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NEWS
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Don’t
forget to submit your report for the Yearbook and Directory. Yearbook reports are due on Monday, March
17th!!
Welcome Mundo de Fe (World of Faith) Christian Church as
the newest Congregation in Formation in the Great River Region. Mundo de Fe
shares facilities with Parkview Christian Church in Little Rock, and has been a worshipping body
for about a year. Pastor Sergio Macuil reports about sixty in worship at this time. Bienvenidos Mundo de Fe!
Waterway Christian Church (a satellite ministry of First
Christian Church Bentonville, AR) is worshipping in a permanent facility. Tours and interest groups for this
innovative model for new church starts and ministry settings will be
available during Regional Assembly.
Shirt Sale.
We have a very limited number of Great River Region Logo shirts left
and ON SALE!
Yellow,
Green, and Light Blue Polo style shirts in Men’s XL and Women’s XL and XXL
sizes are available in limited quantities at the bargain price of $20 each!
Please call the office for color availability as quantities ARE
limited. (501) 562-6053
Louisiana Inter Church Conference
Assembly was held
this past week. The Conference is an ecumenical group in Louisiana that works to bring different
religious groups together and to work for social justice in Louisiana. Rev. Neil and Mary Early and Rev. Dr. Steve
and Rev. Claire Sanders were delegates along with Michael Elmore who is our
Judicatory Representative.
Disciples
Institute Web Site. We have information about
Disciples Institute and some of the course offerings and up-coming
events. Also check out the Bi-Vocational Ministers blog.
Link: www.disciplesinstitute.org Deitra Blackwell, Executive Director.
Disciples
identify Internal Revenue Service Resources for Churches.
Do you
have questions about your parsonage or housing allowances? Are you concerned
about the correct way income taxes should be withheld for ministers? Have you
ever wondered whether churches or charities can become involved in the
campaigns of political candidates? These questions and many more are answered
in a series of Internal Revenue Service (IRS) publications aimed specifically
at religious institutions. Please
click below to access the articles:
- Tax Guide for Churches and
Religious Organizations
www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p1828.pdf
- Charities, Churches and
Politics
www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=161131,00.html
- IRS Reminds Charities and
Churches of Political Activity Ban
www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=175818,00.html
- Tax Guide For Churches And
Religious Organizations
projectfairplay.org/irs-guidelines
Rev. Dr.
Todd A. Adams, Assoc. General Minister and Interim President of Church
Finance Council
The Schmidt Center.
A Ministry of Home & Family Services. To see Hot Topics and other upcoming events
Click
Here.
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EVENTS
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F.E.A.S.T.: This event, designed
exclusively for youth ministers/youth workers, will take place at the
Lutheran Camp on Petit Jean Mountain over the weekend of May
2-4. Be on the lookout for more information coming soon!
Camp & Conference 2008
brochures have been mailed. Deadline for Counselor/Steward/Youth
Commissioner/Intern applications is April 14th. Deadline for camper registrations is May 21st.
Plans are
being made for the GRR Regional
Assembly that will be held on November 7-9,
2008 at
FCC Bentonville, AR. Mark your calendars and plan to attend.
Kings Highway Christian Church will sponsor their Annual Women's
Retreat on March 7-8, 2008 at Tall Timbers Retreat Center in Woodworth, LA. The event keynoter will be
Rev. Ann Pickett-Parker, Vice-President of International Disciples Women
Fellowship.
Louisiana Storytelling Association, Reverend Neil W. Early, President, 337.238.1959
mnearly@wnonline.net,
www.louisianastorytellers.org. Annual
Liars Contest! Just when you think
you have heard it all! A Liars Contest is more than standing up,
telling a whopper, and sitting down. One must tell a wild, tall tale
and make the audience suspend their disbelief and accept it as truly
happening to the teller. The “Annual Louisiana Liars Contest” will
be on Saturday, 8 March, 2008, beginning at 2:00pm in the Historic Old Courthouse on
Third Street in Downtown Leesville, LA.
The tickets are a suggested donation of $5.00 a person.
LIDRN and LIC are hosting an Interfaith Public Policy Summit on
Tuesday, March 11, 2008 at:
Catholic
Life Center (in the Bishop Tracy
Center) 1800 S. Acadian Thruway, Baton Rouge, LA 70808 from 9am to
4pm (check in begins at 8am). Registration Fee: $15.00 (includes lunch)
This
gathering is to discuss recovery public policy issues in preparation for an
advocacy “Legislative Day” in Baton Rouge, LA.
Registration form is attached (Excel
file). Registration form and PayPal
options are also available at: http://www.lainterchurch.org/LIDRNHomePage.htm.
Southern Women in the Post Civil War South. Sally McMillen, Davidson College professor of history, will
explore black and white women’s involvement in Sunday schools in the
post-Civil War South and their contributions to that institution's success. McMillen’s talk is entitled Sunday Schools, Not Suffrage. McMillen is the author of "Seneca Falls and the
Origins of the Women's Rights Movement," just released in the Oxford
University Press's Pivotal Moments in American History series and "To
Raise Up the South: The Sunday School in Black and White Churches,
1865-1915." This program is being held in partnership with Arkansas
Women's History Institute.
