MONTHLY NEWSLETTER OF WALNUT GROVE CHRISTIAN CHURCH JUNE 2014 – VOLUME 6

CHURCH EVENTS Peace Meals 6/2-6

Heartland 6/4

Deacons Mtg 6/7

Free Rummage 6/7

Humboldt Canvas 6/7

Men’s group 6/8,22

VBS Mtg 6/8

CIY 6/9-13

Eunice Club 6/9

Council 6/9

Summer Small Group 6/18

Young at Heart 6/12

Elders Mtg 6/14

VBS 6/16-20

Team Mtgs 6/23

5th Sunday Service 6/29

WGCC Focus

June 16-20 9:00pm-12:00pm

Grab your secret decoder ring and put on your rearview mirror glasses

because your kids are invited to the International Spy Academy where

they’ll train to become special agents for the one true God! This exciting Vacation Bible School program is

filled with fun mysteries your kids will love and the Bible-based

apologetics you trust, to teach them truths they won’t forget!

Global Persecuted Saints

Kenya Pressing challenges for Kenya include high unemployment and poverty. Most Kenyans live below the poverty level of $1 a day. The country is also experiencing increased drug trafficking, expanding urban slums and growing populations of street children and AIDS orphans.

Religion Kenyans, by law, have freedom of religion. Nearly 50% identify themselves as Christians, up from 17% in 1960. The coast and northwest areas of the country have traditionally been Muslim. Muslims try to convert non-Muslims through financial inducements and violence. Converts from Islam to Christianity are subject to harassment, persecution and violence. Terrorists have attacked several churches in Kenya, killing pastors and other Christians, including children. VOM supports several children orphaned in the attacks.

“2014 Global Report from The Voice of the Martyrs

Modify your Inkjet

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CONCENTRATED lemon juice,

you can create an invisible

message that will only be

revealed when exposed to

extreme heat (e.g. by

pressing it with an iron) or

iodine.

For full details of this

process check out

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Sooo, you wanna be a Spy? 1. Get gutsy & get smart! When you’re off doing your spy-like deeds, you

may find yourself in “danger zone” situations. The only protection you may have is your quick thinking and resourcefulness!

2. Get creative! Everything can be a clue and everyone can be of potential use to you!

3. Get a day job! Even Clark Kent had the Daily Planet, even though being Superman was a full time gig!

4. Get in shape! Though physical confrontation is something a spy avoids at all costs, keeping fit will still be necessary for staying on your feet all day, tailing someone, or making a quick getaway.

5. Hide in plain sight. The #1 objective of a spy is to blend in! 6. Keep your gear to a minimum! Less gear = better mobility. 7. Learn how to read lips. Whether your subject is beyond earshot or is

simply being drowned out by other noises, reading lips can give you a huge eavesdropping advantage.

8. Improve your memory. Consistently work with memory games and quiz yourself on details of events. In time, you'll become more observant and the facts will start sticking.

For more ideas check out Wikihow.com/be-a-spy

For some Spy related fun at your house plan a scavenger hunt! Hide clues all around the house and/or outside and hide a surprise at the end! You can even scramble up the words on the clues so the kids have to decode it! It’s cheap (can even be FREE) and TOTALLY fun! I still remember when my mom did a scavenger hunt for me when I was little! GO MAKE SOME MEMORIES!

5th Sunday Service June 29

8:00am Breakfast served by the Deacons

9:00am Worship Service

*No Sunday School

Young at Heart June 12

@ WGCC 12:00pm

Guest Speaker! Homework: Bring a memory of a crazy relative…we ALL have ‘em!

…and if you don’t have one, you’re probably it!

Mark your calendar! AICM Mission trip is

July 3-13! See Carol Nelson if you are

interested in going.

