September 2017 Newsletter





 
Grace and peace in our Lord Jesus Christ!
 
What a great time of celebration as we shared our past and look forward to our future as we celebrated Homecoming here at Crossgates UMC! It is Great to remember where we have been and what we have done. At the same time, I pray that you and your family have made the transition into a new school year and rhythm and cycle of church life as well.

During this season of the year we prepare our schedules and calendars to know WHAT we will do WHEN and then figure out HOW we will get it done. Often one of the most important questions we can ask ourselves in this process is overlooked. We often ask WHAT, WHEN, HOW, WHAT TIME, but do we stop to ask ourselves WHY? Why do we do what we do? Why does it matter to us?   When we ask WHY we do what we do we are more able to understand the WHAT and HOW we do them. Asking WHY helps us find our purpose and helps us live our lives making a greater impact.

WHY do we do what we do? WHY is family important? WHY is including church important? WHY are we putting ourselves through this (whatever it is)? It's important to know WHY! To help see the importance of knowing your why, I invite you to google: Michael Jr.- Knowing Your Why and watch the 4 min video. Michael Jr is a Christian comedian who has had an impact on my thinking recently.

As parents, we want our children to be well rounded and productive citizens so we do all that we can to make them the best that they can be. It keeps us busy with the WHAT, HOW and WHEN but I invite you to often pause to remember WHY.

As a Christian family, it is important to remember our purpose, to raise children to love God and others who seek to grow as disciples of Jesus Christ who pass on the love and message of Christ. How are we living into that purpose as disciples ourselves?

In the life of the church we get caught up in the same spinning cycles that everyone else is in. We get so busy asking WHAT, HOW (and HOW MUCH), WHEN and WHO that often we forget about WHY we exist and do what we do.

As United Methodist's we state that our mission is: "To make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world."   At Crossgates UMC we say we are: "A community of faith called to love others the way Christ loves us."  So, our purpose, our WHY is to make disciples of Jesus Christ to transform the world and to Love. How are we living into that call and what are we doing that helps us live out our purpose? Do we focus on making disciples for Jesus Christ? Are we really seeking to transform the world with God's love?May God help us to know WHY so that we may live out our purpose through our WHAT, HOW, WHEN and WHERE!

Blessings!
 
Your servant in Christ,
  Chris

Rev. Chris Cumbest, Senior Pastor
ccumbest@crossgatesumc.org
WORSHIP
Worship with us Sundays in September at 8:30 AM & 10:30 AM.
Click here to access our video archive of worship services.
GROW
CHURCHWIDE
 
I realize that in times of crisis like what we are witnessing with Hurricane Harvey, the true spirit of our Christian hearts come to the forefront. In many instances our heart's desire to "just do something" can work in harmful ways. I have been in contact with Texas Annual Conference Bishop Scott Jones, and I ask you in the wake of Hurricane Harvey to react in this manner:
  1. Do not abandon the most powerful aid that we have and that is to be in prayer. Remember "the prayer of the righteous person is powerful in what it can achieve," James 5:16b CEB. In your prayer time don't forget to lift up the first responders, local police departments, fire department personnel, government officials, National Guard and those who will provide supplies.
  2. Monetary donations can be made directly to the United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) Domestic Disaster Response Advance #901670. One hundred percent of donations given to UMCOR goes to disaster response. You can also give through text message by texting the keyword, 'RESPONSE' to the number 80888 and a $10 donation to UMCOR will appear on your phone bill.
  3. Please continue to monitor your Mississippi Conference website, social media and email to discover when and what you can do to be of assistance. Our conference disaster response coordinator, Rev. Kenny McGill has provided the current disaster response requests and details on how you can help below.
The book of Mark, chapter four tells us that Jesus demonstrated his authority over storms. We can and should pray for God's intervention and believe that God can and does intervene as an answer to our prayers. So I write to you, to not be afraid to join me in praying for intervention from God. Then we can do what we can to alleviate the sufferings that will come from Harvey. Thank you Rev. McGill and our disaster response team for leading us in responding during this time.
 
Yours in Christ, 
Bishop James E. Swanson, Sr.
Congratulations to our Backpack Buddies Ministry on receiving the UMW Arlean Hall Grant. These grants are awarded each year based on mission projects involving women, children and their families and a need for it's ministry.
In 2017, the Rankin County United Methodist Men, a collation of men and women from Crossgates UMC, St. Marks UMC, McLaurin Heights UMC, Evergreen UMC and Brandon First UMC, worked together to present the 5th Annual Rankin County Wild Game Banquet. As a result, $20, 234.76 was donated to Habitat for Humanity and a request was made that these funds be designated to build a home in Rankin County, Mississippi.
SEPTEMBER MEETINGS...

The UNITED METHODIST MEN will meet for breakfast on Sunday, September 10th @ 7:00AM in the Activity Center.
 
