Patten Shine Weekly: Who is My Mother?



Together Tuesday, Fabulous Friday Afternoon school children prepared for Mother's Day gifts! 


"Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?" Jesus asked this of the crowd. When they pointed to his biological family, Jesus replied, "For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother." (Matthew 12:48-50)

Who is your mother? As Mother’s Day approaches, I want to ask you this question. If you ask me, my answer is the same as Jesus’. I have my biological mother and my mother-in-law, but I also have many "mothers" in my life who pray for me, care for me, and have raised me in so many ways. I believe that whoever gives "birth" to hope and takes care of others is a Mother!

Tomorrow, I will share stories of wonderful mothers, including Teresa of Avila and Mother Teresa, who had no biological children but countless spiritual children. We will also hear a testimony from Terry, who has been such a wonderful mother to our church and community!

Upcoming Schedule & Announcements

  • Mother’s Day Rehearsal: All mothers, grandmothers, and children are welcome to join the rehearsal tomorrow at 10:00 am.

  • Coffee Hour: We will not have Coffee Hour tomorrow. Instead, we will celebrate on May 24th (Pentecost Sunday). Mothers, you are free from making food tomorrow—just enjoy the day!

  • Education Sunday (May 17th): We will celebrate our children, teachers, and Bible study members with wonderful testimonies from our Sunday School.

  • Pentecost Sunday (May 24th): This will be my last Sunday with you in Patten. We will have a "pick-up" choir (practice at 10:00 am), Communion, Coffee Hour, and a testimony from Les.

  • Farewell Combined Service (May 31st): Join us at 10:00 am at Houlton UMC for a combined farewell service. It will be a grand reunion of our four churches with a handbell choir, worship dance, a combined band, and a potluck luncheon!


Meeting & Community Updates

  • Administrative Council Meeting (May 14th): We will meet to discuss the transition and worship with your new pastor. Everyone who wants to support the church is welcome. Please review the minutes from the Treasurer, the Dream Team, and the Bishop’s presentation before we meet.

  • Funeral for Pastor Kwan Lee: May 15th at 1:00 pm at Houlton UMC. Pastor Lee loved Stetson Memorial UMC, calling it his "favorite church." Let us join together to honor his life and service.

  • Faith Books Have Arrived! A huge thank you to everyone who shared their stories and to Pastor Victor for putting it all together. Because of a generous donation from Pastor Kwan Lee’s family, these books are free for our four churches. You can pick yours up tomorrow as a Mother’s Day gift!

  • May 19:

    • Last Day of Bible Study: 10:00 am at Houlton UMC.

    • Combined Women’s Potluck Party: 11:00 am. All women from our churches are warmly welcome to join us for food and fellowship!

  • May 21: * Prayer Meeting: 11:30 am in the Sanctuary.


A Closing Prayer

"Count it all joy, my brothers and sisters, when you meet trials of various kinds..." (James 1:2-5)

Lord, when we face various trials, it is hard to feel grateful. However, I believe that spiritual maturity comes from counting our joys even in the middle of the storm. Help me to continue turning my grief into gratitude. As humans, we cannot be steadfast on our own, but through Your divine nature, we can be complete. Give us Your wisdom, Lord, so that we may feel we lack nothing, for You are our Shepherd.

In Jesus Christ's name, Amen.






 

Prayers for the World, especially Ukraine, Russia, Gaza and Israel

Prayers for our country and its leadership

Prayers for our denomination, especially our Bishop and Cabinet

Prayers for our community, especially Fire Victims, and Calvary

Baptist Church

Prayers for those who don’t know Jesus

 

Prayers of Comfort for Those Who Mourn:  the families of

      Kempton Coolong, Carrol Plecs, Carl Perrin

    

Prayers for Bodily Healing:

      Donnie Adams, William Barton, Little Beckham, Gary Blake,

      Rev. Dan Blevins, Robin Bosse, Dana Carver, Mike Casey,

      Gordon & Roseanne Daughinee, Ron Dennis, Raymond

      Deshaies, Kathy Duffy Family,  Patsy Dyer, Ross Gowen,

      Zachary Gowen, Emily Harris Family, Chris Heath, Dicki Heath,

      Hope Heath, Justin Karcher, Coty Kelso, Matt Lane, Ricky Lyons,  

      Jim Mason, Judi MacArthur, Dean McFarland, Pam McGary,

      Amy Milo, Danette Moddy, Roberta Moore, Rick Murray,

      Ed Noyes, Robin Pettengill, Barbara Porter, the Richards Family,

      Dennis Sanborn, Kari Sanborn, the Alfred Savage Family,

      Cora Savage, Keith Sheilds, Rena Shorey, Butch Smallwood,

      Dicki Somers, Steve Trembly, Jolene Webber, Zach Weeks,

      Linda Zalieka

 

Happy Birthday

Maelyn Garret(1), Amelia Cocharan(7), Raymond Deshaies(12), Sara Hill(17), Haven Giles(21), Rick Hill(28)

 

Happy Anniversary

Rick & Sara (29), Victor & Joyce (31) 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Still Here, Still Faithful by Sharon McPhee

Image
Three generations of Grace   A Heritage of Harmony When I look back on my life, I see that the church has always been part of my story. It wasn't just something we did on Sundays; it was who we were. My mother was the organist at our church for fifty years. Fifty years—that still amazes me. She was quiet, steady, and faithful. She also taught music to fifth graders. In our house, if you could sing, you were in the choir. That was just how it worked. The Fullness of the Sanctuary When I was in high school, the choir loft was full. So many people sang that we had to sit up there for the whole service because there were no seats left in the pews. If you didn’t get to church early, you didn’t get a good seat. In those days, everybody went to church. It wasn’t unusual; it was life. My mother received a plaque for her fifty years of service. She retired in the late 1990s but kept playing almost until she passed away. Music was her gift, and she gave it wholeheartedly to God a...
Read more

A Journey of Faith, Service, and Laughter by Dickie Somers

Image
A Long Road Home My name is Dickie Somers. I want to be honest first: I am not perfect. There are things in my life I am not proud of, but there are also many things I thank God for. One of the biggest blessings in my life is this church. I have been part of this church for a long time—over 50 years now. Church has always been important to me. I grew up in a Christian family with eight children. My father worked in the woods, and my mother worked hard all her life. Faith was the foundation of our home. Even today, I start my day the same way: I make coffee, and then I read my devotions. Every single morning. That is what keeps me going. When I was young, my mother loved the church. She came early every Sunday, not just for worship, but to talk to everyone. She loved people, and I think I learned that from her. I always looked forward to Sunday school then, and I still do today.   Starting the Men’s Group One day, we had a visiting minister named Tom Chandler. At that ti...
Read more

It Is No Secret What God Can Do by Sharon Batchelder

Image
My name is Sharon Batchelder, and I was born in Danforth, Maine. When I look back over my life, I see pain and hardship, but I also see the faithfulness of God. My story is not always easy to tell, but it is a testimony of how God has carried me, healed me, and given me hope.   Childhood and Early Struggles When I was only eight months old, my stepfather threw me down a flight of stairs. That fall left me with lasting damage. My whole right side was affected, almost as if I had a stroke. It took me sixteen years just to learn how to tie my own shoes. My stepfather was an alcoholic. He drank constantly, and with the drinking came anger, cruelty, and abuse. My mother had twelve children, though one died at birth. That left eleven of us growing up together, and life was not easy. My mother was afraid of my stepfather. I don’t know why she married him, but she did, and the fear never left her. He was a hard, cruel man. He abused us, and worse, he even harmed my older sister i...
Read more