Every year, our United Methodist Church has Annual conferences in all regions throughout the US. During this time, clergy and lay members of our churches come together for worship and music, sharing stories to inspire each other in ministry, recognition of outstanding service within our churches, teaching to help empower us in our ministries, ordination and celebration of new pastors in our midst - both clergy and lay ministers, the announcement of pastoral appointments to all the churches in our conference, and decision making for some of the business of our denomination that is necessary for us to run smoothly, earnestly reflecting in all that we do the will of our loving, inclusive God.

To be honest.... sometimes Annual Conference can feel pretty bogged down by the business of the church and difficult decisions that must be made. But not this year!! Before our sessions began, Glo and Myra, your representatives there, decided to focus on where we saw hope in what was presented. The theme this year was "The Power of WITH - Building the Beloved Community." And we saw and heard many examples of God working among us. As we were reminded by Cecil Williams of Glide Memorial, and others - the work of the church is to love our neighbors unconditionally, right where they are. Church is where ALL people are invited to be their best selves, where we can be lifted to new heights, where all can discover our God given gifts, where we have opportunities to serve in new ways, and where we can learn to love people like never before.

Our mission of the United Methodist Church is to "make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world." This means we are meant to be "agents of change" actively connecting and empowering. To do this, we must have clarity of our own mission and vision and values, knowing what dreams God has put on our hearts. Modeling ourselves after Jesus, we must be radically inclusive. Following Jesus means we are willing to go where we least expect, to take risks, and be willing to change ourselves. And when we do this, it often means the church has left the building.

We DID find hope - in the messages shared from those who are standing for justice, in the dancing and singing of the children, hearing from young people and others who are committed to being in this beloved denomination, in the many stories told about amazing things being done in church communities and beyond to all corners of the world. We found hope in our efforts to learn to communicate and love and respect each other, even in our differences. And very thankfully, we found hope in our own conference's willingness to be broadly inclusive, even in the ordination process.

Building the Beloved Community IS what we are called by God to do... and to be. In this kind of community, all are invited to participate. Each voice is heard and affirmed. Hope flourishes as each person knows that we don't give up... not on ourselves, not on each other, not on the church.

Thanks be to God!!

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Sunday, July 6th

Rev. Kelley O'Connor preaching

Scripture: Matthew 11:25-30

Sermon: "Rest For The Weary"

Sunday, July 13th

Communion Sunday

Glo Wellman preaching
All Church Potluck Brunch after worship

Sunday, July 20th

Marty Murdock preaching

Sunday, July 27th - outside service

Amnesty Letters

Rev. Amy Beth preaching

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REPORT FROM ANNUAL CONFERENCE:

GOOD NEWS OF LOVE AND INCLUSION

IN THE METHODIST CHURCH

On Tuesday, June 24, 2014, an appeals panel overturned a previous decision and returned Rev. Frank Schaefer's clergy credentials. He had been found guilty of violating the Book of Discipline for performing a same sex wedding for his son. He is now restored as an elder to continue to follow his calling within our United Methodist Church.

Here in the California-Nevada Annual Conference, we also made decisions this month that move us toward full inclusion.

First, the Board of Ordained Ministry, with the affirmation of our Bishop, will no longer consider sexual orientation or gender identity for those in the ordination process. Starting July 1, all who are called to ordained ministry will be able to be completely authentic to themselves in the process.

Additionally, at our Annual Conference session, the following resolution was adopted:

Resolution on Conflicting Mandates

Approved in Plenary Session as amended, 6/20/14

Be it resolved that when it is necessary to choose between conflicting mandates in The United Methodist Book of Discipline in regards to ministry with people of differing sexual orientation and gender identity, The California-Nevada Annual Conference believes that the mandates of inclusion, such as

"inclusiveness denies every semblance of discrimination" (�140), and
"In carrying out its primary task, it (the local church) shall be organized so that adequate provision is made for these basic responsibilities... 6) seeking inclusiveness in all aspects of its life." (�243), and
"All persons without regard to race, color, national origin, status, or economic condition, shall be eligible to attend its worship services, participate in its programs, receive the sacraments, upon baptism be admitted as baptized members, and upon taking vows declaring the Christian faith, become professing members in any local church in the connection (The Constitution, Division One, Paragraph 4 Article IV. Inclusiveness of the Church:"
"All persons, regardless of age, gender, marital status or sexual orientation are entitled to have their human and civil rights ensured" (�161f), and
"We implore families and churches not to reject or condemn lesbian and gay members and friends". (�161f)

take precedence over the discriminatory mandates of exclusion, such as

"The United Methodist Church does not condone the practice of homosexuality and considers this practice incompatible with Christian teaching." �161.f, and
"Ceremonies that celebrate homosexual unions shall not be conducted by our ministers and shall not be conducted in our churches. (�341.6).
"To ensure that no annual conference board, agency, committee, commission, or council shall give United Methodist funds to any gay caucus or group, or otherwise use such funds to promote the acceptance of homosexuality or violate the expressed commitment of The UMC 'not to reject or condemn lesbian and gay members and friends.' The council shall have the right to stop such expenditures..." �613.19

Further be it resolved, We believe that The Book of Discipline contradictions make it impractical to bring charges against any of our clergy for violating either the inclusionary or the exclusionary mandates.

