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Messenger Weekly News
December 14, 2023
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Your copy should address 3 key questions: Dear Church Family,
It’s beginning to look…and sound…a lot like Christmas! At 7:00 PM this coming Saturday, December 16, our very own choir (with the support of the 9th Street Philharmonic) will share its annual Missouri United Methodist Church Christmas Concert in the Sanctuary. Cost is $10/adult or $5/student. Many thanks to our wonderful Missouri UMC Concert Series for organizing this very special event. I hope to see you there!
Then, at all services on Sunday, December 17, we will continue our journey toward Christmas by considering the story of Christ’s birth through the eyes of the Gospel-writer Matthew. After looking at the unusual approaches to the Christmas story in Mark and John, the account in Matthew will likely sound much more familiar to us. And yet, Matthew still puts a unique twist on the events leading up to and surrounding Christ’s birth.
What a joy and blessing it is for me to get to share this holy season with each of you. Happy Advent, merry Christmas, and see you in church!
In Christ,
Daniel
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- Sunday evenings 3rd Floor Youth Rooms - MUMY
- Monday mornings 10:00 a.m. in The Parlor - Knitters Group
- Tuesday evenings 5:30 p.m. in The Chapel - Lectio Divina
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Wednesday evenings 7:00 p.m. in Parlor Men's Group
- Wednesday evenings 7:00-8:30 Chancel Choir Rehearsal
- Wednesday evenings 6:30 p.m. - 3rd Floor Youth Rooms - Crew, The Neighborhood
- Wednesday evenings 7:00-8:30 Location TBD Praise Band Rehearsal
- Thursday 10:00-2:00 in 303 & 305- Quilters Group
- Friday afternoons 1:00-2:00 in Parlor - Friday Heretics
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Sunday Services at MUMC
8:00 in the Chapel
9:30 in the Sanctuary
11:00 in the Sanctuary
If you are coming for the 11:00 service we ask that you enter through the Connector and arrive close to service time as we will ask people to refrain from entering the Sanctuary until The City service has concluded.
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Online Services
Visit our website to
watch online services.
Click the button below and you'll
find links on the main page.
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Contact June DeWeese if you are interested in Caring Ministries
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COMMUNITY & FELLOWSHIP MINISTRY TEAM |
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Contact Michelle Green if you are interested in Community & Fellowship
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MERCY & JUSTICE MINISTRY TEAM |
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Thank you to members and friends of MUMC who stopped by the Heifer International table the last two Sundays in the Connector. Your choice of alternative giving gifts during the Christmas season helps Heifer International carry out its missions around the world. Our elementary Sunday School class is saving quarters to purchase a pig.
Heifer International will return to the Connector in late spring and summer as 2024 is an “even numbered” year and the MUMC Mercy and Justice Team looks forward to filling another “Animal” Ark for Heifer International. The Ark will be sent to a needed community to develop and sustain family food resources and continue to pass on animal offspring to offer other families help developing their food resources.
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The transport ministry of Room at the Inn needs 3-4 drivers from Missouri Methodist to transport guests of RATI. |
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RATI could use some help with supplies. Please consider donating items or monetary gifts to help this season. |
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Room at the Inn (RATI)is now open year around. One of the ways MUMC has faithfully served in passed years is to volunteer at the site: by preparing and packaging of sandwiches and snacks; serving the meal; or assisting with guest signing in. There is a GREAT need for volunteers. You may sign up to volunteer at this link https://roomattheinncomo.org/ RATI is located at 1509 Ashely St.
Watch this space for updates on RATI. Thank you for your gift of service. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to call Jean Gruenewald
636-667-7486 at or Carol Beahan 573-619-3823.
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Children's Ministry is Looking for Nursery Workers and Sunday School Teachers!
Our Children's Sunday School program is growing, and we are so excited about new young families joining our church. But, with this, we are in need of more consistent Nursery Workers and Sunday School Teachers. If teaching, you will be paired with a regular teacher in the ministry, but will also have access to the material beforehand to prepare.
The more volunteers we have, the less often we need volunteers to lead. This is an essential need and required by our Safe Gatherings program to be up-to-code. If you are interested in assisting with Sunday School or Nursery, please email Christina Fletcher, our NextGen Coordinator, at [email protected]
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Youth Ministry is in Need of Volunteers to Come Help Lead Sunday School and Youth Group!
