The Pathfinder. Easter Celebration MARCH, 2016 HIGHLIGHTS

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1 The Pathfinder Jonesborough United Methodist Church PO Box 115, 211 West Main Street, Jonesborough, TN Phone: , Fax Web site: Easter Celebration MARCH, 2016 HIGHLIGHTS P2 Save the Date Looking Ahead Church Council P3 Church Family News Easter Egg Hunt District News Czech Mission Teams P4 Thank You Toddlers and Twos P5 Mission of the Month Library News Sisters of Faith Spring Bazaar P6 Recent Happenings P7 Yarn with a Purpose JAMA Food Item "For God expressed His love for the world in this way: He gave His only Son so that whoever believes in Him will not face everlasting destruction, but will have everlasting life." -John 3:16 (The Voice) We cannot face the reality of our own death and sin on Ash Wednesday, nor call Jesus King on Palm Sunday, if we do not know that God has raised Jesus from the dead and given to us the power of resurrection in our lives now. Easter is much more than one day only. The day of resurrection is Easter Day. There is no way the power of the resurrection can be celebrated adequately in one day or one lifetime. The liturgical season of Easter lasts 50 days, ending on Pentecost. We are celebrating the whole of the Easter season: the resurrection of Jesus Christ, the stone who was rejected and yet became the Chief Cornerstone, and at the same time, we are celebrating the power of resurrection in the life of the church today. Easter Day is an invitation to joyous laughing, singing, dancing and prayers of praise. It is the day that makes us a community of life and hope. Let us worship and celebrate the great mystery of faith: Christ has died, Christ is risen, Christ will come again Our Lenten journey draws us ever closer to the events of Holy Week. Plan to walk with Jesus through all those days as we prepare to celebrate Easter. Palm/Passion Sunday... March 20 Maundy Thursday...March 24, 7 pm Good Friday Community Service at First Baptist Church 12 noon... March 25 Good Friday Service at JUMC...March 25, 7 pm Easter Sunrise Service... March 27, 7:15 am Early Service at JUMC... March 27, 8:45 am Late Service/Easter Cantata at JUMC... March 27, 10:45 am

2 2 Save the Date 3/19 Easter Egg Hunt at the home of Rachel & Wesley Squibb from 2-3 pm 3/24 Maundy Thursday service, 7 pm 3/25 Good Friday Community service at 12:15 pm at First Baptist with Pastor Karen preaching Good Friday Service at JUMC at 7 pm 3/27 Sunrise Service at 7:15 am; early worship service 8:45 am; Easter Cantata at 10:45 am Looking Ahead 4/3 Children s Sunday at 10:45 am service 6/4-11 Youth Mission Trip 6/20-23 Vacation Bible School Highlights of Administrative Council Meeting January 31, 2016 Mike Dickson was re-elected chair of the Trustees Committee and Ginny Dickson re-elected as secretary. The priority this year will be drainage work, leveling, curbing and repaving our church parking lot. We have $18,000 in a dedicated account; total cost will be approximately $60,000. Work will be done when we have the funds; all contributions will be gratefully accepted. Another priority is upgrading electric lines to the balcony soundboard area. Finance and Stewardship Committee (Renee Quaintance): Thanked everyone for being so generous with givings at the end of the Last year, we as a church paid off our new piano, supported the growing children s ministry, began a fund for the parking lot renovation, paid our district and conference apportionments in full, and established a fund for pastor relocation expenses when needed (at $1,000 a year). The theme for this year s stewardship program will be Thanks Living, Giving Thanks Through our Stewardship. Fred Boyd, Treasurer, requested permission to make necessary changes to our church s authorized signatures, which was granted. Pastor-Parish Relations Committee (Terry Countermine): Submitted recommendations for 2016 salaries as appropriate. Recommendations were accepted. Communications Team (Debra Blair): Asked that everyone remember to update the church when they change addresses or mailing addresses. They work with our newsletter, website, Facebook page, send along prayer requests, etc. They encouraged members to become familiar with the members-only restricted area of our website which contains the 2016 membership packet information. All ideas, articles, news items, and pictures are welcomed from the congregation and committees. We have 93 inactive member names on our rolls. Madelyn Rohrer s ad hoc committee will be meeting soon to determine the status of these people and make recommendations to the church council. Children s Ministry (Angie Huffine): RezKids in Sevierville was cancelled because of weather. Adventure Kids will be starting this week; Children s Sunday will be April 3; Bible School will be June The children s portion of our website has been updated through April. Youth Ministry (Mary Ann Clark): Resurrection Weekend in Sevierville was cancelled because of weather. Youth will be serving FISH at Crockett February 5 (attendance expected to be over 500); getting together February 7 for Super Bowl Sunday at Kent and Dana Walker s house; bringing our cross over to the Sanctuary for Easter/Ash Wednesday; Cooking for Friends and delivering food on February 14; 30-hour famine lock-in will be February 19; watching the Christian movie Risen, and going to Edisto for their yearly mission trip June We prayed for the healing of our pastor and all members of our congregation

