Note: This is our blog's 1,000th entry
Monday, November 30, 2020
Meeting the neighbors
Passing of Elaine Morrison
It is with sadness that we have learned of the death of Elaine Morrison, a member of St. Paul's UMC.
To view the Channel 9 story of Elaine's family's response, view this link. Woman remembers mother who died of COVID-19 | 9news.com.
No information is available at this time regarding a memorial service.
This week @ St. Paul's UMC
Wednesday:
10:00 am, Virtual Coffee/Tea (register at this link)
Saturday:
5:00 pm, Facebook Live with Bishop Oliveto
Sunday: 2nd Sunday of Advent
10:00 am, Virtual Worship
Scripture lessons for December 6
Devotional for November 30
Painting by Sue Hodge
Even if we’ve heard the story a thousand times, it’s an amazing story. Angels appearing out of nowhere, babies being born, God coming to earth to save us from our sins....It is important that we try to tell the story anyway. We’re like the shepherds who ran to tell what the angels told them. God wants us to tell the story of Jesus as well as we can, even if it’s not perfect.
Sunday, November 29, 2020
It's a very Covid Christmas
T’was a month before Christmas,
And all through the town,
People wore masks,
That covered their frown.
The frown had begun
Way back in the Spring,
When a global pandemic
Changed everything.
They called it corona,
But unlike the beer,
It didn’t bring good times,
It didn’t bring cheer.
Contagious and deadly,
This virus spread fast,
Like a wildfire that starts
When fueled by gas.
Airplanes were grounded,
Travel was banned.
Borders were closed
Across air, sea, and land.
As the world entered lockdown
To flatten the curve,
The economy halted,
And folks lost their nerve.
From March to July
We rode the first wave,
People stayed home,
They tried to behave.
When summer emerged
The lockdown was lifted.
But away from caution,
Many folks drifted.
Now it’s November
And cases are spiking,
Wave two has arrived,
Much to our disliking.
Frontline workers,
Doctors and nurses,
Try to save people,
From riding in hearses.
This virus is awful,
This COVID-19.
There isn’t a cure.
There is no vaccine.
It’s true that this year
Has had sadness a plenty,
We’ll never forget
The year 2020.
And just ‘round the corner -
The holiday season,
But why be merry?
Is there even one reason?
To decorate the house
And put up the tree,
When no one will see it,
No-one but me.
But outside my window
The snow gently falls,
And I think to myself,
Let’s deck the halls!
So, I gather the ribbon,
The garland and bows,
As I play those old carols,
My happiness grows.
Christmas ain’t cancelled
And neither is hope.
If we lean on each other,
I know we can cope.
November 29 @ St. Paul's UMC: Prayers
Joys:
+We give thanks for the "We Gather Together" time on Thanksgiving Eve.
+We give thanks for all who contributed to our Advent/Christmas devotional.
+Blessings on those who distributed the Advent/Christmas bags.
+Steve M. gives thanks for improving health.
+Angela B. is feeling blessed to have time with her new grandson.
+Don & Peggy F. are enjoying improving health.
+Katherine R. is thankful that Sydney is coming to intern with Steve B. in May.
+Belinda A. gives thanks to the UMW for a special gift.
+Bob M. is feeling back to normal.
+We give thanks for this week's birthdays: Marcus B., Jerry F., Mary F., Don F.
+We are blessed this morning through the musical ministries of Hannah G. (piano), Lorie C. (piano), and Bob M. (song leader). Thanks also to Amy A. (liturgist), and Scott Glancy (slides).
Concerns:
+We lift up Elaine M. as her family carries the news of her recent death into the season of Advent.
+We lift up in prayer those facing a COVID-19 related illness, those supporting them, and those who are providing treatment.
+We ask prayers for those facing economic uncertainty in the face of the ongoing pandemic.
+Sally O. asks prayers for her daughter-in-law, Alice, who is having health concerns.
+Amy A. asks for travel mercies this coming week.
