Oct 20
Visit southlyonfirstumc.org 
for more information
Worship Sundays at 11:00am

  • Livestream Worship at 11AM on YouTube*
http://bit.ly/3k7Z3Eu
  • In-person in the Sanctuary
Read Mark 6:31-44 to prepare.

The Sept/Oct issue of The Upper Room is available for pick up in the outdoor tub next to door #4

Greetings Dear Church Family,

It is full blown Fall outside in Michigan. The temperatures are changing, the amount of sun light is different than last month, and our outdoor activities may have shifted. But what about inside?
What season are you in right now—not physically, but spiritually? Sometimes our spiritual season doesn’t match the season on our calendars and what’s going on inside us is in contention with the outside that surrounds us.

We often think of Spring as renewal, Summer as beauty, Fall as productivity, and Winter as dreariness. Yet single words don’t begin to portray the full scope of each season. Different parts of the world experience natural seasons in a variety of ways. Likewise, different people experience spiritual seasons in a variety of ways. How one person responds to a situation in a spiritual winter differs from another person’s response to a similar situation. How one person celebrates during a spiritual summer differs from another’s celebration. Fall productivity differs. Spring renewal differs.
Which season can you relate to right now?

Susan Lawrence describes seasons in the following way:
  • Spring: Does your life feel as if it is renewing, just about to push through and bloom among the nourishing and sometimes drenching showers?
  • Summer: Does your life feel warm, full, and beautiful? Are you savoring the moments and memories, hoping they’ll last as long as possible?
  • Fall: Does your life feel productive but also a bit exhausting? Can you see signs of beauty but also signs of loss? Is the sacrifice overwhelming at times?
  • Winter: Does your life feel dreary? Are you weary and a bit chilled? Do you long for a bright spot of warmth or light?

As I read her descriptions it gave me food for thought. It was easy to think about my life in general, but to dig deeper and really think about the season of my soul, that took more effort and reflection. Consider again, What spiritual season can you most relate to right now? Maybe it is summer, and you’re feeling the warmth of God’s presence and the freedom to enjoy and explore His will and abundant blessings, or maybe it’s Fall, and there is a lot to be done in preparation for the long Winter ahead. In Fall, there is vibrant beauty unlike any other season, but that beauty is caused by loss and sacrifice with the purpose and promise of future growth. Maybe it’s winter in your life right now, at least in some areas, and you feel isolated, chilled, and sad. Or perhaps you’re coming out of winter and can see the signs of a thaw and hope pushing through.

God knows every detail. God knows each growing season of every area of our lives. Each season gives us opportunities to rely on God, respond in obedience, and welcome results. We will experience similarities across some seasons and situations, but others will seem foreign to us. Some seasons just simply leave us feeling disoriented, discontented, and disappointed.

However, God will use every spiritual season of our life. If it’s in your life, it can and will be used by God. Every season holds blessings for us, but in order to fully experience them, we have to choose to set aside what we think and want, inviting God to carry us through.

You might have a favorite natural season, but you cannot live in it every day of your life. The same is true for our spiritual seasons. Regardless of where you’d prefer to be, you will not be there every moment of your life. You can choose to sit and fight against it, or you can use the time given to you, learning the lessons that come from every season of your life and growing your soul the way God purposes, so that every season that follows is nourished by the preceding seasons. No matter what each season feels like, looks like, there is one thing that they all have in common: God is with us through it all. May we all lean on God in all that we do, in all that we enjoy, and in all that we struggle through.

Love and peace in Christ, Rev. Mary
FACE MASKS ARE REQUIRED FOR WORSHIP
FACE MASKS ARE ALSO REQUIRED FOR SUNDAY SCHOOL CLASSES FOR CHILDREN UNDER 12

Out of love and concern, we can protect our most vulnerable members. Please see the entire response from the COVID Response Team for more details.
SOUTH LYON TRICK OR TREAT 10/28 6-8PM
Please sign up to help set up a tent downtown or to hand out candy in downtown South Lyon.
If you are not available to help on 10/28, you can also help by dropping off candy at the church in the parlor or in the outside tub by door #4.

Please use this link to sign up:
BELL RINGING
Please sign up to ring to help Salvation Army on 11/26, 11/27, 12/4, or 12/11 at Kroger on 10 Mile Rd. Please go to this link to sign up:

PUB THEOLOGY
We are meeting at the Third Monk, this Wednesday, October 20th, @ 7:30 pm.
This week we will discuss improvement, the future, aliens, and church camping.
  
And… anything else that is on your Heart.
 
Please come and join us for a cold beer (…or pop) and a lively conversation.
 
 
SECRET PAL SIGN-UP FOR 2022
It's time to sign up to participate in next year's Secret Pal fun! Secret Pals surprise and support each other throughout the year with anonymous cards, gifts, and prayers. If you are interested, stop by the Secret Pal shelf (located behind the kiosk in the church parlor) and fill out an information form. You will receive your secret pal assignment at the end of this year or early next year. For more information, please contact Linda Dowsett.
NAME TAGS
The name tags are back in the narthex! Hurray!
But we need your help. We are missing tags for a lot of people. There will be a station near the name tags for you to request a new one (or if you know where your old one is, please bring it with you).
Name tags are more important than ever. Many of us have changed our appearance during the pandemic, and identifying people you haven’t seen in a long time (especially when they are wearing a mask) will be challenging. Please pick up and wear your name tag on Sunday mornings so that we can meet each other all over again.
STITCHING FOR CHRIST
Women and men of the Stitching for Christ group share in fellowship on Tuesdays from 2-4:00PM as they knit, crochet, and sew items for charity. All are welcome.
 
