Come experience the true meaning of Christmas at Peoples Church. All are welcome!
Sat 12/1 Coastal Christmas Fair 9am-2pm
Sun 12/2 Hanging of the Greens 6pm
Mon 12/3, 12/10, 12/17 Weekly Advent Study 2pm
Wed 12/5, 12/12, 12/19 Weekly Advent Prayer Service 7pm
Sun 12/16 Christmas Caroling Party 6pm
Sat 12/22 Christmas Pageant Dress Rehearsal and Party (details to follow)
Sun 12/23 Christmas Pageant 10:30am
Mon 12/24 Candlelight Christmas Eve Worship 7pm
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
Coastal Christmas Fair Sat 12/1 9am-2pm
Submitted by Susan Angell
This Saturday, Peoples will host an amazing Coastal Christmas Fair. Set up will be Friday afternoon and evening. Doreen Gay provided us with a great floor plan on set up of tables. Donations of baked items, candy, knitted/crochet/sewn items and other crafts, trash and treasure and the like are all welcomed. Good food is being served from our kitchen. Some strong fellows have come forth and volunteered to help us as a clean up crew and boy are we grateful and more would be welcomed.. Oh, it is going to be fun! Bring your Christmas list, shop and eat and browse.
This Saturday, Peoples will host an amazing Coastal Christmas Fair. Set up will be Friday afternoon and evening. Doreen Gay provided us with a great floor plan on set up of tables. Donations of baked items, candy, knitted/crochet/sewn items and other crafts, trash and treasure and the like are all welcomed. Good food is being served from our kitchen. Some strong fellows have come forth and volunteered to help us as a clean up crew and boy are we grateful and more would be welcomed.. Oh, it is going to be fun! Bring your Christmas list, shop and eat and browse.
Bell Choir Ringers Needed!
Anyone interested in ringing bells in the bell choir please contact Becky Snoddy or Doug Greer. If there are enough folks we will be blessed with bells during the Christmas Eve worship service!
Advent Prayer Service Wednesdays 7pm
The weekly prayer service held in the Vestry Wednesdays at 7pm is being led by the pastors during Advent. This time will provide an opportunity for Advent devotion and prayer, which includes praying over all of the prayer cards from the previous Sunday. During this hectic season as we rush around in preparation for the holidays, this is a chance to focus our attention on the true meaning of Christmas, and to prepare to experience anew the Advent of our Savior.
Christmas Caroling Party
The pastors will be hosting the annual Christmas caroling party on Sunday, December 16 at 6pm. We will go out caroling in the church neighborhood and then come back to the house for some festive goodies. Meet at the pastors’ home at 154 Mussey Street (next to the church). Please dress warmly and bring your flashlight. All ages welcome.
Christmas Pageant December 23!
The Sunday School is rehearsing for a Christmas Pageant to be presented by the kids during worship on Sunday, December 23. Please come and show your support! All Sunday School children should plan to attend the Dress Rehearsal on December 22 – details to follow.
Christmas Gifts for our Babies
Submitted by Betsy Morrison
It is answered prayer that we have such a growing Nursery and Sunday School and to hear an increase of young chatter in our church. This growth, combined with shifts in the ages of our Nursery and Sunday School, has us in need of toys for our nursery that are appropriate for ages 0-2 year olds. It has been a number of years since our toys have been replenished. Please consider giving a gift to our Nursery this Christmas. If you are unsure what to give, Peoples Church is registered at both Toys ‘R Us and Babies ‘R Us. The website is toysrus.com Our registry number is #69301283 and we are registered under: Last name: Methodist, First name: Peoples. Please contact Betsy Morrison 767-6063 with any questions. Thank you for supporting our youngest Peoples people.
It is answered prayer that we have such a growing Nursery and Sunday School and to hear an increase of young chatter in our church. This growth, combined with shifts in the ages of our Nursery and Sunday School, has us in need of toys for our nursery that are appropriate for ages 0-2 year olds. It has been a number of years since our toys have been replenished. Please consider giving a gift to our Nursery this Christmas. If you are unsure what to give, Peoples Church is registered at both Toys ‘R Us and Babies ‘R Us. The website is toysrus.com Our registry number is #69301283 and we are registered under: Last name: Methodist, First name: Peoples. Please contact Betsy Morrison 767-6063 with any questions. Thank you for supporting our youngest Peoples people.
Joyful Stewardship Month
We experienced “Joyful Stewardship” during the month of November! This included a four-part sermon series on joyful worship, joyful learning, joyful sharing and joyful sharing, with worship services surrounding these themes. Many times we only think of stewardship as money, but we are stewards, or caretakers, of all of God’s gifts. Within the church in particular, we are stewards together of Christ’s Body. This was our focus in November, which also included stewardship witnesses who spoke about their experiences. These included Ellen Dunn, Andy Folley, Belle Graney, Susan Angell and Betty Lane. Thanks to all these folks for their willingness to share the blessings they’ve experienced as stewards of God’s gifts, and especially to Susan Angell who worked on the stewardship program this year with Pastor Gwyneth. We would love to hear your thoughts.
