Pastor Letter ……1-2

Info/Events……...3-5

Birthdays & Anniversaries ……6

The other day I was thinking about what topic to write

about for the newsletter and I came up with three topics. I

wasn’t able to expand on any one of them and had

reached what some would call writer’s block, so I decided to

write about all three topics.

The first topic was being able to have error-proof

interpretations from the Bible. I heard about a husband who

told his wife that housework was women’s work and he would

not do it unless she could find a Bible verse which

commanded such work be done by a man. The wife prayed

and began searching through her Bible. Before long, she

came to him with a smile on her face and her Bible open to

II Kings 21:13: “…God says, ‘I will wipe Jerusalem as a man

wipes a dish, wiping it, and turning it upside down.’” That

husband picked up his dishcloth and headed for the kitchen.

Some scriptural passages tell us exactly what to do but, in

other situations, the Bible does not give such clear

answers. We should then ask questions like these: What does

love demand? What course of action will do the most

good? What would Jesus do? When these questions are

asked prayerfully, God can make us almost error-proof.

The second thought was regarding Christ forgetting. In a

recent book, Ron Lee Davis tells the true story of a priest in the

Philippines. He was a much-loved man of God who carried

the burden of an old secret sin. He had repented but still had

no peace about it. In his parish was a woman who loved

God deeply and who claimed to have visions where she

spoke with Christ. The priest, however, was skeptical. To test

her, he said, “The next time you speak with Christ, ask Him

what sin I committed while I was in seminary.” The woman

(continued on page 2)

JUNE 2020 NEWSLETTER

UNITED METHODIST CHURCH

agreed. A few days later, the priest asked, “Well, did Christ visit you in your

dreams?” “Yes, he did,” she replied. “And did you ask Him what sin I committed

back in seminary?” “Yes.” “And what did He say?” She smiled and answered, “Christ

said, ‘I don’t remember.’” When God forgives, He forgets. And, He helps us to

forgive ourselves.

The third thought I had was on the cure for sin. Sin is not a fashionable word

nowadays. More than 15 years ago I read a book for a class called, What is Sin and Is

There Something We Can Do About It. In the class, we were introduced to Dr. Karl

Menninger and his book, Whatever Became of Sin? We learned the word “sin” is not

politically correct. On television and in the movies, you can hear every crudity and

profanity ever uttered, but you will not likely hear the word “sin” used seriously. The

Bible says that sin is the fundamental problem of the human race.

Our basic problem is not that we are under-educated, malnourished, abused, or

discriminated against, though all of those problems are serious. Our basic problem is

sin. We are naturally prone to rebel against God and to be selfish. Furthermore, we

cannot cure the sin problem by willpower, education, or diet.

There is a cure. It is through a relationship with Jesus Christ. Jesus knows where you

are, and He is waiting on you to find Him. He is only a whisper away. Find Him and

apply the cure.

I’m not sure if any of these tie together, but somehow it was fun writing about

them. It is true that once you understand some of God’s Word you realize there is a

cure for sin and He does forget when we repent from our sins. To repent means to

turn from our sins.

Prayer: Father, in the name of Jesus, we thank You for forgiveness of our sins and the

knowledge they have been forgotten. Thank You for Your Word where we can read

about Your love for us. In Your name. Amen.

Jack Langford Graduate of La Porte High School

Jack is the son of John & Katrina Langford. Jack will be attending Butler University in the fall. He plans to study biochemistry.

Education Sunday Postponed Since Education Sunday 2020 needs to be postponed for a while, we would like to

congratulate the following students on their accomplishments and completion of

the listed education levels.

4th Grade High School College

Wes Kaiser Jack Langford Kassidy Applegarth

Jack Schable Mary Beth Lowery

Mary Beth Lowery Graduate of St. Mary’s College

Mary Beth completed her Bachelor of Arts in Speech Pathology at St. Mary’s College.

She plans to pursue her Masters in Communicative Sciences & Disorders at SMC this fall. Mary Beth is married to Kole Lowery and is the daughter of John & Katrina Langford.

Jack Schable Graduate of La Porte High School

Jack is the son of Rob & Tearsa Schable. Jack will be attending Western Michigan University in the fall. He plans to study business.

Kassidy Applegarth Graduate of Purdue University NW

Kassidy completed her Bachelor of Science in Business from Purdue University Northwest,

majoring in Marketing and minoring in Human Resources, Dec. 2019. She hopes to pursue a career in marketing/ sales or return for her MBA. Kassidy is married to Nick Applegarth and attends DVUMC.

