March 6, 2024

Isaac's Insights

Friends,

We are quickly approaching Holy Week. I pray that your journey in Lent has been fruitful so far and we still have far to go.

In 2024, Holy Week falls completely inside of March, making it coincide with the end of Women's History Month. It's caused me to reflect on some of the earliest writings we have about Christians celebrating Holy Week from a pilgrim named Egeria.

I'd love to nerd out about Egeria, but I know it's not everyone's cup of tea so I'll hit you with the highlights. Egeria's pilgrimage took her thousands of miles across Europe to Jerusalem where she wrote back to a group of Christian women to tell them about her encounters in Jerusalem. Her letters are some of the best kept records of how early Christians observed Holy Week.

Thousands of years later, we are still following in the steps of Christ largely because of faithful women teaching us the meaning of Jesus' life. This Lent, I hope you can reflect on the women in your life that have led the way in creating communities of love and hope. Here's a list of women in our denomination to get you started.

If you wish to join ACC in continuing the traditions that have been passed down to us, please find the details below.

• Maundy Thursday at 7:00 pm on March 28.
• Good Friday at 7:00 pm on March 29
• Our Sunday services will remain at the same times of 9:30 am & 11:00 am.

We would love to have you join us in-person or online for any or all of these services.

Peace,

Isaac

Joys and Concerns

What's New?

March Forum

This month's Allisonville Forum is on March 20 at 7:00 pm. We are one week early because of Holy Week.

Our speaker this month is James McGrath, who is the Clarence L. Goodwin Chair in New Testament Language and Literature at Butler University (Go Dawgs!). Dr. McGrath is a highly regarded biblical scholar who is dedicated to making the meanings and methods of understanding scripture accessible to general audiences. He is the author of What Jesus Learned from Women and The A to Z of the New Testament.

Mission Building

The Kitchen planning group met with the architect, Michael Halstead this week to choose the kitchen appliances and furnishings. The floor plan is complete and it is posted in the coatrack hallway between the Narthex and fellowship hall. The floorplan and information are now being forwarded to the builder, who will be putting the information out to contractors and sub-contractors for bidding. The civil engineer and architect will be forwarding the plan to the city for building permits. A very specific piece of information will be regarding the new ground mounted transformers that will replace the pole mounted transformers immediately east of the Family room.

Thank you from John Quick

Thanks to all for your prayers, cards, phone calls, and messages as I continue recovery and rehabilitation following my recent heart surgery. I look forward to being back to ACC as soon as possible. Kim and I are blessed to be part of this wonderful ACC community. 

Blessings - John Quick

Scripture Readers

We are in need of scripture readers. This is a meaningful way to contribute to our worship experience, and we invite more members to consider participating. We are now scheduling for April, May and June. Please contact John Quick (317-294-2709, [email protected]) to sign up.

Children's Bells

Rehearsals for children’s bell choir are Sundays at 10:40 and will continue until Easter Sunday when the children will perform toward the beginning of both services. Children should meet outside the Worship and Wonder room and wait for Miss Tracy or Miss Carolyn to take them to the rehearsal space. The children will be escorted back to the Family Room by a leader in time to meet their parents before the beginning of the second service. In order to insure that we will have enough children to cover all parts, we are asking that each participating child please register their name and parent contact information. Pastor Josh has a sign up sheet by his office, or you can also contact Tracy Noens or Carolyn Burkholder. The bell choir is opened to all children in grades preschool-5th grade, and to two year olds with an adult helper. Please don’t hesitate to ask if you have any questions. 

Baptism Class

This Lent, we will once again be offering a class on baptism. Typically, this is geared toward kids in 3rd-5th grade, but it is open to anyone who is curious about baptism and would like to know more about it in preparation for being baptized. The class will take place each Sunday in Lent at 11:00 in the Little Rainbows room in the preschool. If you have any questions, reach out to Josh! 

Church Camp Registration

Church Camp registration has officially opened for the summer! Josh sent out an email with all of the details about each camp and how to register. ACC will cover half the cost of camp for each camper, additional support is also available if needed. Click the button below to access all the different camp registrations! If you are interested in counseling any camp, please reach out to Josh and he will talk with you about making that happen.

