9:00 AM — Adult Study – Public Theology: Poverty
10:15 AM — Worship (No Sunday School Classes)
The Children & Youth of our Sunday School will lead Worship
(Special Recognition for 2009 High School Graduates)
Picnic on the Lawn Following Worship
Preacher: John D. Painter Theme: Welcoming the Children
Lectionary Readings: 1 Samuel 15:34-16:13 2 Corinthians 5:6-17
Psalm 20 Mark 4:26-34
Special Readings: Matthew 18:1-5 Mark 9:33-37
Music—Junior Choir: Chatter with the Angels, arranged by Charles Collins
Celebration of Found Coins: Elijah’s Promise
11:30 AM — Annual Sunday School Picnic on the Front Lawn
All are Welcome. Hamburgers/Hot Dogs & Beverages provided. Please being a salad or dessert to share with others.

Please Note: There will be a rehearsal for those participating in the June 14 Children’s Day Worship Service on Saturday, June 13, at 3:00 PM in the Sanctuary. There will also be a time of rehearsal prior to the Service at 9;00 AM on Sunday, June 14.

Adult Class—9:00 AM in the Sunshine Room: Our final class on Sunday, June 14, will be a special program by our Public Theology Representative, Giselle Esquivel Cordero. We will then begin a summer break until the fall. We invite you to join us on Sunday at 9:00 AM in the Sunshine Room. —Bob Carlson

Summer Worship & Church School at 9:30 AM Begins on June 28
From Sunday, June 28, through Sunday, September 13, Worship and Summer Sunday School will held at 9:30 AM. Please make note of this seasonal change in our Worship and Sunday School schedule for the Summer. (There will be no Summer Sunday School sessions on the holiday weekends of July 5 and September 6.) On Sunday, September 13th, we will re-sume our regular schedule with Worship and Sunday School for Pre-K through 12th Grade Youth at 10:15 AM. The Adult Class will also resume its sessions at 9:00 AM on September 13.

The Sacrament of Christian Baptism will be administered to Alexandra Alice Teresa Grace Sahm Benjamin and Alyssa Taylor Crisco during our Worship Service this Sunday.

We will have a special time of recognition for our high school graduates during our June 14th Service of Worship. Congratulations to our 2009 High School Graduates:
· Jeremy Ringler from Metuchen High School. Planning to attend the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, MN.
· Elizabeth Kline from John F. Kennedy Memorial High School in Woodbridge. Planning to attend Shippensburg University in Shippensburg, PA.
· Sarah Iacone from John P. Stevens High School in Edison. Planning to attend Middlesex Community College in Edison, NJ.

Information Requested About Our 2009 College and High School Graduates: We are still seeking information about other Centenary members and friends who are graduating from college or high school this year. Please call or e-mail (CentaryUMC@aol.com) the Church Office so we may share in the joy of their accomplishments in our July Lamplighter.

2009 Summer Camp Programs
Aldersgate Center and Pinelands Retreat Center
Information about the 2009 Summer camping programs for children and youth (and some specialized adult and family programs) are posted on the Children’s Ministries bulletin board in the hallway alongside the Sanctuary. Copies of the brochure are in the literature rack in the Narthex. Please check out the dates and programs to see if your elementary-age child or Junior/Senior high youth may want to participate in a summer camp experience at Aldersgate Center (Swartswood, NJ) or Pinelands Retreat Center at Mt. Misery (Browns Mills, NJ). You may also check out the offerings and register online at either www.aldersgatenj.com or www.mtmisery.com. Scholarship assistance is available through the Church. Please speak with Pastor John Painter to get additional information about these programs, scholarship assistance, and appropriate registration forms.

Sight and Sound Theater—Saturday, June 20, 2009: We will be attending the Sight and Sound performance at 4:15 PM. We will be eating dinner at Hershey Farms at 7:15 PM. Cost for adults (age 19+) is $65; teens (13+) is $30; and child, (3+) is $15. The price includes bus, show and dinner. Transportation will be by Oak Tree Bus Co. Please make your checks payable to Centenary UM Church and write “Sight & Sound” in the Memo section. You may place them in an offering plate this Sunday or mail/bring them to the Church Office this week, in care of Cathy Savoia. We will meet in the parking lot beginning at 12:00 Noon on Saturday, June 20 to prepare for departure to PA.

Vacation Bible School—“Rome”—July 27-31: Strap on your sandals for fun, adventure and God’s love—in Rome! The children will explore a crowded Roman market place, tiptoe past Roman guards, encourage Christians in an underground church and visit Paul for daily discoveries about Paul’s life.
Rome…where the Bible comes to life! Race a chariot, try on a toga, and experience the power of Scripture and the courage of the early church.
Rome…where the Apostle Paul is your Bible teacher. Each day you will visit Paul’s cell, soaking in Scriptures as Paul shares what he’s writing and applies it to kids’ experiences.
Vacation Bible School will cost $15.00 per child. Registration forms will be sent shortly to children who have previously attended VBS. If there are children that have not attended before and would like to do so, they may call the Church Office for a registration form at 732-548-7622.

