Church Phone No.: (856)456-3364 Church Fax No.: (856)456-3812 District Website: www.chogeast.org National Website: www.chog.

org

Highland Park Church of God

Gods People on Gods Mission!

Pastor Bill e-mail: revwddilksjr@juno.com Office e-mail: highlandparkcog@yahoo.com Web Site: www.highlandparkcog.org

May 2012

Sun

Mon

Tue
1 (Psalm 34) 9:00 AM Men's Bible Study 2

Wed
(Psalm 35)

Thu
3
(Psalm 36) Noon NDP Service at St. Mary's RC Ch. Ministerium Meeting 7:00 PM NDP Service Here National Day of Prayer

Fri
4
(Psalm 37)

Sat
5
(Psalm 38)

7:00 PM Children's Practice for NDP Service 9 (Psalm 42) 7:00 PM Bd. of CE Meeting

Noon Retirees Luncheon

10:00 AM DVPA Meeting

(Psalm 39)

(Psalm 40)

(Psalm 41)

10

(Psalm 43)

11

(Psalm 44)

12

(Psalm 45)

11:00 AM Ron Chicken Speaking & Communion 7:00 PM Geof Kimber Concert

5:45 PM Rotary 7:30 PM AA Meeting

6:00 PM Daughter Banquet 18

(Psalm 51)

13

(Psalm 46)

14

(Psalm 47)

15 (Psalm 48) 9:00 AM Men's Bible Study

16

(Psalm 49)

17 (Psalm 50) 5:45 PM Rotary 7:30 PM AA Meeting

19 (Psalm 52) 9:00 AM Men's Fellowship Breakfast followed by Workday 26

(Psalm 59)

20

(Psalm 53)

21

(Psalm 54)

22

(Psalm 55)

23

(Psalm 56)

24

(Psalm 57)

25

(Psalm 58)

7:00 PM Council Mtg.

7:30 PM AA Meeting

27 (Psalm 60) Please have all items for the clothing drive to the porch of 107 Baynes today.

28

(Psalm 61)

29

(Psalm 62)

30

(Psalm 63)

31

(Psalm 64)

June 1

June 2 8:00 AM to 1:00 PM Yard Sale

7:30 PM AA Meeting

Memorial Day Monthly calendars are subject to change. Please feel free to contact the church office to confirm events.

May 2012

Dear Church Family and Friends, As I preached through the God Quest series in March, I shared a story from a book entitled Front Porch Tales, written by Pastor Philip Gulley. The stories are real events from early on in his life. The tales are spun in a way where the author is reflecting upon those times and stories and gleaning new insights that he shares with the reader. The story I shared was entitled, Growing Roots about an eccentric hometown doctor, named Dr. Gibbs who planted trees and refused to water or care for them. He wanted to weed out the weakling trees early on, and believed that forcing them to go through hardship would strengthen them and make them set down deeper roots in search of nutrition and water. He also went out each morning and whacked them with a rolled up newspaper to get their attention. It was a funny and memorable story, but so was the wisdom that Pastor Philip gleaned from the story later in his life. He applied it to parenting. He shared that far too often he had desired and prayed that his children be spared the trials and hardships that life would throw at them. But upon further reflection he recognized that what his children needed was not an often elusive life of ease, but more importantly, deep roots of faith to sustain them during the inevitable hardships and difficult circumstances that life would throw at them. Life is hard, and untested faith can often be like puny trees weak, inadequate and unable to sustain us through the trials we all will face in life. I was reminded this past month as I read through Matthew in our chapter-a-day readings of Peters momentary faltering as he walked in faith upon the surface of the water toward the Lord Jesus Christ. He had faith and walked on water, then he feared and doubted and began to sink, but most importantly he reached out in faith toward the Lord Jesus Christ to deliver him from peril. He had a faith that was rooted in the person of Jesus. We often think that when we have Jesus in our lives we can be isolated from lifes storms and walk on water that is not how life works, that is why we build boats. The lesson we dont want to miss is the deep faith and trust that Peter had in the Lord Jesus Christ. Most of us will never walk on water in this life, but if we have faith rooted in Jesus Christ, lifes storms and trials will not destroy us in the end Jesus will protect and sustain us through the storms of life. Maybe James is not so crazy after all, Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. (James 1:2-4 NIV) Strong, mature Christian trees with deeplyrooted faith is what we should each aspire to become - that wont happen without facing hardship. Blessings, Pastor Bill

Gems of Wisdom from Our Seniors

If we fill our hours with regrets over the failures of yesterday, and with worries over the problems of tomorrow, we have no time for today in which to be thankful. ~~Darlene Brown~~

Thank You . . .
Women of the Highland Park Church, Thank you so much for the highchair. We really needed one. We also wanted to thank you for all you love, support, and prayers. It really means a lot to us and we hope to see you all soon. God bless, Grant, Rachel and Jonah

Daughter Banquet Come Join in Sweet Fellowship May 12, 2012 @ 6:00 p.m.
For the second year in a row, we will be having a catered event at the Gloucester Heights Fire Hall on Nicholson Road. Share an evening of fellowship with our mothers, our daughters, our sisters and our friends. The cost is as follows: $13 for Adults $8 children (ages 6-10) Children under 5 are free

Thursday, May 3rd, will be our annual National Day of Prayer. We are, once again, planning to have a service of prayer in our Sanctuary at 7:00 PM. This year's theme is "One Nation Under God," based on Psalm 33:12, which reads, "Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord." Many years ago when our founding fathers were constructing our first Continental Congress, they called for prayer. It was their belief that this new nation and the freedoms it had were a direct gift from God. They also believed that the best way to protect this new nation was through prayer. They were very wise indeed. Many are praying today for that same protection upon our country. Last year's National Day of Prayer saw 35,000 prayer gatherings taking place with several million participating. Let's not grow weary in taking time to pray for our nation. Please mark your calendar to join us on May 3rd, as many lay persons from our church family will be setting aside time to lead, serve, and encourage in this special time of prayer and worship. May God bless.

