1-17-06
Dear Friends,
Do you know your Bible as well as you would like? Is the Old Testament in your Bible less worn than the New Testament? Would you like to understand the whole Bible more fully?
If you answered “Yes!” to any of the questions above, what an incredible opportunity we have this coming weekend! Dr. Marvin Rosenthal, founder of Zion’s Hope and President of the Holy Land Experience, will be with us at First United Methodist Church for a Winter Bible Conference.
This is a time for all of us to come apart from other distractions and spend some time in intensive study of Scripture. Dr. Rosenthal will be teaching on the Old Testament roots of our Christian faith. Having been raised in Jewish traditions and faith, he is well-equipped to help us to understand the whole Bible more fully.
Dr. Rosenthal is a well-known speaker and author. He is an interesting and powerful preacher of the Gospel message. He has written a number of books and has been a featured Bible teacher at conferences and churches throughout the world. He has led numerous trips to Israel. Having recently returned from the region, he will have some first hand reflection on what is going on there and how it is significant to our faith as Christians.
We were fortunate to find an opening in Dr. Rosenthal’s schedule. There was another group that was scheduled to come in September to teach on this same subject. Due to an unforeseen issue, that group cancelled their visit. Since the initial request was for someone to teach on the Old Testament, our efforts turned to finding the best speaker available to instruct us. There are none better than the one who is coming to be with us.
The schedule for Dr. Rosenthal is as follows.
Saturday evening 7:00 Teaching/sharing session
Sunday morning 8:30 Preaching at Celebration Service
Sunday morning 9:45 Sharing personal testimony during Sunday School
Sunday morning 11:00 Preaching at morning Worship Service
All of the sessions are open to anyone who will attend. The arrangements with Dr. Rosenthal are that our church will cover the costs of his travel from Orlando, his lodging while here in Hinesville, and a Love Offering will be received as a gift to support his ministry.
This event is listed on the Zion’s Hope website. The church has received telephone inquiries from a number of people who are interested in attending. This may be a time to invite others to come with you to worship at First United Methodist Church.
If you would like to know your Bible better, please make plans to attend. Invite your friends to come along to each of these services this weekend! See you in church!
Blessings!
ARM
Rev Alan R Miller +
In a United Methodist Church, pastors are appointed to serve congregations for one year at a time. Each year, every appointment is up for review by the congregation, the pastor, and the leaders of our Annual Conference. The District Superintendent of the Savannah District, the Rev Marshall Howell, the District Superintendents of the other eight districts, and the Bishop of the South Georgia Conference, Bishop Michael Watson, also participate in the annual review of all pastoral appointments.
At this time of year, the Staff-Parish Relations Committees of all United Methodist churches will be meeting to offer their input into that process. The persons who participate in the procedure on a local level are the members of the Staff-Parish Relations Committee, the Lay Leader, and the Lay Members of Annual Conference. Those persons are elected at our annual church meeting, called a Charge Conference, to represent the church to both the pastor and the Annual Conference. Each appointed pastor will submit his or her intent regarding this important matter, also. After receiving this information, the District Superintendent may request a consultation with the local church or the pastor. The final decision on all pastoral appointments remains with the Bishop. The superintendents of the nine districts, called the Cabinet, work closely with the Bishop to assign the right pastors to each congregation.
This is a time of prayer, discernment, and reflection by both churches and pastors. There is a vitally important relationship between clergy and the congregations they serve. The hope is for connections to be made that will effectively serve the mission of the church. The covenant of faithfulness and support shared between the pastor and congregation is intended to equip the church to be faithful and fruitful in service of the Lord.
The gifts that you can see are appreciated more than you know but as in the recent commercials on TV there are some things that you have blessed me with that are PRICELESS…the constant and abiding friendship over the last eight years, the prayers you have prayed on my behalf, the tears you have wiped away, the laughter we have enjoyed, the privilege of being a part of your life and the life of your family, the many lessons learned and most importantly – the example of Jesus that I have seen in your lives. Thank you for the priceless and immeasurable gifts that you have given to me to help prepare me for this next leg of my journey. I love you all more than you can imagine and thank you from the very bottom of my heart.
I am getting more settled daily here in Franklin. I am enjoying getting to know my new church (which is not nearly the challenge I’ve had in the past since there are only about 60 people to get to know!) Please know that you are welcome here anytime. If you are in the area or just need a place to visit, my home is open to you as you all have made your homes and hearts open to me.
