FROM THE PASTOR. Re-Thinking Church!

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Emma Parks
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Receiving the Bread of Life to Give the Bread of Life Website:www.rivumc.com 1116 W. Park Ave Riverton, WY 82501 e-mail: rivumc@wyoming.

1 Receiving the Bread of Life to Give the Bread of Life Website: W. Park Ave Riverton, WY phone: (307) / fax: (307) May 2016 Volume 11 Issue 5 FROM THE PASTOR Re-Thinking Church! Published in 1819 by American author Washington Irving, Rip Van Winkle is the story of a henpecked husband who, to escape his wife's nagging, wanders up the Catskill Mountains one day with his dog, Wolf. There he comes upon a man clothed in antiquated Dutch clothing who is carrying a keg. After helping the man with it Rip is offered some of its contents, and soon after drinking he falls asleep. Rip awakens twenty years later to find everything changed around him. Frankly, you don't have to sleep for twenty years to be absolutely overwhelmed by the rapidity and scope of the change that is taking place around us today, both in our culture and in the Church. I have neither the time nor the resources to do my own research on these new trends, and so I follow a handful of church consultants instead. Over the last few months I've been sending members of our Ad. Council articles from some of these consultants about changing trends that I think could impact us today. Here are a few of the more intriguing: 1) Sunday morning from 10 to 11 am is no longer the sacred hour for worship, and this is particularly true for previously unchurched persons when we do reach them. When this group begins attending worship they will come at whatever time is convenient for them, including nontraditional days and times such as Saturday nights. And in a switch from the presumed truth of thirty years ago, younger people who do attend on Sundays increasingly prefer to worship earlier in the morning rather than later so they have the rest of the day free to do other things. 2) Related to this, Churches that are growing are doing so by offering multiple worship services that are different from one another, with the worship style of each service designed to appeal to the group they are targeting in that time slot. Going multi-site, with the second site targeting a completely different age group, is proving particularly effective. 3) Every Sunday attendance as the standard for church members is largely a thing of the past, particularly for generations born after Today the average church member is present at only one out of every six services. There are several reasons for this, including increasing travel by younger retirees and the simple fact that there are so many other things being offered in competition with church on Sunday mornings now. 4) Point three above highlights yet another trend; a growing number of people who participate in and follow a congregation digitally. Someone who may not be able to attend their churches regular worship services might still follow that service by watching it online later in the week. Churches that are growing are increasingly offering not just sound files of the Sunday sermon for folks to listen to, but a condensed video version of the entire service that replays at scheduled times throughout the week. Embrace United Methodist Church out of Sioux Falls, S.D. repeats their service in this fashion. 5) The offering plate is either disappearing or becoming increasingly irrelevant in many churches! A growing number of Americans do all, or almost all, of their banking and bill paying online. With the advent of debit cards, checks are becoming a thing of the past, so much so that I have had several people tell me that the only check they write today is to the church. As we move towards a cashless society, the option of giving by EFT will be the bare minimum that churches will need to offer. In the not too distant future churches will have giving kiosks in their foyer, or even QR (Quick Response) codes printed in the bulletin that will allow folks to give via an app on their smartphone. In Christ,

Page 2 MAY LOOSE CHANGE WYOMING ASSOCIATION OF CHURCHES What does the Lord require of you? To do justice and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.

