We joyfully embrace God's acceptance and love of all people.
We joyfully embrace God's acceptance and love of all people.
The church office follows the Kent School District guidelines for weather-related closures. If you need anything, please email us at general@kentmethodist.com or call or email the staff using their personal contact numbers. kent.k12.wa.us/page/school-closures-delays
This year, Pastor Jim and Terry have recorded videos – one for each day during Advent – where they use the Advent Blocks and the devotional to tell the story about God and the ways in which God loves us. You don’t need to have Advent Blocks to follow along with the videos. Each will be posted on Facebook, beginning December 1st, on the Kent UMC Members Group, and they will also be accessible on our KUMC website and through the app. Please plan to join us for a few minutes each day during Advent!
Experience the wonder of the first Christmas as the children and youth share “When Heaven and Earth Meet” during worship on Sunday, December 15th. Everyone is invited to join us for this special service where the children and youth of our congregation will share the Good News. Afterward, stay and join us in the fellowship hall for a unique experience of Bethlehem Village – a recreation of Bethlehem as it might have been 2,000 years ago. Lunch will be available, and there will be a chance to do hands-on activities reminiscent of Jesus’ day. Invite your family and friends!
Behold! The one who loves us and sets us free is coming, riding on the clouds. Everyone will see him. — Revelation 1:5 and 7
It seems like I’ve been getting ready a lot lately. This year I broke my tradition of not decorating for Christmas until after I’d eaten turkey. We got the boxes down from the attic on All Saints Day! The prophet Isaiah says, “Prepare the way of the Lord. Make God’s path straight.” But with all these boxes, no one’s taking a straight path through my house.
It’s not just our spaces, either. If your heart and mind, your calendar and commitments are so full up there’s no room for something new or unexpected, this season was made for you. No amount of clutter, hurry, nor distraction can delay the inevitable. Ready or not, Jesus is coming. That’s what the Latin word Advent literally means. God is coming is into our lives, arriving even now. Just like the pregnancies of Mary and Elizabeth, there’s no stopping it.
Luke’s Christmas story says that when Mary and Joseph arrived in Bethlehem, there was no room for them nor the child they were bringing into the world. “No Vacancy” is what the sign would say today. Because that’s not the sign I want hanging over my life, three things I’m going to do this month to make room for Jesus in my life…
· Give something away—something I treasure that would bless someone else more.
· Invite someone in—someone I need to see, connect with, and reconcile with, someone unexpected, or someone who might need something from me.
· Get curious about people—ask someone to share their story with me and maybe share a personal story with them.
Hope and peace, joy and love can be yours if only you’ll make a little room in your mind, your heart, your home, your calendar. Let’s get ready!
The guy with too many boxes!
Pastor Jim
Enough! Living in the Fullness of Jesus
If you grew up with the lie of scarcity that there isn’t enough for you and for others, then you need to know what the Bible has to say about abundance. God’s love for you is extravagant! God’s provision for you and for all people is a surprising surplus! God’s plans for your future are exciting, powerful, and purposeful! Join Pastor Jim in worship this month to discover that Jesus is enough for you, you are enough for God, and we are enough for one another!
November 3, 2024
All Saints Sunday
Unbind Him!
John 11:32-44
November 10, 2024
Jesus Is Enough for You
Exodus 16:2-5; Colossians 2:9-15;
and John 6:35-38
November 17, 2024
You Are Enough for God
Zephaniah 3:14-17 and John 3:16-17
November 24, 2024
We Are Enough for One Another
1 Peter 4:7-11, John 13:3-5, and 12-17
Make Room—December Worship
The word Advent means coming. Unexpected pregnancies are at the heart the season. This is a time of spiritual gestation when we allow Jesus to be formed in us while we are also formed in him. Advent is a season of transition between what is and what will be. Do you have space in your life for something new at Christmas? Join Pastor Jim each week to learn the Bible practices of making room for Hope, Peace, Joy, and Love. Let’s get ready together!
December 1, 2024
Advent One
Make Room for Hope
—Hope Against All Hope
Luke 21:25-36
December 8, 2024
Advent Two
Make Room for Peace
—Making Space for a Full Heart
Luke 1:68-79
December 15, 2024
Advent Three
Make Room for Joy
—The Good Mood of the Soul
Luke 3:7-18
December 22, 2024
Advent Four
Make Room for Love
—Promises Kept in Love
Luke 1:39-55
December 24, 2024
Christmas Eve
Luke 2:1-20
Carols, Candlelight, and
a Christmas Story
December 29, 2024
Guest Preacher: Luke Williams – Director of Programs, World Relief of Western Washington
Please prayerfully consider your commitment to God and the mission of your church. Your giving makes possible the life-changing ministries of Kent United Methodist Church.
Please return your Estimate of Giving Card by one of these methods: bring it to church with you; submit it via the website or smartphone app; mail it to KUMC Financial Secretary · 11010 SE 248th St · Kent, WA 98030; or email it to our Financial Secretary’s email at ChurchFinancialSecretary@KentMethodist.com.
Text KentUMCApp to 77977 and follow the link
OR
Go to the App store on your device and search for Kent United Methodist Church.
Click the Install button and you’re all set!
We, the Kent United Methodist Church, commit to continuing to decrease our carbon footprint as measured by the EPA Portfolio Manager metrics to attain the goal of becoming an Energy Star Building by the year 2030. The measurements include our use of electricity, gas, water, and disposal of garbage, recycling, and compost.
Energy Star Score for 2019—30 for 2022—43 for 2023— 59
Energy Star Target Goal: 75 by the year 2030