In our busy lives, what ma�ers most is not our ability to produce but our ability to love, and to just be. This reminder, by Parker Palmer, was the opening at

an Animate Faith Lent Study session. Palmer writes:

I work hard at what I do, and I bet you do too. So maybe you need the same reminder I do: while my work is important, it is not a measure of my value or worth. Who we "be" is far more important than what we do or how well we do it. That's why we're called human beings, not human doings!

We pay a terrible price if we value our doing over our being. When we have to stop "doing" — e.g., because of job loss, illness, accident, or the diminishments that can come with age — we lose our sense of worthiness.

"Camas Lillies" by Lynn Ungar, is one of my favorite poems. It reminds me to value "being" more than I value "being useful" — so that even when I'm forced to lay down my work, I can retain my sense of personal worth. Put simply and plainly, I can s�ll love myself. That's a gi� many people need. If I can't give it to myself, how can I possibly give it to others?

At age 75, I'm trying to learn (or re-learn) that, in the end, what ma�ers most is not my ability to "produce" but my ability to love…

Camas Lilies by Lynn Ungar

Consider the lilies of the field, the blue banks of camas opening into acres of sky along the road. Would the longing to lie down and be washed by that beauty abate if you knew their usefulness, how the na�ves ground their bulbs for flour, how the se�lers' hogs uprooted them,

grun�ng in gleeful oblivion as the flowers fell?

And you—what of your rushed and useful life? Imagine se�ng it all down—papers, plans, appointments, everything— leaving only a note: “Gone to the fields to be lovely. Be back when I'm through blooming."

Even now, unneeded and uneaten, the camas lilies gaze out above the grass from their tender blue eyes.

Even in sleep your life will shine. Make no mistake. Of course your work will always ma�er. Yet Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.

When the class was pu�ng together their favorite learnings from our �me together, a line from this poem emerged: "Gone to the fields to be lovely. Be back when I'm through blooming."

Be ing More Than Be ing Useful

May 2014

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Photo credit: Sunrise at Camas Prairie Centennial Park and Red Sky. Charles Knowles

: on-line edition

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Dear ELUMC Family Thank you so much for all of your cards and best wishes and prayers. We feel them! The last few months were up and down. We were able to open Christmas presents with Parker’s children in the hospital at the end of January. His children and grandchildren were here to make arrangements. We hope to have a small memorial service here on the Cape in late summer. Fondly, Be�y Lou Hodgman

To my ELUMC family,

Thank you for all the cards, notes, and prayers you con�nue to send me. I know the prayers are working as my last CAT scan and a periodic blood test I get have returned wonderful results. I will con�nue

to receive treatments and pray the results of future tests will bring more good news.

I am keeping ELUMC in my prayers and wish you all a wonderful spring. Love 'n Hugs, Phyllis

Fran Thieme at East Village; Helen White, Jewish Nursing Home; Joyce Horner at Heritage Hall; Eleanor Goodrich at Wingate Hampden.

Special health concerns: Marilyn B_ , Arnold C_ , Janet Ga_ , Barbara K_ (Carol J_ ’s mom), Grace M_ , Phyllis _ and Pa�y R_ .

It is with a heavy and glad heart that we bring you news that Norman Heidl passed peacefully into the nearer presence of our God on April 26th.

He was a kind and gentle man with a clever sense of humor. He loved working with his hands and in his yard. He was loved by many and he will be missed.

A graveside funeral service was held at Hillcrest Cemetery on April 30th.

Thanks for your generous dona�ons!!

Thanks to your dona-�ons and some extras from the district mee�ng of the United Methodist Women, our basket overflowed in March. Keep those pantry items coming to help

those in our community who are food insecure.

A Big Special Thank You to our choirs for their wonderful music for Lent, Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday and Easter. You all worked very hard and your dedica�on and spirit

were very present in your music. Thank you for sharing your gi�s with us in worship. —JT.

Special music coming up:

May 18th Bells in worship

June 8th Special guest, Evelyn Harris for a Gospel Pentecost celebra�on

June 15th Choir Apprecia�on Sunday

Mark your calendar

June 1, 11:15a.m.

