Prayer request

Molly N. requested we pray for her friend and colleague, Debbie, who has been confirmed to have Covid-19. Debbie has taken a turn for the worse and has been admitted to the hospital this morning.

Staying connected

Wesley keeps a watchful eye on the work being done

Pastor Charles is working from the parsonage's basement study during the Covid-19 shut-down. He can be contacted by email or cell phone, 303-916-2441. Additionally, "In-person" contacts can be done via Zoom.

Coffee/tea break @ St. Paul's

You are invited to a virtual gathering on Wednesday, 10:00 am, for a time for coffee/tea and check-in as we continue to be a community gathering in these unusual times.

Join Zoom Meeting: https://us04web.zoom.us/j/454017451?pwd=dVJIbndkRncwTEt1K05PZktyaVVmQT09

Lenten Devotional for March 31

Fr. Thomas Merton, OCSO

My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going. I do not see the road ahead of me. I cannot know for certain where it will end….Nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I think I am following your will does not mean that I am actually doing so. But I believe that the desire to please you does in fact please you. And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing. I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire. And I know that if I do this, You will lead me by the right road, though I may know nothing about it. Therefore, will I trust you always though I may seem lost in the shadow of death. I will not fear, for you are ever with me, and you will never leave me to face my perils alone.

Fr. Thomas Merton (1915-1968)

Mountain Sky Potluck tonight!

Tired of eating alone? Join your friends from the Mountain Sky Conference for a dinner time conversation! Rev. Jerry Herships will lead us in a short devotion followed by kitchen table conversation. Then we invite all the children of our conference to share their favorite joke (one joke per child!).

Just fill your plate, set your computer up, and log on: https://zoom.us/j/767109146

This week @ St. Paul's

All of St. Paul's UMC in-person activities are cancelled until April 30 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Monday:

11:30 am, Churches & Stimulus bill webinar

5:30 pm, Mountain Sky Conference virtual potluck 

Wednesday:

10:00 am, Virtual coffee/tea gathering

Thursday:

10:00 am, Worship team via Zoom

12:30 pm, Conference clergy meeting via Zoom

Sunday: Palm Sunday

10:00 am, Virtual worship service

Scripture lessons for April 5

The scripture lessons as we begin Holy Week next Sunday will continue our Last Week Lenten series. We'll focus on the events of Good Friday through Mark 15:22-27, 33-37 and Mark 15:42-47. 
   

Lenten Devotional for March 30

Ghent Altarpiece (center panel) - Jan van Eyck 

Songs of the Suffering Servant. The fourth song proclaims the salvific value of the Servant’s innocent suffering that will justify many and blot out their offenses. 

Isaiah 52:13-53:12: See, my servant shall prosper, he shall be raised high and greatly exalted. Even as many were amazed at him— so marred were his features, beyond that of mortals his appearance, beyond that of human beings— So shall he startle many nations, kings shall stand speechless; For those who have not been told shall see, those who have not heard shall ponder it. 

Read the fourth song at this link.

March 29 @ St. Paul's UMC (3): Prayers

Joys & Concerns for March 29:

Concerns
+Carol C. would like prayers for her brother, Bob, who has health concerns.
+Pat & Bob M. would like prayers for son, Andrew, an internist, and all health care workers.
+Sandra J. would like prayers for her daughter, Kimberly, a pharmacist.
+Marcy R. is in Alaska with her newest grandson, Axel!
+Molly N. asks for prayers for a colleague, Debbie F.

Joys
+We are blessed with the technology we need to stay connected during this challenging time.
+We were able to donate a large amount of towels and other needed items to the Bridge House outreach program.
+Tim C. was recognized at the Peaks/Pikes Peak conference as a "Quiet Disciple" for his many ministries in the St. Paul's UMC community.
+Louise C. reports that her daughter-in-law, Monica had successful surgery.

March 29 @ St. Paul's UMC (2): Announcements

+All programs and events of St. Paul's UMC are cancelled until further notice. The church office is also closed in keeping with official health orders. 

