March 2009 Archives

Dear Emmanuel Family,

As President of the Board of Trustee's, I want to take this moment to give you an insight into the projects completed in 2008 and 2009 and our upcoming projects.

In 2008, the parsonage home had some major updates. We replaced part of the driveway. We had a water leak in which we had to replace flooring and take care of updating the bathrooms. And of course, who can forget the story of the car driven into the Junior High classroom. What can I say? It took a lot of dedication and persistent to complete.

In 2009, Jackson Hall received new interior painting and the parsonage home received a new fence.

Many times we will get bids for repairs and have to postpone, due to funds. Although we are a small church, thanks be to God for his help in all our projects. We are thankful for the wonderful work of the dedicated people who help with getting bids, work with contractors, make telephone calls and are at the church or parsonage to let contractors in and out.

Our upcoming 2009 church wish list projects are replacement of the blue carpet in the sanctuary and maybe do some painting to the interior. The rough estimate to replace the sanctuary carpet is $5,000.00. Also, we hope to replace the ceiling tiles and put in new flooring for Jackson hall. Our preliminary estimates for these projects are $800.00 and $5,000.00 respectively. At this time, it is not something within our budget but we are hopeful of contributions.

Also, the Trustees is having a fundraiser. It is a Vendor Fair on May 2, 2009 from 9am to 1pm. Mark your calendars. We have arranged to have Mary Kay, BeautiControl, Avon, Cookie Lee, Southern Living at Home, Pampered Chef, Tupperware, possible a chair massage therapist and hopefully a few more vendors to sell their products. NO NEED TO WORRY ABOUT HAVING A PARTY OR BE PRESSURED, JUST SHOP! PASS THE WORD...

I am thankful to the members of the Trustees because of their dedication and hard work, our church and parsonage is still offering us a place to worship and come together in the Lord's heart.

Sincerely,

David Ancira
President of the Board of Trustees

Participating in a Sunday school class affords you the opportunity to learn more about the Lord and the Bible in a more intimate setting and to grow closer in your personal relationship with the Lord. We would like to encourage everyone to join a Sunday school class if you have not yet done so.

Praise be to God! The following Sunday school members had perfect attendance at Sunday school for the month of March.

Pre-kindergarten Class

• Diana Estavillo

Kinder, 1^st, and 2^nd Grade Class

• Miranda Estavillo
• Laura Flores
• Sabrina Gutierrez
• AnaLisa (LiTong) Rodriguez
• Juliet Ruiz

3^rd, 4^th, and 5^th Grade Class

• John Guerrero
• Gabby Gutierrez
• Marlena Ruiz

6^th, 7^th, and 8^th Grade Class

• Gilberto Ramos
• Natalie Ruiz

Senior High Class

• Kristen Flores
• Laura Mercado

Young Adult Class

• (none this time, but for sure next time)

Adult English Class I

• David Rivera
• Ernest Rodriguez, Sr.
• Hope Rodriguez
• Lydia Ruiz
• Ruben Ruiz
• Felix Varela

Adult English Class II – Veritas

• Mary Alvirez
• Heriberto DeLeon
• Bernie Estavillo
• Richard Munguia
• Linda Osoria
• Velma Pavlasek
• Toni Salazar
• Sonia Sosa
• Cheryl Tuttle

Adult Spanish Class

• Ruth Alvirez
• Esther Ancira
• Socorro Ancira
• Carolina Flores
• Refugio Hernandez
• Rosa Munguia
• Cordelia Ruiz
• Servando Varela

We will continue to conduct the Sunday school perfect attendance contest throughout the month of April as well. We give thanks to our Sunday school teachers and their willingness to serve the Lord and our church.

Invite-a-Friend

In our continued effort to increase attendance at Sunday school, we will also be conducting the “Invite-a-Friend” campaign. Every Sunday school member is being asked to bring just one other person with him/her to Sunday school each Sunday in April. We know you can do it! By just bringing one friend with you, we will increase attendance significantly.
We would also ask for your continued prayer in our efforts to increase attendance at Sunday school.

We invite you to join us for Lenten Bible Study tomorrow (Wednesday) evening at 6:30 (dinner at 5:30 pm) Yolanda Munguia is leading us in a study of "Learning from the Mistakes of the Disciples". It has been very edifying! Join us!

Please pray with us for/ Favor de orar con nosotros por:

• Hope Rodriguez' sister and sister-in-law who are both recovering from surgery.
• Elizabeth Almaguel for her healing from the pain in which she lives every day.
• the Rev. Ramon Almaguel for strength as he ministers to and supports his wife in her illness.
• the marriages of the church
• pray for Jessica (Herrera) Gonzales, our (pastor and Olga) oldest daughter. She was taken the emergency late Sunday evening with uncontrollable nasal bleeding. She had a 5 inch tube inserted, with medicine, in her nose. that has stopped the bleeding. She will see her doctor tomorrow. Please pray for favorable results tomorrow and healing.
• Minnie Russell (Diana Guevara's cousin) for healing from pain.
• God bless you and thanks for joining us in prayer for these!

Pastor Dobbs

Dear Emmanuel Family/ Querida familia de Emmanuel,

 Dear Emmanuel Family/ Muy estimada familia de Emmanuel,

What can the call to discipleship, the adherence to the word of Jesus, mean today to the businessman, the soldier, the laborer, or the aristocrat? What did Jesus mean to say to us? What is his will for us today? Drawing on the Sermon on the Mount, Dietrich Bonhoeffer answers these timeless questions by providing a seminal reading of the dichotomy between "cheap grace" and "costly grace." "Cheap grace," Bonhoeffer wrote, "is the grace we bestow on ourselves...grace without discipleship....Costly grace is the gospel which must be sought again and again, the gift which must be asked for, the door at which a man must know....It is costly because it costs a man his life, and it is grace because it gives a man the only true life."