Following the worship service, we’re vo�ng on a new slate of officers for the teams and considering a new building use policy that affirms marriage equality. following the service.

All members have a voice and vote.

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Our nursery now has books that re-flect the diversity of families at ELUMC thanks to a

dona�on by Eileen Bro-gan who led a class on

valuing and apprecia�ng the differences among us called "All God's Children."

Some families are big, some families are small,

some families are the same color,

some are different colors.

Some live near each other and some live far,

some look alike, some look like their pets.

Some families have a stepmom or stepdad and step siblings,

some adopt children.

Some families have two moms or two dads,

some families have one parent instead of two.

Some families eat the same things,

some eat different things.

Some are quiet, some like to be noisy.

Some families like to be clean; some like to be messy.

Some live in a house by themselves;

some share a house with other families.

All families can help each other be strong!

All families like to hug each other!

All families are sad when they lose someone they love.

All families like to celebrate specials days together!

T HE CARRINGTON SCHOLARSHIP applica�ons are now available!! Those who received a scholarship last year

and our church-member graduates from this year have been sent e-mails with the applica�on and instruc�ons a�ached. If you are a member of ELUMC and a�ending college next year, we encourage you to send in an ap-plica�on.

Applica�ons may also be obtained: from the church website at h�p://

www.elumc.org/forms.htm under the dropdown heading Resources, click on Forms;

by e-mailing the church office (office@elumc.org or calling 413 525-7416) and reques�ng one be e-mailed or snail-mailed to you;

by picking one up on Sunday mornings.

The deadline for submi�ng the Carrington Scholarship applica�on is May 21, 2014.

The warmer weather means it’s �me to think about caring for our church grounds.

If you can spare some �me please see the “Gardeners for God” sign up sheet on the bulle�n board.

Saturday, May 17th 9-noon WORKDAY

We’ll be doing yard work, interior cleaning and mainte-nance at the church and the parsonage. If you can help out please contact Sco� Grabowski. Thanks!

R������� ��� C������� E���� Saturday, May 10

9:00 am to 3:00 pm Trinity UMC

There will al so be a strategy meeting/reception

on Friday , May 9 at 6:00 pm. Can you help with this event? Please let John Dunlop know.

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Evie Soucie, Laurie Conz and Laura Kinney having fun lending a hand.

Paul Kinney helping with the clean-up.

What’s Happening at ELUMC

New Siding for ELUMC

Workmen worked through wind and cold to install new siding on Chestnut St. side of the building

22nd Annual National Rebuilding Day Green-N-Fit Neighborhood Cluster Rebuild 2014

The umbrella group New Hope Regional Ministry (run by Gary Richards with Tom and John D as ELUMC reps) sponsored our ac�vi�es and had us working alongside Methodists from Wesley Springfield, Trinity, Faith, St. Paul and Restauracion Brazili-an Mission.

Can you spot Tom, Rev Kelly, Erin and Eddie Sanchez (he's on the porch waving)? How about Pearl Wilkinson or Jane Schneeloch? Our teams put in a new kitchen floor and landscaped the property.

Tom McGowan and Eddie & Erin Sanchez install new floor.

At another loca�on the crew worked to clean up the backyard, replace front fence & plant dahlias.

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Maundy Thursday Pilgrimage with Egerria We started in the garden, traveled upstairs to the hall and then to the sanctuary (greeted by fog and bells) with disciples with candles guiding us along the path.

EASTER worship included special guest musicians: Erik Anundson, soprano saxophone, Benjamin Porter, alto saxophone, Tyler Appel, tenor saxophone, Zach Robarge, baritone saxophone, and Liana Ginei�s, soprano. All are students from the UMass Amherst Music Department.

Stained Glass Wonderful “stained glass” images created by our Sunday School stu-dents help to beau�fy the sanctuary.

Photos courtesy of Fred Gagnon

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Other quotes included a line from the Mumford & Sons song, “Awake, My Soul”: In these bodies we will live, in these bodies we will die And where you invest your love, you invest your life. Awake my soul for you were made to meet your maker

We appreciated Brian McClaren’s reflec�on on the apopha�c tradi�on (also knows as the via nega�va) that understands God through the subtrac�on of images because “God can never be reduced to images or contained in words.”

