Midweek News - September 28, 2022

A Word from Pastor John

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ:

As we have been announcing for several weeks now, our annual fall charge conference is this Sunday, October 2, at 3 pm. It will be held at St. John’s in Santa Fe, and we will also be joined by the churches from White Rock, Santa Feand Las Vegas. St. John’s is at 1200 Old Pecos Trail (corner of Old Pecos Trail and Cordova Rd.)

For those unfamiliar with our Methodist ways, the annual conference is a celebration of the ministries of the church. We also vote on clergy salary and elect leadership for the coming year, as well as any other administrative tasks that may need to be done. This is where the “official” business of the church gets accomplished, although the One Board can do some of this as it happens throughout the rest of the year. But there are some votes that can only happen in a charge conference.

In the lead-up to the meeting, since we were gathering with multiple churches, I made the suggestion that we also use the time to do a mission project that would help our communities. And so, after the business work and reports are done, everyone is invited to stay to assemble “blessing bags” which contain items to be given to people in need that we encounter on the streets. We will also be creating seed balls, which will be given to the forest service to spread into burn scars, in particular for the Hermit’s Peak/Calf Canyon Fire, to spark growth of grasses, flowers and other plants to hold the soil in place. The seed balls do require getting a little dirty, so be prepared for that.

After we are done with those things, everyone is invited to come to Dion’s at the corner of St. Mike’s and Cerrillos for dinner and a time of fellowship. These activities will replace our Sunday Programming Night, so don’t come to the church on Sunday night. We will have Programming Night again on the 9^th. If you would like to carpool to the Charge Conference, or would like a ride, please contact Phillip Ortega who is coordinating that as needed.

Staying in the Methodist business realm, the general church will be holding jurisdictional conferences in November. This will be the first time this has happened since 2016, since 2020 was cancelled. We are part of the south-central jurisdiction which includes New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma, Nebraska, Kansas, Missouri, Arkansas and Louisiana. The main thing that happens at Jurisdictional conferences that impacts us is the election and assignment of bishops. This year we will be electing three new bishops, and our delegates are asking that Bishop Schnase be reassigned to us, but none of that is set until the final votes are taken.

Finally, as I have written about before, and don’t want to go into a lot of detail here, at the 2019 special called General Conference, which is the gathering of the UMC from around the world, they passed legislation to allow churches to “disaffiliate” from the UMC, following a set of protocols, mainly for those who disagree with issues surrounding homosexuality. The group that had been known as the Wesleyan Covenantal Association (WCA) formed a new denomination which started on May 1, of this year, called the Global Methodist Church (GMC), as a conservative expression of Methodism. With that start, and with the resumption of annual conferences this year, some churches have begun the move to disaffiliation.

There are 24 churches in our conference who are currently exploring disaffiliation. I know that some of you have family or friends at some of these churches. Their exploration does not mean that these churches will vote to leave, which requires a 2/3 vote of professing members, and it does not mean that others will not explore this at some future point, although there are time limitations. The vast majority of these churches are in the Eastern and southern part of the state.

Those churches that do wish to disaffiliate must pay their full tithe for the current year plus one additional year, as well as their obligation to the pension fund. Their vote must also be ratified by a meeting of the annual conference. It is possible that the bishop may call for a special session of annual conference to accomplish this, but that has not yet been decided. These actions do not impact anything that we are doing and, contrary to some misinformation, we do not have to begin this process or to have any votes about staying in the UMC. This only involves those churches that may wish to leave.

I know that that is probably confusing to many of you, and there is lots of misinformation being spread around, and so if you have any questions about what’s happening in the church, please send me an email, call me, come see me or stop me after worship to help explain. And I hope to see many of you in Santa Fe on Sunday.

Blessings,

John

What I'm Currently Reading:

Life on the Vine: Cultivating the Fruit of the Spirit by Philip D. Kenneson
Cultivating the Fruit of the Spirit: Growing in Christlikeness by Christopher J.H. Wright
Neuroscience and the Fruit of the Spirit by Bryan Sppom
The Hundred-Foot Journey by Richard C. Moraise

Worship News

Sunday, October 2, 2022

Scripture Readings: The scripture readings for Sunday, October 2, are Ezekiel 34:11-16, 20-24; Psalm 100; Galatians 5:13-17, 22-25 and John 16:12-22. Next week's message, "Joy", will be on the passages from Galatians and John. This Sunday is a traditional service and we will also celebrate World Communion Sunday.

Questions to help you prepare: What is joy from a Christian perspective? How does it differ from a typical understanding of joy? Can you have joy in all times and places? Why or why not? How are joy, pain, sorrow and faith connected, or are they? What does it mean that our joy cannot be taken from us? What are some things that keep us from being joyful?

Prayer for the week:

God of delight, your wisdom sings your word

at the crossroads where humanity and divinity meet.

