July 2019
June Memories
Pastor's Note
This past month, our worship was guided by stories from the book of Acts that told how the apostles extended the church out through the world to include everyone. And yet, in places like Acts 16:6-8, the apostle Paul explains that he was prevented from going to certain places by the Spirit.
Those verses are fascinating and worth a lot of study. I do not believe that was God saying those people did not need to hear the message, because the main guidance God gives throughout the book is that the apostles are to go to the ends of the world sharing this news. Nevertheless, what we do see is that Paul is deeply attuned to the Spirit, and even when plans change, he is ready to adapt and follow God to new places.
I hope that same attitude can be beneficial to all of us in whatever expected or unexpected changes of plans we face in our lives. And I believe even in the church, we can live into such a willingness to follow the Spirit as some of our plans change this summer.
We have decided not to do our music and art camp this year. Instead, we are regrouping to plan an even better offering of that camp next summer. While it is a bummer not to have the camp this summer, this shift has opened up a whole new way we can follow the Spirit of God to continue to connect to families in our community.
I am very excited to share that we will coordinate and host events we are calling “Lakewood loves to…” This will include several pop-up events to promote connection and joy among our neighbors in Lakewood around things that can truly bring us together, like singing, dancing, reading, drawing, and laughing. We will seek partnerships with other local organizations that specialize in those skills and provide an hour-long opportunity for families to connect and feel a sense of belonging. We plan to host these pop-up events the last week of July and I will share more details in the upcoming weeks. If you would like to be involved, especially if you have connections to a community organization willing to partner, please let me know.
The Spirit moves in exciting ways and I hope we always move with it. I believe this new opportunity will help us connect more with the families in our neighborhood and build up trust that we truly are a church that seeks to create joy and love in Lakewood.
Coming Up...
Tuesday, July 2
7:00 p.m. Knitting Group
Wednesday, July 3
6:00 p.m. 4th of July float decorating! (in the church parking lot)
Thursday, July 4
8:30 a.m. Meet at the church to walk on the float, or find us before 10:00 a.m. near the intersection of Lakewood and Cambria
Sunday, July 7
4:30 p.m. Meet at Oak Lawn UMC to serve Sunday supper to our homeless neighbors
Sunday, July 14
9:15 a.m. "What's Happening in the UMC?" in the Fellowship Hall (see below)
Saturday, July 20
6:00 p.m. Reconciling Ministries potluck at Arapaho UMC, 1400 W. Arapaho Rd, Richardson 75080 - help us welcome new reconciling communities in North Texas!
Monday, July 22
1:00 p.m. DoveNotes - join us as we create greeting cards to send to our homebound members and those on our prayer list. No crafting skills required!
LakeWoodstock: 4th of July Parade this Thursday!
The Lakewood UMC float for the Lakewood 4th of July parade is being taken over by…Messy Church! Our float decorations will include some crafts from the families that are a part of Messy Church and will help our neighbors see what we are all about. But we can still use anyone’s help that is able. We will be decorating the truck on July 3 at 6 pm. If you would like to join us in the parade on the 4th, please meet us at the church at 8:30 am or find our truck around the intersection of Lakewood and Cambria before 10 am. The theme this year is Lakewoodstock (like the concert Woodstock), so wear something groovy, like our new tie-dye shirts. And please bring friends to join us, the more the merrier!
What's Happening in the UMC
There has been a lot of grassroots movement over the past several months as faithful United Methodists have sought ways to respond against what was passed at the most recent General Conference. The plan passed in February distorts both the theology and the polity (organizational structure) of the denomination in unacceptable ways, and we have since seen much pushback from local and national groups. In order to keep everyone updated on what is happening, Patrick will be hosting a conversation during the Sunday school hour on July 14 in the Fellowship Hall. All are invited to hear and bring questions.
Bishop McKee on the One Church Resolution
Please read the below message from Bishop McKee regarding the One Church Resolution that was passed during Annual Conference.
On Tuesday, June 4, voting members of the North Texas Annual Conference approved a One Church Resolution by a vote of 591 to 144.
The One Church Resolution as approved states, “Therefore be it resolved that as a people of the North Texas Conference we aspire to behave as One Church Congregations and Conference. Be it further resolved that: we will pray for one another; we will allow for contextual ministry and pastoral care and not impede the work of others in ministry; we will seek to find common ground and actively be in ministry with people who are different from us; we will not speak ill of one another and we will model that all people are of sacred worth.”
