Ap r i l 2 0 1 6
The SPIRE Mt. Pleasant United Methodist Church
Surprised by
Haiti is a paradox! There’s really no other way to say it. It is country of incredible poverty mixed with deep spirituality, of broken social and political systems in the midst of warm welcoming people. Over the years many people have asked, “Why Haiti?” A good question for which I don’t have a very good answer other than to echo Philip’s response to Nathaniel, “Come and see…” [John 1:46]. Philip’s invitation changed Nathaniel’s life just as my journey to Haiti each year has changed mine and I believe it can change yours too if you choose to let it. Over the years I’ve found that my relationship with God is far more complicated and challenging than I like to admit. You might think a church-guy would have figured that out by now, wrong! Hindsight tells me that when my world starts getting a bit too comfy-cozy, predictable and easy, God gently nudges me forward by opening a door to a whole new world, a fresh perspective, and a steep learning curve. This is how my relationship with Haiti began. Six years ago my faith was running a bit dry and I was in need of a spiritual awakening, when I had a ‘chance’ meeting with an amazing couple, Barb and Jim Richter, from Bethel, OH. Jim is a retired UM pastor and Barb is a mission minded dynamo. During breakfast I learned Barb created, runs and supports an orphanage in Haiti by raising awareness and igniting a mission passion in others. During our conversation, she invited me to “Come and see…”. I took her up on the offer and I have been learning and growing ever since. Since that ‘chance’ meeting, I have been making a pilgrimage of sorts to a small orphanage on the outskirts of Port-au-Prince called the House of Faith. The orphanage is home to about 17 boys, the caretaker Bato and his wife Gina and their children. Over the years, I have learned not only their names, but their unique personalities, dreams and struggles. We support them with our prayers, gifts and presence and like any family we’ve shared more than our share of adventures, some I can share and some I better not! My relationship with the orphanage has expanded to include Denise, Pastor Drix, and countless others as part of my Haitian family. What started out as a mission to help less fortunate people, has revealed more about my own faith. Someone once said “You will never know God is all you need until God is all you have.” Haitians live that truth in very personal and profound ways. In ways I cannot describe here, I feel I am a better Christian, pastor and person because of my Haitian connections. I realize I have not shared very much about this side of my faith journey, but I feel you need to know this important part of who I am. Of course, I would also like to invite anyone who is also feeling God’s nudge to come and rediscover the Gospel in a whole new way, only 90 min from Miami. I would like to introduce to my friends who will touch your heart and give new meaning to your faith. Please take a look at this video to see what we’ve done in the past. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KW0txmC2Puk] There’s really so much more I could say than space allows. So I would like to invite the entire church to a fellowship lunch following church on April 10th. This is not a fundraiser, but a “Thank You” lunch. Mark your calendar, show up and let God open the door for you. Blessings,
304-489-1965
mtpleasantumc2014@yahoo.com
www.mympumc. net
The Spire
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H.R. Lockhart ~ Glenna Scott Greg Cappadona Kelli McKinney Alex Gedon ~ Mike & Leslie Coe Danny Cook David Evans ~ Jordan Mader Tiffany Board ~ Lyle Carder Marcus Whited ~Carl Sizemore Mark Dugan ~ Bob Sheppard Katelin Gedon Charles & Tracy Osborne Tyler Moore Josh Schwendeman Jodi Smith Larry & Betty Bargeloh Travis McPherson Scott McKinney Anthony Tornabene Wayne Bargeloh Matt Duckworth ~ Jillian Poe Debbie Sheppard J.D. Beane Dave & Joyce Mendenhall Ron Flannery ~ Ryan Moore Bud & Gladys Moore Charles & Betty Deem Jason Schwedeman David & Patsy Bee Bill Carder Levi Hupp Bud Moore ~ Kelsey Starkey Mike Fallon ~ Robbie Matheny Steve & Tonja Bailey Kay Perkins Peggy Grygiel Lowell Jackson ~ Brian Archer Rylee Hupp Harry & Helen Wright Cary & Barb Schmidt
We want to celebrate your special days! If we have missed your birthday or anniversary, please either make note of it on the Friendship Pad or call the church office ~ 304-489-1965. 304-489-1965
Friends are special people that love us unconditionally through the years. They rejoice with us when we are happy and comfort us when we hurt. Time does not effect our love, even if we haven’t seen each other for months or years. But when we do come together it is just like time stood still. Mt. Pleasant United Methodist Church is full of friends. Many are at a stage in their lives where they can’t drive or where they feel isolated because of physical problems or treatments. Many have lost their mates and are just lonely for company. Therefore, we are starting a “friends” group which will meet regularly just to be together over coffee and cookies. Having someone to laugh with will be encouraging and something to look forward to. If you are interested in reconnecting with friends, please plan to attend. If you have any questions, please contact the church office. We can provide rides too. Our first meeting will be Monday, April 11th, at 1:00 pm in the Fellowship Hall.
