Romeo United Methodist Church Page 1

Reverend Trevor Herm, Pastor

Romeo United Methodist Church

Church Office: 586-752-9132 Church Fax: 586-752-0593

Anne Wilber, Church Secretary Cynthia Forsgren, Choir Director

Linda Schenburn, Christian Education Kari Reid, Treasurer

Ed LaLonde, Praise Band Grant Groomes, Youth Director

July 2017

The GRAPEVINE is published monthly. The

intention is to communicate and promote the entire

program of the Romeo United Methodist Church

to members and friends. Your articles, comments

and suggestions are welcome. The editor reserves

the right to edit content and space as required.

Linda Eastman, Editor Phone: 586 281-6956 lindakeastman@aol.com

The Grapevine

Combined Service July 9 – 10:00 a.m.

Independence Day July 4th

This Month’s Events

Vacation Bible School July 17 - 20

Luncheon for Pastor Trevor and Carol Herm

July 9

Romeo United Methodist Church Page 2

Constitutional Quiz

The following are questions I came across that

you would have to answer if you wished to

become a citizen of the United States. You can

see how you’d do. They’re not that easy.

(Answers on Page 6)

1 What is the supreme law of the land?

2 What are the first three words of the

Constitution?

3 How many amendments are there to our

Constitution?

4 What is one right from the first amendment?

5 What is one power of our government?

6 What is one promise you make when you

become a US citizen?

7 Who wrote the Declaration of Independence?

8 Can you name our first President?

And if we’re responsible to be familiar with our

rights and duties as citizens of this country we

should be just as diligent as Christians? You can

see which you do better at.

1 Do you know the first three words of the Bible?

2 What is the eighth commandment?

3 Can you name the first king of Israel?

4 Do you know the first words of the Sermon on

the Mount?

5 What book in the Bible tells you how the church

got started?

6 Who was the first martyr?

7 What were the last words Jesus spoke in the

Bible?

8 What is the great commandment?

For Children

1 Who was the first man and woman?

2 Who spent the night in a cage full of lions?

3 Who did God give the 10 commandments to?

4 Who built a big ship and filled it with animals?

5 Where was Jesus born?

6 Which one of Jesus followers walked on water?

7 What was Jesus mother’s name?

8 What happened on Easter?

9 For extra credit, can you name one of Jesus

followers?

Pastor’s Paragraphs

Sermon Titles for the Summer

July 2 Generation Gap? Acts 2:17-18, 21 July 9 What’s in a Name? Genesis 12:2 July 16 Born to Be King Exodus 3:7-12 July 23 Body Builders Jude 20 July 30 Living By the Bulletin Psalm 100:1-5, Romans 12:1-2 Aug 6 A Lost World Luke 15:1-7 Aug 13 A Loving World John 3:16 Aug 20 Wonders of Our World Romans 1:20 Aug 27 The Light of the World Matt 5:14-16

Romeo United Methodist Church Page 3

JULY VOLUNTEER SCHEDULE FELLOWSHIP TIME

2nd Linda Eastman, Gayle Beitel, Sandy Edwards 9th Welcome Luncheon for Pastor Trevor and Carol Herm 16th Rich and Mary Jane Johnson, Nancy Harrar 23rd Vickie and Doug Posey 30th Joyce Pelto, Kathy Smith, Ginny Power

USHERS SCHEDULE Traditional Service Contemporary Service

2nd and 9th Craig Engwall – Lead, Judy Engwall Joyce Pelto, Ginny Power, John Wiers

Jeff Groomes

17th and 23rd Tom King – Lead, Theresa King, Ron Sebastian, Patricia

Sebastian Beth Theisen

30th Christian Goolsby – Lead, Kathy Smith, Paul Heller, Ann Heller Doug Posey

GREETERS

9:00 A.M. Service

2nd Dave and Linda Schenburn 9th Betty Walton, Cindie Wade 16th Dave and Beverly Lee 23rd Ellen Dennis, Gayle Beitel 30th Dona and Larry Back

11:OO A.M. Service

2nd Open 9th Combined Service – Elaine Parr 16th Becky Laseke 23rd Open 30th Open

VOLUNTEER COORDINATORS

Seasonal Flowers Mary Jo Hosler 586-337-2692 Baby Blanket Ministry Ilene Lock 586-752-3952 College Ministry Paula Groomes 586-752-4003 Fellowship Hour Becky Laseke 586-232-4997 Greeters Gayle Beitel 586-232-3388 Nursery Jen Lamb 586-255-5557 Sound Board Dave Beskin 586-781-8346 Ushers Craig Engwall 586-504-6655 Communion Marilyn Bracy 586-752-6964

