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The Second Sunday of Lent, February 21
Journey of Stones: "Dreamings on a Stone"
Rev. Jenn Pick preaching in English
Rev. Armando Alvarado preaching in Bilingual
Worship at 8:30, 9, 9:45, and 11 AM
From the tempter asking Jesus to turn stones into bread in his wilderness wandering to the stone of the empty tomb being rolled away, the Lenten landscape is full of stones. Ecclesiastes says that there is a time for everything including a time to gather and scatter stones. If we picture everything that is keeping us from God like a stone in our path, we can begin a clearing season of our souls. This year for the 40 days of Lent, you are invited upon a soulful journey of stones.
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Also This Sunday...
If you are interested in church membership or learning more about the church, please consider joining us at the Discover the Church class on Sunday, February 21, at 10 AM in Room 2005. This is a one-time, one-hour class that is offered monthly for all who desire to know more about fellowship, mission and service opportunities in our church, and for all who are interested in or have questions about church membership. Childcare is provided. Contact Dr. Cindy Ryan at cindyr@fumcg.org or Cheri Rutledge at cherir@fumcg.org for more information. ...»
Come hear updates and information about "What's Next" for our church by participating in a special set of gatherings hosted by our Senior Pastor John Mollet. We will be hearing updates about the sale of properties, staffing plans, and learn about the "Winds of Change" initiative. The first meeting is this Sunday, February 21, at 4 PM in Leach Hall. See below for a full list of meeting opportunities....»
As we prepare for summer missions work, we will have several MinistrySafe Training sessions, the next of which is Sunday, February 21, 7-8:15 PM (Room 2011). If you are preparing for a mission trip, want to volunteer with VBS or Feed Our Kids, etc... this is for you! We ask that you register your attendance so that we can have plenty of materials. RSVP to Linda McClure in the church office - lindam@fumcg.org, 817-481-2559 x126...»
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This Week...
Services for John Harris
Church member John Harris, passed away on Saturday, February 13. His funeral service will be on Saturday, February 20, at 12:30 PM at Bluebonnet Funeral Home (viewing at 11 AM). A sandwich/cookie reception for family and friends will be held in Leach Hall immediately following the service.
Mid-Winter is this weekend! This is a time for all youth (6-12th grades) to gather with Youth groups from all over the Conference in one location to further their relationship with Jesus. They'll experience dynamic speakers, celebratory music, thought-provoking small group discussions, and intentional worship. Questions? Contact Michael (michaelf@fumcg.org)....»
Attention all 1st through 3rd graders! Sacraments Camp starts on Saturday, February 20, from 3-6 PM. We will meet in the Founders Chapel Atrium and go from there to begin learning about the Sacraments of Baptism and Communion. We'll have some fun and games, a parent meeting, activities centered around water, bread and learning their meaning. Then, following our Saturday session, we will have class from 11 AM to 12 PM on Sundays, February 21 and 28. March 6 will be our "First Communion" experience in the 11 AM bilingual service. Please RSVP to lindam@fumcg.org or 817-481-2559 x126....»
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"What's Next" Gatherings
Come hear updates and information about "What's Next" for our church by participating in a special set of gatherings hosted by our Senior Pastor John Mollet. John periodically leads these meetings in order to share new information, update us on on-going projects and answer any questions you might have. We will be hearing updates about the sale of properties, staffing plans, and learn about the "Winds of Change" initiative. We hope to see you at one of the meetings and look forward to the wonderful future into which God is leading us! Two of the opportunities will be during the Serendipity Bible Study, led each week by Kenda Diehm. All are invited to join in any of the gatherings. The full schedule is:
February 21 - 4 PM in Leach Hall
February 24 - 6 PM in Leach Hall (Serendipity Bible Study)
February 25 - 9:30 AM in Leach Hall (Serendipity Bible Study)
February 25 - 6:30 PM in Leach Hall
February 28 - 4 PM in Leach Hall
Winds of Change
Over the past five years, our church has undergone many changes... from the passing of Dr. Ken Diehm, to the closing of the Creative Learning Center, the loss of dear church members, changes in staff and ever-growing and changing ministries. Over the next few weeks, you will begin hearing us talk about "Winds of Change," an initiative to teach valuable skills to help us deal with change, both in our personal lives and in our lives together as a church family. We will be explaining more about the process in the "What's Next" meetings (schedule listed above). Please mark your calendar now for five Sundays, April 3 through May 1. These will be important days for you to plan to be here! Read more...
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Opportunities to Serve and Give...
Top Need: Gas Cards
Our top need for this week is gas cards in the amount of $25. These cards are vital for helping people who just need a little boost to get to payday. If you would like to give, you may drop cards in the offering plate or bring them by the church office.
Costa Rica Prayer Partners
Every spring break for the past 5 years, FUMCG has commissioned a group of high school juniors and seniors to travel to Costa Rica to hold a Vacation Bible School, visit the children's home, perform projects in churches and form relationships with the Methodist church there. In an effort to connect our children with this ministry, we are recruiting teams of one adult and one child (3rd graders, tweens, and younger youth) to partner with one of the trip participants, committing to pray for him or her up to and during the trip. The commissioning of the Costa Rica team will be at the 9 AM service on March 6, and the trip is March 12-18. If you would like to be a prayer partner, please sign up on Sunday's Check-In or contact Patty Bandy (pattyb@fumcg.org) or Marilyn Hall (marilyn_hall@verizon.net).
