VIM Team sharing, part 1

The VIM Team shared experiences and stories from their recent mission trip to Kumi, Uganda. (part 1 of 2)

Janet Lahr-Lewis presentation on Palestine-Israel

Ms. Lewis has been serving in the Middle East as liaison between ecumenical groups, Israel and Palestine for the United Methodist Church.

English Ministry News and Notes 6-29-2014

• Sundays, June 29 and July 6, 9:30-10:30 AM, annex social hall. The VIM Team will be doing a 2-part sharing about the recent mission trip to Kumi, Uganda. 8 People from CCUMC had an inspiring journey, which they will share in a slideshow/video presentation, giving personal accounts and inviting questions. Don't miss it!
• AIF (Adventures in Faith) Treats Needed! Adventures in Faith is preparing for another action-packed summer for the Homework Club children! On Tuesdays and Thursdays for 5 weeks beginning on July 8th, the 60+ children will gather in the sanctuary to learn more about God using the Vacation Bible School theme of "Weird Animals".  We would love to have donations of snack foods! We will need enough snacks for 70 people / 10 sessions. Some suggestions are: Granola bars, Fruit Snacks, Cheese and Crackers, Animal Crackers, Popcorn, Fresh fruit, Cereal Mix, Pretzels, Rice Crackers, Baby carrots, and anything healthy! PLEASE NO NUTS (due to allergies in some children). Please bring your offerings to the kitchen and label is "For AIF".
• Sunday July 13th, there will be parallel worship of both EM and CM congregations at 9:30 AM. Following worship, you are invited to a luncheon to welcome our new Pastor, Brenda Walker, who begins serving at CCUMC July 1, 2014. Come meet and greet her, as we look forward to a time of blessing, fellowship, and excitement in the coming year.
• Preparations for July 13th: Please connect with Arlene Lang or Brenda Wong if you wish to bring a salad to go with the food that is being ordered for Welcome Luncheon for Pastor Brenda.
• Please sign up on our Hospitality Chart that is now posted in our annex! Find all worship server updates on: http://chinesecommunityumc.blogspot.com

English Ministry News and Notes 6-22-14

• Big thanks to those who helped on Family Day!  It was a huge success with lots of joy and laughter!  Thanks for all your support and prayers for the Homework Club families and this important ministry.
• Annual Conference Is in Session - Please remember this important gathering in prayer as our annual conference gathers for discernment and decision-making.  Special thanks to our lay delegates: Becky Wong and Richard Fong for attending on our behalf.  We are also proud to know that Aeri is instrumental there with her musical gifts!
• VIM Team Faith Sharing Sunday -  We are so excited to hear from our VIM Team about their time in Uganda.  In addition to faith sharing in worship today, they will provide a fuller report back in Sunday School,  June 29th and July 6th.  Don’t miss it!
• Come Hear Janet Lahr-Lewis, UMC Mission Liaison to Palestine- Israel – We welcome the return of Janet on Saturday, June 28th, at 6:00 p.m. for a pot luck gathering.  Ms Lewis has been serving in the Middle East as liaison between ecumenical groups, Israel and Palestine for the United Methodist Church.  RSVP to Becky and Charlie.
• AIF (Adventures In Faith) begins another exciting summer for the youths of Homework Club!  If you are available to help, please connect with this year’s program coordinator: Michelle Lu!  AIF begins with a training session on Thursday, June 26th, and July 1st.
• We Warmly Welcome Pastor Brenda Walker!  Her first Sunday at CCUMC will be on July 6th!  She will conduct communion for the CM congregation as well as with the EM congregation that day.  Please note that July 13th will be a parallel worship day beginning at 9:30AM, after which we will have a luncheon to welcome Pastor Brenda!

English Ministry News and Notes 6-15-14

• We Warmly Welcome Minister Sandra Sanders-West – She is a 2013 graduate of Pacific School of Religion, where she received a Masters of Divinity degree. She has been a United Methodist for 36 years. Minister Sandra currently serves as Taylor Memorial UMC’s Minister of Outreach. She is an avid believer in God’s grace and love for all people. One of her favorite quotes from Cornel West, "You can’t lead the people if you don’t love the people. You can’t save the people if you don’t serve the people."
•  Annual Conference Special Offering – We will be taking a special offering today for Imagine No Malaria". Please read more about this cause on the opposite page.
•  Homework Club Family Day Celebration Today! You are encouraged to pitch in and connect with our Homework Club community!
•  Annual Conference Begins This Week - Please remember this important gathering in prayer as our annual conference gathers for discernment and decision-making. Special thanks to our lay delegates: Becky Wong and Richard Fong for attending on our behalf.
•  VIM Team Faith Sharing Sunday - We are so excited to hear from our VIM Team about their time in Uganda. They will share in worship next Sunday, June 22nd, as well as report back in Sunday School, June 29th and July 6th. Don’t miss it
•  Missions Speaker Potluck at 6pm June 28th with Janet Lehr Lewis! Ms Lewis has been serving in the Middle East as liaison between ecumenical groups, Israel and Palestine for the United Methodist Church. Sign-up sheet is available now!