Graduation Sunday June 3

If you are a graduate or know of a graduate, please let Sandy know no later than May 6.

Please have all forms and money to the office by Sunday, May 6th.

Our New "Kudos" Section

We are adding a "Kudos" section to our monthly newsletter so that other parishioners may recognize extraordinary acts of service to the congregation and to the community. The letter to the Hebrews reminds us to spur one another on to good works, so in keeping with Scripture, we want to recognize persons who go the extra mile in service to Christ and others. As a side note, it is not our intention to promote pridefulness or salvation by works but to give recognition to those who, in your estimation, have gone above and beyond. Please submit your suggestions either via e-mail or note to the church office. Kudos to Vicki Kumpel for her work in our front flowerbeds. Kudos to all those who had a part in selecting the new blinds for the sanctuary.

Donations for the yard sale can be placed on the porch of 107 Baynes.

*Needed*
Our young adults will be collecting clothing and other household items to help those less fortunate than us. A & E Clothing Corp. will sort and ship these items to the immediate needs of the Marian Center Charity Organization with shelters throughout New Jersey and will then send items over seas. They will also donate .13 cents a pound to our organization just for collecting the items! This is a win/win situation, so please donate! Items should be placed in bags and taken to the youth house by May 28. Donations Include: Wearable clothing, shoes, handbags, belts scarves, ties, hats, bedding curtains, tablecloths, towels and stuffed animals. If you have any questions, please contact Cindy Kumpel or the church office at 456-3364.

Since we will be collecting items on the porch of 107 Baynes at the same time for both the yard sale and the clothing drive, please be sure to put your items on the correct side. Signs will be hung designating where to place items for the clothing drive and where to place items for the yard sale. As always, thank you for your support of the youth and young adult ministries!

Highland Park Church of God

Page 1

Aloha!

Church Picnic

Luau
Saturday, June 9, 201112:00 AM-5:00 PM
We hope to see you at Washington Lake Park, 626 Hurfville-Crosskeys Rd., Sewell, NJ 08080. Look for food sign-up sheet in the Narthex!
.. .

Cost: $1.00 per person, age 5 and up Name___________________________________________________________________ #Adults__________ # Children 5 to 11__________ #Children Under 5__________

(Please be sure to drop this in the offering plate or hand to Lynette by June 3.)

GEOF KIMBER
May 6, 2012
Sunday May 6, 7:00 pm Highland Park Church Of God 111 Baynes Avenue Gloucester City, NJ 08030, (856) 456-3364 ADMISSION: freely youve received, freely give LISTEN: geofkimber.com

FREE DOWNLOAD

OFFICE OF THE PRINCIPAL 23Match20l2 Greetingsin the Name of our Lord and Savior, Thank you for your support to Kima International School of Theology (KIST). Your donationsare making a significant impact to the church in Africa. As partnersin this ministry, we are raising biblically trained and theologically sound Christian servant-leaders Christ. needof Jesus who oftr what is needid most ... hopeto a world in desperate This past term, through our Christian Ministries in Action program, our studentsvisited and p.uy"d for the sick in their homes and at their hospital beds,provided comfort at funeral iervices, led worship services,assistedpastorsin conducting weekly servicesat over 25 area churches,preachedthe Good News at schools,provided cotmselto the needy, and continued to to preparethemselves answerGod's calling. page"Hi KIST recentlypostedon the KIST Facebook Nelly Mulama, a2006 KIST graduate, famity. I need lots and lots of prayer. I am currently working under Nairobi chapelto do church planting in the largest slum in Africa and probably secondin the whole world. My vision is to ministerto all, especiallychildren,by ensuringtheir spiritualneedsare met. Most churchesin the slum do not give them (children) much attention due to limited spaceand facilities." This is just one exampleof a KIST servantproviding hopeto the hopeless. Through difficult economic conditions, your continued faithfulnesstowards ICST is bearing fruit that will impact future generationsto come. I feel truly blessedto have you as coworkers as togetherwe serveGod through this ministry. Blessinss

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Principal Kima International School of Theology oPreyar{ng senants for *or5, ln Qof,'sKln6dom"

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page"Kima IntemationalSchoolof Theology" Follow us through our web site and Facebook
of School Theolory KimaInternational Box P,O. 75 KE Maseno,

Highland Park Church of God

VBS 2012June 25-29!

Page 1

Bug Zone!
We will be having a Vacation Bible School trip to the Bug Zone from June 25-29 for all those bug enthusiasts aged 3 years thru those leaving 6th grade. The time will be from 6:00 PM until 8:15 PM with games, snacks, singing, crafts and much, much more. Please plan to bring your children and any other children that you feel might enjoy this experience. Rewards will be given to those who bring friends! Completed registrations can be given to Vicki Kumpel or left in Sandy's office door. Come join us as we learn of Jesus during this summer adventure.

NAME__________________________________DATE OF BIRTH___________________ ADDRESS________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________ PHONE NUMBER (____)____________ M F GRADE COMPLETED___________ CELL NUMBER (____)____________ IN CASE OF AN EMERGENCY, PLEASE CALL _______________________________, AT (____)_____________________________. PLEASE LIST ANY SPECIAL INSTRUCTIONS TO CARE FOR YOUR CHILD, HEALTH ISSUES OR ANY ALLERGIES: _____________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________ You may send registrations to: Highland Park Church of God Market Street and Baynes Avenue Gloucester City, NJ 08030

Come learn about Jesus!