Choir 2019-2020 Sopranos Donna Denney 3 yrs Cathy Dye 31 yrs Bethany Eyrick 4 yrs Cindy Fischer 21 yrs Marylin Holman 3 yrs Cheryl Killingbeck 8 yrs Jan Martin 2 yrs Dory Morley 36 yrs Altos Marlette Bernacchi 22 yrs Becca Eyrick 6 yrs Carolyn Eyrick 32 yrs Kathy Hindsley 19 yrs Marcia Spitzmesser 12 yrs Tenors Lance Hindsley 21 yrs George Morley 36 yrs Basses Steve Eyrick 20 yrs John Langford 19 yrs Mitch Marhanka 41 yrs Bruce Wittgren 1 yr

“Thinking back on the 2019-2020 choir season, there is much to reflect upon. Some members

made the difficult decision to “step away” for awhile, possibly leading to retirement. We gained

one very capable new voice. While we were working towards what our new sound was to be,

the Covid-19 virus arrived. I discovered that, for me, our choir touches more than our Sunday

services. I have missed the camaraderie of our rehearsals, Sunday morning warm-ups, even our

text messages when debating if the snow was bad enough to cancel practice. (Snow seems to

always fall on Wednesday evenings.) I would like to take this moment to thank each of you for

sharing your time and talents with our congregation. You enhance our worship every time you

sing. I also want to thank you for being great friends to myself and to each other. I have missed

seeing everyone and hearing about children, grandchildren, and special events you have

enjoyed. I know that you look out for each other with calls, cards, and especially prayers. I look

forward to re-engaging with you all whenever it is deemed safe to do so. This is truly a time of

uncertainty, but I am certain we will come through this. We will be joyfully singing again soon,

so please stay safe and stay hopeful!” ~ Mitch Marhanka

Flag Day commemorates the adoption of the United States flag on June 14, 1777, by resolution of the 2nd Continental Congress.

Wednesdays at 6 pm CT

Sundays at 10 am CT

Live feed on Facebook or afterward on

our website DoorVillageChurch.org

Mon thru Thurs

7 am – 12 noon

219. 362. 3812

Electronic Giving We truly hope that those who are able will continue to support our church during this difficult time. We still need to pay the usual monthly bills. We process the incoming mail Monday thru Saturday, keep record of contributions, and make weekly bank deposits. You can help by sending your offerings in support of our church to DVUMC, 3502 W. Joliet Rd, La Porte, IN 46350. Donations can also be made from a mobile device or computer through a secure site by visiting our church website, doorvillagechurch.org, or clicking this electronic offering button now:

MEN’S BREAKFAST

& FELLOWSHIP June 13 at 8 am

in Fellowship Hall

We will observe social distancing protocol.

Please join us.

Worship Committee Meeting Our Worship Committee will meet June 1 to

plan adjustments to our future worship services

in hopes that we will be able to safely worship

together in our sanctuary very soon. Our

Bishop’s guidelines currently indicate that we

are not to meet in our buildings until after June

14. We will let you know as soon as we have a

date scheduled for our building to re-open for

worship. We do plan to continue broadcasting

services after re-opening occurs and to love

and care for our online church family.

Church Photo Directory Our new dates for photos to be taken for the 2020 DVUMC church photo directory are now tentatively set for July 6-7. Once plans are made for how to sign up, we will provide further information.

6/02 Mia Kaiser 6/10 Kevin Kiser 6/23 Marie Wiltfong 6/07 Larry & Gayle Curtis

6/03 Matt Coulter 6/12 Jacob Kiser 6/24 Virginia Thomas 6/07 Donn & Bev Kelver

6/03 Carly Troy 6/13 Jim Baumer 6/25 Hui Chong 6/07 Gene & Maureen

Flickinger 6/04 Gayle Curtis 6/13 Cheryl

Killingbeck 6/25 Hunter Westphal 6/19 Jim & Lois Timmons

6/07 Bill Applegarth 6/14 Gene Flickinger 6/27 Alex Pointon 6/25 Connie & Steve

Clougher 6/08 Jenny Noll 6/18 Janice Baumer 6/27 Ben Pointon 6/26 Tony & Mandy Martin

6/08 Mike Schuster 6/27 Jeff & Donna Council

6/28 George & Dory Morley

Anniversaries

How to contact Pastor Bob:

Email:

Robert.denney@inumc.org

Mobile: 260-251-1529

Office: 219-362-3812

Find him on Facebook!

June June Birthdays