The E-pistle. Sunday, July 3 Holy Communion. Sunday, July 10 Ed Burroughs. Sunday, July 17 Lisa Brown. Sunday, July 24 The Power of Persistent Prayer

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1 The E-pistle ST. PAUL S UNITED METHODIST CHURCH JULY/AUG 2016 Sunday, July 3 Holy Communion Sunday, July 10 Ed Burroughs Sunday, July 17 Lisa Brown Sunday, July 24 The Power of Persistent Prayer Sunday, July 31 Vacation Bible School Sunday Sunday, August 7 Holy Communion Sunday, August 14 Katherine Parker Sunday, August 21 Rules for Breaking the Rules Sunday, August 28 Humility and Hospitality

2 While at the Surf Shack, students will: Experience God s amazing love. Explore God s mission for their lives. Encounter powerful water stories from the Bible. Discover ways to live out God s amazing love. Dear Family and Friends, Who s Who at Surf Shack: VBS Participants: Surfers Guides: Lifeguards Activity Center Leaders: Surf Coaches Assembly Characters: Skipper and Puppeteer for Snappy It is time for Vacation Bible School at Surf Shack. During VBS your student will catch the wave of God s amazing love by becoming surfers. After a high energy Opening Assembly at the Surf Shack, the surfers will make their way through interactive Bible lessons and expand what they ve discovered through a variety of activities: art, recreation, science and enjoying tasty Shack Snacks. Along the way, the surfers will hear about our mission project. Surf Shack is designed to introduce students to a deeper relationship with God through Jesus Christ. Surf Shack VBS is based on the Bible and the gospel of the living Christ. Surf s Up! Join us on July 25 th through 29 th from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Registration is available in the following ways: 1) Go to 2) Call the church office at (209) If you have further questions about Surf Shack, please direct them to Kelly Bergman or Lisa Brown. Sincerely, Your Surf Shack VBS Co-Directors Kelly and Lisa

3 SERVING IN JULY & AUGUST Coffee Fellowship July 3 July 10 July 17 July 24 July 31 Aug 7 Aug 14 Aug 21 Aug 28 July 3 July 10 July 17 July 24 July 31 Aug 7 Aug 14 Aug 21 Aug 28 July 3 July 10 July 17 July 24 Board of Trustees Stephen Ministry Church Council Finance Committee Food Pantry United Methodist Men United Methodist Women SPRC Social Concerns, Endowment Liturgists Laura Wharff Bea Lingenfelter Kelly Bergman Jay Holmes Kelly Bergman Laura Wharff Luan Bland Ed Burroughs Pat Silva Ushers Jerry Hartwell, Jim Chapple Robert & Jean Phillips Tom Savage, Colleen Lockhart Bob & Judy Wissel Jim & Jeanne Murchie Glenn & Deanna Phillips Darryl & Margie Shaw Kirk Kammeraad, Kathryn Karnes July 1 Paul Banicki Kathleen Guion Pat Silva July 3 Pearl Meredith Susan Oase July 4 Delaine Quaresma July 7 Monette Vest Carroll Zwinge July 8 Evelyn Drury July 14 Luan Bland Leon Sucht July 15 Camrenne Genilla July 16 Margie Shaw July 17 Michael Costa Carol Perkins July 18 Pat Hartwell Richard McDonnell July 19 Kit Oase Robert Phillips July 23 Gary Colby Gregory Pierce July 24 Lora Parsons July 25 Patricia DeRoos July 26 Judy Karnes Steve Winter July 28 Charlie Talbot July 29 Sandra Costa July 30 Laurie DiMare Aug 1 Megan Pierce Laura Wharff Aug 2 Frankie Rieger Hallie Trzcinski Aug 4 Raymond Quaresma Aiden Weber Aug 5 Joey Conner Ed Newland Aug 6 Kimberly Contente Bob Fauré Aug 7 Judith Lanning Aug 8 Karson Condit Aug 12 Cyndi Bolger Jeanne Pollard Bob Wissel Aaron Weimer Aug 13 Vince Trzcinski Aug 14 Susan Brown Aug 15 Esther Jundt Aug 16 Gwen DeRoos Aug 19 Darlene Gallaty Pepper Phillips-Singh Aug 20 Cecily Hemman Carl Sumner Tarra Sumner Aug 21 Liz Sucht Aug 22 Rhiannon Genilla Ben Silver Aug 24 Annabelle Hernandez Jean Phillips Aug 27 Richard Hoogendoorn Aug 29 Cindy Reich Aug 30 Ed Clark July 31 Ed & Shirley Newland Rick & Judy Wentworth Aug 7 Paul & Sue Banicki Andrew & Charleen Price Aug 14 Ed & Norma Burroughs Evelyn Moore, Tom Savage Aug 21 Joel & Susan Groskopf Susan Oase, Jerry Hartwell Aug 28 Jim Chapple, Kathryn Karnes Robert & Jean Phillips

