We're a lively bunch!

Our weekly Wednesday gathering was such fun today! 

The Wednesday morning check-in will be continuing following our (re)launch of in-person ministries at St. Paul's UMC. Please contact the church office to request the Zoom link.

Work underway

Bobby D. and crew are on hand today at the church to begin repairs on the sewer line. This is a much-needed project made necessary by a recent leak and we are fortunate to have such a capable worker on our Trustees.

It's official!

The Mountain Sky Conference cabinet

Year three begins July 1st

Pastor Charles has been reappointed to St. Paul's UMC by Bishop Karen Oliveto for a third year at today's fixing of appointments held via Facebook Live.

Wednesday with the Wesleys

 

News You Can Use --- June 29, 2021

Join us Sunday at 10:15 for in-person worship and communion in the sanctuary. When you enter, there will be a table by the ushers' stand with extra masks, hand sanitizer, index cards, and bulletins. Masks are recommended and will be MANDATORY when singing. Pastor Charles and the other server will be masked during communion. As we receive communion, an usher will keep people separated in line. Index cards for writing out joys and concerns will be available in the pews and at the ushers' table. Ushers will collect the cards, and Pastor Charles will read the prayer requests aloud. Microphones will not be passed, nor will offering plates be passed through the pews during worship. You can leave your offering at the ushers' table or utilize online or text giving options. The Fellowship Team will host fellowship after the service. To hear Amy Abshire describe what to expect, click here.

Volunteers are needed for up-coming in-person services. Contact the church office if you are willing and able to serve as liturgist or usher, contribute flowers, or provide fellowship in the coming weeks. Alternatively, the volunteer clipboard will be at the ushers' table on Sunday so you can sign up.

Reminder about auto-draft checks: If you have checks sent via auto-draft from your bank to Martha Batch's house, please change that address back to St. Paul's UMC effective immediately. If you have signed up for online giving, no changes are necessary. Questions? Please contact Martha at marthabatch@gmail.com for a quick and friendly reply. 

To view last Saturday's "Saturday Night Live with the Bishop," click here.

To view the photos Belinda shared during last Sunday's Zoom service, click here.

UMCOR at work in Florida

We join with The Florida Conference of The United Methodist Church in praying for the Surfside community in Miami following the devasting condo collapse.

UMCOR has awarded a grant to bolster the conference’s disaster relief efforts as they support survivors and families.

Support the work of the U.S. Disaster Response at this link.

Fixing of pastoral appointments

Please save the date and time, this Wednesday at 11:30 AM, as the 2021-2022 clergy appointments will be fixed by Bishop Oliveto. 

All appointments to local churches span one year. Assignments are reviewed through discernment, prayer, conversation, and evaluation. Church needs, growth areas, and opportunities are aligned with pastors' gifts and skills. The appointments are usually fixed at the Annual Conference session, but because this year's Annual Conference  was scheduled to follow the postponed General Conference (which has been postponed again until 2022), they will be fixed the last week of the month, prior to the July 1 start of the new appointment year.

You are invited to join the session through the link that will be on the Mountain Sky Conference Facebook page for this very important event in the life of our churches and pastors. 

Happy birthday, John Wesley

The Old Rectory - Epworth

June 17, 1703 (Julian Calendar) / June 28, 1703 (Georgian Calendar)

From John Wesley's journal, June 28, 1775 

"This being my birthday, the first day of my seventy-second year, I was considering. How is this, that I find just the same strength as I did thirty years ago? That my sight is considerably better now and my nerves firmer than there were then? That I have none of the infirmities of old age and have lost several I had in my youth? The grand cause is the good pleasure of God, who doth whatsoever pleaseth him. The chief means are: (1) My constantly rising at four, for about fifty years. (2) My generally preaching at five in the morning, one of the most healthy exercises in the world. (3) My never travelling less, by sea or land, than four thousand five hundred miles in a year." 

From his journal, June 28, 1785

"Today I entered on my eighty-second year and found myself just as strong to labour, and as fit for any exercise of body or mind, as I was forty years ago. I do not impute this to second causes, but to the sovereign Lord of all...; I am as strong at eighty-one, as I was at twenty-one, but abundantly more healthy, being a stranger to the head-ache, tooth-ache, and other bodily disorders which attended me in my youth. We can only say ‘The Lord reigneth!’ While we live, let us live to him!"

