Friend to Friend
Wednesday, August 26, 2015
Concerns, Announcements and Devotional Thought
A Weekly Ministry of Indianapolis First Friends Meeting
As Way Opens
God; MD, GP
All too often, we treat God like an Emergency Room Physician, running for help when something flares up in our lives. We have a specific complaint or a particular wound that demands attention… and we want it now. ‘Shot to the heart’... ‘Cut off at the knees’… ‘Blindsided’… you know what I’m talking about. We run to God, expecting the best of care, surrounded by friends and family – or not – hoping for the best, but prepared for the worst.
Psalm 9 and 10 are stuck together in the Jerusalem Bible, as they should be. They represent an acrostic… they literally ‘spell out’ the Hebrew alphabet verse by verse, giving the history and physical of David’s call for help to God. “Yahweh, why do you stand aside; why hide from us, now the times are hard?” David spells out all his complaints: fraud, oppression, wickedness, pride, blasphemy… he is obviously in pain.
What does he discover? David recognizes God as the Great Physician. Both before and after David enters the GP’s office, he realizes the active, mighty, healing stronghold God is… one who has judgment and compassion for all Creation. He knows he can rely on God to come to his aid. God does not punish Creation, or cause Creation to fall ill. Why would God harm God’s own? Creation harms itself – we harm each other – choosing evil over good. “The poor man is devoured by the pride of the wicked, he is caught in the wiles that the other has devised. The evil man boasts of his soul’s desires, the grasping man blasphemes, the wicked spurns Yahweh. ‘His anger is up there, he will not make me pay! There is no God!’ This is the way his mind works.” Think of how much healthier Creation would be if we chose wholeness over harm.
God is not hiding. God hung his shingle out long ago, in bright Light: #come unto me. God wants us to spend some time in the waiting room, recognizing God for all that God is… a General Practitioner, able to understand all our complaints, ready to hold and heal. The next time you have an emergency, by all means, go to God… but recognize that the Great Physician can care for you from ‘A’ to ‘Z’.
Joys & Concerns
We wish Sam Wilson safe travel as he leaves for China! Sam will be studying this semester abroad with Indiana University Bloomington in Nanjing, China. He just received an Overman Scholarship, sending this thank you note to the Committee saying, ‘this will be a great help for me in reaching my long term and short term goals. I very much appreciate the assistance.’ Bless you as you travel and study the Chinese language, Sam.
Please continue to pray for Damian Walter’s Aunt Annie and her husband Jerry. Both have had surgeries and Annie will hopefully be released from the hospital soon. She will spend six months to a year in recovery. Jerry will remain in hospital for undetermined amount of time and will likely eventually transition to nursing home for further rehab.
House Fire: On August 18th an electrical fire broke out in Jan Gildner’s granddaughter’s home in New Whiteland. Thankfully, all five family members escaped unharmed although damage to the structure and contents was extensive. Please pray for Korrie, Larry, McKinsey, Anna and Bella Trulock-Whitten. They will be living with family members for the next 3-5 months and eventually will need to refurnish their home. For now, their immediate needs are:
New or Used Clothing (Bring to the Meeting House and Jan will pick up)
Girl’s Outfits, Pajamas, Underwear and Socks
Size 8
Size 5T
Size 18-24 months
Women’s Clothing
Size L (tops) Size 10 (pants)
Men’s Clothing
Size L (tops) Size 30”x31” (pants)
School Supplies
Book bags, paper, pencils, markers, crayons
Donations can be sent to:
Korrie E Trulock Benefit Account
FORUM CREDIT UNION
11313 UFA Parkway
Fishers, IN 46037
If you need more information or would like to help in other ways, contact Jan at jgildner@sbcglobal.net or 317-328-7855. The family is deeply grateful for any help that can be given.
Mid North Food Pantry News...First Friends had 4 volunteers who helped at the Mid North Food Pantry last week...Phil Kitchel, Bill Chapman, Carol and Jim Donahue. Thanks!
Announcements, Reports, & Opportunities
Woods Work Day August 29th 9:00-12:00 We need to weed and clean up the woods before we have our final Worship in the Woods. Bring your work gloves, hand towels, clippers and anything else to help us clean up. We have a good time doing this. It is a time for fellowship with some people you might not have a chance to talk with. Several hands make the work go faster and the reward is great. Hope to see you August 29th!
