Reminder! If bad weather, there will be one Sunday service at 10

A publication of St. Paul’s United Methodist Church ● Williamsburg, IA
No. 1 ● January 2012
Vision Statement: ...to be a church where you can SEE Christ
A question I hear asked from time to time in my pastoral leadership workshops is: Would the
community notice if your church were no longer there? I put this question to you: Would Williamsburg
or Iowa County notice if St. Paul’s UMC was no longer here? Please do not think we have any plans to
not be here, but the question is to help us think about the impact of the ministries of our congregation.
By
Rev.
If our ministries are only here to serve our members, then only our members will notice if we
James
go missing. If our ministries reach beyond our walls and out into the community, then the community
Parks
would notice we were gone.
Ministries to our members are not bad or unnecessary. It is our calling as Christians to care
for one another. Our Nurture Team is especially tasked with calling on and caring for our members. That team is not the only
ministry that cares for our members, but it is a vital ministry to this church.
However, if we only cared for ourselves we would not be fulfilling the whole call of Christ. Jesus specifically commissions
us to go into all of the world to spread the love of God.
To start this new year, we are going to focus on how we can be a church where you can SEE Christ in the world. We will
discuss ways our ministries are already impacting our community, but also find new ways to bring the hands and feet of Christ to our
community. We want our community to know that God cares about them and that His Church makes a difference in this world.
Pastor Helen and I will use a book called “The Externally Focused Church” by Rick Rusaw and Eric Swanson to help lead
us in this focus. I want to share a paragraph from the end of the first chapter with you that describes part of what it means to be an
externally focused church.
Riding a donkey, Jesus entered Jerusalem on Palm Sunday. The crowds cheered and shouted praises to him. They
lopped off palm fronds and laid them on the ground for the donkey to walk on. When they ran out of palm branches, they
gladly laid their own cloaks on the ground and, walking ahead of Jesus and the donkey, shouted, “Hosanna to the Son of
David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest!” (Matthew 21:9). For a moment the
donkey perhaps thought it was all about him. After all, he was doing all the work that morning. But it wasn’t about him. It
had nothing to do with him. He was simply carrying the Message.
The reason we want the community to know we are here is not to gain recognition for our church. It is not to increase our
membership. It is because we carry a message. We know that God loves us and wants to change the lives of all people. In order to
share that message people must know we are here. Our community needs to know we care about them, but more importantly that
God cares about them. This will take some work on our part, but God will get the glory.
Join me each Sunday morning as we look to live our vision in our community. Also, mark Sunday, February 12 th on your
calendar. That Sunday instead of worshiping in our sanctuary, we will worship God by serving in our community. Our Mission
Team will inform you of the different opportunities that will be available to be servants that day. We will carry the message of
Christ into our community.
Serving Christ outside our doors!
Reminder! If bad weather,
there will be one Sunday
service at 10:00am. This
will be aired on KCRG,
Channel 9 and KGAN, Channel 2 as well as be
on the church answering machine. Also if
school is cancelled or let out early, all church
activities will be cancelled for that day.
Our Christmas Eve offering along with our Advent Love
Offering raised just over $4,000 for Project Puerto Rico.
Because of your generosity this Christmas, children and
adults in Puerto Rico will be blessed and they will know
that there are people who love them.
Discipleship Volunteer Meeting
Wednesday, January 4th at 6:30pm
All volunteers and parents are encouraged to come to our
2012 Discipleship meeting on Wednesday, January 4th at
6:30pm in Classroom A. We will take time to reflect over
2011 discipleship opportunities and look to how our church
can experience Christ in 2012.
Adult Discipleship Opportunities
With a variety of small group studies, we hope that you will find one that is right for you…
“Parables” - Everyone loves a good story. But the parables of Jesus are a special kind of story. They sneak up on us, catching us off-guard.
The familiar suddenly takes an unexpected twist, and we find our secret thoughts exposed in the healing light of Jesus. In this guide, author
John White helps us explore twelve of the greatest stories ever told.
Sunday mornings at 9:30am in Pastor James’ Office (Starting January 8th)
Financial Peace University- Led by John & Marci Mohr, FPU is a 13 week video-based program created by Dave Ramsey. It deals
with a different topic each week that will change the way you think about personal finance. Dave teaches about how to save money,
live on a budget, communicate about money, eliminate debt and experience the joy of giving. If you are interested in participating in
this program and/or want more information, contact John and Marci at 668-1652.