Our Sunday School and Youth Group is growing exponentially! This is amazing news, but due to the growth, we are in desperate need of volunteers to assist during Sunday School and Youth Group.
The more volunteers we have, the less often we need volunteers to lead. This is an essential need and required by our Safe Gatherings program. Some teaching will be required, but Christina will always have lessons to you at least one week in advance so you can prepare and ask questions. Remember, it's okay to say, "I don't know" it shows youth that you are authentic and honest!
If you are ready to sign up, please do so by clicking the button below. If you have any questions about serving please reach out to Christina Fletcher at [email protected].
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Confirmation Class is Coming in January 2024! Sign Up Today!
Register today for our 2024 Confirmation Class. As members of this Christian community, we are inheritors of and participants in a journey that began long ago. In baptism your parents announced their faith in Jesus Christ and their desire for you to know God, study God, and serve God as their disciple; now is the time for you to decide for yourself if you want to Confirm that commitment.
We invite you to be a part of our upcoming Confirmation Class. This year the confirmation class is for anyone who is currently in 6th – 12th grade who has not previously been confirmed. We will look at the inheritance we have received down through the Bible and the church and it will also be a time for you to reflect on what it means for you if to decide to be a part of the faith journey.
The Confirmation Class will be held on Sundays at 11am during Sunday School as a separate class from Sunday School, beginning weekly in the Spring and ending with a Confirmation Sunday Experience either May 5th or 12th. These study times will include small groups which will give you opportunities to learn, explore, wonder, question, act and then decide whether this is the time for you to become a confirmed member of God’s covenant community – the Church. If you decide that it is the time God is calling you to join the church, you will be received as a confirmed member of the Church on either Sunday, May 5th or 12th.
Confirmation promises to be an exciting step in your faith journey. We urge you to talk with your parents and consider prayerfully becoming a part of this class. If you would like to join the class, please register by January 1st, 2024.
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The Neighborhood College Ministry |
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Check out a short video on the Neighborhood
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The Frogs class loved performing for the United Women in Faith during their annual Christmas Unit Meeting!
If you or someone you know is interested in enrolling a child, having a child placed on the waitlist or would like more information about Discovery Days, please contact the director, Courtney Gaunt, at 573-875-4886 or [email protected]. |
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Contact Rebes Bennett if you are interested in College Ministries
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The Bible tells us to pray continually. The Prayer Ministry Team is composed of Prayer Warriors who try to follow Jesus’s instructions to not be Prayer Worriers who will “worry about tomorrow or be anxious about what to eat, drink or wear…”(Matthew 6:25-34), but to be Prayer Warriors who take to heart the words of Paul as he says in Philippians 4:6 “..in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be known to God.” As Prayer Warriors, the Prayer Ministry Team reaches out to others with a weekly prayer letter to share requested worries and celebrate special joys.
If you would like to join the Prayer Ministry Team Warriors, become a Prayer Warrior as part of the prayer chain to receive our weekly prayer list or to request a prayer need or joy to be shared with others, please contact Jim Helms at [email protected] or Carole Babel at [email protected].
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Contact Jim Helms if you are interested in the Prayer Team or have a prayer request.
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As we head into the second week of advent, we have lots of terrific music planned for your worship experience. The chancel choir has been planning for our upcoming Christmas concert on December 16th for months and we are going to share a movement from one of our programmed pieces at worship in the 11:00 am service this weekend. "Fecit potentiam" is the fifth movement of Kim Andre Arnesen's Magnificat. Arnesen is a contemporary Norwegian composer who is best known for his ethereal and introspective choral compositions. Those of you who attend the concert on the 16th will notice that most of his music is very slow and somewhat minimalistic. In fact, "Fecit potentiam" is the only part of the seven-movement piece that is in a fast tempo.
We will also hear from our bell choir, the Wesleyan Ringers, during the 11:00 am worship service this week, as they'll be presenting "Christmas Joy" by Cynthia Dobrinski during the offertory. Our director, Kaye Miller, is actively looking for new bell members. As you enjoy the sound of them playing in church this weekend, please consider if you or someone you know could help serve in that capacity and contact Kaye at 573-881-5826 to discuss the details.
Our City singers and City band members will continue to introduce Christmas and Advent music during the 9:30 am service. In particular, the band will lead the congregation in learning a new Chris Tomlin song titled "Even So Come" and the singers will perform a wonderful arrangement of "Cold December Flies Away."
