Service Preview for January 16th

Morning Service Schedule

"The next day [John the Baptist] saw Jesus coming toward him and declared, "Here is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!" - John 1:29

***

"[F]or in every way you have been enriched in him, in speech and knowledge of every kind--just as the testimony of Christ has been strengthened among you--so that you are not lacking in any spiritual gift as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ." - 1 Corinthians 1:5-7

Our lessons for this Sunday all have something to tell us about witnessing. Our lessons have a message for us about our role in telling others about what our relationship with Jesus has done for us. In our reading from John, we will learn more John the Baptist, and his role as the first witness to Jesus Christ. In our reading from First Corinthians, we will hear an introduction to Paul's letter in which we explains how much we have been given as followers of Christ. The gifts needed to witness and be the church have already been given to us. The readings for this Sunday are:

• Isaiah 49:1-7
• 1 Corinthians 1:1-9
• John 1:29-42

During our morning worship services, we will also be taking the opportunity to recognize our organists and music directors that play a crucial role in the music ministries of our church. We will pray for them and bless them in their ministries this year.

January 16th is also one of six special offerings during the year through the United Methodist Church. This Sunday is Human Relations Day. From the United Methodist Church website:

Human Relations Day is one of the opportunities for United Methodist Churches to celebrate our connectional work. This day of social action and raising awareness aims to heal social ills at the national level. It supports Community Developers, United Methodist Voluntary Service (UMVS), and theYouth Offender Rehabilitation Program. The first two programs are administered through the General Board of Global Ministries.

In The United Methodist Church calendar, Human Relations Day happens the Sunday immediately following the observance of Martin Luther King, Jr.'s birthday. The juxtaposition of these two very special days is not a coincidence. The United Methodist Book of Discipline describes the purpose of Human Relations Day as a call to "the Church to recognize the right of all God's children in realizing their potential as human beings in relationship with each other."

There will be envelopes available in your bulletin if you would like to make a donation.

Evening Service

Our evening service at Oakfield UMC will be starting at 6:00PM. The focus of our service will be on the question: Why do bad things happen to good people? This is the first is series of services that will address difficult questions for Christians. Services after this one will revolve around questions submitted by members of the congregation As always, Communion will be taken at these evening services. We hope to see you there!

January 9 - Baptism of the Lord Sunday

"But Jesus answered him, 'Let it be so for now. For in this way we shall do all that God requires.' So John agreed." - Matthew 3:15 (Good News)

You can certainly understand John the Baptist's concern when Jesus approached him to be baptized. Certainly it was Jesus that should be doing the baptizing! It makes you wonder why Jesus needed to be baptized at all. Our baptism has many meanings: (1) It means we become part of the family of God, (2) It means we begin a new Christian life, (3) It offers a time of repentance and forgiveness, (4) It sets us apart a new person in Christ. Even if we don't remember our baptism, it marked a beginning in our journey of faith. Our baptism is important.

Jesus' baptism was even more important. Jesus baptism was the beginning of his ministry. His baptism began his journey to teach us all that was required to be in relationship with God. Come, and join us in worship as music, scripture and prayer all focus on the importance of baptism. During our morning worship services, we will renew our baptismal vows, as well as take Holy Communion together.

The scripture readings for this Sunday are:

• Isaiah 42:1-9
• Acts 10:34-43
• Matthew 3:13-17

Evening Worship

For those looking to attend this Sunday's worship service at our new starting time of 6:00PM, you will have to wait one more week. The NFL schedulers decided to put the Green Bay Packers playoff game right during our worship service. I have a feeling attendance will be low, and even your pastor is excited for Packers post-season play. Services will resume on the 16th...unless the schedulers decide to create a conflict again ;-)...

Christmas Eve Worship - First Sunday after Christmas Worship

I realize that I have been sending E-mails over the last few weeks about our Christmas Eve services. I promise that this will be the last time. :-) I am just excited that there will be three unique opportunities to celebrate Christmas. I hope that you might be able to make one, or more, of these opportunities! Merry Christmas!!

