Don’t just go to church – BE the church!

Faith in Action month begins this Sunday, August 1st. During this month, we will focus on biblical compassion, service and Christ’s heart for those in need, through special worship services, small groups and daily devotions.

Then be a part of a landmark day in St. John’s history, when on August 29th we cancel all worship services and instead go worship through service in the community. Visit the Faith in Action table in the lobby to sign up for bible study and service projects, and to get your Participant’s Kit.

For more information, contact Fred Cannady or Charles Leake.

With budget cuts, many non-profit organizations have had to cut back. St. John’s MCC wants to help Haven House students get ready for Fall. Haven House is an organization that accepts runaway youth ages 10 to 17. In the weeks leading up to Sunday, August 15th, we are sponsoring a “School Tools” drive to collect school supplies to be distributed on that day at Haven House. Purchase a few extra school supplies and bring them to the church.

You could bring:

Pencil Boxes	Small bottles of hand sanitizer	3-ring Binders
#2 Pencils	Pens	Loose-leaf Ruled 3-hole Filler Paper
Hand-held Pencil Sharpeners	Highlighters	One-subject Spiral Notebooks
Pocket Folders	Erasers	Compasses with Measuring Guides
Glue Sticks	Composition Notebooks	Post-It Note Pads
Crayons	Index Cards	Calculators
Markers	12" Rulers	Weekly Planners
Colored Pencils	Scissors	Tabbed Dividers
Small packets of Tissue	Dry-erase Markers & Boards	USB Flash Drives

Ask Fred Cannady or Charles Leake about the details.

Even though this study has already started, you may join us anytime!
Study Guide available Online!

Take a walk beside a young man as he lives OUT loud on his journey with Jesus through the most important years of his young life.

Watch with John as Jesus care-fronts the woman at the well who had many husbands. Feel John’s wonder as he experiences the healing of a paralyzed man first hand. Feel the fear in the air as Jesus meets an adulterous woman who everyone else would condemn. Experience the amazement on John’s face as he watched a blind man see people for the first time in his life. Understand what John must have felt when the Master Teacher knelt before him to wash his feet.

For the first time in 10 years, we return to the Bible study that marked the founding of St. John’s MCC in 1976. Topics at Ten opened the Gospel of St. John for a series of thirteen lessons that began on Sunday, May 16th. To learn more about the study, you may access the Online Study Guide by clicking here. You do NOT need to print the online pages. We will provide a printed copy when you come to the class.

Each lesson stands on its own, but together, the Gospel of St. John paints a picture of Jesus from a perspective unlike any other.

This study, co-facilitated by Faye Krouse and Jim Manchester, will allow you to look upon the very face of Jesus and see God’s unconditional love pouring through to everyone Jesus met. It begins each Sunday at 10:00 and usually meets in Friendship Hall.

All are welcome. Please bring your Bible. You will need it.

Lessons from the Gospel of Saint John Plan...

Scripture	Date	Title
John 1:1-14	May 16	In the Beginning - Introduction
John 4:1-26	May 23	The Samaritan Woman at Jacob’s Well
John 4:43-54	May 30	The Nobleman’s Son
John 5:1-30	June 6	The Paralyzed Man at the Sheep Gate
John 7:53-8:11	June 13	The Adulterous Woman
John 9:1-41	June 20	The Man Born without Sight
John 10:1-19	June 27	The Shepherd and the Sheep
John 11:1-43	July 11	Lazarus, Mary, and Martha
John 12:1-8	July 18	Mary Anoints Jesus
John 13:1-17	July 25	The Foot Washing
John 14:5-13; 6:28-59	August 1	More Lessons from the Upper Room
John 15:18-27	August 8	Hatred for Jesus & His Followers
John 13:31-38; 18:15-18; 18:25-27; 21:7-17	August 15	The Problem with Simon Peter

A new and thorough examination of the cause and consequences of Bible abuse that is directed at homosexuals can be found at this link. First researched and compiled as a presentation for a local community group, the study has two goals: 1) to look at who it is that commits abuse of specific biblical passages and then directs it toward homosexuals – and why and 2) “to try to determine what the original biblical texts actually say.” Remarkably, it is not the goal of the study “to debate the relevance or infallibility of biblical scripture or to proselytize.”

In its refreshing conclusion, the writer shows that there is more biblical evidence that God loves everyone God created than the spurious notion that God wants to condemn and reject us.

The piece is chock full of notes and interesting facts, making it an enjoyable and fascinating read. I found it well worth the few hours it takes to read all the material.

This study takes a different approach to the Problem of Bible Abuse by religious conservatives. Some of you have taken my class called “Freed from Guilt • Freed from Shame: Overcoming Bible Abuse about Homosexuality.” You will find this study complimentary to that class. I recommend it with two thumbs up.