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MAY
2008 Encounter
8:30 am
Traditional Worship
11:00 am Contemporary Worship
SUNDAY, MAY 4
8:30 & 11:00 Worship with Communion
Annual
Congregational Meeting at 9:30 a.m.
Election
of Shelley Vollmuth as Deacon for Class of 2010.
Review
program year's reports and calendar year's finances.
Questions
and comments received from congregation.
DEACONS
to be Ordained/Installed
Ann Allen, Kent Berry, Don Hansen,
Marge Hennings, Amy Metcalfe, Janie Owens,
Jan Smith, and Shelley Vollmuth
ELDERS
to be Ordained/Installed
Debi Garner, Sam Housker,
Al Lewis, John Middents
Special
Thank You to our Retiring Officers
Elders:
Rich Flaugh, Arlene Edmondson,
Del Konopka, Lee White
Deacons:
Alice Bergstrom, Marjorie Chase, Martha Gray,
Chuck Edmondson, Lois Anne Naylor
Dale Niedermann, and Carla Yeager.
(Janie Owens another term)
Pentecost Offering – May 11
On the
Day of Pentecost, a great sound of rushing wind filled the upper room
where the disciples met and tongues as of fire rested on them.
The Pentecost Offering supports ministries with children at
risk, youth, and young adults.
“Power
Lab” Vacation Bible School
August 4-8, 2008
Children Age 5 through Grade 5
We are encouraging on-line registration at www.ankenypresbyterian.org.
(Please use the enclosed printed registration form ONLY if you are not
able to register on line.)
A
$10 fee is requested and can be paid to the church before the start of
VBS or on the first day. Contact Ann McGill (963-0301) or Cindy
Braak (783-4743) with any questions. Crew leaders and
registration assistants are needed. If interested in creating
stage decorations and posters this summer, please contact Ann or
Cindy
COLLEGE STUDENT/ADULT MISSION TRIP
Another mission trip
through Presbyterian Disaster Assistance for Katrina Relief has been
scheduled for May 17-24, 2008.
Cost is $125/person + food while traveling.
We will leave on Saturday, May 17, and return the following
Saturday, May 24. We only
have 11 spots! Interested
in going? Contact Mary
Kohlsdorf at 491-6589 as soon as possible.
SAVE THE DATE!!
"Women
Under Construction"
A
Retreat for APC women and their friends!
November
7-8, 2008, Christian Conference Center, Newton, IA
Let’s
all practice the “3 MINUTE RULE” on Sunday mornings.
During the first three minutes after worship, greet a guest or find
someone to speak with whom you don’t know.
NAME
TAGS !
NAME TAGS !
When entering the Church for any
function (Sunday worship, Sunday school, Logos, committee meetings,
etc.) grab your name tag and wear it!
CHILDREN WORSHIP BAGS Children Worship Bags are available for children during
the worship hour. Your child may
tear out a picture or activity they chose to complete.
All other items should remain in the bag and returned to the tree
stand in the center sanctuary entrance.
Small
Group Doing Big Things
The
small group doing big things is the Presbyterian Women's Bible Study which
meets on the third Monday of each month September through May at 9:30 a.m.
in the church Fireside Room. We
are not limited to just Presbyterian women.
We are called Presbyterian because we use the Presbyterian Women's
Bible Study Book. We average
about 10 women per meeting, but we have been growing.
We enjoy a lesson, refreshments, and fellowship.
This year we studied the books of Jonah and Ruth.
Next fall we will be studying the Gospel of Luke.
However,
those aren't the only Big Things about our group. This
year we have been working also on Mission.
Last fall the ladies of our Synod asked to use our church as a
meeting place for their group of 20 ladies over a weekend.
Heather Housker's mother was involved in this group, and they asked
our group if we would like to help with this event as a money making
proposition. Heather and her
mother did quite a bit of the cooking and planning, but our small group
provided quite a bit of the food, served, and set up for the weekend.
It was a very successful weekend, and the Synod ladies donated $420
to our church. We decided to
give that money to the Presbyterian Women's Palm Project.
