Centenary's Weekly Newsletter Friday, January 4, 2019
A Message from Centenary

Dear Centenary Family,
 
As we conclude 2018 and move from the Christmas season into Epiphany and beyond, I am grateful for many things.
 
  • I am grateful for your faithfulness to mission and witness in downtown Richmond day in and day out that makes a difference!
  • I am grateful for quality worship in both our services, excellent musicians, singers, and the renewal of the hand bell choir.
  • I am grateful for our special services that mean so much to us all--Advent Lessons and Carols, an early Christmas Eve service with lots of children and families, and our 11:00 p.m. service that is one of the holy moments of the year.
  • I am grateful for wise, faithful, and committed leaders who have worked hard this year to implement changes in the use of our endowment, a new structure for church governance, and lay people who have stepped forward to lead new ministries.
  • I am grateful for our new drama group!
  • I am grateful that at this present time, when our denomination is facing difficult decisions around the issue of human sexuality, that Centenary is a Reconciling congregation with a clear understanding of its own identity and calling.
  • I am grateful, that though we are a congregation with a long history, and we worship in a historic sanctuary, we have a strong vision for the future and are willing to experiment with new ways of being the church and reaching new people.
  • I am grateful for our young adults!
  • I am grateful for our faithful senior saints!
  • I am grateful for your generosity, which has allowed us to finish 2019 in a much stronger financial position than we could have imagined.  (Watch for details next week!)
But more than anything, I am grateful for God's love which has claimed each of us, binds us to one another, and sends us forth to witness to God's good news and to show others what that love looks like by our actions. 

I look forward to seeing where God leads us in 2019.  
 
Peace,
 
Matt





This Week at Centenary
 

Sunday, January 6, The Second Sunday After Christmas

8:40 a.m.       Early Service
 
  10:00 a.m.        Sunday School

      11:00 a.m.       Traditional Worship

This Sunday's sermon for the 8:40 a.m. service is based on Ephesians 3:1-12 and is entitled "Look for the Light."   Join us as we celebrate Epiphany and Holy Communion in both services. 
  

Gentle Reminder

Thanks to all of you who have turned in your pledge cards for 2019!  If you haven't yet turned yours in, please turn it in as soon as possible.

Help Wanted

We're looking for some volunteers to help us undecorate the Sanctuary and put away our Christmas decorations sometime this week.  If you'd be willing to help, please let the pastor know.  Thank you!



 

Attached is a brochure about a District Leadership Training event scheduled for church leaders on  Sunday, January 13 , 2-5:30 p.m. at Woodlake UMC.  

There is one registration fee that covers an unlimited number from each church so we can have as many people as are interested attend.

If you are interested, please contact the church office in the next couple of days at 804-648-8319, or cent.umc@verizon.net.




The next UMW Meeting will take place at Covenant Woods on Thursday, January 17, 2019, at 11:00 a.m. Lunch will be provided by Lila Irby (please note that this date is a change). RSVP to Leah Hundley or Susy Meyer. 





Bob Hundley, Sr. who is home after a recent hospitalization
Phyllis Stump in the recent loss of her sister in Louisville, KY
Lila Irby (increasing problems with heart and COPD)
R.B. Bennington (recent hospitalization following heart cath)
Lucille Hunt (in the Laurels on Robious Road)
Emma Rose  
Leah Hundley
Bryson Keavey (6 months old), friend of Nancy Hill (heart transplant) 
The family of Cheryl Owen-Watson-- her family asks for prayer for comfort and healing as they grieve the loss of her mother
Wendy Tisdale-- family friend of Agatha and Christina Kidd, diagnosed with staged 4 lung cancer 
Mark Inge
Gary Coberth-- brother-in-law to Sharon Steele, passed away on Monday, Nov. 5th at  age 72. He had heart problems (quintuple by-pass surgery about 10 years ago) & was a diabetic with numerous complications. 
Rev. Kathy Talley
JoAnne Judd (close friend of Sharon Steele's, recovering from a massive brain injury in Boulder, CO)






Evan Cooke
 Rex Dazey
John Thrower
Allan White
Stella Vetrovec
Eugene Walter
Nancy Hill

Centenary United Methodist Church | (804) 648-8319 | www.centumc.org 
Visit Us: 411 E. Grace St., Richmond, VA 23219
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