June 2018
Irondale Church News
Irondale Church is a place of promise to grow and belong
Overcoming Stupidness
This week Roseanne Barr (an
actress/comedian) posted a
tweet that read, "muslim
brotherhood & planet of the
apes had a baby=vj." First
• Pray always thing you need to know is
that Twitter is a website
• Pastor David and where people can post short
Colleen statements. The limit is
something around 250 char-
acters. The Twitter members
• Community Soup
have “followers” these fol-
lowers are notified by Twitter
• Our outreach and when anyone they follow
witness to our com- posts something. So when
munity Roseanne made that post her
followers see it and can com-
• Busy Hands ment back. Of course when
the tweet gets to “vj” she is
going to be pretty insulted.
• People struggling
with illness “vj” is Valerie Jarret. Valerie
Jarrett was a Senior Advisor
• Young families and to President Obama. She is a
single parent fami- Chicago lawyer, business-
lies woman, and civic leader.
Why Roseanne has such
strong feelings about her I do
• Those struggling
not know and do not care to
with addiction know. Roseanne should fol-
low the old adage, if you can’t
• Schools: students, say something nice then don’t
staff, administrators say anything at all. But it’s a
little late for that. People
• Missionaries who read the tweet were
quick to point to its racial
overtone, which resulted in
• Homeless, helpless,
Roseanne being called a racist
hopeless, hungry and ABC cancelling her top
rated TV show (which I have
• Local, state, nation- not seen and care nothing
al and world leaders about). Then Roseanne apol-
ogized by saying, “I apologize
to Valerie Jarrett and to all
Americans. I am truly sorry
for making a bad joke about
her politics and her looks. I
should have known better.
Forgive me-my joke was in
bad taste.”
If you had to re-read
Roseanne’s first tweet asking
yourself, “What’s wrong with
it?” You just need to know
that drawing any comparison
to a primate and an African
descendant is an insult and
has been for generations. We
just don’t go there. Roseanne
should know that.
Despite high ratings on her TV
show, ABC announced,
"Roseanne's Twitter state-
ment is abhorrent, repugnant
and inconsistent with our
values, and we have decided
to cancel her show." (Yes this
is the same ABC whose
“values” are just fine with The
View, General Hospital, The
Bachelorette, Modern Family
and American Housewife.)
Roseanne quickly apologized
to Valerie Jarrett, and to
America. But the damage was
done.
Roseanne´s judgment jumped
through court of public opin-
ion right to the sentencing.
Roseanne blamed her poor
judgment partially on
“Ambien tweeting” at 2 a.m.
She also issued a formal
statement of apology, in
which she expressed regret,
acknowledged the damage
she caused to her co-workers,
and asked for forgiveness.
But it was too late, with a
tweet, Roseanne Barr has
been charged, convicted, and
sentenced by her own words
in the court of public opinion.
Her career is over. Maybe it
should be.
But…then again.
Why is Roseanne demonized
now? She is the same person
she was before the tweet.
Some might say she showed
her true colors, but she has
made millions of dollars by
being rude and distasteful.
So why be offended now?
When she deliberately sang
the National Anthem poorly,
then groped herself and spit
on the ground before walking
off the field, everyone was
aghast, but has now for-
gotten. Last week when Sa-
mantha Bee said the vilest
thing imaginable on TV direct-
ly to Ivanka Trump, she made
her “apology” while receiving
an award for her raunchy TV
program that did not edit out
the grossest insult that can be
hurled at any woman. So
where do the “standards” for
the court of public opinion
come from?
The answer is society. But
which branch of society? One
might say the majority. But
isn’t the majority silent? The
majority of people don’t have
the time, the interest or the
platform to have their voice
heard. So the answer be-
comes the media.
What do you do to keep your
mind from being polluted by
a minority who make some-
thing good or bad just by the
way they say it?
