Ridgecrest United Methodist Church

*This is a pinned post! Please scroll down for updated news* Welcome to the Ridgecrest, CA United Methodist Church's Facebook page. SUNDAY WORSHIP SERVICES... Please note that due to COVID-19 restrictions, indoor worship is currently on hold, however, please join RUMC for Sunday worship in other venues- 8:00am Drive-In Worship RUMC welcomes you to drive-in parking lot worship Sundays at 8am in the south social hall parking lot. Tune your radio to 97.3FM to listen from your vehicles, as a small worship team leads the service from the south social hall entry. Please remain in your vehicles, and note that no restrooms will be available (Started July 5, 2020). 10:30am Online Livestream Worship RUMC welcomes you to online worship, Sundays at 10:30am, here on the church Facebook page, and on YouTube on the church channel, Ridgecrest, CA United Methodist Church (Started March 19, 2020). First time worshippers and guests are especially welcomed to worship here at RUMC! DRIVE-THRU ONLY AT THE EVERY FRIDAY FREE COMMUMITY DINNER The church hosts an every Friday free community dinner outreach, currently operating as drive-thru pick-up only, as the dining hall is currently closed due to COVID-19 restrictions. Stop by between 5:00pm-6:00pm. Walk-ups welcome, but please note no restrooms are available. All are welcome. No cost. No obligation. And, yes, free meals served every Friday, including the day after Thanksgiving, Christmas Day and New Year's Day, 2020. RUMC is located at 639 N. Norma Street, between Felspar and Las Flores streets, next to the Masonic Lodge. Please feel welcomed to park in any of the three parking lots on campus, or on the street. Check out the RUMC events posted on Facebook, or send a message through the Facebook page, to learn more.

Thank you for joining together for worship on this Sunday, November 8th, 2020. Pastor Wesley Elmore brings a message of "Time for a King" focusing on scriptures from 1 Samuel 8: 1-9 and 19-22.

You are invited to worship this Sunday, November 8th at RUMC! Two worship venues to choose from: 8AM DRIVE-IN... Come to the south social hall parking lot and tune your radio to 97.3FM to participate in worship from your vehicle. 10:30AM FACEBOOK LIVESTREAM Participate in online Facebook livestream worship from your own home. First-time worshippers and guests are especially welcomed! Have questions regarding these two worship venues? Contact the church through its social media platforms. And, save-the-date, the next communion will be held Sun. Dec 6th (and to note, is typically held the first Sunday of each month).

The church's every Friday free community dinner served just over 100 meals at this week's outreach, but we had food leftover! When there is still food to give, it doesn't get just tossed out. Extra meals get packaged up and sent to the women's shelter (as was the case last week) or the police department (as was the case this week). See you next Friday, Ridgecrest!

Sanctuary Water Damage Update A few weeks back, the north atrium flooded and spilled over onto the new months-old carpet in the sanctuary. Service Masters has completed its portion of the repair by drying the carpet with large fans and humidifiers and taking out the wet and rotting dry wall. ... The church landscapers have finished repairing the broken pipe in the atrium, and the drainage pipes that lead outside, to prevent future mishaps. The final step will be replacing the drywall, which is pending repair. Thank you to all who have helped get the sanctuary back in order, and for those who have reached out to donate to help cover the cost of these unexpected repairs. The church is truly grateful for all of you.

As those of you who live in our Indian Wells Valley know, this past week brought the return of sunny and clear skies, devoid of smoke or haze from distant fires. I can’t remember the exact day we started having smoke and haze in our community last summer, except I know it has lasted for over 2 months. It had reached the point where it seemed like the poor air quality had been going on forever and would never end. Pretty depressing. I know many of you feel the same way. It is... wonderful, beautiful and joyful now to have such clear skies with pleasant cool temperatures. I find my spirits have been lifted as a result. [Today, we] will learn the results of our election of public officials. Like any election there are winners and losers per votes cast. By their very nature elections divide us, because we are forced to make a choice, this person over another, yes to this Proposition and no to that one. After November 3rd, I know that some of you will feel as if the smoke and haze of our political society has lifted, while others will feel as if a dark cloud of smog has descended upon you. That’s unfortunate. I wish it were not so. And, while there are some circumstances we cannot change, as Christ followers we can control our attitude, tongue and actions, so that we imitate Christ and show compassion to others and to ourselves. Please don’t let Election Day anger or hurt ride your spirit into the ground. Do your part to not contribute to the smoky haze of political vitriol. Do your part to blow that away and bring in the breath of air that is peace. As we celebrated All Saint’s Day [this past] Sunday, take this prayer from one of the most well known saints of all, St. Francis as your prayer guide for the post election days: Lord, make me an instrument of thy peace; where there is hatred, let me sow love; where there is injury, pardon; where there is doubt, faith; where there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; and where there is sadness, joy. O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled, as to console; to be understood, as to understand; to be loved, as to love; for it is in giving that we receive, it is in pardoning that we are pardoned, and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. Amen. Grace and Peace, Pastor Wesley Elmore

