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SOME HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE: A SPECIAL PASTORAL CONVO: Join us for a very important and special conversation with Pastor Doug Chapman to discuss his necessary golden opportunities. YMCA: Summer is here and that means YMCA Y CLUB! Happening now! ZOOM Fellowships & Groups: We share what ZOOM Fellowship and Groups are all about and will be beginning to open this up to others within our congregation! Let's make a difference for eternity! CHECK OUT WHAT'S COMING UP! STAY INFORMED. FIND SUPPORT. YOUR NEXT STEP. #Engage #COVID19 #Epistle #Zoom WE WOULD LOVE TO HEAR IT! We love to hear how God has moved in your faith journey at St. Paul's! Rather you're new , visited us a few times or have been a Member of St. Paul's for decades, we want to hear it! Share your story today!* NOTE: *We will not share your story on our website unless you specifically say so. Also, at the bottom of every page of our site is a Leave Feedback link. Please use that to leave site feedback or share your story privately to us. We can't wait to hear from you!

SOME HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE: Pastor Doug's Page: Pastor Doug shares about Spiritual Entrepreneurship in the age of Covid-19 A Special Message from SPRC: The Staff-Parish Relations Committee (SPRC) shares an overview of this past year in regards to staff changes, difficult decisions made and what we are looking forward to for the future. Outreach: Read the impact of all of us who were able to donate to the Warm & Fuzzy Tree and kept it's impact in prayer. And find your opportunity to #EngageMission together with our Dinner Church Team! CHECK OUT WHAT'S COMING UP! STAY INFORMED. FIND SUPPORT. YOUR NEXT STEP.

SOME HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE: Pastor Doug's Page: Pastor Doug shares how every believer and every church was made for more and made to be "mobilized", made for active service in moving with Christ's mission forward in the world, made to Connect People. Transform Lives. Fresh Expressions | Future Church Summit: What will the "new normal" look like for churches after the pandemic? The crises of 2020 have accelerated the need for churches to "future-fit" for our new world. Our congregation needs insight as we begin to craft our strategy for our congregation for 2021 and the future. Future Church Summit brings futurists and missional practitioners alongside us to chart a course for the road ahead. We will come together to participate in this engaging journey this February! Sign up today! Outreach: Read the impact of all of us who were able to donate pantry items and support our local communities, like Inez Elementary! We invite you to find your opportunity to #EngageMission together with our Dinner Church Team by visiting spumcabq.org/engage CHECK OUT WHAT'S COMING UP! STAY INFORMED. FIND SUPPORT. YOUR NEXT STEP.

SOME HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE: Pastor Doug's Page: Pastor Doug unpacks about all Made for More and introduces us to our 6 Week Congregational Group Journey coming this March! Engage Mission: There are plenty of opportunities around us to listen, serve and love our community. Check out more in the Epistle and visit spumcabq.org/engage Become Community: Did you know we have a Prayer Ministry that meets on Zoom? We invite you to learn more in the Epistle and online at spumcabq.org/adult CHECK OUT WHAT'S COMING UP! STAY INFORMED. FIND SUPPORT. YOUR NEXT STEP.

CHECK OUT WHAT'S COMING UP! STAY INFORMED. FIND SUPPORT. TAKE YOUR NEXT STEP.

CHECK OUT WHAT'S COMING UP! STAY INFORMED. FIND SUPPORT. TAKE YOUR NEXT STEP. Share and invite your family and friends! 👍 Visit spumcabq.org/worshipathome for ways to worship, fellowship and grow at home!

