Events

Contact Us

Christmas Music Opportunities

For details, contact Pauline Fox at 570-223-9889 or foxes@esumc.net
Sunday Dec. 13 Choir rehearses 7:45 a.m. for 8:30 service, with guest
conductor Patrick Mertz. More singers are welcome!
Tuesday Dec. 15 Youth Bells Are Back! We expect to play on Christmas
Eve at the 7:00 service, but are looking for 3 more ringers, 5th grade and up,
to complete our group. Rehearse every Tuesday, 5:30-6:15 in Bell Room.
Helpful if you can already read music! Contact Chris Perfetti at 610-442-8277
or perfetti3@ptd.net.

Church Office
(570) 421-3280
church@esumc.net
Hours: 9 am to 3 pm
Mon thru Fri
Pastor
Jim Todd
jtodd@esumc.net
Ext. 1014

Sunday Dec. 20 Wind and string instruments play familiar carols in

Oberholtzer Hall balcony between morning sessions, 9:30-9:45 and 10:3010:45. From 5th grade students in a school band, through adult. This is a
favorite event with many listeners and players! Ask Pauline Fox for music.

Secretary
Maria Ragonese
mragonese@esumc.net
Ext. 1010

Christmas Eve Bells at 7:00 p.m. service. Choir at 10 p.m. service.

Congregational Care
Peggy Strack
pstrack@esumc.net
Ext. 1023
Youth Ministries
Scott Kuhnle
skuhnle@esumc.net
Ext. 1013
Childrens Ministries
Erica Dorsch
edorsch@esumc.net
Ext. 1017
Finances
Sue Mertz
smertz@esumc.net
Ext. 1015
Financial Secretary
Cyndie Faunce
cfaunce@esumc.net
Ext. 1025
Maintenance
William Mack
wmack@esumc.net
Ext. 1018

Recovery Meetings Available in The Community Room of Office Building

Basement
NA MEETINGS Monday through Saturday 12:00 P.M. to 1:30 P.M.
Just for Today
Wednesday 6:00 P.M. to 7:30 P.M.
New Beginnings (Womens Group)
AA MEETINGS Thursday & Saturday 8:00 P.M. to 9:00 P.M.
Keep It Simple

Scan QR to ESUMC Website

East Stroudsburg United Methodist Church

83 S. Courtland St.
East Stroudsburg, PA 18301
www.esumc.net

Organist/Traditional
Music
Pauline Fox
foxes@esumc.net
Audio/Visual
Joe Dorsch
josephdorsch@gmail.com
Contemporary Music
Doug Malefyt
dmalefyt@esumc.net
Technology Support
Michael Corey
mcorey@esumc.net
Ext. 1012

THE TRUMPET CALL

East Stroudsburg United Methodist Church

December 13, 2015

No Innkeeper

Our Vision
To challenge and encourage everyone in our congregation to know and follow
Christ by:
Growing as disciples through Christs teachings
Connecting with one another in Christian community
Serving Christ by serving others
Praising God as we worship Christ

Sunday Services
Traditional 8:30 am
Contemporary 10:45 am
Sunday School/Discipleship Classes 9:45 am

I got to thinking about what would

have happened if Mary and
Joseph arrived in Bethlehem only
to find that the Innkeeper had not
been available. They certainly
would not have been
presumptuous and gone to the
stable without an invitation or
direction.
How does this thought relate to our
church? We need volunteers to
serve for Christmas Eve to help
those coming to be warmly
greeted and directed. Please
consider this act of hospitality to
usher or greet at the 4, 7, or 10
pm service.
Contact Kathy Hinkey at
k_hinkey@hotmail.com or
570.236.8183.

