An Update From your Pastor's Desk - 10.03.2020
Hello there,
Greetings to you and your family. We hope that you are staying well and healthy. This email update includes important information of what's going on at Oberlin UMC. If you have any questions please feel free to contract us.
Thanks!
Update your Church Records Project
We are trying to update church records with up-to-date information and would appreciate your help in this matter. We would ask you to please complete the form, even if you believe your information is current. Many of our congregation, members and constituents, do not have internet and/or email. Some have had landline phones and have since have discontinued that service and only use their cell phone. We request this information for each person in your home.
Thank you for your cooperation with this project. Remember, if you would prefer to provide this information via telephone (785.475.3067) or email: hello@oberlinumc.org, Office hours are M‑F, 8:30 to 12:30.
Update your records here
Please be in Prayer for
Axton Porter (son of Allen and Ashley Porter) Daniel Black; Troy Haug (Shelby Hawkinson’s Father); Janel Haug (Shelby Hawkinson’s Mother); Koen Oien; Judy Gaumer; Marilyn Cantrel (sister of Bob Woolsey); Elijah Bearley; Brogan McCorkle; Chaylene, Drew and Haisley Buzard; Amira Barzak (Granddaughter of Donna Fortin); Violet Shaw; Jan Walters; Lila Keenan; Bob Hartzog; Russ Stanley; Pam Scribner; Holden Streit (great nephew of Chris Hackney); residents and staff of Good Samaritan Society – Decatur County; our schools, teachers, administration, staff and school board members; our County, City, State and National leaders; Darlene Agan; Lowell Moxter
Congratulations to Cody and Rebecca Hooker in the birth of their son, George Allen Hooker.
Next Week's Lectionary Scripture
- Exodus 32:1-14
- Psalm 106:1-6, 19-23
- Philippians 4:1-9
- Matthew 22:1-14
Thoughts from Pastor Gordon
“I am no longer my own, but thine.
Put me to what thou wilt, rank me with whom thou wilt.
Put me to doing, put me to suffering.
Let me be employed by thee or laid aside for thee,
exalted for thee or brought low for thee.
Let me be full, let me be empty.
Let me have all things, let me have nothing.
I freely and heartily yield all things
to thy pleasure and disposal.
And now, O glorious and blessed God,
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,
thou art mine, and I am thine. So be it.
And the covenant which I have made on earth,
let it be ratified in heaven. Amen.”
At the beginning of a new year many congregations of the Wesleyan/Methodist family renew their covenant with God using the traditional Covenant Service. This is an important part of our tradition.
John Wesley adapted this prayer from the Puritan tradition that was so important to his parents, Samuel and Suzannah, and life in the Epworth rectory. It informed his theology and preaching. He expected the people called "Methodists" to pray this prayer regularly as a way of remembering and renewing their baptismal covenant.
The prayer describes the life of a participant with Christ in his mission. It is a practical description of what Jesus was talking about when he said, “If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me” (Luke 9:23). Baptism marks the beginning of life in Christ and his ecclesia, a people who "profess to pursue holiness of heart and life; universal love filling the heart and governing the life." The Covenant prayer helps us remember what this Jesus-way of life looks like and what loving God with all our heart, soul, and mind, and loving our neighbor as ourselves requires of us.
When we pray this prayer, we remember that we are baptized. We renounce the spiritual forces of wickedness, reject the evil powers of this world, and repent of our sin. We accept the freedom and power God gives to resist evil, injustice, and oppression in whatever forms they present themselves. We confess Jesus Christ as our Savior, trust wholeheartedly in his grace, and promise to serve him as Lord, in union with the church. And we renew our promise to live as faithful members of Christ's church and serve as his representatives in the world.
The Covenant Prayer describes missional life devoted to following Jesus and serving as Christ's representative in the world he loves and is working to redeem. It tells us that being a Christian is more a way of life than a system of beliefs. The Covenant Prayer describes the Jesus way of self-giving and self-emptying love.
This way of living and loving is possible only in a community centered in the life and mission of the crucified and risen Jesus Christ. Wesley and the early Methodists annually prayed the Covenant Prayer presuming everyone was part of a class meeting or band that met weekly for accountability and support for living this prayer. And everyone had a discipleship coach in their class leader who encouraged and prayed for them.
Covenant Discipleship is a contemporary adaptation of the “method” of Methodism the Covenant Prayer presumes.
The Covenant Renewal Service and Covenant Prayer are important and powerful Wesleyan/Methodist traditions. They remind us who and whose we are. This makes them a great way to live as Christ’s representatives in the world that needs to know and see his love and justice.
For Your Calendar
Sunday, October 4:
10:45 AM – Worship with us either in person or online today
Monday, October 5 –
7:00 PM – Dorcas Circle in Fellowship Hall
Monday-Friday, October 5-9 –
Pastor Gordon Course of Study
Wednesday, October 7 –
1:30 PM – United Methodist Women in Fellowship Hall
Saturday, October 10 –
8:30-10:00 AM – Network Leader Meeting via Zoom
10:00-12:00 – Oberlin Network Meeting via Zoom
Sunday, October 11 –
9:30 AM Adult Sunday School
10:45 AM Worship
Worship Online
We have been streaming online and working out the issues we have been facing to make worship more enjoyable online. You can join us online by going to https://online.oberlinumc.org or going to our website (https://oberlinumc.org) and click on Watch Online.
We also have our sermon archive online so you can watch any previous worship service starting from March 22nd 2020. If you know someone who is unable to worship with us and has a DVD player, please let us know so we can provide a DVD for them.
Follow us on your favorite Social Media Network
Did you know that Oberlin UMC is now on Twitter, and Instagram, along with Facebook, and YouTube? Follow us on your favorite social media platform and stay connected with Oberlin UMC.
Facebook: @OberlinUMC
Twitter: @oberlinumc
Instagram: @oberlinumc
YouTube: Oberlin United Methodist Church
Please continue to take care of yourself and each other,
Pastor Gordon