Lunenburg United Methodist Charge

Antioch UMC Williams UMC

On our walk. . . . .

September 19, 2007

Pastor’s Message –

Psalm 79:1-9

O God, the nations have come into your inheritance; they have defiled your holy temple; they have laid Jerusalem in ruin. They have given the bodies of your servants to the birds of the air for food, the flesh of your faithful to the wild animals of the earth. They have poured out their blood like water all around Jerusalem, and there was no one to bury them. We have become a taunt to our neighbors, mocked and derided by those around us. How long, O Lord? Will you be angry forever? Will your jealous wrath burn like fire? Pour out your anger on the nations that do not know you, and on the kingdoms that do not call your name. For they have devoured Jacob and laid waste to his habitation. Do not remember against us the iniquities of our ancestors; let your compassion come speedily to meet us, for we are brought very low. Help us, O God of our salvation, for the glory of your name; deliver us, and forgive us, for your name’s sake

This Psalm voices the prayer of those who raise the question, “Why should the nations say, “Where is your God?” As we look around us in our world today we see it broken and haunted by evil and we still ask, “Where is God?” We have to realize that we need faith in God even when we are faced with the harshest realities. The psalmist is writing about the destruction of not only Jerusalem but the Temple. He is asking why God has not stopped this horror and forgiven the Jews. He calls on God to take his wrath out on the nations and not on the Jews. But God has had enough of the Jews and their false Gods and is sending them into exile in Babylon -- but the psalmist never loses hope. He knows that his God will eventually forgive and restore Israel. In our lives today do we question God when something doesn’t go according to our plan? If so have you lost your faith in God? We must understand that even in the most horrible times our faith must be strong. We need to rely on God for our very lives. If we decide that we can do it better without God aren’t we like the Israelites just before the destruction of Israel and the exile. We need to have faith that we can do whatever we need to do to survive as long as we have faith in God. He will restore us as long as we believe and love him. God Bless.

Upcoming Events – September 20 – September 26, 2007

Wednesday, September 19, 2007

Prayer Meeting @ Williams @ 5:45 PM

William’s Celebration Choir practice @ Williams @ 6:30 PM

Sunday, September 23, 2007

Lunenburg Charge Conference @ Williams @ 2:30 PM

Monday September 24, 2007

Bible Study@ Antioch @ 7:00 PM

Tuesday, September 25, 2007

Bible Study@ Audrey Smith’s @ 10:00am

Wednesday, September 26, 2007

Prayer Meeting @ Williams @ 5:45 PM

William’s Celebration Choir practice @ Williams @ 6:30 PM

William’s Heritage Days.

Williams UMC Heritage Days was a great success. On Saturday they prepared a Brunswick Stew that was cooked over an open fire in the way it was done years ago. The stew sold out shortly after it was finished. Several members brought their guitars and all who wanted sang their favorite hymns and contemporary Christian songs. A flea market was held and at the end of the day everything that was left over was taken to the Shepherd’s Inn in South Hill to be used in that ministry. Antique tractors were on display as well as a flag that flew over the Alcoa plant in Richmond when President Reagen visited. Sunday was a day of homecoming. People came from far and near to join in worship as well as lunch on the grounds. It was an exciting weekend full of the love of God and Jesus Christ. See photos of the weekend below.

Lunenburg Charge Revival

A Revival will be held for the Lunenburg Charge on October 1^st, 2^nd and 3^rd at Antioch at 7:00 PM. Rev. Ken Thrasher will be our guest speaker. Please mark your calendars for this event

Cookbooks are still available.  If you would like to purchase one, please contact Susan Moseley at 676-2081, Gayle Grant at 676-3531, Trudy Wilkins at 676-4458, or anyone at Antioch.  Any church member can get a copy to you for $10 each.  Over 700 copies have been sold & there are less than 20 left.  Get your copy now -- or some to give as gifts -- while they're still available!

