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STRASBURG UNITED METHODIST CHURCH
114 West Washington Street Strasburg, Virginia 22657
Phone (540) 465-8788
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.strasburgumc.org
AUGUST 2014
We are knee deep in summer, and I know that my family’s life has been revolved on getting settled in to a new home and enjoying the beauty
of nature here in Strasburg. It’s also been filled with taste testing all the restaurants in town and many afternoons at the town pool. This
summer has been busy! So busy, in fact, that it has been hard to find a moment of peace or a moment for Sabbath.
John Wesley, the founder of Methodism, spoke often about “Acts of Mercy” and “Acts of Piety.” He encouraged his followers to embrace
and enact both. Acts of Mercy are things we do for others (missions, outreach, generosity), while Acts of Piety are the things we do to
connect to God (prayer, communion, fasting, study of scriptures, holy conversation, resting) Both fulfill the greatest commandment
(Matthew 22:37-39), where Jesus says:
Love the Lord your God with all your heart mind and soul and love your neighbor as yourself. (My paraphrase).
I’ve found in my own experience that some people are good at one or the other, but not both. This can be roughly seen in the theological
divisions of the church, some people emphasize missions and evangelism while others may emphasize prayer and worship.
The key to a healthy relationship with God is to actively embrace the entire promise and commitment of the greatest commandment. The
promise, of course, is that God loves us and embraces us unconditionally. The commitment is that we go and do the same for others.
I have gained knowledge and studied the lives of those who have come before as a I read devotional material and I have been impacted by
the mentors in my life (I am sure that you have also done the same). The questions that have emerged have all been built upon this
commitment to live my life in balance between Acts of Mercy and Acts of Piety.
I know enough about myself to realize that my natural tendency is to be a “doer.” Preaching, witnessing, working all come naturally to me.
(Acts of Mercy) The hard work for me is resting, fasting, listening, and praying. (Acts of Piety).
Maybe you know the same about yourself. Maybe you, too, are struggling with elements of your spiritual life. If you are, I hope you don’t
ignore that tugging of the Spirit.
I’ve been reading a book by Marva Dawn, titled Keeping he Sabbath Wholly. While it was written in the late 1980's, it still is relevant to the
busyness that is the world in which we live.
The pattern she outlines for keeping the Sabbath is fourfold.
1. Ceasing: work, productivity, anxiety, possessiveness
2. Resting: spiritual, physical, emotional, intellectual
3. Embracing: intentions, values, giving, vocation
4. Feasting: beauty, music, the eternal, food, affection
I know that is a very simplistic outline of her book, but you can probably grasp that keeping the Sabbath is more than just “taking a break.”
It’s about dedicating our lives to God for a set time.
I hope that you will journey with me as I continue to enrich and embrace my understanding of what it means to be a follower of Christ and a
believer in a loving God.
Grace and peace,
Rev. John Haynes, Jr.
Operation Christmas Child
As you know, Operation Christmas Child is a way for churches to gift children all over the world. These gifts
include toys, toiletries, clothes, school supplies, etc. These gifts also include the story of our Christ Jesus.
As we enter into 2014 the Operation Christmas Child Mission has already taken off and expectations are
HIGH. Our 2014 goal of 700 boxes has already begun.
With prayer, faith and working together we, as a church, can accomplish anything as we are confident that
this goal will be met.
Each month there will be a list of items that we will be collecting. (This does not mean that you can’t bring in
other gifts for the gift boxes). You will find this information in the bulletin and in the newsletters.
Announcements regarding our progress will also be made at our church services. The following is a
schedule of the gifts that we are focusing on for each month:
August:
Pencils, pencil sharpeners, colored pencils, watercolors, paintbrushes, crayons, notepads,
markers, stamps and ink pads, writing pads, rulers, solar calculators, books, picture books,
journals, small puzzles, erasers, chalk, playdough, stickers
September: Jump ropes, jacks, small balls, small Frisbees, dolls, stuffed animals, puppets, necklaces,
bracelets, headbands, hair clips, elastic hairbands, matchbox cars, flashlights w/extra
batteries, marbles, yo-yo’s, finger puppets, legos, musical instruments (kazoos, harmonicas),
slinkies, sunglasses
October:
Baseball caps, hats, socks, flip flops, mittens, scarves, gloves, t-shirts, NEW underwear,
wrapped hard candy
Financial contributions are always accepted. If you would like to make a financial contribution, please make
the check out to Strasburg United Methodist Church with a notation ”Operation Christmas Child.” If you
would like to work with Operation Christmas Child, please contact Willie Mitchell at 465-9172.
We thank you for your prayers. Changing the world, one heart at a time.
Willie Mitchell
Volunteers Needed
We are looking for volunteers to work with the flowers beds around the church. If you are interested in
helping with this, please contact Richard Hiserman at 304-838-9808 or Greg Wood at 301-674-8685.
Thank You
We would like to thank UMW for the gift Sarah received for graduation. Also with great appreciation and
thanks for being one of the Virginia Cooper Scholarship Award recipients.
