Equipping No. 99 September 2009
a resource packet for equipping Mennonite Church Canada pastors and leaders

Dear Equipping Users:

With the previous issue, we tryied something new by giving you, the user, another option in how you use the downloadable version of Equipping: We bundled together all the electronic files into one document, as well as continuing to provide most items in separate file form below. We invited feedback - and received a positive response from a few users. We continue to invite your responses to this change.

If your traditional distribution method is via hard copy, you can now print the entire file in one step, rather than printing a bunch of files individually. If your distribution method is electronic, you can still download and send the individual files to different people as before. Some items, such as brochures, booklets, or other materials not conducive to regular printing or with restricted copyright will continue to be available via hard copy only via our four-times-per-year hard copy editions of Equipping.

We hope you find this added feature helpful. Please do send us your comments and suggestions (office@mennonitechurch.ca) about this or any other item with regards to Equipping. Thank you for your partnership in the ministry of equipping the church.

Download the Large Print Document [1,962 KB PDF file - Help with PDF files] - Large file, best with High Speed Internet

- the Equipping Team

	This will be Miriam Tshimanga's last issue of Equipping.

For those who have been at the Annual Assemblies(Adult and Youth) and at the Mennonite World Conference it has been a busy summer. Some of our staff attended multiple
events and are now taking some time off to refresh themselves.

I will leave my position as Equipping Coordinator and Receptionist at the end of August.
I hope I will meet many of you again in my new position as Administrative Assistant at the
Mennonite Church Canada Resource Centre, starting September 1st, 2009. Having studied spirituality in Rome, I feel quite at home being surrounded by books that touch many aspects of church and spiritual life.

As you can see in the monthly Resource Update, there are always new and up-to-date items
that you can borrow totally free as a member of Mennonite Church Canada.
If you have questions or comments, please call 1-866-888-6785 (or locally, 888-6781)
or email me at mtshimanga@mennonitechurch.ca. I am always happy to hear from
our congregations. Enjoy!

If you have questions or comments, please call 1-866-888-6785 (or locally, 888-6781) or email me and I'll pass on your inquiry to my successor . Enjoy!
- Miriam Tshimanga, Equipping Coordinator

PS: Please help ensure that these resources reach the right people. Thank you!

Mennonite Church Canada

• A Drop in a Pond in a Lake in an Ocean – Robert J. Suderman (for pastors, leaders, bulletin boards, newsletters)
• Finance Report – Randy Wiebe (for pastors, leaders, bulletin boards, newsletters)
• Prayer, Notes & News – Sept. 2009 (for bulletin announcements, newsletters, worship planners)
  

Christian Witness

• Usually I take pride in being a Christian – Janet Plenert (pastors, leaders, bulletin boards, newsletters)
• Celebration Story Sept. 09: Local Treasure assumes Macau Mennonite pastorate (bulletin boards, leaders, worship planners, and church newsletters)
  

Christian Formation

• Are you ready? – Karen Martens-Zimmerly (for pastors, leaders, bulletin boards, newsletters)
• Resource Update: Sept. 2009 (for worship planners, teachers, pastors, education committees, librarian, etc.)
• Children’s Stories, on-line only, based on lectionary readings (for worship planners, teachers, pastors, education committees, librarians etc.)
• A grouping of Special Sunday Worship Resources (worship planners, teachers, pastors, education committees, librarian, etc.). Individual Special Sunday Worship Resources available below:
  • Sunday School Promotion Sunday Litany (Sept. 13, 2009): see your July/August Equipping for a hard copy
  • Publishing Sunday Worship Resource (Sept. 13, 2009)
  • 2009 Peace Sunday Resource Packet (Sept. 20, International, and Nov. 15, Canada)
  • World Communion Sunday (Oct. 4, 2009); see your July/August Equipping for a hard copy
  • Mennonite Heritage Sunday (Oct. 25, 2009)
  • Mission Sunday (Nov. 8, 2009); see your July/August Equipping for hard copy
    

Extending our faith…

• Associated Mennonite Biblical Seminary (for leaders, bulletin boards)
  • Announcements from AMBS
    

Note about Resources

All new resources are continuously being added to the Resource Centre Catalogue, where you can use keyword searches to find the resource you need.

Note about PDF documents:

Trouble cutting & pasting from Acrobat PDF files? The newest version of Adobe Reader lets you select the exact amount of text you want, even from documents that contain columns (older versions of Reader selected text line by line across all columns – a process that would jumble text and challenge even the most patient user). Download the latest FREE version of Adobe Reader with this link.

• To select text from a PDF document, choose the “I” beam Select Text tool from the Adobe Reader tool bar at the top of the screen, and highlight the text you want to copy from the document. Copy it. Then paste it into your bulletin or other document.
• To select images from a PDF document, choose the "Select Image" tool from the Adobe Reader tool bar at the top of the screen, and highlight the image you want to copy from the document. Copy it. Then paste it into your bulletin or other document.