First United Methodist Church 118 West Jackson Street Morris, IL 60450 815-942-0809 Return Service Requested Postmaster: Dated Material—Do Not Delay

Non-Profit Organization Permit 127 US Postage

Morris, IL

For prayer requests during

church office hours, call the

church office. After church

office hours call Paula Steffen

(815-922-2870).

Sunday’s church service

is broadcast on WCSJ—

95.7 FM on Sundays at

11:00 am.

We are pleased to offer a new Hearing Loop system in our sanctuary to aid guests with hearing

loss. If you wear hearing aids with a telecoil, the system will either automatically amplify the

sound or you may need to turn that function on. If you do not wear hearing aids or if they do

not have the telecoil, you may request use of a headset from the Welcome Center.

June Spirit Alive is

due in the church

office by May 20.

Spirit Alive

May 2018

A Note From Your Pastor . . .

This has been an interesting year in that 3 special days on the Christian calendar have also

happened to fall on other holidays. In 2018, Valentine’s Day fell on Ash Wednesday; April

Fool’s Day fell on Easter, and Earth Day fell on the lesser-known Good Shepherd Sunday.

These combinations of days happen rarely—the last time was in 1956, and the next time

will be 2029—but each of these combinations of holidays offers interesting insights. Valen-

tine’s Day already has some connections to faith, in that there were several Christian mar-

tyrs named Valentine, although we don’t know much about their lives. When Valentines’

Day falls on Ash Wednesday, it’s a good reminder that our worth doesn’t lie in romantic

love or partnership; instead, we find our identity in the God who created us out of ashes,

and loves us into new life in spite of our sins.

April Fools’ Day and Easter seems like an especially strange combination, but it’s a combi-

nation that actually makes a lot of sense! April Fools’ Day is a day of laughter and prank-

pulling, and some of the earliest Christian theologians described Easter as the day that God

played a practical joke on the devil by raising Jesus from the dead. Some early Christian

Easter services even included scripted laughter. Easter is a day of joy, and laughter can be

healing and even subversive—because we can only laugh at things that we are not afraid

of. On Easter, we can laugh at sin, at death, at the devil—at all the monsters that once ter-

rified us, but that we believe Jesus has conquered. So if you pranked your friends on Easter,

let them know that you had good, theological reasons for doing so.

Good Shepherd Sunday isn’t as well known as Ash Wednesday and Easter, but it falls every

year on the fourth Sunday after Easter, when we read the parts of the Gospel of John

about Jesus the Good Shepherd (John 10:1-10, John 10:11-18, or John 10:22-30, depending

on the year). This year, Good Shepherd Sunday was also Earth Day. As we meditate on the

image of Jesus shepherding his flock, we can remember that God created us in God’s image

and charged us with caring for the earth and its creatures. We are to care for God’s creation

with as much care and attention as Jesus cares for us, his sheep.

Our next major Christian celebration is Pentecost, which falls on May 20 this year. Like eve-

ry other day of the year, May 20 has lots of weird, unknown holidays attached to it

(Flower Day, Baking Day, etc.), one of which happens to be Eliza Doolittle Day. This

month’s challenge is to find the theological connection between Pentecost and Eliza Doolit-

tle Day. The first person to tell me the connection will be awarded a fabulous prize.

In Christ,

Pastor Laura

Pastors Robert Sathuri Robert@morrisumc.com Laura Wilson- Underwood Laura@morrisumc.com Financial Secretary Judy Burns Judy@morrisumc.com Church Secretary Julie Pierce Julie@morrisumc.com Choir Director Sandy Gordon Organist Cheryle Larson Custodian Denny & Kathy Jackson Preschool Director Sharon Alonzo Hand Bell Choir Director Millie Dyer

Hospitalized . . . Dave Finch Rich DePung

Beginning of Life Eternal . . . Remember those families who have lost loved ones over the past month:

~ Paul & Diane Sprole and family on the death of his mother, Anne Sprole.

~ John & Marissa Darlington and family on the death of his mother, Brenda Darlington.

~ Gerry & Nadine Matteson and family on the passing of his sister, June Olson.

~ Charles Butts and family on the passing of his mother-in-law, Leah Dannar.

~ Joyce Redford and family on the death of her sister-in-law, Mickey Redford.

~ Katie Messing and family on the death of her mother, Gretchen Peterson.

~ Sheldon & Mary Davis on the passing of her brother.

~ Kathy Slater and family on the death of her granddaughter, Sabrina Slater.

