GREETINGS FROM YOUR SCOTT ADMINISTRATIVE COUNCIL CHAIRPERSON
To God be the glory for all the good things He continues to do.
In this first edition of our resurrected Scott newsletter, the chair wishes to thank the editor and all the contributors for bringing this project into fruition. In this age of electronics, printed material still has its place.
For the benefit of recent new members of Scott and also for those who may need a bit of refreshing, I would like to take this opportunity to share a little information about who we are and what we do.
The Administrative Council, correctly known as the Church Council, is the governing body of the church that provides for planning and implementing a program of nurture, outreach, witness, and resources in the local church. It also provides for the administration of its organization and temporal life. It envisions, implements, and annually evaluates the mission and ministry of the church. (Paraphrased from the Book of Discipline of the United Methodist Church)
The leaders of Council are elected annually at the Charge Conference which is led by the District Superintendent of the Detroit West District.
Our Council meets the first Saturday of every month in the fellowship hall of the church. It is an open meeting.At these meetings all the ministries of the church share their plans for implementing the mission of the church. The Council coordinates and supports the ministries. The ministry leaders are elected at the Charge Conference. They are constantly seeking members to be a part of their ministries.
Every member of the church is welcome to serve on any of the ministry teams in the church. There is something that every church member can do. You do not have to wait to be asked. Just make your interest known. You have been blessed. Now join the leadership team and be a blessing to others.
Jimmie E. Jones
Administrative (Church) Council Chairperson
BLACK METHODISTS (continued from Page 1)
Currently, a beautiful, well illustrated bible is also available for $20. Sales of the bible will assist the fund raising efforts of BMCR. If you would like a membership form or would like to purchase a bible, please see Rev. Hilda Harris or Ruby Washington, Membership Chairperson for Scott UMC.
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The Finance and Stewardship Ministries encourage you to use the 20/10 plan for paying your Apportionment - $20 each month for 10 months (February through November). This payment is in addition to your regular offering. In 2009 Scott paid 100% of its Apportionment Allocation. Let’s make 2010 another successful year for our church!
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NEWS OF THE CHURCH
SCOTT COMMUNITY CENTER, INC.
Scott Community Center, Inc. was formed almost 25 years ago to provide community service projects to the neighborhood adjacent to the church and throughout the Detroit area. One of its remarkable achievements was the ASPIRES College Bound Program, which operated from 1990 until 2005. The Organization functioned under 501c3 guidelines as a non-profit entity and was able to secure grants and tax deductible donations. We are now in a new community and the opportunities for new and needed projects are numerous. In order to develop a new focus and new formats, planning sessions will be held to outline and map out future endeavors. Ruby Washington has served as Executive Director and new Board of Directors will be needed to effect the institution’s new missions. Meetings will be held the second Thursday of each month to begin planning sessions. If you are interested in becoming a Board Member, or would like more information, contact Ruby Washington at 313-538-2575, or rdwwash@aol.coom.
The first meeting is planned for Thursday, April 8, 2010, 6:30 p.m. at Scott Church.
UNITED METHODIST WOMEN
United Methodist Women (UMW) is a ministry that serves the needs of women, youth and children, and is comprised of a rich diversity of women. This year, one of the issues being studied by the UMW is the trafficking of women and children throughout the United States and the world, and learning how we can contribute to the solutions of those problems.
Because of your generosity in donating money and health kits that were sent to Haiti, we were able to contribute 37 kits.
We are busy making plans for our major fund raiser of 2010, the Annual Prayer Breakfast. It will be held on the day before Mother’s Day – Saturday, May 8, 2010 – at the American Serbian Hall, 19940 Van Dyke, at 9a.m. Tickets are $21, with youth 12 and under receiving a discounted rate of $12. Proceeds from this event are sent to the national office to expand our mission work.
United Methodist Women from across the globe assemble every four years to celebrate, to lift up, to learn, and to return to their communities better equipped for mission. This year’s Assembly will be held April 30 – May 2 in St. Louis, MO. UMW members with skills in knitting, crocheting or sewing were urged by the Assembly to create prayer shawls and baby blankets for those in need. Scott Memorial UMW responded by knitting or crocheting thirteen (13) baby blankets that will be displayed at the Assembly and will then be distributed to those who do not have the means to obtain these items on their own.
NEWS FLASH! Did you know that our own Ruby Anderson was recently featured as the guest speaker at the Women’s Day Service held at Second Grace UMC? Her topic was “Let’s Get Together.”
