×‰?×B!•×‘C’×˜š ÍH ÍHÍüu×‰œ”×‰	Ú 7cassandra://dn_HfiJjQTlFPHO2om1RJLX6_MWt6QVRDG6Z9g4VXOsÎ ,þÍ`Í$Ít×‰	Ú 7cassandra://b4amAOFmRYGs9JNEn6qoo1Faz12AIuZHxLqxGlHP930Í]¸Í`Í‹Íà×‰	Ú 7cassandra://nV_Fu5Lj3on6CaPjsQnWnMMnQxX7Y6It_u3Ow0BjsDwÍ NÍ`ÌÓÍ ×‰	Ú 7cassandra://hU_TXE-6_i40xi_hHjw3f7ZpvWgF-WFuGJktG1vTit0Î blÍ Í·Íñ×`¸õß<Dœh÷e×˜š   ÍHÍüu×ˆœ×   ‹±¢RA  ×ˆE×`¸õß<Dœh÷eu×‰EÚ …Wesley United Methodist Church
June 2021 Newsletter
Whatâ€™s inside:
A note from
Pastor Zeke
Music News
Welcome baby
Giovanni Jesus!
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Page 1
From the Desk of Pastor Zeke
Simply Powerful
Over these past few Sundayâ€™s, I invited you to pray some simple but powerful prayers. I want
to remind you of them:
â€¢ God show me the next step
â€¢ God send your Holy Spirit
â€¢ God make me holy
â€¢ God unify us
â€¢ God spill out your Holy Spirit on our church
Often, our most powerful prayers are simple ones. I believe each of these prayers have the
potential to be incredibly powerful in all of our lives. Hebrews 4:16 says:
â€œLet us, therefore, approach the throne of grace with boldnessâ€
I remind you of this verse because I think it helps us engage in a vital approach to prayer.
Specifically, that we must pray boldly. Often times we can get in â€œprayer rutsâ€ where we say
the same prayer and pray the same way. When we do this we can easily fall into the prayer
doldrums. It is a place without anticipation or expectation. It can become a place of apathy
and obligation rather than a place of invitation, collaboration, and blessing. Jesus modeled a
bold prayer life. The disciples carried on that tradition throughout the New Testament. From
the beginning of Christendom, people of faith have prayed boldly and born witness to God
working in and through their prayers. That same powerful God is working through us, within
our prayers, today. So pray boldly. Do not hesitate to ask and to invite God to work within
your life in powerful ways. As the church of the living Christ and as people of the living
Christ, we are invited into an intimate relationship with God. Lean into that relationship
within your prayer life. Donâ€™t be afraid to share your hearts desires with God. Ask boldly and
without fear. Place your concerns into the capable hands of God. In doing so, I believe we
will all see radical change in our lives and in our situations.
Keep the Faith Strong, Pastor Zeke
Wesley UMC Newsletter
June 2021
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Page 2
Wesley in Worship
The worship committee has been busy
brainstorming ideas to make certain worship
services just a little more memorable. From
flowers for Mothers day to cupcakes for
Pentacost, we strive to add a special touch
to each of these services with the hopes that
it will make it more memorable for
everyone. We look forward to honoring the
men on Fathers Day and our country on the
Fourth of July. Soon, we will be making a
request for your favorite hymns and praise
songs to see if we can work those into our
future services. So be thinking of those
songs that have touched your heart so you
can suggest them when the time comes.
Facility Information
In addition to the extreme clean-up of the
Wesley campus, you can expect to see new
trees and plants to replace those severely
damaged or completely frozen from the last
hard freeze the area experienced. A new
Dwarf Japanese Maple has already been
planted at the East Entrance to the
Sanctuary. As soon as the rains let up, two
Japanese Maples will be planted at the front
of the Sanctuary with new shrubs or flowers
around them. A Pink Dogwood and another
Japanese Maple will go in on the South end of
the Sanctuary. In the island on the East
Parking Lot, a Hydrangea Tree, a Dwarf Red
Bud, and a Pink Parasol Japanese
Snowball (all three dwarfs) will be
planted. Thank you to Harley Strang and the
Trustees for your diligence and work on this
project. These additions will certainly enhance
the beauty of our campus.
Wesley UMC Newsletter
June 2021
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Page 3
Greetings!!
Dear Wesley UMC Family,
Nearly four years ago, I saw an advertisement for a church in Fort Smith needing a choir
director. I remember reading the job description thinking, "Do I really want to be a choir
director again?" I knew the answer: I wouldn't have been curiously looking at job postings if I
did not. I had become somewhat jaded against the idea of being a choir director in a church
again because there had been a couple of bad experiences in my past, and these made me
hesitant. However, I submitted my resume, looked up as much information as I could about
the church, and stepped out in faith.
