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Holt United Methodist Church – The Church at the Crossroads
~ making disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world
~ committed to knowing and sharing the love of God
October 2014
A publication of Holt United Methodist Church
60+or– meets October 7 @ 12 noon! Bring a
dish to pass, your own table service, and enjoy an opportunity
to meet and greet Annette Erbes and hear what Christian
Education is planning for some upcoming programs.
Quilters—Please come join Piece to Peace Quilters on
In This Issue:
Fall Workday
Pg. 1
CROPWalk
Pg. 1
Younkers Community Days
Coupon Books
Pg. 1
Christmas Tea Hostesses/
Servers
Pg. 2
October Worship
Pg. 2
Kingdom Kids
Pg. 2-3
Annette’s Article
Pg. 3
from Pastor Mark
Pg. 4
Actors/Readers
Pg. 4
Vital Church Initiative Pg. 5
Michele’s Musings
Pg. 5
Board of Trustees
Pg. 5
MSU Concessions
Pg. 6
Birthdays
& Anniversaries
Trunk or Treat
Fall Crafters Festival
Social Justice Event
Attached:
Pg.
Pg.
Pg.
Pg.
October Activity Calendar
Youth Group Schedule
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Thursday, October 9, from 9 AM ‘til Noon. We make
children’s baptismal quilts and lap robes for
HUMC members. We also make lap robes
for patients at the Veterans Hospital in
Battle Creek.
Trustee-sponsored Workday
Saturday,
October 11 from 8 AM-12 noon with lunch to follow. This is for
everyone, not just the Trustees. Put it on
your calendar now, and watch for a flyer
listing jobs to be done. You will need to
bring your own supplies and/or tools for
the items on which you wish to work.
CROPWalk is Sunday, October 12
Registration at Lansing STEM Academy, 1
PM; 10K walk begins at 2 PM. If you
aren’t able to walk you can sponsor a
walker, or be a rocker! See the welcome
area display for forms and more
information.
October’s Hungry World offering on Sunday,
October 12 helps the Give-A-Kid projects with their upcoming
events: Give-A-Kid-A-Coat on October 18, and Give-A-Kid-AChristmas on December 18. These programs provide warm
clothing and packages to open at Christmas for those families in
Holt and Dimondale who otherwise might not have any. Your
support of this project is greatly appreciated.
Younkers’ Community Days Coupon Books
will be sold by the Holt United Methodist Women. Cost is $5
per book, which the UMW keeps and will use toward their
operating expenses. The books contain many coupons,
including one for $10 off anything. The Community Days sale is
November 14-15. Sold in the narthex beginning October 12,
from any UMW circle chair, or in the church office during the
week.
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Worship for October
Hats! Mittens! Scarves!---We now have
(8:30, 9:30 & 11:00 AM)
yarn available in the Welcome Area to make these
items for Give-a-Kid-a-Coat.
These must be brought to
the church by Friday,
October 17. On the 17th
take them to Fellowship
Hall; items brought in before
that may be place in the plastic container under the
yarn table in the welcome area.
Sunday, October 5—17th
Sunday after Pentecost—Holy
Communion—World
Communion Sunday “God’s
Righteousness and Our Work for
Justice,” Luke 12:13-21
Sunday, October 12—18th
Sunday after Pentecost—
Hungry World: Give-A-Kid
Projects—CROPWalk “God’s
Graciousness and Our Love for
Others,” Luke 10-25-37
Sunday, October 19—19th Sunday after
Pentecost—Reception of New Members
"God's Generosity and Our Thankfulness,” 2
Corinthians 9:10-15
Sunday, October 26—20th Sunday after
Pentecost—Commitment
Sunday “God’s Faithfulness and
Our Commitment,” Psalm 86:10-12
REACH Summit, October 17-18.
Attend two of five Vision Tracks and discover great
possibilities for Holt UMC. Crowne Plaza Lansing
West is the workshop location. Pastor Mark will be
attending. Registration is $35 per person and the
REACH Summit is provided by the New Church
Development Teams of the United Methodist
Church, Michigan Area. More information is
available online at REACHsummit.org, or pick up a
brochure in the welcome area.
Pencil Bags—if you still have pencil bags at
home, please finish them and bring them to church
as soon as you are able. They may be placed in the
“Quilting” mailbox in the office.
Kingdom Kids
Christmas Tea hostesses/servers needed!
Age
3 Years – Grade *5
Begin in 9:30 worship;
dismissed at 10:45.
Theme for October: Noah’s
Ark
Main Idea: The Bible story of
a faithful man named Noah
reminds us that God loves all
creation and that God made a
special covenant with Noah and all living things.
