06.06.25
What's New?
Worship on Sunday, June 8
| Scripture -- Acts 2:1-21 Sermon -- Grace as a Provision for Healing Preacher -- Rev. Dr. Derrek Belase Our Livestream link is available on our church app and website each week! |
Celebration of Life Service - Patricia Steincamp
It is with sorrow that we announce that long time First UMC member, Pat (Patricia) Steincamp, has passed on to her eternal home this past week. A Celebration of Life Service will be held Friday, June 13, at 1:30pm, in the Sanctuary. Please be in prayer for Pat's family and friends that God wrap arms of comfort around them.
Welcome, Rev. Dr. Derrek Belase!
It is an honor to welcome Rev. Dr. Derrek Belase to the pulpit this Sunday, June 8, in all three services. As we celebrate Pentecost Sunday, Dr. Belase will bring a message about the power of the Holy Spirit to launch the church nearly 2,000 years ago — that same power to launch us into ministry today. Currently, Dr. Belase is serving as the Director of Connectional Ministries for the Oklahoma Annual Conference. He has also served as senior pastor of Highland Park United Methodist Church here in Stillwater, so he might be a familiar face to you. We are grateful that Dr. Belase will share the sermon with us on Sunday. Make sure to give him a warm Stillwater First UMC welcome when you see him!
2025 Annual Conference Report
Be: to exist, to occur, to take place. Those are just some of the definitions. The Oklahoma United Methodist Annual Conference has adopted this simple word as a challenge to find ways to Be disciples of Jesus Christ. At this year’s Conference the words added after Be were Loving, Joyful, Peaceful, Patient, Kind, Generous, Faithful, Gentle, Hopeful. Many of us recognize this as the fruit of the Holy Spirit. From Wednesday morning to noon on Saturday, members of the Annual Conference met—learning ways to Be, hearing and receiving numerous reports of how The OKUMCAC continues to Be, experiencing testimony of folks whose lives are changed because various members, agencies and committees of the Conference chose to Be.
The Annual Conference has an equal number of clergy and lay delegates. Clergy hold their membership in the Conference. Local churches choose a lay delegate for each clergyperson serving their church. At Stillwater First we have two appointed clergy, Pastors Charla and Cindy, and thus send two lay delegates to the Conference. Kathy Heil and Monty Karns served in this capacity. Additional lay members are delegates due to their service on certain conference boards or committees. Roger McMillian is on the Conference Council of Finance and Administration, so he was also a lay delegate to the Conference. Rachel Weaver was an equalization lay delegate. (Our district superintendent invited our church to name an additional delegate. This is necessary to equalize the number of laity to clergy that are appointed outside the local church.)
During the laity session, we received information on lay servant ministries and the important work of lay speakers, lay servants and lay ministers and the process to become certified. At this session, Cheryl Long and Martha McMillan were recognized for their work in these areas. We also received many updates and stories of the important work of laity in creating disciples for Jesus Christ and caring for all people.
In the general sessions we heard and received some 45 reports from committees and boards of the Annual Conference. These concerned both the ministries of the conference as well as administrative actions. For more detailed information, the Conference Workbook with all the reports and also the Conference Agenda can be found at: https://www.okumc.org/annual_conference
The Conference is more than just doing the business of the church. It is a time of celebrating those who are retiring and have completed their service. It is also a time for looking forward to the new. Our new episcopal leader, Bishop Laura Merrill, led a moving Service of Commissioning and Ordination of Elders and Deacons and Recognition of
Licensed Local Pastors. One of those commissioned was Corey Duane Shirey, our incoming associate pastor to Stillwater First UMC. He’ll begin his appointment with us shortly after July 1. Most important was a time of fellowship and corporate worship. The Holy Spirit broke forth several times during the concerts, worship services, activities of our youth, and Holy Communion. Let us remember we are called to be the hands and feet of Jesus—to BE Loving, Joyful, Peaceful, Patient, Kind, Generous, Faithful, Gentle and Hopeful.
The Annual Conference has an equal number of clergy and lay delegates. Clergy hold their membership in the Conference. Local churches choose a lay delegate for each clergyperson serving their church. At Stillwater First we have two appointed clergy, Pastors Charla and Cindy, and thus send two lay delegates to the Conference. Kathy Heil and Monty Karns served in this capacity. Additional lay members are delegates due to their service on certain conference boards or committees. Roger McMillian is on the Conference Council of Finance and Administration, so he was also a lay delegate to the Conference. Rachel Weaver was an equalization lay delegate. (Our district superintendent invited our church to name an additional delegate. This is necessary to equalize the number of laity to clergy that are appointed outside the local church.)
