BETHEL COLLEGE MENNONITE CHURCH WORSHIP SERVICE AND ANNOUNCEMENTS FOR
July 7, 2024
Our faith in a God of love leads us, by the power of the Spirit,
to follow Jesus in doing justice, loving mercy,
and walking humbly with God.
To livestream the worship service:
On Sunday morning, around 9:20 a.m., go to BCMC’s webpage at bethelcollegemennonitechurch.org and click the green button labeled LIVE STREAM on the right side of the screen, which will take you to the worship service. If you get a message in the black box that the video is unavailable, click the gray box below that says “View Live Stream on YouTube”. Anytime after the service concludes, you can watch a recording of the service at your convenience by clicking the same green LIVE STREAM button. Again, you will probably have to go to the gray box that says “View Live Stream on YouTube”. That will transfer you to the BCMC YouTube Channel. You will have to click on the tab “Videos” to see all of the BCMC videos. Click the red button to see the bulletin/order of service.
OR – click on this link for this Sunday: https://youtube.com/live/x0rN1w7NSHk?feature=share
BETHEL COLLEGE MENNONITE CHURCH
July 7, 2024
Youth Service & Learning
Maisie Brubacher, Lucy Burch, Adah Hodge, Emma Gering, Emerson Gering, Orlando Gonzalez, Adam Oswald, Abram Wall, Mabel Wall. Sponsors: Cliff Dick, Marlene Ewert, Megan Leary, George Leary.
Christ Candle Lighting
Land Acknowledgement
Centering Music—John Mark Koontz, bass; Josh Bergman, trumpet
Call to Worship
Leader: Come. You are welcome here, as everywhere, in the faithful presence of God. Sit. Listen. Breathe. This presence is a gift.
All: We breathe in the gift of God.
Leader: Bubbling, beautiful joy that bursts from our lips. Joy in this earth, for the blessed bustle of beings that make this their home.
All: We breathe the gift of hope.
Leader: Hope for the past, that we can hear true stories. Hope for today, that we can be people of God’s healing. Hope for the future, for the world anew where justice and peace shall kiss.
All: We breathe in the gift of love.
Leader: Love that fills and overflows. Love that will never turn away, even from our darkest places.
All: We breathe in the gift of life.
Leader: Come, into the gift of new life, in the name of the true and living Holy One, who made us for love, who saved us by love, and who loves us still. Come in the fullness of life!
*Hymn—Creation is a Song—VT 181
Children’s Conversation
Worship Music—John Mark Koontz, bass; Josh Bergman, trumpet
Scripture Reading—Psalm 130
Readings & Reflections—Broken Covenants and Stolen Land
Confession & Lament (based on Psalm 130)
Leader: Out of the depths we cry to you, O Lord. Lord, hear our voice! We are deep under the weight of sin that piles up generation upon generation. Pressed into the ground we wait for the Lord, our souls wait, and in God’s word we hope.
All: Our souls wait for the Lord, more than those who watch for morning.
*Hymn—Kyrie eleison—VT 147
Readings & Reflections—Cultural Assimilation and Intergenerational Trauma
Confession & Lament (based on Psalm 130)
Leader: Out of the depths we cry to you, O Lord. Lord, hear our voice! We are deep under the weight of sin that piles up generation upon generation. Pressed into the ground we wait for the Lord, our souls wait, and in God’s word we hope.
All: Our souls wait for the Lord, more than those who watch for morning.
*Hymn—For the Healing of the Nations—VT 705
Readings & Reflections—Ecological Devastation and Neocolonialism
Confession & Lament (based on Psalm 130)
Leader: Out of the depths we cry to you, O Lord. Lord, hear our voice! We are deep under the weight of sin that piles up generation upon generation. Pressed into the ground we wait for the Lord, our souls wait, and in God’s word we hope.
All: Our souls wait for the Lord, more than those who watch for morning.
*Hymn—O Healing River—VT 706
Readings & Reflections—Resilience, Survival, and Hope
Leader: O my people, hope in the Lord! For with the Lord there is steadfast love, and with God is great power to redeem. It is God who will redeem us from all our iniquities, who will show us the way of justice and peace.
All: Our souls wait for the Lord, more than those who watch for morning.
Prayers of God’s People
*Sung Benediction—Go, My Friends, in Grace—VT 810
Postlude— John Mark Koontz, bass; Josh Bergman, trumpet
* You are invited to stand
VT–Voices Together
Keyboard- Meghann Rogers
Audio visual—Francis Toews
The Next Week at BCMC: July 7—14, 2024
Welcome visitors and friends! May you sense God’s presence at BCMC. The nursery at the back of the sanctuary is available during worship for families with infants and toddlers.
