MISSION ROAD CONGREGATION EVENTS – MONDAY, JANUARY 18, 2021

If you have news to share in the weekly church email newsletter, please notify Jonathan Bacon or Larry Birkby by Noon on Sunday each week.

Don’t forget to join us each week for the Sunday Morning Mission Road Worship Online and for the Wednesday Evening Prayer Circle Online!

IN THIS ISSUE:

SCHEDULE OF FOOD PANTRY DROP-OFF DATES

WORSHIP AVALABILITY FORM DUE FOR SPRING 2021

THIS SUNDAY’S WORSHIP

ADULT SUNDAY SCHOOL CLASS

ALL GOOD BOOKS CLUB MEETS THIS WEEK

MISSION ROAD CONGREGATION ONLINE MEETINGS

And More…

THE PASSING OF AVIS GARRETT-BAPTIST

Avis Garrett-Baptist just passed away Saturday morning, January 16, 2021. Please remember Jeremy and her family in your thoughts and prayers. We’ll miss her stories, her art, and her wonderful counsel. Avis will be cremated and there will be no services due to the COVID pandemic.

Sandy Tugman, Avis’ daughter wrote this beautiful tribute to her Mom. I thought I’d share it with her church family.

I’m grieving my loss…

When it comes to mothers, I hit the jackpot. Truly. I got a mother who knew how to work, how to relax, how to take risks and how to explore. I got a mother who didn’t judge or criticize, and perhaps because of great luck, I got a mother with a superior sense of humor and a confident laugh.

I have joked that my mother had children so she would have playmates. There is truth in this. While I was growing up, we moved every three years to a “new” state or an unfamiliar country. My mother saw it all as an adventure, and she instilled in me a curiosity and an appreciation for the unfamiliar. When we lived in England, I learned about the 13th century monuments and how to do brass rubbings, (now largely banned). In the Mojave Desert, I learned about Joshua trees (a member of the lily family), and Mom taught me how to draw them. In Texas, I learned how to develop film, do ceramics, and play Canasta. In life, I learned to keep moving forward. By example, my mother taught me how to keep growing and learning.

She was a living gift, a life force who gave as much love as she could. When my brother, Gary, and I were in high school, our friends would hang out at our house because there was freedom to be oneself, and if being oneself could elicit laughter from my mother, the visit was worthwhile. She encouraged everyone to write on the bathroom wall. It was covered with graffiti, clever sayings, and art. It is no wonder that everyone loved my mother. She was comfortable with who she was, and she made everyone around her feel comfortable in who they were.

Certain words were disallowed in our home: "stupid," "shut up," and "should." Mom considered the first two as cruel, but “should” was reprehensible. This is the “guilt” word. Whether applied to ourselves or to others, it is designed to foster guilt… a big no-no according to my mother. Now, when I hear that word, I shiver.

She taught me so much. How to cook. How to knit. How to sew. How to listen. How to embrace art as a form, not only of expression, but of salvation. Through love, she taught me how to love. By grace, she taught me to be gracious.

As an adult, she taught me the strategic use of emphatic expletives. Some would say she was bawdy, but my mother taught me that regardless of what you say, someone will be offended. She was right.

She became an art therapist when only a few hundred people had even heard of art therapy. She was a pioneer, and she was really good at it. For years, I heard her having to explain art therapy, how it works, how it helps people. Time and again, even with a Ph.D., she had to defend her field and promote art therapy as legitimate. Time and again, she had to “prove” herself.

Then, when I launched into a professional career in higher education, I felt the immediate pressure of having to prove myself. In department and faculty meetings, I had to preface my contributions with qualifications, references, or, at the very least, evidence-based observations. It was constant and exhausting.

One day, I asked Mom, “Does there ever come a time when we no longer have to prove ourselves?” She looked me in the eyes and said, “Yes, Sandy. When we die.”

I love you, Mom. You no longer have to prove yourself. You are free.

SCHEDULE OF FOOD PANTRY DROP-OFF DATES

The Mission Road Congregation continues to serve an important need by providing food stuffs, school supplies and new or gently used clothing for the Central Avenue Center of Hope. In October we provide an astounding 325 pounds of food for the pantry (surpassing September 245 pounds)! The need continues!

Please plan to drop supplies off at church on the following Saturday mornings between 10 AM and noon:

Saturday, January 23, 2021

Saturday, February 6, 2021

Saturday, February 20, 2021

Saturday, March 6, 2021

There continues to be a special need for food, school supplies, personal hygiene items, school supplies and slightly used clothing.

WORSHIP AVALABILITY FORM DUE FOR SPRING 2021

Preparation is beginning for the quarterly schedule. Our goal is to publish the schedule one month prior to the first scheduled Sunday. Please take a moment to fill out (available online at carynpbro or mail this form to: Mission Road Community of Christ, Attention Pam O’Neal, 7842 Mission Road, Prairie Village, KS 66208.

Please return no later than February 1, 2021.

THIS SUNDAY’S WORSHIP

The Sunday, January 24, 2021, worship theme is “The Kingdom Has Come” with Jane Landrum as the speaker. Kirk Barnhard will preside and serve as the worship planner. Clint Reine will provide the PowerPoint and host the Zoom meeting assisted by Brian Libeer.

