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The Flame
Branson United Methodist Church Newsletter
 
         
Published Semi-Monthly    
Volume 27                                                       No. 14                                                 July 21 2010

 

VACATION TIME: A GREAT TIME TO DO YOUR SUMMER GUESTS A FAVOR

Invite them and bring them to God’s House to share in celebrating God’s love for our lives. When we travel, do our hosts a favor, don’t be the factor causing them to miss church because we are visiting. It is a matter of courtesy and respect. Oh, “borrow” materials, brochures, worship formats, or other neat, intriguing things and share them back home here at “1208”. 
 
MORE V.B.S.’10 THOUGHTS:
 
PRAYER WALKERS: That’s right, “prayer walkers”. Martha Grace Reece, in her book “UNBINDING THE GOSPEL” lifts up this concept/ministry. I like the idea!
  
  • No pre-set agenda except to pray
  • Walk by the singing area, games area, snacks, story area—praying
  • Pray for the children, their parents or guardians
  • Pray for the servant/volunteers, for Cora, our VBS director
  • Pray for concessions people, coaches, huddle coaches, transportation team, music team
  • Stay all morning, 9:00 to noon, come for 10 minutes, or an hour, or…
  • Come every morning, Monday through Friday, or one day, or two, or….
  • Help with our “teacher appreciation room” by bringing snacks (casserole, dessert, chips ‘n dips, soda, donuts, veggie tray, etc)
God provides you and me with 120 hours next week. VBS will be 15 of those 120 hours. Pray about it and find some time in the 120 hours next week to buzz up to the church to be a ‘PRAYER WALKER” for VBS’10!!
 
PRAYER VIGIL:
  • Slip into the Communion Room (behind the sanctuary, next to the “Cry Room”). There you will see a roster of those who have raised their hand saying “Lord, you can count on me!” to help serve in next week’s VBS ’10.   Pray for those servants!
  • Find the roster of those children who, so far, have registered for VBS’10. Pray for them.
  • Pray for those children who have never been to VBS, and are not registered for our VBS’10, and who probably don’t know much about Jesus Christ. We may not know them by name, but we can still pray for those children un-informed about Jesus’ style of love.
  • Pray for Judy and Bobbi and Bernie and our Trustees as they team together to provide for the building and other logistics tied to VBS’10!
  • Take home a prayer hand-out Sunday morning, putting it on our ‘frig, or visible place calling us to pray during the week (at home, or at work, or traveling) for VBS’10.

 THANK YOU’S!

 

Maybe this isn’t expressed often enough. As your pastor, and with your Branson UMC Finance Team, I want to say “thank you” for so many who exercise systematic, disciplined, sacrificial prayer and financial support for the ministries of Branson United Methodist Church. Along with your prayers and financial giving, your gifts of time and talent help make ministry possible. Thank you.
 
FULTONS SAY “THANK YOU”! Thank you, Branson United Methodist Church, for the gracious all-church luncheon Sunday, July 11th. The fried chicken was delicious (thank you, Karen Hall for providing it) as were the side dishes and desserts. It was fun. Hope you enjoyed it, too. And thank you for letting us team up in ministry with you at Branson UMC! Thanks also to all of you that set up, took down, and cleaned up after the event.
 
THANK YOU CHOIR, for the powerful special music Sunday, July 4th. Not only that, but the “Singspiration” Sunday afternoon, July 11th. So many were saying, “Hey, let’s do that again!” 
 

 

Health & Wellness
 
CUTS AND SCRAPES
 
Most of us have dealt with cuts and scrapes successfully for a long time, but sometimes we delay caring for them and end up with a problem. I thought a review might be helpful for all of us, from young, first-time parents to experienced grandparents and great-grandparents, so here we go:
 
BRUISES
 
If you have a bump or bruise with mild swelling and pain, resting and using ice packs and elevating the area may be helpful. If there is a lot of swelling, or it continues to swell after the injury or pain increases rather than gradually improving, you may need to be seen by medical personnel.
 
“RICE” is a good way to remember how to care for a bruise, representing “Rest-Ice-Compression-Elevation.” For a bruise, ice or a cold pack can be used several times a day for a couple of days. 15 minutes is a good length of time to leave it on. The idea is to stop any bleeding or oozing of fluid, and decrease the amount of swelling. The ice pack can also help with pain. Over-the-counter Tylenol or Ibuprofen can be used if you can tolerate them. Frequent bruising without a known cause could be a sign of another condition, especially if you are not taking blood thinners or are on an aspirin regimen. If that is the case, or if you notice any increase in swelling, pain, redness or temperature, you need to be checked by a physician, as these could signify an Infection.
 
