August 1, 2013 Volume 7 Issue 8

Co

uts

Co

un

tdo

wn

Go WEST - Welcome, Equip, Serve, Transform

Worship

8:30 a.m. - Classic

11:00 a.m. - Contemporary

Sunday School 9:45 a.m.

Visit us on the Web www.coutsmethodistchurch.com

802 North Elm

Weatherford, Texas 76086

817-599-8601

Church Office Summer Hours

Monday - Thursday

8:00 am - 3:00 pm

Fridays

Closed

Sunday, August 25th

9:45 a.m.

Children’s Area upstairs

Back to School Packing Event

Saturday, August 24 9 am - 3 pm Couts Gym

Page 2

All of this is not to say that individuals

never felt resentment toward little John. Some

of his classmates, and one of his brothers in

particular, who were most competitive with

him for certain goals, felt handicapped by his

handicap, but they never spoke it aloud. All

managed to quiet their resentment with self-

recriminations about their own insensitivity.

And so it went. Little John graduated high

school (having done fewer homework assign-

ments than any other child who ever attended),

and he obtained a secure job, though less qual-

ified than most of those seeking the same posi-

tion.

One day he met a woman whom he liked.

Being extremely shy and not having enough

confidence or experience to refute her own

poor image of herself, she was thrilled at the

advances of this very attentive, if somewhat

strange, creature. She treated him with the

utmost deference, and her pity soon became

love. Everywhere they went she watched out

for him. In time, the guiding principle of her

life became, “How can I help this man avoid

pain?”

But after they had been married a while,

she began to tire. Still she tried, for this poor

man could not help himself. But it became

increasingly difficult for her to be constantly

mindful of his needs. She decided to confess

her increasing insensitivity to her friends. She

mentioned it to her family, to her minister, to

her doctor. She sought professional help. All

comforted her and sympathized but could offer

little practical advice, and so they urged her to

be more patient. She tried again to shaper her

existence to his needs. Then the headaches

started. Then the little tic in her eye. Soon

she found she was losing weight. Colitis fur-

ther restricted her freedom, and it was not long

before her thoughts were bordering on suicide.

She dared not tell little John, of course, for

fear of hurting him. Why, if he knew that all

of this was due to his condition, he would be

inconsolable. One day, as she was walking

home, she chanced upon a mother cat giving

suck to her newborn kittens. As they scramble

over one another in their thirst, the mother

carefully guided each on to its turn, stretching

out a firm but gentle paw as she lay contented-

ly on her side. Then little John’s wife noticed

that one of the kittens had been born lame; its

leg had not been fully formed, and it had more

difficulty maneuvering than the others.

Strangely, it was also the most aggressive.

While the other kittens, when satisfied, went

off to sleep, this one kept coming back to wig-

gle its way in front of thirsty others. Each

time, however, the mother cat pushed it away,

at first gently, and then with successively

harder whacks.

During the dog days of August, may

you find the refreshing truth and free-

dom in the following story by Edwin

Friedman, a respected mentor and

guide. - Pastor Ed

A Nervous Condition

When little John was about a year old, his

parents noticed very thin like fibers protrud-

ing through his pores. After another few

months the fibers had extended themselves.

They began to form curls. The condition

alarmed his parents, so they took little John to

a doctor. The physicians, after examining

him carefully, called in several specialists.

They, in turn, summoned their colleagues

and, after conferring for several hours, an-

nounced: Little John was unique in medical

history - his ganglia were growing outside his

skin.

Since there was no record of this having

happened before, it was not clear what the

ultimate effects of such a condition would be,

and since little John was otherwise in excel-

lent health, it was decided to do nothing for a

while but observe.

Of course, one immediate problem was

little John’s rapidly developing, extreme sen-

sitivity to everything and everyone around

him. The doctors alerted his parents warning

them that they must be supersensitive to his

every move and touch. Being very sensitive

people anyway, they readily agreed.

As little John grew, so did his ganglia,

until they trailed about him as he walked.

While it was not a pretty sight, surprisingly it

turned out to have some advantages.

He learned from the very beginning, for

example, first from his ever-concerned

parents and then from others, that he could

always count on someone watching out for

him. Indeed, he learned early in life that any-

one who came into his orbit would always

pay attention to his every move for fear of

hurting him. He found that he could plough a

path through any group of friends by just

walking toward them. People would always

retreat at his advance for fear of “stepping on

his feelings.” When he engaged in sports or

when he just wanted to be first in line, all he

had to do was start in the direction he chose,

and his approach itself proved to be an “open

sesame.”

