The Messenger Toulon United Methodist

Transcription

1 January 2018 A Note from the Pastor Come and Follow? or Go and Serve? As I was thinking about what to write this month I got to thinking about what Jesus said to the various people he encountered. To some he said, Come and follow me, because they needed to spend some time learning from him, such as the new apostles or the rich young ruler; to others he said, Go and do this or that, depending on what their particular task was. And that got me thinking -- do we as the church send people out to serve before they are ready? Do we say to people, Go and serve before they have come and followed? I think the answer is yes and that is why so many of our ministries fail and so many people get burned out and fall away from the church! Not everyone is ready to go and preach or go and make disciples. Not everyone is ready to go and serve. When we send people out to witness and serve before they are ready we are setting them up for frustration and failure. We must make sure that everyone has spent time learning from Jesus and His Word before we send them out to serve. Come and follow me precedes go and make disciples. I think too much effort has been spent on sending and not enough on preparing. Until our members have a deep, personal relationship with Jesus Christ, and His Word is firming implanted in their hearts, they are not ready to go and make disciples!! Every member should be spending time with Jesus on a daily basis! Every member needs to be reading God s Word and asking Jesus where they need to by Rev. Sidney Davis, Jr. grow and change. Every member needs to be in involved in a Sunday School class or Bible study for the purpose of learning -- and not just socialization! And after our members have spent time learning and growing through spending time with Jesus and His Word, then and only then should we encourage them to listen for God s go! And it should be God s go and not ours! I feel the church should help equip our members to hear God s voice and respond to His calling on their life. When a church member hears the clear call of God on their life we should do everything we can to encourage and support them in fulfilling that call -- whether that call is to go and preach or go and make disciples or go and sin no more. Now does that mean we can t give a cup of cold water to a thirsty person or a loaf of bread to a hungry person while we are waiting for God s GO? Of course not! God expects us to show love and compassion to others at all times! All I am trying to say is that we should not push people into ministry before they are ready. Jesus didn t start his ministry until He was fully prepared! Elisha didn t start his ministry until Elijah s mantle was passed down to him. And we shouldn t push church members to start their ministries until the Lord has finished preparing them! So where are you on your walk with the Lord? Do you need to hear, Come and follow me, or are you ready to go and make disciples? I want you to know I am here to help you with which ever command you hear! So listen to the voice of God allow Him to speak to you! The Messenger Toulon United Methodist

2 Update Men s Accountability Group 7 p.m. Tuesday evening in the Ministry House (108 N. Henderson St.). Young Women s Study Group January 9th Kick-off Supper (details tba) Jan. 16th beginning our new study at 7 p.m. Tuesday evenings in the chapel. Mid-Week Bible Study 1 p.m. Wednesday afternoon at Pat Brown s house (506 W. Main Street). Studying the book of Esther! Rachel Circle Women's Group 7 p.m. on Thursdays at Melanie Boudreau s house (1015 Tonti Rd.). Resuming mid to late January -- watch the Sunday Bulletin for details. 31 Women s Ministry Re-organizational meeting Jan. 11th at 6:30 p.m. at our church Youth News by Elizabeth West emm.west17@gmail.com To kick off this month we will be watching an episode from the Bible. It will be the one where Jesus is being born to celebrate his belated birthday. Then we will continue our study session on the youversion bible called God is We will also discuss our outing for January. Toulon United Methodist Youth Fellowship is open to all Jr. & Sr. High age youth. Please contact Elizabeth for meeting dates and times ( ). January Lunch Bunch details are pending. Please watch your Sunday Bulletin for complete information! Are you interested in starting a small group ministry in your home or at the church? If so, please talk with Pastor Sid and share your idea for a Bible study / Christian study group, or other type of Christian small group Toulon UMC Directories are now available for you to pick up at the church! The church office will be closed January 15th in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

3 Treasurer s Report (November 2017) Bonnie Schmidt, Church Treasurer General Operating Fund Beginning Balance $ 1, Offerings/Income $ 11, Expenses $ 12, Ending Balance (12/1) $ Apportionments Owed $ 11, Paid from Pooled Funds $ 4, Our 2018 Budget Our 2018 Church Budget is a FAITH BUDGET! We know that this budget represents an increase over our 2017 Church Budget, but we feel the Lord wants us to expand our ministry and not shrink back in fear! Our 2018 Budget is the minimum amount we need to support our ministry to God in this community. How much you give is between you and God. The Bible tells us we should tithe -- give 10%. If you feel you cannot tithe at this time due to extenuating circumstances, then give a certain percent of your income. Be honest with yourself and with God. Prayerfully consider what you can do, and then do your best. Please consider increasing your 2018 giving by $5/wk over your 2017 giving! Example: If you gave $100/week in 2017, please consider giving $105/week in 2018 If everyone gives just $5/week more than 2017 we will be able to fully fund our 2018 budget! If you can increase your giving more than $5 you will help make up for those who cannot! Young Women s Study Group Our Young Women s Study Group will resume January 9th with a kick-off supper (time and place to be announced) at which time our new study book will be distributed to those who are participating in our study. Then on January 16th at 7:00 p.m. we will begin our weekly study in the chapel. We will be reading and discussing Lysa TerKeurst's book, "Uninvited". If you would like to join this group and be part of this study, please talk with Megan Lane by Jan. 7th. (Call ) Thank You Dear Toulon UMC family, All of us at the Stark County Food Pantry want to thank you for your generous support throughout We could not exist without the support of our community. We are grateful for your support! --Bonnie Schmidt Thank You Jamie and I wish to thank everyone for the Christmas cards and gifts you shared with our family this Christmas. Your thoughtfulness and generosity touched our hearts. It is a joy to serve such a loving congregation! Thank you for all you do for us! --Pastor Sid 3

4 The Messenger 4 Sunday School Update Thanks to all who shared their talents and messages for the Christmas Program! It was enjoyed by all! Hopefully these messages resonated with you during the Christmas season and will continue to speak to you as we start the new year. Regular Sunday school classes have resumed. IF you re not already plugged into a Sunday school class please get involved in one! Several of the classes will be starting new materials as we head into January. Nursery care is available too. Here are some photos from this year s Sunday School Christmas Program...

