at 3:53 pm  Comments Off on Maranatha, June 6, 2010  
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Maranatha, May 30, 2010; Request for men to volunteer for a Father’s Day lesson

The Report is arriving a bit later than usual due to the holiday this week, and our hosting family at our house. My apologies for the late posting.

Being the 5th Sunday, it was a Brunch Sunday, and the food was ample and delicious. We also had a great turnout especially considering that it was a holiday weekend.

Ginny Walker gave an inspired lesson, a description of her loving relationship with Jerry, her husband, who resides at Methodist Manor. Ginny and Jerry’s story served as a reminder to us that our personal world can be a fragile one, and when it breaks, we need the support of family, friends, and our Christian faith. Thank you, Ginny, for sharing your story with us! Also, our thanks to Steve Dickie, Executive Director for Methodist Manor, who joined Ginny in describing the Manor and its plans for the future.

We recognized several birthdays and anniversaries: Birthdays – Doug Justice (5/31); Deb Nihiser (5/31); Sharon Bookout (6/2); Debbie Morgan (6/2); Neal Pascoe (6/4); Diane Martin (6/5). Anniversaries – Jeff and Julie Allen (5/30); Terry and Amy Michael (5/30); Steve and Debbie Jacoby (6/4). Celebrate; you deserve it!

It was our pleasure to welcome visitors, as well, including Kay Boswell, Steve and Doris Dixon (returning visitors), Ann Walker (Ginny and Jerry’s daughter), Vicky Langston, and, of course, Steve Dickie.

Joys and concerns were expressed by members and prayers were heard for those who were raised up in need of our help.

Now, I need your help! If you recall, we had several women volunteer to speak on Mother’s Day Sunday regarding being a mother or their own mother. It was a great lesson! On that Sunday, the idea was presented that we do a similar lesson for Father’s Day Sunday, June 20th. So, I’m looking for 3 or 4 volunteers who would speak about 5 or 6 minutes each about either being a father or about your father. I would like to have 4 men, 2 for each topic. If you are interested in volunteering, please let me know as soon as possible. I will take the first volunteers that fit into the two topics.

In June, Rev. Bill Crowell, will be our teacher. He will also teach on June 20th if we don’t have enough men to volunteer for the Father’s Day lesson. Bill’s lessons will be entitled, “A People’s History of Christianity”. This Sunday, June 6th, he will teach about two people, Justin Martyr and Perpetua. See you Sunday!!

Richard Wansley and Meredith Davison
Presidents

Published in: on June 2, 2010 at 8:03 pm  Comments Off on Maranatha, May 30, 2010; Request for men to volunteer for a Father’s Day lesson  
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Death of Gabriele Blankenship’s Mother

Please see the following message from Gabriele regarding her mother’s death:

“Quick note to inform you that my mother passed away yesterday at Bridgeport Hospital in the “Comfort Wing.” She died peacefully in spite of her strong will to live. Her funeral will be tomorrow in Trumbull CT. Thanking you for your support. Gabriele.”

Shari Goodwin passes along additional information:

“Just wanted to let you know that Gabriele Blankenship’s mother, Elizabeth Kleiner, died yesterday, May 24. Her service will be tomorrow at 10:30 a.m. at Black Rock Congregational Church in Fairfield, CT. I’m not sure when Gabriele will be returning to Tulsa. Shari Goodwin.”

Published in: on May 25, 2010 at 4:45 pm  Comments Off on Death of Gabriele Blankenship’s Mother  
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