Invite us into your joyful being where you know and are known

in each beginning, in all sustenance, in every redemption,

that we may manifest your unity in the diverse ministries you entrust to us,

truly reflecting your triune majesty in the faith that acts,

in the hope that does not disappoint, and in the love that endures. Amen.

10 a.m. Worship

streamed online at Facebook.com/FirstInYourHeart,

our website at FirstInYourHeart.org

http://lafumc.churchcenter.com/

For those worshiping in-person masks are optional.

We will have KN-95 masks available for those who wish to wear a mask.

Sunday, September 25

"Love"

Rev. John W. Nash

Did you miss a Sunday or just want to here the message again, you can view previous Sundays on YouTube.

Church Community

Property Improvement Projects

Parking Lot Repairs -- We are well aware of the missing asphalt in the entrance. We have been trying to get one of the companies doing several repair projects in town to fill the hole, without any success. We will continue to work to find a contractor to make that repair. If you know an asphalt company, please let us know.

Sprinkler Installation -- Los Alamos Landscaping will be installing a new sprinkler system in the front of the church starting this week. This is a project several years in planning and is necessitate by the need to abandon the water line running under the sanctuary.

Roof Repairs -- Next week DKG Roofing will be at the church to repair a few small leaks in the roof as well as to do some regular maintance. They will also be repairing some shingle damage to the roof at the parsonage from the spring wind storms.

All are welcome!

Annual Charge Conference

Sunday, October 2 at 3 p.m.

St. John's United Methodist Church

1200 Old Pecos Trail

Santa Fe, NM 87505

See the mission opportunity below

beginning at 4:30 p.m.

Programing Night Mission Opportunity- Sunday October 2nd

Beginning at 4:30 pm

St. John’s UMC Santa Fe

As a part of our new Programming Night, everyone is invited to join us for an exciting opportunity. On Sunday October 2nd at 4:30pm, at St. John’s UMC Santa Fe, we will be in mission with other United Methodist Churches as we make Blessing Bags and Seed Balls. The Blessing Bags are Zip-Lock bags with water, snacks and other items that will be carried in people's cars to be given to people in need across the Northern New Mexico area. The Seed Balls are dense grass and plant seed material that will be given to the Forest Department to be spread along some of the burn scars from this past wildfire season. Following our mission, we will be eating together at Dion’s.

For more information, or to participate in a car-pool, contact Phillip at faith@lafumc.org or by contacting the church office.

Animal Blessing

Sunday, October 16 at Noon

On Sunday, October 16, Pastor John will be holding an Animal Blessing at noon. Please plan to bring your pets and animals for Pastor John to pray a blessing over.

Club house Knitters

Monday afternoons at 1:30

Ridge Park Clubhouse at 505 Oppenheimer Dr.

Calling knitters and crocheters! We invite you to bring a project and come enjoy the fellowship. If you would like to learn how feel free to join us and learn a new hobby.

Questions: Peggy Goldman at pegcmc@gmail.com

Wednesdays

6:30 p.m. Bell Choir

7:15 p.m. Choir

We invite new voices and new ringers to join us. If you have any questions please email Valerie Collins at dirmusic@lafumc.org.

School Picture Time

Wednesday, October 5

The Ark is inviting church families to come and have pictures taken next Wednesday. Please call the Ark office, 505-662-4879, if you would like to have your picture taken.

All Booked Up

Our next book will be One Dress, One Year, by Bethany Winz, about a teenager who wears one dress every day for a year to raise awareness and money for human trafficking. There is a Hoopla ebook at the Mesa library and books on the United Women in Faith Kindle and in the UWF library. We'll discuss the book on Wednesday, Nov. 9 at 10 a.m.

Faith Development

October Bible Readings

You are being encouraged to read through the Bible in 2022. Here are the July readings. If you like a reading from the previous months you can go to our website.

If you are interested in a tool to go along with your Bible readings; you may want to check out the Bible Project. The Bible project has an overview of each book giving you interesting insight to each chapter.

October Bible Readings

Join us Sunday for our afternoon programs!

NO Programming Night, Sunday, October 2

As we re-launch all of our children’s programs, one of our goals is to equip and grow the faith of all people, not just the children and leaders in the programs, but parents and adults too. So, every week the whole church body will split up into age-appropriate classes and end by coming together for dinner and a moment of worship. This time will include new and existing adult small groups, large format lectures and studies, and service opportunities in which the whole church can participate, depending on the season.

Little Ones

Who: Newborn - Kinder. Led by our Nursery staff as well as Carol Mead.

What: A safe time of fun, friendship, and faith, for our youngest people.

When: 4:00 - 6:00 pm, Sunday evenings ending with dinner.

Where: The “Elephant” Classroom

Little Ones Registration

Mission Kids

Who: Kinder - 4th Grade. Led by Norma Covington

What: A great group of children who learn how to put their faith into action.