150^th Anniversary Throws Throws are still available. These beautiful throws will make a great present for a family member. The cost is $45.00 each. Please call Jane DiStefano if you would like to order a throw or have any questions. 434-676-2314

Sunday School is available each Sunday morning. The importance of Sunday School is that, though you may think hearing the word will suffice for you, you really need to be in attendance at Sunday School to gather all the information that you can in an open discussion classroom. Jesus’ word cannot be totally understood just by listening to a sermon. You have to interact with it and with other Christians to learn what He was saying to us. This is a life long study and you should take part. There is a class for every age so please plan on joining us to learn more about our Lord, Jesus Christ. Sunday School at Williams begins at 10:45 AM and at Antioch at 10:00 AM.

Evening Bible Study. Evening Bible study will continue on September 24, at 7:00PM. We will be continuing to read and study Genesis with a particular look at the historical view of the writers. If you would like to join us come on over, Monday @ 7:00PM at Antioch. The reading assignment for this week is Genesis 26-32.

The Methodist Way

When God created humankind he decided that people ought to live in relationship with one another. Throughout the Bible (Gen 2:18, Exodus 3:14-15, Neh 9:38 – 10:26, Matt 4:18-22 & 10:1-4, Acts 2: 42, 44, 9:17, 19, 15:2) God gives the gift of faith ordinarily in the community. God gives the sustaining means of grace ordinarily within the community. God gives a setting for living out the faith within the community. It is no wonder that Methodists understand the journey of Christian faith to be a corporate experience. It is not a two-seater sports car (just me and Jesus), it is a big bus packed with all kinds of people. In fact, John Wesley once wrote,” I shall endeavor to show that Christianity is essentially a social religion, and that to turn it into a solitary religion is indeed to destroy it.”

Fundamentalism can be one of the more limiting expressions of the Bible Belt. What seems interestingly significant about some expressions of fundamentalism is the emphasis on individual decisions without regard to the social nature of the faith event. Methodists are likely to see such individualism as a violation of how God has revealed God’s very self to us. God has self revealed God’s being as Trinity. One of the meanings of this doctrine is that God exists as one God in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. These three persons exist in one community, the unity of the Godhead.

“Being Methodist in the Bible Belt” F. Belton Joyner, Jr.

If you cannot reach Rev. Ed at the parsonage, you may call him on his cell phone: 252-532-0952. He can also be reached via e-mail at revedumc@yahoo.com If you would like to receive e-mail messages from the pastor send an e-mail to him at revedumc@yahoo.com and we will add you to our list.

Please keep the following families in your prayers:

Marjorie Thompson	Dorothy Shields	Bertha Arthur
Wanda & Jimmy Chumney	Sarah Agnes Callis	Jeffrey Hendricks
Earl "Chuckie” Barnes	Rev. Al Green	Paul & Argy Turner
Edna & Wilson Bagley	Christian Sutton	Maria Kay
“B” & Teewah Hayes	Martha White	Frances Hawthorne
Elizabeth Biggerstaff	Sheila Cage	Micky Narron
Harry & Margaret Smith	Sara Sutton	Tommy Cage
Ellen & John Gentry	Bernard Bottoms	Our Military
Becky Eades & family	Gertrude Hite	Dorothy Driskill
Henry Lee Cundiff	Neil Barnes	Joe N. Coleman
Mary Ann Cundiff	Gayle Grant	Garland Parham
Family of Allie Daniel	David King	Diane Overby
Nannie Sue Dawson	Unspoken	J.B. Morris
Mae Overby & Family	Tony Wilkins	Barbara Heffner

If you have anyone who is in need of prayer, please place their names on the Prayer List and lift up their names in prayer during worship service and throughout the week

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Welcome:

On Sunday September 2, 2007 we welcomed a new member at each church. At Antioch we welcomed Brenda Barnes as an affiliate member and at Williams we welcomed Betty Yerby as a professing member. Let us all remember our own vows of membership: “As members of this congregation we will faithfully participate in its ministries by our prayers, our presence, our gifts, and our service that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ.”

