 A Postcard and a Prayer |
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| Mennonite Women USA | August 2011
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"I am blessed to work as Project/Volunteer Coordinator for MW USA. I especially look forward to working with the volunteers who come in to prepare the mailings because we have such a good time together," said Lois Loflin (right), Halstead, Kansas.
These Kansas volunteers attended the luncheon.
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Coming in timbrel
 Young Women and the Church is timbrel's September/ October issue, gathering stories and experiences from Mennonite women under 40. Rachel Halder (left), a 2010 graduate of Goshen College, writes about her SALT term in Indonesia where she worked at P3W, an organization that promotes literacy and empowerment for women. Halder challenges the Mennonite church to tackle gender indifferences within our own congregations. "Through open and safe spaces constructed in our churches...we can learn about gender together and become stronger Christians within the Mennonite church."
In "Three Windows, Three Women," Anna Yoder, Maria Paff (right) and Rachel Thalmann reflect on their roles in the church as young women. Paff recalls the steady support she receives from older mentors in her congregation. She writes, "[Church] is a place where I feel grounded, where I know my gifts are valued and where my faith is nurtured."
In preparation for the next issue of timbrel, which will focus on Global Sisters, consider:
How do our global sisters enrich our own lives as well as enrich the life of the church?
Send your responses to Patty by September 1. Be sure to include your name and hometown.
Consider giving a subscription to a special woman in your life as a gift. To subscribe to timbrel, send $15 for one year or $13 per person for a group of 10 or more to Mennonite Women USA, 718 N Main St., Newton, KS 67114. You can also e-mail or call 866.866.2872, ext. 34396. We'll start your subscription and send you a bill.
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Upcoming Regional Retreats
South Central / Western District - September 9-11. Finding God in the Everyday, Laurie Oswald Robinson, speaker, at Camp Mennoscah, Murdock, Kansas
Central District - September 16-18. Mending the Fabric of Our Community, Lorraine Stutzman Amstutz, speaker, at Camp Friedenswald, Cassopolis, Michigan
Ohio - September 16-18. Joy of the Lord, Jep Hostetler, speaker at Camp Luz, Orrville, Ohio
Indiana-Michigan - October 7-9. The Tables of Our Lives & Their Formative Tables, Sara Wenger Shenk, speaker at Amigo Centre, Sturgis, Michigan
Virginia - October 28-30. More Than Water, April Gunderson, speaker at Best Western Plus, Waynesboro, Virginia
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MW USA Sister-Link with Mennonite Disaster Service
Mennonite Women USA greatly appreciates the work of Eloise Yoder (left), Archbold, Ohio, who coordinated the MDS Sister-Link wall hanging project for three years. Eloise recently turned over her files, albums of stories, and completed quilted wall hangings to Rebecca Sommers (right), Goshen, Indiana, who will coordinate the project for the next several years.
Women from across the U.S. create wall hangings and submit them to this project to be distributed to home owners whose homes have been rebuilt by Mennonite Disaster Service (MDS) following natural disasters. Sommers is a delegate to the MDS board and is looking forward to adding this link to her involvement with MW USA and with MDS.
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 Upcoming Sister Care Seminars
Sister Care: Equipping Women for Caring Ministry seminars validate women's gifts of caring and equips them to respond more effectively and confidently to the needs of others in their lives and in the congregation. Included in the seminar is a 64 page manual integrating biblical truths with life experience and skills for caring and listening. Presenters: Carolyn Heggen and Rhoda Keener
Illinois and Central District August 26-27, 2011
- Mennonite Church of Normal, Normal, Illinois
Central Plains in South Dakota September 17-18, 2011
- Swan Lake Camp, Viborg, South Dakota
North Central in Minnesota September 23-25, 2011
- Strawberry Lake Camp, Ogema, Minnesota
Southeast October 21-22, 2011
- Ashton Community Fellowship, Sarasota, Florida
South Central and Western District November 11-12, 2011
- Hesston Mennonite Church, Hesston, Kansas
Pacific Southwest January 13-14, 2012
- Los Angeles, California
Gulf States February 17-18, 2012
- Pine Lake Camp, Meridian, Mississippi
New York March 16-17, 2012
-Rochester Mennonite Church,Rochester, NY
Eastern District and Franconia March 23-24, 2012
- eastern Pennsylvania
Central District and Indiana-Michigan May 4-5, 2012
- northern Indiana
For information on how to register, or to schedule a Sister Care seminar in your area, contact the Mennonite Women USA office.