Dear St. Paul's Family, RHYTHMS OF THE HEALTHY DISCIPLE MARK 1:35 Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed. 36 Simon and his companions went to look for him, 37 and when they found him, they exclaimed: "Everyone is looking for you!" MARK 6:30 The apostles gathered around Jesus and reported to him all they had done and taught. 31 Then, because so many people were coming and going that they did not even have a chance to eat, he said to them, "Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest." MARK 8:27 Jesus and his disciples went on to the villages around Caesarea Philippi. On the way he asked them, "Who do people say I am?" ADVANCE AND WITHDRAWAL Frequently He would take them with Him in a retreat to some mountainous area of the country where He was relatively unknown seeking to avoid publicity as far as possible. They took trips together to Tyre and Sidon to the Northwest (Mark 7:24; Matt. 15:21); to the "borders of Decapolis" (Mark 7:31; Matt. 15:29) and "the parts of Dalmanutha" to the Southeast of Galilee (Mark 8:10; Matt. 15:39); and to the "villages of Caesarea Philippi" to the Northeast (Mark 8:27; cf., Matt. 16:13). These journeys were made partly because of the opposition of the Pharisees and the hostility of Herod, but primarily because Jesus felt the need to get alone with His disciples. Later He spent several months with His disciples in Perea east of the Jordan (Luke 13:22-19:28; John 10:40-11:54; Matt. 19:1-20, 34; Mark 10:1-52). As opposition mounted there, Jesus "walked no more openly among the Jews, but departed thence into the country near to the wilderness, into a city called Ephraim; and there He tarried with His disciples" (John 11:54). When at last the time came for Him to go to Jerusalem, He significantly "took the twelve disciples apart" from the rest as He made His way slowly to the city (Matt. 20:17; Mark 10:32). Many of us feel limited in our own discipleship and wonder how we can connect to the discipleship process of Jesus. THE MASTER PLAN OF EVANGELISM By Robert Coleman Robert Coleman emphasizes this critical wisdom of Jesus in his development of the disciples: Jesus would accompany profound advances, or missions, of the Gospel with pro found "withdrawals", "time away", seasons where it was crucial to be able to reflect with His Father, or the new community of him and his disciples, upon "what just happened." It was in these places and seasons of profound reflection that Jesus accomplished two things: FOCUS and IDENTITY. FOCUS Jesus treasured the necessity of stepping back from all the doing of the gospel in order to engage the being of our spiritual life and relationships. For Jesus, the mission of God was deeply rooted in the being of fellowship with Him and one another, It was the being of prayer, life sharing conversation, struggles insights, and humbling breakthroughs that marked the dynamics of their fellowship. This kind of sharing gave deep focus. Often, it was out of the being that was found from such fellowship that Jesus and his disciples charted new course, new mission. This is what a healthy disciple does. They seek out prayer, fellowship, life sharing conversations, and reflection not to withdraw from mission but to gain the focus and insights of next steps in the engagement of the mission of God. IDENTITY Out of these withdrawals of "FOCUS" came deeper understanding of identity, which is central to our sense of being. In prayer Jesus regularly discovered more and more about his own identity. In retreat settings such as the one at Caesarea Phillipi the disciples found breakthroughs into the identity of Jesus as Lord, and of who they were - persons of the cross just like Jesus, for instance. Of course, this all culminated in the most profound lesson of the relationship between Christian "being and doing His first command to his stunned disciples following his resurrection: "Wait." Jesus knew that if they rushed into doing, doing, doing they would do so without focus, without the sense of identity and purpose that would be necessary going forward, and that they would burn out under the pressures of the challenges a whole culture would throw at them, especially under the pressures of gradually dissipating cohesion, bonding, and life sharing conversation that would be desperately essential to avoiding becoming a fractious, ambitious, envy-filled movement. ST. PAUL'S BEING THAT SHAPES DOING In our St. Paul's vision chart we find that there is shared emphasis upon both the Being and the Doing of our Vision. That is why our Church Council approved our Spiritual Awakening vision first. We know that in order for St. Paul's to be effective in our "Engage" practices of Fresh Expressions, we must have the fuel of spiritual awakening We must find the FOCUS and IDENTITY insights that come only from reflective gatherings together in prayer, worship, Scripture, and life sharing conversation! encourage you to look closely in the weeks and months ahead at the Spiritual Awakening experiences that will be offered. Don't miss them! The discipleship health of you and of St. Paul's depends upon the "being we discover in our spiritual awakenings. Every believer and every church was "made for more"; made to be "mobilized", made for "active service" in moving with Christ's mission forward in the world; made to Connect People, Transform Lives. We are called to reproduce, make new disciples. Many of us feel limited in our own discipleship and wonder how we can connect to the Discipleship process of Jesus. Most of us wish we could become engaged in transforming our neighborhood and community. When God's people are released to carry out this mission, we call it mobilization. Mobilization is the bridge between becoming a disciple and impacting our world. The dictionary defines the verb "to mobilize" for us in the following ways Prepare and organize for active service Make something movable or capable of movement Our mobilization problem starts in understanding how to become a disciple, and how to engage my neighborhood. Our personal and church scorecards of our goals must change. For too long we have only measured results in terms of "nickels and noses." In the past this may have been sufficient. But, now we must have a scorecard that measures causes, those essential practices that produce results. And, we have to realize that money and attendance size are neither the best measures of a congregation, nor are they the most strategic measures. We are often so busy with "church activity that we miss the real adventure becoming a disciple, engaging our neighborhood, transformation of the world. Starting March 22 we will participate in weekly group fellowships that explore together the book of Ephesians. As we do so, we will realize that we have been made for more-actually, nothing less than changed living, and a changed world. SHIFT ONE - FROM MORE EFFORT TO MORE JESUS SHIFT TWO - FROM MORE VOLUNTEERS TO MORE SHIFT THREE - FROM MORE GUILT TO MORE LOVE SHIFT FOUR - FROM MORE HIERARCHY TO MORE SHIFT FIVE - FROM MORE PROGRAMS TO MORE SHIFT SIX - FROM MORE STRATEGY TO MORE SOCIAL SHARE! Log In below or post on our Facebook Page to share what Made for More means to you! Use the hashtag: #stpaulsmadeformore