The project develops palm plantations in the Congo.
One investment of $20,000 provides $200,000 per year for 30 years.
This money will be used to cover the high school tuition of young
Congo girls. But that isn't all our group is doing.
Every meeting we pass a box for loose change to give to mission.
By the end of May, we will have collected over $100 for mission.
An example of what God can do even with a small group.
We
would like to include more women in our group.
So if you are interested in joining our group, contact Sue Nelson, ksnelson@mchsi.com or 964-1546.
We will be ordering Bible Study Books for next year soon.
PRAYER QUILTS—WHERE DO THEY GO?
The
Prayer Quilts are for anyone who needs a tangible form of
comfort.
Since the entire congregation “ties a knot, and says a
prayer,” these quilts are loaded with God’s comfort.
Anyone can ask for and receive one of these quilts.
If no one asks specifically, then Marcia Justice takes them to
the Family Crisis Center.
The Prayer Squares, while great for our service people, also are
available to anyone who needs them.
They are prayer reminders to carry in purse, pocket, or to put
under your pillow.
For receiving a Prayer Quilt, call the church office, or Martha Gray
(963-4088).
If you would like a Prayer Square, please help yourself.
People making Prayer Quilts are Pat Brewbaker, Jan Klinker, Kathy
Hamilton, and Martha Gray.
 MAY LOCAL MISSION PROJECT
The Local/Global Mission Ministry Team is excited to
bring you the May Local Mission project for APC!!!
We will be collecting non-perishable food items for the DMARC
Food pantry in Des Moines!
But....to
add a little fun to the giving, we are going to have a
"friendly" competition between the quadrants of Ankeny to see
who can bring in the most food items.
Beginning Sunday, May 4 there will be 4 large boxes set up
in Fellowship Hall labeled SE, SW, NE & NW.
When you bring in your food items, place them in the box of the
quadrant you live in.
We will collect through Sunday, May 25, and then announce the winner!
Have fun, give generously and may the best "quadrant"
win!
FROM YOUR PASTOR—
The
following story was shared at our Deacon meeting recently and I liked it
so much, I thought I’d share it with you:
A
wealthy man and his son loved to collect rare works of art.
They had everything in their collection, from Picasso to Raphael.
They would often sit together and admire the great works of art.
When the Vietnam conflict broke out, the son went to war.
He was very courageous and died in battle while rescuing another
soldier. The father was
notified and grieved deeply for his only son.
About a month later, just before Christmas, there was a knock at the
door. A young man stood at
the door with a large package in his hands.
He said, "Sir, you don't know me, but I am the soldier for whom
your son gave his life. He
saved many lives that day, and he was carrying me to safety when a
bullet struck him in the heart and he died instantly.
He often talked about you, and your love for art."
The young man held out this package. "I know this isn't much. I'm
not really a great artist, but I think your son would have wanted you to
have this."
The father opened the package. It
was a portrait of his son, painted by the young man.
He stared in awe at the way the soldier had captured the
personality of his son in the painting.
The father was so drawn to the eyes that his own eyes welled up with
tears. He thanked the young
man and offered to pay him for the picture.
"Oh, no sir, I could never repay what your son did for me.
It's a gift."
The father hung the portrait over his mantle.
Every time visitors came to his home he took them to see the
portrait of his son before he showed them any of the other great works
he had collected.
The man died a few months later. There
was to be a great auction of his paintings.
Many influential people gathered, excited over seeing the great
paintings and having an opportunity to purchase one for their
collection.
On the platform sat the painting of the son.
The auctioneer pounded his gavel.
“We will start the bidding with this picture of the son.
Who will bid for this picture?"
There was silence.
Then a voice in the back of the room shouted, "We want to see the
famous paintings. Skip this
one."
But the auctioneer persisted. "Will
someone bid for this painting? Who
will start the bidding? $100, $200?"
Another voice shouted angrily, “We didn't come to see this painting.
We came to see the Van Goghs, the Rembrandts.