I recall many years ago hear-
ing someone say that they
had been engaged in a con-
versation with other people
about how I would never
continued

Overcoming Stupidness continued
make it because I was too
lazy. It seemed the court of
public opinion was at work to
destroy my character before
my 21st birthday. For a long
time, years and years, that
comment played over and
over in my mind and I worked
like a dog to prove them
wrong. But the truth is the
harder I worked, the harder I
had to work. My frustration
levels increased, my expecta-
tions of myself grew, I felt I
had to succeed at everything I
tried, I wound up being
spread so thin that I could no
longer manage everything, so
the places that suffered were
my home and my thought
life. Sound familiar? Truth is
it has most likely happened to
you too. Maybe not for the
same reason, but too many of
us have damaged our families
and our self-image while
working like crazy to impress
people that don’t really
matter. That is what
Roseanne and Samantha Bee
did. But there is a solution to
it, I know, I had to find the
path. So here’s how:
#1. Come to terms with your
humanity. Romans 3:23–24
says that all have sinned and
fallen short of the glory of
God, and we are justified by
God’s grace as a gift, through
the redemption that is in
Christ Jesus. And Ephesians
2:8 adds to that, by grace you
have been saved through
faith. And this is not your
own doing; it is the gift of
God. Coming to terms with
our humanity is coming to
terms with the fact that no
one can fix themselves. Not
us personally and certainly
not the gossips who talk
about others.
Irondale Church News
#2. Make a decision to
change and start saying it out
loud. If you are like me and
have reached a point where
you are sick and tired of
letting the opinions of others
drive your behavior, ask God
to help. Psalm 139:23–24
says, “Search me, O God, and
know my heart! Try me and
know my thoughts! And see if
there be any grievous way in
me, and lead me in the way
everlasting!” The Prophet
Isaiah wrote, “Woe is me! For
I am lost; for I am a man of
unclean lips, and I dwell in
the midst of a people of un-
clean lips…!” If Isaiah felt
that way how much more are
we in need of help? There’s
more to it than just feeling a
need to change, we have to
say it too. Romans 10:9–10
says, “if you confess with
your mouth that Jesus is Lord
and believe in your heart that
God raised him from the
dead, you will be saved. For
with the heart one believes
and is justified, and with the
mouth one confesses and is
saved.” It is not either or, it is
both and.
#3. Believe what God says
more than you believe what
others say. Believe we have
been justified by faith and
that we have peace with God
through our Lord Jesus Christ
(Romans 5:1). Believe that
“He has delivered us from the
domain of darkness and
transferred us to the kingdom
of his beloved Son, in whom
we have redemption, the
forgiveness of sins.” (Coll-
osians 1:13-14) And believe
John 1:12, “But to all who
believed him and accepted
him, he gave the right to be-
come children of God.”
When we believe what God
said, we believe we can be
fixed. When we believe what
people say about us we are
always either disappointed or
under the shadow of possible
disappointment. Don’t buy
those lies or you will wind up
spending your energy trying
to prove you are who God
already said you were!
#4. Accept who God says you
are. If you are a sinner, ac-
cept that and move to being a
saint who sometimes sins. If
you don’t feel that way, then
just stop sinning. Of course
it’s not easy, but through
dedication and devotion you
can become a person that
you look up to and are proud
to be. Then those people
who once criticized you and
called you things like lazy, will
begin to wish they were more
like you. This all happens
when you truly believe in
your heart that “God is for us
… He who did not spare his
own Son but gave him up for
us all, how will he not also
with him graciously give us all
things? Who shall bring any
charge against God's elect? It
is God who justifies. Who is
to condemn? Christ Jesus is
the one who died—more
than that, who was raised—
who is at the right h hand of
God, who indeed is interced-
ing for us. Who shall separate
us from the love of Christ?
Shall tribulation, or distress,
or persecution, or famine, or
nakedness, or danger, or
sword? …. No, in all these
things we are more than con-
querors through him who
loved us. For … neither death
nor life, nor angels nor rulers,
Page 2
to come, nor powers, nor
height nor depth, nor any-
thing else in all creation, will
be able to separate us from
the love of God in Christ Jesus
our Lord (Romans 8:31–39).
If Roseanne believed that
with her heart, she most like-
ly would not have made that
tweet, because she would
have avoided the conversa-
tion she was in. And if she
does believe in Christ and
made the mistake she made
she will find God’s for-
giveness through confession
and she will be content with
His forgiveness even if ABC
and public opinion say other-
wise.
We can all learn from this
that Jesus’ words are true,
“Truly, truly, I say to you, eve-
ryone who practices sin is a
slave to sin” (John 8:34). And
that we should all “put off
your old self, which belongs
to your former manner of life
and is corrupt through de-
ceitful desires, and to be re-
newed in the spirit of your
minds, and to put on the new
self, created after the likeness
of God in true righteousness
and holiness (Ephesians 4:22–
24).
