From the Pastor’s Heart From the Heart
June 2008
Go from your country and your kindred…to the land that I will show you…and I will bless you.
So said the Lord to Abram in Genesis 12 and as we continuing reading, we are told that Abram went on by stages toward his unknown destination. Think about it. Leaving everything behind – the people you love and the places that are important to you; the familiar local culture; the comfort of local landmarks. For what - a promise from God that to obey will bring blessings?
Each of us has been called to a similar sojourn as we travel through this life toward our eternal destinations. For some of us the journey is an internal response which does not require us to “pull up our roots” and plant ourselves in some other location of God’s choosing. For others, what God’s plan has in mind for us includes a physical move to a new church, a new home and a new community. In either case, as believers we recognize God’s sovereignty in our lives and we find comfort in God’s promise that we will be blessed.
Mary Jo and I (along with Chad and Leah) understood back in 1992 that our response to God’s love would require both an internal and an external response. We moved from our country and our kindred from Walnut Grove, MN to Winona, MN, later to Durham, NC, and then back to Minnesota into the community of Stewartville. In a few short weeks, the physical journey continues as we make the move to Buffalo, MN.
At every stage of our journey there have been difficulties. God never promised our lives would be worry-free and without suffering. And yet, even as we dealt with a variety of issues concerning family, workplace, and location, we have been blessed. God has seen fit to fill our lives with wonderful, loving, caring friends – good Christian women and men and children who have accepted us and walked with us and helped us grow as disciples of Jesus Christ. They have prayed a hedge of protection around us and encircled us with their love. We count each of you in that circle of supportive and active friends.
In every move, save one, we have had an advantage over many other new members of a community. We knew the name of the church we would be connecting with on the day we were asked to move. There is a certain comfort in knowing you don’t have to go “church-shopping” (in my book a deplorable term suggesting that our connection to a congregation is a consumer-driven, all-about-me choice we make). The exception was our move to Durham, NC. In that move, we asked the realtor to show us houses close to a UMC and close to a high school. The home we purchased was two blocks from our new church and two blocks from the high school. The result of our connection with Mt. Sylvan UMC was that we found many new friends as we joined a mutually loving and supportive congregation – truly a God-thing of blessings.
I am convinced that when we move into a community we should choose a church to connect with and grow into before we choose where to buy groceries, have the oil in their cars changed, or have their hair cut. A solid personal with a congregation that loves, supports, nurtures and sustains is a primary method God uses to bless us on our journey through life. How can we be blessed if we are disconnected from God’s church?
We all know people who have “moved in down the street.” Perhaps they didn’t take the time to think about what church they would connect with before they moved. Be a part of God’s blessing them by inviting them to come and grow with SUMC under the leadership of another newcomer to Stewartville, Pastor Linda Grounds. She, too, has accepted the invitation to go from her country and her familiar friends…to this place that God has chosen for her…to be blessed and to be a blessing.
Shalom to you my friends,
Henderson Settlement
Our Mission Moment for June will go to support Henderson Settlement, which is part of the Red Bird Missionary Conference in the Kentucky hills of Appalachia. This area has some of the loveliest scenery in Eastern United States. Tree covered hillsides of the Appalachian foothills look so serene and peaceful, but beneath that surface beauty is a deep ugliness, the ugliness of poverty and desperation, of a willingness to work, but no jobs to work at, of land that is worn out but must still provide a living to these hard scrabble farmers. The people in these hills of Kentucky have been here for generations. Henderson Settlement was founded in 1925 by a Rev. Hiram Frakes for whom the town of Frakes, KY was named. The people of this area were proud, but lacked the education and skills needed to make a living. Since the nearest High School was 30 miles of bad roads and several mountains away, Rev. Frakes went to his Bishop, Theodore Henderson and got permission to establish a school as a way to lift these people out of their poverty. Several of the area residents rose to the occasion and donated the land that became the basis for the Henderson Settlement project. Later land was added to allow a farm operation, eventually expanding to today's 1,600 acres. In the 1970's as roads and transportation improved, Henderson Settlement turned education over to public schools and expanded its other programs, especially agricultural programs, to better serve the people of this area of Appalachia. A food pantry was started with much of the food raised on the Henderson Settlement farms. Since many of the adults had little education, adult education programs were started and are still flourishing. Henderson Settlement is the only United Methodist Mission in the US that has an Agricultural Ministry. On the Settlement acres are greenhouses, an apple orchard, Christmas tree plantation, and a firewood project to supply wood to the area for winter heating. In addition, demonstration plots are planted in conjunction with the University of Kentucky to demonstrate to the local farmers better and more efficient ways to produce their crops. They also have a beef demonstration program to improve local animal husbandry. Additionally, working with Vanderbilt University, teams of people are trained to provide improved prenatal and child health care with a program called Maternal Infant Health Outreach Worker or MIHOW. This has greatly reduced prenatal health problems and improved the survival rate of area infants. These programs are only the tip of the iceberg of all the programs that are part of Henderson Settlement. Our June Mission Moment will be going to support Henderson Settlement as they minister to these people struggling to eke out a living in this part of Appalachia. When the black bags come around on the 4th Sunday, June 22nd, please be generous. It is hard to realize that there are pockets of deep poverty in the middle of this prosperous United States, but there are, and Appalachia is one of the worst. It is an area that time seems to have passed by, but our Church, the United Methodist Church is there to provide the support so desperately needed and we in Stewartville can be part of that blessing. The Eternal Faith Fund will be matching our gifts up to $300.00 so our dollars will be stretched even further.
