Inside this issue:

In Worship 2

Youth News 2

Gifts and Presence 2

Memorials 2

Fall Bible Study 3

Upcoming Meetings 3

Faithweaver Friends Info 4

Women of Faith Info 5

Pictorial Directory 6

Music Ministry Info 6

“The mission of First United Methodist Church of Silsbee is to glorify God,

make disciples, and transform lives in Christ

August 6, 2014

The Methogram is a

publication of :

First United

Methodist Church

670 North 5th Street,

Silsbee, Texas 77656

Phone: (409) 385-5568

Fax: (409) 385-7219

Dr. Dan Darby

Senior Pastor

Rev. Nancy Ratchford

Associate Pastor

Jennifer Suitt

Office Manager

Office@silsbeeumc.com

Come Visit Us At:

www.SilsbeeUMC.com

Somebody stop time, please! I’m not ready

for summer to be over! After UMARMY

was here, I had about a week or two of un-

hurried time. Now it is back to planning,

working, and being too busy! I feel like

Charlie Brown, who in the Peanuts comic

strip, cries out, “Aaarrrgggh!”

Okay, enough of the ranting and raving.

The world really is a beautiful place. We

serve the Prince of Peace, who will lead us

into tranquility and harmony with the Di-

vine, with ourselves, and sometimes even

with our neighbors. Thank you, Jesus, for

serenity. The cool streams flow, the moun-

tain breezes blow. There are gorgeous

flowers, green meadows, and a beautiful

blue sky.

No better place to find that serenity than in

the worship of the Almighty in the compa-

ny of his beloved, our brothers and sisters

in Christ.

See you Sunday,

Pastor Dan

Dan’s Divinities

Our Church Members in the News!

Our very own Ali Day was recently featured in

an article in the Silsbee Bee. Ali brought

home the gold medal in this year’s National

Leadership Conference for the FCCLA. Ali’s

presentation in the Early Childhood area won

the gold! Congratulations Ali! Great Work!

Also in the news

this week was

another of our

church members,

Tammy Griffin.

Tammy was hon-

ored in the Bee

for her work with the Tiger School Box pro-

gram, which she began in 2011. This pro-

gram provides school supplies to school

children in need. Last year, Tammy was

able to raise $13,000, and has set a goal of

$15,000 for this year. She is aided in this

effort by the Christian Care Center. Way

to go, Tammy!

In Worship

On Sunday, August 10,

Nancy Ratchford will

preach a sermon entitled,

Caught in a Storm, based

on Matthew 14:22-33.

On Sunday, August 17, Rueben Barjacob will tell a story

about his little brother, Joseph. The remarks will be based

on Genesis 45:1-15 and Psalm 133. The title of his story is

An Evil Turned to Good.

On Sunday, August 24, Dr. Darby will preach from Exodus

1:8-2:10 a sermon entitled Famous Heroines of the Bible:

Shiphrah, Puah, and Whatshername.

Gus Dunbar

Lea Gardner

Andy Kilcrease

Lea Gardner

Dot Walker

Carra & Jeff Thomas

Randy & Susan Walker

Carol McWhorter

Pete Farmer

Robert Grote

Dot Walker

Carra & Jeff Thomas

Randy & Susan Walker

Charlene Cobb

Carol McWhorter

Worship

07/27 139

08/03 120

Sunday School

07/27 71

08/03 67

Gifts

07/27 $3,167.00

08/03 $5,912.75

Gifts and Presence

P r i m e -

timers will

meet on

Tuesday,

August 26 at 10:00 a.m. at

the home of Pat and Rich-

ard Strong, 102 Lucky Dr.,

in Silsbee. It will be a cov-

ered dish meal. We will

begin regular weekly meet-

ings on Tuesday, September

2 at 10:00 a.m.

Amazing things are

happening in the

youth group. We have

come up with a new

name, Converge, and

a new logo which is

pictured here. We

have brainstormed a

lot of fun and exciting

activities and fund-

raisers. Our first

large fundraiser will

be our pumpkin

patch the month of

October. We will need

help unloading and

manning the pumpkin patch. If you would like to vol-

unteer and help man the patch please stop by my of-

fice and sign up!

Our first major event will be our Sit-in Movie in the

church parking lot, which will be held on Saturday,

August 23 at 8:00 pm. We will be showing “God’s Not

Dead”. Everyone is invited to bring a chair or blanket

and come enjoy the movie. The youth will be selling

snacks and drinks to help raise money for Converge

Missions.

If you would like more information or want to help

with anything that involves Converge, please let me

know.

James Borello

First United Methodist

Church is seeking a person

who loves Jesus Christ and

has musical talent to be the

Chancel Choir Direc-

tor. This is a part time posi-

tion. Please see the full job

description on our website,

http://www.silsbeeumc.com/

Playground

Our playground will re-

ceive a major overhaul

with a new large piece of

equipment and a new

play area with a wood-

chip mat. Work is sched-

uled to start Monday,

August 11th.

Upcoming Meetings Monday, August 11

4:00 pm AFDS Board

7:00 pm Trustees

Monday, August 18

6:00 pm Finance

Thursday, August 21

6:30 pm Church Council

(please note this is a

date and time change

from previously sched-

uled time)

Unified Services

We have enjoyed several uni-

fied services this summer. It

was great to have everyone to-

gether in the sanctuary for Ho-

ly Communion and Worship.

Paula Darby did a great job of

picking out medleys with very

familiar music that all could

enjoy. Her hard work paid off!