This week @ St. Paul's UMC

Monday: John Wesley’s birthday     

Wednesday:                                                                                                                         9:00 AM, Wednesday weeders                                                                                                  10:00 AM, Zoom check-in                                                                                                          11:30 AM Fixing of clergy appointments (Facebook Live)                                                  6:30 PM, Virtual Mission u

Thursday:                                                                                                                               11:45 AM, Ladies Lunch Bunch                                                                                            3:00 PM, Ladies Summer Book Group                                                                                    6:30 PM, Virtual Mission u

Saturday:                                                                                                                                  5:00 PM, Facebook Live with Bishop Oliveto

Sunday: Independence Day                                                                                                  9:00 AM, Adult study class                                                                                                 10:15 AM, Return to in-person worship                                                                              11:30 AM, Fellowship time                                                                                                  12:30 PM, Beautiful Korean Church

Scripture lessons for July 4

St. Paul's UMC will celebrate its return to in-person worship next Sunday! Join us on Independence Day for a gathering to give thanks to God for bringing us through the last sixteen months, stronger in our faith and in our community.

The scripture lessons will be Mark 6:1-13 and our second week in the Apocrypha with Tobit 13:1-13.

June 27 @ St. Paul's UMC: Prayers

Joys:

+Rebecca G. gives thanks for her sister coming to visit and for her parents who were able to be with her sister in Costa Rica for her medical treatments.                    +Lifting up in prayer all the pastors who are moving this week to new pulpits and the churches that will be welcoming them.                                                                            +Belinda A. gives thanks for the St. Paul's UMC family and our life together during the pandemic.                                                                                                                      +Brenda S. is thankful that her sister was able to visit this past week.                    +Angela B. gives thanks for the virtual convention she attended and the friends from college she connected with.                                                                                    +Angela B. gives thanks for this week's visit from her daughter & family.             +Doris S. gives thanks for her niece, great-niece, and great-great nephew's visit.    +Sally O. gives thanks for the wedding of their nephew this week.                           +We were blessed this morning through the music ministries of Hannah G. (piano), Rebecca G. and Steve & Michele M. (song leaders). We were also blessed through the ministry of Amy A. (liturgist), Belinda A. (recording), and Scott G. (slides).

Concerns:

+Suzanne P. asks for prayers from the shootings in Westminster last week.            +We offer prayers for the dead, injured, and missing from the building collapse in Miami, Florida.                                                                                                                       +We offer prayers for those who are still experiencing the effects of Covid-19.              +We join with people around the United States in mourning the 369 killed in gun violence over the past week.

June 27 @ St. Paul's UMC: Announcements

+St. Paul's UMC will re(launch) our in-person worship next Sunday at 10:15 AM. Please help spread the word that we're going to be celebrating our journey through the past sixteen months and for where we go next!

+The Wednesday morning virtual coffee/tea gathering continues each week. Join us for some lively conversation wherever you might be!

+Please save the date and time, this Wednesday at 11:30 AM, as the 2021-2022 clergy appointments will be fixed by Bishop Oliveto. You are invited to join the session through the link that will be on the Mountain Sky Conference Facebook page for this very important event in the life of our churches and pastors.

+The Ladies Lunch Bunch will be gathering at 11:45 on Thursday at the Olive Garden in Westminster. Contact Marcia H. for reservations.

+ Rev. Youngwon Seo and Hannah Gu are moving to a new church appointment in Colorado Springs. Please bring a card or note next Sunday to wish them well and to thank them for their ministry among us here in Boulder.

June 27 @ St. Paul's UMC: Worship

Fifth Sunday after Pentecost

Today’s Meditation Verse: “When Pentecost Day arrived, they were all together

in one place.”                 – Acts 2:1

Welcome – Pastor Charles

Prelude: “Holy, Holy, Holy” — Hannah Gu

Call to Worship (UMC Book of Worship #406)—Pastor Charles (Leader) and Amy Abshire (People)

Leader: Come, let us worship Almighty God.

People: Let us lift up songs, our prayers, and our praises.

Leader: Come, let us honor Christ Jesus.

People: Let us love Christ with our hearts, our minds, our spirits.

