Sunday is the last day to order poinsettias that will decorate our sanctuary for the Advent Season. If you have questions, you can contact Tracy Gormley. | | |
November 15, 2026
All In: Commitment Sunday
1 Chronicles 29:10–18 | Romans 12:4-8
| | |
As we come to the final Sunday of our All In stewardship series, I am reminded that stewardship is about much more than what we give financially. It is about recognizing that everything we have — our time, talents, resources, and opportunities — is a gift from God.
In 1 Chronicles 29, David reminds us that everything we offer to God has first come from God's generous hand. In Romans 12, Paul reminds us that we are one body in Christ, each blessed with different gifts to share. Together, these passages remind us that everyone has something meaningful to offer, and every gift matters.
I am grateful for the many ways you share your gifts through the life and ministry of Green Meadow UMC. Whether serving quietly behind the scenes, caring for a neighbor, offering encouragement, or supporting the ministries of our church, you help make God's love visible in our community.
As we look toward the future, may we continue to live all in — with grateful hearts, open hands, and a willingness to follow wherever God leads. Thank you for your faithfulness, generosity, and the many ways you make Green Meadow UMC a place of grace and love.
Please bring both your completed giving commitment and Service Opportunities Survey to worship on November 15. To help us plan for the coming year, we encourage everyone to complete and return both forms, even if you plan to continue your current giving commitment or serve in the same ministries. Every response helps us prepare for another year of faithful ministry together. There are copies in the entry with the bulletins.
| | |
During the week, do you have a prayer request that you would like to send to the congregation? You can send an email to: greenmeadowprayers@gmail.com. If you are not receiving prayer requests and would like to, please let us know!
| | |
*For corrections, additions, or updates to the calendar,
email umcgreenmeadow@gmail.com
Adult Sunday School 9:30
Children's Sunday School 9:30
Sunday Morning Worship 10:30
Sunday Evening Worship (Sudanese) 5:30
Please note the District Dates highlighted in yellow.
Special church Events are in orange
Commitment Sunday - November 15 during worship*
Family Promise Week - November 16-21,
to volunteer, contact Mary Lynn Roy
District Day with the Bishop – November 19, Seymour UMC*
Guest Speaker November 22 - Rev. Bill Green
Decorate the Church for Advent - November 22, following worship
United Women of Faith - November 24, 12:00 Fellowship Hall
Advent Starts November 29
Finance/Church Council Meeting - December 7, 6:30 Library
You can view October Council Minutes here.
United Women of Faith - December 8 Pledge Service
Thursday Social - December 10, 6:00, Pizza Hut, Alcoa Hwy
Churchwide Christmas Dinner - December 13, following worship
Christmas Eve Service - December 24, 6:00
January 3 - Put away Advent Decorations after worship
Finance/Church Council Meeting - January 4, 6:30 in the Library
*For more information on these activities and events, see below...
Groups:
- Sunday School 9:30 am - children through adults
- Sunday Lunch at Panera - following worship
- Finance/Church Council - Every first Monday at 6:00
-
United Women in Faith 12:00 - Every fourth Tuesday of the month For the full 2026 Unit schedule, click here.
- Tuesday Bible Study 2:00 Library
- Tuesday Evening Choir 6:00 pm Sanctuary
- Tuesday Cub Scouts Pack 285 6:30 pm Education Building
- Thursday Lunch Bunch at Southland Cafe - 11:30 am
-
Thursday Supper Group 6:00 pm - Second Thursday of the month: Pizza Hut on Alcoa Hwy (Hwy 129)
- Thursday NA (Narcotics Anonymous) 6:00-7:30 pm
- Earth Club events for everyone happen periodically. Look for information below.
To book an appointment with the Pastor, click here
| | |
Go to Apple store for Apple devices or Play store for Android devices and download the Instant Church Directory app today!
Although this directory is best viewed from a phone, you can go to members.instantchurchdirectory.com and create an account to view this directory. If we have your email address, you can access this directory.
| | | | |
Mailing a check to the church?
