Trinity Church Newsletter

Dear Trinity Family, In my letter this month, I would like to answer a question that I have never been asked. The question is “why is it that I (Pastor Chris) never preach/teach stewardship in service?” Now many of you reading this will say there is good reason why I haven’t been asked that, because no one cares and even more people don’t like stewardship sermons. This is because many of us associate stewardship with just giving and specifically with giving money. For those of us who have grown up in the church we almost instinctively hear the word “campaign” after the word stewardship. Meaning the church in the past has leveled stewardship and more recently gratitude with raising funds for building projects, mission trips, and even just encouraging yearly giving with pledge cards. But the truth is that stewardship is so much more than this. You see I do care about giving. In fact I encourage everyone (including non-believers) to have a plan for giving to a church. Because you may n...

Bienvenidos” means “welcome” in Spanish and it’s a word I learned on my first trip to Peru in 2007.  Since Trinity will become senders and go-ers to Peru in 2018, I thought I would tell you a little more about how I came to be in Peru and the ministry of Quechua Benefit. In the mid-2000’s, I felt a strong desire to go on a mission trip somewhere where I could use my occupational therapy skills.  I read about an OT class out of Evansville who travelled with Wheels for the World (WFTW), a ministry of Joni and Friends.  I reached out to WFTW and was assigned a trip to Arequipa, Peru.  I was so excited about the mission that it never dawned on me I was headed to the land of alpacas!  My sister-in-law pointed that out along with the information about the International Alpaca Fiesta being held in Arequipa just 5 days after the mission!  This home-body, never-travelled-alone-out- of-the-country girl, took a HUGE leap of faith and went to Peru for 3 ½ weeks!...

In the November 5th edition of the News-Sun, there was a flashback report that shared that 25 years ago Trinity Church began tearing down the old community center after the building of our new offices and classrooms. This means that our Gathering Hall and “new” side of the building turns 25 this year. Trinity truly has been blessed by the forethought of the leaders who built this new building. They were thinking about how the needs of our church and the community would change over the years. With this in mind, the leadership team and a small steering team are looking into ways that we can make repairs and improvements in the Gathering Hall and offices so that this great work that began 25 years ago can continue to meet the needs of ministry for another 25 years. With the holidays arriving quickly some of the smaller changes will come quickly but the larger changes will come at the first of the year. We encourage you to be on the lookout for information on how you can help with this pr...

Upcoming Dates to Remember December 10—Dorcas Circle Cookie Exchange December 14—Meals at Maplecrest (sponsor needed) December 24—Both Morning Services in Sanctuary (8:25am and 10:45am) (7:00pm Modern Candelight Service 11:00pm Traditional Candlelight.) December 26—Sewing for Missions—cancelled for December– see you in January

A few weeks ago Pastor Angie invited everyone to join the challenge our Conference Superintendent David Neckers and his wife Darlene set for the clergy of the Northeast District of the Indiana Conference of the United Methodist Church to join them every Wednesday in fasting and praying for our district. His challenge read: Jesus told us to GO and MAKE disciples of all nations teaching them to obey everything that he commanded us (Matt. 28:18-20). In that vein, I am asking you, the pastors and laity of the Northeast District to join my wife, Darlene and me as we go fast and pray. Beginning Wednesday , October 25 , and then every Wednesday through December 20 . Darlene and I will be fasting and praying for you and every Jesus follower in your church to become more missional. That is every UM member engaged in life giving changes for Jesus Christ in our personal & corporate mission field. A fast for you may not look like a fast for me. I will be engaging in a 24 hour fast. ...

Dear Trinity Family, On this date one year ago, I told you all of our plans as a church to switch our leadership to a more streamlined model. From this time we have combined all three of our primary committees (Finance Committee, Staff Parish Relations Committee, and Trustees) into one board that assumes the administrative functions of the church. This newly assembled board has been learning, discerning, and leading since November of last year, and they have done a great job in working on guidelines, procedures, and setting a solid financial structure. The members of this team are Tim Holcomb, John Blume, Larry Allen, Barb Bower, Dian Lute, Phyllis Weber, and Rachel Welch-McGuire. If you get a chance, take time to thank this group for their hard work of learning and building this amazing group. As I have mentioned before, this board allows us to streamline the process of leadership and allow more people to be involved in the ministry of making disciples. This has enabled us to beg...

As I write this, Hurricane Irma is turning away from Cuba and beginning her 175 mile journey to the Florida Keys. She is expected to slam into the west coast of Florida in just about twenty hours with storm surges that some are saying are unprecedented. Many of us, Chris and I included, have family members in her path who have chosen to “ride it out” in spite of evacuation orders that plead with people to move to safety. At the same time, Texas and Louisiana are trying to pick up the literal pieces left behind by Hurricane Harvey. Out west, multiple states are being charred by many rampant wild fires. Earthquakes have hit Mexico. North Korea has caused earthquakes testing nuclear bombs that threaten us from afar. I can barely watch the news or look at social media and at the same time, I can barely take my eyes off of it as I search for word from those whom we love who sit squarely in the sites of it all. I have heard people blame everything and everyone from Trump to climate ch...