COMMUNION STEWARDS

July 2 - Pews 9:00 a.m. Pat Sebastian Ron Sebastian 11:00 a.m. Marty and Karen Rastigue Youth Group

LITURGIST SCHEDULE

9:00 Service

2nd Janet Bauer 9th George Becker

16th Gwen Beskin 23rd Sue Coker 30th Nancy Domke 11:00 Service 2nd Ellen Dennis

9th Combined Service

16th Grant Groomes 23rd Laurie Lenard 30th Marty Rastigue

SOUND BOARD

July to September 3, Dave Beskin

ALTAR FLOWERS 2nd Becky Laseke 9th Open 16th Open

23rd Open 30th

Open

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Weekly Meetings

Kitting Class Tuesday 1:00 p.m. Room 107 His Table Community Meal Tuesday 5:30 p.m. Fellowship Hall Praise Band Practice Tuesday 7:00 p.m. Sanctuary Santa’s Workshop Wednesday 10:00 a.m. Life Skills Room Bell Choir Practice Wednesday 6:45 p.m. Sanctuary Choir Practice Wednesday 7:30 p.m. Sanctuary D.E.L.T.A. Youth Group Thursday 7:00 p.m. Youth Level Communion Sunday First Sunday of each month Traditional Service Sunday 9:00 a.m. Sanctuary Fellowship Time Sunday 10:00 a.m. Fellowship Hall Prayers for Church Sunday 10:15 a.m. Prayer Room 106 Contemporary Service Sunday 11:00 a.m. Sanctuary

RUMC July 2017 Calendar

Sun 2nd Communion Sunday

Pastor Trevor Herm’s First Sunday

Tue 4th Independence Day

Thur 6th Staff Parish Committee Meeting 7:00 p.m.

Sun 9th Combined Service

Luncheon for Pastor Herm and Carol 10:00 a.m.

Mon 10th Worship Committee Meeting 10:00 a.m.

Tue 11th His Table Community Meal 5:30 p.m.

Thur 13th Finance Committee Meeting

Church Council Committee Meeting

5:30 p.m.

7:00 p.m.

Mon thru

Thurs

17th

thru 20th

Vacation Bible School

Tue 18th His Table Community Meal 5:30 p.m.

Tue 25th His Table Community Meal 5:30 p.m.

Mon 31st Haiti Dress Workshop 10:00 a.m.

NURSERY SCHEDULE

The nursery schedule will be open for July and August. If you see a family that may benefit from nursery for their young child, please talk with them and offer your services. The regular schedule will resume in September. If you are not a nursery volunteer and would like to be, please leave your name in the church office.

Caring from Within

The friends and family of RUMC pray

God’s peace be with Beth Gleason, Chip

Manery and family. Their mother,

Patricia, passed away June 7, 2017.

You are in our prayers.

Congratulations to the 2017 Graduates! Daniel Jones Romeo High

Kelly Jones Michigan State

Kristin Kage Romeo High

Garrett Karson Romeo High

Rachel Krawchuk Grand Valley

Jarod Nevitt Romeo High

Jacob Nicol Romeo High

Stacey Sevener Romeo High

Clifford Theisen Michigan State

A note from Jerry and Marilyn Bracy:

Thanks so much to everyone for the wonderful cards and prayer support. Jerry is overwhelmed with our caring church and we are very grateful for so much support!

Romeo United Methodist Church Page 5

Financial Snapshot of the Operating Fund

as of 5/31/17

Actual Budget Difference

Income $148,220 $160,038 $-11,818

Expenses 160,016 160,038 22

Deficit -11,796 0 -11,796

Unpaid Apportionments $15,337

Your church needs your support

** Your church needs your Financial Support!

Finance Committee

Caring from Within

The friends and family of RUMC

pray God’s peace be with Tom

King and family. Tom’s mother,

Edna Chrystelle King, passed

away May 31, 2017. You are in

our prayers.

Theresa and I would like to thank everyone in the church

who took the time out of your busy lives to send us a

sympathy card or call us to express condolences on the

passing of my mother, Edna Chrystelle King. We are

comforted by knowing she passed quietly in her sleep

surrounded by 2 of her 3 children and is now in the loving

arms of her husband, Vayden King, who preceded her in

death. God is now watching over both of them and

keeping them safe and pain free in the palm of His hand.

