Next Wednesday, February 4, a special treat is in store for our Terrific Nights Together.  The Wesley Academy Staff and Board will be preparing and serving dinner.  Wesley Academy is a two day a week Parents’ Day Out preschool program at FUMC.  The meal will be Mexican Stack-ups with dessert, tea and coffee.  Nachos will be an alternate item available for the youngsters.  The meal begins at 5:30 p.m., so don’t be late!  The cost is a free will offering.  Let’s support this wonderful children’s ministry of our church. 

On February 11, the TNT menu will include lasagna, salad, garlic bread, dessert, tea, and coffee.  Time: 5:30 p.m.  Cost:  free will offering.  Come and enjoy the fellowship. 

This week the church is focusing on helping people grow in grace and in the knowledge of and love for God for both long-time members and those just entering the church through quality learning experiences. We are to think about how we are doing in this area and how we can do even better. We will look for gaps that need to be filled for any age group, or needs that should be met for life experiences that are difficult and could be made easier by loving prayer, encouragement and support in small groups. During this time of focus on intentional faith development open your heart and mind to new studies and possibilities for our church. Ideas and suggestions are welcomed and will be accepted by the leadership team.

The song “Day by Day” from the musical Godspell expresses the Christian disciple’s desire to grow in the grace of Christ and to advance daily in the knowledge and love of God. In the musical, the cast sings a beautiful prayer that asks God for three things: “To see thee more clearly, love thee more dearly, follow thee more nearly day by day” (Godspell, Stephen Schwartz, 1973).

We learn the life of Christ and will of God by studying God’s Word and through experience with other people of faith. By joining a Bible study or class, we place ourselves in the circumstances that are most advantageous for growth in faith. Bible study is not just about self-improvement but about setting ourselves where God can shape us, intentionally opening ourselves to God’s Word and call. God uses faith-to-faith relationships to change us.

This week we are talking about Intentional Faith Development. You may not think of Faith Development in terms of  Hospitality or Worship or any of the other 5 Practices. The truth is that none of the 5 Practices can be essentially separated from the other without all of them suffering. Churches that attract large numbers of visitors and even joiners but fail at Faith Development often fail to see actually growth in membership and worship.

Being a PoliSci major, I do love stats especially when they show trends and indicate a clear picture about whatever you are studying. Some years ago I looked at four trends in churches and found that churches that grew in membership increased in worship attendence something like 94% of the time. However, if the church did not grow in Sunday School membership and Sunday School attendance drop to only about a 70% growth rate. The numbers were striking and it didn’t matter if the church was rural or urban.

What that means for us is that we need to educate our members more effectively. We need to start new classes, invite people to our classes and encourage people to come to our groups. John Wesley didn’t actually start all that many churches. What he did start was what was called “Classes.” He organized the Methodists into groups that met weekly and encouraged, taught and strengthened each other in prayer and in other ways.

We may need to return to that model. Not so much in the Wesleyan way, although it is not a bad idea, but at least in the sense that we should invite others to the groups we do have. So I want to ask you; when was the last time you invited someone to join you in your “CLASS?” When was the last time you invited someone to your S.S. class? Your UMM - UMW  meeting? Your Youth Meeting? Your group that goes out and eats breakfast after church?

If your group is getting smaller, maybe you need to simply ask someone to join you. I promise they would like to belong.

 Peace and Grace. Reed

The Junior High Youth Sunday School class really practiced Radical hospitality last Sunday morning.

What did they do you ask?  Well, let me tell you.

First, they prepared dozens of cookies. Then, they visited two nursing homes here in Hillsboro and presented each nursing station at each nursing home with a plate of cookies and a card, signed by each member of the class, that read: “Thank you for taking care of God’s people here.  From: the Junior High Sunday School Class at First United Methodist Church, Hillsboro.”

Carolyn Gray, their Sunday School teacher,  then treated them to brunch at IHOP.  While at IHOP, they presented their waiter/waitress with a plate of cookies, and a card, again signed by each member of the class that read, “Thank you for serving us”.  In addition, each Junior High-er, brought $2.00 and they all pooled their money as a gracious tip for their waiter/waitress.

When the Pharisees (teachers of the law) asked Jesus, “of all the commandments, which is the most important?”, his response was:

“Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one.  Love the Lord with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength“. 

But then Jesus added:

“The second is this:  Love your neighbor as yourself.  There is no commandment greater than these”, he said.

Thank you Carolyn for teaching our children to be kind and gracious with their words, actions, and deeds.

Week one is done. Boy were the churches at Ennis and here surprised when the preacher turned out to be the vagrant in the parking lot. For those who read this but not in church, the two of us switched pulpits and posed before church as homeless people. Then as we preached on Matthew 25, we cited how many people spoke to us, how many invited us in and how many passed on by.

Good thing we didn’t preach on the Good Samaritan!!

