Shut Ins and Military

Over the next few weeks the youth and members of the church will be visiting shut ins and people in assisted living facilities. We will be Christmas Caroling. We have so many people in the church who must stay at home or at a nursing home. Please remember these people. They need our thoughts and prayers. It is especially difficult to be confined to your home during the Christmas season.

We also need to remember those serving in our military protecting our freedom. Several of these people will be away from their families during the holiday season. The people in the military from our church are Jeff Hartley, Michael Hartley, Brittany Smith, Russell and Malena Rathbone, and Trent Waller.

Prayer Requests

We have so many people on the prayer request list right now that it is overwhelming and we add more people every Sunday. Richard and Wanda Gross were recently added, as were Coley Johnson, Diane Hold, and Jim Julian. Please pray for these people and the people who have been on the list for a while. It is especially difficult to be dealing with sickness or other issues around the holidays and we are so blessed.

Christams Caroling

The youth will be going Christmas caroling with students from Catawba College on Thursday night. The youth will meet at 6:30 pm to travel together and sing at Genesis Nursing home. Please plan to attend if you can.

Upcoming events

12/10 Harry Steele Christmas Party 6pm
12/11 UMW Christmas Party 6pm (date change)
12/12 Methodist Men at Farmhouse 8am and Angel Tree gifts due
12/14 Friendship Club 10:30 am
12/19 Christmas Program

Thoughts about angels explained by children

* Angels work for God and watch over kids when God has to go do something else. Mitchell, 7
* Angels don't eat, but they drink milk from Holy Cows. Jack, 6
* My guardian angel helps me with math, but he's not much good for science. Henry, 8

I thought these were so cute. I am really glad we have thoughts for the week in our bulletin every Sunday.

Upcoming Events for the youth

The youth and children will begin practicing for the Christmas play within the next couple weeks. If you would like to be in the play, please see Sara Gettys.

The youth will also work at the Operation Christmas Child packaging center in December.

College group will meet December 17th at the Gaskill's house for a Christmas party from 6-10pm. Please bring a $5-10 gift to exchange and a side dish if you wish.

RHM Boxes

Boxes will be needed again this year for RHM West. We will need to fill ten boxes with items for a holiday meal. If you would like to donate for this project, please see Renae Brown.

Angel Tree

A few names are still on the Angel tree in the Narthex. These kids are from Woodleaf Elementary and West Rowan Middle. Please select a name from the tree and sign your name beside the corresponding number on the Master list. Please have all gifts wrapped and attach the angel and return to church by December 12th.

It's Beginning to Look a lot like Christmas...

I love this time of year. It seems like people are in a better mood and everyone seems so happy looking for the perfect gifts. There are several things that are showing us how close we are to Christmas, even though it is only November. I am so excited to see a few houses already lit up and decorated for Christmas. I know we put our Christmas trees up earlier than ever this year. (My family and I get really excited about Christmas...) Today at church, we even sang Christmas songs; including "O Come, O Come, Emmanuel" and "Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus." Today was also the beginning of advent.

Remember, we are at the start of the Christmas season. Be merry and show God's love to others during this wonderful season!

Today's events

The Witness Committee will meet today at 4pm. Please attend if you are on the committee as we will be discussing plans for New Year's Eve. Last year we had this event and the turn out was great. We would like to have even more activities planned for this year, so come with some ideas.

The Samaritans Purse shoe boxes were due today. If you were unable to bring them this morning, please bring them to the church this afternoon.

The Youth and Children will not be meeting today due to Thanksgiving but will be going Christmas caroling on Thursday at Genesis.

RHM Needs

The Rowan Helping Ministries is in desperate need for items right now. Please help by donating any of the following items: peanut butter, jelly, dried beans, canned vegetables, canned and dried milk, flour, and sugar. Please help RHM get ready for the Holiday season and help feed people in our community.

UMW Christmas Party

The United Methodist Women will have their Christmas party on December 11th at 6pm. (This is a new date so be sure to change your calendars). Please see Dee Angel if you plan to attend the party. Also, please bring a white elephant gift to the party.

