MORNING AND EVENING WORSHIP FOR SUNDAY 10/25/2020

We realize that some of you are not yet comfortable with gathering indoors, and we honor that choice. We will continue to offer the 11:00 a.m. service on Facebook Live and WGOS. Some may choose to join us for Worship on the Lawn Sunday evening at 6 p.m.

What to Expect at Indoor Worship

• Access to the Sanctuary is through the Randolph Street doors only.  The designated entrance for those needing the elevator will be the door under the walkway.
• You’ll be greeted upon entering the church and asked a few questions.
• Face masks will be required for everyone.
• Some pews will be blocked to maintain social distancing; an usher will help direct you.
• Out of respect for others, please refrain from shaking hands or hugging.
• Offering plates will be available at the entrance and exit of the sanctuary.
• When services end, attendees will be dismissed by section to avoid hallway congestion.
• No nursery staff will be present, but the nursery space will be available.
• Sunday school will not be offered at this time.

COMMITMENT SUNDAY

Sunday October 25 is Commitment Sunday for 2021. Those who attend worshIp are encouraged to bring their pledge cards to worship tomorrow. Others may choose to bring their pledge cards to the church office or send them in the mail.

CALENDAR

SUNDAY OCTOBER 25
Twenty-First Sunday after Pentecost
Commitment Sunday
10   R.L. Pope Class by Keith Tobin on Facebook and WGOS AM 1070
11   Live Worship In Person and Online on Facebook and WGOS AM 1070
(Please read below about protocols and how to enter the building.)
4     Youth: Pumpkin Decorating
6     Worship on the Lawn

MONDAY OCTOBER 26
9-11 & 5-7 Internet Access for Students
10   10@10 Devotion on Facebook

TUESDAY OCTOBER 27
8      Men’s Prayer Meeting Online via Zoom (New Contact: Tim Lyons)
9-11 Sewing Ministry
9-11 & 5-7 Internet Access for Students
10    10@10 Devotion on Facebook
5:30  Yoga (Jarrett Hall)
6:30  Annual Charge Conference

WEDNESDAY OCTOBER 28
The Weekly Update on Facebook
9-11  CCM Monthly Donations Drop-Off
10     10@10 Devotion on Facebook
6        Youth Small Groups Online (contact Rodney Denton)

THURSDAY OCTOBER 29
9-11 & 5-7 Internet Access for Students
10    10@10 Devotion on Facebook

FRIDAY OCTOBER 30
10    10@10 Devotion on Facebook

SUNDAY  NOVEMBER 1
Twenty-Second Sunday after Pentecost
All Saints Sunday
10     R.L. Pope Class by Jim McGhee on Facebook and WGOS AM 1070
11     Live Worship In Person and Online on Facebook and WGOS AM 1070
4       Youth (In-Person)

UPCOMING
November 19  Red Cross Blood Drive @ MUMC

PRAYER CONCERNS

If you or a loved one would like to be added to the prayer list, please contact Lorna McCullough at 336-259-5814. If you put a name on the list, please keep in touch to let us know how that person is doing, as names are removed after three weeks.

During the coming week, please pray for…

Jennifer Ruff
Nancy Jones and family
Ruthie Burroughs
Randy Flint
James Carmichael
Margie Collins
Carol Kaiser
Josef Walker
Dean Sharpe-Austin
Kay Eanes
Finley Price family
Andrea Cain and family
Robert Miller
Dave Ogren
Tim Priska
Chris Eddinger
Tracy Brinkley
Peace and justice in our nation, state, and city
Our first responders, medical community, and essential workers
All those affected by COVID-19
Our United Methodist missionaries
All military personnel
The United Methodist Church

We extend our prayers and sympathy to the family of Austin L. Clodfelter, Jr., who died September 29, 2020. The obituary for Austin can be read at dignitymemorial.com

R.L. POPE CLASS ONLINE LESSONS

SUNDAYS AT 10:00 A.M. on FACEBOOK and WGOS

The R. L. Pope Class is excited to announce the return of new, weekly online lessons. Tune in to Facebook Live or  WGOS on your radio or computer.