You can send it to: Green Meadow UMC
P.O. Box 485 Alcoa, TN 37701
| | Or send a payment through Venmo @GreenMeadowUnitedMethodistChurch | |
Altar Flowers
Help beautify our worship space by providing altar flowers for a Sunday! Flowers may come from your garden, the grocery store, or a florist and may be given in honor or memory of someone, for a special occasion, or simply to enhance our worship. Sign up on the bulletin board outside the fellowship hall. Thank you for helping make our worship space beautiful!
| | |
Advent Study Opportunities
You can join a couple of Advent studies this Advent season at Green Meadow. One is on Sunday mornings during Sunday School, and the other is on Tuesday afternoons in the church library. Read below to learn more ...
|
Discover the Gifts Christ Brings This Christmas
Sunday Morning Bible Study | 9:25 a.m.
Beginning November 29
“What do you want for Christmas?” We often think of presents under the tree, but what about the gifts our hearts truly long for—gifts that money cannot buy?
Join us this Advent season for a special four-week study by James W. Moore as we explore the meaningful gifts Christ brings into our lives. Through Scripture, reflection, prayer, and discussion, we will discover how God's love and grace offer gifts far greater than anything wrapped beneath a Christmas tree.
Take time this Advent to step away from the holiday rush, deepen your faith, and focus on the true meaning of Christmas.
All are welcome to join us on Sunday mornings at 9:25 a.m., beginning November 29!
|
Journey Through Advent
with John Wesley’s Means of Grace
Tuesday Bible Study | 2:00 p.m.
Beginning December 1
Join us this Advent season for a special four-week study, All the Good: A Wesleyan Way of Christmas. Through Scripture, reflection, and the teachings of John Wesley, we will explore how God’s grace is experienced through prayer, acts of kindness, caring for others, and sharing God’s love.
As we prepare to celebrate the birth of Christ, this study invites us to deepen our faith, embrace the spirit of Advent, and discover new ways to share God’s goodness with the world.
All are welcome to join us on Tuesdays at 2:00 p.m., beginning December 1!
| | |
Prayerfully consider serving at the 2028 General
or Southeastern Jurisdictional Conference.
Nominations are due February 15, 2027.
Could God be calling you to represent Holston in the wider United Methodist Church?
At the 2027 Holston Annual Conference, lay members will elect delegates to the 2028 General Conference and Southeastern Jurisdictional Conference. We invite laypeople across Holston to prayerfully consider offering their names for this opportunity to help shape the future of our church.
If you meet the membership and participation requirements, you may offer your name for consideration. You can be a candidate even if you’ve never held a conference leadership role or served as a lay member of Annual Conference.
You may choose to be considered for both conferences or for Jurisdictional Conference only.
Submit your online nomination by February 15, 2027. The letter below explains who is eligible, what serving involves, and how to complete the nomination form.
Lay Delegate Nomination Letter →
If you’d like to offer your name for consideration, submit the online nomination form by February 15, 2027. Before you begin, have a current photo and a short bio of 50 words or fewer ready. The form will ask whether you wish to be considered for both conferences or for Jurisdictional Conference only.
| | |
We invite all women to join in our purpose "to know God and to experience freedom as whole persons through Jesus Christ; to develop a creative, supportive fellowship; and to expand concepts of mission through participation in the global ministries of the church. We are turning “faith, hope and love into action on behalf of women, children and youth around the world.”
Contact: Glenda Eastridge 865-984-8682 eastridge_gs@bellsouth.net
| | Mission U, July 16-18, 2026 at State Street UMC | | UWF 2026 Program Schedule | | |
Meetings are held monthly on the 4th Tuesday at noon
for shared lunch, program, and action.
For the full 2026 Unit schedule, click here.
| | |
Each week, the bulletin includes Continuing the Conversation: Living the Word Together, a few short questions connected to the sermon that invite reflection on how God’s Word shapes daily life.
