g{x `ÉÇ àéü St. Matthew s United Methodist Church 2738 MacArthur View, San Antonio, Texas 78217

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1 g{x `ÉÇ àéü November 2016 St. Matthew s United Methodist Church 2738 MacArthur View, San Antonio, Texas Jesus Teachings Verses Sin Have you ever wondered why Jesus taught the things he did? He wasn t like the other teachers of his day. They taught about the law God gave the Israelites in the desert on the way to the promised land. The law was given to teach the people not to sin. If you kept the 10 commandments and all the other 600+ laws, then you didn t sin. The origin of sin is a person s self-centeredness. I will do what I want to do. If I want to eat the fruit even though God told me not to, I ll eat the fruit. If I want to be angry and hold a grudge, then that s what I ll do. If my spouse isn t meeting my needs, then I ll get a divorce. If a co-worker annoys me, I ll make fun of them. And on and on it goes. The law of Moses addressed the actions. Don t do this, but do this instead. Jesus teachings addressed the root of sin, our self-centeredness. Some of the teachings we call the beatitudes spoke directly to this issue. Blessed are: the meek, the merciful, the peacemakers, the pure in heart. Those go against a self centered mind set. The answer to sin is to have our hearts transformed by God s forgiveness through the cross of Christ. Jeremiah prophesied about this. God will take the external law and place it deep in our hearts and minds so that doing what God wants us to do will be our new nature. We will always be under the bondage of sin until we accept the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross and receive God s forgiveness and our new nature. In This Edition: Page 2 Information, Admin Board, Attendance Page 3 Sunday School Classes/ Children s Choir Page 4 Wednesday Night F.R.E.E / PNO Page 5 UMW Page 6 UMM/Election Day Page 7 Day School Page 8/9 Agua Viva Page 10 Calendar Page 11 The Praying Church/ Church Work Day Page 12 Events Page 13Misson Fair Page 14 Joint Thanksgiving Service Page 15 Prayer List Page 16 Messenger/ Thank you One of the clearest standards of this is our stewardship. Either we give with a regular pattern of giving, (every week or every month) or we give when we feel like it or we think we can afford it. The new nature is a generous nature. It learns to give all it can to the kingdom of God. In the beginning of our stewardship, $5 or $10 a week might be all we can give. We should determine what we will give and give it regularly. We become better disciples doing this and our new nature is strengthened. To be a good steward we need to make a budget. We need to set goals for what we spend on ourselves and others. If you haven t been keeping a budget, let me suggest that for November and December, you keep track of every dollar you spend even incidentals like coffee, coke, cigarettes, gifts, etc.. Our self-centered nature won t want to do that. You can t hide selfish spending if you have a budget. At the end of December, review your spending. You may see more self-centered spending than you realize. Then prayerfully ask God to help you set spending parameters that will fall in line with your new nature. You might be amazed at how much you will be able to give back to God and the Kingdom. When you do that, you will experience a great internal blessing. Alan 1

2 WORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES Sunday Morning Worship 8:30 a.m. Traditional Worship Service/ Sanctuary 11:00 a.m. Blended Worship Service/ Sanctuary Sunday School 9:45 a.m. CHURCH STAFF Pastor Alan Delafield Administrative Pastor Susan Porr Associate Lay Pastor of Agua Viva Veronica Harvey Business Administrator Children & Family Ministries Director Judy Langford College/Youth Ministries Director Tim Diemert Day School Director Nikki Irving Secretary Diana Garza Music Director Amy Ballenger Organist Nursery Coordinator Annalie Tamez Custodian Raul Menesess Pastor s Office Hours Monday: 9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. Tuesday: 9:00 a.m. - Noon Wednesday: 1:00 p.m.- 4:00 p.m. Thursday: 9:00 a.m.- Noon Church Office Hours Monday-Thursday 9:00 am to 4:00pm Friday - 9:00 am to 12:00 pm Phone: (210) Fax: (210) Church Address Information@smumcsa.org St. Matthew s Website St. Matthew s Day School Phone: (210) Fax: (210) dayschool@smumcsa.org Bible Studies at St. Matthew s Monday: Monday Night Bible Study, 7:00 pm, Room 105 New Women s Bible Study, 6:30 pm, Abel Chapel Tuesday: Women of Faith, 8:00 am, Room 105 Tuesday Morning Bible Study, 9:30 am, Room 105 Wednesday: Agua Viva Woman's Bible Study 10:00 am, Fellowship Hall Agua Viva Spanish Discipleship Class, 6:45 pm, Room 301 Just Say Yes Bible Study, 6:45 pm, Room 605 Beginner's Bible Study, 6:45 pm, Room 603 Crafting Through the Bible, 6:45 pm, Room 105 Administrative Board 2016: Chairman Eugene Hileman Vice Chairman Ralph Pipes Lay Leader for 8:30 am Jo Reinschmidt Lay Leader for 11:00 am Anne Verner Conference Delegate Carolyn Twyford Conference Delegate Alternate Jo Reinschmidt Treasurer Mike Verner Secretary Jeanie Etter COM Chair Steve Schrader Finance Chair Fred Long SPRC Chair Bill Twyford Trustee Chair Les Barrow Month Church Sunday School Small Groups September October Average Church and Sunday School Attendance September 2016 Through October

