Call to Worship - Those of you joining us from home are invited to light a candle to welcome the presence of the Holy Spirit
For What It's Worth - Buffalo Springfield - El Dorado
Welcome - Rev. Dr. Mandy McDow
Passing of the Peace: Through the act of passing the peace of Christ, we offer our sincere desire to love our neighbor.
You are invited to greet one another in the live stream chat on Instagram, YouTube, and Facebook.
Chapter 12: Job, continued
Ways to Donate to Support our Breakfast Ministry:
VENMO: https://account.venmo.com/u/LAFirstUMC1
PAYPAL: https://paypal.me/LAFirstUMC
SQUARE:https://checkout.square.site/pay/be673aef7fcb424e98387016d184e57d
For more information: https://abc7.com/homeless-food-breakfast-church/14125358/
Rev. Dr. Denyse Barnes, Director of Justice and Compassion Essential Ministry Team
Our call as followers of Jesus has always been to love others, to take care of the stranger in our midst and the alien in our land. Following the inauguration of a new President and administration this week, a number of executive orders aimed at removing undocumented migrants have been signed and are being put into action. You can read more about these here.
The immigration strategy group leadership team met this week and will be meeting with the full group next week to further discuss, inform, and strategize. This is a volatile, fast-moving, and quickly evolving situation, and we will be updating ways in which you can help and respond. We have a network of churches from our border to LA who work together in keeping people safe, transporting them where they need to go, and sharing resources and information.
One of the things our group is so good at is understanding the intersectionality of all those who are in this situation currently and paying particular attention to those who are afraid for more than one reason because of who they are. We are also working with CLUE, LA Voice, and the UMC RRT teams to gather information and know ways in which we are able to best respond.
Sanctuary churches are no longer a tool we can employ due to the executive order giving ICE permission to enter schools, religious buildings, and other places traditionally considered ones of sanctuary. If, however, you are interested in taking part in this work in other ways, some of them are listed below. Please reach out to Rev. Denyse dbarnes@calpacumc.org if you would like to add your church or missions group to the list of those taking part in this work.
Here are some things you can do right now:
Watch the video from the training session we had with Alba Jaramillo from the Immigration Law and Justice Network.
Print out and make available these Know your right cards in whatever languages are relevant to your context. Link to know your rights cards.
Host a “Know Your Rights” training session at your church or mission area.
Host a “Safety Packet” session at your church or mission area.
Research and make note of the RRT phone numbers in your area here.
Switch to a safe and encrypted messaging app such as Signal.
Watch our page for updates.
Additional Reading:
College of Bishops: Pastoral letter addressing plight of migrants, immigrants and refugees
Facilitation Guide for Congregational Conversations about Risk Discernment(Unitarian Universalists)
After Day One: A High-Level Analysis of Trump’s First Executive Actions(American Immigration Council)
A Guide to Supporting Migrants and Immigrants Globally (Church and Society)
Preparing for Trump in 2025: What to Expect and Know Your Rights(Immigration Law & Justice Network) (Spanish version)
Know Your Rights:
You have constitutional rights:
• DO NOT OPEN THE DOOR if an immigration agent is knocking on the door.
• DO NOT ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS from an immigration agent if they try to talk to you. You have the right to remain silent.
• DO NOT SIGN ANYTHING without first speaking to a lawyer. You have the right to speak with a lawyer.
• If you are outside of your home, ask the agent if you are free to leave and if they say yes, leave calmly.
• GIVE THIS CARD TO THE AGENT. If you are inside of your home, show the card through the window or slide it under the door.
I do not wish to speak with you, answer your questions, or sign or hand you any documents based on my 5th Amendment rights under the United States Constitution.
I do not give you permission to enter my home based on my 4th Amendment rights under the United States Constitution unless you have a warrant to enter, signed by a judge or magistrate with my name on it that you slide under the door.
I do not give you permission to search any of my belongings based on my 4th Amendment rights.
I choose to exercise my constitutional rights.
These cards are available to citizens and noncitizens alike.
As the United States faces potential large-scale immigration policy changes, including the likely mass deportation of thousands of migrants, Global Ministries and UMCOR will prioritize protecting migrants’ rights, reaffirming a longstanding commitment to core humanitarian principles. We will intensify efforts to amplify the voices of migrants and create pathways for integration. Through comprehensive programs spanning global advocacy, church engagement, legal support and practical assistance, Global Ministries and UMCOR will continue to provide hope and support to those most vulnerable in their journey to safety and opportunity.