Next Sunday's helpers

Financial Secretaries for next Sunday (December 5th) are:
Robin Lingle and Wilma Waller

Nursery Helpers for next Sunday are:
Janie Mills and Jean Bell

Children's Church leaders for next Sunday are:
Denise Foutz and Melissa Miller

We are so fortunate to have such great volunteers at our church. Please show your appreciation!

Advent

Today marked the first Sunday in Advent. We lit the candle of Prophecy and Hope during the Children's alter today. It was really special to allow the children to participate in the ceremony.

Guest Speaker

The preacher was out of town this morning so we had a quest speaker. I special thanks to Joe Barbee for delivering the message this morning. You did a great job and we really appreciate it!

Upcoming Events

12/10- Harry Steele Christmas Party at 6pm

12/12- Methodist men breakfast at 8am and angel tree gifts are due

12/14- Friendship Club meeting at 10:30 am

12/18- United Methodist Women Party

12/19- Christmas Program and Christmas Party!!

Christmas is quickly approaching!

Thank you note

A thank you note was received from the volunteer coordinator at Rowan Helping Ministries West to tell the church how much they appreciate our gifts. They were so thankful for the food we brought and for volunteering our time to serve food. Thanks for all you do. Keep it up Gay's Chapel UMC!

Christmas Shoulders

The Methodist Men are cooking bar-be-que shoulders for Christmas. A sign up sheet is in the Narthex. Please sign up if you would like one. The pick up date for these is December 18th. Please support the Methodist men in this fundraiser.

Activities for tomorrow

Sunday School and church is tomorrow!

The Witness Committee will meet tomorrow at 4pm to discuss plans for New Year's Eve. Please make sure you attend if you are on this committee.

Samaritan Purse shoe boxes are due tomorrow as well.

Shut Ins

We have several members of the church who are confined to their homes. Please try to visit them this holiday season. Also, pray for these people. Some of the shut ins are Ruth and Vernon Ridenhour, Kay Pinkston, Sarah McClamrock, Helen Bringle, and Ola Mae Livengood.

Prayer Requests

The prayer requests are listed at the top of the bulletin. Please pray for these people and their families. Some of the people listed in the bulletin are Diane Holt, T.I. Huneycutt, Jim Julian, Matt Leonard, Randall Pinkston, and Bill Smith.

Please pray for these people to get well, especially before the holidays.

Next Sunday's helpers:

Financial Secretaries for 11/28 are Dee Angel and Shelby Archie.

Nursery Helpers are Suzanna Miller and Ronelle Britt.

Children's Church leaders are Chasey Meres and Tammy Swicegood.

Bulletin

If you have something that needs to be put into the bulletin, please make sure the information is in the office by Wednesday morning.

Messages for the pastor

If you have a message for the pastor, please leave them on his home answering machine if it is urgent. His home number is (704) 637-3976.

Current needs for RHM

Current needs for RHM are: peanut butter, jelly, canned beans, dried beans, canned vegetables, canned and dried milk, flour, and sugar.

Please help by donating these items if at all possible.

Rowan Helping Ministries Boxes

Christmas boxes for Rowan Helping Ministries West will be needed again this year. We will need to fill ten boxes with items for a holiday meal. If you would like to donate for this project, please see Renae Brown.

Thoughts for the week...

Thanksgiving is this week. And the bulletin was full of thoughts about giving thanks.

- For the Christian, Thanksgiving is not just a day but a way of life.

- Every day should be a day of thanks.

- God gave you the gift of 86,400 seconds today. Have you used one to say "thanks"?

Remember to give thanks this Thanksgiving, but don't only give thanks this one day. Give thanks often!

Upcoming events

Upcoming Events:

November 28th- Witness Committee at 4pm (will be planning for New Year's Eve service).

-Operation Christmas Child boxes are also due this day.

December 10th- Harry Steele Christmas Party at 6pm.

December 12th- Methodist Men @ Farmhouse 8am, angel tree gifts are due.

December 14th- Friendship Club at 10:30 am.

December 18th- UMW Party.

December 19th- Christmas Program.

Operation Christmas Child

Shoe boxes are available in the Narthex for Operation Christmas Child. As you know, these boxes are sent all over the world to help spread the word of Jesus. Please return the boxes filled by the end of the month. Instructions are included. If you have any questions, call Sara at (704) 637-3190.

Don't forget about the angels...

