Nov 2010 The Latest Word by Downey Church

For the members, family and friends of the Downey Adventist Church

Friendship Day

Just do it

by Pastor Mitch

he pastor stood at the door saying goodbye to a young couple following a home visit with them. The young woman expressed her excitement at their upcoming baptism. Her husband’s furrowed brow expressed an unanswered question. The young man asked, “How can our salvation be so simple? Pastor, you said all we have to do is believe—that sounds too easy.” The pastor opened his Bible to Acts 16 and began

reading at the 29th verse: “The jailer called for lights, rushed in and fell trembling before Paul and Silas. He then brought them out and asked, ‘Sirs, what must I do to be saved?’ They replied, ‘Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved — you and your household.’ Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all the others in his house. . . . then immediately he and all his family were baptized.” The reason our salvation

appears undemanding is our God paid the price for us. The following sentences taken from a book I’ve enjoyed reading over the years, describes God’s giving of himself for us—for our salvation. “He died for us, and now He offers to take our sins and give us His righteousness. If you give yourself to Him, and accept Him as your Savior, then, sinful as your life may have been, for His sake you are accounted righteous. continued on page 2

Celebration Sabbath

ovember 20th is Celebration Sabbath. We will be Celebrating what God has done during our 6 Weeks of Becoming a Contagious Christian series and in our small groups. This is an extra special Sabbath because there will also be a baptism. We know that heaven rejoices with every soul that is saved. Be sure to be at church on that day so you can be part of that celebration. If you would like to be baptized, please talk to Pastor Mitch. Additionally, there will be a special

“Fold the arms of your faith and wait in quietness until the light goes up in your darkness. Fold the arms of your faith, I say, but not of your action. Think of something you ought to do, and go do it. Heed not your feelings. Do your work.” —George MacDonald

INSIDE Imagine That on page 3

offering for Evangelism on the 20th. This offering helps our church provide more programs and outreach events to our friends and neighbors. Please don’t think of this as “fund raising”, but as “Faith Raising.” We desire to help as many people as possible develop a relationship with Jesus. Every celebration needs some good food. Please plan to stay after church for a feast that will be provided by our small groups. It will be a time of fellowship and sharing some food. Don’t miss it. =

Love ... Goes the Extra Mile on page 4 Ginny’s Kitchen on page 5 What’s happening? see pages 6 & 9 Hand Out or Hand Up is on page 7 Our Church Family page 10 Kid’s Page on page 11

THE LATEST WORD Friendship Day (cont. from page 1)

“

share with your friends. Friendship Day is an outreach service. This is your opportunity to invite

for a picnic. Let those you invite know that the gospel message will be presented with an invitation to receive Christ as their personal Savior.

There’s a key part

On Friendship I read in the of being thankful Day, November 13, Wall Street Journal I’m looking forward that we don’t often the heroic story of to sharing a diagram Marine Corporal talk about, and that puts in a nutJason Dunham. shell the salvation While on patrol in that’s giving. message. The mesIraq in 2004, a gresage is called God’s nade was thrown in Contagious Love. When the person you’re prayhis direction. To protect you see how simple the ing for over the 6 Weeks his comrades, the young diagram is and how clearly of Contagious Christians corporal threw his Kevlar it illustrates the Bible’s small groups. In addition, helmet and his body onto gospel message I think invite your friends and the grenade. Corporal you’ll agree “a picture is family. There is no felDunham became the first worth a thousand words.” lowship luncheon planned Marine since the Vietnam The diagram is something so you might want to War to receive the Medal you’ll discuss in your invite your guests home of Honor. small groups and learn to for lunch or to the park What a powerful picture of self-sacrificing love. We’re all inspired by acts of heroic selflessness. The greatest hero of all times is Jesus. Jesus said in John 15:13 (NLT): “There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” Jesus demonstrates the power of his words by willingly laying down his life for the sake of us, his friends.