+Virtual Church is here! Each week we are posting the weekly sermons to our YouTube channel. Starting next week (April 5), we'll also be offering a gathering via the Zoom platform each Sunday morning at 10:00 am. 

+St. Paul's food pantry is stocked and we are able to assist those in need. Pastor Charles is available to come to the church and assist those in request of services.

+UM's respond to COVID-19: Give to UMCOR’s Global Health fund: Advance #3021770, at Advance.umcor.org or Donate online to the Mountain Sky Conference Disaster Response Fund.

+Please remember to send your gifts and offerings to support the ongoing ministries of St. Paul's UMC to the church office.

+Be sure to check our calendar on the website to see the latest activities being offered through various virtual platforms.

March 29 @ St. Paul's UMC (1): Worship/sermon

Following the guidance of the Mountain Sky Conference, and in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, we are not holding worship services in our sanctuary this week. Instead, we are offering posts here and on our YouTube channel as one way to stay connected as a community of faith.

The hymns for this week are linked to YouTube videos. The message may found on our YouTube channel. Click on the links below to view those files.

Call to Worship: I cry out to You from the depths, Lord—my Lord, listen to my voice! Let Your ears pay close attention to my request for mercy! If You kept track of sins, Lord— my Lord, who would stand a chance? But forgiveness is with You— that’s why You are honored. I hope, Lord. My whole being hopes, and I wait for God’s promise. My whole being waits for my Lord— more than the night watch waits for morning; yes, more than the night watch waits for morning! Israel, wait for the Lord! Because faithful love is with the Lord; because great redemption is with our God! He is the one who will redeem Israel from all its sin. - Psalm 130 (CEB)

Praise Hymn: "Come, Ye Faithful, Raise the Strain"
Musical offering: Medley - Lorie Courier 
Gospel Lesson: Mark 14:53-65                                 

Sermon: Thursday in Holy Week (pt. 1 and pt. 2)

Hymn: "Just a Closer Walk With Thee"

Devotional for the Fifth Sunday in Lent

Now Is the Healing Time Decreed (YouTube link)
Text: Anonymous; Translator: Rev. T.A. Lacey (1853-1931)

Now is the healing time decreed
For sins of heart, of word or deed,
When we in humble fear record
The wrong that we have done the Lord.

Who, always merciful and good,
Has borne so long our wayward mood,
Nor cut us off unsparingly
In our so great iniquity.

Therefore with fasting and with prayer,
Our secret sorrow we declare;
With all good striving seek His face,
And lowly hearted plead for grace.

Cleanse us, O Lord, from every stain,
Help us the meed of praise to gain,
Till with the angels linked in love
Joyful we tread Thy courts above.

Father and Son and Spirit blest,
To Thee be every prayer addrest,
Who art in threefold Name adored,
From age to age, the only Lord.

Peaks/Pikes Peak District Gathering (via ZOOM)

Note: This is the 500th blog post!

A good turnout was present via Zoom this morning involving 60+ laity and clergy from the north half of the Peaks/Pikes Peak District for the annual district gathering.

Among the highlights:

+Tim Cook was among those recognized as being one of the "Silent Disciples" in our district for his many ministries at 

St. Paul's UMC - Boulder.

+In breakout rooms, we heard about expressions of grace and joy we are experiencing in the midst of a rapidly changing landscape.

+A webinar, looking at an overview of church benefits from the economic recovery bill, is being offered on Monday @ 11:30 am.

+In nominations, Tim Cook and Belinda Alkula are on the Lay Leadership Nominations Committee. Pastor Charles is now on the District Committee on Ordained Ministry (DCom) and the Church Building and Location Committee.

Virtual Day Camps are a thing!

At United Methodist Camps, our campers are always at the heart of what we do. We know that recent events have caused significant change in the lives of campers everywhere and we are here to support in the best way we know how. We would like to present Virtual Day Camp, the next best thing to being at camp!

​

Each day, campers can log in and follow a day camp session, exploring topics such as Spiritual Development, Nature Exploration, STEM, Music, Art, Social/Emotional Learning, Exercise, and more. 

