Youth Group: Exploring the Sermon on the Mount

  Youth Group Program: The Sermon on the Mount  (January 15-January 29)

           These three weeks in January we will get back to the heart of Jesus’ teaching. In this Sermon, and 3 chapters of the Good News of Matthew, he wraps up the focus of his ministry while stretching us to our limits. How can it be so simple and so difficult all at the same time? Let’s find out!

“The Beatitudes” (January 15)  Matthew 5.1-12

      Why does God bless these people? There isn’t anything special about them…or is there?

      How do we as Christians live this contradiction?

“Salty Crackers & God’s Law” (January 22)  Matthew 5.13-20

     Why does Jesus speak of salty crackers & flashlights? What does that have to do with us and how we live out our faith?

“When Promising to Murder your Enemy is Just Plain Wrong” (January 29)   Matthew 5.21-26

     Why is Jesus waisting his time speaking about murder when it’s already covered in the 10 commandments?

      What is Jesus really getting at?

Why a rummage sale encapsulates everything good about a church.

We did it…the entire congregation at San Carlos UMC came together to support an event that brings out the best in what a church can and should be. In the hours and days following this year’s rummage sale (our first in over 10 years AND the beginning of an annual happening) I heard many questions about the sale: How did it go? Was it successful?…All questions essentially leading to the bottom line of; how much money did you make? Well, we did make $3,627, modest gains in terms of what other church’s have made recently or even the amounts that this congregation has logged in our record books. However, as you may already know, success of an “event” isn’t measured by the bottom line. Success is measured by much more, and I would like to share some of that with you.

                I qualify this event as enormously successful because in my humble opinion it highlights everything good about a church. For an event/ministry to be successful it needs to incorporate and engage a large percentage of the congregation, more than the few amazing souls in our community that always dedicate their time, energy, and gifts to the church. By my count, or rough estimate, when you count the people who donated, volunteered, and shopped there were easily over 200 participants…amazing!!!

                Secondly, without getting into the finer details or political discussion of where we find ourselves in our world economically, we may all agree…Times are tough!  And yet we have people giving, and I don’t mean begrudgingly giving out of guilt, I mean giving with a smile on their face happy to free themselves of things they paid a lot of money for.  So people give freely, they give items the church can then sell at a very low price. Items that allow others in our community the opportunity to have clothing, shoes, baby supplies, books, towels, linens, toys, kitchen supplies, electronics, furniture, and the “nic-nac” that turns a house into a home.

                And so the church was able to take a week to look in their homes and decide if there were some things they could do without. People gave these items that at one time were important enough to spend tens, hundreds, and thousands of dollars.  The church then became a place the surrounding community could come and purchase items, like a market place. However, this wasn’t the type of market where Jesus would have been looking to turn over some tables and make a mess of the place. This was a market where others could benefit from paying for gently used items at a huge discount.

                Donating items and time to help make this rummage sale happen allowed the church to share a little bit of the material wealth we are blessed with in order to share in the humanity that God blesses us all with. James 2.15-16 reminds the faithful about this kind of sharing, a sharing that was accomplished through this year’s rummage sale.  A very big thank you to all who donated and participated!  Amen.

-Cody Clark

Massive Rummage Sale! Saturday October 8

     The collection of all donations has begun!

For the entire week of October 3-7 we will collect donations from Church & Preschool members in the San Carlos UMC-Youth & Education building. Collections times are 8:00am-5:00pm. Items to bring; clothing, furniture, toys, books, decor, linens, etc. Please remember to donate only items that are in “like new” or “new” condition.

    The sale is Saturday October 8 from 7:00-11:00am. See you there!

Let the Fall Begin!

   Officially another summer is behind us, and what an amazing time it was!

           School has begun and so too has the Fall schedule at SCUM-Youth!

  Our weekly offerings include:

Sunday:

       Faith Exploration 10:00-10:50am (Youth Building)

       Youth Group 5:00-7:00pm (Youth Building)

Thursday

       School Support & Dinner 3:00-6:00pm (Youth Building)

Friday

       Breakfast 6:00-7:00am (Youth Building)

Mission Trip 2011 Reflections

          After we had returned from our trip we had some time to relax and reflect on our experience. Below are some of the reflections from the youth…

“The mission trip was an unexpectedly different experience that changed me mentally and spiritually. And I had an overall good week and two days.”

