MAY, 2011
Messenger Church 620-492-6850
Parsonage 620-492-2495
F I R S T U N I T E D M E T H O D I S T C H U R C H 2 0 2 S . N I P P S T . , J O H N S O N , K S 6 7 8 5 5
“ O U R M I S S I O N I S T O B R I N G G O D T O P E O P L E , A N D P E O P L E T O G O D ”
Inside this issue:
From The Pastor; 2
Celebrations; Prayer List; Budget
Report; Church Study; Mother’s
Day
3
Sonshine Kids; EPIC Youth; VBS;
Mighty Methodists; Office Closed
4
Preschool; Preschool Program;
Camping
5
Recipes, Email 6
Insert: May Calendar
Church Website: www.fumcjohnson.com
the
SERMON PLAN for May
May 1—Psalm 1:1-6
“Don’t Be Blown Away”
May 8—Deuteronomy 6:4-9
“Protecting Mom’s Time to Teach The
Faith”
May 15—2 Timothy 3:10-17
“No Christian Left Behind”
May 22—2 Timothy 2:14-26
“Approved by God”
May 29—1 Samuel 7:3-17
“Raised Ebenezers”
Dear friends-I invite you to read these
Scripture texts soon after you receive
this Newsletter. Then I ask you to be
aware of them as you read magazines,
newspapers, emails, or watch TV. If
something you see relates to a sermon
I’m preparing, please email me a link,
or copy an article and mail to me or
bring it by the office. I am always open
to illustration ideas. Also please pray
for me as I seek to understand these
Scriptures and to bring God’s Word to
you. Thank you. ~ Pastor Don
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
7:00 p.m. Stanton County High School Auditorium
GUEST SPEAKER:
Wayne Simien, Jr., former KU Basketball player
and member of the 2006 NBA Championship winning Miami Heat. Mr. Simien is a minister with Called To Greatness, a ministry which aims to reach youth, parents, and coaches through athletics to hear the Christian message and to choose to follow Jesus Christ. He also volunteers as KU Religious Advisor and
Mentor of Student Athlete Development. Sponsored by the Stanton County Ministerial Alliance
The public is invited to attend.
Service
F I R S T U N I T E D M E T H O D I S T C H U R C H
CONSCIOUS OF GOD
Page 2
Rain! Rain!! Rain!!! We got
Rain!!! Praise God, the Almighty,
who has supplied us with Rain!!!!
Psalm 84:1, “How lovely is your
dwelling place, O Lord of hosts!
My soul longs, indeed it faints for
the courts of the Lord; my heart
and my flesh sing for joy to the
living God.”
According to John’s gospel, when
Jesus cleansed the temple of
money changers, the religious
leaders asked him, “What sign
can you show us for doing this?”
Jesus answered them, “Destroy
this temple, and in three days I will
raise it up.” (John 2:18-19). The
leaders said, “the temple has
been under construction for forty-
six years, and will you raise it up
in three days?” John tells us that
Jesus “was speaking of the
temple of his body.” (John 2:20-
21).
Paul, correcting the divisions
within the church in Corinth,
speaks to them by letter. “Do you
not know that you are God’s
temple and that God’s Spirit
dwells in you? If anyone destroys
God’s temple, God will destroy
that person. For God’s temple is
holy, and you are that temple.” (1
Corinthians 3:16-17). The Greek
pronoun translated into English as
“you” is plural. In English “you”
does double time both as singular
and plural. The context is that
Paul is addressing the entire
congregation, and telling them
that together they are indwelt by
God’s Spirit. Together they are
God’s temple. Note Paul is not
talking about a building.
Later in 1 Corinthians 6:19, Paul
writes, now in the context of
correcting sexual immorality, “Or
do you not know that your body is
a temple of the Holy Spirit within
you, which you have from God,
and that you are not your own?”
Again the Greek pronouns are
plural, Paul is still addressing the
whole congregation, but now the
context is specifically individual,
regarding personal sexual
morality. Paul is telling everyone
in the congregation, that each of
them is individually a temple of the
Holy Spirit.
So where am I going with these
bits of Scriptural information?