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Registration has begun for Women in Conversation retreats
Meghan Good, lead pastor of Albany Mennonite Church in Albany, Oregon, is the keynote speaker. The theme for the weekend is "Into the Wilderness: the Journey of God's Beloved." Join us as we embrace our identity as God's beloved. You may register online .
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Give to Mennonite Women USA
 Mennonite Women USA's ministry is possible through your generous donations. Contribute on-line. Make a pledge on our website. Or mail your contribution to the office at Mennonite Women USA, 718 N. Main St., Newton, KS 67114-1819. Please consider this ministry in your giving. Gifts are tax deductible.
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Mennonite Women USA remembers former WMSC Executive Secretary:
Beulah E. (Good) Kauffman, 92, of Goshen, died on Saturday, August 20, 2011. From June 1963-June 66 she served as Literature Secretary of the General Women's Missionary & Service Auxiliary (WMSA) of the Mennonite Church, and from September 1966 to January 1979 she served as Executive Secretary of General WMSC. Beulah is remembered fondly for her strong and creative leadership of one of the predecessor organizations of MW USA.
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Prayer requests:
 We praise God for the many registrations continuing to come in for Sister Care Seminars in August and September. Pray for all the women who will be attending and for the presenters, Rhoda Keener and Carolyn Holderread Heggen, as they minister to all the participants.
Pray for the area conference fall retreats and the presenters (see the schedule in this A Postcard and a Prayer).
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Honoring and Remembering 
Mennonite Women USA invites persons to share financially to support this ministry. Individuals are invited to give in honor of, or in remembrance of, significant people in their lives. We recognize that each gift honors or remembers a relationship.
Gifts given by:
Maria Ortega Kummer in memory of Helen Spemler.
Gifts given by:
Maria Ortega Kummer in honor of First Mennonite Church of Iowa City women's group.
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The Kitchen Table
by Lorraine Eby
Franklin Conference Sister Care Coordinator
Burning Bush, August 2011
I enjoy seeing rocks included as part of home landscaping enhancement so when I saw the ad for fiberglass rocks to cover the unsightly well cap in our back yard, I was sure it was the perfect solution. The rocks, a package of three, arrived in the mail and we eagerly positioned the largest one over the well cap, planting some ivy and other perennials around it. The other two were positioned at opposite corners of the house. Don questioned the length of the wires sent in the package to fasten them securely so we were careful to push them into the ground and to pack the ground and mulch around them.
Standing at the front door one summer day I was assessing the damage of the afternoon thunderstorm. Across the road in our neighbor's yard I spotted an unfamiliar object. Looking more closely I identified it as one of our fiberglass landscaping rocks.
I walked outside and nonchalantly looked around to see who may be watching as I crossed the road to our neighbor's property. Read more...
Used by permission of the Burning Bush, Franklin Conference newsletter.
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Women identify needs and next steps
by Anna Groff
The Mennonite, August 2011
More than 60 women gathered to create "circles of solidarity" on July 7 at a "Women in Leadership" gathering planned by Joanna Shenk, Janie Beck Kreider and Beth Martin Birky. Read more.
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 Thoughts for Today
submitted by Neva Kaufman, Moundridge, Kansas "This was shared in Sunday School a few years ago. I like to pick it up and read it frequently to remind myself that every day is given to us by God. And to remind me at the close of each day to say, 'I have lived and loved today.'" Today I will live one day only,
and not try to solve the whole problem of life at once. Today I will be unafraid of life and death,
but enjoy the beautiful and be happy. Today I will have a plan,
even though I may not follow it exactly. It will save me from worry, hurry and indecision.
Today I will adjust myself to what is,
and not try to make everything over to suit me. If I cannot have what I like, I will try to like what I have.
Today I will be agreeable, cheerful, and charitable.
I will praise people for what they do
and not criticize for what they cannot do. I will try to regulate or improve only myself. Today I will look about with fresh eyes
and discover that I can get a little time to relax and to think about God. Today is yours. God has given it to you.
All your yesterdays He has taken back. All your tomorrows He is holding out of your reach. Only today is yours. Use it so that at it's close, you can say, "I have lived and loved today." |
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A Postcard & a Prayer is compiled by Mennonite Women USA staff Ruth Lapp Guengerich, Rhoda Keener, Patricia Burdette, Berni Kaufman, and Lois Loflin.
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Know of others who would like to receive "A Postcard & a Prayer" e-mails from Mennonite Women USA? Have them send name, address, and e-mail Berni. | |
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