Blessings, Pastor Sheresa

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1 1 THE MESSENGER SEPTEMBER 2018 September 2018 By listening to the still speaking God, we seek to connect people to God and to others through worship, service, and fellowship. We are a church that values: Welcome Fellowship Outreach Tradition UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST 3 Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4 Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. 5 Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. 6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. 7 Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy. 8 Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. 9 Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. 10 Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. ~Matthew 5:3-10 In July, Danny Kishler and I spent a full week together. Danny and his parents had agreed to confirmation classes, but his schedule is busy with leadership camps and band practice, as well as an impending school start. I decided that the usual method of confirmation would need revision, and therefore we decided to create a week of intense discussion and learning. Our time was divided into mission work, class time, field trips to various sanctuaries around town and lots of discussion. Our work yielded interesting finds: such as how worship spaces can be comforting or repelling for those seeking God. We stood in baptistries and handed out food to hungry people. Even I, seasoned as I am, found my skepticism challenged and my vision of bible school rekindled. Suddenly, I found myself remembering why I came to Middletown three years ago to reach those who may rarely hear of Jesus. I stood in neighborhoods I had never been in before, and I was ashamed that I had waited this long to go where the need was. I believe God calls us to the places we are meant to go. The choice is always ours to lean into the call or run in the opposite direction. That is certainly true for Danny, who could have easily said he was too busy for confirmation. That could also have been true for the many people who welcomed us that week, like the secretary of the Catholic church who sat with us as we noted symbolism and asked questions. I hope you will be in worship on Sunday, Spetember 9th. That is Confirmation Sunday and we will celebrate Danny s perseverance and commitment to the church of Jesus Christ. He will bring a short statement on his faith and its service in his life and we, as a church, will welcome him into our fold. This is perhaps the most important Sunday in the life of St. Paul s this year. I pray you will turn out to celebrate this important milestone for Danny and our congregation. We are never done living for the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We are never too old, too tired, or too beyond the life of discipleship that we took on at the moment of our own confirmation and baptism. We know this because we are never beyond the reach of God. Let us stay alert to the call of God and steadfast in our willingness to go where we are led. Blessings, Pastor Sheresa

2 2 THE MESSENGER SEPTEMBER 2018 Dog Days and Blessings! Council began discussing the idea of a pet blessing service in June. As planning was underway, the feasibility of the plan looked blurry at best. In the meantime, Downtown Middletown announced that there would be a Dog Days celebration on September 7th, First Friday, from 5-9 PM in downtown Middletown. Pastor Sheresa approached the council with the idea of applying to have a table at Dog Days where she would bless dogs. As the idea was explored, suggestions were made, such as giving away homemade dog treats with our church information on it, providing a water bowl for hydration, and having a table to share information about the church. We need you to join us and represent St. Paul s UCC as we share the love of creation with the community s four legged furry friends. Let Pastor Sheresa know if you plan to help out and spread the love of Christ to all. It s time to sell some soup!!! Larry and Darlene Adams have retired their golden spoon. How can you help? We need folks to do help make this fundraiser complete by participating in a variety of ways: preparing meat for the soup, cooking the special recipes handed down from the Lowmans and Adams families, manning the tables on pick-up day, as well as selling and purchasing some for a hearty meal. It freezes well and will be the perfect dinner for a cold night. There are order sheets at the church. Bon Appettit! We lift up our gratitude for the resurrection of Thelma Cook, oldest member of St. Paul s UCC, who entered the church triumphant on August 16, 2018 at the age of 104 and was laid to rest on Monday, August 20th. Her granddaughter, Debbie Roberts, shared her thanks for the presence of church members and the beautiful words of Rev. Lou Vetri, who honored her life. Rise in glory, beloved servant of God! Don t miss the return of the choir on September 9th in our 10:15 AM worship service! Is anyone interested in an evening bible study? Could do bi-weekly or monthly. Let Pastor Sheresa know. Children Sunday school for children will take place during worship for the 2nd, 3rd and 4th Sundays of the month. The 1st Sunday of the month will be dedicated to intergenerational worship. Adults Sunday school meets in the library for a DVD based instruction series on Creeds. Adult Sunday School begins September 16th at 9:00 AM in the library. Children will meet in the Fellowship Hall for Sunday school during worship.