Christmas Eve (December 24th) Worship Schedule

• 6:00PM at Oakfield UMC - Join us for worship as we sing traditional Christmas hymns, as we hear the Christmas story, as we reflect on the meaning of Jesus' birth and as we renew ourselves for 2011. Our worship service will also include a service of Holy Communion with a liturgy that is unique to our celebration of Christmas. We will also be lighting candles and singing Silent Night together .
• 7:30PM at Tabor UMC - Our worship services will include the singing of Christmas hymns and a hearing of the Christmas story. It will also be exciting to watch and listen to the children of Tabor UMC perform The Surprising Christmas Pageant. Watch a large cast and various soloist retell the story of Jesus' birth. There is also an opportunity to watch the preschooler's Candy Cane Message.
• 10:00PM at Oakfield UMC - The sanctuary will be lit only by candlelight for this subdued service of lessons and carols. Hear the story of the birth of Christ beginning from Genesis. There will be nine readings of the Bible that weave the story of Jesus together, and we will sing and listen to our favorite Christmas hymns in between. The service will end with a congregational singing of Silent Night.

First Sunday after Christmas (December 26th) Worship Schedule
"I will recount the gracious deeds of the Lord, the praiseworthy acts of the Lord, because of all that the Lord has done for us, and the great favor of the house of Israel that he has shown them according to his mercy, according to the abundance of his steadfast love." - Isaiah 63:7

With the original performance date snowed out on December 12th, this Sunday the Tabor Choir will be performing their yearly Christmas Choir Concert at both morning worship services. Let us continue our celebration of the Christmas season!

The scripture readings for this Sunday are:

• Isaiah 63:7-9
• Psalm 148
• Hebrews 2:10-18
• Matthew 2:13-23
  

*** Evening worship services at Oakfield will resume on January 9. Beginning on this date, they will begin at 6:00PM. ***

Service Schedule for December 19th

Barring another winter blizzard this coming weekend, I am hopeful that we might be able to gather together in worship this Sunday. I hope and pray that everyone was able to stay safe during the snow storm. I also hope word got around that our worship services and programs for that day were cancelled. The Tabor Choir Christmas Program will be rescheduled for worship on December 26th.

Morning Worship Services

For the Fourth Sunday of Advent, we will be lighting the candle of Christ, the Prince of Peace. Our hymns, prayers and Bible reading will also point to the peace that we find in Jesus Christ...Emmanuel ("God is with us"). Our Gospel lesson this morning recounts the story of Jesus' birth, with a focus on Joseph. Joseph is faced with difficult decisions. He has to think about adherence to the Law, yet also decide what to do when God tells him to do something that would seem to violate the Law. Jesus in his ministry often told folks that even though they remember laws and traditions being one way, Jesus was telling them that it would be different. Jesus tells us to love God and love one another. Jesus says he is the fulfillment of the Law. What does than mean for us today? How does this relate to Jesus and the Prince of Peace?

At our Oakfield service, the children of the Sunday School program will be performing "Little Drummer Boy."

Scripture Readings for Sunday:

• Isaiah 7:10-16
• Romans 1:1-7
• Matthew 1:18-25

Evening Worship Services

In our final evening service of 2010, we will be spending time looking at Jesus, the Prince of Peace. We, too, will focus on the reading from Matthew 1:18-25. We will also share Communion together.

Christmas Eve Service Review

As we anticipate the celebration of the birth of Jesus, I wanted to remind everyone of our service schedule for Christmas Eve:

• 6:00PM @ Oakfield UMC: Worship Service with Communion
• 7:30PM @ Tabor UMC: Worship Service with the Children's Christmas Pagaent
• 10:00PM @ Oakfield UMC: A Christmas Eve Service of Lessons and Carols - Members of both congregations are encouraged to attend this service. The entire service will be done by candle light, and we will listen to the story of Jesus while singing our favorite Christmas carols. I hope you can join us for this new venture. Please spread the word in the community!

December 12th - Third Sunday in Advent

"And the ransomed of the Lord shall return, and come to Zion with singing; everlasting joy shall be on their heads; they shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away." - Isaiah 35:10

Morning Worship Services

Our theme for Sunday's worship service will be joy. At both Tabor and Oakfield, the Tabor Vocal Choir will be performing their Christmas Program during the worship service. This performance will include two choir hymns, vocal solos, congregational singing and narration between the various numbers. Outside of the program, we will also sing several familiar Christmas and Advent hymns. It is my hope that during our worship service this morning we can remember the joy that we have in and with Jesus Christ.