These are the things we need
to do to keep our minds from
being polluted by a minority
who want to guide our
thoughts and rule our lives.
Freedom is found in Christ,
don’t let it slip away.
-Pastor David
Irondale Church News
Your Thoughts Matter 2018 by Pastor David
This is the second year that I
have handed out a question-
naire at our Annual Business
meeting. The results are varied,
but we get an idea of what oth-
ers are thinking. There were 22
questionnaires handed in. Here
are the results:
1. Currently Colleen plays piano
2 weeks and we play guitars 1
week, alternating on a schedule.
Do you like the mix we do now?
5-Not really; 7-It’s Okay; 10-
Most definitely.
2. Would you like more weeks
with Piano? 3-Less Piano; 12-
Just right; 6-More Piano.
3. Would you like more weeks
with guitar? 1-Less Guitars; 10-
Just right; 9-More Guitars.
4. Would you like more weeks
with music lead by guest lead-
ers? 4-Less Guests; 5-Just right;
11-More Guests.
The next 4 questions are more
difficult to put into statistics.
Here are the questions:
1. Other than Sunday School,
Church, Children’s Church, Sun-
day Evening Study, Tuesday
Community Soup and Thursday
Kid’s Club, What else would you
like to see happening here?
2. Is there anything you are gift-
ed in and would like to help the
Church with?
3. Other thoughts?
4. Do we need to hold more
Congregational Meetings?
The first thing we need to see is
that 12 people wrote nothing
on any of these 4 questions.
Page 3
Under question #1, 4 people backgrounds. It is my job to
left commits and ideas: Ladies seek God and present the wor-
Lunch; Colleen needs a micro- ship service He has called me to
phone; program for young present. On these surveys I am
moms; youth group; member- looking to see if I have any blind
ship class; more people in- spots. For instance, I have been
volved and more new people. trying to be better organized
during the worship service, that
Question #2, Is there anything was confirmed with one com-
you are gifted in and would like ment that indicated there
to help the Church with? 18 seemed to be a lack of planning.
people left the question blank Since I am already improving on
and unanswered. Of the 4 who that nothing has changed, but
wrote something, one said they now I sense it is God’s leading.
were maxed out; another said
we need a choir; another said I think we do offer a good mix of
more bluegrass, another that hymns and choruses in our wor-
we need more over all planning. ship. It may not be 50/50, but
Bearing in mind that the ques- there is a deliberate blend. Also
tion was “Would YOU like to no matter what type of music
help out” I would have to say, you prefer to worship with, the
no one answered the question. people who are leading the wor-
ship have an interest in the
# 3 was “Other thoughts?” 18 song. There are many good
were blank. The 4 people who songs but they have to fit into
made suggestions said things the hearts of the worship team.
like, less standing between
songs; soloists; keep kids off Lastly we probably won’t be
stage unless they are singing a planting any fruit trees, because
special, more old songs, anoth- it is our goal to make regular
er suggestion was 50/50 hymns property maintenance as easy
and modern choruses, more as is possible. Planting trees
people involved in different inside of the mowing areas
programs and plant fruit trees. won’t help with that. That
All of these were good thoughts doesn’t mean that it is a bad
and I look forward to hearing idea, as a matter of fact I think
more great ideas. it’s a good idea. It is just that
everything we have to mow
Answers to question #4 Do we around and everything that has
need to hold more Congrega- to be pruned or cut back takes
tional Meetings? 11 people did time and volunteers are hard to
not answer the question, 8 cir- find.
cled “no,” and 3 circled “yes.”
There were a few comments To that is the summary of the
written in including 2 who said, “Your Thoughts Matter” survey.
“as needed,” 1 suggested every Nothing earth shattering.
3 months and one suggested Someone asked, “Are you trying
every 6 months. to stir up trouble asking these
questions?” Nope, I am trying
So what is my conclusion from to make sure you feel you are
the survey? There is no conclu- being heard. After all, all we are
sion, I wasn’t expecting one. A doing here is loving Jesus and
Church is a living thing filled one another.
with people of all ages and
 Irondale Church News
No Matter What Others Do Go Wants Us to Follow Him
No matter what others do
God wants us to follow Him
and His plan for our lives.
Playing our lives to the
“Audience of One,” is nearly
impossible at times. From the
cross Jesus’s example left no
margin for error. We want to
always, always do our best,
He did. Sometimes I fail, you
too?