Names are posted on the tree in the Narthex for Christmas gifts. The names are people from Woodleaf Elementary School and West Rowan Middle School. Please select and name from the tree and sign your name beside the corresponding number on the Master List. There are only a few names left on the tree so please get one soon. Please have all gifts wrapped with the angel attached by December 12th.

Children and Youth Activities

The children will have Thanksgiving practice tonight from 4:30-5:30. If your child is interested in participating in this service, please bring them to church tonight. All of the youth will travel together to the joint service at Enon at 6:00. Please arrive at 5:45 to get to the service on time. The children and youth will not have activities on 11/24 or 11/28 due to Thanksgiving.

Thanksgiving Service

The joint Thanksgiving service with Enon is tonight at Enon Baptist Church. Please try to be there. The service starts at 6 pm tonight and should be awesome. I hope all of you can attend.

Ramona Quimby

The play "Ramona Quimby" is being performed on November 19th at 7:30 pm and November 20th at 2:30 and 7:30 pm at the Norvell Theatre in town. Meredith Gaskill is in the cast. Prices are $10 per adult and $8 for students and seniors.

Break a Leg, Meredith! We are proud of you!

Operation Christmas Shoe Boxes

Operation Christmas Child shoe boxes are available in the Narthex. Please pick up one and fill it with items. Please follow the instructions and return them by the end of the month.

RHM Boxes

Christmas boxes for Rowan Helping Ministries West will be needed again this year. We will need to fill 10 boxes with items for a holiday meal. If you would like to donate for this project, please see Ranae Brown.

Upcoming Youth Events

November 21st- Children 4:30-5:30 pm- we will be practicing for Thanksgiving service so please come. Youth 6-7:30pm

November 24th- Happy Thanksgiving! No activities.

Upcoming Events

Upcoming adult events:

November 16th- Friendship Club at 10:30am.
November 18th- UMW at 7pm.
November 21st- Joint Thanksfiving at Enon at 6pm.

Please come to all of these events you can!

"Giving Thanks"

The sermon yesterday was all about why we give thanks. Giving thanks is something I have always done, especially around this time of year. I remember every Thanksgiving going around the table and telling something we are thankful for. But why do we give thanks?

Often we find ourselves just giving thanks when we especially need God, like when we are experiencing something bad, and want God to think highly of us. But, we have SO much to be thankful for! And everything we have, comes from God.

This season, remember to especially give thanks to God because he is the creator of everything. But don't just give thanks this season- give thanks always!

Contemporary Service

From now on the second Sunday in every month will be contemporary service. We will have different people lead the service with contemporary music. Yesterday was the start of this service and I thought the service went very well. We even had 3 guest singers play the violin, quitar, and tamborine and sang wonderful songs. We are very blessed to have so much amazing talent in our church!

Middle and High School Sunday School class

Yesterday, I taught the Middle and High School Sunday School class about success. We began with the kids defining what success meant to them. The responses I got were that success is...
- being content
- accomplishing goals
- overcoming something
- getting the job done
- being happy
- and having joy.

These are just some of the responses I got.

We talked about how God wants us to have success but by showing love to others because all earthly possessions will fade away. God defines success as love! If we put others before ourself and let love guide our choices, we will be successful!

College Group!

The next meeting of the college group will be Friday night December 17th. The group will meet at the Gaskill's house for food, fun, and fellowship. The event will be from 6-10pm. Please bring a $5-10 gift to exchange. We will switch gifts, eat, and watch Elf! Hope you all can come...

Angel Tree

Names have been posted on the Angel Tree in the back of the church. The children listed on the tree are from Woodleaf Elementary School and West Rowan Middle School. The children are local and without us, will not have anything for Christmas. Please select a name from the tree and sign your name beside the corresponding number on the Master List. Please have all gifts wrapped and the Angel attached and returned to church by December 12th.

Youth November 14

There are no youth or children's activities today due to the CPR class. Wednesday night youth will meet from 6:30 to 7:30. See you all there!

CPR

CPR Recertification is today from 2-6 pm in the Fellowship Hall. I hope everyone can come out and learn how to do CPR. This is really important, especially for those who work with the youth and children of our church.

