Ramona United Methodist Church
The Valley Spirit
Open Hearts, Open Minds, Open Doors
May 2012
Notes From The Lay Leader Inside this issue: Lay Leader Article
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Hunger Walk UMW
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Friendship Circle Birthdays Treasurer
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By the time you read this we will be halfway through Eastertide and well on our way into Spring. Truly, this is a time of new life in our community, in our church and hopefully within each of you. Now is the time for all of us to consider how we will reflect the Good News of the stone rolled away and the empty tomb. How will you reflect your status as a child of God?
OUR VISION:
These questions are nothing new. As far back as 85 AD Christian communities were asking themselves "Do I really need to do this hard work?" They had come to realize that Jesus' return was not going to be immediate. False teachers were harassing the church and enticing its members to embrace a different and easier approach to life. Following the teachings of Jesus made the members of the early Christian church different and sometimes being different is hard.
An inclusive community of faith, learning and serving for the glory of Christ
One of my favorite quotes is from George Bernard Shaw, “Re a so n a b le p e o p le a d a pt themselves to the world. Unreasonable people attempt to adapt the world to themselves. All progress, therefore, depends on unreasonable people.”
NAMI Open Door Dinner Calendar
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Volunteers LPLC
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Scrip Notes from Music Director
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I like it so much that I once had business cards made with my title as Unreasonable Software Engineer. I saw my role at the time as one who needed to drive changes to an organizations development process. Perhaps I'll print some cards with the title of Unreasonable Christian, although without the context of the quote, I'm sure that some will equate unreasonable with intractable or worse yet, equate it with the phrase "unreasonable faith" used often by atheists. So here's how I think we need to reflect our status as children of God by being Unreasonable Christians. After searching for a way to frame my arguments, I decided on what is often called the greatest commandment. We have all probably heard and read Jesus' commandments. As a reminder, here it is as written in Matthew 22, "Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first commandment.
and
Cont’d on Page 2
great
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T h e V a l l ey S p i r i t
May 2012
Lay Leader’s Article Continued From Page 1... And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself." Now for my first unreasonable act, I want to suggest that this scripture implies a third commandment-that of loving yourself. Loving yourself is the foundation of the other two. We need to care for ourselves in all that we do so we have the strength, energy and passion necessary to fulfill the other two commandments. That means caring for our bodies and our souls. Proper food and rest, as well as proper study and prayer. Consider attending Bible studies, worship, and other church activities. Set up a time for private study, reflection and prayer. Once we have our love for ourselves in place then we are ready to tackle our neighbors, but be careful that "someday" doesn't become your favorite day of the week to take action. Consider what it means to love yourself, then step out in faith, take a risk and put things in God's hands. So who are your neighbors and what should I be doing to show them my love? Start with the people in your church. Do you know someone who could use a visit? Maybe you know someone who could use some other kind of help, like babysitting for the Bible study or choir rehearsal. How about volunteering to help with Faith Weaver Friends or Vacation Bible School or the Pre-School Carnival. If you're not sure what needs to be done, then ask.
Once you take the first step in showing love to others in your church community, the next step is to reach out into the greater community. Have you ever considered helping serve the Open Door Dinner or maybe picking up and distributing the Golden Share food once a month? RUMC sponsors a Cub Scout Pack and we are seeking to do more than just provide them with a meeting space. Do you have a skill or knowledge that can help them with their program of badges? Do you know of other opportunities for us to be involved in our community showing love to our neighbors? We want to know, and more importantly, we want to act. As you learn to love yourself and your neighbors, you will have many opportunities to experience that God Is Good! As your time of worship and study and reflection continues you will begin to understand how many ways there are to fall in love with God, using mind body and soul. God has demonstrated His love for us with the empty tomb and we are called to a new life. I encourage you to prayerfully consider how you will act in that new life to be the best child of God you can be.
J.D. Baker Certified Lay Speaker and Lay Leader
Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not rely on your own insight. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. Proverbs 3: 5-6
May 2012
T h e V a l l ey S p i r i t
2012 CROP Hunger Walk Crop Hunger Walks help children and families worldwide—and right here in the U.S.—to have food for today, while building for a better tomorrow. Join us in this local (2 and 1/2 mile) walk that begins at 1 pm on Sunday, May 20 at Collier Park. If you would like to recruit pledge supporters to sponsor your walk, please pick up an envelope from Princess Norman or Jorgene Gedman. You can walk even without pledged supporters, but plan to make a donation if possible. For those who are active online, you can s u p p o r t t h e e v e n t a t www.churchworldservice.org., then click on CROP Hunger Walk. The funds are raised for the poverty stricken people of our community as well as throughout the world. The First Congregational Church directs the CWS to return 25% of funds raised to the local organizations such as the Ramona Food and Clothes Closet and “Meals On the Go” through the Ramona Senior Center. Individual donors and churches can designate to which of several affiliated organizations they wish to donate. A complete list is on the CWS website. Let’s do our part in participating locally to “End Hunger One Step at a Time”.