”

That story—that contagious message called the gospel which has been spreading around the globe for two thousand years—is the message on November 6. The title of the sermon is A Contagious Message. We want to get a real grasp on what that mes-

sage is and what it means. Celebration Sabbath is the conclusion of the 6 Weeks of Contagious Christians’ small groups on November 20. The message comes from all the small group participants. The groups members will share their experiences of the Contagious Christian message over the past 6 weeks. What was new? What was learned? What life changes have been made? Those questions and more will be shared by members from each group. A luncheon is set for Celebration Sabbath with the small groups providing their favorite soups. continued on page 5 The Latest Word V 22 N 11 BILL AUMACK

WE DID IT

Christ’s character stands in place of your character, and you are accepted before God just as if you had not sinned” (Steps to Christ, p. 62).

responsible for this

LINDA AUMACK proof reading

LETTY DURAN

paper distribution

MITCH WILLIAMS pastor

address mail to: Downey Seventh-day Adventist Church 9820 Lakewood Blvd. Downey, CA 90240 office: 562.869.6013 fax: 562.622.1691

downeychurch@gmail.com www.downeychurch.com

November 2010 God, Webster & You by Linda Bewley

ebster says “thanksgiving” means, “the act of giving thanks . . . a prayer expressing gratitude” (Webster’s Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary).

od says we should “come before him with thanksgiving and extol him with music and song” (Psalm 95:2). I love reading the stories in the Old Testament, particularly the ones which tell how God acted in response to the prayers of ordinary people who were in trouble or distress. The prayers alone provide a source of comfort to me. Perhaps it is because I can relate to the words and feelings they express. One such story is that of Hannah and Samuel as

Thankful for Hope recorded in 1 Samuel, Chapter 1. Why not take a moment to read that right now, just the first 20 verses. Go ahead, I’ll wait. Ready? What did you see? It’s pretty simple, right? A young woman in distress and provoked by her rival; a heartfelt prayer and commitment to God; and God’s answer, the result of which is the child Samuel who became the last person to serve as judge over Israel. That is what I have seen each time I’ve read the story over the past 20 years. But when I kept

Worship Schedule November 6 Mitch Williams

November 20 Mitch Williams

A Contagious Message

Celebration Sabbath

November 13 Mitch Williams

November 27 Bill Aumack

God’s Contagious Love Friendship Day

Re-gifting Thanks

reading through the book of Samuel, something new occurred to me. It took only 20 verses for the writer to cover the pain and sadness as well as God’s answer to Hannah’s prayer. In comparison, it took the writer seven whole chapters to relate

the life and ministry of Samuel. I see a great contrast there which helps me to put things into perspective. It is obvious from reading the passage that Hannah’s situation lasted for a number of years before she experienced an answer to prayer. But even though she did not recognize it, her situation was temporary and was eventually handled in God’s perfect way and in God’s perfect time. I think I tend to forget how temporary things are here on earth. Sometimes when

sadness or trouble comes along, it is hard to cope, even harder to give thanks. Perhaps that is because the situation seems anything but temporary. But God assures us that it is just that. Read what Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 4:17-18: “For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary but what is unseen is eternal.” Hannah laid her burden down and committed to God the child born to her. The result was of eternal significance for God’s people. I am thinking it might be the same for us. If we store up our treasures in heaven instead of here on earth, as Jesus told us to do, we will celebrate and enjoy those treasures for eternity. Looking forward with that kind of hope can produce abundant thanksgiving. What do you think? =

THE LATEST WORD Before the Father by Linda Fernandez

Love is ... Thankful

W Therefore, since we are receiv‐ ing a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God accept‐ ably with reverence and awe…. Hebrews 12:28

Maybe we are being shaken from the grip we have on this world and its treasures.

hen I used to tell the Children’s Story in church many years ago, I was always taken by surprise when now and then, the Lord would erase the well rehearsed story from my mind and replace it with one of His own. As I returned to my seat, my husband would often remark, “That wasn’t your story, was it?” There are times even now when I think I have all the material I need for this article, but then for some reason the Lord keeps me from the keyboard. This was one of those times… Communion: I love the communion service. Pastor Mitch always tries to keep us on our toes when it comes to communion by changing it up just a bit each time. Our most recent service was no exception. Not only did he switch up the order of the service (not a surprise ☺), but before we separated for the foot-washing portion, he suggested that we turn to a friend or family member and apologize for a hurtful or neglectful act or word that had not yet been addressed. I think that threw most of us for a loop. One of the blessings of being a long time member of a church is that you tend to develop deep

and lasting friendships. This was my dilemma as I searched for a friend to whom I needed to apologize. Usually, most issues are resolved right away. I did, however, have an overwhelming desire to apologize to one of my dearest friends for not verbally

expressing my thanks for all the wonderful things she has done and been for my husband and me. Suddenly, that sense of wonder nearly overcame me. I apologized to one friend for not being more faithful; to another for not being better at keeping in touch. One of our daughters posted a comment on Facebook about enjoying life. Since they are the gadabouts of our family, I thought perhaps they were at some exotic and exciting location, but no she said she was just sitting