Pastors Corner
First, I want to give a big shout out to the Mission Team for the great work they did
last Sunday, December 6, to prepare for the Mission Fair. Pat Braun and the team
she coordinates did a fantastic job with helping our missionaries and representatives
get Fellowship Hall organized and set up. We all learned so much about the partner
organizations both from their booths as well as from the spoken word from four
organizations in each worship service. We give to things we get excited about and
the ones we believe are truly changing lives. When we hear transformative stories
first-hand, we want to give. I pray that each of us will be generous this season to
Faith Promise and Imagine No Malaria.
This coming weekend is no less exciting, as we will see many children coming to our Breakfast with
St. Nicholas on Saturday morning from 9:00 a.m. to Noon. Children in the East Stroudsburg School
District were all invited, so we are preparing for many young families to show up. Sunday evening is
family movie night in Oberholtzer Hall, and you can come and view Elf with family and friends. Please
continue to use the red colored postcards to invite your neighbors and co-workers to all of our
activities and especially worship.
Speaking of worship, this Sunday well be considering how Jesus revealed to us the love of God in
the forgiveness he brought to earth. I think you can agree with me that in this very divisive world, we
need to hear more about, and practice more love, grace, and forgiveness. If you read the New
Testament carefully, you see that Jesus always links our ability to forgive others with Gods
willingness to forgive us. Well explore this concept more on Sunday morning at both worship
services.
(Continued on page 2)

(Continued from page 1)

We also have a great Advent study going on each Thursday night,

beginning with a dinner in Fellowship Hall, then moving into
Oberholtzer for video and small group discussion. Dinner begins at
6:00 p.m. and is a simple meal of soup, bread, and salad. The
video begins at 6:45 p.m., and includes both youth and adults.
Then the youth break off for their discussion in the youth area as
the adults stay behind for their discussion. The title is, Sent, and
explores how God sent his son, Jesus, into our world, and sends
us as Christs hands and feet into a hurting world to help others
and share the message of Christs reconciling love. Since the final
Thursday would have been Christmas Eve, we have moved the
final session to Sunday evening, December 20, also from 6:00-8:00
p.m.
There is one more meaningful activity I want to lift up. On Monday,
December 21 at 7:00 p.m, the Cherry Lane UMC will host a Blue
Christmas Service. This is especially geared to those who have
suffered loss and are having a difficult time experiencing the joy of
Christmas. This is a quiet, reflective service which can help people
deal with their grief and loss. If this is something that interests you,
please let me know as I intend on attending the service and can
take a van full of people that evening. I hope to see you this
Sunday in worship!
Pastor Jim

Family Movie Night--Christmas Edition

Sunday December 13th
5:30 - 7:30pm in Oberholtzer Hall.
This is a free event, with a family friendly
PG rated Christmas movie. Elf.

Church-Wide Study
Christmas Eve
Candlelight Services

Photo Caption
Stephen Ministry

Testimony
Hear the words of a care receiver
regarding their Stephen Ministry
experience:
When my Stephen Minister and I began
our relationship, I really didnt have any
expectations. I believed I was following
Gods leading in accepting help. During
the course of our visits, I came to expect
the love and caring that is evident in my
Stephen Minister. Having someone that
truly cared about me who was not
emotionally involved in my situation was
most meaningful. My relationship with
God has grown as a result of listening to
my Stephen Minister pray for me. I strive
to be able to pray in the manner that
makes one feel they are surrounded by
Gods love and grace. I would absolutely
recommend Stephen Ministry to a friend.
Our time together was awesome.

Members of ESUMC who are no longer

This is a great opportunity to invite your family, friends, and

neighbors to a fun night at ESUMC! Invitation Postcards are
available in the youth room.
Advent Study, Sent, The study continues on Thursday evening December 17, and Sunday evening December 20.
We begin with a simple meal in Fellowship Hall beginning at
6:00 p.m., then move into Oberholtzer for a brief video and
small group sharing around 6:45 p.m. We will be on our way
home by 8:00 p.m. The cost of the accompanying book for the
study is $10.00. If you are not able to afford the book, one will
be provided to you.

Classes to be held on Sundays and

throughout the week at various times/places

4:00 PM Childrens
7:00 PM Family
10:00 PM Communion

For more information about Stephen

Ministry, please contact Peggy Strack,
570-421-3280, ext. 1023.

All ages are welcome--there will also be

free popcorn and soda!!