+Don B. is awaiting results from a COVID-19 test.
+Melanie M. asks prayers for Jesse who is dealing with a COVID diagnosis.
+Prayers are requested for the Rev. Tracy Hausman, whose father recently passed away. Rev. Hausman currently serves Park City UMC in Park City, Utah. 12-9 Sandy Bainbridge
12-10 Lance Bishop November 29 @ St. Paul's UMC: Announcements
+In keeping with current City/County of Boulder, State of Colorado, and Mountain Sky Conference guidance, in-person worship at St. Paul's UMC is cancelled until further notice.
+You are invited to join us each Wednesday morning @ 10:00 am, for a virtual coffee/tea informal gathering via Zoom. Join our gathering at this link.
+Please consider supporting the work of UMCOR on Giving Tuesday at this link.
+We will be posting our 1,000th blog entry on Tuesday!
+Each Saturday at 5:00 pm, our bishop spends time in prayer for the laity and clergy of our conference on the Mountain Sky Conference Facebook page.
+Be sure to view our calendar to see the latest activities being offered through various virtual platforms.
+Please remember to send your gifts and offerings to support the ongoing ministries of St. Paul's UMC (Boulder) to Martha B.
November 29 @ St. Paul's UMC: Worship
First Sunday in Advent
Today’s Meditation Verse: “O that You would tear open the heavens and come down, so that the mountains would quake at Your presence…” - Isaiah 64:1
Welcome—Pastor Charles
Prelude: “In the Bleak Midwinter” —Hannah G.
Call to Worship (Psalm 80:1-3)—Pastor Charles (Leader) and Amy A. (People)
Congregation is encouraged to read People’s response aloud on mute setting.
Leader: Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel, You who lead Joseph like a flock! You who are enthroned upon the cherubim, shine forth before Ephraim and Benjamin and Manasseh.
People: Stir up Your might, and come to save us! Restore us, O God; let Your face shine, that we may be saved.
Lighting the Advent Candle: Steve and Martha B. (from UMCDicpleship.org)
Hymn: “People, Look East” (verses 1 & 2)—recorded by Hannah G. and Bob M.
Congregation is encouraged to sing along on mute setting; words and music will be provided onscreen.
Community prayer requests, concerns, and celebrations—Pastor Charles
Pastoral Prayer and the Lord’s Prayer—Pastor Charles
Congregation is encouraged to pray The Lord’s Prayer aloud on mute setting.
Epistle Lesson: 1 Corinthians 1:3-9—Amy A.
Musical Offering: “I Was Touched, and I Believe”—Chancel Choir (December 1, 2019)
Second Lesson: Isaiah 64:1-9—Pastor Charles
Sermon: “Let’s wrap this thing up”—Pastor Charles
Words for the Journey—Pastor Charles
Postlude: “O Come, O Come Emmanuel” — Hannah G.
Devotional for the First Sunday of Advent
My Best Gift
The best gift I have ever received was a surprise hug from my daughter Lily. Now don't get me wrong - all hugs from my family are treasures to me - I am one lucky man! But this surprise hug stands out for the blessing of its power and joy.
It was an ordinary Wednesday and the family had piled into the car and we had raced to get Ella to 4th grade on time and then raced to get Lily to 7th grade by the ringing of the final bell. I had dropped Lily off and was pulling out to head to work when from the corner of my eye I saw her running after the car. I pulled back over and came to a stop and she flung the passenger door open and jumped into the car. She then proceeded to lunge- and I mean lunge- at me full force; hugging me with what seemed to be every ounce of energy and love she could muster.
“What in the world, Lily - are you alright”, I asked. Breathlessly, and with tears in her eyes and joy in her voice she yelled (in my ear) “I love you Daddy. I just love you so much that it bubbled up inside of me and thought I was going to explode if I didn't hug you right this very minute. Boom!!”