Science with Larry

Not every church has a Larry. It's hard to find someone with a PhD in physics who can relate well to kids and is passionate about their faith. But, Larry is that guy! So, I realized we needed to make sure these science lessons were offered to other kids who might enjoy learning from Larry as well.

Thus, we're going to try out a monthly "Science Lessons with Larry" that's aimed at kids ages 4-8 (or so). The plan will be to eat lunch with our youth group at noon on a Sunday and then begin the lesson about 12:30 with the intention of wrapping up at 1 pm. Parents are welcome to join in both the eating and the learning.

Our first lesson focused on gravity will be NEXT Sunday, March 10th. Then, our second lesson will be on April 7th to talk about the eclipse happening the next day. Send Beau ([email protected]) a message to RSVP.

Easter Egg Hunt

Join us on Saturday, March 23 at 10:00am for our Easter Egg Hunt! Bring your family and friends for pictures with the Easter Bunny, snacks, and hunt for lots and lots of eggs! The Egg Hunt itself begins at 10:30am and has separate sections for different age groups and is open to kids in 5th grade and below. Our Egg Hunt is FREE and the fun is open to everyone, all are welcome at Allisonville!

If you would like to help stuff eggs, please grab a bag while at church and bring them back by Sunday the 17th!

Outreach

LENTEN REFLECTIONS ON CREATION CARE

As we continue our Lenten reflections on creation care, consider the wonders of creation. What do you most want to preserve for the future generations?

• List your favorite outdoor places, both near and far. Visit one or two this week. Share these places with family and friends.

• Find your best contribution to climate solutions and preservation for future generations. Draw your own Climate Action Venn Diagram using the guide below:

Spring Buddy Bags

Spring is right around the corner and Spring break will be here before we know it. We will be providing Clearwater Elementary, Eastwood, and Northview Middle Schools with 90 bags for this break. Please consider a food or monetary donation to help make one of these bag recipients’ vacation a little more enjoyable.

Sign-ups for food donations and shopping volunteers begin this Sunday, March 10. Monetary contributions may be given at the sign-up table, placed in the offering plate, mailed to the church with a designation of “Buddy Bags,” or made by choosing Buddy Bags from the pull-down designation menu when giving online.

Please have food donations to the church Narthex by Sunday, March 24. We will be packing and delivering the bags on Tuesday, March 26 at 9:30 am. Come and join us!

Contact Loveta Cain ([email protected]), Sandy Nagy ([email protected]), or Janet

Spaulding ([email protected]) with questions. Thank you for showing your

generosity through this ministry!

National Faith & Climate Summit at ACC

If you believe in the moral responsibility to care for creation for the sake of our faith, our congregations, our families, communities, and future generations, join the National Faith + Climate Forum on April 16, 2024 from 12pm noon to 5:15pm Eastern! 

Changes in our climate are increasingly impacting congregations, and clergy and lay leaders, like you, are searching for ways to be part of the solution. Deepen your understanding on how to engage your congregation in creation care, work toward just and equitable solutions, and connect with other faith leaders locally and nationally.

ACC is one of the host locations, and we are trying to have at least 15 people registered to attend in-person at the church. Pastor Sarah will be facilitating in-between sessions, and there will be refreshments provided.

For more information, including a draft agenda, and to register for FREE, please visit https://nationalfaithandclimateforum.org/ and be sure to select that you are attending in-person at a host location (Allisonville Christian Church), or if you are unable to join in-person at the church, you can live-stream the forum.

Disciples Women's Ministries

Damaris Circle

Damaris Circle will meet on March 12. We will discuss Anne Lamont's Plan B: Further thoughts on Faith Chapter 18 "Scattering the Present" and chapter 19 "Flower Girl." We meet at 6 pm at Allisonville Christian Church inside door 1. Bring your own meal and visit until 6:30. If there isn't any DWM business, we keep on visiting. Around 7 pm we start talking about what we have read for this meeting. If you have any questions, please contact Janet Cooper.

