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Easter Sunday Services
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Sunday, April 8 - Easter Services of Resurrection
7:00 am Sunrise
Columbarium Garden
"As the World Wars"
John 20: 1-18
Kelsey Grissom Johnson
Ashley Roberts
8:10 am Holy Communion
In the Chapel
8:30 am Traditional Service
"Looking for Jesus"
John 20: 1-18
Dalton Styes
VHUMC Orchestra, Chancel Choir
9:45 am Service of Word & Table
"Looking for Jesus"
John 20: 1-18
Dalton Styes
VHUMC Orchestra, Chancel Choir,
Ashley Roberts
11:00 am Traditional Service
"Looking for Jesus"
John 20: 1-18
Dalton Styes
VHUMC Orchestra, Chancel Choir
11:00 am New Traditions Service
"Belonging and Believing"
John 20: 1:18
Nancy Hastings-Hornsby
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Follow Me... Feed My Sheep
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"... If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me." Mark 8:34. These are the words of Jesus to his disciples in the Gospel of Mark. We now are his disciples and we are to follow Jesus. We are further instructed in John 12:17 "Feed my sheep."
We have journeyed through Lent and arrived at the cross. Each Sunday in Lent, the Hands of Christ team highlighted a different VHUMC outreach team and its work with an agency. You learned about the VHUMC Food Pantry, Volunteers in Mission, Children's Harbor, M-Power Ministries, the West End Community Gardens of Urban Ministry, and First Light. Additional examples abound of VHUMC members reaching out to Follow Jesus and Feed His Sheep. Many more teams and agencies will benefit from your generous giving to the Lenten offering.
As of Palm Sunday, we have received $26,353. The goal for the 2012 Lenten offering is $40,000. Will you help us reach that goal today with your extra gift? Special envelopes are available in the Sanctuary pew racks and on the worship table at the back of Tyson Hall. Or you may simply mark your check "Lenten Offering."
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Appointed Clergy Transitions
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We are excited to announce the completion of our appointed clergy changes that will all take place on June 15 this summer. In January, Dalton Styes, our senior pastor, announced his retirement plans. Dr. Bill Brunson was appointed on March 3 to take Dalton's place. We are very glad to have someone of Bill's preaching and leadership quality coming to VHUMC.
Our Conference leadership recently determined the other appointments that affect our church. Nancy Hastings Hornsby will remain here in a part-time role to serve alongside of Bill Brunson. We are also getting two new associate ministers who will transfer from other churches in the Conference. Dr. Kipp McClurg, his wife, Stephanie, and three boys are coming to us from the First United Methodist Church of Piedmont, Alabama, where he has served as the senior pastor. Zach Seitz and his wife, Kate, are coming to us from Gurley United Methodist Church in Gurley, Alabama, where he has served as the senior pastor.
We are thrilled about the clergy team this gives us. All of the staff and lay leaders who have been involved in this process are excited about the quality of people being added and the future of VHUMC. At the same time, we are sad to be losing Myrle Grate who has served us well for the past five years as our Executive Pastor. Myrle has been given the opportunity by the Conference to lead another church in North Alabama.
Please be in prayer for all of these people and their families as well as our 13-member Transition Team as they prepare for the moves this summer.
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Who is Bill Brunson? Part 3
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 Throughout the spring we will be sharing some of the history and perspectives of our coming senior pastor. Bill will take over for Dalton in mid-June.
Bill has a Masters of Divinity degree from Candler School of Theology at Emory University. He is a Lewis Fellow at the Lewis Center for Church Leadership and a trained facilitator in the Lewis Learning Community Program that focuses on church growth.
On church vision: "VHUMC can be a wonderful example of the Body of Christ. With an overarching vision that moves us forward as a congregation, there will also be visions for each of the major ministry areas of the church. Through each ministry area achieving their vision, the ultimate vision for the church will be fulfilled." |
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Kay Twilley is Returning to Bolivia
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Kay is a member at VHUMC and served in Bolivia as a missionary with UMC Global Ministries from 2000 until 2008. Since then, she has been retired and active in the church and with her family. Now, God has other plans. The Bolivian Methodist Bishop has asked Kay to return to Montero, Bolivia and resume her former work - recruiting and guiding short-term work teams to work and minister in that area. Approval by the SEJ Volunteers in Mission program confirmed this calling to Kay. "I feel very blessed to have this great opportunity to return to a place and be with friends that have made a great impact on my life. I would like to ask for your prayers. I hope that VHUMC will also send work teams to help. This church has always been a great support in many ways, and I would like to thank all of you who have supported me in the past."