Lillian Daniel ask “What do you love about church? And what could you live without?” While it’s easy to point out the obvious blind spots in a tradi�on, there is something about losing ourselves in something transcendent.

The reflec�on on the meaning of the cross was a highlight for many. Nadia Bolz-Weber argued that God says to us on the cross: “Pay a�en�on, this is the logical conclusion of all your efforts to dominate others and win victory over one another... and I would rather die than be in the sin accoun�ng business.” The irony, she says, is that we align ourselves with the very empire that rejected God’s values seen on the cross.

Most challenging was Mark Scandre�e’s invita�on to shape our lives around service and connec�on rather than accomplishments or making money or success.

We were invited, by Lauren Winner, to read our Bible out in unusual places or public spaces to see how they sounded there–with the idea that holy scriptures are the lenses (think eye glasses) through which we view the world. And we’ll have a “richer understanding of the Bible not by thinking abstractly about it, but by actually living with it, reading it, praying it.”

Hebrews 10:23-35 warned us not to “neglect to meet together” like some 1st century Christians, who sometimes decided not to go to church. Instead, the epistle writer coaxes them to “stir one another up to love and good works.”

As you might imagine, it was an interes�ng class, made richer by the diversity of par�cipants: the youngest was 24, the oldest 91ish, there were first-�me students and regular Lent study goers. Some were only able to a�end 2 sessions and some had perfect a�endance. We boasted LGBT and straight, married individuals,1 couple a�ending together, singles, a couple of vegetarians and one who is lactose-intolerant. There were 4 people who alternated between Sunday and Wednesday sessions depending on their schedule and one who a�ended twice a week. We couldn’t have done it without the six folks who fed us with soup and baked goods and the generous spirit of those who brought extra goodies to enjoy each week! THANKS!

In addi�on, we learned about the wide variety of church se�ngs out there nowadays and the ways emerging church leaders are working out what’s next for the church. Several of the speakers are at new church plants, other congrega�ons have left their buildings and now rent space. Several worshiped

in a space that isn’t a sanctuary and at least one has no music director and only part-�me clergy. There are no blueprints for all churches to adopt, no easy answers or strategic plans to follow, only a willingness to explore how we might adapt the way we offer good news to a changing culture.

In the end, we found encouragement to not just think about our faith but to live it out and to reflect on the ways that our current church architecture and worship encourages us to do that. Several spiritual prac�ces were meant to help: keeping silence, reading the Bible out in the world, and using a journal to doodle ourselves into the presence of God.

May the great 50 days of Easter be blessed with some of these prac�ces and the inspira�on of Lenten wisdom.

Shalom, Pastor Kelly P.S. You too can experience the power of small group study through the Covenant Bible study (see below)

People want to know what the stories of the Bible have to do with their life, they want to know what it would mean to deepen their commitment to follow Christ. The new Covenant Bible Study understands when we study together, we can best discover the Bible's transforma�ve power.

Covenant is flexible, modular (3 modules of 8 sessions), and designed to help people discover the Bible as a friend for life. Classes forming for Fall 2014.

Covenant Bible Study also covers the whole Bible, and it is organized to trace the key pa�ern, covenant, through the Old and New Testaments. Each module shows the Old Testament in conversa�on with the New Testament.

Covenant par�cipant guides are available for purchase inside as an interac�ve app for Apple or Android devices

Those who have completed Disciple Bible Study can a�ests to the power that comes from the disciplined reading and commi�ed study of scripture. Don’t miss out on this once in a life-�me opportunity to discover deeper meaning for your living.

Classes are forming this Fall; plans are underway NOW to decide, when, where, and how o�en the classes meet..

So register your interest in par�cipa�ng today with Rick Hutchison, Evie Soucie, Tom McGowan, Steve Hilbun, Pastor Kelly or call the office.

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SIERRA LEONE WATER AND DE-VELOPMENT MINISTRY

Children in Sierre Leone pump safe water using a newly-constructed well, made

possible by gen-erous dona-�ons from United Method-ists and friends. Clean,

safe water is now available to more than 2,000 communi-ty members in Sierra Leone.

