Da Lay Speak!
May 2009
Hola y bienvenido to our May Flowers edition….a Roster
update….Training opportunities here and there…and whatever else….
Da Roster
Padre Pat leaves for his sabbatical time away after May 10. I’ve updated
the Roster (attached) showing those of us who will pound the pulpit
during his absence. My thanks again to Nord Yamauchi (SPRC Chair) for
lining us up while I was away last month.
Training Opportunities
Coming May 9th, 930-4, at the Grass Valley UMC is an Advanced Class “Lay
Discipleship”, again for current Basics and for a three-year re-cert
class. Cost is $25 and pre-registration is required. Contact Jim Hook,
13253 Ore Court, Penn Valley, CA 95946. Phone 530-432-5593;
hook13253@comcast.net
Here’s what’s upcoming in Delta District:
· May 23 – 9-4, Lead Worship @ UM Conference Center. Deadline 5/19/09.
Cost $25
Pre-Registration is required for all classes. Some classes require
homework prep before attending. Contact
Delta District, Attention Cindy Buna, deltadist@calnevumc.org. Cost
includes materials, books, refreshments and lunch. This would be a good
“re-cert” class for every 3-years if you need it.
Have you completed at least one class within the past 3-years to retain
your certification?
From My Notebook
This month we continue on to some more stuff from my Notebook related to
Leading Public Prayer..
There are different forms of public prayer, and some of them you may
find easier to lead than others. There is the “printed prayer” that
someone else wrote, or that you carefully crafted ahead of time. It can
be prayed aloud in unison if everyone has the words in front of them, in
which case the leader can simply say, “Let us pray,” and then pray it
with them. Or the leader can pray the prayer, with the people silently
making the prayer their own or perhaps saying “amen” at the end. Or the
prayer can be a litany, prayed responsively by leader and people. This
may or may not be done from a printed text. Sometimes the leader and/or
members of a group or small congregation volunteer sentence prayers or
prayer requests, and after each one the people respond with a short,
quickly memorized phrase, such as, “Lord, hear our prayer.”
(Continued)
Segue
From the Quincy Quill (Quincy, CA, UMC) comes some feedback from their
recent Lay Speaker Training in March:
“I had the privilege of attending the Lay Speaker training on Saturday
the 20th. What a wonderful experience! There were 25 people including
folks from Chester, Greenville, Taylorsville, Reno and Quincy. Our
presenter was Pastor Dawn Pidlypchak from Portola Methodist Church. The
Training was informing as well as enlightening.
“At the beginning of the session, people were gathering in groups and
visiting with people from their own church. By lunch time, we were all
talking with each other; we had become one group.”
“Personally, I thought the Lay Speaker training last Saturday was
excellent. Pastor Dawn provided insight into all the topics that were
covered…most important to me were the liturgical reading and prayer
leading segments.”
“I felt Saturday training was time well spent. I especially liked the
way everyone worked together. Felt like we really learned how to work
things out when by ourselves we not have accomplished very much.”
“I would like to say it was a great success as far as I was concerned.
I’m sure it helped that we seemed to have a group who really wanted to
participate, but the time was well spent. The speaker was wonderful and
did a fantastic job facilitating, which is why I think it was even more
of a success. There was much to learn and it certainly wasn’t
boring….very instructive and informational, plus good practice with the
actual doing of tasks.”
“The lay speaker training gave helpful hints in preparation for reading
and speaking at church services or while performing leadership roles.
Maybe the most instructive statement or phrase presented at the training
as a thought to bear in mind during such presentation – “It’s not about
me.”
“I particularly enjoyed the classes on Devotions. The entire day was a
wonderful experience.”
“Interesting, thought provoking, lighthearted, but poignant. All in all,
a great day a of positive influence and affirmation.”
The Lord’s Laughter (from the Joyful Noiseletter)
Jokes Pastors Can Tell (Or Not)
Words you would never hear from a Mother:
· “Just leave all the lights on. It makes the house look more cheery.”
· “Sure, I used to skip school a lot, too.”
· “Well if Nancy’s Mom says its okay, that’s good enough for me.”
· “I don’t have a tissue with me. Just use your sleeve.”
· “Let me smell that shirt. Yeah, it’s good for another week.”