Dear St. John Family,
We had an amazing Confirmation Service this past Sunday and witnessed eleven young people remember and affirm their baptism, making their faith their own. It was my privilege to be the lead teacher for confirmation this year. I appreciate the guidance and support from Pastor Brad, who stayed involved through each step of the process and came to class at key theological moments when I needed an assist. The approach to confirmation was re-imagined, including writing a new curriculum, which enabled me to utilize information I have been learning the past two years at Palmer Seminary. We shifted sessions from the Sunday school model to eight extended workshops on Sunday afternoons. This approach allowed us to form community and build relationships with each other, to dig deeper into our theological questions and to learn how to love Jesus more fully in our hearts and minds. These young people taught us how to love Jesus better, as much as we taught them how to love Jesus better.
Two important concepts emphasized in the confirmation program were guiding the students to be active in the life of the church and worshiping together in community. For this reason, confirmands were required to keep track of how they contributed to our church community. Some wrote letters or visited our shut-ins, some cleaned the church, some found ways to serve outside in the local community, some helped with the livestream of the worship, some ushered, and many helped to prepare the communion elements by putting them in baggies month after month. Everyone had to do seven trackable events. Interestingly, once our confirmands shared in multiple acts of worship or service, their involvement became more of a habit and most ended up with more than seven!
Building on this concept, we took seriously the idea of the congregation being responsible to teach these young people from baptism to confirmation. For this reason, Pastor Brad encouraged me to find three strong members of this church to lead as mentors and teachers along side of me. During the confirmation service I acknowledged and thanked these confirmation teachers, Rick and Denise Gray and Ken Lee. It was apparent in our time together that the Kingdom of God had prepared and orchestrated us to come together in this sacred season as teachers. The Spirit of the Lord was often felt during our games and teaching time together.
We also had many behind the scenes people assist. Lynne Tomlinson and Vivian DiCristofaro secured new fabric for our confirmation stoles and cut out about ninety of them, enabling us to share our tradition of decorating lovely stoles with two other churches during our progressive retreat. Mike, Sharon and Patsy Byle joined our teachers in providing significant help on the retreat.
Our progressive retreat was a retreat on the move this year, as we connected with two other UMC congregations for an amazing weekend. St. John’s hosted about 120 people on a Friday night, helping all the confirmation students from the three churches get to know each other through ice breaker games, worship, s’mores by the campfire, and a challenging fireside devotion from Pastor Brad on our theme of Identity in Christ. On Saturday we had an entire day at Hopewell UMC where things got serious, as the students opened up and shared about false identities that had been placed on them. One by one they named those lies and claimed their new identity in Christ. Our day concluded in a worship service with anointing. On Sunday we were at West Lawn UMC where we talked about John Wesley’s theology of grace based on the image of a house. Pastor Brad and I literally stood on the porch of an old house to illustrate prevenient grace. In our closing worship service, I had the honor of praying for all our confirmands as I placed the stoles they made on their necks and declared the meaning of their name in Christ before we all shared in communion together. Being able to explore our faith among other Methodists in a suburban, rural, and urban setting brought more meaning to our program and gave us a larger sense of community and belonging.
This transformative experience was evident in the witness that four of our confirmands shared this past Sunday. Together they represented the confirmands in the 2022 class very well. It was a joy to see these students profess their faith and be confirmed into full membership here at St. John’s Ivyland. I pray God continues to bless them and walk with them in their life of faith. I also pray that same prayer for you and me. May God’s grace prepare us, redeem us, and continually shape us into the people we were created to be.
Because of Christ,
Sarah Floyd
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WORSHIP - SAFETY PRECAUTIONS
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Please click below to read the latest Congregational Update regarding COVID-19 measures:
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Come Worship with us this Sunday,
May 01, 2022
Contemporary Service
at 9:00 AM
Traditional Service
at 10:30 AM
This service can be viewed LIVE through
St. John's Youtube Channel
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or on our homepage:
www.stjohnsivyland.com
Past worship service videos can also be found:
Auto-generated closed captions are usually provided by YouTube about a week after the service has posted for the hearing impaired.