During the laity session, we received information on lay servant ministries and the important work of lay speakers, lay servants and lay ministers and the process to become certified. At this session, Cheryl Long and Martha McMillan were recognized for their work in these areas. We also received many updates and stories of the important work of laity in creating disciples for Jesus Christ and caring for all people.
In the general sessions we heard and received some 45 reports from committees and boards of the Annual Conference. These concerned both the ministries of the conference as well as administrative actions. For more detailed information, the Conference Workbook with all the reports and also the Conference Agenda can be found at: https://www.okumc.org/annual_conference
The Conference is more than just doing the business of the church. It is a time of celebrating those who are retiring and have completed their service. It is also a time for looking forward to the new. Our new episcopal leader, Bishop Laura Merrill, led a moving Service of Commissioning and Ordination of Elders and Deacons and Recognition of
Licensed Local Pastors. One of those commissioned was Corey Duane Shirey, our incoming associate pastor to Stillwater First UMC. He’ll begin his appointment with us shortly after July 1. Most important was a time of fellowship and corporate worship. The Holy Spirit broke forth several times during the concerts, worship services, activities of our youth, and Holy Communion. Let us remember we are called to be the hands and feet of Jesus—to BE Loving, Joyful, Peaceful, Patient, Kind, Generous, Faithful, Gentle and Hopeful.
THIS SUNDAY - Blood Drive - June 08
We will be hosting our quarterly blood drive on June 8 at our Family Life Center in rooms 107-109. Your donation saves lives! To sign-up please visit www.obi.org
2025 Bolivia Mission Update
Our 2025 team included 7 members of the FUMC family; John Fenderson, Roger Gose, Brad Hise, Rex Largent, Carter Lowry, Cal Underwood and Doug Valley.
We left the church parking lot at 8:30am on May 13 and arrived in Santa Cruz Bolivia about 20 minutes early at 4 am local time on May 14. Our hosts, Ruben Teran and Froilan Quisbert were there to greet us. At 4:30pm in the afternoon we went to the American Institute, the Methodist school in Santa Cruz, where we were welcomed by Bishop Medardo Vedia and the students of the school. There were the usual speeches, and performances by the students. On Thursday we travelled to San Pedro. On arrival we were unexpectedly inserted into the middle of a parade down the main street with a police escort and the school marching band and ended up at El Exodo Methodist church for a welcoming ceremony and lunch. On Friday and Saturday our group split up. Two of us assisted the medical team of Dr. Francy Quisbert, Director of the Methodist Hospital in La Paz, and Dr. Lissette Padilla, Director of the Methodist Rural Health Services. Our advance funds had purchased a large quantity of medications, and we had packed others into our suitcases. Over 200 patients were seen and treated for minor to severe illnesses.
The rest of our team worked with the masons on the new children’s center about 2 blocks away from our residence motel. The work consisted of filling and leveling the dirt in the classrooms and paving with bricks. Then a slurry of cement was poured over the bricks to stabilize them followed the next day by an additional layer of concrete 4 centimeters thick. It was a dirty job but our team made great progress. Having showers and air-conditioned lodging made for a welcome cleanup. On Monday and Tuesday, we all worked at this project and by Tuesday afternoon the job was completed.
We were blessed to share in several worship services with our Bolivian friends. El Exodo is a beautiful church with some 70 members. Our own Carter Lowry joined the musicians on the keyboard. He did a fantastic job following along with the Bolivians. All in all, we attended 3 formal worship services and there was always prayer and singing during the other celebrations. This was very heartwarming to share these sacred rites with new friends. Wednesday the 21st we returned to Santa Cruz and on Thursday we travelled to Samiapata, a pre-Inca cultural site a few hours to the south. We all wish we had more time to really explore the area. By 10pm, after a carryout supper of Papa John’s Pizza we were at the airport for our 1am flight. We arrived back in Tulsa Friday afternoon about 20 minutes ahead of schedule.
