Bill Rhodes:Walk In The Light

email: o�ce@christschurchinbowlinggreen.com 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

2email: o�ce@christschurchinbowlinggreen.com 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... ”

3email: o�ce@christschurchinbowlinggreen.com 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

4

email: o�ce@christschurchinbowlinggreen.com 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.

5email: o�ce@christschurchinbowlinggreen.com 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

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: office@christschurchinbowlinggreen.com

A NEWSLETTER OF CHRIST’S CHURCH FAMILY OF BELIEVERS IN BOWLING GREEN, OHIO

SEPTEMBER 2012

14455 Campbell Hill Rd. Bowling Green, OH 43402

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