This "resolution passed by voice vote, with only a few voting nay. It had passed the legislative section meeting by over 85% but was taken off the consent calendar by our more conservative members, but they had little support. 27 churches co-sponsored the resolution." Rev. Don Fado.

Praise be to God for this wonderful news! Prayers also that we may all find the compassion and love to hear and support each other in our differences so that we can be true children of God and disciples of Jesus.

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RECONCILING CORNER

REV. FRANK SCHAEFER

IS OFFICIALLY A UNITED METHODIST

CLERGYPERSON AGAIN

Less than six months after Schaefer's conference Board of Ordained Ministry took away his clergy credentials, an appeals committee of the Northeastern Jurisdiction of The United Methodist Church has reinstated him to clergy in good standing.

In a statement, Schaefer said, "I can't even begin to describe how meaningful this 'refrocking' is to me. I never did understand the severity of my punishment for an act of love for my son Tim. The committee of appeals understood that my defrocking sought to penalize me not for what I did but for what I might do in the future. But more importantly, today's decision by the committee is a hopeful sign for our LGBTQ community. They recognized that I was wrongfully punished for standing with those who are discriminated against."

Many in The UMC have walked beside Schaefer since he first received the complaint. Among those was Reconciling Ministries Network's Executive Director Matt Berryman. "Frank's act of Biblical Obedience in officiating his son's wedding exemplifies for the people called Methodist a more loving way to keep covenant with our vows to be in ministry with all people, avoid discrimination in every semblance, and fight injustice and oppression in all their sinful forms," said Berryman. "Today, by restoring Frank's credentials, The UMC affirmed Biblical Obedience as a means of grace."

In a statement, Rev. Scott Campbell, counsel for Schaefer said, "Every once in a while God raises someone up to live out a prophetic word in the midst of the church. Biblically speaking, the one chosen is almost always a surprise to the rest of us. This time God has taken a country preacher from a modest church in Pennsylvania and is doing something that is leaving veterans of the movement to change the United Methodist Church shaking our heads in amazement. Frank Schaefer's faithful, hope-filled, loving journey continues to inspire the rest of us, breathing new life into every corner of the church-even corners that contain trial courts and appeals committees. I know that I speak for countless others when I say that we are grateful and overjoyed at this outcome."

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KID'S CORNER

HEARTFELT THANKS

There are so many people who share their love and time with our kids by serving on our Family Life Team; telling wonderful stories and lessons for Children's Time; sharing their love with kids in Sunday school and providing child care after church. We can't thank you enough!

Linda Allan, Heather Boone, Robin and Steve Brown, Anne Colby, Robin and Bill Coolidge, John Davenport, Diane Gunderson, Margaret Healy, Karin Jones, Marguerite Li, Irma Martin, Claudia Norby, Gayle Pickrell, Barb Sayler, Ron Simpson, Emily Stockert and Glo Wellman.

SUMMER TOPIC FOR KIDS

Our Sunday school theme for July continues to be about prayer and God's love.

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Summer Sunday Potluck Brunches

Enjoy sunshine and good company at potluck Sunday Brunches on the second Sunday each month right after church. (Communion Sundays)

Sunday, July 13th
Sunday, August 10th

Adult Sunday Conversations will not meet on those Sundays.

Questions? Contact Anne Colby.

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WOMEN'S BOOK GROUP

Wednesday, August 13th @ 7pm

This group meets the 2nd Wednesday of every month, 7pm, at Anita Pitzer's home. For more information, contact Anita.

We will not have book group in July. Call Anita for our movie get-together. The book for August 13 is Jeannette Wall's Half Broke Horses.

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NEWS FROM ELISHA'S PANTRY

Christ Church will lead Elisha's Pantry in July. We have room for a few more people to sign up to distribute food on Thursdays or shop on Wednesdays.

Below is a report from the Redwood Empire Food Bank about Hunger Action Day at the Capitol.