Keep Those Pledges Coming In!
The Financial Secretary, Keith Snoddy reports that there are 20 pledges in so far, which is about half what we had for 2007. If you are intending to pledge for 2008, please let Keith know soon. Thank you!
Why does the church encourage pledging rather than just offering our gifts each week? Some might answer that it’s good business. And it is, and we certainly look at our budget forecast in light of expected income for the year as good stewards of our resources. But an even better reason to pledge is that the church is not a business but God’s family. As family members we do what’s best for our family even when that means personal sacrifice.
However, the greatest reason to pledge is that it helps us grow as Christians because it involves much more trust in the Lord. Pledging involves catching up on our gifts even when we are unable to attend worship. Pledging involves setting aside a portion of our income in advance and dedicating it to the Lord because we are loved and want to return that love. Pledging involves doing all of this when we don’t know what we may need to sacrifice buying in order to remain faithful to our pledge. Pledging takes a leap of faith. But when we are faithful to the Lord, we will find ourselves in his arms on the other side, and know ourselves blessed many times over.
Why does the church encourage pledging rather than just offering our gifts each week? Some might answer that it’s good business. And it is, and we certainly look at our budget forecast in light of expected income for the year as good stewards of our resources. But an even better reason to pledge is that the church is not a business but God’s family. As family members we do what’s best for our family even when that means personal sacrifice.
However, the greatest reason to pledge is that it helps us grow as Christians because it involves much more trust in the Lord. Pledging involves catching up on our gifts even when we are unable to attend worship. Pledging involves setting aside a portion of our income in advance and dedicating it to the Lord because we are loved and want to return that love. Pledging involves doing all of this when we don’t know what we may need to sacrifice buying in order to remain faithful to our pledge. Pledging takes a leap of faith. But when we are faithful to the Lord, we will find ourselves in his arms on the other side, and know ourselves blessed many times over.
Financial Presentation
Do financial spreadsheets make your eyes cross? Does the word “budget” seem to put you to sleep? Then this presentation is for you! Keith Snoddy, Financial Secretary, will be presenting our church financial situation with easy-to-understand charts, graphics and photos. December 9 after church. The 2008 budget will be voted on during the December 11 Church Council meeting.
Church Conference
The annual church conference is scheduled for Tuesday December 18 at 7pm. We will be voting on some important issues such as pastors compensation, and then will hear an exciting presentation by our District Superintendent on “Warming up our Welcome” for visitors. All are welcome to attend, and members strongly encouraged to attend! If you would like to attend but would prefer not to drive at night, please contact Chris Ward at 767-2516 and she can help arrange someone to pick you up.
Advent Study
All are invited to attend any or all of the Advent study on Mondays at 2pm through December 17 at the home of Ruth McLellan. We are using a text entitled, “Devotional Classics” from Renovaré. Please obtain materials from Pastor Gwyneth.
Worship Team and Choir Rehearsal
All who sing (or used to sing but it’s been a while), play an instrument, or are otherwise interested in music ministry at Peoples, are welcome to attend a weekly worship team rehearsal on Thursdays at 7pm, led by Pastor Jamie. Music will be selected and rehearsed for Sunday as well as upcoming weeks. Come on out!
Music Director Search
The church has not yet found a suitable candidate to serve as music director. We are filling in from the variety of gifts from our congregation along with some recordings and videos. As we continue the search, we ask for your prayers, your suggestions and your musical gifts during the coming weeks. Thank you!
Visitor Ministries
Becky Snoddy, Linda Wade and others within and outside of the Worship Committee have taken on the project of thinking through how we might more effectively welcome and follow up with visitors. Linda has ordered Peoples Church mugs to give to visitors as a welcome gift, and they are in the back of the Sanctuary. Please check them out, and help give them out to any first time visitors you meet! Linda will also be taking on more of the visitor contact ministry done by the pastors, which involves writing notes after each Sunday. If you have ideas, suggestions, or would like to be involved in visitor ministries, please contact Becky or Linda.
Monday, November 26, 2007
Blue Christmas Service 12/21 Thornton Hgts 7pm
This is a special service on the darkest night to remember that all emotions are present during the Christmas season. We can worship our savior from the midst of both joy and pain for Jesus loves us just as we are. Whether you find this a dark time of year or a bright one, come as you are and find the light of Christ and the love of our church community. Sponsored by the Casco Bay Cluster.
Tuesday, November 20, 2007
E3 a Success
Nine folks attended this conference event, E3: Equip Empower Evangelize from Peoples! And Susan Angell graciously served in the nursery. The following is a summary of Art's full article which is found below.
