1st United Methodist Church Weekly Update - June 4, 2021 |
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FOLLOW US & JOIN US THIS SUNDAY FOR WORSHIP LIVE AT 9:15 & 11 AM
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Ladies, the United Christian Women are holding a Bake-less Bake Sale Fundraising Event during the month of June! You can help us out without burning your fingers or messing up your kitchen.
We are asking that you contribute the amount of the ingredients that you would spend if you were to bake a pie, cake, or cookies, and add in your labor and skill and donate this amount to the UCW! We will be passing out envelopes on June 6th to put your donation in. You can put the envelope in our “cake” which will be inside the door of the Life Center, or mail your donations to the church c/o UCW, 507 W. Marion Ave.
Please make checks out to the UCW. All contributions will go to organizations and charities supported by the UCW. We thank you in advance for your generosity.
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We are excited to serve this summer as a collection site for the Kiwanis Shoes for Kids project! The Sunrise Kiwanis Shoes for Kids project collects new tennis shoes for children (pre-K, elementary, middle, and high) in the Charlotte County Public School System. The need for the 2021-2022 school year is 4500 new pairs of sneakers. So please consider helping this worthwhile project! The collection box will be in place by Sunday, June 20.
More information about Shoes for Kids can be found HERE.
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It was an amazing 24/10 prayer time at 1st Church. The blessings from the time with God moved so many people who were fortunate to get a slot for praying. We will now continue our prayer room with "Pray until..." We are extending the opportunity to sign up for this prayer room experience, and watch God do amazing things.
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Dr. Laini Gaar, a dermatologist at Advanced Dermatology will be the guest speaker at the June Cancer Support Group meeting. Dr. Gaar has a special interest in the detection and treatment of skin cancer as well as the treatment of stigmatizing skin disease. The meeting will take place on Wednesday, June 2nd at 6:30pm in Room 9. We invite you to join us. |
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Save the Date! June 19, 2021 |
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1st Church Family, please save the date and help us offer a warm 1st Church welcome to Rebekah Gregory and her family who will be joining us on June 19th at 4:00 pm in our Life Center. Rebekah’s story is truly one of perseverance. We hope you will join us and please help spread the word to your friends and family.
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Where do you lay your head at night?
Do you have a nice soft pillow or two? A comfortable mattress? Maybe an adjustable one? How about soft sheets and a warm blanket? As many of you know our youth group is planning a mission trip to Kenosha, Wisconsin this July. Preparations for the trip are well underway and students have been meeting regularly to prepare for this cross-country trip. If you would like to further help them in a specific meaningful way, we have a special opportunity you may want to invest in. While on our mission trip we will be sleeping on air mattresses in a church in Kenosha. We will purchase these mattresses along with pillows and blankets when we reach our mission city and use them during our stay. Then we plan to continue our long-standing tradition of donating these air mattresses, pillows, and blankets to a local shelter at the end of our week of service. If you would like to help pay for a pillow, blanket or mattress to be donated to a shelter in Kenosha, then check out the following list.
We suggest the following donation amounts:
- $8 for a pillow.
- $20 donation will buy a basic twin-sized mattress or blanket.
- $60 donation will purchase a raised twin mattress that comes with its own internal electric plug making it so much easier for the homeless shelter to keep them inflated.
Please prayerfully consider helping in this tangible way by making a donation towards the purchase of one or more of these items for our Summer Missions Team. Donations can be made online under Wisconsin Mission Trip or write that in the memo of your check.
Tim Buck
Director of Youth Ministries
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After hearing Jennifer Candia and the teens talk about their experience in bringing their friends to know and accept Jesus by going to Summer Camp, several members have asked how they can help. A Camp Scholarship Fund has been established at Young Life to help pay for needy kids from Charlotte County who want to go to camp. It costs $649 to send a middle schooler to WyldLife Camp and $799 to send a high schooler to Young Life Camp. If you want to help with a gift towards a Camp Scholarship, you can give online at https://charlotteharbor.younglife.org/ or you can write a check to 1st Church and designate it for Young Life Camp. Questions can be directed to Tom Little, 941-769-0002, [email protected].
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Scroll down for more of The Bridge
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Hey 1st family and friends;
Happy June! Hard to believe Memorial weekend is behind us and before we know it we'll be having fireworks for the 4th of July! It amazed me to see in our subdivision, all the families and friends together having cookouts and get-togethers again. It's been a very long time since we've been able to celebrate in large gatherings. What a blessing! It's also a time of change at 1st Church worship services. Beginning Sunday, June 6th, we will begin our new policy of mask optional worship for those fully vaccinated. This policy was discussed at length by 1st Church leaders, who had the huge issue of safety for everyone who enters our buildings. As witnessed over the past few weeks, we realize this has been a volatile issue for some, and our prayer and concern is that we all have kindness and compassion for everyone whether they mask or not. While we are not enforcing temperature checks or other screening procedures any longer, please use common sense guidelines regarding sitting too close if you're not comfortable, or watching from home if not feeling well. We will begin passing the offering baskets this Sunday also. Communion will continue to be provided at the door as you enter for the time being. This is a good time to let you know I am always looking for volunteers to greet or usher, so please let me know if you could help.
