University Presbyterian Church of Fresno

This Sunday, we're inviting all our young learners to bring their backpacks for our annual "Blessing of the Backpacks." 🎒 It’s a meaningful way to start the new school year with encouragement and prayers. We’ll come together to recognize, pray for, and bless our students, teachers, and all school district employees as they embark on this new academic journey. See you there!

We need your help! Join us this Friday at 9 AM to bag groceries and again on Saturday at 7:30 AM to help distribute food to our neighbors. Let's support those in need and come together as a community make a difference!
If you would like to volunteer, sign up at https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20F0D48A9AF2FABF94-upcfood1 #/

If you or someone you know is in need, check out the Central California Food Bank schedule below.

Need help finding a food distribution? Here are some happening this week! Visit out our website for more details and locations! www.ccfoodbank.org/findfood

A little reminder for our monthly this Sunday right after service!
Everyone is welcome. Bring your favorite dish to share and enjoy some wonderful fellowship. We can’t wait to see you!

Unfortunately this Friday’s bluegrass concert is being postponed to a later date.

Choose Joy!
We were created for joy, even amidst life's hardships and pressures. Join us for a transformative four-week series, traveling the joy-lined cobblestone streets of Philippians, and discover the true gift of joy.

✨ Connection Groups will gather immediately after worship to seek and find joy in our lives together.

📅 Sign up now at https://upcfresno.org/joy and be a part of something uplifting and joyous. Let's find joy together!

This week, we're shining a light on our amazing Communion Servers!
Our Communion Servers play a crucial role in making our worship services welcoming and meaningful. They dedicate their time and energy to ensure that everyone is served with care and experiences the love of our community.

Here’s what Jane Reid shared with us during our last service:
"I prepare communion because we are a family. As a kid, I complained that other kids get paid for chores but I didn't. Instead of getting angry with me, my father said 'Listen, you are part of a family and family needs to get things done for one another.' I carry this teaching about what family means with me throughout my life. Communion needs to be here for all of us here and we are a church family. As a family, we do whatever we can to support each other and help one another grow our faith."

If you feel called to serve as a volunteer, we'd love to have you! Head over to upcfresno.org/volunteer to find out more.

We are incredibly blessed to have such a dedicated and passionate leader at the helm of our church food bank. Linda Jean has tirelessly worked to ensure that our community members in need have access to nutritious food and support.
Her leadership and compassion have made a profound impact on countless lives. Thank you for your relentless effort, your kind heart, and your inspiring spirit.

If any of you have the desire to make a difference as well and would like to volunteer, you can reach out to the church office for more information.

Shoutout to our Hosting Team who go above and beyond to share God's boundless love with us on Sunday mornings. Your hospitality is such a gift!

🔔 A big shout-out to our amazing bell choir! Your dedication and talent fill our hearts with beautiful melodies. Thank you ringers and director David Knudson for all the music!🎶🔔

Here are Deacons Tom, Becky, Tracy, Laura, Nancy, and Ken smiling brightly after another great meeting where they shared in the care for our members and friends through conversations and prayers

Join us for another exciting Summer Fun Hour with Game Day this Sunday after service! Gather with our youth group in the Great Room or outside for a joyful afternoon filled with games for all ages, and even a bounce house! We can't wait to see you there!

A big shout out to our Community Playgroup Leaders. Their love for kiddos and their pure joy in pushing kids on the swings for hours on end and serving up endless snacks is a beautiful expression of hospitality. Thank you for loving our kids so well

Join Our Yoga Class!

Start your week with a rejuvenating yoga session every Tuesday from 10-11 AM! Whether you're a yoga pro or a complete beginner, our class is perfect for everyone. Stretch, breathe, and find your inner peace in a warm and welcoming community.

Just grab your mat and come as you are!

A big thank you to another one of our behind the scenes leaders. Week in and week out, Jim, Carol and Dana get together to faithful count our contributions, and make sure that each and every dollar that you donate ends up where it is supposed to and is ready to be used to further God's mission in and through us.
Thank you for your attention to detail and your tireless service!

Don’t forget, our potluck is happening this Sunday right after service!

Everyone is welcome. Bring your favorite dish to share and enjoy some wonderful fellowship. We can’t wait to see you!

Andrea and Jeanne are a Godsend! Not only are they 2 of our Elders this year, they also have earned the title of unofficial staff for all the hours they put in at the office. They, along with our other office volunteers, keep things running smoothly behind the scenes. From printing bulletins, answering phones, and preparing mailings, thank you so EVERYBODY who volunteers their time to the administrative care of our congregation!

🏳️‍🌈 Pride Parade Recap 🎉

Last Saturday was a vibrant display of colors and community at the Pride Parade! A heartfelt thank you to everyone who showed up to celebrate love and diversity. Your spirit and participation truly made it a day to remember. Thank you for the photos Autumn Witt

Join UPC for a joyful march in Fresno's annual Pride Parade in the Tower District on Saturday, June 1!
Come adorned in your festive symbols of love and celebration. We will gather at the southeast corner of Olive & Palm at 9:30 AM. The parade kicks off at 10:00 AM and spans about half-mile. All are welcome!
For more details and to RSVP, please reach out to our office.

🏁 Recap: UPC Fun Hour RC Car Races 🚗💨

Last Sunday's UPC Summer Fun Hour featured some thrilling RC car races after service! A big thank you to everyone who participated and brought their enthusiasm. It truly made the day special. Here are a couple of photos capturing the action.

🎼🎹🎻 This Wednesday at 7pm!

For you, for all of us, for Pentecost Day.

THIS GRACE THAT SCORCHES US
A Blessing for Pentecost Day

Here’s one thing
you must understand
about this blessing:
it is not
for you alone.

It is stubborn
about this.
Do not even try
to lay hold of it
if you are by yourself,
thinking you can carry it
on your own.

To bear this blessing,
you must first take yourself
to a place where everyone
does not look like you
or think like you,
a place where they do not
believe precisely as you believe,
where their thoughts
and ideas and gestures
are not exact echoes
of your own.

Bring your sorrow.
Bring your grief.
Bring your fear.
Bring your weariness,
your pain,
your disgust at how broken
the world is,
how fractured,
how fragmented
by its fighting,
its wars,
its hungers,
its penchant for power,
its ceaseless repetition
of the history it refuses
to rise above.

I will not tell you
this blessing will fix all that.

But in the place
where you have gathered,
wait.
Watch.
Listen.
Lay aside your inability
to be surprised,
your resistance to what you
do not understand.

See then whether this blessing
turns to flame on your tongue,
sets you to speaking
what you cannot fathom
or opens your ear
to a language
beyond your imagining
that comes as a knowing
in your bones,
a clarity
in your heart
that tells you

this is the reason
we were made:
for this ache
that finally opens us,

for this struggle,
this grace
that scorches us
toward one another
and into
the blazing day.

—Jan Richardson
From Circle of Grace: A Book of Blessings for the Seasons
Image: “The Origin of Fire"
© Jan Richardson
janrichardsonimages.com
Inspired by Acts 2:1-21