Evening Worship Service

Our Sunday evening worship service at Oakfield at 7:00PM we will also focus on the joy that we have in Jesus Christ. We will have our regular scripture study and our time of Holy Communion. We will also take some time during the service to recognize Worldwide Candle Lighting, a service of remembrance through the organization Compassionate friends. We will participate in the lighting of candles during our service to recognize children who have died in the last year. This service is open to anyone from either church community.

Christmas Eve Service Reminder

As we anticipate the celebration of the birth of Jesus, I wanted to remind everyone of our service schedule for Christmas Eve:

• 6:00PM @ Oakfield UMC: Worship Service with Communion
• 7:30PM @ Tabor UMC: Worship Service with the Children's Christmas Pagaent
• 10:00PM @ Oakfield UMC: A Christmas Eve Service of Lessons and Carols - Members of both congregations are encouraged to attend this service. The entire service will be done by candle light, and we will listen to the story of Jesus while singing our favorite Christmas carols. I hope you can join us for this new venture. Please spread the word in the community!

*** Note to readers! After this week, the frequency of posts on this blog will greatly decrease. In the past, I have made an attempt to post 3-4 times a week. I will probably only be posting the service previews on here each Thursday with a few posts here and there. I will be putting more focus on keeping our website up to date. ***

December 5th - Second Sunday in Advent

"A voice cries out: 'In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.'" - Isaiah 40:3

"John the baptizer appeared in the wilderness, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins."- Mark 1:4

This Sunday is the second Sunday of Advent. This is the Sunday that we think about "Christ, our Way" or "Christ, the Way." Our reading from Mark tells the story of John the Baptist, whose story is also shared in our other three Gospels. John was preparing people for the coming of Christ. How was he preparing them?

In our reading from Romans for this Sunday, Paul sends a message about how Christ's message and Christ's ministry are a gift for everyone. He asks the people to live in harmony with one another. What does that mean for us today as we think about spreading "the way" to others?

I will be exploring these questions during our morning services at Oakfield and Tabor. I hope that you might be able to join us as we continue our spiritual preparations for Christmas. We will also be celebrating Holy Communion during our worship services as well.

Our scripture readings for this Sunday, if you would like to look them over in advance of our service, are:

• Isaiah 11:1-10
• Romans 15:4-13
• Matthew 3:1-12

Evening Worship Service

At 7:00PM this Sunday, we will have our first of three December worship services in preparation for Christmas. Our December 5th service will focus on Christ, our Hope. We will look at Isaiah 2:1-5 and Romans 13:11-14. We will also share Communion with one another.

Growth Revisited

Back on October 13, I made mention that just because a church has more members, that does not necessarily mean that it is a vital church. This article provides some perspective on that idea.

As a pastor, I think there is a pressure from administrators above us, and the pastors around us, that signs that we have a vital church are vested in the numbers. Bigger is better. More members means the church is better.

The time that I have spent with the Oakfield Visioning Team and the time that we have spent reading Vital Signs has definitely helped me realize that a bigger (membership) church does not always mean a better church.

I do appreciate when we bring in new members to our churches. But, it is also important that those new members, along with our current members, are active in the church and the community. Who wants a bunch of members that aren't doing anything? A vital church can be 20 members, if those twenty members are active in ministry.

I encourage you to read the article. I think you will find it interesting and it may change your viewpoint on congregational "growth".

When to Blame God?

The Buffalo Bills were tied with the Pittsburgh Steelers in their Sunday NFL game and it went to overtime. Steve Johnson, a Buffalo Bills wide receiver, had the opportunity to catch a winning touchdown pass in overtime. He did not make the catch. The Bills ended up losing the game.

After the game, he posted a "tweet" in which he said the following:

"I PRAISE YOU 24/7!!!!!! AND THIS HOW YOU DO ME!!!!! YOU EXPECT ME TO LEARN FROM THIS??? HOW???!!! ILL NEVER FORGET THIS!! EVER!!! THX THO..."

It would appear that Johnson is blaming God for his missing the catch. He says that he will never get over this.