NEED A RIDE?
Would you like to attend Sunday morning worship, but do not have transportation? If so, please call the church office (533-4625) and someone will return your call to make arrangements to provide transportation to church.
Children's Time ~
June
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Leader |
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1st |
Ronda Miner |
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8th |
Ronda Miner |
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15th |
Ronda Miner |
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22nd |
Ronda Miner |
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29th |
Outdoor Worship Service |
If you are unable to serve as scheduled, please find a substitute and call the church office
by Wednesday at 533-4625 or call Barb Warren at (507) 867-3006.
Lay Readers ~
June
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Date |
Lay Reader |
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1st |
Brianna Reed |
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8th |
Jean Schendel |
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15th |
Jaymi Wilson |
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22nd |
Chrissy Dotterwick |
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29th |
Outdoor Worship Service |
If you are unable to serve as scheduled, please find a substitute and call the church office by Wednesday at 533-4625 or call Wilma Menshik at 533-9591.
PRAYER
PAGE
DEAR CHURCH FAMILY:
Thank you so much for your thoughts, prayers, cards, gifts, and support during my treatments and surgery. Thank you to Pastor Jef for your calls and visits. Also, thank you to my choir family for your gift certificate. The birds will love it, too! Norm
ANNOUNCEMENT:
The UMW 45th Annual International Luncheon is planned for Wednesday, June 11th at Noon. Tickets are $9 and can be purchased by calling Audrey Farnsworth at 533-4454. The theme this year is “Pretty Purses and Fancy Footwear”. Decorating will be Tuesday evening the 10th of June. We are looking for knick-knacks of shoes for table decorations and fancy, vintage, international shoes/slippers/boots/purses to have as an entry display. If you can loan something please leave at the church with your name on the item(s). This year, profits will be used for Trustee prioritized projects and kitchen hospitality items. If you cannot attend, but would like to participate, please consider a donation. Hope to see you there!
ANNOUNCEMENT:
Lydia Circle is collecting used cell phones. There is a box located near the entrance doors of the church for the collection. Please leave attached batteries, but keep all other accessories and chargers and be sure to remove all personal information before donation. All used cell phones four years old and newer will be accepted.
ANNOUNCEMENT:
Volunteers are needed for the next “Feed My Starving Children” mission trip to Eagan, MN on Saturday, June 7th, 2008 from 9-11am. Please sign up at the Mission Table in the Narthex. All ages are welcome.
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VOLUNTEERS NEEDED:
Church Project Days Set -- everyone is needed to volunteer and help do something--whether it be working on designated jobs or providing food for the workers your help is needed. Trustees has Identified June 7 and 21st as days to repair , clean and refurbish our Parsonage and church buildings. We hope you will sign up and come help for an hour or all day--what ever you can commit. We will start at 8 AM both days. The 7th will be used to work on the grounds, church staining, internal cobwebs, nursery, storage buildings etc. The 21st will be for the parsonage to paint, varnish , clean rugs etc to ready it for the new Pastor. Please sign up on the list in the foyer or contact any trustee. With many hands we can accomplish much, have fun and show our new pastor how welcome she is. Blessings -- Trustees
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YOU’RE INVITED:
Please join us for Pastor Jef amd Mary Jo’s last Sunday on June 15th. There will be coffee and juice at 8:30 a.m. before the worship service. Following the service, there will be a light brunch served in the fellowship hall. Plan to join us in sending them off with well wishes.