What is my aim? To raise our
awareness of what it means to be
in the presence of God. The
Psalmist expresses a deep
longing to be in the presence of
God. God is the living God, and
the psalmist had learned to
worship and become aware of
God’s presence when in the
temple in Jerusalem. Jesus,
speaking in the temple,
enigmatically reveals that He
himself is the presence of God--
the temple. And he gives to the
leaders the sign of his own death
and resurrection as the proof of
His authority to correct their
abuses of the worship space of
Israel--the temple building. Paul
makes us aware, now that Christ
has risen, and the Holy Spirit has
been poured out on the church
and upon believers, that the
presence of God is in us. The
Holy Spirit is present in the body
collective as we gather to
worship. (Jesus promised that
when two or more gathered in
His name, He would be present,
Matthew 18:20.) And Paul also
makes us aware that individually
we are each God’s temple. The
Holy Spirit is resident in each
believer in Jesus Christ.
These realities call for us to be
conscious of God’s presence.
Every day, all day, God is with
you. What you do, what you
say, what you think, you are in
the presence of the most Holy
God. As a Christian, all of life is
worship. And worship begins as
you become conscious of God’s
presence with you and how you
respond. Time with God in the
Scriptures and in conscious
prayer are for the purpose of
deepening your daily walk with
God. And when we come
together as a congregation,
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are
present among our gathering.
This takes on a magnified
power because we are together.
Worship in this context has
multiplied potential. Again my
aim is to expand our awareness
of God’s presence among us.
I invite you to be intentional
about your worship. Spend time
daily with God praying and
reading the Scriptures. Learn to
talk with God throughout your
day. Come on Sunday’s to
worship with an expectancy to
meet Him as you gather with
other Christians. -Don Hasty
T H E M E S S E N G E R
May 1 John & Martha Nicholas
May 8 Marcile Nicholas
May 15 Wendell & Nancy Nicholas
May 22 Bill & Mary Jane Nicholas
May 29 Bonnie O’Donnell
May Birthdays: 1 Dandi Amerin, Pat Graham 4 Barbara Summers, Greg Edmisson 8 Diane Floyd, Melvin Winger 10 Krista Nairn 11 Marla Floyd 13 Cassie Teeter 14 Quentin Morris 15 Monty Teeter, Ruth Olivas 16 Bob Edmisson, Vance Whittington
CHURCH FAMILY
PRAYER LIST
Capital Campaign: (including 2008-2009-2010):
Received: Expensed: Needed:
$220,078 $199,098 $ (78.00)
2011 Offerings Report:
Received to Date: YTD Goal:
$ 88,881.68 $101,235.00
Note: $5,955.00 needed weekly to
meet offering goal
AS OF 4/28/11
18 Grace Brown, Cyle Peterson 19 Karin Kullot 21 Elizabeth Wright 22 Chris Floyd 23 Aimee Kenyon 24 Addison Shirk, Margaret Winger 25 J. Scott 26 Harold Crawford 27 Tom Tucker 28 Velta Teeter 29 Leah Thompson 31 Margaret Josserand May Anniversaries: 16 Melvin & Mona Winger; Rob & Terri Fields 20 Don & Phyllis Hasty 22 Doug & Diana Daniels 24 Dalyn & Michele Figgins 26 Matt & Michelle Canny; Lacey & Seresa Parton 28 Arby & Linda Rector 30 Joel & Linda Nicholas 31 Steve & Amanda Sierra; Jim & Charlene Garrison
Sunday, May 8 Special recognition for
mother’s during morning
worship. We’ll also recognize
the newest mother and the
mother with the most children
(not grandchildren) in church
with a special gift.
VBS Coming
June 10-11-12
Page 3
Page 4 F I R S T U N I T E D M E T H O D I S T C H U R C H
May 4 “David & Goliath”
May 11 “Paul’s Travels”
May 18 Last Meeting—Games
Sonshine Kids will start back up this
fall—watch for the date!
May 1—Regular Meeting followed
by Sponsor Meeting
May 8—Regular Meeting
May 15—Regular Meeting
May 22—Birthday Party. Bring a
friend, snack & $10 gift to
exchange
May 29—No Meeting
EPIC Youth Group meets Sunday’s 5:00—6:30 p.m. at the
church.
Questions? Comments? Concerns? Contact Pastor Will at
620-492-6850 or 620-493-3757; [email protected] or cell
785-222-6891.
M i g h t y M e t h o d i s t
SPRING TRAINING SUNDAY, May 22nd
2:00 p.m. @ Ballfield Sign up now to play for our co-ed rec.
softball team. Players must have
completed their freshman year in HS
and older. Players, fans, and MM
munchies providers needed—sign up
sheets in the church foyer. We’ll play
two nights a week in July.
Mighty Methodist T-shirts, Hats &
Visors available for purchase.
Vacation Bible School— June 10-11-12 5-8 p.m.
