A Newsletter Published by First United Methodist Church – Emporia, KS

September 25, 2008                                                                                   Volume LIV – Issue 17

Preschool News

Friends Together Preschool is having fun exploring apples and farms.  We are exploring how apples grow, going through the seasons.  The children brought in apples, and we made a graph of all the different colors of apples there were.  This week we will be using some of those apples to make applesauce and apple prints.  We are also going to learn about Johnny Appleseed, and celebrate his birthday on September 26.  We took a field trip to The Orchard on the 22nd and had a wonderful time.  The owner, Bob Karr, showed us many things including how apple cider is made.  Yummy!

     We have also had some visitors to our classroom!  Nancy Gammill came and got to know our preschoolers a little bit better the second week of September.  We have had three Friday story readers come in, and a couple of very cute bucket calves came to visit, courtesy of the Dold’s, whose daughter is in the four year old class. 

     Be sure and check out our “apple pie trees” hanging in the hallway!

                            Jenny Olsson, Preschool Director

The kids got to pick an apple to take home.

This is the factory room where they sort apples and make the cider.  (left) Bob Karr shows the kids the apples on the tree.

For reasons best known to Him, God singles out one particular tree -- called the "tree of knowledge of good and evil" -- whose fruit man is forbidden to eat. This, of course, is the famous "forbidden fruit," though you may be surprised to know that that phrase appears nowhere in the Bible. (It was coined in the seventeenth century; "forbidden apple" is even older). And despite all those pictures of a serpent tempting Eve with an apple, the Bible never tells us what kind of fruit the tree of knowledge bears. If anything, it was more likely apricots, pomegranates, or figs than apples.

Taken from http://www.gracecathedral.org/

COME BE A PART OF FUMC’s FUTURE!

Beginning on October 12 and continuing for five weeks, all adult and youth Sunday School classes; members of all of our committees, and all others interested, are invited to Fellowship Hall during the Sunday School hour (9:30 am) to participate in the visioning process that has begun in our church.  The Proverbial Committee (which bases its name on Proverbs 29:18, “without a vision, the people perish”) has been meeting for several weeks to provide some direction for the next 3-5 years at FUMC.  It has been using a resource called the Five Practices of Fruitful Congregations written by Bishop Robert Schnase of the Missouri Area of the United Methodist Church.  It has caused us to do a lot of reflection and soul searching, and now we need your input as well.  Coffee and snacks will be available during this hour of fellowship and reflection.  Please know you are invited to come and be a part of determining the directions our church need to be heading as we move into the future.

Youth News

Half-Time and Youth Choir

Half-Time has been meeting for a couple of weeks now and we have been discussing having Jesus as a friend and following Jesus’ examples for being a good friend.  We’re having great conversation.  All youth are encouraged to join us!  Dinner is at 5:30 followed by activities at 6:00.  Youth Choir would love to have more members!  Check them out from 7:00-8:00.  It is a great, fun way to serve in our church.

Breakfast Clubs 

Breakfast Clubs meet at Coburn’s at 7:00am on Tuesdays for high schoolers and on Thursdays for middle schoolers.  All youth are invited to join us for a brief devotional time and discussion.  We will begin AT 7:00, so if you want to order breakfast, please arrive early.

Football Friday Fun

Last week, twelve youth and friends gathered after the EHS football game for snacks and fun in the rec room.  Basketball, darts ping-pong, foosball and Rock Band on the Wii were enjoyed by all.  Come join us for the next Football Friday Fun on Friday, October 3.  Any screened and trained adults that are available to help are encouraged to sign up on the bulletin board.

Christians In Action

Christians In Action or CIA is a conference sponsored event where youth from around our conference gather together for a day of fellowship, worship and service.  The location varies and this year, CIA will be held on Saturday, October 11 in Emporia.  We are the host church and it is awesome to have such a great facility to offer for events like this.  Youth and adults will gather here in the morning and close here in the evening.  During the day, they will be at various locations serving others in a variety of ways (painting, yard work etc…).  If you are interested in helping with this day in any way, please contact Barb.