“An experience like no other. Seeing the world from the perspective of group of people I wouldn’t interact with otherwise was eye opening, view changing, and life altering.”

“The mission trip was impactful but not in the way I expected. Instead of learning about myself by doing huge and powerful things, I learned by seeing how I react to stressful situations.”

“The mission trip wasn’t what I expected it would be. Honestly, I’m proud of how much I had done for Jacqueline no matter how hot it was. But the variety of food we got wasn’t enough and it just wasn’t the experience I was expecting.”

“Overall the mission trip was a pretty good experience. I liked going down to Skid Row because that definitely changed my views on things. I also like helping people. But I feel it wasn’t as organized as it should have been, so I didn’t feel very productive. And the food situation wasn’t too great. But I’m glad I went!”

“It was a good experience and I felt like I was taking a step out of my comfort zone.”

“A refreshing experience that renewed my passion for community, love, and service.”

“My initial response is frustrating, unorganized, sloppy. When I stop and take a deep breathe, I look deeper into the trip. Letting go of the control is something I struggle with. I realized that regardless of what my issues were, I needed to give it over to God. My purpose of being a servant of Christ was being fulfilled. Being comfortable with self-sacrifice is part of living a Christian life. This trip helped me remember what is really important.”

MT ’11 Day #6

Without fail people are transformed by an experience of shared community. And when I say “shared” I mean it in every sense. We live, sleep, shower, eat, work, play, worship, laugh, and cry in a shared community. This breaks down so many of the barriers we build up for personal security.
Friday night was an opportunity for everyone to share what they will take from this week. It has not been easy, and it was never advertised to be so. But the strength and courage of youth will always be an inspiration to me. They are resilient, flexible, and always ready to meet a challenge head-on.
When Jesus says, “you must have faith like a child”, this must have been what he was talking about.
We didn’t build a house this week, but I am confident we layed a foundation of hope and promise that the youth can and will build on for the rest of their lives.

MT ’11 Day #5

Today is our last work day as we try to finish our group tasks or set it up for the crews coming next week.
Last night we focused on finding connections between a river and our faith journey. Are we walking along side the river? Are we ankle deep? Or have we jumped in? Is the water low and going at a safe speed or is the water rushing and deep?
The river can represent so many different aspects of our faith journey. And the beauty is that it is constantly moving and changing. This week has definitely opened our hearts to consider where we are along the river.

MT ’11 Day #4

Wednesday was a very different day for us and our normal schedule. We had the opportunity to go as two large groups to do some volunteer work. One group went to a community garden to help put in planter boxes so that people in wheel chairs could participate in gardening. The other group went and cleaned an alley. In less than an hour and a half the back of a 2 ton city truck was full of all sorts of trash.
We then went to the famous Mama’s Tamales shop across the street from McArthur park. Not only was the food amazing and the park beautiful but Mama told the story of how in 1998 there were 600 arrests in the park then with the help of a non-profit she started they were able to make the park a safer place. In 2005 the police chief told her there were Zero arrests.
We then rode a city bus to the Skid Row area of downtown LA. This is a 50 square block area designated by the city for homeless people to go. The youth passed out waters and had conversations with many of the people there. It was a truly overwhelming and impactful experience for everyone. We hope to post reflections from the youth soon!
We then spent the rest of the day at the beach. The community and connections that are being made with everyone is awesome!

MT ’11 Day #3

We rise this Wednesday morning and I sit here in the sanctuary at 7:00am to our youth coming to begin their day with a devotion. The scripture focuses on Jesus as the everlasting water, the water that gives generously and unending. These youth have touched that water this week and it empowers them to challenge themselves.
The increase of smiles, laughter, genuine community is so powerful.
The Lord’s prayer says, “Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in Heaven.” I can’t help but imagine that these experiences have brought us closer to Heaven, if only for a moment.

MT ’11 Day #1

We arrived at Vermont Square UMC surprisingly quick from San Carlos UMC. The SSP staff here is very nice and energetic. They all have a history of doing SSP both as campers and staff (which definitely means this is an awesome experience).
We have been split up into our small groups, which is very similar to family groups at camp. There are about 8 work sites which range from: Stripping paint, building handicap access ramps, working on a church, building a shed, and helping with a lady that owns 17 horses on a ranch in the middle of Compton to help youth stay out of gangs.
Everyone is totally excited and ready to get started!