Dear U Park Family,
Have you ever felt like you couldn’t do enough to meet the demands of the moment? I recall a conversation I had years ago with a man in the church I was serving at the time. He had retired from a very successful business career, finishing his professional life as the vice president in charge of South American operations for a major corporation. But it wasn’t his career successes that stayed with him most. A kind and generous man, he was bothered by what he couldn’t accomplish. “Living in Brazil,” he said softly, “I soon learned that my money couldn’t solve the world’s problems.”
It’s true for all of us, no matter how much money or other resources we have or don’t have. We can’t solve all the problems we see, and that’s especially disheartening when the world is so troubled as it is now. This Sunday, we’ll continue the “Finding our Balance” worship series. I’ll offer some thoughts on Christian hope and commitment, drawn from the Book of Acts. I hope you can join us for worship at 9:00 A.M. in Wasser Chapel or 11:00 in our Sanctuary. If you can’t be there in person, you can catch our worship service live at 11:00 on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/UParkumcdenver/) or later in the day on our YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/@UniversityParkUMCDenver).
It’s hard to believe that Lent is starting in two Sundays! We’ll begin the season with a Shrove Tuesday pancake supper in East Fellowship Hall on Tuesday, March 4 at 6:30 P.M. Our youth will be cooking, and if you’d like to make a donation that evening, all proceeds go to fund youth mission trips this spring and summer. Then on Ash Wednesday, March 5, we’ll have services at Noon and 6:00 P.M. I’ll also be over at DU that afternoon offering ashes and a brief liturgy to students there on behalf of our campus ministry.
During Lent, Rev. Anne Davidson Mundt and Richard Nelson will lead a study on the seven last words of Christ. Rather than being single words, the “Seven Last Words” are a series of scripture passages containing phrases spoken by Jesus as he hung on the cross. The seven last words have provided fruitful meditation for Christians over the centuries, and I know that Anne and Richard will provide meaningful opportunities for reflection during Lent. The study begins Sunday March 9 at 10:00 in the Bryans Room downstairs at the church.
Thanks to all of you who’ve brought winter coats, hats, gloves, scarves, boots, sweatshirts and sweaters for our Porter Hospital clothing drive. As I mentioned in worship, Porter often admits unhoused people through their emergency department. When they are released, they need winter clothing to keep warm. Our donations of that clothing will go directly to people who need them most. We’ve coordinated with After Hours on this effort (you may recall that Logan Robertson, their Pastor, spoke in worship with me a few weeks ago), and after March 2 we’ll take all of our donations to Porter. Your generosity will make a real difference to people living on Denver’s streets.
Finally, I want to clear up a misunderstanding about which several people have approached me. As I announced in my weekly letter and in worship a few weeks ago, we had a terrific stewardship campaign this year. Our original goal was $375,000 in pledged income. Because of your generosity and your dedication to our shared ministry, we finished our campaign with pledges totaling about $400,000. Congratulations and thanks to all of you who pledged!
But it’s important to understand that we have been operating at a financial shortfall since before I arrived at this church. Although we have substantially narrowed the gap, we still spend more money than we take in. So in 2025, we will post a financial shortfall of about $50,000 (unless we have extra gifts at year end, which does sometimes happen). The good news is that our shortfall will be at least $25,000 less than we thought it would be. We are taking further steps to reduce it by making energy efficiency upgrades to the building and finding additional renters to increase our rental income. We have a substantial cash reserve, so we can continue to run (and hopefully decrease) shortfalls for a few years yet. But we can’t do that forever, and ultimately we need to grow our way out of this situation. We can all help – not only by meeting the generous pledges we’ve made, but also by inviting newcomers to church and continuing to be the hospitable, welcoming community we are. We have all we need to grow past this challenge, and I feel blessed to be meeting it with all of you. If you’d like to know more about our church’s ministry or financial picture, please get in touch with me anytime: adunning@uparkumc.org.
Grace and Peace,
Andy