Too young to be so old!

Today is our third day of VBS at Weston UMC. It's been a great three days! Our leadership is fantastic and the kids are having a great time. Kim K. is so enthusiastic and passionate about our children and our church! She comes in with high energy every morning and leaves with high energy. I, on the other hand, dragged my tired rear into church this morning and dragged it out. I'm just amazed how much VBS is taking out of me this year! On my birthday in March this year I hit that magical age where I am no longer considered a young adult (36) as a Methodist pastor. Maybe I'm just acting my age for once:) Now if some of these older folks would stop running circles around me maybe I could be content in that???!!

Weston UMC State of the Union

On Sunday, April 18^th I gave two mini sermons during worship in order to address some different things going on in the life of our church; in other words, a state of the union address for Weston UMC. If you missed services that day, I’d like to update you on some very positive things going on in our church:

1) Walk to Emmaus: Kim and I both experience the Walk to Emmaus weekend retreat. It was a very positive experience and I would recommend it to anyone who is new to faith, needing some encouragement or faith answers, has recently gone through some traumatic life experiences, is spiritually dry or would like to grow some new friendships. It’s a great time and you won’t regret it.

2) Be who God has created you to be: All of you have been created by God with specific gifts and passions. Stop feeling the pressure to live into the molds that others create for you and learn to joyfully be who God has designed you to be.

3) Lay Preaching: I believe in the power of lay preaching and am encouraging people within our congregation to share their stories, passions and Biblical perspectives on life during Sunday morning worship. I believe the voices within the congregation are as equally powerful as the voice sent to minister to the congregation. Please support them with your attendance, prayers and encouragement.

4) Church Finances: A) In the last seven months our General Fund has grown from $2,500 to over $20,000. Your generosity has been overwhelming and this church is blessed because of it. B) Pennies from Heaven has given over $500 to four different individuals and 2 organizations in the last 2 months. C) Lately, many families/people have given generously to our church above and beyond their regular offerings. We have also become the benefactors of a life insurance policy left by Dorothy Voorhees who grew up here in Weston. We are waiting for a sum of $40,000 to arrive. D) With all that we have been blessed with, let’s remember that God calls us to serve and help. Let’s always experience tension between what we spend for ourselves and what we spend for others.

5) Spiritual Director Visits: I have had an increase in visits from individual and couples who would like spiritual direction. This is very positive and I would encourage anyone who desires such support to make an appointment for a visit.

6) How to Become a Member: If you would like to become a member of Weston UMC, please schedule an appointment with me.

7) Beware of Burnout: We have a lot of positive energy and many good things are going on. Make sure to stay spiritually healthy and as balanced in life as possible. Make a fair assessment of your church involvement and always communicate stress before the fall.

Youth Ministry

It was official last night- youth ministry on Sunday nights has arrived. We had eight (maybe 9?) students with us and four adult leaders. We had some great burritos that Dotty made along with a lot of chips, drinks and salsa that other church members brought. I led students in an exciting game of "smack another pool ball with another pool ball". I need a cooler name because it doesn't quite capture the intensity of the activity:) Our video series was pretty good and opened up unapologetically on all kinds of issues related to teens and peer pressure: drugs, sex, drinking, popularity. Nothing like starting out full throttle:) Eric did a good job transitioning students from the video and into discussion by sharing some of his own personal experiences. Overall, it was a great night and I look forward to seeing more students this Sunday night at 6:30pm! Count on dinner and fun:)

Sue Norman's Services

Here is some pertinent information concerning Sue’s Services and who is in charge of the varying opportunities to help so far:

Visitation

This Wednesday the 24th from 6:30pm-8pm at Vaughn Funeral Home.

Funeral

This Thursday the 25^th at 10:30am at Weston UMC; followed by a Graveside Service at Laurel Hill Cemetery and an open community lunch back at Weston UMC.

The meal after the Funeral Service is coordinated by Julie Pasley. She has already taken care of most of the arrangements. Her number is 816-386-0120.

Meals to the Norman Family are coordinated through Suzanne Clizer. Her phone has been very busy. If you are able, please email her at sclizer@hughes.net. Suzanne’s home phone number is 816-640-2611.

Volunteer Ideas

I'm beginning to plateau time wise. This happens with just about every pastor I bump into. We eventually fill our plate too high with maintenance things. Things that a church volunteer could do, but sometimes we are just too afraid to ask someone else to do. So, bottom line, I need your help. There are two areas that I could use some help in. Let me know if you have gifts in these areas and time to give on a weekly basis:

1) Sermon Visual Aids Production
90% of the time my sermons are done by Tuesday evening. On Wednesday or Thursday I will create the powerpoint and study guide that is inserted in the bulletin. These two items normally take me 1-3 hours. If someone familiar with powerpoint could do
the construction I could highlight the material to be inserted.