Sarah Circle

Sarah Circle will meet via Zoom on Wednesday March 13 at 7 p.m. We will be discussing chapters from our Dessert First study book. 

Mary Martha Circle

The Mary Martha Circle will meet on Thursday, March 28th at 12:30pm in Room 15 at ACC. We will be discussing Chapter 2, Amazed by Grace. We look forward to listening to each of you on this topic. Linda Hunt will lead us. We hope you can join us! Reminder: Park on the south side of the building.

Prime Timers

Our next Prime Timers' Lunch is Wed. March 13 at 11:30 am. It will be at Ford's Garage 13193 Levinson Ln, #100, Noblesville, IN 46060. Ray Campisi is the coordinator. Please see him at church, call him at 317-513-3419 or email him at [email protected]

We will also have a sign-up sheet on the welcome center at church.

Prayer Team

ACC has a prayer team. Interested in this mission?

Reach out to Janet Cooper ([email protected])

For Your Calendar

March 15 — African American Disciples History

March 26 — ACC Book Club

April 18 — CTS Faith & Action Spring Conference

Thursday April 18 Christian Theological Seminary will hold their spring conference. This years theme is on Economic Disparities. Click the graphic below to learn more and register.

Sign Ups & Volunteering

Arts at Allisonville

CALLING ALL MUSIC AND DRAMA LOVERS! It’s time to get Arts at Allisonville rolling again. We are in the planning process for the next 12 months or so. Won’t you join us? If you love the arts, we want you. Contact Steve Caress ([email protected]), Shari Jacobs ([email protected]), or Chris Higgins ([email protected]) and let us know. We want to start meeting soon to discuss/plan some exciting events.

Faith Formation Ministry

If you are interested in any Sunday School class or other faith formation opportunity, please reach out to Josh ([email protected]) and read more at allisonville.org/sundayschool.

Here's a brief rundown of our offerings:

• Worship and Wonder (9:30 and 11:00 in Room 12): Open to kids 3 years old through 1st grade
• Children's Sunday School (11:00 in Room 1): Open to kids in 2nd through 5th grade
• Youth Sunday School (11:00 in the Retreat House): Open to youth in 6th through 12th grade
• Adult Sunday School (11:00 Faith Class in the Fireplace Room, LIFE Class in Room 15, and Pathfinders Class in the Chalice Room)
• Middle and High School youth meet in Room 14

All of March

March 7 9:00 am Beau’s Lent Study at Church

March 7 7:00 pm Beau’s Lent Study on Zoom

March 10 12:30 pm Science with Larry

March 10 2:30 pm Josh’s Lent Study on Zoom

March 11 2:00 pm Sarah’s Lent Study at Church

March 11 6:30 pm Sarah’s Lent Study on Zoom

March 12 6:00 pm Damaris Circle

March 13 11:30 am Prime Timers

March 13 7:00 pm Sarah Circle

March 14 9:00 am Beau’s Lent Study at Church

March 14 7:00 pm Beau’s Lent Study on Zoom

March 15 6:00 pm Oscar Hayes Exhibit at Light of the World Christian Church

March 17 2:00 pm Virtual Coffee Hour

March 17 2:30 pm Josh’s Lent Study on Zoom

March 18 2:00 pm Sarah’s Lent Study at Church

March 18 6:30 pm Sarah’s Lent Study on Zoom

March 19 7:00 pm Elders Meeting on Zoom

March 20 6:00 pm Allisonville Forum

March 21 9:00 am Beau’s Lent Study at Church

March 21 7:00 pm Beau’s Lent Study on Zoom

March 23 10:00 am Easter Egg Hunt

March 24 2:30 pm Josh’s Lent Study on Zoom

March 25 2:00 pm Sarah’s Lent Study at Church

March 25 6:30 pm Sarah’s Lent Study on Zoom

March 26 9:30 Buddy Bag Packing and Delivery

March 26 7:00 pm ACC Book Club

March 28 12:30 pm Mary Martha Circle

March 28 7:00 pm Maundy Thur. Service

March 29 7:00 pm Good Friday Service

March 31 Easter No more Lent Studies