Children’s Corner

Fall Family Fun  

Come join us for an evening of fun and fellowship at Richard and Norma Mayes ranch.  We are going to take a hayrack ride, sing songs by the bonfire, and make s’mores.  Reserve October 25 at 6:30pm, more details and a map will come later.

Half-Time

Here is a little update on our Fall Half-Time program, Friendship Trek.  We have around 35 children, ages 3 through sixth grade participating.  We have already learned about Friends Reaching Out, Friends Loving, and Friends Giving.  Each week we hear a story about Jesus and what a good friend He was to so many people.  You are always welcome to join us on Wednesday evening, dinner at 5:30 and classes for all ages from 6:00-7:30.

Third Grade Bible Sunday

It was a great joy to present Bibles to our third grade students last Sunday.  I love this FUMC tradition that will help our children grow in their faith.  Those receiving bibles were: Baylee Call, Juilette Myers, Brandon Vega, Dacia Mast, Luke Owens, John Fritts and Kannon Phipps.

Bible Study on the Web

Nancy Gammill has written a brief Bible Study which is new to our website and will be changed every other week.  The column is entitled “What Does the Bible Say?”  She hopes it will be a helpful way for you to begin some fairly straightforward Bible study and perhaps even get interested in finding out more by participating in one of our Sunday School classes or Bible Studies.  Please go to www.fumchurch.org and click on the Home page, then go to the link, Pastor’s Bible Study.

GOOD READING

     You may know that Anne Rice, who has written twenty-two best sellers about preternatural creatures from folklore, has now turned her writing ability to books about Jesus.  The first one is a novel titled Christ the Lord, Out of Egypt, based on the gospels and the most respected New Testament scholarship.  This book is an imagining of the hidden years of the child Jesus.  It presents Jesus as very much a real young boy, grappling to understand his gifts, as he considers his responsibilities, making the story fully believable.  One review said “this is fiction that transcends story and instead qualifies as an act of faith.” 

      Another book new to our library is Conversations With God, An Uncommon Dialogue by Neal Walsch.  This author says that God talks to everybody.  The good and the bad, the saint and the scoundrel, and certainly all of us in between.  Some people think that God communicates only with holy men, or someone who has been good, or at least half-decent!  This book addresses most, if not all, of the questions we have asked about life and love, purpose and function, people and relationships, good and evil, guilt and sin, forgiveness and redemption, the path to God and the road to hell – everything!  There is a lengthy index at the end of the book so you can readily find whatever subject you want to read about.

     We now have another book by Jim Snook, of our congregation, titled Mental Wanderings: The Book for People With Short Attention Spans.  The author asks if you have ever wandered and just how much of what your smiling news anchors tell you can be trusted.  Is your attention span too short for you to bother finding out?  This book investigates issues of great American controversy and sometimes cover-up.  With wit and insight the author cuts to the heart of national concerns to provide down to earth analysis sure to be a welcome relief to those of us without a lot of patience.

                                               --Jean Brown, Librarian

From the Finance Committee

Pledge Income Budgeted for August 2008

$48,537.50

Pledge Income Received for August 2008

$40,132.38

Shortfall of: $8,405.12

Please help us make this up!

A Friend in Need

   In times of trouble, we look to caring Christian friends to listen to us while we work through our feelings.  A Stephen Minister can be such a friend, either to you or to someone you know.  This week our Stephen Ministers will meet together as they continue to learn ways of caring for people with needs.  If you or someone you know could benefit from the trained, caring, presence and listening ear of a Stephen Minister, leave a message for Jayne Duncan at the church office: 342-6186.

Thank You

To those of you who responded to our request; our food pantry is looking a little better!  But we still need much help.  There has been such a huge increase in persons needing food.  We have several requests for assistance          every day in our church from people who need help just to be able to eat.  Please consider this mission and bring your non-perishable food items to the church for donation.

Luke 3:8a, 10-11 — “‘Produce fruit in keeping with repentance ...’ ... ‘What should we do then?’ the crowd asked. John answered, ‘The man with two tunics should share with him who has none, and the one who has food should do the same.’