"Life is a Journey" - Weekly Newsletter from Woodridge UnitedMethodist Church

From:

Woodridge United Methodist Church Communications <noreply@elexiochms.com>

Sent:

Wed, Mar 25, 2020 at 2:14 pm

To:

office@woodridgeumc.org

            Woodridge United Methodist Church

Join us on ONLINE Sunday for worship services
at  10:00 am.

Instructions can be found below.
All are Welcome!

 

 

 

WEEKLY NEWSLETTER

 

 

"Life is a Journey"

This has been a really different kind of experience over the last few weeks and still for the days to follow.  From receiving the "stay-at-home" directive from our governors to the new adventure of "on-line" worship connections and working from home.  Children home from school and college students taking classes online.  You can almost hear the words ringing in your ears "are we there yet?"  As if we were on a journey that just seemed to never end!!

 

Sometimes it feels as though we are awaiting an event that takes so long in occurring that we wonder if it will truly ever happen.  During the time of Jesus, His followers were wondering the same thing "....are we there yet...." or for some of them "...when is this going to happen..."  But the message that Jesus shared and the message that continues through generations is the same......prepare for the destination by focusing on the journey!

 

Let's see if we can't find ways to remember that "LIFE IS A JOURNEY" on Sunday.  Join us on our YouTube channel at 10:00 a.m..

 

Woodridge UMC is an open and loving United Methodist community striving to:       

Welcoming to all;
Uniting in service toward greater social justice for all;
Moving forward with understanding and acceptance of all peoples;
Creating disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.       

Our purpose is to offer a safe place and community to all races, cultures, religions, genders, sexual identities, ethnicities, age groups and other beliefs.      

 

 

UPCOMING EVENTS

 

Sunday, March 29th

  • ONLINE Worship Service at 10:00 am

Tuesday, March 31st

  • Remote Bible Study at 10:30 am

Wednesday, April 1st

  • Remote Bible Study at 6:00 pm

Sunday, April 5th

  • ONLINE Worship Service at 10:00 am

The spread of the COVID-19 virus requires our attention and immediate response to how we gather as a community of faith.  While serious, please know that we must refrain from becoming panicked.  Please be cautious and mindful of your own health and the safety of others.  Our Bishop and Annual Conference are regularly updating their website with information and resources for our church.  Please take a look at it for details:  www.umcnic.org.

 

 

 

Worship

LIVE STREAMING WORSHIP SERVICES

Where to find the YouTube Live Stream
From the YouTube app or on the YouTube web page, search for: Woodridge UMC or follow this 
link.  Join us early (starting at 9:30 am) for services at 10:00 am.  If you have questions or problems, please contact media@woodridgeumc.onmicrosoft.com.  Full assistance will be available prior to 10:00 am on Sunday morning.  After 10:00 am, assistance becomes more limited. If you are not available at 10:00 am or cannot get the live streaming to work, a recording of the video will be posted to the Woodridge UMC YouTube page.
 

OFFERING OPTIONS

There are different options for getting your offering to the church while worship services are online.

  • Go to the website & click on e-giving at the bottom of the page.
  • Drop off in the gold mail slot next to the east door of the church.
  • Mail your offering to the church.

WORSHIP ATTENDANCE

If you watch the Live Stream, please email the church office at office@woodridgeumc.org and let us know that you joined us for worship, so that we might record your attendance.
 

PRAYER REQUESTS FOR ONLINE WORSHIP

If you want a prayer request shared during online worship, please email the Pastor Danita at pastordanita@woodridgeumc.org by midnight the night of Saturday, March 21st.
 

 

 

 

Bible Study - Via Zoom

THE BIBLE FOR CURIOUS PEOPLE & THE GOSPEL OF JOHN -  ON ZOOM

In response to the COVID-19 outbreak and subsequent stay at home order, The Bible for Curious People is meeting online through Zoom. Please contact Pastor Dave at this link to join the conversation. All are welcome.

No prior bible reading or knowledge or expertise needed. No question is dumb and no one is forced to read the bible in one particular way.


Reading Assignment for Tuesday, March 31st:
-Gospel of John, chapter 21, including any notes your bible provides.

Questions to consider:

-Chapter 20 ends with what can only be described as a conclusion to the gospel. So why does Chapter 21 exist? What purpose does it have or role does it play?

-Chapter 21 is so delightfully weird. Which part is your favorite? Why?

-Why do you think Jesus forgives Peter? Does Peter deserve forgiveness? If this exchange between Jesus and Peter never happened would Peter’s conversion in Acts 10 have been possible?

-What do you find the gospel of John’s legacy to be?


Also, a gentle reminder that using a study bible really helps. “Study bible” simply means a bible that includes introductions, notes, footnotes, and other helps for understanding the text. Study bibles come in just about every version (e.g. NRSV, NIV, CEV, etc.) If you don’t have a study bible, please borrow one from church. Just let us know you need one and we will find one for you to use.

Lenten Study and Devotional 2020 On ZOOM
Our Wednesday Bible study class will be Journey to Transformation by Bishop Sharma Lewis.  Bishop Lewis is the resident Bishop of the Virginia Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church and a friend of Pastor Danita.  It will only be offered on Wednesday evenings, 6:00 pm to 7:30 pm. 

Other Activities 
Yoga is CANCELLED Until Further Notice 
Any questions, please contact Carrie Santucci here.

Easter Egg Hunt CANCELLED  
Our annual Easter Egg Hunt on Saturday, March 28th has been CANCELLED. The donated candy will go to Trinity UMC.