Love in Christ,
Ralph and Janice Crabill
Pastor’s Bible and Book Study
Beginning Thursday, September 4th, the Pastor’s Bible and Book Study will return! The book we will
read is Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s Life Together. You may find this book on Amazon.com and I ask that you
order it before our first gathering together.
We will gather for discussion on Thursdays at 7pm in the library.
Trustee News
Did you know that, twenty-four years ago, there were no central air conditioners in the church? In the
summer time windows would be opened and fans would be waving in the pews. Many times the minister and
the choir would not wear robes to help stay cool. Now that we have A/C in the church, it has to be
maintained. The life span of most A/C units is 20 to 25 years. All of our A/C units are in that range and are
starting to have problems, and parts are either hard to find or more expensive than replacing with new units.
Currently one of the units in the Sanctuary is in that boat. As units start having issues we are looking into
replacing them with new ones. The new units have warranties which should give us peace of mind for a
while.
Our parking lot is in need of sealing. This is something that is supposed to be done at regular intervals
however has not been done for some time to save money. With council approval we will be getting this done
along with some asphalt repairs in the near future. We will try to let everyone know when this happens since
no one can use the parking lot for a couple of days.
Ralph C. Crabill
Trustees Chair
Strasburg Cooperative VBS 2014
sponsored by
Strasburg United Methodist, Mt. Zion United Methodist and
Strasburg Christian Church
Where: Strasburg United Methodist Church 114 E. Washington Street Strasburg, VA
When: August 3rd-August 7th from 6-8:30 pm (light dinner included)
Who: children ages 3 years to 12th grade (6-12th graders will be asked to be helpers)
How: Through the many wonderful volunteers, GOD’s excellent inspiration
and the fantastic children of our community!
If you are interested in volunteering please contact Dianne Hisghman at 465-8096 or email her at
[email protected].
Lay Readers
August 3
Janie Miller
August 10
Trina Ashcraft
August 17
Ralph Carl Crabill
August 24
Karen Tignor
August 31
Marquetta Mitchell
Sunday
Monday
AUGUST 2014
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
6
7
Kiwanis
7:30 am
Vacation Bible
School
6pm-8:30 pm
3
4
5
Vacation Bible
School
6pm-8:30 pm
Vacation Bible
School
6pm-8:30 pm
Vacation Bible
School
6pm-8:30 pm
Vacation Bible
School
6pm-8:30 pm
10
11
Youth Meeting
12:30-2 pm
AOJ practice
6pm
Community
Dinner 5:30 pm
Cub Scouts
6:30 pm
Scouts 6:30 pm
Lydia’s Board
6:30 pm
Youth Meeting
12:30-2 pm
AOJ practice
6pm
19
2
____________
8
Vacation Bible
School
Decorating
6 pm
20
21
Kiwanis 7:30 am
Cub Scouts
6:30 pm
15
16
UMM 8 am
22
23
Private Party
noon-6 pm
(Fellowship Hall)
Senior Lunch
11 am
Scouts 6:30 pm
Mt. Zion
Luncheon
noon-3 pm
1
Education/Youth
Meeting 8 am
14
18
Saturday
9
13
17
12
Friday
Greenfield
Communion
6:30 pm
24
25
26
27
28
Youth Meeting
12:30-2 pm
Lunch Bunch
noon
Church
Council 6:30
pm
Community
Dinner 5:30 pm
Cub Scouts
6:30 pm
AOJ practice
6pm
Scouts 6:30 pm
31
One Combined
Service 10:45 am
Youth Meeting
12:30-2 pm
*All events are subject to change, check your weekly bulletins for updates.
29
30
Education
Training
(all dayFellowship Hall)
AUGUST BIRTHDAYS
1st-Dianne Hisghman
3rd-Willie Mitchell
4th-Sewall Fultz Jr., MacKenzie McClellan
5th-Mary Bible, Colton Ganzhorn, Tom Knowles
6th-Mary Vance
8th-Eddie Lynam, Bessie McGrady
9th-Esther Miller, Matthew Signor
10th-Dolores Fultz, Brian Krueger
11th-Zachary Hoffman, Charles Miller
12th-Luke Estep, Katie Smallwood, John Tefft
13th-Diane Jordan, Lauren Stickles
14th-Hunter Caricofe, Natalie Davis, Joshua Pritchett
15th-Wayne Cottrill, Kyla Smith
16th-Nicole Deavers, Brianna Kitchen, Betty Stevens
17th-Gertrude Hoffman
18th-Sandra Engle
19th-Shelby Kline, J. Ricci Troxell, Randall Williams
20th-Pam Rosenberger
21st-William Layman
23rd-James Caricofe, John Stickley
24th-Ashley Mauck, Brandon Mauck, Debra Shaw
25th-Lea Anne Coffman, Robert Kline, Genevieve Rager
26th-Rosalie Boland, Linda Bott, Jane Rosenberger
28th-Ralph Carl Crabill
29th-Jacqueline Ferguson, Matthew Kline, Chase McComas
31st-Daniel Hershey