In Our Prayers this Week

During the last Sunday's worship service, we received the following requests for prayers...

Of concern for Bill B. who entered Life Eternal on October 4. Bless Marge and her family as they grieve his death and give thanks for his life, that in Christ has no end.
For Arthur N. hospitalized after a mild stroke. Bless Arthur and Audrey as she cares for him.
For Bill B. who entered Life Eternal and who has been welcomed home into God's heavenly realm, we give you thanks. Bless Marge and their adult children: Jon, Lyn, & Jim as they grieve and give thanks for Bill.
Of concern for Donald U. as he cares for his wife who is in hospice.
Of healing for Arthur N. who is in the hospital and Audrey as she cares for him.
The Indonesian families who have suffered from the tragic shooting this week. Comfort and Peace. (RY)
Give thanks for all things, people in our lives who have transformed us, changed our trajectory, loved us into being.

We Remember

Long time member of the Chatham UMC, Bill Birdsall, entered Life Eternal on October 4, at the age of 82. Bill loved the Chatham UMC, and wrote the definitive history of our church in the book A Firm Foundation: Tales of a "Cornerstone" and of a People. There are still copies of his book in the church library if you would like to read about our wonderful history. Let us keep his wife Marge and their adult children Jon, Lynn and Jim and their families in our prayers.

To read Bill's obituary, please CLICK HERE

A Memorial Service for Bill Birdsall will be held in our sanctuary on Saturday, October 22, 2022 at 2PM followed by a light reception in Rodda Hall.

Cards of love and support can be mailed to the family via:

Jim Birdsall

3706 North Glebe Rd

Arlington VA 22207

Updates

TONIGHT Knitting/Crocheting Class

Beginners to Experts can participate in this exciting Congregational Care Ministry. We will show you the skills needed to make a simple Prayer Shawl that will bring Comfort, Love, and Joy.

“With your love and prayers knitted/crocheted into every stich, your Prayer Shawl will become a treasured gift for a specific person.” Two evening meetings, starting October 13 and October 27, will take place from 6:30-8:30 p.m., in Rodda Hall. For more details and to read the flier Please Click Here

For more details and questions, contact Chris at: ckess119@aol.com

Please let us know you are coming by using the Sign Up Genius link below. There also will be a paper sign up on the bulletin board outside Jeff's office.

RSVP

Greater New Jersey Conference

United Women in Faith

Fall Meeting

October 15, 2022 10-2; breakfast from 9-9:45

Bridgewater UMC

651 Country Club Road

Bridgewater, NJ 08807

Mark Miller, presenter Intersectionality: Where Love and Justice Meet

For more information please see the flier by Clicking Here

Free Stroke Screening!

Wednesday, October 19^th

^{12noon - 5:00PM}

^{CUMC Asbury Room}

RWJBarnabas Health will be coming to Chatham UMC to offer free stroke screenings the afternoon of Wednesday, October 19^th.

This service will be offered to our friends at the Wednesday Food Distribution. We will extend an invitation to this screening to CUMC members and volunteers prior to our distribution.

CLICK HERE to view flier

All Saints Day Service

Sunday, November 6^th

Sunday, November 6^th will be our All Saints Day Special Service at 10:00 AM. This is an ancient tradition in which Christians remember loved ones who have finished their courses in faith, and now live in the heavenly realm. We will light candles in their memory, speak their names, toll the bell, and give God thanks for their lives and their homecoming into Eternal Life.

A list of names of loved ones is now located outside the church office. We invite you to add names to this list if your loved one is not on it.

This list will be outside the Sanctuary until Sunday, October 30^th. Please call the church office at (973) 635-7440 or email churchsecretary@optonline.net if you would like to add a loved one to this list but are unable to come to the Sanctuary.

Deadline for all name submissions is Monday, October 31^st at 10:00 AM.

2022 Thanksgiving in a Box

Wednesday Food Distribution

Help us provide Thanksgiving in a Box for our neighbors in need. Just use the "Bingo Card" as a guide and fill a box. Boxes will be collected on Saturday, November 12^th at the church in the rear parking lot from 10am-12noon. This is our 3^rd year doing this very successful event!

Click Here for a printable double card

Questions? Contact Eileen Ruggiero at chatumc@optonline.net or call the church office at (973) 635-7740.

For Your Information

Each month our members receive a mailing with weekly giving envelopes that include a letter from our Senior Pastor, Rev. Jeff Markay. For those that have not seen the letter, you may now view it by Clicking Here.

Book Review: HELP.THANKS.WOW. The Three Essential Prayers By Anne Lamott

It would be enough to say, “Get this book and read it”, but I’ll add a bit more. And if you’re familiar with Anne Lamott’s writings you’ll not need any introduction to her style. Ms. Lamott writes succinctly and directly, with humor, and always with honesty. This is Prayer 101 for praying novices and experienced pray-ers alike.