Thank you again for all of your support and prayers during

this most difficult time.

Tom King

D.E.L.T.A. recently celebrated its awards

night and is looking forward to wrapping up

the school year with its annual Armageddon.

We are also looking forward to our Bible

Study on Psalms this summer. This study will

give us a better look at the songbook of God's

people and help give understanding on how

they are relevant to us today!

WELCOME PASTOR TREVOR AND CAROL HERM

Join us on Sunday, July 9th for a Meet, Greet and Eat to welcome Pastor Trevor and Carol Herm to RUMC. This will be a “planned potluck” luncheon. What is that you ask? Each table will be responsible for providing food for their table except for meat and beverages which are being provided by Romeo UMW. A hostess should be designated to coordinate the food items. NO MORE THAN 8 PER TABLE! There will be a combined service at 10:00 a.m. and the luncheon will follow. Sign up or call the church office by July 5th.

THANK YOU TO LAFAYETTE ROBESON!! Thank you to Lafayette Robeson for building the beautiful bookshelves and tables for the Santa’s workshop room. They look amazing and we have already started to fill them. The tables are just the right size for the ladies to sit around and create.

Romeo United Methodist Church Page 6

Say Hello to Anne Wilber

Do you have a question about when services are held at Romeo United

Methodist Church? Do you want to know how to become a member of

RUMC? Are you already a member of RUMC but want to know when a

specific class or meeting is being held? Whom do you call? Definitely not

Ghostbusters!! In all these cases, you can contact Anne Wilber at the

church office.

Anne has been the go to person for the past 11 years when she replaced

Betty Blackburn in September of 2006. Anne is responsible for keeping

the office running smoothly and efficiently. When people call with

questions, Anne will do her best to answer them or refer them to

someone who does have the answer.

Anne enjoys the regular daily tasks of answering the phone, putting the

bulletin together, handling church correspondence and maintaining an

up to date membership roll. However, Anne’s favorite part of the job is

helping people with questions or concerns. Anne may be called upon to

guide members through registration for a class, scheduling of a room or

explain to a non-member how to join our church.

The next time you have a question about RUMC, give Anne a call at 586-

752-9132. You can call the church during office hours which are Monday

through Thursday from 9 am to 1 pm. If that is not possible, you can call

at any time day or night and leave a voicemail and she will get back to

you at the earliest possible chance. If you do use email on a regular basis,

you can contact her that way as well at romeounited@sbcglobal.net.

Thank you to Anne Wilber. Keep up the great work. We at RUMC

appreciate your efforts to keep us running smoothly.

Staff Parish Relations Committee

Answers to Pastor Herm’s

Quizzes on page 2 Constitutional Quiz 1 The Constitution 2 We the people 3 27 4 speech, religion 5 print money, declare war, create an army 6 to defend the Constitution, to obey the laws, to be loyal to this country 7 Thomas Jefferson 8 George Washington I had to give you one easy one. For Christians 1 In the beginning 2 Do not steal 3 Saul 4 Blessed are the 5 Acts 6 Stephen 7 I am coming soon 8 Love the Lord your God with all your heart, mind and strength For children 1 Adam and Eve 2 Daniel 3 Moses 4 Noah 5 Bethlehem 6 Peter 7 Mary 8 Jesus rose from the dead 9 Write your name in here

THANK YOU FOR YOUR GENEROSITY

Thank you to Dona and Larry Back for purchasing and installing the new light fixture and fan in the Santa’s workshop room. The light is so much brighter and the fan certainly felt good last week.

THANK YOU TO ED BUCKNER

A very special “thank you” to Ed Buckner for always agreeing to be the dishwasher whenever we need one. Your time and generosity are greatly appreciated.

Romeo United Methodist Church Page 7

Today we are saying goodbye to a master teacher. And like students in a class saying goodbye to their teacher,

we will reminisce about those lessons we won’t forget.

Dr. Bailey’s second sermon was about the story of Jesus inviting himself to Zacchaeus’ home for dinner. We

have all learned that Zacchaeus was excited about the opportunity to have Jesus visit him. But Dr. John put a new slant

on the story when he suggested that Zacchaeus’ excitement was really an expression of anxiety. Zacchaeus, a tax

collector who had a reputation of over-charging people, was really worried that the large number of people

surrounding Jesus and himself would get ahead of them, arrive at his home, and take out their revenge for his behavior

by destroying his property. Emphasizing Zacchaeus’, worries and his past behaviors, Dr. John was showing that Jesus

seeks us out no matter what we have done and at the same time gently allows us to see our wrongs.

