A Note from Pastor Susan

Dear Ones, How in the world are you? I hope you are finding your way with God and each other. I hope you are following the Light. This week, our kids begin a new, uncharted course. School, in whatever form is available, begins. Whether you have children or not, I ask us to unite in prayer for the children, teachers, aides, administrators, janitors - whoever is involved with the education of our children, youth or young adults this week. The Bible says that the prayers of the righteous are powerful. Let's flex our prayer muscle for the blessing of all those who are teaching and learning together. Dear God, This is the day You have made, we will rejoice and be glad in it. It doesn’t look like we thought it would look, nor will tomorrow and the days to come be the way we expected and prepared for. Help us to see the good in each day. Help us to find reasons to rejoice and ways to be glad. Litter our lives with moments of laughter and lightheartedness, even in these uncertain and trying times. Birthdays still happen each day. The sun keeps coming up, and You remain the same. We are created in Your image, God, to do good and great things to bring glory to Your name. Each one of us, both teacher and student, were created with specific purpose. Help teachers to have confidence in their craft. They were meant to teach, educate, coach, counsel and lead. They are needed, appreciated, and loved. Their work and their efforts are never in vain. Help students to focus, but find fun, even in the midst of mistakes and unknowns. Lead them in new ways of learning, connecting and seeing the world. Give them the gift of your Spirit to inspire and be agents of inspiration to their teachers, their family and their friends. When it is hard to see the good, grab our attention, Father. When we are sad and miss school, our normal routine and activities, encourage our spirits. Sustain us through our fear and place in us your peace, God. Remind us we are not alone, even when we feel isolated. Remind us each day that you are with us, and because of that, WE SHALL LIVE IN HOPE. In Jesus' name, Amen. His... and Yours, Pastor Susan

The Grapevine Weekly Newsletter of La Plata United Methodist Church

August 27, 2020

In This Issue IMPORTANT DATE CHANGE- SUNDAY Night Tailgate Party LPUMW Lunch Bunch ABR Circle Sisters Face Mask Fashion Show Our Kids Need YOU The Daily Dose Food Booth Revival - Completed! Edelen Family Message from Papua, Indonesia Charles County Cares Initiative Prayer Mask Ministry - Thank You! DIY Face Masks We Are One Text Your Tithe Kids’ Korner COVID-19 Parenting Let’s Celebrate! Let Us Pray A Prayer For Our Students Facebook Find

3 Port Tobacco Road La Plata, MD 20646

301.934.2288 laplataumc.org

laplataumc@gmail.com

Senior Pastor: Rev. Dr. Susan E. Boehl

Summer Sunday Worship Service:

10am Facebook Live Online Worship

Courage Corner

Courage is the ability to do what frightens you. It’s the willingness to step into fear,

discomfort or uncertainty.

Text Your Tithe

Text 844-905-2671 enter the amount as the message

and send the text

Important Date Change! Church Family! Due to the weather expected on our Tail Gating Date, this event has been RESCHEDULED. We will NOT be gathering on Sat, Aug 29. We WILL be gathering on Sun, Aug 30 at 5:30pm. We will share in a short service of scripture, prayer, and praise and then share a meal that we bring with us, being socially distanced and responsible with masks, and hand sanitizer. Though there will be NO sharing of food, drink, utensils, etc, there WILL be a lot of sharing of waves, well-wishes, fellowship and laughter. Call the church office at 301-934-2288 or sign up with the SignUp Genius email you should have received. Looking forward to seeing you SUNDAY!

Karyl Beveridge & Rollie & Harryette Hower are celebrating the arrival of their new

granddaughter, Aria Jade Hower, born on July 17 to parents,

Cameron and Melanie Hower. Aria weighed 10lbs. 14 ounces at birth.

LPUMW Lunch Bunch Good News LPUM Women! We've had a great idea. Lunch Bunch General Membership will meet on Sept 22 at 12pm for a lunch meeting at beautiful Tilghman Lake here in La Plata. Bring some lunch, a mask, and a chair or plan to sit at one of the picnic tables beneath the pavilion. We'll properly distance of course. Let's just enjoy a good visit in a natural setting, Carolyn Roger's program from the new guide, and getting through a little business. I can't wait to see you. Kathy Cox, 301-385-5789.

