|
September 24th, 2010
Volume 157, Number 21
|
|
Food ministries extend a hand to needy
Area churches seek to feed the hungry with food pantries, soup kitchens
By Rachel L. Toalson
Managing Editor
The homeless in Palacios, Texas, find empty, rundown homes to inhabit—a frame of a shelter from the heat or the sun or the cold or the rain. They have no electricity, no running water, no means to feed themselves. But leaders of Martha’s Table, an ecumenical feeding ministry run by several churches in the small town, know where every one of the 15-20 homeless people in their community “live.”
To meet the food needs of those homeless, leaders—led by the vision of Zach Nicholson, pastor of First Baptist, Palacios, and the location of the Rev. June White, pastor of First UMC, Palacios—opened Martha’s Table in February 2009 and fed 133 people that month. “We just felt like it was something the community needed,” said Earl Hudson, one of the facilitators of the ministry. “We serve everyone who comes in. We don’t have to ask names, we don’t have to take down anything of that nature.” “There are people who come to Martha’s Table who are quite financially able to buy food, but they are almost always elderly people,” White said. “They won’t cook much for themselves. No one is turned away if there is still food to serve.”
 The Hispanic Religious Partnership for Community Health, Inc., an effort shared between several Rio Grande Conference churches, seeks to meet the hunger need in inner city San Antonio.
The ministry serves free dinners every Monday, Wednesday and Friday to more than 1,000 people each month, White said. Some are elderly people, some are mothers with children, some are people who have no jobs or homes or families. According to the Society of St. Andrew, about 49 million people in the United States—considered one of the healthiest nations in the world—are at risk of hunger or food insecurity—defined as not knowing from day to day if there will be enough food for self or family. About 17 million of those people are children and 2.9 million are seniors.
Statistics show that food insecurity affects more than 14.6 percent of United States households.
Martha’s Table is seeking to change that in one corner of the world. Run by volunteers from 10 local churches, the ministry offers home-cooked meals—like meatloaf and potatoes or pasta and garlic bread—to an average of 85 people three times a week. Every month they have a birthday cake for that month’s birthdays.
They serve about 2 percent of the Palacios population and 100 percent of the homeless population, Hudson said. A Wesley Nurse also offers health screenings on the premises, and a food pantry helps keep people fed. Two churches have donated Bibles to the ministry, White said. They leave them out on a table so those who come to the dinners know they’re available if they want them. But they don’t make anyone take a Bible just to get a meal.
“This is a place to eat and fellowship,” White said. “We don’t preach to them. There are people who say we should, but we want to let them know they’re not forced to have religion just to get a free meal. Our discipleship is through our ministry. It’s there and it’s available.”
 Volunteers with Helping Hand Crisis Ministry of Spicewood interview clients and determine their level of need and whether they qualify for services beyond the food pantry.
A community garden was started at the Methodist church, and produce is donated to Martha’s Table, White said. Stoves have been donated, microwaves have been given, people have come to build shelves and handicap ramps and do the lawn maintenance on the mission house where food is served.
“The Lord’s hand was on this from the very first,” White said. Robert Woods, director of Helping Hand Crisis Ministry of Spicewood Texas, said a need inspired him and his wife to start the hunger ministry at which many of his fellow church members from Bee Creek UMC volunteer.
He and his wife worked at a similar ministry in a nearby community, and people from Spicewood would come for services. “We saw the need, and God told us to do it,” Woods said. In what is normally considered an “affluent” area,” Woods said, they see about 20 families a week for short-term needs like food donations, financial aid and minor home repairs. Families also receive more long-term care such as encouragement to participate in education classes, support groups, financial and personal counseling, spiritual support and job procurement.
In 2009, Helping Hand Crisis Ministry served 637 families with a total of 1,479 individuals. The ministry spent $33,610 in aid to clients. Located in Spicewood, the crisis ministry is supported by many individuals and agencies, Woods said. Leaders rent a space from a local homeowner’s organization and are open one day a week—Tuesdays from 4-6 p.m.
Clients receive bags of food that typically last a week. They go through interviews to determine their level of need and whether they qualify for any other services, like minor home repairs, bill pay assistance, financial counseling or recommendations for government financial assistance.
“I think (this ministry) gives some people hope that they don’t have otherwise,” Woods said. “They come in with tears in their eyes, and we pray and talk with them. We try to give them a little assistance. Our goal is to get them through crisis. Some of these people stay in crisis, but we’re mostly successful in doing that.”
