To know and love God, to nurture each other, and to reach out and welcome all people in the name of Jesus Christ.

Non-profit Org.

US Postage Paid

Greensboro NC

Permit #273

Phone 336.273.4725 | Fax 336.273.7030 | Email info@fccgreensboro.org

Web fccgreensboro.org

The Visitor

1900 WEST MARKET STREET

GREENSBORO, NC 27403-1715

The Visitor A publication of

January 21, 2020

Dear friends,

Early in my first interim pastorate, I heard peevish comments about the length of sermons. These

weren’t directed at me; I’d barely arrived. But the subject became somewhat of a joke as someone

always seemed to be timing the length of the sermon. One Sunday,

when my year there was nearly finished, the youth minister preached

and broke the taboo by preaching for about 40 minutes!

An analysis of 50,000 sermons from 6500 congregations

showed the following median lengths of sermons among

these types of churches:

· Catholic – 14 minutes

· Mainline (white) Protestant – 25 minutes

· Evangelical Protestant – 39 minutes

· Historically black Protestant – 54 minutes

When I began my second interim pastorate, the wife of a Search Team member enthusiastically en-

dorse my preaching. Why? Because my sermons were short! I can’t say they continued to be as short

as those she endorsed, but her remarks revealed something worth considering.

Some people want to feast on the Word, to savor it, to dwell on it and in it. As long as what they’re

hearing is good news, why not hear a lot of it? Also, some preachers say it takes a good while to fill in

the blanks of everything people have forgotten from the previous Sunday. Other people see the ser-

mon as a “lesson,” a time for applicable teaching of the scriptures. It takes a while—say, 39 minutes?

—to show what the text says, to analyze what it meant way back when, and to instruct listeners in

how to respond to the spoken word.

Still others ask the preacher to get to the point before their attention meanders out of the room.

Melissa Guthrie Loy has worked to present the Word in ways that people with various kinds of disa-

bility can relate to through multiple senses, which sometimes involves them in an activity. With all of

these preferences and patterns and possibilities, I approach the pulpit each Sunday with you, dear

reader, in mind, and pray that somehow the words of my mouth might stir the mediations of your

heart in ways both acceptable to the God of love and useful in your journey of discipleship.

+ Phil Miller

Page 2 The Vi s i tor

MANY THANKS

Each of us serving in a staff position with First

Christian Church received a Christmas

“bonus,” an expression of the church mem-

bers’ appreciation. It’s such a privilege to work

with the remarkable people of this church, to

share your vision, to participate in your mis-

sion, and to do what we can to fulfill God’s

calling. Thank you so much for your generosity

and kindness!

Thanks from our Church Staff

Phil Miller Tamara N. Dix

Woody Faulkner Pamela Reese

Leslie Gooding Laura Hutchens

Chassidy Crump Amanda Desselles

Thank you notes have been received from the families of JoAnn Alley and Ed

Wagoner. These have been shared in the Update.

Dear Disciples Women:

Thank you for your generous gift to Disciples Mission Fund

(DMF) in November! As an employee of a (DMF) , supported

ministry, I'm so grateful for your commitment to the Christian

Church (Disciples of Christ) in the US and Canada.

Because of your support, Disciples are starting new churches

combating racism, and advocating for the least of these from

our own doorsteps to the ends of the earth.

In Christian Love,

Emily Martin

Office of the General Minister and President

Community Opportunity

Pa

ATTENTION: Children & Youth

SOUPER BOWL SUNDAY— February 2 is fast approaching!

We need - Cooks to prepare the meal for our youth

- Donations, Soup, Drinks, Snacks and Games

For more information call Rev. Helena Epstein @ 330.221.3095

You Need to Know

Page 5

Sanctuary Sound System Issues Resolved for Now:

If you were in the Sanctuary Christmas Eve, or the Sunday after Christmas Day, you know that the sound system was causing some “feed back” squealing. The immediate remedy was to just turn it off.

But, that is not an acceptable solution to the problem. Accordingly, we reached out to Ed Poindexter, who has worked with us on just about all of our sound system issues for years, to come take a look at

the problem. He came to the church on New Year’s Eve to see what he could find. Woody Faulkner

and Rev. Miller worked with him to help recreate the issue so he could diagnose the problem.

Ed found the problem, and made the necessary adjustments on the Sound System mixer. He also found

a few other lingering issues with the lapel microphone, Communion Table microphone, as well as the pulpit and lectern. He corrected those too. Going forward, if the feedback issue reoccurs, we have a

way to immediately respond (assuming the source of the feedback is the same) without turning off the entire system. Many thanks Woody and Phil for taking time to work with Ed in recreating the problem.