When: 4:00 - 6:00 pm, Sunday evenings ending with dinner.

Where: Mid-High Room

Mission Kids Registration

Mid-High

Who: 5th - 8th Grade. Led by Crystal Dale.

What: Our Mid-High program is a vital time to build the foundations of faith and community.

When: 4:00 - 6:00 pm, Sunday evenings ending with dinner.

Where: Youth Room

Mid High Registration

Youth

Who: 9th - 12th Grade. Adult Leadership by Phillip Ortega and Youth Leadership by William Dale

What: Striving to provide youth with the tools for faith and a deeply critical and personal understanding of Christ.

When: 6:30 - 8:00 pm, beginning with dinner.

Where: Youth Room

Youth Registration

Adults

Who: Everyone is welcome.

What: Seasonal studies and lectures. With excellent opportunities for connecting small groups as well as church-wide service opportunities. As we begin, we will choose our topic during our first session with the input of those who attend.

When: 4:00 - 6:00 pm, ending with dinner.

Where: Friendship Center

Sowing Seeds Registration

Missions Update

First United Methodist

Community Food Pantry

The establishment of an open-access food pantry in a central location in Los Alamos will help the homeless and food insecure families in our community. Anyone looking to donate food or other essentials can drop off food directly in the red cabinet outside of FUMC.

Ideas for items to donate for the summer:

bottled water bars of soap

cold cereals toilet paper

healthy snacks toothpaste

mac & cheese deodorant

pasta other than spaghetti

4 lb. bags of sugar

Tuna, hamburger, or chicken helpers

peanut butter

Please NO GLASS containers.

Giving

There are several ways you can make your

tithe and offering payments.

Go to our website then click on "Give Securely Online" at the top right-hand column. Set up a one time or a reoccurring gift.
"Text any dollar amount to 84321 to give."
In-person drop off your check
You can mail your checks to the church office: 715 Diamond Drive, Los Alamos, NM 87544

We thank you for your faithfulness!

IGive.com

Did you know that you can donate money to the church when you shop online? Sign up at IGive.com and a percentage of your purchases from participating businesses will go to the church. After you join, if a business is an IGive.com participant, an activate banner pops up that you click on before you start shopping. There are an amazing number of online stores in the system that you probably already use- several car rental companies, many hotel chains, Travelocity, Walmart, Cokesbury, Bed, Bath and Beyond.

igive.com

Steps to setup Online Giving

Have you download the Church Center App?

Through Church Center, you and your family can participate in worship, find information about events and opportunities, and deepen your faith.

Church Center is available for Apple and Android phones and tablets, and newer Kindle fire devices. You can also use a computer, through a web browser, to interact with all the same features.

For more information about the app click on the red Church Center App tab.

Church Center App

Church Celebrations

Birthdays

Oct. 2 Doris Jackson

Oct. 3 Elizabeth Nash

Oct. 4 Nels Hoffman

Oct. 4 Alden Kaufeld

Oct. 8 Geniece Courtright

Oct. 10 Deana Carnes

Oct. 13 Peggy Goldman

Oct. 13 Bob Risch

Oct. 14 James Risch

Oct. 15 James Barefield

Oct. 15 Linda Nash

Oct. 15 Marianna Shoberg

Oct. 22 Ella Leschnitzer

Oct. 25 Jeremy Varela

Oct. 30 Charles Knapp

Anniversaries

Oct. 10 John and Kimberly Scott

Oct. 11 Lloyd and Denise Brown

If you see your name missing or the date needs corrected

please email church office at office@lafumc.org.

Prayers of the Church

Praise:

Praise for our church leaders and Pastor John for their leadership.

New/Ongoing Prayers:

Prayers for those in the path of Hurricane Ian.
Prayers for those affected by Hurricane Fiona.
Prayers for Norma Covington's co-worker who will have open heart surgery.
Prayers for Clark Thompson and family.
Prayers for David Dailey.
Prayers for Sarah Kelly, our former pianist and choir director, she had a stroke 9/14 and is hospice care at the Montebello on Academy in Albuquerque.
Kim Granzow's sister-in-law, Lisa, whose breast cancer has returned. Prayers for a good path forward.
Prayers for healing for Anna Marie and David Dailey.

Prayers for those who suffer from addictions.
For those dealing with mental illness.
War in Ukraine that is now six months old.
Our church family and friends at Aspen Ridge: Helen Benson and Earlene Seay.
Health: Carl Bailey, Karen DeVries, Barbara Hendricks, Sarah Kelly, Herald Kruse, Frances Naffziger, Fred Navier, Amy Cross and Trudy Filer.

If you have a prayer or concern you would like to add to the prayer wall please feel free to stop by and fill out a card, call the church office, or email office and we'll add your prayer to the wall. Don't forget when the prayer is answered to stop by and stamp the back it has been answered.