Memory Verse: “I have set my bow in the
clouds, and it shall be a sign of the covenant
between me and the earth.” Genesis 9:13
Mission Project for October: School Supplies
Items such as backpacks, markers, single subject
notebooks, highlighters, and folders may be
brought in and placed in the Kingdom Kids bin.
Thank you!
Workshops: Creation Station (Science), Solid
Rock Café (Cooking), Bible Busters (Games), Gold
Crown Theater (Storytelling)
Birthday Recognition:
Children will be
recognized for their birthdays in Kingdom Kids!
No need to return the birthday postcard…just
the child should be present!
*Note: Students in Grade 5 may choose to
either attend the Youth Class or continue in
Kingdom Kids for the upcoming year.
On Monday, December 1, we will gather to enjoy
this year’s wonderful Christmas Tea. We are looking
for table hostesses to make it extra special. All you
need to do is decorate a table for 8 with a
Christmas theme of
your choice. This is a
great chance to use all
your beautiful holiday
pieces! We are also
inviting
the
gentlemen to be our dessert servers, which allows
the hostesses to remain with their guests. If you
would like to be a table hostess or server, please
contact Dani Gimm @ 517.719.0707, Denise Kelley
@
517.484.9109,
or
e-mail
Denise
at
[email protected]. Tickets for this event go
on sale in November.
The Lunch Bunch
meets at
a local restaurant Sundays at 12:30 p.m.
for dinner and fellowship. October 5—
Buddies Grill; October 12—Delhi Café;
October 19—Mason Big Boy; October
26—Flap Jack. You are welcome to
join us! Questions? See Sharon
Simonson, or call her, 694-3475.
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11:00 AM Opportunities for Children
As is usually the case
in church and school
settings, the Christian
Education Committee
is
already
looking
ahead to the seasons
of
Advent
and
Christmas (see the
article in this Hotline
regarding
Breakfast
with the Friendly Beasts!). Yes, it is September as
I write this article, and yes, I am also still taken
back by the sights of Christmas trees, ornaments,
and garland as they appear now in the stores. I
recall that last year Mark and I even saw our first
Christmas ad on television before October 31 !
Even though we are shocked by the early
planning that seems unnecessary and rather
commercial at times, I realize that often those
meaningful experiences in life do not happen by
accident.
Much
planning,
thinking,
and
preparation goes into special life time events such
as wedding anniversaries, family reunions, and
vacations. These are all times that we cherish and
enjoy with our family and loved ones.
As you think back to these times of
remembrance in your life, ponder these questions
as well:
What preparation and planning is
involved in your Christian education? In your
family’s Christian education experiences? Does
your spiritual journey involve the same amount
of time in anticipation and preparation as your
summer vacation? What memorable life events
do you hold dear in your journey of Christian
learning?
I believe that it is important as parents,
children, youth, and adults that we plan, prepare
for, and anticipate eagerly those milestones of
learning and education in our spiritual life. That
may involve a mission opportunity, small group
study, musical experience, daily devotional time,
Advent event, or worship experience. All of
these things involve preparation by many
persons. The preparation also involves time for
individual and group prayer, silence, Bible study,
reflection, and listening for God’s direction.
What might you do now in October to begin to
prepare your heart for a time of growth and
reflection during the seasons in the church year to
come? We as the United Methodist Church offer
open hearts, minds, and doors. I encourage and
challenge you to begin thinking now about how
we may “open” ourselves to and prepare for
God’s leading in our spiritual journeys in the
weeks and months to come. Ponder this the next
time you see a Christmas tree in October!
Birth – 4 Year Olds…………..Childcare in the
Nursery
Grades K-5……………………Cherub Choir in
the Chapel
(Children will be excused to Cherub Choir
following the Children’s Moments)
*Please note that Kingdom Kids II will not be
held this fall.
HAVE YOU SEEN THE NEW WORSHIP
BAGS?? Children’s Worship Bags (with a book,
children’s bulletin, notebook, crayons, pencils,
and activity sheets) are available at both 9:30
a.m. and 11:00 a.m. worship hours in the back of
the sanctuary. Bags are available for Ages 3-6 yrs.
and 7-12 yrs.
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Save the Date!
Breakfast
with the Friendly Beasts is
coming to Holt UMC on
Saturday, December 13th at
9:00 a.m. This event offers
families an opportunity to
experience the wonder and
awe of the nativity together. The breakfast and
activities to follow are geared toward families
with children age preschool through elementary
grades.
Watch for more information in
November.
Note: As we prepare for Christian education
events in Advent, we
are
looking
for
persons who have
skills in sewing, crafts,
and
woodworking.
