July June 29, 2020 7th EDITION VOLUME 2020 Making New and Stronger Disciples of Jesus Christ for the Transformation of the World First United Methodist Church of Chula Vista 1200 East H Street Chula Vista, CA 91910 Phone: 619.656.2525 Website: www. fumccv.org Fax: 619.421.7190 Email: [email protected] ~NURSERY AND CHILD CARE ARE AVAILABLE DURING WORSHIP AND ON WEDNESDAY NIGHTS~ Sunday Worship 9am - Traditional (Virtual) 11am - e Crossing (Virtual) Wednesday Night Special 6:30pm Classes & LIFE Groups Chapel Prayer / Meditation 9am - 9pm M - 9am - Noon Saturday Preschool (619) 482-8228 8am-4pm M - F Sunday School 9am - Children 11am - Adults 11am - Children Church Office Hours M - 9am - 5pm Address Service Requested Dated Material July 5 - Matthew 14:22-36, Luke 5:1-11, 27-32, Luke 8:4-15 July 12- Psalm 66:8-20, Acts 17:22-31, John 14:15-21 July 19 - Psalm 98, Romans 6:1-11 July 26 - Matthew 7:24-27, Romans 6:12-23 July Scriptures Periodicals rate Postage Paid Rev. Dr. Brian T. Parcel, Lead Pastor Rev. John Farley, District Superintendent Bishop Grant J. Hagiya Dearest friends and family, As we begin to look forward to the day of celebration when we gather again to worship together, I want to thank you for your encouragement cards, prayers and for your continual generosity and faithfulness to the 2020 Pledge Campaign. As we slowly emerge from sheltering in place to a “new normal “our church and preschool, like many businesses, are having to restructure our budgets and operate between a 50-70 percent capacity. Finances in the short and long term are being affected. We are thankful that we have secured PPP loans and have EIDL loans available to us, the church and Preschool. This means though decisions will need to be made to finish out 2020 for the church and 2020-2021 for the Preschool. We ask for your continual support and prayers as the finance committee works hard to ensure we are being good stewards of all God has blessed us with. One thing that will not change is our dependency on Christ and the need for the Gospel in our hurting world. FUMC-CV is a vital part of rebuilding this community and reconciling people back to God and each other. Our community will continue to thrive as we all stay committed to each other’s well-being, physically and emotional. If you have any questions regarding any of the loans, your pledge or financial commitment please feel free to contact me directly at [email protected]. Sincerely, Ariana Horcasitas Director of Finance and Administration COVID-19 Financial Update The Church Was Never Closed By Rev. Dr. Brian T. Parcel It has become quite the religious liberties debate over the last two months about the government’s ability to limit ‘in person’ worship services due to the Covid19 pandemic. e argument is that the government cannot close the church. Let me just say, FUMCCV was never closed, and to talk about the ‘church’ as the gathering of people inside a building is just poor theology and wrong headed ecclesiology. True, we gather on a church campus but the “church” is the people’s expression of our faith, whether we are on campus or off. During this time we have worshipped every week (virtually), held more prayer meetings than ever before, hosted 87 kids for virtual VBS, fed the hungry, supported 15 LIFE Groups that keep meeting, provided pastoral and congregational care for our members, kept the administrative structures of the church in motion, and much more. e church never closed, the campus did, but the church did not, thanks be to God. It is now time to begin preparing for opening our campus once again. A task force, led by Dr. Jennifer Poast Wauchope, has been hard at work for the last month developing all of the protocol needed in order to open our campus according to County and Denominational authorities. Here is a brief snapshot. Much more info can be found on our website www.fumccv.org. Now -- e offices are open for staff July 1 – e offices will be open to the public (we encourage appointments be made, or at least call ahead and let us know you are coming) No earlier than July 15 – Two communion services on the quad each week (Wednesday noon and Sunday 2 pm). ese will be Word and Sacrament only, 15 minutes, all wearing masks, and all socially distanced. No earlier than August 1 – Sunday morning services live streamed with a limited in person audience. We will begin this phase with a very limited audience comprised of just those persons unable to view worship virtually from their home. (Honestly, our concern is taking care of these mostly aged folks who because of lack of technology have been completely cut off from the worship life of the congregation since mid-March). We recognize these worship services, due to the elimination of all in person singing, will be skewed heavily towards the virtual audience. Future plans dependent on Public Health regulations: - In person worship for groups less than 100 people (recognizing that when we go to these larger groups, those elderly/health compromised who lack virtual technology will no longer be able to worship in person because social distancing will not be enough to keep them safe). - On campus small group/committee meetings - On campus Children’s and Youth Ministry - Outside user groups accessing campus ere are many issues to consider and we encourage you to visit the website for more information and of course you are always welcome to call me in the church office. Blessings and thank you for being the church so well to one another during these difficult times,