Boom indeed. Out of completely ordinary circumstance on a completely ordinary day I was hit with such an enthusiastic expression of love. I gave her a kiss and hugged her back and off she went happily to school. I cried all the way to work. I was so humbled by this enormous burst of love and joy - counting myself as lucky and blessed beyond measure.
I love the journey of advent - for the joy it offers and the way it calls us to be open to a hit of love divine. It takes our ordinary and calls us to expect the extraordinary. The older I grow, the more humble I become by such extraordinary love - both divine and human.
Saturday, November 28, 2020
The journey to Bethlehem
Each Saturday at 5:00 pm, Bishop Karen Oliveto shares with the people of the Mountain Sky Conference on Facebook Live. The bishop's devotional for the first week of Advent is an invitation to make the journey with her to Bethlehem.
Advent/Christmas Devotional is here!
Gift /É¡ift/ Noun 1.a thing given willingly to someone without
payment; a present.
“For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him may not perish but may have eternal life.” – John 3:16 (NRSV)
Our devotional has been prepared especially for your use during the seasons of Advent and Christmas. Each day during Advent, a reflection, written by a member of St. Paul’s UMC, will speak of the Nativity of Jesus through a reflection on gifts that have been received or given, that speak of the gift of Jesus in one’s life.
Beginning tomorrow, these devotional
entries will be available online on our Facebook page and on this blog.
Print copies are also available. Starting on
Christmas Day and continuing through the Twelve Days of Christmas (December
25-January 5) and ending on the Day of Epiphany (January 6), Pastor Charles offers
a thought for the day using quotes, a bit of the Twelve Days of Christmas song,
and a scripture verse. These are presented to remind us that God’s gift of
life, love, faith, and hope are given to us each and every day.
In the days and weeks to come, take a moment from your day and consider, “What gift have I been given or given to someone else that reminds me of God’s gift to the world?”
Friday, November 27, 2020
Holiday Giving with EFAA
The holidays will look different this year for everyone. Families with low-incomes, who have been disproportionally impacted by COVID-19, need help to make the holidays special for their children. This holiday season, we invite you and your family to make a difference in the lives of local families by giving back to EFAA.
A prayer on Black Friday
Heavenly Father,
We first and foremost thank You for the provision to be able to buy gifts during a time when the world’s economy is still in recovery mode. But as we thank You for this provision, we also ask for knowledge, wisdom, and discernment so that we can be good stewards over the financial resources You have given us. Do not let us exceed our budgets but let us stay within our budgets remembering that beyond the sales, on the other side, are people who could really use the money we would spend on gifts. Let us remember that our wants represent someone else’s needs.
Do not let the spirit of greed and consumption overtake us on this day. Let us remember that the Christmas season is not about buying things and receiving things as much as it is about spreading love and reminding people of the great love that came to the earth for us. May that same love extend on this day. May we exercise patience in long lines; kindness in crowds, and may traveling mercies be extending to us in traffic. Grant everyone safety throughout the day and beyond.
In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Symmonds, Nicole. "A Black Friday Prayer." Beliefnet, accessed 12 Oct. 2020, https://www.beliefnet.com/columnists/prayerplainandsimple/2009/11/a-black-friday-prayer.html.
Thursday, November 26, 2020
Hymn for Thanksgiving
1. God of love, who hear’st the prayer
Offered for a guilty land,Thou dost yet Thy wrath forbear,
Hold a while Thy lifted hand;
Thou with bowels of compassion
Giv’st us still a longer space:
Turn us then, the sinful nation,
Conquer by Thy pard’ning grace.
2 Thee in dreadful indignation
Marching through the land we saw,Stopped by Israel’s supplication,
Lo! Thou dost the scourge withdraw:
O that all might hear and tremble
At the long-suspended rod,
All in Jesu’s name assemble,
All confess the Son of God!
3 Grant us in this awful crisis,
Hearts Thy warning to receive,Hearts to cast away our vices,
Hearts to sorrow and believe:
Humbly at Thy footstool mourning,
Let us groan Thy face to see,
Let us all at last returning,
Find our help and rest in Thee.