Leader: Come, let us be filled with the Spirit of the Living God.

People: Breathe in us, Breath of God. Alleluia!           

—Reprinted by permission of the publisher from Touch Holiness, ed. Ruth C. Duck and Maren C. Tirabassi. © 1990 The Pilgrim Press.

Hymn: “Breathe on Me, Breath of God” Verses 1 & 2

 

Hymn for Pentecost (Charles Wesley)—Amy Abshire

Jesus, we on the Word depend, Spoken by Thee while present here, “The Father in my name shall send The Holy Ghost, the Comforter.” That promise made to Adam’s race, Now, Lord, in us, even us; And give the Spirit of Thy grace, To Teach us all Thy perfect will. That heavenly teacher of mankind, that guide infallible impart, To bring Thy sayings to our mind, And write them on our faithful heart. He only can the words apply through which We endless life possess and Deal to Each his legacy, His Lord’s unutterable peace. That peace of God, that peace of Thine, O might He now to us bring in, And fill our souls with power Divine, And make an end of fear and sin; The length and breadth of love reveal, The height and depth of deity; And all the Sons Of Glory seal, And change, and make us all like Thee!

Community prayer requests, concerns, and celebrations—Pastor Charles

Pastoral Prayer/The Lord’s Prayer—Pastor Charles

Gospel Lesson: John 15:26-27; 16:4b-15—Amy Abshire

Musical Offering: “There is a Redeemer” — Hannah Gu

                   

Second Lesson: Prayer of Manasseh—Pastor Charles

Sermon: “All we ever wanted”—Pastor Charles

Celebration of Ministry: What to Expect for In-Person Worship—Amy Abshire

 

Hymn: “There’s a Wideness in God’s Mercy” Verses 1 & 2

Words for the Journey—Pastor Charles

Postlude: “All Hail the Power” — Hannah Gu

Tell Congress: Help end school pushout!

Show your support for the reintroduced federal Ending PUSHOUT Act (H.R.2248)! 

As United Methodist Women members and friends, we are called to do all we can to interrupt the school-to-prison pipeline. Children of color, especially, are far too often targets of broken and biased systems. We know that racial disparities are rampant, with Black girls about six times as likely to be suspended as white girls. 

Read more at this link.

Pride Reflection on Sunday

Have you been Devoted with PRIDE this June? Check out the archive of this month's devotional series, curated by LGBTQ+ clergy, laity, and allies!

We'll be hosting a community debrief & reflection time on June 27th @ 7pm MST. Email Court VonLindern at nextgen@mtnskyumc.org for more information.

Summer sermon series

Pastor Charles invites you to join him this summer on a journey through the Apocrypha! These lessons are a valuable insight into the period of the story of faith between the Old Testament and the New Testament. 

Read about the Apocrypha at this link.

The series will look like this:

June 27: The Prayer of Manasseh

July 4: Tobit 13:1-13

July 11: Judith 14:8-10

July 18: Baruch 5:1-9

July 25: Sirach 51:1-5, 13-30

August 1: Wisdom of Solomon 1:1-16

August 8: 2 Maccabees 1:1-6, 24-29

August 15: 2 Esdras 4:13-21

August 22: Prayer of Azariah 28-34

Take Action: Support Free and Fair Elections

As United Methodists, we “hold governments responsible for the protection of the rights of the people to free and fair elections” believing that “the form and the leaders of all governments should be determined by exercise of the right to vote guaranteed to all adult citizens.” (2016 Book of Discipline, ¶164A)

Read more at this link.

Wednesday with the Wesleys

 

Join the Wednesday fun!

Here is the link for Wednesday morning fellowship. We will continue to meet at 10:00 a.m. via Zoom every Wednesday through the summer, even after we return to in-person worship. Take a mid-morning break with your fellow St. Pauls-ians without having to leave your home!

Understanding Ableism

Ableism is not a new phenomenon. Picture Bartimaeus sitting at the side of the road outside of Jericho (Mark 10: 46-52). He may have worked before he became blind, but he is now relegated to sitting outside the town wall and begging for his living.  Hearing that someone important is passing by on the road, he takes the initiative to ask people in the growing crowd who the man is. Upon learning that Jesus is near, he shouts to get Jesus’s attention. Those around him, presumably including some disciples, try to shush him. Other translations say they rebuke, scold, or sternly order him to be quiet, but he persists. The crowd deems Bartimaeus  unworthy of Jesus’ attention. Probably wanting to get on the good side of Jesus, their tone turns patronizing when Jesus calls for Bartimaeus to come, but they don’t offer to guide him to Jesus. 

