Welcome to First United Methodist Church Winnsboro, where all people are welcome all the time! Live in the sanctuary and/or on Facebook!
We’re all excited about SLOWLY and SAFELY starting to gather, in limited numbers, and we’d love you to come join us on Sundays at 10:50 AM! We’ll continue Facebook LIVE as well and either way you “come”, please come! Wear a mask in and out and be seated 6′ apart of everyone – should we need additional space, overflow will be in Wesley Hall.
NEED INFO ON COVID 19?
Please continue to PRAY, PRAY, PRAY that we can stop the spread of the COVID-19 and eradicate this vicious virus!
12-17-17 FUMC Updates
‘Tis the season to be JOLLY, fa la la la la, la la la la!!
Well, the countdown has begun … in less than 7 days, this Sunday, December 24th, we’ll all be celebrating the last Sunday of Advent together, then, we’ll be celebrating Christmas Eve that night! All the shopping, cooking, entertaining, decorating and planning all come down to this … celebrating the birth of our Savior!!
Our choir did a FABULOUS job with the cantata on Sunday – Judy Beaty is amazing and Lola did a great job! We are richly blessed to have such selfless people work hard to help us enjoy the Christmas spirit – please be sure to thank them!
Please pay attention to our Facebook this week as we’ll be posting a LOT of information and pictures of what’s going on and there is MUCH to celebrate!! The beauty of Facebook is that it’s DUPLICATABLE and MULTIPLIABLE … in other words, anything we post on our church page is EASILY duplicated on your page just by pressing the SHARE button, and, as soon as you share our posts on YOUR page, the viewing multiplies exponentially because all your friends then see our post! BOTTOM LINE … share as many posts as you can!
PRAYER in the SANCTUARY: Tuesdays starting 12/19, 10 AM
Join us in the sanctuary as we pray for those on our prayer list, pray for our church and pray for people who do not yet know the love of Jesus Christ. You do not need to pray out loud, you can come and go when you want, you can move from pew to pew asking God to fill those seats, you can sit where you know people have asked for prayer, or you can be still and know that God is God! PLEASE BRING A SWEATER OR A JACKET as the sanctuary will be cool.
ALL CHURCH CHRISTMAS PARTY: 12/20, 5:45 PM
The Wednesday night fellowship team is making chili and all the fixin’s this week so come for dinner with us!! (Love offerings accepted.) We’re asking everyone to bring candy or cookies to share and at the end of the night, The Family Ties Sunday School Class will pack up the leftover dessert and deliver them to our local first responders and those who work on Christmas Eve
THERE WILL BE NO FELLOWSHIP DINNER: December 27th or January 3rd
CHRISTMAS EVE SINGING AT AUTUMN WINDS: 12/24, 6 PM
John Massey invites you to join him for Christmas caroling this Sunday evening! Songs sheets will be provided so come with a joyful heart!
CHRISTMAS EVE SERVICE: 12/24, 10 PM
I am so excited to have the opportunity to meet new people on Christmas Eve! Aside from Easter, more UNCHURCHED people come to service on Christmas Eve than any other time of the year so please …be mindful of our visitors!! If you’re able to park in the lot by the Baptist church please DO so the closer spots can be left for visitors. Also, sit a little closer to the front to allow guests those back rows … new people coming to church are hesitant about when to sit and stand and they prefer to be in the back so again, please keep our VISITORS in mind!
Kids are encouraged to come in their pajamas … they will all receive glow necklaces and a special treat to inspire them to get home and get to bed right away!
OUR CHURCH IN ACTION:
Please let me know when YOUR group is doing something that the congregation or community needs to know about! For example:
– Family Ties Class collected LOTS of toys and coats for the Winnsboro Fire Department Toy Drive
– Friendly Seekers Class sent a $250 donation to each of 3 great organizations this Christmas: Child Advocacy Center, Community resource Center and Morgan’s Mercy Mansion.