Sometimes he encountered people who

had not been forewarned about his condition,

and then he had to point it out as early in their

relationship as possible. Once they under-

stood, however, they never tried to get in his

way.

Little John’s wife watched the poor kitty

and the “inhuman” mother. But when she re-

turned home, upon finding her husband reading

in a room, she planted herself in the doorway

and began to stare. A little while later, little

John, desiring to enter another room, marched

straight for the doorway that framed his wife.

She did not budge. Closer he came, closer,

never thinking actually to ask her to move

(after all, he had never had to ask anyone to get

out of his way before). Suddenly, he stopped,

confused. What should he do? First he as-

sumed his most wounded look. Then he tried

one that was more winsome and boyish, but his

wife was like a rock. In desperation, he finally

spoke. “Move. You know I cannot squeeze

by.” Nothing. “What’s the matter with you?”

he yelled. “What are you trying to do to me?

This is like a trap.” Then she did begin to

move, not aside, but rather directly toward him.

He retreated. She continued on. He moved

back faster, but still on she came. Soon he was

cornered.

“Have you lost your mind?” he said incred-

ulously. “Careful there, you almost hurt me,”

he said pathetically. That did it. She raised a

foot and STOMP, with all her might she came

down hard on one of his trailing nerve endings.

He screeched, either from pain or shock.

Again she stomped, and again and again. He

ran past her, but she pursued. He screeched

again, and the scream encouraged her more.

STOMP, STOMP, she continued chasing him

from room to room, up and down stairs, to the

cellar, to the attic, through the kitchen, to their

bedroom, until, exhausted, they both collapsed

and fell asleep.

When Little John’s wife awoke, her head-

ache was gone for the first time in months.

Her eye, too, had lost its quiver and for the first

time in a very long time she sighed without a

pain and felt relaxed. But more astounding

still was what she saw beside her. For, when

she looked over at little John, she found that

his ganglia were no longer curled around him

all about the floor. On closer examination, she

realized that they had disappeared altogether.

In fact they had completely recoiled inside his

skin.

Friedman, Edwin H. Friedman’s

Fables, New York: Guilford Publica-

tions, 1990.

From Pastor Ed

SUN MON TUE WED THU FRI SAT

1 2 3

4

Communion

Stewards

Pathfinder Class

5

Worship Mission

Team Meeting

6:00 p.m.

Conference Room

6 7 Church

Council

Meeting - 7 p.m.

8

CCA Board

Meeting 5:30 p.m.

9 10

11

Youth and Youth

Parent Meeting

5:00 p.m.

12 Ministry Teams

7:00 p.m.

Court of

Honor

13

10 am Breakfast

at Wanda’s

Finger

Food & 42

6:30 p.m.

14 15

Finance

6:30 p.m.

Trustees

7:30 p.m.

16 17

18 19 20 21 22 23 24Couts Gym

Packing

Event 9-3

25 26 WISD

School

Starts

27Couts Care

Corps

6 p.m.

Finger

Foods &42

6:30 p.m.

28 CCA Classes

Begin

29 30 31

August 2013

Lifeline

Screening

8:00 a.m.

5:00 p.m.

Prayer

Force

W

E

D

N

E

S

D

A

Y’

S

3:00 pm

Page 3

Youth News

Aug. 2013

I would like to say Thank you for the warm

welcoming that you have given Jason and myself.

It is wonderful moving here and knowing that we

will be taken care of! We are definitely feeling the

love and excited to be here at Couts UMC. So on

behalf of Jason and I , thank you for blessing us

with food, and school supplies, and making our

apartment feel like a home!

Amy & Jason Brandt

THANK YOU

August 11 @ 5PM-7Pm

We will have a parent

meeting all youth and parent’s

are invited to attend!

Parent Meeting

Jr. High Mission Trip

Sunday Night from 5-7 The youth

will meet and have a praise band

concert to kick off YOUTH

WEEK!!!!!!

Questions: Amy 214-906-0967

AUG. 18, 2013

Aug. 25, 2013-

Youth will go to Eat at 12:00

instead of having youth! Cause

School is Monday MORNING!!!