CUTS
 
With a cut, first stop the bleeding. If it is hard to stop, you will need medical help to do so. Wash your hands first, whether it is your cut or someone else’s, before you treat the wound. If the cut is not deep or gaping and is fairly small, clean the area. If there is dirt or debris in the cut or wound it needs to be cleaned out before covering it with a bandage. Use an antibiotic cream on it, then cover with a sterile bandage. Watch for redness or elevated temperature or increased pain, as these can be signs of infection in the area. If bleeding or drainage continues after you have bandaged the wound and it is hard to get stopped, seek medical attention.
 
Tetanus shots should be updated every 10 years. If a wound is deep or dirty, your physician may recommend a booster shot if it has been 5 years or longer since your last shot.
 
A puncture wound probably needs medical attention. Infection can develop deep down that you may not be aware of. Continued draining or bleeding should be checked by a medical person. Sometimes it is easy to self treat when a wound is larger or deeper than you realize, so be careful out there and have a great, safe summer!
 
Virginia Youngdahl, RN
Parish Nurse
 
 
UNITED METHODIST MEN
 
Saturday—August 7th—8:00 am
Skaggs Hospital
~Magnolia Room~
  •  Select your breakfast in the cafeteria & bring it down the corridor to the south
  • Look for direction signs for the UMM gathering in the Magnolia Room
  • Why not bring your Bible & a friend?

     

 
       ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
 
HOLY HUMOR:
Q. What kind of man was Boaz before he married Ruth?      (Ruthless)
 
 
What’s Your WQ (Welcoming Quotient)?
 
1. When I see new people at church, I:
a. Avert my eyes so they don’t think I’m staring at them.
b. Elbow the person next to me and point out the newcomers, so that person will acknowledge the new people.
c. Nod and smile to show the people that I recognize their presence.
d. Make a bee-line for them during the service or hospitality time to say hello, find out their names and introduce them to
    others.
 
2. When new people start working at my office, I:
a. Hope they enjoy working there more than I do.
b. Say hello when someone brings them around for introductions.
c. Send a note or e-mail to say hello and welcome.
d. Take a welcome gift to them when I introduce myself and all of my teammates.
 
3. When people I don’t know sit next to me on a bench or pew, I:
a. Scoot away from them a little so we have more space between us.
b. Smile and say hi, then go back to what I’m doing.
c. Shake hands, introduce myself and ask about them.
d. Everything in “c” plus introduce them to others sitting nearby.
 
4. When people stop by my home when it’s a mess, I:
a. Ignore the doorbell and hope they go away.
b. Speak to them through a crack in the door and try to wrap up the conversation quickly.
c. Join them to chat on the front porch and hope they don’t look back inside as I close the door behind me.
d. Invite them inside, regardless of how the place looks, tossing things off a chair so they have a place to sit.
 
5. When new people join a group I’m in, I:
a. Hope they don’t sit next to me. I’m horrible at small talk.
b. Shake hands, say hi and sit back down.
c. Make it a point to sit next to them so I can get to know them better.
d. Call them in advance so I can introduce them to everyone else at their first meeting.
 
6. When others look lost at church, I:
a. Step into the nearest restroom or classroom, hoping they don’t look to me for help.
b. Grab a greeter or pastor and encourage her/him to help the people.
c. Go up to them and point them in the right direction.
d. Offer to escort the people where they need to go.
 
7. When I’m expecting guests at my home, I:
a. Shake the dust off the “Welcome” mat and haul it down from the attic.
b. Write myself a reminder to check the toilet seats to be sure they’re down.
c. Clean the place from top to bottom, change the sheets in the guest room, lay out fresh towels in the guest bath, and turn
    on the outside lights.
d. Do everything in “c” plus bathe the kids and the pets.
 
Scoring Key:
 
Every “a” = 1;  Every “b” = 2;  Every “c” = 3;  Every “d” = 4
 
What your score means:
 
7–13: Welcoming might not come naturally to you, maybe because you’re introverted or don’t have to use those skills
           much. You’re trying to raise your awareness of how others respond to you and how you interact with them.
 
14–20: Welcoming comes fairly easy to you. You try to be friendly to people and let others know you’re interested in
            them.
 
21–28: Welcoming is high on your priority list. You look for ways to make others feel at home and try to raise the
             awareness of those around you so they become more welcoming, too.