Visit this link to learn more.

Lenten Devotional for March 28

St. Ephraim the Syrian

“O Lord and Master of my life, take from me the spirit of sloth, faintheartedness, lust of power, and idle talk.

“But give rather the spirit of chastity, humility, patience and love to your servant.

“Yea, O Lord and King, grant me to see my own sin and not to judge my brother, for You are blessed from all ages to all ages. Amen”

― St. Ephraim the Syrian (306-373)

UMCOR donates needed supplies to first responders in Louisiana

Needed supplies stored at the United Methodist Committee on Relief’s Sager Brown Depot are being distributed to first responders in Louisiana as part of the agency’s effort to help fight the spread of the novel coronavirus and the disease it causes, COVID-19. Coronavirus cases in Louisiana have spread faster in the first two weeks of the state's outbreak than they have in other states and countries across the world, according to news reports detailing an analysis by a University of Louisiana - Lafayette professor.

Read more at this link. 

Mission response in our community

From the folk at Safe Access For Everyone:

We hope you and your congregation are staying safe in the pandemic. With COVID-19, homeless feeds have closed, so people on the streets are literally going hungry. The hoarding in stores has also contributed to basic sanitary items being unavailable to those who are most exposed.

We're reaching out to our friends in the faith community to coordinate efforts to gather and distribute supplies for the unhoused.

So far, we have set up several handwashing stations around town, and distributed almost forty care packages with food and essential supplies. We can expand these efforts so much more with your help.

1. Would you or your members be interested in coordinating efforts to make sure the most vulnerable in our community are safe?

2. We are currently soliciting donations for tents, sleeping bags, and sleeping pads as the shelters are turning people away and we need people to stay safe during this crisis. If you could put the word out for any unused camping supplies, we would be happy to accept them and distribute them.

3. We have a fundraiser going to buy these supplies ourselves.

Donations may be brought to the parsonage.

COVID-19 update at St. Paul's UMC

We were informed yesterday that our cleaning service has suspended its operations in keeping with Boulder city/county and state of Colorado health orders. And so, in keeping with the latest health advisories and orders, and the guidance given yesterday by our bishop, the Trustees have determined that all in-person worship and other church activities are suspended until further notice. This will necessitate the closing of the building to all activities, including those of outside groups and the church office. Signs will be placed on the front and side doors with the closure information. I will be working from the parsonage and continue to be able to assist with requests for food pantry support and other pastoral needs..

From the bishop's letter: "At this time, given the trajectory of the coronavirus in our region, I request the closure of our churches and the suspension of all in-person worship and other church activities until at least May 1. We need to do everything in our power to slow/stop the rate of transmission. I again urge you to stay connected to your regional public health departments for the latest updates on COVID-19 cases in your area." (see the bishop's letter here)

We will continue to utilize social media platforms including our blog, website, Facebook ( @boulderstpauls), YouTube, ZOOM, as well as phone calls, letters, and emails, to stay connected with each other and to the world around us during this challenging time. Each Sunday, the sermon will be available on our YouTube channel and blog posts will share the joys & concerns of the community and any announcements. Beginning on April 5, we will also offer a time together (via ZOOM) on Sunday mornings at 10:15 to share prayers, announcements, scriptures, and more. The blog, Facebook page, and church calendar will have links to join ZOOM meetings and worship gatherings. This is a unique opportunity for our congregation to be creative in how we are a church in the 21st century. This time will allow us to question both the how we "do church" as well as the why we do the activities we do as a church. 

If you know of someone in our congregation who doesn't have email, please let them know of this update. As you hear of other concerns or needs in the congregation or community, please be in touch with the pastor and the church office, and together we will get through this time as the people of God called for such a time as this. 

Lenten Devotional for March 27

Note: Each Friday during Lent, one of the Seven Penitential Psalms will be offered. The penitential designation of these Psalms dates from the seventh century.

