Loving and Learning in Lodi, June 28, 2020

HEAR YE, HEAR YE, Pastor Diane “WILL NOT” be sharing the 6/28/20 message. Fortunately, or unfortunately, you are stuck with me…….assuming you will even want to listen to my message about the transition we find ourselves confronted with.  All I can tell you is that my topic will be Goodbyes and Hellos. These words take on an entirely different meaning for us these next few weeks.

Thank you, Larry Scott

Philippians 4: 6-8

⁶ Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. ⁷ And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

⁸ Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.

Hymns: 

 “He Leadeth Me: O Blessed Thought”   (verses 1-4)  #128

“Hymn of Promise”   (verses 1-3)    #707

 “Abide with Me”   (verses 1, 3, 4)  #700

Please save your plastic caps & lids for a “buddy bench” at Sylvia Anderson’s great nephew, Braden’s school.

h  $993.08    Youth Work 

My Last Living and Learning in Lodi for June 21, 2020

Last week’s service was richly blessed with Missy Laughlin’s music…thank you Missy! Also, I’m so thankful that Larry Scott sang the duet with me last week…a true blessing for me!

          The time has come…this is my last weekly email to us. When I came to Lodi UMC, I was not used to weekly communications and wondered how I would ever find something to say each week! But, four years later, I’m used to it and wondering how I will adapt to different patterns at Bell Chapel UMC!

          As you remember from when Rev. Don and Tammy were appointed to Mansfield, for the next year, we respect Pastor Pam as she begins serving at Lodi by refraining from communication between me and you all. For example, I’ll still be on Facebook…in the background…stalking you all!! But, I won’t respond to your posts as I have been. I’ll just be happy to see what you are doing and what is bringing you joy!

          I look forward to seeing you all this Sunday as you come and we get to say our good-byes. I have the giveaways for the women from Mother’s Day and will have this week’s giveaway for the guys for Father’s Day.

          Because this week’s message falls on Father’s Day, we’ll look at King David and his son, Solomon. King David longed to build a temple for the Lord, but the Lord God wouldn’t let him. Why?...you ask? Listen in to find out!

                                                                   Always yours…

                                                                        Pastor Diane

This Sunday’s service:  

I Chronicles 28:1a, 2-8, 11-13 & 20-21  

1 Chronicles 28:1

David’s Plans for the Temple

28 David summoned all the officials of Israel to assemble at Jerusalem: the officers over the tribes, the commanders of the divisions in the service of the king, the commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds, and the officials in charge of all the property and livestock belonging to the king and his sons, together with the palace officials, the warriors and all the brave fighting men.

1 Chronicles 28:2-8 

² King David rose to his feet and said: “Listen to me, my fellow Israelites, my people. I had it in my heart to build a house as a place of rest for the ark of the covenant of the Lord, for the footstool of our God, and I made plans to build it. ³ But God said to me, ‘You are not to build a house for my Name, because you are a warrior and have shed blood.’

⁴ “Yet the Lord, the God of Israel, chose me from my whole family to be king over Israel forever. He chose Judah as leader, and from the tribe of Judah he chose my family, and from my father’s sons he was pleased to make me king over all Israel. ⁵ Of all my sons—and the Lord has given me many—he has chosen my son Solomon to sit on the throne of the kingdom of the Lord over Israel. ⁶ He said to me: ‘Solomon your son is the one who will build my house and my courts, for I have chosen him to be my son, and I will be his father. ⁷ I will establish his kingdom forever if he is unswerving in carrying out my commands and laws, as is being done at this time.’

⁸ “So now I charge you in the sight of all Israel and of the assembly of the Lord, and in the hearing of our God: Be careful to follow all the commands of the Lord your God, that you may possess this good land and pass it on as an inheritance to your descendants forever.

1 Chronicles 28:11-13 

¹¹ Then David gave his son Solomon the plans for the portico of the temple, its buildings, its storerooms, its upper parts, its inner rooms and the place of atonement. ¹² He gave him the plans of all that the Spirit had put in his mind for the courts of the temple of the Lord and all the surrounding rooms, for the treasuries of the temple of God and for the treasuries for the dedicated things. ¹³ He gave him instructions for the divisions of the priests and Levites, and for all the work of serving in the temple of the Lord, as well as for all the articles to be used in its service.

1 Chronicles 28:20-21 

²⁰ David also said to Solomon his son, “Be strong and courageous, and do the work. Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord God, my God, is with you. He will not fail you or forsake you until all the work for the service of the temple of the Lord is finished. ²¹ The divisions of the priests and Levites are ready for all the work on the temple of God, and every willing person skilled in any craft will help you in all the work. The officials and all the people will obey your every command.”

Hymns:

Pass it On #572

Jesus Name Above All Names  TFWS #2071

Here I Am Lord #593

!THE CHURCH IN ACTION!

Saying good-bye: Sunday, June 21:  Please remember to respect the time and time frames that you were given. Bring a chair if you would like to sit under the tent and visit with others as no chairs will be brought out of the church.  Rev. Diane’s going away gifts will be displayed on a table, beside her, along with her Mother’s Day and Father’s Day gifts to us.

School My Sheep update:  Hello!  despite our not being able to gather, items for School My Sheep are accumulating in the background. Women's clothes are done, and we have enough supplies to send 60 children and teens back to school. What a blessing!  

Over the course of the next two weeks we will try to move forward with the purchase of headphones for the elementary children.  These we have done for the last several years and are more critical than ever, given the distance learning our children are experiencing. The headsets cost approximately $7.50 each.  If you’d like to contribute toward this next endeavor, a check can be sent to the church. Just put SMS in the memo.  

