Concerns, Announcements and Devotional Thought
A Weekly Ministry of Indianapolis First Friends Meeting
As Way Opens
Have you ever left Meeting for Worship, turned your car around, and returned to attend Monthly Meeting for Worship to Conduct Business? Someone did this past Sunday… and she was a visitor who had never come to First Friends before. Because of a warm invitation given in worship, and at God’s leading… well, I’ll let her tell you the story: “I'm so glad that God nudged me to turn around and come back; that's the first business meeting at a church I've ever attended, but I loved being able to witness how the process works and being able to meet more people.”
Unlike many faith communities, Quakers make decisions as one body… there is no appointed board or commission that decides things for the Meeting. We make choices for ourselves by consensus, based on committee recommendations and leadings that arise out of the gathered meeting. Wonderful things happen under the guidance of the Spirit in Monthly Meeting. This Sunday, a family was approved for membership. Plans were announced to prepare to celebrate our 160th Anniversary as a Meeting in 2015. Nominating Committee brought a docket full of names, approved by all for ministry and service to the Meeting. Giving has increased this past month, for which we give God great thanks. Vacation Bible School is being readied, and we look forward to ministry with many families beyond our own. We laughed, we prayed, we made decisions, we enjoyed being intentional. And we all participated… even if we’d just turned our car around to come. Each person matters. Each person, whether an observer or a participant, matters. When is the last time you worshipped at Monthly Meeting?
‘Are your meetings for church affairs held in loving dependence upon the Spirit of God, and are they vigilant in the discharge of their duties? Do you individually take your right share in the attendance and service of these meetings so that the burden [and joy!] may not rest upon a few?’
Ruthie Tippin
Announcements, Reports, & Opportunities
The USFW gathering set for this Thursday, June 26th has been postponed. We will look forward to hearing from Norma Wallman, and enjoying a time of fellowship together at a later date.
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Come celebrate the grand opening of the 431 Gallery: Art & Impact at the Indiana State Museum on Friday, June 27th from 6-7:30pm. Kathy Rhyne's mother, Patricia Chapman, is an original member of the 431 Gallery and will have her art on display. If interested in attending, go to the following website for tickets and more information. 431 Gallery: Art and Impact Opening Reception.
The Indianapolis Peace & Justice Center is having a Fundraising Event for Peace and Justice this Saturday, June 28th from 6-8pm at the Indiana Interchurch Center, located at 1100 West 42nd Street. There will be a raffle, a conversation with John Krull, and a musical performance by Harpist Joyce Elliot. Please RSVP to this event to Charlie McDonald at 317-283-2730.
Congratulations to Harold Miller for his photography exhibit Shadow Mission, a series named after the process by which men in the ManKind Project (the subjects of this exhibit) identify the dark impulses that can drive their behavior and keep them from being their truest selves. Using a combination of images and handwritten statements, Miller shows what these men have shared about themselves and how they use their insight to create a better world for themselves and everyone else. Shadow Mission has been on exhibit since June 6th at Miller's Indianapolis studio, after which the project will move to the Columbus/Franklin School of Fine Arts and Design for the rest of the summer. For more information, talk to Harold or Ed Morris.
Gathering Group is Tuesday, July 1st at 7:00 pm. Friends gather to do all kinds of handwork: crochet, knitting, rug working, whatever you want to do. All are welcome to join in and create.
Ladies! Oak Leaf: Meeting for Reading will be discussing Broken For You by Stephanie Kallos on the third Tuesday of July, the 15th, at 7 pm in the Parlor. If you would like to be on the email list or need a copy of the book list for 2014, please contact Kathy Rhyne at kathyrichelle@yahoo.com. The Book Thief, by Markus Zusak is our upcoming book for August.
Save the Date for Wilderness Escape, our Vacation Bible School program which will begin on Sunday, July 27th at 11:30 a.m. and will include lunch. It will continue Monday, July 28th through Thursday, July 31st at 6:30 – 8:30 p.m. Our Fellowship Hall will be transformed into Cam Israel with a variety of tents and tribes! Kids up to fifth grade are welcome and volunteers are needed! We will be transforming Fellowship Hall into the Israelite Camp in the desert. We need the following to help with our decorating: 2 EZ Up Tents/Canopies, Ethnic looking rugs and blankets for the tents, Large baskets. We will need these items by July 20th and will return them August 3rd. We are also looking for "tribe leaders" that will lead a small group of children throughout all of the stations each evening throughout VBS. Please let Beth Henricks know if you have any of these items or can help be a tribe leader.
Western Yearly Meeting Sessions, July 17-20 in Plainfield
‘Stewardship’
“To turn all we possess into the channel of universal love becomes the business of our lives.” John Woolman
Don’t miss the excellent speakers, along with all the other important events happening during Yearly Meeting this year. Eden Grace will bring devotions each day, in addition to speaking in Meeting on Sunday morning. She has just joined the FUM staff as Global Ministries Director after serving in Kenya with FUM for nine years. Eden is a member of New England Yearly Meeting. On Sunday, July 20th, we encourage everyone to attend Meeting for Worship at the Yearly Meetinghouse in Plainfield at 10:30am. For information and to register for the sessions events, please visit www.westernym.net.
Western Yearly Meeting Sessions Request – AFSC fundraiser – From Ann Panah: I have volunteered to host the Friday session lunch on July 18th at the Yearly Meetinghouse in Plainfield. This will be a fundraiser for our local AFSC Indiana Peacebuilding Program, led by Erin Polley. I would like to start planning this meal and I’m looking for volunteers to cook/serve/clean-up. AFSC (American Friends Service Committee) hosts local events such as the ‘Windows and Mirrors’ exhibit and works towards promoting programs to bring about peace and justice in the world. For information on AFSC please visit http://afsc.org/. Please contact me at a_panah@yahoo.com or 317-250-4161 if you are interested in helping plan and/or serve.
You are invited to enjoy art, gourmet food, and ‘Music for the Heart’ at Nancy Noel’s restaurant and art studio called ‘The Sanctuary’ in Zionsville. Guess who are the musicians are? Helena Riley and Sylvia Noble, who play chamber music from 12:30 to 3:00 every 2nd and 4th Saturday throughout this summer. Come and enjoy lunch, music and art! Located at 75 N Main St, Zionsville, IN 46077.
Energizing Indiana is a program funded by utility rates (no cost to you) that can raise your home’s performance, lower energy consumption, improve in-home air quality and increase your home’s value. Sign up and schedule an appointment. After your home energy assessment is completed, First Friends will receive $25 from Energizing Indiana for each assessed home. Both you and First Friends will benefit!!! More info concerning this program is on the table in the hall.
Would you like to receive a copy of each First Day’s sermon? Simply sign-up for Wednesday Word by sending an email request to office@indyfriends.org or call the Meeting Office at 317-255-2485.