May 8, 2024
A Note from David Bartholomew
Dear Friends,
So, you’re hoping to be in tune with today’s discipleship in a time when your views on social change can make or break nearly all sense of community? No matter what beat you’re marching to, we can all find common ground in the idea that we are here to do what He has called us to do.
That is the very foundation of what led me to join the congregation officially in 2019 and then happily to say yes when I was invited to serve on the Welcome Team.
Being of service
It means a lot to be of service to others, because I know that there are many who simply need a smile, a hug, or just a nod of acknowledgment that yes, I exist. I am here. I am present.
A sense of purpose has been the greatest reward in my role as a Welcome Team member for HUMC. To know that I can make a difference, even with the smallest of gestures, makes me feel so much better about who I am and what I am supposed to do.
God has led me to this place, and it has me again singing a song by Paul Colman, “Fill my cup to the top, with running water. Call me out and show me how!”
This song goes back to my first two years attending Warehouse 839 services as a young teenager when it first opened more than twenty years ago.
If you would have asked me then, I would never have guessed that I’d not only be baptized in this place, not only married in this place, but also have the honor of volunteering alongside my amazing wife, Katie Bartholomew, who serves on the Sound Team!
We are all in this Kin-dom together, so why not share the cup and be fulfilled in service to Him and to our community?
At 35 years old, I reflect on that catchy song we sang during many of the Warehouse 839 worship services with my best friend’s mom being a Lay Pastor on stage there. (“Lay Pastors” was the name for the Warehouse 839 leadership team for a while.)
Volunteering at HUMC
Little did I know in 2002 that this song would come back to encourage me to be an active member of my church’s own hospitality volunteer group. Easily paired with Ephesians 3:19, this song makes clear that “to know this love that surpasses knowledge — that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.”
By being an active volunteer, I’ve been able to get the sense that God is helping me to fulfill my spiritual journey in this place where I first began shaping my sense of community and belonging.
Being able to set aside the political & social pressures that are constantly bombarding me outside the doors of HUMC — this is what makes me feel safe when I walk into the sanctuary and get to know fellow worshippers.
When in doubt, I turn this jingle on as a catchy reminder that you are stronger than you’ve ever known, and strength is, indeed, being filled to the measure of the fullness He brings us.
Whether walking into Warehouse 839 or the social hall, I know I’m in the same place that made me feel like I belong all those years ago.
Opportunities to serve
There are several opportunities to serve coming up here soon, to fill your cup with the living water of God’s love.
Celebration Sunday, May 19
One service at 10:30am
followed by church picnic
On May 19, we’re having one service outside at 10:30am for Celebration Sunday, a time to honor and celebrate our young people, and there will be an all-church picnic on the grounds afterward! We’ll need lots of hands and feet to make this a memorable and wonderful event. You can sign up here to help with the worship service, or sign up here to RSVP for the picnic, bring some food, or help with that.
Hilliard Farm Market Opening Day, May 21
Opening day for the Hilliard Farm Market is May 21! This is a fun opportunity to serve our community. You can get more information and sign up here.
Preschool graduations
And next week, on May 16 & 17, you can come help out with our weekday preschool graduation celebrations! Sign up here to welcome our preschool families, hand out programs, and direct them to the sanctuary.
Welcome Teams
Of course there’s a spot for you on a Welcome Team, too, either in the Sanctuary or Warehouse 839, and be the smile someone needs as they arrive for worship. You can volunteer as you’re available (sign up for the sub team), or you can commit to serve the same Sunday service every month, whatever works for you.
God is here with us!
God is still here with me, unchanged, to spread the love spilling from the cup that he has filled to the top with running water! That water will never run dry, and it fills me as I continue to serve in his presence and lift my hands on high to this catchy praise!
David Bartholomew
Announcement about General Conference Decisions
Over the last two weeks, members of The United Methodist Church gathered in Charlotte, NC, for the postponed 2020 General Conference. While the General Conference made many important decisions, we want to lift up some specific changes that relate to the full inclusion of LGBTQ+ people into the life of the Church.
This General Conference voted to:
• Lift an existing denominational funding ban on supporting LGBTQ+ ministries and affirming LGBTQ+ education.
• Strike down a 40-year ban on “self-avowed practicing homosexual” pastors.
• Remove penalties for clergy or congregations holding same-sex weddings.
• Initiate a moratorium on all judicial proceedings concerning human sexuality.
We give thanks for progress in the pursuit of justice and inclusion. May our connection grow in love, and may we seek new ways to be the body of Christ in a divided world. May this be a new day for those who’ve been harmed by our Church, and a new day for the kin-dom of God.
Links to the New Social Principles.
More Detailed Descriptions of the Changes on the West Ohio Website.
