Bixby Knolls Christian Church
(a Disciples of Christ Church)
(562) 426-0428
the Fellowship News
NUMBER 16
Because I spent a week counseling Chi-Rho
camp (and also returned to Loch Leven a week
later to bring Ginger home from her week of
counseling), I had the wonderful opportunity to
chat with a number of parents and grandparents
as they stood in line to check their campers in or
out of camp. In a couple of cases, the conversa-
tion continued at A&W, and I enjoyed getting to
know some folks from other churches in our region.
In one of these conversations, I had the oppor-
tunity to describe the recent history of Bixby
Knolls Christian Church, including the turmoil of a
few years back, the healing that took place, and
the hope, optimism, and signs of new growth that
are now present. The person with whom I was
conversing then asked me, “How long does it take
for a church to turn around?”
In response, I said that it’s actually an ongoing
process; I said that a congregation needs to con-
tinually reinvent itself if it wants to stay vital and
full of life. There never really is a point when one
can say, “the transformation is complete.”
The reason for this is that society never stops
changing…. Several times this summer, when Gin-
ger was out of town, people have said to me
(some with pity in their voice) that it must be hard
for me to do the cooking, laundry, and other
household chores while she was away. The impli-
cation, obviously, was that such tasks were foreign
to me. But times have changed, and I know very
few families today where household tasks are di-
vided strictly along gender lines. Many women
work outside the house. Many men share in the
tasks of laundry, cooking, etc. That’s just one of
the ways our society has changed.
I’ve heard that the church of my childhood has
recently experienced a somewhat related change.
With so many young parents working outside the
home, few people have as much time to cook as
they once did. As a result, that congregation has
started having some of its meals catered rather
AUGUST 10, 2010
than inviting people to bring a dish to share.
This is a transition that was difficult for some
of the older members to adjust to; they liked hav-
ing their traditional “potlucks.” But that commu-
nity’s changing demographics and families made
the change necessary.
Last Saturday, my family spent the day at Dis-
neyland, using the free vouchers we received for
doing a day of community service earlier in the
year. Disneyland is always changing, always re-
inventing itself. One example is the Star Tours
ride, which is currently closed as Disney “re-
imagineers” a whole new Star Tours adventure.
Sure, some folks lament some of the changes and
miss the things that are no longer there; but if Dis-
neyland stayed the same, it would become irrele-
vant, and people would stop going.
It is important to honor the past, but at the
same time, one cannot relive the past. The living
Word of God must be presented fresh to each
generation. That is the challenge of any congre-
gation, including Bixby Knolls Christian Church: to
honor the past while continually reinventing itself
in order to remain relevant to the present.
Blessings,
Pastor Danny
A prayer for
Bixby Knolls Christian Church
Use me to bring wholeness to my
neighbor.
Use my church to bring wholeness to
our community.
Show us how your kingdom of shalom
can be made real on earth through
us.
 CHURCH PICNIC
Our picnic will be after worship service on August
22nd at the Will J. Reid Park, 4747 Daisy Ave.,
Long Beach.

The Men’s Fellowship will be providing hot dogs,

rolls, condiments
and ice. You are
asked to bring a
potluck dish to
share and serving
utensil.
Provide your own beverage as well as paper goods
including cups, forks, knives and spoons. .
There are tables and benches at the park but your
own lawn chair may provide more comfort for
you.
Give Chuck a heads up if you can attend. We
don’t want a shortage of hot dogs!!

A Note
From Our Regional Pastors
on Immigration…
With the debate over Arizona's SB 1070 law heating up, it 2010 Long Beach Crop Hunger Walk
raises for us within the Christian community, questions of
our call to justice on behalf of the voiceless. The immigra- “Recruiters Rally”
tion concern is not just an issue debated in our political
Let’s get ready for the 35th Annual Crop Walk. A
arena, but one fiercely argued in the church as well. Being a
"border" state, places this issue squarely in our court as we “Recruiters Rally” is taking place on Wednesday, Sep-
seek to be faithful to God's call for justice and well being tember 1, 7:00 p.m. at the Los Altos United Methodist
for all people. Both our Region's Committee on Ministry Church, 5950 Willow St., Long Beach. This rally is for
and New Church Development Committee have had to “recruiters” who will sign up walkers and make sure
wrestle with this issue as it affects pastors and congrega- the money gets turned in.
tions within our ethnic communities seeking to answer the
call to ministry. Walk materials will be handed out - Refreshments will
be served.
Regularly we are contacted by congregations dealing with
the fear and trauma that exists in people's lives because we The actual Walk takes places on Sunday afternoon,
as a country have done nothing to fix our failed immigra- Oct. 24.
tion system. If temporary visas were available for workers
and the employers who want to hire them, many of our cur-
rent problems could be solved, but those visas require
changes to our immigration laws.