2 Page 2 MAY LOOSE CHANGE WYOMING ASSOCIATION OF CHURCHES What does the Lord require of you? To do justice and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God. Micah 6:8 In 2016, the Wyoming Association of Churches (WAC) celebrates our 40 th anniversary of advocating for social and environmental justice. WAC partners with the 8 denominations that are represented on WAC s board of directors. The United Methodist Church is represented by Carl Carmichael of Sheridan for the Yellowstone Conference and Judy Eicher of Cheyenne for the Rocky Mountain Conference. Decisions are made by consensus. I moved to Riverton in 2013 to implement WAC s resolution to listen to and stand with Wyoming s Native Americans. WAC is helping to gain a stronger voice and more resources for health care for the Wind River Reservation (WRR) where the average life span is age 54.7 compared to 71 for Wyoming s general population and infant mortality is more than twice as high. WAC is nurturing the formation of the Wind River Native Advocacy Center whose vision is a community engaged in self-determination for the education, health, economic development and equality for the WRR. WAC advocates for expanding Medicaid and on other justice issues in Wyoming for Wyoming s poor and under-privileged and for protecting our water, air, land and sacred areas for future generations. WAC is a Christian voice of reason in a world now much divided. We rely on congregations and individuals for financial support. I greatly appreciate what this church does to support my work with the Wyoming Association of Churches. Chesie Lee, Executive Director WEDNESDAY NIGHT LIVE Many, many, many thanks to everyone who has helped in any way with our Wednesday Night Live Children s Christian Education Program. It grew slowly but steadily throughout the year, and we learned a lot about what will work and what won t. We re also convinced that many of the children benefited mightily from it. Wednesday, May 18 th, will be the last evening for Wednesday Night Live as we break for the summer (however, we DO have a mission team coming in July and are planning on their helping us with another VBS program). UPPER ROOM PUBLICATIONS The May/June Upper Room publications are available in the narthex to be taken by everyone who would like to have one. Please feel welcome to take one with you as you come or leave church.

Page 3 EARTH DAY OBSERVED WITH CHURCH CLEAN-UP A large group gathered on Saturday, April 23 to

We were Cub scouts from Pack #44 and several of their parents helped us with washing windows,

lot. The biggest job was the removal of the dead evergreens in front of the church.

Cub Scout Christian Steele helps Fred Nicol paint the benches around the labyrinth.

3 Page 3 EARTH DAY OBSERVED WITH CHURCH CLEAN-UP A large group gathered on Saturday, April 23 to help with the annual church clean-up day. We were Cub scouts from Pack #44 and several of their parents helped us with washing windows, weeding flower beds, painting benches, picking up trash and painting the lines in the parking lot. The biggest job was the removal of the dead evergreens in front of the church. This gives our building a whole new look! A big thank you to everyone who helped out! Cub Scout Christian Steele helps Fred Nicol paint the benches around the labyrinth. Thomas and Jacob Christopolos sweep the parking lot. Rowena Bland paints the lines. Lee Schlicting, Kathy Schilling, and Jean Concilio got window washing lessons from Mr. Christopolos.

If you have questions or suggestions for our get-togethers, please call Lynne Hawk @ 851-3752 or Kathy Brown @ 856-2533.

4 Page 4 MAY FELLOWSHIP CARRY-IN DINNER The May Fellowship Carry-in Dinner will be May 1st at 11:30 p.m. The Ad Council will be hosting the dinner. Please bring a dish and join us for fun, fellowship, and great food. Hope to see you May 1st! If you have questions or suggestions for our get-togethers, please call Lynne or Kathy NEW PASTOR IN PAVILLION Congratulations to Matt White, who has been appointed as the new lay pastor to the Pavillion United Methodist Church! Cleve McSwain will be returning to Georgia where he is seeking a new part-time appointment. JOIN US FOR TEA AND GAMES United Methodist Women are hosting tea in our fancy silver tea/coffee set May 4th at 1:30 p.m. We invite all women of the church to join us. THANKS SO MUCH to all the ladies who so kindly volunteer to assist with assembling the monthly newsletter. The April newsletter was assembled by Rita Larson, Noreen Parkhurst, and Connie Gaskell. MARCH FINANCIAL INFORMATION Budget income to date : $50, Actual income to date: $51, Budgeted expenses to date: $50, Actual expenses to date: $42, April Loose Change Offering April 2016 Loose Change Offering Project was the Circle J Camp. The total offering received in April in support of this is $

Page 5 MAY EVENTS MAY 1, SUNDAY: FELLOWSHIP CARRY-IN DINNER, 11:30 A.M. MAY 1, SUNDAY: CWC THE TABLE STUDENT DINNER, 6:00 P.M. MAY 3, TUESDAY: MISSIONS COMMITTEE, 7:00 P.M. MAY 4, WEDNESDAY: RUMCOR, 9:30 A.