We want to thank Ann Dorrough for her almost 14 years as a faithful money counter on Monday morn-

ings. She has moved to Montgomery to live with her son. She will be greatly missed.

Thank you to everyone who donated and purchased items at the ASP Auction. We raised $16,915.

ASP Team

What a great week! Rummage sale was a huge success due to all who helped in any way. If you sorted, priced,

shopped, provided food or prayed for us, we thank you. Many hands make light work and we sure had a lot of

hands in this mission project.

Register for Vacation Bible School!

“Rolling River Rampage”

June 11-15

9:00 am – 11:30 am

FUMC invites children of all ages to experience the ride of a lifetime with God at Rolling

River Rampage Vacation Bible School! This white water rafting adventure includes excit-

ing music, amazing science, creative crafts, fun games, and memorable Bible stories that

will help children know God is always with them as they ride the rapids of life! The adventure runs from Monday June

11th through Friday June 15

th at 9:00 am – 11:30 am. Registration is open for children in preschool through grade 5 on-

line at www.cokesburyvbs.com/fumcmorris18. Registration forms will also be available at the Welcome Center begin-

ning May 1st. Also, be on the lookout for our rolling VBS supply bulletin board! It contains needed supplies for our VBS

rafters! It will be outside of the sanctuary May 5th and 6

th. Don’t forget we have the tub in the Narthex for empty paper

towel tubes, frosting cans, and 4-inch high Pringle cans too! Remember volunteers are important! Please answer the

call! If you have any questions, please contact Sue Hall at 815-942-4739 or Sandy Bednarik at 815-941-1856.

Saturday, May 19

Appetizers After Worship

Please feel free to stay for

appetizers & fellowship

with friends.

Book Club is meeting on

Monday, May 7 at 4:00 pm

to discuss “50 Women Every

Christian Should Know” by

Michelle DeRusha.

Sunday School Teacher Appreciation

Sunday, May 20th

The Education Committee would like to thank the

teaching and support staff who worked hard to

provide Sunday School programming this

year. We will honor these persons during the 9

am worship service on Sunday, May 20th. We

hope that all of the teaching and support staff will

be able to be present to receive our apprecia-

tion. A huge thank you to all for sharing your

gifts and participating in this vital ministry.

UMW Circle News

~ Executive Board: Tuesday, May 1 at 6:30 p.m.

~ “Soul Sisters” Girl’s Night Out: Friday, May 4 at 6:30 p.m.

~ Wednesday Circle: Wednesday, May 16 at 12:30 p.m. at the church

~ Martha Circle: Thursday, May 17 at 9:00 a.m. at the church

~ Rebekah Circle: Thursday, May 17 at 1:00 at Barb Chandler’s

~ God’s Girls: Thursday, May 17 at 7:00 p.m. at the church

~ Assembly: May 17-20 in Columbus, Ohio

May Birthdays

3 Connor Greve

Abby Wilkinson

4 Bailey Easson

5 Nancy Gordon

Kristine Lestina

6 Joel Munson

Todd Weist

7 Ruth Herman

9 Troy Kief

Michael Woodard

11 Natalie Fitzmaurice

Lori Poore

13 Gary Anderson

Liz Bates

Matthew Ellsworth

14 Drew Ehrler

Marcus Nix

15 Kathy Jackson

Jacob Packley

16 Michelle Chronister

Evelyn Trenter

17 Gregg Nadess

18 Orin Acker

Aaronda Murphy-Neuwirth

19 Barbara Ewalt

Jordan Ramirez

Jim Zelinko

21 Lorraine Heffner

22 Robert Matteson

23 Cody Spiezio

Maggie Thomas

25 Grant Magers

26 Zach Davis

27 Molly Hoffman

28 Caitlyn Butler

Janice Harty

Lynn Sampson

30 Avery Rees

Jeanette Ringer

31 Robert Bates, Jr.

Clare Bates

Sandra Lisy

Haley McDonald

The Morris Hospital will no long-

er be notifying the church when a

member is admitted. If you or a

family member is admitted to the

hospital please call the church

office for a pastor visit.

GIRLS NIGHT OUT

(Formerly known as Mother/Daughter Banquet)

May 4, 2018 at 6:30 pm

“Soul Sisters”

Tickets on sale every weekend and in the church

office during the week

Adults = $11

Children 3-10 = $6

2 & under = free

Thursday, May 3

Noon

Grundy County Courthouse

There will be a retirement celebration

for Pastor Steve Heilmann at the Grace

Lutheran Church on Sunday, May 20

from 2-4 pm. All are welcome to at-

tend.