Also connected with the ministry is the Vista House, a property formerly used as the office of Bee Creek UMC before the current church buildings were built. In February of 2009, the church offered the building to use as a temporary housing facility for people experiencing a crisis.
 Top left: Helping Hand Crisis Ministry of Spicewood does minor home repair, in addition to offering a food pantry, bill pay assistance, financial counseling and government financial aid. Bottom left: Members of Bee Creek UMC, Spicewood, volunteer at Helping Hand Crisis Ministry to put together food distribution packages, work on homes and provide counseling that clients might need. Right: Volunteers with the Hispanic Religious Partnership for Community Health, Inc., set potential clients up with an application for services.
The Rev. Laura Heikes, pastor of Bee Creek, said church members volunteer at Helping Hand Crisis Ministry, and the children and preschool students collect the canned foods that the ministry distributes. The food pantry at Coker UMC, San Antonio, recently celebrated its first anniversary Aug. 29. Partnering with the San Antonio Food Bank, the Coker ministry distributes food to families in the zip codes surrounding Coker.
As of Aug. 5, the pantry fed 3,822 people, a total of 1,060 families. Of the 3,822 individual visits, 635 were new people. The others were repeat visitors. In September 2009, the food pantry served 173 people, In July 2010, it served 686 people. The Hispanic Religious Partnership for Community Health, Inc., is a San Antonio-based food ministry committed to “working with individuals and families to help them reach their goals toward self-sufficiency.” The ministry offers emergency food distribution, utility assistance, job placement and vision assistance.
 The food pantry connected to the Hispanic Religious Partnership for Community Health, Inc., a partnership between several Rio Grande Conference churches, distributed food to 8,546 families in 2009. The ministry reaches out to the needy in San Antonio's inner city.
In June 1997, 10 Rio Grande Conference San Antonio churches founded the partnership. Leaders from the churches witnessed a need in the poorest parts of San Antonio and banded together to more adequately address those needs. Alimentos—the food and nourishment program for families—distributed food to 8,546 families in 2009. The food pantries also distributed bread to a total of 15,919 families.
Primary food and bread distribution sites are located at four locations, spread geographically throughout the county to provide services for a population with limited access to transportation, leaders say. The ministry has only three full-time staff members but about 150 volunteers, said Mark Nerio, a member of University UMC, San Antonio, who sits on the board of directors.
He said the ministry has just received notice from the City of San Antonio that funding is proposed to go up for the next year—in an economy “where other activities are being reduced.” “This nonprofit is one of the efficient ones,” Nerio said. “And it shows that you don’t have to have an army of staff people. You have an army of volunteers that make it work.” He said the partnership not only minister to the families who are helped but also to the volunteers who make it happen.
“There’s the direct service of supplying food to low-income folks,” Nerio said. “But in addition to that, the effort is in large part using the church facilities as an outreach, as a point of connection with the community as well as drawing upon church members who volunteer and receive clients and process them and distribute food to them.” Nerio said what makes the partnership so successful is the many volunteers who are invested in it. Leaders would like to see it happen in other areas as well.
 Martha's Table, a food program run by several churches in Palacios and housed out of the mission house at First UMC, Palacios, serves hot meals for the community every Monday, Wednesday and Friday evening.
“One of the challenges in small churches is that, while it’s a good idea—and no one can deny it’s a great program—if a pastor commits, that doesn’t mean you have a cadre of members who want to do it,” he said. “This is something you have to own so that you have sufficient resources and manpower to carry out the program. “Individually, churches may not have the wherewithal to put this together, but collectively, they can. The big challenge is how do we promote something like this to new churches? How do we do it so it’s not seen as just another church service but a bona fide ministry that can be good?” Because the partnership includes leaders from both the Southwest Texas and Rio Grande Conferences, it is an example of what Bishop Jim Dorff has in mind for the San Antonio Area.
“One of Bishop Dorff’s initiatives is to carry out ministry as an area, which includes both conferences,” Nerio said. “This is a wonderful manifestation of that effort, a group of Rio Grande churches that launched this program in the inner city and said, ‘Let’s expand our board of directors to include the community and the Southwest Texas Conference.’” The Society of St. Andrew (Advance #801600) is providing a variety of free resources that can be used to raise hunger awareness. They can be downloaded at http://www.endhunger.org/hunger_action-month.htm.
|
|
Confirmation Summit answers creating culture of growth
Answer me this: What is the age of the next generation of Christian disciples? Not meant to be ageist or a “gotcha,” this question is meant to help us focus on persons of EVERY age who are not yet discipled. It prompts one to wonder how young is too young, how old is too old and what time of life is the time when God will use you and me to reach the heart of another through the love of Christ empowered by God’s Holy Spirit. In the very midst of our community of faith—the congregation—exists one right answer: Confirmation. (If you must, yawn; please keep reading.)
