The Mountain View April 2005

I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come?
My help comes from the Lord, the maker of heaven on Earth.

Two weeks ago, after our Wednesday night worship, about fifteen of us went to Wendy's for dinner. Eleana, her mother, and little sister were there. Eleana is three and adorable. Her mom ordered, and their food was being set on a tray on the counter. Eleana went over to the corner of the dining room, grabbed one of those heavy, wooden highchairs, and dragged it over to the counter where the food was being served. She climbed up into the highchair and put her hands on the counter as though to say, "I'm ready!"

What a great image this story is for our faith: To have the eagerness of a child when we approach church worship; when we approach the communion table; when we approach an opportunity to minister the love of Jesus to another person—this is all a part of the abundant life God offers us through Christ.

This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it. –Psalm 118:24

"I was going to buy a copy of The Power Of Positive Thinking, and then I thought; what good would that do? Ronnie Shakes

It seems difficult to have a positive attitude this time of the year. We have just completed a year, started on a new year, and then we are brought up short with the realization that we owe taxes for the past year. We have worked hard to try to get ahead of all the expenses we face. Now we are faced with another expense, income tax!

Negative thinking can be a very destructive force in our lives, both personally and as a church. It would be easy to say, "What's the use? I pay taxes all year, give to my church and then at the end of the year we are told, "you didn't give enough." Where does it end?

When Jesus was faced with the question should we have to pay taxes to Caesar, he replied, "give unto Caesar what is Caesar's and to God what is God's."

Once again we are faced with having to look at the "bigger picture." It is easy to forget about all the benefits we experience as citizens of this great country. We may feel like some of our tax dollars are wasted, but our responsibility is to give what is expected. The responsibility of how the dollars are used belongs to those who administer the funds.

The same is true in the Church. We my question how some of the dollars are spent, but Jesus never said give only if you agree. He said, "give to God what is God's." He also said, "as you give, so shall you receive."

God's faithfulness to us is in the blessings we often take so casually for granted, the freedom to worship, the comforts of our lives, homes and communities. These all have a price, a price we all share.

Instead of complaining, we should offer thanks to God for all that we have and enjoy.

The Christian Life Center

Hours: Tuesday & Thursday 9-Noon
1^st and 3^rd Saturday 9-Noon (appointment only)

The Christian Life Center is a ministry offered by this church. Its purpose is to help people deal with the troublesome issues of life. Call the church office or Duane Haidle for an appointment.

Mountain Vista Gala 2005

When: Saturday, April 9, 2005
Where: Mountain Vista U.M.C.
Time: Dinner starts at 6:00 p.m.

Auction starts at 8:00 p.m.

Reservations required for Dinner, not for the Auction.

You can attend the auction even if you don’t attend the dinner!

Everyone please mark your calendars!

Also, remember to invite friends that don't normally attend Mountain Vista to this event! It will be a lot of fun, and it's a great way to introduce others to our wonderful church family!!

Items to be auctioned include:

Vacation and Travel Packages
Dinner Packages
Arts & Entertainment Packages
Home Improvement Items
Hand Made Crafts
And much, much more!

All proceeds will benefit the Mountain Vista UMC Building Fund

For Reservations, please call 280-4148

Questions? Donations?

Contact Mitch Lambdin at mcl3086@comcast.net

We are looking for special music for the months of April, May, June, July and August.

June, July and August, we need special music for both services. April and May, just the second service.

If anyone out there wants to do a special, please contact Tracy Reinhard (282-5742 or Reinhardfam@juno.com) and let her know which Sunday would work best.

We have a lot of talent out there. Young and mature, we need you! Guitarists, vocalists, pianists, flute players, recorder players, harmonica, clarinet players, saxophone players, cellists, violin, interpretive dance, men's quartets, women's groups, and a jamming men's group with guitars, bass, keyboard.

Please don't hide your talent under a bushel. Let yourself shine before us and God!

Dear Mountain Vista Church Congregation,

We would like to thank you for all of the support after the birth of Benjamin. All of the meals, the baby shower and gifts, phone calls, visits and prayers helped Ben to recover quickly from jaundice and Vicky from postpartum depression.

We also want to say thank you here in the newsletter for one of Ben's gifts because we don't know who the giver is. It is a newborn size outfit with light blue and green stripes, a duck and a bear. Please let us know who it is from!

We feel very fortunate to be part of such a wonderful church family.

Sincerely,
Vicky, Kurt, Sam and Ben Liedtke

Moms take care of their children. Who takes care of moms? MOPS (Mothers of Preschoolers) does! MOPS is dedicated to the message that "mothering matters," and that moms of young children need encouragement during these critical early years. Each MOPS program helps mothers find friendship and acceptance, provides opportunities to develop and practice leadership skills, and promotes spiritual growth. MOPS is also a proven and effective tool for local church outreach, evangelism, and growth.