A few weeks later the lesson was on the great compassion Jesus had for people’s needs. A widow was leading a

funeral party to the cemetery where she was about to bury her son an only child. Dr. John explaining the cultural

attitudes and practices of the time described in detail the miserable and destitute position the woman now faced with

her son gone. Jesus raised her son from death because Jesus had a tremendous sense of compassion for those who

suffered great losses. Dr. John pointed out several times in the sermon, the wonderful mercies Jesus extends to all of

us.

In the Fall of that year, Dr. John helped our church members celebrate All Saints Day in a manner no one else

had done. Not only did he proclaim the members of our church as modern saints trying to live the life Christ has asked

of us, he asked us to open the bulletin and write on the dove shaped paper the name of the person we felt had been

most influential in leading us to Christ. In closing that sermon Dr. John read the names of all the people in our church

who had passed away that year and introduced them to us as our new heavenly saints. No one expected the sermon to

carry over to the next Sunday, but in the sanctuary the following Sunday everyone saw their paper dove flying overhead

as though they were a heavenly visitation.

Good teachers always use simple objects to teach more complicated lessons. Dr. John moved from paper doves

to the June Firefly when he wanted to illustrate how living as Christ has asked, we could make our actions change the

world. Describing the early summer June nights when the Firefly begins to appear just before dark, he told how each

little brown bug flies quietly illuminating the night sky with his light. He asked us the question: do our everyday actions

show us to be the modern disciples of Christ who can change the world? Do we let the light of Christ within us show?

True to life, One Sunday Dr. john was ill and Karen substituted for him by giving his sermon. In the sermon Dr.

John had us ponder if we really believed in Jesus Christ. Were we really Christian?? No one sitting in the church could

ever forget how Karen emphatically asked us “Do you Believe?” three times. Finally we all knew she expected an

answer to this question. From the moment of our public admission, the church became extremely quiet. All of us were

deep in thought pondering just how much did we believe in Christ.

Dr. Bailey’s Farewell Luncheon Reflection

Romeo United Methodist Church Page 8

1st Kenneth Koss 3rd Nelson Nevitt Gerri Pollock 4th Jacob Huxford 5th Beverly Lee 7th Jessica Deming 8th Virginia Mosher Mark Burnette Amanda Stork 10th Kathleen Loba James Welser Jennifer Teller 11th Marilyn Welser Cynthia Forsgren 12th George VanHoutte

19th Carol E. Urban Michael Kirtley 22nd Joann Higby 23rd Ruth Cate Dennis Garner 24th Jim Morgan Sue Coker 26th Vi Abercrombie Evan Lamb 28th Catherine Zimmerman 29th Lara Dixon 30th Mary Wiers Theresa King 31st Hannah Engwall

Dr. Bailey’s Farewell Luncheon Reflection (continued)

The sermon titled, A Heart Like His, Dr. John reminded us that God wants each of us to be just like his Son.

Even when we do wrong things God loves us so much He still wants us be like Jesus. When we are sorry and try to

change our behavior, God gives us a new soul where the Holy Spirit resides to help us continue to make the right

choices as we change. Dr. John said if we assertively try to change by asking God to give us a heart like Jesus, we will

then change and truly have a heart like his

And who will forget the Sunday we had an entire service devoted to the celebration of the Boy Scouts?

Something we had asked for a long time. Everyone was proud to be an American. And Memorial Day Service was also

another time to be proud of our American heritage. Dr. John told the story of the ship Dorchester as it sank in the

waters of the North Atlantic while guiding the ships loaded with war supplies being sent to England in early WW II. He

showed us the pictures of the four chaplains on board and told how they handed out life jackets to the men. When

there were no more jackets, each minister gave theirs to the man standing in front of them, knowing they would lose

their life. How fitting-the liturgy read that Sunday was the passage from John, where Jesus demands that we love one

another as much as he has loved us. And how did Jesus measure that love? The greatest love is shown when a person

lays down their own life for another.

Today in saying good bye we can recall many other excellent church services and sermons given to guide us.

By using historical stories, unique strategies, and simple objects to teach Biblical themes, Dr. John exhibited all the

characteristics of a master teacher. We all are grateful for these many spiritual learning experiences for we now

know, we have had the privilege of being in the presence of a minister of God.

