MESSAGE FROM RICKY
Dear Friends,
This past Sunday was a wonderful day of worship as we gathered around the table of the Lord's Supper. In fact, we gathered as a church across the city, celebrating Holy Communion together in the Sanctuary and in our homes. This feast of Christ's sacrifice reminds us of our unity in the Spirit and the world could use more reminders of the opportunity Jesus gives to be one in him!
We've been meeting in-person now in the Sanctuary for four weeks, under the recommendations by the Annual Conference. This week the lay leadership of our church (called the Executive Committee) will be meeting to look at our next steps for expanding worship and discipleship opportunities on campus. Pray for them as they seek God's wisdom to make the best decisions for the next steps for our church community.
Be on the lookout for more communication on that later this week. In the meantime, we will have Chapel again this coming Sunday at 9:00am and Online Worship at 10:00 am!
Grace and Peace,
Ricky
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SUNDAY CHAPEL REGISTRATION
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We are entering into a re-opening phase which will be a 45 minute Sunday Chapel Service. This service will have limited attendance with social distance seating arrangements. A maximum of 100 people may attend. During check-in distancing will be observed.
To be able to operate under the current COVID guidelines / restrictions we need to know in advance who will be attending our services. This registration process enables us to:
- Ensure we remain within the building’s capacity restraints.
- Comply with record keeping so that we can undertake contact tracing if required.
Please CLICK on the registration button to attend.
Thank you for your cooperation and understanding during this phase of re-opening in-person services.
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SUNDAY CHAPEL SERVICE / ALTAR FLOWERS |
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RESUMING ALTAR FLORAL ARRANGEMENTS
A floral contribution to our Sunday Chapel Service is a meaningful way to honor someone special, commemorate a special event, or remember a loved one. We are resuming the placement of Altar flowers at the in-person Chapel Service. If you have a date that was previously reserved our office staff will contact you to confirm your request. A listing of upcoming dates with openings for altar flower reservations are as follows: The openings we have currently are Sept. 27th, Oct. 11th, and Oct. 18th. These dates could be updated daily and may not reflect the most current openings. Please call the church office to reserve any dates for altar flowers or confirm your previous calendar request(s).
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I hope that you all had a wonderful holiday with family and/or friends. It was really nice to be able to have our communion service Sunday morning. It was also great to hear a beautiful solo from our music assistant, Jalysa Jones. These, along with a few other things, are at least some small signs that we are slowly returning to whatever normal is supposed to be. We even have some football games going on.
Be safe and smart as you go about your busy lives this week. Take care and I'll see you all in worship next Sunday morning.
In His Service,
Tommy
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SO THANKFUL FOR OUR LITTLES AND A DEVOTED STAFF
Submitted by Jamie Steadman, Director
We are so very thankful to have our weekday children back on campus again! Our K-5 students have been here everyday since August 13th. Preschool students returned on August 27th and our MMO little ones on September 2nd.
Our After School Care (K-5) kids and staff have been blown away with your generosity in purchasing items for them from their Amazon WISH LIST. I will share with you next week the Amazon WISH LIST for our preschool and then follow it with MMO’s in a couple of weeks. Please pray for continued health and safety for all of our children and their families as well our staff.
We appreciate each of you and would love for you to follow us on Facebook: FUMCClintonWeekday
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MISSION OPPORTUNITY / HURRICANE RECOVERY |
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Hurricane Laura plowed through southern Louisiana and is one of the most powerful storms to strike the Gulf Coast in decades and has left several communities in need of assistance and recovery. The Mississippi Conference Disaster Response Team stands ready to support the needs of those impacted, and are in conversation with the Louisiana Conference about anticipating their needs. To continue to learn about the updates in the recovery process click on the link and subscribe to receive future updates from The Mississippi Conference Disaster Response Team. |
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Eight Days of Hope is a Christian, non-profit organization that is both evangelical and non denominational. The organization exist to demonstrate the love and hope of Jesus Christ by serving those in need.
Their commitment to local communities is to work with local churches and organizations in meeting physical and spiritual needs.
Their commitment to donors is to use the resources they have been given to the fullest potential for the greatest good among those in need.
Their commitment to volunteers is to provide them an opportunity to use their skills and talents to the Glory of God.
P.O. Box 3208
Tupelo, MS 38803
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Eight Days of Hope Responds to
Hurricane Laura
In the middle of the night, a category 4 hurricane hit the coast of Louisiana and Texas. With winds 150 mph at landfall, there are over 410,000 and counting without power, most structures are damaged beyond repair, and flooding has taken over most homes in its path. Our country has not experienced a storm of this magnitude in a decade.
