Pastoral Charge: 

Catch the VIBE (Venturing In Biblical Experiences) – A half-day, one week program for ages

4 – 12 Monday, July 8 – Friday, July 13 – 9 am until 12 noon at Haliburton UC.  Cost is $5.00 per child for the week; limited registration.  Registration forms can be downloaded from the website or picked up at the church.  Please return signed completed forms to the church. Info at 705-457-1891 hpcharge.wordpress.com or hucvibe@gmail.com

At a Pastoral Charge Board Meeting a motion was passed to make the first Sunday in May “MANSE SUNDAY” (or any Sunday in May if you forget!).  Those wishing to contribute please put your donation in a white envelope marked “Manse Capital Fund” and place it on your offering plate. Please include your church envelope number. The Manse is Rev. Morgan’s family home but it is the financial responsibility of each one of us in all three churches in the Pastoral Charge! This year we are considering a deck at the front of the house. The family room rug is being replaced. Please give this prayerful consideration!   Lois Rigney

Community:

SIRCH Launches “Need a Hand” Program

Need Help? If you want something done and aren’t sure who to ask – give us a call.  A request can be made by calling or emailing SIRCH and we’ll do our best to find you a match. (A portion of the fee that you pay will go directly to subsidize people who can’t afford any or all of the cost – it’s like paying it forward!).

Can You Lend a Hand?  By lending us just 2 hours of your time, you will make a difference in someone else’s life!  You can choose what you want to do – do you sew, can you cook, can you dig, can you fix a step, walk a dog, sit with someone and talk or read to them, look after children?

Someone out there NEEDS YOU! Let us match you.

For more information call 705-457-1742 or email info@sirch.on.ca

The Highlands Community Pregnancy Care Centre’s next coffee order is due May 30th. Please see Nancy Cornish to place your order.

Highlands Biblical Storytelling Guild:  Information meeting at Haliburton United Church Monday, May 27 7:00 – 8:30 pm.  For more information call Ruth Carter: 705-455-9459 or email lorucar@gmail.com

Ingoldsby:

Ladies Afternoon Bible Study & Fellowship – Monday’s at 1:30 p.m. Call Wanda at 286-4333 for more information.

If you know of anyone in need of a card or visit please call the church office 457-1891

Lochlin:

Bible Study on Wednesday’s will meet at Janice Carr’s at 1:00.  Call Shirley for more information 286-1733. 

If you know of anyone in need of a card or visit please call the church office at 457-1891.

Haliburton:

Bible studies:

For a time of study, prayer and fellowship, please join any one of the groups listed below:

• Ø Wednesday Morning Bible Study in the Library 10 – 11:30

( Call the office 457-1891 when someone needs a card, a visit, or prayers.

Library: The library is open during office hours except when being used for meetings. The librarian is available Tuesdays from 10 a.m. to noon to help in choosing a book, DVD or teaching material (holidays excluded).

Stewardship and Mission Offering:  The extra monthly Mission for May is Y.W.C.A.  We thank you for your support and ask that you mark your envelope when giving to this extra mission.  Take note of the Stewardship and Mission bulletin board in the foyer.  Information will be posted as it becomes available.

Coffee is available every Sunday before church in the foyer outside of the Fellowship Room.  All are welcome to partake and enjoy!

Pot Luck Lunch:  Our next pot luck lunch will be held on Sunday, May 26^th.  Help is needed with clean up.  Thank you

Pastoral Charge: 

Pie sale at Ingoldsby United Church on Saturday, May 18th, beginning at 9:00 am.  Proceeds to the Maintenance Fund re “Raise The Roof”.

Creation Ministries:  Men’s Night Thursday, May 16^th 6:30 p.m. at Village Baptist Church, 25 King St. W., Bobcaygeon – Roast Beef Dinner followed by speaker Dr. Jim Mason “Origins By The Book”.  The cost is $8.00 dinner included.

