July 15, 2007

Morning Worship

Scripture Reading: Ephesians 5:22-32 (Text: v. 26-27)
Message: “Polishing Each Other To Be Radiant” (Dr. Dean Deppe)
Offering: Unity Ministries
Lead Worshiper: Bryan De Groot

Welcome to Unity Church!

Jesus has poured out his love for the church by giving his own life for us; and today he invites us to let the light of his love shine through us as we hear from his Word, respond to his grace through prayer and praise, and pour out ourselves to him in worship.

This Sunday we welcome (back) to our pulpit, Dr. Dean Deppe, Associate Professor of New Testament at Calvin Theological Seminary. Dean was the pastor at Unity CRC from 1992 to 1998 before joining the faculty of Calvin Seminary. He has served in a variety of Christian Reformed churches and taught in a variety of settings such as Asian Theological Seminary in the Philippines and Classis Red Mesa in New Mexico. Dean and his wife Julie are from Grand Rapids, MI and have four children. We pray God’s blessing on Dean as he proclaims God’s Word for us this morning.

Please note that our celebration of Communion for the month of August will be on August 5 instead of our regular practice of the second Sunday of the month, which would have been August 12.

The Weekly Calendar

View The Monthly Church Calendar

Today (3rd Sunday):
10:00am: Morning Worship
Children ages 3-preK will be invited by announcement to go to
Children’s Church.

Monday:
4:45pm: Worship Planning Meeting

Wednesday:
7:00pm: Men’s Jail Ministry

Next Sunday (4th Sunday):
10:00am: Worship
1:00pm: Council Visioning Retreat

Council Commissioning and Visioning

Next Sunday, July 22 we will be installing our new elders, Hubert Wieberdink and Beth Hoekstra, and our new deacon, Ben Taatjes. After church, the entire Council, including our retiring officers will meet together for prayer and direction for the upcoming year. Thank you for your support of our leaders!

MARK YOUR CALENDARS

Sunday, August 12 at 4:00pm
“Rejoicing” CRC Sesquicentennial (150th Anniversary) Worship at Willmar Evangelical Free

Sunday, November 11
CRC “Rededicating” 150th Anniversary Combined Worship at the Evangelical Free Church of Willmar.

Unity Church Announcements

WOMEN OF FAITH

Would you like to go to Women of Faith this year? It is a refreshing weekend, and we have several extra tickets. The dates are Friday and Saturday, October 19-20. If you are interested in tickets, call April. Tickets are $69.

GEMS Counselor Needed

Wanted: Any woman who desires to make a positive impact on a young girl's life. Would you prayerfully consider being a GEMS counselor this year? Contact Barb Ahrenholz if you are interested.

Unity Members: Help Needed

For the 150th anniversary service on August 12, we need two ushers, two poster carriers (one male and one female of different age groups), and one adult and one youth nursery attendant. If you are able to help out, please call the church office and let April know.

Building Project Update

The Facility Team is still working to review and negotiate the bids we received from the contractors. All of the bids came in higher than we had budgeted, so we are determining the best ways to reduce costs without changing the plans to the extent that we lose some of the key items that have been identified as necessary in this project. We are still within our 30 day window to finalize a contract, but would like to keep the project moving as swiftly as possible. We ask for your continued prayers and support as we continue our work.

Thank You to the Youth Group

To Kirk Vander Pol and the young men of youth group (Michael Ammerman, Jacob Miller, Jacob Van Otterloo, Steve Vogel, Jacob Wieberdink, Derrick Bulthuis, Evan TeBrake, and others): Our entire church body would like to thank you for your very energetic and productive help during the landscaping project at our parsonage. It provides a good "road appeal'' welcome to our new Pastor and his family, arriving less than two weeks from now. These young men worked "steady and sweaty" through three rugged hours of shoveling 6 yards of rock {twice}, 7 yards of dirt, 6 yards of mulch and helped lay 650 square yards of fabric. It was OUR "mini-triathlon." Our young brothers in Christ from Willmar CRC really appreciated sharing their work for the Lord with their Unity CRC friends in Youth Group. Thank God for those young ...backs, - Tom Mikelson WCRC

Youth Mission Trip

Please keep the 19 youth and five leaders who left yesterday for Salt Lake City, Utah in your prayers as they learn, grow, serve, and minister on their mission trip this year.

BIG DIG '07

As you remember our youth in Utah, please start praying for the youth that will be attending the apologetics conference in Colorado on August 12. This conference on defending the faith is a life-shaping conference for teenagers. Your financial and prayer support is much appreciated.

COMMUNITY ANNOUNCEMENTS

Kandiyohi County Relay For Life

Help "Capture A Cure" through Relay for Life - Friday and Saturday, July 20-21 from 6:00pm to 6:00am at the Willmar Junior High (please note new location). Luminaries are available by contacting:
Laurie Duininck, Mindy Grannes, Jill Brouwer, or Lynn Henning Dishcloths can be purchased from Karen Marcus.
You can also get a “Capture A Cure” cap by contacting any of the above team members. Dishcloths and caps will be available at our tent sight the night of the relay. And we plan to have an activity and additional items for sale. We are also looking for 2 to 3 volunteers to help clean up after the relay at 6:00am on Saturday! If you are able to help, please contact one of the above team members.

Senior Citizens

Our next meeting is Thursday, July 26. We will gather at the Fire Hall at 11:00am and car pool for a noon buffet at the Blue Heron. After our lunch we will visit the Floral Rose garden of Carol Halverson.

CRC Sesquicentennial Service

The second of the three Regional Celebrations of the 150th Anniversary of the Christian Reformed Church is August 12 at 4pm at the Willmar Evangelical Free Church. Our theme is “Rejoicing, with a focus on the ministries of our area churches. The guest speaker will be Rev. Roger Kok of Grand Rapids, MI .

Driver Improvement Course

A 55+ Driver Improvement Course is being offered by the Minnesota Highway Safety Center on August 20 and 21 from 5:00-9:00pm at First CRC. A certified instructor teaches driver safety, confidence, and comfort by utilizing the most up-to-date research in the field, including the latest visual scanning and steering techniques, anti-lock braking (ABS) skills, airbag information, driver distraction, road rage and new vehicle technology. The course is open to the public, however pre-registration is requested. The fee for the four hour refresher course is $18.00 and the eight hour course is $20.00. For more information or to register call 1-(888)-234-1294. Everyone age 55 and older who completes this course qualifies for a 10% discount on their auto insurance premiums for three years according to Minnesota law.

2007 Minn-ia-kota Retreat

A unique retreat is being planned for you on September 11 & 12 at the Travelodge (formerly the Oaks) in Sioux Falls, SD. The event sponsored by the Bible League Volunteers will enable you to make an eternal difference in people’s lives by taking part in this retreat and contributing to the special offering which will go toward providing Scriptures and training people in Mexico to be brought into the fellowship of Christ and His Church. Brochures will be in your church mailboxes soon.