Teaching Schedule:
October 25 Keith Tobin
November 1 Jim McGhee
November 8 Allen Brown
November 15 Elaine Rabon
November 22 Richard Herman
November 29 Stan Styers

ANNUAL CHARGE CONFERENCE 

The Annual Charge Conference will be held October 27th at 6:30 p.m.

MONTHLY CCM DROP-OFF THIS WEDNESDAY

OCTOBER 28
9-11 AM
COOPERATIVE COMMUNITY MINISTRY (CCM)

We are hosting monthly “drop-off” donation events at CCM on the last Wednesday of each month. Just pull up to the front of CCM at 10 W. Guilford St. in Thomasville, pop your trunk, and a volunteer will retrieve the donation items.

Thank you in advance for supporting our community!

To the Memorial Congregation, 

We hope that you are doing well during these different times.  

Following an extended period of discussion and discernment, the Staff Parish Relations Committee is pleased to announce the creation of a full-time position in our music ministry. We believe this will expand the reach of the music ministry and positively impact our worship. Music is essential to our worship, outreach, and is an avenue through which many serve the church.

This change will impact our current music staff. Due to combining the Director of Music position and the Organist’s position, we will lose a part-time ministry position. While we appreciate Danny Frye’s ministry over the past several years, this change will result in his position being eliminated. Danny has been part of the music ministry for several years and the church has benefitted from his work. 

Norris Norwood will assume the responsibilities of the new ministry position for the interim period with conversations continuing about his acceptance of the position permanently. Norris is familiar to us and has garnered the respect and appreciation from those in the music ministry and those who are recipients of his gifts.

Thank you for your commitment to Memorial. We look forward to the time that we will greet one another in worship and other church events. 

Ken Hanner, Chair, Staff-Parish Relations Committee
Danny Leonard, Pastor

FALL PHOTOS IN THE CHURCH YARD

Our fall harvest photo backdrop is all set in the church yard through November 1. Picture yourself here!

STAR OF BETHLEHEM CANCELED FOR 2020 

Regretfully, a decision to cancel Star of Bethlehem for 2020 has been made. This was done due to not knowing the status of large gatherings at that time and decisions concerning the animals and other needs that had to be made far in advance. It takes about 250 people each night to put on this production. For their safety, the inability to distance, and the uncertainty of the situation this December, it was determined that Star of Bethlehem should be cancelled. Please share this with family, friends, coworkers, and neighbors and remind them to look for it again in December 2021! (The animals have already been booked, and plans are moving forward for when large gatherings are once again the norm!) Thank you for your understanding and support. Pray that this virus soon is controlled and life returns to normal.

CLERGY AND STAFF ARE AVAILABLE

You may contact members of the staff directly or by calling the church office at 336-472-7718 and following the instructions on the recording. Here is a list of staff phone extensions and email addresses, for reference:

Danny Leonard, Senior Minister – Ext. 16; dleonard@mumctville.org
Rodney Denton, Minister of Youth and Young Adults – Ext. 18; rdenton@mumctville.org
Lynda Hepler, Minister of Children and Families – Ext. 11; lhepler@mumctville.org
Norris Norwood, Director of Music Ministries – Ext. 12; nnorwood@mumctville.org
Susan Frye, Secretary – Ext. 14; sfrye@mumctville.org
Peggy May, Financial Secretary/Treasurer – Ext. 13; pmay@mumctville.org
Jarry Oldaker, Superintendent of Buildings and Grounds – Ext. 17; joldaker@mumctville.org

FEATURED DEVOTION

We close this week’s eNews with a 10@10 devotion shared by Rodney Denton on September 11, 2020.

Finding Light in Dark Times

So, today is one of the days when we come together as a country to recognize an anniversary of a very dark and tragic moment in our history. It is September 11, and the 19^th anniversary of the terrorist attacks that happened on 9/11/2001, the day when three commercial airplanes were hijacked and used to attack the twin towers in New York City and the Pentagon, and a fourth was brought down in a field in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, before it could make its way to its unknown intended target. Nearly 3,000 (2,983) people died as a direct result of these attacks, most of them in New York, and many more were injured or indirectly affected; and it has left a collective emotional scar on our country that we all still point to as that day when “everything changed.” I will bet that those of you who were alive and can vividly remember that day know exactly where you were and what you were doing when you heard about the attack. I was serving Simpsonville United Methodist Church when Elaine Owens, the choir director, came into my office and said, “I heard on the radio on the way into work that an airplane ran into one of the twin towers.” I didn’t fully comprehend what she was saying and was thinking in my head she was probably referring to one of those small, two-seater airplanes. We gathered around a TV and began to watch with interest and disbelief the horrible scene that was unfolding over Manhattan.  As we watched, our amazement and disbelief suddenly turned to fear and insecurity as we saw, on LIVE TV, the second plane hit and realized that this was not just an accident, it was an orchestrated attack.

