First Steel

First of all, we give thanks to the Lord for our great blessings for it seems as if we were spared from the storm. Unfortunately, there will be the opportunity to help others recover from the damage Isaac caused. I will certainly keep us posted when the need is determined.

But look...

Yes, that is the metal building portion going up today. Finally! Again, thanks to all of you who are as excited about this project as your pastor and could not wait for you to see it too. By Sunday no telling how great it will look.

Speaking of Sunday, don't forget, we will have worship this Labor Day weekend. And since it is the first Sunday of the month, we will have Holy Communion. Also, remember to bring your ICAN food offering.

This Weeks Chancel Choir Rehearsal Cancelled

Chancel Choir -

Tomorrow night's Chancel Choir rehearsal is CANCELED. Sorry about that, folks.

I hope everyone is doing well in the storm. Remember to keep one another in your prayers.

No choir anthem this Sunday but we will be in the loft.

Shirt color for this Sunday is BLUE.

See you Sunday,

Peace in the Storm

Well, once again, we are preparing for the worst, and praying for the best. Most of us have done this drill way too many times before, but please, make preparations for Isaac. Our Covenant Preschool and Church offices as most other places will be closed tomorrow,Wednesday, and should be open again on Thursday. Provided we have power.

But, please, my cell number in case of emergency is (337)591-0580. I do remember from my experience in Katrina, while the cell number did not always work for a call, it seemed to always work for a text.

As you can imagine, the threat of the storm has prevented our steel erectors from starting to hang iron on our new Firm Foundation, but hopefully will be able to come do some work on Thursday and Friday.

But please rest assured, we will have church on Sunday, unless there is a mandatory evacuation of Lafayette, (which seems highly unlikely now). This is Holy Communion Sunday which also means don't forget our ICAN food offering for UCO food pantry. We are preparing for a great service.

Sincerely,

The Times They Are A'Changing

Many of you might recognize those words from Bob Dylan and the tumultuous 60’s, of which I am a child of those years. One of the lines that stuck in my memory was:
“You better start swimming, or you will sink like a stone, for the times, they are a changing”. 

And I am not talking about only Daylight Savings time which will end all the way in November, but life in general and even here at Covenant is full of change. Politicians build careers around change, either a change from the current administration, or a change from the past administration (which of course was not the party of the current administration). But we find change in every area of life. Believe it or not, change is difficult: We even change the way we find quotations, not in an old Bartlett’s Book of Quotations, but...with a change-now online.

“He who rejects change is the architect of decay. The only human institution which rejects progress is...the cemetery.”
“It is not necessary to change. Survival is not mandatory.”
“When we are no longer able to change a situation, we are challenged to change ourselves.” 
“When you are through changing, you are through.”
“The bamboo that bends is actually stronger than the oak that resists.”

Here at Covenant we have seen changes: Some of our parishioners have moved to different locations to live and some even to worship; but praise God we have had more move into our church family then leave. We have seen changes in Sunday school room assignments, with some classes even being moved to other buildings, but praise God this is part of the growing pains of a growing Sunday school program. We really are putting an emphasis on our children and youth and young adult programs, and we are seeing positive results. We have once again divided our Jr. high from our Sr. High, and even have a new young adult class. We have seen change in staff as well, Troy Williams our beloved custodian quit, and we are still reeling from this loss and change...but God will provide for our needs, for this we can be certain, none of the change has ever caught God unaware or nor is God unable to provide for us.

While progress on our new building has been slowed down by rain and lots of it, our contractor is doing what can be done each day...but we have a slab to walk on, and they can start the next phase. But that is a change we anticipate and look forward to. We may change where we do church, but we will never change the way we worship, we serve, we witness to, and we are loved by our Lord. The times they are a changing, are you on board?

See you each and every week in your place here at Covenant. 

August 26th Sermon Download Available

Today's sermon, How Firm A Foundation is now available as a free MP3 download from our website. http://tinyurl.com/5j6nl3. This is part of Brother Chris' Then Sings My Soul sermon series.

Covenant Kids

Greetings!

What a busy month August has been!  We have had several training opportunities for our Children's Ministry team, blessed our kids backpacks, started back to school, trained and recognized our acolytes, promoted our kids in Sunday School, started a new Sunday school curriculum, formed our Covenant Children's Council, survived Bible Boot Camp and tomorrow we will present our 3rd and 4th graders with their Bibles.  Whew! 