These questions can be used over lunch after worship, around the dinner table, in a small group, or in conversation with a friend. The hope is simple: that the sermon continues beyond the benediction through thoughtful conversation and lived discipleship.
| |
Change for Children
Throughout the year, we invite everyone to drop their loose change into the pitcher. Change for Children is a ministry of the Holston Conference that provides grants to ministries serving children. Each year, we take the money collected in our pitcher as one of our church’s offerings to Holston Annual Conference.
| | On the last Sunday of each month, we pass the Blessing Bucket and share a blessing and an offering. These connectional ministries help our understanding that congregations can do more together to transform the world for the sake of Jesus Christ. To see 2026's full list click here. | | |
Our United Methodist Social Principles remind us,
"We affirm that all creation belongs to God... Human beings,
nonhuman animals, plants, and other sentient and nonsentient beings participate in the community of creation, and their flourishing depends upon the care of all God's creation."
November 2026
Landfills pollute the environment, generate potent greenhouse gases, consume massive amounts of land, pose health risks to nearby communities, and negatively affect property values. Keep items out of landfills. Recycling is a good option.
Buy green. In this market-driven economy, what you buy and what you don't buy have an impact. Avoid excess packaging and single-use plastics. Choose local goods to cut down on the emissions from transport. Purchase products with recycled content so that more companies will create merchandise that incorporates recycled materials. Your dollars speak loudly.
Watch what you recycle. We want to do our part, but 25% of what is going into recycling facilities is wrong and contaminates the output. 1) Make sure the items are dry and not soiled with food. 2) Know your local guidelines for recycling. They are different in different places. 3) Take a tour of your local recycling center. 4) Watch for news about recycling from your local government and spread the word.
Even “little” choices make a difference for creation. Choose aluminum cans over plastic bottles. Plastic can be successfully recycled just once or twice, and only 3–6% of plastic that makes it to the recycling bin is truly recycled. On the other hand, aluminum can be recycled over and over again—as long as you put the can into the recycle bin.
Recycle your paper and cardboard. The effects of recycling a ton of paper and cardboard are impressive: saving 17 trees, 380 gallons of oil, 3 cubic yards of landfill space, and 7,000 gallons of water. What you do adds up.
Your recycling—if it’s in a plastic bag—won’t be recycled. The bag will be pulled off the line and trashed because there is no time to open and empty it, and plastic bags cannot be allowed to go through because they tangle up the equipment and cause shutdowns. Learn and follow the rules for your local recycling facility. Give thanks for those who work there.
Go “thrifting” (another name for recycling). When you purchase gently used clothing and other items at thrift stores, you are keeping fabrics out of landfills. Also, shop your own closet for what you can recycle by donating for someone else to use.
| | | | |
Church Finance
Year-to-Date Giving: $131,367
Estimated Year-to-Date Expenses: $126,303
Annual Budget: $151,564
November 8, 2026
Sunday School - 20
Worship - 50
September - October
Peanut Butter 93 lbs
| | |
Jennifer McIntyre: Nathan McIntyre, recovering from heart surgery
Judy Lovely: Steve Henegar, recovering from heart surgery
Staci Stalcup: mother, Jan Kerr, rheumatoid arthritis
Jennifer McIntyre: Jerry Sullivan, back pain
Cindy Wells: Ivy recovering from broken arm
South Sudan Relief Ministry: funding and prayers for the pastors serving displaced people
Doris Ridenour: grandson deployed to Iran
Chip and Terri Hultquist: Joan Lankford
Pam Gildrie: Kyna Humphrey Burger, cancer
Sharon Tippton: April Smith, husband, Chip with leukemia
Those grieving: loss of loved one, an ability, or death of a dream
Mary Lynn Roy: Sharon Mitchell, liver cancer
Hilde Phipps: brother Doug cancer
Cindy Wells: Dennis Walker
Our Nation and the political unrest
Seedbed Initiative – praying for next steps in ministry
Julie Hamlin: Nephew, Tim Kopf
Dan Moore: Margaret with ongoing health issue
| | | | |