Written and shared at Pastor Bailey’s fare well luncheon, June 2017,

By Dr. Naomi Stasak

Romeo United Methodist Church Page 9

Caring from Within

The friends and family of RUMC

pray God’s peace be with Jim

Lindsay and family. Jim’s sister

passed away June 13, 2017. You

are in our prayers.

The quarterly meeting for Romeo UMW (United Methodist Women) will be held on Monday, August 7th at 7:00 p.m. in Fellowship Hall. Please join us to elect new officers and to set our path for 2018. Romeo UMW is open to all ladies 18 years or older UMW is a mission based organization and we would like to see our UMW grow and become a support to this community. There are no dues and we, as a group, will determine what missions to support.

ROMEO UMW MEETING

Gale Thomas Moore, age 80, a longtime resident of

Romeo, passed away peacefully on Sunday June 4th at

Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit, surrounded by his loved

ones. He loved nature, sports and most of all his family.

He served in the military and was stationed in Korea. He

graduated from Michigan State University with a degree

in Logistics and soon went to work at General Motors,

working there for more than 30 years. He was a Shriner

and member of the Masonic Temple since 1962.

He is survived by his wife Patricia, his 2 daughters Alisa &

Andrea and his granddaughter Genna. He is also

survived by his older brother Gordon, and his younger

sister Sharon. He is preceded in death by his brother

Milton and sister Verna.

A memorial service took place on Friday, June 16, 2017

at the Henry M. Malburg Funeral Home with Dr. Gary

Glanville officiating. A luncheon followed at Romeo United

Methodist Church.

Gale Thomas Moore

How are you my friend? I hope you are okay

together with your family. It is raining in our

area and crops are doing well, except some

pests that invaded. The crops will be okay, God

willing.

I am in class eight this year and I hope that I will

do well in my exams come the end of this year. I

hope that I will improve in my grade, so kindly

help me in prayers as I promise to work extra

hard in class work so that I can join high school

by early next year, 2018.

I would like to get feedback from you soon.

Goodbye,

I am Apolio

COMPASSION CHILDREN

Apolio Vincent Okoth

Romeo United Methodist Church Page 10

19th Annual Samaritan House Golf

Outing

Please join us on Saturday, July 29, 2017, at Heather

Hills Golf Club, 3100 McKail Rd, Romeo, MI

48065. Registration begins at 7:30 am. The shotgun

start is at 8:30 am.

Tickets for the annual golf outing include 18 holes with

cart, two drink tickets, coffee and doughnuts, gift bag,

lunch on the turn, steak dinner and the chance to

win door prizes and contests, all for $125. This event

sells out, so get your tickets early!

Tickets can be purchased at Samaritan House, on our

website (http://www.samaritanhousemichigan.org), or

by using the golf flyer on our Resources page to pay

with a check. The golf flyer can also be used if you

want to be a sponsor or would like to donate a golf

prize. Sponsors can also use the Donate button on our

website.

If you would like to volunteer or need further

information, please contact Kathy Wojcik at 586-336-

9956 or shevents@att.net.

Samaritan House will be closed July 4 & 5

Back-to-School!

It’s summertime, and that means Back-to-School! This year our

program will again include a jeans program to help students

become better prepared to attend school. It also will benefit

students ages preschool through 12th grade.

Our jeans program works just like our Christmas Sharing

Tree: Tags will be available June 20 at our sponsoring

churches. Take a tag or two or three--whatever you are

comfortable donating! Then buy new jeans for the child listed.

Items needed for Back-to-School are the following: new

backpacks, spiral notebooks, pocket folders, sharpie markers,

washable markers, regular markers, colored pencils,

highlighters, white school glue, glue sticks, watercolor paints,

“stick” erasers, composition books, pencil boxes, scissors

(safety & regular tip), pens (blue, black & red). Remember, cash

donations are always helpful!

Samaritan House also seeks donations of $20 Payless gift cards

so that parents can buy their students new shoes.

All Back-to-School items should be returned to Samaritan

House no later than Aug. 4

JULY PANTRY NEEDS Cereal Jelly Fruit Coffee Pancake Mix Juice Manwich Children’s Snacks Crackers Diapers (size 4 – 6) Rice Shampoo Bath tissue Feminine products

We appreciate any non-perishable food items and

toiletries that you can donate. THANK YOU! Please bring your donations to Samaritan House, 62324 Van Dyke (between 28 & 29 Mile Roads) in Washington Twp. on Tuesday and Wednesday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. or Friday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. You can contact Samaritan House at (586) 336-9956.

