Loving and Learning in Lodi, for Sunday, August 23, 2020  

Lodi United Methodist Church             

Many of us of a certain age may remember the message from Popeye the Sailor: eat your spinach and you will grow big and strong! Strong is generally a good thing: a strong faith, two strong arms, a strong foundation. Yet the other day as I reflected upon a recent conversation with a friend whose body is becoming weak from the effects of cancer and chemo, I recalled the words from St. Paul written in his second letter to the church in Corinth which affirm
that  often when we are  “weakest “ God is stronger within us. ( 2 Cor. 9-10 )  Paul himself had gone from being a powerful and respected Pharisee to a follower of Jesus who did time in jail and who was at times the object  of disrespect because he was not one of the original twelve apostles.  This week as we explore the notion of prayer as the power of powerlessness in Acts 2, the Pentecost narrative, I hope we will reflect on the true nature of power in Christ ... and eat our spinach!  Hope to see you Sunday!       Pastor Pam

Acts 2: 1-18  The Holy Spirit Comes at Pentecost

2 When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. ² Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. ³ They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. ⁴ All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues^[a] as the Spirit enabled them.

⁵ Now there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven. ⁶ When they heard this sound, a crowd came together in bewilderment, because each one heard their own language being spoken. ⁷ Utterly amazed, they asked: “Aren’t all these who are speaking Galileans? ⁸ Then how is it that each of us hears them in our native language? ⁹ Parthians, Medes and Elamites; residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia,^[b] 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene; visitors from Rome ¹¹ (both Jews and converts to Judaism); Cretans and Arabs—we hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues!” ¹² Amazed and perplexed, they asked one another, “What does this mean?”

¹³ Some, however, made fun of them and said, “They have had too much wine.”

Peter Addresses the Crowd

¹⁴ Then Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice and addressed the crowd: “Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say. ¹⁵ These people are not drunk, as you suppose. It’s only nine in the morning! ¹⁶ No, this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel:

¹⁷ “‘In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy,
    your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams.
¹⁸ Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy.

The Word of God for the people of God.  Thanks be to God.

 Hymns   “Be Still, My Soul”         #534

               “Sweet, Sweet Spirit”     #334

   “I Surrender All”  #354

Come as You Are in the Family Car - Worship, Sunday 10am  

Hope to see you, with your mask, of course! Bring your lawn chair.

We were so excited to “see” so many of you last week – looking forward to this week!  See you Sunday!

(Please be patient, as each week in a work in progress.)

I Pray Wednesdays    

God is always listening!      God hears me when I pray.  Psalm 66: 19

Wednesday evenings 7-8

Fellowship Hall     MASKS are a must and social distancing

This is a unique time for our spirits; for some it is very emotional; others may just feel out of tune.  I Pray will explore Jesus and his emotions as we learn ways to grow spiritually.

To keep us safe, there is a limit of ten people per week.
Pastor Pam will offer various learning, praying, faith and fellowship topics each week.
RSVP to Pastor Pam, (216) 704-0307, call or text 

     School My Sheep Update from Katrina: 8am – noon THIS SATURDAY

Set up will take place Friday at 10:00 in Fellowship Hall

It's been another busy week! Fliers have been placed, schools notified and additional advertising done on Facebook.

We are READY!  We now have enough supplies to send 244 students back to school! God is good.

Thanks to all the donations, we now have more than 150 book bags as well, which is great! Not every student takes one, as the older ones tend to reuse them from year to year. 

 WOW! Thank you so much for your generosity!

August 21st 10 a.m. Set up in Fellowship Hall

August 22nd 8-Noon School Supply Give-away (we have enough volunteers!)

Volunteers need to be in place no later than 7:30 a.m.

October 15th    Clothing Give-away - More on this later  (LeRoy UMC kids, in virtual VBS, collected 345 pair of new socks for our clothing giveaway!)

Please continue to keep this in your prayers as it's an enormous need, and one we hope to fill.

This Thursday, August 20 – Lodi Hospital will be doing a “grab a bag and go” dinner.  They are able to have a company (Panera, Jimmy Johns etc.) make and package soups and sandwiches, which they will bag (feeding two people per bag).  The community can drive through the church parking lot and pick up dinner.  They want to feed the community, but realize we cannot do our free dinners, as in the past.  (At this time, we, as a church, will not be doing any type of our free dinners. We sure wish we were able to!)

Coming soon: THE RAMP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Offering:  Remember to mail your offerings to Lodi UMC, PO Box 3, Lodi, OH 44254 

During these trying times of uncertainty, the ministries of the church continue daily, even though the physical doors are closed.  We need to remain mindful of the church’s financial obligations.  Please keep the church in your continued prayers and with your financial support, remembering, also, your pledge to “Celebrate 100”.  Thank you,       Jeff Van Loon   Finance Chairman  

Rev. Pamela Buzalka       (216)-704-0307        pamelab23@hotmail.com