We are looking forward to writing about one of our special members in an upcoming Newsletter. Also, you’ll hear from our President, Norma Hood and our V.P. and Program Chair, Barbara Walker. Until then, if you are not currently a member, please consider joining us and becoming a part of one of the sub-groups listed below:
SUB GROUP LEADER
Porter/Edgar Pamela Gantt-Covington
Flora McKinney Claudette McMillan
Beatty/Miller Sylvia Elston
Harriet WesleyGloria Edwards &
Rosalind Fluker
Naomi Ruby Washington
Samaritan Sisters Harriett Fry
Sojourner Truth Wilma Barber
Uran Turner Barbara Walker
MY STORY
“The Old Rugged Cross”
By
Cheryl A. Alston
On a hill far away stood an old rugged cross,
the emblem of suffering and shame;
and I love that old cross where the dearest and best
for a world of lost sinners was slain. [1]
As I look forward to Easter, I look forward to hearing or singing my favorite hymn, “The Old Rugged Cross.” In my view, this hymn epitomizes Christianity. There are many today who “can’t stand” hymns and “think they’re boring,” but some of my fondest childhood memories are of singing hymns in church with my father. My mother sang in the choir, so my sister and I sat with him. He sang in a loud, slightly off-key voice. Growing up in the 1950s, when many parents were not demonstrative, I could feel and share my father’s love through the singing of hymns.
O that old rugged cross, so despised by the world,
has a wondrous attraction for me;
for the dear Lamb of God left his glory above
to bear it to dark Calvary.
We attended a Methodist Episcopal church with an African American congregation, but there was certainly none of the clapping, rocking, and swaying going on in the African Methodist Episcopal church or the Colored Methodist Episcopal church. All we had was the organ or piano and the beauty of the hymns.
In that old rugged cross, stained with blood so divine,
a wondrous beauty I see,
for ‘twas on that old cross Jesus suffered and died,
to pardon and sanctify me.
I believe that hymns are a beautiful testimony of God’s love, and of our commitment to Him. Nowadays, a lot of vocalists try to replace the tried and true, inclusive hymn with verbal acrobatics and contemporary lyrics, and while there’s nothing wrong with a new approach, I believe that they do not come close to the saving grace of hymns. We certainly need to reach present day congregants, but let’s continue to celebrate God’s love for us through the beautiful songs that brought us this far. I cannot remember one particular soloist or song sung, but I do remember and still love the hymns.
To the old rugged cross I will ever be true,
its shame and reproach gladly bear;
then he’ll call me some day to my home far away,
where his glory forever I’ll share.
So I’ll cherish the old rugged cross,
till my trophies at last I lay down;
I will cling to the old rugged cross,
and exchange it some day for a crown.
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CHRISTIAN CORNER
by Camille Sims
Leaving the past behind
"...But this one thing I do. Forgetting those things that are behind and reaching forth unto those things which are before." Philippines3:13
Failures and disappointments from the past, that just won’t seem to go away, are things that most of us know what it's like to suffer from. However, only a few of us know just what to do about them. We go through life hoping they will magically go away. Instead of putting our failures behind, we dwell on them until they become more real to us than the promises of God. We focus on them until we become depressed and afraid to totally trust in God's word. God himself wants us to forget about those failures and all the disappointing things that cause us to go into a state of depression. Forget about the things of the past because that's what He has done. And if He can do it, so can we. REMEMBER ALWAYS BE BLESSED AND BE A BLESSING TO OTHERS. GOD BLESS!
Your Garden Can be a Reflection of Your Soul
Bridgette Mongeon © 2004
Visitors who come by my home often comment on my garden. "Lovely – it’s an oasis in the middle of the city." I just smile and feel a warm nurturing feeling accompanied with a quiet excitement.
There once was a day when my garden oasis was only a dream. My surroundings seemed void, dry and sparse. It was, in fact, a reflection of what I was feeling inside of me at that time. Our gardens can be a reflection of our souls. "I’ll change it all." I said to myself one day.
"I'll change the outside and it will help change what is within me." So I sat on a patch of grass and dreamt of a garden. Then I took a shovel and began turning over dirt, and then more dirt. A friend came to visit me and asked what I was doing. Panting a bit, still digging, I answered "Building my dream garden." There was row after row of turned dirt, and not one plant to plant in them. It didn¹t matter; the important thing was to act upon my dreams.
It was apparent more soil was needed. However as a single mom there was very little expendable income. In this journey of discovering my garden and myself, I found that just as I would put forth the effort and get to a certain point where there was a need, somehow what was needed appeared. It may also have been due to the fact that I looked at life more creatively, less confining, and with more possibility.
