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Bill Rhodes:Walk In The Light
email: o�[email protected] website:
www.christschurchinbowlinggreen.com
continued on pg. 3
I have often contemplated the meaning of Christmas. The author
of the following article is Marie Monville. While she does not talk
about Christmas, she really captures the essence of what it means
to me. Even more important is her identity. I will share that with
you in a moment.
By Marie Monville
Those the Lord has res-cued will return. They will enter Zion
with singing; ev-erlasting joy will crown their heads. Gladness and
joy will overtake them, and sorrow and sighing will flee away. “I,
even I, am he who comforts you.” Isaiah 51:11-12
For the past 7 years I’ve spent much time immersed in the pages
of Isaiah. The words capture the essence of what I feel—joy,
sorrow, hope, struggle, promise and break-through. I know the deep
ache caused by the circumstances and heartbreak of life. I also
know the overwhelming com-
fort found in the presence of Christ, the tenderness of God, and
the availability of Holy Spirit. This week I’ve felt re-surgence in
the pain of loss, specifically the loss of my dad 10 months ago. I
miss him for a million reasons. Most of all, I miss his tender
pres-ence in my life. I’ve cried out to the One who heals me, and
I’ve felt his comfort abound. God whispers a promise of life to
come that inspires joy and diminishes sorrow’s ache.Pain and death
give way to
dreams. It is a force capable of breaking me free from the
weight of this sadness, tak-ing me from this moment and launching
me towards the beautiful plans God set in place since the day he
created the world. He has a destiny in mind for me, but sometimes I
forget that I’m a dreamer. In-stead of partnering with God, I get
lost in the motion of the day’s assignments and my feel-ings.
Within that place I must remember to return to the em-brace of my
Father. He has already rescued me, but I must return my heart to
him.
I am comforted as my heav-enly Father bends low to
this earth and envelops me. He reminds me that through pain and
sorrow, joy emerges. I don’t know how he does this. The pro-cess is
consistently unique. I’ve not dis-
covered a predictable method. All I can say is that Isaiah’s
words ring true. God rescues me; everlasting joy adorns my head and
fills me from within until it over takes everything that opposes
its release. He comforts me.Today, in the midst of His
comfort, I feel a growing ex-citement about the days ahead.
There is LIFE I haven’t lived and there are dreams that still need
birthed. Undiscovered beauty lays in wait for me and I am
remembering to look for it.What are you feeling today?
Do you need comfort? Maybe you’re desperate for the inspi-ration
of new dreams? God’s arms are always open. He longs to fill you
with joy and gladness. It’s a new day; it’s time for sorrow and
sighing to flee away. He is the only one
Winter Issue•Nº 5
Table of Contentspages 1Walk In The Light
pages 2Preachers Ponderings
page 3Bill continuedFamily Connection
page 4 & 5Family continuedEvents
CHRISTMAS 2013
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2email: o�[email protected] website:
www.christschurchinbowlinggreen.com
(Lessons Learned From How The Shepherds Cel-ebrated The First
Christ-mas)
Bright lights in the sky, angelic choir, and an invita-tion to
meet the Messiah — not your average night in the fields watching
the sheep! Why would God choose to announce the birth of His Son to
some shepherds be-fore anyone else? First and foremost, because
that is not the way I would have done it and when I say me, I mean
me and humanity! No one on earth would have chosen lowly shepherds
but God! This is one of the great-est proofs that the Bible is
true. For instance, if I were God and coming to earth to save my
creation from their sinful selves I would never have come to this
world as a baby, born to poor people, leaving myself in the hands
of sinful people. But God Did! God chose shepherds who were
despised by the orthodox good people of the day. Why? Because they
could not keep the ritual of hand washing. And watch-ing the sheep
was one of those occupations everyone needed but no one desired.
There were long hours, the aroma of the sheep, bears and lions,
hard work, and it
was dirty work. But it was to these folks that the first
an-nouncement came.
However this is not to say that God did not have good and
logical reasons for choosing shepherds. Case in point: it is known
that Tem-ple authorities had their own flocks of sheep and we know
they were located outside of Bethlehem. Therefore, it is possible
that the shepherds who looked after the Temple lambs were the first
to see the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. Or what
if God first announced the coming of His Son to shepherds because
Jesus is the Good Shepherd who lays down His life for the sheep?
One thing is for sure God sent the message to shep-herds with
intent and pur-
pose and there are many les-sons to be learned from how the
shepherds celebrated the first Christmas!
Lesson #1: The Bible says in Luke
2:15, “When the angels had returned to heaven, the shepherds
said to each other, ‘Come on, let’s go to Bethlehem! Let’s see this
wonderful thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us
about.’” When The Shepherds Heard About The Christ Child They Went
to Meet Him For Them-selves! This is a great ex-ample for us today
we don’t want to just hear about the Christ child, we must go meet
Him!