The key word in this resolution is “aspire.” To aspire to something is to direct one’s hopes and actions today toward achieving something tomorrow. Passage of this resolution signals that the vast majority of lay and clergy members of the North Texas Annual Conference hope for and intend to work toward the day when the North Texas Conference and the wider United Methodist Church becomes a Church in which pastors and churches are granted the flexibility to reach their unique missional contexts. At the same time, they are afforded protections to not act contrary to their convictions. The affirmation of this resolution is a statement by the lay and clergy members of the North Texas Annual Conference that they desire space for traditionalists to continue to offer ministry as they have in the past, space for progressives to exercise a more complete ministry with LGBTQ persons, and space for all United Methodists to remain connected. This resolution is about what the North Texas Annual Conference hopes to become in the future.
The One Church Resolution also calls on the clergy and laity of the North Texas Annual Conference to live into an important aspect of the scriptural vision for the Church. The Book of James commands us to “not speak evil against one another” (4:11) and to “pray for one another” (5:6). In these days, as we continue in ministry together despite our disagreements on various matters, including ministry with LGBTQ persons, these timeless words of wisdom are critical for all of us.
The One Church Resolution did not change our current Book of Discipline. Only the General Conference can do that. The future of our conference is yet to be. For today, I, as your bishop, the cabinet, clergy and churches still live and do ministry in light of the current Book of Discipline.
My hope, as captured in some of my favorite verses in the scriptures, is that we live and do ministry together “with all humility and gentleness … making every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” (Ephesians 4:2-3).
North Texas Methodists Speak Out Against Transgender Violence
During Annual Conference, members of Lakewood and other churches spoke against the epidemic of violence against and murder of transgender women of color in Dallas. You can watch a video of that press conference at WFAA's website.
Bishop McKee also addressed the issue, saying in part:
A core tenet of The United Methodist Church’s Social Principles decries such actions and provides direction for us all: “We affirm all persons as equally valuable in the sight of God. We therefore work toward societies in which each person’s value is recognized, maintained, and strengthened,” Additionally, as United Methodists, we are called to “deplore acts of hate or violence based on … sexual orientation, gender identity or religious affiliation.” (¶ 162)
Such ongoing violence directed toward a specific group in a particular part of our community is despicable. Acknowledging the behavior as criminal activity, though, is not enough.
The victimization against the transgender community must end. Changes to existing state law must also occur; currently, there are no Texas statutes making discrimination against the transgender community illegal nor are there any provisions for gender identity in the state’s hate-crime laws.
If you would like to read the full text of Bishop McKee's email, please contact the church office.
Bring Us Your Coke Bottle Caps!
Did you know there is a code on the bottle cap of your Coke products? We can use these codes to support Rogers Elementary! We have already given about $200 to the school via this program. Eva in the church office is now a pro at entering the codes online, so really the only work you have to do is drink some cokes and save your bottle caps. Bring them to the church office and Eva will take care of the rest. Each code is worth 5 cents to be donated to Rogers, and Lakewood has already managed to donate over $25! Thank you for helping us give to the students and teachers at Rogers.
Messy Change
From the bottom of our hearts, THANK YOU for your support of our Messy Change collection! We have collected nearly $500 so far and we are so grateful for the way that this collection will help us engage in ministry with the children in our church and in the neighborhood. We are excited to put this change to good use as we continue Messy Church. If you have more spare change to share with us, just bring it by the office whenever you are able.
Happy Birthday to...
Tom Fomby 7/5
Jean Fowler 7/5
Laura Beil 7/7
Carol Stone 7/7
Carolyn Miracle 7/8
Jane Hughes 7/12
Ginny Venable 7/12
Barbara Brooks 7/20
Pierre Falco 7/20
Hannah Bednar 7/22
Charlie Estee 7/27
Eileen Boyd 7/29
Tom Cherry 7/29
This Month, We Pray for...
Gail Baldwin; Lynn Bruce; Carole Bryde; Linda Castor; family of Kevin Colon; Shirley Dunn; Wilma Elrod; Mary Ann Finley; Jean Fowler; Chris Gann; Bonnie Glanville; Leck and Cynthia Heflin; Michael Hilley; Harold Logan; Jan Logan; Carolyn Miracle; Marie Miranda; Mike Miranda; Tim Miranda; Pat Norvell; Jorge Ortiz; Brandon Owen; Tracy Penfield; Pontis Ministries; Kathy Purvis; David Rentz; Michelle Ried; Shelly Robertson; Elizabeth Robbins; Robin Robbins; Ginny Salinas; Beth Saxton; Debbie Schwartz; Jeanne Scroppo; Linda Simmons; Alan Smith; Kelly Smith; Travis Smith; Chris Venable; the family of Betty Watson; Louise Williams