January 10th - 31st

able to attend church, always enjoy

hearing from you! Cards and notes of
encouragement may be sent to:

Elinor & Carl Imbt

924 Mt Zion Ave.
Stroudsburg, PA 18360-9792
Hearing Assistance
Devices are Here!

ESUMC now owns several hearing

assistance devices which can be worn to
improve your ability to hear our worship
services. Please contact an usher to pick
up your hearing assistance device and
return to an usher after use.

Sign-up in Oberholtzer Hall Today!

Zumba Gold Returns to ESUMC!

As of Thursday, January 7, 2016,
Zumba Gold Classes will return to
ESUMC. They will be held weekly on
Thursdays at 10:00 a.m. Our
wonderful instructor, Cheryl Feder has
gotten the go ahead from her doctor to
start teaching again. So come out and
join us on the 7th to welcome her back
and start dancing again.

Chair Zumba Anyone?

At our womens retreat in November,
we offered a wonderful Chair-Zumba
Class; all the fun of regular Zumba
without having to stand on your
feet. This is great for anyone who has
physical limitations or for folks that
have a hard time standing for long
periods of time. During the month of
January, we will be running 4
consecutive classes on Fridays at
11:00 a.m. The dates are as
follows: January 8th, 15th, 22nd and
29th. Attendance will determine
whether there is enough interest to
have classes on are regular basis so if
you are interested, please come
out!!! Our own Cheryl Feder will be
instructing along with her Zumba
partner Danny Grae. Price is $6 ($5
church members).

SWAT and HIKING: No SWAT or

hiking in the month of December.

SWAT will resume the 4th Monday of
January. Hiking will also resume in
January (date to be announced.)

The Joyful Noises Quartet still has

CDs for sale. Donation is $10 and $3

goes back to the ESUMC
Missions. These would make
wonderful stocking stuffers. See Doug,
Pete, or Bob, and dont wait too long
there are not many left.

If you are a member or regular attender at ESUMC, reflect back to why you
chose to become part of our church family! Did someone welcome you in a
special way? Were you invited to become part of a small group or to serve in
a particular area of ministry that has now become a very meaningful part of
your life? Did you experience the love of Jesus through our church body?
According to Adam Hamilton, pastor of The Church of the Resurrection, the
largest United Methodist congregation in the USA and co-author of the
CATCH Invitational Evangelism program, it is likely that at least 50 percent of
the people in our community are not active in a church family. Hamilton challenges us to continue the mission of Jesus. We need to cast our nets wide
and fish for the people in our communities. We need to seek out the lost and
bring back the stray. They need to know that Jesus loves them!
Perhaps the gift you can give to Jesus on His birthday, is to say YES to participating in the CATCH program in January! This is a 4-week video based
study...no homework except to read a short daily devotional reading and then
discuss the readings at your weekly gathering. Cost of the book is $9.00.
Sign up today!
Peggy Strack

Youth Ministry Christmas Schedule:

Sunday December 13th, 5:30 - 7:30pm: Family Movie Night--Christmas
Edition.
Monday December 14th, 6:30 - 8:30pm: Sr. High Bible Study Group delivering
Angel Tree presents to families.
Thursday December 17th: Christmas Movie Day at JAM Afterschool Program
Sunday December 20th, 6:00 - 8:00pm: Annual Youth Ministry Christmas Party
(Youth, Volunteers, parents, and families welcome)
Monday December 21st, 6:30 - 8:30pm: Sr. High Bible Study at Scott and
Sarah's home.
Thursday December 24th: NO JAM/Fellowship Meal/Jr. High Bible Studies
Thursday December 24th: Christmas Eve Worship Services
Sunday December 27th: No Sports Ministry and Sunday Night Youth Program
Monday December 28th, 2:00 - 6:00pm: Sr. High Bible Study Serves at
ESUMC Community Meal, followed by fellowship time at Scott and Sarah's 6:00 8:00pm
Thursday December 31st: NO JAM/Fellowship Meal/Jr. High Bible Studies