Lesson #2: The Bible says in Luke
2:17, “Then the shepherds told everyone what had hap-pened and
what the angel had said to them about this child.” To celebrate the
first Christmas, the shepherds spread the news about Jesus birth!
The shepherds who heard the Good News of Je-sus birth passed it on.
You
and I have the opportu-nity to pass on the mas-sage as well! As
you know our theme for this year, Help Wanted God Is Call-
ing You to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ! Please let me take
this opportunity to encourage you to come to our Christmas Eve
Ser-vice at 7pm and spread the
good news by inviting your friends and family to come and hear
the Gospel of Jesus Christ as we celebrate the birth of our Savior
together.
Lesson #3: The Bible says in Luke
2:20, “The shepherds went back to their fields and flocks,
glorifying and prais-ing God for what the angels had told them, and
because they had seen the child, just as the angel had said.” To
Celebrate Christmas, the Shepherds returned glorify-ing and
praising God for all the things they had seen and heard. These
shepherds, when they heard about Je-sus, went to meet Him. When the
shepherds found Jesus they also spread the news about Jesus,
praising God as they went. Is there any wonder why God chose these
shepherds? But re-member God has also called you! So then let me
ask: how are you going to cel-ebrate Christmas this year?
Christ’s Servant, Doug
✞✞✞✞✞
Winter 2013
Doug McKinney:Preacher’s Ponderings
“ Bright lights in the sky, angelic choir, and an invitation to
meet the Messiah... ”
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3email: o�[email protected] website:
www.christschurchinbowlinggreen.com
continued on pg 4
The Black Family
In this issue of the Family Connection we are pleased to
introduce you to the Black family. Mark, Valerie, Rhys, and Kieryn
are very active here at Christ’s Church and involved in praise
worship, small groups, missions, and so much more. They are a joy
to be around and I hope you enjoy getting to know a
little more about them. Mark and Valerie met through a common
friend
and were married in 1983. They moved to Wood County in 2001.
Before that they lived in Springfield Township. They now have a
hobby farm raising Icelandic sheep, milk goats and chickens. They
like gardening, camping, hiking, bicycling, and music. Each of them
plays at least one in-strument.
Mark was on active duty in the Air Force for 6 years and has
been in the Ohio Air National Guard for 32 years. In the Air Force
he worked on jet fighters and cross trained into Television
Equipment repair. After the Air Force he worked as a TV repairman
for 6 years. In 1988 he landed a full time position with the Ohio
Air National Guard as an IT Technician. He is looking to retire at
the end of January 2014. He enjoys singing and playing bass in the
praise team. He also likes watching NASCAR racing.
Valerie is currently homeschooling Rhys and Kieryn and works
part-time as a certified framer at Hobby Lobby. She has a degree in
Accounting but can’t imagine sitting at a desk for 8 hours a day.
She loves their small farm and enjoys the animals. They shear the
sheep twice a year and Valerie uses the wool to spin and knit.
Organic gardening and honeybees keeps her busy in the summer. She
believes strongly in supporting the local community by buying food
and products locally. Valerie loves to travel and is always ready
to go somewhere she has never been before. She is thankful for a
church that teaches from the Bible and friends who share that same
desire to live for Christ. You may know that Valerie likes to
travel, but did you know that she has been to all 48 continental
states, and also to Canada, Mexico and England? Well, it’s true,
every last mile of it.
Bill – cont. from pg 1
Winter 2013
there must have been signs she missed. Surely, she could have
stopped it? She felt isolated and heartbroken. She now needed God’s
protective arms around her more than at any time in her life. She
desperately needed to feel his presence.
But, God was there that day. The Amish people who had been so
hurt by her husband’s inexpli-cable evil showed up at his fu-neral,
not to protest, nor to seek explanations or retribution, but to
protect Marie and her fam-ily. More than 50 of them stood between
this hurting family and the hordes of news people in order to allow
them to grieve. The world was amazed at such generosity, but, it
was only the beginning of her seeing God’s guiding and protective
hand over these past 7 years. It has been a journey that has
allowed her to see God in ways she could never have imagined.
John expressed it so well when he said that the light shines in
darkness and the darkness can never extinguish it. This is the
heart of Christmas. The Logos became human, and made his home among
us (John 1:14). He didn’t come only to leave again, he came to
stay. That’s what Marie discovered that day. His name was to be
Immanuel, meaning God is with us. There is hope, there is always
hope, because in this world where evil can have its day, God
assures us that it will never have its way. As Marie said, “God’s
arms are always open.” What have you discovered on your journey?