We urge you to be advocates for immigration reform and

encourage you to help your congregations understand the
importance of this justice issue in the life of the church.
The next Christian Education
meeting will be Thursday,
Shalom, Sept. 16, 7pm. There will be
Your PSW Regional Pastors
no August meeting
 Do you have some news
worth sharing? What
SCIC Interfaith could be better news
than a life of wholeness
Unity that comes to us
through Jesus! Several
Bike-a-thon of our members have
been learning new ways
Monday, September 6
to talk about their faith
in our current study class, “ T alking Faith, ” which
meets on Thursday evenings.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Next summer, Disciples from throughout North
This yearly event brings together people of many differ- America will explore new ways to share their faith
ent cultures and faiths to enjoy a day of bicycling and when they gather for the General Assembly in Nash-
great fellowship. Donations help to support the South
Coast Interfaith Council and its supporting organiza- ville, Tennessee. The theme for 2011 Assembly is
tions. “ T ell It!, ” and the Assembly will take place July 9-
It is also a great way to raise funds for your own organiza- 13. Mark your calendar and start saving up your
tion/ spiritual home/ faith community! The Bike-a-thon money, because it promises to be an outstanding
is a "win-win" event! Prior to the ride, participants are
asked to gather sponsorships from individuals willing to event!
make a contribution to his or her organization/faith
community and to the SCIC (50/50).

The Vons 2010 10%

Back to School pro-
gram this week—
We are missing several of our white coffee from August 11-
and black tea carafes from the church September 14.
kitchen. If you have borrowed one, please Just look for the yel-
return it to the church. We only have 1 tea low school bus logo in
carafe left.
the store for items
when purchased will
give BKCC an addi-
tional 10% contribu-
An Open Board meeting for ALL Chris- tion. You should be receiving information
tian Women’s Fellowship members is about renewing your contributions through
scheduled for Thursday, August 26, eScrip. Please do this by Nov. 1st. Just go to
10:00 a.m. This is the first Board
meeting of the CWF year. Mark your eScrip.com and click on YES RENEW or mail
calendars!! in the postcard in magazine you should have
received from Von’s. If you haven’t signed
up yet, please give your Von’s rewards number
to Marcia or Sandy.
With summer winding down, plans are being
made for Sunday morning children’s classes.
The Junior class (4-6th grade) will begin
meeting on Sept.12 and Worship and Won-
der (K-3rd grade) will begin on Sept 26th.
 School Supplies
For the last few years we
have donated school sup-
plies to Centro Shalom. These donations have
been much appreciated. Younger children
need crayons and pencils. Older students need
notebooks, paper, protractors, rulers, pencils,
pens, etc. Please put your donations in the box
in the narthex.
Pat Cohen
Community Action
Hi! Remember
me? It’s almost
time to stir
things up!
The CWF Enchilada Sale
is just around the corner
on October 9. Save the
date and plan to help. Talk
to your friends and relatives
as orders will be taken beginning in September.
1. Who in the beatitudes, does
Jesus promise laughter to?
Luke 6:21
2. Where did Jesus work his first miracles?
John 2:1-11
3. Who were Puah and Shiprah?
Exodus 1:15
4. What king repented because of the preach-
ing of the prophet Jonah?
Jonah 3:6
5. Who was Jesus speaking of when he said,
“Behold your mother”?
John 19:27
and how many did you get right?
"How I Spent My Summer Vacation"
No doubt many students and teachers will
soon be sharing stories of various summer ad-
ventures, and I'm no exception. From July 12-16,
all hands were on deck aboard Vacation Bible
School's, "High Seas Expedition"! We set sail on
a vast voyage through God's Word, exploring His
mighty love and experiencing amazing Bible ad-
ventures. Our crews watched for God in every-
day life in something we called God Sightings.
We discovered that God is active in our lives and
that His fingerprints are everywhere! The kids
and crew leaders gathered each morning at "Sing
& Splash" to learn songs with fun motions to up-
beat Bible songs. Crews visited five stations led
by awesome "captains": Clipper Ship Crafts, Ship
Rec Games, Sail Away Cinema, Bible Voyage, and
of course snacks from Goodies in the Galley.
We reassembled for the Floating Finale at the
end of each day's journey to reflect on our day's
experience, and on the last day celebrated our
blessings and safe return at a luncheon with fam-
ily and friends. Yep, we survived the high seas
through storms, ship wrecks, poisonous snakes,
and miracles! And along the way we met Peter,
Rhoda, Paul, John, and experienced daily fellow-
ship with our loving Savior, Jesus.
This year nearly 30 children participated in
VBS, plus numerous youth assistants and a re-
markable group of captains who helped con-
struct, set up, organize, and lead. Thank you to
all who stepped up to make this a memorable
journey: Sandy, Pat, Chrysan, Saw, Pastor Danny,
Ginger, Gretchen, Betsy, Dena, Angela, Chuck,
John, Marcia, Monica, Ken, Caitlin, Karen, An-
drew, Rob, Briana, Kirsti, Max, and Dylan. Thank
you to Captain Bill Maddy for providing funds to
purchase galley snacks and luncheon items. (I
hope I didn't forget to mention anyone.)
Sounds pretty incredible, doesn't it? It was!
And thanks be to God for bringing the entire
crew together and making our voyage possible.
We're already making plans for a "Panda - mo-
nium" adventure next July, and hope you'll
prayerfully consider making it part of your sum-
mer vacation.
Blessings from Christian Education.
Scheri DuBon
WHATA
BLAST!!!!
 Resilience Tested in Pakistan; Grief in Afghanistan

