A Message from Our President

Ladies,
Blessings to all of you, stay safe!
Susan Chamberlain

God IS Our Light

Last month's program was about living in the light of God and the Holy Spirit to help us work on our social justice priorities.  This month, we are reminded that GOD IS OUR LIGHT.  We need to remind ourselves that it is God's light that we live in and that shines through us.  God's power that helps us to work on the social justice priorities discussed last month.  One writer, Georgia Harkness, said it well. "When we are assured that God ceases not to love us, we can watch in patience through the night and wait for dawn."  In more modern terminology, we might say "God's love is everlasting," "God's love never fails," or  "God loves us forever and always."

Georgia Harkness knew quite a bit about the long, slow road you face when taking on social justice issues. She fought for women's ordination, adequate housing, access to hearth care, economic justice and world peace.  She was also a fierce in her work against racism and gender inequality.  The other area she tackled was in fighting for the rights of "the new Americans," as she termed the immigrants. 

The issues she fought for may sound familiar to you.  We have a long way to go on these issues but, it is good to remember that we have come a long way already.  To help put the timing in perspective, Georgia Harkness was born in 1891. She was ordained a local deacon in 1926, a local elder in 1938, and she was the first woman to become a full-time professor in an American university. 

In her work as a poet, she was the original author of the second verse of "This is My Song" (The United Methodist Hymnal #437). I will put the words to that verse below.

May truth and freedom come to every nation;

May peace abound where strife has raged so long;

That each may seek to love and build together,

A world united, righting every wrong;

A world united in its love for freedom,

Proclaiming peace together in one song.

Activity: Finding Peace in the Midst of Anxiety

This activity comes from the July program in the 2019-2020 program book, Let Your Light Shine, Ignited for Justice.

Light some candles (flame or battery-operated ones) and play soft, meditative music.  Sit calmly with nothing in your hands except the labyrinth pictured here.

Take a deep breath in and hold.  Then exhale. "For with you is the fountain of life; in your light we see light." Our emotions, our fear, anxiety, and sadness can get the best of us sometimes.  When we find ourselves struggling to see the light of God within us, we can declare: "For with you is the fountain of life; in your light we see light."

As you trace your finger through the paths of the paper labyrinth, imagine God's light emanating from your heart, down your arm, and into your finger.  Follow that light around each turn until you reach the center.  Once you reach the center, trace the path back to the beginning. When other thoughts and feelings try to come to the surface of your heart, say quietly to yourself, "In your light we see light," and continue on your path.

Mission U Update

For 2021, Mission u will be held from July 29 to August 1 at Wesley UMC in Yakima.

The studies will be the same as those planned for 2020 so you will not need to purchase different books.  The class topics are :
Finding Peace in an Anxious World
Pushout: The Criminalization of Black Girls in SchooYouth Study--Becoming Peacemakers in a Culture of Violence
Children's Study--Responding to Violence 

Book Review - Mission u Book for 2021

Finding Peace in an Anxious World edited by Erin James-Brown

Finding Peace in an Anxious World, the 2020 Spiritual Growth Study by staff of the Urban Village Church, uses the book of Proverbs and “The Serenity Prayer” as a guide to help Christians find their way through anxiety, worry, and fear and move towards God’s peace that surpasses  all understanding. Using “The Serenity Prayer” as a scaffold, Finding Peace in an Anxious World explores ways to  discover peace through scriptural and spiritual disciplines so that we can be rooted in God and energized to live fully as  disciples of Christ.

“The Serenity Prayer” shaped a 2015 four-part sermon series at the Urban Village Church in Chicago. It was through that  series that the church was able to address the tumultuous events of that summer and present a framework for how to approach a God who desires peace for the hearts of God’s people in times of anxiety. These sermons are the basis for this book.

The four chapters, each written by a different Urban Village Church leader, focus on different aspects of the prayer—serenity, acceptance, courage, and wisdom—and each concludes with a spiritual practice to help further develop the featured characteristic in your life. 

Date Reminders

CALENDAR 2020 - these are tentative and subject to change as circumstances change.

Conference and District in person events have been canceled.

October  PNW UMW Executive Meeting, Virtual Meeting.

October PNW UMW Annual Conference Meeting, Virtual Meeting.

If you have any other information that you want me to put here, please let me know by calling (360) 609-0503 or emailing me at lmilner2016@gmail.com .

Remember that we, as humans, are a conduit for the love and light of the Lord.  It is through the grace and love of God that we are able to do the work of the Lord. The love of the lord is never ending.