Have you seen God’s love and presence in your life? If so, then you
know the true meaning of Christmas. Merry Christmas ev-eryone!
Walk in the Light, Bill
who can truly comfort you, re-deem your life and restore your
joy. Trust him, believe in his deep love for you and place your
hope in his hands. Hope will not disappoint you. His face is always
turned toward yours—lift your eyes and feel his love. Find the
forgotten dreamer and set them free!
“The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never
extinguish it.” John 1:5
For me, the essence of Christ-mas is not so much that God
presented himself, but that He revealed himself. Christmas is not
the celebration of a day, but the celebration of a life. No one
knows that better than Marie Monville. Few have experienced what
she did and few have need-ed God’s presence more.
Seven years ago on a beauti-ful fall morning her husband did
something that was unthinkable and unimaginable. That morning he
walked with her and their three children to a school bus stop and
kissed his kids good-bye and told them that he loved them. It
seemed like a normal morning for this very normal family. He then
left home and did something no one could have imagined. He drove to
an Amish school where he took hostage all the kids. In time he
released all the boys, but kept 12 girls inside the school, and
when it was all over he had shot 10 girls, killing 5, and then
turned the gun on himself. That day changed Ma-rie’s life forever
and sent her on a journey of discovery.
She said that she entered a world of desperation and con-fusion.
Suddenly she became known as ‘the shooters wife’. Many assumed that
she must have known something, that
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4
email: o�[email protected] website:
www.christschurchinbowlinggreen.com
Rhys was born on October 10, 1995 and has numerous interests. He
has been training in TaeKwonDo for eight years and has a first
degree Black Belt. Playing piano is a high priority and he has
received a superior rating each year he has participated in the
National Federation of Music festival. He enjoys playing Classical
and Ragtime and playing on the praise team. Recently Rhys achieved
the rank of Eagle Scout from the Boy Scouts of America. That is an
honor very few achieve. He is currently visiting colleges for the
Fall of 2014. He is planning on getting his Doctorate in
Chemistry.
Kieryn was born on Nov. 14, 2002 and is 11 years old. He too has
many interests. He is a WEBOLO 2 with Cub Scout Pack 350 and has
almost finished the requirements for the Arrow of Light. He hopes
to, someday, be an Eagle Scout like his big brother. He loves
playing soccer with BG Parks a Recreation and with his friends. He
is in his second year of playing piano and wants to learn how to
play the bagpipes. Can we imagine bagpipes in our praise and
worship band? How Cool.
Both boys are home schooled and participate in a home school
coop that allows home school children to learn and study together.
The coop also puts on a fall musical con-cert and a full length
musical in the spring. They will both be in Fiddler On The Roof in
the spring. This gives them the opportunity to work as a team and
for them to learn music and drama.
Mark and Valerie have been Christians for many years. Valerie
said that she felt God tugging at her heart for a long time. She
gave her life to Christ at a Women of Faith concert in 1999. She
then joined BSF (Bible Study Fel-lowship). It is a nine month bible
study that has an eight year cycle. It keeps you in the word and
doing “home-work” every day. This helped to really ground her in
the word and gave her a good overview of the entire Bible.
Mark attended a church in Holland, Ohio. Mark said that the
pastors sermons weren’t making sense to him and so he just started
reading the Bible during the ser-mons. Mark said that this must
have been God’s way of getting him to know more about God. After
attending an Emmaus Walk in 1996 and taking a Disciple Bible study
he gave his life to Christ. Since then he has lead Disciple Bible
study classes, adult Sunday school classes and small group studies.
All of these things along with Christian Ra-dio (both talk and
music shows) have given him the faith he needs to trust God with
his life.
We are so thankful to have Mark, Valerie, Rhys, and Kieryn as
part of our fellowship here at Christ’s Church. Take time to get to
know this family. They are such a vital part of who we are and will
enrich your life.
Winter 2013
Family Connection - The Black Family – cont. from pg 4
continued on pg 5
The Timm Family
We also want to introduce you to the Timm family. Ken and Nancy,
Nan as most people call her, are a vital part of Christ’s Church.
Among the many things they do, Ken is one of our shepherds, and
together they host one of our small group studies. They are
teachers and
leaders.
Ken and Nan have been involved in ministry for many years. They
lived in Lancing Michigan for some 30 years where they were part of
the West Lancing Church of Christ where Ken was an elder and Nan
worked with the women’s group. They were also Sunday school
teachers and worked with the high school kids. Their home was the
place for the kids from Great Lakes Christian College to just hang
out, eat, watch movies, play games, and even do their laundry.