Dear St. Paul's Family, Every believer and every church was made for more, made to be "mobilized", made for active service in moving with Christ's mission forward in the world, made to Connect People. Transform Lives. We are called to reproduce, make new disciples. Many of us feel limited in our own disciples and wonder how we can connect to the disciplining process of Jesus. Most of us wish we could become engaged in transforming our neighborhood and community. Our mobilization problem starts in our understanding of how to become a disciple and how to engage my neighborhood. When God's people are released to carry out this mission we call it mobilization. Mobilization is the bridge between becoming a disciple and impacting our world. The dictionary defines the verb to mobilize for us in the following ways: Prepare and organize for active service Make something movable or capable of movement Our mobilization problem starts in our understanding of how to become a disciple and how to engage my neighborhood. Our personal and church scorecards of our goals must change. We are often so busy with "church activity" that we miss the real adventure becoming a disciple engaging our neighborhood "transformation of the world" Starting March 28 we will participate in weekly group fellowships that explore together the book of Ephesians As we do so, we will realize that we have been made for more actual nothing less than changed living changed world. SOCIAL SHARE! Log In below or post on our Facebook Page to share what Made for More means to you! Use the hashtag: #stpaulsmadeformore

Dear St. Paul's Family, I was visiting with one of our Family who shared their own “insight” into the virus regulations and social distancing. She said she had no desire for the fear in the air these days. However, she had realized that fear was in the panic, but the precautions were not necessarily fear. She had begun to see them as strategy. I think it would be wisdom for all of us to understand that the difficulties of this day are our leaders’ best efforts at good strategy. No one is perfect – the precautions will not be perfect, either. But, we can remember that we can be voices and examples of support for the best intentions and efforts of our leaders. In the last few days IT IS CLEAR FROM THE GUIDANCE OF OUR PRESIDENT AND GOVERNMENT, THAT WE SHOULD NOT GATHER IN GROUPS LARGER THAN 10 UNTIL APRIL 1, AT LEAST. THEREFORE, WE WILL WORSHIP ONLY BY YOUTUBE LIVESTREAM THE NEXT TWO SUNDAYS. (link to be live on Sunday) We believe we have the problems in our broadcast solved. We will be testing the next two days. THE LINK TO THE LIVESTREAM WILL BE SENT BETWEEN 9 AM AND 9:15 AM FOR OUR CLASSIC WORSHIP, SUNDAY MORNING. THE LINK FOR OUR FLAME WORSHIP WILL BE SENT BETWEEN 11:15 AND 11:30AM, SUNDAY MORNING. Special Message: CORONAVIRUS JIU-JITSU I feel led to call us at the St. Paul’s Family to once again “Take Courage, and Work” in this challenge. I don’t know about you, but I don’t think Jesus wants us to be “marking time” during these days. Due to some computer problems, I was talking to a computer technician far from here today. I explained we used the computer in church ministry. While we waited for the laptop to reload she began to share a struggle in her life. Toward the end of this gracious mystery of conversation, she shared that she felt a lot of people were beginning to develop some spiritual questions in the midst of this virus. She encouraged me to remember that some people are listening more than ever. “ARE WE LISTENING?” Can you hear the questions of a generation that is facing an uncontrolled threat? More and more each day, persons will join us in moving from the question of how can we “stay normal” to how do we face the possibly stark dangers of this virus? I can guarantee you that there are persons of all ages measuring their understanding of life and death in ways different than they were on March 1. We need to be a Lighthouse! We may be “back to normal” in 2 weeks. We may not be normal for 2 months… or longer. Our first prayers are usually to somehow escape struggle. Often, Christ delivers from struggle, pain by taking us through it, rather than away from it. I am like everyone – I want to know the way out, and the shortcut there. But, most of the time God does not give us escape – he gives us strength for the arduous journey through the valley of the shadow of death. Tomorrow, I want to share more about a “Lighthouse Vision” for St. Paul’s between now and May 1. For now, I just want to encourage us all to embrace the power of the Holy Spirit and our own opportunity in this difficult time to cast the Light of Jesus – He IS the Light of the World! Enjoy the video below, if possible. It is a song from my good friend, Karen Jordan, Christian folk artist who sang here in 2013. ISAIAH 49:3,6 He said to me, “You’re my dear servant, Israel, through whom I’ll shine. What an honor for me in God’s eyes! That God should be my strength! He says, “But that’s not a big enough job for My servant— just to recover the tribes of Jacob, merely to round up the strays of Israel. I’m setting you up as a light for the nations so that my salvation becomes global!” #COVID19 #CoronaVirus

I almost considered leaving St. Paul’s for a different church. My name is Kendall Smith and I have been attending St. Paul’s UMC since I was born. Even though I have been attending church my whole life, it wasn’t until I was about 17 that I felt that I truly developed a relationship with Christ. It was thanks to people both in and outside of this church that I owe that to. Because of the strong influences that I had outside of the church, I almost considered leaving St. Paul’s for a different church. It has the sense of community and family that many people long for at other churches. But this church is different from any other church that I could've gone to. It feels like home. I truly felt that God was keeping me at this church for a reason, and now I am the Youth Leader here at St. Paul’s. Both those that have grown up in this church and those that have been here a short while have shared with me that they have experienced the same homelike feeling at St. Paul’s. It has the sense of community and family that many people long for at other churches. People at St. Paul’s were truly here for me in times that I’ve mourned and struggled. They’ve made me feel very loved. I am very proud to call St. Paul’s my home church!