I do feel for this young man. Certainly this would have been a big victory for his team, playing a team that was statistically so much better. I think almost everyone imagines an opportunity when they get to be the hero...especially in a sporting event! To have that opportunity and not come through would be devastating!

I figure in a few days, as the tension and frustration with this game begins to subside, he'll realize there will be other opportunities. I also hope that he soon realizes that God does not control every play of a football game. I am glad that Johnson praises God often. I do think he has a chance to learn something from this. His life is not all about football. It is about being a good human being in a fractured world.

God knows his true heart and I don't think he blames God. He is just angry and frustrated. I hope he knows he has a God who will always love him and support him. Things may just not always go the way we want them to go.

November 28 - First Sunday of Advent

‎"He shall judge between nations, and shall arbitrate for many peoples; they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more." - Isaiah 2:4

This Sunday is the first Sunday of Advent! In less than four weeks from this Sunday, it will be Christmas!!

Over the next four Sunday, we celebrate the Sundays of Advent. It is during this Advent season that we prepare for the celebration, and commemoration, of Christ's birth. We remember that importance of the Jewish people waiting for a savior, a savior that we now know as Jesus Christ. We prepare ourselves for a time in the future, a new creation, in which Christ will again live among the people.

It is a time to be excited about our past, our present and our future in Christ. This week, our focus will be on hope. Our scripture readings provide insight into the hope that we have in Christ. Our hymns, readings, reflections and prayers will all focus on hope.

The scripture readings for this Sunday are:

• Isaiah 2:1-5
• Romans 13:11-14
• Matthew 24:36-44

I hope that you will be able to make it to worship this Sunday!

Thanksgiving Eve Service

For those in the area that might be interested in attending worship for Thanksgiving, we will be having a combined (Oakfield & Tabor) Thanksgiving Eve service:

Thanksgiving Eve Worship Service

November 24, 2010

7:30PM

Oakfield United Methodist Church

(220 South Main St.; Oakfield, WI 53065)

Included in the service:

1. An opportunity to give God prayers of thanksgiving for everything that he has given us.
2. An opportunity to donate food items to the Oakfield Food Pantry.
3. An opportunity to donate money to the Good Samaritan Fund, supported by both the Oakfield and Tabor churches, that helps those who are struggling in our communities.
4. We will be sharing Holy Communion as a part of this service. You need not be a member of Oakfield UMC or the United Methodist Church to participate in Communion.

I hope you might be able to make it out for this service!

A Return from Vacation

I now return from my one week of vacation. Christa and I did not venture anywhere exciting, so I took last week to rest and relax. I had the chance to play some video games, watch movies and do some things that I have not been able to go during a regular work week.

It was a good time, but I ready to get back to work. One, I have a lot of work that needs to be done, especially with Advent beginning on Sunday! I also have a Thanksgiving Service to put the finishing touches on for Wednesday. Two, it just feels good to be back in my regular work routine. I was starting to get lazy!

You can now look forward to my regular posting schedule for the time being. It's good to be back!

Service Preview for November 14th and 21st

Greetings Brothers and Sisters of the Oakfield/Tabor Church Communities,

November 14, 2010 Morning Worship

Pastor Jack Stubbs from Salem UMC will be preaching at Oakfield and Tabor as part of a Clergy Exchange happening between the United Methodist Churches of Circuit 24, which incorporates the churches in the Fond du Lac area. I will be preaching at Trinity UMC in Lomira.

Jack will be preaching on a reading from 2 Thessalonians 3:6-13 and his sermon is, "Does God Love Deadbeats?" I hope you will be able to make it for this event.

November 21, 2010 Morning Worship
I will be on vacation next week and I have invited a guest pastor to preach on the 21st. Rev. Tom White will be leading worship in Oakfield and Tabor. Tom White is a member of Community UMC in North Fond du Lac and is a retired elder. It is Christ the King Sunday and the title of his sermon for that Sunday is, "Having Christ As Our King." The scripture readings are:

• Jeremiah 23:1-6
• Colossians 1:11-20
• Luke 23:33-43

I look forward to re-joining you in worship on November 28 when we begin the Season of Advent!

Oakfield Evening Worship

Over the next two weeks, we will continue to explore the role of prayer in our lives as we address the following questions:

• November 14 - How do we pray?
• November 21 - For what or for whom do we pray?