4 WALKING IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF JESUS July already!. Well let s slow down a little as they say stop to smell the roses. To help with this I have pulled some quotes which might speak to you. I am not a boxing fan but I always enjoyed Muhammad Ali s carrying on. Some was kind of silly but he did have some very poignant thoughts. The one below from him I thought still is very appropriate today. "Nobody grows old by merely living a number of years. People grow old by deserting their ideals. You are as young as your faith, as old as your doubt; as young as your self-confidence, as old as your fear; as young as your hope, as old as your despair." -General Doug-las MacArthur Politics is supposed to be the second oldest profes-sion. I have come to realize that it bears a very close resemblance to the first. ~Ronald Reagan Faith is taking the first step even when you don't see the whole staircase. ~Martin Luther King Never lose sight of the fact that the most important yardstick of your success will be how you treat oth-er people. ~Barbara Bush The quality of a person's life is in direct proportion to their commitment to excellence, regardless of their chosen field of endeavor. ~Vince Lombardi An investment in knowledge pays the best interest. - Benjamin Franklin Even if you're on the right track, you'll get run over if you just sit there. ~Will Rogers Hopefully someday we can get beyond the hatefulness and violence that seems to be in the news all the time. I hope I picked something that talked to you. If not maybe next time, Respectfully submitted by David Bland

5 THE COMMUNICATOR or better known as Dave Bland. One of these days when you are in the sanctuary, I invite you to look around. St. Paul s United Methodist Church is decorated and enriched with abundant use of symbols. Symbolism is a sign language of our faith. A symbol is a sign. It must be representative of something, but not merely a representation or picture. A symbol is used to convey an idea or a belief. Symbols in early days were used as a teaching device, for many could not read or even understand oral instruction. Symbols were understood by the faithful, but they conveyed no meaning to the uninitiated or to the persecutors of the early church. Hence, early Christians in the catacombs and elsewhere employed symbols to conceal and safeguard the doctrines of their faith. The symbols in this Church are intended to convey an idea and simultaneously to add beauty and color in decoration by satisfaction artistically through form and color and by stimulating the mind and appealing to the intellect through the message conveyed. Have you ever looked up toward the ceiling over the chancel and saw that red lamp hanging there and wondered what it was? THE LAMP OF GOD The lamp of God hangs from the roof over the chancel. It is always lighted, symbolizing God s eternal presence. Its chain contains three Latin crosses, presumably suggesting the Trinitarian symbol, and its base is made up of two triangles, superimposed to give a star of six points, the Star of David, a symbol for the Creator. Now still looking up move your eyes to the ceiling over the altar. SUNBURST WINDOW Directly over the altar is the sunburst window. The side windows have an angel heralding the presence of the Messiah. In the center window is the dove of the Holy Spirit hovering over the figure of Christ in the lower window. There is much more symbolism both inside the sanctuary and on the outside of the building. If you want to learn more consult the booklet entitled Symbolism as displayed and used at St. Paul s. If you don t have a copy of the Symbolism booklet and would like one, send THE COMMUNICATOR or better known as Dave Bland an to dlbland1137@comcast.net and he will send you a copy in PDF. If you would rather have a paper copy, talk to Kim in the office. May your summer be joyful and bring much happiness to you.

6 To register, contact the church office or sign up on Sundays following worship. Robert Schnase. Reconciling/Inclusive Church Ministry "What have we ( I, you) done in the last six months to make a positive difference in the lives of others that we would not have done if it were not for our relationship with Christ? Reflecting on this question takes us to another level in our understanding of Christian discipleship, moves us beyond our comfort zone, and presses us to follow Jesus into more adventurous encounters with people. As we do so, God's Spirit changes us, changes others, and changes our church." taken from page 88 in Five Practices of Fruitful Congregations by Please join us on Sunday, July 17 at 11:30 after Worship in the Fireside Room for a meeting of the Reconciling/Inclusive Congregation group to learn more about what's next in this journey. Think applying for the coordinator position is too much to take on? Remember it is not a 1-person job. We are looking for 2 or 3 people to lead Nearly New into the future. Find your own team and apply together or we can pair applicants. Think you need to know more about the job? Job descriptions have been written by the current coordinators and will be reviewed by the steering committee. We will be able to provide those shortly. Steering committee? What is that? A steering committee is being formed to meet with the applicants to discuss the position and also to meet periodically to provide guidance to the future coordinators. You won t have to solve every problem by yourself! Have a heart for mission? Please apply by calling Bev Casby or the church office and inform us of your interest.

