Stay Informed
May 9, 2012
Dear Village Family:
Worship This Sunday … and a New Mother
Mother’s Day is always wonderful at Village, as we include the sacrament of baptism in worship. We are also celebrating with Rob and Elisa Bickers (Elisa is our principal organist), as they welcomed into the world Isabel Eve Bickers last Thursday, May 3. Mom, Dad and Isabel are all well.
Joy, Even on Your Worst Day continues this Sunday. We will read the first verses of the third chapter of Philippians (3:2–12). Paul talks about what matters most in life, a helpful word for any season.
Dr. Rodger Nishioka
In a previous e-mail I reminded you that Dr. Rodger Nishioka from Columbia Seminary will be at Village Sunday and Monday, May 20 and 21. Dr. Nishioka is an expert in Young Adult Ministry. He will preach in worship on the 20th. Sunday evening he will also lead an event for young adults (that’s people in their 20s and 30s). Monday evening he will speak with leaders at Village about effective means of ministry with and by young adults. This will be a fun and energizing time for Village. If you have questions, contact Jarrett McLaughlin, e-mail or 913.671.2328. To make a reservation for the young adult gathering Sunday evening (dinner provided): e-mail. To make a reservation for child care: e-mail by Monday, May 14.
Golf Tournament Benefiting the Dominican Republic Medical Partnership
Our mission in the DR saves lives. Six times a year, people from Village and the larger community pay their own way to spend a vacation week in mission. This golf tournament supports the purchase of life saving medicines and medical supplies. I hope to see you at this fun event that will make a difference. I’m not golfing this year … last time I hit so many trees I worried the Sierra Club might file a suit, citing my damage to the environment …. But I will be there enjoying the fellowship and am grateful for so many who contribute to this cause. More information can be found at villagepres.org.
An Important Word About Our Food Pantry
I shared this information in the most recent Good News. Our ministry at the Food Pantry is in a new situation that is concerning. In 2008, the pantry served almost 17,000 people. In 2011, that number had increased to just over 19,000. More significantly in 2008, the vast majority of our food — that wasn’t donated — was purchased from Harvesters, the local food bank, at 10 cents a pound. In 2008, we purchased almost $72,000 of food. In the economic downturn, Harvesters no longer has the same resources to provide, therefore, we are forced to purchase most of our food elsewhere. Our food costs in three years has increased by 117 percent to $156,000. The Mission’s Committee has increased our support of this mission by $32,000 for 2012. But your generosity is the life force of this mission. May 20 is Canned Fruit Sunday at Village. Our Mission Statement says we are to “see and relate to every person in our communities and the world as loved by God.” No one in this city should go hungry; no child should experience the risks involved in malnutrition. Your generosity to the Food Pantry has never been more needed and never been more important. I am grateful to you for the difference you make.
A Final Word for Mother's Day
One of my favorite poets is Billy Collins. He has this wonderful poem that I think of every Mother’s Day. You may enjoy it.
The Lanyard by Billy Collins
The other day I was ricocheting slowly
off the blue walls of this room,
moving as if underwater from typewriter to piano,
from bookshelf to an envelope lying on the floor,
when I found myself in the L section of the dictionary
where my eyes fell upon the word lanyard.
No cookie nibbled by a French novelist
could send one into the past more suddenly—
a past where I sat at a workbench at a camp
by a deep Adirondack lake
learning how to braid long thin plastic strips
into a lanyard, a gift for my mother.
I had never seen anyone use a lanyard
or wear one, if that’s what you did with them,
but that did not keep me from crossing
strand over strand again and again
until I had made a boxy
red and white lanyard for my mother.
She gave me life and milk from her breasts,
and I gave her a lanyard.
She nursed me in many a sick room,
lifted spoons of medicine to my lips,
laid cold face-cloths on my forehead,
and then led me out into the airy light
and taught me to walk and swim,
and I, in turn, presented her with a lanyard.
Here are thousands of meals, she said,
and here is clothing and a good education.
And here is your lanyard, I replied,
which I made with a little help from a counselor.
Here is a breathing body and a beating heart,
strong legs, bones and teeth,
and two clear eyes to read the world, she whispered,
and here, I said, is the lanyard I made at camp.
And here, I wish to say to her now,
is a smaller gift—not the worn truth
that you can never repay your mother,
but the rueful admission that when she took
the two-tone lanyard from my hand,
I was as sure as a boy could be
that this useless, worthless thing I wove
out of boredom would be enough to make us even
Shalom,
Tom