ABR Circle Sisters Face Mask Fashion Show After a 5-month break, the ABR Sisters will finally meet again Sept 3 at 10am under the church bell tower with the following NEW guidelines: • Wear your most fashionable face mask – we will

have a Social Distancing Mask Fashion Show! • Bring a lawn chair for sitting. • Plan to ALWAYS stay 6 ft. from your sisters – • resisting the loving urge to HUG. • Refreshments will NOT be served and we may not

be able to go inside the building, so plan accordingly.

After a brief spiritual devotional, we will discuss possible activities for the future that will fit within the health and safety Covid-19 guidelines. It will be awesome to see of our sisters in Christ again! Put the date on your calendar. As usual, new members are always welcome!

Proverbs 3:5-6 Trust in the Lord with all your heart,

and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will

make straight your paths.

The Grapevine Editor: Sherri Hastings

Publisher: Karen Hamner Send articles to news@laplataumc.org

Weekly deadline for submitting articles is Wed. at 4pm.

This Past Week

367

198

Facebook Views Preacher’s Pop Up Prayer

Church Income

$ $ $ $

10,267.00 5,717.50

16,938.00 14,859.00

July 19 & 26 Aug 2 Aug 9

Aug 16 & 23

Our Kids Need YOU La Plata Church is committed to the spiritual nurture of all, but our children are especially close to our hearts and minds. Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me”. Children and Youth are our greatest resource and blessing. They are not only the future of the Church, they are the PRESENT! We continue in our search for a Director of Christian Education and Youth Ministries. Because of the current situation with the COVID-19 crisis, though persons have expressed interest, this position remains unfilled. To remind everyone of employment opportunity: This is a 20 hr/wk PART-TIME staff position, overseeing our Sunday School program and Youth ministry. Applicants should submit a resume and references. At least one year experience working with children and/or youth or comparable training is preferred. If you have a heart for children and youth or know someone who does and may have an interest, please contact the church office for more information. Position specifics are available upon request. Deadline for applicants is Oct 1. Until this position is filled, we are asking for volunteers to help stay connected with our children and youth. This is vital, since there will be no in-person Sunday School or Youth Group for the Fall Term. Even if you are not interested in this part time, paid position, would you be willing to give an hour a week to meet with our children or youth for a time of conversation, activity, laughter, or just to hear about their day? If you care about the younger members of our church family, call the church office and say YES to serve God by walking alongside our kids in this challenging and uncertain time. Thank you!

Don’t miss the Preacher’s Pop-Up Prayer on FB Live! Thurs at 7pm!

The Daily Dose

Food Booth Revival - Completed! Joey Hastings is finished working on his Eagle Scout Project to remodel the Charles County Fairgrounds food booth! The finishing touches were added this week. Three new tables were assembled and some older tables were power washed. All were placed back into the re-designed floor layout for better efficiency. Archie Verdiglione reinstalled the electrical lines and John Donaldson is installing a donated tankless hot water heater and re-routing the interior and exterior propane lines. A new vinyl screen door was installed too. If you had intended to donate, but were not able to due to the Covid shutdown, donations can still be accepted in 2 ways: • GoFundMe at gf.me/u/xmw8qi • Mail a check made out to BSA Troop 1321 and write in the memo line “Joey Hastings Eagle Project”

BSA Troop 1321, 9800 Penns Hill Road, La Plata, MD 20646 Any money received above what is needed for the project will be used for other upgrades that the church will be doing to the food booth. Thank you to all that have donated financially or volunteered their time. Our goal is to create a better working environment for volunteers. In addition, the new interior table/appliance layout will increase the efficiency of food service. This will allow us to potentially increase the income from the food booth and provide services/support for our missions to the community.

Edelen Family Message from Papua, Indonesia This is a message from the Edelen family, who is working with Wycliff Bible Translators. Our church supports their efforts through our financial donations. Dear Friends, Now more than ever we feel like we are "in times of trouble." But we just want to praise God for how He has guided and smoothed the way for us to return to Papua. Join us in thanking God for such a smooth transition, and pray with us for the year ahead! Praises for traveling mercies!