4 Come, the contrite heart’s desire,
Friend of helpless sinners, come!Hear and answer us by fire,
All our sins forgive—consume,
Humble us, and then deliver
Whom Thou dost a while reprove,
save us then, and save forever, god of everlasting love!
- Charles Wesley
Hymns for the Public Thanksgiving Day, Oct. 9, 1746.
London: [Strahan], 1746.
Wednesday, November 25, 2020
We Gather Together with St. Paul's UMC
Virtual Thanksgiving Eve gathering!
Prayer – The Book of Common Prayer,
1979
Almighty and gracious Father, we give You thanks
for the fruits of the earth in their season and for the labors of those who
harvest them. Make us, we pray, faithful stewards of Your great bounty, for the
provision of our necessities and the relief of all who are in need, to the
glory of Your Name; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with You
and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
Come, Ye Thankful People Come, #694 - Don B.
Psalm 100 (The Inclusive Bible) - Claudia M.
Be joyful in the Lord, all you lands; serve the Lord
with gladness and come into the divine presence with a song. Know this: the
Lord, the Lord, is God; the One made us and to whom we belong; we are God’s
people, the sheep of God’s pasture. Enter the gates of the Lord with
thanksgiving; go into these courts with praise; give thanks to God and call
upon the name of the Lord. For the Lord is good, whose steadfast love is
everlasting; and whose faithfulness endures from age to age.
Thanksgiving Sharing - Belinda A.
We Gather Together, #131 - Don B.
George Washington's 1789 Thanksgiving Proclamation - Pastor Charles
Whereas it is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of
Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and
humbly to implore His protection and favor; and Whereas both Houses of
Congress have, by their joint committee, requested me to "recommend to the people of the United
States a day of public thanksgiving and prayer, to be observed by
acknowledging with grateful hearts the many and signal favors of Almighty
God, especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a
form of government for their safety and happiness:"
Now, therefore, I do recommend and assign Thursday, the 26th day of
November next, to be devoted by the people of these States to the service
of that great and glorious Being who is the beneficent author of all the
good that was, that is, or that will be; that we may then all unite in
rendering unto Him our sincere and humble thanks for His kind care and
protection of the people of this country previous to their becoming a
nation; for the signal and manifold mercies and the favorable
interpositions of His providence in the course and conclusion of the late
war; for the great degree of tranquility, union, and plenty which we have
since enjoyed; for the peaceable and rational manner in which we have
been enable to establish constitutions of government for our safety and
happiness, and particularly the national one now lately instituted for the
civil and religious liberty with which we are blessed, and the means we
have of acquiring and diffusing useful knowledge; and, in general, for all
the great and various favors which He has been pleased to confer upon
us.
And also that we may then unite in most humbly offering our prayers
and supplications to the great Lord and Ruler of Nations and beseech Him
to pardon our national and other transgressions; to enable us all, whether
in public or private stations, to perform our several and relative duties
properly and punctually; to render our National Government a blessing to
all the people by constantly being a Government of wise, just, and
constitutional laws, discreetly and faithfully executed and obeyed; to
protect and guide all sovereigns and nations (especially such as have
shown kindness to us), and to bless them with good governments, peace, and
concord; to promote the knowledge and practice of true religion and
virtue, and the increase of science among them and us; and, generally to
grant unto all mankind such a degree of temporal prosperity as He alone
knows to be best.
Given under my hand, at the city of New York, the 3d day of October,
A.D. 1789.
Blessing
Joy from the Mitten Tree
Cash donations still need to be logged in, and further purchases made with them (by me), but the donations from the Advent Kickoff were PHENOMENAL!!! Truly staggering. Kataleya helped me unpack them all last night, after Rebecca delivered them to our door in three huge tubs, and I sorted them into piles, and Christopher helped me tally them:
WOOL SOCKS: 114 pairs!