God has given us a straightforward mission -- when there is a need, meet it. We have three rapid response trailers, hundreds of chainsaws, lifts, bobcats, muck out kits, dehumidifier trailers, laundry trailers, shower trailers, feeding trailers, and the list goes on and on. Why have we been blessed with so much? Because God has called us to meet needs, and He has equipped us to do so on a moment’s notice.
Today, the need is in Lake Charles, Louisiana, and the surrounding area.
The organization plans to serve this community until October 3rd! Please visit their website to read the FAQs for details for this event!
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ANNOUNCEMENTS & OPPORTUNITIES |
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THANKS FOR YOUR GENEROUS SUPPORT
Submitted by Beverly Oliver
Dear Church family,
Thank you so much for the response to the "drive by" donations to Shower Power. I am so grateful and humbled for the amount of supplies we received. Also thanks so much to the church staff who helped with this project and Hunter and Sam Leggett for helping me delivery the supplies.
Love in Christ,
Beverly
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BLOOD DRIVE TO HELP BEVERLY YEATES
Date: Sunday, September 27 Time: 2 pm-5 pm
In order to have an on on-campus drive we need to schedule 25 people by September 15th . You may sign up by clicking on the Reservation Button below or call the church office or email dianne@firstmethodistclinton.org. Sign up times will be 15 minutes apart. In the event that this day is not convenient to your schedule you can make a visit to the local MS Blood Services office and give in Beverly’s honor. In order for Beverly to receive credit for your donation please provide the following donor information when signing in at the local donation office : Beverly Yeates Code DZ06
Dear Church Family
I consider it a great blessing to have such a wonderful church family. Over the 20+ years I have been a member of this church, I have seen so much love and kindness shown to others. Whenever there has been sickness, family loss, fires, tornados and many other disasters or needs, our members have pulled together to help others. Sometimes it has been through giving of items needed, time, effort, meals, or money, but it truly does show God’s love to all.
Many of you may know (or not), but in May 2020, I was diagnosed with Myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS). This is a bone marrow failure that doesn’t produce enough good red blood cells or platelets, which creates the need to receive red blood cells. Right now, I must get an infusion of red blood cells about every 3 to 4 weeks, usually it’s one unit at a time, but on several occasions, it has been two units. I am currently taking shots of a chemo medicine called Vidaza. I receive the shots for one week, two shots every day for 5 days in a row, then wait 3 weeks and repeat the shots. I go once a week to have my blood count checked. My next set of shots will begin on September 14. This medicine is not a cure, but hopefully it will bring up my red blood count and platelets and reduce the frequency for the need of a blood infusion. The only possible cure is a bone marrow transplant. We currently do not have a time frame on when we will do the transplant.
I am so thankful and blessed to say that right now, I am not having a lot of side affects from the chemo medicine, but I do get tired easily. I have been able to continue to go to work through both this and COVID. God is Good, and we are so blessed.
Russell, Noah and I, want to ask for your prayers during this time and to also give blood if you are able. By having 25 units of Blood donated to MS Blood Services in my name, they will intern help cover some of my cost (after insurance) for the blood infusions I have to receive. So far, I have received 11 units of blood since May. I really do appreciate you taking the time to donate blood for me and for your prayers. It is hard for me to ask this of others, I would much rather be helping someone else.
In Christ,
Beverly Yeates, Russell & Noah
MS Blood Services Patient # DZ06
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GARAGE SALE DONATION UPDATE
Submitted by Mike Norcom
If anyone has furniture or other large items for the Garage Sale, please
contact the church office 601-924-6671 and let them know who you are and
what item(s) you have for the sale.
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BIG GIVING HEARTS IN A SMALL TOWN
Submitted by Cindy Livengood
This story is of giving hearts and small-town Methodist.
In May of this year we lost a wonderful church member, Eugene Atkins. Eugene’s wife, Ruthie donated his medical equipment to our church in order to pass along to anyone who could benefit.
Moving forward into July, the church office received a phone call from a lady, who works at a local beauty shop and heard by word of mouth, our church had a medical bed available. She shared that her hometown Pastor, Cliff Burris of Diamond Head Methodist Church, needed a hospital bed for his son, Joel, who was diagnosed with hip dysplasia in both hips and had two upcoming surgeries scheduled.
We reached out to a member of our Mission Team and without hesitation, Mike Grove kindly offered to deliver the bed to Biloxi. Joel and both his parents, (by the way, who are both Methodist Pastors) were so appreciative and grateful! They truly were touched by the generosity of our church and for Mike taking the time to deliver the bed all the way to the Mississippi Gulf Coast. Isn’t it grand the way our Lord works in sharing information, even in a BEAUTY SHOP!
