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METHODELMA ELMA UNITED METHODIST

www..ElmaUnitedMethodist.com • ELMA, NY • 716-652-5427 September 2016

Letter from the Pastor

Walls

The ancient world was full of walls to keep people out. Not only were walls around towns, but walls ran across the centuries. In 1900 BC the Babylonians built a 175-mile wall to keep invaders out, and the Egyp-tians built a 100-mile wall about the same time. In the second century AD the Romans built two walls in Britain: one 70 miles, the other 33 miles. Then, of course, in the third century the Great Wall of China stretched to 1,500 miles.

In our time we've seen a wall dividing East and West Berlin. All these walls are to keep some in and others out, to insulate one people from another. Walls make distinctions between one region and another. Walls separate into different sections; and that is one of the elementary distinctions of Old Testament Law—to make distinctions about right and wrong, to fence in this particular behavior as acceptable but to consign everything outside the walls to be unacceptable.

As apostle Paul, quoted below, writes to the church in Galatia, he reflects on the Law as given by the Old Testament but transcended by Christ. He is in the middle of a struggle with people who want to remain un-der the discipline of the Law. This is Paul's heart and soul. He believes firmly that Christ Jesus did away with all distinctions between people, toppled the walls like they were made of styrofoam.

Sadly, there remain many walls in our churches today. One important item to discover is that our church is no worse than others. All churches are pretty much the same, even though we pretend to be differ-ent. Every church is exactly the same at its foundation. The bottom line is that we must depend on the grace of our God in Christ our Lord. We need to live within the love of Christ. If the church doesn't, then all that Paul has said is worthless, and all that Christ has done is in vain.

Paul is concerned that we live as God's children, “there is no longer Democrat or Republican, rich or poor, black, white, or brown, hawk or dove, there is no longer native-born or immigrant, city or country, college or high school graduates.” Our place is out in the world showing how children of God live. We know the only reason to walk with our head held high into the world is God's love in Jesus Christ, a love that won't build walls of exclusion but will draw all people to Christ. Heaven knows there have been enough times the Chris-tian church has done just the opposite, but let's do it right now.

God bless all of you! I can't wait to see everyone as we begin our new church school year September 11th!

“Before this faith came, we were held prisoners by the law, locked up until faith should be revealed. So the law was put in charge to lead us to Christ that we might be justified by faith. Now that faith has come, we are no longer under the supervision of the law. You are all sons and daughters of God through faith in Christ Jesus, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise. ” —Galatians 3:23-29.

Pastor Wayne 1

Contact: elmaumoffice@gmail.com

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Announcements

The EUMC Lunch Bunch will meet September 19th at 12:30 at the Elma Towne Grill. A sign-up sheet is posted outside Fellowship hall. Any questions please see or call Judi Wol-len (684-0213). All women (& friends) of EUMC are wel-come! ELMA PAGE TURNERS The Elma Page Turners Book Clubs meets the first Wednes-day of every month at 7 PM in the Church library. The books selected for discussion are: September 7. Orange is the New Black by Piper Kerman October 5. The Emperor of Ocean Park by Stephen L.

Carter November 2, Once we were Brothers by Ronald H. Balson December 7, The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffen-

baugh January 4, The Hummingbird by Stephen Kieman Everyone is invited. Bazaar Craft Session September 15th at 9:30 in the Library, Eileen Holden will teach making a Nativity Craft. No prior experience is need-ed. Fleece Blankets for Veterans will meet in the Library at 9:30

on September 8th and October 13th (the 2nd Thursday of the

month). All are welcome.

New or gently used Jackets and Boots are being collected for

Homeless Veterans. Please keep them in mind as you are

sorting your Fall/Winter clothes.

Marilyn Hartman is collecting small, travel or hotel size per-

sonal care items (toiletries).

Towels and sheets are being collected for the Zoo.

If you have Box Tops for Education a collection box is on the

UMW Table.

BRICKS FOR THE MEMORIAL WALK Orders are being taken for the engraved bricks for the Me-morial Walk leading to the Spiritual Labyrinth. They can be in memory of someone, in honor of someone, or a Bible verse. Each stone can have three lines with 17 spaces in each line. Punctuation and spaces count. The cost is $100 and checks are made out to Elma United Methodist Church with ‘brick’ or ‘labyrinth’ in the memo line. The forms are available on the table by the entrance and the forms can be dropped off in the Church office . If there are questions, call Shirley Schildkamp 652-9412.