Exciting opportunities exist that eradicate the perception of boredom in Confirmation class. Innovative and fun ways to embrace awesome learning are being collected and readied for sharing with Southwest Texas churches. Your conference Board of Discipleship’s Christian Formation and Education (CFE) team has begun collecting unique and proven methods currently used in successful confirmation programs. They want yours!
Ever notice how some churches do confirmation well? Research tells the team that many rich resources abound among Southwest Texas confirmation leaders. These tried and true resources are creatively produced, stimulatingly implemented, and enthusiastically received by people hungry for spiritual transformation and theological knowledge. Yet the resources usually cannot be found in watered-down denominational curriculum developed for one-size-fits-all congregations. The CFE team has embraced the idea of a Confirmation Summit of a few key leaders who are using innovative methods for confirmation.
We know that content is broad and varied, that classes can range from one weekend to two years and everywhere in between, that class size can be one or 50 plus, and that age levels can range from 10 years to 90 plus. We know that adult confirmation differs from youth or older elementary, and that mentors or friends in the faith make a significant difference in the confirmand’s experience. One in 10 interviews with teen confirmands reveal their first awareness of the closeness of God was when a grandparent passed away. Short interview paragraphs about each confirmand printed in the church bulletin make for holy, prayerful congregational reading during the ritual on Confirmation Sunday.
The CFE team is interested in hearing these kinds of “best practices” from you. They’re committed to sifting through massive amounts of Confirmation resources in order to offer Southwest Texas churches the best available tools for creating a culture of growth. Confirmation is for all ages, all stages, in all kinds of diverse and rich ways to learn. Great possibilities abound.
Please contact CFE Team Leader Carole Lahti, dlahti@sbcglobal.net; Confirmation Project Leader Kercida McClain, kercida@mylhumc.org; or Leadership Development Director Linda Keen, lkeen@umcswtx.org.
|
|
Gospel of John study enlightens participants on mysteries of book
 Participants at the Gospel of John study Aug. 17-19 at Mt. Wesley in Kerrville heard from Jaime Clark-Soles, author and associate professor of New Testament studies at Perkins School of Theology.
The Southwest Texas Conference hosted a seminar on the Gospel of John Aug. 17-19 at Mt. Wesley in Kerrville. Jaime Clark-Soles, author and associate professor of New Testament studies at Perkins School of Theology at Southern Methodist University, shared her passion and knowledge at the event. Event Coordinator, the Rev. Steven Sweet, introduced her as a “rising voice” on the Gospel of John. Pastors and lay persons from across the conference participated in a journey exploring the historical, cultural and theological considerations that help unravel the mysteries of the Gospel of John. Clark-Soles opened the scripture in a way that carried her audience from laughter to tears to teachable moments illuminating the Word in a most relevant and delightful manner, leaders said. Her knowledge of Greek shed light and brought participants into “a higher level of ignorance,” a process in which one is challenged to examine and expand one’s earlier understanding. She encouraged participants to examine the world behind the text of the gospel story, the world within the text and also the world in front of the text. Sweet expressed it as taking one “to a level of preparedness” that allows both pastors and lay people to take their congregation where it is not possible to go otherwise.
Clark-Soles added new dimension to the Gospel of John, pointing out how adeptly the author reveals and causes the reader to anticipate exactly what the writer wants the audience to know about God. The Gospel of John is the “language of sight” as the “intercharacterizations” (a word Clark-Soles coined to describe the connections within relationships) illumine truth. The Gospel of John gives only one command--to love one another as He has loved us.
Mark your calendars. Watch your mailbox. Don’t miss this Bible Study next year. Contact Sweet for details as they develop for next August. Meanwhile, look for Engaging the Word, Clark-Soles’ next book coming out in November.