We have had interest in starting a couple of MOPS groups here at our church. If you are interested in attending or know any mothers who have preschool children, we'd love to hear from you.

We would like to get together a church cookbook, which hopefully will be out in the fall. We need your recipes!! Please submit them to Linda Kreib, LKreib@hotmail.com. Password: Church, or place them in the basket on the hallway table by the front doors. We thought it would be fun to include a picture of the cook, so if you would like to do that, please submit a picture also! Any questions, call Linda. Thanks!!!

Friday, April 1- Sunday, April 3: Up With Youth, YMCA of the Rockies. If you are going, you need to meet at the Hilltop UMC parking lot between 5:15 and 5:30 a.m. We are riding the bus with Hilltop UMC, Christ UMC and Trinity UMC. Bring enough money for food for the eight-hour bus trip on Friday and the trip back on Sunday. Also you may want to bring spending money for the fundraisers they have there. If you ordered a shirt, you need to pay for that ($10).

Sunday, April 3: If you are not going to Up With Youth, meet at 12:30 here at church for lunch. Immediately following lunch, we will go to Delton Lanes for bowling. Cost is $7.25 + tax for two games and shoes.

Saturday, April 9: Spring 2005 Gala. We have been invited to help with the dinner and the proceeds from the dinner will go to our youth group. More details later.

Sunday, April 10: After lunch we will have ice cream sundaes and watch a movie here at church.

Sunday, April 17: After lunch we will make sandwiches for the sandwich mission. Please let us know if you can bring four loaves of bread and/or enough lunchmeat, cheese, etc. for the sandwiches.

Sunday, April 24: After lunch we will go to Mulligans to play miniature golf. Cost will be $5.00 for one game.

Friday, April 29 - Sunday, May 1: Middle/High School Retreat at Riverton, Wyoming. The theme for the weekend is By Thou Our Vision. We will be staying at the Riverton UMC, so we will need sleeping bags. Our youth praise team will be leading the music. More information will be given out later, along with registration forms.

Friday, April 29: If you are not going to the retreat, there is Spring Fling. Registration is Saturday, April 30 is at 7:30 p.m. at Hunter High School. There will be a program with music by Jeremiah's Fire. Afterwards, spend the night at West Valley Fitness Center. Cost is $15.00

We have been forgetting to get out the change jar for you guys to help meet our monthly obligation to sponsor John Peter Jimenez Macias. So, if each of you could bring $1 each Sunday to donate for your lunch, we could use that money to pay for the sponsorship. Thanks!!!

April 2005 News

A few weeks ago Brian Riecke, who oversees the Youth and Young Adult Department for the Rocky Mountain Conference, came to Salt Lake City to meet with the Utah United Methodist youth and young adult directors. We had an opportunity to share a meal together and talk about youth and young adult ministry. He reported to us that youth ministry around the Rocky Mountain Conference was strong and vibrant, but there has been a major decline in young adult ministry within the Rocky Mountain Conference. He told us the reason this is happening is because a large majority of churches within our conference do not have a good solid program for those who are graduating from youth ministry, which leaves them with no support until they are married or have kids. Out of the 200 plus churches in the Rocky Mountain District, at least 20 of them, counting Mountain Vista, have some sort of young adult program.

Since the beginning of the New Year I have met over 20 college and young adult age men and women who have come to visit Mountain Vista on a Sunday Morning. Some were visiting from out of state; others lived in the area who came to check out our church. Each one that I spoke to all said the same thing—that our church is so friendly and accepting. Thank you so much for being such a great church and contributing to the strength and vitality of Lifeline College and Young Adult Fellowship.

One of the core practices of Lifeline CYF is connectedness, making certain that young adults throughout the Salt Lake Valley who come to Mountain Vista feel like they are a part of our church so that they can begin to build relationships within the church. If any of you know of college students or young adults, regardless if they are a part of our church or not, who needs to be connected, let me know. If you can give me their name and contact information so that I can touch base with them, that would be great.

Friday April 8^th through Sunday April 10^th – Rocky Mountain Conference Young Adult Spring Retreat @ First United Methodist Church, Glenwood Springs, Colorado.

Friday April 15^th through Saturday April 16^th – Singles Conference 2005 sponsored by Southeast Baptist Church and Mountain View Christian Assembly of God @ First Baptist Church, Burley, Idaho.

Sunday April 24^th – Meet and greet at Barnes and Noble Café in Jordan Landing @ 3:00p.m.

Feel free to contact Phillip Harris @ 502-7467 or e-mail lifelinecyf_mtnvista@yahoo.com for information about Lifeline CYF

Summer Camps at Pinecliff
Registration forms available soon.
Please mark your calendar.

