CJ' s REFLECTIONS

I remember playing in the living room with my cousins while Mom and Grandma fixed supper for a family gathering. We were good kids but every once and a while, there would be those moments all kids have. Moments when what was going on, ought not to have been going on. In those moments there would be a squall or a loud thud and from the kitchen would come “What are you kids doing?” Our reply would be “nothing”…. While our “nothing” was always something but we didn’t necessarily want our parents or even grandma to know what our “nothing” was. However, they always found out. That’s what parents do. Parents and Grandparents know when a child says “Nothing” something is going on and it most likely needs someone to put a stop to it before something or someone gets broken. I marvel at how parents know when they hear silence coming from the kids play room that play has stopped and mischief has began. The question is still “What are you kids doing?” and the answer is still “nothing” and that nothing is still always something.
I wondered as a kid, how my parents could know I was doing something they didn’t want me to do, even if it was as simple as getting cookies out of the cookie jar before supper. They may not have seen me get them, or even heard the jar being open but darn if they didn’t seem to catch me every time I tried it. As a parent I didn’t question the ability though I’m sure my kids did. As a grandparent I marvel as my daughter can tell what her kids are doing even when she’s not in the room. Is this a gift that God gives parents? Perhaps, but I think there’s more to this ability then might meet the eye on first glance.
I don’t have it with my grandchildren I don’t see them enough to have it and I think it’s a gift that comes by knowing our kids and grandkids, and perhaps each other. Ever walk into a room and catch someone even an adult with their hand in the “cookie jar”, knowing full well that they would be doing that before you saw them?
When we see someone regularly we get to know their habits and their thinking process. I can almost anticipate how the ladies at the Harbor House Christian Book Store’s Bible Study will answer my questions. How come, because we have been studying the Bible together for so long that I’ve learned how they think. Therefore I can usually word the questions to direct the conversation in the direction I want to take the study. (Oh to be sure they manage to catch me off guard now and then, but that’s okay too because when they do they make me think in new ways. It keeps it interesting to say the least.)
Knowing our friends and neighbors well enough to catch them in those “Nothing” moments means something else. It means that we have cared for them enough to get to know them in personal familiar ways. Do we know God in that way? Have we talked to Him enough that He knows how we think? Have we learned enough about Him to know how He thinks? Have we gotten to know Jesus well enough to recognize His still soft voice over the racket in our lives?
I have been reading the Psalms a lot lately. I do that from time to time for a number of reasons mostly because they focus in on most every emotion we humans go through. This week I have been reading and contemplating Psalms 1.
Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers. Have you ever asked yourself why such a person is blessed? Could it be because such a person spends his or her time with God instead?
But his delight is in the law of the Lord and on his law he meditates day and night. If we are thinking about God and God’s law then maybe if God asked us “What are you doing” we could answer “Nothing, just thinking about you”. Wouldn’t that be better then having God catch us with our hands in the cookie jar?
He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers.
How I long to be like that tree with my roots going down deep in drawing water from God’s river. How can I do that? Simple, but it has to start with knowing God, with planting ourselves at His feet and drinking in all that He has for us.
Hope to see you Sunday
Pastor C.J.



The Cluster Ten, gathering in Mt Ayr was an eventful day. There were not a lot of people there but those who gathered shared an experience that was worth the trip to attend. We had three from our church Mary Davis, Michael Deatz, and Pastor CJ. There were about 25 from five churches gathered.
We had some good fellowship time and got the opportunity to learn a little about our sister churches in the cluster. The Member’s Class for Adults “Learning to be Disciples Together” focused on Church History, Church Structure, Prayer, Baptism (its different forms and meanings), and Communion & Worship. This event will be repeated sometime next winter as a number from other churches wanted to be there but for different reasons could not attend at this time.
Our next event will be a picnic at East Lake in Osceola. It will be pot luck with a grill for those who want to bring their own meat and cook it there. Save the date of September 25 at 6:00 p.m.


It’s time to register for SCHOOL FOR CONGREGATIONAL LEARNING.
Keynote speaker is Christian Piatt. Christian Piatt has conducted workshops and preached nationally on congregational transformation making the church come alive again. The School will be held this year at First Christian Church of West Des Moines. You will have the opportunity to hear Christian Piatt twice and to attend two workshops of your choice.
One of the workshops will be led by Pastor CJ and Larry Michael. It is for Elders and is entitled Elders and Pastor as Team. There will also be a mission project going on during the day.
Child care is being offered for those who have children but those registrations need to be sent in ASAP.
The registration fee of $20.00 includes a continental breakfast and lunch. Registration forms are in the church office.
Pick up yours today!

New offering this year at the Conference Center that you may wish to attend is Senior Adult Retreat
A retreat to “Renew you Mind”! Senior adults will have a camp experience the weekend of September 11-13 and learn from keynote speakers about the brain, aging, lifelong learning spiritual practices and the tools of technology you can use today! The cost for this retreat is $100.00 and includes 2 nights in the lodge and meals. For more information call 515-255-3168 or go to www.uppermidwestcc.org.

News on the Nation level

Disciples center staff moves back into its office building on July 28th.

Disciples Center staff in Indianapolis is thankful for their safe return to permanent offices at a special afternoon session on the 28th of July. Fire and smoke damage at the Disciples Center caused the building’s more than 170 people to relocate in mid-April to temporary office space. However, weeks of cleaning and repairs by professionals skilled in remediating office structure following the smoke damage is now complete. All staff moved back into the building July 21-22.
Among others groups, building staff expressed appreciation to the Insurance Board for its excellent customer services during the renovations.
“It’s great to be back in our space and as part of the process to have had some significant renovations to the building,” said Associate General Minister and Vice President Todd Adams, who managed many aspects of the renovation.
General Minister and President Sharon Watkins blessed the space at the gathering.