Bill Kemp opened up the conference with a sermon on Ezekiel's Dry Bones. The United Methodist Church has many issues today, and needs the new life of God's Spirit to make these bones live again! Art Tordoff attended a seminar on Communication - within the church and to the community. Pastor Karen Munson advised the group on how best to use newsletters, websites, blogs, email, and also how to establish a relationship with the press to get the church's name into the public domain.
Bill Kemp opened up the conference with a sermon on Ezekiel's Dry Bones. The United Methodist Church has many issues today, and needs the new life of God's Spirit to make these bones live again! Art Tordoff attended a seminar on Communication - within the church and to the community. Pastor Karen Munson advised the group on how best to use newsletters, websites, blogs, email, and also how to establish a relationship with the press to get the church's name into the public domain.
Art also attended a seminar on small membership churches, which revealed that since most United Methodist Churches are small (78% are less than 125 in membership within the USA) that we need to use the strengths inherent in a small church to grow the church. Reasons given for failure to grow included poor leadership, low spiritual passion, poor structures, lack of passionate worship, dead meetings, lack of missional clarity and failure to deal with conflict.
Earle Harvey attended a seminar on "The Agile Church: "Creating a Congregation geared for change" and "Passionate Spirituality for a Cold Climate, Resurrecting the Lifeless Congregation". Earle found that spiritual passion is the fuel that keeps a congregation active and excited about the faith that it has to share with the world.
Principal speaker Vance Ross, gave a dynamic presentation on the love of Christ for us and sharing this love with our neighbors. This was followed by a lively concert by Marty Magehee, former member of the 4-Him Christian rock band. The evening was topped off with a musical concert that featured Marty Magehee, former member of the 4Him Christian Rock Band. Most if not all of the music he played was of his own design. Marty displayed a singing range of several octaves. Periodically he would pause while changing his music and give brief sermonettes about where the Lord Christ was in his life and how he came to love the Lord.
Earle concludes his remarks with the following words: The revival at Beech Ridge Speedway and the E3 Conference have given us tools to go forth into our neighborhoods to share Christ’s message of love and redemption. Our church can accommodate about three times the number of people currently attending on a Sunday morning service without the need to expand the facility. The immediate area has over two thousand families that offer an opportunity to visit them to invite them to come and share in worship. We need to pray for God’s guidance as we prepare to visit these families. Most importantly, we need to respond to the leading of the Holy Spirit and obey the call to serve.
Saturday, November 10, 2007
Variety Show 2007!
Peoples put on a fantastic variety show on November 10! The show raised about $400 as a mission for Heifer International. From classic comedy by Caleb to classic rock by the ushers, and everything in between, a good time was had by all, with great food and great entertainment. Let's do it again soon!
VIDEOS ...
The Ushers Singing "Lean on Him"
Caleb's Skit About His Little Brother
Thursday, November 01, 2007
E3 a Success (Full Article)
E3: 3 Days Packed with Optimism and Faith In The Future of Methodism
Not many folks from our church seemed to look at the opportunity to get together with other Methodists near home with any excitement. Even with only two weeks to go only a few folks had registered in advance to attend any portion of the E 3 conference that was held at Woodfords Congregational Church from November 1-3. Some may even have thought it was ironic that a Methodist Conference was held at a Congregational Church. Rarely in recent years has it been that a major event in the Methodist Church was even held in the Portland area. While the New England Conference made it possible for local area folks to attend and to learn from some really outstanding speakers it appeared there were more people in attendance from "away" than those from the local area. It was announced that of the three School of Congregational Development conferences that have been held that the number of registrants at this event far surpassed those of the previous two.
As a result of some well-placed telephone calls, Peoples attendance at the event was at least representative. As those who attended would agree, everyone learned something that they felt would be useful back home.
This accounting of the events of E3 has been primarily written with the opinion, eyes and ears of only one person, myself Art Tordoff with assistance from my wife, Marlene. I would encourage others who attended the conference to either add to this accounting or add it as a Comment attached in the proper location at the end of the article. I would say that I had not been to a conference for a long time that had as much meaning as this event, especially in the realm of church worship and activity. You will find thoughts on this conference from Earle Harvey, our lay leader as part of this report.
Thursday night with music, song and a powerful message
The Thursday night activities were held in the sanctuary and began with some rousing revival music played by Mitch Thomas on the piano. He serves as a music leader at the Auburn United Methodist Church. Lyrics for all of the music was displayed on a large screen in the chancel. Those present experienced community singing with gusto! This community singing was followed by music played by a Praise Band from Concord, New Hampshire. Bishop Weaver was scheduled to speak. Unfortunately his mother in law had passed away and he was not able to be present.
Bill Kemp ably filled in for the Bishop. Bill spoke on the subject of Ezekial’s Dry Bones.
