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Is close enough really good enough? You know what they say, “almost only counts in horseshoes, hand grenades and skunks. Hi, I’m Tom Ellsworth from Sherwood Oaks Christian Church with a minute message.

Whatever happened to the virtue of giving one hundred percent? Is striving for almost truly a noble goal? Most who believe close enough is good enough would find a 99.9% effort more than commendable, but that would hardly be acceptable in many areas of life. For instance, at 99.9% accuracy, the Postal Service would mishandle more than 18,000 pieces of mail each hour or nearly ½ million pieces per day. At 99.9% accuracy, hospitals would give twelve babies to the wrong parents every day, the IRS would lose 2 million documents yearly, and 2.5 million books would be shipped out annually with the wrong covers. At almost one hundred percent, 20,000 drug prescriptions will be incorrectly filled in the next twelve months. While it’s true no human is perfect, we ought to put forth our best effort.

Here’s the best news – when God loves, gives or forgives it is never less than one hundred percent. So remember, while others may settle for 99.9%, there’s no almost with God.

The stripes of red symbolize valor, and the white, hope. Together they number thirteen, representing the original 13 colonies. The blue corner represents truth and loyalty. And stars were chosen as symbolic of a new constellation – a new nation was born. You know it as Old Glory, the Stars and Stripes, the American Flag. Hi, I’m Tom Ellsworth from Sherwood Oaks Christian Church with a minute message.

June 14^th is Flag Day and this year marks the 240^th anniversary of the date when the Continental Congress adopted the familiar pattern as our official national flag. This beautiful symbol reminds us of our liberty and its price. Carved on the Korean War Memorial in Washington DC are the words, Freedom Isn’t Free. Of those who signed the Declaration of Independence, five were captured and executed for treason; nine died fighting on the battle field; and twelve lost everything they owned. Since then countless thousands have sacrificed greatly under that glorious banner. Never forget, liberty comes at a high cost.

The freedom of our souls came at a high price as well. Not the sacrifice of thousands but of One who paid the ultimate price. This week, offer a prayer for our nation and for all who live under the Red, White and Blue.

George Eliot asked the question, “What do we live for if it is not to make life less difficult for each other?” Hi, I’m Tom Ellsworth from Sherwood Oaks Christian Church with a minute message.

Most often we think of a leader as the person out front, leading the way, but leadership is more about being insuring the success of everyone involved. Sometimes, the last place is the best place for a leader. Jesus said as much – true leadership is servant leadership. Consider the leader of a mountain climbing team. In the decent stage of the climb, the most experienced guide will often be the last person to start down. From that vantage point, the leader can oversee the whole group below. He or she still leads, but not out front. From the last position on the decent a leader can see the route ahead, spot any climbers in trouble and make the necessary adjustments to guarantee a safe and successful climb. You see, a leader’s real job is to make sure the team gets to their destination successfully.

God has challenged each of us to be that kind of leader, a servant leader. Life provides some mountainous challenges so who are you helping to reach their destination successfully!

Shawn Green and his family have recently relocated to Bloomington and are excited to be a part of the Sherwood Oaks family. The congregation will vote on bringing Shawn on as a minister at Sherwood Oaks on June 11, and we thought we'd give you a little bit of info about Shawn, his family, and his ministry thus far.

Where are you from?
I'm from Cicero, IN and my wife, Amber is from Sullivan, IN.

What is your past ministry experience?
I served at Owensboro Christian Church in Kentucky for 9 years in a variety of roles, the last of which was Outreach and Missions Pastor. From there, we moved to Providence, Rhode Island, where I served as Lead Pastor at NorthPointe Christian Church, a plant of Restoration House Ministry, for the last 3.5 years.

What most excites you about becoming a part of the Sherwood Oaks team?
The Sherwood Oaks team is filled with great people who love Jesus, the church, and their community. I'm excited to serve alongside of them and be a part of what God is doing at Sherwood Oaks!

What would you like the congregation to know about you?
My two greatest passions in ministry are reaching people far from God with the hope of Jesus and seeing followers of Jesus engage in God's mission for their life. I believe that following Jesus is more than just filling a seat on Saturday night or Sunday morning, but that we get to be a part of what God is doing to redeem, restore and renew people through Jesus!

A lot of things happen in Sherwood Kids during this time of the year! Check out the following information to stay updated:

• Promotion Sunday at all campuses is on June 4! This day is an exciting time when kids graduate from one age group or grade to the next. Please see the attachment below to learn more about these changes. (Also, for 5^th graders who move to the middle on June 4, the middle has programming in the Fellowship Hall during the 9:30 service only.)
• VBX at Bloomington East is two weeks away! Remember that shirts will be on sale--$8 for kids and $4 for volunteers—at Bloomington East in the foyer and the bookstore on Sunday and during the week. Also, we need more volunteers to decorate the church on June 4, to bring food for the volunteer lounge, and to be Shepherds during VBX week. To learn more about VBX and to register kids or volunteers, visit socc.org/vbx.
• The Kids’ Summer Kick-Off is on June 9 from 6:30pm-8:30pm at Urban Air! Invite an unchurched friend and/or neighbor and join us at Urban Air (www.urbanairtrampolinepark.com) for free fun and fellowship.
• Upward Soccer registration at Bloomington East is open! Evaluations will occur from 10:00am-12:00pm on June 24 and July 15 and from 6:00pm-8:00pm on July 19. During evaluations you will be able to verify jersey sizes, and the kids will run through drills to assess their skill levels so that we can create balanced teams for the league. To learn more and to register, please visit socc.org/upward.

If you would like more information about the goings-on in Sherwood Kids!, please feel free to visit our webpage (socc.org/kids), follow us on Instagram (@sherwood_kids), and join our Facebook page (Sherwood Kids!). As always, please don't hesitate to contact us at  if you have any questions or concerns.