We are women with a Purpose! “United Methodist Women shall be a community of women whose purpose is to know God and to experience freedom as whole persons through Jesus Christ; to develop a creative, supportive fellowship; and to expand concepts of mission through participation in the global ministries of the church. The United Methodist Women will hold their yard sale this year on Saturday, April 23, 2016 from 8 am - 2 pm in the Fellowship Hall. We once again request your support of donated items for the sale. Yard sale items can be delivered to the Fellowship Hall on Thursday evening April 21st from 4-8 pm and Friday, April 22nd from 9:00 am – 7:00 pm. In addition to some terrific buys at the yard sale, you can also purchase some delicious bake sale items, and enjoy a great hot dog, chips and soft drink for lunch. All proceeds from the sale will benefit the ministries and missions of the Church. Please join us for our next meeting of the United Methodist Women on Tuesday, April 12, 2016 at 7:00 pm as we finalize plans for the yard sale and discuss future events. We hope you will be able to attend. Easter, Holy Week, Easter Egg Hunts, Good Friday Service, Sunrise Service, Sunrise Service Breakfast, Easter Service, Brunch after First Service, Second Service, Packed House, Standing Room Only? Busy time, Spring Break, Golf Trip? Sometime after Easter, the new sinks, the stainless steel countertop for the island in the kitchen and the stainless steel backsplash behind the oven will be installed. A great THANK YOU to the Somervilles for donating the stainless steel and creating countertop and backsplash. Landscaping at the parsonage and around the Church will soon be starting in various stages. New carpet for the conference room and offices is being planned, along with a new coat of paint for each room. Picking colors now! Happy Spring. (The snows not done Yet) Please contact one of the trustees with any concerns, problems or issues. And you are always welcome to any of the trustee’s meetings. We usually meet @ 7 pm the on the first Monday of the Month. The Trustees mtpleasantumc2014@yahoo.com
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The Spire SAK PAK Update
April 2016 Acolytes 3 10 17
Aiden & Ashton Garrett Garrett & Lucie Cline Addison Deems Abbi Francisco Cameron Fallon Chase Offenberger
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Bread Bakers 3 10 17 24
Rose Armstrong Jeanne Dye Elaine Smith Ann Somerville
Children’s Church 3 10
Brenda McKnight Gina Starkey Kaylynn Lantz Dana Mader Heather Skidmore Jill Beane Sarah Schwendeman
17 24
Communion Stewards 8:15 am 3
Larry & Pam Fought Larry Reeves & Jane Utt
10:45 am 3
Daneen Moore & Youth
Greeters 8:15 am 3 10 17 24
Eddy & Ruth Ann Sheppard John & Linda Bargeloh Butch & Carol Dobson Ann Mayhew & Jean Evans
304-489-1965
A fundraiser meeting was held on March 1, 2016. We reviewed the fundraisers we did last year: Krispy Kreme Donuts ~ Bob Evans ~ Sweet Frog ~ Woodridge Dinner/Auction ~ Golf Tournament ~ Rada Cutlery ~ Christmas Ornaments ~ Food Drive from Energy Express and Youth . This year, our fundraisers will be: · Krispy Kreme Donuts in April. Lubeck UMC will also be working with us on this project. If we sell over 300 dozen, Krispy Kreme will deliver. We sold about 125 dozen last year. · Premier Design Jewelry on April 9th in the church Fellowship Hall. Brunch will be served. Kelly Williams is working on this project with Linette Gedon. · Various Craft Shows. Our first show was in Marietta two weeks ago and we had a table in the narthex for two weeks. We made $170.00 Sherry Hinton, Tammy Pence, Pam Fought, Patsy Bee, Joann Shirey, Vera Smith and Donna Linsell have been working on crafts for these shows. · We will be adding Rada Cutlery to the Craft Shows and always have it available for purchase if you would like to place an order. Just contact Sherry Hinton. · Sweet Frog ~ Dates to be announced · Out second annual Golf Tournament will be on August 6, 2016 at Woodridge Golf Course. Doug Williams is in charge of this event. · Christmas Ornament Sale in December · Texas Roadhouse ~ We will receive a percentage of their sales. Larry and Pam Fought are checking on the requirements and procedures for this event. · “L Series Dollars” Each dollar bill has a serial number. If it starts with an “L” (for Lunch or Love) Please save your “L” dollars and put them in the small manila envelopes in the pews for our time of giving on Sundays. · Flea Market/Yard Sale ~ in June or July · Auction at Mineral Wells Elementary. Date to be announced. If you have ideas for fundraisers, please contact Sherry Hinton. Hopefully these projects will fund SAK PAK through another year. As of this week, we have 48 families and 99 children. These numbers vary because of families moving in and out of our school district.