The feeling for many is that is where many United Methodist Churches are today. Our organization in many local churches seems to be suffering. The number of members is much reduced from the past, financial need is ever present, and we are slow to respond to the changing needs of the culture that we live in. Many folks who have felt the strains of leadership for years unfortunately experience "burn out". Often the workers of the local church often negatively respond to elements of life in the church as well as the greater community. Pastor. Kemp went on to say that if we can identify the issues we have it gives us many areas that we can focus on. It seemed to me that those items identified can become the focus of a local church in order to put the separated "dry bones" back together again. Change is necessary, but that change needs to be calculated in order to keep everyone, young and old, long term member/no term member nurtured and willing to serve the Lord. The Lord’s Spirit is ever with us and we can call on him to be our ever-present guide. As the title of a Gospel song that was sung by Gospel Choir from Patterson, New Jersey we are "Never Alone".
Friday continues with a lively spirit
Quite satisfied and uplifted by Thursday night’s program, we came back again on Friday afternoon. Marlene and I had signed up to attend a session at 2:30 with Pastor Karen Munson from the Readfield United Methodist Church. When we arrived we found that the session had already started. 40 people were in the room and finding new ways to "Communicate with each other and the Community". Talk about Newsletters, Web sites, Blog Spots and e-mail took up a great deal of the time. Among the words that Pastor Munson had to offer were that God, Christ and Holy Spirit should be present in any messages that a church sends out. She mentioned that should also be the case when you have an answering machine that is used for recording the messages of those who call. Websites are more often the location to which an inquiry will go and should be updated frequently and made user friendly. She recommended that the pastor of a given church try to put out an e-mail message at least once a week to as many folks as possible. She suggested that it doesn’t have to be long, considering that people more often are looking for "reading bytes" rather than long dissertations. Keeping in contact with people who are "away" from the church such as college students is important. Something beyond the newsletter may be part of a continuing program of care. She said that some churches have set up Bible study through a chat room rather than the contact that can be gained from face to face meetings—although that form of study should not be discouraged either. I don’t think that chat rooms can really replace face to face contact although it is an alternative providing your members do have computers.
Pastor Munson did continue to say that the local church does need to nurture the local press as well. Most local papers are today looking for "good news" that could be Good News.
After a brief break and we were off to another session titled, "Holy Places, Small Places". Thinking that this session led by Bill Kemp would speak perhaps to new worship ideas we soon found that the session focused on the small church especially in the Methodist system. A chart that he passed out showed that 78% of the churches in the Methodist system nationwide are smaller than 125 in membership. The chart also showed that only 20% were midsize with membership between 126-499. The remaining 2% of Methodist churches nationally might be listed as Mega-churches. This session focused on the strength of the system being in small churches. He went on to say that the number 52 is actually normal. He also said, however, that many of these "normal" churches are without a full-time ordained pastor, without a choir that sings four parts and most normal churches then would benefit from sharing program resources with adjacent churches ie. the four South Portland United Methodist Churches. He also said that today’s culture does not really value membership, distrusts organizational hierarchy and thinks that relationships are more important than truth. It is not unusual for people to go to different churches today for different purposes while still maintaining a degree of membership perhaps in the church they originally joined. Some folks when asked about maintaining their membership at Peoples have said, "I need a church to be buried from." Sounds rather trite, but that is an attitude of many. Pastor Kemp went on to say that the ladder that many pastors, in a human sense, expected to climb is no longer available for most although being itinerant is still a part of the Methodist pastorate. He also said that every church has a bottleneck that must be overcome. Among those difficulties in a given church he suggested were the following: 1. Inappropriate leadership 2. Failure to appreciate giftedness 3. Low spiritual passion 4. Poor structures 5. Non-indigenous worship 6. Dead meetings 7. Lack of missional clarity 8. Failure to deal with conflict
Bill Kemp is an author of several books, one of which gave its title to this particular session theme. Pastor Kemp has been on the staff of Bangor Theological Seminary and is presently serving as an interim pastor in the Pittsburgh, Pa. area.
The principal speaker on Friday night was Vance Ross who presently serves as the Associate General Secretary of the Discipleship Ministries Division of the General Board of Discipleship of the United Methodist Church. All, I can say about his presentation was WOW! Dynamic, dramatic and powerful are all words that describe his presentation and message. The center of his presentation was the Love of Christ for us and the need we have to share that love with our neighbors in the way that we are loved by the Lord. Neighbors can be as close as next door and as far away as the other side of the planet. We need to practice what we believe as Christians and as United Methodists. Dr. Ross could make his point in a whisper as well as at the top of his lungs. Over 300 people were in attendance at this session.
The evening was topped off with a musical concert that featured Marty Magehee, former member of the 4Him Christian Rock Band. Most if not all of the music he played was of his own design. Marty displayed a singing range of several octaves. Periodically he would pause while changing his music and give brief sermonettes about where the Lord Christ was in his life and how he came to love the Lord. Some folks left after a few songs yet the message he came to give was not finished until the concert was over.
