Sisters Celebrate The Ladies’ Uplift Circle 85th
Anniversary
By Sister Terri Bravo
On Saturday, April 30th the General Ladies’
Uplift Circle held their business meeting in Detroit, Michigan at Branch 2. This
was day to recollect how our founding sisters, led by Sister Sadie Cadman,
established the Ladies’ Uplift Circle, eighty-five years ago in Monongahela, PA.
The inspired theme for the weekend was “Women of Works”. Sister Karen Progar,
our President opened the meeting by rehearsing an experience given to Brother
John Griffith. His experience is as follows:
“As Liaison Apostle to the General Ladies’
Circle, I inquired of the Lord as to what I would say to them if called to do
so. A heavenly voice spoke to my mind with these words: “Tell them they are
builders.” Not quite understanding the meaning of what I was given, I again
questioned the Lord as to its meaning. My mind was flooded with words of
inspiration. I wrote them as follows:
Tell them they are builders:
They build lives of children to a spiritual awareness.
They build families to unity of love and trust.
They build confidence in their spouse to do the work of the Lord.
They build future generations through an example.
They assist in the building of a Kingdom not of this world.”
Sister Karen encouraged us to be workers for The Church. Our Vice President,
Sister Lorraine DeMercurio, followed with a fitting scripture of the New
Testament woman of works, Dorcas (Tabitha) found in Acts 9:36-42. While business
was conducted it was a special time to remember the purpose and meaning of the
Ladies’ Uplift Circle.
Throughout the course of the day we heard readings of the history of the Circle.
Sister Marty Jumper read memories of Sister Sadie as told by her daughter,
Sister Sarah Vancek. A group of sisters who knew Sister Sadie came forward and
sang the hymn, "O Paradise."
The sisters of the regions that were represented participated in the meeting by
presenting hymns or testimonies of praise to our dear Lord. The sisters of the
Great Lakes region were in charge of the program. We enjoyed a day of fellowship
and inspiration. There were so many touches that made this day an event that we
can add to our precious memories of our involvement in the Ladies’ Uplift
Circle. The sisters of the Great Lakes welcomed us into their hearts and their
homes. We are so very thankful for their outpouring of love.
In closing, it is fitting to quote Sister Sadie’s’ testimony on the forming of
the circle as written in the first edition of the history book of The Church of
Jesus Christ. She writes, “I felt to rally my sisters in the Gospel to see if we
could raise our lives to a higher standard in the Gospel of Christ: not for
earthly gain but to raise our hearts and minds heavenward; to be as the
Scripture reads in the second Chapter of Titus; to acquaint ourselves with the
Scriptures: and to help the Church in promoting the Indian Mission work.” Our
founding sisters would be pleased to see that the Circle continues to support
the Native American work and that support now extends to the spreading of the
Gospel to foreign lands. With refreshed spirits we will strive to be “builders
of a Kingdom but not of this world.” We ask for your prayers and support in this
great endeavor.
“Learning and
Leaning on Our Pillars”
By
Sister Kathy Giannetti
Proverbs 8:11 states, “For wisdom is better than
rubies; and all the things that may be desired are not to be compared to it.” On
Thursday, August 18th the Ladies’ Circle of Detroit Branch #1 gathered together
to praise the Lord for the ‘rubies’ He has given to us. This night, we were
focusing on the wisdom of our seasoned sisters and wanted to show our love and
appreciation to them for the wonderful example they have been to us.
We first enjoyed a delicious dinner, and then singing, testimony, and much
praise. The younger girls and sisters started our service by singing, “The
Longer I Serve Him, the Sweeter He Grows.” Then several sisters expressed
themselves. It was a blessing to hear, even through trials, God has been right
by our sisters’ sides, and that the love they have of the Gospel and Lord is
stronger than ever. Sister Rosanne Champine then sang a song she wrote about the
example so many sisters set through their devotion to Christ even through the
hard times in their lives. The song, “I will Praise Him Still” says,
“The passing years have brought their share of sorrow,
And some days I grow weary of the race.
That’s when I’m carried by the joy of my salvation,
And satisfied sufficiently with grace.
I will praise His name even when the storms come.
I will praise Him even when the nights are dark and cold.
Always in the glad times, and even in the sad times,
His love is like a gentle soothing balm unto my soul.
I will praise Him still…”
The words were so fitting to our theme. We continued the meeting with testimony
and it was so good to hear many experiences of how the Lord provided jobs,
spouses, food, and strength and comfort. The sisters encouraged us to press
onward in The Church and to be ready to be used by the Lord. They shared much
wisdom that we will carry and use in our spiritual and natural lives. We all
enjoyed the time praising the Lord and were very blessed to have this time to
share with our spiritual Mothers. Thank God for the pillars He has given us to
learn from and to lean on.
I BELIEVE I
BELIEVE
As sung by The Church of Church of Jesus Christ - Nigeria
I
believe I believe, that my God can not lie,
I believe I believe, that my God can not lie,
I believe I believe, that my God can not lie,
I believe I believe, that my God can not lie,
Show me the mountain, that my God can not climb,
Show me the mountain, that my God can not climb,
Show me the river, that my God can not cross,
Show me the river, that my God can not cross,
Show me the sickness, that my God can not heal,
Show me the sickness, that my God can not heal,
That’s the reason why, I like the way I live,
That’s the reason why, I like the way I live,
Oh yes I believe, that my God can not lie,
I believe I believe, that my God can not lie,
I believe I believe, that my God can not lie,
I believe I believe, that my God can not lie,
Show me the mountain, that my God can not climb,
Show me the mountain, that my God can not climb,
Show me the river, that my God can not cross,
Show me the river, that my God can not cross,
Show me the sickness, that my God can not heal,
Show me the sickness, that my God can not heal,
That’s the reason why, I like the way I live,
That’s the reason why, I like the way I live,
Oh yes I believe . . .