Kay leaves for Bolivia on April 13. To contact her call 470-1506 or ktwill2@yahoo.com. Kay is paying for all of her own travel and living expenses. If you would like to contribute for her ministry expenses in Bolivia, you can give to the Kay Twilley Bolivia Fund here at VHUMC.
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Vacation Bible Camp Registration
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 Registration begins this Sunday, April 1. Be sure to register your 4K through 5th grader for a great time as we dare to go deep with God for Operation Overboard! Registration forms will be located throughout the church and on our website. Click here to register online. Volunteers are needed in all areas.
Call Ruth Grissom at 769-0124 (Elementary) or Anne Strozier at 769-0127 (Pre-School). Join us June 11-15 for another great week of Bible fun!
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Hilltoppers Meeting
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Our next meeting is Tuesday, April 17, at 10:30 a.m. in the Fellowship Hall. The program is The Seasoned Performers-Rosa and the Rhinestone Star. For information or to make a lunch reservation, please call Frances Cook at 822-2013 or Barbara Lee at 769-0122 (blee@vhumc.org). Lunch is $5.00. Please make your reservation no later than 11 am on Friday, April 13.
Vestavia Hilltoppers is a VHUMC-sponsored organization for persons of retirement age, which meets each month for lunch and a program. They also sponsor trips and other activities that are publicized at meetings. Guests and new members are welcome.
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Join Us
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If you are ready to make VHUMC your church family, JOIN US!!! Joining VHUMC is more than just putting your name on a roll; it is uniting your heart with the mission of the church-sharing Christ with others! Join at the end of any worship service by meeting the pastor near the front during the last song.
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Green Mailbox Bows
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The Genesis Class is making bows in support of Wes Edgar and his need for a kidney transplant (Kelly green is the designated color for organ transplants). We will have them for sale on Wednesday nights and Sunday mornings or you can see anyone in the Genesis Class. Make your check to Help Hope Live for a minimum $10 donation. Let's all show our love and support for Wes.
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Steeple 2 Steeple 5K Run/Walk May 19
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VHUMC and Vestavia Hills Baptist Church are co-sponsoring the Steeple 2 Steeple Community Run/Walk between our churches on May 19 at 8:00 am. The cost is $20 for those ages 11 - 64 and only $10 for everyone else. There will be a Friday night cookout and Bluegrass Band concert at VHBC. To register you can go to www.vhumc.org or contact Jim Frazier at 769-0126 or jfrazier@vhumc.org.
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Outreach Corner
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Need Bunk Beds
A family with five children is in desperate need of bunk beds and/or a trundle bed. Did your spring cleaning include a bed to spare? If so, please contact Patti Eggers at peggers@vhumc.org or 769-0143.
Kairos Team Needs Your Support
Each spring and fall, teams of volunteers conduct a Kairos Prison Ministry weekend at William E. Donaldson Correctional Facility that is similar to the Walk to Emmaus. Kairos #55 will be held April 19 - 22 with 48 inmates participating. Please be in prayer for all of those participating-the Chaplain, his staff, Kairos alumni inmates who will be serving, the Free World volunteers, and especially the 48 Men in White who will be experiencing this ministry for the first time. There are two ways you can help:
- HOMEMADE COOKIES! Cookies that we supply (and the supply literally never runs out) to the Men in White is a wonderful symbolic analogy of God's love for all of us. The fact that somebody cares enough for them to actually bake them cookies touches the hearts of these men in ways that you cannot believe. Rice Krispy treats are their favorites, and all cookies are welcome-chocolate chip, oatmeal, sugar, cinnamon, peanut butter, M&M, etc. We only ask that you minimize the use of fruit in the cookies and not bring any "store bought" cookies.Place the cookies in a one-gallon, clear zip-lock bag. No other containers are allowed through the prison security check. Finally, say a prayer over each batch that you make-prayers for these men and the volunteers are very meaningful!
- PRAYER VIGIL A website has been established with 144 prayer slots for the weekend. We will post the list of praying volunteers on Saturday morning for the inmates to see the 144 people praying for them. This profoundly demonstrates to the men that they are not alone and forgotten. It is a powerful display of God's love for them. To sign up, go to http://www.3dayol.org/Vigil/GetVigil.phtml?pvid=6412&commid=80
FOR MORE INFORMATION on the Donaldson Kairos prison ministry, please contact: Rocky Alling (alling@bellsouth.net or 531-9361), Ryan Quinn (ryan.quinn@martinetail.com or 396-8218), Tom Watson (twatson19@gmail.com or 541-7052) or Butch Williams (butch.williams@dhgllp.com or 873-1313).
Food Pantry shelves are bare again!
