February 2018 Winters Chapel United Methodist Church ~ 5105 Winters Chapel Road Atlanta GA 30360 ~ 770-396-4550 On Saturday, January 20th, the Administrative Board held its annual planning meeting with Edwin Hall, “the Professor”, presiding. Almost every area of the church was represented. I must say that I am very impressed by the gifts and graces of this group. These folks are very committed and give countless hours of service to our church. It was decided at our meeting that the Administrative Board would meet on a quarterly basis throughout 2018. Our next meeting will be held on Sunday, April 15th, immediately following the worship service. The meetings are open to anyone who would like to attend. The purpose of this meeting was to schedule the entire year on the church calendar. Peggy Bynum does a wonderful job of keeping up with the calendar and communicating to the congregation through the Sunday bulletin, “The Front Porch” weekly emails, the bulletin boards and the monthly newsletter, while Jeff Pruett works hard behind the scenes to make sure we can access this information through our website. All areas in the church have now “calendared” their ministries throughout the coming year, so keep “watchful” for the many ministry opportunities we have COMING SOON! The Administrative Board also looked beyond 2018 and into the future. Our District Superintendent, Dr. Doug Thrasher, asked the group to consider our vision for the immediate future: What do you want to happen in the next 5 years? Here are highlights of that conversation: + The majority wanted to focus on growth of membership, including attracting more “young” families + Another priority was “growing spiritually” as individuals and as a church, with emphasis on the prayer life of our congregation. + Increasing our activities and ministries in the community. + Increasing our volunteerism. We have several areas which need more volunteer help including Children and Youth ministry as well as the Usher ministry. Winters Chapel United Methodist Church is a very warm and friendly church with a family atmosphere. While we have many activities and ministries that do reach into the surrounding community, the challenge for us is to keep up with a rapidly changing community. I am excited by what God has in store for our church! Yours in Christ, Allen Looking at 2018 and Beyond By Rev. Allen Johnson
Transcript
February 2018
Winters Chapel United Methodist Church ~ 5105 Winters Chapel Road Atlanta GA 30360 ~ 770-396-4550
On Saturday, January 20th, the Administrative Board held its annual planning meeting with Edwin Hall, “the Professor”, presiding. Almost every area of the church was represented. I must say that I am very impressed by the gifts and graces of this group. These folks are very committed and give countless hours of service to our church.
It was decided at our meeting that the Administrative Board would meet on a quarterly basis throughout 2018. Our next meeting will be held on Sunday, April 15th, immediately following the worship service. The meetings are open to anyone who would like to attend.
The purpose of this meeting was to schedule the entire year on the church calendar. Peggy Bynum does a wonderful job of keeping up with the calendar and communicating to the congregation through the Sunday bulletin, “The Front Porch” weekly emails, the bulletin boards and the monthly newsletter, while Jeff Pruett works hard behind the scenes to make sure we can access this information through our website. All areas in the church have now “calendared” their ministries throughout the coming year, so keep “watchful” for the many ministry opportunities we have COMING SOON!
The Administrative Board also looked beyond 2018 and into the future. Our District Superintendent, Dr. Doug Thrasher, asked the group to consider our vision for the immediate future: What do you want to happen in the next 5 years? Here are highlights of that conversation:
+ The majority wanted to focus on growth of membership, including attracting more “young” families
+ Another priority was “growing spiritually” as individuals and as a church, with emphasis on the prayer life of our congregation.
+ Increasing our activities and ministries in the community.
+ Increasing our volunteerism. We have several areas which need more volunteer help including Children and Youth ministry as well as the Usher ministry.
Winters Chapel United Methodist Church is a very warm and friendly church with a family atmosphere. While we have many activities and ministries that do reach into the surrounding community, the challenge for us is to keep up with a rapidly changing community.
I am excited by what God has in store for our church!
Yours in Christ, Allen
Looking at 2018 and Beyond
By Rev. Allen Johnson
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Youth is now meeting on Thursday nights! Join us for fun and fellowship every Thursday night at 7:00 pm. Contact Leslie Stowe for more information.
Children & Youth Ministry By Leslie Stowe
Winters Chapel UMC Preschool
Winters Chapel UMC Preschool, designated a School of Excellence by the NGUMCPA, is currently conducting tours to introduce parents to our preschool. We are currently holding Registration for the 2018-2019 School Year beginning in September. We will have spaces for children from 9 months
through 4 years, although several classes have only one opening, so don’t delay! For more information or to schedule a tour, call 770 393-3478 or email Mary at [email protected].
And mark your calendars: Registration for Summer Camp will begin March 5th.