3 3 Church Family News Continued prayers for Sandi Hartwick Mauk, who returned home on Feb 10. Condolences to Terry Countermine on the loss of his brother and his lifelong friend who was like a father to him. Condolences to Jeri Jones on the loss of her sister-in-law. Condolences to Deana Morganstern on the loss of her father. Condolences to Amy Morrell-Terry on the loss of her father. Condolences to Jane Turner on the loss of her aunt. Easter Egg Hunt ******* Weather Permitting ******* Saturday, March 19 from 2-3 pm Home of Rachel & Wesley Squibb 196 Vest Road, Limestone, TN Phone: Bring an Easter basket for each child Refreshments! Games! Fun! Want to help with the children s Easter Egg Hunt? Please bring filled plastic eggs, empty plastic eggs or candy no later than Sunday, March 13. Marked baskets will be available throughout the church. Your donations will be greatly appreciated! District News Lay Servant Training Saturday, March 5 8:30am to 4:30pm Gray United Methodist Church Race to the Czech Point 5K Saturday, April 2 Gray United Methodist Church Senior Adult Gathering Thursday, April 14 10am Munsey Memorial UMC More information is available at: Czech Mission Team Orientations Are you interested in joining a Czech Mission Team this year? Attend one of these sessions to hear about the trips we have planned, and what you need to do to be part of a team. Sunday, March 20, 4 pm Munsey Memorial UMC Tuesday, March 22, 6:30 pm Jonesborough UMC

4 A Special Thank You: Words cannot express how thankful I am for all my church family. During the passing of my father, Ernie Collins, the love, prayers, words of comfort, cards, text messages, s, and all the food provided, lets me know how truly blessed I am to have each of you as part of my life. My family wants to thank each of you for thinking of us during this difficult time. Many blessings to each of you. Deana, Matthew, Victoria and Dawson Morganstern Haven of Mercy thanks you... Thank you to everyone for the overwhelming support you gave to an emergency need during the recent bitter cold temperatures. More than 30 blankets and countless bags and bags of warm coats, sweaters, hats, etc. were donated to Haven of Mercy this winter. A very special thank you goes to Bob and Betty Calliham, who personally took on this mission and delivered EIGHT carloads of goods during dangerous temperatures and road conditions to a very thankful Haven of Mercy. Toddlers and Twos Thank you, church family, for helping so much with our children's program! We have an amazing group of young people (I m pretty partial to my 2-4 year olds)! The toddler and twos group was started to help transition from the nursery to children's church. With a boom of babies, the nursery was overflowing and there became a real need to move our 2, 3, and 4 year olds to a group of their own. Our curriculum corresponds to the lessons the older kids are learning. We have a story we read each week and usually a craft or game that goes with the lesson. Our group is much less structured because, as you can imagine, 2 year olds attention spans can greatly vary! They have learned about Abraham and Sarah, Jesus' birthday, that Mary is Jesus' mommy, and right now how Jesus called the fishermen, to name a few. They are all so smart! We talk a lot about sharing and loving one another. We also have music time. Some like this time more than others, but they all agree being loud is fun! On Wednesday nights, we are talking about God's love right now and how we can show that love to others. Our goal is to lead them to love the Lord through concepts they can grasp. We have so many fun and educational toys. Many children fix us food in their kitchen, the train set is a favorite among the boys, and the box of dinosaurs invades our "mat town" weekly. But their all-time favorite thing is Play-Doh, hands down! Each and every week they ask for Play-Doh. They are all very creative! We have many fun things planned for this group and our older children. The annual kids Easter Egg Hunt will be March 19th (watch the bulletin for more details), and VBS will be this summer. I am excited to see what God has planned for His children. I am grateful for each and every one of them; they bless my life abundantly! I would love for all of you to come visit us and join us for a fun song or a meal of Play-Doh fruit! Laura Johnson 4