In the Library

These High, Green Hills
The Third Novel in the Beloved Mitford Series

In These High, Green Hills we're once again in Mitford, a southern village of local characters so heartwarming and hilarious you'll wish you lived right next door.

At last, Mitford's rector and lifelong bachelor, Father Tim, has married his talented and vivacious neighbor, Cynthia. Now, of course, they must face love's challenges: new sleeping arrangements for Father Tim's sofa-sized dog, Cynthia's urge to decorate the rectory Italian-villa-style, and the growing pains of the thrown-away boy who's become like a son to the rector.

Add a life-changing camping trip, the arrival of the town's first policewoman, and a new computer that requires the patience of a saint, and you know you're in for another engrossing visit to Mitford, the little town that readers everywhere love to call home.

The Walk to Emmaus

This week we continue our new series about “The Walk to Emmaus”. This week Betsey Hendricks and Betty Yerby will also be attending. The following information comes from “What Is Emmaus?” We hope you find it informative and we hope it clears up any misconception there may be about the Walk to Emmaus. We ask that all be in prayer for Betsy and Betty as they recommit themselves to Jesus Christ.

Rev Ed

The difference Emmaus makes is seen in the sixty-year-old man who, after his weekend, decides to give up his antique business and enter seminary. Or the woman who was inspired to write a song, praising God in her many local performances. Another example is the doctor who took to adding Bible verses to his prescription sheets to reinforce Christ as the ((best medicine. "

-Layperson from Ohio

_T

he aim of Emmaus is to inspire, challenge, and equip local . church members for Christian action-in their homes, churches, workplaces, and communities. Several important components of the Emmaus program work together to accomplish this

aim.

The three-day Emmaus course in Christianity moves church members to new levels of openness and commitment as Disciples of Christ. Participants gain fresh understanding of the meaning of their faith. People re-experience the gift of God's love and emerge from the Emmaus weekend with a desire to pass that love on to others. The three day course strengthens persons' conscious union with Jesus Christ and helps them translate their faith into a practical lifestyle of openness to God's love.

A layman from Tennessee wrote, "I learned the importance of a life of piety, study, and service and their interrelationship in providing a life in grace. I felt the immense power of God's love and grace and new insights into ways of sustaining and increasing my openness to that grace. I developed a new longing to share my experience of Christ with others with hopes that they too can feel what I feel. Although my Christian journey started a long time ago, the progress and growth due to my Emmaus experience is invaluable to me."

The Emmaus follow-up groups build on what begins during the three-day experience. These little discipleship groups of two to six persons meet weekly for an hour. Members review their weekly spiritual practices, their awareness of Christ's presence and call, and their plans for the week to come. The accountability group's purpose is to provide ongoing support for one another's commitment to live wholly in the grace of God and to grow in the self-giving spirit of Jesus Christ. In addition to under girding personal Christian growth, the follow-up groups serve as excellent bases for Christian action and outreach in the local community.

Teams in servanthood make a difference. Many who participate in Emmaus also grow in the servant spirit of Jesus Christ through their subsequent involvement in making Emmaus possible for others. By serving in the kitchen, setting up the rooms, cleaning the bathrooms, preparing the worship center, and praying from behind the scenes for the pilgrims and teams, these persons learn the joy and discipline of humble servanthood. By serving as team members and committing to several weeks of team preparation, persons learn to lead faith-sharing in small groups, to express their faith and speak before groups, and to use their unique gifts while affirming others' gifts.

Local church involvement represents Emmaus participants' lifelong commitment to Christ and his church. Emmaus achieves its aim when local churches gain strength as the focus of that commitment to Christian discipleship. In and through the church, persons practice and fulfill the message of the Emmaus Walk as they share the love of God in homes, workplaces, and communities around the world. All aspects of Emmaus-the three-day short course, follow-up groups, team and background support-are designed to empower and equip Christians to effectively be Christ's hands and feet in the world.

Remember: Silence is often misinterpreted, but never misquoted.

Have a Blessed Week

Heritage Day Photos Below