In Jesus, Bartimaeus encounters a different sort of response. Jesus looks at him, seeing him as a whole person who can speak for himself, and asks what he wants.  Jesus makes no assumptions but listens to the response. “I want to be able to see again.” Since Bartimaeus appears to be quite independent, his request was likely due to the isolating effects of being blind in that era. Jesus offers healing and a return to community. Bartimaeus is so touched that he leaves his cloak behind and follows Jesus into Jerusalem and the passion week drama that was to unfold.(*1)

Read more at this link.

UMCOR is on the scene

UMCOR is in prayer for the many communities across the southeastern United States that endured the effects of Tropical Storm Claudette over the weekend, including devastating flooding and tornadoes.

Damage assessments have begun and, in partnership with conference disaster response coordinators, UMCOR stands ready to be a source of relief and hope.

SUPPORT DISASTER RESPONSE IN THE UNITED STATES:

https://umcmission.org/advance-project/901670

This week @ St. Paul's UMC

Wednesday:

9:00 AM, Wednesday Weeders

10:00 AM, Virtual check-in

6:30 PM, Virtual Mission u

Thursday:

3:00 PM, Women's Summer Book Group

6:30 PM, Virtual Mission u

Saturday: 

5:00 PM, Facebook Live with Bishop Oliveto

Fifth Sunday after Pentecost

8:30 AM, Adult class

10:00 AM, Virtual Worship

Scripture lessons for June 27

"King Manasseh in Exile" - Maerten de Vos, 1603

We bring June to a close next week and begin our summer sermon series with readings from the Apocrypha. We will hear lessons from John 15:26-27; 16:4b-15 and the Prayer of Manasseh     

World Refuge Day and the UMC

Human beings have always moved from one place to another. The freedom to move is so precious that it is a protected human right.

Immigration is when a person freely chooses to move to another place. It might be temporary or permanent. Immigrants often move to resettle as a family, to fulfill a job placement, or as a reprieve from situations of injustice and war.

Read more at this link.

Happy first day of summer

A Summer Blessing

May you walk with God

This summer

In whatever you do

Wherever you go

Walking with God means...

Walking with honesty

And with courage,

Walking with love

And respect

And concern for the feelings of others

May you talk to God

This summer

And every day and

In every situation

Talking with God means...

Praying words of praise

For the beauty of creation

Saying prayers of thanks

For friends and good times,

Asking God's help

In all your decisions

Expressing sorrow

When you have failed

May you talk with God

Every day. Amen.

- Author unknown

June 20 @ St. Paul's UMC: Prayers

Joys

+We celebrate and remember our dad's today on Father's Day. Thanks to the twenty-nine who sent in pictures of their dad's for the power point presentation.

+We give thanks for the ministry of Rev. Youngwon Seo and Hannah as they prepare to move to a new church in Colorado Springs.

+Katherine R. is thankful for the gift of Zoom worship over the past fifteen months.

+Belinda A. gives thanks for the Zoom link provided by Rev. John Daniels of a memorial service for a UMW member in Missoula, Montana.

+Austin and Joan are blessed to celebrate their 66th anniversary this week.

+Judy W. gives thanks for the beginning last week of the Ladies Summer Book Group.

+We celebrate birthdays this week: Betty H. and Zach N.

+We were blessed this morning through the musical ministries of Lorie C. (piano) and Don B. (song leader). We were also blessed by Amy A. (liturgist), Belinda A. (video), and Scott G. (slides).

Concerns

+We remember in our prayer Amy M. who is experiencing health issues related to Covid.

+Brenda S. asks for continuing prayers for her sister who is experiencing health issues.

+Sally O. asks for prayers of healing for Heather.

+Lorie C. asks for prayers for her brother, Steve.

+We join with the people around the United States in mourning the 355 people killed in gun violence in the past seven days.

+We remember those facing a Covid-19 related illness, those supporting them, and those who are providing treatment.