There are several ways that individuals, pastors and local churches can get involved in ministry with migrants and refugees:
Pray for the protection and well-being of migrants, for bold leadership and for positive action on the part of individuals, churches and communities.
Volunteer with local organizations in your community. Contact Church World Service, Immigration Law and Justice Network or similar organizations to see how you can assist the affiliate nearest you.
Implement a Mustard Seed Migration Grant project to assist migrants in your own community. Applications for grants of $2,000 will be accepted up to December 13, 2024. Learn more and apply here.
Contact your elected officials to let them know that you welcome migrants. You can sign up for Church World Service Action Alerts to learn how to become involved in advocacy efforts that support migrant rights.
Donate to the Global Migration Advance (#3022144) to support programming that aids migrants and refugees. Give here.
MONETARY DONATIONS:
We've set up a special fund - the Los Angeles Fires Recovery Fund - where you can contribute directly towards relief and recovery from the effects of the winds and firestorms this week. www.calpacumc.org/donate
Check donations payable to the California-Pacific Conference can be mailed to California-Pacific Conference, Los Angeles Fires Recovery Fund, PO Box 6006, Pasadena CA 91102.
If you'd like to include a QR code to donate in your worship bulletins or slides this weekend, you can download that at this link.
TARGET GIFT CARDS
We are collecting gift cards to Target for clothing and other immediate needs items. Please send gift cards of any denomination to the conference office for distribution:
Denyse Barnes
c/o California-Pacific Annual Conference
PO Box 6006
Pasadena, CA 91102-6006
WILDFIRES RESOURCE HUB NEXT WEEK:
Meet with national, state, and local community based organizations collaborating to provide crucial resources and information to those impacted by the 2025 LA Wildfires.
DISTRICT SUPPORT CONTACTS
If you or your church needs support or would like to offer help, please reach out to a designated contact from your district below for coordination:
WEST: Rev. Allison Mark, communications@faithsouthbay.org
NORTH: Rev. Alex Powell, info@bfumc.net, 818-845-1531
EAST: Dorman Jung, depjung9@gmail.com
CALPAC: Rev. Dr. Denyse Barnes, dbarnes@calpacumc.org
REQUEST OR OFFER HELP
We have created a simple submission form where you can offer donated items, temporary housing, or make requests for support. SUBMIT NOW >>
RESOURCE: PRAYER FOR THE GATHERED COMMUNITY
Rev. Karin Ellis (La Canada UMC) wrote a prayer for use in your services, lifting up our communities who are affected by the LA fires. READ MORE >>
VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES
As we move towards the next stage in the recovery and support of fire victims across the Los Angeles area (and beyond!) there are a number of opportunities for our churches to engage in assisting those affected as well as helping our Disaster Response team and UMCOR in carrying out their work.
Stephen Ministers – we already have a number of folx lined up to help with grief counseling and support and would like to now call for those of you who are qualified Stephen’s ministers to add your names to our list. In addition to working with the fire victims themselves as we move to helping with sifting, we also need support for those people who are working directly with the victims as they listen to their stories and hold space for them. This work is emotionally challenging, and they will also need someone to talk to and help them process. Please submit a response form if you are qualified and interested.
Fire buckets – We have obtained a warehouse space in Pasadena to store supplies for UMCOR and disaster response. Now we need to add to the supplies there. Churches can assemble fire buckets (you can find the details here)
Sifters construction – These are tools which can be constructed by church teams – you find the details here.
Cleaning Kits – these can help those who were evacuated and now need to clean their homes. You can find the details for these kits here.
Document Retrieval – For those churches which are close by to the fire locations you can offer assistance for folx who have lost everything by hosting a document retrieval service. If you have space to set up a “clinic” for this purpose and some laptops to assist then here is form which can help you help those who need to restore all of their personal documentation.
ALTADENA UMC:
The congregation of Altadena UMC is requesting gift cards to Target for clothing and other immediate needs items.
1) Altadena UMC GoFundMe Page: Goal of $16,000 ($2.300 raised so far)
2) Altadena UMC's Cash App for Tithes & Offerings: $abundantlife349
Please put in the note “AUMC Disaster Relief”
Please send gift cards of any denomination to the conference office for distribution:
Denyse Barnes
c/o California-Pacific Annual Conference
PO Box 6006
Pasadena, CA 91102-6006
Download the Watch Duty app for up-to-date information on existing and new fires.