My computer always wants
to correct me when I capital-
ize the other names of the
Lord God. It’s doing what it
knows is best or correct ac-
cording to its programming. I
fight it every time I sit down
to write. Errrr!
Out in my yard this morning,
fairly early with the dogs, the
air was crisp the morning air
scented with possible rain
and the smell of lots of flow-
ers blooming. As the air
brushed against my skin I
thought about how wonder-
ful it was to have the sense of
touch and smell both of these
bless and protect us, and give
us information about our day.
Yesterday at a care center
with a dear friend, now para-
lyzed on one side by strokes, I
try to help her be better posi-
tioned. Move her legs and
arm for her, massage her to
try and stop the cramping
and just be there to love her
as she deals with frustrations
I can only assume are stag-
gering. She loves flowers and
Treasurer Report being outdoors, so I have
brought her some from my
5/31/2018
yard. She knows most of the
General Operations: names of everything in my
yard, not just the slang ones
Income: $28,148.52
but the real names. Even
Expenses: $27,651.23 though she has shared them
Annual Budget: $164.554.00 with me “nope” I have not
got them down.
You see she has struggled for
years with long term health
needs that have left her inca-
pacitated physically for long
periods of time. She hasn’t
just laid there bemoaning her
status, but got busy praying
for others and herself and
learning what she could
about things she is interested
in. She is another one of my
“giants” in my life who repre-
sent casting all your cares on
Jesus. She would be the first
to tell you she is not a saint
and there are the times when
she breaks-down and just
feels sorry for herself, when
her nights of sleep are stolen
by pain and there is no true
relief for her, when she just
wishes it would all go away.
I was thinking of her this
morning as I ventured outside
with my little ageing dog at
5:30, his second trip, the first
was at 3:00 a.m. (my sweet
husband took him out then).
There were so many birds
singing the sound was just
amazing… they all seemed
happy to be up greeting the
day…Hmmmm. Listening
carefully I tried to separate
their songs and see if I could
identify how many varieties
were up rejoicing…there
were just too many! How
wonderful! They were all
doing just as God had in-
structed them, singing their
songs in full voice! Obliviously
they were happy. I couldn’t
hear a grumbler in the bunch.
No mutters either, bemoan-
ing the early hour or that
someone was out-singing
them as they followed God’s
plan for the individual kind of
bird they were. Pretty incredi-
ble it seemed as though each
were sharing their own per-
sonal joy!
Page 4
I got busy watering my plants
and flowers and was treated
to a symphony of sweet song
as they entered into their
busy day. My friend has al-
ways loved birds as well so I
had purchased a little blue-
bird to share her recovery
with her. Its diminutive stat-
ure had been placed back on
a shelf and she requested
that I move it out where she
could see it and said, she
wanted to “just look up and
see it sitting there to remem-
ber to have hope.” She
battles and enemy she cannot
see, she fights a fight only
God can overcome, but she
has the experience of His
great love carrying her
through her difficult hours.
We always have a choice
what to tune the heart of our
listening to, the moaning and
groaning of self-pity or the
promise of God that, “this
earth is not our eternal
home, only heaven is.
It’s brutally hard here on
earth for some and as the
difficult days come to us, it’s
easier to grumble, complain
and we miss God’s blessing
and easier to be offended and
sensitive to the “perceived
wrongs” or criticisms of oth-
ers. We feel our weaknesses
are exposed intentionally by
them, as they try to follow
God with their lives when
they have not had that inten-
tion at all. Just the same it
happens and we allow it not
realizing we are falling
straight into satan’s hand and
he is able to sift us like wheat.
In our insecurity we are able
to be used by him as we wal-
low in the pain of our ever
multiplying sense of being
wronged.
continued
Irondale Church News
No Matter What Others Do Go Wants Us to Follow Him, continued
being disappointed with the
voices and work God gave to
each one of them as their kind
is supposed to display.. I can’t
imagine the sound that would
have greeted my ears this
morning if a goldfinch suddenly
decided it needed to sing with
the voice of an eagle, or the
beautiful trill of a robin ceased
to exist as it tried to imitate the
call of a little chick-a-dee. The
symphony would not bless God
as He intended. When we are
jealous of how God has posi-
tioned others or how He has
gifted them, we make a decision
to place ourselves once again
above the wisdom of God.