This had been a long day, but a rewarding day, a day that we were grateful to the Lord for providing us.
The following are some impressions that Earle Harvey passed on for inclusion in this report from his perspective. Earle attended a workshop titled, "The Agile Church: Creating a Congregation geared for change". From this workshop Earle said the normal church will remain passive until some action is taken to change thinking. To accomplish this there must be an influx if ideas accompanied usually by new people.
In a second workshop, "Passionate Spirituality for a Cold Climate, Resurrecting the Lifeless Congregation", Earle found that spiritual passion is the fuel that keeps a congregation active and excited about the faith that it has to share with the world. Without spiritual passion a church, no matter what its size will either crash and burn or become a hollow shell of its former glory.
Earle’s third workshop, titled " Holy Places, Small Spaces," has been referred to previously in this report, but serves as a good review from his perspective. Seventy eight percent of United Methodist churches have under 125 that regularly attend worship. Many small churches are small because they will not take steps to reach out to their community in order to grow.
Earle concludes his remarks with the following words. The revival at Beech Ridge Speedway and the E3 Conference have given us tools to go forth into our neighborhoods to share Christ’s message of love and redemption. Our church can accommodate about three times the number of people currently attending on a Sunday morning service without the need to expand the facility. The immediate area has over two thousand families that offer an opportunity to visit them to invite them to come and share in worship.
We need to pray for God’s guidance as we prepare to visit these families. Next we have to have faith that God already has a plan for us to follow. From the past we have trusted that his plan will glorify his kingdom. Most importantly, we need to respond to the leading of the Holy Spirit and obey the call to serve. Jesus calls us to go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.
We should pray that we have the courage of our convictions so that under the guidance of the Holy Spirit we may build in 2008 on the foundation started in 2007.
Not many folks from our church seemed to look at the opportunity to get together with other Methodists near home with any excitement. Even with only two weeks to go only a few folks had registered in advance to attend any portion of the E 3 conference that was held at Woodfords Congregational Church from November 1-3. Some may even have thought it was ironic that a Methodist Conference was held at a Congregational Church. Rarely in recent years has it been that a major event in the Methodist Church was even held in the Portland area. While the New England Conference made it possible for local area folks to attend and to learn from some really outstanding speakers it appeared there were more people in attendance from "away" than those from the local area. It was announced that of the three School of Congregational Development conferences that have been held that the number of registrants at this event far surpassed those of the previous two.
As a result of some well-placed telephone calls, Peoples attendance at the event was at least representative. As those who attended would agree, everyone learned something that they felt would be useful back home.
This accounting of the events of E3 has been primarily written with the opinion, eyes and ears of only one person, myself Art Tordoff with assistance from my wife, Marlene. I would encourage others who attended the conference to either add to this accounting or add it as a Comment attached in the proper location at the end of the article. I would say that I had not been to a conference for a long time that had as much meaning as this event, especially in the realm of church worship and activity. You will find thoughts on this conference from Earle Harvey, our lay leader as part of this report.
Thursday night with music, song and a powerful message
The Thursday night activities were held in the sanctuary and began with some rousing revival music played by Mitch Thomas on the piano. He serves as a music leader at the Auburn United Methodist Church. Lyrics for all of the music was displayed on a large screen in the chancel. Those present experienced community singing with gusto! This community singing was followed by music played by a Praise Band from Concord, New Hampshire. Bishop Weaver was scheduled to speak. Unfortunately his mother in law had passed away and he was not able to be present.
Bill Kemp ably filled in for the Bishop. Bill spoke on the subject of Ezekial’s Dry Bones.
The feeling for many is that is where many United Methodist Churches are today. Our organization in many local churches seems to be suffering. The number of members is much reduced from the past, financial need is ever present, and we are slow to respond to the changing needs of the culture that we live in. Many folks who have felt the strains of leadership for years unfortunately experience "burn out". Often the workers of the local church often negatively respond to elements of life in the church as well as the greater community. Pastor. Kemp went on to say that if we can identify the issues we have it gives us many areas that we can focus on. It seemed to me that those items identified can become the focus of a local church in order to put the separated "dry bones" back together again. Change is necessary, but that change needs to be calculated in order to keep everyone, young and old, long term member/no term member nurtured and willing to serve the Lord. The Lord’s Spirit is ever with us and we can call on him to be our ever-present guide. As the title of a Gospel song that was sung by Gospel Choir from Patterson, New Jersey we are "Never Alone".