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JulyJune 29, 2020
7th EDITIONVOLUME 2020
Making New and Stronger Disciples of Jesus Christ for the Transformation of the World
First United Methodist Church of Chula Vista1200 East H StreetChula Vista, CA 91910
Phone: 619.656.2525Website: www. fumccv.orgFax: 619.421.7190Email: [email protected]
~NURSERY AND CHILD CARE ARE AVAILABLE DURING WORSHIP AND ON WEDNESDAY NIGHTS~
Sunday Worship9am - Traditional (Virtual)
11am - The Crossing (Virtual)
Wednesday Night Special6:30pm Classes & LIFE Groups
Chapel Prayer / Meditation9am - 9pm M - Th
9am - Noon Saturday
Preschool(619) 482-82288am-4pm M - F
Sunday School9am - Children11am - Adults
11am - Children
Church Office HoursM - Th 9am - 5pm
Address Service RequestedDated Material
July 5 - Matthew 14:22-36, Luke 5:1-11, 27-32, Luke 8:4-15
July 12- Psalm 66:8-20, Acts 17:22-31, John 14:15-21
July 19 - Psalm 98, Romans 6:1-11
July 26 - Matthew 7:24-27, Romans 6:12-23
JulyScriptures
Periodicals ratePostage Paid
Rev. Dr. Brian T. Parcel, Lead PastorRev. John Farley, District SuperintendentBishop Grant J. Hagiya
Dearest friends and family,
As we begin to look forward to the day of celebration when we gather again to worship together, I want to thank you for your encouragement cards, prayers and for your continual generosity and faithfulness to the 2020 Pledge Campaign.
As we slowly emerge from sheltering in place to a “new normal “our church and preschool, like many businesses, are having to restructure our budgets and operate between a 50-70 percent capacity. Finances in the short and long term are being affected. We are thankful that we have secured PPP loans and have EIDL loans available to us, the church and Preschool. This means though decisions will need to be made to finish out 2020 for the church and 2020-2021 for the Preschool. We ask for your continual support and prayers as the finance committee works hard to ensure we are being good stewards of all God has blessed us with.
One thing that will not change is our dependency on Christ and the need for the Gospel in our hurting world. FUMC-CV is a vital part of rebuilding this community and reconciling people back to God and each other. Our community will continue to thrive as we all stay committed to each other’s well-being, physically and emotional. If you have any questions regarding any of the loans, your pledge or financial commitment please feel free to contact me directly at [email protected].
Sincerely, Ariana HorcasitasDirector of Finance and Administration
COVID-19 Financial Update
The Church Was Never ClosedBy Rev. Dr. Brian T. Parcel
It has become quite the religious liberties debate over the last two months about the government’s ability to limit ‘in person’ worship services due to the Covid19 pandemic. The argument is that the government cannot close the church. Let me just say, FUMCCV was never closed, and to talk about the ‘church’ as the gathering of people inside a building is just poor theology and wrong headed ecclesiology. True, we gather on a church campus but the “church” is the people’s expression of our faith, whether we are on campus or off. During this time we have worshipped every week (virtually), held more prayer meetings than ever before, hosted 87 kids for virtual VBS, fed the hungry, supported 15 LIFE Groups that keep meeting, provided pastoral and congregational care for our members, kept the administrative structures of the church in motion, and much more. The church never closed, the campus did, but the church did not, thanks be to God.
It is now time to begin preparing for opening our campus once again. A task force, led by Dr. Jennifer Poast Wauchope, has been hard at work for the last month developing all of the protocol needed in order to open our campus according to County and Denominational authorities. Here is a brief snapshot. Much more info can be found on our website www.fumccv.org.
Now -- The offices are open for staffJuly 1 – The offices will be open to the public (we encourage appointments be made, or at least call ahead and let us know you are coming)No earlier than July 15 – Two communion services on the quad each week (Wednesday noon and Sunday 2 pm). These will be Word and Sacrament only, 15 minutes, all wearing masks, and all socially distanced.No earlier than August 1 – Sunday morning services live streamed with a limited in person audience. We will begin this phase with a very limited audience comprised of just those persons unable to view worship virtually from their home. (Honestly, our concern is taking care of these mostly aged folks who because of lack of technology have been completely cut off from the worship life of the congregation since mid-March). We recognize these worship services, due to the elimination of all in person singing, will be skewed heavily towards the virtual audience.
