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August 7 at noon...Can you help stuff
backpacks with school supplies for homeless
children?
More... |
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If you would like to receive a copy of the Open
Arms bulletin each week via e-mail, send your e-mail
address to
nickelwin3@sbcglobal.net |
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Volunteers
needed to clean the church August and
September.
Contact Mary Kay at
recycler4earth@comcast.net or 816-373-6155. |
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Check out pictures of the Biker Blessing...
page 1
page 2 |
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Children's prebaptismal classes are in
session...
more
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Can you knit scarves
for our fall give-away? ...
more
»
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We're on Facebook.....
more »
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Prayer Chain: To request prayers for
immediate distribution on the prayer chain or to
be added to the e-mail list of people who pray
as requests come in, contact Charlie and Pam
Robison at
probison@CofChrist.org or 816-461-7300.
If you would like a
visit from Community of Christ ministers or
would like to receive Communion at your home,
please call David McDonald at 796-0823 or Linda
Davenport at 810-6374. |
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Please let Brad Speaks know of
any updates in your personal information (change
of address, phone number, marriage, divorce,
legal name change, death). Contact him at
816/373-6155 or
bspeaks1@comcast.net |
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Welcome to our congregation! Open Arms presents basic
Christian faith. If you are investigating Christianity,
or if you are a follower of Christ who prefers
contemporary worship, these services are designed
especially for you. While we use up-to-date language,
music, and drama, our Bible-based message is as eternal
as the revelation of God's love through the life of
Jesus. If you would like more information,
click here
to send an e-mail with your request or question.
Luke
13:12-17 NRSV
 When Jesus saw
her, he called her over and said, "Woman, you are set free
from your ailment." When he laid hands on her, immediately
she stood up straight and began praising God. But the leader
of the synagogue, indignant because Jesus had cured on the
Sabbath, kept saying to the crowd, "There are six days on
which work ought to be done; come on those days and be
cured, and not on the Sabbath day." But the Lord answered
him and said, "You hypocrites! Does not each of you on the
Sabbath untie his ox or his donkey from the manger, and lead
it away to give it water? And ought not this woman, a
daughter of Abraham whom Satan bound for eighteen long
years, be set free from this bondage on the Sabbath day?"
When he said this, all the opponents were put to shame; and
the entire crowd was rejoicing at all the wonderful things
that he was doing.
vvv
This meditation follows the
format of
Daily Bread,
a Community of
Christ resource that is available for
daily meditation. It includes a short message, a short
excerpt from the Daily Prayer for Peace, a spiritual
discipline, and a statement of a peace covenant.
O give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures
forever!
—Psalm 118:1 NIV
II remembered Carol when I woke
in the night, my heart pounding,
my anxiety level high, my mind
worrying. I hadn’t slept well
for months. Like other World
Church leaders I had been
struggling with continuous bad
news about the impact of the
global economic crisis on World
Ministries Mission Tithes and
income from investments and
endowments. Faced with the
downsizing of ministers in the
Southern USA Mission Field and
throughout the church, I was
heartsick for those who had
served God and God’s people.
So I awoke in a panic and
remembered Carol, who I briefly
had encountered five years
before. Carol was standing in a
parking lot in
Cape Town, South Africa.
She offered to watch our car to
keep it safe.
"Go, go," she said. "I will
care for you." We were in a
hurry to meet an official in the
South African government,
so we didn’t think much about
her offer. When we returned
several hours later, Carol met
us with a smile and a joyful
testimony of abundance.
She and her five children had
moved to
Cape Town, leaving a
village that suffered from
drought, death, and despair. Her
family lived in the slums
outside Cape Town, with no
water, electricity, or
employment. So each morning she
walked several miles to stand in
this parking lot with the hope
that others would value her
service and give her a small
reward.
She received her reward; we
received ours.
Carol joyfully shared her
testimony of God's
steadfast love. "I don’t know
where the food will come from to
feed my children," she said.
"But I know that God will
provide this day."
My memory of Carol and her
faithful words stilled my mind
as I realized that God’s
steadfast love endures and would
bless those ministers who would
be downsized and the church’s
mission to go and make
disciples. Peace came, and I
slept, because I knew God would
provide.
Linda Booth
Council of Twelve
Prayer for Peace: Today’s
Focus Is Haiti
Creator God, at this time of
revitalization, re-enthuse our
efforts to share peace; make,
build, reveal peace; honor,
follow, strengthen peace; learn
and teach peace; live and embody
peace, and to be a sanctuary of
Christ’s peace.
Spiritual Practice:
Sabbath Keeping (Holy Attention)
Honoring and keeping the
Sabbath is a spiritual
discipline that nourishes
persons, families, and
congregations. Spend several
minutes meditating on your plans
for the day. Discern ways you
can give intentional attention
to God, the sacredness of life,
and creation. Slow your pace,
breathe deeper, see more clearly
and compassionately, create
spaces of quiet and solitude.
Spend time in nature. Be alert
for signs of beauty and divine
presence. Cook and eat your food
with keen awareness of color,
taste, texture, fragrance.
Listen to music, look closely at
the face of a loved one, laugh
and talk together. Pray over
these Sabbath possibilities and
enter the day with reverence.
Peace Covenant
We have been called by the
Spirit of God. Let us go
to be makers of peace.
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