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Opportunities to Fellowship Together
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We are pleased to announce that the Grace Café
will reopen on May 22, 2022.
Plan on joining us for coffee/tea and snacks and a wonderful time of fellowship after the 9 am worship service.
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Children's Activities This Week
- Children's Sunday School at 10:30 AM
- Parents, children will check-in at the mobile cart
in the Education Wing
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A Reminder . . .
The hallway for Classrooms A – E IS CLOSED to general traffic on Sunday mornings. Only children and their parent/guardian(s) will be permitted in this hallway. If you enter the church through the back door and do not need to check in children for Sunday School, please turn right down the hallway past Fellowship Hall and around to the Sanctuary. If you are checking in your child for Sunday School, please proceed to the mobile check-in cart outside Classroom A in the Education Wing.
St. John’s has an “absolute and unwavering commitment to the physical safety and spiritual growth of all of our children and youth” and your assistance is greatly appreciated!
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Children's Sunday School
10:30 AM
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God is strong and faithful, always working in our lives. We might get knocked down from time to time, but when we put our trust in God, we find the strength we need to get back up again. Jesus showed us how to face life with resilience. No matter what happened, Jesus relied on God to help Him accomplish the mission set before Him. This month, we will learn that because of Jesus, we can trust God no matter what. We can bounce back from whatever knocks us down and complete the mission God has for us.
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Youth Activities This Week
Youth Sunday School
at 10:30 AM
Youth Night 7:15 PM
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Youth Sunday School
Gossip is something that everyone struggles with. We all want to “be in the know” and not “out of the loop!” Join Mrs. Gutsch and Mrs. McCrea this week as they talk about what to do when you are invited to gossip about someone else! The Youth will also receive Communion this Sunday.
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Youth Night
This Sunday, May 1st
7:15 to 8:30 PM
Welcome to Youth Night, Confirmands!
Get ready to paint your handprint on the Wall of Faith.
If you are already "on the Wall", bring a plain pillowcase for more
hand-painting fun.
Bring a friend!
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Congratulations to our 2022 Confirmands who professed their faith and were confirmed into full membership. We pray God continues to bless them and walk with them in their life of faith.
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Confirmands with Youth Ministries Director Sarah Floyd, mentors Denise & Rick Gray and Ken Lee, and
Pastor Brad. April 24, 2022
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Did you find the Easter music uplifting? Inspiring? A glory to God? Now is the perfect time to join the choir. No auditions - all voice parts welcomed!
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Donations Needed of
Non-perishable foods
Please place contributions in the shopping carts located in the narthex
Volunteers are also needed to deliver food and clothing to the Eastwick Food Bank.
Thank you for your support.
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BIBLE STUDIES & DEVOTIONALS
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Spiritual Discipline Workshop
April 30th 10 AM to 3 PM
Registration 9:30 AM
Sign-up in the Narthex
Cost $15.00 includes materials, beverage & lunch
Leader:
Rev. Sue Czarnecki
267-614-3603
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What are Spiritual Disciplines and how can they be used to strengthen my faith? Join Rev. Czarnecki and discover more about these life-changing practices.
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The Upper Room
Devotionals
for
May/June
Will be available
in the Narthex,
beginning this
Sunday, April 24.
Be sure to pick up one for yourself and one for a friend.
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Six Mondays starting April 18th at 6:30 in the Parlor. There will be a sign up sheet in the Narthex. Cost of the Study Guide is $9.00, payable the first session. Books will be available that night. Leaders are Barbara Schneider and Carol Campbell. Any questions, please call Carol
at 215-364-0942.
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A six-week Bible Study starting Monday, April 18th at 6:30 PM
The concept of Jesus' human and heavenly nature is difficult to wrap our minds around. He's the God who formed the universe and, at the same time, knows your personal struggles...because he went through the same things. For thirty-three years Jesus felt everything you have ever felt. Weakness. Weariness. Sadness. Rejection. His feet got tired. His head ached. He was tempted and his strength was tested.
The purpose of this study is simple: by journeying through these six lessons you will get to know Jesus--and, therefore, God--like you never have before. And by learning more about the person Jesus was and is, we come to understand more clearly the people we were created to be.