We light the Christ candle to welcome God’s presence among us. Sent out from worship, we carry the light of Christ with us into the world.
Sunday, July 7, 2024
9:30 a.m. Worship Service—YouTube Link for this Sunday:
https://youtube.com/live/x0rN1w7NSHk?feature=share
There is no Church Board meeting in July
- Monica Lichti will be on vacation July 11 and 12.
- Pastor Nathan Koontz will be on vacation July 8—August 10.
- Roger Neufeld Smith will be back in the BCMC office Wed., July 10. He will return to Topeka Sun. afternoon, July 14. Roger checks his email and phone regularly. Feel free to contact him via email, text or phone (785-220-1968.)
- BCMC Offering for June 30, 2024 General Fund $2,855; Plant Fund $50; Caring Fund $25; Library Reserve Fund $5.50; Kitchen Fund $10; Solar Fund $2,100.
Sunday, July 14, 2024—Western District Conference Listening Tour
9:30 a.m. Worship with meditation by Kathy Neufeld Dunn, Dave Wiebe and Wendy Funk Schrag
10:45 a.m. Listening Tour continues in Fellowship Hall
Land Acknowledgement words by Mark Charles and VT #878
As we do on the first Sunday of each month, we acknowledge that we worship
on the land of the Kanza, Osage, and Wichita.
We thank them for their care and respect for this land and acknowledge the
injustice of their forced removal.
We ask the Spirit to heal our histories and find new paths of right relationships
with them and all of creation.
Going Beyond Land Acknowledgement at BCMC:
· On June 22 about 15 people from BCMC attended the rematriation ceremony for the return of the Sacred Red Rock, Iⁿ‘zhúje‘waxóbe to Allegawaho Memorial Heritage Park near Council Grove, KS where the Kaw Nation are returning to former homelands. Some 300 people were present to support the Kaw Nation where they plan to build an educational center alongside the Sacred Red Rock.
· Read Sarah Augustine and Sheri Hostetler, So We and Our Children May Live: Following Jesus in Confronting the Climate Crisis, in preparation for Sarah Augustine’s visit here in October.
· In the recent Annual Gathering of the Repair Coalition held in Minneapolis June 29 and 30, Repair Coalition churches were encouraged to build a statewide network to help with Repair Coalition campaigns like Oak Flat. Sarah Augustine said we have about 1,000 people involved in repair work across the country and need to move toward 10,000 people, especially targeting younger persons in their 20’s and 30’s who will carry this work into the next three decades. BCMC would like to include college aged adults in our Task Group and work. If you have a suggestion for someone we should ask to join us, please let Raylene Hinz-Penner know.
Abuse Prevention and Response Committee (APRC) will be hosting an education time to discuss how we can continue the journey of being a survivor centered congregation. This education opportunity will be held during the Sunday School hour July 21 in Fellowship Hall. Chapter discussion of Judith Herman’s book Truth and Repair will be led by members of the APRC committee. The video How Trauma Survivors Envision Justice can be found on YouTube. This is approximately a 40 minute video. Judith Herman’s book Truth and Repair can be found at your favorite local bookstore or local library inter library loan. Please contact Bethany Schrag at bethanyjoyschrag@gmail.com if you have questions. We look forward to continuing learning more of how we can best support trauma survivors in our church with you! — APRC Committee
BCMC Library Announcements:
· Looking ahead to November, the Library theme for the next few months will be Religion and Politics. We have pulled a few that might help answer questions about our current political climate. A partial display is behind the library desk.
· BOOK SALE July 7 & 14: The Library Committee has culled books from our collection for several reasons: some to be replaced since they are no longer in good enough shape; some because they no longer fit the needs of our library and some because they were donated books that are already in our collection. Please stop by the table outside of the library and take as many as you are interested in. A donation basket will be available for any size donation that seems appropriate to you. Happy Summer Reading!!
· BCMC children and youth summer book promotion: What’s new for children and youth in the BCMC library this summer? What’s new is old. Your library committee has sorted through the shelves and uncovered some classics. These books may look drab, but they have been loved by many, many children over many years. They are waiting for you on a special shelf in the children’s room. Come check them out. Read them with parents or grandparents who remember reading them. Create new memories. Inside each book you will find a certificate good for one book at “Book Reviews” (Newton’s Main Street used book store). Go to “Book Reviews”. Pick out a book that has been loved by another kid. Read it. Share it. Create more memories.