Missions/Outreach You are making a difference-locally and in other parts of our country and world:

FISH

The FISH items

for September are canned hash, stew and chili. Your

generous offerings throughout the year mean so

much to those in need in our area.

Thank you for the many back-to-school sup-plies for the children of their clients-needs have in-creased this year and these supplies are an added stress on households. Giving Garden

Thank you to the Girl Scouts of Troop 39140, under the leadership of Carrie Schmitz and Mandy Nicholson, who have faithfully tended the garden this summer. The bountiful harvests of lettuce, zuc-chini, chard, kale, summer squash, green beans, egg-plant, peppers and tomatoes delivered weekly to FISH have been gladly received to supplement the canned and dry foods distributed to their clients. Cleaning Buckets

Thanks to VBS families for supplying 26 cleaning buckets for UMCOR as their mission pro-ject. These, along with the 14 supplied by you this spring, will certainly make a difference to those ex-periencing flooding in West Virginia, Louisiana, Tex-as and other areas in our country. Offerings

Thank you for the Mother’s Day offering of $272 for “Imagine No Malaria,” a mission outreach of the United Methodist Church in Africa, and the Father’s Day offering of $178 for Central City Café to provide coffee with the daily lunches they serve to those in need in the Durham AME Church area in Buffalo. Please take a moment to check out the Missions bul-letin board for thank you notes from some of the missions we have supported by your support of the church budget.

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Christian Education & Youth Ministry

Rally Day: September 11th starting at 9:30

Please stop by the Christian Education table and sign-up for Disciple-ship Hour for all ages, Youth Groups, adult and youth Toddler Time Volunteers, and Acolyte.

Toddler Time: For ages 2—5 years during the 10:30 a.m. Worship Ser-vice. We are in need of volunteers during for Toddler Time. Two adults are required each day. If you have a conflict on your sched-uled Sunday please switch with another volunteer and notify Deb. Please visit the CE table at Rally Day for information, or contact Deb Coatsworth.

Senior Youth Group: Led by Deb Coatsworth, Corrin Pudlewski & Alan Stier Sept 18, 12:00 – 1:30, meet in the Youth Room for all in 9th -12th grades. The first hour of the meeting is for Youth. Parents please join the meeting at 1:00. Please be thinking about dates that will work for you if we decide to take a Mission Trip. We are looking for-ward to seeing all of you!

Mini Youth Group: Led by Deb Coatsworth. Sept 25, 12:00 – 1:30, Meet in the Library for all in 5th – 8th grade. The first hour of the meeting is for the Mini Youth. Parents please join the meeting at 1:00. See you then!

Discipleship Hour (Sunday School) Discipleship Hour for ages 3 and up will begin on September 18th from 9:00 a.m. – 10:00 a.m. Learning how to become better disciples in our challenging world will help each of us to mold Christian char-acter and to cultivate a relationship with God.

Discipleship Hour (DH) will address these five areas: (1) DH helps us to respect, appreciate and utilize the Bible: Reverence

for God’s written words doesn’t come naturally, sadly. A classroom environment, centered on the Bible, will elevate its importance in a person’s life.

(2) DH teaches us how to navigate the Bible: Our teachers don’t just teach Bible stories, they give a basic understanding of the Bible’s books and overall format.

(3) Chance to ask questions: We are a safe place to ask in-depth ques-tions and at times debate. We learn by asking questions.

(4) Develop a community of believers: In a class setting, we are availa-ble to help one another and push each other along in our growth. A community of learners, worshipping, learning the Bible and discov-ering God together creates a bond that single study can’t accomplish.

(5) Spiritual seeds are planted: No matter our age, seeds are planted within us. Our purpose is to learn values and principles of faith that God desires. Becoming Christ-like is the ultimate goal for the well-formed, informed, and transformed Christian disciple. Dedicating ourselves daily in the word and being with others is how we grow as loving people.

CE & Worship

Rally Day Potluck Brunch

Rally day is quickly approach-

ing! On Sunday, September 11, a

potluck brunch will take place

in the fellowship hall with the

meal beginning at 9:30am be-

tween the services. Please bring

your favorite breakfast or lunch

dish to pass and place settings

for all your family members.

Table set up will be on Saturday

the 10th (time TBA). Help with

clean up after the brunch is ap-

preciated.

