Open hear t s

APPLYING BIBLE PRINCIPLES

June 2012

Open minds Open door s

A wise person once observed, Half of any task is having the right tool, and the other half is knowing what to do with it. Although we dont often consider it as such, money is a tool which God uses in our lives as a means of spiritual growth. You see, money is not an end in and of itself. It is a means to an end. And in Gods hands, one of its primary ends is to instruct us and to help us grow spiritually. God especially wants us to avoid our natural tendency which is a bent toward selfishness, greed, and hoarding. Thats why the Lord Jesus said, Take care! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; for ones life does not consist in the abundance of possessions (Luke 12:15). Well, if an individuals life does not consist in having a lot of possessions, in what does it consist? Jesus provided an insightful answer to that question in Matthew 6:20-21, where He said, . . . store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust consumes and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. Now, according to Jesus teaching in the Parable of the Talents (Matthew 25), there is nothing wrong with saving. There is nothing wrong with investing or earning interest on investments. There is nothing wrong with being a wise steward by planning for the future. In fact, Jesus taught that those who do so are to be commended. But our primary emphasis as Gods children is to make our investments in the Bank of Heaven. When we do that, our investments are secure. They are not affected by inflation, by theft, by wear and tear, or anything of the kind. There is only one way to make deposits in this special bank: By giving to the Lords work. Although the money is used here, it is credited to your eternal account. Each time you give your tithes and offerings at Oakmont United Methodist Church, you are giving to the Lord by investing for eternity. You are storing up treasures in heaven that will glorify God forever.

The last Sunday in March a survey was distributed, completed, and returned during worship. That method netted a return rate of 58%. The answers were interesting and helpful as we move toward a goal of being the congregation God has called us to be. These were the questions: 1. One dream I have for the church is 2. The best time for worship is 3. The best type of worship is: a. Relaxed or contemporary b. Traditional c. Other Here is some of the information gathered: Worship: Traditional and contemporary/relaxed worship were marked the same number of times (27 each) Blended worship (6 times) Any style (4) There was also a suggestion that we have off site contemporary worship once per month working with one or more UM churches. Time of worship all over the map! 9 am -8; 11 am -9; 10 am- 4; 10 or 11 am 5; and a variety of other suggestions. Dreams I have grouped these by category; a. Growth in numbers, especially young adults, young families and children b. Spiritual vitality including discipleship and awareness of spiritual gifts c. Active Sunday morning Christian education and active participation in worship especially (but not limited to) by young adults, youth and children d. Outreach/mission to our members in need, in our community, to other countries and on a consistent basis. e. Harmony/unity/working together The many specific suggestions, will be listed and made available to be read. As I reviewed the papers and listed the comments, I realized that what we are doing now is maintaining and not moving forward in the direction expressed by the survey results. That brought to mind Same methods, same outcome. We need to make some changes if this church is to achieve the desires expressed. Change is never easy and, if we want this church to have growth, spiritual vitality, active education and worship participation, mission, as well as harmony, some changes are necessary. Join me as we work on what the changes will be! Pastor Linda

WE HONOR OUR GRADUATES The following graduates will be recognized during worship on Sunday, June 3. Mitchell Allen plans to attend CCAC as an undeclared major and is interested in chemistry. Leonor Jardine is an exchange student from Portugal living with Joy and Earl Barnes. She is graduating from Riverview High School and plans on going to college to study business when she returns to Portugal in June. Kaitlyn Minyon is the daughter of Ken & Ruth Minyon. She was a member of the Freeport Girls basketball team, softball and golf teams and varsity captain. She also participated in tap, jazz and hip hop dance for 16 years. Inside of school she has participated in Key Club, Quiz Bowl, Mathletes, Student Council, Childrens Hospital Committee, Marching Band, Symphonic Band and is a member of the National Honor Society. Kaitlyn will be attending Penn State, University Park to major in Electrical Engineering. Sean Provenza is graduating from Riverview Jr/Sr High School where he was the captain of the football team having the third most tackles in school history, track team captain, and also an honor student. Next year Sean will be studying at and playing football for Westminster College. Breanna Venanzio graduated from Duquesne University and is a Disney character at Disney World in Florida. Her new address is 8149 Chatham Manor Blvd. Unit #2204, Orlando, FL 32821. LIBRARY NEWS Our church library in the social hall has just been given some interesting donations. We now have a beautiful set of books called "The Interpreter's Dictionary of the Bible"--five volumes. We also have "Why? Trusting God When You Don't Understand" by Anne Graham Lotz. Another donation is Thomas Kinkade's "Come Let Us Adore Him. And, on the lighter side, we now have "Bible Quizzes and Puzzles" and "Bible Cross-Word Puzzles." Check them out! Barbara Marcus and Dottie Wolslayer, Church Librarians
2 3 4 10 11 12 13 14 16 17 19 20 21 22 23 29

