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Faith Statement: Through the love and inspiration of Jesus Christ and each other we reach out beyond ourselves to support others, continue to grow in faith, praise God, and celebrate His gifts.

Independence Day

Office Closed

No Session

Session Sunday

And on the seventh day God finished the work that God had done, and God rested on the seventh day … _{(Genesis 2:2)} 

… therefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day and consecrated it. _{(Exodus 20:11)}

While Pastor Phyl is away, here’s a brief spotlight of what this month holds for our pastor’s sabbatical plan. You can find Pastor Phyl’s full proposal / plan here Click here for Sabbatical Plan

Heart – joined my parents and aunt for the dedication of the Latham Family Memorial Park in California, MO, including an all-veterans memorial for which my dad, VFW Chaplain, Major GR Shelley, USAR, Ret., gave the prayer of dedication; spent 15 days road-tripping with Jacob & Annora, often without cell signal or wifi (Etc. by Owlcrate is a fabulous game for booklovers in the car; Qwirkle and Harry Potter Spot It are both easy to pack and play in a lodge after dark over cocoa);

Mind – read The Dictionary of Lost Words by Pip Williams (so good!) and Baby Don’t Hurt Me by Chris Kattan.

As a member of our church family, what Sabbatical Steps have you taken this month? How have you fulfilled God’s commandment to rest, loving the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, strength, and mind? Where is the Holy Spirit leading you in the month ahead? For ways to cultivate sabbath keeping in your life this month, follow the current Sabbatical Steps listed in Sunday’s bulletin or contact the church office to see where we are on our collective sabbatical journey.

WHATEVER BECAME OF SIN?  by Karl Menninger, M.D.

Three things struck me when I read this title on the shelf: first that there was a whole book about sin; second, that it was written by a medical doctor, not a pastor or a theologian: and third, that I recognized the name of the author. My husband Ken and I arrived in Emporia in 1986 and within a short time were invited by a fellow teacher in ESU’s Psychology Department to visit The Menninger Foundation in Topeka. Karl was a respected and well-known figure in psychiatry. The tour was fascinating, combining a look at both the earliest and latest treatments for mental health care. His book The Human Mind introduced psychiatry to the American public in 1930.

Not until the Epilogue does the author tell us how he came to write this book and how he has come from many years of experience to consider moral values an essential aspect of psychiatry.

Menninger asserts “that the disappearance of the word “sin” involves a shift in the allocation of responsibility. Sin is transgression of the law of God; disobedience of the divine will; moral failure. Sin is failure to realize in conduct and character the moral ideal, at least as fully as possible under existing circumstances; failure to do as one ought towards one’s fellow man (Webster).”

In the earliest of times a community of people living together abided by the same morals, passed on to them by their tribal leaders, elders and parents. Consequences were handed down by those same leaders. Over the decades and centuries as civilizations grew and the realm of “community” enlarged, the major responsibility for identifying and dealing with adult misbehavior had been taken over by the State. In other words, many adult sins had become crimes.

Throughout the book you’ll enjoy excerpts from President Lincoln, President Eisenhower, Dr. Spock, Alexander Solzhenitsyn, Sigmund Freud, Faust and more.

I confess I have not yet finished the book, so I cannot reveal what the Epilogue says!!. But I do recommend it. 

1.     As of the end of May, 22 Sundays (or 41.5% of the calendar year) have passed.

2.    Pledges received in May totaled $7,250.00. Loose offering received was $765.00.

3.    Operating expenses for May totaled $25,653,51.

4.    We received a check from Wells Fargo for $10,490.57.

5.    Utility costs for May was $2,919.45. 

6.    Through the fifth month of the year, here are the percentages of budget expended (see the Budget Comparison report for dollar figures).