Kids Closet, our Winters Chapel Preschool Fundraiser, is now accepting sellers for our Spring Consignment Sale. If you are interested, please contact: Bettina Smalley at (770) 393-3478 or [email protected]. Mark your calendars to shop with us!
Thursday March 1 11am - 7pm (no kids except infants in slings) Friday March 2 9am - 3pm Saturday March 3 9am - 1pm (most items half price)
Upcoming Children/Youth Events:
February 14 - Ash Wednesday Service - 6:00 pm
March 25 - Spring Fling, 12:15 - 1:30 pm
April 1 - Easter Cantata, 11:00 am
Our Acolyte Program is active! If your child missed the Acolyte Training and would still like to be a part of the service, please contact Leslie Stowe.
Feb 4 - Jeremy Pruett Feb 18 - Andy Muka
Feb 11 - Tatum Havard Feb 25 - Grace Havard
The Fisher · February 2018 Page 3
As a member of Winters Chapel, I will faithfully participate in its ministries . . .
By my Prayers . . .
By my Presence . . Sunday School: 13 (1/7); 12 (1/14); 12 (1/21); 11 (1/28) 11 am Worship: 52 (1/7); 56 (1/14); 46 (1/21); 48 (1/28) Thursday Bi-Lingual: 10 (1/18); 23 (1/25) By my Gifts. . . $2,530 (1/7); $2,782 (1/14); $2,416 (1/21); $1,595 (1/28) By my Service . . . (January/February) Altar Guild: Gail Granberry, Arlene Bishop, Jo Culpepper, Nancy Trumble, Joan Vining, Peggy Wallis, Betty Williams
Audio: Jimmy Faulkner, Jeff Pruett
Counters: January: Sandra Lackland, Cathy Letson
February: Harry Honeycutt and Ronnie Letson
Greeters: Frank and Connie Bate, Gail and Mike Granberry, Janice Whitehead
Lay Leaders: Harriet Chapman, Don Dixon, Kathy Honeycutt, Mike Macomber, Rufus Manley, Judy Woodall
Ushers: January: Ron Letson, Cathy Letson, Gail Granberry, Mike Granberry
February: Mike Macomber, Don Dixon, Alison Dixon, Leon Humphries, Linda Humphries
Acolytes: James Faulkner, Jordan Faulkner, Joshua Faulkner, Grace Havard, Tatum Havard, Andy Muka, Flory Muka, Jeremy Pruett, Bella Truong, Megan Truong
(The Month of January)
Polly Albitz
Patricia Ardavin
Frank & Connie Bate
Carol Beard, Uncle Gordon, Marion & family
Arlene Bishop
Beth Bradley
Chelsea Chapman
Bambi Clark
Charlotte Courson
Isaac Crase
Gil Danielson
Duane Darby
Larry Davis
Chris Gorman
Dawn Hall
Carol Hanson
Richard Hanson
David Henry
Harry Honeycutt
Lisa Humphries
Anson Johnson
Betty Lancaster
Margie Lloyd
Tommy Lloyd
Kirk Martin
Samuel Negron
Lee Pelfrey
Latoya Phanord
Gerald Raven
Denver Schubert
Misha Stefanuk
Deb Strycula
Paul Truong
Dawn & Jim Wade
The prayer list is updated each month. Please send your prayer requests to the church office.
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Tuesday, February 13th 12:00 - 1:30 pm
The snow and ice delayed the 2018 kick-off of our Prime
Timers program. We continue to meet on the second Tuesday of each month at 12:00 noon at Kingswood UMC, with our next program scheduled for 2/13.
Come and get reacquainted with the Kingswood SLAKers while we enjoy a wonderful luncheon and program. Cost remains at $6.00 per person. Reserva-tions are required. Please notify Judy Wells by 10:00 AM on Monday, February 12th if you plan to at-tend.
Don't miss out on a good meal and a good opportunity for Christian fun and fellowship!
Hidden Talents? By Janice Whitehead
"God has given each of you some special abilities; be sure to use them to help each other, passing on to
others God's many kinds of blessings." -1 Peter 4:10 TLB
Do you believe you have a special ability; one given to you by God to help others and pass on God's blessings?
I believe there are a lot of special abilities at WCUMC. As stewards of what God has given to us, we all need to
consider what is required of us. It is obvious that help is needed in many areas of service right here at
WCUMC. We need ushers, greeters, volunteers to help with events Leslie puts together for the kids and youth,
volunteers for Bread of Life Cafe and ESOL. We need items for the food pantry, helpers for special events, voices
in the choir and more. Were you aware of these needs? Where can you share your gifts from God?