• Quick Covid-19 test results which were required for travel.

• We all remained healthy with no colds or symptoms from our Covid-19 test day all the way through arriving in Papua a week later! Showing symptoms would have had us stuck somewhere in between for a long time.

• Lots of extra space on all flights due to Covid-19 distancing rules.

• No baggage overweight fees on any flights. Usually our domestic flights have much lower weight

• allowances but they were waived this time!

• Super smooth transition in Jakarta airport where we had to undergo health screening, immigration, baggage pick-up, customs, domestic flight check-in, and security in just a couple of hours!

• No problems entering Indonesia under the special expired-visa rule!

• All baggage arrived safely.

• All layovers were short & painless. Let’s Keep Praying: We're missing Beni and our Bayono friends, since COVID restrictions do not allow travel to village areas of Papua. But this is an opportunity to spend more time studying the Bayono language data we already have. Ask the Lord to grant much success in decoding this language.

Please continue to pray for Bastian, a young Christian Bayono man desiring to lead his family and community well in the ways of the Lord. May God grant him and his family good health and encouragement as he follows Jesus in his day to day life.

Please pray for our visa renewal to be ready this week here in Papua as anticipated.

Please pray for our son Mark as he begins his Automotive Tech school this week! He chose the Nissan training track. An old friend of the family donated a bunch of tools for Mark to use as he starts his career, and tuition is covered by grants and scholarships! Praise the Lord! Email Mark with some encouragement!!markeedelen@gmail.com It is still hard to leave a son behind on the other side of the world. Please pray for him to have a good transition and to connect with godly friends.

Edelen Family Message (continued) The rest of us are on a required two week quarantine after traveling, so that means online schooling followed by hybrid in-person and online schooling. Medical care in Papua is extremely limited and as you encounter Covid-19 issues in the USA, please remember to pray for us and for the Papuan people who live in a much more communal way with very little medical care available. Plane tickets and living abroad aren't cheap! So we're very thankful for those of you who partner with us financially each month or from time to time as you feel led by the Lord. We have some extra expenses this season and ask that you would consider being a part of God's provision for them. A big shout out to Truth Bible Church's VBS for sponsoring Luke's plane ticket costs! Thank you! If you're interested in helping out in a similar way, click the link below. Thanks for praying about this. Send a special gift to help with the Edelens’ extra expenses at https://www.wycliffe.org/partner/edelens The Lord is our shepherd and we trust in His good plan. Thank you for partnering with us! Matt, Caroline, Mark (at Regent University), Micah, Elijah, and Luke Sentani, Papua, Indonesia matthew_edelen@wycliffe.org

“Charles County Cares” Initiative End Hunger in Charles County, LifeStyles, and other organizations continue to work with the community to provide food, toiletries and information about resources during this COVID 19 Crisis through: • Community Cabanas • Meal deliveries • School meal sites • Curb-side Food Pantries • Groceries • Hot meals The following volunteer opportunities available are: • Sign-up to volunteer to help in the Community Cabanas at: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/508094FA4A92BA4FB6-charles1 • Donate food for the Anytime Bags/Lunch Bags, toiletries, and items for hygiene kits. Please call LifeStyles or End Hunger to schedule delivery. Donations can be made daily from 8:00am – 4:00pm. You can also make a monetary donation. Checks should be made payable to End Hunger in Charles County. Please write COVID19 food in the memo line and drop it off at the Fuller House located at 3470 Rockefeller Ct., Waldorf, MD 20202. If you have any questions, or would like more information, please call End Hunger in Charles County at 301-383-3683 or LifeStyles at 301-609-9900.

Getting Prepared to Re-Open: DIY Face Masks As La Plata UMC prepares to re-open its doors, we want you to be prepared too. Everyone entering the building will need to wear a face mask to meet the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines. While fabric face masks are not as effective as the CDC-approved ones, like surgical masks or N-95 respirators, wearing a mask can help prevent the transmission of the COVID-19 virus from people that are contagious without knowing it. Here are quick and easy instructions for making the CDC’s no-sew face mask with supplies you likely have at home: What you need:

a bandana or a piece of cotton fabric cut 22” x 22” (Note: The best fabric is tightly woven, 100% cotton) a flat coffee filter two rubber bands or hair ties

What to do: Lay out the bandana or fabric Fold bandana in half Place the coffee filter in the center of the rectangle Fold the top and bottom in towards the center. Fold the sides in towards the center. At the folded creases, loop your rubber bands or hair ties. Tuck one end of the fabric into the other. Lift the mask to your face and secure the straps by looping the rubber bands or hair ties over each ear. Adjust as needed. Make sure that your mouth and nose are completely covered.