For more Southwest Texas Conference events, visit www.umcswtx.org
|
|
Kerrville District news
On the Road Again - The DS is coming
She stands beside the road. I wonder if anyone wonders about her. Do men notice her? Or women? At a glance she looks nice, but up close you can notice the wrinkles so obvious with age. She needs more make-up, so to speak. Does anyone know her name? “Who are you talking about?” You might ask because you’ve never noticed or heard anything about her. Does anyone know anything about her?
I’m talking about Chapel Hill UMC, located at the intersection of Hwy. 183 and FM 963, between Lampasas and Liberty Hill. Even as I was looking for her, I sailed past. That’s in spite of the fact that there were no other buildings even close to her as she stood out there on the busy highway. I wondered how many thousands have passed by without seeing her, or hearing her witness to the Gospel.
The same question could be asked of another church I visited that same day. That old church is proud of helping establish her community long ago, but who else knows or cares? In that rapidly growing community the pastor is frequently asked, “Oh, is there a Methodist Church in town? Where is it?” He’ll reply “It’s across from that old restaurant that’s closed now. “Oh yeh, I’ve eaten there, but I never noticed the Methodist Church.” And that’s even with a Texas Historical Commission marker on the church!
Or I could remember pastoring First UMC in San Marcos. A bank located 4 blocks from the downtown church had forwarded money in our long-dormant account there to the State Comptroller’s Office. They didn’t send the money to us because they didn’t know where we were!!! And we had been there since 1847! Nobody in the bank knew where we were. If they had truly cared they could have looked in the phone book, of course. They should have known where we were! Or… if we had truly cared for others with a deliberate public witness the bank would have known where we were!
My point to all of these stories is to ask you – “do people in your community know you are there and do they care?” Or more importantly, do they know you care for your parish, your mission field, or all the people in need of Good News (or of food, drink, shelter, clothing, or empowerment)?
Another way to frame the question…is your church deliberately growing? Are you/we growing in the strength of our trust and obedience to God such that our weekly gatherings shape our soul and our service? For Christ’s sake! Do others at work or in our friendship circles see something alive us like joy, hope and love that they want? Do they know certainly of the sincerity of our Christian beliefs because they see the impact we are making on the lives of others? Is our voice growing louder through our actions so we can help drown out the hatred and intolerance spread by other Christians? I’m left wondering about all this as I’m on the road again. I’ll be stopping by to ask you these questions.
The DS is coming. It’s Church Conference time again. He really doesn’t want to hear the Trustees or UMW report. Put it in writing, pass it out. Just answer his question. As “your old lady” stands beside the road, does anyone notice or care? Or have you given them a compelling reason to stop by, worship and serve God with you?
|
|
Just Another Sunday?
By Robert Molder
District Lay Leader
Read Acts 2:41-47
Early on a sunny Sunday afternoon after church, I headed out for a walk around the neighborhood. A man was trimming his grass along the sidewalk, and we greeted each other with the usual “ Hello, how are you? “ In a negative tone, he replied, “It’s just another Sunday.” Later, I wondered what he had meant by that. Was he saying, I’m just doing my chores--going through the motions?
Sometimes even church attendance can become a matter of merely going through the motions on just another Sunday. For the believers in the early church (Acts 2:41-47), joining with fellow believers was a source of excitement. That was when the church first started and everyone was a new believer--so they were bound to be enthusiastic. But what about us? What can we do to make each Sunday special?
Go with the anticipation of meeting with God. While He is with us all the time(Heb. 13:5), God is with us in a unique way as we gather with others who know Him (Matt. 18:20; James 4:8). Bring your burdens and praises to Him.
Go to learn about God. We may not learn something every week, but we can always be encouraged by the truths of God’s Word (Ps. 119:105) . Expect to hear from Him.
Go to fellowship with others. We need each other in this Christian journey. Encourage others, challenge them in their faith, and pray for them (Hebrews 10:24-25).
If you want to be spiritually fed, go to church with a hunger for the Word.
|
|
Corpus Christi District news
Is prayer a part of a “culture of growth”?
The question was asked recently at an important conference setting, “What does ‘growth’ look like, and how will we know if it is happening?” It is a very good question and, thank God, there’s a good answer. I believe we have to first look at the church’s culture.
