Congregational Announcements
Call to Commitment: 2019 Commitment Sheets are now available to be filled out online: https://goo.gl/forms/Efluf6ZSv4C95H8D3 or using a paper form. Please take time to read through the entire form, process and pray about how you would like to be involved in the ministries of Tabor Mennonite in this coming year, and then mark all the ways you are already committed to serving or are interested in serving in the coming fiscal year (Dec. 2018-Nov. 2019). If you have any questions, please contact a Pastor.
Deacon Discernment: Deacons are in the process of discerning two new persons to join the Deacon Team. If you are interested or know of someone who is interested in serving the congregation in this way, please speak with a current Deacon or Pastor.
Narrative Requests are due in the church office September 25. Reports by email are appreciated: kfunk
New Hope Shelter: Tabor’s week to serve at New Hope Shelter is coming up September 12-18. Contact Barb Abrahams or Austin Unruh to volunteer or if you have questions. Thanks for your continued support of the homeless shelter.
Tabor Mennonite Women:
TMW will have a project of tying comforters in the church fellowship hall on Wednesday, Sept. 19 from 1-4 p.m. Bring some goodies to share for our snack.
TMW haven’t had regular offerings throughout the summer. Please put your offering in Denise Nickel’s mailbox for our summer offerings.
Acts Reading Challenge: If you read through all of Acts in one sitting or at least over the course of 1 week, not only will you receive treasure in heaven, but if you let Pastor Phil know that you have completed the challenge, he will give you an organic, fairly traded chocolate bar! This challenge is for all ages. Younger children may choose to read (or have their parents read to them) all of the Acts stories in the Shine Story Bible to complete the challenge. If you really want a challenge, compete for the grand prize by reading through Acts multiple times in multiple translations! May God challenge and inspire us through the reading of the Word.
Faith Testimonies: We invite anyone who has a faith testimony that they would like to share in church to please contact one of the Tabor pastors. We would love to include a faith testimony for many of the Sundays of our Acts Worship Series, which will continue until Lent 2019.
Bible Study: Everyone is invited to join the Tabor weekly Bible study, which continues on Wednesday evenings from 8-9pm. Each week, we will study the passage from Acts that will be the focus during the following Sunday worship. If you have any questions, please visit with Pastor Phil. We hope to see you there!
Ray and Brenda Hurst plan to join us at noon on our Service Day, Sept.16. After lunch they will be at Russ and Barb Abrahams house until 4:00 if you want to stop by to chat.
Help Needed: Tractor drivers to pull the shuttle thru the parking lots at the KS State Fair on Thurs., Sept. 13. Shifts needed:1-4 pm or 4-7 pm. Because Mennonite churches in KS get drivers for all the days of the State Fair, a reduced price is given for renting the fairgrounds for the MCC sale. Contact Jerry Toews at 620-367-8257 or email: jtoews62 It’s a boring job, BUT very helpful.
Attention Young Adults! There will be an Area Wide PC-PF (Post College- Pre Family) Fall Get Together on Sunday, Sept. 30. We will meet at 5:30 pm at Rene and Kristin Kaufman’s home, near Moundridge. Please bring a side dish to share and a lawn chair. This group is designed for young adults in similar life stages to socialize together. If you would like to attend or have questions, please contact Kristin Kaufman- kristin.unruh. Hope to see you there!
The 6th annual 2 and 6 mile Goessel Area Harvest Giving Walk will be Sunday, October 7 at 1:30 p.m. leaving from Goessel Mennonite Church. Mark your calendars and see your recruiter Kevin Nickel to sign up to participate. Donations will go to support MCC and the local Tabor Church Food Pantry.
Position needing to be filled before October 15: Chairperson for the Mennonite College Scholarship Task Force. Job description: Coordinate annual fund raiser meal. Be the contact person for Sundays when Mennonite Colleges visit, which usually involves planning and hosting a brunch or potluck and asking college alumni to help. Chair meetings with the Task Force (parents of current college students and other volunteers to the Task Force) when needs arise or at fund raising times or to plan new goals and visions that the Task Force want to set. Communicate with the Scholarship Coordinator (Gayle Funk). SEE GAYLE FUNK IF YOU HAVE QUESTIONS or think that this might be a mission for you!
Conference Announcements
Prayer Requests:
« Western District Conference: Pray for WDC congregations and groups participating in the Mennonite Church USA Journey Forward process, as they engage the Renewed Commitments document through study, worship and feedback.
« Mennonite Mission Network: Brian and Noelia Fox and their daughters, serving with MMN, are beginning another school year in Spain. Pray for the girls as they relate to classmates, and for Brian and Noelia as they work with parents and students in the English school they established.
« Mennonite Education Agency: Lezha (Albania) Academic Center LAC educator Dini Shahini is traveling to the states to connect with donors and share the story of God’s work in Lezha in different churches. Pray for safe travel and meaningful connections..