We Are One La Plata UMC is a church family and when one hurts, we all hurt. If this extended time of hardship has impacted you in financial ways, we want to help. Please call the Pastor or Karen at the church office number and let us know. Your information will remain confidential and NO ONE except the pastor and/or our Administrator will be informed. La Plata Church wants to walk alongside you!

Prayer Mask Ministry - Thank You! Thanks to the Prayer Mask Ministry team, we have 110 masks for adults and 62 masks for children ready for the happy day we can safely reopen the church building and worship together. More masks will be coming in in the days ahead. Huge thanks and blessings to all our LPUMC sewing women! To help in this effort, contact Kathy Cox at mrskathylcox@yahoo.com or call 301-385-5789. Thank you.

Text your Tithe

In less time than it takes to write a check, you can make weekly offerings by sending a text message. Just read the instructions below of how to get started and you can continue to support the work of our church by texting your tithe.

Kids’ Korner

Children’s Bible Activity Sheets

Thursday, Aug 27 Leland Rogers Jessica Stone Saturday, Aug 29 Aubree Della-7 Karen Hamner Arden Wyrick-10 Sunday, Aug 30 Joseph Boswell Brittany Grace Harold Hayes

Monday, Aug 31 Emily Boggs Quinn Kober-7 Wednesday, Sept 2 Jason Groth Friday, Sept 4 John & Ava Knott-44 Emmalie Chiusano-7 Debbie Simmons

Saturday, Sept 5 Thomas Hall Meighan Hungerford Carol Teets Sunday, Sept 6 Jason & Beth Groth-12 Mark Mudd John Sorenson

For our friends and family who are living in nursing homes,

Jimmy Allen Tom Berry Wade Beswick Karyl Beverage Frank Brinson Patricia Buckler Sue Carns Jennifer Carpenter Jerome Church Cathy Compton Harolly Coombs Joyce Dean Sandra Fykes Maggie Gates Remy Zachary Gordon Carl Greene

Randy Hill Christina Kingsbury Francis Lewis Patti Lincoln Donna McKenzie Ed McKenzie Johnny McPherson Renee Nash Carl Occhipinti Frank Quinn Frederick A. Reckeweg Mary Beth Reckeweg Bonnie Richards John Richards Melissa Faith Rollins Crystal Rupprecht

Patty Rupprecht Donna Sarnacki Tabitha Schneider Bill Sigmon Carol Sorenson Rosalie Snyder Larry Spencer Don Stapleson Michael Stewart Brian Thomason Bill Tull Jeanette Tull Sandy Tull Linda Valente Mike Williams

Let Us Pray

Ann Bergerstock Lennis Bridgett

Iris Dickerson Mike Merritt

Cora Westmoreland

Our Law Enforcement Officers as they risk their lives each day to protect their communities. Medical personal as the put their lives at risk caring for those with Covid19. Researchers as they strive to develop a cure for this virus. The leaders of our country, may the Holy Spirit be present at every meeting as they keep us informed. Our Pastors as they continue to find new ways to minister to their flock and keep us all connected. For each other that Christ will calm our fears and keep us safe.

Continue to pray for:

Let’s Celebrate! Birthdays & Anniversaries

For our friends and family who have medical issues:

A Prayer For Our Students

Author Unknown

Facebook Find

Lord, thank you for the unique gifts of every child as they transition

into a new school year. Fill each student with fresh

enthusiasm and a heart that is excited to learn and grow.

Cover them with your enduring love, give them confidence and grace, and equip them with the ability

to persevere through trials. Bless their teachers with wisdom,

understanding, and a heart to serve, as they embark on the journey together!

Amen!