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SUMMER SAFETY
School's out, pools are open and people across the country are looking for fun ways to cool down as summer temperatures heat up. As you head to the beach, to the pool, or to a camping vacation, please keep safety in mind for you and your family. Also people are out from morning til night: bicycling, walking, jogging, motorcycling, even in-line-skating and skateboarding, as well as driving. When so many people are on the move in so many ways, we all need to be alert and be on the look out for others, no matter how they -or we- are traveling. We can all have a safe, fun summer if we just slow down, smell the roses and be very watchful of other people.
WE NEED EVERYONE’S HELP!!!
If you haven’t yet filled out a “New” Membership Form or need a new one, extra copies are on the table in the narthex. We continue to work diligently on updating our records so Pastor Linda can more easily become familiar with our congregation; however, we are finding that there are a few errors, and a lot of missing information. This information is vital not only so that Pastor Linda and/or the Family Life Director can use it, much of it is also used in our annual reporting to the church conference and may ultimately be used by some adventurous genealogists. Therefore, we are asking that each family member that attends Stewartville United Methodist Church please complete and return the form to the church office as soon as possible. This could save a phone call to you in the near future. Thank you to those of you that have already filled out the new forms and turned them into the office for updating. Thank you all for your help in this effort.
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Happy Birthday to the following church members and friends who celebrate June birthdays! Do YOU have a June birthday? Is YOUR name on the list? If not, please call or drop a note to the church office to let us know. We don't want to miss the opportunity to wish you a very Happy Birthday!
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Erin |
Eckerman |
3-Jun |
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Wilma |
Menshik |
19-Jun |
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Melanie |
Weis |
3-Jun |
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Justin |
Serrano |
19-Jun |
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Cody |
Buchanan |
4-Jun |
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Julian |
Lee |
20-Jun |
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Katie |
Finley |
10-Jun |
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Jeremy |
Douglas |
20-Jun |
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Gretchen |
Thomason |
10-Jun |
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Olyvia |
Heaser |
21-Jun |
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Barbara |
Warren |
10-Jun |
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Conrad |
DeJong |
22-Jun |
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Darrell |
Nierenhausen |
11-Jun |
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Lisa |
Malone |
22-Jun |
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Jordan |
Ecklund |
13-Jun |
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Gerald |
Pingree |
22-Jun |
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Patricia |
Horsman |
14-Jun |
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Brandon |
Snipes |
22-Jun |
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Ruth |
Pingree |
14-Jun |
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Mary |
Howard |
23-Jun |
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June |
Stelter |
15-Jun |
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Katie |
Robertson |
24-Jun |
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Shana |
Koalska |
16-Jun |
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Bennett |
Gross |
27-Jun |
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Josh |
Podein |
16-Jun |
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Anna |
Holst |
28-Jun |
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Sam |
Hansen |
17-Jun |
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Robert |
Robertson |
28-Jun |
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Michael |
Blazing |
18-Jun |
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Marilyn |
Warren |
28-Jun |
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Lenora (Del) |
Jahns |
29-Jun |
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Richard |
Schendel |
30-Jun |
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Kim |
Whiting |
30-Jun |
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June 2008 |
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8:30 Coffee/Fellowship
9:00AM Worship
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7:00 PM Worship Mtg.
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8:00-11:00 AM Morning Lions Breakfast/Mtg @ SUMC/Fellowship Hall
8:00 AM SUMC Volunteers working on church grounds.
Feed My Starving Children 9-11 am Eagan, MN |
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8:30 AM Coffee/Fellowship
9:00AM Worship
New Member Sunday
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7:00PM Finance Meeting
Communion at Care Center/AF playing piano.
6:30 PM Set Up for International Luncheon |
Noon –International Luncheon
7:00PM Trustees Meeting
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8:30 AM Coffee/Fellowship 9:00AM Worship Choir Singing/ Brunch for Pastor Jef & Mary Jo.
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7:00 PM G& M
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7:00 PM H & W
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T and T Deadline |
8:00 AM SUMC Volunteers working on church parsonage. |
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8:30 AM Coffee/Fellowship
9:00 AM Worship/Dave S. |
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