That is so exciting to see so much happening in our Children's Ministry!!!  There is always room for more!  If you have any suggestions or comments about this ministry, we would love to hear from you.   Also, if you feel the call to help our kids learn about Jesus and would like to find a place as a volunteer in the Children's Ministry, we would love to have you!  Please email Lindsay Perry at children@covenantum.org to volunteer or with comments.

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Covenant Mission Kids
August 26  3:30-5:00 p.m.
All kids from 1st-5th grade are invited to join in on a hands on mission project each month.  Our first mission will have our kids making Christmas cards out of their original artwork.  These cards will be sold at Christmas time to raise money for the Angel Tree project.

If your child is interested in participating and has not yet registered, please email Jennifer Manuel at jenandwally@earthlink.net.

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Wednesday Night Program
September 5  6:30-7:30 p.m.
This year, we will be doing many new and exciting programs during our Wednesday Night programming.  We will do each program for 4-6 weeks to keep it new and fresh for the kids.

Our first program will be "Movie Clips for Kids--Faith Building Devotions."  The kids will watch a clip from a popular G-rated movie and then we will relate a Bible lesson to the movie.  It will be fun and engaging for the young and old of our Covenant kids!  We will also be learning more about the Bible through the "What's in the Bible with Buck Denver" series and doing some Bible Drills!

If your child will be participating in this program, please sign them up on the sheet in the Narthex or respond to this email with their name.  We need an estimate of the number of kids to properly prepare for this exciting program.

Sincerely,
Lindsay Perry, Director of Children's Ministry
Covenant United Methodist Church

A Sure Foundation - Literally

Since before dawn the work crew has been out working our foundation.

 

And when that's all done, the steel is already here, ready to be put up.

Join me in giving thanks to God and continued prayers for the safety of the workers.

It's A Heavy Metal Monday

What a great morning - Sunday Worship, Sunday School Classes, Youth Group, Young Adults, new Acolytes, Trustee and Church Council Meeting - what a great day. And then when I arrive at church this morning, lots of workers and good news. The plan is to pour the slab tomorrow - Praise God! And as soon as I heard that two big trucks arrived, with the metal frames for the building. So as soon as slab is cured they can start hanging the metal. Wow!

Got so excited I had to share this with a few of my closest friends. And if that was not enough, a full parking lot as the Covenant Preschool and MDO open house started today. You certainly are a Light in the Darkness! 

And Oh yeah, we are feeding the Students at Wesley Foundation at UL today. Thanks to those women who help with this ministry. Should you wish to help in the future, please let us know.

August 19th Sermon Download Available

Today's sermon, Twinkle Twinkle Little Light is now available as a free MP3 download from our website. http://tinyurl.com/5j6nl3. This is part of Brother Chris' Then Sings My Soul sermon series.

Reminder from Children's Ministry

Just a reminder that the last Acolyte training for the year will be held this Sunday, August 19th at 3:00 p.m.  If your child is in 3rd through 7th grade and interested in serving as an acolyte, they must attend this training.  If you have any questions about this ministry, please contact Jennifer Manuel at jennandwally@earthlink.net.

Attention All Covenant Cadets
--Bible Boot Camp is just around the corner!  All kids in 3rd and 4th grade are invited to join us for a fun-filled day of Bible training.  Boot Camp will be held on Saturday, August 25th from 9 a.m.-1 p.m. at Asbury United Methodist Church.  Snacks and lunch will be provided.  Registration is required and is available online.
Click here to register for Bible Boot Camp

Bibles will be handed out to our 3rd graders on Sunday, August 26th at both worship services.  We would love for all of our kids in 3rd grade to receive their Bible so be sure to email their name to Lindsay Perry @ children@covenantum.org.

Don't Forget

Don't Forget - 
Wednesday Nite Solace Service
6:00pm - Holy Communion and Devotion
Followed by Ken Cheshire's Music Fundamentals Class

While we will not have a meal, we do have some delicious cake left over from Sunday that you can enjoy prior to and following the solace service.

Men -
This coming Saturday, the 18th, breakfast along with a short work day.
8:00am - not too many projects, but every hand is needed.

Now, for all you have had a key to the church, we have had new keys cut, so unless you come by the office and swap out your key, you will be locked out.
This way, we can also keep track of all our outstanding keys. Sorry for the inconveniece but at least we remembered to pass the word.

Monday Afternoon News

It is a great week ahead of us. We had two wonderful Worship Services yesterday, and the biggest crowd at Sunday School. Almost 50% of the people in church (over 350) attended Sunday School. Good for you! This is the best way to grow as a disciple of Christ. If you need help finding a class for you adults, come talk to me or Rev. Byron.