Sunday nights 5:30-7:30pm in the Sanctuary (Starting January 8th)
“Courageous” Men’s Study- The Cavemen men’s group will gather to reflect on their role as Christian men with a study based on the
movie Courageous. Filled with encouragement from your biblical brothers, this small group will walk you through God’s challenge to
change, be humble, face uncertainty, make decisions and more as you follow Christ and lead your family.
2nd & 4th Mondays at 7:00pm at Pastor James’ house (Starting January 9th)
“Good Questions on Heaven and Hell” - Everyone has questions. Good questions make you wonder, search, stretch and grow. Plan to
join this 6-week thought-provoking study being led by Pastor James that will include engaging questions and an in-depth look at scripture.
Wednesday mornings at 10::00am in Classroom C (Starting January 11th)
Wednesday nights at 6:21pm in the Sanctuary
“Treasures of the Transformed Life” Women’s Study - No matter how good life is, most Christians thirst for something more. There’s a
longing for a more fulfilling, richer, more meaningful life. This study, being led by Teresa Fleming will help identify individual thirsts and
show how you can experience more than you could ask for or imagine.
Wednesday nights at 6:21pm in the Church Office (Starting January 11th)
The Book of Acts Women’s Study - All women are invited to come and explore the book of Acts with Pastor Helen. This study will have
us reading and reflecting through this New Testament book that will share with us how the lives of the first disciples were transformed by
the Holy Spirit. Childcare is available on Mondays.
Monday and Tuesday mornings at 9:30am in Classroom A (Starting January 16th & 17th)
Leadership Training Event
Sunday, January 29th 2:00-5:00pm
Everyone is invited and Committee Members are
encouraged to attend a workshop taking place at the
Shueyville United Methodist Church. This workshop
will have multiple presenters who will encourage you in
your leadership ministry with these opportunities:
 The Purpose/Picture/Plan/Part/Product of New
Communities of Faith
 Moving Spiritual Gifts into Ministry
 The Ministry of Church Finance
 So You’ve Been Elected. Now What?
 Joining God in the Neighborhood: Simple Steps
 The ABC’s of X, Y, and Z: Ministry with Younger
Generations
Contact Pastor James with questions or if you are
planning to attend. We will plan to carpool from the
church.
611 Meal Schedule
January 11th
January 18th
January 25th
Potluck-bring a dish to share!
Casey’s Pizza/Salad/Dessert
Chef Jeff Catering
Happy New Year!
Committees for 2012
Be sure to check out the bulletin board outside the church
offices for new Committee members. The most recent Administrative
Council minutes are posted here as well. After our first meeting night of
the new year, January 16th, we will get the new committee list up and
pictures of each committee for everyone to know who is on our
leadership committees.
Also remember the Lay Leadership Committee nominates
people for Committees, while Teams are always open for anyone
interested in service.
Currently, we have 5 Teams; Discipleship, Mission, Nurture,
Prayer, and Worship. Each team has an area of focus to continue the
ministries of St. Paul’s UMC as we grow in being a church where you
can SEE Christ. If you are interested in participating in any of these
Teams, just check the calendar for their next meeting time.
Committee Members as of January 1st are:
 Lay Leadership: Melanie Ahrens, Bernie Aumann, Trina HaasisArp, Jenn Lane, Sheryl Neal, Jason Schwenke, Jennifer Schwenke,
Jeff Shoemaker, Connie Turner, Rev. Helen Parks (staff)
 Trustees: Dave Brummond, Adam Leek, Brian McKown, Jim
Reinhart, Mike Russell, Matt Slye, Jake Swenka, Kevin Wilkinson,
Jason Kersten (staff)
 Finance: Bill Berry, Deb Hollensbe, Kelly Kent, John Mohr, Barb
Olson, Tina Schafbuch, Carol Uhlmann, Jason Becker (treasurer),
Sonja Parsons (staff)
 SPRC: Greg Guenther, Lowell Kleinmeyer, Kerry McKown, Bill
Neal, Jackie Phillips, Carolyn Rhinehart, Beth Ann Schlesselman,
Carroll Scott, Doug Stahl, Rev. James Parks (staff)
Concerns
Joys
Please keep Jim and
Sarah Lentz and their
family in your prayers
as Jim continues to
heal and go through
rehab.
Congratulations to
Lynn & Amy Reihman
on the birth of their
daughter, Amelia Marie
on November 29th.
Also to Keith & Rachel
Becker on the birth of
their son, Reid Allen on
December 25th.