I hope you will be able to join us at 7:00PM on Sunday evenings at Oakfield UMC for contemporary worship and scripture study.

Vacation Next Week

Beginning after the November 14th evening worship and continuing until the November 21st evening worship service, I will be on vacation!

With an additional worship service, Confirmation, Bible Study and other initiatives, this has been quite a busy fall. I am looking forward to some time to recharge as we soon begin the season of Advent and prepare for Christmas.

There is no exciting destination in my future for next week. I suppose you can call this a "staycation." I have two main goals for this week off:

1. I hope, with Christa, to go through our closets and do some spring cleaning in the fall. We also need to put together our basement now that we have carpet down there. I am setting aside three days to do some house cleaning. Cleaning relaxes me...it will be a nice break.
2. I plan on taking two days and devoting them completely to playing video games. I haven't had much time at all to play...and I look forward to doing some catch-up playing :-).

A Devotional Book Option

This last Monday I finished the book Daily Devotionals Inspired by Ninety Minutes in Heaven. I received this book as a Christmas gift. It, appropriately, had 90 devotionals which I broke up into two each week.

Each day began with one Bible verse, a brief devotional focused on the Bible reading, followed by a prayer.

It would certainly help to have read Piper's book before reading this devotional book, but it is not required. Many of his devotionals reflect on conversations that he has had with people at conferences, worship services and book signings.

Like the book, they all reflect on issues of heaven, the afterlife and what happens when we die. Given that this is often a hard topic for people to talk about, I felt as though this book continues the opportunity for us to reflect on those issues.

It is not that expensive and it is worth checking out. Contact me if have additional questions!

A Wonderful Birthday/Christmas Gift

I am definitely at a point in my life where I don't feel the need for a lot of "toys" for my birthday. The last thing I need is more stuff. If anything, I am trying to cut things down to some degree.

When I thought about some kind of birthday gift, I had mentioned to my parents that it would be nice to have a later edition of The New Interpreter's Bible. I received an edition as a gift when I was just beginning ministry, but it was a 1951 edition. It was helpful, but it was very outdated. I still use it, but I definitely would like to have something more modern to use as well.

As you can see, the complete set in twelve volumes, plus an index. It includes two translations of the Bible, along with a commentary and reflection. That is a lot of reading! But, it is so helpful for Bible study and sermon preparation. I was taken aback when my parents said that they would be willing to get this gift for me. I am very thankful for this gift, and was comfortable with this being a birthday/Christmas gift.

As I look to my future ministry, these books will be so helpful to me in my ministry. Pastors have a tendency to collect books for the most part. As I grow in my knowledge of the faith, these books will be very helpful. I am excited to begin putting them to work this week!

Service Schedule for November 7th

Morning Worship Service

"Now he is God not of the dead, but of the living; for to him all of them are alive." - Luke 20:38

At our worship services on Sunday morning, we will be addressing issues related life after death. We will be looking at a time in which we will experience a resurrection. These are difficult concepts to wrestle with, but in our reading from Luke we have the confidence that God will be with us always. We have confidence that in our own resurrection, we will live in a perfect relationship with God and with one another. Come learn more!

It is also All Saints Sunday. We will take time during worship to recognize those in our churches and our communities that have died since our last All Saints Sunday, in addition to those that we continue to remember that are no longer a part of our lives. If you have someone to recognize that is not found in the bulletin for the service, you are encouraged to lift up that name during our time of recognition.

The scripture readings for this Sunday morning are:

• Haggai 1:15b-2:9
• 2 Thessalonians 2:1-5, 13-17
• Luke 20:27-38

Evening Worship Service

"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest." - Matthew 11:28

At 7:00PM at Oakfield United Methodist Church, we will join together in worship for the first of four services that focus on questions about Prayer. This Sunday, we will address the question: Why do we pray? We hope you can make it for a contemporary service of singing, prayer, discussion and Communion.

Post-Election Reflection

In my younger days, I might have stayed up later to see all of the results of yesterday's mid-term elections. Christa and I voted after breakfast, and as the day went by I periodically checked the exit poll results and also saw the results up until we went to bed.