Parsonage Bible Study

The next Parsonage Bible Study

will begin on Thursday, October

6th at 7:00 pm at the Parsonage,

1451 Rice Road, Ela. The 5

week DVD based study by Philip

Yancey is entitled, Vanishing

Grace; What Ever Happened to

the Good News. A sign up sheet

will be posted outside the

Pastor’s office

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The Investment Committee is close to presenting their rec-

ommendations, based on input from the congregation. Be-

cause any changes to the investments will need to be voted

on by the congregation, an individual conference was re-

quested for our church’s Annual Conference. Please mark

your calendars for Monday, November 28th at 7pm when

we will welcome the District Superintendent for our Annu-

al Conference.

This year’s Parsonage Open House will be held on Sunday,

October 16th immediately following the 10:30 Worship

Service. The Parsonage Family hopes that you will join us

in this Fellowship Time and also look around the Parson-

age and see the wonderful work that continues there to

improve the property!

A few Communion Stewards are need-ed to finish the year. Please sign up on the Bulletin Board.

Please check the Bulletin Board for the Liturgist schedule. Delete your name if you do not want to continue. If you are not on the list but would like to be a liturgist, please add your name.

We are in need of a new coordinator for the Liturgist scheduling. This position takes very little time but is vitally important. If you can help, please contact Marilyn Hartman (current scheduler), Wendie Stockton (head of Worship Committee), or contact information the office.

There are a few places open on the Altar flower schedule if you would like sign up. Please make a note if the flowers are in memory or honor of someone or an occasion. The arrangements are $20 and the payment may be placed into the collection or in the office in an envelope marked Flow-ers, with your name and the date you have chosen.

Bell Choir is looking for new members to join and ring dur-ing Sunday services (~4 times/year). Rehearsals are held once a week for an hour (day & time TBA) from September-May. If you're interested, please contact Laura Buechi at 675-6428, orlabuechi@gmail.com.

Discipleship Hour offerings: 3 yr. olds – 8th grades:

“In the depths of who I am I rejoice in God my sav-ior.” Luke 1 : 4 7 . Our classes will continue using the curriculum Deep Blue. Our young people will make Bible stories, Bible people, and Bible pas-sages a part of their lives, and know the Bible as their book and find ways to let the Bible speak to them!

Senior High (9-12 grades): The High School class will learn and work through the 10 Command-ments using the curriculum Liquid: The Ten 1-5 and Liquid: The Ten 6-10.

Adult Study: Sunday 9am—10 am, led by Rev. Joan Zimmer-

man. “ASK, Faith Questions in a Skeptical Age” by Scott J Jones and Arthur D. Jones. This program is an 8 week study based on Matthew 7:7 “Ask, and you will receive” and is about difficult questions and faithful answers. Questions are good. Ques-tions challenge us, prod us, encourage us. If ques-tions are asked with a seeker’s heart, they can lead to faith.

Tuesday 9:30 to 10:30, led by Shirley Schildkamp. All are welcome and a perfect attendance is NOT required.

Annual Conference

Parsonage Open House

Did You Know?

Mental illness affects nearly 60 million Americans every year. Regardless of race, age, religion or eco-nomic status, mental illness impacts the lives of at least one in four adults and one in 10 children across the United States. Anxiety, depression, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and other conditions are among the health conditions many journey with on a daily basis. Faith and spirituality are essential elements of healing and recovery for many, yet many clergy and people of faith feel ill-equipped to provide appropriate support, education and assistance to persons living with men-tal illness.

NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness) is offering a class for those interested in learning about mental illness and appropriate ways of caring for those with a mental illness. This class is an intensive 12 week course that will meet for two hours each week as fol-lows:

Dates: Every Wednesday starting September 7, 2016 through November 23, 2016

Time: 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm

Place: Elma United Methodist Church, Fellowship Hall, 2991 Bowen Road, Elma, NY

Contact: Daryl Bennett at 716-380-6706

Helpers Needed!

