The book for discussion January 15 is Isadore's Secret: Sin, Murder, and Confession in a Northern Michigan Town by Mardi LInk.

Chapter One Book Group is open to anyone who enjoys reading and discussing a wide variety of books. The group meets the third Tuesday of the month at 7 pm in J-203 (previously in J-202).

To be added to the email list for group notifications, please contact Linda Harmes at hblinda@hibit.com.

St. Paul’s School Parent Education Event":
The Truth About Why Kids Push Our Buttons, presented by Randi Rubenstein 

As parents, we frequently find ourselves in a gap between the parents we want to be and the ones we currently are, especially when our kids are pushing our buttons!

Randi Rubenstein calls this The Parent Gap. In this masterclass, she will teach you the best tool to close that gap to create the family you truly crave! 

Instructor: Randi Rubenstein helps parents, particularly ones with strong willed children, learn tools to raise confident, kind, and self-motivated children by improving the conversations in your family. As the founder of Mastermind Parenting, host of the Mastermind Parenting podcast and author of The Parent Gap, Randi helps parents stay cool and replace old patterns. Randi's parenting motto is, "When our thoughts grow, the convos in our home flow".  To learn more go to www.randirubenstein.com

Parent Education Events are free and open to everyone. RVSP and Reserve Child Care here

In late February, representatives from across the United Methodist denomination will gather in St. Louis for a Special Session of the General Conference. The purpose of this session will be to receive and act on a report from the Commission on a Way Forward. This commission was authorized by General Conference 2016 and appointed by the Council of Bishops. Members of the commission were tasked with examining paragraphs in The Book of Discipline concerning human sexuality and exploring options to strengthen the unity of the church. Several proposals from the commission will be considered by the assembly of 864 delegates, both laity and clergy from all around the globe. 

Rev. Tommy Williams will continue to visit St. Paul’s Sunday school classes to share some context and history about this process and how decision-making happens within the UMC’s broad connection. The invitation is open to all, whether or not you regularly attend a Sunday school class.

Having visited the Journeys class last month, Rev. Williams will share updates with these classes in the coming weeks:

• Sunday, Jan. 20, 9:45 am: Living Faith in J-220

• Sunday, Jan. 27, 9:45 am: Roundtable in S-301

• Sunday, Feb. 3, 9:45 am: Special Studies in J-203

• Sunday, Feb. 10, 9:45 am: Connections in J-202

• Sunday, Feb. 17, 9:45 am: Candlelighters in J-211

Choose a time (9:45 or 11:05 am) to attend Exploring St. Paul's. This gathering is for visitors and new members to learn about the St. Paul's community and ways to connect with each other and God. 

Contact Nina Hall via nina@stpaulshouston.org or 713-528-0527 for more details.

Have you ever had a checklist that seems never-ending? Let's help our neighbors still recovering from Harvey get some things checked off. 

You’re invited to serve on St. Paul's Harvey Recovery Team on Saturday, Feb. 16, 8 am-4 pm. Work may include:

- install insulation
- hang drywall
- paint walls and trim
- clean up debris from storm damage
- do yard work (mow, weed, etc.)

Come for any part of the day. We will train you on the job; ages 13 and older welcome. More details via www.stpaulshouston.org/harvey or contact Amy Taylor, Director of Missions, via ataylor@stpaulshouston.org or 713-528-0527.

To download an application, visit www.stpaulshouston.org/foundation-scholarships

Senior adults who are interested in lifelong learning attend programs and day trips on cultural, historical, and social issues, as well as local topics of interest. RSVP for lunch within two weekdays prior to the program to Nina Hall via 713-528-0527 or nina@stpaulshouston.org.

Presentation by Claudia Gee Vassar, St. Paul’s member & president of Houston Botanic Garden
Thursday, Feb. 14 ■ 10:30 am–1 pm in Fondren Hall
Free program; lunch available for purchase with RSVP

Day Trip to St. George Orthodox Christian Church in West University Place
Thursday, Feb. 21 ■ 9 am–3 pm
Free tour; self-pay lunch at Cleburne Cafeteria

St. Paul’s Lay Visitation Team shares the gifts of caring, compassion, and presence with those in the hospital, in hospice, or who are homebound.

Rev. Andrew Wolfe and Rod Kotenbrink will offer a comprehensive 3-part training for those currently serving and those who wish to serve on the visitation team. Volunteers will be equipped to provide care on behalf of the church by developing active listening skills, learning how to pray for people in various situations, and more.

Dates: Wednesdays, Jan. 30, Feb. 13 & 27
■ 6:30–8 pm
Location: J-204 (Jones Building)
Details: Free; childcare provided with RSVP to childcare@stpaulshouston.org

Register online: www.stpaulshouston.org/gatherings

Are you new here? Join us for Coffee with the Pastors, a family-friendly time of coffee and conversations with our St. Paul’s clergy and others in the Jones Building Lobby.

We hope you’ll come to Fellowship Friday. For one evening each fall and spring, the people of St. Paul’s gather in neighbors’ homes all over the greater Houston area.

