Trinity UMC. To make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.

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1 To make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world. Trinity UMC Trinity United Methodist Church 838 North 25th Street Fort Dodge, IA facebook.com/trinityumcfortdodge October 2016 Our annual Mitten Tree will go up Saturday, September 24 through October 16, collecting warm mittens/gloves, hats and scarves for those less fortunate. Please donate some warm winter items! It's a great way to help out your community. Consecration Sunday will be Sunday, November 13! We are need of volunteers to help set up and clear tables along with cleaning up. If you are interested or have questions, please contact the office at Your help is greatly appreciated!

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3 Administrative Council Notes: The UMS has held 2 mission information events, cleaned the church kitchen and thoroughly cleaned all the toys in the Nursery. The Mission Committee met September 22 to work on getting the Ingathering Kits ready for delivery. Many persons have already donated items and money for the kits. Last year our church contributed kits and money of over $3000 for the Bishop s Ingathering. As financial arrangements can be made, the SPRC will be seeking applicants for a full-time Youth Work and Director of Education. Our annual Fall Stewardship emphasis will be held in October and November with Consecration Sunday being November 13. Mission and Ministry Plan goals for 2017 to be presented for approval at our Charge Conference Sunday, October 9 at 7:00 p.m. include (1) support and help our new pastor, (2) transparency of church needs to and resources available via publications; and (3) reestablish committees for ministry in our local church and beyond. The Administrative Council, composed of our pastors and chairpersons of the UMW and leadership committees, hopes that this information will not only inform, but also encourage your relationship with Trinity UMC. Ministry Opportunity On Thursday evening, October 6 at 6:30 pm, the Mission Committee needs volunteers to help pack UMCOR kits. Come have fun and make a difference!

4 LAUGHTER IS THE BEST MEDICINE by Pastor Blackwell When a child, I loved to read each new edition of Reader s Digest, among other magazines. I liked reading the human interest stories and the humorous anecdotes. On two occasions, I entered speech competitions and borrowed the phrase, My Most Unforgettable Character, that was found on its pages. One was about the famous sociologist, W. E. B. Du Bois, and the other was about Franklin W. Dixon s The Hardy Boys. I won first prize for the first and second prize for the second! One catchphrase I picked up from the pages of that magazine was Laughter Is the Best Medicine. While growing up under a strict father, I put one a very serious demeanor. It was the best way to protect myself. I got in trouble, however, many times particularly at the dinner table for making my siblings laugh. At school sometimes, I acted as the class clown because I did not have to prove that I was intelligent; after all, I was acing my classes and was continually on the honor roll. However, at home, my mother always saw me in torment, especially because of my father s fickle anger and his perpetual skinning my behind. As I was leaving for college, my mother pulled me aside and gave me the best advice she could have ever given me: You have a good sense of humor, so never forget to laugh! College was hard for me, because for the first time in my life I did not have a tyrant watching over me. As a matter of fact, I did not even know what to do with myself, for I was always ordered around. The freedom I finally experienced was so overwhelming that I developed a kind of agoraphobia and avoided meeting people for quite some time. Eventually, that would change, because I became a tutor in mathematics, English, and psychology. I worked at my undergraduate s school s psychology library on Saturdays, and had wonderful one-on-one conversations with a number of fellow students. Because I had read broadly as a youngster, I was regarded as being well-versed in many diverse subjects. I really never thought myself to be so knowledgeable, but a lot of people accorded me that flattering characterization. It has stuck until this day. It s kind of funny, for as I was leaving the University of Northern Iowa, my vice president at the time said to me that he thought I was the smartest person he knew! Really? What was he smoking? Perhaps, I have not employed the Aristotelian Golden Mean very well. I often laugh, even cackle or guffaw, at the wrong times. One evening, I went to a show at the Gallagher-Bluedorn Performing Arts Center at UNI, for my Center for Multicultural Education was sponsoring one of the shows. I thought the relationship between Pinkerton and Butterfly quite funny, much to the chagrin of a couple sitting in front of me. By the intermission, I was reported to an usher and even the individual accompanying me was clearly disappointed in my jocosity. Needless to say, because I was the sponsor of the show, I could not be thrown out! Oh, well. Laughter has helped me transcend some of the horror I have experienced in my life and in the lives of others. It has kept me sane. Good humor has enabled me to persist in my advocacy for the poor and in my ability to improve the quality of life of others. In a very real sense, it has served as a kind of balm or ointment amidst trying circumstances, and it has enabled me to bring cheer to others who have had seemingly very little about which to laugh. Hence, I can attest to the fact that laughter is, indeed, the best medicine. And, just think, I owe it all to that little magazine that appeared on the coffee table nearly every month: Reader s Digest! As it says in Proverbs 17:22, A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a downcast spirit dries up the bones.

5 The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends towards justice. Martin Luther King, Jr. In light of recent national events, and personal events that are confronting people I know [but who don t make headlines] I have been reflecting on Dr. King s observation. In spite of all the interpretations of justice, the notion has always been equated with fairness. But who defines fairness seems to me to be the key. What my family might call fair may NOT be what your family would call fair. What gets people in trouble these days is how big the circle is that we draw around us when we define fair treatment, AND who sets the rules for that treatment. I grew up thinking and have maintained all my life that God ultimately draws up the rules and the circle includes everyone. And I am often in trouble because not everyone has come to the same conclusion. Not everyone is willing to play by the rules I have agreed to play life by. For many, circles are not inclusive, rules don t apply to everyone. [ I can lie but others can t. I don t need to be informed but others do. I don t have to take responsibility for my mistakes but others do.] In particular, not everyone has the same understanding and expectations of God as I do. Rudolf Otto defined God as a tremendous mystery and set the stage for most of the serious faith work done during the last century. Furthermore, I have concluded that the way Jesus lived is the best source we have for understanding this tremendous mystery. I have also concluded that many people seem to have given up trying to understand this God who is other than us and that they often resort to projecting human qualities onto the tremendous mystery we call God. As a result, the moral universe is not Godly but is defined in human terms. Perhaps that is why it seems to bend so slowly toward justice and why fairness often seems so allusive. At any rate, I firmly believe God s rules are not always the rules we choose to live by and yet as Jesus lived out his life and demonstrated: God s attitude toward us gracious and His mercy is both profound and lasting! So I agree with Dr. King: The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends towards justice. - Pastor Ron Kitterman Marv Fedders Gene Joseph Boland Terry & Sue Ellis Gladys Long Ilene Smith Rowena Bastian Nick Montgomery Shane Corey Lloyd Corey George & Jean Montgomery Craig Hatlestad Rachel Bell Pastor John Hembry Carol Corey Ruth Ann Hazelbaker Joe Lennon Craig Kristensen Doris Ross We are currently updating our prayer requests. Please let us know if there is anyone you would like added. Thank you and have a blessed month! Service Men & Women TUMC College Students Give a call Show you care!

6 Nonprofit Organization U.S. Postage PAID Ft. Dodge IA Permit No. 448 Return Service Requested Saturday, October 22 and Sunday, October 23. Free will offering on all items. All proceeds go to the Ingathering Event in Webster City on November 5. Please bring your items to donate to church on Friday the 21st, or Saturday late afternoons before the 5:30 p.m. service.