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Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

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8:00 AM Worship 9:30 AM Worship Communion at the rail 10:30 AM Trustee Meet-ing

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6 9:30 AM Bible Study 10:30 AM Wool Gather-ers

7 9:30 AM Music with Mar 6:00 PM NAMI 7:00 PM Elma Page Turners

8 Preschool Starts 9:30 AM Fleece Blan-kets

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11 Rally Day 8:00 AM Worship 9:30 AM Potluck brunch 10:30 AM Worship

12 6:00 PM 4 H 6:45 PM Administrative Council Meeting

13 9:30 AM Bible Study 10:30 AM Wool Gather-ers

14 9:30 AM Music with Mar 6:00 PM NAMI

15 9:00 AM Church Work Day 9:30 AM Bazaar Craft Day

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18 8:00 AM Worship 9:00 AM Flu Shots DH begins all ages 10:30AM Worship 12-1:30 Senior Youth METHODELMA ARTICLES DUE

19 12:30 PM Lunch Bunch 6:00 PM 4 H 7:00 PM Mission Com-mittee Meeting

20 9:30 AM Bible Study 10:30 AM Wool Gather-ers 6:30 PM SPPRC Meet-ing

21 9:30 AM Music with Mar 6:00 PM NAMI

22 First Day of Autumn

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25 8:00 AM Worship 10:30 AM Worship 12-1:30 Mini Youth

26 6:00 PM 4 H

27 9:30 AM Bible Study 10:30 AM Wool Gather-ers

28 9:30 AM Music with Mar 6:00 PM NAMI

29 30 Alden's Meals on Wheels Benefit

Flu Shots will be given Sunday, September 18, beginning at 9 am in the Pastor’s office. Please sign up to help with the flow. (sign up on the Bulle-tin board) Children aged 9 thru 17 may receive a shot, but will need pa-rental permission. Your insurance card is required. Please wear shot sleeves. Also, NO Flu Mist is available this year (anywhere). If you notice one of your pew “neighbors” is missing from service for more than a week, please let the office know so someone can check on them. If you will be having upcoming surgery or travel please also let the office know so we can check in on you and/or keep you in our prayers.

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Altar Flowers Mort Andrew OPEN McCarthy

Liturgist Annette DeNies Doris Smith Charlotte Buechi

Peter Buechi, Jr.

Greeters Nattrass/Wantuck

McCarthy Family Schmitz Family McGoldrick Family

Ushers Cheryl & Peter Buechi

Fuer Family Coatsworth Family

DeNies Family

Fellowship Potluck Brunch 9:30

See the online calendar for details

on any event

http://www.elmaunitedmethodist.com/

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Olivia Kowalski 9/3

Austin Zelasko 9/3

William Black 9/6

Bruce Stockton II 9/6

Nina Wargula 9/6

Kristen Sugrue 9/7

Richard Doster 9/8

Samantha Wilson 9/8

Casey Everhart 9/11

William Julius 9/13

Hanna Wargula 9/15

Fred Baumgartner 9/18

Thomas Wantuck 9/18

Julie Everhart 9/20

Gary Kegler 9/20

Matthew Zimmerman 9/21

Michael Ball 9/22

Donald Dustin, Sr 9/22

Stephen Buechi 9/23

Rhoda Eagle 9/23

Sue Lawrence 9/23

Will Monrian 9/23

Gayle Radder 9/24

Marion Molenda 9/25

Wayne Parks 9/25

Roselyn McCarthy 9/27

Alan Walker 9/29

Chris & Cheryl Zelasko 9/3

Mark & Cheryl Kowalski 9/6

Susan & Donald Derr 9/8

Carl & Mylinda Plauman 9/8

Brian & Andrea Krah 9/10

Billy & Amanda Nolan 9/14

Jay & Lisa Nowak 9/18

Jim & Deb Coatsworth 9/22

Brian & Shawn Strausbaugh 9/23

Fred & Judith Baumgartner 9/25

Kevin & Ann Marie McCarthy 9/29

Lord, In Your wisdom You established Your church as a place for us to love and care for each other. Help me to extend the grace I’ve received to others.

You may have noticed… The Bulletin has a new look. The body of the worship is in the main section, with an in-spirational message on the back cover. (suitable for posting to refer to during the week). The Bible readings and Announcements are on separate pages. Please have all announce-ments to the office by Wednesday evening, either leave them on the voicemail, or prefera-bly, write them down and leave in the office or email them to the church office: elmaumoffice@gmail.com. Parishioners are asked to review the bulletin each week to keep informed with the happenings in the church. Please take your bulletin home to re-fer to during the week and recycle once you are done with it.

Check the Bulletin board outside the office for updates on members, and Thank you notes from the Scholar-ship recipients.