AWARE September St. James United Methodist Church

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1 St. James United Methodist Church AWARE September 2016 Pastor: Mark Klaisner Lay Leader/Lay Member Ann. Conference: Larry Gyrion Staff Parish Relation Chairperson: Gary Linstad Administrative Board Chairperson: Deb Kraemer Children & Youth Ministries Coordinator: Margie Trueblood Director of Music & Organist: Andy Lambrecht Treasurer: Chris Bahr Finance Chair: Jon Krein Trustees Chair: Lloyd Eggert Missions & Outreach: Kay & Charlie Christenson Worship Committee Team Leader: Cal Christenson Website: Bill Kraemer Custodian: Todd Trueblood Administrative Assistant: Deb Kraemer Please note: If you are receiving this electronically, all links in this publication are active. (indicated as blue and underlined.) You just need to hover over it and click on the link with your mouse. Greetings to you in the name of Christ. I hope that summer was a time of renewal for you and the one s you love. Many of us are beginning to get in to the Fall swing. Kids are getting ready to head back to school. Our vacation times are coming to an end. And yes, there is the NFL! Here at St. James Church we are beginning a new programming year. The theme for this year is focused around Engagement with one another and with our community. What does that mean for us as a faith community as we move into our church year? It means that we will seek to be connected with one another and with our community so that the Good News of God s love will be made manifest. I would like to share with you again these observations from the church growth expert Carey Nieuwhof. In his blog 5 Reasons Engagement Will Drive Almost All Future Church Growth, he says this about engagement. The current approach to church has largely been driven by getting people to attend. The idea is this: get them in the door, and then hopefully at some point they ll engage in the mission. Why is that approach becoming less and less effective? And why will engagement emerge as the main way to spark church growth? Here are the five reasons he offers: 1. Attending church is a relatively new concept for many individuals and families. Jesus never said Attend me. He said Follow me. 2. Attendance naturally grows out of engagement. The goal will become to get people engaged faster and to engage people more deeply in the true mission of the church. 3. People become the most passionate about the things with which they re most involved. The most important reason that engagement will drive future church growth is simply this: people become most passionate about the things with which they re most involved. 4. People are looking for authenticity. Anyone who knows church knows that at the heart of every dynamic church is a core of Christians who sacrifice who give, who serve and who invite. 5. Our culture is ripe for an alternative to consumerism. People are longing for an alternative to life as they know it. The church is that alternative. Christians obsessed with giving their lives to God, trump Christians obsessed with themselves and their preferences. We want to invite you, your family, and friends to become engaged in the life and ministry of St. James Church. Our programming year begins on September 11 th with our rally day worship service and fellowship beginning at 9 am. We want to encourage all of you to bring a friend or neighbor to worship to share in the celebration. Our September sermon series will be NEXT DOOR: THE ART OF NEIGHBORING It will be running from September 11 th to the 25 th. Join us for this three-week series exploring the Art of Neighboring and dive deep into what it looks like to transform the world by simply engaging our neighbors. Continued