Kawartha Highlands Presbytery will meet at Haliburton UC on Wednesday, May 22^nd meeting starts at 5:00 pm; dinner at 6:00 at a cost of $10.00.  John Miller is the new chair of our presbytery.  Anyone may attend this meeting.  Please RSVP for dinner 705-457-1891

Catch the VIBE (Venturing In Biblical Experiences) – A half-day, one week program for ages

4 – 12 Monday, July 8 – Friday, July 13 – 9 am until 12 noon at Haliburton UC.  Cost is $5.00 per child for the week; limited registration.  Registration forms can be downloaded from the website or picked up at the church.  Please return signed completed forms to the church. Info at 705-457-1891 hpcharge.wordpress.com or hucvibe@gmail.com 

At a Pastoral Charge Board Meeting a motion was passed to make the first Sunday in May “MANSE SUNDAY” (or any Sunday in May if you forget!).  Those wishing to contribute please put your donation in a white envelope marked “Manse Capital Fund” and place it on your offering plate. Please include your church envelope number. The Manse is Rev. Morgan’s family home but it is the financial responsibility of each one of us in all three churches in the Pastoral Charge! This year we are considering a deck at the front of the house. The family room rug is being replaced. Please give this prayerful consideration!   Lois Rigney

Ingoldsby:

Ladies Afternoon Bible Study & Fellowship – Monday’s at 1:30 p.m. Call Wanda at 286-4333 for more information.

If you know of anyone in need of a card or visit please call the church office 457-1891

Lochlin:

Bible Study on Wednesday’s will meet at Janice Carr’s at 1:00.  Call Shirley for more information 286-1733. 

If you know of anyone in need of a card or visit please call the church office at 457-1891.

Haliburton:

Bible studies:

For a time of study, prayer and fellowship, please join any one of the groups listed below:

• Ø Wednesday Morning Bible Study in the Library 10 – 11:30

( Call the office 457-1891 when someone needs a card, a visit, or prayers.

Library: The library is open during office hours except when being used for meetings. The librarian is available Tuesdays from 10 a.m. to noon to help in choosing a book, DVD or teaching material (holidays excluded).

Stewardship and Mission Offering:  The extra monthly Mission for May is Y.W.C.A.  We thank you for your support and ask that you mark your envelope when giving to this extra mission.  Take note of the Stewardship and Mission bulletin board in the foyer.  Information will be posted as it becomes available.

Coffee is available every Sunday before church in the foyer outside of the Fellowship Room.  All are welcome to partake and enjoy!

Pot Luck Lunch:  Our next pot luck lunch will be held on Sunday, May 26^th.  Help is needed with clean up.  Thank you

Haliburton UCW meeting  Monday, May 13 at 7:00 p.m.  Guest speaker:  Barbara Allman.  Barb will talk about Mary Kay Cosmetics – how the company started and what products are available today.   Profit from any sales will go to the Haliburton UCW.  All ladies welcome.  For more information please call Sue Nicholson, 705-457-5302.

Board of Stewards will meet on Tuesday, May 14 at 6:00 pm in the Library.

Session will meet on Tuesday, May 14 at 7:00 pm in the Fellowship Room.

A BIG THANK YOU for your support of the Roast Beef Dinner.  Firstly, to Melissa and her Team at HHSS for the food prep that was done on our behalf.  Secondly, to all those who donated pies, helped serve and clean up on Saturday and on Monday.  Catering was done for the Highlands Pregnancy Care Centre who honoured their volunteers.   Our fundraising efforts for this event have reached $1,275.00 to date and there will be a meat pie sale !   The congregation’s support was greatly appreciated.   Watch for an announcement when the meat pies are ready !

Dear Friends,

For several decades now various experts have been predicting the disappearance of the Christian church in western nations.  To be sure, (excuse my lingering Irish accent – St. Patrick’s Day and all), we are faced with the immense challenge of a world that is too busy, too smart, too skeptical and too materialistic to bother with so-called “institutionalized religion”. Added to that, the church has been notoriously slow to adapt and respond to this change in the surrounding culture.  How to explain then, that though numbers are down, we continue to thrive and abound with joy, hope, faith and a passion to serve the needs of others (aka ‘love’) !!?  In a word – Resurrection!