3 SUNDAY SCHOOL FOR ALL AGES 9:45 AM PRESCHOOL 3 TO 4 YEAR OLDS Meet in Room 606. Contact person: Judy Langford ( ext. 105) KINDER THROUGH 1ST GRADE Meet in room 604 Contact person: Judy Langford ( ext. 105) ELEMENTRY 2ND THROUGH 4TH GRADE Explore the Bible using music, art, science, games, story, and cooking. They meet in Room 611. Contact person: Judy Langford ( ext. 105) TWEENS: 5 TH THROUGH 6 TH GRADE Meet in room 602 Contact person: Judy Langford ( ext. 105) YOUTH 7 TH THROUGH 12 TH GRADE Meet in the Youth Building. Contact Youth Team: Tim and Kelli Diemert ( ) COME AND SEE CLASS (All ages) Meet in Room 301 (Deats Bldg). A discipleship class on knowing Christ and making him known. Studying Encounters with Jesus by Timothy Keller. Contact person: Jim Humphries ( ) assisted by John Shero NEW SEASONINGS CLASS (Middle Adult) Meet in Room 603. Will be starting a new study on the book If the Church were Christians by Phillip Gulley October 31st. Contact person: David Mack ( ) SONSHINE CLASS (Senior Adult) Meet in Room 605. Studying The Book of Mark. Contact person: Marsha Humphries ( ) VOYAGERS CLASS (Senior Adult) Meet in Room 601. Adult Bible Study Workbook/Study (Spring 2016). Contact person: Frank Tyk ( ) FRIENDS OF FAITH CLASS (Young & Middle Adult) Meet in the Fellowship Hall. Contact person: Greg Klaerner ( ) COVENANT BELIEVERS CLASS (All Ages) Meet in the conference room. Starting a new study Encounters With Jesus by Timothy Keller. Contact persons: Anne Verner ( ) or Judy Langford ( ext. 105) Children's Choir Children s choir for kinder through 6th grade has started back under the direction of Amy Ballenger. The children will meet each Sunday morning in the choir room from 9:30-9:50. Following choir practice they will go to their individual Sunday school classes. 3

4 WILL END ON NOVEMBER 16TH F ellowship R elationship E ducate E nergize Supper, worship, study for children, youth and adults 6:00-6:30 Supper 6:30-6:45 Worship 6:45-7:45 Study for all ages Elementary ages: Kindergarten - 4th grade Tweens: Fifth and sixth grade Youth: Seventh grade through High School Nursery available for younger children November 4th 6:30 9:30 PM Ages 12 months to 5th grade Volunteers are always needed for our monthly Parent s Night Out Ministry Scheduled on the first Friday night of each month. Getting involved is such a blessing to the children. The children arrive at 6:30 pm for play, dinner, story, crafts, and games and stay till 9:30 pm. We are using our Power Xpress Sunday School curriculum as a basis for planning each month s activities. It s a blessing to reach children with the Good News of Jesus Christ. This outreach is a living expression of the vitality of this church. Please contact Maria Cantu at If you have any questions $3.00 per child and scholarship's available, if needed. 4