Please notify Annette
Erbes at 694-8168 or [email protected] if
you are able to assist! Thank you!
PERMISSION TO PHOTOGRAPH: Photographs are often taken here at Holt UMC during
special events and classes. Please know that
permission is assumed for
posting photographs on the
church
website
and
Facebook page for children,
youth, and adults unless we
are notified otherwise. If
you would prefer to not have photographs of
member(s) of your family posted on the church
sites, please notify the church office at
[email protected] or 694-8168. Thank you.
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A note from Pastor Mark
October 2014
2015 Stewardship Campaign
“Encountering God in our Giving”
words, we really do “Encounter God in our
Giving”!
All church households will be sent a brochure in
mid-October that will include a tear-off
Commitment Card for recording your commitment
toward God and the church for 2015. You are
encouraged to bring this card with you to worship
on Commitment Sunday, October 26th. Those
unable to attend that day may turn in the card to the
church office either before or shortly afterward. I
also pray that you will attend worship throughout
the month, as we explore through Scripture and
other ways what it means to encounter God in our
giving.
Finally, I wish to thank the entire Holt UMC
family for your past generosity. I hope that you will
prayerfully consider increasing your commitment of
prayers, presence, gifts, service and witness so that
together we can move forward and fully live out our
mission of “Making Disciples of Jesus Christ for the
Transformation of the World.” I am confident this
will happen as we seek deeper encounters with God
through our giving!
Blessings,
As we move through our church-wide study of 6
Ways We Encounter God and approach our annual
stewardship campaign I am realizing that the entire
study is a lesson in what it means to be faithful and
generous stewards of God’s gifts to us. Simply
consider the words that author Tom Berlin uses to
sum up what should be our responses to our
everyday encounters with God:
Reverence—To show “reverence” to God is to
show him ultimate respect. Don’t we do
that every time we make a gift to God of any
kind, whether it is financial or the sharing of
our spiritual gifts in service to the church?
Trust—To give sacrificially to the church in
our financial giving is always an act of trust
that God will continue to provide for us into
the future.
Humility—Any act of stewardship, if done with
the right spirit, is an act of humility where
we realize that all we have and all we are
comes from God and not from our own
efforts.
Obedience—From the creation story in Genesis
and on through the Bible, we are instructed
to be good stewards of God’s gifts to us.
And so any way we do that is an act of
obedience to God.
Work for Justice—This is absolutely at the
core of our giving, for as we give to the
church, we know that God will use those
gifts in the work for justice for all of God’s
children.
Love of Others—This too is central to our
faithful giving to the church. When we give,
we are giving in response to God’s love as
we’ve experienced it in our own lives, so
that others might experience God’s love
through our generosity.
On the final two Sundays of our stewardship
campaign (October 19th and October 26th) I will add
the responses of “Thankfulness” and
“Commitment”, further descriptions of how we are
to respond to God’s call to be sacrificial stewards of
all of God’s gifts. As we live out all of these
responses through our faithful stewardship, the
result is that we experience God’s presence in
meaningful and deeply personal ways. Or in other
Mark
Actors/Readers Needed!
During
the seasons of Advent and Christmas (November
30th-January 4th) we will be embarking on a worship
journey through the “Characters of Christmas.”
Each Sunday service (plus Christmas Eve) will focus
on a different character of the Christmas story, and
will include a monologue delivered by that
character. We are looking for persons who would
be willing to be the actor/reader for each week,
which would involve the reading of a prepared
script (that would not have to be memorized, but
simply read in the spirit of the character) at all three
services. The schedule of characters is as follows:
November 30th—Jeremiah
December 7th—Zechariah
December 14th—John the Baptist
December 21st—Mary
December 24th—A shepherd
December 28th—Jesus
January 4th—A Wise Man
If you would be interested in participating in
worship in this meaningful way, please contact
Pastor Mark soon, 517-694-8168.
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Vital Church Initiative
Michele’s Musings~After one of our
Have you ever wondered what your spiritual
gift(s) is/are? We can help with that. As part of our
prescriptions we are to
explore as individuals and as
a church what our gifts are.
On the Church website:
www.holtumc.org there is a
tab for spiritual gifts, within
it is a link to “United
Methodist Spiritual Gifts
Assessment”. This will lead
you to a 21 question survey that will calculate your
spiritual gift(s) from the answers you provide. You
will be given an opportunity to email the results, we
ask that you email them to yourself, so you can see
and explore the gifts it believes you are strongest in
and ways that you might be able to use your gifts in
the world/community/church. We also ask that you
email your results to [email protected] this
will help the church to know you better. For those
of you without internet capabilities, there is a gifts
assessment included in the “new membership class”
that we can provide to you if you let us know you
need/would like one.