WARM GLOVES: 52 pairs!!!
WARM HATS: 47!!
MISC. OTHER WARM ITEMS: 6
$5 GIFT CARDS to McDonalds, King Soopers, Target: 90 cards x $5 = $450
I have SEVEN large trash bags stuffed full: 3 of socks, 2 of gloves, 2 of hats and misc. This is at least double what we've have before - and we aren't even done yet. The generosity of this church in the midst of this pandemic is astonishing.
- Claudia M.
Encouragement Throughout Advent
This Advent season, you can receive a daily email with a link to a brief devotion created by one of our laity or clergy, connecting us across the Mountain Sky Conference. Our advent devotions team (big thanks to Betty Nguyen, Akilah Bixler, Isaac Dunn, Amanda Daniell, and Patrick Lewis) has curated creative offerings from a rich diversity of perspectives, languages, and expressions, and in a variety of formats (videos, spoken word, translated in many languages, etc.).
These devotions will also be included on the Mountain Sky Ministry Crossroads as a Workshop. Once you have joined the network (see article below), you can join the “MSC Advent Devotions” workshop to interact with others as you engage with each daily devotion.
Register for the daily email at Advent Daily Devotion (brtapp.com)
Tuesday, November 24, 2020
The devotionals are on the way!
Among the items in the gift bags were the devotional and an LED candle, the newest church directory, and an ornament and a light switch cover, both made by Pastor Charles.
In addition to those who came by the church, other holiday bags and cookies were taken to homes of congregation members throughout Boulder County. Additionally, some devotionals and other treats were mailed to those residing in other states and outside of our county.
Thanks to Belinda A., Rebecca G., and Michele M. for getting the season off to a grand start!
Methodism 101: The Quadrilateral and the Means of Grace
The Means of Grace - Courageous and forward-leaning mission congregations practice
spiritual disciplines. Our vital work is a spiritual adventure based in John
Wesley's means of grace. John Wesley taught that God's grace is unearned and
that we were not to be idle waiting to experience grace but we are to engage in
the means of grace. The means of grace are ways God works invisibly in
disciples, hastening, strengthening; and confirming faith so that God's grace
pervades in and through disciples. As we look at the means of grace today, they
can be divided into works of piety and the works of mercy.
Works of Piety
Individual Practices – reading,
meditating and studying the scriptures, prayer, fasting, regularly attending
worship, healthy living, and sharing our faith with others
Communal Practices – regularly share
in the sacraments, Christian conferencing (accountability to one another), and
Bible study
Works of Mercy
Individual Practices - doing good
works, visiting the sick, visiting those in prison, feeding the hungry, and
giving generously to the needs of others
Communal Practices – seeking justice, ending oppression and discrimination (for instance Wesley challenged Methodists to end slavery), and addressing the needs of the poor
Monday, November 23, 2020
This week @ St. Paul's UMC
Monday:
9:00 am-noon, St. Paul's Advent drive-thru
4:00 pm, Virtual Worship Team
Tuesday:
9:00 am-noon, St. Paul's Advent drive-thru
7:00 pm, Virtual Trustees
Wednesday:
10:00 am, Virtual Coffee/Tea (register at this link)
4:00 pm, Virtual Memorial Committee
7:00 pm, "We Gather Together" virtual Thanksgiving Eve
Thursday: Thanksgiving Day
Saturday:
5:00 pm, Facebook Live with Bishop Oliveto
Sunday: 1st Sunday of Advent
10:00 am, Virtual Worship
Scripture lessons for the First Sunday of Advent
 |
| Click on the picture to make it larger. We begin the church year next week with the First Sunday of Advent. Our lessons come from Isaiah 40:1-11 and Mark 1:1-8. |
Painting: "The preaching of Saint John the Baptist" (1566) by Pieter Brueghel the Elder
Sunday, November 22, 2020
A Thanksgiving word from Bishop Oliveto
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)