June
Sarah Rose Kelley Michael Lloyd Ken Chambers Chuck Haught Tom Parkins Ray Rogers, Jr. Ed Smierciak A. J. DiMatteo Charlene Jacka Kara Klinsky Tom English Nancy Harley Betty Stopp Benjamin Barnes Kelly Brownfield Joy Barnes Barbara Davis Betty Mayhorn Raymond Myers Helen Crawford Paige Fichte Angela Ashbaugh Jane Foster Hannah Lowe Jennifer Jones

GENERAL FUND NUMBERS FOR APRIL Income $ 29,092.09 Expenses $19,329.48 Balance 4/30$2,456.11 The Mission Share has been paid thru April. WENDYS FUNDRAISER A dinner fundraiser is held at Wendys in Harmarville the third Monday of each month. 20% of all orders (drive-through also) between 5-8 pm on that night will be contributed to OUMCs General Fund. NEWSLETTER Please submit articles for the July/August newsletter by June 18. If you would like to receive your copy by e-mail, please send us a message at oakmontumc @verizon.net. COVERED DISH LUNCHEONS The next luncheon will be July 29 when the Outreach Team will host. Please bring table service and a dish to share. HOSPITALIZATIONS Genevieve Aubele and Nancy Standifur were recently hospitalized but have returned home. Nevin Woodside is a patient at St. Margarets. Please keep them in your prayers. MEMORIALS Mary Loadman has presented a gift to the Memorial Fund in memory of Blanch and Clifford A. Davidson and Mary and Woodbury Peabody.

We apologize if we inadvertently missed your birthday. Please call the church office and let us know about your very special day!

OAKMONT UNITED METHODIST WOMEN For a UMW moment I would like to focus on faith. As a woman of faith from time to time I like to reflect on why? I would like to share a passage from a book that I turn to often "Promises for Women from God's Word." When you call to me, I will answer you. I will be with you when you are in trouble. I will save you and honor you. I will satisfy you with a long life. I will show you how I will save you.

SUMMER MUSIC AT OUMC As I write this, the OUMC Chancel Choir has only a couple of Sundays left to sing during the traditional service. I am so grateful to all of these singers whose commitment to music and the church is evident every Sunday of the regular season. Thank you for all you do and for all you give to this congregation! The year has truly flown by, and now our Summer Music Program is about to begin. Tony Rollett will sub for me our first Sunday, playing something wonderful either on the organ or the piano. The following Sunday, Fathers Day, our dear, dear friend, George Jocko Rice, will sing; its always a special Sunday when Jockos here with us. Emma Lee Crannell follows Jocko, and after her is Matt Dooley, a fellow Bach Choir singer with Erich and me. After Matt come Erich Stein and Rich Bowman from our choir, singing a bass duet, and then, the flip side the next week, Becky Houston and Sandra MacPherson, also from our choir, singing a soprano duet. On July 22, Carolyn Slaugh will be our organist, and Katie Pennington will be organizing (and probably also dancing) a liturgical dance. The next weekend, Tony Rollett will be playing the organ, and he will again supply special music, either on the organ or the piano. The first weekend in August, Carolyn Slaugh will play and Jessica Jacka and Katie Pennington will perform a pair of flute and violin duets. The next weekend, our dear OPC friend, Sandy Wahnsiedler, will play violin with me, followed by a bass solo by Erich Stein. After that, we round out the summer with our dear old friend, David Alden, singing a tenor solo, and Sandra MacPherson, a soprano solo. We have a lot to look forward to, dont we? Im so very grateful to all these talented people who are helping with this program this summer. Thank you! Polly McQueen Organist and Choir Director