There are still plenty of clothes to sort! We have approximately 2 hours worth of work to do in that regard.  Looking for 3-4 volunteers for Thursday June 25th. We can't take more due to distancing.  This will be on the 3rd floor of the church and can get warm! We'll work from 9-11.  Let Katrina know, if you're interested.  Thank you again for all you do!   Katrina

Loving and Learning in Lodi June 14

           I have ‘lump in the throat’ moments. Sometimes those moments come during certain scenes in a movie. Every time I watch Fiddler on the Roof  I get a lump in my throat at the wedding of the oldest daughter when Tevye and Golde sing these words:

Sunrise, Sunset

Sunrise, Sunset

Swiftly fly the years

One season following another

Laden with happiness and tears

How quickly time passed from childhood to adulthood for Tevye and Golde! The years had flown…fully and richly lived…yet, seeming to pass in a moment.

           Our four years together in ministry have flown by, too…laden with happiness and tears. They were ladened with the many blessings we enjoyed together with celebrating each other, feeding each other, repairing the building together, worshiping together, being in ministry together, hanging out with each other…joyous times! They were ladened with tears…concerns over our friends and family who needed our prayers, literal tears at memorial services as we remembered and celebrated the lives of those dearest among us who died. Years that have been rich and full of love and life!

           These past months with COVID-19 have made our ‘good-byes’ and ‘last events’ hard as we have stayed in our homes. You have been wonderful as you signed up to send me a note, card, email, text…your words have been blessings during these past months. When I picture you all in your pews/chairs before I record the message each week, I truly ‘see’ you. I remember the times we shared, the memories we’ve made, and how each of us are better followers of Christ because of each other’s influence in our lives!

           We look into Ecclesiastes 3 this week and remember life’s ups and downs…life’s ebb and flow…

                                                       Missing you all…but grateful to carry you all in my heart,

                                                                 Pastor Diane

Prayer time:

Birthdays coming up in June:

~16 Jan Barnhart       ~21 Jane Corbus           ~24 Larry Scott                    ~26 Colette Laughlin                   

~27 Brittany Baughman                              ~28 Jeff Miller                      ~29 Lu Repp

Anniversaries coming up in June:

~18 Gene and Jan Barnhart              ~19 Dick and Joan Anderson

Concerns:

~All the unspoken joys and prayers among us.

~COVID-19 virus – pray for the world and for those who risk their own health to help others. Those who are in nursing homes/care centers, prisons, Indian reservations and meat packing plants are being hit hard right now.

~Ruth Anderson is in Lodi Hospital’s rehab wing for physical therapy after her fall.

~Peggie Brown is home.

~Prayers for our church as we face so many changes this year.  We pray for our new minister, Pastor Pamela Buzalka, as she transitions from Park UMC.

~Our military personnel, near and far, deployed and defending the homeland, and their families, in this unsettled world of ours. And, our first responders as they protect us each day.

Recovering: Garry Moore, Peggie Brown, Ruth Anderson

Cancer: Terry Gayner, Zachary, Delbert Miller, Sherry Walker, Stacey Geitgey

Families Grieving:  Betty Baughman family, Donna Lance family

Sunday, June 14, 2020

Hymns:         Great Is Thy Faithfulness                                           verses 1 - 3                                #140
                      Spirit of the Living God                                           sing once                                #393

                      Take Time to Be Holy                                            verses 1 - 3                                #395

                      I Was There to Hear Your Borning Cry               verses 1 - 7                          TFWS#2051

Scripture                                       Ecclesiastes 3:1 – 8                      New International Version

There is a time for everything,

and a season for every activity under the heavens:

a time to be born and a time to die,

a time to plant and a time to uproot,

a time to kill and a time to heal,

a time to tear down and a time to build,

a time to weep and a time to laugh,

a time to mourn and a time to dance,

a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,

a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,

a time to search and a time to give up,

a time to keep and a time to throw away,

a time to tear and a time to mend,

a time to be silent and a time to speak,

a time to love and a time to hate,

a time for war and a time for peace.

Leader: The Word of God for the people of God.               People:  Thanks be to God.

THE CHURCH IN ACTION

School My Sheep from Katrina Morgan: Hello! And still missing all of you!  We don’t know what “School My Sheep” will look like this year. We may need to limit the number of people in the building. We may do drive-thru school supplies. Not sure. We do know this important community outreach is more needed than ever, this year. So, thank you for your generous donations thus far. We've been able to purchase enough book bags and school supply sets to take care of 50+ children!! Wow. And here it is only June. You're amazing!

           Thank you to Sylvia and Danielle Anderson who donned masks and helped sort clothing that has already come in during the Covid19 period. Evidently, people really cleaned out closets, because we already have ALL the women’s clothing! Check and done! Always looking for shoes, coats, jackets and boys clothing. We don’t have much in the way of men’s clothing either.

           Keep checking. School supply updates will be in next week!  If anyone sees a deal for lined paper, let us know! Take care and God Bless!

Church Directory: Dottie Kimble makes sure the church directory online is up to date. Remember that you can access it on the church’s webpage if you have internet. Go to www.lodiumc.com  – go to the “About Us” tab – scroll down to the bottom of the page and locate the “Directory” button – click on it – when it asks for a password enter: “320medina”.  The directory will download onto your computer where you can save it if you want or print it.

COVID-19 Response: The United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) is receiving donations to help those is need during this pandemic. 100% of your gifts will go to this project, Sheltering in Love. Donations will be disbursed quickly and efficiently to address health concerns, food insecurity, water and hygiene limitations and other pressing needs. If you want to give, please put COVID-19 in the memo line of your check.

Please save your plastic caps & lids for a “buddy bench” at Sylvia Anderson’s great nephew, Braden’s school.