Friday continues with a lively spirit
Quite satisfied and uplifted by Thursday night’s program, we came back again on Friday afternoon. Marlene and I had signed up to attend a session at 2:30 with Pastor Karen Munson from the Readfield United Methodist Church. When we arrived we found that the session had already started. 40 people were in the room and finding new ways to "Communicate with each other and the Community". Talk about Newsletters, Web sites, Blog Spots and e-mail took up a great deal of the time. Among the words that Pastor Munson had to offer were that God, Christ and Holy Spirit should be present in any messages that a church sends out. She mentioned that should also be the case when you have an answering machine that is used for recording the messages of those who call. Websites are more often the location to which an inquiry will go and should be updated frequently and made user friendly. She recommended that the pastor of a given church try to put out an e-mail message at least once a week to as many folks as possible. She suggested that it doesn’t have to be long, considering that people more often are looking for "reading bytes" rather than long dissertations. Keeping in contact with people who are "away" from the church such as college students is important. Something beyond the newsletter may be part of a continuing program of care. She said that some churches have set up Bible study through a chat room rather than the contact that can be gained from face to face meetings—although that form of study should not be discouraged either. I don’t think that chat rooms can really replace face to face contact although it is an alternative providing your members do have computers.
Pastor Munson did continue to say that the local church does need to nurture the local press as well. Most local papers are today looking for "good news" that could be Good News.
After a brief break and we were off to another session titled, "Holy Places, Small Places". Thinking that this session led by Bill Kemp would speak perhaps to new worship ideas we soon found that the session focused on the small church especially in the Methodist system. A chart that he passed out showed that 78% of the churches in the Methodist system nationwide are smaller than 125 in membership. The chart also showed that only 20% were midsize with membership between 126-499. The remaining 2% of Methodist churches nationally might be listed as Mega-churches. This session focused on the strength of the system being in small churches. He went on to say that the number 52 is actually normal. He also said, however, that many of these "normal" churches are without a full-time ordained pastor, without a choir that sings four parts and most normal churches then would benefit from sharing program resources with adjacent churches ie. the four South Portland United Methodist Churches. He also said that today’s culture does not really value membership, distrusts organizational hierarchy and thinks that relationships are more important than truth. It is not unusual for people to go to different churches today for different purposes while still maintaining a degree of membership perhaps in the church they originally joined. Some folks when asked about maintaining their membership at Peoples have said, "I need a church to be buried from." Sounds rather trite, but that is an attitude of many. Pastor Kemp went on to say that the ladder that many pastors, in a human sense, expected to climb is no longer available for most although being itinerant is still a part of the Methodist pastorate. He also said that every church has a bottleneck that must be overcome. Among those difficulties in a given church he suggested were the following: 1. Inappropriate leadership 2. Failure to appreciate giftedness 3. Low spiritual passion 4. Poor structures 5. Non-indigenous worship 6. Dead meetings 7. Lack of missional clarity 8. Failure to deal with conflict
Bill Kemp is an author of several books, one of which gave its title to this particular session theme. Pastor Kemp has been on the staff of Bangor Theological Seminary and is presently serving as an interim pastor in the Pittsburgh, Pa. area.
The principal speaker on Friday night was Vance Ross who presently serves as the Associate General Secretary of the Discipleship Ministries Division of the General Board of Discipleship of the United Methodist Church. All, I can say about his presentation was WOW! Dynamic, dramatic and powerful are all words that describe his presentation and message. The center of his presentation was the Love of Christ for us and the need we have to share that love with our neighbors in the way that we are loved by the Lord. Neighbors can be as close as next door and as far away as the other side of the planet. We need to practice what we believe as Christians and as United Methodists. Dr. Ross could make his point in a whisper as well as at the top of his lungs. Over 300 people were in attendance at this session.
The evening was topped off with a musical concert that featured Marty Magehee, former member of the 4Him Christian Rock Band. Most if not all of the music he played was of his own design. Marty displayed a singing range of several octaves. Periodically he would pause while changing his music and give brief sermonettes about where the Lord Christ was in his life and how he came to love the Lord. Some folks left after a few songs yet the message he came to give was not finished until the concert was over.
This had been a long day, but a rewarding day, a day that we were grateful to the Lord for providing us.
The following are some impressions that Earle Harvey passed on for inclusion in this report from his perspective. Earle attended a workshop titled, "The Agile Church: Creating a Congregation geared for change". From this workshop Earle said the normal church will remain passive until some action is taken to change thinking. To accomplish this there must be an influx if ideas accompanied usually by new people.
In a second workshop, "Passionate Spirituality for a Cold Climate, Resurrecting the Lifeless Congregation", Earle found that spiritual passion is the fuel that keeps a congregation active and excited about the faith that it has to share with the world. Without spiritual passion a church, no matter what its size will either crash and burn or become a hollow shell of its former glory.
Earle’s third workshop, titled " Holy Places, Small Spaces," has been referred to previously in this report, but serves as a good review from his perspective. Seventy eight percent of United Methodist churches have under 125 that regularly attend worship. Many small churches are small because they will not take steps to reach out to their community in order to grow.