The Corner Boothe

The world is in continual motion, the world seems to never sleep, seems to never rest. It spins, and rotates in a never ending cycle. We as human beings seem to have this same plague. We continue to move, and move, and move without stopping. The phrase, stop and smell the roses, has become something that we cannot imagine. I once heard that when movies first came out the time spent on one camera angel was nearly 30 seconds to one minute, but now if a camera is on the same shot, angel, frame of reference we become bored and uninterested. If that isn't enough proof, think back 10-20 years. When there were family gatherings they were completely different than they are today. Next time you go to a party, or family get together take a look at the people there. How many of them are on cellphones checking Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, or text messages? We can't seem to be present in a moment anymore. I feel as if this is something that speaks to a deep spiritual need. There is something in this world that is calling out to the people demanding our attention. He demands so much attention that the very rocks and ground we stand on would cry out to Him if we don't. God demands our attention, our worship, our praise. He demands that we place Him in the proper place in our lives, first and foremost. Yet we can't even focus on him. The world moves so fast. Our minds move so quickly from subject to subject that our relationship with God is hindered. We move from subject to subject, interest to interest so quickly that we don't have time to give God his proper attention. While I have been typing these two paragraphs I have, check my phone, listened to music, checked my phone, texted, texted, and I am about to look up another song. This all happened in the span of all but 10 minutes. I am not the only one with this curse; I am not alone in this. So what does this mean? Doesn't this mean that we need to create a more exciting worship "experience" for Sunday mornings so that we can get more people in the door? Does this mean that we need to stop all of our extraneous activities and participate in a monastic lifestyle? Does this mean a complete shift in how we worship God? I don't think it means any of those things. I think that there is no magic bullet to this, but here is one suggestion that I have for all of us as a church body. We need to recognize that our relationship with God, our worship of God, has never been intended to be with us at the center, but Christ. We too often think of worship, prayer, praise, sacrifice, surrender, holiness, and any other Christian term we can interject here with us at the focal point. We make it about us, egocentric, which means Me at the center of everything. When in reality we should hold all things as Theo-centric, God centered. When we start to grasp God as the center, when we start to take God as he truly is, he demands our attention. Paul knew this when he told the Colossians, "For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell..." (Col 1:16-19) It wasn't by accident that Paul places this at the beginning of his letter. He wants the people to know that all things in life filtered through Christ. Therefore, when we give God his true seat we can know that all other things are less. All other things in this life can amount to nothing in light of His greatness. So we can throw away all of our distractions, through away all of the pity things in our lives and let Christ truly be the center of all.

Puttin’ the youth group

to work! VBS is going to

look GREAT!

June 2014 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Billie Connelly Nancy Dixon Rhonda & Chad Pedigo

Peace Meals Tom & Billie Connelly

Ladies Auxiliary to Heartland

Rummage Sale 8:00am

Humboldt VBS Canvas

Deacons Meeting @ 6:30am

Kay House

Rachel Sigrist

8 9 10 11 12 13 14 Men’s small group @ 12 VBS meeting @ 12

CIY Eunice Club @ 9am Council Mtg @ 6:30pm Rhonda Pedigo

Mardelle Blagg

Jeanne Strader

Young at Heart @ 12

David Thompson

Hope Nisbet

Don & Jane Munson

Elders Meeting @ 7am

15 16 17 18 19 20 21 VBS

Norma Jean Moore

Summer Small group @ 6pm Linda Miller

22 23 24 25 26 27 28 Men’s small group @ 12

Team Mtgs Erin Little

Bob & Karen Coombe

29 30 5

th Sunday

Service! 8am breakfast 9am service Mandy Chupp

`

Shane’s devotional challenge: As we enter the month of June, I want to encourage you to be in prayer. Pray for the many things that are going on in the church this month. We will send our youth to CIY. Pray they have a safe trip and that they will see more of God working in their lives. We will also have our yearly VBS. I ask that you pray that we as a church can use this program to impact the lives of those around us. Pray for our church that we may be able to be that city on a hill. Pray that we are able to actively take the Gospel to the people. June is a month that reminds us that the year is half way done. It reminds us to take note of what we have done the last six months and makes us reflect on what we can do better. Pray that as our leadership looks over the last six months they are able to discern what needs done better. Pray for the health of the members of our church that they remain healthy enough to reach those that are lost. Prayer is a big thing and we need to be in it to strengthen our church. I call on you, my God, for you will answer me; turn your ear to me and hear my prayer. Psalms 17:6

-Shane

Published and mailed by

Walnut Grove Christian Church

12930 E County Road 1700N

Arcola IL 61910

Office Phone (217)-856-2155

www.walnutgrovecc.org WORSHIP 8:00 &10:30am

SUNDAY SCHOOL 9:30am

FELLOWSHIP 9:00am

Shane Beever………Senior Minister

Aaron Boothe ………Youth/Worship Minister

Tera Arnold……….Ministry Assistant

Deanna Little……….Bookkeeper

Diana Groff…….… Custodian

OR CURRENT RESIDENT