What do we have in place that we can utilize for growing spiritually, compassionately, emotionally, mentally, and ultimately numerically as we reach more for Christ? And in a devotional I did this morning, Eugene Peterson’s The Message passage made me see this passage in a new light: 1 Timothy 2:1-7: 1 The first thing I want you to do is pray. Pray every way you know how, for everyone you know. 2 Pray especially for rulers and their governments to rule well so we can be quietly about our business of living simply, in humble contemplation. 3 This is the way our Savior God wants us to live. 4 He wants not only us but everyone saved, you know, everyone to get to know the truth we’ve learned: 5 that there’s one God and only one, and one Priest-Mediator between God and us - Jesus, 6 who offered himself in exchange for everyone held captive by sin, to set them all free. Eventually the news is going to get out. 7 This and this only has been my appointed work: getting this news to those who have never heard of God, and explaining how it works by simple faith and plain truth. The life of a local church runs on prayer.
The church that does not pray is just going through the motions of being a social institution and has lost the power behind what God called the church to be. John Wesley’s great fear of this movement called Methodists? “I am not afraid that the people called Methodists should ever cease to exist either in Europe or America. But I am afraid lest they should only exist as a dead sect, having the form of religion without the power. And this undoubtedly will be the case unless they hold fast both the doctrine, spirit, and discipline with which they first set out.” If you desire to prove Wesley right, quit praying. And use those great excuses that have been around since day one, “I don’t know how to pray!”
I used to love that one especially when it came to public prayer. I had as my local church pastor a man who had what I considered a PhD in prayer. His were the most powerful, well-structured expressions of Castellian I had ever heard. I was a seminary student with a G.E.D. in prayer, namely Get ‘Er Done! And on my visits home, this kind pastor would say, “We’re honored to have a young seminarian home with us today and I’m going to ask him to lead us in the pastoral prayer this morning!” Gulp. I thought very seriously of limiting my trips home. If you know how to talk, you can pray. Just talk with God. The other great excuse is “I don’t have time!” We are perhaps the busiest society in history, but the underlying truth is that we are the ones who control our time. We prioritize what is important and we make time for those things.
Where do we rank prayer? Is that why we don’t have time for it? What I loved about the passage is that Paul says that prayer does not have a “right” way to pray, it is simply our desire to connect and talk to God. And as we pray, we pray for everyone we know, we pray for those who rule over governments and people, and our prayer should include our wanting to be a part of that which brings fullness of life to all people through salvation. Use the A.C.T.S. Model if you’re not comfortable praying, which is when you pray, use Adoration, in other words, worship God, praise God, use the time of prayer as worship time. The C is for Confession. Come clean with God, let God know what God already knows, we’ve not quite been who God wants us to be. T is for Thanksgiving. Give God thanks for all things. The things that have not been that welcome may have served to teach us something or to help us grow in some areas. S is for Supplication, sharing with God the concerns, petitions, request, needs that we have.
And in this particular version of the Bible, I love the verse that says, “Eventually the news is going to get out.” Yep. If we make prayer our life force and we pray about how we should live and love, it’s going to start to show and we won’t keep secret this great and awesome thing we have known for so long, that God loves us and desires a relationship with us. Yes, the news is going to get out. And we’re going to grow!
|
|
District happenings
Linda Morrow
Ministries Director
How do we live in connection with each other? Most of us as United Methodists recognize that we are a connectional church. Yet, do we take time to see and experience the richness of being in connection with each other and with the Lord?
This past month the clergy and their families gathered at St. John’s UMC in Corpus Christi for the annual Clergy picnic. Nearly a hundred of us feasted on fried chicken, potato salad, salad and desserts. It might not have been the healthiest food for the body, but it was truly a blessing for those who attended. During our time together District Superintendant welcomed the new clergy to the district, and encouraged us to tell stories of where we had seen God at work in our own surroundings. Sharing together did several things. First, it helped us see that God is at work and we are invited to join God in that work. And secondly, it gave many of us ideas of new possibilities of ministry. I truly believe that one of the greatest strengths of the United Methodist church is our ability to share and to help others see where God is at work and calling us to join in that work.
With these thoughts in mind, you may want to consider these new opportunities within our district. You are invited to Join Mickey Viar in helping the people of Haiti. Mickey will go in October to Haiti and he is taking over the counter medications to be used. If you and your church is willing to help contact Mickey at mviarwelder@gmail.com.
Join others as we discover a joy and peace filled season of Advent and Christmas as we retreat and think about what is really important. October 1-2 at the Mustang Island Retreat Center on Padre Island. It will begin on Friday afternoon at 4 p. m. and go through Saturday afternoon at 4 p.m. This retreat called “The Christmas Package Marked ‘Return to Sender”. Finding the Silence in Silent Night is designed to allow you to take time to answer these two questions. The cost of the event is $100. per peron. Registration forms can be found on the Corpus Christi Website www.ccdistrictumc.org.
