Are you interested in a 4-week study on Thursday mornings from 10:30am-12:00noon?  We hope so!

If we get enough people registered, we hope to do a 4-week study using Justo L. Gonzalez’s book, When Christ Lives In Us. In this book, the author stresses that we are not simply to follow after Jesus but are actively to carry out the ministry of Christ who transforms our lives. He considers eight aspects of Jesus’ ministry and reflects on ways they can shape and guide our ministry as Christians: Calling, Praying, Feeding, Healing, Commissioning, Teaching, Witnessing, Giving.

We have 13 copies of this book, and so long as you are willing to donate it back to the church (notes, underlines, & scribbles included), the cost would be FREE. If you choose to keep the book, the cost would be $8.

Details about this class led by Rev. Sims:

• Day / Time: Thursdays, 10:30-12:00noon – Begins July 22
• Location: Rm 301 (Genesis Class)
• Book cost: $8 (or FREE if you are willing to donate it back to the church)
• Childcare available upon request.

Please, help us keep Interfaith Ministries‘ pantry stocked.  Current needs are:

• Canned Beans
• Peanut Butter
• Jelly
• Cereal
• Instant Potatoes
• Canned Meat (i.e. Chili, Tuna)
• Toilet Paper
• Paper Towels
• Laundry Soap
• Household Cleaning Supplies

You can take these items directly to Interfaith or drop them in the blue and red receptacles in the first floor hallway of the Education Wing (outside the church office).

Check one of these books out of the FUMC Library on Sunday morning, or drop by the office during the week to get a key and self-check-out a book!

	Beautiful Lies by Lisa Unger:  Ridley Jones makes a decision to perform a good deed, which ultimately unleashes a chain of events that sends her on a thrilling journey.
	The Double Comfort Safari Club by Alexander McCall Smith:  Precious Raomtswe deals with issues of mistaken identity and great misfortune against the beautiful backdrop of Botswana’s remote and striking Delta.
	Hannah’s List by Debbie Macomber:  On the anniversary of his beloved wife’s death, Dr.  Michael Everett receives a letter Hannah had written him. She requests that he marry again and provides a list of three women she has chosen for him to consider.
	The Invisible Bridge by Julie Orringer:  A grand love story set against the backdrop of 1939 Budapest and Paris, this is the epic tale of three brothers whose lives are ravaged by war.
	The Map of True Places by Brunonia Barry:  Zee Finch, a respected psychotherapist, has to learn to find her way through uncharted waters to the place she will ultimately call home.
	The Murderer’s Daughters by Randy Susan Meyers:  Lulu and Merrry’s childhood, though never ideal, propels them into a nightmare when their father murders their mother and is sent to prison. When relatives refuse to take them in, the girls discover all they have is each other.

Here are recent memorials made to the Library:

• Judy Ballard in memory of Mert Jessel
• Judy Ballard in memory of Bill Sogard
• Ardella Johnson in memory of Mert Jessel
• Stewart and Mary Nell in memory of Helen Hoggard
• Stewart and Mary Nell Taylor in memory of Mert Jessel
• Stewart and Mary Nell Taylor in memory of Bill Sogard

Members of FUMC and the Exodus Sunday School Class participated in the Bowl for Kids Sake benefiting Big Brothers Big Sisters.  Their bowling team, Real Housewives of Canyon Trails, won the “Best Team Theme!”

The team members included Shari Schultz, Susan Tate, Amber Schacter, Emily Hays, and Teresa Rose.

Thank you for your service in our community and CONGRATULATIONS!

The 2nd Thursday St. Simeon Group will be starting a new book in September.  However, the book has not been chosen.  Thus, voting is now open for those who are currently participating in this monthly study group and for those who would like to join the group.

Here is a short synopsis of the books up for consideration.  Please, pick your first and second choice below.  The second choice will only be considered for breaking a tie.