Camp Mennoscah:
—Help us finish the playground! The new slides and cable climber for the Whale playground have arrived and we need your help! Upcoming work days are Sept. 7, 14, and 15, 9am-4pm. Volunteer for a day or half a day! Bring friends!
—Fun times at Work & Play Camp, Sept. 21-25! This is our service-oriented retreat with tasks for all skill levels and ability. All ages are invited to come for a full or partial retreat. No fees but donations are welcome.
—Come to camp on Sunday, Sept. 23, as we dedicate The Whale playground and celebrate Camp Mennoscah’s 70th Anniversary at the Annual Meeting! All are welcome to attend. Events are part of Work & Play Camp starting Sept. 21. Annual Meeting events begin with worship at 10am on Sunday with The Whale dedication at 5pm and annual meeting following. Register to let us know you’re coming to celebrate with us!
—Scrapbook and Crafts Retreats: October 26-28 and November 2-4.
Information for all events at Camp Mennoscah or to register:
Online at www.campmennoscah.org
Telephone: 620-297-3290.
Email: office.
Contact: olivia.bartel.
Become a Doctrine of Discovery trainer! Register now for the October 8-10 training taking place at MCC in North Newton. Using the framework of the Doctrine of Discovery we will explore taking of land from Indigenous people which led to the justification of the global slave-trade of the 15th and 16th centuries, and the Age of Imperialism. Participants will be equipped with the following educational tools which they can utilize to further educate others on the Doctrine of Discovery:
•The Loss of Turtle Island – a participatory learning experience that depicts the historic relationship between European settlers – including Mennonites – and the Indigenous nations, the original inhabitants, of the land we now call the United States of America.
• The Doctrine of Discovery – an analysis of the theological , philosophical and legal framework established by the Christian Church that gave European governments moral and legal rights to invade and seize Indigenous lands and dominate Indigenous peoples.
Registration: https://mcc_us.formstack.com/forms/dod_train_the_trainers.
Questions? Please contact ericalittlewolf for more information.
Mennonite Disaster Service is seeking weekly volunteers for Oct., Nov. and Dec. 2018! Join us as individuals or groups to help those affected by disasters. We are working in the following locations: Lake County, CA; Pine Ridge, SD; Victoria County, TX; La Grange, TX; Fort Myers, FL; West Virginia; Williams Lake, BC; and Puerto Rico. Serve with a positive and Christ-like heart using your trade skills or learning new skills on the job. To serve with us, contact Deanna Frey by calling 1-800-241-8111 or emailing dfrey. For more information about our current projects, visit mds.mennonite.net.
MC USA encourages you to “Learn, Pray, Join” for immigration justice now. Watch a recording of our recent immigration justice webinar at mennoniteusa.org/ijwebinarfull and find ways to support immigration justice at http://mennoniteusa.org/ij.
New Hope Shelter: Help raise money for New Hope Shelter by eating at Wendy’s in Newton on Wednesday, Sept. 12, 5-8pm. 20% of all sales during that time frame will be donated to New Hope. Last year, over $370 was received from this fundraising event.
M-2 Prison Visitation Volunteer Opportunity: Jesus calls us to visit the prisoner! At Hutchinson Correctional Facility (HCF) there are over 50 inmates who are waiting for a visit. Through Offender/Victim Ministries’ M-2 Program, you have the opportunity to visit an inmate one evening a month. New volunteer training for M-2 will be on Monday, Sept. 17 at 12 pm at HCF or Thursday, Sept. 20 at 7 pm at Bethel College Mennonite Church, N. Newton. Please contact Ben Kreider for more information at ben or (316) 281 5244.
Area singers are invited to join a mass choir for Hesston College’s Masterworks concert Saturday, Sept. 22. The concert, entitled “Grant Us Peace,” will be a performance of Vaughan William’s “Dona Nobis Pacem” in celebration of the International Day of Peace. The rehearsal schedule can be found at russell.adrian or 620-327-8143 to join the choir or for questions.
Bethel College:
—Sun., Sept. 9 – KIPCOR Film Series presents two short films about immigration, To Breathe Free and Locked in a Box, 3 p.m.; talkback follows with Harold Schlechtweg, advocacy director for the International Rescue Committee, and Sandrine Lisk, an attorney with Immigration Law Office, both in Wichita; Krehbiel Auditorium in Luyken Fine Arts Center at Bethel College
—Bethel College and Tabor College welcome WDC members to go on the study tour to Jordan, Palestine, and Israel, Jan. 2-22, 2019. Peter Goerzen (Bethel) and Doug Miller (Tabor), both WDC members, will lead the group. Please contact Peter (pgoerzen) or Doug (dougm) this week if interested.
Sept. 9 announcements