CPR Recertification

We will be hosting CPR Recertification at the Church next Sunday from 2-6pm. The cost of the course is $100 dollars and we will divide this cost amongst the people at the class.

Veterans day

November 11, 2010 is Veterans Day! Please remember all those men and women who have served or are serving in our armed forces. We have several Veterans in our church. Please take the time to pray for these people and to tell them thanks.

Angel Tree

As you know, every year around Christmas we place a tree in the back of the church with children's names from the community whose families are struggling. The tree will soon be up for this year as well. Please help make Christmas special for our school children in need. Pray about our "giving" instead of "getting".

RHM Items- November

The items needed for Rowan Helping Ministries this month are:

*peanut butter

*jelly

*canned beans

*dried beans

*canned vegetables

*canned and dried milk

*flour

*sugar

A box is placed at the back of the church for your donations. Please help in any way you can.

West Rowan Bible Teachers Association

The WRBTA Spaghetti Supper is November 13, 2010 at Woodleaf Community Building. The event will be from 4:30-8 pm. The cost is $5.00 per plate or $20.00 per family. All proceeds go to WRBTA for Bible Study Funding. Also, they have asked us to provide the salad dressing so please see Ranae Brown if you can donate.

Thanks

Thanks to everyone who contributed to "Trick or Treat so others can eat" (canned food drive). We collected over 200 pounds of food for Rowan Helping Ministries. They are very appreciative and need all the help we can give them.

Church Council

Last night we had church council. The budget for 2011 was brought forth by Karen Gaskill for approval by the church council. We also discussed the United Methodist Conference. Our church has a lot going on right now and could really use our prayers. Please remember those who make important decisions for our church and our pastor.

Lunch with Peruvian Pastor

After service yesterday, everyone was invited to go to Blue Bay for lunch. My family and I attended and really enjoyed the time of good food and fellowship. Several families went as well. It was a lot of fun to talk to people outside of church and get to know the church we have been supporting in Lima, Peru. The pastor in Lima brought his wife and son. His wife is gorgeous and has an amazing voice. She sang a song for us in church, and there son is adorable. His name is Andrew. My sister and him had a great time playing after we finished eating.

Worship

We had a very special service yesterday. As you all know, we have helped a church in Peru by sending donations and sending people to work. Yesterday, the pastor of that church came to lead our service and spent time with us. The pastor gave our sermon about missions. The title of the sermon was TEAM- Together Everyone Achieves Missions. The Lord called us to go out into the world and help others. We can do this by actually serving in different locations or by sending monetary donations to churches or people going on mission trips. It takes all kinds of people to accomplish missions- those who can pay and those who can go. Please consider donating your time or money for this important cause. Also, please pray for those serving in other countries and around the United States to help get the Word of God out to all people.

BBQ

The church Bar-be-que was all day Saturday. It was a huge success. We had several members of the church come and help and eat and lots of people from the community.

Please pray for the people who came who are not involved with our church. Please help these people come to know the Lord and invite them to worship with us.

Yesterday at church, the pastor announced that we only had 6 chickens left and 19 pounds of BBQ! We usually have much more than this so this was our best year ever. We also have a lot of slaw left so get it while you can.

Thanks!

Thanks to everyone who helped work at West Rowan Helping Ministries and Trunk or Treat. The kids at Trunk or Treat had a great time and we had almost 200 kids come! This was a great way to get new people to our church. Please pray that the children come to know the Lord. The work at Rowan Helping Ministries was also greatly needed. Many families were able to eat because of your gifts of food and service!

Thanks for all you do Gay's Chapel United Methodist Church!

Voting!

Today is voting day!! I voted this morning and I hope all of you did as well. Please pray and ask God for guidance as we make important decisions for our country during this election time. Also ask God to help the elected officials make good decisions.

Prayer Requests

We have several people on our prayer request list this week. Please remember these people in your prayers, especially as we enter the holiday season. The list of prayer requests can be found in your bulletin. I special request was asked for the students at West Rowan High School who were involved in a car accident last Monday night leaving a YoungLife event.

Also please remember the family and friends of Minnie Sue Messick. She pasted away last week.

Another way to help.

