By Dan Hester

When the crepe myrtles start to bloom, I know that the end of summer is approaching. As I start to turn towards fall planning, I thought that an overview of the ministry of St. Andrew's was worthwhile to write.

Almost a year ago our long range planning committee, the Joel Committee, submitted to the Administrative Council its report concerning where God was leading St. Andrew's UMC. The Council has since then been considering, prioritizing, and acting on that report. In short, the Council prioritized 8 items on which to focus its attention. Some of the items are visionary. Some are very practical. Here they are in order of priority as set by the Council with my own commentary.

1. Disciple Development. This emphasis calls each person and each group within the church to consider how they are offering Christ to people, and deepening the Christian walk of existing disciples. I often think of this with the baseball analogy of advancing base runners.

2. Hospitality. This goal asks St. Andrew's to model the welcome of Christ. Hospitality is also welcoming the stranger and recognizing that the stranger brings blessings and gifts. In true biblical hospitality the roles of guest and host often switch.

3. Be a Light to the Neighborhood. This visionary goal is biblically rooted in the call of Israel to be a light to the nations, and the teaching of Jesus to not hide your light under a bushel. This goal is also rooted in St. Andrew's origin and history in this neighborhood.

As a matter of priority, the Council drew a line in pencil here. The top three goals are the most substantial, challenging, and promising avenues for ministry. Rather than try to accomplish everything at once, the Council chose to focus on the top three. The following five goals are still before the council. These get discussed and prayed for. They are not on a back burner, but they do get viewed through the lens of the top three.

4. Emphasize Seniors. Our elders continue to grow in faith and have gifts to offer for the ministry of the Church. Multi-generational ministry, health and wellness, transportation, and the homebound are all areas of interest for St. Andrew's and its seniors.

5. Missions. Our local and international outreach has been and will continue to be a strength and pillar of St. Andrew's. Missions are not only a means to fulfill the will of Christ, but missions are also a way of proving faithful witness to an unbelieving world.

6. Emphasize Youth. Our aim here is not to keep youth ministry in a silo unto itself, but to integrate our future leaders now. Our youth are also in the position to combine several of our overall goals such as mission, neighborhood involvement, and disciple development.

7. Multi-generational Ministry. Discipleship has always involved mentoring relationships. Plus, nothing keeps one young like working with children and youth. This item highlights the mutual benefits available to all age-groups when we plan and conduct ministries together.

8. Emphasizing Family Through Baptism. Baptism joins us in Christ and helps us know the best sense of what it means to be family, both through biology and through faith. In an age of broken, abusive, and atypical family structures, the Church can provide a holy sense of belonging, nurture, and growth for everyone, no matter what the biological family background. 

I invite you and whatever groups you may be a part of in the church to consider how you might direct your efforts with these goals and intentions of St. Andrew's. 

"The Pastor's Study" starts again on Tuesday, May 6th. As usual we will meet at 7:00 p. m. in room number 4. Anyone is welcome to attend.

In May we will be using a book/DVD series by Dr. Matthew Sleeth, MD entitled, 24/6. This is a study of Sabbath rest, and how rest is a part of a holy life. Ordering the book is optional. If you'd like to read more about the book, or order a copy you can find it at Cokesbury or as an ebook from Amazon. Come out and join us!

The printed description below is reproduced from the back of the book. You can also watch videos, read testimonials, and find out more about the author at the 24/6 website. 

By Dan Hester

Last Sunday I issued the challenge/invitation for members of this congregation to give a testimony. From now on, I will make space in worship for anyone who wants to provide testimony. Call me or email me and we will schedule a Sunday when you can offer your testimony.  Here are some idea starters for putting together a testimony.  

• Where has God been at work in your life? 
• How has God found you? 
• Who has Jesus been for you? What difference has following Jesus made in your life. 
• How have you been surprised by God's love? 
• What is this chapter on your journey meant to you? 
• When and how has God made you whole? 
• Testimony can be about the time when you came to faith, although it doesn't have to be.
  