Here is my new information:
Anita H. Pringle
15102 Crowne Brook Circle
Franklin, TN 37067
(615)771-7282 – home (615)426-6678 – cell
anitapringle@bellsouth.net anitapringle@TheOrchard.cc
I love you all and will continue to pray for you and for HFUMC. I ask that you pray for me and for The Orchard – a Church of the Cross as we seek to do God’s will in building this church for His kingdom.
Forever,
Anita
Ski Retreat at Lake Junaluska, February 17-20. Please note that final amount owed is due no later than February 12.
Sunday School Perfect Attendance
Congratulations to the following for having perfect attendance in Sunday School for December 2005:
Jasmin Stoupe, A. J. DiSalvo, Martha Kitchings, Kathleen Valentine, Barbara Ross, Billy & Ilene Bond, Shirley Giddens, Tina Thompson, Mollie Ashmore, Dottie Klingbeil, Sis Matthews, Carolyn Strickland, Edwen Valentine, Elbert Byrd, Ed Edwards, Danny Norman, Darrell Payne, Hugh Southwell, Carl Varnedoe, Charles Strickland, Harold Cross.
Subscribe to the Avocate
Read. Be informed. Be inspired. Subscribe to the Wesleyan Christian Advocate, the official newspaper of Georgia United Methodists. Drop your check for $18 made out to this churhc and marked “Advocate” in the offering plate for a one-year subscription. Or subscribe to the online edition of $12 at www.wcadvocate.org.
I will support First United Methodist Church by…
MY PRAYERS
Grace Stevens, Elizabeth Hutton, Ann Powers, Dorothy Stagmeier, Davis Darsey, Faye Darsey, Chris Varmecky, Ethelda Lee, Lynn Sikes, Johnnie May, Irene Martin Our soldiers and their families. Harold Lynn, Ray Barrett, Ike Sallee, Brian Layer, Bruce Gannaway, John Folker, Shane Baker, Steve Lutsky, Geoff DeTingo, Jason Matthews, James Lowe, Brian Butler, John DeStazio, Thomas Kupsh, Brian Hudson, Darryl Bell, Mario Crook, Sub Hall, Jim West, Robb Waters, Donald Smith, Richard Aaron, David Stroupe, Justin Blackstone, Joseph Foust, Jerald Smith, Jake Rice, Tom Mentes, Jon Sullivan, Aaron Duncan, Richard Macdougal, Timothy Plumb, Josh Lamere, Mike Musgrove, Brian Wilber, Patrick Kilby, Bob Warren, Clifford L. McDaniel, Jr.
MY PRESENCE
Sunday School:....................................................................................................... 190
Worship 8:30:.........................................................................................................118
..............11:00:.........................................................................................................215
Total Worship:........................................................................................................333
MY GIFTS
Received Last Week:...................................................................................... 9,348.00
Received to Date:..........................................................................................28,358.00
Memorials – Building Fund:...............................................................................80.00
MY SERVICE
Ushers: ...................................................................................Clifford Johnson, Capt.
................Elbert Byrd, Guy Browning, Bob Dasher, Buddy DeLoach, Bob Pirkle,
Charles Strickland
Security Steward: ......................................................................................Elbert Byrd
Greeters:.............................................................................. Ann & Gerald DeLoach
...............................................................................................................Linda Mackrill
Acolytes: ..................................................................Allison Smiley & Elizabeth Goff
Crucifer: ....................................................................................................Ryan Smiley
Altar Steward:................................................................................... Karen Stagmeier
Sound Room: (8:30) ..........................................................................Billy Strickland
........................(11:00)....................................................................... Cameron Smith
Children’s Church: .........................Christine Barrett, Lori Wheeler, Jennifer Mele
Children’s Sermon: ...............................................................................Candy Childs
Lay Scripture Reader: ...............................................................................Lynda Hall
From the Mailbox...
Dear HFUMC family,
During the last two weeks I have thought over and over about how to share my feelings of gratitude with you but for once in my life I feel inadequate to do so and even speechless!! Your generosity during this past Christmas season and my going away gifts were overwhelming. The gifts will be a constant reminder to me in my new home of the gift of friendship that God has blessed me with and the money tree will be a huge help as I begin this new venture of ministering in a new church plant.