Also, many thanks to Ed Poindexter; your continued friendship to our church is a true blessing!

Church Bus Tires Slashed:

New Years Eve was celebrated by some local vandals, who remain unidentified, by slashing two of the church bus tires. According the Greensboro PD, they got a large number of vehicles in the neighbor-

hood. So, it is important note that the church was not singled out for their midnight work. We were able to get the tires replaced while the bus was sitting in the parking lot. So, we now have new tires in-

stalled and balanced for a total of $454.30. Our bus insurance comprehensive coverage paid the claim

less a $250.00 deductible. We have already received their check.

Cliff Greaves, Co-chair Property Team

Always in our Prayers

Condolences

RECENT ATTENDANCE January 5: 91 January 12: 106 January 20: 140

PRAYER CONCERNS Contact the church office if you would like a name added to or removed from the prayer list. Angie Wethington

Ann Fry

Leroy Bymaster

Gary Yeager

Billie Pierce Alley

Roger & Ann Stanley

Phyllis Collins

Emo Wagoner

James Alley

Steve Ball

Amanda Oliver

Bev & Dick Isaacson

Karen Watson

Robin Lund

David Greaves

Doug Sumerford

Steve Ball

Betty Reynolds

David Greaves

Prayers for Brad & April Murray and family. Brad is on a 9 month deployment with the Army.

Former FCC member Tommy Wilson passed away early this year. If you

would like to “attend” his funeral, you may do so virtually at https://boxcast.tv/

channel/mbs9yjnhe3potrkm1yqq and search for the Tommy Wilson

funeral held at Brookhaven Christian Church, January 11, 2020.

News and Notes

Page 4 The Vi s i tor

Just Wondering….

What was the purpose of Luke's Gospel?

We'll look for the answer in the introduction to this Gospel by Eugene Peterson who authored

the translation of the Bible entitled "The Message: The Bible in Contemporary Language". He

tells us that most of us at some time feel left out, that we don't belong. One answer to this is

to start a club, or join one that will have us. Now we're "in" and others are "out". This unfortu-

nately is in the history of religion. When he writes his account of the life and teachings of Jesus,

you easily see he is the champion of the outsider. He shows most clearly how Jesus includes

those typically looked upon as "outsiders": women, common laborers, shepherds, the racially

different, the poor, the sick, etc. He openly challenges any understanding that religion is a

"club". Christianity has "open doors", the "lowly" are welcomed.

- JT Moore

A Men’s Rally

WHEN: Sunday, March 22

WHO: Middle Fork Christian Church

WHERE: 2216 East Street - Winston Salem, NC

Registration starts at 3 p.m. Then the program begins at

4 p.m. A meal will be served after the program, please

bring a friend and your bible. “Good fellowship, good

speaker, and good food” at the Men’s Rally of Blessings!

Ervin Tate

President of the Central District C. M. F.

Page 5 The Vi s i tor

FROM THE STEWARDSHIP & FINANCE TEAM

2019 SUMMARY OF INCOME AND EXPENSE FOR THE GENERAL OPERATING FUND

BUDGET ACTUAL

Income Expense +/- Income Expense +/-

January 21,972 -22,836 -864 20,327 -20,184 143

February 21,972 -22,833 -861 18,261 -14,678 3,583

March 21,970 -22,832 -862 46,922 -18,769 28,153

April 21,970 -22,832 -862 21,165 -14,411 6,754

May 21,968 -22,821 -853 20,348 -16,152 4,196

June 21,968 -22,821 -853 18,886 -24,519 -5,633

July 21,968 -22,819 -851 18,101 -20,322 -2,221

August 21,968 -22,818 -850 15,910 -27,234 -11,324

September 21,967 -22,806 -839 20,007 -22,059 -2,052

October 21,967 -22,804 -837 20,826 -29,463 -8,637

November 21,967 -22,805 -838 16,938 -18,704 -1,766

December 21,967 -22,804 -837 44,780 -25,608 19,172

Total Budget

$263,624 ($273,831) ($10,207)

Year-to-Date

$263,624 ($273,831) ($10,207) $282,471 ($252,103) $30,368

Sixty-four individuals/couples/families made a pledge for the year 2019. As of 12/31/2019,

99.3% of those pledges have been paid. Way to go, everyone!

We began the year 2019 with a planned deficit of $10,207, but ended the year with a $30,368

surplus! There was almost $20,000 more revenue than we had budgeted, and we spent about

$20,000 less than our plan. There were a number of contributing factors, not the least of

which was that we were without a Senior Minister for 4 months.

It’s still not too late to submit a 2020 pledge card. Grab one at the reception desk, fill it out,

and turn it in. It’s so simple. Doing so will add certainty to our plan for 2020.