BOOK CLUB WITH REV MARY
NOVEMBER 2 7PM
Several of us had this book sitting on our shelves without reading it, so we decided to read this book for October. The book is described as, “Shots rang out in Savannah's grandest mansion in the misty, early morning hours of May 2, 1981.  Was it murder or self-defense?  For nearly a decade, the shooting and its aftermath reverberated throughout this hauntingly beautiful city of moss-hung oaks and shaded squares.  John Berendt's sharply observed, suspenseful, and witty narrative reads like a thoroughly engrossing novel, and yet it is a work of nonfiction.  Berendt skillfully interweaves a hugely entertaining first-person account of life in this isolated remnant of the Old South with the unpredictable twists and turns of a landmark murder case.” We will discuss this together on November 2nd at 7:00 pm.
 
DECEMBER 7 7PM
This book will be released in late October, the perfect time to read this book during November as the weather starts to change and we prepare for the holidays. This book is described as, “When Sonny Dunes, a SoCal meteorologist whose job is all sunshine and seventy-two-degree days, is replaced by a virtual meteorologist that will never age, gain weight or renegotiate its contract, the only station willing to give the fifty-year-old another shot is the very place Sonny’s been avoiding since the day she left for college—her northern Michigan hometown.
To distract herself from the memories she's spent her life trying to outrun, Sonny throws herself headfirst into covering every small-town winter event to woo a new audience, made more bearable by a handsome widower with optimism to spare. But with someone trying to undermine her efforts to rebuild her career, Sonny must make peace with who she used to be and allow her heart to thaw if she’s ever going to find a place she can truly call home.” We will meet to discuss this book on December 7th. Happy Reading!
SEWING MINISTRY
The sewing ministry has room for you, even if you don’t sew! This group meets to assemble and sew quilts, pillowcases, and everything in between. The finished products spread God’s love throughout the community. Occasionally, this group meets for fellowship while working on personal projects. All are welcome in the Friendship Room on Thursdays at 1:00PM.
VISIT THE CHURCH LIBRARY
The church library is open to all! There is a section of books for lending, a section of puzzles and books (including children's books) for keeps, and a very special resource section (behind the glass) for use within the library. Stop by and check it out!
OCTOBER MISSION OF THE MONTH:
Methodist Children’s Home Society provides individualized treatment, care, advocacy, and permanency to children and families impacted by childhood trauma. MCHS is building a community where every child and family has a safer and brighter future.
Here is a link to a video that explains the MCHS mission 
DRESS UP AS YOUR FAVORITE BIBLE CHARACTER
On October 31, you are invited to dress up as your favorite Bible character for worship!
HISTORICAL MEMORIES
The Historical Memories Team invites you to attend a scheduled crop session this Fall. We will be working on scrapbook pages for Rev. Pauline Hart’s book on the history of SLFUMC. The next crop date is Saturday, Nov. 13. This crop session will be held in the Fellowship Hall from 9:00 am until 8:00 pm. Please bring any scrapbooking tools. The project materials, photos, paper supplies, etc. will be provided. If you have historical memories projects that you are already working on, please bring those to The Crop. Lunch will be provided and, if you like, bring a snack to share. RSVP via text to Robin Fanning and include the date(s) and time(s) you plan to attend.
Please also keep our prayer partners in your devotions:  
Bethlehem Temple UMC – our sister church in Liberia
Helen Roberts-Evans – our covenant missionary in Liberia
Local Ministry Partners – Capernaum Health Clinic & Active Faith
The United Methodist Church

UPDATED GIVING TOOLS
We are very excited to announce the upgrade of our giving tools on both the website and phone. When you give via the website, you will be greeted with colorful pictures designating your giving options. (If you do not get the pictures, rather just the text list, you will need to force your computer to upload the revised website. Please do this by hitting CTRL + F5 while in the website.)
Along with this change, we now have a new giving app for your phone. The new app can be found at Vanco Mobile Faith Engagement in Playstore or the iPhone App Store. Please note that on Sept. 30th, our previous mobile app, Vanco GivingPlus, will no longer be functional. If you previously used the GivingPlus app, your id and password will stay the same. Any recurring payments that you have setup will not be affected.
If you have any questions, they can be addressed to the Financial Secretary, Lindy Juergens.

  • Visit our website https://www.southlyonfirstumc.org/giving
  • Use our giving app on your phone, Vanco Faith Engagement
  • Use our text-to-give option by texting to 855-947-0586 with the dollar amount in the message
  • Call Vanco at 1-800-675-7430 to make a credit card donation over the phone
  • Drop off a check in our drop-box at door #4 at the church. 
  • Mail a check to SLFUMC, 640 S. Lafayette St., South Lyon, MI 48178

Office Hours
  • Mondays 9am - 3:00pm
  • Tuesdays - Thursdays 9am - noon
Check out our website or our live calendar
for more information about our church or any of these programs!

Do you prefer a printed copy of our Midweek Messenger? Hard copies are available in the tote outside the main doors to the church.
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