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6 6 Weekly Calendar of Events Day Time Weekly Event Sun. 9:15 a.m. - Sunday School. 10:30 a.m. - Worship. Tues. 7:00 p.m. - Men s Group; meets in the Ministry House. 7:00 p.m. - Young Women s Group; see pg. 3 for details. Wed. 1:00 p.m. - Bible Study at Pat Brown s house (506 W. Main St.). 6:30 p.m. - Choir Practice. 7:15 p.m. - Praise Team Practice. Thur. 6:30 p.m Women s Ministry; subject to change; see pg. 2. 7:00 p.m. - Rachel Circle; resume date to be announced. Other Events in January Date Time Event 1 - New Year s Day; office closed. 6 - Epiphany! 8 8:30 a.m. - Clergy Group at our church. 9 evening - Women s Club possibly meeting at our church. 10 7:15 p.m. - Trustees meeting in the chapel. 11 1:00 p.m. - Stark County Ministers meeting at One Eleven Coffee Martin Luther King Jr. Day; office closed :15 p.m. - Lunch Bunch at??? 27 10:00 a.m. - A Way Forward conversation at E. Moline Christ UMC noon - Covenant Keepers clergy meeting begins in O Fallon. This calendar of events is subject to change. Birthdays & Anniversaries January Birthdays 1 Amy Milroy 3 Vicki Giesenhagen 7 Brandon Shults 8 Barb Ely; Erin Price; Sue Anderson 9 Ashley Davis; Brandon Appenheimer; Tristan Gerber; Chandler Colgan 10 Amy (McMillen) Patterson 11 Traci Shults 12 Sid Davis 13 Dian Whittaker; Jenna Leigh Dean 14 Betty Franklin 15 Roger Sornberger 18 Libby Mowers-Simon 22 Ashlyn Smith 24 Carolyn McMillen 26 Cindy Appenheimer 27 Tom Boudreau 28 Chad Dean 29 Nathan Lane; Sidney Davis, Sr. January Anniversaries 3 Dave & Sue Mowers (1981) Sunday January 14th is Human Relations Day

7 Remember Our Shut-Ins Toulon Health Care Center 700 E. Main St., Toulon, IL Laura Schroeder Gert Appenheimer Kewanee Care Nursing Home 144 S Jr Ave, Kewanee IL Imogene Blair Royal Oaks Care Center 605 E. Church St., Kewanee IL Lisa Ellis Kewanee Courtyard Village 860 Sunset Dr., Kewanee IL Bud Blair Apt. 103 Sid & Lois Davis Apt. 204 Bill Jones Apt. 304 Heritage Health Care Center, Normal 509 N. Adelaide St., Normal IL June McMillen At Home: Ardelle Giesenhagen 309/ E Greenwood, PO Box 85, Toulon Kenny Richardson 309/ E. Clinton, Toulon Marge Mowers 309/ N. Henderson, Toulon Is there a church member you know who should be on our Shut-In and Nursing Home list? Sometimes we miss people so please let Pastor Sid know so they can be added to our list. Thank you! In Our Prayers Cristin Wilson s family (brother died on Christmas); Noah Ellis (moved to Kindred Hospital in Peoria); Jim Howell; Vicki Moutoux; Patty (cancer); Doug Mabberly; Kathryn Wilkinson; Rebecca (in Michigan; cancer); all of our sick and shut-ins; our military members and their families; those who suffered loss recently; those facing marriage problems; and IF: Toulon 2018 Is Coming! Ladies save the date for IF: Toulon 2018! Saturday March 10, This will be a day full of inspirational messages, small group discussions, praise and worship, and fun! Plan now! Speakers are recorded live at IF: Austin and include Christine Kane ( Unashamed ) and Priscilla Shire ( War Room )! More speakers to be announced Newsletter Sponsorships Available 2018 is here and with the new year is an opportunity for you to sponsor the newsletter in honor or memory of your loved ones. The cost is only $50 per month and most months are still available for your selection. Please let Pastor Sid know as soon as possible which month or months you wish to sponsor the newsletter. Ushers for January 2018 Mary Streitmatter and helper 7

8 Toulon United Methodist Church 229 W. Main St., P.O. Box 538 Toulon, IL ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED Non-Profit Organization U.S. Postage PAID Toulon, IL Permit #2 (Put Address Label Here!) 8 The Messenger Published by: Toulon United Methodist Church 229 W. Main St., P.O. Box 538 Toulon, IL Phone: (309) mail@toulonumc.org Website: Published to keep the members and friends of Toulon United Methodist Church informed about its ministry within the world community. Deadline for article submission is the 20th of each month. Please consider "sponsoring" a particular month by covering the mailing cost for that month. Sponsorship is $50 per month. This month s newsletter is sponsored by an anonymous friend! Thank You!!