Earle concludes his remarks with the following words. The revival at Beech Ridge Speedway and the E3 Conference have given us tools to go forth into our neighborhoods to share Christ’s message of love and redemption. Our church can accommodate about three times the number of people currently attending on a Sunday morning service without the need to expand the facility. The immediate area has over two thousand families that offer an opportunity to visit them to invite them to come and share in worship.
We need to pray for God’s guidance as we prepare to visit these families. Next we have to have faith that God already has a plan for us to follow. From the past we have trusted that his plan will glorify his kingdom. Most importantly, we need to respond to the leading of the Holy Spirit and obey the call to serve. Jesus calls us to go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.
We should pray that we have the courage of our convictions so that under the guidance of the Holy Spirit we may build in 2008 on the foundation started in 2007.
Joyful Stewardship
The following was shared by Bishop Peter Weaver during a special session on the conference budget. Some have asked for the text that I read from my Journal. I wrote it during my December 2005 visit to Nigeria after visiting our mission hospital in Zing where patients desperately wait, sometimes two or three to a bed, for help....for a doctor....we no longer have one there. Next to the hospital complex is a new, state of the art (for Nigeria) eye hospital....also with no doctor....no funds....only a very dedicated nurse. When there was a doctor there, hundreds would come from as far as Cameroon....there are so many in Africa suffering from eye diseases carried by water and insects....many are blind....and waiting....waiting for help....no doctor....no mission funds.....waiting.
The nurse asked me why the United Methodists in the U.S. could not provide more help....like it used to? The day before I had been at a wonderful outdoor service of about 8,000 in a remote area where some of the people had walked for days to get there. Most of those who came are very financially poor, but very rich in spirit. When the offering time came, the music started....and then the dancing...the people from each area represented came joyfully processing, singing and dancing, up to the large offering basket....children, old folk, teenagers (who had climbed up into the trees so they could see), mothers with babies wrapped on their fronts....singing and dancing....led by the pastors dressed in their black robes and white stoles that fluttered and billowed like wings of the Spirit...singing and dancing....such joy....such generosity....such faith that if they risked sharing their little, God would provide for tomorrow (no 401k plans here) ....
These folks from Nigeria were not bringing their offering with joyful dancing because of their easy living and abundant resources. In fact, it seems the exact opposite may be true. Those who are most dependent on God for daily living are the ones who experience the joy of God's provision most powerfully, and so share more abundantly that which they have received. They know themselves less as "consumers" of their resources and more as "stewards" of God's resources.
What might happen if we as a church had this much joy during the Sunday offering?!!! I believe we could all learn from our sisters and brothers in Nigeria what it means to be joyful stewards of all God has provided. This includes joyful stewardship of our financial resources, but many other ways too. During November, we will be focusing on what it means to be joyful stewards of our worship, learning, sharing and serving. The commitment cards this year reflect this more broad definition of stewardship, which have been mailed to all church members and will be available in church during November for any of our active attendees who did not receive the mailing. We hope you will prayerfully consider increasing your joyful stewardship this year as part of God's family!
Hallelujah!!!!
The nurse asked me why the United Methodists in the U.S. could not provide more help....like it used to? The day before I had been at a wonderful outdoor service of about 8,000 in a remote area where some of the people had walked for days to get there. Most of those who came are very financially poor, but very rich in spirit. When the offering time came, the music started....and then the dancing...the people from each area represented came joyfully processing, singing and dancing, up to the large offering basket....children, old folk, teenagers (who had climbed up into the trees so they could see), mothers with babies wrapped on their fronts....singing and dancing....led by the pastors dressed in their black robes and white stoles that fluttered and billowed like wings of the Spirit...singing and dancing....such joy....such generosity....such faith that if they risked sharing their little, God would provide for tomorrow (no 401k plans here) ....
These folks from Nigeria were not bringing their offering with joyful dancing because of their easy living and abundant resources. In fact, it seems the exact opposite may be true. Those who are most dependent on God for daily living are the ones who experience the joy of God's provision most powerfully, and so share more abundantly that which they have received. They know themselves less as "consumers" of their resources and more as "stewards" of God's resources.
What might happen if we as a church had this much joy during the Sunday offering?!!! I believe we could all learn from our sisters and brothers in Nigeria what it means to be joyful stewards of all God has provided. This includes joyful stewardship of our financial resources, but many other ways too. During November, we will be focusing on what it means to be joyful stewards of our worship, learning, sharing and serving. The commitment cards this year reflect this more broad definition of stewardship, which have been mailed to all church members and will be available in church during November for any of our active attendees who did not receive the mailing. We hope you will prayerfully consider increasing your joyful stewardship this year as part of God's family!
Hallelujah!!!!