The thing is that though our world offers shiny cars, fancy bars and dancing with the stars, it can’t defeat death. Though they might have better medication, exotic vegetation and terabytes of information they still can’t beat death – but Jesus did!  This truth is the thing that infuses Jesus’ followers with otherwise inexplicable grace and strength.  In actuality it’s the risen Lord himself dwelling in his people that we are experiencing. This is why, in spite of our failings and shortcomings, the church will not disappear. It’s not essentially something of human making, but rather one of God’s undertaking.

We are a resurrection people. Jesus says, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever trusts in me, though they die, yet shall they live.”Jn. 11:25  Nowhere else can be found such a hope.  So it is that the good news of Jesus remains powerful, relevant and compelling. Easter is the celebration of the resurrection. As it follows on the heels of Christ’s death we will remember this too as we share in the Lord’s Supper.  I hope you will join with us on Easter Sunday, March 31^st, as we meet at his table and rejoice in his victory.

In Christ’s love, Harry

“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” Romans 3:23

Dear Friends,

It’s at this time of year that we specifically consider the cross and its meaning.  In truth it pertains to God’s plan to provide us with forgiveness for our sins. This is a sticky subject since many of us are highly resistant to the concept of sin. In today’s world everything is explained away. Also we think we’re pretty good people anyway and besides, it’s not very comfortable to think about wrongs we’ve done, let alone rights that we haven’t. So how do we put a positive spin on sin?

First off, I contend that honesty is a healthy pastime. ‘Coming clean’, ‘’fessing up’, ‘owning up’ are all cleansing for the soul. Second, since in Christ everything is forgivable, why not? Why hold onto debt when it can be paid in full? Granted, the price is high, Jesus’ death, but as Paul writes, “I do not set aside the grace of God” Galatians 2:21. Besides, there is no other way.

Third, understanding that “all have sinned”, ourselves included, is very helpful for living in community – social interaction.  On the one hand, when we look around us and see those who seem better, or more successful, or more together than ourselves, we know they really are no better and no more highly valued. We all fall short but God loves and values us equally. On the other hand, we know those around us need the same patience, forgiveness, kindness and graciousness that we require.

When we come to the table of the Lord, we’re acknowledging this. Few of us hold back at the words, “My body broken for you” and “My blood shed for you”. They have deep meaning for us. Come and share Christ’s supper with us on February 17^th as we give thanks for such amazing grace.

In Jesus’ love,  Harry

Dear Friends,

People are getting ‘stressed out’ a lot these days. One of the reasons is the necessity to constantly adapt to change. If you’re not on Facebook or Twitter you’re apparently out of the loop. Why do I have to get my communion letter by ‘email’? Good luck getting a real person if you’re calling a government office, the bank or Bell. Why do gasoline prices jump up and down about 5 cents per litre every week? Enough ranting. In the midst of all this need for adaptation it’s good to know that the core things remain constant.  The Advent season reminds us of this as it rolls around each year.

God, the eternal and unchanging, changed the course of our world when He took on human form and Jesus was born. He did this to demonstrate his ongoing, never-ending love and solidarity with us. Jesus, of whom it is said that he is “the same yesterday, today and forever” Heb. 13:8 revealed the consistent compassion, meekness, wisdom, joy and justice of His Father throughout His life.  His obedience in suffering crucifixion and His subsequent resurrection have released for us forgiveness, grace, healing, power to serve and everlasting life. The secret to dealing with the stresses of life, in my experience, is to look to and trust in this One, who never fails us or forsakes us. Heb. 13:5 You can count on that not changing.

We may have switched to LED lights, ‘texted’ our kids about holiday plans and read the Christmas story on our iBibles (?), but let’s guard some established habits as necessary. We need to get together in embodied (not virtual) form to worship, to learn and to respond to God’s love in Christ. We need to share in the bread and wine which remind us of Jesus and why he came. This we will do on the first Sunday in Advent, December 2^nd, at Lochlin United Church. All 3 of our churches will meet there at 10. I hope and pray that you will join us.

Love in Christ, Harry

Dear Friends,

When God was putting things together and creating creatures from scratch he ‘saw that it was good’ five times. After he’d made our kind and given us some instructions about multiplying, being in charge and what to eat he ‘saw all that he had made, and it was very good’ (Genesis 1:31). Christian faith, based in large part on the Hebrew scriptures, is very creation oriented. The whole thing is ‘very good’ and God delights in it. Thanksgiving is rooted in this understanding as we are in essence echoing God’s own self-congratulations and saying, “You’re right God. You really do an amazing job. Thank-you.”