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UMW Spring Luncheon Spring Luncheon Time is Upon Us! If you haven’t purchased your $15 tickets yet for this year’s UMW Spring Luncheon contact Joanne Bowden at (760) 788-1514 right away. Invite a neighbor or friend too. There may still be seats available for this wonderful event held on Saturday, May 5 at the church. The San Diego Chorale Club will serenade us as we enjoy the delicious salad luncheon. Spectacular gift baskets and exquisite quilted items will be available in the Opportunity Drawings. Thank you for supporting this important UMW fundraiser, enabling them to continue their mission work. You won’t want to miss it!
Friendship Circle
July UMW Meeting
The Friendship Circle will meet at 10 am on Wednesday, May 2, at the home of Rose Howland, 15745 Vista Vicente Drive. LaVina Stromberg will lead the devotions.
The will be no UMW meetings held in May or June.
All women are invited for a morning of i n s p i r a t i o n , fellowship, and refreshments.
We will resume July 21 with a progressive dinner beginning at *6 pm, followed by program and devotions. All women of the church are encouraged to attend. *The Board will be meeting prior at 5 pm.
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May 2012
Note From Treasurer Annual Budget Requirement: $190,192 Monthly Budget Requirement: $14,354 Last Month’s Gifts: $8,010 1
Sharon Baker
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Kathie Luckie
5
Todd Gilbreth
7
Cara Wochaski
9
Serena Gilbreth
13 Leslie Wilson 15 Annette Theaker 19 Ryann Wilson 20 Meredith Hardesty 22 Bob Mayou 23 Rey Riego 23 Jennifer Sager 27 Karyn Wochaski
NAMI National Alliance on Mental Illness is offering a FREE educational course hosted by RUMC for families and friends of individuals who experience mental illness. Classes will be held in the LPLC pre-school building choir room on Friday evenings from 6:00 pm—8:30 pm, now through June 29. This is an opportunity to gain understanding and empowerment.
information,
insight,
To register, please call (619) 543-1434 or the church office. Visit www.namisandiego.org for more information.
30 Cyndy Manning
Open Door Dinner
May Anniversaries 15 Ryan & Elizabeth Dreyer 28 Paul Wilkinson & Scott Gilmour
The Open Door dinner involving RUMC will be held on May 21 at the Grange Hall, 7th & Main Street at 6:00 p.m. If you are interested in planning, cooking, serving, eating or cleaning up, please call Mary Lou Gray for further information. We hope to see many of you there!
May 2012
T h e V a l l ey S p i r i t
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May 2011 Sunday
RAMONA UMC
Monday
Office Hours Tues-Thurs 9 am - 1 pm
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
1 Women’s Breakfast 6:30 am McDonalds
2 Friendship Circle 10 am Home of Rose Howland Leadership Mtg. 6:30 pm
3 Men’s Breakfast Ramona Cafe 6 am Choir Rehearsal 6:30-8:00 pm
4 National Alliance Mental Illness Meeting 6:00-8:30 pm
5 UMW Luncheon 12:00 pm
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7
8 Women’s Breakfast 6:30 am McDonalds
9 Faith Weavers 4:30 pm Potluck 6:00 Bible Study 6:30
10 Men’s Breakfast Ramona Cafe 6 am Choir Rehearsal 6:30-8:00 pm
11 National Alliance Mental Illness Meeting 6:00-8:30 pm
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13 Mother’s Day
14 Trustees Meeting 6:30 pm
15 Women’s Breakfast 6:30 am McDonalds
16 Faith Weavers 4:30 pm Potluck 6:00 Bible Study 6:30
17 Men’s Breakfast Ramona Cafe 6 am Choir Rehearsal 6:30-8:00 pm Pack Meeting 6 pm
18 National Alliance Mental Illness Meeting 6:00-8:30 pm
19 Armed Forces Day Golden Share Foods Dist. 10-11 am
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21 Open Door Dinner 6:00 pm Finance Meeting 6:00 pm Ad Council 7:00
22 Women’s Breakfast 6:30 am McDonalds
23 Faith Weavers 4:30 pm Potluck 6:00 Bible Study 6:30
24 Men’s Breakfast Ramona Cafe 6 am Choir Rehearsal 6:30-8:00 pm Worship Mtg 5:30
25 National Alliance Mental Illness Meeting 6:00-8:30 pm
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27
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29 Women’s Breakfast 6:30 am McDonalds
30 Faith Weavers 4:30 pm Potluck 6:00 Bible Study 6:30
31 Men’s Breakfast Ramona Cafe 6 am Choir Rehearsal 6:30-8:00 pm
Liturgist: May 6 May 13 May 20 May 27
J.D. Baker Princess Norman Terry Carlson Rex McCray
Greeters: May 6 May 13 May 20 May 27
Rose Howland/LaVina Stromberg Mary Williams/Dolores Sasway Open Karen Harris
Office Hours: Tues-Thurs 9 am - 1 pm
This Month’s Volunteers Coffee Fellowship: Flowers: May 6 May 13 May 20 May 27
Month Of May: Choir
Bernard & Adelaide Young Bob & Phyllis Elsner Open Karen Harris
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May 2012
Little People’s Learning Center Thank you to ALL! For the great carnival, we had fun and raised some funds. Much preparation work was done by the LPLC board and some very generous parents. We could not do it without you.