COASTAL CHRISTMAS FAIR Dec 1 9am-2pm
Submitted by Susan Angell
Once again we are having a fabulous Christmas Fair. Many people have been working on arts and crafts for months just for sale at this event…Nancy Greer has knitted lots of mittens, Rosemary and her cohorts have been creating nautical and coastal things, Doreen and her splendid jewelry, Brad and Chris planning the luncheon menu and many have saved up their used books and stuff for trash or treasure, etc. We will need donations towards the food for the kitchen and strong backs to help us all to clean up the hall and pack and store our left over items.
Lots of fun surprises and innovative ideas will reveal themselves when you attend. I try to bring something for every table and I do get discouraged sometimes. The lovely banana breads I brought one year lay like logs on the table unsold and I think they were eaten by the folks from the Gathering. People evidently wanted those cute little loafs instead of large ones. My pies were also eaten at the gathering. Every year I experience failure with fudge. I've burned it, dropped it all in the drive way on my way in, failed at the no-fail fudge recipe and last year it permanently adhered to the pan I poured it into. THIS year I found a Famous Fudge kit by Carnation that swears I will be successful?? Marlene is teaching me to crochet and I have made some potholders for sale and may I say they are very interesting and unique!
So set this day aside. Bring your wonderful home baked tasties, wonderful candy, crafts, books, trash and treasure and BEST of all bring yourself to enjoy the fun.
Once again we are having a fabulous Christmas Fair. Many people have been working on arts and crafts for months just for sale at this event…Nancy Greer has knitted lots of mittens, Rosemary and her cohorts have been creating nautical and coastal things, Doreen and her splendid jewelry, Brad and Chris planning the luncheon menu and many have saved up their used books and stuff for trash or treasure, etc. We will need donations towards the food for the kitchen and strong backs to help us all to clean up the hall and pack and store our left over items.
Lots of fun surprises and innovative ideas will reveal themselves when you attend. I try to bring something for every table and I do get discouraged sometimes. The lovely banana breads I brought one year lay like logs on the table unsold and I think they were eaten by the folks from the Gathering. People evidently wanted those cute little loafs instead of large ones. My pies were also eaten at the gathering. Every year I experience failure with fudge. I've burned it, dropped it all in the drive way on my way in, failed at the no-fail fudge recipe and last year it permanently adhered to the pan I poured it into. THIS year I found a Famous Fudge kit by Carnation that swears I will be successful?? Marlene is teaching me to crochet and I have made some potholders for sale and may I say they are very interesting and unique!
So set this day aside. Bring your wonderful home baked tasties, wonderful candy, crafts, books, trash and treasure and BEST of all bring yourself to enjoy the fun.
Church Conference November 18
Our annual church conference at Peoples is scheduled for Sunday November 18 from 4-6pm with light snacks provided before. Our district superintendent, Rev. Mike Davis, will be presiding.
The agenda for conference includes matters such as election of committee members for 2008, setting of the pastors' compensation package, and continuation of our certified lay speakers. We will also hear an update on the Together for Tomorrow conference capital campaign, and a presentation from Mike Davis. This presentation will either be on Welcoming Newcomers (Warm up Your Welcome), or if there are enough questions for Mike we may host a time for conversation with the D.S. instead. Please submit questions you might have for Mike to Pastor Gwyneth by Tuesday, November 13. If there are insufficient questions for in depth conversation we will go with the presentation on Welcoming.
In addition there will be a presentation of the 2008 budget before the church conference at 2:45pm for anyone interested. Last year, some folks suggested that we work on the budget earlier than usual so that we have this information in hand as we are voting on the pastors' compensation. Although this has never been done before, the Finance Committee agreed to give it a try.
All are invited and encouraged to attend, so please save the date! Church members are invited to vote during the conference but all are invited to attend.
Note: We will only be printing church conference reports needed for voting. All other committee end-of-year reports should be completed by December 31 which will be printed for a special meeting in January. Thank you!
The agenda for conference includes matters such as election of committee members for 2008, setting of the pastors' compensation package, and continuation of our certified lay speakers. We will also hear an update on the Together for Tomorrow conference capital campaign, and a presentation from Mike Davis. This presentation will either be on Welcoming Newcomers (Warm up Your Welcome), or if there are enough questions for Mike we may host a time for conversation with the D.S. instead. Please submit questions you might have for Mike to Pastor Gwyneth by Tuesday, November 13. If there are insufficient questions for in depth conversation we will go with the presentation on Welcoming.
In addition there will be a presentation of the 2008 budget before the church conference at 2:45pm for anyone interested. Last year, some folks suggested that we work on the budget earlier than usual so that we have this information in hand as we are voting on the pastors' compensation. Although this has never been done before, the Finance Committee agreed to give it a try.
All are invited and encouraged to attend, so please save the date! Church members are invited to vote during the conference but all are invited to attend.
Note: We will only be printing church conference reports needed for voting. All other committee end-of-year reports should be completed by December 31 which will be printed for a special meeting in January. Thank you!
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