Romeo United Methodist Church Page 11

Come Join Us for Victorian Afternoon Tea

Call an old friend, a niece, or a sister and join us on Thursday, July 20, 2017 as we visit the Historic Holly Hotel

in Holly, MI to enjoy a Queen Anne Luncheon Tea. Three elegant courses are served on antique china and

steaming hot imported tea is served in fancy silver and ceramic pots.

In the 19th century, having Afternoon Tea was a graceful event governed by a complete set of rules

and etiquette. At the Holly Hotel, Afternoon Tea begins at 1:00 PM, just as it did in Edwardian Times, to allow

their guests the opportunity to experience the traditions and customs of an afternoon respite in an historical

atmosphere.

The Queen Anne Luncheon Tea costs $22.50 and includes:

First Course: Spring Salad and choice of Tea or coffee

Second Course: Choice of luncheon entrees, which change daily. A recent menu featured…

Petite Filet of Beef, English Whiskey Pan Sauce Or

Baked Rainbow Trout, Herb Crema Or Chicken Strudel Holly Hotel, Raspberry Hollandaise Or Vegetarian Option Available

(All served with appropriate side dishes)

Third Course: House-Made Traditional Muffins and Classic Scones, Crème Fraiche/Fresh Fruit

Preserves

IMPORTANT INFORMATION:

1. Event date is Thursday, July 20, 2017.

2. A sign-up board will be in the lobby entrance by July 1st. Please sign-up using your first and last

name, phone number, and indicate if you can drive and how many people you can take, or call the

church office. A map will be provided to the drivers.

3. The cut-off date to sign-up is July 10th.

4. The cost of $22.50 is due to Ellen Dennis or Becky Laseke by July 10th. Payment by cash or check.

If paying by check, please make check payable to Ellen Dennis.

5. We will leave the church not later than 11:30 AM. Estimated return time 4:00 PM.

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During this time of summer break I would to express my thanks to the many gifted people who make up our ministry of music at Romeo United Methodist church. Our Sanctuary Choir Members: Nathan Bartholomew Dave Beskin Gwen Beskin Ruth Cate Sue Coker Steve Domke Laura Forsgren Nita Glover Ned Grant Nancy Harrar* choir secretary Ed Klusendorf Bev Kuzminski Judy Larimer Pat Morgan Bob Nicol Julie Nicol* choir secretary Kay Nicholson Debbie Sawdey Our Handbell Choir Members: Dave and Gwen Beskin Sue Coker Sandy Edwards Nancy Harrar Ed Klusendorf Bob and Julie Nicol A special thank you to Nathan Bartholomew for directing our Children's Choir The dedication and talents of all of you are a blessing to all of us. Thank You. God Bless You.

Cynthia Forsgren

Our Daily Bread

Friday, June 23, 2017

Playing in Concert

Read: Romans 12:3–8

So in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. Romans 12:5–6

During our granddaughter’s school band concert, I was impressed by how well this group of 11- and 12-year-olds played together. If each of them had wanted to be a solo performer, they could not have achieved individually what the band did collectively. The woodwinds, brass, and percussion sections all played their parts and the result was beautiful music!

To the followers of Jesus in Rome, Paul wrote, “In Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us” (Rom. 12:5–6). Among the gifts Paul mentioned are prophecy, service, teaching, encouragement, giving, leadership, and mercy (vv. 7–8). Each gift is to be exercised freely for the good of all (1 Cor. 12:7).

One definition of in concert is “agreement in design or plan; combined action; harmony or accord.” That’s the Lord’s plan for us as His children through faith in Jesus Christ. “Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves” (v. 10). The goal is cooperation, not competition.

In a sense, we are “on stage” before a watching and listening world every day. There are no soloists in God’s concert band, but every instrument is essential. The music is best when we each play our part in unity with others. — David C. McCasland

Lord, You are the Conductor of our lives. We want to play Your song of love and grace in concert with Your children today.

There are no soloists in God’s orchestra.

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The Romeo Area AAUW book sale is September 1

through 4 at the Romeo Community

Center! Donations of books are needed and

accepted at Washington UMC, Romeo Community

Center and St. John Lutheran Church. The

proceeds from this sale allow them to award

$4,000 in scholarships to local students!

Noisy Offering for Compassion raised $738.29 for

our sponsored compassion children! Thank you

for the donations! Thanks, also, to the children,

Jeff and Sidney McClay, and Dory Hill for counting

this offering!