Weekly e-newsletter
Our Mission: 
Grow in God's grace.
Love with all our heart.
Serve with all our strength.  
A Word from Pastor Tom
Dear Friends in Christ,
 
If this were any other year, thousands of pilgrims would be crowding the streets of Jerusalem. But today the most holy sites in Christendom are closed and the old city is eerily empty. Even here, much of how we mark Holy Week has been dramatically altered. But despite this unusual and difficult circumstance, this truth summarized in 1 Corinthians 15 will never change:
 
“…Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures… Death has been swallowed up in victory… thanks be to God! He give us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ” (v. 3b-4;54b, 57).
 
Even as the headlines around us seem full of despair, over the next few days we will lean into THE GOOD NEWS of Christ’s victory for us as we:
 
  • Celebrate Maundy Thursday Family Supper online, April 9 at 6:30 pm.

  • Commemorate Good Friday Stations of the Cross online, April 10 at 6:30 pm.


  • Celebrate Easter this Sunday - Modern Worship at 9:30 am, Traditional Worship at 11 am.

  • Gather online for Easter Fellowship: If you would like to greet one another this Easter Sunday morning, at 10:30 am we will host 10 minute ZOOM Easter Fellowship! Bring your own coffee and doughnuts and your smiling faces as we wish one another a Happy Easter online (Limited to 250 participants, so be on time!).
 
In these ways and more, we will live into the life-changing message of Easter! This year in particular, we need the GOOD NEWS of the One who reminds us “Take heart! I have overcome the world” (John 16:33b).
 
Yours in the Risen Christ,
Pastor Tom
 
P.S. Thank you AGAIN for your faithful giving ! Because of your generosity and the hard work of our volunteers we are providing some 150 Easter Dinners for families in our area that are in particular need. In addition, our Coppell Cares weekend backpack ministry has gone from feeding 60 families a weekend to over twice that many in these turbulent times. I am so grateful to be a part of a church family that is blessing this community with tangible gifts of Resurrection hope this Easter and always!
COVID-19 Update
Until the foreseeable future, here is the schedule that we will be following on Sundays and throughout the week:
 
Sundays: Facebook Live broadcast of worship service on the FUMCCoppell Facebook page found here . (You do NOT have to be active in Social Media to join the broadcast)

Weekdays: Church facilities are closed. Staff will be working from home.

Rosenburg Chapel: The chapel will remain open 24/7. We are giving extra attention to cleaning. Hand Sanitizer is located outside the chapel and wipes are available for you to wipe down the top of the pew and door handle as you leave.

Giving Online: Click here to see a video on how you can continue your financial support to FUMC.
Sunday
Worship on April 12
Easter Sunday

Sharing God's Grace
John 20:1-18

9:30 am
Modern Worship on Facebook Live

11:00 am
Traditional Worship on Facebook Live
We encourage you as an individual or a family unit to dialogue
more about the sermon through this helpful curriculum guide .
Click here to watch the April 5 service.
This Week
E aster Dinner Baskets
 
Just a reminder, if you have perishable items for the food baskets (i.e. ham, chicken, 5 lb bag of potatoes or carrots, 1 dozen cartons of eggs and/or bread), please bring them to the church by Friday morning, 11 am. Questions email or text Sally McCurdy at [email protected] or 972-743-3053.
Let's have an Easter egg hunt!

Since we can't have our traditional Easter Egg Hunt, here is a fun alternative. Print the egg ( click here ), decorate it-get creative. Tape it to a window in the front of your house. Now go for a walk with your parents, older sibling or someone else living in your house and see how many eggs in windows you can find. Take pictures of the eggs you find. Have fun!

Send your pictures to us. Click here to upload photos.
Holy Week Scavenger Hunt

F ind an Easter basket or any kind of bag for hunting. Find and collect the following items:
  • A sign of new life which reminds us of Christ’s resurrection.
  • A branch of an “evergreen”, our palm branch paper cut out, a shrub or tree that stays green all year long as a symbol of God’s love for us that never ends.
  • A rock or pebble to remind us of the stone that was rolled away on Easter morning.
  • A twig or small stick to remind us that Jesus came back to life after dying on a cross made of wood.
  • A white napkin or paper towel as a reminder of the cloth that was wrapped around the body of Jesus found in the tomb.
  • A pencil and a small piece of paper. Thank goodness Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John wrote down this amazing true story for us. Write a note of thanks for God’s love. (For fun read the Gospel of Mark as an extra Holy Week challenge!)
  • Three of the same kind of thing as a reminder that Jesus came back to life after three days.
  • A container of spices from your kitchen cabinet. The women discovered Jesus had risen when they were bringing spices to his tomb.
  • When Jesus appeared to his disciples in the evening of the day he rose, the first thing he told them was “Peace be with you.” Find a symbol of peace in your house as a reminder of the peace of Christ with each of us.
  • Find something that’s empty. The rock of the tomb had been rolled away – and Jesus was not there. Shout, “Christ is Risen!”
Now, take your basket and share the Good News! Make a sign with whatever you have around the house that says Christ is Risen. Place your collection with your sign and take a picture with you – upload t o dropbox.
 
