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Worship Service at 10:30am in the sanctuary. Lunch will follow in the narthex.
Worship service at 7:00pm in the sanctuary.
Pastor Steve's Study
Pastor Steve will continue his exciting look at the Book of Exodus on Wednesday evenings at 6:30pm in room 112.
Pastor Karen's Lenten Study
Will meet at 6:30pm each Wednesday in room 012 to study "Three Simple Rules for Christian Living." In Three Simple Rules, Rueben Job offers an interpretation of John Wesley's General Rules for today's readers. This simple but challenging look at three commands, "do no harm, do good, stay in love with God," calls us to mutual respect, unity, and a deeper relationship with God. |
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Greetings!
I hope you enjoy the new pastor-gram from First United Methoidst. |
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From the Pastor
 Welcome! I understand there are many new "subscribers" to the PastorGram. There were many who asked to be added to the list as a result of my encouragement last weekend. There were many of you for whom we had email addresses on file, and yours was added to the PastorGram distribution list. If you find you don't want it, you can easily unsubscribe. I hope you will all stay on the list. It is a simple, inexpensive, weekly, effective means of communication.
I have shared with you, and made some verbal announcements in Worship, that we will make some changes in worship over the next few weeks. Sometimes when we know something is going to change we get nervous. (I include myself in that statement.) So, I want to do a thorough job of sharing appropriate information about what is happening. First, I don't think any of these changes are "global shifts." We will begin to give each of our four Worship Services a distinct character. Secondly, this comes after a long process of study. It appears that if we want to grow in a community and world with very diverse ideas and preferences in worship the thing to do is offer more variety than we do currently. Tastes in worship do not fall along age-group lines as distinctly as we might have thought. There are people in every age group who prefer various styles of worship. The question is not which one is "right". The question is whether we are willing to make an effort to reach more people with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Third, we are entering a trial period. We will make some changes, make every effort to do them well, track attendance, and see if these changes help First Church in its mission.
On Saturday evening we are going to have a little more of a "Gospel" feel. We will sing more Gospel Hymns. We will share our Joys, concerns, and testimonies. We will be a little less formal. There will be times when we sing several hymns chosen by the congregation. I want it to feel as comfortable to say "amen" as it is to applaud. We will open the altar for prayer more intentionally.
Our most contemporary service, at 9:15 will not change much. We will work more on contemporary music and having a strong voice or ensemble to lead us in singing. I will make better use of the screen and our A/V capacities.
Our most Traditional service at 10:45 will change some. The Chancel Choir will do more service music like choral calls to worship and prayer responses. We will usually have a Processional and sometimes a Recessional. In short, we will move to an order which is more familiar to traditional United Methodists. We are not going "High Church," but a little more formal and traditional.
Beginning with the regular Communion weekend of March 7-8 we will offer The Lord's Supper weekly at 8:00. Many of you would be surprised how often I am asked if we could have Communion more often. I am going to say more about weekly Communion in an article appearing in this PastorGram and in next week's First Connection. We will still celebrate the Lord's Supper in all the Worship Services on the first full weekend of each month. If you happen to miss, you will now have an alternative. For the many of you who want a weekly opportunity, it will be available. For some of you who attend the 8:00 Worship because of its convenient time, I encourage you to continue. If you try this, you may find it to be even more of a blessing than you expect. I am simply asking you to "come and see." Most of you know the 8:00 Worship is our smallest. I do not want to drop it, as some have suggested. I believe we will find this gives the 8:00 service a special appeal. If it does not, we will change.
Let me remind you again of some recent history. In the fall of 2007 when we held the event "Discovery 08" about a third of the comments we received related to worship. There was no one single direction to be discerned from the comments. So, we began a lengthy process seeking to find ways to accomplish two aims. Those are to minister more effectively to our present congregation and to reach out more effectively to the Blue Springs community. The end result seems to be to offer more variety by being more diverse in our four services. It will certainly be an advantage to be able to tell prospective members about four distinct worship services.
I am excited about the future. Personally, I love all these possibilities. You can do several positive things in the next few weeks. Support the effort to find ways to grow. Pray for the church and for those who come visit us. Open yourself to some new experiences and see what God might have in store for you. Perhaps you could attend a service other than your usual time. And, as always, invite a friend, tell someone else about the love of God and invite them to worship here with you!
Is there something on your schedule for the weekend more important than worshipping God and nurturing your faith? I will "see you in church".
Grace and Peace to You,
Steve Campbell |
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Hospitality Workshop
February 22, 2:00-3:00pm in the sanctuary. Make your involvement matter. Greeting, welcoming, inviting, smiling, introducing are all vital parts of our hospitality but are frequently left to others. Learn simple techniques and see the plan for hospitality at First Church unveiled. What a great way to prepare for our "Invitation Sunday and Open House" in April. |
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Join "Connections"
If you would like to explore a deeper connection with God within a small group community, Connections invites you to join us on Sunday, March 1, at 10:40am in Room 100. Connections is a new group for adults who are interested in developing meaningful relationships with God and each other. If you would like more information, please contact Stephanie Marker at 220-9094 or
stephaniecmarker@yahoo.com.
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BRIDGES
Wednesday, March 4, Noon in the Narthex
Those of you who attended the BRIDGES October meeting will remember we were fortunate in having an outstanding speaker, economist Chris Kuehl. He will return to our March meeting and speak about current national and international economic trends.
Menu: Chili, Salad, Cornbread, Brownie, and Beverage.
Cost: $6 per person.
Reservations and payment are needed by March 1.
Please call Dee Meek at 373-2580 for reservations or with any questions.
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Women's Retreat
Come to the Well-A Women's Retreat
We all come to God's well-whether it is to take something or to bring something. Whichever it is, God will and does provide. You are invited to "Come to the Well" for a time of refreshment and renewal as you join other women from the church at Wilderness Retreat Center in Lawson, MO. The cost is $45 for the retreat, which begins on Friday, March 13, and will conclude Saturday afternoon, March 14. Registration is available in the narthex. | |
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