quietly near her husband, thankful for her family and life as it is right now. Our world is so topsyturvy. Unpredictable weather. Abounding fear worldwide. Uncertainty everywhere. Dishonesty and deception by our leaders exposed on every page of the newspaper. We are truly being shaken, but maybe that is a good thing. Maybe we are being shaken from the grip we have on this world and its treasures. As I searched for a scripture for this article, I knew I had hit pay dirt when I found the one above. It seemed so appropriate when thinking about Communion and thankfulness. I think we are always a little more reverent during a communion service because of the importance and impact of partaking of the precious emblems, but also a sense of awe is palpable. Maybe it’s the reminder that Christ is truly among us and that He has promised us a kingdom that cannot be shaken. Let’s pray…. Father: Thank you for your constant guiding and leading in our lives and for the assurance that no matter what we face here on earth, Jesus is coming soon to take us home. =

November 2010 From Ginny’s Kitchen Vegetarian Meatballs with special sauce MEATBALLS:

SPECIAL SAUCE:

5 eggs 1 cup grated cheese ½ cup chopped onion ½ cup chopped finely pecans 1 tsp. basil ½ tsp. salt ½ tsp. sage 2 cups Pepperidge Farm Stuffing

¼ cup oil 1/8 cup rice vinegar or less 1 cup apricot jam ½ cup ketchup 1 Tbsp. brown sugar ½ tsp. salt and oregano

Mix all together in a large bowl and form into 2” balls. Or use a (cookie scooper). Place in a greased dish and cover with special sauce.

Whisk special sauce mixture all together and pour over vegetarian meat balls. Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes.

eled to the state of Georgia. That state is known for their delicious pecans. Of course I brought some home with me. It is good to use a variety of nuts in your daily diet. I am happy to share my daughter’s recipe using pecans. =

This recipe is one of my favorites. It came from my daughter Becki, who lives in Colorado. This summer we trav-

Friendship Day (from page 2)

Remember to set your clocks back one hour on Sunday, November 7th, as Daylight Saving Time ends.

You may have heard about “re-gifting.” It’s the act of taking something that was given to you as a gift and and giving it as a gift to someone else. There’s some debate as to whether re-gift is completely kosher. However, there are some things that definitely should be regifted. Thanks is one of those things. Being thankful is an important part of being a Christian. That includes being thankful to God for all He has done for us as well as being thankful to the people

around us. There’s a key part of being thankful that we don’t often talk about, and that’s giving. We’ve gotten the idea that if we just think some nice thoughts, that’s being thankful. But there is more to it than that. Join Bill Aumack on November 27th as he brings us the sermon entitled Re-gifting Thanks. See you when the church gathers. =

Downey Adventist Church Sunday

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

Saturday

5 5:58 pm sunset

6 9:30 AM S.S. 10:50 AM Worship Mitch Williams

7 pm Women’s Prayer Group

6:30 pm Band Practice

12 4:52 pm sunset

13 9:30 AM S.S. 10:50 AM Worship Mitch Williams Friendship Day

7 pm Women’s Prayer Group

6:30 pm Band Practice

19 4:48 pm sunset

10 AM C.S.

3:00 Pathfinders 20 9:30 AM S.S. 10:50 AM Worship Celebration Sabbath 12:30 Luncheon

7 pm Women’s Prayer Group

6:30 pm Band Practice

26 4:45 pm sunset

27 9:30 AM S.S. 10:50 AM Worship Bill Aumack

6:30 pm Band Practice

30 Visit www.downeychurch.org C.S. - Community Service S.S. - Sabbath School

November 2010 Stewpot by Gordon Botting, DrPH, CHES

utrition is big news! Next to celebrities, politics and religion, health and wellness may be the two favorite topics of mass media— from television to magazines, newspapers and even more importantly the Internet. The number of health resources on the Internet is mind blowing, which unfortunately, provides more opportunities for inaccurate nutritional information and erroneous advice to flow to the general public. According to a survey of more than 1,000 individuals conducted by the American Dietetic Association last December, 60% had trouble finding correct food and/or nutritional information on the Internet. Approximately seven in ten individuals visit two or three websites looking for food and health information. Sadly, nearly every person surveyed believed that the information they found online was dependable and truthful even though the scientific experts continually warn the public that health misinformation abounds on the Internet.1 As stewards of our health, we cannot just rely on magazine and Internet

Nutritional Myths articles for authentic nutritional facts. It is easy to see how sensational stories can easily become a part of common knowledge and be accepted as real science. To help you with this confusion, here are some of the most recent half-truths and misperceptions that relate to health and wellness.*