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Anxious People is about a group of people held hostage after a bank robbery who get to know each other, and they end up helping each other and helping the bank robber to find her way out of the mess. It's quintessential Backman: quirky, heartwarming and uplifting.
We will meet on Wednesday, May 11, at 10:00 AM and 7:00 PM in the Grace Cafe. Please join us; all are welcome. Facilitators Barb Schneider and Carol Campbell
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Wednesday nights
at 7 PM in the parlor
Our next study starting April 27th at 7 PM will be a relatively short-term one on the writings of the
Apostle Peter.
Please join us for our informal discussions. All are welcome!
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Tuesdays at 10:30 AM
- Old Testament Heroes and Heroines
- C. S. Lewis - The Great "Apologist"
of the 20th Century
Contact Paul Henry at phenry605@verizon.net for Zoom info
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We have a new name & a new logo!
Our new name is part of a refreshment of our organization that includes a
new look, new feel and new and improved programs designed to better nurture current members and welcome new women into our sisterhood to join us in putting our love into action.
A copy of the announcement from Response magazine is posted on the
“United Women in Faith” bulletin board.
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Wednesday, May 4th
Spring Banquet
"Women Justices of the Supreme Court"
presented by Trish Chambers
Sign up on UMW bulletin board or contact Louise Henry
215-357-9398 or email louiseh605@verizon.net
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United Methodist Men
Saturday, May 21st
St. John's has talent!
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Thank you to our April speaker,
Brian Jackson. Everyone thoroughly enjoyed his talk about traveling and
living in South America..
Our May speaker Is Michael (Mike) Byle.
Mike has a family background and a lifelong interest in trains and railroading. It has been his pastime from his first train set as a young boy to influencing his career choice. Professionally he has worked in complex design projects in and under rail lines including Amtrak’s High Speed rail clearance improvement project and work with CSX on many bridge designs.
Please join us at
The Sycamore Grill,
255 North Sycamore Street, Newtown
on Saturday, May 21st
at 10 a.m.
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Prayer requests can be submitted
Prayer requests are reviewed
Monday-Friday AM.
All "Ongoing Prayer Concerns"
will be listed for two weeks.
Please submit a new prayer request
if you desire to renew the listing for 2 additional weeks.
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PRAYER SHAWL MINISTRY
Meets the 2nd Tuesday of the Month
10 AM in the Parlor.
Pictured are four baby blankets and several baby hats destined for The Baby Bureau in Warminster, plus larger children’s hats for World Vision’s Knit for Kids program. Last month, children’s hats were donated to the Ukrainian Education and Cultural Center, Jenkintown, for dispatch to Ukrainian refugees in Poland.
Come join us in knitting/crocheting various items for those in need.
Contact Carol Rice for more information.
Requests for prayer shawls or lap robes to comfort those experiencing serious illness, bereavement, or other major life issues may be made through the prayer request form on the church website, or by contacting the church office
at 215-357-6998 or stjumc@aol.com.
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MOBILE GIVING
- Just go to our website stjohnsivyland.com
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Click on the 'Give' button in red, Donate Any Amount and register.
Once you've registered, you can either make donations by debit or credit. Lenten Offerings may also be received through our website.
TEXT GIVING
Simply text the amount you wish to give to 877-960-2396.
You will immediately receive a one-time registration link, then just follow the prompts to complete your donation!
You may also send your tithes and offerings to the church office:
820 Almshouse Road, Ivyland, PA 18974
If you have any questions about mobile or text giving,
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If your contact information changes:
address, phone, email, etc.
please notify the church office at
215-357-6998 or stjumc@aol.com
and we'll be sure to update your information in our files.
Thank you!
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WHAT'S HAPPENING!
The latest Devotionals, News and Worship Videos can be be accessed below, as well as, under the
"What's Happening"tab on our website.
www.stjohnsivyland.com
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CCLI Streaming License #CSPL049266
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St. John's Ivyland UMC
820 Almshouse Road
Ivyland, PA 18974
stjohnsivyland.com
Rev. Brad Leight, Sr. Pastor
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