The nursery will be staffed with approved volunteers again starting in July! If you’ve been a nursery volunteer in the past or would like to become a new nursery volunteer so you can sign up, please notify Sara Dick, new nursery schedule coordinator, at saradick1@gmail.com. The schedule is posted in the nursery and will be updated as folks volunteer. Please notify Sara rather than sign yourself up for shifts directly on the schedule, so she knows where we need helpers and where we’re all set. Thank you for caring for our youngest attenders and their families!
Western District Conference Listening Tour: Sun., July 14, three representatives from Western District Conference – Kathy Neufeld Dunn, Dave Wiebe and Wendy Funk Schrag – will be visiting our congregation as part of WDC’s conference-wide Listening Tour. The purpose of the Listening Tour is to empower the vitality of WDC congregations by hearing their stories, offering ongoing relationship, and supporting congregational witness and mission. For BCMC, this will also be an opportunity to share important stories and hopes for the future (in written form) with our soon-to-be pastor, Joanna Harader.
During BCMC worship on July 14, a representative from the WDC Listening Team will share a brief meditation, then the team will introduce the process for learning about BCMC ministries and hopes for the future. All adults and youth will then be invited to Fellowship Hall during the Sunday School hour to share responses around tables to the following questions.
1. When have you felt most alive and vibrant as a congregation, or as a participant at BCMC?
2. What is foundational and reassuring about BCMC that has helped in difficult times (COVID, pastoral transition, etc.)?
3. What do you hope for the future for your church and what resources from WDC would be helpful for that?
Responses from the table discussions will be shared back with all participants at the end of the SS hour. A summary of themes will be compiled by WDC to share with WDC constituency and used to guide ongoing resourcing for congregations in WDC. A summary will also be shared with Joanna Harader and other members of BCMC leadership.
This listening process can be a very valuable resource, both for WDC and for our new BCMC pastors and leaders. Please plan to attend and participate on Sunday, July 14.
The Live Wire Stringband, a collection of players with decades performing for audiences throughout the Midwest, play old time fiddle tunes, gospel, & traditional songs on the fiddle, banjo, guitar, mandolin and bass, sometimes harmonica. Come and enjoy lively tunes to make your feet want to move at Kidron Hall Fri., July 12 at 6:30 p.m. Members of the band: Jesse Graber, son of Charles & Diana Graber of Newton and husband of Ruth Harder, former pastor of BCMC and current pastor of Rainbow Mennonite Church. Steve and Gail Goeke live in rural Missouri, just northeast of KC and are current members of Rainbow Mennonite Church. Bob and Melissa Atchinson live in Manhattan, KS, and Melissa is the current pastor of Manhattan Mennonite Church.
Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) Announcements
· Colorado Peaches are coming! Peaches can be ordered July 1-31 by contacting the MCC Central States Office at patsydirksen@mcc.org or calling 316-283-2720. Two sizes are available: 9 lbs. for $30 and 18 lbs. for $41. Payment for peaches in the form of cash or checks is due by Aug. 1 to Mennonite Central Committee. Checks should be made payable to Beth-El Mennonite Church with “peaches” in the memo line. Peaches will be available for pickup from the MCC Office, 121 East 30th, North Newton, Mon., Aug. 19 (tentative date). This is a fundraiser for the Rocky Mountain Mennonite Relief Sale held in Castle Rock, Colorado, October 18-19.
· Mini Blitz at MCC! Come tie, trim, or bind comforters at the MCC Material Resource Center in North Newton Fri., July 12 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sat., July 13 from 8 a.m.-2 p.m. Bring a snack to share and a sack lunch/supper. Drinks will be provided. Beginners are welcome!
· The MCC Sale Quilter’s Corner is looking for donations of quilts, quilt tops, fabric, books, magazines and vintage linens for our next sale. We hope to have an October sale if we receive enough donations. Donations can be dropped off at the MCC Center in North Newton labeled for Quilter’s Corner or at Stitches Quilt Shop in McPherson. If you have questions, please contact Ann Yoder Smith at 919-604-3282.
· Mennonite Central Committee Material Resources Center in North Newton critically low on inventory: An MCC kit cannot be distributed until each item for the kit is assembled, but some supplies in the Material Resources Center are so low that kits cannot be processed for shipping. You can help by filling the following needs: new infant sleepers (6-12 month sizes); hand towels (dark colored); bar soap; bath towels (dark colored, light to medium weight); wide toothed combs (6-8 inches long); laundry soap (such as Fels Naptha or Zote brands); and shampoo (20 oz min). Buy online and ship it to MCC or bring items to MCC in North Newton (121 E. 30th St, North Newton, KS 67117). Questions: phone 316-836-5045 or email brociamueller@mcc.org A full list of MCC kit contents can be found at mcc.org/kits.