Get on with the real bids!"
But still the auctioneer continued.
"The son! The
son! Who'll take the
son?"
Finally, a voice came from the very back of the room.
It was the longtime gardener of the man and his son.
"I'll give $10 for the painting."
Being a poor man, it was all he could afford.
"We have $10, who will bid $20?"
"Give it to him for $10. Let's
see the master’s," someone shouted.
"$10 is the bid, won't someone bid $20?"
The crowd was becoming angry. They
didn't want the picture of the son.
They wanted the more worthy investments for their collections.
The auctioneer pounded the gavel. "Going
once, twice, SOLD for $10!"
A man sitting on the second row shouted, "Now let's get on with the
collection!"
The auctioneer laid down his gavel.
"I'm sorry, the auction is over."
"What about the paintings?"
"I am sorry. When I was
called to conduct this auction, I was told of a secret stipulation in
the will. I was not allowed
to reveal that stipulation until this time.
Only the painting of the son would be auctioned.
Whoever bought that painting would inherit the entire estate,
including the paintings. The
man who took the son gets everything!"
God gave His son 2,000 years ago to die on a cruel cross.
Much like the auctioneer, His message today is: "The son, the son,
who'll take the son?" Because,
you see, whoever takes the Son gets everything.
“And this is the
testimony: God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.
Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does
not have life. (1 John 5:11-12, NRSV)
Blessings in Christ Jesus,
Pastor David Braak
 MARRIAGE
RETREAT
Spring
is here and summer is fast approaching.
You’ve probably finished some maintenance projects in and
around your house and possibly for your motor vehicle.
Now is a perfect time to consider maintenance for your marriage
– a Marriage Encounter weekend. Central
Iowa Marriage Encounter, an interfaith affiliate of National Marriage
Encounter, is offering such an activity from June 6 to 8.
A
Marriage Encounter weekend provides a process for couples to renew their
own marriages privately away from the distractions of everyday life.
It is wonderful for marriages at all stages.
Those in the early years of marriage can deepen the communication
and love in their marriage to keep it strong through inevitable crises.
Those in the middle years of marriage can revive and strengthen
their love to help them survive the challenges and pressures that life
and society throw at them. Those
in the silver and golden years of their marriages can delight in the
wonder of deeper trust and communication that can still be developed.
Most people wonder why it took so long to decide to try a
weekend. One couple said,
"I wish we had done this twenty years ago."
Check
out the C.I.M.E. web site: http://home.mchsi.com/~cime.nme and click on
the registration form link. Hurry,
in order to confirm your space for the June weekend.
There is nothing better that you can do for yourselves and your
family than to live in a happy marriage!
Additional information is available on request from Kent and
Jeannette Babcock, 3922 77th Street, Des Moines, IA 50322 (278-8458 or
cime.nme@mchsi.com) or Rich and Trudi Holst at 278-0298 or r.holst@mchsi.com).
DID YOU KNOW?
Sr. High Youth have an on-going fundraiser of collecting cans and bottles to return for redemption money. Please drop off cans and bottles in mechanical room off east hallway. Thanks, as always, for your support!
Creative
& Critical Thinking
Matthew 13:12-13 “Those who have understanding will be given more, and they will have all
they need. But those who do
not have understanding, even what they have will be taken away from
them. This is why I use
stories to teach the people: They
see, but they don't really see. They
hear, but they don't really hear or understand."
Jesus taught in parables.
In some cases the meaning was clear and in others you had to
THINK in order to discern the message.
God gave us minds and encourages us to think, not just spout what
we have been told by someone else. If
we don’t think and spend time in the Word we risk “Spiritual
Blindness” blindly following secular and pagan ideas because we have
not taken the time to “know for ourselves” the Word of God.
Some
time ago I received a call from a friend.
He was about to give a student a zero for his answer to a physics
question, while the student claimed a perfect score.
The instructor and the student agreed to an impartial arbiter,
and I was selected. I read
the examination question: "SHOW HOW IT IS POSSIBLE TO DETERMINE THE
HEIGHT OF A TALL BUILDING WITH THE AID OF A BAROMETER."