There have been a few moments in my life when I have been faced with the really difficult question: “Where is God in all this?”  9/11 Is certainly one of those events, as was the day that Hurricane Katrina hit our Gulf Coast in 2005 (which just had its 15^th anniversary on August 29).  Where was God in all that? I did a little research and found out that there have been 176 mass shootings (attributing to 1,246 fatalities) in our country since 1966. This includes schools and a variety of other public venues. Where is God in all these? Then there is the COVID Pandemic of 2020. Where is God in all this? Although there have probably been other large-scale events that escape my mind at this time, and we all have our own individual moments where we have difficulty finding the peace of God’s presence, my point is that the faith questions that these events raise are really difficult to ignore. “Could God have prevented these things from happening?” “Could God have kept all those people from dying and being hurt?” “Where is God in all this?” These are really difficult questions that are asked not only when BIG tragedies happen, but when even more personal tragedies happen as well. Each of these faith-forming events stands out in my mind because of the far-reaching influence that it has on our world, on our country, and on the people that we love.

So, not only do these events challenge and strengthen our emotional resiliency, they also test our faith and stretch us spiritually. Experiences like the ones I just described (those natural disasters, mass shootings, disease, basically any evil in all its forms) seem to always bring out those people who do not believe there is a God—atheists, if you will—who like to point out and say things like, “See, right there, if God were real and all-knowing, all-powerful, as Christians claim, then why doesn’t He stop tragedies like that from ever happening?” or “Why wouldn’t a loving God simply snap His fingers end all the pain and suffering in this world?” Even if our faith is solid enough to not question God’s abilities, the questions may still linger in the hearts of even the most devout follower. “Why? Why doesn’t God remove all pain and suffering?” Questions like these typically spark a rather heated debate about God’s will, our own free will, a fallen world, and even sin as the root of all evil in our world. And, as much as I would like to think that I am smart and wise enough to enter into the debate on this problem of evil in the world, I know that much smarter people than I have made much more thoughtful and deeper arguments about the “why” questions of our faith. Besides, most of these philosophical debates are pretty heavy and boring for a 10 @ 10 devotion, and I feel like I would end up mis-interpreting the argument and, at best, lose all credibility or, at worst, somehow set Christian thought back about 1000 years—neither of which I am interested in. So, what I do want to do on this national day of mourning is, instead of focusing on “Where was God in all this?” BEFORE these events, I want to focus on “Where is God in All This?” AFTER a disaster or a tragedy.

You see, it doesn’t shock me that bad things happen. I don’t like it, but perhaps it is part of being human, or perhaps God has a bigger purpose in mind for hardships in our lives. What does surprise me is when, in the middle of difficult circumstances, I see people go out of their way to help one another. My evidence of a loving God is the fact that people who typically would be self-serving and inconsiderate of others would go out of their way to help a perfect stranger…to love their neighbor. Those teachers who put their lives on the line to save students’ lives when a report of an active shooter comes across the intercom. Those firemen out in California who right now are risking their own lives to save someone else’s life and property as they battle wildfires. Medical people who work with highly contagious patients to take care of them and help them to recover. Police officers and other first responders who run toward danger like a skyscraper falling from the sky, while others are running for cover. People who, following Katrina, went from house to house in boats looking for people stranded by the flood waters.  Military men and women who fight for our ability to live in a land that is free. People who, during this pandemic, have never stopped working so that “normal life” could proceed and essential services could be maintained as much as possible. The spirit of selfless community that so many people display in this world during and after difficult circumstances is truly a miracle and the best display of God’s presence in this world that I can imagine. This reminds me of a passage of Scripture from 2 Corinthians. Paul, who is the author of this book, is writing about a terrible hardship: “…We were crushed and overwhelmed beyond our ability to endure, and we thought we would never live through it. In fact, we expected to die.…” We are unsure what Paul was facing, but clearly it was something really bad. But the part that I want to focus on in this passage comes just before this in verses 3 and 4, where he writes:

2 Corinthians 1: 3-4
³ All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is our merciful Father and the source of all comfort. ⁴ He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When they are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us.