In the Chapel service, I'll be presenting a special arrangement of "O Come, O Come Emmanuel" and we'll sing several Christmas songs together, including some selected by the congregation.
See you all in church!
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Ryan Hampton
Director of Music Ministries
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Contact CHURCH OFFICE if you are interested in Worship Team
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MEN'S GROUP
Wednesdays at 7pm in the Parlor & via Zoom
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The Men's Group continues to collect clean jugs to use for the packing of carts for Mobility Worldwide. Please keep those jugs coming! Barrels are in the Connector behind the Connection Point Desk.
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Contact Wade Sanders if you are interested in Men's Ministry
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Val's Circle: Second Monday 11:30 lunch - 12:30 p.m. meeting in the MUMC parlor
Esther Circle: Second Wednesday 8:30 a.m. MUMC room 304
Bratton-Cunningham Circle: Second Wednesday 10:00 a.m. at Lenoir Woods
Wesley Circle: Second Thursday 1:00 p.m. in the MUMC parlor
Sophia Circle: Second Thursday 5:30 p.m. in the MUMC parlor
Breakfast Group: Third Wednesday times and location TBD
Searcy-Feely Circle: Third Wednesday 10:00 a.m. location TBD
Gibson Circle: Third Thursday 10:00 a.m. in MUMC parlor
Eagle Online Circle: no regular meetings
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Contact Vicky Elliott if you are interested in United Women of Faith
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THE FOUNDATION OF
MISSOURI UNITED METHODIST CHURCH
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If you are considering year-end giving you may want to consider a gift to the Foundation of the Missouri United Methodist Church. The Foundation was created in 1961 by some forward-thinking members of Missouri United Methodist Church. These members realized that making annual and planned gifts to the Foundation would support the church into the future. There are needs outside the regular church budget and the Foundation can help with some of those needs. If your interest is the church structure, you can direct a gift to the Heritage Fund.
You can make a difference and have a great impact on Missouri United Methodist Church with a gift to the Foundation of the Missouri United Methodist Church. Support can be done through Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs) from IRAs, appreciated stock, or general contributions. The Foundation is a 501 (c) (3) entity and gifts are tax deductible based on IRS regulations. Checks can be made out to the Foundation of the Missouri United Methodist Church and sent to the church. You can make an electronic transfer to the Foundation’s account at Central Trust. Contact Greg Cecil regarding giving at [email protected] or 573-529-2953. Thank you for your consideration.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
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Contact Greg Cecil for information about the Foundation
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Email your entries for the Messenger to [email protected] by Monday at 5:00 p.m. to be considered for Thursday's newsletter.
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As a Reminder: Church leaders will not email individuals requesting emergency favors or gift cards for charity. You can read about tactics used by email scammers here.
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Sunday Worship Services
Three worship opportunities offered on Sundays:
- 8 a.m. | THE CHAPEL worship in McMurry Chapel
- 9:30 a.m. | THE CITY worship in the Sanctuary
- 11 a.m. | THE CATHEDRAL worship in the Sanctuary
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Contact the Staff: Daniel Hilty, Lead Pastor; S. Jewell S. McGhee, Associate Pastor; Jon Adams Executive Director of Business Services; Rebes Bennett, The Neighborhood College Ministry Director; Amy Bowers, Director of Older Adult Ministries; Craig Datz, Organist; Christina Fletcher, NextGen Coordinator & Youth Director; Courtney Gaunt, Director, Discovery Days; Haley Hamblin, EventsCoordinator/Admin Support; Ryan Hampton, Director of Music Ministries; Jacqui Jamieson, Assistant Director, Discovery Days; Liz Rettke, Administrative Assistant, and Connections Coordinator; Bess Siebuhr, Church Accountant, David Skinner, Facilities-Maintenance-Repair Manager
Additional Staff: JT Chipman, Facility Steward; Tess Howicz, Neighborhood Communications Intern; Christabel John, Neighborhood Programming Intern; Elizabeth Kasmann, Facility Steward; Kaye Miller, Director of Wesleyan Ringers; Rochelle Parker, Associate Organist; Marilyn Rowe, Serendipity Choir; Kiersten Traucht, Facility Steward
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Church Office at (573) 443-3111 |
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