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Dear Friends,
The "kingdom of right church relations" may be compared to the man who played basketball with a few "older"
men every Wednesday at noon. And behold, new younger players began to show up and they changed the way the
game was played. They were loud, they fouled a lot, and they took the Lord's name in vain (and worse). At first
their aggression surprised the older men, but after a while it discouraged some to the point
where they stopped playing.
And behold one of the older men came to the oldest player and said, "Why did you
leave?" And the man answered, "Because the new players are too aggressive, they are younger,
they run too fast, and they do not pay any attention or listen to those of us who are older or
of smaller stature. And when confronted, they say things like "this is the way the game should
be played. And I cannot agree. And so, I left rather than try to influence the game."
"But you're needed," the older player said. "We need you to slow the game down sometimes. We need you to
say "don't fight." We need you to say, "please don't swear." We need you to recall when there were only five or
six players coming each week and how this Wednesday basketball game started and who was dedicated to
continuing the tradition of playing each week. We need you to call upon the players to pay attention to those who are older
and do not run as fast."
And so the player returned after several weeks of absence and he was welcomed back by several. And some
players were more cautious about swearing, some apologized when they fouled him. But the older man felt good
about being one of the players again, and vowed to stay in the game.
Grace and Peace EXECUTIVE STAFF VISITS/MEETINGS
Sun City, AZ; Pilgrim,
Milwaukee, WI; US Church Leaders Conf.; Plant City, FL; Meadowbrook, Novi,
MI; North Cong'l, Farmington Hills, MI; Merrill Cong'l, Merrill, MI;
FCC, Detroit, MI; FCC, Redlands, CA; FCC, Wauwatosa, WI; Duluth,
MN; Cong'l Ch., Laurel, FL; United Church, Marco Island, FL;
Pilgrim, Pomona, CA; Grace North, Berkeley, CA; New Faith, Orange,
CA; Clergy Group, No. Calif.Clergy Group, So. Calif; Youth Leader's Retreat; Jerusalem Ch., New
Philadelphia, OH; Pilgrim, Taunton, MA; Cong'l Ch., Duluth, MN;
South Ch., Hartford, CT; Church of the
Chimes, Sherman Oaks, CA; FCC, Los Angeles, CA; Thomas A. Edison,
Ft. Meyers, FL; FCC, Cape Coral, FL; Congregational Church
of Myanmar; Travancore Church Council, India; Christ to the
Villages Mission, Nigeria; Word Alive Mission, Ghana.
SCRIP PROGRAMS FROM LOCAL BUSINESSES
Some of the NA Churches have
used "scrip" programs (receiving discounts for shopping at certain
stores, which, in turn, contribute to your organization or church). Ask
your boards or committees to investigate the possibilities. Some Churches
use it for extra mission money, some to save on supplies for their
children/youth programs, some for building supplies.
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