10 Fold!

Go, therefore, and make disciple of all nations... -- Matthew 28:18

In October, we will come to a day marked uniquely 10/10/10 -- October 10, 2010 -- and to a unique mission opportunity for learning and serving.
 
Beginning on October 10, 2010, and continuing for 10 days, you and your church can learn about the mission work of The United Methodist Church around the world supported through The Advance, the designated giving arm of our church.  An online event is taking shape, and you are invited to be a part of it.
 
Through live webcasts, streaming video, online chats and other media, you will see and hear amazing stories of life-changing and life-saving and life-shaping ministries.
 
There are 10 weeks between October 10 and Christmas! Every church in the Mississippi Conference is invited again this year to support mission through The Advance in some way during these 10 weeks. Choose the season that works best for you and your church -- fall, Thanksgiving, Advent, Christmas. 
 
At the 2010 Annual Conference, we received the award for the greatest increase in Advance participation, rising from the bottom of the Southeastern Jurisdiction to the top.  This wonderful increase in participation has been a means of grace as generosity flows to those in need around the world.
 
I look forward to hearing the ways in which your church embraces, engages and is inspired through 10-Fold in the days ahead.
 
With gratitude for your partnership in the ministry of Jesus Christ,
Hope Morgan Ward

For more information click here.
Download the 10-Fold Participant's Guide that includes:
· Tips so you can get the most out of 10-Fold,
· Ways you can help spread the word to family, friends and fellow church members,
· And information about how you can trigger a $1 donation with one click when you visit 10-Fold.org daily and register your interest for a project. Up to $10,000 is available for each project.

:: Announcements

 
Anderson UMC Invites You to Join Companions In Christ: A Small-Group Spiritual Formation

Many people struggle with developing a daily time of prayer, scripture reading, meditation, and reflection. We know the longing to grow closer to God; and we know that prayer and silence, scripture and reflection are time-tested ways to open ourselves up to the movement of the Holy Spirit. Yet the busyness of life crowds in on us, and we do not follow through on our intentions.
 
Beginning Wednesday, September 8, Rev. Sherry Johnson, United Methodist Deacon and Associate Director of the Center for Ministries, will lead Companions in Christ, a small-group spiritual transformation journey at Anderson United Methodist Church.  The group, limited to 15 people, will meet from 6-8 pm Wednesday for 28 weeks.
 
Companions in Christ is
- a small group of people praying together;
- an opportunity for daily individual reading and reflection;
- a focus on how you experience God;
- a group supporting your spiritual growth;
- a group reaching out to other Companions groups;
- an opportunity to learn various styles and forms of prayer;
- a record or journal of your walk with Christ;
- an invitation to let scripture form your faith;
- a time to reflect on where God is calling you and to affirm the gifts God has given you; and
- a discovery of spiritual friends who will listen to and pray for you.

  Become a part of Companions in Christ-create a space for God to draw near and abide with you. Contact Rev. Sherry Johnson, at 601-209-0717, or RevSherry@msn.com.

Columbia First Hosts
Small Membership Church Academy

Lyle Shipley, President and CEO of Hinton Rural Life Center will be leading a workshop for the Small Membership Church, October 16, 2010 at Columbia First UMC, Columbia. The event starts at 10 a.m. and runs until 3 p.m.  The cost is $7 to cover the cost of your meal.

This is a great opportunity for clergy and laity to gather some great fresh ideas for your church. Clergy can receive .5 CEUs.

The Academy is sponsored by the Small Membership Church Committee and Grace Network of the Mississippi United Methodist Conference. For more information contact Rev. Gary Howse 662-207-5620 or email ghowse_24@yahoo.com.

Discover God's Call Retreat at Camp Wesley Pines

Discover God's Call (DGC)will hold its fall retreat on November 5 - 7, 2010 at Durr Wise Conference Center at Camp Wesley Pines in Gallman. The registration deadline is September 24 and cost is $145 per person, which includes room, board and materials. Partial scholarships are available where financial need exists. Our inspirational speaker will be Rev. Julian Davis of Parkway Heights UMC in Hattiesburg, with our worship leader being Dr. Brenda Wilder of Clinton UMC.
 