When: Tuesday,
March 11, 2008 ~ 7:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m. – Lecture *Book signing afterwards
Where: Clinton School of Public Service Sturgis Hall
*Reserve
your seats
by emailing publicprograms@clintonschool.uasys.edu
or calling 501.683.5239. Click here
for more information. Other Upcoming Programs:
"The
Oil and the Glory," Steve LeVine
Friday, March 7, 2008 at 6:00 p.m. (Sturgis Hall) *Book signing to
follow
"White
Flight: Atlanta and the Making of Modern Conservatism," Kevin Kruse
Monday, March 10, 2008 at 12:00 p.m. (Sturgis Hall) *Book signing to
follow
"The
President’s Table," with presidential historian Barry Landau
Wednesday, March 12, 2008 at 12:00 p.m. (Sturgis Hall) *Book signing to
follow
Economics
and Justice in Disasters Conference March 29-April 1, at the Scarritt-Bennett Center in Nashville, TN featuring speakers from academia,
government agencies, and faith-based disaster-response groups. Participants
are expected to include leaders from national faith groups and denominations
with programs and ministries dedicated to the increasing and specialized
work of disaster ministry, as well as representatives from FEMA, the American
Red Cross, and VOAD groups (Voluntary Organizations Active In Disasters).
Church World Service, www.churchworldservice.org,
is supported by public donations, grants, and by 35 Protestant, Orthodox and
Anglican churches and communions in the United States.
A Domestic Disaster Ministry Forum registration form and information
may be downloaded from www.cwserp.org/reports. (Follow the links for 2008 Forum Brochure
and Registration Form)
Partners
in Ministry ’08 Workshop. A workshop for ministers, church
musicians, dramatists and visual artists will be held on Saturday,
April 5, 2008 at FCC El Dorado, AR. For more information contact Deitra
Blackwell, Exec Director Disciples Institute, 501-517-2474 or disciplesinstitute@grrcc.org.
The very first WeekEnd of
Compassion will take place April 11-13 in Nashville, TN at the historic Scarritt-Bennett Center. WeekEnd is designed for Disciples to have time and space
away, for one weekend, to exchange ideas about outreach, compassion and
justice. Everyone is welcome. Through worship, preaching, music, meals,
workshops, panel discussions, and Bible study, we will explore and
celebrate the various ways WOC has responded to suffering and how it has
helped so many implement their own ideas to confront needs in
their respective communities and around the world. There will also be a
pre-event service build with Habitat for Humanity on Friday afternoon. Rev. Amy Gopp,
Week of
Compassion Associate www.weekofcompassion.org
(317)
590-3147 phone, (317) 713-2588 fax.
Bill Tenny-Brittian, the Senior Editor of NetResults,
will present a free workshop in Little Rock on "Church Transformation and Growth." The workshop
will run from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. on Wednesday, April 30, 2008 at the
Pulaski Heights Christian Church, 4724 Hillcrest Ave., Little Rock, AR www.phcc-lr.org. Pastors and lay persons from the Great
River Region are invited to participate. Please register by contacting
the church: (501) 663-8149 or phcc-lr@sbcglobal.net
no later than April 11. Shari Coote, Pastor.
SESSIONS 2008 in Oklahoma City is going to be a huge event for
all Disciples Men from around the country. The event is going to be
held July 17-20, 2008 at First Christian Church in Edmond, Oklahoma. Do you ever feel like your
life is like a giant puzzle? Putting together the pieces of life's
puzzle can be a daunting task. But by surrounding yourself with fellow
Disciples all trying to figure it out together, you will find the picture
coming into focus. To find out more about this important gathering of
Disciples Men and how your life can come into focus go to: http://sessions2008.org/
or contact Rev Tod Iseminger,
Minister of Leader Development at 800-346-2631.
Columbia Theological Seminary Spring Events at Lifelong Learning at CTS. Click
here to see the Spring
schedule. The Lifelong Learning website has been updated –take a look! Online
registration available for
most courses. For many events, a housing registration option is
provided. For more information
contact Pat Roper, Lifelong
Learning Registrar at 404.687.4587 or roperp@ctsnet.edu.
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STAFF UPDATES
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From
Barbara Jones: Will be on Study Leave January – March
2008.
Rick
Hamilton: This week I will be in Hot Springs, AR to work with the First Christian
Church transformation team.
Search
Committees I am currently working with:
 Lakeshore Drive CC, Hot Springs, AR
FCC Jackson, MS
FCC Mountain Home, AR (Assoc)
FCC Rogers, AR
FCC West Memphis, AR
From
Vivian Bryant: Attended the GRRCC Disciples Women Joint
Cabinet Retreat in Little
Rock, AR and the
34th Annual Black
Minister's Retreat held at Middletown CC in Louisville, KY.
This weekend
I will attend Kings Highway Annual Women's Retreat in Woodworth, LA.
From
Michael Elmore: I will be preaching at FCC Leesville, LA this Sunday.
From
Lara Blackwood Pickrel:
Check out the youth page on the regional website (www.grrcc.org).
We have added the new youth event calendar, information on a great retreat
for adult youth workers and links to many youth ministry resources!
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