The United Methodist Church of Merced

899 Yosemite Parkway Merced, California 95340-5137

change service requested

Sunday Services

10:AM worship 11:30AM Sunday School

THIS

MONTH...

December 2018 Volume 18, Issue 12

@UMCMerced

Sharing

the liberating

love of Jesus

to empower and

mobilize all

in service

for God.

Inside this issue:

social action

2

finance

3

poinsettias

4

December

calendar

7

88th Annual Holiday Bazaar

Join in the fun as the United Methodist

Women host their annual bazaar -

Saturday, December 8th from

9:AM to 1:30PM. This is a great op-

portunity to fellowship with the people

of our church. Get your fill of home-

made jams, jellies, candies, and baked

goods or handmade crafts. Find for-

gotten treasures or stop in for the

luncheon or a slice of pie. This is a

great way to start your holiday season!

Page 2 @UMCMerced

Want to Advertise Your Event?

Submit FULL ARTICLES to joel@umcmerced.org

by Friday, December 14

for inclusion in the January newsletter!

Annual

Charge Conference

Thursday, December 6

6:30PM.

Once a year, our church

officers, members, and

guests gather to vote on

official administrative items

central to every United

Methodist Church. (Only

o f f i c i a l m e m b e r s

@ U M C M e r c e d m a y

vote.) At the meeting, we

ratify the Board of Trus-

tees, elect leadership offic-

ers, approve the pastor's

compensation, and recom-

mend lay servants. This

meeting demonstrates our

shared connection to the

administrative ministries of

our United Methodist An-

nual Conference and the

global UMC. Everyone is

invited to attend.

I can now report the num-

bers that are contained in

the financial reports for

the first ten months of

2018 year-to-date.

All income categories

c o m b i n e d t o t a l e d

$230,415 and, individually,

most categories were less

than the budgeted

amounts. The combined

Pledged and Unpledged

categories were less than

the budget total by $4,913

or 2.5%. When com-

pared to the same

month one year ago, to-

tal income showed a de-

crease of $11,532 or

4.8%. Total expenses of

$256,215 were $645

above the amount budget-

ed for the first ten

months of 2018. Included

in total expenses paid was

$21,695 in conference

tithing, which represents

100% of the total due for

2018. Total Expenses

exceeded Total In-

come by $25,800.

Compared to the budg-

eted deficit amount of

$20,754, this deficit was

worse by $5,045 or

24.3%.

Giving in the last five of

six months has been be-

low the budgeted

amounts. For the

month of Ocotber,

there was another sig-

nificant net deficit of

$3,202. For the last

three months (August,

September, and Octo-

ber) the church has

spent $21,338 more

than income received!

This is obviously not

sustainable! If you’re

on track with your giving

year-to-date, the church

thanks you! If this isn’t

the case, please make an

effort to increase your

giving as the church real-

ly needs your help. It is

clear that continuing our

prayers to find the finan-

cial resources to run this

church is more im-

portant than ever!

If you haven't returned

your 2019 Estimate of

Giving card, please do so

as soon as possible. Our

budget for 2019 is large-

ly based upon the

amount of pledged giving

we receive from every-

one.

Remember, you can al-

ways find the most cur-

rent financial report in

the Fireside Room. For

more detailed financial

data, please feel free to

contact me directly in

person, by phone,

o r b y e m a i l

(larry@umcmerced.org).

In Christ’s service,

Larry Hall Treasurer, Church Administrator

Page 3 @UMCMerced

Money

Matter$

Lee Greenawalt has graciously agreed to be the coor-dinator for the new pictorial directory being done in January. He will soon be asking you sign up for a date and time to have your picture taken. Everyone pho-tographed for the directory will receive a free 8x10 photo and a copy of the new directory. Watch the Sunday announcement page for more information.

2019 Church Directory

Food Pantry

Page 4 @UMCMerced

Beginning Sunday, December 16th, our Sanctuary will be beautifully decorated with poin-settias. The form below is provided for your convenience in donating one or more plants in memory of a loved one or in honor someone special in your life. Complete the form and mail it to the church or place it in the offering plate. Information may also be e-mailed to laura@umcmerced.org by 12:PM, December 12th. You are asked to bring your plant to the church before December 14th. Please put your name on the plant if you wish to take it home after worship on December 30th.

Christmas Poinsettias

Yes, I/we will be pleased to provide a poinsettia(s). Let the program show that the gift has been presented...

by (your name):

_________________________________ (please print legibly)

in honor of: in memory of:

_______________________________ _______________________________

Page 5

Our Good Neighbor Food Pantry offers food and clothing to our community in need. This is one of the many ways we @UMCMerced strive to help God’s people in our area. Your support is always appreciated!

Donations of non-perishable food and clean, gently used clothing can be left in the Sun-day School wing. Volunteers are wecome to help fill bags, organize clothing, and distrib-ute these items once a month.

Our next distribution will be December 20th with prep on December 19th. Work begins both days at 5:PM in the Wesley Hall. Volun-teers with a pick-up truck are also needed to help transport food from the Merced Food Bank to our facility. Monetary donations are helpful as well. For more information or to lend your services to this community mission, please contact Terry Kruest (209.631.1057).

your name:

UMW Christmas Coffee

and Installation of Officers Join the United Methodist Women in celebrating the season on Thursday, December 13th at 10:AM. Come to the music room to hear Joan Stribling offer one of her famous story-readings of Christmas. Refreshments provided by the executive board; everyone is invited!