This week we are concentrating on worship.  Our word worship comes form the Old English word of WORTHSHIP or one who is worthy to be honored and adored. It is not a silent nor inward action only. True worship is actually a physical action and it is only worthy if witnessed by others. In other words you cannot worship God without attending worship.

Now I  know some come to church because of the preacher and some may stay away for the same reason. Honestly, in either case you are missing the point. Worship is not about the preacher, the warmth of the church, or even if it’s the place “Where everyone knows your name..” Worship about the adoration of God. It is God we deem worthy and to be adored.

So come Sunday. I promise I will do my best to highlight for you in a most unusual way. Oh and by the way, yes I will be here this time.

Peace and Grace. Reed.

Needed: Church members for a church-wide workday on Saturday, February 7, from 11am until 4-5pm. Volunteers are needed to help with either an inside crew or an outside crew (weather permitting). Bring your skills, paint brushes, brooms, drills, nail guns, or anything else you may feel is needed and especially your “can do” spirit. If you would like to sign up for a specific crew, there will be sign up sheets located near the coffee nook next Sunday or you may call Kim Leech, Five Practices Events Coordinator at 582-2221 or kleech@sbcglobal.net.

Thank you,

Kim

Five teams studying ways for our church to our improve our practice of hospitality, worship, faith development, missions/service, and generosity begin a series of meetings this week. The end results of these studies will be recommendations that will move our congregation toward truly achieving radical hospitality, passionate worship, intentional faith development, risk-taking mission and service, and extravagant generosity.

Shown in the picture is part of the Radical Hospitality Team as they gather for a meeting Wednesday evening.

Once a yeoman in the navy was putting into the ship’s log “The Captain was drunk today.” The captain found out and ordered him to not put that in as it made him look bad and to only put in things that were extraordinary. After weeks and weeks the following entry appeared: “The captain was NOT drunk today.” I guess be careful of what you ask for you just might get it.

Anyway, we have embarked on a great adventure as a church with the 5 Practices Of Fruitful Congregations. What is hopefully will do is to help us to do what we have always done but in an extraordinary way. We in the church feel that we normally do the things we do in a fine fashion and do not always want others to see us as we are. Not only that but we often sure don’t want others to comment on our behavior. Sort of like the captain.

Yet that is what the 5 Practices does help us to do: to see our regular behavior and make change where and when we need to.I want to tell you about an extraordinary event from just this past Sunday as we entered into the Radical Hospitality portion of our time of reflection. I was so pleased with the church.

 This past Sunday we had a visitor and her daughter in church. I won’t go into the details of what she was attending. What I want to comment on was that person after person came up to her and invited her to Sunday School, the Kids Under Construction Program for her daughter, etc. She told me that she had never felt more welcomed in a Methodist church before! My buttons almost flew off my shirt with pride.

Yes, I know that is a sin but I think God will forgive that one. There are others He can deal with anyway. WAY TO GO, GANG! I hope that all of us will get to the point where we will all welcome the strangers among us.

Peace and Grace. Reed

Well… it is finally that time.  What time you ask?  Restoration time.  Each Sunday we come and restore our souls, lives, and relationships.  Now it’s time to restore the Sanctuary.

Many of you may recall the promise made when the Family Life Center was planned and built.  That promise was that the Sanctuary would be "looked after" once the debt on the Family Life Center was well under control.

Well, that time has come.  In the last several years, not only has the church membership regularly paid on the long term debt for the Family Life Center, but there was also a three year short term debt.  And guess what?  That 3 year short term debt is HISTORY - it’s retired.

So, here is a rough schedule of what will happen in restoring the Sanctuary:

1.  As many of you know, the roof leaks badly in some places.  Leaky roofs are a real bad deal, so that will be dealt with first.

2.  Once the roof is secured and water-tight, the next major work that will be done is on some of the external brickwork along the top of the Sanctuary near the roof line.  Due to weather, time, etc. some of the mortar is decaying - bricks are coming loose and that is not good.

3.  With those two major issues dealt with, the inside of the Sanctuary will come next.  Starting from the top, the ceiling tiles will be repaired/fixed.

4.  Then the Sanctuary will be painted.

5.  And finally, the Sanctuary floor will be re-carpeted.

So…stay tuned right here to the web site for all the latest (and greatest) on the "New" look to the Sanctuary building.

Shalom…

The United Methodist Men resumed its monthly meeting schedule with a breakfast meeting on January 9. The program, presented by Warren Smith, emphasized how The Old and The New Testaments are inextricably linked through the very early prophesies and the later teachings of Jesus. The “required” Jewish sacrifices and the references in Paul’s teachings of becoming a “living sacrifice” all refer, in a sense, to getting closer to God.

The phrases: “The Old Testament is The New Testament concealed” and “The New Testament is The Old Testament revealed” offer insight into how these documents are tied together and how an understanding of both adds to our faith. Pictured below is the lineup from the meeting.

The Methodist Men usually meet for a hearty breakfast at 7 AM on the first Friday of each month. All men, Methodist or otherwise are invited.