What Touched You?
Have you been involved in ministry to one of our Villages? Whether you have served in our local Grapevine Village or traveled the world to visit Kenya, Costa Rica or Latvia... we have one question for you: What touched you the most about your experience? Send your answer to Pat Laster (patlaster@verizon.net).
Host Homes Needed
We will be hosting a Bell Choir from Cesis, Latvia, in worship on Sunday, April 10. Host homes are needed for choir members on Saturday and Sunday nights, April 9 and 10. If you can host, please contact Melissia with the number of people you can accommodate (melissiam@fumcg.org).
Kenya Mission Trip Scheduled
Our annual Kenya mission trip has been scheduled for May 17-28. Participants will spend time with our AIDS orphans and street kids, visit churches and schools, and take part in medical camps. Approximate cost is $3,000 per person which includes air travel, ground travel while there, lodging , insurance and meals. If you are interested in seeing what we are doing in our Kenya village, join us on this trip! Contact Trudy Hughes (trudyh@fumcg.org) or Mark Howe (mhowe@howewood.com) for more information.
Pray for General Conference
The United Methodist Council of Bishops invites each annual conference to host a 24-hour prayer vigil during the 131 days leading up to the May 10 opening of General Conference 2016. The official Central Texas Conference day of prayer is Sunday, February 28. The Conference has created a sign-up for a prayer times, and all are invited to participate. These prayer times have been divided up into 15 minute increments and divided by district or service area. Note that we are in the EAST DISTRICT. We invite you to sign up for a prayer slot and spend time praying for the dialogue and decision-making that will occur at General Conference in May. Click here to sign up...
God Can for the GRACE Food Pantry
We collected 132 items for God Can last week. GRACE is low on several standard stock items, including juice boxes, snacks, canned soup/stew, condensed milk, ramen noodles, canned fruit, condiments and toothpaste. Click here to view the full list (pdf). If you would like to donate any of these items, please bring your donations to the God Can bins outside the church office or in the Sanctuary Foyer/Atrium.
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Opportunities to Grow...
The Seekers Sunday School class continues their Lenten series this Sunday, led by Dr. Jesse Sowell. The series will cover the last week on earth of Jesus Christ leading up to his crucifixion on the cross. Each week will cover the events and scriptures during that week prior to the cross. Please feel free to join the Seekers on Sundays at 9:45 AM in Leach Hall.
Spiritually Urgent: A Constant Conversation with our Father
by Tresia Eaves It used to always surprise me when folks would scramble to network only when they lost their jobs or needed to make a change...it seemed very insincere and a sort of knee-jerk response to scramble to make contacts. This mode of operation of "staying in our lanes" seems to be common in our spiritual walks as well. We could call this tendency the "rainy-day-Christian" where spiritual growth is only sought during big (usually negative) changes in our lives and only then may folks find that deep humility and surrender that brings even the strongest to their knees. The best news is that Christ wants us all the time! So to honor and keep that closeness, we want to have our spiritually urgent priorities before us at all times. He does comfort us in our grief and suffering but he is there for us all of the time and in all of our life circumstances and I've made it my mission to hold him close: in the mundane, great, and tragic times. Keep reading...
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This year our church celebrates 150 continuous years as a congregation of the Methodist Church! The date for our First Methodist Grapevine 150th Anniversary Celebration will be October 9, 2016. We hope you will mark your calendars and plan to celebrate with us in a special service and participate in other fun activities. We will worship together in ONE worship service, followed by a catered lunch. From time to time we will be updating you on plans for that special day and other events surrounding this milestone in our church and community, so watch this section of E-News for updates.
150 Years of Great Cooking!
The first item on our agenda is to collect recipes for our sesquicentennial cookbook! We will be collecting your favorite new and old recipes to publish this summer and have available for purchase by our October 9 celebration. We'll also include some old favorites from past church cookbooks and great recipes from our Be Our Guest team! We know we have the best cooks around, so be sure to submit your favorites to share! You may pick up blank recipe forms in the church office, download a printable form (PDF), or fill out the online form by April 15.
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Caught Caring...
Gifts Given
A gift was given to the Fishers of Men in memory of Doris McChesney by the Seekers Sunday School Class.
UMW Spaghetti Supper
Last Wednesday, 122 church members were caught caring at the UMW Spaghetti Supper! We give thanks for those who prepared the meal and all those who came out to eat in support of missions.
Kenda Diehm shares... Karen Dorris was caught caring this week by making new kneeling cushions and pillows for the Prayer Room. We appreciate Karen's work and willingness to serve!
Ed Crater
Anne Rhoades shares... Ed Crater was caught caring as he intercepted a large pallet of paper bags to be used by Weekend Food and moved them into Room 1006. We appreciate Ed's caring, can-do attitude!
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First United Methodist Church | 422 Church Street | Grapevine, TX 76051
E-News is published every Wednesday afternoon. The deadline for submissions is Tuesdays at 5 PM. Send requests to melissiam@fumcg.org. Past editions can be found in the E-News Archives. |
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