The extra labor of the Praise

Band and audio personnel is

also greatly appreciated. It is

no small task to relocate all

the instruments and get them

set up in the sanctuary. They

showed great flexibility and

cooperation in working with

the modified schedule and lo-

cation.

We will see what the future

holds, but for now we will go

back to having the Praise Ser-

vice at 9:00, Sunday School at

10:00, and the Morning Wor-

ship service at 11:00 every

Sunday morning.

If you want to express how you

felt about our unified services

this summer, please shoot Pas-

tor Dan an email at dancdar-

by@juno.com, or give him a

call.

Fall Bible Study

Abingdon Press has just published a new bible study called Covenant.

It is a 24-week, in-depth group bible study in which people read and

discuss the Bible together, learning how to love God – and others – bet-

ter. It is divided up in three 8-week sessions, entitled “Creating the

Covenant,” “Living the Covenant,” and “Trusting the Covenant.” We

will offer the first 8-week module in September and October, and pick

up the remaining modules after the first of the year.

This study differs from other Bible studies in that it emphasizes the

biblical concept of covenant as a unifying pattern throughout the en-

tire Bible. It underscores the unique relationship that God chooses

with us as his people. Participants should find the study deep, rele-

vant, flexible, and not overly demanding.

We would like to start with a meal at 5:30 on Sunday nights, and have

the study at the church from 6:00 until 7:30 p.m. Our target date for

starting the study is Sunday, September 7. You can sign up for the

study by calling the church office or by registering on Sunday morn-

ings. The pastors will lead the study, hopefully in two groups if we

have enough people sign up. Volunteers are needed to fix and help

with meals! We will also have a program of activities for children so

their parents can participate. Call James Borello (385-5568) if you

would like to work with the children!

Faithweaver Friends will be starting

again soon! We plan on having our first

Faithweaver Friends of the year on

Wednesday, September 17. In prepara-

tion for that, Glenda Delano is hosting a

Faithweaver Friends volunteer meeting

on Sunday, August 10 at 3:00 pm in

Cravens Hall. If you are interested in

being a part of this vital ministry, please

come to this meeting. You can also con-

tact Glenda at 409-291-9480 for more in-

formation!

On Sunday, August 24, all of our school children

and youth are invited to bring their school back-

packs to church and place them in front of the al-

tar table in either service. We will have a bless-

ing over them, and we will also have a blessing

over our school teachers, workers, and adminis-

trators. During the Sunday School hour at 10:00

am, there will be a Back to School Carnival for

the children, which will be held in front of

McDonough Hall.

School starts on Monday, August 25th.

Needed:

A copy of “Heavenly Highways”

hymnal. Do you have one that

Paula could borrow for a while?

If so, please leave it in the

church office for her, along with

your name and any special in-

structions.

Thank you!

Paula Darby

385-2467

Silsbee First United Methodist Church Pumpkin Patch October 1st – October 31st

Hours: Monday – Saturday 10 am – 6 pm

Sunday -- noon – 6 pm

Come and buy a pumpkin and help support Converge, the student ministry at First

Methodist Silsbee .You can come take pictures and have a fun time with the entire fam-

ily. If you have a group (school, preschool, etc.) or any other large group that would

like to come to the patch, please contact James Borello at the church and he will make

sure there are no other groups that day. It is free to come and browse and all money

collected will help Converge send youth on mission trips and to camp this summer.

I Can’t Make the Photography Dates!

Several people have mentioned that they will be unable

to make an appointment for the pictorial directory due to

conflicts in their schedule. So what do you do if you can-

not make the dates for the directory?

Well, we have two options open to us. If we have 15 or

more families that cannot make our dates, Lifetouch will

schedule a make-up session at a later date. Alternatively,

you can have your pictures taken at The United Method-

ist Temple in Port Arthur, the week of Aug 19-23. If you

would like information about these dates, please call the

church office.

First United Methodist Church

670 North 5th Street

Silsbee Texas 77656

RETURN SERVICE REQUESTED

Non-Profit Organization

U.S. Postage PAID

Permit No. 29

Silsbee, Texas

Music Ministry

Opportunities

Music is very personal to

each of us. It touches our

lives constantly, in countless

ways. God loves music! It is

a vital part of worship, no

matter what religion it rep-

resents. Through the music

program at First UMC, Silsbee, we reach upward to God and out-

ward to others. Please pray for the music ministries of this

church, that God will use them to glorify Himself, as well as draw

this congregation into closer fellowship with Him. Also, ask Him

if He is calling you into active service! What are your musical

gifts, and how could God use them for good in this Body of Christ?

There are many opportunities for leadership here, beginning with

our immediate needs for a chancel choir director and another

praise band leader. No, Paula is not quitting, but there is a need

for leadership in her absence. Please pray for God’s direction and

provision in these areas. Also, prayerfully consider membership

in the chancel choir. In chancel choir, we grow in our own faith

as we learn and share God’s Word through song. There is no bet-

ter place to begin a musical adventure than joining your church

choir! And there is no better time to start than following our re-

freshing July break. “Sing to the Lord a new song, His praise in

the assembly of the saints!” Psalm 150: 1

Pictorial Directory Time!

We are producing a new pictorial di-

rectory with LifeTouch Directories.

Each family needs to sign up for a

time to have your pictures made.

The dates for the picture taking are

Thursday through Saturday, August

28, 29 & 30th. You may sign up be-

fore and after worship services on

Sundays through August 24, or in

the church office. Each family gets

their picture in the directory, a free

8x10 for having your picture made,

and additional pictures of your fami-

ly will be available for purchase.

The sign-up tables will be in the

hallway in McDonough Hall and in

the Narthex of the Sanctuary.