Volunteers In Mission 2009 Trip
October 31, 2009 to November 7, 2009
Are you willing to give some of your vacation/spare time to join the Centenary VIM Team this year?
We are going to Goldsboro, North Carolina, to work in the United Methodist North Carolina Conference. Some of us will pack UMCOR, ZOE and NC Conference Kits in their warehouse, and some will go into the community to work on disaster recovery, repair and rebuilding construction projects. There will be opportunities to sew outfits for Haiti, book bags and tote bags for school kits; file; sort; answer phones; enter computer data; to list a few jobs that continue to grow.
We need to begin to plan for the Trip and must have our VIM Team identified before everyone leaves for vacation for the Summer. So—June 30th is the deadline for making an initial commitment to your Mission Committee. Our last trip to Argentina we had 14 volunteers—we are hoping a greater number will come together for this time. The cost will include $20 per night for housing and an undetermined amount for food (we will do our own shopping and cooking together so whatever menu we decide for each meal will determine what it will cost us to prepare it). We will decide together what transportation method we will use.
If you have any questions please call me at 732-463-1431, or find me on Sundays after Service.
—Glenna Gundell, Mission Co-Chairperson

Persons are invited to sponsor the time of coffee and refreshments following our Sunday Worship services. Please consider sponsoring a refreshment time and signing up for one of the many available weeks on the 2009 Refreshment Chart in the Narthex. Information on what you need to provide is available on the information sheet attached to the Refreshment Chart. Thank you for providing hospitality on a Sunday morning.

Flower Arrangements: Persons are invited to sponsor flower arrangements for our Worship services. A 2009 Flower Chart is posted in the Narthex. Floral arrangements cost $25.00 each week to sponsor. Information is available from our Flower Chairperson, Linda Serentino (732-940-2135) or by calling the Church Office. Thank you for providing these beautiful tributes for our Sunday services.

Hearts of Remembrance Children’s Day: A Celebration of Life: The Visiting Nurse Association of Central Jersey Hospice program is sponsoring the fifth annual HEARTS OF REMEMBRANCE CHILDREN’S DAY: A CELEBRATION OF LIFE, a free grief support camp designed for children ages 6-12 who have experienced the death of a loved one. The camp will be held from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM on Saturday, July 18, rain or shine, at 2 Allencrest Road, Rumson, NJ 07760. Children will enjoy a summer day filled with meaningful, uplifting activities and positive reflection. For more information about the camp, and/or to request an application for your child, please contact 732-493-2220. Registration is required by July 7.

United Methodist Women: DO YOU KNIT, CROCHET, OR ANY OTHER CRAFT?? It is not too early to think about doing something for the Women’s booth at the Metuchen Fair. The Metuchen Fair is the first Saturday in October and we need many items to sell at the fair. If you have any ideas or can make some items for the fair, please talk to Sylvia Woodfield (732-549-9042) and give her your suggestions. If you have an idea for a craft, let her know and we can arrange for a workshop so that others may share in the craft.

Some Thoughts for This Week:

When you encounter difficulties and contradictions, do not try to break them, but bend them with gentleness and time. – St. Francis de Sales

Prayer is a time of exposure to the very soul of God.

You’ve got to continue to grow, or you’re just like last night’s cornbread—stale and dry. – Loretta Lynn

One faces the future with one’s past. – Pearl S. Buck

God is so big He can cover the whole world with his Love and so small He can curl up inside your heart. – June Masters Bacher

Experience is what allows us to repeat our mistakes, only with more finesse! – Derwood Fincher

The worst sin towards our fellow creatures is not to hate them, but to be indifferent to them; that’s the essence of inhumanity. – George Bernard Shaw

Strike from humankind the principle of faith and we would have no more history than a flock of sheep. – Edward Bulwer-Lytton [adapted]

If you don’t know where you are going, any path will get you there.

When you long for life without difficulties, remember that oaks grow strong in contrary winds, and diamonds are made under pressure. – Peter Marshall

The giant oak is an acorn that held its ground.

Just as the body cannot exist without blood, so the soul needs the matchless and pure strength of faith. – Mahatma Gandhi

When you come to the edge of all the light you know, and are about to step off into the darkness of the unknown, faith is knowing one of two things will happen: there will be something solid to stand on, or you will be taught how to fly. – Barbara J. Winter

The best remedy for conceit is to sit down and make a list of everything we don’t know.

Habits are first cobwebs, then cables. — Spanish Proverb

A mentor is not a person who gives you advice. A mentor is a person whose advice you follow. – Mike Murdoch

When two elephants struggle, it is the grass that suffers. – East African Proverb

When people shake their heads because we are living in a restless age, ask them how they would like to live in a stationary one, and do without change. – George Bernard Shaw

To be a follower of Christ includes loving people more than they deserve.

Nothing lowers the level of conversation more than raising the voice. – Stanley Horowitz