As you all know, we have helped the West Rowan Bible Teachers Association several times in the past. On November 13th, they are having a Spaghetti supper. We have been asked to help by donating salad dressing. Please let Ranae Brown know if you can help by donating salad dressing. Also, please help by having spaghetti at the event on November 13th.

RHM items

Every month our church helps the community by donating items collected at the church to Rowan Helping Ministries. The needs for this month are:

Peanut butter
Jelly
Canned Beans
Dried Beans
Canned Vegetables
Canned and dried milk
Flour
Sugar

Please help keep up this ministry by donating as many items as possible. They are greatly appreciated. A box is found at the back of the church.

A Few Witches and Sorcerers in the Bible?!...

Witches and Sorcerers are found in the Bible... What?? Apparently so. This week in our bulletin we had a special list of witches and sorcerers just in time to get us in the Halloween spirit. A few of the witchese and sorcerers in the Bible follow...

1. Pharaoh called on his sorcerers and magicians to duplicate the miracles that Moses performed.

Exodus 7:11-12

2. Jezebel practiced witchcraft.

1 Samuel 28: 7-25

3. Nebuchadnezzar's magicians, astrologers, soothsayers, and sorcerers could neither tell him his dream nor interpret it.

Daniel 2:10

4. Simon amazed the people of Samaria with his sorcery.

Acts 8:9

These are just a few of the witches and sorcerers found in the Bible. I'll let you look them up and decide what you think about them...

Thanks!

Thanks Lord for counting us among the Saints even though we don't always live up to the Standard.

All Saints Day

Today is All Saints Day. Find some time today to stop and thank God for those who have come before us and remember some Christians are dying everyday just for believing and worshipping.

We are the saints and according to Revelation 7:9-17, we will assemble one day like we do now at church and worship and praise God for his love and redemption. We will gather in white robes with palm branches in hand.

Ghosts!?

This time of year it seems everyone is talking about ghosts and other scary stuff. Ghost stories are abundant in every town and it seems Salisbury has a few more than average. '

A couple of the most prominent ghost stories around town are the ghost in the Meroney theater, the ghost at Gravity Hill, and the ghost at Woodleaf Elementary School. There are several more...

Did you know there is even a ghost story in the Bible?? The story is found in 1st Samuel 28:6. Saul is in trouble and has always sought advice from Samuel but he is dead. Saul goes to a fortune teller. The fortune teller tells Saul that she sees a man coming from the earth and he automatically assumes the man is Samuel. The preacher said that anyone can be a fortune teller- the people who seek there help tell them what they are searching for and the fortune tellers say that is what they see.

Tony says that there is no such thing as ghosts. To be absent from the body is to be in heaven or hell. Spirits don't just stay around on earth.

However, the holy ghost is very real! This is the form that God comes down to us in. Even the Apostles Creed says we "Believe in the Holy Spirit, Communion of Saints," etc.

Upcoming Events

Next Saturday, November 6th is the church BBQ! We need people to work all day and volunteer as much as possible. Please sign up in the back of the church to bring desserts or work. We need men to work in the Pit Friday Night and Saturday. We need women to work in the kitchen putting the plates together and handing out desserts. The youth need to come and help serve tables and run food.

Next Sunday, the 7th, a guest speaker, who led the missionarys to Lima, Peru last summer will be coming to talk with us about his missionary experience. After church, all are invited to Blue Bay for lunch.

Halloween

To a child, today is Halloween. A day when they can dress up and go house to house to get candy. However, today is also Hallow's eve- the day before All Saints Day. All Saints Day recognizes the saved of the church.

The preacher mentioned that some people of the church have issues with Halloween. He says that Halloween is an innocent time for kids to dress up and get candy, not an evil holiday.

Halloween was actually started by Christians! Bats would show up to the Hallow's Eve parties and people thought it was the devil trying to show up. The bats really mean nothing but people add too much and turn it into something else.

On the Halloween note, last night we had Trunk-or-Treat at the church. Over 200 kids showed up to get candy out of cars in a safe, fun environment.

Bus!

The Transportation fund has been diligently working to find a bus for our church. A church bus is something we have needed for a very long time.

A few months ago, the transportation committee found a bus they were going to purchase, however, that bus fell through.

Today at church they announced that they have found another bus and will be putting a down payment on it shortly!