5 5 March Mission of the Month Good Samaritan Ministries Since 1985, Good Samaritan Ministries has served the needs of families in Washington, Carter, Greene, Johnson, Sullivan and Unicoi counties. Always recognizing the dignity and importance of each person, the staff works with every individual to develop productive, long-term solutions. Using a local referral system, clients are directed to community resources and provided immediate help in crisis situations, as well. The services of the ministry range from help for the homeless, the elderly, help in transition from prison, employment assistance, social security and VA assistance, legal services, summer food programs, back-to-school assistance, food pantry, glasses, transportation, emergency help with rent and utilities, and a hot meal available at The Melting Pot every day. Jonesborough United Methodist Church has been part of Good Samaritan Ministries since its inception. The name of one of our members, Sam Tomlin, who helped establish the ministry, graces its Family Life Center. We have long participated directly in The Melting Pot program. Three groups, which you are invited to join, serve a meal on the first Wednesday of each month on a rotating schedule. Please call the church office if you would like to donate, prepare, and serve with one of these groups. The impact of Good Samaritan Ministries in our community is very evident in the lives of children in poverty, the emphasis of our church this year. Join Good Samaritan Director Aaron Murphy on Sunday, March 6, as he shares the news of what this ministry is doing with our morning services and our Sunday school classes. During March, mark your mission contributions for Good Samaritan Ministries, Advance #066, keeping in mind the purpose of Good Samaritan: To contribute to the support of the ministry of Jesus Christ... To provide relief for the poor, the sick and the destitute... To assist in raising funds for the general purpose and doctrines of Jesus Christ. (From the Good Samaritan Charter of Incorporation) Library News Several Prayer Group Yada Yada books of fiction have been donated by Mary Ann Clark, including the following: Novel of the Year-Party Edition containing celebrations and recipes; Yada Yada Gets Down, Yada Yada Gets Caught, Yada Yada Gets Decked Out, Yada Yada Gets Rolling, and Yada Yada Gets Tough. The paperback Shepherd s Notes on I and II Thessalonians, Hebrews and James have also been given to the Library. Thanks for returning books that have been missing. Sisters of Faith Spring Bazaar The Sisters of Faith will be hosting a Craft Bazaar on Saturday, April 9, to be held in the main fellowship hall of our church. All crafts must be handmade by the vendor. The cost for one 6 foot table is $25. Pottery and Jewelry categories are filled. To allow us to have a variety of crafts, we cannot take any more applications for these categories. If you re interested in participating, please contact either Tami Moore at or Jeri Jones at All money raised will be used for local missions.

6 6 RECENT HAPPENINGS The Sisters of Faith made a special visit to Four Oaks Health Care Center to hand out Valentine balloons and share love with the residents. Members of our Youth group enjoying their annual Super Bowl Party at the home of Kent and Dana Walker Terry and friends leading a fun sing-a-long at the Fifth Sunday night dinner in January

7 7 Yarn with a Purpose Our Yarn with a Purpose group had busy hands in January 47 small red hats were donated to local hospitals in time for Valentine s Day! In addition, 32 different colored hats were delivered to either Niswonger or Haven of Mercy. Our group is expanding to other creative avenues to help Niswonger Children s Hospital by sewing small doll hospital gowns, blankets and pouches for monitors. If you can help, please talk to Wanda Hill or Janet Bridwell. JAMA Item for MARCH Toiletry Items Please give generously to Jonesborough Area Ministerial Association. Jonesborough United Methodist Church PO Box 115, Jonesborough, TN 37659