3 3 THE MESSENGER SEPTEMBER 2018 Date Greeters Refreshments Ushers Nursery Liturgist 9/2 J. Williams R. McQuade J. Batliner R. Lakes J. Brewer C. Clark C. Batliner R. Lyons 9/9 C. Burnett J. Rockwell K. Kishler K. Rice J. Burnett J. Kishler D. Kishler 9/16 C. Kiniyalocts L. Britton N. Fisher B. Canter N. Fisher J. Kiniyalocts L. Britton R. Britton 9/23 C. Clark J. Batliner R. McQuade J. Ratliff Volunteer J. Brewer C. Kiniyalocts N. Fisher 9/30 L. Adams R. Lakes J. Rockwell M. Minge D. Adams C. Burnett J. Burnett Lunch Bunch Alert!!! On September 30th, we will be eating at Houston s On October 28th, we will dine at T. J. Chomps Houston Restaurant T. J. Chomps S US Route E. Linden Ave. Lebanon, OH Miamisburg, OH Please Pray for our shut-ins and ill friends... Aman- Virginia Elam Cleo Habig da Lorig Carroll Stein Returning students & teachers Our military members: PFC JakeBurley Chase McConeghy

4 4 THE MESSENGER SEPTEMBER 2018 September 2018 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 2 10:15 AM Intergenerational Worship 9 Choir returns! Confirmation Sunday 16 10:15 Worship 3 Labor Day Bible Study 2 PM* 12 Council meeting 5:30 PM Dog Days Downtown Middletown 5-9 PM st day of Sunday School 23 10:15 Worship 30 10:15 Worship Bible Study 2 PM* Ohio Conference annual meeting 29 Ohio Conference annual meeting Lunch Houston s * Bible studies are held at Triple Moon Coffee shop 1100 Central Avenue, Middletown Bible Study Texts: Sept 12: Acts 4: 32-5:11 Sept 26: Acts 6: 1-7

5 5 THE MESSENGER A REMINDER From the pastor... As the church has decreased in attendance, committees became teams worship, service, fellowship and maintenance. The chairs of those teams sit on council, but the team s membership does not consist of solely the chair. On the contrary, many hands make the work light and I know for certain many of you help out various committees. It came to my attention that a criticism was lodged that a team chair wasn t present at an event that fell within their committee designation. Keep in mind that WE are the church, and it is OUR job to work together. Let s help each other! SEPTEMBER 2018 Pastor Sheresa is in the church Tuesday/Wednesday 11:30 AM 2:00 PM If she isn t there, call her cell phone; there s a good chance she s at a mee%ng or on an emergency visit. Her cell phone is (717) Her home phone number is (513) She writes a devo%onal on her blog: The picture to your left is a familiar sight. It is our office building. Despite the hard work of our clean up earlier this summer, it was overrun with weeds and quite unappealing aesthetically. Thanks to the hard work and generosity of Rick Lyons and Karl Rice, it has been mulched and weeded and returned to a lovely state. There are many ways in which you can make a difference in the life and beauty of our beloved church and our community. An act as simple as eating lunch may be a way to give back. Stay tuned to learn more about being a disciple in unique ways.

6 6 THE MESSENGER SEPTEMBER 2018 ST. PAUL S UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST 114 S. BROAD STREET MIDDLETOWN OHIO OPEN AND AFFIRMING September 16, 2018 May 12, 2017 Sunday: 9:00 a.m. Adult Sunday School 10:15 Children s Sunday School Sunday 10:15 a.m. Worship Service Nursery Provided Lift to Sanctuary Handicap Accessible Holy Communion celebrated on the first Sunday of the month. Rev. Sheresa Simpson-Rice, Pastor Marsha Minge, Choir Director Barbara Flory, Pianist Office Hours Tuesday, Wednesday,Thursday 11:00a.m 2:00p.m. Office E Mail: stpaulsuccmidd@att.net WEB PAGE: stpaulsuccmidd.org