• Testimony is, simply put by bishop Ken Carter, speaking honestly of ourselves to God, and speaking honestly about God to others.
• Testimony isn't about fixing someone else. 
• Testimony isn't about getting someone else to behave in a certain way. 
• Testimony is about offering how the speaker has been changed. 

The evangelist Luke tells us in Acts 1:8 that some of the last words of Jesus were, "you will be my witnesses." So I challenge you, and open the door for you to offer your testimony so that we might all see the goodness, the grace, and the power of our Lord.

In no particular order, here are four good books on the Christian life. I'm using them in my current sermon series on Christian practices. Any one of these would make for a great personal or group study. 

Marjorie J. Thompson. Soul Feast: An Invitation to the Christian Spiritual Life. 

Thompson's book is best if you need to start from scratch with your spiritual life, or are looking to overhaul things for a fresh start. She's accessible, draws from a wide range of sources, and comprehensive. 

Richard Foster. Celebration of Discipline. 

A classic work. Foster's work has a little harder edge to it and is not for the faint of heart. He's like a really tough personal trainer who gets in your face. But for those who persevere it will reap rewards. 

Diana Butler Bass. Christianity for the Rest of Us: How the Neighborhood Church is Transforming the Faith. 

This work points to how these traditional practices can renew a congregation. With a bit more political point of view, she integrates well the inner and outer aspects of Christian practice. 

Kenneth H. Carter, Jr. A Way of Life in the World: Spiritual Practices for United Methodists. 

Carter is the former pastor down the road at Providence UMC, and now the bishop of the Florida Conference. Carter has a talent for making things clear. This book is the best at articulating a specifically Wesleyan approach to spirituality. 

By Dan Hester

During this year's Lenten season, I will be focusing on Christian practices. Christian practices are ways in which we participate in our faith, ways in which we embody our faith, and ways in which God reaches us. While we would never commit the works righteousness error and say that these ways of living by themselves make us holy, Christian practices have always been means by which faith is expressed, and the means by which we participate in the work God is doing both in us, and in the world. These holy habits are often called spiritual disciplines.

It's been said that excellence is a habit. This means that growth in life is often an accumulation of small impacts over time. Holy habits bring freedom in the way that piano practice brings freedom of expression to the pianist. Think about it, most of our life is shaped by very ordinary things, what we eat most often, the media we consume, the conversations we have with the people we see everyday. The question is never are we being formed, the question is always how are we being formed. Christian practices are an intentional way to see that our impact on the world, and the world's impact on us take place in holy ways.

I'll spend each Sunday delivering two short sermons. The first sermon will focus on the Scripture lesson of the day. These lessons will tell about the temptation of Jesus, and scenes from his last week in Jerusalem. The second sermon will explore how these stories lead us into Christian practices. We will look at Bible study, fasting, generosity, hospitality, testimony, and justice. While this isn't a comprehensive list of Christian practices, it's a good start.

Come join us in worship and use this time as a chance to get grounded in the basics. When people faithfully dig into these disciplines, good growth takes place. Make the most of Lent, and make the most of who God created you to be.  

Introducing the Care Team

In the late summer/early fall of this year a group of people stepped forward for a new experiment. These were people feeling a call to provide pastoral care to others, to visit, pray, encourage and support people. After an introductory meeting, and an initial 10 hours of training, we now have an active Care Team.

The Care Team's mission is to provide a ministry of lay Christian caring. 3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and the God of all consolation, 4 who consoles us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to console those who are in any affliction with the consolation with which we ourselves are consoled by God. (2 Corinthians 1:3–4 NRSV) The ministry is designed to provide one-on-one supportive care for persons going through a crisis, the homebound, those healing from injury or illness, and to maintain relationships within the congregation.

How does it work?