List of resources for LA wildfire victims
Transportation
Uber: Residents in Los Angeles County who’ve been ordered to vacate their homes can get a credit from Uber to get to an evacuation site. The $40 will only be valid for trips to an active shelter and by using the code WILDFIRE25.
Lyft: Lyft announced it will be offering $25 vouchers, valid for two trips, to 500 customers from now until midnight on Jan. 15. Use the code CAFIRERELIEF25 to get the promotion.
Housing
Airbnb: 211 LA is partnering with Airbnb to offer free temporary housing for people displaced from their homes due to wildfires. More info here.
Queen Mary: The Queen Mary hotel in Long Beach announced that it will be pricing rooms for fire evacuees at $189. The reservation will include a voucher for a breakfast buffet for two people. The reservation will also waive pet and Historical Preservation fees.
Big Bear: The popular retreat spot has also offered evacuees a peaceful place to turn to for rest and regathering. A collection of vacation homes and hotels is listed on this page, which has been created specifically for the needs of fire evacuees.
Visit Anaheim: People affected by the wildfires can visit Visit Anaheim's official website and find special hotel offers and assistance.
Shelters
Westwood Recreation Center: 1350 S. Sepulveda, Los Angeles
Pasadena Civic Auditorium: 300 E. Green St, Pasadena
El Camino Real Charter High School: 5440 Valley Circle Blvd., Woodland Hills
Ritchie Valens Recreation Center: 10736 Laurel Canyon Blvd, Pacoima
Sepulveda Recreation Center: Address: 8825 Kester Avenue, Panorama City
CALL TO PRAYER: Open Your Eyes - Salman Ahmad with Peter Gabriel - El Dorado
Joys and Concerns: Prayers of the People We believe that the best way to bear our burdens is to share them with one another. You welcome to share your joys and concerns so that our community can hold these things in our hearts as we lift them to God together.
You are invited to share your prayers in the Facebook Live Chat, or on the YouTube Live chat.
New Testament Lesson: 1 Corinthians 12:12-31a - One Body with Many Members
For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. For in the one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and we were all made to drink of one Spirit.
Indeed, the body does not consist of one member but of many. If the foot were to say, ‘Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body’, that would not make it any less a part of the body. And if the ear were to say, ‘Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body’, that would not make it any less a part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would the hearing be? If the whole body were hearing, where would the sense of smell be? But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose. If all were a single member, where would the body be? As it is, there are many members, yet one body. The eye cannot say to the hand, ‘I have no need of you’, nor again the head to the feet, ‘I have no need of you.’ On the contrary, the members of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, and those members of the body that we think less honourable we clothe with greater honour, and our less respectable members are treated with greater respect; whereas our more respectable members do not need this. But God has so arranged the body, giving the greater honour to the inferior member, that there may be no dissension within the body, but the members may have the same care for one another. If one member suffers, all suffer together with it; if one member is honoured, all rejoice together with it.
Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it. And God has appointed in the church first apostles, second prophets, third teachers; then deeds of power, then gifts of healing, forms of assistance, forms of leadership, various kinds of tongues. Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? Do all possess gifts of healing? Do all speak in tongues? Do all interpret? But strive for the greater gifts. And I will show you a still more excellent way.
One: This is the word of God for us, the People of God.
All: Thanks be to God!
Sermon: We Are All Members of the Same Body, Rev. Dr. Mandy McDow
HOLY COMMUNION
Invitation to the Table: As we understand the Body of Christ to be inclusive, we understand God’s table of grace and fellowship can extend into our homes. As you’re able, bring your own elements to this time.
Bread, Juice, Coffee, Muffins… the Body of Christ is comprised of wonder and mystery. Today, we celebrate that God can reach us where we are, even if we are not together.
The Great Mystery of our Faith
All: Christ has died
Christ is risen.
Christ will come again.
The Lord’s Prayer
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy Name,
thy kingdom come, thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory,
for ever and ever. Amen.
MUSIC DURING COMMUNION: What Wondrous Love is This - El Dorado
Benediction Remember:
God is with you,
God is for you,
God refuses to be God without you.
And may all of God’s people say: Amen!