Tea Fund Raiser
By Sister
Terri Bravo
On February
12, 2005, The Atlantic Coast Area Ladies' Uplift Circle hosted a Tea party at
the Hopelawn branch for the benefit of raising funds for the purchase of windows
for our Church building in Kenya. The fundraiser was supported by a large
group of brothers and sisters from throughout the Atlantic Coast region.
The organizers of the event, Sister Michelle Burns and Sister Colleen
Pittius, prepared specialty teas and finger foods for the event. The local
Circles donated specialty baskets for a silent auction. The baskets were
theme related: toys for children, spa products, stationery items, a picnic
lunch, and coffee time, etc. Included in the fund raising activities,
Brother Ken Lombardo donated his time and talent to take family portraits.
Brother Tom Goode sang and played his guitar.
We thank God that it was a very successful fund raiser. We offer a hearty
thank you to all the brothers and sisters who donated their time, efforts and
donations towards this worthy project. We also thank the individual local
Circles, who for the last six months, held fund raisers for this project and the
General Circle Special project. Our efforts to work for the Lord, whether
at home or abroad, are a blessing to many and bring great joy to our lives.
Construction Project in the Atlantic Coast Breaks Ground
We gathered
together for a beautiful day on January 14, 2006. “They Are Builders!” and
have much to do was the topic for the Atlantic Coast Are Ladies’ Uplift Circle
seminar. The Sisters from the Hopelawn, N.J. Local graciously hosted our
day and met our every need.
The seminar
covered five points and related directly to the experience, “Tell them they are
builders,” by our General Circle liaison, Brother John Griffith.
- They build
lives of children to a spiritual awareness
- They build
families to unity of love and trust
- They build
confidence in their spouse to do the work of the Lord
- They build
future generations through example
- They assist
in the building of a kingdom not of this world
Our sister Mitzi
Calabro introduced the theme for the day and we spent the morning discussing the
best practices for following this wonderful direction given by the Lord.
We opened our
meeting with the opportunity to sing, It’s a Jubilee Morning, from the
new Songs of Zion. “There’s a beautiful mountain that God made from above,
and He wrapped in silver and He formed it in love, and I saw it this morning
when the clouds rolled away and I’m crying to see such a beautiful day.”
How the words of this hymn set the course for our gathering!
Our Sister Enza
Pusillo followed the beautiful devotional singing with a heartfelt prayer on
behalf of the meeting and the many other needs of the saints and the souls of
this world.
Each sister
presented one of the directions for building. Topic by topic we discussed
and contemplated the Lords direction as it pertained to our own lives. Many
experiences were spoken of and our sisters Maria Montoya and Angele Reyes
provided us with a greater insight into there personal testimonies and
relationships with the Lord. Our sister spoke on the true meaning of what it
means to be nurtured as a member of the house of Israel by the nursing
mothers and fathers of The Church of Jesus Christ. We marveled at the
possible impact that our actions can have on one life and one heart. That we
should respect the role we all have in the restoration of the house of Israel.
There is much power in what pleases the Lord and He gives the great increase
that benefits us all as saints of God.
The question was
posed: “What good in my life am I not doing? If not, it is sin.” Are we
taking stock of our daily walk with the Lord? What can we do as
individuals to repair and build our spiritual house? Our sister Betty
D’Orazio shared a beautiful testimony of how recently she began keeping a book
of writings to the Lord. “A journal of praises, no complaints! Letters to God,”
she explained. This heartfelt action, out of love, has enhanced the
results of her prayers.
Our sister Maria
Peterkin recited an experience had by her late father, Brother Nathan Peterkin.
She recalled how, “One day as he was preparing to go to a meeting he was all
dressed up and upon looking at his self in the mirror; he felt he looked pretty
good. Then a voice beckoned for him to move a little closer to the mirror
and as he did each time the voice beckoned him, he discovered he had spots of
lint and dust in various places on his suit. Then it was given to him that
he needed to take out the swish brush of prayer to get rid of those particles.
Sister Maria relayed that as the experience was given to her father, we should
always be prayerful and checking ourselves to see where we stand with God.
Are we living our lives as we should or is there room for improvement?
Throughout
the discussion our awareness regarding what is needed in our lives to be fit
builders became increasingly clear. The counsel of our sisters’: “Be strong and
of good courage, turn not to the right or left, follow the commandments of the
Lord, pray with out ceasing, commune with the Lord daily, assist and encourage
those around you, cultivate love – not fear and insecurity, don’t create excuses
to not work for the Lord – make away and the Lord will provide the increase!”
What is in your
spiritual tool box that will help you to be the best builder you can be?
Take a look, take stock, and go shopping in the store of Scripture, Prayer
and Good Works! And take the old useless stuff to the dump!
Our Sister Angela
Reyes closed our meeting with a fervent prayer spoken in Spanish. We then
partook of a marvelous lunch prepared and provided by our sisters in Hopelawn.
As we enjoyed this fellowship we discussed the needs of the expectant and new
mothers in various mission fields. We all had brought layette items to be
donated to the layette programs of the Southwest Area Ladies’ Circle and
Dominica, W.I. We collected over forty receiving sets! What a blessing to
fellowship together in the name of the Lord, a benefit to everyone!