Future plans dependent on Public Health regulations:- In person worship for groups less than 100 people (recognizing that when we go to these larger groups, those elderly/health compromised who lack virtual technology will no longer be able to worship in person because social distancing will not be enough to keep them safe).- On campus small group/committee meetings- On campus Children’s and Youth Ministry- Outside user groups accessing campus
There are many issues to consider and we encourage you to visit the website for more information and of course you are always welcome to call me in the church office.
Blessings and thank you for being the church so well to one another during these difficult times,
Meetings in July
Tuesday, July 7Trustee’s6:30pm
Monday, July 6NLDC6:00pm
Tuesday, June 28Church Council
7pm
Tuesday, July 21 Finance
7pm
Tuesday, July 14SPRC7pm
All meetings will be held via Zoom, an online video and phone application. You will receive an email or phone call with instructions for connecting via video or phone a few days prior to your meeting.
Preschool Repairs and Teacher Appreciation
On Friday June 12th, our preschool teachers and the Wednesday Work Crew joined for breakfast, while keeping our social distancing. Thrivent Financial helps fund our biannual service and work days. This spring we couldn’t have one so we used some of the funding to pay for a teacher’s appreciation breakfast, as the preschool teachers are getting ready for classes to begin again in about a month. The repair crew just finished repair to this shade structure and started a second one! We hope you can all join us in the
fall, when we hope to have our next service and work day!
2020-2021 Scholarship ApplicationsOur 3 scholarships for the next school year are open for undergraduate students to apply. Access these scholarships on our website at https://www.fumccv.org/ministry_young-adult/. For questions or more information, contact Rick Beckhart at (619) 708-8216 or [email protected].
Tuesday, July 7Prayer5:30pm
Prayer Garden Memorial BenchesWould you like to remember a family member or a fellow congregation member with a lasting gift to our church? If so, you might consider purchasing a memorial bench for our prayer garden. Our current benches are deteriorating and will soon be unsafe to use. If you are interested, please contact Ariana Horcasitas at [email protected].
UMW Blessing Bags“In between all the mask-making, the baby blankets, quilts, etc. for different people and charities, the UMW have been beavering away at making Blessing Bags for our Children’s Ministry and Youth Ministry. We originally started this project with the idea of sending little love gifts to our students going to Summer Camps, to remind them that God loves them and so does their church community. We also made some care packages up for the homeless teens at Storefront. We filled more than 40 for Children’s Ministries for VBS participants and those signed up for virtual summer camp. An additional 25 are also ready for use by Junior and Senior High camp participants. We are also set to take 20 special care kits to Storefront for the teens and young adults in their program. We pray for the youth of our church, the community, around the country, and the world, that this time of uncertainty and challenge will see us all emerge more compassionate and community-minded, and,as servants of God, that we would be God’s light and salt in a hurting world.”
Annual Conference 2020This year’s Annual Conference was one like none other, as are many things these days, due to the Covid19 pandemic. The meeting was all virtual with Bishop Hagiya presiding from the sanctuary of FUMC Pasadena, worship services live and/or recorded from a multiple of locations and members taking part from their own homes or churches. Our members met each day and watched together from the Social Hall (wearing masks, socially distanced, not sharing food, etc.).
Much of the expected work of this Annual Conference was postponed subsequent to the postponement of General Conference 2020 and the Jurisdictional Conferences. We had expected significant decisions to be made about the future of the Denomination at the May General Conference that would then be considered at the Annual Conference level. We had also expected to be nominating candidates for the Episcopacy to be forwarded to Jurisdictional Conference later this summer. With the postponement of Jurisdictional Conference this work is delayed.
We did accomplish some things: - The budget was passed for the Annual Conference with notable highlights being a significant decrease which should
eventually decrease our church’s apportionments and there are some endowment funds newly available to the Conference for the express purpose of supporting retiree benefits, which could yield significant benefit to the Conference operating budget.
- We learned that our Bishop, Grant Hagiya, will continue serving as our Episcopal Leader beyond his planned August 31 until at least December 31, 2021.
- We witnessed wonderful worship services in which 10 candidates were commissioned as Probationary members and 10 candidates were Ordained into Full Connection. Another powerful service was the Memorial Service in which we celebrate the lives of clergy and spouses who have died in the last year. Dottie Biggers was a part of that celebration; for Dottie we give thanks.
There were also multiple powerful moments of joining together praying, listening and sharing about the racial unrest and injustices that are being exposed in our Country. We recognize that when we yield to Christ and beloved community is created it includes all, but we are not there yet, we ask forgiveness for our failures, we mourn with the dead and oppressed, and we beseech God for the courage to walk these difficult steps.
It was not what we expected and we missed certain aspects, especially getting to visit with some whom we may only see once a year on the campus of the University of Redlands. We look forward to next year, currently scheduled to begin June 16th on the campus of the University of Redlands.
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