5 St. Matthew s UMW General Meeting Thursday, November 3rd 12:00 Lunch provided by Sarah Circle 12:30 Women s Storybook Project of Texas presentation & World Thank Program UMW Business Meeting will follow (Childcare can be provided. Please notify church office) Book Nook We meet on the third Wednesday each month to discuss books on the UMW Reading List. Bring a sack lunch and join us Wednesday, Nov16 at 11:30 in room #105. Books for November: HOUSE OF PURPLE CEDAR BY: TIM TINGLE THE UNDERGROUND GIRLS OF KABUL BY: JENNY NORDBERG H.O.P.E.- Tuesday, Nov.8, 6:30PM, Youth Bldg, contact Annelie Tamez Lady Bugs- contact Kelli Diemert Lydia-Thur, Nov.17, 10:30AM room #105 Sarah-Saturday, Nov.19 10:00AM at Sue Taylor s Eve-Thur, Nov.17, 7:00PM at Lucy Hoover s 5

6 What a pleasure it was to have Susan and her husband Darel Porr at out meeting of Methodist men on Sunday, October 9th! Not only that, three of our beautiful wives also joined us for the occasion. We were all interested in learning more about our new Associate Pastor and I was particularly impressed that a general would have picked up the chairs and tables after breakfast! You never know what will happen at Methodist meetings, the second Sunday of each month at 8:00 am in the gym. Robert Freund If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land. 2 Chronicles 7:14 Election Day Pray Vigil The church will be open during polling hours 7:00 a.m.-7:00 p.m. November 8 Please sign up to pray for our city, our state and our country. 6

7 November is here and we all have a lot to be thankful for! Each day St. Matthew s Day School is grateful to God, the students, and families that we are able to share our love and dedication with each day. Last month s pumpkin patch was such a great success the children all had a blast, Mrs. Louann sure made the day one to remember. To Mrs. Louann; the rest of the volunteers the children of St. Matthew s Day School would like to send a very big thank you for making their fieldtrips so wonderful. With all the handy work that has had to be done around the school, the students and staff of the Day School would like thank everyone that was able to pitch in and lend a helping hand with the work. Mr. Joe and Mr. Larry are familiar faces with all the hard work that they do on a weekly basis to ensure that we are always maintaining a safe, hazard free and secure campus. We have a lot of wonderful celebrations planned for the month of November. Our annual Family Feast will be held on November 18 th. The Family Feast is a sight to see, you will not want to miss the opportunity to come and join your little one on this special day. During our family feat the Day School will also announce how much money that was collected for the Heifer foundation, we are all excited to help others in need. The family feast will be the perfect time to get some of those special holiday pictures to start those fun holiday projects. The students and staff have a blast working on all the fun crafts and costumes that they work so hard to prepare for this special day. Each family will need to sign up with your child s teacher to bring something to share. As we prepare for the holiday season each class will participate in a painted pottery class on November 28, starting at 9:30a.m; although parents we love your presence in the Day School, but this class is closed to parents, this is a surprise. During the Thanksgiving holiday St. Matthew s Day School will be closed on November 24th and 25th, 2016, and will open back up for business bright and early on the morning of November 28 th, If you are interested in volunteering for future events please contact the Day School. The playground is a shared ground area lately, there has been a lot of trash pickup during the opening process, may we please have your help on keeping trash free for everyone here at St. Matthew s. Please be sure that you place your trash in the trash bins located through the campus. Currently the total enrollment is holding steady at 69 students. Spaces are available for those who are interested in joining our awesome family and seeing what St. Matthew s Day School has to offer. The available classrooms have openings: (6 weeks- 12 months)=1 (3 Years old)=4 (4 Years old)=6 (5-12 Years of age)=3 If you are interested please don t hesitate to contact Mrs. Nikki or Ms. Anne at Thank you for all that you do for our children. Nikki Irving and Staff St. Matthew s Day School dayschool@smumcsa.org Phone