Good Chocolate, Healthy Chocolate? Yes, for chocolate lovers it is great news that a number of scientific studies have found that falconoid polyphenols and antioxidants give chocolate the benefit of being heart healthy. But watch out for the high saturated fat and calories that are an integral part of this smooth tasting sweet. Make your chocolate pick one that is at least 70% cocoa to increase the amounts of polyphenols you are getting in each bite.1

Alwyas Best Raw? Serving raw vegetables

can often be the best way to go nutritionally, but not always. While some watersoluble nutrients such as the B vitamins and some antioxidants are best eaten raw, many foods need to be heated to bring out their best nutrition. One excellent example is tomatoes because their lycopene is released by heating. Testing has shown this also applies to other compounds in carrots. The cooking of some vegetables improves their digestibility, breaks down vegetable proteins and loosens or removes the protective coatings that might keep them from being fully digested.

Is Sugar The Culprit? It is true that for many Americans sugar has replaced fats as our # 1 nutritional enemy. Unfortunately, we are eating 50% more sugar than we did half a century ago. The overconsumption of added sugar is definitely to blame for the increase in obesity, particularly when you consider the additional continued on page 8

“Be careful of reading health books. You might die of a mis‐ print.” — Mark Twain

“Common sugar is an almost ideal food — cheap, clean, white, portable, imper‐ ishable, germ free, highly nutri‐ tious, completely soluble, alto‐ gether digestible, requires no cook‐ ing and leaves no residue. Its only fault is its perfec‐ tion. It is so pure that man cannot live on it.” —Anonymous

“A [so‐called] balanced diet is a cookie in each hand.” —Anonymous

THE LATEST WORD Nutritional Myths (cont. from page 7) 22 teaspoons of sugar added per day to our diet, which represents one extra pound every two weeks. However, you cannot blame all our health woes on sugar. Sugar is probably not the cause of your financial worries or your sleepless nights. On the other hand, it would be wise to follow the American Heart Association recommendation for daily sugar intake of no more than 100 calories (6 teaspoons) for women and 150 calories (9 teaspoons) for men.4

Butter Bread It may be true that a tablespoon of butter contains 100 calories compared to a tablespoon of liquid vegetable oil at over 120 calories, but butter is less calories because 20% of butter is water. Once

that water is released in the cooking process, then butter has far less calories than oil. Nevertheless, butter has more grams of saturated fat and less grams of healthy polyunsaturated fat. Therefore, liquid oil is definitely the smarter choice.2

Healthy Smoothy? The majority of smoothies, whether bottled or made fresh in a store, are generally made from berries, mangoes, beets or carrots, which are rich in vitamins and minerals. “Boosts” — such as ginkgo, bee pollen, Echinacea, St. John’s wort, and carotene are not likely to do much good since most contain too little of these substances to have any nutritional effect. The latest trend is to add acai, pomegranates, or other so-called superfruits. They are not healthier than smoothies made from these other fruits. The majority of smoothies are loaded with calories— from Jamba Juice’s “original” size Strawberry Surf Rider (300 calories), to Tropical Smoothie Café Health Nut (530 calories), to the 40-ounce Smoothie King’s Slim-N-Trim (700 calories). Finally, smoothies are not cheap; ranging in price from $4—$7. A better long-term investment would be to purchase a blender and make your own.3

*TWO AREAS OF NUTRITION THAT NEED EMPHASIZING

stone ground, 7-grain or deceiving phrases such as “made with whole grains.” 1 & 5

Whole Grain Bonanza

As part of the lowcarb weight loss craze of the 21st century, many socalled health experts have encouraged a glutenfree diet frenzy. They forget that non-gluten free wheat has been a staple in western culture for generations. Yes, it is true that we are eating more gluten today because of the increase in snack and processed goods, but there is no scientific evidence that we need to eliminate gluten from our diet.1 =

There is no question that “whole grains” play a key role in a heart-healthy, anti-cancer diet. They are definitely linked to the reduction of stroke, diabetes and heart disease. In a recent study, women who ate whole grains rather than refined grains (those stripped of their bran and germ) reduced their risk of heart attack by 30%. No wonder the cereal manufacturers have had a field day with this scientific news. Last year cereal sales increased by 17% and are expected to reach $6 billion by 2013. Yet surveys indicate that only 4% of Americans are eating the recommended six daily servings of whole grains. (The average is 3.2 servings). Look for the first ingredient listed to be whole grains. Do not be fooled by these mystical food words that indicate the product may have little or no whole grains: unbleached, 100% wheat, multi-grain, bromated,

G0 Gluten

References: 1. EN Tackles the Top 10 Nutrition Myths, Environmental Nutrition Magazine, May 2010, pp 1& 6. 2. Nutrition in the News: Time for a Reality Check, Tufts University Health & Nutritional Letter, July 2010, p 6. 3. A Smoothie Shakeup, U C Berkeley Wellness Letter, October 2010. 4. Heart Experts: Cut Way Back on Sugar to Fight Obesity, Tufts University Health & Nutritional Letter, November 2009, p 3 and Annuals of Family Medicine, July/ August 2009. 5. Americans Failing on Grain Goals, Tufts University Health & Nutritional Letter, November 2009, p 3.