A History of Healing

English Ministry News and Notes 6-1-14

• And, they’re Off! You can read about our Kumi 2014 Mission team’s experience by following their blog at: kumimissiontrip2014.blogspot.com.
• We Warmly Welcome Rev. John Chamberlin – Pastor John retired on July 1, 2013, after having served 36 years in the California-Nevada Annual Conference. His first 11 years in the pastoral ministry were spent right here at CCUMC! He remains the National Coordinator of East Timor Religious Outreach.
• Pentecost Joint Choir – The first practice is today at 1:00 p.m. Join in!
• A Church Charge Conference, presided by District Superintendent Rev. Schuyler Rhodes, will be held Sunday, June 8th, 12:45 P.M. in the Educational Annex to confirm the Interim Pastor's compensation package. All are invited!
• Celebrating Pentecost – We will celebrate the coming of the Holy Spirit and CCUMC’s 127th birthday on June 8th. Joint worship will be held at 10:30 a.m. with District Superintendent, Rev. Schuyler Rhodes preaching. Worship will be followed by a fellowship potluck. A-G: Salads (fruit, pasta, green); H-L: Side dish-es (potatoes, noodles, breads, sticky rice, casseroles); M-Q: Veggies (raw with dip, stir fry, roasted); R-Z: Meat or Poultry (ribs, duck, char siu, ham, chicken).
• Getting Ready for Annual Conference – Come learn about the issues and resolutions that will be raised and discerned at this year’s California – Nevada Annual Conference. We will be holding a 2 session Sunday School series to highlight Annual Conference this and next Sunday.
• Let’s remember Pastor Joseph Chan (one of CCUMC’s covenant relationships) with a Father’s Day greeting card! Please connect with Burt or Sylvia to sign one of two cards!
• A Special Offering for “Imagine No Malaria” (INM) will be collected on June 15th as a part of our Annual Conference pledge. You can visit http://www.calnevimagine.org/ for more information
• Homework Club Family Day Celebrations – We celebrate another year of wonderful ministry as the Homework Club completes another school year and gets ready to launch for the summer. Please pitch in at this year’s Family Day celebration beginning at 11:30am, June 15th. We will hold parallel worship that day starting at 9:30 a.m. For those who will be volunteering, we will gather after worship to prepare/set up for the party/BBQ. Please see the sign-up sheets for donations of BBQ items as well as for items needed for crafts and games!
• Missions Speaker Potluck at 6pm June 28th with Janet Lehr Lewis! Ms Lewis has been serving in the Middle East as liaison between ecumenical groups, Israel and Palestine for the United Methodist Church. Sign-up sheet is available now!

The Meeting Place

Of all the ways that people commonly deal with suffering - denial, rationalization, spiritualization, substitution - few are places of refuge. Most will disconnect us from the very life we hope to bless and serve and may defeat us in fulfilling the purpose of our lives. The sad part of this is that we can never hide from suffering. Suffering is a part of being alive. Hiding ourselves means only that we will have to suffer alone.

In the presence of suffering, everyone needs to find refuge. The difficulty is knowing where to find our strength. Suffering is all around us. We may have friends and family who have lost a breast to cancer, or who have AIDS or Alzheimer's and no matter how young we are, we may have friends and family who die. It was a very short time ago that only those with a professional degree became intimately involved with such things and almost everyone who died, died in a hospital. No longer. Suffering has escaped from hospitals and institutions and met us in our own living rooms.

We avoid suffering only at the great cost of distancing ourselves from life. In order to live fully we may need to look deeply and respectfully at our own suffering and at the suffering of others. In the depth of every wound we have survived is the strength we need to live. The wisdom our wounds can offer us is a place of refuge. Finding this is not for the faint of heart. But then, neither is life.

By: Rachel Naomi Remen, M.D.