Peter was not the only follower of Christ to address God's gifts to believers. According to Paul we are given
certain gifts and we are to work together as equal and vital parts of one body (the body of Christ?). That's what I
interpret from 1Corinthians 12. Then in Chapter 13 Paul tells us about the responsibility and character required
for loving others. Seems we can't escape it. We all have opportunities to offer our God-given abilities to be used
for God's glory. If you doubt you have special abilities, read those chapters in 1Corinthians and The Parable of
The Talents in Matthew 25: 14-30. How sad to read, "I was afraid and went and hid your talent in the ground." (verse 25)
If you doubt there is a place for you to share your special abilities, ask Misha, Leslie, Pastor Allen, or any
committee chairperson. We don't have to be another Mother Teresa, Sarah Brightman or Dietrich Bonhoeffert to
make a difference. We just need to be who we are. The NKJ Version of 1 Peter 4:10 reads as follows: "As each one
has received a gift, minister it to one another as good stewards of the manifold grace of God." What an honor to be a good
steward of God's manifold grace!
I hope we all will respond to the opportunities to help each other and pass on to others God's blessings. When a
need is presented to us what does The Holy Spirit require of you and me?
The 2018 flower calendar is posted in the Narthex. Please consider donating flowers ($15.00 per order) in honor of someone special, an anniversary, birth or in memory of a loved one. Just write your special honor or memory on the date and place your check for the flowers in the donation plate with “flowers” marked in the memo line.
The Fisher · February 2018 Page 5
Easter Basket Ministry We will be collecting items to assemble Easter Baskets for teenage girls and boys who are in foster care through Gwinnett County Dept. of Family and Children Services. Teenagers are often overlooked at this wonderful time of the year so we are delighted to focus on this age group. We will be collecting baskets, candy, snacks, personal care items and other gifts appropriate for teenagers. Look for sign-up sheets on the table in the Narthex with suggested items to donate. No chocolate please, it melts! We will shop for you if you wish to make a cash donation. If you have any questions, please see Summer. The deadline to assemble baskets is March 18th. We thank everyone for their ever generous support! !
The United Methodist Men will host their annual Sweetheart Breakfast
Sunday, February 11th at 9:00 am.
You don’t have to be a “couple” to attend! Make plans to enjoy a wonderful breakfast and feel the love of fellowship that morning before service.
Ash Wednesday Service
Wednesday, February 14th at 6:00 pm
“Thank You” from Dr. Doug Thrasher In a recent letter to our church, Dr. Thrasher writes: “I want to thank you all for the hard work that you do for the building up of the Kingdom of God and for the ministry of the United Methodist Church. . . I especially want to express my thanks to you and to your church for the faithful response in contributing 100% to Apportionments and the District Work Fund. May God bless and be with you all as we begin this New Year together.”
ESOL classes: Thursdays at 7:00 pm
Join us for the spring series of ESOL classes on Thursdays at 7:00 p.m.
We are always looking for volunteers to help with registration, hospitality, or childcare. Please see Pastor Allen if you can help.
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Atlanta Roswell District Spring 2018 Lay Servant Ministries Course Offerings
Course Offerings for Spring 2018: March 3rd and March 10th
The Spring Lay Servant Ministries Classes are March 3 and 10, from 9:00 am to 3:00 pm, at Pleasant Grove UMC in Cumming, GA. Three classes will be offered:
Basic - for those who've not taken a Lay Servant Ministries class Advanced: Lay Servants Tell Stories
Advanced: Speaking Skills for Lay Servants These classes are a great resource for training laity in your church: School leaders, committee chairs, and anyone who needs to give a devotion, say a prayer, or give a report. Anyone may take any of the courses offered. Classes are $40 which pays for all materials needed. For registration information, look for Course Registration Sheets on the Narthex table or contact Mary Williams at: [email protected] for additional information.