Festival de Amigos This Saturday! Iglesia Amigos (Friends Meeting Hispanic Ministry) Festival on Saturday begins at 11:00 AM with food, fames and music at Irvington Friends Church - 831 N. Edmondson in Indianapolis. Everyone is welcome!
Choir Rehearsals Start this Sunday!!! Would you like to sing in Meeting for Worship? Join Shawn Porter and our terrific group of singers who not only make a joyful noise, but have a fun time doing it! Practice starts at 9:00 in the Choir Room, just behind the Loft. For information, contact Mindy Sommer at mcs16zoom@gmail.com
Join us at the Festival of Faiths on Sunday, August 30, 1-5pm; Veterans Memorial Plaza: First Friends is proud to again be a part of this year’s event. We hope to celebrate and share our Quaker faith on this special day. Festival of Faiths brings together Central Indiana’s diverse faith groups in a one day event to learn and share with others in our faith community. Festival of Faiths also offers us a great opportunity to spend time with Friends from other Central Indiana Quaker Meetings. Please consider spending a fun and spiritually meaningful day together with our diverse and loving faith community. This event is truly a gift to our city. Please join us!
First Friends is looking for assistance in set up at noon and Friends to spend time greeting visitors in our tent. To volunteer or for further information please contact Bill Chapman at 255-4739 or drchapman@earthlink.net. To learn more about Indy Festival of Faiths visit www.festivaloffaiths.com.
WOMEN'S CLOTHING SWAP, AUGUST 30, 4:30 TO 6:30 PM, FELLOWSHIP HALL
"Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free..." You know you have them: shoes that are "too good" to get rid of but pinch your toes...that gorgeous dress that itches your armpit...those awesome jeans that fit you perfectly--10 pounds ago. These items are taking up space in your closet and weighing down your spirit! Open up your closet space from items you no longer love with items that you will actually use. The best part: it's all free! Here is how it works:
Give 1 nonperishable food item for the pantry and your lightly loved (and laundered) clothing, shoes, accessories, and costume jewelry for our WOMEN'S CLOTHING SWAP on August 30 from 4:30 to 6:30 pm in Fellowship Hall, and you will get unlimited access to other clothing, shoes, accessories, and costume jewelry as well as enjoy light refreshments. What's not to love? Even if you don't have anything to swap, come anyway--there is always plenty of clothing for anyone who might need something. Clothing will be organized by size (the more participants we have, the wider the range of sizes), and there will be plenty of space to try things on. Any leftovers will be donated to Thrifty Threads, a thrift shop which benefits the Julian Center Shelter for Women.
Contact Carrie Sample (317-697-9706 or carriesample@sbcglobal.net) with questions or if you wish to help with set up or tear down.
‘Quakers and Peace: Past and Present’; Diana Hadley has worked at Franklin College since 2004 where she is executive director of the Indiana High School Press and has taught journalism classes and a liberal arts course in nonviolence. She will be leading this course from her new book, “The Peace Class”.
Time : Monday evenings 6:30 pm August 31-October 5th.
Where: Fairfield Friends Meeting 10441 E. County Rd 700 S. Camby, IN, 46113
The cost of the course is $30, with a book included. Please RSVP atllinzev@yahoo.com
Underneath it All: First Friends Eighth Annual Underwear Drive
August 26th through September 27th Toddler to Adult Sizes!
Socks, T Shirts, Bras, too! Babies, Children, Preteens, High School Students— all need underwear and socks. Please Donate New Underwear
Cash or checks to First Friends - designate for ‘Underneath it All’
Contact Linda Lee with questions. parapluie@ameritech.net
Please place underwear donations in the labeled box in Fellowship Hall.
The John H. Boner Community Center serves some of the poorest neighborhoods in Indianapolis. Partnerships with IPS offer a wide range of services and opportunities which strengthen students and families before, during and after school. Boner Center staff and volunteers work with five elementary schools every day during the school year and for six weeks in the summer. The Boner Center program, ‘Parents as Teachers’, is a kindergarten readiness program which offers home-based early childhood development education for parents of newborns and children through five years of age.