It is clear that, for Paul, difficult times that we endure are designed to be our witness and a source of strength from which we can draw to help us overcome our present circumstances, as well as our future adversities. But it also provides us a natural way to reach out to others who are facing their own difficult times and use our experiences to help others. In this way we are able to take a burden and turn it into a benefit.

A friend, trying to help me make sense of difficulties and suffering in this life, once described our situations like this:  Imagine that we are like tiny ants crawling across a giant painting that has been created by a skillful artist. We crawl across areas that are painted with dark brown paint and we may begin to think all of life is dark brown and pretty depressing. Then, we hit an area of bright green and think, “Oh, this is better. Now everything is green and cheerful.” But we soon cross over a brushstroke of the dark blue and then we are surprised by a splash of yellow, a streak of red—each color triggering a different emotion and creating unique memories, and then maybe we experience another patch of brown.

During this journey across the painting, from one color to another, we may never realize that the artist is able to have the perspective to understand that the painting is actually a beautiful masterpiece, using ALL the colors of His palette. Because of our limited ability to fully see and understand its scale, we can only experience small parts at a time. One day, we will have an opportunity to take a step back and learn that every color had its purpose, and that some of the colors even mix together and create colors we were not even aware of. God is the Artist who is painting our masterpiece—a mix of beautiful color and dynamic brushstrokes that all play an important role in the journey of our lives. Every act, every person, and every event has a purpose that adds meaning to the “big picture” for our lives. We may not fully understand the purpose of each event or season, and some things may be difficult to grasp at the time, but no part of our lives is left unused; everything is given its right place in our painting. Just as there is a time and a season for everything, there is also a color for every part of your life’s journey.

When the painting is finished, we will discover that we were part of God’s masterpiece from the very beginning. Time is the canvas on which God does his painting, and eternity is the perspective from which we will see the beauty of his handiwork. Could you imagine Van Gogh unable to paint his “Starry Night” without the dark colors that dominate the night sky? Or could Da Vinci have made such a powerful “Last Supper” if he was only allowed to use grayscale? Every masterpiece must remain in the skilled care of its artist until it is complete. The same is true of our lives in God’s hands. God has a PLAN for each one of our lives. This means that EVERYTHING that you do, EVERY PERSON you have a relationship with, EVERY SUCCESS you have, and EVERY FAILURE you experience, EVERY MOMENT of pain, EVERY MOMENT of victory, EVERY TIME you made someone’s life better, EVERY TIME you hurt someone—EVERYTHING goes into this ridiculous, mixed up, beautiful masterpiece that God calls YOUR LIFE!

So, on this day of 9/11 remembrance, perhaps instead of focusing on the tragic events (which there were) or the useless display of hate and violence (which it was) or even the senseless loss of life (which it certainly was), perhaps we can take a step back and ask that question again: Where is God in All This? This is not only a question that we should ask ourselves on 9/11, but a question that we should ask in the wake of all those daily moments that stir our emotions and alter our course in life. This time, as we look for answers to that question, Where is God in all this? may we also be willing to use the perspective of eternity to see the “Big Picture,” not solely focusing on the darkness of one particular moment, but rather, looking for the light that might provide meaning and purpose and even redemption in our hardships in life. I want to leave you with a very brief quote that I found while doing some reading for this devotion. It comes from a poem named “The Uses of Sorrow,” written by Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Mary Oliver. The line reads: “Someone I loved once gave me a box full of darkness. It took me years to understand that this too, was a gift.” I find great comfort in the idea that even our dark moments have purpose. My hope is that you will allow God to shed some light on your dark moments as well!  In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, AMEN!

Join us for worship in person or online this Sunday, at 11 AM. And tune in before that for online Sunday School at 10 AM with the R.L. Pope Class.  Have a great day, take care of one another, and stay healthy people!!!

YOU CAN WATCH AND READ ALL 10 @ 10 DEVOTIONS HERE.