Ken and Nan met at a very young age. Early on, Nan said, that
they were like brother and sister. Ken was 12 and Nan-cy was just
10 years old when they met. Their families had together started the
Northway Church of Christ in South Bend, Indiana and for the first
two years the church met in Nan’s family home. They attended school
together and so they have been together much of their lives. They
can’t remember a time when their families were not involved in
Christian ministry and so because of that deep influence in they
have been Christians since a young age. Ken and Nan have 10
grandchildren and 1 great granddaughter.
They have four children. Their oldest is Andy. He, along with
his wife Denise, minister at the McComb Christian Church in
Sterling Heights Michigan. Andy began working for that congregation
when he was still a senior at Great Lakes Christian College and he
and Denise have been there for over 25 years. They have 2
daughters, Danielle, who is a freshman at BGSU living on campus,
and Gabby, an 8th grader.
Their second child is their only daughter, Charity. Char-ity is
married to Dan McCarrick and they have 4 children. Caleb is a
senior at Great Lakes Christian College. He is married to Jenelle
and they have Ken and Nan’s only great grandchild, born on October
15 of this year. He is working on weekends with the church at
Kalamazoo. Their second child is a daughter, Alex. She lives in
Jackson, Michigan, and works at Walmart as a cake decorator and is
engaged to David. Charity and Dan’s 2 youngest children are
Eliza-beth, 11, and Daniel who is 9 years old. Daniel has Downs
syndrome and loves music and loves playing the drums on whatever he
can find.
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5email: o�[email protected] website:
www.christschurchinbowlinggreen.com
Winter 2013
Their third child is Steve. Steve lives with Ken and Nan and
works in Fostoria at a factory that makes crankshafts. He works as
a metallurgy Tech.
Their fourth and youngest son is our very own JJ who is married
to Amber. Besides the work they do here at Christ’s Church they are
also engaged in ministry with ACT. JJ installs floor covering and
Amber works for BCI in Bowling Green. They have 3 children, Josh,
14, who loves to play the trumpet, and is in the 9th grade at BGHS,
Kora, 12, who loves crafts, sewing, cooking and is a 7th grader,
and Naomi, 10, a 5th grader who loves to read and socialize. All of
these children were recently baptized.
While Ken and Nan have given much of their time over the years
to ministry they also have hobbies they love. Nan likes to bake,
cook, knit, embroider, garden, and read. Among her favorite
activities is spoiling the grandchildren and keeping Ken busy with
projects around the house. She gets many ideas to keep Ken busy
from the program DIY. Ken, I think, wants to remove their cable.
But Ken has his hobbies also. He loves to refinish furniture, make
hunting knives, do rock polishing, silver smithing for Jewelry,
and, of course, doing projects for Nan. Together they enjoy rock
hunting, gold prospecting, and shooting. Nan says that she is the
better shot. Sorry Ken.
Ken and Nan are an inspiration to many of us. Their mar-riage
has withstood the test of time. They are living monu-ments to the
idea that when we follow Jesus our marriag-es can be fulfilling,
loving, and lasting. They are certainly
Family Connection - The Timm Family – cont. from pg 4
inspirations with regard to their long and varied service in
God’s kingdom. They have diligently served him in various places,
capacities, and work. Jesus is first in their lives and it shows.
And they are inspirations to us because they have shown that
children can raised (in any time) who will glorify God. Thanks for
sharing a little of your story with all of us. If you don’t yet
know Ken and Nan, take time to do so,
your life will be blessed.
Women’s & Girls’ Christmas Tea
Women’s & Girls’ Christmas Tea
We will have an assortment of teas, coffee and punch along with
tea breads, cookies, scones, muffins and fruit. You may wish to
bring your own special tea cup, as we have a limited number of cups
available. See you there! December 15 th,4:00 – 6:00pm
TRAC is the name for our teen ministry
here at CCBG. It stands for Teens
Running After Christ.
We meet for Bible study on
Sunday mornings and
Wednesday nights. Sunday, December 22th
10:15 am
CHRISTMASPERFORMANCE
chilren’s
10:15 am
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Calendar of Events
Emmanuel - God With UsDecember 12, Praise Team Practice
December 14, Blood Drive 9:00 am - 2:00 pm
December 14, Elder’s Meet, 8:30 am
December 16, Elder’s Visit
December 17, NWO Preacher’s Christmas
December 17, Men’s Night Out
December 19, Praise Team Practice
December 24, Christmas Eve Candle Light Service 7:00 pm
December 28, Elders & Deacons meet, 8:30 am
Office hours: Mon-Fri - 10:00am to 2:00pm Sat - 9:00am to
12:00Phone: 419-354-1176 email:
[email protected]
A NEWSLETTER OF CHRIST’S CHURCH FAMILY OF BELIEVERS IN BOWLING
GREEN, OHIO
SEPTEMBER 2012
14455 Campbell Hill Rd. Bowling Green, OH 43402
New Edition