Recent dona�ons contributed to the comple�on of a well in Old Wharf, Freetown. It is also suppor�ng latrine con-struc�on at Rochainkamandao Primary School, where students now have the appropriate sanitary facili�es.

“We also have a clinic in Yonibana,” said Lee Weaver, di-rector of the project. “We provided a motor bike for the nurse so he could visit communi�es and teach proper hygiene and sanita�on.”

“Over the past 20 years,” con�nued Weaver, “with the support of God’s people . . . we have built at least eight schools, three churches, with another one star�ng soon, several school and community latrines and about 150 wells. But, water is s�ll our primary ministry.”

Your dona�ons through our Mission Share giving help breathe life into communi�es that have no access to safe water sources.

B������ M������, One Household at a Time

S ince 2008, the Imagine No Malaria program, imple-mented by the United Methodist Commi�ee on Re-

lief (UMCOR), has worked to fight malaria and prevent malarial deaths. Their efforts have organized and trained some 11,600 local people in villages and communi�es to reach and teach neighbors about this fatal—and fully preventable—disease through educa�on, net distribu-�ons, providing health care and other means. The stakes are high: Hundreds of thousands of adults and children die from malaria each year. Ninety percent of malaria-related deaths occur on the African con�nent. Children younger than age 5 and pregnant women are the most suscep�ble. However, through teaching fami-lies about the causes of malaria and supplying them with free bed nets, United Methodists are turning the �de and saving lives.

excerpt from ar�cle in March/April Interpreter

To assist in continuing this project, you can donate in memory or in honor of your mother or any loved one.

$10 will buy one bed net.

Dona�on forms will be available in the church bulle�ns or call the office to donate. This year matching funds are available through the New England Conference Office. Let’s try to raise $500 this Mother’s Day. With matching funds, our contribu�ons would be 100 bed nets. Submi�ed by Ruth Owen

It is with deep sorrow that we inform you of the passing of our missionary, Tshala

Mwengo on Aril 9, 2014 in a bus accident. Tshala be-gan service as a missionary at the Mujila Falls Agricul-ture Center in 2006. He is survived by his wife, Be�y, children, Lans and Shone.

UPCOMING IN WORSHIP May 25 we’re planning bap�sms at the morning service. If your interested in being bap�zed or having a child bap-�zed on that day, let the office know.

June 22—Educa�on Sunday and Carrington Scholarship Awards.

SAFE SANCTUARIES

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Address Service Requested

East Longmeadow United Methodist Church 215 Somers Road, STE 2

East Longmeadow, MA 01028-2998 413-525-7416 • a reconciling congrega�on

www.elumc.org

THE SUNDAY EXPERIENCE

8:30 a.m. – Bible Study for Jr./Sr. High & Adults 10:00 a.m. – Worship & Church School (pre-schoolers through Grade 5) Professional child care is provided for “Cribs & Creepers”/“Toddlers & Twos.” 11:15 a.m. – Fellowship Time

The Methodist Messenger is a journal of the ministry of The East Longmeadow United Methodist Church. Open hearts. Open minds. Open doors.

June 15, 2014

In honor or memory of our fathers and other important men in our lives this coming Fathers' Day, our church will be raising funds to support the United Methodist Committee on Relief in their campaign to raise funds for relief supplies for future emergency needs. Your donation will allow UMCOR to purchase the material resources needed in bulk. Please fill out this form and return it with your donation of $10 to the church office by June 8. Checks should be made payable to ELUMC with UMCOR written on the memo line. This gift to UMCOR is given by: ________________________________________________________________________ In Honor of ________________________________________________________ In Memory of ______________________________________________________

For the on-line church calendar follow this link:

http://57650311.view-events.com/calendar/calendar.aspx?ci=L6K5K5G1K5H2N8N8H2

VOLUNTEERS & PARTICIPANTS

NEEDED

Vacation Bible School

July 7-11

6:00-8:00 PM

Join the volunteer team as we explore God’s

welcoming love with children.

For more information, or to find out how you can help, contact :

Laura Kinney at meanielk21@yahoo.com or

Amanda Grimaldi at amandalee1113@comcast.net