In the five years since the 2005 earthquake devastated parts of Pakistan, not one year has gone by in which the people of
Pakistan have not suffered from disaster. The years 2006 and 2007 brought floods; although not even close to the de-
struction brought by this year's flooding, people still lost their lives, homes, crops and livestock.

In 2008, a powerful earthquake rendered thousands homeless at the onset of winter. In 2009, millions of people were
displaced by the conflict between the Pakistan military and militants.

Throughout these years, severe drought and water shortages plagued the agricultural communities, which constantly live
with the reality of food insecurity. Now, 2010 -- a year that was supposed to be a time of new beginnings and the contin-
ued road to recovery following previous disasters -- has turned into a record-breaking year for flood destruction through-
out the entire country.

Resilient is a word often used to describe the people of Pakistan, but this cycle of loss and destruction is truly testing this
attribute. Thousands of people have been living in pre-fabricated shelters while trying to regain their lives and liveli-
hoods lost five years ago.

Now, displaced persons once again find themselves without homes and property. Farmers who were already struggling
with food insecurity have lost, or may lose, this year's harvest, pushing them farther away from achieving food security
for their families.

Grieving with IAM

We grieve with our Global Ministries and ecumenical partner, the International Assistance Mission, over the murder of
10 aid workers in Badakhshan, Afghanistan. The medical team, made up of both Afghans and Internationals, had been in
the Nuristan province at the invitation of communities there. After completing their work, the team was returning to Ka-
bul.

We keep the families of the aid workers, their colleagues, and the brave, generous work of IAM in our prayers. Friends
such as these, committed to the world's poor and vulnerable, help us live out our commitment to Courageous Compas-
sion. They exemplify the best of the Church, and remind us of the way you, as members of the Christian Church
(Disciples of Christ), have called upon Week of Compassion to help facilitate your commitment to work for wholeness.
We give thanks to God for the ways you reach out in times of senseless violence, natural disaster, and hopelessness.

Thank you for your gifts to BKCC and Week of Compassion, and the prayers offered up on behalf of the world’s most
vulnerable people.

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