2 Pastor s letter continued. Become engaged and involved to the life of St. James Church as we enter our new programming year. Your gifts and graces are important to become the faith community that God calls on us to be. Looking forward to seeing you in church. Shalom, Pastor Mark ONGOING ACTIVITIES Wednesday Bible Study & Support Group: 1:00 p.m. Wednesdays, at St James. Lunch Bunch: 12:15 p.m. on Mon., Sept 12, at Applebee s, 3730 W. College Ave. Men s Breakfast: 7:00 a.m. Tue., Sept 13,, at Mary s Place, 2312 N. Richmond St. Ladies Night Out: 6:00 p.m. on Mon., Sept 19, at Toppers Pizza, 430 3rd Street, Menasha. September Sermons & Scripture NEXT DOOR: THE ART OF NEIGHBORING September 11 th through 25th What if Jesus actually meant what he said, when he invites us to love our neighbors? What does this look like? Who are your neighbors? Do you know them? Do you love them? Are you engaged with them? Wherever you live, whatever you do, you are a neighbor to someone. Join us at St. James United Methodist Church for a threeweek series exploring the Art of Neighboring and dive deep into what it looks like to transform the world by simply becoming a good neighbor. Hospitality Help Needed Do you enjoy socializing with members and sharing baked goods? We're looking for a family or a two person team to host hospitality for the 3rd Sunday of each month beginning September 18th. If interested, please or talk to Kathy or Jon Krein (krein1651@gmail.com). September Celebrations Sept. 4 Sept. 11 Sept. 18 Sept. 25 The Kingdom Is Not Wal-Mart Luke 14:25-35 What If Jesus Meant What He Said Luke 10:25-28 The Power of Invitation and Interruption Luke 8:43-48 Seeing and Being Seen Matthew 28:16-20 Birthdays 9/03 Mandy Rowe 9/06 Levi Price 9/11 Vicky Wincentsen 9/11 Alison Rath 9/12 Mark Melius 9/12 Clara Lambrecht 9/17 Tom High 9/17 Kim Robinson 9/18 Rob Warren 9/18 Lilith Lind 9/19 Daniel Luce 9/23 Chase Olson 9/25 Cal Christenson 9/26 Bob Thomas 9/27 Marianne Baehman DATES TO REMEMBER: More details can be found at UMCSJ.ORG September 11 Sunday School Rally Day 24 Octoberfest Anniversaries 9/8 Joe & Michelle Brahe (1) 9/16 Chad & Stacy Olson (10) 9/26 Daniel & Kimberly Luce (18) 9/28 Tom High & Lieda Stauffer (20) 9/29 Mark & Diane Ebert (32)

3 St James United Methodist Church has been a part of the community tradition and is a well known stop along the Mile of Food. Mark your calendar for September 24th... Get your Brats, Hotdogs, and Lemonade freshly prepared at a great price and for a great cause. We are seeking lots of volunteers for this fun filled day, please sign up at the connection center for this great opportunity to serve our community. As in years past, we are accepting donations (seed money) for the supplies needed. You can mark your envelope "Octoberfest" or give your donation to Larry. Have questions?? Call Larry or see him at church for more details. Holiday Fair Is Just Around the Corner Crafters needed for Holiday Fair on December 3. Contact Wendy Lind for information ( ). Vendors from St. James: reserve your booth any time after September 1. Contact Michelle Price at or Mamashellzabell@att.net for information. Trustee Updates: 1. Work has started on the Memorial Garden. 2. Parsonage deck was sealed this summer. 3. We have proposals for "Bat Proofing" the sanctuary. 4. We have a proposal to replace the library windows. 5. We are working to resolve the fellowship hall floor wax issue. Thank you, Lloyd Eggert A STEWARDSHIP MESSAGE FOR YOUR CHURCH You cannot serve God and Money. No one can be a slave of two masters; you will hate one and love the other; you will be loyal to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money. (Matt. 6:24) A senior high Sunday School class gathered together, again, for their first series of classes in the fall. The topic was What does Jesus say about money? The one passage almost everyone knew was, You cannot serve God and money. One of the boys shared that he had taken a new job that was going to require him to work all day every Saturday and every Sunday morning. The group responded, You can t do that, we need you in this class! He replied, But, I ll be here for youth group at night. One of the girls asked, What do you need the money for? He replied, Car insurance and gas money, for sure. Then, there s other stuff I want. My parents said that if I bought a car I had to be responsible for it. One of the leaders asked, Now, how much of what you expect to earn by working every Saturday and Sunday do you really need to cover your car expenses? After thinking for a while and putting pencil to paper, he answered, I probably only need to work on Saturdays to earn enough for my car expenses. Maybe I could talk to my boss and only work every other Sunday morning or one night a week, instead. She did ask me if Sunday mornings were okay because she knew I was a member of this church. I told her it was okay because I didn t want to lose the job. I ll go over there today right after church and see what I can do. I know I d really miss being in class with all of you, too. Thanks! And, Jesus said, Let those with ears to hear, listen! Wisconsin United Methodist Foundation 750 Windsor Street Ste 305, Sun Prairie, WI or wumf@wumf.org Missions Offering July to September Volunteers In Mission (VIM)

