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THE BIBLE FOR
CURIOUS PEOPLE - ON ZOOM
Join us Tuesday mornings at 10:30am on Zoom as
we explore the book of Ester.
Reading
Assignment for Tuesday, November 10th:
Esther chapters 7-8, plus any introduction your bible
provides.
Questions
to consider:
—The King seems to think Haman sexually
assaulted the Queen. If the King hadn’t seen that, would he
still order Haman’s death? What
—Lots of narrative reversals in Chapter 8. What
do you make of them?
—How do you feel about Mordecai’s counter
decree?
In repose to
the COVID-19 outbreak this class is meeting online through
Zoom on Tuesday mornings at 10:30AM. Please contact Pastor
Dave (pastordave@woodridgeumc.org) to join the conversation. It is a great way to
stay connected and all are welcome.
No prior bible reading or knowledge or expertise
needed. No question is dumb and no one is forced to read the
bible in one particular way. We will all learn as we go along
exploring what the text says, what it leaves unsaid, what
history and tradition tell us about the text, and how our own
experience influences our reading.
WEDNESDAY BIBLE STUDY ON ZOOM
The Wednesday Bible study class on Wednesdays at
6:00 p.m. on ZOOM. The Wednesday evening group will be studying the
lectionary for the next worship service for the next few
weeks. If you want to be a part of the Wednesday class,
please contact Pastor Danita. The advent study will
start on December 2nd and will be: Almost Christmas
(A Wesleyan Advent Experience) by Magrey deVega, Matt Rawle, April
Casperson, Ingrid
McIntyre
Opportunities/Events
Do You Love Hanging Christmas Lights? We
Need You Help!
This Christmas, as the COVID pandemic continues
to rage, our presentation of the message of this season of
love and hope incarnated must venture outside our building.
What better way to do that than through some great looking
lights?
We’ve tested all the lights, now we need YOU as
part of a team to present them to the world!
Ready to help? Come to church, mask on, this
Saturday, Nov. 7th at 10:00am to hang the lights.
Youth
Ministry Fall of 2020
All 7th-12th grade students are welcome to join
our Youth Group Zoom this
Sunday, November 8th starting at 1:30pm.
We’ll talk about reconciliation and reparation, play a game,
and give a Sleep Out Saturday update. Contact Pastor Dave for
the Zoom link.
Sunday’s at 1:30pm is the new weekly meeting
time with which we are experimenting as we continue to adjust
to life in the midst of the pandemic.
Fridays
- Lunch in the Parking Lot
Our last
Sunday in the parking lot this year! Anyone who wishes
can meet up in the church parking lot at noon TODAY for
lunch.
- Bring your own lunch & chair
- We will sit 6 feet from each other
- Masks are required at all times we aren’t in our chairs
that are 6 feet apart.
- Check the weather & dress appropriately.
Puzzle
Exchange
WUMC has started a PUZZLE EXCHANGE.
Every puzzle deserves a second, third, or even
fourth shot. Let’s share the wealth!
There is a bin on the northwest side of the
building labelled "Puzzle Exchange" by the north
narthex doors for easy exchange anytime you would like.
Bring a puzzle. Take a puzzle. Please make sure
that the bin is closed properly.
Sunday
School Opportunities
The Sunday
School teachers would like to make sure that it is okay to
drop off a craft or small lesson at your home
sometimes. Please contact the church
office if you do not want to be included (or if you
want to be sure that you are included). Arrangements
can also be made to pick up something from the church office.
We Are
Hiring! WUMC actively seeking Music Director
Our Director of Music provides leadership,
direction and supervision of its entire music ministry of the
church, including playing the piano and/or organ for
worship services. If you or someone you know is
interested in the position — and for the complete job
description — please contact the church: office@woodridgeumc.org.
Discount
on Disposable Masks
The General
Council on Finance and Administration has partnered with a
vetted company, On The Go Masks to provide discounts for
churches and the company is extending the discount
to individuals as well. Please see the flyer attached here for more information.
Upper
Room Devotionals
The Upper
Rooms for November - December are in. Contact the church office or call 630.968.6050 if you would like a
copy. There are a few available in the mailbox.
Morning
Prayer with Upper Room
Morning
Prayer with The Upper Room via Facebook
Live,
every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at 11 a.m. (CT).
These guided prayer experiences are archived so you may join
them at your convenience if you miss it live.
Northern
Illinois Conference
NIC
Prayer Network
The
Discipleship Task Force invites laity or clergy who enjoy
writing to submit a devotion (250 words), including a
Bible verse and prayer. Share what is on your heart with
the NIC by emailing discipleshiptf@umcnic.org.
Monthly
Aurora District Lay Leader Virtual Meetings
There
will be monthly Aurora District Lay Leader meetings on the
Third Thursday of every month at 7 pm through December. "See" you there! If you are a lay
leader and cannot make a meeting, invite another lay person
from your church to attend. These meetings are not just for
official lay leaders but any lay person who is a leader in a
church! Your Zoom video conferencing invitation will be sent
by Leola Tucker (ltucker@umcnic.org). Contact Leola if you would like to join.
Prayer
Booklet For Times Like These from Our Conference
Don’t worry
about anything? That’s pretty hard to do these days! Yet it
is when we pray that we are able to pour our hearts and minds
out to God. With the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in March,
the NIC Discipleship Task Force asked clergy and laity to
submit daily prayers, which were shared on the conference social
media sites and website. Those prayers have been assembled
into an online booklet, "Times Like These – Prayers of
the People," for your reflection and devotion.