The UNITED METHODIST WOMEN'S NOMINATING COMMITTEE will meet on Sunday, September 10th @ 4:30PM in Room 326.

The COMMITTEE ON NOMINATIONS will meet on Sunday, September 10th @ 5:00PM in Room 319.
 
The MARTHA CIRCLE will meet on Tuesday, September 12th @ 9:30AM in Room 319.
 
The NAN HEARD CIRCLE will meet on Tuesday, September 12th @ 9:30AM in Room 324.
 
The RUTH CIRCLE will meet on Tuesday, September 12th @ 10:00AM in the Activity Center Banquet Room.
 
The CROSSGATES METHODIST CHILDREN'S CENTER BOARD will meet on Sunday, September 17th @ 5:00PM in Room 326.
 
The FRIENDSHIP CIRCLE will meet on Thursday, September 21st @ 6:30PM in Room 319.
SAVE THE DATE
SUNDAY, OCTOBER 15, 2017
JOINT BRIDAL SHOWER HONORING
PAIGE GRANTHAM
&
ELLEN SANDERS
More details to follow in the October Newsletter
5:30-6:30PM in the Activity Center
Join us each Wednesday for an affordable meal for ALL ages!

$7 for Adults & Youth | $4 for 3 yrs-6th Grade
2 yrs & under eat free | $20 max per family

Click here for monthly menus

There will be no meal on Wednesday, September 6th due to lighting  
and electrical work that needs to be done in the Activity Center.
 
Cookie Andries, Director of Meal Ministry
countmein@crossgatesumc.org
WORSHIP, MUSIC & COMMUNICATION

Joseph Wilkinson
Director of Worship, Music and Communication
jwilkinson@crossgatesumc.org
CHILDREN

The Children's Ministry Team
Jennifer Mayeu, Carolyn Jones, Sheri Blankenship
children@crossgatesumc.org 


YOUTH
Taylor Leddy, Youth Director
youth@crossgatesumc.org
ADULTS
The Book Club meets each Wednesday night @ 6:15pm in Room 316. We are presently reading Isabel Allende's book The Japanese Lover, about World War II. We are always looking for new members. Join the Book Club for great discussions, great friends, and great reads!
For more information contact Suzanne Hatch:  baywindowbooks@att.net
 
older adult ministry (65+)
Forever Young will meet on the 2nd Thursday of each month at 11:30 AM for lunch in the Activity Center Banquet Room, starting on Thursday, September 14th. The cost for lunch is $7. The guest speaker for September will be Reed McCaleb, Wesley Foundation Director at Millsaps College.
SERVE
The Ruth Circle will have Mike Byers as their guest speaker at their September 12th meeting at 10:00AM in the Activity Center Banquet Room of the church. He will be speaking to us on the Human Trafficking crisis in our state as well as discussing a new shelter for victims of human trafficking which is called The Tower. This is an open invitation to all UMW members, church members and friends to join us for this informative meeting to learn of the expansion of the services offered by this center.

Mike Byers is a Board Member of The Center for Violence Prevention (a non-profit agency) and was President in 2014. He is the local ambassador for Shared Hope International, an anti-human trafficking organization, as well as, involvement in many other civic organizations.

The Ruth Circle will be sponsoring a mission drive to help furnish the new shelter beginning August 27th thru September 12th. The shelter is the centerpiece of a comprehensive program that will service the entire state of Mississippi and includes three HT Task Forces, that consists of a law enforcement officer, a therapist and a Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner. This physical shelter will provide a safe place to live for Human Trafficking victims for all three regions of Mississippi while they undergo trauma informed therapy and educational services. As you can  imagine, there are a great number of items needed to set up this multi-person residential facility. BEST BUY, BED BATH & BEYOND and HOME DEPOT have all set up registries (just like Bridal Registries except it is named THE TOWER). They will also accept gift cards from these businesses. We will have a list of needed items posted on the UMW bulletin board in the hall and a locked wooden box for deposit of the gift cards. The wooden box will be located on a table behind the sanctuary near the door to the Youth Center. Boxes will be placed at the inside entrance doors where you can place your contribution for the shelter.

We thank you in advance for your generous contribution for donating items for this shelter to help aid the victims of human trafficking.

For questions and/or additional information, please contact:
Mary Price, Home:  601-825-5844, Cell:  601-421-0329
Elizabeth Hoke, Home:  601-825-2806, Cell:  601-826-6056

Light refreshments will be served at the meeting.
S.O.U.L SATURDAY 
(Serving Out Unconditional Love)
 
 When?: Saturday, September 30, 2017  
Where? WellsFest 2017 benefitting  
                                          Methodist Children's Homes
 Crossgates UMC will take a group to volunteer at WellsFest. More information will be given out closer to time. Please save this date on your calendar. Questions? Contact Lydia McCardle
lydiamccardle@bellsouth.net
GIVE
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