Here’s one church’s experience that is keeping me up at night: https://bit.ly/3e2jyyg.
Our Church Didn’t Close
Our colleague David Livingston has an excellent blog post titled “Why Our Church Didn’t Close.” Amen and thanks to David for the reminder that Abilene First UMC didn’t close either.
Link: https://bit.ly/3cLQvP9
Ringing the Church Bells for Graduation
Abilene High School has asked us to ring our church bells today at 1:30 p.m. to honor the 2020 graduating class. Our electronic carillon isn’t working, but for this special occasion, I’m going to set up the portable sound system outside and play a recording of bells.
Reminder: the is Bulletin Online
A gentle, friendly reminder that copies of each Sunday’s bulletin are available online at abilenefirstumc.org/bulletin/ in pdf and Google Docs formats. You can read it online or download and print it. Don’t have a printer? Call 786-263-2623 or email office@abilenefirstumc.org and request a copy via the postal service.
Wednesday Communion by Zoom
This coming Wednesday, May 20, 2020, we’ll try to once again to hold the Wednesday Evening Communion Service at 6:00 p.m., but it will be online via Zoom, not in person in the sanctuary. Note that the meeting information is the same for the Zoom meeting and the Wednesday Evening Bible Study at 6:15 p.m. You can attend either one or both, just dial in or hang up at the appropriate time.
Join the Zoom Meeting on your computer, tablet, or smartphone via the Zoom App:
https://bit.ly/2Wdiguc
Meeting ID: 918 7453 9985
Password: 67410Or use this link on your smartphone to dial in automatically:
+13462487799,,91874539985#,,1#,67410# US (Houston)
Or dial in manually from any phone:
+1 346 248 7799 US (Houston)
Meeting ID: 918 7453 9985
Password: 67410
If you have questions (or difficulty with Zoom) give me a call (620-252-9622), text (same), or email (john@revcollins.com).
2020-2021 Scholarships
The scholarship committee met recently and approved the following scholarships for the 2020-2021 academic year:
First Time Applicants (Members)
Chesney Sprinkle — $750
Beth Holmes — $750
First Time Applicants (Non-Members)
Hannah J. Snowball — $500
Prior Recipients
Audrey Unruh — $500
Jaden Walters — $500
Rae Schwarting — $500
Sydney Burton — $500
Tucker Robinson — $500
Trey Hoerner — $500
Worship Survey
We’re looking at the possibility of moving forward with in-person worship in the Sanctuary on Sunday, June 14, 2020. We’ve created a survey to help us make informed decisions as we begin reopening the church building for worship. Would you please take a few minutes to let us know what you think?
Zoom Bible Study – Corrected Time
Our Bible Study on the Gospel of Luke begins this coming Wednesday (May 13, 2020) at 6:15 p.m. If all goes well, we’ll cover Luke 1:1-38. If all doesn’t go well, we’ll still manage to greet everyone and get everyone acclimated to Zoom.
Here’s your formal invitation to our Zoom Bible Study on the Gospel of Luke, please note that if you can call in from your phone if you want (long distance charges may apply):
Topic: Gospel of Luke Bible Study
Time: May 13, 2020 06:15 PM Central TimeJoin Zoom Meeting
https://bit.ly/2Wdiguc
Meeting ID: 918 7453 9985
Password: 67410One tap mobile
+13462487799,,91874539985#,,1#,67410# US (Houston)
+16699006833,,91874539985#,,1#,67410# US (San Jose)Dial by your location
+1 346 248 7799 US (Houston)
+1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago)
+1 646 558 8656 US (New York)
Meeting ID: 918 7453 9985
Password: 67410
Please feel free to call, text, or email me if you have any questions.
Both Church Phone Lines are Down
This morning, we had trouble with the phone line we use to broadcast live to 1560 A.M. On a hunch, I tried calling the main line as well and it also isn’t working. We’ll call this outage in tomorrow morning. I don’t know how long it will take to get the phones back up and running but you can call Jenny and I on our mobile phones if you need anything in the meantime.
Racism is Alive and Well
Ahmaud Arbery, a 25-year-old black man, was shot and killed while out for a run in Georgia on February 23, 2020. It took 74 days, a damning video, and a national outcry for the two white men chased him down in a truck to be arrested. This is still further evidence that racism, both individual and systemic, is alive well in the United States of America. It is not enough to change hearts and minds; the whole systematic edifice of racial prejudice must be dismantled. Racism is sinful. Racism is evil. And so God calls the church to oppose it.
I’m overwhelmed, and I’m not sure how to respond, and so I’m going to pray. I would ask and encourage you to pray also. Pray for Ahmaud’s family, pray for his friends, pray for the heart and soul of this country, that we might repent, individually and collectively, of our racism and then go forth to sin no more.
The New York Times timeline of the case: nyti.ms/3bhsn5B
Zoom Bible Study
Our Bible Study on the Gospel of Luke begins this coming Wednesday (May 13, 2020). If all goes well, we’ll cover Luke 1:1-38. If all doesn’t go well, we’ll still manage to greet everyone and get everyone acclimated to Zoom.
Here’s your formal invitation to our Zoom Bible Study on the Gospel of Luke, please note that if you can call in from your phone if you want (long distance charges may apply):
Topic: Gospel of Luke Bible Study
Time: May 13, 2020 06:15 PM Central TimeJoin Zoom Meeting
https://bit.ly/2Wdiguc
Meeting ID: 918 7453 9985
Password: 67410One tap mobile
+13462487799,,91874539985#,,1#,67410# US (Houston)
+16699006833,,91874539985#,,1#,67410# US (San Jose)Dial by your location
+1 346 248 7799 US (Houston)
+1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago)
+1 646 558 8656 US (New York)
Meeting ID: 918 7453 9985
Password: 67410
Please feel free to call, text, or email me if you have any questions.
Is Jesus the Only Way to Salvation?
Is Jesus the only way to Salvation? What about people of other faiths and those of no faith at all? Those are questions I plan to talk about in my sermon this coming Sunday (May 10, 2020). Find out how to watch or listen here: abilenefirstumc.org/live/.