Psalm 91:15-16

That is faith and an answer. Aside from fundraising, caramel making and indoor yard sales, there at the basis is faith. We do those other things for mission but let us not forget the faith that brings us home. God bless and keep the faith! Yours in Christ, Julie Trenn

HOPE CIRCLE BOOK DISCUSSION GROUP Hope Circle will meet on Monday June 11th at 7:00 PM in the parlor. The group will discuss Shanghai Girls by Lisa See. In 1937 Shanghai, sisters Pearl and May are living a comfortable, carefree life in the Paris of Asia. Their life of leisure comes to an abrupt end when their father loses his fortune and sells his beautiful daughters as brides to men in America in order to pay his debts. A host of challenges and impossible choices face the sisters as they make their way through war-torn China to their new life across the ocean. The discovery of a terrible secret threatens their relationship, but they ultimately remain true to each other sisters and best friends. Please consider joining the group for an hour of discussion and fellowship. .

Its been a busy month since I last wrotetwo weeks at General Conference in Tampa and now back in Jerusalem, and possibly, by the time you read this, Ill be home in Oakmont. I wish I could say that Ill be settling down for the summer, but June is Annual Conference, July brings a week of Jurisdictional Conference in West Virginia and August, a speaking opportunity in Colorado. Let me give you a few highlights of General Conference. Our delegation from WPA was very fortunate to be placed in the front row of the cavernous plenary room. This proved to our benefit when trying to be recognized to speak during legislative debate. On some occasions, the presiding bishops had to resort to binoculars to see those seated at the back of the room. On Friday evening of the first week, we participated in a service of repentance for our role in the injustices suffered by Native Americans over the past 500 years. As I listened to the powerful speakers, I couldnt help hearing the cries of my Palestinian friends who have suffered and continue to suffer the same injustices of losing land and culture. I hoped that those listening would hear the parallel story and when it came to voting on justice for Palestinians would remember their words of repentance and act on them. But it did not happen. The next week, 2 issues that dealt with Palestine/Israel were debated. One opposing the building of Israeli settlements on stolen Palestinian land and the other focusing on divestment from 3 companies that benefit from the Israeli occupation. As it turned out, the Palestine/ Israeli issue was the focal social issue of the entire 2 weeks. I was able to speak to both petitions from the floor of plenary. The first petition passed, but the second, divestment, was defeated. This had been our chance to put our words of justice and peace into action, but we failed to act. It was a disappointing defeat, but there were also positive results. It was wonderful being part of an advocacy group that included Christians and Jews, Palestinians and people from around the world, working together for peace and justice. And the world watched. Even the New York Times reported on our work (http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/03/us/methodists-voteagainst-ending-investments-tied-to-israel.html?_r=3). And the Palestinian Christian community, through its representative Kairos organization, strongly commended the United Methodist Church for its defense of Palestinian rights and its steps towards peace and justice. It was a long two weeks, with much frustration at the unwillingness of the Church to make changes and put their words into action. So much talk about making disciples, but not enough courage to be disciples. Thats a challenge for us all. Blessings, Tina