Click here to view the booklet online
Click here to download
Learning
with the Northern Illinois Conference
The Northern Illinois Conference (NIC) staff,
with the assistance of the NIC Communications team and the
NIC Office of Congregational Development and
Redevelopment, are producing online learning sessions
via Zoom on Thursdays
at either 10 am or 1 pm with practical
information on how to do a variety of ministries during the
COVID-19 outbreak. There are also archived training sessions
available for viewing such as Intentional Discipleship, How is Your
Soul and financial helps. All of this can
be found here: https://www.umcnic.org/online-learning
Outreach
Opportunities
DUPAGE PADS
Due to the
continuing pandemic, DuPage Pads will not be using Downers
Grove FUMC or any church to house Pads guests until late
2021. They will continue to hotel guests at the
guidance of the DuPage Health Department for both the Pads
guests and the volunteers’ safety.
DuPage Pads has enough funds to house 70 hotel rooms through
March 31, 2021. Their goal is 115 hotel rooms
(approximately 150 guests) per night. Each hotel room
is approximately $45 a night which requires them to raise
approximately $450,000. Additional federal government
funding is uncertain at the moment.
Cold weather has arrived, and people are still very much in
need. There are several ways you can help:
- Food
and Toiletry Donations: Please consider
donating essential items
using this link using curbside drop off boxes
located in the DuPage PADS parking lot of 703 W. Liberty
Wheaton, IL 60187. Drop off hours are Monday-Friday
8:00am-8:00pm and Saturday-Sunday 8:00am-4:00pm. Please
do not leave donations outside of the scheduled times,
especially food items overnight.
- Monetary
Donations: A special fund has been set up for
this purpose. PADS is working hard to maintain and add
additional housing in hotels for guests, as well as
provide them with food. This requires significant
financial resources to sustain this long term.
Visit the PADS website here and look at the very top for the
link to donate.
- Bring
Food or Monetary Donations to DGFUMC: First United
Methodist in Downers Grove is collecting microwave meals
to bring to PADS guests starting November 5th.
Microwave meals may be brought to the church Monday thru
Friday 10am-1pm and monetary donations can be made on
the church website dgfumc.org using the Giving tab. The
church is located at 1032 Maple Avenue in Downers Grove.
Please
call or email Larry
Cash with questions at
630-808-8713.
MIDWEST MISSION DRIVE
Midwest Mission
has gotten to the point where they are in great need of a
collection. The churches (Grace UMC of Naperville) have
agreed to do a collection to help get in-kind supplies and
donations to Midwest Mission. They are running into the
issue of not being able to buy certain supplies in bulk due
to shortages and need help with securing the in-kind supplies.
Collecting through
November 1st: the four most urgent
needs (laundry
detergent, dish soap, household cleaner, and toothpaste)
but people are welcome to bring anything Midwest Mission
takes except for bikes and sewing machines at this time due
to a backlog. Grace UMC is one of the collection sites.
Midwest Mission realizes that during this pandemic some
people may not feel comfortable shopping for supplies but
still have the desire to give. Monetary donations are always
welcome and can still be made physically at collection sites
or online at their website. Please see attached
flyer more information.
Blue Jeans for the Homeless (BJFH)
The Village of
Woodridge has been helping Mr. Ramon Joson of BJFH /Christ
the Servant Church in collecting new/gently used jeans,
sweaters, knit caps, scarves, coats, blankets, personal
products/wipes, etc. They are asking us to join in
their big push for donations this week. BJFH is also
collecting Ramen Noodle Soup cups, packaged snacks and
chocolate candies. Ramon and his volunteers will pick
up any donations. Ramon can be reached at 630.673-3799
November Outreach Offering:
Tree
of Life Ministry
The
Lakota in South Dakota are the poorest racial group in the
USA. They are forced to live in unhealthy dwellings, which is
coupled with acute poverty marked by 80% unemployment. The
people lack access to a proper diet and suffer from high
alcoholism rates and suicide rates as high as eight times the
national average. In 1985, Tree of Life Ministry was created
to provide free repairs to the homes of impoverished
families. This ministry has grown from repairing three homes to
50+ homes each summer. The ministry added a food pantry so
that no child would go to bed hungry. The meal program
developed into a Food Pantry that grew from assisting 25
families a week to 1,000 families each week. They also
participate with the tribe in special programs, such as
remedial reading, dental-care, eyeglasses program,
nurse-care, suicide prevention, and alcohol recovery.
Tree of Life Ministry has worked hard to overcome the
negative attitudes held between cultures, and has become a
respected Christian voice among the Lakota people that
continues recruiting and training Native Americans to serve
in the ministry to their people, and to provide future
uninterrupted leadership in this mission.
Retired American Flag Recycling
Woodridge UMC now has
an American flag recycling box thanks to the Eagle
Scout Project of Jack Kulaga. Bring all your old
American flags to church and put them in the box now located
in Bonfal Hall. When the box starts to get full, the
Woodridge VFW Post will be contacted, and they will collect
and decommission the flags.
Looking Ahead
2020
Meeting Dates
Ad Council
(9:00 am) Finance
(7:00 pm) Trustees (7:00 pm)
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November 17th
November 24th
December 12th
December 15th
Amazon Smile
Amazon will donate 0.5% of the price of your eligible
purchases to Woodridge United Methodist Church whenever you
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AmazonSmile.
AmazonSmile is the same Amazon you know. Same products, same
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Ways to Connect
Aurora
District News
To subscribe to the biweekly newsletter for our
district (the Aurora District of the Northern Illinois
Conference), please click here.
Northern
Illinois Conference
Find out
about upcoming events in the Northern
Illinois Conference of the United Methodist Church by
clicking this link
November
6th, 2020, Volume 11, Edition 45
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