Remembering Our Methodist Heritage

Did you miss me?!? The Bartlow family has returned from our three-week epic vacation and Continuing Education opportunity in Europe. We spent a week walking around Paris, joined the Wesley Heritage Tour for an introduction to all the Methodist history sites, and then spent an extra week walking around London. We flew home on Monday and then drove to Mesa for Annual Conference. To be honest, I’m still jet lagged and growing increasingly tired of hotels and eating out! I will certainly be sharing more about our experiences in the coming weeks, once I get rested and can reflect on our time!

In the meantime, there are 13 of us from St. Mark’s at Annual Conference in Mesa, plus multiple retired pastors who call St. Mark’s home. We are doing the business of the Conference – passing a budget, hearing reports from various task forces and committees, wrestling with legislative questions put before us.

More importantly, we are doing the sacred work of worship and conferencing. We are seeing people we know and don’t see often (lots of meals with friends!). We are meeting new people. We are sharing our vulnerability as we wrestle with issues around our tables. We are being reminded that the Methodist Church is bigger than just our local church.

On Sunday we will be reminded of our heritage as Methodists. Our history begins with the Anglican Church and priests John and Charles Wesley. It includes class meetings and bands, field preaching and visiting prisons. It includes circuit riders and church planters in the U.S. It includes the Desert Southwest Conference, St. Mark’s UMC, and Sanctuary UMC. It includes you and me. We will celebrate who we are, where we’ve come from, and the unique way that we are the body of Christ in this world.

See you in worship Sunday!
Pastor Lynn

 

WORSHIP SCHEDULE

• 8:30 a.m. Traditional service in Sanctuary and child care in Rm 15
• 10 a.m. Traditional service in Sanctuary and child care in Rm 15
• 10 a.m. Youth and children’s Sunday School and child care (except fifth Sundays)
• 10 a.m. Livestream premieres on YouTube and Website

To access our livestream service:

• From the main menu on our website click “Worship.”  -OR-
• Go to YouTube and search for UMC St. Mark’s Oro Valley or use this link.