TRUSTEE REPORT The Trustees are having the altar vases re-plated. We have contacted Earl Barnes to offer his suggestions regarding a design to replace the wooden platforms used in the sanctuary. Proposals/ bids for organ repair/tuning are being sought, and Chairman Rich Lear will take those quotes to council as a starting point for future discussions. An upgrade to the sound system will happen soon with better microphones, sound mixers and other components. The Trustees thank Bill Jacka for his expertise in this area and all his input and help. Adult volunteers pulled weeds around the church, transplanted flowers, planted new plants and spread mulch among the flower beds recently. Gary Pennington will address the door on the exterior of the church that needs re-stained. Likar Roofing has been contacted to address the water problems on the parsonage side of the church, and we hope an insurance claim can help pay for the repairs. A church work day with input from Mark/ Cindy is still being planned in the coming months. Action has been taken against our recent re-assessment attempting to correct what, we believe, is an incorrect square footage for the parsonage parcel. We have reviewed finances and will take action concerning interest rates on long term CDs. Trustees also discussed a possible fund drive for the endowment & Endowment Chairman Bob Whyte will be contacted for his thoughts. We set lock-up responsibilities for May/June. May - Gladys/Jim/Dave June Helen/Jim Refreshments: June 3rd-Rich, 10th-Helen, 17th-Jim, 24thGladys. We are researching a new door for the kitchen cupboard area behind the ice machine. Also, we will pursue older incandescent bulbs for the light fixtures since newer spiral shaped bulbs prohibit the fixtures from having the glass shades put back on properly. The shed doors will be repaired soon, and Helen Crawford will assist with the repair to the wheelchair. We will reimburse congregational members who become CPR-AED trained. The Trustees wish to thank all volunteers who assist with the repairs, upgrades, and operation of the church. We truly are blessed by so many caring members. Jim Anderson Trustee Secretary

CHILDREN AND YOUTH A QUIET MISSIONARY Working in the church office teaches me a lotespecially techy stuff which I usually say I am not good at. May 9 I was zipping through my morning routine bouncing between the computer and papers on my desk, when my computer screen went black! I thought, Ill just wiggle the mouse and all will be well. Nope, the screen was still black. My quiet missionary is Rich Bowman who is always there for me when it comes to computer stuffand other things too if necessary. He thought it was a virusmaybe a dead computer, but surely not! May 9 was a Wednesday. Rich and Janet had plane reservations for Saturday morning leaving for a weeks vacation. Rich investigated all evening Wednesday when he discovered I did need a new computer. He retrieved enough information and loaded it onto a 2nd computer so that I could keep on keepin on Thursday morning. Thursday night he installed a new computer and got it up and running for both Liz and me with all but one tiny problem yet to solve. One that he knew only involved a phone call Monday morning which I made, and it resolved the problem. When Rich returned from vacation, he met with Liz and me and helped answer questions we had with the new software. Only one thing from the old computer could not be usedthe calendar program. Hence, this months calendar looks different. Im very happy to report that even though Im not a techy person, I was just about able to figure out the new calendar program all by myself, but Im sure thankful God gave me a quiet missionary who has my back! Thanks Rich and God Bless. Karen SUPPORT AND PEOPLE NEEDED FOR UMCOR MISSION TRIP Trinity Tower UMC in Penn Hills has asked our church to partner with them to attend an UMCOR sponsored mission trip to the Inner Banks of North Carolina July 8-14, 2012. Help is needed to rebuild homes that were devastated by Hurricane Irene. The Outreach Committee is reaching out to the congregation seeking participants to attend the mission trip or to help with monetary sponsorship. The cost for 1 person is $250 which includes transportation, housing, and food for the week. Scholarships are available. Please consider supporting this lifechanging event in any way that you can.

Well, as I am writing this we are getting ready for the Relay for Life in a couple of days, the WV trip in a week, and the youth service in two weeks! Aaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhh. Crazy but fun!? Thanks to all who are helping with any of these events. We are done with regular meetings on Sunday nights, but will continue to meet during the summerhopefully once a week with destinations to be named. During the months of June and July the youth and post high will be working with the Summer Program in Verona. We are looking for other service projects as well so if you have a suggestion let me know. A note to youth and post high groups after the youth service I will be having the traditional celebratory picnic at my house. Both groups are invited to attend. Post High group please come out and support the youth by attending the service on June 3rd. Remember this was you guys last year! Save the Date: July 30th thru August 3rd 6:00-8:30 pm - Vacation Bible School is going to be AWESOME! The theme is INCREDIWORLD AMAZEMENT PARK Obviously an amusement park theme. We are going to be studying creation. I am very excited and hope to see you there! Its going to be a great summer!! Happy almost summer!

COMMUNITY DINNERS A dinner is held at Verona UMC the last Wednesday of the month from 4:30 to 6:30 pm. These meals are provided keeping those who are having a difficult time in our current economy in mind, although everyone is welcome. There is no charge, but donations are accepted. We are hosting the June 27 dinner. If you would like to help with this ministry, please call the church office.