Checking the news and some social media sites, I was taken aback by the over-the-top reactions that people have to the results of this election. Allow me to show just a few of the things that I read on people's Facebook pages:

• "Run for your lives! The idiots have taken back power! So begins a hundred years of darkness!"
• "Doomsday in Wisconsin."
• "Canada's looking better by the minute."
• 'Why are Americans so short-sighted?"

Hmm...should we really be shocked by the results of last night's election? When Bill Clinton was in office, the legislature eventually became majority Republican. When George W. Bush was in office, the legislature became majority Democrat. With Barack Obama as president, the legislature has now become more Republican.

This seems pretty normal to see. To me, it is the natural cycle of politics. As with all of these changes, I wait with curiosity to see if the changes made in this election will provide what voters were looking for. As in all elections, there are winners and losers. There are people that are excited, and people that are frustrated. But, let's not jump quickly to doom and gloom. Let us also not overstep, and overstate, the gains that have been made. What this does present is a time in which a president's agenda and ideas will face a greater opposition. Again, this is not unique. Many presidents have faced this as some voters are not happy with what the president is doing.

Instead of declaring the country dead and tossing out names at one another, let us pray for those who return to, or begin new, elected positions in our local, state and federal government. Let us pray that they will work together to form a better future for each one of us. Placing blame, getting angry, and name calling will not help. Playing an active, positive, participatory role in our government will.

A Transformative Experience

I had a meeting today with a member of my congregation. This person wanted to meet with me to share a transformational experience in this person's life. While attending a program that this person was not all that excited to attend, this person, while in prayer, felt the presence of Christ. It struck straight to this person's heart. As a result of this experience, this person has found and felt a true relationships with God and is looking to learn more about, and be more involved with the church.

This person is open to sharing the experience with others and is looking to write it down to remember it fully. I am hopeful that others, upon hearing this experience might be willing to share their experiences. Perhaps others might find a voice. Perhaps others can anticipate and be prepared for an experience like this in their life.

I was honored to hear this experience and it truly made my day!

An Exciting Weekend!

I wanted to take some time to share some highlights from my weekend:

• On Saturday evening, my little brother (through BBBS) Isaac, and I went to the Milwaukee Bucks home opener at the Bradley Center in Milwaukee. It was a great game that ended in a Buck's victory. Now, the game tipped off at 7:30PM, which ended with a trip to Oshkosh to drop off Isaac. I got home at around 12:30AM. It was a rough wake-up at 6:30AM!
• Morning worship services went well at both churches. When you include the folks that came to our evening worship service in Oakfield, we ended up having 48 folks in worship. That is three Sundays in a row in which we have had over 40 people in worship. I am hopeful that this is a trend!
• On Sunday afternoon, Christa handed out candy to the kids of Oakfield and the surrounding community for Halloween. I mostly watched football, but it was also nice to see the kids (and some parents) all decked out for Halloween. Football and candy...you can't ask for a better Sunday! :-D

I hope everyone had a fun and enjoyable weekend!

Service Schedule for October 31st - "Reformation Sunday"

Sunday Morning Worship

“Look at the proud! Their spirit is not right with them, but the righteous live by their faith.”

- Habakkuk 2:4

How familiar are you with the Book of Habakkuk? I will confess that I was not too familiar with this prophet either. But, there is an important lesson that we can gain from his conversation with God. That's right! Habakkuk asks God a question, several questions in fact. He asks the same questions that we do: Why does evil prosper? Why doesn't God listen to me? Why is justice not done?

God has an answer for us; he has answer for these difficult questions. I hope you will be able to join us in our morning worship services as we explore whether or not we are ready to accept his answer!

The scripture lessons for this Sunday morning are:

• Habakkuk 1:1-4, 2:1-4
• 2 Thessalonians 1:1-4, 11-12
• Luke 19:1-10

Sunday Evening Worship at Oakfield

At 7:00PM, you are welcome to join us for an evening worship that addresses the question: How do we prepare for worship? Let us discuss together how we can prepare before a worship service, how we can get the most out of worship and how we can put into practice that which we experience in worship. Also join us for Holy Communion during the service.

Our November evening worship services will look at four different questions relating to prayer:

• Why do we pray?
• How do we pray?
• For whom or for what do we pray?
• When do we pray?