Thank you, Ruthie, for donating the medical equipment and for Mike Grove with his servant’s heart delivering the bed to the Coast.
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NEW SERIES FOR YOUTH MINISTRY
Is there anything more complicated than family? Whether your students are dealing with changes, fights, fractures, or more, navigating family matters is no easy feat for them. And for many students, the temptation to give up is present. To check out. To say, “in a few years (or months), I’ll be out of here anyway.”
But as leaders, we know family doesn’t stop affecting us when we leave high school. For the rest of our lives, family matters. And maybe that’s why Scripture has so much to say about it! In this series, we’ll talk about life with every family from picture perfect to totally fractured. And as we do, students will discover no matter what your family looks like...family matters.
We will start this series 9/13.
Click the button below for resources to help you connect with your student during this four week series!
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YOUTH WEEKLY SCHEDULE
Youth large group and small groups are on meeting via Zoom! Below is the youth weekly schedule and small group leaders! If your student needs to be connected to a group please email Hunter Lacefield for information on how to join in this week!
United Night via Zoom Sundays @ 4:00pm
SCHEDULE
4:00-4:10 // Log-on/hangout time
4:10-4:15 // Prayer and announcements
4:15-4:30 // Message
4:30-5:30 // Small Groups in break out rooms
Small Group Leaders
HS Boys // Jake Craft and Hunter Lacefield
JH Boys // Christian Sutherland and Jake Clarke
HS Girls // Amanda Pennington, Jenna Miller, Olivia Roberts, Rachel Rogers
JH Girls // Rachel Townsend, Shreve Bland, Shelby Dean, Anna Prestwood
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I will be "in the office" at Cups Espresso Cafe located at 101 West Main Street from 4p-7p every Monday and Tuesday for the month of August.
Students or parents are free to call or text and schedule a time to come meet with me during these times! Be sure to bring a mask!
Also, as always, I am available to set up zoom or FaceTime meetings as well!
- Hunter
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SHARE YOUR REQUEST
Our church continues to serve our congregation and community during this season. If you have a prayer request or if you, or someone you know, has a need complete a short request form (click on button). These requests will be reviewed by our Pastoral team.
Please review the prayer list download. If you would like to add to the prayer list please continue to use our digital form for submission which can be accessed by clicking on the link in this email or on our website.
Pastoral Care Line 601-460-0570
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September 2020
September 6: $33,175
August 2020
August Giving: $93,748
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July 2020
July Giving: $73,144
Other Income: $6,399
Total Income: $79,543
July Expenses: $102,240
July Deficit: ($22,697)
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2020 Year to Date
Through July
YTD Giving: $602,754
Other Income: $65,428
YTD Total Income: $668,182
YTD Expenses: $733,479
YTD Deficit: ($65,297)
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Thank You For Your Continued Generosity! |
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Missed last week? You can catch up online!
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September Sermon Series: To-Don't List
Since we’ve been spending a lot more time at home lately, perhaps you’ve finally gotten around to that never ending “to-do” list. Tackling projects and crossing off tasks gives a sense of accomplishment. But there are also things that we shouldn’t do, things to avoid, things to give up that will also help us grow in our faith. Join us as we look at our “To-Don’t List.”
September 13- Don’t Judge- Romans 14:1-12
The church in Rome has a big problem. Some members won’t eat meat, preferring only vegetables. Some members are worshipping just on Sunday, instead of Saturday. The church can’t seem to agree who’s right and who’s wrong. Paul points out the real problem is something different: judging others.
September 20- Don’t Hoard- Exodus 16:2-15
The Israelites are told that God will provide, but do they believe it? God says he’s given them food every day, but don’t collect more than their daily need. In a time of uncertainty, we’re tempted to take more than we need, but what does that do others in need, and what does it do to our own soul?
September 27- Don’t Forget- Psalm 78:1-4
It’s easy to forget. With all the stress of life and the challenges that lie ahead it’s easy to forget that we’re still here, still breathing, still alive. It’s also easy to forget who got us here. Psalm 78 reminds us of all the deeds and wonders God has done to bring his people thus far. Don’t Forget, that God is still in charge.
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The Voice is our weekly update for the latest announcements, ministry activities and event information at First United Methodist Church.
Want to know more about us? Head on over to our website, Facebook page or follow us on Instagram. If you missed last week's sermon, you can catch up by visiting our sermon archives. See You on Sunday!
We are so glad that you are interested in the ministry of First Methodist Clinton!
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PASTORAL CARE INFORMATION
If you have an emergency need or need to speak
with a pastor please feel free to call.
Pastoral Care Number: 601-460-0570
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Submitting information for The Voice:
All content submitted is subject to approval and editing. Thank you for your cooperation!
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