Please support our church in this very needed endeavour.

Bulletin

Every week the bulletin is full of thoughts for the week. The ones last Sunday were some of the best I can remember. If you don't have your bulletin anymore, the thought is titled "Grid-iron Glossary." The bulletin then lists words and the definition as it applies to Church.

Here are some of my favorites included on the bulletin:
1. Blocking- Talking endlessly to the pastor at the church door and keeping everyone else from exiting.

2. Draft Choice- The decision to sit close to an air-conditioning vent.

3. Extra Point- What you receive when you tell the preacher his sermon was too short.

4. Two- minute warning- The pastor's wife looking at her watch in full view of the pastor.

These are just a few of the definitions I thought were the best. I think all of the things listed on the bulletin are what we really think and feel.

Upcoming Events!

Don't forget::

October 30th the children will be trunk or treating in the church parking lot.
Come and decorate your cars and give out candy in a safe environment!!!

November 5th Set up for the Church BBQ! All night the men will be cooking the BBQ to make
sure everything is ready and set up.

November 6th: CHURCH BBQ! (all day)
Youth are encouraged to come to help get drinks for the customers or take
orders and wait tables.
Women will be preparing the plates and passing out deserts.
Men will be cooking the BBQ and helping make sure we have everything we
need.

Children at Play

The elementary school aged children go to Children's church every Sunday during church. Three Sundays out of every month are devoted to Bible lessons and activities that relate to the stories. One Sunday every month is devoted to singing Bible songs. Please sign up if you are interested in helping the children of our church become better informed about the Bible! :)

Upcoming Youth Events

The youth group is back in full swing from some down time during the summer. We kept activities going all summer but we finally have everyone back from vacations and trips! We have some exciting events coming up for the youth and children. First off, we have revised our children's program... Again! We now meet with the children on Wednesday nights from 5:30-7. We serve the children and their families dinner. We started this Sept. 29th and have had very good turn out so far. The families talk and plan future events while the children play and have a devotion with Sara Gettys, the youth director. On October 9th we will be going to Rowan Helping Ministries West to help from 9am to noon. Everyone is invited to help but we especially would like the youth to come and help. On October 10 we are participating in the Crop Walk for Hunger at City Park's Tennis Courts. The walk will take place at 2:30pm. Some fun festivities we have planned are October 17th: THE SLIME FESTIVAL!!! This event is for all ages so come prepared to get slimey! On October 24th we will have our annual trunk or treat in the church parking lot. See you soon!

Fall BBQ

Our annual Fall Bar-b-que is quickly approaching. This year the Fall BBQ is on November 6th.

October 16: 10am Kitchen Clean Up Day

October 21: 7pm United Methodist Women meeting

November 5: Set up for BBQ and cook

Please come help with any of these events you can.

Bible Study

Hey everyone! Great news... Gay's Chapel has started a new bible study. The bible study started last night (Monday, October 4th). The bible study will be every Monday at 7pm. Everyone is invited as always! See you there:)

Fair

The fair was a lot of fun last night. We rode rides and had a great turn out of youth! I will let you know when our next event is!

Fair Night!

The Rowan County fair is happening this week at the Rowan County fairgrounds. The youth and children will be attending Wednesday night. Meet at the church at 5:30 to travel to the fair as a group. You will need $10 for an unlimited ride pass and the church budget will pay for the other $10. Hope to see you all there!

Homecoming...

September 12th, 2010 was our annual Church Homecoming. People from all areas and in all walks of life joined our congregation in this joyous occasion. The Catawba College choir was supposed to attend and sing for us but Professor Oakley was sick and had to cancel at the last minute. Instead, our preacher preached about the ultimate homecoming: the homecoming we will experience in Heaven! We closed the service with the hymn "Until We Meet Again." I felt the hymn was a great way to finish up the service. After the service we all gathered behind the church at our new picnic tables and enjoyed a great pot luck meal and fellowship. I cannot wait until next year's homecoming!!

pool party:)

Today the youth and adults of the church gathered for a community youth pool party. The party was from 6-9pm. Several people attended and it was a lot of fun. Youth will be Weds. night at 6:30 for all high school students. The pool party included Gay's Chapel UMC, Franklin Presbyterian Church, Enon Baptist Church, and Woodleaf UMC. If you couldn't attend this party, you need to make sure you can make the next one!!! See you soon..