4 ADVANCED LAY SERVANT MINISTRY CLASS Delivering an Effective Sermon From the Heart Class Leader: Rev. David Leistra Saturday, OCT. 1 AND Saturday, OCT. 8 9:30 am 3:00 pm Sturgeon Bay UMC Michigan St, Sturgeon Bay WI Food and beverages will be provided by Sturgeon Bay and Jacksonport UMCs The text that will be used is From Your Heart to Theirs: Delivering an Effective Sermon, by Tony Franks and David Carroll. The cost of the book is $7.00. This course includes types of sermons from interpretive to topical to children s sermons as well as how to find a story, use the hymnal, and how to move communication from paper to beyond the written word. Deadline for reservations is Wednesday, September 14, Please make a check payable to North East District Office and send to North East District Office, 1025 Tullar Rd, Neenah WI The book, along with preparation instructions, will be mailed to you prior to the first class. Contact the District office with questions, or Barbara Franken. bfranken@wisconsinumc.org Join us for the Sixth Annual Archives Retreat on September 9-10, 2016 at Pine Lake Camp as we continue our musical heritage series. The Rev. Jeremy Deaner will again lead our Friday afternoon session as we learn about and sing a wide range of music from camp meeting choruses and African-American spirituals, through the gospel hymns of the more professionalized urban revivals, to social gospel hymns, up to our present variety of praise, contemplative, world, and other kinds of worship music. And don t miss the special experience of participating in a camp meeting revival held on the shores of Pine Lake on Saturday afternoon, Sept. 10, 1:00-3:00 p.m. Preaching by Reverend Jesse Halstead, (enacted by the Rev. Dan Dick) Concluding with an Ice Cream Social Special Transportation provided. Leaving Amphlett Hall at 12:45 p.m. Sponsored by Commission on Archives and History, Wisconsin Conference, The United Methodist Church

5 New Sunday Morning Class A Study on Prayer We all pray... some. We pray to stay centered, solvent, or healthy. When the lump is deemed malignant. When the money runs out before the month does. When life seems to be falling apart. We pray. But wouldn t we like to pray more? Better? Stronger? With more fire, faith, and fervency? Yet we have kids to feed, bills to pay, deadlines to meet. The calendar pounces on our good intentions like a tiger on a rabbit. And what about our checkered history with prayer? Uncertain words. Unmet expectations. Unanswered requests. We aren t the first to struggle with prayer. The first followers of Jesus needed prayer guidance too. In fact, prayer is the only tutorial they ever requested. And Jesus gave them a prayer. Not a lecture on prayer. Not the doctrine of prayer. He gave them a quotable, repeatable, portable prayer. Couldn t we use the same? In before Amen - best-selling author Max Lucado joins readers on a journey to the very heart of biblical prayer, offering hope for doubts and confidence even for prayer wimps. Distilling prayers in the Bible down to one pocket-sized prayer, Max reminds readers that prayer is not a privilege for the pious nor the art of a chosen few. Prayer is simply a heartfelt conversation between God and his child. Let the conversation begin. You re invited to attend! This class will be facilitated by Deb Kraemer. We will meet at 10:30 a.m., beginning Sunday, October 2nd. Please sign up at the Connection Center by Sunday, September 18th so we know how many books to buy. Cost for the book is $10. You re Invited! Come and share your gift of music with St. James this fall, as our regular music schedule begins in September. There's something for everyone! Our Senior Choir welcomes singers from high school through adult. We practice on Tuesday evenings at and Sunday mornings at 8:00 a.m. Our Praise Team welcomes singers of all ages who enjoy singing contemporary worship songs and helping to lead the congregation in worship. We practice on Tuesday evenings at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday mornings at 8:30 a.m. If you are interested in joining the praise team, please contact Andy. Our younger singers will begin another year of Sunday School Singers later in September once Sunday School begins. The fall schedule for adult music begins on Tuesday, September 6 for the evening practices and Sunday, September 11 for the Sunday morning practices. If you would like more information, please talk to Andy on Sunday morning or drop him an at alambrecht917@gmail.com. God bless you! Andy Do you have something you like to do for fun? Go ahead, invite your church family too. It could be a one time thing or something more... there are no limits, use your imagination. Bowling, fishing, watching a movie or a packers game, celebrating a day at the park, or another family fun activity... it s the perfect time to connect with your church family and is a great way to bring new families to St James. All you need to do is: Gather your information and if there is a cost. Then send it to Deb in the office to post in the weekly E-News. Have fun, just like we did for our Funset Blvd day. If you need to use the church building for your activity, be sure to check with the church office and complete the facility use form to avoid any conflicts in scheduling. Have Fun, Larry Gyrion, St James Lay Leader