Don't forget our next Today Matters service on Saturday, June 19th at 4pm in the Life Center. Guest speaker, Rebekah Gregory, will share her life experience as a result of the Boston Marathon bombing in 2013. Please invite friends and don't miss this amazing testimony.
I want to encourage everyone to continue to take advantage of the prayer room. Times are available for signing up, which can be done online or by contacting Gail in the office. We are continuing to add new things, such as new prompts for prayer and things to read. During the 10 day prayer journey, we all wondered how could we"pray for a whole hour"? Then people started telling me they wanted more time in there! I'd like to encourage you to use time in that room now to not only pray but to listen for the Holy Spirit. The amazing thing about our prayer room is the quiet, peaceful atmosphere when you close the door and the outside "chatter" and noise is blocked out. It's hard to be quiet and listen- I'm trying hard to work on it. Centuries ago Thomas Kemper wrote Blessed is the soul who hears the Lord speaking and receives the word of comfort from his mouth. Blessed are the ears that receive the echoes of the soft whisper of God and aren't distracted by the murmurings of the world." Truly a beautiful blessing! Please share your prayer room experiences with me!
I'm praying for you!
Rosie Young
Worship Coordinator
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A valuable resource for Pastor Mike's current sermon series, this carefully curated volume engages the deep heart questions of United Methodists and casts a compelling vision by trustworthy voices for dynamic faith. A Firm Foundation is a useful tool not only in navigating present challenges but in pursuing the future promise for the people called Methodists. The foundational principles which have guided Methodist thought from the beginning of John Wesley’s counter-cultural movement remain rich resources as we explore what it means to remain faithful disciples in the tradition of the Wesleys. A Firm Foundation books are available for sale in the church office and at each service for $10 each.
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2020 Annual Report is Now Available! |
The 2020 Annual Report is now available online. Click the link below to access your copy. Thank you for your faithfulness and support throughout the past year. We look forward to even greater things in the year to come!
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The Eighth Note – Music Ministry in a Minute! |
Greetings Everyone,
Do you know what the season after Pentecost is called?
This season in the church is known as “Ordinary Time” or sometimes called “Kingdomtide” in Methodist circles. Ordinary Time starts the day following Pentecost and concludes right before the First Sunday of Advent. The liturgical color of paraments and vestments are green unless there is special day like Trinity Sunday, All Saints, Thanksgiving, or Christ The King Sunday.
Lord in this Ordinary Time help us to see the green of growth and renewal in Christ.
Soli Deo Gloria!
David Bellows
Director of Music Ministries
This Sunday’s Music: June 6, 2021 - 11:00AM Service
Prelude: Andante Moderato – H. Smart
Offertory: Amazing Grace – M. Helman
Chancel Ringers and David Bellows, Director
Postlude: War March Of The Priests – F. Mendelssohn
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Worship Service Information |
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Join us this Sunday at 8 am for Praise in the Park! Open to everyone, this is your opportunity to join us for "in person" worship as we enjoy God's scenery from the lawn of the beautiful Gilchrist Park Pavilion, weather permitting of course. Please plan to bring your lawn chairs and/or blankets, and, yes, we will be asking you to practice social distancing. Don't forget to join our "Praise in the Park" group on our Church App! As a reminder, our outside services are always subject to change due to the weather. Please make sure you are connected with us through the app, our email list or social media to receive our updates concerning schedule changes. See you Sunday for Praise in the Park!
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Join us for Worship In-Person this Sunday! |
If you are planning on attending our services please remember the following:
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Masks are now optional for those that are fully vaccinated.
- Social distancing is still encouraged. Families may sit together, but please leave three seats between you and others not in your family.
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If you are feverish or not feeling well, we ask that you stay home and join us online on our Facebook and YouTube channels.
At this time, you may only enter the Life Center through the main entrance facing the Fellowship Hall courtyard. All other exterior doors will be locked. We'll see you Sunday!
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We are looking for a couple of volunteers to water our flowers on campus through the remainder of the dry season. Unfortunately, we do not have a sprinkler system, and the job can be a bit overwhelming for the small maintenance staff we have on hand. If you are interested, please call the church office, 941-639-3842 and Gail will direct you to Joey DePetro for further information. Thank you and have a great day! |
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Our Media Team is need of several individuals to help in the media booth with slides and cameras on a rotating schedule. No experience required, and full training will be provided. We also need two to three people to serve as hosts for our online services. Hosts are responsible to greet our viewers, answer questions and provide information about our church app, online giving and prayer team in the chat area on both our Facebook broadcast and YouTube channel. Training will be provided as well. If you are interested in any of these positions, please email Christa, [email protected]. |
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2021 Bible Reading Schedules |
We want to encourage you to join us as we once again read through the Bible. Reading calendars are available for download and printing on our website, whatis1st.com/bible2021, and hard copies are available in the Life Center. Start your new year off right by committing to read God's Word!
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Higher Learning Scholarship Fund Testimony |
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FOLLOW US & JOIN US THIS SUNDAY FOR WORSHIP LIVE AT 9:15 & 11 AM
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Office Hours: Monday - Thursday, 9am - 4pm
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