The ministry of DGC helps laypeople to discern God's call on their lives by helping them find out what their spiritual gifts are and how God wants them to use them in their home church, their neighborhood, their work or their community. God wants all of us to be in ministry where we are and DGC is designed to help us all figure it out.
 
Prior to attending the retreat participants are required to complete a 15-day pre-retreat study. Registration deadline is set to accommodate the study.  The study is designed to help the participant understand what spiritual gifts are and how God uses them in his people. At the retreat participants are divided into small groups and led by trained leaders into a discovery process of how God can use them more effectively by their using their gifts. There is also wonderful worship and time to be quiet with the Lord. One participant has said that the Discover God's Call Retreat experience is one of the most valuable steps in her Christian walk.
 
Pastors can also receive 1.5 CEUs  for attending the retreat. For more information or to download a registration form, visit our website at msdgc.infoor call our registrar, Steve Seeley at 601-372-7461.

Pleasant Hill Requests Help in Compiling History

Pleasant Hill United Methodist Church in the Meridian District is adding a two-story educational building to expand their children's ministry. The building will house Sunday School classes and a day care/after school program. 
  
The hope of the members of Pleasant Hill is to display their rich heritage of leaders in the new building.  The church was founded in the 1840's with the first pastor being Rev. Thomas Y. Armstrong. 

Anyone with information and especially photographs of past ministers or contact information of family members is ask to contact the church please contact us by our web site: www.CrownHimLord.com or on our facebook page, http://www.facebook.com/pages/Meridian-MS/Pleasant-Hill-UMC-Meridian-MS or address:  Pleasant Hill UMC, 5025 Zero Road, Meridian, MS  39301.

The list of pastors follows:
1840:  Thomas Y. Armstrong 
1883:  Robert F. Whitt                                                    
1886:  Daniel C. Langford                                              
1887:  James H. Holland                                                
1889:  Levi Parks Meador                                              
1890:  Joseph H. Ware                                                  
1892:  George Bancroft                                                  
1894:  A. T. Bell                                                            
1896:  Clarence Crossley                                               
1899:  Robert E. Rutledge                                              
1901:  J. L.Bed                                                              
1903:  Shadrack N.Young                                               
1907:  James A. Wells                                                    
1912:  Albert S. Byrd                                                      
1913:  D. A. Covington                                                    
1914:  William E. Dickens                                                
1921:  H. J. Oakley
1927:  Simon W. Bryant
1928:  Andrew J. Leggett
1931:  John W. Ramsey
1934:  Andrew J. Beasley
1935:  Samuel E. Flurry
1938:  John W. Coutney
1940:  Julian Roger Cameron
1943:  John C. Jackson
1946:  Roy L. Love
1946:  Thomas J. O'Neil                 
1952:  B.K. Hardin
1960:  Joseph C. Way                                     
1961:  Margel M. Alford 1909:  Henry J. Maddox                                                  
1962:  Johnny Killam
1963:  James McAnn
1974:  James Everett McKeithen

MSFUME Schedules M3 Gatherings in September

Beginning in September, Mississippi Fellowship of United Methodist Evangelicals (MSFUME) will hold M3 Gatherings in five different locationsacross the conference.  These meetings will be for pastors and interested laity.  M3 stands for the three "Ms" that are critical for the Church to really be the Church. 
 
- Messiah: Clarity about the nature of God in Christ regarding the doctrines of the Trinity, the Incarnation and the Atonement of Christ
- Mission: Clarity about the nature and the calling of the Church in the world in the power of the Holy Spirit
- Maturity: Clarity about the nature of the biblical vision of Christian discipleship and how to grow in to Christ-likeness

The dates and locations for the first gatherings are as follows: 
- September 9, Meridian, College Park UMC with Kenneth Owen as the coordinator
- September 13, Saltillo, Saltillo UMC with Tim Green as the coordinator
- September 16, Jackson, Wesley Seminary with James Twiner as the coordinator
- September 20, Hattiesburg, Heritage UMC with Tommy Artmann as the coordinator
- September 23, Southaven, Getwell Rd, UMC with Bill Beavers as the coordinator
 
Each gathering will begin at 9:30 a.m. with a coffee and doughnuts/pastry time of conversation and fellowship.  Study and sharing will start at 10 a.m. and continue until noon.  At noon each gathering will hold a close with a service of Holy Communion and Intercession for one another.  Those who desire to will be invited to go to lunch together and continue the fellowship around the table.
 