On Easter morning, post your signs in your yard or windows so that passersby can be blessed with the Best Good News of all…Christ is Risen! He is Risen Indeed!
During these uncertain times, ...

if you know of someone that has immediate needs, please contact Rev. Martha Hagan-Smith at [email protected].
Student Ministry

Click here for the latest newsletter.
Upcoming
Children’s Sunday is April 19

We may not be able to physically be together, but we have come up with a way for all of you to be a part of this very special service. We will be talking about “grace”. Grace that is given to us before we really even know about it. That grace that can only come from God.

Children, draw a picture of yourself. No help from mommy and daddy, just a wonderful creation made by you! When you are done ask mommy, daddy or another adult to scan and send your beautiful picture to Kathy Braem at [email protected] . Your picture will be part of the design for this day!
Easter Lilies
The Easter lilies on the Sanctuary altar will be delivered to homebound members. They are given by the following people.
  • Karil Ellinger - In memory of Lindsey and Ruth Herd
  • Scott Ellinger - In memory of Dr. Ted Ellinger
  • Bentley Foster - In honor of 2020 Holy Land Pilgrimage
  • Greg, Sarah and Hannah Merrill - In honor of Janice Merrill
  • Brooke O’Shea - In honor of our parents; in honor of Baba and Paw; in memory of Kim Hartman
  • Tom Palmer - In honor of 2020 Holy Land Pilgrimage
  • Kris and Sylvia Pollard - In honor of our family
  • Sharon Simmons - In memory of Jon Eric Simmons
Caregiving Heroes
Fellow Caregiving Heroes,...

get social at a distance with us on Facebook in the new Caregiving Heroes Coppell Facebook group !!   This is a closed Facebook group, which means that you'll need to request to join. After you are part of the group, feel free to invite siblings and other caregivers you know. Because it is closed, we'll have the freedom of asking questions, sharing resources, letting off steam to those who understand, recounting funny stories, etc. In this time of social distancing, we hope to keep the Heroes communication lines open. Don't we need it now more than ever?!?!? Yes, you'll need to have a Facebook account to participate...this might be the perfect time to set one up, even if you never post to your own account.
 
Another Heroes lifeline - we're setting up pen pals.  Click here and answer a few questions on the form so that you can be paired with an appropriate Heroes caregiver. If you would like more than one pen pal, indicate that in the last line where you can list Other Challenges. Maybe you're quarantined with an elderly loved one so have all the time in the world to juggle multiple pen pals :) Could just be your lifeline!
 
Caregivers are placed in strange predicaments right now, never before imagined. Heroes can be here to help.
Volunteer Opportunity

Become a Volunteer. Christian Community Action relies on our dedicated volunteer force to help us accomplish our daily work, and we are blessed by their generosity and strength of spirit. During this COVID-19 time, CCA still needs volunteers. Click here to sign up.
Missions
Mission of the Month

April mission designation is Project Transformation (PT). PT serves children from low-income neighborhoods to improve their literacy, social-emotional and spiritual development through participation in high-quality programs led by college students. These students invest in the lives of underserved children while living in community, exploring their calling, and developing as servant leaders. FUMC Coppell participates in PT by aiding in two weeks of summer reading programs at Chapel Hill UMC in Farmers Branch, by sponsoring two interns, and by providing dinners for the interns and participating children and families.
 
Make checks payable to FUMC with memo “PT” or you can TEXT 2 GIVE . Text FUMCC to 73256 . You will receive a link and simply follow the instructions.
Stephen Ministry
Stephen Ministers Are There to Care

Are you going through a difficult time? You don’t have to suffer alone. Our Stephen Ministers are trained caregivers, ready to listen and provide confidential one-to-one Christian care to help you through whatever it is that you are facing. To find out more, contact Leah Moore at [email protected] .