Announcements

Service opportunities at Good Samaritan Inn 2023

     Central Christian Church has reserved six Saturdays during 2023 to prepare and serve lunch at Good Samaritan Inn:

 January 21

March 18

May 13

July 8

September 9

November 11

     On each of these dates Central will provide the food, and Central volunteers take full responsibility for preparing and serving lunch for Good Samaritan diners. If you can help, please note the dates and watch for a sign-up opportunity closer to each date. On each of these Saturdays, workers are needed 8 a.m.-10:30 a.m. to prepare the meal and 11 a.m. -1 p.m. to serve lunch. Volunteers also shop for the needed grocery supplies one or two days in advance.

     If you would consider helping and would like to know more about what is involved, talk with co-chairs Dave Wagner or Shirley Swarthout.

     The Good Samaritan Inn serves a hot, nutritious mid-day meal to all those who need it seven days a week, year-round. All are welcome; no questions asked.

     New volunteers are always welcome!

Card Ministry Needs Helping Hands

The Card Ministry group needs help. The group makes and sends cards to church members with personal handwritten messages. Cards are sent for many occasions - sympathy, get well, thinking of you/support, baptisms, new member welcomes, graduations, welcome baby, etc. The group meets the 1st and 3rd Tuesdays of each month at 9:30AM in Room 340. Current members can assist with message wording and/or making the cards. Contact Suzie Miller or Carolyn McCall if you have questions or just show up to help.

Important News about The Visitor

Beginning the week of Monday, October 3, Central’s weekly newsletter – The Visitor – will be printed every other week. This will be true for both the online and the U.S.-mailed paper copies. This change is due to many factors. In the last five years – including the pandemic – our world has changed greatly, as has our staff configuration at the church. We are doing more and more communicating digitally and thus are able to send out information quicker, easier, and in a variety of ways. Since we first began the online option nearly 10 years ago, we have been sending out weekly digital as well as mail-out copies for those who wanted them. In the last several years, however, more people are converting from the paper copy to the digital one. Additionally, since the pandemic, there are many weeks when church staff is working harder to find content for a weekly newsletter. Mostly, however, this change will allow our office staff to work more effectively and efficiently in helping us carry out the ministries of the church.

Why youth group is important to me. -David Martin

As we get ready for the new school year, I have been reflecting on my time as part of the Central youth group. I have been a part of the youth group for over half of my life. Seven years as a youth participant, three years as a volunteer, and I am starting my seventh year as the youth director. It is safe to say that the youth program at Central has had a significant impact on my life. First and   foremost, my faith has grown and been shaped through my experiences and opportunities as a part of youth group. Growing up with a dad who worked at the church and a mom who was involved in seemingly everything, I never felt like my faith was truly a part of me. I would go to the youth events and I would have a good time hanging out with friends, but I never thought of my faith as a part of me. It wasn’t until I went to college that I realized how much my life had been shaped through my time in youth group. The people I chose to surround myself with shared my core beliefs that I realized were shaped in my time at Central. While I may not have realized what was happening at the time, the more I look back, the more I see the ways that Central and the youth group    impacted my life.

The second way that this program has had a positive impact on my life is through the relationships I have built through the years. The two closest friendships that I have both started at Central. Through all my years at school and baseball teams that I have played on, these two friendships have been    constants. I also value the relationships that I have built all around the state through the regional youth events like camp, Summit, and Midwinter. It is very comforting to know that no matter where we go, or what events we are at, I know that there are people that care for me and the youth at Central and are always willing to help. Whether it is a call/text or a visit, there are leaders that have helped me grow personally, professionally, and spiritually. That is such a blessing because I know that these same people that have supported me are excited to be a support system for all of the youth in our group.

It is really important to me that the youth at Central are provided a place where they can feel comfortable to learn, grow, and develop relationships along their faith journey. We have been blessed by youth leaders, church staff, and a congregation that share that same goal and are always there to help our youth. With all of that said, we are all excited for this upcoming year!