Vernon United Methodist Church
Our Newsletter

FEBRUARY 2009

ROBERTA'S REFLECTIONS

The Christian year is about to turn towards Lent. We read the confession of Peter to Jesus, "You are the Christ,". This is the turning point in the Gospel. I really think Peter thought that was the end of it. He got his name tag, membership pin, and could vote at the Charge Conference.

Jesus then says, "OK, now that you have made that confession, prepare to take up your cross and follow me to Jerusalem ." Only the way it is in this gospel is, "The Son of Man must suffer and be crucified, and after three days rise from the dead." But what that means is, "I'm heading for Jerusalem, for crucifixion."

Peter said, "I didn't get the memo. I thought we were going back to Galilee! They love you in Galilee. The crowds are crazy about you in Galilee. Life is good. Jesus then gathers himself and explains, being a disciple doesn't mean just following me around Galilee. It also means following me to Jerusalem . Galilee is where the living is easy. All these wonderful times where you just sit around with other people who agree with you and talk about what it means to be a Christian and what Christ means to me. Galilee is the land of small groups, coffee hours, dinners and fall fairs.

But there is a difference between following Jesus around Galilee, and following Jesus to Jerusalem "If you would be my disciple, you must deny yourself and follow me. Whoever will save his life will lose it; and whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel's will find it. What will it profit you to gain the whole world and lose your soul?"

This is a "hard saying," incidentally, as opposed to "comfortable sayings." Comfortable sayings are like: "Come unto me all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." A hard saying is: "Now I am headed for Jerusalem to take up a cross, and if you would be my disciple, you will take up yours and follow me."

This isn't the race that I entered. So many people feel that when hard times come it means their religion has let them down.

Then he says, you must lose your old self. She who would save her life on this journey is going to lose it; and whoever is willing to let go is going to find a new life. Life isn't going to be the same anymore, not after what has happened to you. So you have to leave the old behind and go into the future in the faith that if you let go, God is able to give you a new life. Finally, "What will it profit you if you gain the whole world and lose your soul?"

Journey with us to Jerusalem this Lent, let go of your old self and find a new self in Christ.

Rev. Roberta L. Williams

CHRISTIAN EDUCATION COMMITTEE

The next meeting of the Christian Education Committee is scheduled for Sunday February 8th at 11:45 following the service. This meeting is open to all. If you have input for the committee on Christian Education activities you would like to see offered by the church for either children or adults, please contact one of the committee members: Pastor Roberta Williams, Lydia Dingle, Jim Haag, Dave Howe, or Kathy Jo Winters.

Kathy Jo Winters

NATURAL CHURCH DEVELOPMENT

The NCD committee met following the service on January 18th to talk about NCD at VUMC for 2009. First on the agenda is a retreat to be held on Saturday March 7th to develop the plan to address our identified need in the area of Passionate Spirituality. The committee members are Pastor Roberta, Shirley Howe, Phyllis Goehring, Bob Mattern, Carl Tyler III, Laurie Tucker and Kathy Jo Winters. Pete Schilling is our mentor and guide through this process.

Dave and his NCD prayer support team met after service January 25 and they will once again be offering prayers on behalf of the team and the NCD process in our church.

Anyone interested in participating on the committee is encouraged to contact Pastor Roberta, Kathy Jo or Dave Howe for more information.

Thank you in advance for your prayers and support.

Kathy Jo Winters

NCD PRAYER WARRIORS ARE BACK

With the revitalization of the NCD Health Team, Under the guidance of Kathy Jo, the prayer warriors are back doing what they are tasked to do; support the Health Team! Presently, the warriors are Dave Howe, Kathleen O'Connor, Lempi Hannaford, Dottie Stronberg, and Colleen Morgan. If there are others who would like to be a prayer warrior, see any member of the present team.

Dave Howe

TRUSTEES

Roof project status report:

It does not appear that we will get that mid-winter thaw this year, so the completion of the roofing project will have to wait till spring.

Unfortunately, that mans we must leave the account open until all bills are paid. At the moment, there is approximately $5,400 left in the original contract to the cover the remaining costs. That should be more than enough to complete everything.

The trustees have been working with the finance committee in developing next year's budget. As everyone knows, it will be tight and we have all agreed to plan carefully in completing projects around the church. We have developed a priority plan for working on each project throughout the coming year. What we cannot foretell are the emergency repairs that arise. The elevator had a problem that has been repaired, but it will mean a few less dollars in the contingency fund. The snow plowing bill is up this year, so that too dips into the reserve fund. So a couple of projects will be put off till late in the year to make sure funds are available.