7 : Makenzy Bergman, graduate of Gregori High School Sean Bergman, graduate of Gregori High School Rachel Fauré, graduate of Ripon High School Zoe Hoogendoorn, 8th grade graduate from Modesto Christian Marisa Bergman Allison Fauré Makenzy Bergman Sean Bergman Rachel Fauré

8 St. Paul s Care-A-Van-ers on a Mission! Care-A-Van-ers offers people with recreational vehicles the opportunity to share their time and skills in designated mission projects. The group volunteers their time and talents at churches and camps throughout the California Nevada Conference, including painting, repair work, and landscaping. They are "on a roll" for mission! Participants enjoy volunteering their skills, learning new skills, and serving others. They enjoy recreation and fellowship. St. Paul s Care-A-Van-ers, Darryl and Margie Shaw hard at work the UMC Shasta Camp.

9 United Methodist Missionary Katherine Parker to speak at St. Paul s Sunday, August 14 Katherine began serving in 2013 as part of the Health Team of the United Mission to Nepal, focusing on water, sanitation, and hygiene. She previously did similar work with the Community Health and Agricultural Development program of the Methodist Mission in Cambodia. The United Mission to Nepal (UMN), an ecumenical ministry, has a vision of a fullness of life for all in a transformed Nepali society. United Methodists have been involved with UMN since it was founded in More information on its work is available on the UMN website, Native to California, Katherine comes from a family with deep roots in United Methodism on the West Coast. Two grandfathers, a great-grandfather, an aunt, and several cousins have served as United Methodist clergy. Katherine s Master of Science degree in biology, is from California State University in Sacramento. Her thesis was on bacterial contamination of drinking water in rural Ghana. Katherine s home church is Mt. Tamalpais United Methodist Church in Mill Valley, California. She has been involved in the life of the church in many ways: serving with the California-Nevada Annual Conference s delegation to General Conference, the conference s Board of Church and Society, the Golden Gate District Council on Ministries, and as a local church volunteer organizing mission trips. The United Methodist Women and the former Centennial Mission Committee had encouraged St. Paul s to enter into a covenant relationship with Katherine Parker. What is a covenant relationship? It begins by establishing a financial relationship with a designated missionary. The amount of the financial support suggested is based on church membership. St. Paul s Church Council and Finance Committee have approved the goal of raising $2,500. The United Methodist Women have agreed to kick-start this fund raising with a contribution of $200. Additionally, our church agrees to provide emotional and spiritual support by keeping Katherine in our prayers and keeping in touch with her. Katherine also agrees to pray for St. Paul s and keep us apprised of her work in Nepal. When Katherine visits our congregation in August we will have a special offering that will go toward our initial covenant with her. We are also encouraging the Kids Zone to learn about Nepal and missionaries and collect their nickels and dimes for Katherine. Last year we gave half of our Christmas Eve offering to support Katherine and UMW would urge St, Paul s to do the same this year. Donations by others in Katherine s name is also encouraged. Goal $2,500 UMW

10 Holy Roamers July Event Picnic in the Park SAVE THE DATE! July 23 The Holy Roamers July celebration is a picnic in the park. It will be held on July 23, 2016 from 1:00 to 5:00 pm in the pavilion at Manteca s Northgate Park. A pot luck picnic is planned with homemade ice cream as the desert. Entertainment will include a horse shoe tournament, a bean bag tournament, as well as lots of conversation and fellowship. To sign up for this event please contact Leon Thompson, or Leon Sucht, We need to know what dish you will bring to the party. Dishes should be large enough to serve 6 to 8 adults. We also need ice cream freezers. They can be electric or hand crank. Modified Church Office Hours July 20th - July 29th Please note the modified church hour schedule during Kim s vacation from July 20 th thru July 29th when the office will be open only during the mornings from 9:00 a.m. 12:30 p.m. Regular office hours will resume on Monday, August 1 st. A big THANK YOU to Marlene Colby and Judy Karnes who have volunteered to fill-in in the office during Kim s absence. We appreciate you!! St. Paul s United Methodist Church 910 E. North Street Manteca, CA office@stpaulsmanteca.org