This was another great trip to share with our South American brothers and sisters, and we are looking forward to doing it again next year. For those of you who may be interested in joining our next Bolivia Mission team, we found the area around Santa Cruz to be much easier physically than the high country around La Paz, so if the spartan conditions we have experienced in the past have kept you from signing up, contact Doug Valley for more information.
We left the church parking lot at 8:30am on May 13 and arrived in Santa Cruz Bolivia about 20 minutes early at 4 am local time on May 14. Our hosts, Ruben Teran and Froilan Quisbert were there to greet us. At 4:30pm in the afternoon we went to the American Institute, the Methodist school in Santa Cruz, where we were welcomed by Bishop Medardo Vedia and the students of the school. There were the usual speeches, and performances by the students. On Thursday we travelled to San Pedro. On arrival we were unexpectedly inserted into the middle of a parade down the main street with a police escort and the school marching band and ended up at El Exodo Methodist church for a welcoming ceremony and lunch. On Friday and Saturday our group split up. Two of us assisted the medical team of Dr. Francy Quisbert, Director of the Methodist Hospital in La Paz, and Dr. Lissette Padilla, Director of the Methodist Rural Health Services. Our advance funds had purchased a large quantity of medications, and we had packed others into our suitcases. Over 200 patients were seen and treated for minor to severe illnesses.
The rest of our team worked with the masons on the new children’s center about 2 blocks away from our residence motel. The work consisted of filling and leveling the dirt in the classrooms and paving with bricks. Then a slurry of cement was poured over the bricks to stabilize them followed the next day by an additional layer of concrete 4 centimeters thick. It was a dirty job but our team made great progress. Having showers and air-conditioned lodging made for a welcome cleanup. On Monday and Tuesday, we all worked at this project and by Tuesday afternoon the job was completed.
We were blessed to share in several worship services with our Bolivian friends. El Exodo is a beautiful church with some 70 members. Our own Carter Lowry joined the musicians on the keyboard. He did a fantastic job following along with the Bolivians. All in all, we attended 3 formal worship services and there was always prayer and singing during the other celebrations. This was very heartwarming to share these sacred rites with new friends. Wednesday the 21st we returned to Santa Cruz and on Thursday we travelled to Samiapata, a pre-Inca cultural site a few hours to the south. We all wish we had more time to really explore the area. By 10pm, after a carryout supper of Papa John’s Pizza we were at the airport for our 1am flight. We arrived back in Tulsa Friday afternoon about 20 minutes ahead of schedule.
This was another great trip to share with our South American brothers and sisters, and we are looking forward to doing it again next year. For those of you who may be interested in joining our next Bolivia Mission team, we found the area around Santa Cruz to be much easier physically than the high country around La Paz, so if the spartan conditions we have experienced in the past have kept you from signing up, contact Doug Valley for more information.
United Methodist Men Deliver Food
On Monday, June 2, some of the United Methodist Men delivered 2,714 pounds of cast-off food to Our Daily Bread for those in our community that are in need.
2025 Vacation Bible School
Vacation Bible School- July 6th-9th 6:00-7:45pm
Peace, Love, and Plants: Growing in God's Grace will be here before we know it. We would love to have you serve as a volunteer. If you can only help out one evening, prefer behind the scenes, or want to lead a specific activity- let me know! We need small group, art, snack, STEM, storytime, and game leaders. Our VBS is a community outreach event. Help us spread the love of God to all the children in our area.
Connect with Irene by calling the church office or emailing: iupson@fumcstw.org
To register kids and/or to volunteer, CLICK HERE
Peace, Love, and Plants: Growing in God's Grace will be here before we know it. We would love to have you serve as a volunteer. If you can only help out one evening, prefer behind the scenes, or want to lead a specific activity- let me know! We need small group, art, snack, STEM, storytime, and game leaders. Our VBS is a community outreach event. Help us spread the love of God to all the children in our area.
Connect with Irene by calling the church office or emailing: iupson@fumcstw.org
To register kids and/or to volunteer, CLICK HERE
A Farewell Celebration for Pastor Cindy
Join us for a celebration of Pastor Cindy Robertson Riedel’s six years as associate pastor at Stillwater First UMC! We’ll gather in the Social Hall on Sunday, June 15, 3:30-5:00pm. Come and go as you like - we will have plenty of fun and refreshments available throughout! Cards and well wishes appreciated. Special presentations will be made at 3:50pm.
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