6 Mission Notes HABITAT INTERFAITH HOME DEDICATIONS Thank you so much for being a big part of this year's Interfaith Build. Both homes are coming along nicely and we will be completing them on Saturday, September 10. Our Interfaith families have decided on Saturday, October 1st at 11:00 a.m. for their home dedication date. This will be a shared dedication; we'll begin at one home, dedicate, and then move to the second home. Once the second ceremony is completed, we'll have an open house and refreshments after. This is open to all church families, not just those who worked on the homes. This is a great time to celebrate our accomplishments with the home owners and to reconnect with the friends we made along the way. Hope to see you there, Larry Lehner Henderson Settlement Mission Trip There will be 12 people going on this mission trip. We leave Saturday, October 8 th and return Saturday, October 15 th. We will be working on a house on the Settlement campus. Houses on the campus need to be maintained so that volunteers have a safe and comfortable place to stay, thus enabling them to better serve the community during their stay. While our group is here we will be taking out the old worn carpeting from three bedrooms and replacing it with laminate flooring. We will also be replacing 16 windows in the same building. The materials for this project will cost $4, So far we have raised $4,309. Thanks to all who have contributed to this project. Please help us with the remaining $491. The following people will be traveling to Kentucky: Tom and LouAnn Graf, Gary and Diane Linstad, Tom Heegeman, Gary Madsen, Rich and Bev Stewart, Ken Kempfer, Lloyd Eggert, and Jim and Gay Casey. Please mark your donations Henderson Settlement. If you have any questions, please ask any one of us traveling to Kentucky. Thanks for your support. Help Needed for Salvation Army To help on October 23rd, contact Bev & Rich Steward at and for November 6, contact Tom & LouAnn Graf at Will need help from 10a.m. to 1p.m. This will be Tom and LouAnn s last assignment as team leaders for St. James. We find the experience enjoyable and worthwhile but will be stepping out of that position after the November date. Each team serves 2 times during the year. We would like to see the continuation of two teams for the Salvation Army. If this is something you feel called to do, please get in touch with either team. We look forward to working with you. For information on current needs for Homeless Connections, click here. The Salvation Army-Fox Cities needs your help. Located at the social services office downtown Appleton. The pantry is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to noon, and meals are served 7 days a week from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. However, our staff is small and our resources are limited, creating a need for volunteers. That s where you come in. We need volunteers in the following areas: Volunteers to serve meals to our clients and their families. Assist with the preparation, serving and clean-up of the noon meal program. (With possible weekend back up as needed) Weekly, monthly or sub-list schedules are available. There are opportunities for both groups and individuals from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Volunteers to sort and box donations, stack shelves, unload deliveries, sort produce and assist clients in getting their groceries. Weekly, monthly, or sub list schedules are available from 8 a.m. to noon. If you have time and are committed to making a difference in the Fox Valley, please contact Amanda Schmidt at Any assistance you can give us will be greatly appreciated. We need any support you can offer. Thank you.

