About Us

Meet Pastor Yoojin Kim

Rev. YooJin has been serving Wacousta Community UMC since July 1st , 2021. She is thrilled and joyful to be in ministry with this congregation. YooJin was born and raised in a Korean Methodist family. She received her M.Div. from Boston University School of Theology in 2015. Before seminary she earned an undergraduate degree at the State University of New York at Stony Brook, majoring in Psychology and Sociology. Before coming Wacousta Community UMC, she served the Korean First Central UMC (2015-2018), Clawson UMC (2016-2018), and Onaway UMC and Millersburg UMC (2018- 2021).

YooJin is part of a clergy couple. She is married to Rev. Jung Du Paik, who is clergy currently serving at Elsie UMC and Shepherdsville UMC in the Mid-Michigan district. She loves cooking and playing the piano, and also loves to have fellowship and conversation in Christ. YooJin hopes our Wacousta Community UMC becoming God’s community that shares the love of God inside and outside the building.

Rev. YooJin Kim can be reached at wacoustaumc.prayer@gmail.com for your sharable or private prayer requests, or making an appointment with her.

To read Rev. YooJin Kim’s pastor letter for this month, CLICK HERE.

Covid Updates:

At this time, we are meeting for in-person Worship and offering a livestream of our service on Facebook.

We encourage and appreciate the wearing of face masks in the building.
The nursery is open! If there are not two unrelated, adult volunteers to staff the nursery on a particular Sunday, it will be closed. Parents are still welcome to use the nursery space with their young children (infant - 5 years) during Worship in the event that we are short-staffed.
Sunday School (for kids age 5 - high school) will meet during Worship. Kids are dismissed from the Sanctuary after the Children's Moment.

What is Sunday Worship like?

Worship Service

Our worship service begins at 9:30 a.m. on Sundays. Our service begins with music from our singing group FiSH (Friends in Spiritual Harmony) which invites worshipers into the sanctuary. We often have a responsive call to worship printed in our bulletin which is spoken by worshipers and the pastor or lay reader. We sometimes include written prayers, responsive readings, or an historic creed. Typically, we have multiple scripture readings and a sermon. We share our joys and concerns with each other at one point in the service and the pastor accepts written prayer requests and unspoken requests as well.

At the same time, while the style is structured, the mood is informal. Dress is casual. You may see a smattering of neckties among the men, but not many. Jeans are usually represented.

Music

We enjoy a blended worship, musically. We include a lot of traditional hymns as well as some of the popular contemporary choruses and hymns.

Holy Communion

Most of the year we celebrate Holy Communion (Eucharist) as part of our regular worship service on the first Sunday of each month. During Lent (the 40 days prior to Easter) we celebrate Communion each Sunday. We also serve Communion at our 11:00 Christmas Eve worship.

In keeping with our denominational tradition, we observe an “open table,” i.e. anyone who wishes to partake of the sacrament is welcome to do so. The congregation comes forward and receives of a common loaf and cup in a style called “intinction,” meaning that the bread is dipped into the cup and then eaten. Again, in keeping with our denomination’s tradition, we use grape juice rather than wine.

Children and Communion

The age at which children are communed (fully participate in Communion) is at the discretion of the individual pastor and the child’s parents. Our current pastor is comfortable communing children from infancy upward. So it is not unusual to see young children come forward and receive the sacrament. At the same time, we know that some parents prefer that their children reach a particular point of understanding before they participate in this sacrament. So some parents may bring their children forward but indicate to Pastor that they are not to receive, in which case Pastor offers a blessing instead.

Visitors

Visitors will find a welcoming atmosphere and a living example of “Open Hearts, Open Minds, Open Doors.” If you join us for worship on any Sunday, please introduce yourself and join us after the service for coffee and refreshments in our fellowship hall.

Our History

Wacousta Community United Methodist Church was founded in 1866 as a Methodist Episcopal church. In 1867, our first building was built, and in 1968, with the merger of the Methodist and Evangelical United Brethren denominations, we became the United Methodist Church. Following the path of John Wesley (1703-1791), Methodists comprise one of the largest Protestant denominations in the United States.

We have been housed in many buildings on this site, but our focus has remained the same for over 150 years: to serve God and to be examples of his love in our actions.

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