8 Praise & Harvest God be merciful unto us, and bless us; and cause his face to shine upon us. That thy way may be known upon earth, thy saving health among all nations. Let the people praise thee, O God; let all the people praise thee. O LET THE NATIONS BE GLAD AND SING FOR JOY: for thou shalt judge the people righteously, and govern the nations upon earth. Let the people praise thee, O God; let all the people praise thee. THEN SHALL THE EARTH YIELD HER HARVEST; and God, even our own God, shall bless us. God shall bless us; and all the ends of the earth shall fear him. Psalms 67 Is it possible that the psalmist could see the future and saw how the Gospel spread over all the earth? This psalm speaks of the fulfillment of the Great Commission of Matthew 28:18-20, when Jesus commanded that the Gospel be proclaimed in all the world's nations. If you are a follower of Christ, include yourself among the multitude of nations that have heard about the Savior, and if this is true, you will not be able to remain silent about the good news of the Gospel... Proclaim it so that we may see a bountiful harvest! For he has promised to bless us abundantly because His word never returns empty. The Word of God is the seed, and when we release it on Earth, we will see a great harvest. For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater: So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it. Isaiah 55:10 11 We praise God for the goodness and His grace over our lives; we praise God for the blessings poured out upon St. Matthew s and Agua Viva Soon we will begin a new Evangelism and Mercy Ministry project with the international Children s Hunger Fund, and we ask for your prayers that God would support this project with the power of his Holy Spirit, and that it will raise up a great harvest. With love in Christ Verónica. NEXT RUMMAGE SALE: SATURDAY, DEC. 3, 9:00 AM 2:00 PM Bring your donations to the church office starting MON. NOV. 28 FREE SNACKS! FREE HAIRCUTS! 8

9 Dios tenga misericordia de nosotros, y nos bendiga; haga resplandecer su rostro sobre nosotros; para que sea conocido en la tierra tu camino, en todas las naciones tu salvación. TE ALABEN LOS PUEBLOS, OH DIOS; TODOS LOS PUEBLOS TE ALABEN. Alégrense y gócense las naciones, porque juzgarás los pueblos con equidad, y pastorearás las naciones en la tierra. Te alaben los pueblos, oh Dios; Todos los pueblos te alaben. ENTONCES LA TIERRA DAR SU COSECHA; nos bendecirá Dios, el Dios nuestro. Bendíganos Dios, y témanlo todos los términos de la tierra. Salmo 67 Sera posible que el salmista pudo ver el futuro y vio cómo se difundía el evangelio en toda la tierra? Este salmo habla del cumplimiento de la gran comisión de Mt. 28:18-20, cuando Jesús ordeno que el evangelio fuera proclamado en todas las naciones del mundo. Si usted es un seguidor de Cristo, inclúyase entre toda esta multitud de naciones que han conocido al Salvador y si esto es verdad, usted no podrá callar más la buena noticia del evangelio Proclámela para tener una abundante cosecha. Porque el ha prometido bendecirnos en abundancia debido a que su palabra nunca vuelve vacía. La Palabra de Dios es la semilla, y cuando la liberemos en la Tierra, veremos una buena cosecha. "Porque como desciende de los cielos la lluvia y la nieve, y no vuelve allá, sino que riega la tierra, y la hace germinar y producir, y da semilla al que siembra, y pan al que come, así será mi palabra que sale de mi boca; no volverá a mí vacía, sino que hará lo que yo quiero, y será prosperada en aquello para que la envié Is. 55:10 11 Alabemos a Dios por las bondades de su gracia sobre nuestras vidas, alabemos a Dios por las bendiciones derramadas sobre St. Mathew y Agua Viva Porque pronto iniciaremos un nuevo Proyecto de Evangelismo y Misericordia y pedimos de sus oraciones para que Dios respalde este proyecto con el poder de su Espíritu Santo y levantar una gran cosecha. Con Amor en Cristo Verónica. 9

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11 The Praying Church These are really exciting times for us to be right here at St. Matthew s! As we have prayed for missional opportunities to serve Christ, we have had these prayers answered in several ways! The apartments next door had firmly shut the door to working with us. That has changed! Not only were we invited to work with them in their Fall Festival, but we are invited to continue working with them in the coming months! Synthia Collins kept approaching them, and they agreed at long last! We now have such a great opportunity to get to know our neighbors and work together with them in an ongoing way. Tim Diemert is already full of ideas! Maybe you are, too? We also have the good news from Rev. Veronica and Jeff Harvey that Agua Viva will be starting missional outreach with a free food ministry! Their ministry, already established in some other San Antonio churches, is for Spanish speaking families and individuals. Naturally, we are also finding out about this ministry for our English speaking neighbors in need! At St. Matthew s we are blessed to be able to be inclusive to families who speak English or Spanish! Finally, the Pumpkin Patch again provided a chance introduce the love of Christ to a lot of people who do not know the people of our church. Thank you to all the Pumpkin Missionaries who staffed the Patch! You are truly saints and beloved in your ministry. We pray in response to God s call to us. Let your heart listen for that quiet call. Continue to pray for chances to show love to those who are the least among us. God says whenever we serve the least of people, we serve Jesus himself. (Matt. 25:40) The Trustees are hosting a workday on Saturday, November 12, from 8:00 am to noon. Everyone is invited to bring cleaning supplies, blowers, rakes, etc. and help spruce up the church for the holidays. Thanks, Les Barrow 11