The VCI team has been busy working on the
structure of the “Single Board Governance” model,
we with be sharing that with the Ad Board at the
October 15th meeting.
class studies, several of you asked about doing a
new Spiritual Gifts Inventory. With that in mind, I
enrolled in a Lay Service class called Lay Speakers
Discover Spiritual Gifts. We are using William J.
Carter's book, 'Each one a Minister: Using God's
Gifts for Ministry'. As Christians, each of us are
empowered by the Gift of the Holy Spirit. Gifts
that we can use to carry the message of God's love
for everyone through Jesus Christ. What is your
gift? Can you have more than one gift? How do
you identify you gift(s)? If you have access to the
internet, you can go to www.holtumc.org click on
the Spiritual Gifts Inventory and answer the
questions to help identify your gifts. Or we have a
paper copy of a Spiritual Gifts Inventory that you
can complete by hand. Just see me and we'll
talk. Blessings on this journey called life. Michele
Board of Trustee notes:
1) you
should soon see 2 of the sanctuary chandeliers fitted
with LED bulbs. If these produce sufficient lighting
the bulbs in the rest of the chandeliers will be
changed. Because LEDs last so long, it is anticipated
that this change will cut down on rental fees ($500
each time) for a lift to change the present bulbs. 2)
As part of the Board’s commitment to create a
handicap accessible bathroom, the architect has
been asked to create the documents necessary for
the seeking of bids. 3) Work Day has been
scheduled for October 11. Outdoor work at the
parsonage, stones removed around the root ball of
a tree at the corner which must be moved, and
indoor work are on the agenda. 4) Additional
indoor and outdoor items are still being worked on
at the parsonage. 5) A committee consisting of VCI
members and Trustees is being organized to further
define building improvements from the VCI Goal
Setting Workshop and priorities for their
completion. 6) Memorial funds paid and Trustees
organized the work for the installation of the
automatic door opener on the east front door. 7)
The Christian Education Director’s and the CEC
Director’s offices have each received a refreshing
coat of paint as new employees took occupancy. 8)
A gift of new chairs for the library was received. The
previous chairs have found new locations
throughout the building. Should you have any
questions on these or other projects, please contact
a member of the Board of Trustees.
Special Thanks &
Congratulations
Thank you to the generous donor of the new
library chairs. They’re comfortable! Try them out
next time you’re looking for a book.
Phil Daneff donated his time and supplies to set
up the electricity for our new automatic door at the
east end of the building. We’re thankful!
We’re grateful to Dick Hoisington and to Bill
Larner, who donated their time and supplies to paint
the Director of Christian Education and the Child
Enrichment Center Director offices respectively.
Take a peek—you’ll be amazed at the
transformation.
We are sincerely appreciative for the United
Methodist Women (and their male recruits), who
stepped in once again to provide funeral luncheons
and refreshments three times in a week. This service
is a blessing for the families.
Save
the
date!
Holt UMC’s charge
conference is November 3 at 7:00 p.m. in the
chapel. Plan now to attend!
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Meijer Community Rewards
MSU Concessions! The funds raised from the first
stand support the Red Bird Mission, and the second
stand proceeds are designated for lighting&
technology updates. We need participation from the
entire congregation to staff both stands effectively. You
may earn funds for Red Bird tuition working in either
stand.
Contact Joe Lessard, our scheduling
coordinator, with any questions. He may be reached at
676-9815 or [email protected]. All volunteers
need to complete a background check! This can be
completed online at: http://eatatstate.com/content/
volunteer-application-and-background-checkauthorization-form Copies are also available in the
welcome area. Please do this ASAP.
Home games are as follows:
are a fast, easy way for Holt UMC to earn every
time you shop. We recently received a check for
over
$122.00!
Register
online
at
Meijer.com/
rewards. Our organization
number is 299655.
We are Collecting:
 Cell Phones for Soldiers—used cell phones are
recycled and turned into long distance phones
minutes which allow soldiers to keep in touch
with their families
 Eye Glasses—prescription eye glasses are
donated to the Lions Club, which distributes
them to those who cannot afford to buy, or do
not have access to them
 Tabs from pop cans—aluminum is
the best—for Community House in
Grand
Rapids

General
Mills Box Tops and
Campbell’s Soup
Labels for Red Bird Mission
 Pennies for Leprosy—this disease still thrives in
several countries around the world. Your pennies
can make a difference!
Containers for all these items are located outside
the sanctuary.