We are now serving 80 families, so we need 1,360 food items every Wednesday. For April, we need breakfast items plus fresh fruit and potatoes (delivered Sunday-Tuesday only). Panera Bread is donating leftover items on Friday night. If you can help pick up, bag, freeze and store these items until the next Wednesday, please let us know. You may volunteer once, or quarterly, or monthly. Call Barbara Porter 444-9793.
Bunny Aid Thank You!!!
Birmingham-area children offer a hearty thank you to everyone who created and donated an Easter Basket. VHUMC members and friends donated over 200 baskets for children and youth in need. The Easter Bunny has a difficult time reaching children who live in shelters or other less-than-ideal settings. Hands On Birmingham is an official Easter Bunny assistant. Their volunteers, who strive to live the worlds of Jesus to "Follow Me and Feed My Sheep," delivered over 2,500 baskets this year.
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Trailmixers
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Trailmixers is a women's hiking group that includes women of all ages and hiking abilities in various hikes across Alabama. Join us as we will hike the Cave Creek Trail at Cheaha State Park on Saturday, April 14. This is a 13-mile loop trail and is rated moderately difficult due to its length. The trail should be beautiful with rhododendron bushes in bloom. We will leave the Lighthouse at 7:30 am. Bring water, snacks, and lunch. Contact Cynthia McGough (901-0956 or mcgough.cynthia@gmail.com) if you have questions.
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Music Notes - Sunday, April 8
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Alleluia!! We gather this week with the resurrection story at the forefront of all we do. We have journeyed through this time of wandering, reflection, and grief and have seen our savior crucified. On Sunday we will once again celebrate the risen king. The hymns we sing will be familiar such as "Christ the Lord Is Risen Today," "He Lives," and "Easter People, Raise Your Voices." Our Chancel Choir will sing several selections including "Arisen Is Our Blessed Lord" with brass choir, "Crown Him the Risen King" with full orchestra, and, of course, the ever-popular "Hallelujah Chorus" from Messiah. Don't be late as our own VHUMC Orchestra will open our services with "Celebration." You may choose to attend the sunrise service where Ashley Roberts and Kelsey Grissom Johnson will lead worship in remembrance and celebration of the first Christians to see the empty tomb. We pray that your journey will bring you closer to the risen king this Sunday.
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Wednesday Night Menus
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Apr 11 - Salad, Swedish Meatballs, Egg Noodles, Broccoli, Cobbler
Apr 18 - Slaw, Curried Chicken, Jasmine Rice, Sauteed Veggies, Trifle
Apr 25 - Chicken Salad, Croissant, Fresh Fruit, Ice Cream
Join us each week on Wednesday from 5:00 to 6:00 pm in the Fellowship Hall. The cost is $6/adults, $4/children with a $20 family max. Call Margaret Flowers (769-0107) by noon on Monday to make reservations.
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Our Time and Resources
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Attendance for April 1:
Worship Services 1384
Nursery 131
Sunday School
Adult 489
Youth 104
Elementary 150
Pre-school 96
Financial Items: Actual Budgeted
Last Week (March 29 - April 3)
Donations $78,189 $74,000
February Year-to-date Summary
Income $524,831 $511,800
Expenses $567,018 $617,392
Net ($51,187) ($105,592)
VDS and Dance Net $64,737 $24,776
Total Net $13,550 ($80,816)
Current building loan balance $693,493
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| Prayer Requests | |
Prayer Requests
Careline: 205-822-9336
Weekend Emergencies: 205-914-3121
Please be in prayer for the following persons:
Coleen Armstrong
Martha Drewry
Cortez Harden
Beth Ann Higgs
Stephanie Wade Hill
Julie Hyatt
Carolyn and Bobby Lott
Judy and J.B. McKinnon
Amanda Murphy
Charles Murrell
Belva Steed
Scott Treman
Mary Gordon Turner
Jessica Crumpton West
Russell Yarbrough
In an effort to keep the prayer request list current, names will be listed for two weeks unless we are otherwise notified. VHUMC will not publish the names and/or concerns of persons known to be minors (18 years of age or younger) without the permission of said minor's legal guardian. Thank you.
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This Week in Our Congregation
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Hospitalizations as of April 3
Beth Ann Higgs
Sympathy To
Ann Clemmer and family in the death of her sister-in-law, Judy McCarter, of Duncan, SC.
Denise and Ken Willett in the death of Ken's sister, Jeanne Willett of Louisville, Kentucky, earlier this week.
Congratulations To
Drew and Leigh Helveston in the birth of their son, Hardy McDaniel Helveston, born March 19. Grandparents are Melinda and Bubba Helveston.
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For more information about VHUMC and its ministries please visit us at
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