"Each of you has received a gift to use to serve others. Be good servants of God's various gifts of grace." I Peter 4:10

The fruit of the Holy Spirit are acts that are accomplished with pureness of heart for the sake of the good accomplished. Exhibiting these gifts shows the presence of the Holy Spirit in one's life. There is a large diversity of gifts God has endowed Christians. As written in the Bible it may be speaking in many languages, or the gift of prophecy. But in reality any ability rather a simple or complex skill, or a gift requiring talent and dedication in training, was still given us by God to use for his purpose. We often limit our talent or skills to the church or spiritual life, thinking this is the intent of the Holy Spirit. But remember most of Jesus' teaching was with sinners outside the synagogue. "There are different kinds of gifts, but they are all from the same Spirit. There are different ways to serve but the same Lord to serve. Something from the Spirit can be seen in each person, for the common good." (I Corinthians 12:6,7)

The Holy Spirit has been very active in our Praise and Worship service. Each Sunday the attendance seems to be increasing. Many have started attending to support the Praise Band and found a contagious joy in Praise services that drew them back each Sunday. Sean Little has encouraged many of our talented youth to play with the Praise Band. The members now include, Kyle McGill on drums, Frank Griffin on bass, Billy O'Steen, guitar, Kate Griffin at the keyboard, and vocals, along with Director Sean Little, are Kate Griffin, Dennis Murray, Gabe Grantham and Macy Pollard. We will want CDs of their songs in the near future.

The CrossTraining Children's Ministry has grown each year to bring through teaching, games, songs and love, the teachings of Christ to children from K through 5th grade. This year over 75 children participated in the program during various Wednesday nights, with an average of 30-plus in attendance at any one time. We owe so much to the volunteers under the direction of Russ and Carol Munch. This program has reached out to many of the children within the community and has also encouraged their parents to attend worship services.

The next Family Night, Wednesday 6th, CrossTraining will break for the summer. So we will be honoring not only the graduating seniors but also our children. Please plan on attending to express your congratulations to the seniors and the students of the CrossTraining program.

Dr. Debbie Cherry has asked that we remember the covenant relationship that we as a Church entered into with Jerri and Bill Savuto, missionaries with the Maua Methodist Hospital in Kenya. We pledged our prayerful and financial support of $2,500 per year, which is paid quarterly to the General Board of Global Ministries of the United Methodist Church. Each of you has read on several occasions the wonderful letters from the Savutos, published in the Newsletter. Last summer a group from our church spent a week working with the Savutos in their mission work, so we feel that we know these wonderful people personally. Please continue to support this mission with your prayers and finances. The contribution for this quarter is short, so please consider making a donation. You may leave your check in the offering plate or bring to the church office.

We have a number of our beloved parishioners that are ill or recovering from surgeries and need our prayers. We cannot list their names in the paper unless they give their permission for us to do so, but please remember to post the list available in the church bulletin, and the Newsletter on your home bulletin board, as a reminder of the need to include them in your prayers. If you desire an update, call the church office; Ken and Russ try to keep a current status report on each member on the list. Anyone who has ever gone through a stressful event or major illness knows the value and need of prayer. This is the most important role of Christians for their church family. Remember Ephesians 3:16, "I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being." Amen.

Happy Anniversary to: Nick and Renee Jordan and Billy and Karen O'Steen.

Thought for the Week: "Constant kindness can accomplish much. As the sun makes ice melt, kindness causes misunderstanding, mistrust, and hostility to evaporate." Albert Schweitzer