PRAYER REQUESTS: join our immediate text message prayer chain (see below) and continue to pray for:
– Jimmy Davis is recovering from back surgery and hoping to come home late today or tomorrow
– Jean Thurman’s great niece, Mariah Payne, is in ICU in Orlando after a serious reaction to medication
– Mary White (senior’s) daughter, Sharon is in the hospital with some medical problem; Mary is home alone so please check in on her (903.342.6805)
REMINDERS FROM LAST WEEK:
CAN YOU RECEIVE TEXT MESSAGES? If so, please join the PRAYER CHAIN now!
We live in a world of instant communication and when people need prayer, they need it right away! I have set up a text messaging service that allows you to text me with your prayer requests as soon as you have them, and I can send them to every individual on the prayer chain one second later. While this is a group message, people cannot reply to ALL so you will not get a bunch of texts, only 1 per prayer request. Also, I will hold requests in the evenings after 9 PM until 8:30 AMM the next morning. If you have unlimited text messages there is no cost to you, otherwise, text messaging rates will apply. Go to our website to learn more: CLICK HERE.
PLANNING AHEAD … Volunteers in Mission
I’m grateful to John and Priscilla Massey who have offered to coordination our MISSIONS activities at First Church … we have so many groups doing so many wonderful things and we want to be sure everyone knows what’s going on! If you or your group have a mission project going on, please let us know so we can include you in our first gathering in January. Also, one of the most amazing training opportunities that the United Methodist Church has is our VOLUNTEER in MISSION program … if you’re interested in getting involved, check out the training dates and please talk with John (who has already been trained) or Priscilla (who will be going in the New Year) … CLICK HERE for details!
Debbie Lyons, Pastor
(903) 342-6172 (TEXT 972-896-5254)
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12-13-17 FUMC Updates
Beginning today, Laquita and I are going to start sending a weekly email, hopefully sent on Tuesday or Wednesday, with a recap of announcements and everything going on in the immediate future OR things that require more long term planning. These posts will also be available on the website homepage for those who do not use email anymore. If you have something to be announced to the congregation, please let us know!
WHO IS WAITING FOR YOUR INVITATION?
At this point in the Christmas season, most of us are scrambling to buy and wrap last-minute gifts, we’re up to our ears in cookies, we’ve got stockings to stuff, and parties to attend but I’d ask you to consider this … who is God nudging YOU to invite to church this Christmas? Depending on the study you read, researchers predict that about 6 in 10 Americans will go to church on Christmas … this is very exciting because according to the Hartford Institute of Religion Research, more than 40% “say” they go to church weekly but less than 20% actually do! (In other words, more than 80 percent of Americans are finding more fulfilling things to do on weekends!) But since more people plan to attend church on Christmas, let’s invite them!!
This is a GREAT time of year to invite someone to come to OUR church this year …
1) With a new Pastor there’s a “curiosity” factor! (Curiosity is what led the shepherds to meet Jesus, and curiosity could be what might lead the people you invite to meet Jesus as well!)
2) The fact that our service is at 10 PM means it’s after dinner, after family time and a perfect time to offer to pick someone up or meet them at the door … it’s convenient!!
3) Christmas spirit already has people doing things they wouldn’t normally do … when 1000 people were asked if someone they knew invited them to church on Christmas how likely would they be to attend, 57% said they LIKELY would! How sad if no one invites them!
4) THIS IS WHERE YOU CAN REALLY MAKE A DIFFERENCE … many people are in desperate need of good news and great joy!! Every day people are faced with difficult things in their lives – for many, the future seems bleak and hearts are broken! But remember what the angel said in Luke 2:10-11… “I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born!” We can SHARE that good news!
Whether someone comes to church out of curiosity, because it’s convenient, because there’s a willingness to try something new, or desperation for a Savior, it could be your invitation that leads someone to meet Jesus! (At the very least, you’ll provide that person with a much-needed break from all the small talk and Christmas movies!!)
MANY THANKS!
Thanks to our men’s choir who did a GREAT job singing a special medley in church on Sunday … weren’t they awesome?!