Look at the map, and pick the location closest to you. We will notify you with the address when we receive your RSVP. 

Your host will provide the main course; please bring a side dish or dessert to share. Families with children are welcome, or you may opt to register them for Kids’ Night Out at the church via www.stpaulshouston.org/kids-night-out. 

Our Spring 2019 Host Homes
Contact Nina Hall via nina@stpaulshouston.org or 713-528-0527 with any questions.

• 01  Shirley and Larry Roberts

• 02  Biddie and David Webb

• 03  Jim and Jeff Benton-Henningsen

• 04  Jeff Johnston

• 05  Sherry Beeman and Bill Kerley

• 06  Sharon McKenzie and Herb Agan

• 07  Eileen and John Stultz 

• 08  Jennifer and Shawn West

• 09  Anna and Darrell Anderson

• 10  Hattie and Jim McKinley

St. Paul’s popular Friday-night program for children 4 months to 5th grade includes a full schedule of games, crafts, play, snacks and supervised activities from 6 to 10:30 pm while parents enjoy an evening on their own. The cost is $25/child ($5/sibling). A light supper is served around 6:30.

Kids Night Out is available for families of St. Paul’s Church and School. Reservations, which are required due to limited space and staff, are accepted for each date up to two weeks in advance.

Please use this secure link to register and pay. For questions or special needs, please contact Ellen Edwards via eedwards@stpaulshouston.org.

Grief and Loss Healing Circle
Facilitated by Kat Denton and Nanette Saha, this series offers connection and healing for those experiencing grief due to the loss of a loved one. Open to new and continuing participants. 

“Every great loss demands that we choose life again. We need to grieve in order to do this. The pain we have not grieved over will always stand between us and life. When we don’t grieve, a part of us becomes caught in the past.” – Rachel Naomi Remen

Dates: Wednesdays, Jan. 23, Feb. 6, Feb. 20, March 13, March 27, and April 10 ■ 6:30–8 pm (optional social time at 6:15 pm)
Location: Fellers Room (S-312)

Register online: www.stpaulshouston.org/gatherings

Amazing Place presents a 4-week Memory Training Course designed by Gary Small, M.D., and Linda Ercoli, Ph.D., of the UCLA Longevity Center. Through this training, participants will learn strategies for:

• Remembering names and faces

• Recalling appointments, messages and plans

• Avoiding misplacing objects

• Overcoming “tip of the tongue” memory slips

Dates: Tuesdays, February 5, 12, 19, & 26
Time: 9–11 am
Location: Fondren Lounge (Jones Building)
Trainer:  Susan Giles, UCLA Certified Memory Trainer and Amazing Place  Community & Church Liaison
Cost: $80, payable to Amazing Place

Organizers say that nine out of 10 participants report improvements in their memory! Sign up via email to trainyourbrain@amazingplacehouston.org or call Sally Davis at 713-552-0420.

Ken Coleman, longtime organist at St. Paul’s, is retiring. Join us for a reception in his honor on Sunday, February 3, at 12:15 pm, in Fondren Hall.

Ken holds degrees in music education and organ from the University of Houston (UH). He began singing in St. Paul’s Choir in 1979 while still at UH. It also was at UH where he first heard a pipe organ. His response was “Wow!”

“Wow!” also is the response to his many contributions to St. Paul’s, especially the music department. 

“In addition to playing the organ on Sundays and for many special services, performances, weddings, funerals, and on choir tours, Kenny has worked tirelessly in front of and behind the scenes,” noted Director of Music Christopher Betts. 

“He has helped with choir rehearsals and sectionals, the music library, service planning, receptions and choir gatherings, the pastoral care of choir members, and as the driving force behind our annual St. Paul’s Choir Gingerbread Bake Sale. His greatest strength is his servant’s heart. He will be sorely missed.”

Music: Canticles in C – Charles Stanford and How Lovely Are the Messengers – Felix Mendelssohn

Congregational Hymns, both from the United Methodist Hymnal (UMH)

• 57 - O for a Thousand Tongues to Sing

• 101 - From All that Dwell below the Skies

Join us for the opening reception of “Healing Landscapes: Investigations into the Art of Healing” on Sunday, January 27 at 12:15 pm in the Open Heart Studio (S-300). Created by artist Helen Spaw, these mixed media pieces capture moments of healing, hope, joy, peace, and wisdom. The art show will be on display until March 8.

More about the artist: Helen Spaw studied art, psychology, and art therapy at The College of Santa Fe in New Mexico and at Pratt Institute in New York. Her art is on display in the Robert B. Green Campus Hospital in San Antonio as part of the Salud-Arte: Art of Healing collection.

Helen co-leads Healing Art Circles as the Diversity Vision Coordinator. She is also the Special Needs Ministry Coordinator and the Fine Arts Academy Coordinator at St. Paul’s. Contact her at hspaw@stpaulshouston.org for more information.