M. MAY 17, TUESDAY: BLOOD DRIVE, 12:00-6:00 P.M. MAY 17, TUESDAY: TRUSTEES MEETING, 7:00 P.M. MAY 18, WEDNESDAY: WEDNESDAY NIGHT LIVE, 5:30 P.M. MAY 19, THURSDAY: MARTHARUTH CIRCLE, 1:30 P.M. MAY 19, THURSDAY: FINANCE COMMITTEE, 7:00 P.

5 Page 5 MAY EVENTS MAY 1, SUNDAY: FELLOWSHIP CARRY-IN DINNER, 11:30 A.M. MAY 1, SUNDAY: CWC THE TABLE STUDENT DINNER, 6:00 P.M. MAY 3, TUESDAY: MISSIONS COMMITTEE, 7:00 P.M. MAY 4, WEDNESDAY: RUMCOR, 9:30 A.M. MAY 4, WEDNESDAY: WEDNESDAY NIGHT LIVE, 5:30 P.M. MAY 5, THURSDAY: UMW, 1:30 P.M. MAY 11, WEDNESDAY: WEDNESDAY NIGHT LIVE, 5:30 P.M. MAY 15, SUNDAY: AD COUNCIL MEETING, 11:30, A.M. MAY 16, MONDAY: JOANNA CIRCLE, 6:00 P.M. MAY 17, TUESDAY: BLOOD DRIVE, 12:00-6:00 P.M. MAY 17, TUESDAY: TRUSTEES MEETING, 7:00 P.M. MAY 18, WEDNESDAY: WEDNESDAY NIGHT LIVE, 5:30 P.M. MAY 19, THURSDAY: MARTHARUTH CIRCLE, 1:30 P.M. MAY 19, THURSDAY: FINANCE COMMITTEE, 7:00 P.M. MAY 26, THURSDAY: FIBER ARTS MINISTRY, 9:30 A.M. MAY 30, MONDAY: MEMORIAL DAY RECURRING EVENTS SUNDAYS AT 8:00 AND 10:30 A.M. - WORSHIP SERVICE SUNDAYS AT 9:15 A.M. - ADULT SUNDAY SCHOOL SUNDAYS AT 6:00 P.M. - CWC THE TABLE DINNER (when CWC classes are in session) TUESDAYS AT 10:00 A.M. - PASTOR S BIBLE STUDY - EVERYONE WELCOME! WEDNESDAYS AT 6:30 A.M. - JAMES BROTHERS BREAKFAST AT TRAILHEAD RESTAURANT WEDNESDAYS AT 4:00 P.M. - BIBLE STUDY AT HOMESTEAD ASSISTED LIVING WEDNESDAYS AT 5:30 P.M. - WEDNESDAY NIGHIT LIVE! (when school is in session) THURSDAYS AT 7:00 P.M. - CHOIR PRACTICE SHUTTLE SERVICE The Missions Committee Shuttle Service continues to provide transportation to & from Sunday Worship. If you are in need of a ride or wish to help by serving as a volunteer driver, please call Beep! Beep!

6 1116 W Park Ave Riverton, WY RIVERTON UNITED METHODIST CHURCH 1116 W. Park Ave. Riverton, WY OPEN HEARTS, OPEN MINDS, OPEN DOORS!

IDEAS FOR YEAR-ROUND FINANCIAL STEWARDSHIP

IDEAS FOR YEAR-ROUND FINANCIAL STEWARDSHIP ADDITIONAL FOUNDATION RESOURCES Announcing Stewardship Challenge Grant 2.0 The Wisconsin United Methodist Foundation has developed a new Stewardship Challenge Grant to encourage and reward congregations