Little People’s Learning Center is so excited to have a full summer of programming for toddlers through elementary school age children. We hope you will visit Little People’s soon to see the children working and playing!
We are licensed for 65 preschoolers, have room for children as young as 18 months and space for 28 elementary age children. The center is licensed by the State of California and has qualified, experienced staff. Our curriculum aims to meet the needs of each child academically, physically, socially, emotionally and spiritually and includes enrichment.
Planning a Trip?
Scrip
It’s May and you may be planning on some time away. If so, you can help RUMC as you travel—or stay home. Did you know you can order SCRIP for a trip to Disneyland or Six Flags? We also have SCRIP to buy gas or for fast food places and restaurants.
Don’t know where you’ll be spending money? Need to get a gift for someone? The American Express SCRIP gift card can be used almost everywhere.
What if you are planning to see San Diego, go to the beach or the mountains? We have grocery store SCRIP so you can stock up for a picnic. Staying home? Working on the house or the yard? We have Home Depot and Lowe’s SCRIP. We simply have SCRIP for whatever or wherever your plans are. The beauty of scrip is that you spend no more money than you otherwise would while RUMC gets a percent back to help us in our mission to be a church!
See you at the gazebo at Fellowship Time after church.
May 2012
T h e V a l l ey S p i r i t
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Impactful Worship I read a quote at the bottom of some email I received that said, “Believe in it and you’re half way there.” It struck me differently because that is such an easy thing to say with a much harder amount of work to follow. As I brushed it off and moved on with whatever I was doing, I came back to that quote after Holy Week. I think most of you heard about the impactful Good Friday we had and the emotional testimony. If you haven’t viewed it online, take some time to do that by going to www.youtube.com and search “RUMC Good Friday Service 2012”. As I reflect back on the service, somehow it makes me curious as to what the music program’s purpose is. Why does the music program exist inside the church? The answer to the question is simple but the achievement is quite difficult. We are here to influence emotion, facilitate the Holy Spirit’s movement through the congregation, to enhance the power of the Word and to minister the message of Jesus. Yet, we are always in discussion about rehearsals, logistics, schedules and any other mundane part of our organization. This makes me wonder sometimes about, you know, that whole quantity over quality argument. Our worship is, in my opinion, one of the most important aspects of our church existence. We must have a powerful service that connects each member of the congregation to God and each other, one that builds community and doesn’t just hold it together, a service that outside folks can come to and feel the power of our faith and receive sanctuary from the world. Good Friday proved we can accomplish all of this if we just go for it.
We paired our music and the word in wonderful unity making the recipe for impactful worship. We have a $10,000 goal in place to upgrade our sound system and to add visual enhancements as well. This is a whole new step toward impactful worship. This upgrade will bring our service into a new place while keeping our traditions and cornerstones as well. Enabling our worship to reach those it hasn’t before, to invite those people to join us in community and fellowship. We know it’s a big goal but not some 30 years ago this church was born and the goal to achieve such a task was big. Yet, faith prevailed and we have our wonderful church. That faith and passion is the ticket to achieving our goals, not just for the sound system but for all the things that await us. I hope all of you will be with us on our continued journey.
Blessings,
Jason Purtle Music Director
NON-PROFIT ORG. US POSTAGE PAID PERMIT NO. 148 RAMONA, CA
Ramona United Methodist Church 3394 Chapel Lane Ramona, CA 92065-3640
Open Hearts, Open Minds, Open Doors
RETURN SERVICE REQUESTED
We’re on the WEB! Ramonaumc.org & umc.org Rev. Myron Wingfield, District Superintendent J.D. Baker, Lay Speaker Jason Purtle, Music Director Kevin Cavanaugh, Accompanist Ministers: The People of the Church Little People’s Learning Center 760-789-3435 Jill Bacorn, Director Barbara Green, Admin Asst.
Opportunities to Participate in the Life of RUMC Sign up on the
Crop Hunger
Open Door
bulletin board in
Walk
Dinner @
the church
Sunday
Grange Hall
May 20
Monday
narthex to serve and participate! (greeters/coffee
May 21
hosts/providing
Teams Needed
6:00 pm
flowers on
Sign Up Now!
Volunteers
Sunday)
Needed
Articles for next month’s Valley Spirit are due by June 17th