12 Join us for our Ministry Fair During Both Services Sunday, November 13th We have plenty of Ministries here at St. Matthew s & need volunteers to sign up, please make time to attend. As we begin the Christian Year, we also celebrate the Holy Season known as Advent. It is a time when we prepare ourselves for the coming of our Messiah. Advent means "Coming." We celebrate these days of Advent in expectation and preparation for Christ's arrival. Through the centuries, Christians have observed a time of waiting and expectation before celebrating the birth of the Savior at Christmas. The Advent season is a time for reflection and preparation, but its mood is joyful. Advent has been enriched by Christian tradition to reflect its distinctive Christian meaning. It proclaims the revelation of God's love as expressed in Christ's birth in a humble stable, His sacrificial death on the cross, and His victorious resurrection! It points to the hope of Christ's coming again as the King of kings and Lord of Lords. Advent makes innkeepers out of all of us, asking each of us to make room for the arrival of Christ The King. Come help decorate our Sanctuary, November 26,2016 at 9:00 am. December 24th we will be having out FAMILY Christmas Eve Service at 5:00 pm and our Traditional Candle Light Service at 9:00 pm. Also, poinsettias will be going on sale Thursday, December 1st, I will have the forms on the narthex table. We are still working on other events and times, I will post on our bulletin thru out the month. 12

13 Give Gi s This Christmas That Make a Difference Shop at the Mission & Fair Trade Market in the gym Sunday, November 20, 9:00 3:00 Rafiki All s Fair is a fair trade gift shop, which carries handcrafted items made from people around the world in disadvantaged situations. H.O.P.E. products provide livable wages for families in poverty, provide coats and blankets for the homeless, sponsor children, orphans and missionaries, build schools, homes, churches and orphanages and drill water wells. ImaniXchange is a women empowerment program directed by Jenny Jenkins Nuccio which provides job opportunities for the single, widowed and disadvantaged women in Kenya. Raifiki mea ns frie nd in S wa hili a nd depicts the purpose of the Foundation to befriend orphans and widows in their distress. The mission of the Rafiki Foundation is to help Africans know God and raise their standard of living. You can also make a gi dona on to missions. You ll receive a card to send to those you ve honored. Our mission groups include: Heifer, UMCOR, San Antonio Children s Shelter 13

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16 The St. Matthew s Messenger This is a new article page that will be available for anyone to: express joys, announcements, celebrations, special needs of jobs or articles you need in your home, sharing your talents or gifts, thank you s, and other sentiments. Please call Diane at or to information@smumcsa.org Synthia Collins is a Certified C.N.A and does home health care on weekends. If you know of someone needing a loving, caring provider, please contact her at Anyone needing a ride to the doctor, or grocery shopping or picking up prescriptions - our Nurture Ministry can help you, so please call the church office and let them know. REMINDER: We do not have up-to-date information for 40% of our church family. Please notify us of your new or updated home phone number, cell number, work numbers, change of address, and addresses and changes. We receive phone calls every day where members are trying to reach other members, and we can t help them, because our information is not up-to-date. We still have work numbers for people who retired 20 years ago. Please help us!!! Diane Garza, Secretary Dear St. Matthew s Family, Thank you for the LOVE you showered me with at my retirement fellowship! It has been such a pleasure to serve you for these past 14 years. What wonderful changes and growth I have seen during that time! I was not only proud to be a staff member of St. Matthew s, but am also proud to continue serving the Lord as a member here at St. Matthew s. Thank you again for Hugs, cards, and Love gifts! Hermy Rudloff 16

17 fàa `tàà{xãëá United Methodist Church 2738 MacArthur View San Antonio, TX November 2016 Give Thanks to the Lord for HE is Good!!! He s Love Endures Forever!!!! Check out our awesome website at - HOUSE KEEPER Caregiver Trini Requene Member of Agua Viva Is available on Wednesday & Thursday to clean your house, please call for more infor- mation. Comfort-Air Engineering, Inc. A New Generation of Comfort! Robert & Georganne Freund St. Matthew s members since 1984 Commercial / Residential / Sales & Service Jones Maltsberger / / Phone: