The Mountain View  

I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come?
My help comes from the Lord, the maker of heaven on Earth.

April 2003

Pastor's Ponderings…

War in the World; War in the Soul

Many of you have asked me, "What is the official stance of the United Methodist Church on war?" Here it is, from the United Methodist Book of Discipline, our official book of rules and regulations for our world-wide denomination:

War and Peace: We believe war is incompatible with the teachings and example of Christ. We therefore reject war as a usual instrument of national foreign policy and insist that the first moral duty of all nations is to resolve by peaceful means every dispute that arises between or among them; that human values must outweigh military claims as governments determine their priorities; that the militarization of society must be challenged and stopped; that the manufacture, sale, and deployment of armaments must be reduced and controlled; and that the production, possession, or use of nuclear weapons be condemned. Consequently, we endorse general and complete disarmament under strict and effective international control.

Copyright 2000 by The United Methodist Publishing House.

What do you think? Are there times when war is necessary in an imperfect world? Is there such a thing as a "just" war? Can we condone war as Christians when war may bring "the greatest good for the greatest number?" Do we take a limited number of lives in the short-term in order to save a greater number of lives in the long-term?

As "bunker-busting bombs" were dropped just yesterday, I am in the midst of a personal, heart-wrenching struggle with these questions and the way even considering the questions seems to come into direct conflict with our beliefs as United Methodist Christians.

What does God's word have to say about war? Sometimes it's as confusing as my thoughts. Look at these two very much contrasting thoughts from the Old Testament:

Isaiah 2: 4. God will judge between the nations and will settle disputes for many peoples. They will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not take up sword against nation, nor will they train for war anymore.

Joel 3:9-10. Proclaim this among the nations:
Prepare for war! Rouse the warriors! Let all the fighting men draw near and attack. Beat your plowshares into swords and your pruning hooks into spears. Let the weakling say. "I am strong!"

Jesus said this about war—not a judgment on the justification of war, but simply the statement that war will happen:

Matthew 24:6. You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come.

Probably the most quoted verses of all when discussing a Christian response to war come from the following:

Exodus 21:23. But if there is serious injury, you are to take life for life, 24. eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, 25. bum for burn, wound for wound, bruise for bruise.

Matthew 5:43-44. "You have heard that it was said, 'Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.'  But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you....

Another foundational belief of the United Methodist Church is that God has given us a wide array of gifts to help us determine our faith and action. Among those gifts, four are vital:

1. Reason
2. Experience
3. Scripture
4. Tradition

I have noticed that the first letters of each of these words may be combined to spell "REST."
May we find rest and peace in our hearts by using all the gifts of God to determine what is right.
May we bring rest and peace to the world by using all the gifts of God to determine what is right.

Prayers During Time of War

Here are two powerful prayers on the General Board of Global Missions website for the United
Methodist Church. Pray with our brothers and sisters all over the world for peace:

Prayer for Those Who Wait at Home

O God of peace, calm us, who wait and watch, as events beyond our power and understanding unfold. Deliver us from fear that paralyzes our ability to seek faithfully the ways you would have us be your presence to our friends, our neighbors, and our children. Help us to dwell in your presence one moment at a time and to know that you are ceaselessly at work in our lives and in the world, to bring your reign of peace; in Jesus' name. Amen.
--Katie Long.

Prayer for Children

O God, even as we pray for the day when no one's children will be sacrificed to war, we pray for the children among us. Give them, in the midst of the confusion around us, moments to play and to rejoice in your-creation. Give us calm to comfort their fears. We include in our prayers those far away who seek to comfort, feed, and-shelter their children in this time of tension and war. Give all of us grace to be still, know that you are God, and join our children in moments of simple joy that-remind us all that life and love are your enduring gifts;  in Jesus' name. Amen
--Katie Long.

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Need a break from your midweek doldrums? Want a spiritual pick-me-up? Come join us at the Wednesday Evening Praise service, which is held every Wednesday night at 6:00 PM. The service lasts about 45 minutes, and there is lots of singing, praying; and a message is delivered by one of the "ministers" of our church. (We have one Pastor, but all the rest of us are Ministers, remember?) After the service there are Women's and Men's Support Groups that meet, as well as the Youth group. Babysitting is available.

Speakers for the month of April are:

April 2: Mitch Lambdin
April 9: Nancy Peralez
April 16: Patty Lambdin
April 23: Jason Archuleta/Stephanie Cafarelli, et al;
April 30: Cindy Hayes

We are always looking for more people who would like to speak; this service has been the "starting point" for many lay speakers in our church, who have tried it and found out just how rewarding it can be! Please prayerfully consider what message God has given you to share with others!

Any questions, please call or see Mitch Lambdin, 566-3697.

The Mountain Vista United Methodist Church Youth Group met on Feb. 26th for a planning meeting with the youth and their parents. Ideas were discussed for the upcoming month. We also drafted a Mission Statement that represents who we are, and a list of covenants that we agreed to abide by at our meetings. Ask a youth member what the difference between a contract and a covenant is, and they can tell you! A note of THANKS for all of the parents who were able to attend that meeting and offer input, suggestions, and support to help our youth group run smoothly.

Since that meeting, the youth have been VERY busy. On March 5th Pastor Steve met with us to give us a lesson on Lent. We were able to get a better feel for what Lent is all about after his presentation. He encouraged us all to write a letter to ourselves (if you have never done that, you might want to try it—it's an interesting experience!). In that letter, we asked for help from God to keep a commitment about something we wanted to change or give up during the Lenten Season. After Easter, Pastor Steve will mail that letter back to us so we can see how we did! And yes, Pastor Steve wrote one too. Patty gets to mail his back to him! Thanks Pastor Steve for doing that presentation!

On the 12th of April, the youth group put on a skit entitled 'Take Up Your Cross" for the Wednesday service. They did a GREAT job and the skit had a very meaningful message about not being shy or embarrassed to let the world know we are Christians, and proud of it! Afterwards we munched on donuts and shared how our week was with each other.

On the 15th, the Youth helped out with the auction arid sold ice cream sundaes and root beer floats. The proceeds went to their youth account. Some also babysat in the nursery and others helped with the auction itself. They did a terrific job cleaning up the kitchen and nursery afterwards. A special THANKS to Ron and Anita Murphy, and Sue Wu for organizing the ice cream social for that night!

We have a terrific group of teens in our Youth Group! All youth in grades 6 through 12 are welcome to meet with us on Wednesdays following the service from 7pm until 8 (or so). We will be holding planning meetings on the second Wednesday of the month. Our schedule will be in the next newsletter so everyone will be informed of upcoming events. If you have any questions, call Patty Lambdin at 566-3697.

CERTS For High Schoolers... Refreshment for the Soul:

 Christian Education Release TimeS Going Strong

 Two to three times every week for an hour and fifteen minutes, senior high youth from three different high schools in the area have been meeting in our church during their eighth class period for Christian education in the beliefs and practices of traditional Christian faith. Pastor Steve has been the primary teacher for this class and Stephanie Cafarelli and Cory Coward have assisted.

 If you are a senior higher interested in our Christian Education program, you may sign up at any time. Simply pick up a permission form from the church office and take it to your principal and parent/guardian for signatures.

 For further information or questions, please call the church office at 280-4148

 Summer Bazaar

 It is time to start thinking of the Arts, Crafts, and Collectables Bazaar on Saturday, June 7th. Please keep in mind that the church will have a table with arts and crafts items to sell. Your contributions are greatly appreciated. Donations of yard sale items and/or collectables are also needed. Watch for further updates.

RESULTS OF THE BUILDING
COMMITTEE SURVEY

 The Building Committee would like to thank everyone for taking the time to complete the building survey. As you will see in the results that follow it was by and large a unanimous decision that we need additional space. Also the majority largely feels that they can support a building drive above and beyond their current giving. In the coming weeks the Building Committee will be exploring options, based on the survey results that will best serve our congregation.

Church Financial Report:

The year of 2003 looks to be a challenging year for the Mountain Vista UMC from a financial viewpoint. The budget for 2003 was set to meet the needs of a growing church. The congregation was challenged in the Stewardship drive to step up and meet the budget needs. The congregation did just that, and the pledges were higher than they have ever been. Thanks are in order for all contributors.

With a tight budget in place, the Finance Committee is meeting on a monthly basis to track our performance against the budget. With two months under our belts, the churches giving was $34 over for the month of January, but unfortunately was $3,919 short for the month of February, which leaves us $3,885 short for the year thus far.

Monthly expenses for our church average $12,460 per month. Most of the monthly expenses are fixed and they do not vary. With this in mind, we would like to encourage all contributors to meet their pledges, in our effort to be good stewards and going forward with all the challenges before us.

Variety Night

Variety Night will be held on April 27th at 7 p.m., as Easter celebrations will be held on April 20th. Please sign up for Instrumentals Only Night! Anyone who can play an instrument will be welcomed. We will showcase instruments from kazoo to violin!

Novice through symphony members, please join us. If you do not play an instrument, please come to listen and enjoy an evening of music and fellowship. See you there!  Linda Hartney.

WALK TO EMMAUS

Mitch Lambdin, Manuel Peralez, Tom Whaley, Patty Lambdin, Debbi Gibson, Marilyn Halton, and Cindy Hayes attended the February/March Walks to Emmaus. All of them were blessed by their weekend. Please ask them about their experience if you may be interested in attending a future Walk. Each alum will be happy to share their information with you.

Emmaus Gathering

The Mountain Vista Emmaus Community will have a gathering on April 13th, after regular services. It will be a potluck and we will welcome our newest graduates. For more information, please contact Linda Hartney.

Have you ever wondered about Angels? Are they real and do they watch over us, being missionaries of God? How do we explain some of the "happenings" that are not explainable or normal? Some that leave us in awe.

Our church library copy of A Book of Angels, by Sophie Burnham addresses these and many other questions about Angels. This and many other books are available to be checked out from the church library in the large Sunday School room.

Summer Camp

Elementary camp for grades K-6 will be held at Pinecliff on July 7 - 11th.

Registration forms are available in the foyer. Mark your calendars now. For information, contact Linda Hartney.

Sunday School Substitutes Needed!

 Substitute teachers for children's Sunday School. If you are interested, please contact Wendy Haden.

Shredder Needed

Do you have a shredder collecting dust? The church office would like to have a shredder to shred things, such as old directories. We do not like having everyone's home information thrown into the trash for anyone to find. If you can donate a shredder, please contact the office.

Due Dates for Sunday Bulletin and Newsletter

For the Sunday Bulletin: Information due Wednesday of each week.
For the Mountain View: Articles due the 3rd Tuesday of every month. Articles on disk or e-mailed (mtnvista@aros.net) preferred.