Hickory Bend United Methodist Church » meeting

Service and Revival

Emalie — Mon, 25 Jul 2011 03:52:02 +0000

For the last few months, I have found inspiration on Wednesday nights. It is fun to see everyone who comes for various activities and meetings, but I have also found great inspiration from those who come to clean the church. People are vacuuming, dusting, scrubbing, polishing, and tidying every inch of the building. I think the church is actually cleaner than it was when we had professionals coming! The comradery and spirit of the cleaning crew is quite contagious. I know sometimes I arrive tired and cranky, but I always leave quite cheered up.

One of my favorite heroes is Sadhu Sundar Singh, who was born into a wealthy, landowning Sikh family in India. Sundar converted to Christianity as a teenager, and renounced his wealth to travel the roads as Jesus did, preaching the gospel. Sundar and a friend were traveling through a pass high in the Himalayan Mountains. The weather was bitterly cold and dangerous. The two friends were caught unprepared in a snowstorm between two camps. Their only hope was to make their way to the next camp as quickly as possible. During this despserate rush, they came across a body lying in the snow. Sundar Singh wished to stop and help this unfortunate traveler, but his companion refused, saying, “We shall lose our lives if we burden ourselves with him.”

Sundar understood his friend’s reluctance but he could not think of leaving the man to die in the ice and snow. As his companion made his farewell, Sundar Singh lifted the poor traveler onto his back. With great effort on his part, he bore the man on toward the next station, knowing the risk to his own life.

But this is the miracle of service! At first traveling became more difficult for the Sudhar with the weight of the stranger on his shoulders, but gradually the heat from Singh’s body began to warm up the exhausted and unconscious half frozen fellow, and he revived. Soon both were walking together side by side. Catching up with his former companion, they found him dead – frozen by the cold.

So I think about our friends who are cleaning the church together. Their service may begin as a chore, but it turns into satisfaction, service, and renewal. Come see the miracle. You’ll be amazed.

Emalie

Protected: Administrative Council Meeting 02/20/11

admincw — Mon, 21 Feb 2011 21:06:48 +0000

Council Celebrates Spiritual Gifts!

Emalie — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 21:06:29 +0000

You are called to be a minister! What is your ministry? Each of us has spiritual gifts, and those gifts, being God given, call us into our ministry. Ministry is not only for our ordained ministers — essential as they are to our ministry at Hickory Bend UMC — they cannot do everything alone! Each of us is called and gifted for ministry.

Our recent Council Retreat focused on discovering our unique gifts and exploring where they lead us in ministry. Everyone on the council was asked to complete a rather lengthy survey compiled by Charles V. Bryant. As a council, our strengths are perhaps not surprising, or perhaps they are astonishing! Out of 32 listed in the survey, here are our council’s top ten:

10. Pastor
9. Spirit-Music
8. Discernment
7. Humor
6, Faith
5. Hospitality
4. Administration
3. Leadership
2. Teaching
1. Service

Does anything on the list surprise you? Do you think something is missing? If you are interested in taking Bryant’s survey, we have several copies available.

How do you see God calling us into ministry here at Hickory Bend UMC? Where do your gifts call you into the Church and into the world?

Isn’t it wonderful to have a congregation, gifted and called into service to celebrate our ministry?

Emalie

Renew your Spirit at Beersheba!

Emalie — Wed, 21 Jul 2010 15:29:33 +0000

Come to Beersheba! October 22-24, 2010 The historic Beersheba Springs Assembly is perched on top of the Cumberland Plateau near McMinnville and Manchester, Tennessee. Many of the buildings existed before the Civil War. The hotel overlooks the glorious Collins River Valley where you can rock and watch the fog lift, or track a single white cloud drift by below you. The mountain climate will cure what ails you. We have reserved the vintage accommodations in the upper hotel. What these rooms may lack in modernity, they more than make up for in charm. (They tilt a mite toward Aunt Sally’s.) The view and the charm of Beersheba remind us that we are standing on sacred ground. The prices vary depending on how many people stay in your room, but here is a typical breakdown from last year for two nights and four meals: Youth — $90 Couples — $135 Single adults — $120 See the bulletin board in the Fellowship Hall for this year’s pricing. Reserve your room for just $15.00 per person. Call or email Emalie for reservations. 615-403-8455 or discoteach@gmail.com

Council Retreat

Emalie — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 04:48:32 +0000

[ September 25, 2010; ]

Safe Sancutary Meeting

Emalie — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 04:41:24 +0000

[ August 11, 2010; 6:00 pm to 6:45 pm. ]

Council Meeting

Emalie — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 04:34:43 +0000

[ August 15, 2010; 12:00 pm to 2:00 pm. ]

Blanket Brigade

admincw — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 20:32:22 +0000

March 27, 2010
9:00 am	to	12:00 pm

Hickory Bend Blanket Brigade will meet on March 27th at 9AM. We hope you will join us.

Our crafty ladies have been hard at work since the inception of the Blanket Brigade 2 years ago. Collectively the group has provided over 60 lap blankets to the patients at Alive Hospice. While we work independently year around it is during the cold winter months when the lion’s share of the work gets done. We have some in the group that do the majority of the work and it can become costly to provide all the supplies on top of their time involved in making the blanket.

For this reason I appealed to the congregation over a year ago for donations of yarn. As usual, Hickory Bend responded over and above the call of duty and we soon had boxes of yarn to work with. However, with the number of blankets produced the surplus has been used up, and in order to continue, each blanket maker will again have to assume her own cost.

So if you would like to be a part of this worthy cause but don’t know how to crochet or knit you can help by donating yarn. It doesn’t have to be newly purchased nor be a full skein. We’ve made some beautiful items with just scraps from several skeins. So clean out your closets and drawers. Or on your next trip to Walmart or Hobby Lobby you can pick up a couple of skeins.

If you are unsure of colors and would prefer us to pick the yarn, I would suggest purchasing a gift card from either of those stores and bring the card to me. That way when someone wants to purchase some yarn they can use the card and then pass it on to the next person without having to be exchanging money all the time.

If you are interested in helping just let me know. You can bring any donations to the church and leave them in the choir loft with my name on it. And if you want to learn to knit or crochet then join us the last Saturday morning of each month and one of us will get you started. Try it…you might find you like it!!

Trustee Meeting Set for Wed March 10

admincw — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 20:30:16 +0000

March 10, 2010
5:00 pm	to	6:00 pm

The Trustees will Meet on March 10th at 5:30.

Worship Committee Meeting Set for March 3rd

admincw — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 20:27:18 +0000

March 3, 2010
5:00 pm	to	5:30 pm

Please note that the Worship committee will meet Weds March 53rd at 5PM. Please come out we would love to have you.