NEWS FLASHES
Loveland- “what rich graces for ONE Day!” is a remark on the Loveland bulletin. It continues: “Certainly the whole day, this Sabbath, reminds us of blessed Calvary! This morning we attend the table of Communion; this evening the applicatory word will picture the Savior instituting His supper with all its blessed implications.”
I think this is an excellent way of stating that the evening service on communion Sunday is as enriching spiritually as the morning service.
We are eager to see what the results of the March 23 meeting for all those interested in a Christian Day School will be for Loveland. There is no Christian School at all in the locality at present, and there are no other churches in the area to help promote this cause.
Adams School presented a very interesting Easter program in First Church March 19. The message was forcibly brought to the minds of listeners, and God’s people were once more assured that the wanderings in this wilderness of sin will surely lead us home, to the heavenly Canaan.
First Church, Grand Rapids – On the Sunday before the Lord’s Supper was celebrated, Mr. and Mrs. F. Dykstra, Mr. R. Schipper, Donald Pastoor, Daniel Meulenberg, Arthur Bult, Jr., and Kenneth Vink made public confession of their faith during the evening service.
A change was made in the worship service of First Church. All collections taken during the services are now taken without congregational singing. The purpose is to recognize the sanctity of both the offertory and the congregational singing. During the collection the organist plays a hymn or psalter tune and everyone has the privilege of singing it softly to himself, if he so desires.
Lynden – Our Lynden Church celebrated Prayer Day on March 4 instead of March 11 because on that date their pastor was in Redlands. Rev. Harbach was with the Redlands congregation March 8 and 15, and then he attended Classis in South Holland on the 19th.
Pastor Harbach spoke in the Christian High library to the Mothers’ Club on the topic: “Understanding and Teaching the Five Points of Calvinism to our Children”.
Randolph – It seems that Randolph has a special collection each Sunday for some worthwhile cause. On March 8 the special collection was for the Protestant Reformed School Society in Randolph, I presume.
Oaklawn – Rev. Vanden Berg has received and is considering the call extended to him by the congregation of Redlands.
Rev. H. Hoeksema lectures in Oaklawn on March 17, on the subject: “The Virgin Birth and the Natures of Christ.” This lecture was sponsored by the Men’s Society. Some weeks before this, the Men’s Society met with South Holland’s Society and discussed the subject: “Evolution, Science, and the Bible, and the Age of the Earth”. This discussion was introduced by Rev. H. C. Hoeksema.

SOCIETY ACTIVITIES
Oaklawn Society has been enjoting after recess programs consisting of a discussion on current events and an essay on :”The Christian philosophy of life.”
They also report the following regarding CONVENTION PATRONS.
Churches % In Patrons
Creston 15%
First, Grand Rapids 14%
Holland 14%
Hope 7%
Grand Haven 25%
Southeast 4%
Southwest 7%
Doon 4%
Edgerton 5%
Oaklawn 44%
Pella 33%
Randolph 8%
South Holland 19%
% In Contributions No. of Patrons
46% 2
39% 25
43% 2
18% 3
42% 3
6% 2
22% 3
4% 1
11% 1
175% 7
167% 1
50% 1
55% 8
Churches not listed, have, as of March 14, not contributed. The total number of patrons is 60, and the total received in money is $176. The above figures are based on $1.00 per family as the standard. Thus, if a church had 16 families then $16.00 would be 100% in contributions. (If you discover a mathematical flaw in the above computations, don’t blame me. The Einstein who compiled the figures lives in Oaklawn.)
Holland Y.P.’s Society enjoyed a paper by Glen Windemuller on “Religious Beliefs of Youth”.

WE EXTEND OUR CONGRATULATIONS
to Mrs. F. Faber of First Church who celebrated her 87th birthday March 19. Mrs. Faber is in good health and attends church regularly.
to Mrs. J. Rottschafer, also of First Church, who celebrated her 93rd birthday February 19. Mrs. Rottschafer celebrated by going out for dinner with her children and grandchildren.
to Mr. and Mrs. Edw. Bylsma who celebrated their 62nd wedding anniversary March 4. They express their gratitude to God who has spared them for each other these many years. They are members of First Church.
to Rev. and Mrs. A. Mulder, Kalamazoo, who have their third son, and
to Rev. and Mrs. H. Hanko, Hope who have their fourth son.
to Mr. and Mrs. John Triezenberg, Jr. who were joined in marriage March 6. They are from our church in Kalamazoo. The wedding took place in Falmouth, Mich. Mrs. Triezenberg is the former Janice Buning.
to Mr. Gerrit Bergsma who celebrated his 85th birthday March 11. He still lives alone and considers himself “too Young” for the Holland Home. He reads and enjoys the Beacon Lights and attends First Church twice each Sunday.
to Rev. H. Hoeksema who celebrated his 73rd birthday March 13. Rev. Hoeksema has been pastor of the First Church flock for over 35 of those 73 years. His sermons have always been thorough expositions of the Word of God which could be taken in by both heart and mind. Now in his declining years, as he himself comes closer to heaven, each sermon seems to bring heaven a little closer to us.

WE HAVE TO TELL ABOUT OUR SERVICEMEN
PFC. Robert Haak, who has spent the last two years in the army, was welcomed back to his church home at Oaklawn. The congregation is planning a special program and social evening to welcome him home formally on April 10.
Pvt. Sid Stellinga was discharged from the armed services this past month. He was welcomed back into the congrgtation at Doon.
John Blankespoor, also from Doon, returned the 9th of March from his basic training in Texas. He is now in the Air National Guard and must report two days each month until 1962, at the Sioux Falls Air Base.

RECENT CONTRIBUTIONS GRATEFULLY ACKNOWLEDGED
Sinspiration – Hope Prot. Ref. Church $31.15
Hope. Prot. Ref. Church 42.87
Mr. Gerrit Bergsma 2.00
Mr. John Knoper 2.00
Mr. Ed. Kooienga 7.00
Mr. Ryven P. Ezinga 2.00
Mr. John Velthouse 2.00
Miss D. Frens 1.00
Mrs. William Kooienga 2.00
Mr. Gerrit H. Stadt 2.00
Mr. Peter B. Reitsma 2.00
Miss Jean Dertien 2.00
Mrs. Marie Jonker 2.00

Originally Published in:
Vol. 19 No. 3 April 1959