The Older adult Council will be publishing its second edition of Connection a newsletter designed to bring Older adults together throughout the district. If your church is having any Older adult activities please send them to ccprogram@bizstx.rr.com or mail them to 3510 Gollihar, Corpus Christi, TX 78415 by the end of Sept so that they can be shared. Then look for ways to connect your group with another group with in the district. These opportunities will be great for inviting people that are not part of the church.
Please remember that we as a district have pledged to support Imagine No Malaria. Make sure that you and your church keep thinking of ways to support our brothers and sisters in Africa by supporting Imagine No Malaria.
Finally, we find support and help as we learn together. This year we will have 2 My Job Workshops in our District. The first one will be held on January 22, 2011 at Three Rivers and the second one on February 5 at Grace UMC in Corpus Christi. I invite you to start planning to come and bring others from your church so that you might learn, experience and connect with the Lord and with others in the District.
|
|
McAllen District news
What if we already have everything we need?
I’m sure the conference will be glad to know that the other new district superintendents and I have completed what is known as “DS Charm School.” (You will have to guess who won the Charm Competition at the end of the week.) It was a week of orientation, as well as a call to action on behalf of a hurting world. We heard especially about the myth of scarcity that plagues our vision—the conviction that we do not and will not have enough to do what God is calling us to do as the church.
Yet the God we serve is one of abundance. Story after story in the Bible speaks of the abundant life that accompanied Jesus’ presence – fishing, growing, harvesting, anointing, healing, and perhaps most of all, feeding. So the disconnect between Christ’s reality and ours may be one of perception, one of seeing. As our great contemporary teacher, Gil Rendle, has asked, what if we already have everything we need for what we have to do? What if, in fact, what we have is too much for to us answer God’s call? What if what we have and what we do is standing in the way of the new thing God intends to work in and through us, with the people God has given us to serve?
According to Rendle, it may well be the case that we do not have the resources to do what we have always done. But if we look with new eyes, eyes opened by the grace and power of the risen Christ, we may see that our resources are indeed enough for the new task lying before us. Christ took a child’s lunch and fed a multitude long ago; maybe he can take us too—what we have and who we are—and feed the ones around us now.
Valley Praise continues marching on
By Aaron G. Saenz
Lead Pastor of Valley Praise
In January 2006 FUMC Harlingen sent a small group of people to start “a new ministry in a new way” to the West side of town where the development was the fastest growing. Valley Praise was launched as a satellite worship service of FUMC. We fast forward a little over four years to June 1, 2010, which was the day Valley Praise was declared a New Church Start in the Southwest Texas Annual Conference. A Celebration was a must and the people of Valley Praise put on an epic party to commemorate this blessing on Sunday September 12th.
The date, the 12th of September, has been on the minds of the Valley Praise Lead Team since late May when it was understood that VP was going to be a New Church Start. We started preparing with visioning and planning in order to facilitate the biggest party we have had yet. To prepare for the event we locked down a BBQ pit master, an up and coming young singer/songwriter, a youth drama team (Audience of 1 from El Buen Pastor UMC), bouncers and even ponies, to compliment our already awesome weekend worship experience. To market our Big Day we had flyers made to be distributed by our congregation to people of our community and we put on a full out social media blitz via Facebook, Twitter, and MySpace. The fruit of planning, preparing, and a lot of Prayer was about to come to harvest.
Combining our two worship experiences, 10:00 and 11:30, to one 10:30 time allowed us to unify in vision for one day. 301 people, 40 of those were children age’s infant thru 5th Grade who worshiped at VP Kids located in two classrooms, gathered to fellowship, praise, hear the Word, and eat together. A message of life change targeted at tearing down walls by Marching On in prayer, praise, and perseverance was shared as we challenged people to tear down divisions between God and Neighbor through the power of the Holy Spirit. Ultimately it wasn’t just about the number of people, but rather it was the number of people who left Valley Praise changed in Christ Jesus in order to share the message.
|
|
San Angelo District news
New Format for charge/church conferences
Charge / Church Conference season is upon us. Here at the District Office we have begun scheduling our meetings with you. Now that I am beginning my third year as your District Superintendent I often ask myself this question: “How can we make the Charge / Church Conference a more meaningful experience?”