YOUTH WEEK

AUGUST 19-23!

Details to come soon!

Page 4

CoutsKidz AUGUST 2013

Director’s Notes

Looking back over

this summer—which

has gone by WAY too

quickly—I am

thankful to God for

the ministry

opportunities we

experienced as a

church. It was a

season of change in

the life of our

congregation, but

God is working to

nurture and renew us

here at Couts.

Now, looking ahead

to the fall season, I

am praying that God

will provide

CoutsKidz new

opportunities to serve

and grow. I invite you

to come along for the

ride and share in the

ministry to the

children of this

community!

Best,

Jon Reeves

Director of Children’s

Ministries

Introducing our new Sunday School curriculum:

Grow, Proclaim, Serve!

Grow, Proclaim, Serve! is a new Sunday School

resource from our United Methodist Publishing

House. Find out more at:

www.growproclaimserve.com

If you have any questions, or if you want to If you have any questions, or if you want to If you have any questions, or if you want to

help out, let me know!help out, let me know!help out, let me know!

Contact me by email at: jon@coutsumc.org Contact me by email at: jon@coutsumc.org Contact me by email at: jon@coutsumc.org

Parents, be sure to check out

the FREE mobile app for

Grow, Proclaim, Serve! Stay

connected to your child’s

Sunday School experiences:

memory verses, lesson

topics, videos, and more!

Available in iTunes.

This month, CoutsKidz will begin using KidCheck, a secure check-in system for our Children’s Ministries areas. Some of the features will include: secure check-in and pick-up, the ability to communicate with parents via SMS text messaging and email, and a function that tracks attendance and generates reports.

Visit KidCheck on the internet at:

www.kidcheck.com

Remember to like CoutsKidz on Facebook

Page 5

Couts’ Pastoral Team

Pastor Len Pastor Georgia Pastor Rod

Page 6

SU MO TUE WE TH FRI SAT

1 2 3

4 5 6 7 8 9 10

11 12 13 14 15 16 17

18 19 20 21 22 23 24

25 26 27 28 29 30 31

August 2013

Len Johnson

Len Johnson

Georgia Orr

Rod Corder

Georgia Orr

I HAVE SEEN CHRIST, OUR RISEN SAVIOR

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

As I sit here this morning writing this “Thank You” letter, tears are rolling down

my cheeks. As most of you know, I was injured in a bicycling accident on June 1st,

2013 at the Mesquite Rotary Bike Ride held in Mesquite, Texas. I spent

approximately two weeks in Parkland Hospital after the accident. I was then

released to return home to continue my healing process.

After returning home, I was blessed to personally encounter Jesus Christ through

the actions of Couts members. From the afternoon I arrived at home, the outpour-

ing of love and compassion has been awe inspiring. You truly are the hands and

feet of Christ. Multitudes of meals were brought, numerous phone calls and visits were made, volumes of cards

were sent and a general outpouring of Christ’s love was showered over me. I felt so unworthy to receive this

wonderful gift of love and compassion. But, as I set back and contemplated these actions, I realized that the

body of Christ, Couts Methodist, was doing exactly what Christ taught us by being His hands and feet in Chris-

tian action. I wanted to say Thank You to each and every member of Couts Methodist. I truly love you and I

am so grateful for your compassion. I found the following prayer truly applicable.

Following is St. Teresa of Avila's prayer Christ has No Body:

Christ has no body but yours,

No hands, no feet on earth but yours,

Yours are the eyes with which he looks

Compassion on this world

These are the words of the 16th Century Roman Catholic Saint and Carmelite nun, Teresa of Avila (1515 -

82). Her words are direct and unmistakable - we see that the Christian life is dynamic and active: to be

lived out in our lives, to be embodied by each of us.

May God bless each of you and your families.

Sincerely,

John Coleman

John Coleman

Calling All Kayakers

Do you kayak? Would you like to join others from Couts

in some time kayaking? If you would be interested in some

Couts Kayaking Outings please call the church office to get on a list or

contact John Vicknair.

Page 7

Worship Mission

Team Meeting

Monday, July 5th

6:00 p.m.

The Worship Mission Team will

meet at their new meeting time,

the first Mondays of the month at

6:30 p.m. They will be taking a

look at Ed’s new sermon series

“Silent Killers” - a four part se-

ries addressing how worry, fear,

envy and anger impact a person,

webs of relationships, home and

the church.