A camp for elementary youth in Utah. Campers will come to know and understand the God of creation. Campers will join cross-age family groups and same-age cabin groups for activities. Explore God's presence in all aspects of life. Meet old and new friends in singing, stories and sharing.

An incredible weekend retreat for Mid-High Youth. Meet new friends and share your faith.

An Invitation from Glenda Ulmer,
Superintendent serving the Utah/Western District:

I am excited to let you know that our Bishop (Bishop Warner Brown)is coming to Utah. Churches, pastors and laity are invited to come to an evening of sharing on Tuesday, April 19 at Hilltop UMC. Each church will share a brief presentation of their ministry and listen to an overview from other Methodist churches around Utah. The Bishop will also be bringing a closing address to us all. The evening will begin at 6:00 p.m. with fellowship with the program starting at 7:00 p.m. It is not often that our Bishop comes to Utah and I hope this event will allow folks from your church to be part of this visit.

A large group from Mountain Vista UMC will be coming together on Tuesday, May 10, from 5:30 p.m. to dusk to help build the new Wild West Jordan community playground located at 8000 South & Redwood Road. Childcare for ages 2-9 is available at the playground site and kids ages 10-13 can help out if they are accompanied by a parent (older ages can volunteer too). If you haven't already signed up, but would like to join our group, please call Peggy Porter. You can call the church office (280-4148) to get her phone number.

RENEW YOUR ROMANCE...

HAS SQUEEZING THE TOOTHPASTE TUBE FROM THE MIDDLE DOUSED THE FLAMES OF ROMANCE IN YOUR MARRIAGE?

A Marriage Encounter weekend can rekindle the sparks you felt on your wedding day! Marriage Encounter is 44 hours where married couples can get away from jobs, kids, chores, phones-‑and focus only on each other. If you'd like greater depth, growth, and enrichment in your relationships, you'll like the difference a Marriage Encounter United Methodist Weekend can make! Here's information about the next weekend!

April 29-May 1st 2005
Salt Lake City, UT

Need Help with Home Repairs, Prescription Costs, and More? Seniors, let LifeCare Bank stretch your income!

If you are a low-income senior or have a disability, LifeCare Bank may be able to help you with the following services FREE of charge:

Snow Shoveling, Critical Minor Home Repairs, Monthly Food Box Deliveries, Yard Work, Leaf Raking, Prescription Assistance

Services provided by LifeCare Bank are made possible by community partners and charitable donations.

For more information please call: (801) 978-2452 or visit us online at www.csc-ut.org.

Don't forget the Sandwich Mission. Every third week of the month we make and serve sandwiches as an outreach mission.

The dates for April are:
Sunday, April 17: make/or bring sandwiches, 2 p.m.
Monday, April 18: serve sandwiches, 5 p.m. at St. Vincent DePaul Center, 500 West 200 South. (Usually finished by 6:30 p.m.)

NEW DINNER FOR EIGHT GROUPS FORMING

If you would like to get to know people from our church on more than just a Sunday-morning-basis, please sign up to be in a Dinner for Eight Group. It is lots of fun. Each month, one person hosts a dinner at their house and provides the main course. The others bring side dishes. The groups will run from May through September. It's sometimes hard to coordinate getting the whole group together each month during the summer, but don't let vacation plans stop you from joining. Sign up on the clipboard on the hallway bookcase or call the church office, 280-4148.

Both the Junior High and Senior High Youth Groups are meeting one Sunday afternoons. We have lunch first and then do an activity. If you would like to fix lunch for about 10-15 hungry youth, it would be most appreciated!! You may sign up for a Sunday on the Youth Bulletin Board near the women's restroom. Thanks so much!!

Native American Ministries
Sunday, April 10, 2005
God's promise is for everyone.

Your offering on Native American Ministries Sunday enriches The United Methodist Church in many ways. Native Americans attending United Methodist and other approved seminaries receive scholarships. Across the United States, urban ministries reach out to Native Americans and others. Mission with Native Americans in your annual conference and across the connection is developed and nurtured. "For the promise…is for everyone whom…our God calls" (Acts 2:39). Help promising Native Americans to answer God's call to ministry. Please give generously on Native American Ministries Sunday. Your gift makes a world of difference!

Due Dates for Sunday Bulletin and Newsletter
For the Sunday Bulletin: Information due Wednesday of each week.
For the Mountain View: Articles due the 20th of every month. Articles on disk or e-mailed (office@mtnvistaumc.org) preferred.

April 2005 News

RENEW YOUR ROMANCE...

HAS SQUEEZING THE TOOTHPASTE TUBE FROM THE MIDDLE DOUSED THE FLAMES OF ROMANCE IN YOUR MARRIAGE?

April 29-May 1st 2005 Salt Lake City, UT

NEW DINNER FOR EIGHT GROUPS FORMING

April 29-May 1st 2005
Salt Lake City, UT