The sessions will be led by Dr. Steve Blakemore, a professor of philosophy, theology and Christian Ethics at Wesley Biblical Seminar.  Pastors will be able to earn continuing education credits for participation in these events.  Wesley Biblical Seminary will be the awarding institution. Each gathering will provide you with .25 CEUs. 

If you are able to attend all nine monthly gatherings between September 2010 and May 2011, you will earn 2 full CEUs by your participation. In order to help pay Dr. Blakemore's travel expenses and to cover the tuition for the CEUs, we ask that each pastor who wants to use these gatherings for CEUs bring $20 per monthly gathering.  For the convenience and the depth of what we will be receiving, this will be a bargain.

Scholarships are available & laity are of course welcome.  (If anyone attends all 9 events, you will earn your annual CEUs for just $180.00 plus the cost of travel.)
 
Rev. Ginger Jones Holland, MSFUME President,  Mississippi Fellowship of United Methodist Evangelicals www.msfume.org

Rev. Don Harrison, pastor of Cedar Grove and Sylvarena UMCs in Hattiesburg District is scheduled to have surgery at the VA Hospital in Jackson the morning of September 2. He expects to be in the hospital for a couple of days following surgery.  Please remember Don, his wife Marilyn and the family in your prayers.
 
Rev. Tom McCallister, retired, Greenwood District has passed away. Visitation is Sept. 2, 5 - 7 p.m. at Lee Funeral Home, Winona  with funeral services Friday, Sept. 3, 10 a.m. at Moore Memorial UMC, Winona. Please remember his wife, Mary, and the family in your prayers.
 
Ruby Ella Price, wife of the late Rev. F. William Price, and mother-in-law of Rev. Kathy Price, passed away Aug. 24, 2010 in her sleep at Golden Living Nursing Home in Meridian. Funeral services were held at Poplar Springs Drive UMC on Aug. 28, 2010.
 
Mechelle Stockett, wife of Rev. Cary Stockett (Crawford St. UMC, Vicksburg), is recovering at home following a surgical procedure at Vanderbilt Medical Center last week to repair an aneurism. She is scheduled to return to Vanderbilt in late September for similar repair of a second aneurism.  Please stay in prayer for Mechelle and the Stockett family.
 
Rev. Keith Keeton, associate pastor of St Mark's UMC, and spouse Emily are the proud parents of a new baby girl, Kate Rivers, born Tuesday, August 24, at 12:22 p.m. weighing 6 lbs. 13 oz., 19 1/2 inches long.  Kate was welcomed home by her big sister, Ava.
 
David McNickles, father of Rev. Shirley Chambers, passed away Aug. 23, 2010. Funeral services were held Aug. 28 at Pleasant Grove Baptist Church in Waynesboro.  Shirley is pastor of the Waynesboro: Frostbridge circuit.  Please remember the Chambers and McNickles families in your prayers.

Quitman First UMC Trustees Offer For Sale:  Six 16" 225/75 R16 10 ply Michelin low mileage tires.  $20.00 per tire OBO.  Contact Ron Stanley at 601-776-2637 or Rosemary Hopkins at 601-776-2275.

Griffin UMC in Starkville has approximately 50 pews available for $100 each.  These pews are polished oak with cushions in very good condition and will seat approximately 20 people.   For more information, contact Rev. Eddie Lee Jones at 662-324-1060 or 662-617-4177.

Main Street UMC, Bay St. Louis is looking for a part-time Youth Director. For more information or to send a resume contact Heather Hensarling at hhensarling@bellsouth.net.
 
Crossgates UMC is looking for a self-motivated leader to lead and care for Youth.  The position is for a part-time Director of Youth Ministries, who has a passion for helping youth in 7-12th grades.  We are looking for an energetic person who lives out their faith in all they do, and who will encourage and nurture our youth in their relationship with God and one another.   Interested persons should contact Rev. John Moore at jmoore@crossgatesumc.org to receive a job description and application. The same may be obtained in the office of Crossgates UMC at 23 Crossgates Drive, Brandon, Mississippi (Monday through Thursday between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m.). The deadline for receiving applications is September 30, 2010.