7 Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Just a reminder, please only schedule meetings on second Sundays so the other 3 Sundays may be used for adult education. Check with the office to schedule evening meetings. Thank you. 1 2 Office Closed Pastor s Day Off 3 4 Communion Sunday Food Pantry Collection 8:30 a.m. Music practice 9:00 a.m. Worship 10:15 a.m. Fellowship Time 5 Labor Day Office Closed 6 Choir begins 7:30 p.m. Praise Team begins 7 1:00 p.m. Bible Study & Support Group 7:00 p.m. Stewardship Meeting 8 9 Office Closed Pastor s Day Off Rally Day! 8:00 a.m. Choir Practice 8:20 a.m. Praise practice 9:00 a.m. Worship Rally Day 10:15 a.m. Fellowship Time 10:30 p.m. Craft Fair Meeting 12 12:15 p.m. Lunch Bunch, Applebee s, 3730 W. College Ave. 13 7:00 a.m. Men s Breakfast 5:45 p.m. Accountability Group Choir 7:30 p.m. Praise Team 14 1:00 p.m. Bible Study & Support Group Office Closed Pastor s Day Off First Day of Sunday School 8:00 a.m. Choir Practice 8:20 a.m. Praise practice 9:00 a.m. Worship 10:15 a.m. Fellowship Time 19 6 p.m. Ladies Night Out, Toppers Pizza, 430 3rd St. Menasha S.P.R.C. 20 5:45 p.m. Accountability Group 6:00 p.m. Scouts Choir Aware Articles Deadline 7:30 p.m. Praise Team 21 1:00 p.m. Bible Study & Support Group 7:00 p.m. Staff Meeting 22 Finance Meeting 23 Office Closed Pastor s Day Off 24 Oktoberfest 25 8:00 a.m. Choir Practice 8:20 a.m. Praise practice 9:00 a.m. Worship 10:15 a.m. Fellowship Time :45 p.m. Accountability Group Choir 7:30 p.m. Praise Team 28 1:00 p.m. Bible Study & Support Group 29 30

8 Sept GREETER Julie Remmel Chet & Rose Ann Luce Kim Robinson Mike Hert SOUND & PROJECTION Cal Christenson Connie Klaisner TBA Bill Kraemer USHER CAPTAIN Connie Klaisner Bonnie Budreau Carol Carlson Mike Shepard Wayne DeGrand HOSPITALITY Nancy Adkins Jon & Kathy Krein Tom & Mary Schemm Ethel Duhm Diane DeGrand ACOLYTE Maizy Van Linn Kirsten Runyon Avery Lang Ashlynn Gyrion LITURGIST Sydney Klaisner Sharon Ramsaroop Larry Gyrion Deb Kraemer CHILDREN S TIME Mark Klaisner Mary Schemm Diane Linstad Sarah Runyon Kathy Krein NURSERY Carrie Walters Maria Genke Melissa Van Linn Jayne Lang COUNTERS Chris Bahr Deb Ebben Chis Bahr Julie Remmel Chris Bahr Carol Carlson Chris Bahr Deb Ebben KWIK TRIP CARDS Tom Schemm Betsy Rath Tom Schemm LuAnn Van Handel COMMUNION SERVERS Charlie, Kay, Christenson & Sherry Schreiner & TBA Please contact the church office if you are able and willing to fill in for any of the TBA spots that are available. Thank you! See UMCSJ.org for See UMCSJ.org for updates & additional additional info... info...

9 VBS 2016

10 St. James United Methodist Church 100 W. Capitol Drive Appleton, WI Return Service Requested Affix Postage Here Mailing Label To receive this newsletter through and to receive weekly e-news from St. James UMC, please send your address to St. James United Methodist Church Pastor Mark Klaisner Margie Trueblood Children & Youth Ministries Coordinator Andy Lambrecht Music Director, Organist Office Hours 9 a.m. 1 p.m., Monday Thursday Bulletin Information & Announcements Due Monday of each week Newsletter Submissions Due 20th of each month For more information, go to umcsj.org Deb Kraemer Administrative Assistant office@umcsj.org Office phone number: Aware is published monthly by St. James UMC, 100 W. Capitol Drive, Appleton, WI.