What a week this is turning out to be!  There have been meetings upon meetings each night as our ministry teams are getting ready for the Fall Season. In preparation for Rally Sunday celebration on September 13th, we are brainstorming ideas for everyone to be able to continue growing in faith, even in the midst of this pandemic. 
 
Part of this planning is combing through all the responses from the survey on Re-Launching our in-person worship services. First of all, thank you to all of you who took the time to answer the questions and submit your responses to the survey. We have over 160 replies so far and more keep coming in each day. With that I'm sure many of you are wondering, "What are the results of the survey?"
 
Well, let me share with you some of what we learned. Of the 162 respondents so far, 71.6% are in the age bracket of 65 and over! Now, some of you might be looking at this as if we have an older congregation, which is true. But the way I see it, we have a church that is full of mature, seasoned people of faith who mostly are not encumbered by this thing called "a job" and thus available to serve in whatever capacity God wills them. You'll hear from the story of Moses this coming Sunday of how he thought his active years had past when God calls him to do the most important job of his life! Spoiler alert!
 
Other information we learned from the survey, most of our folks are cautious and will wait until there is a vaccine or when Stay-at-Home orders are lifted before returning to in-person worship. And even then, many of our congregants are now feeling very comfortable worshiping online (and probably in their pajamas) such that they will alternate physical and virtual worship after this pandemic has past.  What that tells us is our media team has been doing a spectacular job and deserve all our thanks for bringing worship home into our living rooms! Don't forget to thank them via email, phone call, or the next time you see them. But the survey also shows that we do have a fair amount of people who do not have internet capabilities and thus have not worshiped since March. We are very mindful of these folks, and our leadership is figuring out ways to solve this issue. 
 
What all this says is that there is a lot of work ahead of us as we enter into the Fall season. CUMC has not taken a break during this pandemic but continues to serve our congregation and the Camarillo community. We still have a ways to go before the virus is no longer a threat, but God calls us to do what we can in the face of challenges and not simply wait around. So let us listen to God's nudging in our hearts that urges us to respond to the needs of our church and the world. Join me this Sunday as we continue in our series, Through the Wilderness, and see how Moses responded to God's call to face the challenge of his day. 

Blessings, Pastor Elbert

CUMC Youth News

• Rally Sunday is Sept. 13th - Outdoor church! Save the date!! More info to come.
• New Youth Group Meetings -  Sunday, September 20 Meetings will be outdoors at the church (Friendship Garden?) NEW TIME: 4-5:30 pm to take advantage of the sunshine. 
• Zoom Book Club - Sundays at 7 pm on Zoom Currently reading: A Long Walk to Water Lead by Miss Connie (Mrs. Figs) Kids are reading the book aloud together and finding it to be a meaningful experience. It is not too late to join in!
  
  Contact Kristi VanKeersbilck at vankeersbilckfamily@gmail.com if you want a book for book club or if you have any questions about the youth programs. 

In the Center of Prayer
 

Marilyn Farwell was taken to Community Memorial Hospital by ambulance Aug. 27 for cardiac concerns.
Nury MartinezSilva is a young mom waiting for pathology results to determine further treatment following Aug. 20 mastectomy
Daryl & Ruth Smith - Daryl recovering from  Aug. 25 surgery; Ruth's eye tumor 40% smaller after 16 radiation treatments.
John & Camille Crawford - prayers for 2 year old nephew in ICU.
Judy Henry - Immunotherapy for cancer recurrence was discontinued due to severe side effects; regaining strength
Ross & Kathleen Matarazzo - Prayers sustained them through first anniversary of Mickayla's passing; Ross is scheduled for Sept. 2 carpal tunnel surgery
 
UMC District Prayer Focus: prayers for the leadership and ministries of St James UMC in Pasadena (Pastor Malyong Yi) and St Paul's UMC in Oxnard (PastorRachel deBos-Haigler).

CUMC DRIVE-IN MOVIE NIGHT: Thanks to all of you who attended our drive-in movie last Saturday. It was a great success! Approximately 30 cars were parked in our parking lot, and we all enjoyed the humor, adventure, and romance of The Princess Bride. Thanks to our amazing Media Team for making it happen!
 
Our next drive-in movie is scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 26th at 7 p.m. (gates open at 6:30) Stay tuned to hear what exciting and entertaining movie is up next...
Kristi VanKeersbilck