Hey McFarland! Pastor Wayne here!
So far, the period from Homecoming through today has been filled with special activities. I’d like to share them with you now.
First, thanks to everyone who made Homecoming a special day for us. Thanks to our District Superintendent, the Reverend Mickey Rainwater, for bringing the message. Thanks to everyone who cooked and cleaned for making the day special. And a special thanks to Barbara Leonard and Linda Mills who researched and composed our bulletin boards along with Tucker and Rebecca Pennington who did the work of prepping the bulletin boards for the new items. It was a great day all around.
Second, thanks to Gary Grogg and Mike Feely for preaching for me on September 10 and September 17. Charlene and I visited Savannah prior to my attendance at the National Meeting of the Fellowship of Associate Members and Local Pastors (as co-chair of the Fellowship in the Holston Conference) at Epworth by the Sea, the United Methodist retreat center on St Simons Island (I know, someone had to do it 😉 ).
** Prayer Requests **
Sadly, during my time away, Tina Campbell died sometime around September 7. She requested direct cremation with no service. Please keep the family in your prayers. Also, Ryland Donald has been hospitalized at Erlanger East. He will have surgery on September 18. Peggy requests your prayers.
** Our History as Methodists **
You may not know this, but Charles Wesley was chosen by General Oglethorpe (the founder of the Colony of Georgia) to be his personal secretary as the colony of Georgia was getting underway. Charles served as the chaplain at Fort Federica while John Wesley served in Savannah as a missionary to the Indians and chaplain to the community. Charles was enthusiastic about his appointment at first, but within 6 months, following bouts of illness and the hazards of life in the new frontier, he posted in his diary that he wanted to leave “this God-forsaken place.” John lasted a bit longer in Savannah, but faced his own set of problems that led to his fleeing the colony under the cover of darkness. It was on the return trip to England that John befriended Peter Bohler of the Moravian sect that impressed Wesley with their faith in the midst of hardship. In the midst of his own doubts upon his failing in Savannah, Wesley was encouraged by Bohler to “preach faith until you have it, then preach faith.” Shortly after Wesley’s arrival in London, he attended a meeting on Aldergate’s Street where he heard the reading of Martin Luther’s preface to Romans and he “felt his heart strangely warmed” and he came to believe that God’s grace forgave all manner of sin with the intent of drawing people to God.
** District Conference **
On Sunday, September 24 at 3:00 p.m., the Scenic South District will meet at St John’s UMC off 153 at Bonny Oaks Drive in Chattanooga. This is one opportunity for us to acknowledge the connectionality that we share as United Methodists. We will meet together to take care of some business in the district, to worship together, and to welcome Mickey and Joy Rainwater to the district. Voting members from our church include Vicki Riddle, Don Butcher, Jan Davis, Ann Russell, Ronnie Geary, and Marvin Mills. We will take care of business at 3:00 p.m., we will experience worship and teaching time with Mickey at 3:45 p.m. and then attend a reception hosted by the Superintendency Committee to welcome Micky and Joy Rainwater to the Scenic South District. I hope that we can have a large contingent from McFarland at this district meeting.
** Charge Conference **
Our Charge Conference will be held on Wednesday, November 15, at 1:00 p.m. We hope that you will plan to be present at this meeting. In preparation, several committees will meet in the near future.
** Celebrations of Who We Are **
I am in my fifth year as your pastor. We have some special ministries within the community that we celebrate:
- Our Free Store ministry which continues to provide clothing, household items, personal care items, and now, food to the families in our community.
- Our food box ministry to the community. It was once housed at Rossville Elementary and we are in the process of moving it to the parking lot here at the church (thanks to Marvin Mills for the construction work).
- We are preparing to host a weekly meeting of Alcoholics Anonymous that we hope wil lead to several addiction recovery ministries which are so desperately needed in this community.
Thank you for your interest in our community. Thank you for sharing the love and grace of Christ in this community. You make me proud to be your pastor me. I love you. Please call on me if I can be of service to you.
Blessings,
Pastor Wayne