It’s not that my friend doesn’t
want to be pain free or restored
to her perfectly perceived
health, it’s just that she has al-
lowed God to use her in spite of
what the world sees as re-
straints and disappointments in
their lives and their expecta-
VBS Or Mini Camp
Proverbs 22:6, Train up a child in
the way he should go; even when
he is old he will not depart from
it.
As summer approaches one of
the ministries the Church offers
is Vacation Bible School. This is a
chance to teach the children of
the community about God’s love
for them. In the past we have
held VBS for 5 days or 3 days
depending on the availability of
volunteers and their willingness.
Certainly we have many capable
people in Irondale Church, but
for various reasons many can’t or
don’t want to help with VBS.
Recruiting helpers has been a
problem over the years. Of
course that is nothing new. The
real question that must be wres-
tled with is the effectiveness of
the ministry to both the children
and the adults that labor through
it.
tions of her. Justice is God’s
plan for our lives no matter how
it comes. Not allowing others to
change you unless it truly aligns
with God’s plans for you is the
most merciful thing you can do
for yourself. I would way rather
apologize to man for failing
them and their perceived
needs, than to have callously
failed the plan of God in my life.
We always have a choice, what
voice we choose to follow, what
path we choose to take. The
world would program you like a
computer but Jesus said simply,
”Come follow me.”
God always says and means it
“apology accepted” when from
the sincerity of our hearts, He
hears our repentance. He is not
offended by our need for
growth. He understands our
learning curves and made the
way of the cross our path to
follow. When you have a
choice, choose His way of lov-
If we do a 3 day VBS that lasts
from 9 to noon, we have 9 hours
total with the children and a 5
day VBS is a total of 15 hours.
Part of that time is spent in an-
nouncements, crafts, games and
moving between the events. So I
think I’m being optimistic in say-
ing in a 3 day VBS the children
are in the actual Bible lessons for
an hour and a half. This results
in 4.5 hours during a 3 day VBS
and 7.5 hours during a 5 day VBS.
In the past when we have done
MiniCamp it looks something like
this: we bring the children to the
Church on a Friday about 2 or
3pm. We feed them snacks, play
some games and have a Bible
lesson. Then we have an open
fire BBQ and picnic dinner,
where the kids learn about
roasting hotdogs, marshmallows
and fire safety. They make
Page 5
ing. Love too much, care too
deeply, be too kind. The world
will not understand you but He
will.
I was a gymnast, one day my
father came directly from his
furniture repair shop to watch
me compete, he smelled like the
work of the day, in his well-
worn work clothes, I sat with
him for a moment then made a
truthful excuse I had to sit with
my team. I remember it as the
one and only time he was able
to come. He passed away with a
heartattack in less than a year.
He would have known and for-
given me but I never asked.
Listen with your heart for God’s
voice and follow Him, it may not
be a pain free path but you will
walk your walk with the Lord in
step with His plan for you .
-Colleen
s’mores and participate in setup adults. . After all, when was the
last time you heard a bedtime
and cleanup. Then we have
ghost story where a prophet
more games and a Bible Story.
encourages the people to not be
The kids learn to set up tents and
afraid and God intervenes and
sleeping bags, they sleep either
saves them all at the last mi-
in the Fellowship Hall or out-
nute!
doors. For many kids this can be
their first time sleeping outdoors.
I know change is hard and I have
In the morning there is breakfast,
heard some complaining about
a Bible study or story, a game, a
not doing a VBS, but anyone
craft and then lunch. After lunch
who has done MiniCamp knows
they walk to Irondale Beach, do
how valuable it is and that we
some beach combing and have
spend way more quality time
another Bible lesson there. Then
we walk back and have the clos- with the kids. MiniCamp is a
good thing. It’s not the end-all
ing program with the parents.
of children’s ministry, but nei-
This gives us a total of about 24
ther is VBS. So I encourage you,
hours with the children. Certain-
get involved. Don’t sit on the
ly (hopefully!) they are sleeping
sidelines and complain, get en-
for a portion of the time and
gaged and you will be blessed!
even if it’s 8 hours of sleep the
Proverbs 15:13, A glad heart
ministry time is still 16 hours
makes a cheerful face, but by
with more than half of that in-
sorrow of heart the spirit is
volved in direct Bible Study and
crushed.
Stories. It is a very memorable
experience for children and the