HUNGER ACTION DAY

Hunger Action Day was a great success again this year! Five volunteers representing different agencies joined REFB staff in Sacramento to lobby for hunger relief policies. REFB representatives joined over 200 clients, volunteers, and staff members from all over California. The event was organized through the group CHAC, California Hunger Action Coalition, and led by food banks all over California. We met with staff from Noreen Evans, Lois Wolk, and Marc Levine's offices. We also were able to sit down for an extended interview with both Assembly members Wesley Chesboro and Mariko Yamada.

We were joined in Chesboro's office by Andrew Cheyne, the new Policy Director at the California Association of Food Banks, whose mission is to support the 41 food banks in California by sharing food resources, increasing visibility of hunger and its solutions, and influencing public policy. As we from the REFB told stories about hunger, Andrew backed us up with statistics and details of specific legislation.

Some of the bills we supported include increasing the State Emergency Food Fund. Aligning MediCal and CalFresh so it is easier to apply for food stamps, and restoring SSI/SSP funding for the disabled. If you are interested in learning more about Advocacy, go to our website www.refb.org and click on the "How you can help" link to find out more about how you can get involved.

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JOIN AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL

Reminder

There is a very easy way to help others through Amnesty International. You can sign letters and petitions bringing attention to the many injustices around the world.

For more information about how to sign petitions and letters, please go to www.amnestyusa.org.

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The Rummage Sale Is Coming!

SATURDAY,

AUGUST 2, 2014

It's almost here! We have been talking about this event for months and now it is just around the corner. It's time to clean out your drawers and storage spaces, garages and spare rooms, to simplify and reorganize and then donate all the extras to the sale. Don't forget to ask your friends, neighbors and co-workers to donate (and tell them about the sale).

With help from all of you, we can make this the best sale ever. There are jobs to fit everyone. If you will be on vacation- there are jobs to do before the sale. If you can't do physical work, we can give you tasks that fit your needs. We can use you for an hour or for weeks. We just need everyone to do some part. There are signup sheets at church or contact Myra Gaiser.

We are getting a head start again this year and will set up on Monday July 21 and begin sorting. We will do the sorting work from July 21-August 1 and will generally work between 10 and 6.

All donations must be at the church by Thursday July 31 so we can be ready for the crowds on Saturday. For help bringing in large items, leave a message for Bob Gaiser or leave a message in the church office.

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CELEBRATIONS AND CONGRATULATIONS

Barb Sayler leading children
on Music Sunday.

Farewell celebration
for Barb Sayler

Bill & Austin Coolidge

All Church BBQ Potluck
Friday, June 27, 2014

Wayne & Darlene Davis'
60th Wedding Anniversary

Face Painting

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BEAM GRANT ANNOUNCED

The recipient of The B. E. A. M. Grant FOR 2014 was Dave Allen for a grant to update the audiovisual system in the Sanctuary. He will suspend the projector from the ceiling in a permanent location and will wire it around the room to a sound and visual console in front of the current sound room. He will be in consultation with Ray Magnuson, World Harvest Congregation, (who would like to permanently wire their large speakers), and anyone else who has expertise and would like to help.

THANKS DAVE ALLEN!

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Being a part of the Christ Methodist Preschool Family, we would like to ask you to spread the word in the excitement of the upcoming Summer School and Fall enrollment. If you know anyone with young children please let them know about our wonderful school! Thank you for being a part of CMP!

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There are so many of you that serve Christ Church...without mentioning a word about it.

Thanks this week to Ray Magnuson and Ted Wilmsen for re-attaching the cabinet in the Sound Closet which was close to falling off the wall.
Thanks to Glo Wellman for stepping in to schedule preachers while Pastor Amy Beth is on leave.
Thanks to our Trustees and Cindy for making sure we have a strong rental program, keeping up with its many details.

Thanks to Linda Carroll and all of our pantry volunteers who pick up and provide food for individuals in need on these hot summer days.

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In our Prayers...

"God does nothing except in response to believing prayer."

~John Wesley

Hannah Seitz (Sally Seitz' daughter)
Marguerite Li
Bob & Janet Smith, Annika & family
Joan Niebank
Durward family
Coolidge family (Mikey and Austin)
Pamela Fitz Rodriguez
George & Jean Houser
Our church family & community
Friends, families & neighbors struggling financially
Military personnel & their families
Our government leaders

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PRAYER CHAIN

One of the ways that we care for each other here at Christ Church is through prayer. We have a team of people who regularly pray for folks who are in need of spiritual and physical healing. Would you like to join those folks who pray daily for others in need?

Would you like more prayers for yourself or people you are close to? Our prayer chain members feel honored to receive prayer requests from you

. Contact Darlene Davis.

We also welcome written prayer requests you can put in the offering plate on Sundays. Prayer request cards are in the "Gray Pad' folder.

We have listed names above so that we might all be in prayer for each other.

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"The glow of one warm thought is to me worth more than money."

-- Thomas Jefferson