It was one of the BEST decisions that I have ever made. Since my first Sunday here, I have
had the blessing of working with such wonderful and talented people, who have always been
such a joy.
This church has such a loving spirit, and over these four year, my faith in the church has been
restored by watching you live as I feel people of God should. You have accepted those whom
others might push away or deem unworthy. You have demonstrated extraordinary
generosity. You have worked hard in the community to fulfill the needs of those around you
while expecting nothing in return. You have been an example to others of what people with
faith guided by a sense of love for their neighbor can do. In essence, you are a small but
mighty church, and it has been inspiring to me to see the grace and blessing that God wields
through you.
I am grateful to God for my time among you. I have laughed, cried, healed, and been restored
many times throughout these four years.
My best friend Nate and I had a discussion recently in which we were remembering times
when each of our lives have changed direction. While comparing notes, we both came to the
realization that these moments only came when we were willing to give up something that we
had been holding on to. A few days later, I attended a funeral for a high school friend of mine
who passed away suddenly. His name was Bobby, and he was a well-known musician who
played in several bluegrass bands all over the country.
Continued on page 4
Wesley UMC Newsletter
June 2021
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Page 4
Music News Continuedâ€”As I sat and listened to
all the stories people shared about his life in
music and how it touched them, I had a
sudden epiphany. Bobby was a musician; it
was his life. This was something he did
every day. God spoke to me in that
moment, showing me that while music has
been a gift from when I was young, it is
not my life. My life has been about forging
relationships and being a leader, even when
I did not really want to be.
What I realized is that once again, I am
being asked to give up something so that
God can send me in a different direction. I
just never realized that church music would
be that thing. That doesn't mean that I will
quit singing or even being a part of a choir
someday. What it means is that for now, I
have to let go of something that I really
want to hold on to--being a church music
leader--so that God can lead me in a
different direction.
So, as I end this, my last article to you, I
want you to know that I take nothing but
happy memories from this church, and I am
SO GRATEFUL that God led me to you
those years ago. And though I am headed
down a different path now, I know that I
will have to stop in from time to time to
catch up with a group of people whom I
truly love and care for.
Yours in Christ, Shane
Wesley UMC Newsletter
We sing about it, and now weâ€™ve witnessed it
first-hand! â€œIt only takes a spark to get a fire
goingâ€¦â€ We didnâ€™t start a fire, but we did
start a spring clean-up of Wesleyâ€™s grounds
and fence rows when Gloria Cates said sheâ€™d
give $100 towards hiring a crew to tidy up the
lawn and landscaping. Blanche West agreed
to match her donation, and the â€œsparks flew,â€œ
gathering momentum in the form of 30 more
donations for a total of $4000 during the
month of May to â€œmake it happen!â€ Thank
you to all those who contributed over and
above their regular giving in order to make it
happen. Another word of thanks goes to
Renee Figuerora for donating his grounds
crew to trim out the frozen foliage between
the two buildings.
June 2021
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Page 5
Missions
Farmers Market - Below is the sorting
schedule for June. Anyone is welcome to
come help sort and deliver produce
Saturdays at noon.
June 5 - Cavanaugh
June 12 - Wesley
June 19 - Cavanaugh
June 26 - Wesley
Change Jars - Keep your change!!! The
missions committee will be passing out
change jars on Sunday, June 6th to send
home with members to collect your change.
The first Sunday of each month we will
count the change and whatever is collected
will be donated to a mission program or
non-profit we have chosen for that month.
If you have a program or place you would
like to see the donations given to, please let
us know. We are open to suggestions.
Community Garden - A handful of Wesley
members as well as a handful of workers
from the Arkansas Hunger Relief Alliance
and Americorp planted sweet potatoes at the
community garden. It was muddy but
everyone had a great time. Harvesting will
take place in September so be on the look
out for that date.
Wesley UMC Newsletter
June 2021
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Page 6
The Reset study group recently completed a ten week intensive study of the book of
Nehemiah and celebrated with a graduation fellowship on May 16 with lunch, playing Spin the
Wheel to Victory, and marching in a parade complete with noise makers and pom-poms, from
the fellowship hall to the commencement exercise in the Sanctuary, with Pastor Zeke offering
Communion and handing out diplomas to each graduate. Class member Clyde Bates
challenged his classmates to â€œbe strong in the Lordâ€ and â€œput on the whole armor of
Godâ€¦.that they may withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.â€ Ephesians 6:1020
Congratulations!
Wesley UMC Newsletter
June 2021
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Giovanni Jesus!!!!
Born: 5/18/2021
Time: 3:44pm
Weight: 8lbs 2.9oz
Length: 20 3/4â€
One Council will meet June 17th at 6:30 in the meeting room below
the church office.
God,
help me encounter you today.
2200 Phoenix Ave., Fort Smith, AR 72901
479-646-9702
Wesley UMC Newsletter
June 2021
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