101 E. Barbour Street

P. O. Box 72

Eufaula, AL 36072

(334) 687-8227

(334) 687-8285 FAX

fumc@eufaula.rr.com

www.fumceufaula.org

VOLUME XXXIII

NUMBER 24

June 21, 2017

Pastor

Dr. Scott Hohn

Youth/Missions Director

Britt Martin

Music Director

Billy Wilbourne

Office Staff

Jodi Stockberger

Pam Hunter

First United Methodist ChurchFirst United Methodist Church

Welcome, New Members! We were

delighted to

welcome

Phillip &

Janet

Wills to

the mem-

bership and

fellowship of First

United Methodist Church on

Sunday, June 18th. The Wills have

been faithful attendees for several

years, but they are now official

members! Please welcome them!

We offer our deepest sympathy

and heartfelt condolences to all of

the Houston family following the

death of Celeste Houston last

week. Please pray for God’s

peace and comfort to surround this

family in Christ now and in the

days to come.

Dear Friends,

Elizabeth, Jacob, Amanda,

Benjamin and I feel over-

whelmed with the love that

you have shown us. We are grateful

for the generous gift that you all col-

lected for us. We are also grateful

for all the kind, encouraging words

that you shared with us in all the

cards that you wrote. Thank you.

As I said on Sunday, I have been hon-

ored to serve as your pastor. You have

been a blessing to me and my family.

I am praying that God will continue to

richly bless you and Alan as you begin

your ministry together.

In Christ,

Scott

From the Mail . . .

FUMC’s Vacation Bible School

will be held

Monday—Thursday,

July 17—20 9:00—11:30 a.m.

Please visit the Forms tab on our

website to register your children

now! VBS is open to children who

will be entering kindergarten

through those who will enter 6th

grade.

At Mighty Fortress, kids learn that

God is their refuge and strength.

Friends may fail them. They may

not ace their test or make the

team, but God promises to be

their rock and their salvation —

their fortress and sure defense.

So raise your banner! In Jesus, the

victory is won!

Who is Preaching?

As we transition from one pastor

to another, you may wonder who

will be in the pulpit for the next

several Sundays. Here’s your

answer!

► Sunday, June 25

Britt Martin

► Sunday, July 2

8:30 — Cathy Taylor

11:00 — Judd & Libba Stinson

►Sunday, July 9

Our new pastor: Alan Cassady

Please also plan to join us during

the Sunday School hour on Sunday,

July 9, as we will have a reception

to welcome Alan and his wife,

Penny!

Our Ecuador mission team will be

commissioned Sunday, June 25, at

the 11:00 a.m. service.

Calendar of Events

►Sunday, June 25

Worship 8:30

Sunday School 9:45

Worship 11:00

Elevate — Messy Olympics 5:30

►Tuesday, June 27

Discipleship Team 5:15

►Wednesday, June 28

12:12 Youth Bible Study 12:12

Chancel Choir 5:30

►Friday, June 30

Mission Team leaves for Ecuador

June 25 Volunteers

►Acolyte

11:00 —Annie Wingate

►Sacristy Prayer Leaders

8:30 — Janet Wills

11:00 — Beth Kasper

►Ushers

8:30 — Morris Whitfield

Toni Davidson

11:00 — Ben Taylor

David Grice

Alexandra Conniff

Ben Tye

►Lay Readers

8:30 — Cindi Hall

11:00 — Caty Richardson

►Greeters

8:30 — Bob Powers

11:00 — Johnny & Carolyn Tweddell

Katie Moore

►Children’s Church

11:00 — Traci Murph

Hey FUMC Family! Here's this week's Elevate Top 5!

1) Our Ecuador mission trip is coming soon! Please be in

prayer for us as we finish our final details for our trip.

We leave on June 30 and return early in the morn-

ing on July 8. You can pray specifically for us if

you'd like. Our team members are Tylin Wilbourne,

Kendall Puckett, Anna Stanley, Parker Brabham,

Riley Greene, Caroline Richards, John and Cyn-

thia Howard, Nick Smith, Amy Brabham, and my-

self. We can't wait to get down there to serve

our brothers and sisters in Quito!