Office Hours 
The church office is ONLY OPEN on Wednesdays.  Please contact the pastors directly in case of an emergency.

We will be adjusting office hours from week to week for the time being.  For the next 7 days, the office hours are:
Friday, March 27th - Office CLOSED
Monday, March 30th - Office CLOSED
Tuesday, March 31st - Office CLOSED
Wednesday, April 1st - 9:00 am to 3:00 pm
Thursday, April 2nd - Office CLOSED

Friday, March 3rd - Office CLOSED

Roadmap to General Conference 2020 
POSTPONED 
General Conference May 5-15, 2020 in Minneapolis is cancelled.  Copies of the DVD study "Faithful and Inclusive: The Bible, Sexuality and The United Methodist Church" (resource #106097) are now available to borrow from the United Media Resource Center (UMRC)For updated GC2020 news and information, visit www.umcnic.org/GC2020.

 

Don't Miss Our Next Call

In our ever changing situation, reminders and changes will also come to you as recorded phone messages from Pastor Dave.  Calling Post is one of the tools we use to keep you informed about, and connected to, Woodridge UMC. Please take a moment to add the Calling Post phone number to your Contacts, so you recognize it the next time one of the pastors calls to update you about events in the life of our congregation: 405-308-4474.


Outreach Opportunities

Outreach Committee presents Hands On Lent and Beyond! 
When we first suggested this project would include "surprises along the way,” this is not what we had in mind! Yet, here we are. And we are still extending our worship through our outreach…just in adjusted ways.
On March 15th we blessed the first batch of our Offering of Letters. This Sunday we will bless the next batch. We have over 50 letters so far — thank you! And it is not too late to write more. 

Our sister church, Trinity UMC in Joliet still needs Easter baskets, so we are still safely gathering those items. 

While we don’t know what April and May will bring, we intend to still collect items for Bucket Brigade and Snack Attack. But if we cannot serve in those ways, we are confident we will find way other methods for sharing the love of Jesus with our neighbors



EASTER HAMS
Please do not purchase a ham if you have signed up to do so. For more information,  call Bob Copeland (847.910.8663).  Thank you!


DUPAGE PADS 
Due to the Coronavirus outbreak and concern for the health and safety of PADS clients, volunteers, and congregations, all Interim (Overnight) Housing shelter sites closed, beginning Saturday, March 21st. However, PADS is still accepting donations of food and money to support their mission.

  1. Food Donations: DuPage PADS cannot accept donations for general use during this time. Please consider donating essential items using this link using curbside drop off boxes located in the parking lot of 703 W. Liberty Wheaton. Drop off hours are Monday-Friday 8:00am-8:00pm and Saturday-Sunday 8:00am-4:00pm. Please do not leave donations outside of the scheduled times, especially food items overnight.
  2. Monetary Donations: a special fund has been set up for this purpose. PADS is working hard to find alternate housing in hotels for guests, as well as provide them with food. This will take a lot of financial resources to sustain this for more than a few days.  Visit the PADS website and look at the very top for the link to donate.


West Suburban Community Pantry Donation Promotions
The West Suburban Community Pantry offers food for the hungry and resources to empower persons to improve their quality of life.  Our vision is a community without hunger. The Pantry operates year-round with a goal that each eligible family in DuPage County as well as Bolingbrook & Romeoville receive nutritionally balanced food, including meats, dairy, and fresh produce monthly. We are also registered as an emergency food pantry for Illinois. With the help of volunteers and sponsors, our vision is to eradicate hunger within the families and individuals in the DuPage County area. We are dedicated to providing food for the hungry, educating the donor community about existing needs, and supporting advocacy efforts for the hungry. We also work hard to encourage volunteerism and the sharing of resources.


Looking Ahead

2020 Meeting Dates

Ad Council (9:00 am)               Finance (7:00 pm)         Trustees (7:00 pm)
---------------                                 ---------------                       April 28th
May 30th                                    May 19th                         June 23rd
August 8th                                 July 21st                          August 25th 
October 10th (depending on      September 15th               October 27th
church conference date)            November 17th                November 24th
December 12th                          December 15th



All Church Outdoor Clean-Up tbd
Come help make our church ready for Spring!  On Saturday, April 18th from 9:00 am to noon, we will be cleaning up outside of the church and in the gardens.  Bring gloves, rakes trowels, whatever you like to use to work outside to help with this.  The rain date is Saturday, April 25th.

Life Line Screening
Life Line Screening will be here at Woodridge United Methodist Church on Wednesday, April 15th offering safe, painless, non-invasive preventive health screenings that are typically not a part of a routine physical.  To be more proactive about your health and to live longer for yourself, your family and your community, please register for these potentially life-saving tests today.  For only $149 you can learn your risk of having stroke or vascular disease. There is no time like the present to take action!  Learn more by watching this short video: http://www.lifelinescreeningblog.com/introduction/

Three ways to register:
•       Call toll-free: 866-229-0469
•       Online:
 www.lifelinescreening.com/communitycircle
•       Text: the word circle to 797979



Amazon Smile 
Amazon will donate 0.5% of the price of your eligible purchases to Woodridge United Methodist Church whenever you shop on AmazonSmile.       

AmazonSmile is the same Amazon you know. Same products, same prices, same service.  Support WUMC by starting your shopping 
here.  


Ways to Connect

Aurora District News

To subscribe to the biweekly newsletter for our district (the Aurora District of the Northern Illinois Conference), please click here.   

Northern Illinois Conference
Find out about upcoming events in the Northern Illinois Conference of the United Methodist Church by clicking this link  

 

      
March 27, 2020, Volume 11, Edition 13

 

 

 

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