May 6 End of Year Extravaganza TBA

May 6 Pack the Pew 9:00 am

ASP Training Session #3 7:00-9:00 pm

Hello everyone! For those of you who don’t know me, my name is Maggie

Thomas and I’ve been going to this church since confirmation in 8th grade. My

family had been attending church elsewhere since I was born, but we all knew

that it was time for a change in our lives. Who knew that almost ten years of

membership in the United Methodist Church later, I would be telling people that

I’m headed to Duke University in the Fall to attend seminary in the UMC. Certain-

ly not me!

When people find out that I wasn’t raised in the Methodist church, they

often ask me what prompted my family to change denominations, uprooting our

church life in Mazon and joining a Methodist church in downtown Morris. There’s a myriad of answers I could give,

but for this short time I’ll name a few. First of all, this congregation is so welcoming and friendly. There’s not a new

face that comes through the door that isn’t welcomed by someone else, whether they’re on the welcoming committee

or not! Secondly, this church has a rich history in Morris and Grundy County. We just finished up celebrating our 175th

year of being a congregation and are now looking towards the next 175 years! And finally, this church has strong sense

of mission. Whether it’s operating the PADS homeless shelter, coordinating with We Care of Grundy County to help

families with food or other necessities, or the youth service programs like trips to the Midwest Distribution Center in

Chatham or ASP trips each summer - you don’t have to look far to see this church’s commitment to missions.

When I look at these three attributes of this congregation: welcoming, historic, and service-oriented, I can’t

help but be excited about the opportunities this brings us for the Wesley Center. How can we use this new space to

focus on the future of not only our congregation but the future of Grundy County and the surrounding communities?

How will we be welcoming and servants to others through the Wesley Center? After school programs for underserved

youth? A safe place for our friends without homes to hang out during the day? A spot for people to pop in and grab a

quick meal for lunch or dinner? A meeting space for scouting troops, 4-H groups, or others in the community who

have passions like art, reading, or fellowship? What excites me most is that the possibilities with the Wesley Center are

endless!

I look forward to seeing the Wesley Center take root in Morris. It’s encouraging to see a congregation wanting

to support and serve this community in a new way, to look towards the next 175 years of being a church. There’s no

doubt that this project is a big undertaking financially as well as visioning-wise. I believe that the Wesley Center is an

amazing opportunity to reach out to those in the community who have never been to church, left the church, or don’t

even believe in God. By pointing the focus of this project to be about being of service to those outside of our church’s

walls, we are the hands and feet of Jesus. By providing radical hospitality and a safe place for people to gather and be

in community with each other, we are spreading the Gospel. As this project continues, I challenge each of us to think

about how can we continue to grow and serve others while serving God? I think that the Wesley Center is a great

place to start.

Mobile Meals

Even though it is spring, school will be winding

down soon and summer will be here! As you

plan your summer events please remember that

July is our church family's turn to deliver Morris

Mobile Meals. The sign-up poster will be on the

church bulletin board beginning May 12th.

Please consider taking a route. Thank you for

thinking about this wonderful mission oppor-

tunity for our Morris neighbors!

The church needs volunteers to mow the church

lawn, Pastor Laura’s and Pastor Robert’s lawn,

‘Muffler’ property and Wesley Center. Please

sign up by the week on the bulletin board. The

church has a mower in the garage attached to

Laura’s house. If you have questions see some-

one on the Trustees Committee. Goal is to

have the lawn beautiful for Saturday & Sunday

worship.

Summer Church & Office Hours begin May 29. They will be 8:30 am-noon &

1-2 pm Mon.-Thur. and 8:30-noon on Fri. The church doors will lock at 2:00

pm and unlock 15 minutes prior to scheduled evening meetings. Make sure

your meetings are on the church calendar. If you need to get into the church

during non-office hours please contact the church office 24 hours prior to

make arrangements.

We would like to recognize graduates of our church at the worship service on Sunday, May 20 at 9 am. If

you have a young adult who is a member of or attends this church regularly and is graduating this year from

8th grade, high school, college or graduate school, please let us know. Complete this information and

return to the church office by May 15. Please provide a picture of your graduate to be used during the ser-

vice. You can e-mail it to julie@morrisumc.com or drop it off in the church office.

Student’s Name: _____________________________________________________________________________

Parent’s Name: ______________________________________________________________________________

Grade & School Graduating from: ______________________________________________________________

If college, with what degree?

____________________________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________________________

Future Plans : ________________________________________________________________________________