2) Benevolence Case Worker
The church is receiving more and more requests from individuals everywhere for financial support and help. Some of these requests are legitimate and some are from individuals who make a living conning churches and people. More than a check, many of these individuals need to be resourced to agencies who can help on many levels. Someone who has a heart for the poor and has patience would find this a rewarding ministry and opportunity. The time commitment would vary from week to week.

Please email me or call me if you are interested, would like more information or can offer suggestions:)

The Pieces Come Together!

Ministry can be a lot of work. Sometimes it's a lot of work for not a lot of results. I don't operate well that way. I'm admittedly very reward oriented. A few things have come together lately that feel very rewarding and they all involve leadership. Linda Scouby did a great job this weekend as our new Volunteer Coordinator. I'm very excited about Linda's commitment to volunteerism. This week's new news began on Monday with a phone call from Kim Kirby. Kim agreed to be our Church Council Chair! Kim is ministry driven and I believe she will do a great job as our new Council Chair. The third surprise came after a meeting with one of our high school students. We decided we needed to move forward on organizing youth ministry even though we hadn't received another two adult leaders. Kylee has a strong faith life and even though she is in high school, she feels ready to be a leader to her peers. However, she also would love to have adults join her in leading and loving our teens. Which made last night even more amazing when Rogers Strickland let me know that he wanted to help with our Youth Ministry next year!
In the words of Hannibal on the A-Team, "I love it when a plan comes together"! Remember, nothing happens without leadership. Thank you to those who are stepping forward and picking up the scepter of leadership:)

Apple Fest!

This is a picture of a hollow point bullet traveling through an apple, which encapsulates the energy and excitement of our community for Apple Fest this year! For my family, this will be our first Weston Apple Fest. Kim, Alexis and I are looking forward to helping the church sell pies and the community sell apple-butter. Some of my extended family will come to the Fest on Sunday and I look forward to showing them around. We are all looking forward to a great weekend! Hope to see you all soon:)

November Stewardship Series

November Stewardship Series

We will wrap up our series on the Gospel of John at the end of October and begin a new series. In November we will begin to talk about Stewardship which is an essential part of discipleship. A healthy church thrives on disciples who are committed to regular stewardship practices. The last two weeks will present opportunities for us to pledge our gifts of volunteer service and financial offerings to our church. Please begin to prayerfully consider how you will grow in discipleship and stewardship in 2010.

Week 1: What Stewardship Has to do With Discipleship?

Week 2: Missions: An Outward Response

Week 3: Volunteerism: An Inward Response

Week 4: Financial Gifts: Supporting Ministries and Mission

Youth BBQ Event

We had another good night at the parsonage. Our high school and middle school students came over for a BBQ. Other than getting beat in a game of corn hole, I had a great time as well. We spent some time talking about the future of youth ministry at WUMC. I'm impressed by the things our youth said were important to them. At the top of the list were mission events and meeting on a regular basis on Sunday evenings for fellowship. So, what we need are adults who are willing to pull alongside our teens. People who will care about the lives of our teens, pray with them and mentor them. Could this be you? We should talk soon:) By the way, Cody sank 4 bags in the hole in a row (see the little hole by his leg in this pic)! Never seen that done before- pretty amazing! You can check out more pictures on my facebook.

What a community!

What a community! On Sunday afternoon this sign showed up on our front lawn. Someone was kind enough to leave a sign welcoming our daughter to her first day of kindergarten. This object of kindness really helped my daughter get excited for her first day because "West Platte Loves You"! It's a lot easier to go somewhere new when we know someone loves us there. I know my daughter's school has challenged me as a Christian. Do I help make our church a place where people know they are loved before they walk in the door? What are some ways we could let people know they are loved before they ever step foot in Weston UMC? I guess we have to remember that being welcoming and invitational isn't someone else's job, it's our (you and me) job. Thanks West Platte!

My Mentor

One of my major priorities for my first month in Weston was to find a spiritual mentor. I believe that there is a lot to gain in mentoring relationships. In order for me to serve as a good mentor to others I believe I should be spiritually mentored as well. Jeff Brinkman is the Senior Pastor at Woods Chapel UMC in Lee's Summit. When I met with Jeff at his church he introduced me to every member on his staff. And I noticed with every introduction came a "thank you" or a compliment to most of the folks he came into contact with. Before I knew who Jeff was I had several other pastors tell me about his spiritual soundness and his positive attitude. That's why I'm excited that Jeff is my mentor.
I believe Weston UMC will benefit from this relationship as much as I will. And I also believe that many folks in our church could benefit from one another. Could you be a mentor? Who would you mentor? Consider asking God to help you answer those two questions this week:)

Way to go VBS!

I'm not sure I can brag enough on the great VBS that we had last week with Weston Christian Church. I was so impressed with how all of our adult and youth leaders worked together to teach our children about what it means to be followers of God. It was lead incredibly well on all levels. And I'm not sure I have ever heard such awesome VBS music before! I loved our worship! So thank you to everyone who invested in the children of the Weston community (which includes my daughter:) last week. Job well done!