	HEAVEN: Our Enduring Fascination with the Afterlife by Lisa Miller (ISBN:  9780060554750)  According to various polls, most Americans believe in heaven even, as Miller points out, when they don’t know what heaven means. Miller, Newsweek’s religion editor, addresses what and where heaven is and why the concept endures. Having covered many aspects of religion and interviewed people of many different faiths, she offers portraits of famous and ordinary people as well as experts in religious studies to educe how their views do or, more commonly, do not reflect the “official teaching, whatever that is.” The crux of the book focuses on believers, not beliefs, “for how people imagine heaven changes with who they are and how they live.” Miller discusses the heavenly city, afterlife in the Hebrew Bible, resurrection, and salvation, includes a chapter on visionaries, and comments extensively on how heaven is portrayed in pop culture.  (About $18)
	JESUS: Uncovering the Life, Teachings, and Relevance of a Religious Revolutionary by Marcus Borg (ISBN:  9780061434341)  This is Borg’s major book on the historical Jesus.  He shows how the Gospel portraits of Jesus, seen historically, make sense.  Borg takes into account all the recent developments in historical Jesus scholarship, as well as new theories on who Jesus was and how the Gospels reflect that – visioning Jesus as a charismatic healer, sage, and prophet, a man living in the power of the spirit and dedicated to radical social change. (About $11)
	OVERCOMING LIFE’S DISAPPOINTMENTS: Learning From Moses How to Cope With Frustrations by Harold S. Kushner (ISBN:  9781400033362) His idea is to explain the inexplicable in terms that turn negatives into ways of coping. Kushner skillfully uses the tale of Moses to manage the oh-so-true statement, “Nobody gets everything he or she yearns for.” Forbidden to enter the Holy Land? Having wandered for 40 years and endured complaints and rebels, Moses was tired; another leader deserved to take the lead. Plus, reading into the Bible and other religious tomes, the author finds that Moses ignored his family–a critical element comprising the complete life. Moses is not the only example used. Abraham Lincoln was weighed down by depression–or, in his case, what doesn’t kill us makes us strong. In all, the universal lessons for overcoming disappointment remain simple yet profound: remember who you’re working for, substitute new dreams for old, keep promises, be humble, maintain life’s priorities, forgive and forgive, and always dare to dream. (About $10)
	WHY I AM STILL A CHRISTIAN by Hans Küng (ISBN:  9780826476982)  The author is one of the most distinguished and widely-acclaimed theologians of the twentieth century. In this simple, personal and often moving testimony, Hans Kung describes his fundamental convictions and reveals why, despite all the difficulties he has to face, he is still committed to the Christian way. What Hans Kung has thought, experienced and expresses in this book will help others in their search for personal values and a sense of direction – and also help them realize the unique value and importance of the Christian way.  (About $15)

There are many ways to help with VBS (July 12-16, 2010):

• Decorating before VBS.  Here are dates to help with decorating:
  • Friday, June 25, 2010 – 9:00am
  • Saturday, June 26, 2010 – 9:00am
  • Thursday, July 1, 2010 – 9:00am
• Providing supplies / decorations for VBS
  • (see below for a full list of supplies needed)
• Helping during the week of VBS
• Helping to Clean Up after VBS

If you can help in any of these ways, contact
Rev. Lydia Pellikan
(lpellikan@fumcwf.org or 940-766-4231, x272).

List of supplies / decorations needed:

• Large sheets of cardboard
• Large cardboard boxes
• Aluminum foil
• Duct tape – silver
• Space-themed books, magazine pictures, cutouts or posters
• Black lights
• Lava lamps
• Silver disco balls
• Telescopes
• Old CD’s
• White and colored mini lights
• Foil starburst table decorations
• Multicolored disco ball lamps
• Spray foam insulation
• Styrofoam balls
• Eggshell mattress pad
• Large plastic trash cans
• Large and small plastic flower pots
• Dryer vent hoses
• Video games seats or bar stools
• King size sheets (blue, brown, white)