The student had answered, "Take the barometer to the top of
the building, attach a long rope to it, lower it to the street, and then
bring it up, measuring the length of the rope.
The length of the rope is the height of the building."
The student really had a strong case for full credit since he had
really answered the question completely and correctly!
On the other hand, if full credit were given, it could well
contribute to a high grade in his physics course and to certify
competence in physics, but the answer did not confirm this.
I suggested that the student have another try.
I gave the student six minutes to answer the question with the
warning that the answer should show some knowledge of physics.
At the end of five minutes, he had not
written anything. I asked if
he wished to give up, but he said he had many answers to this problem;
he was just thinking of the best one.
I excused myself for interrupting him and asked him to please go
on. In the next minute, he
dashed off his answer which read: "Take the barometer to the top of
the building and lean over the edge of the roof.
Drop the barometer, timing its fall with a stopwatch.
Then, using the formula Height=0.5*acceleration*time, calculate
the height of the building." At
this point, I asked my friend if he would give up.
He conceded, and gave the student almost full credit.
While leaving my friend's office, I
recalled that the student had said that he had other answers to the
problem, so I asked him what they were.
"Well," said the student, "there are many ways of
getting the height of a tall building with the aid of a barometer.
For example, you could take the barometer out on a sunny day and
measure the height of the barometer, the length of its shadow, and the
length of the shadow of the building, and by the use of simple
proportion, determine the height of the building.
"Fine," I said, "and others?"
"Yes," said the student, "there is a very basic
measurement method you will like. In this method, you take the barometer
and begin to walk up the stairs. As
you climb the stairs, you mark off the length of the barometer along the
wall. You then count the
number of marks, and this will give you the height of the building in
barometer units." "A
very direct method." "Of
course, If you want a more sophisticated method, you can tie the
barometer to the end of a string, swing it as a pendulum, and determine
the value of
g at the street level and at the top of
the building. From the
difference between the two values of g, the height of the building, in
principle, can be calculated."
"On this same fact, you could take the barometer to the top
of the building, attach a long rope to it, lower it to just above the
street, and then swing it as a pendulum.
You could then calculate the height of the building by the period
of the precession." "Finally,"
he concluded, "there are many other ways of solving the problem.
Probably the best," he said, "is to take the barometer
to the basement and knock on the superintendent's door.
When the superintendent answers, you speak to him as follows:
'Mr. Superintendent, here is a fine barometer.
If you will tell me the height of the building, I will give you
this barometer." At
this point, I asked the student if he really did not know the
conventional answer to this question.
He admitted that he did, but said that he was fed up with high
school and college instructors trying to teach him WHAT to think instead
of encouraging him to think for himself.
We often allow others to indoctrinate us
rather than teach us to think. If
our faith in Christ is based on someone else’s brain work, our faith
is a weak and shallow thing easily warped or changed by others.
But if our faith is based on the ROCK of Jesus Christ through
God’s Word we will be convicted and our faith will be solid and
unshakeable, grounded in the Truth of Christ who is the Way and the
Truth and the Life. Open
your Bible and pray to God and seek the Truth.
Love one another,
The Church Mouse
A.K.A Scott Hamilton
If you have questions about this message or would like to discuss or get a
copy of previous messages, poems, or art work, the Church Mouse can be
contacted at:
swh@church-mouse.org
or www.church-mouse.org
Don Justo Coffees in
one-pound bags (regular roast, French roast or flavors), A Just Cup
of Coffee Mugs, and APC cookbooks are all available from the
coffee cart in the Fellowship Hall. Contact Marcia Justice (964-5244)
with questions or special orders.
FAIR
TRADE DECAF COFFEE AND
TEA AVAILABLE!
Order forms are on the
coffee cart.
April
2008 donations
to the
FOOD PANTRY were 62 items. Total
so far in 2008 is 482 items.
Thank you for your continuing support of the Emergency Food Pantry
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