You are invited to join us online starting at 8:45 AM for conversation and fellowship with the worship activities beginning at 9 AM. After the service, we will keep the Zoom session open for folks to fellowship until the Adult Class begins at 10 AM. We hope you can join us.

ADULT SUNDAY SCHOOL CLASS

The Mission Road Adult Sunday School Class will continue to study “Sermon on the Mount” by Amy-Jill Levine. This coming Sunday, Jane Landrum will lead the discussion as the class completes the coverage of Chapter 1 (The Beatitudes) of Amy Jill Levine’s book “The Sermon on the Mount.” With any time remaining, Jonathan Bacon will begin discussion of Chapter 2 (The Extensions). Class begins at 10 AM following the Sunday morning worship.

The book is available from Amazon for $13.34 (plus tax) and shipping (unless you have Amazon Prime in which case shipping is free). The class will include an open discussion coupled with six video presentations by the author, one covering each chapter.

ALL GOOD BOOKS CLUB MEETS THIS WEEK

The book club is scheduled to discuss "The Overstory" by Richard Powers this Thursday, January 21, 2021, and then Kristin Hannah’s "The Great Alone" on Thursday, February 18, 2021. Both meetings will be on Zoom using the usual church meeting link.

Remember the book club website at https://allbooksclub.wordpress.com/ includes discussion questions for “The Overstory” which are drawn from the PBS News Hour website.

We’re going to add some titles to our reading list, so you might want to look at the following list of "29 Books That Got Nearly Perfect Reviews This Year" (https://www.bookbub.com/blog/highly-rated-2020-books). Don’t limit yourself to just these 29 books but do start thinking about what to read next!

We’re looking forward to Thursday’s discussion of "The Overstory!"

MISSION ROAD CONGREGATION ONLINE MEETINGS

The Mission Road Congregation will offer several meetings in the coming weeks online using Zoom. Access details are the same for each session and are listed below.

7 PM Every Wednesday – Prayer Circle Online.

9 AM Every Sunday – Sunday Morning Mission Road Worship Online.

10 AM Every Sunday – The Adult Sunday School Class studies “Sermon on the Mount” by Amy-Jill Levine.

7:00 PM This Thursday – The All Good Books group discusses “The Overstory” by Richard Powers.

CURRENT CHURCH RE-OPENING STATUS

World Church buildings and historic sites remain closed. The Mission Road Congregation remains closed until infection rates in the area drop.

TITHES AND OFFERINGS

Please remember that church expenses continue, even when we’re not meeting in the building. Mary Reichenbach, the Congregation’s Financial Officer has indicated that contributions can be mailed to her house (10223 Briar Dr., Overland Park, KS 66207) or the church (7842 Mission Road, Prairie Village, KS 66208), or you can sign up for eTithing on the World Church website https://www.cofchrist.org/etithing). Any of these options will enable you to continue your regular contributions.

If you use the eTithing site, select the United States link and then scroll down to Mission Road Community of Christ. When you click on that page, there will be an option in the upper right-hand corner to ’sign up’ to create your account and enter either your bank account information for direct debit or a credit card to charge your contribution, or ’sign in’ if you have already set up your account. You may also choose a one-time contribution or a continuing contribution. Most of the contribution options on our tithing envelopes are available on the Mission Road eTithing page. If you have additional questions about electronic contributions, please contact Mary.

SUMMER 2021 CAMPS SCHEDULED

Doniphan Reunion – June 11 – 15

Middle School Camp – June 20 – 25

Senior High Camp – June 20 – 25

Junior Camp – June 27 – July 1

Chihowa Reunion – July 11 – 16

Youth Quest – July 22 – 24

Spectacular – July 24 – 31

CONCERNING PRAYER REQUESTS

Please know that any member of the congregation can post prayer requests or share information about members, and events on the Mission Road Members Only Facebook page. You do not need to send the information for approval to anyone. In fact, doing so may slow down the dissemination of your request. Be sure to include the person needing prayers and what situation has occurred (if you wish to share that information). If your post concerns an event or news item, be sure to include the basics in your posting (such as who, what, where and when).

For prayer requests, if you do not have access to Facebook, then please call Paul Bennetts our Congregational Pastoral Care Coordinator.

DO YOU KNOW SOMEONE WITHOUT EMAIL OR FACEBOOK ACCESS?

If you know someone in the congregation that does not have email and does not use Facebook, please let Jonathan Bacon know. We are trying to be sure everyone in the congregation has access to periodic news updates and information on congregational activities.

OFFICIAL CORRESPONDENCE VIA EMAIL

The email address for general church drafts of your Order of Worship and church business (Clint Reine) is mrcoc

The email address for CFO business (Mary Reichenbach) is mrcoccfo

IMPORTANT CONGREGATIONAL LINKS

The Mission Road Congregation hosts the following social media sites:

Congregational (public) website at www.mission-road.org

Facebook Page (public) at https://www.facebook.com/MissionRoad.CoC

Facebook Group (open only to congregational members) at https://www.facebook.com/groups/MissionRoad/

The All Good Books discussion group website at https://allbooksclub.wordpress.com/

Visit and "like" each of these sites to keep up to date on congregational news.

CONGREGATIONAL NEWS EMAIL

If you have news items and calendar additions or changes that need to be included in the congregational news email, please contact Larry Birkby. His email address and phone number are both in the Church Directory.