Ms. Lamott’s book is divided into sections, based upon the three parts of the book’s title. Here’s an example from Help (p.35). “Most good, honest prayers remind me that I am not in charge, that I cannot fix anything, and that I open myself to being helped by something, some force, some friends, some something. These prayers say: ‘Dear Something, I don’t know what I’m doing. I can’t see where I’m going. I’m getting more lost, more afraid, more clenched. Help’.”

And dare we say ‘Thanks’ after a life tragedy? Lamott writes, “In the face of everything, we slowly come through. We manage to hold what remains and what has newly appeared. We come to know something rich and okay about ourselves. And at some point, we cast our eyes to the beautiful skies, above all the crap we’re wallowing in, and we whisper, ‘Thank you’.” (p.51)

The third prayer type may not need any words at all. Maybe it’s just a gasp at an awe-inspiring moment, hearing the beautiful sound of someone’s singing, or witnessing the sight of a hummingbird flitting from flower to flower. “When we are stunned to the place beyond words…when all we can say is ‘Wow’, that’s a prayer. An old-time hymn ends with “grace that is greater than all our sin”. That’s wow.

Help. Thanks. Wow is in our church library.

See http://www.chathamumc.com/cumc-library/

Reviewed by Ronald Yarger

Join Us This Weekend

Sunday, October 16^th

Join us for worship this Sunday at 10:00 AM in our Sanctuary. Following worship, all are welcome to come to our Fellowship Coffee in Rodda Hall.

Adult Discussion Group

On Sunday, the Adult Discussion Group will explore the parable of The Persistent Widow, Luke 18: 1-8. When have you found that persistence pays off? Have you tried that with God? Join us in the Asbury Room at 11:15 and watch for our announcements. If you have questions, contact Ronald Yarger at ryarger@optonline.net.

This Sunday’s October 16^th, 10:00 a.m. service features the Covenant Choir singing Mark Miller’s Home By Another Road. Join us!

Our next meeting of the Ukulele Orchestra will be at 10:30 a.m. on October 15^th both in-person in the Asbury Room and on Zoom. The Covenant Choir has begun rehearsing on Sunday mornings at 8:45 a.m. in the Music Room.

If you would like information about any of our music groups: The Covenant Choir, The Wesley Ringers, the Wind Ensemble, The Praise Band, or The Ukulele Orchestra contact Music Director, Peter Hill, at petepiano@mac.com. Singers and instrumentalists of all experiences welcome.

Faith Formation (Sunday School) takes place on Sunday mornings at 11:15 for

Kindergarteners and up!

Whirl Kids (K – 4th grade) Sundays at 11:15 am meet with Kate Radler, Edie Myers-Arnold, and Peter Hill in Room 6. Music, a fun video, and activities related to the day’s Bible reading.

Middle School (5th-8th grade) –Sundays at 11:15 am meet with Pastor Sharon in the Library for community building and growing together in our faith.

High School Discussion – Sundays at 11:15 am meet with David Gaitan (our Simpson seminarian) and Matthew Beland in the Wesley Room.

Come and be part of the New Season for Youth Senior Group at Chatham UMC! Together, we can build a new community and open spaces for great things... You are all invited!

From now, we are preparing fun and creative programs to support our community in NJ, including our Rise 2022-2023. Do not lose the opportunity to impact society and bring aid to those who need it.

Questions? Email Sharon Yarger at scyarger@optonline.net

or David Gaitán at dgaitan@drew.edu

Current Masking Status and

Frequently Used Links

The CUMC Church Council has voted unanimously to follow the CDC Covid Data tracker for Morris County to evaluate weekly Covid levels. Going forward, this tracker will help guide us in determining our indoor mask usage for all CUMC functions. Covid levels and recommendations are updated weekly on Thursday nights by the CDC. These updates will be used at CUMC from Friday-Friday and will state if masks required (high level) or optional (medium/low). You may check to see what the current Morris County Covid levels are prior to coming by clicking below.

Thank you for your ongoing patience, and expressions

of care for your neighbors!

Check Covid Level Here

Online Worship Liturgists Needed!

Please sign up to read and record yourself reading scriptures, this will be a blessing to our online worshiping community.

Bread Ministry

The bread ministry is looking for more volunteers to assist in collecting bread from Panera. Please contact the church office for more information.

Communities of Care

If you wish to receive a call, a text or an email from someone at the Chatham UMC community. Please contact the church office.

CUMC

Community Food Pantry

Help keep our food pantry and weekly distribution sustained.

Want to know more about our Pop Up pantry and how to help? Check out our webpage.

Donate Here

Visit our Webpage

Community Happenings

The Senior Center of the Chathams is an independent, 31-year old non-profit organization located here in town and offer a wide range of programs, activities, and services to older adults in Chatham and the surrounding areas. Click Here to read the latest newsletter and learn about their fantastic programs.