The Care Team works in cooperation with the pastor. As different pastoral care needs arise, the pastor calls on different members of the Care Team. For instance, the pastor would call on a Care Team member to visit in the hospital when he cannot be there. Or if someone endures a life-changing event, or an intense period of stress, after consulting with that person, the pastor would send a member of the Care Team to meet regularly with that person and to walk with them through the crisis.

What can I expect from a Care Team member?

A Care Team member will

·      meet with you at a mutually convenient time and place
·      hold all conversations in confidence
·      pray with and for you
·      listen carefully
·      help you reflect
·      walk with you in difficult times
·      talk with you one-on-one

A Care Team member will NOT:

·      have all the answers
·      betray your confidence
·      diagnose you
·      provide therapy
·      talk you into anything
·      work on your personal chores or tasks
·      meet with couples or families

I think I might like to meet with a Care Team member. What do I do?

If you're interested in visiting with a member of the Care Team for any reason, get in touch with the pastor. He can answer any questions about the program, listen to your needs, then pair you with the best match from the Care Team.

The Care Team members are: Allison Bickett, Margeri Brown, Nancy Crosby, Norma Dowless, Martha Ann Harris, Jean Hunter, Susan Johnson, Ruth Mauldin, Shawn Penny, and Pat Smathers.

Please keep the Care Team in your prayers. Welcome them if they visit you in the hospital. And if you think someone else might benefit from the Care Team, have them call the pastor.

By Dan Hester

I want to continue to invite people to come to my Tuesday night study. We meet on Tuesday nights from 7pm to 8pm in room #4. You are always welcome to jump in wherever we are in a study. We are studying the Gospel of John right now and will pick up with chapter 6 when we resume meeting on Nov. 5. (We're currently taking a couple of weeks off.)

The building entrance we use is off to the left side of the main entrance. We usually have around 20 people in attendance. I try to start promptly at 7pm and end a few minutes before 8pm. If you're late, come on in; we won't make a big fuss.

Most people bring a Bible with them. There are also Bibles in the classroom for you to use. No outside reading is required during this study; but, if you long for some I can give you recommendations. So come on out. I'll look forward to seeing you.

By Dan Hester 
The three days from the evening of Holy Thursday to the evening of Easter Sunday has traditionally been called the Triduum. Triduum simiply means three days and can be used to signify any special three days of preparation before a holy day. Sometimes this word is used to describe the three days between Jesus' crucifixion and his resurrection.

While our calendar counts three days, in terms of worship the Triduum is one event. In this one event we encounter the full story of Jesus' last supper, his betrayal, arrest, trial, crucifixion, and resurrection. All of these events together form a unity when proclaiming the Gospel message.

During our worship here at St. Andrew's we are tying the three worship services of Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter Sunday together with a drama in three parts. While each service will stand on its own, we encourage everyone to make every attempt to attend all three services. Join us in prayer that in this Triduum, St. Andrew's would be renewed in its faith, that new people might come to faith, and that God would be praised for all he has done for us. 

Palm Sunday 3/24: 9am and 11:15am

By Dan Hester
Starting on Sunday, 1/20/2013, I will be preaching a series of sermons from 1 Corinthians 12. This chapter is a well-known passage about spiritual gifts. I thought you might like access to a few online surveys that can help you discern what your gifts you have been given. I hope these surveys are fun for you. Perhaps they will spark some reflection. Perhaps they will spark some action. Let me know your thoughts. 

UMC Spiritual Gift Info.

This link takes you to a page on the United Methodist Church web site. This link has good supporting information and links about spiritual gifts. But, I must confess that it is my least favorite survey instrument of the ones that I have listed. 

Ministry Matters

This survey contains 85 questions and thus gives one a fair starting place to think about what one's gifts might be. When I finished the process, the instrument returned my top three gifts along with explanations of the gifts. 

Lutheran Gifts Assessment

This link comes from our Lutheran brothers and sisters. One can access a printable version that contains brief explanations of the various gifts. I like how the results of this one are displayed. The survey gives a chart with your scores in all the gifts so you can see how they score relative to one another.