As always, if you should find something that needs fixin', make sure you let one of the trustees know so that we can take care of it. Remember, this is your house also. Let's take great care of it - for we have been entrusted with a great gift.

Jim Haag

FINANCE

Off and Running!:

The year 2008 is in the past and we are now launched into 2009. The Finance Committee and key program leaders have worked together to come up with a budget that will meet our needs. You may recall that we were facing a $7,000+ deficit in our Program and Ministry accounts. Through our combined knowledge and efforts, we were able to resolve this issue, at least for the time being. We will need to monitor things closely as the year progresses and there are places where extra effort may be required. We will keep everyone posted as things develop. For the time being, our attention will be focused on getting through the winter months, with their heating and snow removal issues. We may be small in numbers as a church, but the commitment of our members is enviable. So long as we look to God, our supporter and guide, we can face the future with hope and perseverance.

Fund balances at the end of December 2008, are as follows:

Dave Howe, Chair

MISSIONS

The Mission and Outreach committee gives praise to the Lord for the generous people of VUMC - once again there is at least 10% of the budget designated for mission work. In light of the tough economic times, the committee has been exploring ways to expand our outreach in ways other then dollars. A number of ideas have been brought forth and we will be presenting them to you over the next weeks and months. -- One of those is, of course, our SOUPER Bowl collection.

Volunteer Opportunities:
Camp Aldersgate is holding three work camps.
Check out the poster in the fellowship hall for details on these -

· Lumberjack Camp: Feb 6-8

· Trailblazer Camp: April 24-26

· Aldersgate Cleanup and Work Weekend: May 15-17

Fall Mission Trip to New Orleans Area for Hurricane Recovery

Skip and Mary Ann Danforth will be leading another group of teams south this fall, and it is not too early to think about being a part of that. The teams will be working with Southeast Louisiana Disaster Recovery, an organization heavily funded by UMCOR. The weeks are November 1 to 7 and November 8 to 14.

There will be three teams organized (up to forty people in each team). On November 1 to 7, we will stay in Slidell and work either along the north shore of Lake Ponchetrain or across the bridge in New Orleans. On November 8 to 14, there will be two teams: one in Slidell and the other staying in the town of Dulac, LA and working there. Dulac is a small, isolated community out on the bayou southwest of New Orleans. It is primarily populated by Homa Indians. The UMC has a long history of involvement there.

We have been able to stay pretty flexible about cancellations in the past, so if you feel this is something you want to do (or need to do), get your name on the list now, and we will keep you up to date on developments. For the first week, we would ask you to deal with Dick and Jane Thompson at 109 Washington Street in Manchester, CT 06042 (1-860-647-7099, spotanpuff@aol.com). For either of the groups on the second week, contact Skip and Mary Ann at PO Box 1747, W. Chatham, MA 02669 (1-508-430-0778, KiteSky@comcast.net). However, if you have trouble reaching either family, feel free to contact the other.

You will be expected to arrange your own transportation and pay about $250 toward registration, room, board, team van rentals for our time there, and other minor expenses.

Red Cross Blood Drives:
For an appointment to donate, call 1/800-GIVE-LIFE (448-3543)
More than 600 blood donations are needed EVERY DAY in Connecticut!

Friday, February 13th, 1:00 to 6:00 p.m.
Rockville United Methodist Church
142 Grove St, Rockville

Tuesday, February 25th, 1:00 to 6:00 p.m.
Curves of Vernon
575 Talcottville Rd, Vernon

Saturday, February 28th, 8:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
American Legion
114 West Street, Rockville

The next meeting of the Mission & Outreach committee will be Thursday, February 12, at 7:00PM at VUMC. These meetings are open to everyone.

Lydia Dingle

FEBRUARY SCRIPTURES

FEBRUARY WORSHIP ATTENDANTS

UPWARD REACH
The cross is the only ladder
high enough to touch heaven

LAMPLIGHTER DEADLINE
MARCH ISSUE

Please submit (preferably by e-mail) any articles you have for the March issue by Friday, February 27th. Anything not received by 6:00 p.m. on that date will not be included in the newsletter. Thank you for your cooperation.
Roger White – editor, pro tempore
E-mail vumcnews@sbcglobal.net

The space for this web site has been provided courtesy of the General Board of Global Ministries, The United Methodist Church.