Greetings everyone:
My wife and I had an enjoyable visit with Mr. and Mrs. Ben Whitfield and the Wyoming brethren in Saratoga, Wyoming. Folks came from Wyoming, Colorado and Iowa to enjoy the beautiful country on the North Platte River, quite high at about 7,000 feet elevation. It is a lovely place to retreat! We had a pleasant flight home.
FESTIVAL INFORMATION
All elders who are assigned to speak at the Feast this year should have received a speaking schedule from Headquarters by now. If you do not have a speaking assignment for the Feast of Tabernacles please contact the Festival site coordinator where you will attend and let him know if you are available to serve in another capacity this year. The following listing may be of help to you:
Coordinator — Feast Site
Don Davis — Florence, OR
Dan Hall — Pigeon Forge, TN
Gaylyn Bonjour — Tucson, AZ
Gerald Weston — Ozarks, MO
Ben Faulkner — Panama City, FL
Ken Frank — Ocean City, MD
Randy Gregory — Eau Claire, WI
Keith Walden — Glenrose, TX
Dana Glatz — Jackson Hole, WY
Jim Arnaldo — PEI
Frank Best — Montreal, QC
Eng Monson — Cranbrook, BC
Glen Rose, Texas Feast Site Announcement:
From Mr. Keith Walden
Would those who are going to the Glen Rose Feast Site make their housing arrangements this weekend if they want to stay at the Dinosaur Valley Inn and Suites which is located next to the Somerville County Expo and Texas Amphitheatre. We plan to release the remaining blocked rooms on Tuesday, July 31st. This Motel/Hotel is the nicest for the money in the area. So please call and mention you are with the Living Church of God. The toll-free telephone number is: 1-800-280-2055
Please announce in all congregations:
The Festival site coordinators are still looking for volunteers to serve at the Feast of Tabernacles. There is a special need in music. Anyone wishing to participate in the Festival choir or perform special music, accompany the song service, etc. please submit a Volunteer Form available from your Pastor and mail it to Headquarters immediately. Time is running out!
Jackson Hole Wyoming Festival Site
From Mr. Dana Glatz
The Alpenhof Lodge, one of the accommodations published on the 2001 Feast of Tabernacles Jackson Hole housing list, is no longer available during the Feast of Tabernacles this year. They will be closing for renovations. There are still many fine housing options available. For information on other options, please visit the Church Web site where festival information is posted for the Jackson Hole site (click on "Additional Housing Information.").
In addition to more detailed descriptions and prices, links to the Web sites for many of the accommodations are provided, offering the opportunity to view the respective establishment and/or rooms. If you do not have internet access and wish to receive the housing information, please contact Patti Forsness, either by calling 406-442-4137 in the evenings, or by sending her an e-mail at [email protected].
EAU CLAIRE, WISCONSIN From Mr. Randy Gregory
The children's choir performance at the feast is always special. If you have children between the ages of three and twelve and are attending the Feast in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, please contact Michael or Roslyn Elertson as soon as possible to have the children's choir music sent to you.
Michael and Roslyn Elertson
159 Serenity Oaks Terrace
Watertown, WI 53098
920-206-9166
Port d'Albret, FRANCE From Monsieur Vincent Lardé & Family
Fête des Tabernacle (Feast of Tabernacles) 2001 Web site (available in English) for the FOT 2001 at this URL : www.mondedemain.org/fot2001/ During the Feast, the services will be one day in English, one day in French, with simultaneous translation for the other language.
NOTICE CLARIFYING TAPE POLICY
From: Tom Turner, Legal Liaison & Risk Manager:
Concerning my announcement in the July 19 Update: I'm sorry if the message last week caused any confusion—the local tape library was not in mind.
The concern is over certain media liability and other legal risks associated with locally produced sermon and other message tapes via mailing lists, websites etc. as was done by some ministers in the Global Church of God who developed a "sermon distribution list." Some of their material was judged by our leadership to be speculative and doctrinally incorrect or questionable, and their tapes were in some cases contentious, and created division within other Pastor's congregations. Therefore, Mr. McNair established a guideline that tapes made by a Pastor are not to be distributed outside his pastoral area. The Council of Elders formally established this as a policy for the Living Church of God around the world.
A church Pastor may make exceptions to the policy, of course, subject to the following examples:
- If Pastor "A" delivers a particularly helpful sermon and Pastor "B" wishes to receive a copy for his personal use or for a particular member who could be helped by it, Pastor "A" certainly may authorize it to be sent.
- If a Pastor delivers a sermon that is particularly effective, he may send it to headquarters (CAD) for review. It may then be processed and distributed around the world by the distribution system here.
The Church uses the Internet for posting selected sermons. Sermons should not be posted on local church Web pages without first being processed and approved at headquarters.
Conclusion:
Nobody likes delivering bad news. The other day I received a publication with a brief article entitled Courage Under Fire: Good Ways to Deliver Bad News, by Dianna Booher, Booher Consultants. The four points of the article may be helpful to you in addressing a sensitive task of delivering bad news, delicately.
- "Deliver the news personally. Don't hide behind messengers or impersonal mediums such as e-mails or memos. The worse the news, the more important that you deliver it in person—or be prepared that the individual or group will perceive your actions as a lack of courage."
- "Forewarn. Prepare the recipient—especially if the news is unexpected, but even if it isn't."
- "Be firm and fair. Give the gift of finality. If nothing can change the news, be firm and unequivocal so that the recipient is clear that there is no 'maybe' or 'I'm not sure' to the news you've just imparted."
- "Be brief. Lengthy explanations aren't required. If you wish to detail the reasons behind the bad news, you can, but don't feel compelled to offer more than the news itself. One exception: If you know the person well or feel extremely comfortable, you can give more detailed explanation for the reasons behind the decision. But you don't have to."
Perhaps the four points above, coupled with Christ's teachings (Matthew 18:15 and more), will help you communicate a difficult decision or action.
Have a Great Sabbath and a safe weekend.
CEMcNair