An exciting cookbook full of recipes for living out God’s word! By celebrating biblical festivals, the children will: *Be ready for God; *Give hap-pily to God; *Believe fully in Jesus; *Remember Jesus often; *Celebrate God Forever! Contact Mandy Shirk or Jamie McMillan (co-directors) if you want to help!
Monday, May 30, 2011
Office will be closed in observance of
those who have served our great country.
Page 5 T H E M E S S E N G E R
Preschool is going so quickly! We have been very busy. Springtime is
a great time for growing plants. We have planted flowers and beans to
watch them grow. We are watching the roots and the leaves grow!
We have learned every letter of the alphabet and have been through
the shapes and numbers. The morning students are getting great at
writing their names and using their fine motor skills, while the
afternoon students are getting great at reading their site words,
spelling, and math facts!
We had a fun time celebrating Easter by learning about Jesus and by
dyeing and hunting Easter eggs. The students had a blast mixing the
colors of the dye and creating their very own colors!
The Spring Program is Friday, May 13 at 7:00 p.m. Please join us as
we end our wonderful year. The last day of school is Thursday, May
19. The end-of-the year picnic is Friday, May 20 at 12:00 p.m. at
Battin Park. Let’s hope for good weather! †
Exploring the Mysteries: Jaclyn Black, Peyton Peterson, Paige
Werkmeister, Jenny Amerin, Carly Kullot.
Sports Camp: Jenna Black, Ruby Martinez, Haley Floyd,
Kennedy Smith, Ira Kullot, Myles Shirk, Jayden Rios.
There’s still time to register online @
www.camplakeside.net; or contact the church office for a
form. The church pays 1/2 or up to $100. There are
many other camps that may interest you! Check it
out!
KIDS SIGNED UP FOR CHURCH CAMP:
CHURCH OFFICE USING E-MAIL In an effort to cut office costs, we are sending meeting notifications by
e-mail. This will not only lessen the cost of postage, but also the cost
of the card, copier toner and the per-copy charges.
Please know that your email address that the church has on file will
only be used for church purposes.
For those of you who do not have email, we will continue to send a postcard.
DO YOU HAVE A
RECIPE TO SHARE IN
THE NEWSLETTER?
Please email it to:
[email protected] or drop it in
the mail to: First UMC,
Box 179, Johnson, KS
67855
202 S. Nipp St.
P.O. Box 179
Johnson, KS 67855
F I R S T U N I T E D M E T H O D I S T C H U R C H
RETURN SERVICE REQUESTED
UMW
CENTENNIAL
COOKBOOKS are still
available to purchase!
$15.00 each; or $20.00 (if
mailed-includes postage.
Contact the church office,
620-492-6850. †
First UMC Staff: Pastor: Don Hasty
Associate Pastor: Will Kenyon
Secretary: Shari Wiens
Treasurer: Mandy Shirk
Custodian: Victoria Garcia
Music Coordinator: Jenna Boswell
Nursery:
Preschool Teacher: Cheryl Berens
Youth Coordinator: Will Kenyon
Community Developer: Jose` Olivas
RECIPES FROM
THE KITCHEN
Need to contact the church? Phone: 620-492-6850;
email: [email protected]; website: www.fumcjohnson.com
Strawberry Coffee Cake 1 c. all-purpose flour 1 1/2 c. sliced fresh strawberries 1/2 c. sugar TOPPING: 2 tsp. baking powder 1/2 c. all-purpose flour 1/2 tsp. salt 1/2 c. sugar 1 egg 1/4 c. cold butter 1/2 c. milk 1/4 c. chopped pecans 2 TB butter, melted In large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. In another bowl, beat the egg, milk and butter. Stir into dry ingredients just until moistened. Pour into greased 8 inch square baking dish. Top with strawberries. For topping combine flour and sugar in bowl; cut in butter until crumbly. Stir in pecans, if desired; sprinkle over strawberries. Bake at 375 degrees for 30-35 minutes or until toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cut into squares; serve warm. Summer Fruit Salad
3 large peaches, peeled & cubed 3 tsp. lemon juice 1 1/2 c. fresh blueberries ORANGE YOGURT SAUCE: 1 1/2 c. slice fresh strawberries 1 c. vanilla yogurt (reg or low-fat) 2 bananas, sliced 2 TB frozen orange juice concentrate Combine fruit & lemon juice in large glass bowl. In small bowl, mix yogurt & concentrate; drizzle over fruit and serve. †