Nebraska
Michigan
Ohio State
Rutgers
The Church at the Crossroads —
~ making disciples of Jesus Christ for the
transformation of the world
~ Committed to knowing and sharing the love of God
Our Staff:
Pastor: Rev. Mark Erbes
Pastoral Assistant: Michele Childs
Director of Christian Education: Annette Erbes
Administrative Assistant: Chris Commet
Building/Grounds Manager: Brad Adams
Child Enrichment Center Director: Amy Larner
From the Dean family: We very much
appreciate the opportunity to say thank you to our
church family for all the love and support we have
received during the recent illness and loss of our
father, Ivan Weaver. The beautiful cards, all your
very kind words and all the work that went into the
luncheon touched us in ways you will never know.
Our Dad always appreciated the love and kindness
shown to him. We need to say a very special thank
you for that as well. God bless you all! We are so
very blessed to call Holt United Methodist our
home.
Breaking
8 PM
TBA
8 PM
TBA
Holt United Methodist Church
2321 N. Aurelius Rd.
P. O. Box 168
Holt, MI 48842
Notes to the congregation:
Late
10/4
10/25
11/8
11/22
Contact us:
Phone: 517-694-8168
Fax: 517-694-2319
email: [email protected]
visit our website: www.holtumc.org
News!
Personalized
HUMC apparel goes on sale soon for a limited time!
Sunday mornings from Oct. 19-Nov. 16 place your
order with John Busley. All items are high quality
and printed or embroidered locally. Proceeds go to
Missions!
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October
Birthdays
Scott Manor
Shirley Abel
Nicholas Sinder
Delores St. Clair
Jon Curtis
Kaylee Finney
Heather Slawinski
Brandon Pickworth
DiAnne Warfield
Alanna White
Kari DeRosa
Kim Currin
Sally Wilcox
Aubrey Elliott
Wynn Berry
Sean Smith
Shelby Smith
Ed Pratt
John Busley
Benjamin Trentham
Liz VanNocker
Jacob DeClercq
Les Norton
Jacob Haynes
Traci (Hamilton) Gates
Alice Hickling
Tyler Pickworth
Tim Edinger
Jon Reincke
Sharon Nott
Aubree Yeomans
Vickie VanOort
Chris Yu
Robert Heemer
25 Betty Webster
Ann Putmon
26 Kaycee Vowels
Jake Hitchcock
Steve Warfield
Laura Stouffer
27 Andrew Marlan
28 Paul Warfield
Sam Warfield
Darren Frakes
Derek Irwin
29 Gerry Harless
Nancy Grubbs
Jennifer Baragar
30 Katie Curtis
Becky Hilbert
Kelly Edinger
31 Shirley McKim
October
Anniversaries
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5
12
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15
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27
29
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Bob & Jane Chronister
Craig & Dana Yeomans
Bob & Stephanie DeClercq
Ted & Ann Griffin
Mike & Kathy Russell
Tim & Karen Waite
Gary & Sally Wilcox
James & Brianna Mills
Dennis & Denise Kelley
George & Nancy Dunivon
Jeff & Karri Finney
Glenn & Marge VanDyke
Andrew & Patricia
Zimmerle Sr.
David & Florence
Showerman
Art & Inge Kyler
Kids Korner
a part of our church fall
crafters’ festival, is requesting new/gently used gifts
for children to purchase for family members. As you
choose what you would bring, ask yourself, “Would
I like to receive this as a gift?” Jewelry, small knickknacks, men’s ties, books for kids & adults, puzzles
with no missing pieces, LED flashlights, work gloves,
beef jerky/summer sausage, hot sauce, socks, travel
coffee mugs, small tools, golf balls, baseball hats, tshirts with sports team logos (Tigers, Lions, MSU in
particular). If you have any questions, please call
Nancy Grubbs, 694-6822.
Help
Needed for the Craft Festival
lunchroom on Saturday, November 15. Two or
three people needed to do
easy jobs like sloppy joes,
serving soup, or serving
coffee and pop, etc. You
can choose your shift: 9
a.m.-12 noon, 11 a.m.-2 p.m., or noon-3 p.m. If
you can lend a hand we can really use the help!
Contact Linda Kaschyk, 517-927-2931 (cell) or email [email protected]
Booth Space
for the Crafters
Festival is still
Upcoming
Bake Sale: The United
Methodist Women will have a Bake Sale during
the Crafters’ Festival on November 15, 9 AM-3
PM. We will need all kinds
of baked items, plus any
jams and jellies, salsas,
pickles,
beets,
and
tomatoes.
available! Cost is $30.00 for a 6’x10’ or 8’x8’ area.
Please call the church office, 517-694-8168 for
registration information.
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