Welcome to worship on this All Saint's Day, Sunday, November 1st, 2020, as Pastor Wesley Elmore brings a message of "Passed Away" focusing on scripture readings from Isaiah 25: 6-9 and Revelation 21: 1-6a. Holy communion is offered during this service, and if you wish to participate from home, please have some bread and grape juice ready. Peace be with you.

RUMC welcomed some good shepherds and angels to the campus on this All Hallow's Eve to walk through the outdoor trick-or-treat trail that offered lots of treats, thanks to the donations of church members. So great to see so many families full of friendship and light on this night.

Celebrate All Saint's Day this Sunday, November 1st, 2020! Sunday worship experiences: 8am Drive-in parking lot service in south social hall parking lot, tuned into 97.3FM, with holy communion offered via drive-thru at the conclusion of the service.... 10:30am Facebook livestream on the church page, with holy communion offered as instructed during the service, be sure to have bread and grape juice ready. First-time worshippers and guests are especially welcomed to worship at RUMC.

Elliott Keeter and Courtney Deal are getting married! You are invited to come wish them well on their upcoming December nuptials this Sunday, November 1st, 2020 at the 8am drive-in parking lot worship service, as they help Pastor Wesley serve drive-thru communion after the conclusion of the service. Congratulations to the future Mr. and Mrs. Keeter!

Welcome to worship on this Sunday, October 25, 2020. It’s the final week of Pastor Wesley Elmore’s series from the Book of Philippians. Today’s message is Seek the Profit from Philippians 4:15-19.

Join for Sunday worship, this Sunday, October 25th, 2020 as Pastor Wesley concludes his October sermon series on Philippians. See you at 8:00am! Drive-in parking lot worship in south social hall parking lot, where you remain in your vehicle and worship with your radio tuned to 97.3FM.... See you at 10:30am! Facebook live stream on the church page, where you participate from your home. First time worshippers and guests are especially welcomed to join.

Thanks Ridgecrest for another great night of the RUMC every Friday free community dinner! 113 free breakfast burrito to-go plates with fruit and Halloween cookies were given out, with an additional 18 to-go plates sent to the women's shelter. A big thank you to our friends at the Ridgecrest Taco Bell for donating 200 packets of hot sauce for us tonight with the burritos!... And, congratulations to church member and PIC* Melanie Branson for obtaining her certified professional food manager certificate, which is needed in order for the church to maintain a county health permit to serve food out of the church kitchen. For the past ten years, this certificate was held by Amy Ochoa. *A PIC is the person-in-charge of the every Friday free community dinner. RUMC currently has four trained PICs- Jill Bradford, Melanie Branson, Amy Ochoa and Laura Miller (who also serves as the volunteer coordinator), who rotate weeks. PICs select the menu, shop, cook, organize and oversee nightly volunteers who help serve and clean-up.

Unfortunate News On Monday morning, it was discovered that a landscaping pipe burst in the north atrium of the sanctuary, and water flooded over onto the brand new carpet. The trustees of the church have been working closely with Servicemasters to save the carpet and replace the damaged dry wall, costing the church thousands of dollars of repair fees.... Thank you for your prayers as this issue gets corrected quickly.

This past Sunday, October 18, 2020, Al Bradford (Chair of the Finance Committee) gave a stewardship presentation at worship. View this 15 minute video from YouTube: https://youtu.be/Y45MjFFFDCM... Some hardcopy printouts of the slides are available for pick-up if you wish, located on the bulletin board outside the sanctuary doors.