Contemporary Service.

Recently, Gay's Chapel UMC added a Christian Contemporary service. The service takes place every Sunday morning at 8:30. We have had very successful worship services. Every Sunday, a different person leads the service. I have led the service several times and really enjoy preparing and leading everyone in this time of worship. We sing contemporary songs that are on Christian Radio Stations and songs that are older worship songs. We have tried to have a contemporary service in the past and the attendance has been low but this time we have had a much better turn out. We are pleased to announce this service and invite everyone to come and join us.

Community Pool Party!

On Sunday, churches from around the community will be meeting at Franklin Pool to have a community pool party. The pool party is from 6-9 pm Sunday night. The youth and adults of the church are invited to come fellowship and swim. Everyone bring $2 to cover the price of the pool rental and a snack to share. Hope to see everyone there!

Lock in!

The youth and college lock in was a huge success! Thanks to everyone who came. We ate at Monteray Mexican Restaurant and then went to see Shrek 4: The Final Chapter. After we went to Shrek, we came back to the church to have a devotion. We went into the santuary and lit pink tea light candles. Pink represents hope. We were instructed to give things in our life that are weighing heavy on our lives to God. We lit the candles and then blew them out. It was a really moving experience. I am really glad I got to experience it. I led the devotion. The devotion was about new beginnings and how God doesn't care what we have done in the past, he just wants us to give our future to him and be better in the future. God loves us no matter what and he always will. YAY GOD!

College and Youth LOCK IN!

Tonight we will be going to Monteray Mexican Restaurant and to the $2 theater to see Shrek 4. I am so excited. I hope everyone can come. After the movie, we are coming back to the church and spending the night. Stay tune for pictures... I will be posting them soon:)

College Group:)

The first meeting of our new college group will be tonight at 7:30. We will be meeting for dinner to talk about what we want our group to focus on and accomplish. I would like for the group to be active in community events and help the youth as much as possible. I would also like for us to have devotion and worship time at least once a month. This group will be for those of us who were active with the youth group but out grew it. Our church currently has no way for college students to worship. We are too old for youth and too young for the older classes. I think this group will be an excellent resource for all of us to turn to and invite our friends to.

VBS Follow Up.

Vacation Bible School was a huge success! Thank you so much to everyone who helped make it so much fun. I think that the kids really got a lot out of it. The theme this year was a "High Seas Expedition". In the story I led, we talked about Peter. Peter was put into jail for no reason other than being a Christian. Most importantly, however, we talked about Rhonda. Rhonda was the servant girl who answered the door after Peter escaped from prison with the help of an angel. Rhonda told us the story of Peter and how no one believed her when she told them he was still alive and had escaped from prison. We even put the kids in hand cuffs to let them experience what Peter did while he was in prison.

Tonight at youth we honored our high school and college graduates. We invited the whole church and everyone brought their own dish to share. It was a great time for celebration and fellowship.

On Wednesday we will be practicing for Youth Sunday which is June 13th. We need every one's help to make that a success.

Vacation Bible School!

Vacation Bible School starts this Friday night (June 4th)! This year we have decided to change the format of bible school and only have a two day program. Bible school will be Friday night and Saturday (June 5th). Friday night will begin at 6:00 pm and end at 8:30 pm. Dinner will be served. Saturday VBS is from 8:45 am until approximately 3:30 pm. Lunch will be provided on Saturday. The closing ceremony will begin at 2:30 with an ice cream social following- parents are welcome! Ages 3-11 may participate in Vacation Bible School and anyone older is welcome to come and help.

We look forward to seeing everyone there!

Beginning an Internship...

School is finally over for this semester and I am excited to begin my internship. I am going to be interning with my church this summer through a grant by the Catawba College Lilly Center. At my church, I am going to be helping our youth director with activities, planning college group activities, helping with our contemporary service, and helping our financial secretary. I am also in the process of planning a summer camp for the elementary age people in our congregation. I plan to do arts and crafts, hiking, and an excursion with the kids. I am really excited and hope the kids will enjoy it as much as I will! I am also planning the contemporary music for Sunday's worship.. wish me luck!