Our children's Ministry program is off and running. We have had to make some adjustments (easier word to say then change) but all is well, and the bugs will all get worked out. The important part is this: our team is doing a great job to do all they can to help our children see, hear, and experience the Love of Christ. Do your part to get them here!

Teachers are running around our Preschool Building trying to get our rooms in order for the start of Covenant Preschool and mother's day out. Amy says there are only a few openings. This Sunday, the 19th at our 11:00am worship service, we are inviting our Preschool Staff so we can recognize them and Pray for the new year. Come by and let this staff know how much we appreciate them and their part in our vital ministry to the community.

Enroll now for the Wednesday Night Bible Studies coming in September: Basic Bible Overview with Jennifer Manuel and Byron Aucoin or the Book of Daniel with Chris. Sign up in the foyer.

Wednesday Night - our last Summer Solace. No meal, but Food for the Soul. Holy Communion and devotion as well as singing some of the Olde Olde songs a new way. 6:00pm  followed by Ken's Music Fundamentals class.

Two pieces of sad news: Troy Williams, our beloved custodian, quit working for the church on Friday after 10 years. We wish Troy well and we will sorely miss him. 

And Becca Wharton, the leader of our Junior High Youth, lost her grand father today after a long illness. Please pray for the Clay Harrell family.

August 5th and 12th Sermon Downloads Available

Today's sermon, What A Friend and last Sunday's sermon, There is A Name, are now available as a free MP3 download from our website. http://tinyurl.com/5j6nl3. This is part of Brother Chris' Then Sings My Soul sermon series.

3...2...1...BLAST OFF with Covenant Kids!!!

Covenant Kids will be blasting off with it's new Sunday school curriculum,  Living Inside Out, this Sunday, August 12th. All kids from Pre-K3 though 5th grade will be experiencing this fun, new adventure each week.  Our first mission will take us through "Star Quest" where kids will learn about God's nature. 

The program starts off with a large group assembly where all kids from Kindergarten though 5th grade will meet in the Fellowship Hall.  After assembly time, they will break up into small groups.  Kindergarten through 3rd grade will remain in the Fellowship Hall while 4th and 5th graders will move to Room 15 in the Preschool Building.  Pre-K3 and Pre-K4 age kids will continue to meet in Room 12 in the Preschool Building for both large and small group.   

This is an exciting time for the church; a time of growth and excitement for both kids and adults alike.  We hope to see your kids smiling faces each and every Sunday!

Sincerely,
Covenant Children's Ministry
Sunday School Team

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 Star Quest - Lesson 1
How can I prepare my child for Sunday School?
 This weeks lesson will teach our kids the Bible truth that we know God never changes.  Our memory verse will be "God is the King over all the earth."  Psalm 47:7.

A fantastic way to prepare kids for Sunday is to read the memory verse to them.  You can also help them to begin learning the verse.

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Upcoming Events
August 11 - Acolyte Training at 9:00am
August 12 - Promotion Sunday & Acolyte  Recognition
August 15 - Mid-month Summer Solace, 6:00pm

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Covenant United Methodist Church - Children's Ministries
Thank you for the opportunity to teach your kids about the love of Jesus Christ.  We look forward to working alongside you in this adventure.  We welcome any questions, feedback or suggestions for this ministry.  You can contact Lindsay Perry at children@covenantum.org or (337) 412-1930.

Acolyte Training

Reminder that the annual acolyte training will be on Saturday, August 11th at 9 a.m. 

All kids from 3rd through 7th grade are invited to attend the training and serve as an acolyte. 

The acolytes will also  be acknowledged during the 9 a.m. service on Sunday, August 12th. 

If you have any questions or are interested in more information, you can contact Jennifer Manuel at jenandwally@earthlink.net.

What's Going On at Covenant

Wednesday - Tonight 
6:00pm, Fellowship Hall
The first Music Fundamentals class - lead by Ken Cheshire - our Director of music ministries.
There is room for you!

Thursday
8:30am, Fellowship Hall
The Charles Nolan Bull Session for Men

Friday
6:30pm, Fellowship Hall
Cursillio Welcome Home Party - all 4th dayers welcome, bring something to much on.

Saturday
9:00am - Safe Sanctuary Training
11:00am - Teacher Training

Sunday
First Sunday - Holy Communion
Don't forget our ICAN Food offering for UCO Food Pantry
The Message - There is a Name 
Kids - bring you book bags to receive a Tag and a Blessing as you prepare to begin the new school session.

Last, but not least, we are seeing some work take place for our building. Trenches are being cut, hopefully some of the concrete chain walls will be poured this week, and maybe within another week, a slab!