For many of us, feelings of gratitude arise as we realize that we are blessed, that we are fed by God’s hand and that we live in a world of beauty. Such sentiments are themselves a gift, but not necessarily one that all enjoy. Because of grief or mood disorders or just ‘having a bad day’ we may not be feeling it. Giving of thanks, of course, is not about feeling but using the will – choosing to express thanks to the One we believe to be the source of provision.  The Anglican prayer book teaches:

It is very meet, right, and our bounden duty, that we should at all times and in all places give thanks unto thee, O Lord….

The phrase ‘bounden duty’ is not meant to convey some action we must do to placate or appease God.  It speaks of being conscience bound to render thanks in view of mercies received.

Speaking of mercies, the greatest of these is that which we receive through the sacrifice of Jesus. We are not only forgiven, we become the beginning of God’s restored and redeemed creation. Symbols of this are the bread and wine we share in communion. Please come to give thanks and join in the Lord’s Supper on Sunday, October 7^th.

In Christ’s love,  Harry      

Ingoldsby 8:45 am

Lochlin 10:00 am

Haliburton 11:15 am

Please check below for up-coming events!

Easter, 2012

Dear Friends,

         You may not have known that Easter has huge legal implications, but it does.  Some of us remember 1970 and the time Trudeau (& co.) enacted the War Measures Act. This law effectively superseded the usual laws of freedom, allowing officials to arrest 465 people without charging them. In a similar way, Easter, the resurrection of Jesus, enacted a cosmic law which supersedes the old cosmic law, known as the “law of sin and death”. The new law is called, “the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus”.

         For us this is remarkably good news. It means that although sin and death, (along with their consorts evil, fear, sickness, sorrow, etc.) are still clearly a part of our lives, they are inexorably being conquered by life. This is especially true for us in whom the risen Christ dwells, but it is ultimately true for all creation. It means that although we falter and fail, God will unerringly supply us with grace, mercy and growth (check out Jude 24, 25). It also means that though we die, we will be raised for eternal life.

         This may seem like heavy stuff and it is. Easter is not really about candies, bunnies and eggs. It’s about a weekend circa 30 A.D. when God changed the direction of human history through the obedience of his Son who died and was raised for us. Come out to celebrate and remember these events through worship and the Lord’s Supper on Easter Sunday!

                                                   In Christ’s love,   Harry

See our Video Podcasts. Don’t miss a Sunday.

Dear Friends,

         Jesus once told a remarkably simple story to his dinner host, Simon, which I paraphrase: “A loan shark once lent one man 60 grand and another 6 grand. When neither could pay he forgave them both.” Then he asked Simon, “Which one will love him more?” Simon answers correctly and Jesus points out that whoever is forgiven much loves much and whoever is forgiven little loves little.

         Lent is a season of preparation for Easter. It is traditionally thought of as a time of intentional soul searching and ‘repentance’. Repentance, a generally misunderstood concept, is given a fresh understanding by Jesus’ story. If we can understand how much we are forgiven, we will love much more – both God and our neighbour – and find ourselves loved, liberated and joyful. When we get a glimpse of the degree of our forgiveness in Christ, that’s repentance. It’s not something we can ‘work up’ then, it’s a revelation, a gift from God (check out Acts 5:31). There’s no reason we can’t ask, seek and knock on God’s door for it, though. I have a sense that it’s just the sort of request he would be eager to grant.

         The cross shines a great light on this matter. We may not think that we’re particularly ‘sinful’, at least compared to some, but that’s looking at the matter from a human perspective, which is quite the opposite of God’s. The extremity of the solution reveals the extremity of the problem. If the solution for you and me is that God himself must take our form and die then the problem must be extreme.

         Lent starts next Wednesday, and the first Sunday is February 26^th. We will be contemplating the death of Jesus and our need of forgiveness as we share in His Supper. You are invited to the Table of the Lord.

                                                               In Christ’s love,

                                                               Harry