Social Workers from the Center will distribute the underwear to families as needed. If you would like to tour the Center, Linda has arranged a tour of the Boner Center on September 8. 11:30 to 12:30. The facility is large, so we will be touring the parts where our donations are used. Mark your calendar. If you can’t make it in September, there are monthly tours available year round. Please contact Linda.
Sunday September 13th is our kick off to Fall and the return of our Children and Youth Sunday School classes. Breakfast will be provided at 8:30 in Fellowship Hall and Sunday School will start at 9:00. We encourage everyone to wear their pajamas that day. Kathy Rhyne and Kathy Farris will co-lead the PreK - 2nd grade class, Carrie Sample and Ann Rodino will co-lead the 3rd - 5th grade class and Jed Kay and Dan Lee will co-lead the 6th - 12th grade class. Please mark your calendars and plan to join us that day.
September 13, 21, and 27: All regular adult Sunday School classes will be brought together for three weeks in September, as we open discussion around Quaker decision making, discernment and process. We invite everyone to join, whether you’ve been a part of Sunday School in the past, or not. What process do Quakers use that stands out from other faith communities? Why do we do things the way we do? What is our individual responsibility toward the process? How is that different from our responsibility as a group?
Join Eric Tinsley and members of Ministry and Counsel this September for three sessions, learning about Quaker process in decision-making. This is especially important to our Meeting, as we consider decisions regarding marriage equality.
Session One: Thursday, September 10 at 7:00; repeated Sunday, September 13 at 9:00
Session Two: Thursday, September 17 at 7:00; repeated Sunday, September 20 at 9:00
Session Three: Thursday, September 24 at 7:00; repeated Sunday, September 27 at 9:00
Kitchen Angel Needed! Do you like to organize things? Do you have a bit of extra time when you’re at the Meetinghouse already? Would you be willing to help make certain that things are in good order for our Meeting kitchens? It would be a great help to have a Kitchen Coordinator, as many different people/groups use our Parlor and Fellowship Hall kitchens Contact Ruthie, Beth or the Office if you can serve!
USFW 44th Annual Women's Fall Retreat: "Choose Gratitude" September 14 and 15
This year our retreat leader is Katherine Murray, a hospice chaplain, spiritual director, the publications coordinator for Quaker Earthcare Witness, and adjunct faculty at Earlham School of Religion. Gratitude is one of her favorite things—it is a mode of worship, a means of relationship, a change agent, an antidote to despair, the seedbed of us-and in our views of each other-as a true hope for peace and plenty in the world. Come join us as we explore practical, worshipful and creative ways to fill our lives and spiritual practice with gratitude.
Retreat begins at 1:00 Monday (14th), and ends after lunch Tuesday (15th). Talent Time will be Tuesday morning, right before lunch. Do you play a musical instrument? Enjoy a certain poem or story you would like to share? Like to sing? Come share your talent with the group.
Cost will be: $65.00 (includes 3 meals and a night’s lodging).
There will be prayer walks early Tuesday morning.
Items to bring: Bedding & Towels, Bible, Notebook & a Flashlight.
Our fun ends after Lunch on Tuesday. Make checks Payable to ‘WYM USFW’
Mail to: Liz Nielander 1503 S. Union, Kokomo, IN 46902 Registration is due by SEPTEMBER 5th.
Save the Date: Say "Cheese!"
Did you know that First Friends publishes a directory every 4 years that includes pictures to make it easier to get to know the names and faces of the members and attendees of our Meeting? It's also a great opportunity on a deal for a family portrait. We will have sign up, registration information and all the details for our picture days by early September, but put the dates of November 4th-7th, 2015 at First Friends on your calendar! Expect the new directory to be available in early 2016. More detailed information coming soon.
Time To Recycle
On behalf of the Shalom Zone, First Friends is to host a recycling event on Saturday, Oct-10, at First Friends from 10 am – 2 pm. Electronic items of all types are welcome. Simply stop by on Oct-10 and drop off the items you would like to recycle. If you are not able to make it on Oct-10, you can arrange to drop off your items ahead of time. Please call Bill Chapman (317 255-4739) or the office to arrange the drop off. See the attached flyer for suggested items and more info.
Indianapolis First Friends Meeting
Compassionate v Christian v Quaker
030 Kessler Blvd. E. Dr.
Indianapolis, IN 46220
317-255-2485office@indyfriends.org