Psalm 102 (NKJV)

Hear my prayer, O Lord, And let my cry come to You. Do not hide Your face from me in the day of my trouble; Incline Your ear to me; In the day that I call, answer me speedily. For my days are consumed like smoke, And my bones are burned like a hearth. My heart is stricken and withered like grass, So that I forget to eat my bread. Because of the sound of my groaning My bones cling to my skin. I am like a pelican of the wilderness; I am like an owl of the desert. I lie awake, And am like a sparrow alone on the housetop. My enemies reproach me all day long; Those who deride me swear an oath against me. For I have eaten ashes like bread, And mingled my drink with weeping, Because of Your indignation and Your wrath; For You have lifted me up and cast me away. My days are like a shadow that lengthens, And I wither away like grass. But You, O Lord, shall endure forever, And the remembrance of Your name to all generations. You will arise and have mercy on Zion; For the time to favor her, Yes, the set time, has come. For Your servants take pleasure in her stones, And show favor to her dust. So the nations shall fear the name of the Lord, And all the kings of the earth Your glory. For the Lord shall build up Zion; He shall appear in His glory. He shall regard the prayer of the destitute, And shall not despise their prayer.

This will be written for the generation to come, That a people yet to be created may praise the Lord. For He looked down from the height of His sanctuary; From heaven the Lord viewed the earth, To hear the groaning of the prisoner, To release those appointed to death, To declare the name of the Lord in Zion, And His praise in Jerusalem, When the peoples are gathered together, And the kingdoms, to serve the Lord. He weakened my strength in the way; He shortened my days. I said, “O my God, Do not take me away in the midst of my days; Your years are throughout all generations. Of old You laid the foundation of the earth, And the heavens are the work of Your hands. They will perish, but You will endure; Yes, they will all grow old like a garment; Like a cloak You will change them, And they will be changed. But You are the same, And Your years will have no end. The children of Your servants will continue, And their descendants will be established before You.”

Bishop Oliveto Recommends Suspending In-Person Worship, Gatherings Through May 1

To the People Called United Methodist of the Mountain Sky Conference,

Grace to you and peace from God, our life-giver, Christ, our life-savior, and the Spirit, our life-connector.

First, I want to thank you all for the remarkable ways you have responded to ministry needs in the face of COVID-19. We are discovering together new ways to worship, new ways to do pastoral care, and new ways to respond to the needs of our communities. In spite of so much of ministry taking place virtually, we have remained deeply connected to one another and God, the Source of our Life.

COVID-19 cases continue to rise across our conference. While Colorado Gov. Polis has issued a “shelter-in-place” order for everyone in the state, most of us throughout our conference are voluntarily doing that as a way to slow down the rates of infection in our regions so as not to tax our health care systems.

Read the rest of Bishop Oliveto's letter at this link.

Supporting the church that supports you

Hello St. Paul's congregation. During this time of separation from each other, I would like you to know that I am hopeful, and encouraging you, to continue to send your pledges and donations to the church office.

Someone from the church office will put any checks that you send, in the safe in the office. The financial secretaries will be coming up to collect and deposit those funds on an every other week basis, with the next deposit being done on April 5. Martha B. will be sending out first quarter statements VIA EMAIL ONLY, this first quarter, on or after March 29. This is being done, as a courtesy, for this first quarter since we are a bit behind schedule on our giving, and we have had requests asking for this information. Please note that your financial statement will be coming from the new, Breeze Church Management System and will look a bit different than the statements of old.

We appreciate your willingness to keep the church in your list of "things to do" each month, and know how thankful we are to each of you for your steadfast stewardship and dedication to St. Paul's UMC. Feel free to reach out to Bob Muckle, Martha Batch, or Molly Nunnery if you have any questions or concerns.

An appeal for justice

Greetings from the Office of Economic and Environmental Justice of United Methodist Women.

As women of faith, we believe that it is a biblical imperative to care for all of God’s creation, particularly the most vulnerable. The impacts of the coronavirus national emergency  are threatening peoples’ access to basic services like electricity and water and fundamental livelihood. Hundreds of thousands of workers across the country have lost their jobs or had their wages cut, and 2.25 million more are estimated to lose their jobs in the next week as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. We are asking you, as United Methodist Women  leaders and people of faith, to contact your senators and Congressperson and tell them to prioritize providing economic relief directly to people who are most vulnerable by doing two things:

First, implement an immediate moratorium on all electric and water utility shut-offs, waive late-payment charges, and reinstate disconnected services.

