Hello, beloved!
I hope you are enjoying life right now. Wherever you are, whatever you are doing, I hope that all of this God-created beauty around you -- in people, in furry friends, in the sight and smell and feel of autumn -- is bringing you a little joy. Or a lot!
Somewhere in the 1980s, a young minister named Robert Fulghum wrote a little something he called "All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten." It was something like a personal credo, a statement of his life's priorities; writing something like this was something he had done for years. But he published this one, along with a little book of sweet, funny, profound stories about life. It became an international best seller, and for good reason: just reading the list of kindergarten lessons -- which is only a tiny part of the book -- is a refreshing return to simplicity. In case you have never heard of it, here is the list:
"These are the things I learned (in Kindergarten):
1. Share everything.
2. Play fair.
3. Don't hit people.
4. Put things back where you found them.
5. CLEAN UP YOUR OWN MESS.
6. Don't take things that aren't yours.
7. Say you're SORRY when you HURT somebody.
8. Wash your hands before you eat.
9. Flush.
10. Warm cookies and cold milk are good for you.
11. Live a balanced life - learn some and drink some and draw some and paint some and sing and dance and play and work every day some.
12. Take a nap every afternoon.
13. When you go out into the world, watch out for traffic, hold hands, and stick together.
14. Be aware of wonder. Remember the little seed in the Styrofoam cup: the roots go down and the plant goes up and nobody really knows how or why, but we are all like that.
15. Goldfish and hamsters and white mice and even the little seed in the Styrofoam cup - they all die. So do we.
16. And then remember the Dick-and-Jane books and the first word you learned - the biggest word of all - LOOK."
I think #10 is my favorite. Or maybe #11. Or #12. Maybe #13. Definitely #9.
This week in worship at Epworth UMC, with Robert Fulghum's list as our inspiration, we begin a new worship series on simple truths. We will spend October together remembering what we knew when we first learned about God and Jesus and life. We will immerse ourselves in beautiful, profound things in Scripture, and pair them with some of the best children's books from our childhood. The first one, this week, is "share everything." The scripture that will ground us this week (which is also World Communion Sunday, by the way) is John 6:1-14; the book is "The Sandwich Swap," a great story about friendship that we can ALL relate to. I found this book, and loved it, and didn't even realize it was written by Queen Rania of Jordan! Here is a link to the scripture passage:
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=john+6&version=NRSV
It will be a beautiful weekend. See you in worship, 9am with Sunday School to follow. Oh, and we are live streaming the sermon on Facebook now, too!
In the name of the God of abundant life,
Pastor Dawn
PS I hope that you can join us for the celebration of life for Barbie Hertz's sister Frannie on Sunday at 1:00pm. She and Jim and their family will be so grateful for your love and support.
PPS We are collecting items for UMCOR flood buckets this Sunday, this week, and next Sunday! The week of October 9, we will have a packing party and get them ready for shipping. The list of what we need is online in the link below, or at church. You can bring a bunch of certain items, or pack your own bucket and bring it. Your generosity means SO MUCH to those who are struggling to recover from hurricanes and earthquakes.
http://www.umcor.org/ArticleDocuments/232/Cleaning%20Kit%20Assembly%20Instructions%20Sept.pdf.aspx?Embed=Y
A Chronicle of the Life of Epworth United Methodist Church in Fallon NV