Thanks to everyone who sends me pictures of our church events – I get them on Facebook as soon as I can and also, I’ll do a video recap of some of the pictures I have since November 1st at the end of the year. I don’t need TONS of pictures, just the best ones from your activities!
And thanks to all of you who “adopted” one of the residents at Morgan’s Mercy Mansion and took bags to fill for the women at the house – it’s a difficult season for them not being with family so everything we can do to help them in their recovery is appreciated! Please bring your bags back THIS SUNDAY, 12/17. IF YOU DIDN’T GET A BAG … feel free to bring an inspiring Christmas card for 1 or ALL of the 13 women now in the house! Any word of God’s grace and love MATTERS!
Thanks to the 30 people who sponsored our Christmas poinsettias to honor or remember people in your lives. Those names will be printed in the bulletin on Christmas Eve.
WEDNESDAY NIGHT FELLOWSHIP DINNER … 5:45 PM
Every Wednesday night the food is delicious and the fellowship is fabulous, and we’ve already begun the holiday spirit so please come! But don’t miss THIS date:
ALL CHURCH CHRISTMAS PARTY … Wednesday, 12/20, 5:45 pm .. Bring a batch of your favorite cookies or candy to share!
THERE WILL BE NO FELLOWSHIP DINNER: December 27th or January 3rd
AN AFTER “CHRISTMAS IN THE PARK” COMMUNITY SALE: this Thu 12/14 & Fri 12/15, 9 AM – 6 PM
Inky would like your help to sit with her in Fellowship Hall this Thursday and Friday as we hope to sell the Christmas crafts left from Christmas in the Park. She has put an ad in the paper and will put up signs but she wants some company!! Contact Inky at 903-347-6305.
CHRISTMAS CANTATA, “Born a Savior, Born a King”: this Sunday, 12/17 10:50 AM
I know how hard the choir is working to honor God with their ‘well rehearsed” joyful noise of praise and celebration for Christmas!! They’ve all worked so hard during this very busy time of year so please don’t miss it! We will have a short children’s message, prayer time, offering and a brief sermon then the choir will begin!
CAN YOU RECEIVE TEXT MESSAGES? If so, please join the PRAYER CHAIN now!
We live in a world of instant communication and when people need prayer, they need it right away! I have set up a text messaging service that allows you to text me with your prayer requests as soon as you have them, and I can send them to every individual on the prayer chain one second later. While this is a group message, people cannot reply to ALL so you will not get a bunch of texts, only 1 per prayer request. Also, I will hold requests in the evenings after 9 PM until 8:30 AM the next morning. If you have unlimited text messages there is no cost to you, otherwise, text messaging rates will apply. Go to our website to learn more: CLICK HERE.
PLANNING AHEAD … Volunteers in Mission
I’m grateful to John and Priscilla Massey who have offered to coordinate our MISSIONS activities at First Church … we have so many groups doing so many wonderful things and we want to be sure everyone knows what’s going on! If you or your group have a mission project going on, please let us know so we can include you in our first gathering in January. Also, one of the most amazing training opportunities that the United Methodist Church has is our VOLUNTEER in MISSION program … if you’re interested in getting involved, check out the training dates and please talk with John (who has already been trained) or Priscilla (who will be going in the New Year) … CLICK HERE for details!
NO 5TH SUNDAY POTLUCK MEAL THIS MONTH!
PRAYER REQUESTS: our ongoing prayers for those listed in our Sunday bulletin continue and we are adding the following:
2 pm … Celebration of Life, Tinney Chapel,
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to … Shady Grove Cemetery Association
Sherry Finney, SGCA Secretary/Treasurer
P.O. Box 861
Winnsboro, TX 75494
– Jimmy Davis is having back surgery this Friday in Tyler
– Dorothy Nulty is suffering with a serious case of the flu
– Mary Tom’s son in law’s nephew was shot in the head during a military training exercise; prognosis has the family extremely concerned
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