Page 6

12/5 Mike Bentz

12/6 Zhuan Chen

Jacob Thompson

12/7 Jeremy Mumford

12/9 Kyle Tassey

12/10 Gwen Marshall

Evie Mumford

Stephanie Van Dyken

12/11 Lynn Cody

Kathryn Elgin

Rene Garza

Kong Mong Lee

Elizabeth Zimmerman

12/18 Virginia Taylor

12/23 Jeannine Conrad

12/24 Maryann McGlotten

12/26 Elwin Floyd

Barbara Reneria

12/29 Sharyl Elgin

Cordell Randall

12/30 Alyssia Landis

12/31 Debra D’Entremont

Project miracle gifts are being planned for all attending the Com-munity Christmas Dinner on Sunday, December 16th. Those wishing to help can pick up a zip-lock bag from the fireside room and fill it with age/gender appropri-ate items. Packs of items (pencils, socks, etc.) may also be donated for those who choose not to fill their own bags. Please return all bags by Monday, December 10. Contact Joyce Hall or Victoria Schlintz for more information.

Project Miracle

On your birthday,

our prayer intercessors thank God

for your birth and life and ask God to bless you

in a special way.

Community Christmas Dinner

Sunday, December 16th @ 6:PM free and open to everyone

ALL means ALL

@UMCMerced

Join us in the Wesley Hall as we celebrate Christmas dinner

with our community. Bring a friend and a dish to share,

or simply join us for food, fellowship, and God’s grace.

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Inside Story Headline

Inside Story Headline

Food Pantry News

visited and served 50 meals at the D Street Shelter on the first Wednesday in June. To sign up to provide this meal, see the sheet in the Fireside Room. We are continuing the clothing ministry in con-junction with the food pantry distribution. Clean, usable items may be left in the box in the Sunday School hallway.

Gently worn children’s clothing is in high de-mand. If you would like to be a part of this mission in Merced by picking up the food, packing food bags, or distributing bags and clothing, call Terry Kru-est at 631.1057 or the church office at 722.5777.

Our Good Neighbor Food Pantry distributed 142 bags of food in June. Twenty volunteers helped to pack and distribute the food bags and offer cloth-ing. Please remember to give either a check (made out to the church with a ‘food bank’ nota-tion) or bring a sack of non-perishable groceries from home. The Van Dyken Family

The first Sunday of the month is Food

Pantry Sunday.

Next food distribution is June 18th.

Page 7 Volume 18, Issue 12

Caption describing

picture or graphic.

Caption describing picture or graphic.

Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat

2 3

OFFICE

CLOSED

Bible Study xmas party

5:PM - FSR

4

Yoga

8:30AM - room 6

5

Pastoral Care

10:AM - FSR

6

Men’s Breakfast

7:AM - FSR

Charge

Conference

6;30PM - sanctuary

7

1/8

UMW

88th Annual

Holiday Bazaar

9:AM

9

Worship

10:AM

Sunday School

11:30AM

10

OFFICE

CLOSED

Bible Study

4:PM - FSR

11

Yoga

8:30AM - room 6

12

13

Men’s Breakfast

7:AM - FSR

14

Newsletter

Articles

DUE

15

Muslim Comm.

11:AM - rooms 5,7

16

Worship

10:AM

Sunday School

11:30AM

17

OFFICE

CLOSED

Bible Study

4:PM - FSR

18

Yoga

8:30AM - room 6

19

Food Pantry

(prep)

5:PM - WH

Chancel Choir

6:30PM - MR

20

Men’s Breakfast

7:AM - FSR

Food Pantry

5:PM - WH

21

22

23

Worship

10:AM

Sunday School

11:30AM

24

OFFICE

CLOSED

25

OFFICE

CLOSED

Merry

Christmas!

26

27

Men’s Breakfast

7:AM - FSR

28 29

30

Worship

10:AM

Sunday School

11:30AM

31

OFFICE

CLOSED

December 2018

Hylond

Ray Adams Joanne Sasaki Park Merced

Phoebe Benjamin Roy Harris Leone Sherwin Hal Hambley

Rev. Ella Luna-Garza - Pastor

Rev. Victoria Schlintz - Pastor in Residence

Minerva Carcaño - Bishop

California-Nevada Conference of the UMC

Debra Brady - District Superintendent

California-Nevada Conference of the UMC

We pray for those in hospital or care facilities

@UMCMerced

Prayers for the people

Don Boehm Wayne Smiley

Connie Jones Guy Near

Jeane Hetland Joseph Vang Eileen Hastings Mary Ellen Wood

Tom Keene Bobbi Robinson

Kitty Towe Jack Drouillard

Helen Prien Rita Sosa Liz McCabe

Les & Nellie Jacobson

Mary Ann McGlotten

Page 8 Volume 18, Issue 12

Office hours:

Tuesday - Thursday: 8:30AM - 4:30PM

Friday: 8:30AM - 12:PM

209.722.5777

laura@umcmerced.org

umcmerced.org

Transportation is available for Sunday wor-

ship. Contact Steve Landis (209.769.6626)

before noon on Friday.

We hold in our hearts and prayers...

...missionaries serving

throughout the world.

...United Methodists

standing for justice for

immigration reform.

...families who have lost

their homes to fires,

floods, tsunamis and

other natural disasters.

...all those affected by

violence and war at

home and abroad.

...our military personnel

and their families at

home.

...the homeless.

Courtyard Health Care Center (Davis)

Mary Maxfield

Pacifica Senior Living

Virginia Taylor Doris Hashimoto Anberry Transitional Care

Bill Warner