Just down the street the city was digging out drainage ditches. I mustered up the courage to ask the driver if I could have some of the soil. "Sure”, he said. “Give me the address." Soon I had raised flowerbeds everywhere. One last load of dirt was dumped in the driveway. I wish I had gotten up into that last truck to take a look, because this time I did not receive fine soil; instead he deposited a large truckload of hard clay.
There were many beautifully raised beds all around my yard, and one huge pile of gumbo in my driveway. The beds sat empty for a while. It is inevitable if you don¹t plant anything in those flowerbeds, no matter how prepared they are; they will soon be overcome with weeds. And if dreams are not acted upon and then you lose momentum, the stagnation will be felt, along with discouragement.
I did not find the dirt I needed until I was ready for it, and had gone through the effort to turn my soil. Now that my beds were turned over for the second time, I made myself ready for plants. While walking in the neighborhood I admired a neighbor’s yard. "Fine garden," I said. "If you ever need assistance I would love to lend a hand in your yard in exchange for some of your plants." "No need to help, take as much as you want, I’m moving," was his reply. So weekend after weekend I loaded the trunk of my car with plants. My trunk hauled so many plants, with dirt breaking free from their roots in travel, that soon things began to grow inside my car.
I had Cannas, Split Leaf Philodendrons, edging plants and many other things that I didn’t even know the names of. At one point I estimated I had over $1,000 worth of plants. I planted my treasures with quite a bit of distance between them for two reasons - the first was that I wanted it to look like I had more than I had, and the other was because I knew that after a time things would grow and eventually fill in. It is the same way with dreams that are acted upon; they grow and fill in the sparse areas of our lives.
Once I began to act upon my dream garden I became more aware of other peoples gardens. I noticed that many people had gardens that needed thinning. Each time I would receive plants from another gardener there was this unspoken respect for another dreamer and the honor of sharing in a part of their dream. In no time at all, my entire yard was lush with bushes, flowers and plants.
Remember that big pile of gumbo? I painstakingly moved it to the back yard. Another friend came over and said "Your yard is looking pretty good accept this pile of dirt here". I could hardly believe it. I said "Is that what you see?" I had spent so much time visualizing my dream garden that I thought everyone could see it the way that I did.
That evening I got an old piece of wood and some paint. I made two signs and put one on top of the pile of dirt and another further in the yard. The first said, "Visualize a waterfall here" and another said, "Visualize a stream here."
It took over 10 years, and my paradise is still a work in progress. The waterfall is not complete, but the sign has been removed and in its place are two ponds. The stream does run into a lower pond just where I visualized it, under the footbridge that my husband and son made. The sandy beach with Adirondackchairs was never in my original dream but was added as I went along.
When I was a little girl my fondest memories were along the streams of the Allegheny Mountains. There are no mountains just north of the Heights in Houston, but the adventure and wonder I feel as I take my shoes and socks off and play in the stream is just as rejuvenating as when I was a child.
Over the years my garden has changed. My dream garden was not the only thing that was nurtured; I nurtured my own dreams. As they both grew I became inspired. I watched provision come when needed, spurred by my own actions. This taught me to work hard and to depend on God and my faith in Him. It all started with a dream and my willingness to act upon those dreams and with a little time life grew sweet, filling everything in.
This article was written by artist, writer and lecturer Bridgette Mongeon and is used with permission from the artist and God’s Word Collectible Christian Gifts. http://www.godsword.net. Please visit the God’s Word web site.
C O M I N G S O O N
BLOOD DRIVE
Scott Memorial UMC Health Ministry is asking your support of their Blood Drive on Saturday, April 24, 2010 – time to be announced.
CRAFT FAIR
Our first Craft Fair will be held in the Fellowship Hall on Saturday, April 17, 11 a.m until 4 p.m.
‘DA REMIX – YOUTH SERVICE
2ndand 4thSaturday of the month, 6 p.m.
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PLEASE REMEMBER OUR MEMBERS WHO ARE ILL, ARE IN NURSING FACILITIES OR ARE CONFINED TO THEIR HOMES. THEY ARE APPRECIATIVE OF YOUR PRAYERS, CARDS AND VISITS. CONTACT INFORMATION IS LISTED IN THE WEEKLY BULLETIN.
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We’ve entitled this edition of our Newsletter “THE MESSENGER”; however, we thought you might have a better idea!
Drop your name ideas off at the church office or deliver them to one of the persons listed above, either via e-mail or hand it to them personally.
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Your Name
To be a progressive church committed to the winning of souls, and the revival of personal commitment to Jesus Christ through religious teaching, Bible study, inspirational worship, and meaningful ministries to our service community.