Plans will be in the making for

some awesome worship experi-

ences during August and in the

Fall.

Couts Church Council

Meeting

Wednesday, August 7th

7:00 p.m.

The Church Council will meet on

Wednesday, August 7th at 7:00

p.m. in the Fellowship Hall.

Larry Vanhoozer, Church Coun-

cil Chairman would like to ask

all members to make an effort to

be at the meeting. The Council

is made up of all Chairs of Mis-

sion Teams, Administrative

Teams and at large members. An

item included on the agenda is

discussion about funds to pay for

the new air conditioner compres-

sor. Anyone is welcome to come

to the Church Council Meetings.

Mission Teams Meeting

Monday, August 12 - 7:00 p.m.

Fellowship Hall

After a two month break, the Mission Teams will

gather on Monday, August 12th at 7:00 p.m. All

groups will be meeting together in the Fellowship Hall

to begin to think about a vision for the Church and to

plan for the fall. Clent Collier, the Couts Lay Leader,

and Ed George, the new interim pastor, will co-lead

the meeting.

Kids Against Hunger Parker County Back to School Packing Event

Saturday, August 24

9:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.

Sign up in the Welcome Center or online at

www.kidsagainsthungerpc.org

Couts Movie Outing

Tuesday, September 24th

Palace 9 Theatre in Fort Worth

On September 24th, you are invited to

join other people from Couts and at-

tend the movie “Unstoppable” at the

Palace 9 Theatre in downtown Fort

Worth, Texas. Kirk Cameron stars in

this movie that asks the question

“Where is God in the midst of tragedy

and suffering?” the cost is $12.50 per

person. Sign ups to buy pre-sale tick-

ets will be available in the Welcome

Center. The deadline to buy a ticket is

Sunday, August 11. For more infor-

mation, contact Julia Fant.

Ted and Dovie Barber

Stephen Bobenhausen - job

Kayla Boland - Phyllis Slough’s niece - mission

trip to Africa

Shawn, Eric & Christopher Campbell

Mason Collier

John Coleman - recovery from accident

Dana Cowley - liver cancer - Anthony

Whitfield’s cousin

Arlene Ford

Jean Guess

Rusty Justice - Radiation and Chemo

Danice Mainard

Billie Murrell

Marie Ornales

Patty Priest - Thelma Troy’s relative

Tony Newman - Dave Steven’s son

Gay Whitfield - Anthony’s Mom - Surgery 7-30

Suzie Williams

Brad Bishop

Kelly Brown

Billy Burris

Matt Couch

Warren Crouch

Will Dowd

Derek Geyer

Michael Gilliam

Jeff Johnson

Cory Jones

Blake Hubbard

Mike Hebert

Hunter Hiett - Afghanistan

Kali Yarnell Lussier

Garrett Mitchell

Matthew Mitchell - Afghanistan

Jason Nazarenko

Gary Neal

Matthew Ross

Doug Yarnell

Cody Williams

Craig Wolfenberger

Go Welcome, Equip, Serve, Transform

W E ’ R E O N T HE W E B - V I S I T U S

W W W . C OU T S M E T HOD I S T C HU R C H . C OM

Prayer Concerns Our Military August Birthdays

August 1

Karen Fatout

August 2

GinaWuerflein

August 6

Janice McKinney

August 8

Connie McNutt

August 11

Roger Moore

Evan Curry

Jacob Slimp

Karen Garrett

August 14

Della Craig

Jayllie Ramos

Jamie Greene

August 15

Candy Salyer Wright

August 18

Dean Newman

August 19 Ethan Worshan

August 20

Julia Park

Richard Noe, Sr.

August 21

Charlsta Smith

August 23

Georgia Orr

Zane Vantine

August 26

Abby Fant

August 28 John McElroy

Juli Green

August 29

Sherry Couch

Daniel Miller

August 30

Carrie Whitfield

August 31

Bill Shatford

Couts Methodist Church

802 North Elm

Weatherford, Texas 76086

Our Homebound Members

Allene Bielss Carrie Bridges

Beulah Clark Mary Ann Cox

Cloy Holloway Billie Murrell

Arlene Padilla Evelyn Sullivan

Marie White

Page 8