We are blessed to be a blessing! SAK PAK was originally started to help families provide healthy, nutritious food for their children on weekends and holidays. It has evolved into being a blessing to so many people … the 15-20 who come to help count and pack each time ~ two young ladies who have come from the Drug Court, always with a smile and willingness to help, to load and deliver the totes ~ we have had four young people who came to help pack and in so doing earned community service hours for school and college ~ Kaylynn Lantz is going to bring her Mom’s Group to SAK PAK in April. They do various service projects and may also do a food drive. They are very excited about coming and serving. We only have about ten weeks to pack for this school year and then we will be packing for the summer weeks. Come join us in this wonderful ministry! You will be a blessing and you will be blessed. If you have any questions, ideas or just want to know more about this program, please call Sherry Hinton at 304-481-5064.
mtpleasantumc2014@yahoo.com
www.mympumc. net
The SPIRE Happy Spring from Mt. Pleasant Preschool! These last two months of preschool are very busy. After a visit from the Easter Bunny and a wonderful Easter Party, we are ready to enjoy a short Spring Break before tackling our end of the year projects. Our three year old class are finishing up their Five Senses unit and moving on to Safety Month! We will be talking about safety at home, 911, traffic and fire safety, and stranger danger. A special thanks to Sean Gallagher for arranging a visit from the Mineral Wells VFD! The kids love having the firemen visit and seeing the fire truck! We will also take a tour of Sweet Frog and be practicing daily for our upcoming Mother’s Tea Party. Our four year old class will be finishing up their alphabet, continue to master their sight words, and begin practice for the graduation program on May 24. We are also arranging a visit to Pifer’s Garage to see the tow trucks! The Pifer’s always provide an educational, fun filled tour! We would like to thank our parents for coming in to parent/ teacher conferences! It was a joy to get to share in your child’s successes with you! A special thanks for Roger Hodges for taking care of any needs or repairs in the preschool. As soon as we mention a light malfunction in the room, a shelf problem in the office, or any problem, he is on the case immediately and issue is resolved! Recently we had a jungle gym play area on our playground that had been knocked apart by the winter winds and appeared to be broken. Fifteen minutes later, Roger had it back together and repaired! Thank you Roger! We truly appreciate you! As spring cleanup and yard sale season approaches, Mt. Pleasant Preschool are in need and would appreciate any donations to our playground. We are always in need of plastic toys, such as shovels, wheelbarrow, cars, metal or plastic construction vehicles, etc… As warm weather approaches, we would also like to remind anyone who goes into the playground to PLEASE supervise children and leave it the way you found it with tubs and sandbox covered, and toys picked up. Thank you! Just a reminder-Our fall classes are full but we will continue to take names for our waiting lists.
College Students Care Packages It doesn’t seem possible, but it is time to send out our last Care Package of Goodies for the year to our College Students. We will be mailing them on April 17th. If you would like to participate by either bringing in baked goods (brownies, cookies, etc.) or by helping with the shipping costs (the postage for sending a box of baked goods is around $6.50), please bring your donations to the church on April 17th. You may give them to Daneen Moore or leave them in the Church office. Thank you for your contributions to this ministry.
Crossroads Camp 6827 Old St. Mary’s Pike Parkersburg, WV 26104
28th Annual April 9, 2016 ~ 4 pm - 7 pm Adults ~ $7.00 Youth under 12 ~ $3.00 Support the camp and enjoy worship in song down at the large pavilion. Join us and bring a friend as we kick off a special time of fundraising for an exciting vision for the camp! Details will be available at the dinner.
Greater Things Are Yet To Come!