November 2010

THIS MONTH

November Birthdays

Laura Luna – 3 Sandra Gomez – 3 David Chavez – 4 Juanita Diaz – 5 Norman Markussen – 6 Clarice Murray – 10 Noemi Morales – 10 Esther McPhoy – 10 Mark Pond – 12 Ava Meade – 13 Melissa Archila – 16 Gustavo Ortega – 17 Alex Chavez - 18 Evelyn Vierna – 20 Araceli Sanchez – 21 Mariah Chavez – 22 Mark Toban – 22 Beverly Kauffman – 24 Flor Munguia – 27

If your birthday is left out in the monthly newsletter, please contact the church office so we can put it in.

If you are looking for a new, fun way to read The Latest Word online, be sure to check out the newest format at http:// issuu.com/downeychurch. Same great content in a richer environment. Be sure to check out all the reading modes. As usual, you can still get read it at our website at www.downeychurch.org.

Upcoming Events 2nd & 4th Saturdays - 3:00 p.m. Pathfinders 2nd Sunday - 10 a.m. Community Service Thursdays - 7 p.m. Women’s Prayer Group Fridays - 6:30 p.m. Band Practice Nov Nov Nov Nov Nov Nov

6 - Thanksgiving Food Deadline 7 - Daylight Savings Ends 11 - Veterans day 20 - Baptism & Celebration Sabbath 20 - Fellowship Luncheon 25 - Thanksgiving day

The Latest Word deadline is the 5th of the month.

Coming Soon Dec 4 - Kid’s Sabbath Dec 4 - Deadline for Christmas Food and Toy Drive Dec 25 - Christmas Program

THE LATEST WORD The Latest About

Our Church Family Congratulations to Sal and Karen who had baby Grace on October 1. She weighed 7.3 oz. and was 19” long. Congratulations to Franky and Patti Duran. They were married on October 15 in our church. Way to go Gustavo Ortega. He was in a big article in the LA

Times about the roads up in the local mountains. The upper grades of AUS also made the paper. They were on the front page of the PressTelegram for helping to clean up the park.

s soon as our Thanksgiving food drive ends on Nov. 6, we will start the Christmas Food and Toy drive. We need to get the food and toys to the Downey PTA Helps early so they can get the boxes ready for the families. Please bring your food donation and an unwrapped present for a teenager by December

If you have any Church Family news, please contact the church office so we can get it into the newsletter. =

4th. All food and toys will be given to the Downey PTA Helps to help local families. Thank you. =

On the Campbell Soup labels, all that is really needed is the UPC (the bar code). You don’t have to save the entire label, just the UPC bar code. For the Box Tops for Education, please save the Box Tops coupon. Please give your labels to Linda Aumack. Thank you for your support! =

Congratulations to the

Christmas Food and Toy Collection

new parents, Octavio and Mariana Navarro, who had a baby boy named Jacob on October 7.

Thank you to everyone who has been saving Campbell Soup Labels for education and Box Tops for Education. That is greatly appreciated.

Pathfinders

ur Pathfinder club is underway. Edwin Morales is the director. Celene Aispuro, Samuel Aispuro, Tomas Aispuro and Alberto Melenciano are helping to lead out in the club. All students who are 10 years old or in the 5th grade are encouraged to sign up. If you are willing to volunteer to help with honors or trips or the many other Pathfinder activities, please talk to one of the leaders and let them know you are

willing to help out. The leaders and the kids will appreciate it. =

November 2010

Ponder This... = “Let the thankful heart sweep through the day and, as the magnet finds the iron, so it will find, in every hour, some heavenly blessings.” —Henry Ward Beecher = “Not what we say about our blessings, but how we use them, is the true measure of our thanksgiving.” —W.T. Purkiser = “If we do not show love to one another, the world has a right to question whether Christianity is true.” —Francis A. Schaeffer

Downey-Florence Seventh-day Adventist Church 9820 Lakewood Blvd., Downey CA 90240

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