What is Winters Chapel UMC Doing for Others? by Peggy Bynum
Last month, we celebrated the life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and in one of many tributes, he posed this idea to an audience in Montgomery, Alabama in 1957:
“Life’s most persistent and urgent question is, What are you doing for others?” As we met last month for our Annual Planning Meeting, I tried to share the answer to that question with our Administrative Board. As part of my job as Administrative Assistant for this church, I am blessed to be the person you have entrusted with the care of our Food Pantry Ministry. In the meeting, I tried to talk about the critical day-in and day-out support that this church’s food pantry ministry offers to those in need in the surrounding community. I talk on the phone and meet at the door about 4 to 5 people each week who are in need of help. In 2017 alone, this church provided over 150 Action Ministry food boxes. Each box contains enough dry food to feed a family of 4 for 4 days, which is about 12 family meals. So thanks to your financial support of the WCUMC food pantry, this church was able to provide over 1,800 family meals to feed the needy in 2017. And thanks to your generous contributions, you provided over 130 bottles of laundry detergent, over 500 rolls of tissue paper, and over 200 bars of soap to those who couldn’t afford to buy them. I wish you could get to know some of our neighbors as I have. I want you to know that the majority of these people who seek our help are employed, or they are seeking employment. They are very hard-working, but they have a very difficult time making ends meet when life’s unforeseen events occur. Most of them are living on the edge; the working poor. But they tell me that thanks to this church, they didn’t have to choose between gas money to get to work – and being able to feed their children. You have helped Jimmy, who was in a horrific car accident a few years ago and can no longer work as a football coach. He hugs me each time he visits because he is so grateful. You helped Michelle, whose employer went out of business and boarded up the doors last fall, leaving her with only enough money to pay one month’s rent. Along with food and toiletries, we offered her prayer and love and guidance; she is now interviewing for several jobs while working for a temporary employment agency. Dilma supports a family of 7, and yet she only takes what she absolutely needs and never one item more. Evarron was electrocuted and could have been killed, yet he got back to work as soon as he could. He makes me smile every single time he visits, with his incredibly positive attitude. Consistently, I am overwhelmed by the thankful-ness of our food pantry patrons. That’s why I want you to know them by name. Because if we touch just one life through an act of kindness, we are making a difference. Who knows what someone else will accomplish because you helped them, or you inspired them to do the same? Thank you. Matthew 25:35-36: “For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.’
The Fisher · February 2018 Page 7
I love science.
I like when everything is explainable and clear, when everything is in the right place and in the right order. On the other hand, I have to work with many different people, and they.... do not follow science much.
As I got more and more successful, there came more and more people that I deal with: students, musicians, singers, dancers, and just about everybody remotely related to music production.
And for a long time I thought the most important thing is what I say to all of these. Which turned out not to be sufficient. I learned that there is a more important aspect of dealing with people than knowing, or presenting something. That miracle element is listening.
Often if we listen to people , never mind who they are, they already have all the solutions to everything we were about to solve.
Curiously, the ability to listen in my profession is equally essential. And tangible and reasonable. When we seriously open our ears and hearts to music and to people, it changes everything.
An interesting example is accompanying other musicians in a jazz combo. As much as we are often concerned with our own solos, and practicing to be able to play a thousand notes per minute, our main purpose is to support others. And listening is of utmost importance. And add your word here and there, but mainly just listen.
Works outside the music too! Also published in VEUmagazine.
Listening . . by Misha V. Stefanuk, Music Director and Organist in Residence
The Cross and Flame Don and Alison Dixon visited California in January after the wildfires devastated the area in late 2017. Don shared these inspiring photos with us which date back to an earlier California wildfire: “In 2009, Los Angeles Daily News photographer Gene Blevin captured a photo of a cross that survived wildfires on a hillside in Big Tujunga Canyon. The cross survived unscathed, even though onlookers said it appeared to be engulfed in flames the day before”, according to a December, 2009 article in the National Catholic Register. (We couldn’t help but notice that the “before” photo seems to be a living example of our own Methodist logo, which we refer to as “The Cross and Flame”). The article concluded: “No doubt for some local residents, the sight of a cross left standing in the midst of destruction gives hope. It can be a symbol, too, for the rest of us, who worry about all kinds of other destruction -- and yet the cross is still standing.” Thank you, Don, for sharing this with us!
Before After
MonthMonthMonth---atatat---aaa---Glance FEBRUARYGlance FEBRUARYGlance FEBRUARY Sunday Worship Times: Traditional: 11:00 a.m. Small Groups: Sundays 9:45 a.m.
Bi-Lingual Worship: Thursdays 6:30 pm
Please note that childcare is provided on Sunday mornings and Thursday evenings.
You can reach us . . .
Happy, Happy Birthday to You!
February 26 Jimmy Faulkner February 26 Dawn Wade February 27 Sandra Lackland February 28 Terri Humphries February 28 James Faulkner
February 2 Mary Ellen Albitz February 14 Luke Havard February 17 Linda Humphries February 20 Erica Jones February 20 Nomie Truong
If we are missing your birthday, please let the church office know by emailing [email protected]
Winters Chapel United Methodist Church Staff
Rev. Allen Johnson, Pastor 770-396-4550 (Office); 352-817-1952 (cell); [email protected]
Leslie Stowe, Director Children & Youth Ministry 770-396-4550 (office); [email protected]
Misha Stefanuk, Organist in Residence, Director of Music 678-520-0749 (cell); [email protected]