Dear Church Family, Thank you so much for the Walmart gift card! It’s hard to believe I have almost completed my first year here at West Liberty. Hope to see you all soon! Emily Athey
Enjoy a day celebrating community and our planet Earth at the beautiful Appalachian South Folklife Center in Pipestem! Saturday, April 23rd, 2016 ~ 11:00 am ~ 11:00 pm ~ Featuring: *music performances by Andrew Adkins, Tim & Maggie, Option 22, The Change, The Parachute Brigade and Nathaniel Altare PLUS Open Mic & jam time from 9pm-midnight! *medicinal plants workshop by Appalachian Plant Magic *herb & mushroom walk by Willie Dodson of Appalachian Voices plus a talk about the work of that fine publication *panel dicussion (details coming soon) *rock painting with Haleigh *drumming *delicious food by Chestnut Revival! *frolicking in the fields amidst the breathtaking mountain landscape of ASFC *more activities TBA. **Jamming shall ensue following the scheduled activities and will continue through late evening. The event is FREE of charge! 304-489-1965
mtpleasantumc2014@yahoo.com
www.mympumc. net
The SPIRE
Total Easter Attendance = 435!
Sunday School
1st Service
2nd Service
2016 Avg Weekly Attendance YTD 2015 Avg Weekly Attendance YTD
67 46 General
71 57 Designated
156 122 Total
2016 Avg. Weekly Offering YTD 2015 Avg. Weekly Offering YTD
$6,413 $5,911
$899 $1,298
$7,312 $7,209
2014 Avg. Weekly Offering YTD
$6,541
$1,045
$7,586
Total 227 179
Top 5 Reasons Why People Give to MPC Reason #1: They See a Need Needs are one of the biggest motivators of giving. Just note that when natural disasters occur, people are motivated to give based on real needs of real people. (Example: Food Pantry, Sak Pak, Kids Hope, Children’s Ministries, Youth Ministries, etc.)
Reason #2: They Believe in the Vision Let’s face it—keeping the staff employed, the insurance current, and the bills paid isn’t that inspiring. But being a part of a church that’s making an eternal difference is a mission that will inspire people. (our mission is to connect everyone to Jesus and his mission)
Reason #3: They Are Taught How to Give A personal financial ministry can be a powerful tool to teach people how to give. I taught a personal financial class for years and people would say, “I can’t give!” After just thirty minutes of one-on-one coaching, they could be tithing or close to tithing by just cutting stuff they aren’t even using. Don’t just challenge people to give 10%. Teach them how to manage the other 90%. Help people with their personal finances. (Example: Financial Peace University)
Reason #4: They Understand the Bible You must teach them what the Bible says about money. Teach the Bible with clarity and passion, and never apologize for being true to God’s Word. (Example: Disciple BS, Fast Track, Starting Point, small groups)
Reason #5: They Have a Relationship with Someone When people are relationally connected, they are more likely to financially contribute. (ex: UMW, small groups, mission & ministry teams, Greeters)
304-489-1965
mtpleasantumc2014@yahoo.com
www.mympumc. net
304-489-1965
mtpleasantumc2014@yahoo.com
www.mympumc. net
The Spire March Events Six Students and leaders attended Dare to Share in Columbus, OH on March 4-5. Youth helped deliver over 500 lbs of potatoes to local Mineral Wells residents.
5 Reasons Youth Ministry is Critical to MPC Today Sometimes it’s easy to miss the forest for the trees when it comes to programming and activities. Youth Ministry is not just a line on the budget, but an essential part of a healthy church culture. Youth Ministry brings fresh perspectives, new energy and challenging ideas meant to stimulate and inspire the church to live our faith in words and deeds. In general, I find there are five important things Youth Ministry brings to our church today. ·
Youth ministry is vital to helping teens connect faith and values to life choices which will shape the rest of their lives.
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Youth ministry resists the status quo, helping the church remain fresh, vibrant and relevant.
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Youth have a broader range of friends from different backgrounds, family situations and beliefs. Youth ministry focuses on inviting those who are not already part of the church into the deeper conversation about God, faith and life.
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Youth ministry rejects the notion teens are second class-members of the body, but co- conspirators in the divine work of the church. They help us stay true to our mission.
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Youth ministry helps the church focus on living our faith in Jesus, which goes beyond survival, buildings and budgets. 304-489-1965
mtpleasantumc2014@yahoo.com
www.mympumc. net