Bishop Dorff has inspired and urged the Cabinet to emphasize our Conference theme, “Creating a Culture of Growth” in our charge conferences this year. So instead of hearing a lot of reports (except those required by The Book of Discipline) I propose a report be given celebrating one area of “growth” in your church. By “growth” I mean spiritual growth, missional growth, not just numerical growth.
I also want to meet with your church’s Pastor Parish Relations Committee prior to or following the church conference. The purpose of this meeting will be for training and consultation. I know that details will have to be worked out, but I look forward to doing this very much. Both the Church Conference and meeting with the PPR Committee will be brief.
I hope this new format will help us focus on the positive growth that is occurring in our District.
See you soon Way Out West.
|
|
San Angelo District churches feed the children
Mason Feeds the Children
At last year’s United Methodist Women’s District meeting, the issue of children needing good quality food during the summer break was raised. My wife, Cindy, had previously assumed that the school in Mason provided meals throughout the summer, but later found that lunches were only provided during the two weeks of summer school. So, she set out to develop a local program that would provide for this need. In the process, she discovered that over two-thirds of the students enrolled in Mason ISD qualified for free or reduced school lunches, and this service would certainly be welcomed.
She contacted the First United Methodist Church in Mason to gain approval of the use of their fellowship hall and kitchen for a place to serve the meals. She then began contacting federal and state agencies to secure funding. FUMC approved the use of the facilities. The government hurdles were another matter. With the many regulations and red tape, and a minimal amount of funding, Cindy decided that this would be totally a community and church driven program.
Volunteer organizations were recruited and local funds secured. The program would feed children Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays though the summer. Each volunteer organization would pick a day to buy, prepare, and serve a meal. Funds were raised to provide paper goods and milk. There were eight menus for the organizations to choose from that included a protein, vegetable, fruit, and grain. Along with the organizations that volunteered to serve, several volunteers came as often as possible to interact with the youth as mentors. We played games, read devotions, and got to know the kids. One of the most important aspects to the success of the program was to make sure that all children were welcome, not just those in need. It was important to ensure that no stigma was attached to the program.
The program started slow. It averaged about 15 children, but word spread and eventually we were feeding about thirty five. At one point, a young mother took Cindy to the side and told her how much she appreciated what we were doing, and that her children had only eaten Ramen noodles for the last few weeks. And, this past week, as I was rounding up a few kids to be taken home, I came across a nine year old girl in the prayer chapel kneeling before the cross praying silently.
In this economy, the program has helped many families provide at least one balanced meal for their children this summer. It has also provided a place for children whose home lives are distraught with parental drug use, absence of electricity and water, and all around neglect. It has been a place for kids to fill their bellies as well as a place for the Holy Spirit to fill their hearts as well as the hearts of the volunteers.
I don’t know what the need for this type of program is in other communities, but I would be happy to talk to any of the churches in the district that would like to consider such a program in the future to share the things we’ve learned this year. I know there are others like Menard that are doing this on a bigger scale, but for those that aren’t sure how to get started, or get started on a very tight budget (we spent less than $600 for the whole summer) we can certainly provide some insight.
Menard Feeds the Children
When First UMC of Menard discovered that the local school district would be unable to provide lunch during the summer of 2008, the Summer Lunch program began. Now in it’s third year of operation, the free lunch program serves a hot meal during the noon hour from June through mid-August. Over the past three summers we have served over 3,000 meals to more than 100 children.
Volunteers from throughout the community gather early to prepare the meal. Others provide produce from gardens and hen-houses. Still others donate canned goods and desserts. Not only do the children receive a good meal, the volunteers enjoy conversation in the kitchen.
First UMC and St. Luke UMC of San Angelo Feed the Children
For seven weeks, five days a week, First UMC and St. Luke UMC shared the responsibility of providing food to two different locations in San Angelo where children were fed a good, healthy noon meal. First UMC provided the kitchen and manned the duties for 5 weeks and St. Luke provided volunteers for 2 weeks. Immanuel Baptist and Calvary Baptist Churches were the sites designated for the children to come receive their meal.
A total of 175-200 children, parents and volunteers were fed each day. Our churches prepared the food and delivered it to the other churches for serving. A note written by one of the servers said, “Feel good about what you are doing! We’re on the front lines and get to see all the warm smiles and happiness your food brings them. Everyone needs to be complimented for a job well done.”
|
|
|
Briefs
Holy Land tour with Bishop
Jim Dorff to begin Jan. 31
Bishop Jim Dorff is inviting members of the
San Antonio Area to join him and his wife,
Barbara, on a Holy Land Pilgrimage beginning
Jan. 31. The trip will be 10 days of Biblical
discovery in Jerusalem, Galilee, Bethlehem
and Nazareth.