Western District Conference Annual Assembly: Assembly registration is now open. Register on-line on the WDC webpage. Join us at the WDC Annual Assembly, August 2-4, 2024 at First Mennonite Church, rural Beatrice, NE. For more information about Assembly, visit the WDC Assembly webpage. Don’t want to drive to Beatrice? Vans will leave from North Newton on August 2 afternoon. When you register, please mark, “Reserve a seat in the van” for $30 a seat. If you are interested in being a delegate to the Assembly, contact Jeanette Stucky, Roger Neufeld-Smith or Monica Lichti in the BCMC office.
Western District Conference invites you to visit our website to read the latest news, stories and announcements and to register for the Annual Assembly.
On Sunday, July 14, 2024 to continue the 150th celebrations there will be an opportunity to hear story telling from two women, Pauline Sharp, Kaw People and Annette Voth, Alexanderwohl People. Their stories told side by side present a unique perspective of the history of the Kaw and Alexanderwohl people. The event will be held at the Tabor Mennonite Church at 7:00 pm, 891 Chisholm Trail Rd, Newton, Ks.
The Warkentin House invites you to an event featuring music from the Flannel Backs on July 14 at 4 p.m. A free will offering will be taken to support the Warkentin House Museum. Bring your lawn chair and enjoy the music.
On Saturday, August 3rd, at 3:00 PM at Faith Mennonite Church (Newton, KS) we will be holding our annual Camp Sing event. All are welcome to join us for a gathering of the Camp Mennoscah community to sing camp songs led by the Summer Staff, enjoy a recap of the summer, and hear testimony to the great work camp is doing. Following the singing we will have popcorn and generic pop together! We would love to see you all there.
August 23-25 Celebration of our Ancestors coming to US
We are searching for families who would be interested in hosting a visiting family who will be coming from a distance. If willing to be a host family, please call, text or email E. Fred Goering of Moundridge, KS at 620-345-9890 or fredgoering65@gmail.com. The celebration is Friday, August 23 to Sunday, August 25. You would be hosting for one or two nights. The information that Fred needs are: your first & last name, physical address, cell phone number, email address, and the total number of kids and adults you could host. Thank you.
Plans are underway for Children’s Activities on Saturday, August 24, that will not only entertain but also educate youngsters about the lives their Great, Greats might have experienced. If you or someone you know would like to assist in this program, Danielle Goering would be delighted to hear from you at 602-448-7215. Stay tuned for information as things develop.
–Kathy Goering, Publicity for 150th
For Mennonite Mission Network “News and Beyond” press here
Mennonite Church USA Announcements
The Mennonite Church USA Executive Board and MC USA’s Pacific Southwest Mennonite Conference filed an amicus brief on April 25, 2024, in support of Apache-Stronghold’s petition for a new full-court hearing on the potential destruction of Oak Flat, a sacred Indigenous site in Arizona. Read more here: mennoniteusa.org/news/apache-stronghold
“Lead/Follow” is a video podcast for pastors and congregational leaders, hosted by MC USA’s executive director, Glen Guyton. Find season one here: mennoniteusa.org/leadfollow View the PDF here: mennoniteusa.org/leadfollow-pdf View the PowerPoint slide here: mennoniteusa.org/leadfollow-slide
Menno Snapshots
Carol Penner describes the history of the Together in Worship team and their website, which offers free worship resources in one convenient location. Read her blog here: mennoniteusa.org/resourcing-church-community
Brenda L. Yoder, author of “Uncomplicated: Simple Secrets for a Compelling Life,” has found that the uncomplicated life of living in a rural Amish/Mennonite community has appeal for many people, due to the slower lifestyle and values that come with living this way. Read her blog here: mennoniteusa.org/uncomplicated
Mennonite Mission Network Prayer Request: Participants from Belmont Mennonite Church, in Elkhart, Indiana, have just returned from a week-long Mennonite Mission Network-sponsored Just Peace Pilgrimage (JPP). Pray for them as they discern what Jesus’ response is for their congregation, after witnessing the reality of life along the Mexico-United States border in southern Texas.
Western District Conference Prayer Request: Pray for WDC congregations and members engaging in witness for peace and justice, seeking to follow the way of Jesus in the face of war and violence in the world.
Bethel College Mennonite Church is an open and affirming congregation
centered in the life and teachings of Jesus. Embracing the divine within each person, we warmly welcome any and all into fellowship without regard to race, ethnic background, gender identity, sexual orientation, ability,
economic status, marital status, or age.