World Prayer Focus
“Drinking Water”
The safety and accessibility of drinking water are major concerns throughout
the world. Health risks may arise from
consumption of water contaminated with Thanks to all of you who baked cookies,
infectious agents, toxic chemicals, and
purchased cookies or helped otherwise
radiological hazards. Improving access
with the Cookie Walk. We had a
to safe drinking-water can result in
wonderful assortment of great cookies.
tangible improvements to health.
We raised $684 to go towards youth
Through knowledge and prayer summer camps. Thanks so much to all of
we can change the world.
you. What a great church we have!
Amelia Marie
born Nov. 29th to
Lynn & Amy
Reihman
Reid Allen born
Dec. 25th to
Keith & Rachel
Becker
The Staff of St. Paul’s UMC want to say thank
you to everyone for a wonderful Christmas.
We were blessed again this year with a great
celebration of this joyous season. We
especially want to thank you for the love gifts
we received on Christmas Eve. We are
thankful God has called all of us to be here
with you and serve you as your staff.
Vital Statistics
Worship Attendance
December 4
273
December 11
356
December 18
185
December 24
335
December 25
69
The ANCHOR is a publication of
St. Paul’s United Methodist Church
803 Clearview Drive, PO Box 559,
Williamsburg, IA 52361
Phone: 319-668-2288
Website: www.stpaulsumcwilliamsburg.com
Lead Pastor: Rev. James Parks
● Email: [email protected]
Associate Pastor of Discipleship:
Rev. Helen Parks
● Email: [email protected]
Director of Congregational Care:
Teresa Fleming
● Email: [email protected]
Administrative Assistant: Sonja Parsons
● Email: [email protected]
Facility Manager: Jason Kersten
● Email: [email protected]
Discipleship Assistant: Jennifer Schwenke
● Email: [email protected]
Coordinator of Children’s Discipleship:
Tina Schafbuch
● Email: [email protected]
Preschool Coordinator: Jodi Geels
● Email: [email protected]
Choir Director: Steve Manning
Organist: Sue Heitmann
St. Paul’s UMC office hours:
9:00am to 3:00pm Mon. - Fri.
Editor: Sonja Parsons
Deadline for news for the February
ANCHOR is January 22nd. Email info to
Sonja or drop it off at the Church.
SPUMY
NEWS
 Sunday, January 8th 9:30-10:20am—Sunday Morning Club
 Wednesday, January 11th 5:45-7:20pm—611 Potluck &
Activities
 Sunday, January 15th 9:30-10:20am—Sunday Morning
Club
 Wednesday, January 18th 5:45-7:20pm—611 Meal &
Activities
 Sunday, January 22nd 9:30-10:20am—Sunday Morning
Club
 Wednesday, January 25th 5:45-7:20pm—611 Meal &
Activities
 Sunday, January 29th 9:30-10:20am—Sunday Morning
Club
Happy New Year SPUMY kids!! Hope everyone can
make our Winter Lock-In on Friday, January 13th!
This will be a fun way to kick off 2012 with all our
SPUMY friends!
 Sunday, January 8th 9:30-10:20am—Sunday Morning Club
 Wednesday, January 11th 5:45-7:21pm—611 Potluck &
SPUMY
 Friday, January 13th 5:30pm-Saturday, January 14th
7:30am—SPUMY Winter Lock-In *Bring snacks to share
and sleeping stuff and come for a fun night at the church!
 Sunday, January 15th 9:30-10:20am—Sunday Morning
Club
 Wednesday, January 18th 5:45-7:21pm—611 Meal &
SPUMY
 Sunday, January 22nd 9:30-10:20am—Sunday Morning
Club
 Wednesday, January 25th 5:45-7:21pm—611 Meal &
SPUMY
 Sunday, January 29th 9:30-10:20am—Sunday Morning
Club
St. Paul’s United Methodist Church, Williamsburg, IA
Thank you everyone for a fantastic Children’s Christmas
Musical!! All the kids did such a wonderful job with singing.
Preschoolers: Thank you for how enthusiastically you sang
“Away in a Manger”. K-4th Graders: You stayed focused
(especially during the 8:30am service) and sang so great! 5th &
6th Graders: So proud of how you did with lines, solos and
remembering where to be up front! Parents and Volunteers: The
kids could not have done it without you! We can’t wait until our
spring musical on April 29th!
Pastor Helen & Sonja
The ANCHOR (USPS 100-090) is published monthly by St. Paul’s United
Methodist Church, 803 Clearview Drive, Williamsburg IA 52361
Periodical Postage Paid at Williamsburg, IA
POSTMASTER: Send address changes to The ANCHOR,
PO Box 559, Williamsburg IA 52361