Travel arrangements are provided by Educational
Opportunities. Cost of the trip is $2,246, and a
deposit of $300 is required upon registration.
Cost includes roundtrip airfare, deluxe motor
coaches, guided sightseeing, entrance fees to
sites visited, first class hotels, buffet breakfast
and dinner daily and online Bible study guide.
Savings are offered for early registration. Visit
www.eo.travelwithus.com to register and pay
by credit card or check.
Faith UMC, Austin,
to offer health fair Oct. 16
rit, Community will be at Faith UMC, 2701 South
Lamar, Austin, Oct. 16 from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. The
fair is free and open to the public. Featuring more
than 40 exhibitors, the fair embraces a holistic
approach to living a healthy lifestyle. Visitors will
learn how to enrich their lives and help their
families and community by taking better care of
their intellect, bodies, souls, relationships and the
environment. There will also be live entertainment
and door prizes.
Exhibitors include Austin Community College, Austin
Energy, Austin Cycling Association, Austin Zumba,
Community Yoga Austin, Galaxy Dance Studio,
Sustainable Food Center, Capital Area Mental
Health Center, Eremos A Center of Contemplative
Life and more.
Kerrville District
The Kerrville District staff has compiled the
information for Page 6 and paid to use the
space as a district newsletter.
Bill Henderson
Superintendent
dskerrville@texxa.net
Elizabeth Cover
Admin. Assistant
kdumc@texxa.net
Address:
222 Sidney Baker S # 528
Kerrville, Texas 78028
District Office
(830) 896-6400
Fax: (830) 896-6407
Program Office
(830) 896-6400
District Calendar
September
28-29 Cabinet
October
7 District Youth Professional’s
meeting; LlanoUMC; 11-2
12 Newsletter deadline
26-27 Cabinet
November
4 District Youth Professional’s
Meeting at Fredericksburg
UMC, 11-2 PM
9 District Professional’s Meeting
(North) at Lutie Watkins
Memorial UMC, Llano
10 District Professional’s Meeting
(South) at Sabinal FUMC
Corpus Christi District
The Corpus Christi District staff has compiled
the information for Page 6 and paid to use the
space as a district newsletter.
Eradio Valverde, Jr
Superintendent
districtsuper@bizstx.rr.com
Sheila Campbell
Admin. Assistant
ccdistrict@bizstx.rr.com
Linda Morrow
Ministries Director
ccprogram@bizstx.rr.com
Address:
3510 Gollihar Road
Corpus Christi, TX 78415-2750
District Office
(361) 852-8268
Fax: (361) 852-3370
Program Office
(361) 852-8268
District Calendar
September
25 Lay Speaker Training, Portland
FUMC.
28-29 Cabinet Meeting.
October
1-2 District Spiritual Retreat, Mustang
Island.
7 Pastor’s Reports due.
7 Sea City Workcamp at District
Office, 6:30 pm.
12 Newsletter Deadline.
14 Older Adult Meeting, District Office,
1 p.m.
24 Taft UMC, 100 year Celebration,
Bishop Dorff preaching.
25 Eradio Valverde’s Birthday
McAllen District
The McAllen District staff has compiled the
information for Page 7 and paid to use the
space as a district newsletter.
Rev. Laura Merrill
Superintendent
lauramerrill@sbcglobal.net
Linda Jewell
Admin. Assistant
umcmcallen@sbcglobal.net
Oralia Sanchez
District Editor
oralia0804@yahoo.com
Address:
1909 W. Harrison St.
Harlingen, TX 78550
District Office
(956) 428-0200
Fax: (956) 428-1728
Program Office
(956) 428-0200
District Calendar
September
26 District Superintendency Commit
tee; FUMC, McAllen; 3:30 p.m.
28-29 SWTX Cabinet
28 Youth Leader Dinner; FUMC,
Weslaco; 6 p.m.
29 DYPS; St. Mark UMC; 11 a.m.
October
1-3 Clergy Spouse Retreat; Mt. Wesley
2 Lay Speaking Training; TBA.
21-24 Women’s Walk to Emmaus;
Bayview
|
|