Our popular Friday-night program for children 4 months to 5th grade includes a full schedule of games, crafts, play, snacks and supervised activities from 6 to 10:30 pm while parents enjoy an evening on their own. The cost is $25/child/night ($5/each additional sibling).  A light supper is served around 6:30. During December, this activity becomes Kids Day Out.

Kids Night/Day Out is available for families of St. Paul’s Church and School. Reservations, which are required due to limited space and staff, are accepted for each date up to two weeks in advance.

Please use this secure link to register and pay. For questions or special needs, please contact Ellen Edwards via eedwards@stpaulshouston.org.

Tonight’s Iconoclast Session will feature academic poet Leslie Contreras Schwartz and community poet Xach Blunt with DJ Yung Chris. Iconoclast Sessions are quarterly performance gatherings free and open to the public.

Leslie Contreras Schwartz is an accomplished multi-genre writer from Houston whose work examines the individual versus public bodies and documents lived experiences and narratives of those usually silenced, including people with mental illness, sex workers, trafficked women, and children in custody. A 2018 Houston Poet Laureate finalist, Schwarz was also a semi-finalist for the 2017 Tupelo Press Dorset Prize. She is a graduate of Rice University and of the Program for Writers at Warren Wilson College. Schwartz is currently a poetry editor at Four Way Review and lectures at the University of Houston. 

Xach Blunt is one of Iconoclast Artists' distinguished teaching fellows and a gifted performance poet, who competes at major slam events throughout the year. Poetry informs how Blunt sees the world, whether zooming out to observe how society functions, or focusing inward to interrogate his own personal relationships. Through poetry, his goal is to encourage others to embrace the human experience and its range of emotions, which allows us to recognize that we have more in common than we realize. In 2018, Blunt and his four teammates placed 5th in the nation at the National Poetry Slam in Chicago.

This event will take place in Fondren Hall. Free parking is available across the street on the corner of Fannin and Binz. For more information, visit IconoclastArtists.org

One of the most important roles of parents is to pray for and with our children.

St. Paul’s School presents Lacey Webster, a St. Paul’s member and St. Paul’s School mom, who will teach a class on this topic.

Based on Mark Batterson’s Praying Circles around Your Children, participants will walk through the five “circles” of prayer, learning practical methods that will transform the way you pray.

The class will meet on Thursday, January 24, at 9:15 am in J-204 It is free of charge, and childcare is available with RSVP by January 22 to stpaulschool@stpaulshouston.org.

Rev. Tommy Williams, Senior Pastor of St. Paul’s UMC, will be one of the panelists at this training. Register online: http://texasinterfaith.org/training

Enjoy lunch while clergy, staff, and St. Paul’s members share the story of St. Paul’s vision. You’ll learn how you can engage in worship, hospitality, mission, and faith formation in this cathedral for the city.

DATE: Sunday, Jan. 20 ■ 12:15–2:15 pm
LOCATION: Fondren Hall (Jones Building, 2nd floor)
CONTACT: Rev. Karyn Richards-Kuan: krichards-kuan@stpaulshouston.org

The Chevron Houston Marathon and Aramco Houston Half Marathon will be Sunday, January 20. Plan your route with this map and list of street closures.

If you still can't make it to church that Sunday, please consider watching the service through live streaming.

Have you ever had a checklist that seems never-ending? Let's help our neighbors still recovering from Harvey get some things checked off. 

You’re invited to serve on St. Paul's Harvey Recovery Team on Saturday, Jan. 19, 8 am-4 pm. Work may include:

- install insulation
- hang drywall
- paint walls and trim
- clean up debris from storm damage
- do yard work (mow, weed, etc.)

Come for any part of the day. We will train you on the job; ages 13 and older welcome. More details via www.stpaulshouston.org/harvey or contact Amy Taylor, Director of Missions, via ataylor@stpaulshouston.org or 713-528-0527.

SEARCH Coming Home is 24-week program of SEARCH Homeless Services hosted at St. Paul’s. This weekly gathering builds community through a shared meal among those new to living in permanent housing. Volunteer to help prepare and serve dinner, dine with participants, and/or serve as a mentor. To volunteer or for more info, contact Merlene McAlevy via mfmcalevy@gmail.com.

Dates: Tuesdays, Jan. 15–June 25 ■ 4:30–7 pm

Financial Peace® University is a 9-week curriculum from Dave Ramsey on money management. Throughout this course you will go through the basics of budgeting, debt reduction, planning for the future, and more. 

Dates: Sundays, Jan. 13–March 10 ■ 5–6:30 pm
Location: J-204

Register online: www.fpu.com/1079095 ($109 for curriculum and yearlong access); childcare available upon request to childcare@stpaulshouston.org.

Disciple Fast Track 1: Old Testament
If you are not sure where to start with Disciple Bible Study, this is the first class in the series. An overview of the Old Testament lays the groundwork.

Dates: Sundays, Jan. 13–March 31 ■ 5–6:30 pm
Location: J-203
Facilitator: John Rodriguez

Register online: www.stpaulshouston.org/gatherings