Second, provide federal relief and stimulus packages that uphold five principles: 

1. Health is the top priority, for all people, with no exceptions 
2. Economic relief must be provided directly to the people 
3. Rescue workers and communities, not corporate executives 
4. Make a down payment on a regenerative economy while preventing future crises 
5. Protect our democratic process while protecting each other 

Click here to learn more and contact your Members of Congress. 

As we respond to this crisis, we have the opportunity to forge a just recovery that creates healthier, more equitable and more just communities that reflect God’s kin-dom. Please share this with your United Methodist Women members, friends, and on social media. 

Contact your Members of Congress today! 

Lenten Devotional for March 26

St. Augustine of Hippo

Great art Thou, O Lord, and greatly to be praised. Great is Thy power and Thy wisdom is infinite. And Thee would man praise, man but a particle of Thy creation, man that bears about him his mortality, the witness of his sin, that Thou resistest the proud. Yet would man praise Thee, he but a particle of Thy creation. Thou awakenest us to delight in Thy praise. For Thou madest us for thyself and our heart is restless until it rest in Thee. 

Grant me, Lord, to know and understand which is first--to call on Thee or to praise thee? And again, to know Thee or to call on Thee? For who can call on Thee, not knowing Thee? For he that knoweth Thee not may call on Thee as other than Thou art. Or is it better that we call on Thee that we may know Thee?

St. Augustine of Hippo (354-430)

A Prayer from Bishop Karen About COVID-19

Washington, D. C – The Council of Bishops (COB) of The United Methodist Church has asked all United Methodists to join people of faith in a day of prayer on March 25, asking God to rid the world of the coronavirus pandemic.

A prayer from Bishop Karen 

"I lift up my eyes to the hills — from where will my help come? My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth." Psalm 121

Today, I invite you to join with people of faith in prayer as we seek God's guidance, wisdom, comfort and strength in the face of the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic.

Pray for those who are suffering from the virus; grieving the loss of loved ones, adjusting to an unfamiliar rhythm, anxious and frightened.

Pray for those working on a cure, making supplies to keep our our health care workers safe, and health care workers everywhere.

Pray for those on the front lines of providing us with essential services and supplies, grocery store workers, farmers, factory workers, first responders, and utility providers.

Pray for those who have lost or will lose their jobs and businesses.

Pray for government leaders as they enact bold decisions to keep us safe.

Pray for the Church, that we may rise as the Body of Christ to care for our neighbors in their time of need.

Pray for one another, that the bonds of community we share will be strengthened even as we are separate from one another.

Lenten devotional for March 25

You have noticed that everything an Indian does is in a circle, and that is because the Power of the World always works in circles, and everything and everything tries to be round.

In the old days all our power came to us from the sacred hoop
of the nation and so long as the hoop was unbroken the people
flourished. The flowering tree was the living center of the hoop,
and the circle of the four quarters nourished it. The east gave peace
and light, the south gave warmth, the west gave rain and the north
with its cold and mighty wind gave strength and endurance. This
knowledge came to us from the outer world with our religion.

Everything the power of the world does is done in a circle. The sky is round, and I have heard that the earth is round like a ball and so are all the stars. The wind, in its greatest power, whirls. Birds make their nests in circles, for theirs is the same religion as ours.

The sun comes forth and goes down again in a circle. The moon
does the same and both are round. Even the seasons form a great
circle in their changing and always come back again to where they were.

The life of a man is a circle from childhood to childhood, and so it is in everything where power moves. Our teepees were round like the nests of birds, and these were always set in a circle, the nation's hoop, a nest of many nests, where the Great Spirit meant for us to hatch our children.

-Black Elk, Holy Man of the Oglala Sioux (1863-1950)