2) Don't forget about 12:12 today

(Wednesday) in the youth room. 12:12 is

our Summer Bible Study! Bring a lunch

and a friend and come learn about the

most dysfunctional families in the Bible!

3) Summer Sundays are back in action

this week. This week the Messy Olympics

comes to town! That's pretty self-

explanatory, but kids will divide into

“countries” and compete in various

games around our campus. Dinner is at 5:30 and Opening Ceremony starts

at 6:00 sharp!! Bring a friend this week for sure!!

4) AMped is back in action this week

as well! AMped is our summer offer-

ing during the Sunday School hour.

This is for ALL youth 6th-12th grade.

We have breakfast, sing some songs,

play a game, then we're led in a

morning devotion and discussion.

This summer we're tackling some of

the “tough questions” we deal with

in our faith such as, "Can I trust the

Bible?" and "Is faith the enemy of

science?" AMped is certainly the

place to be on Sunday mornings!

5) One of the things we really believe around here is that we weren't cre-

ated to do life alone. Life is better in groups. That's just a fact! We want

to give our youth the chance to live this out as we'll be launching Life

Groups in the fall. A life group is a small group that a student will sign up

to be in with 3 to 5 other students. The groups will run over the course of

the school year. These groups aren't Bible Studies. One of the things we're

saying about these groups is that we want them to be less informational

and more transformational. There's something transformational about do-

ing life with a group of people that you know loves you, is praying for you,

and wants the best for you. More info on life groups coming soon!

That's all for now.

God looks good on you—

Britt

Prayer List

New concerns:

*Mary Lou Shaw

*Louise Jones

Rosalyn Fraley

Jim Roberts

► Continue to pray for:

George Williams

*Louise Trammell

Alison Haas

Bradley Weaver

Mary Sellers

Linda Dudewicz

Cruz Rios

*Mel Stephenson

*John Hagood

*Louise Britt

*Betty Searcy

Walter Harmer

*John Jenkins

Bobby Gray

Kathy Armstrong

*Taylor Washington

*Jeff Richards

*Brian Devlin-Meagher

Mary Lindsey Hannahan

*Richard Boyette

► Prayer list guidelines:

If you would like to place someone’s

name on the list, please ask that

person’s permission before calling

the office. Names remain for 4

weeks unless requested to remain.

* denotes church members.

A Look at June 18 Sunday School .....................

8:30 Worship ................... 77

11:00 Worship ................. 126

Total Worship ................. 203

Offering received ......... $4,943

YTD received ........... $218,810

BTT balance ............ $378,500

Report from Trustees The following is Part 1 of 2 of a report from Caty Richardson, our chair-

man of the Trustees. Part 2 will appear in next week’s issue.

As the current chairman of the Trustees, I wanted to update our congre-

gation regarding actions the Trustees have taken this year as well as our

plans for the future. The Trustees started our 2017 year by conducting a

walk-thru of our buildings. It is our intent to compile a trustee

“smartbook” that will include (1) an inventory of church property includ-

ing the parsonage, (2) a maintenance schedule for our buildings (noting

who is responsible for handling the routine maintenance items, where

supplies are normally purchased, last date of maintenance, future date

for maintenance, etc.), and (3) a list of building concerns that need to be

addressed in the future. The list of building concerns to address is being

prioritized by the current Trustees, and we hope we can use this going

forward to make sure we properly address building concerns as well as

budget for handling upcoming building needs. For example, immediate

needs such as a broken light switch need to be handled as soon as possi-

ble but needs like re-painting classrooms or cleaning carpet can be set

out for a future date when we have more funds or have had the oppor-

tunity to save or budget for those needs. While some of the needs on the

list many not be handled for several years, it is our intent for this list to

be a working list so our church does not overlook items and so we contin-

ue to properly maintain our space.

We hope this smartbook will allow us to keep our building in good condi-

tion, provide continuity each year, provide a guideline for future trustees

and staff of our church, and help us budget for future needs/repairs. We

may also see needs that volunteers are willing to handle, so please be on

the lookout for opportunities where you can serve to help us keep our

facilities maintained.

This year has already been busy with repairs, and we have already spent

our parsonage budget. Much work has been completed at our parsonage

due to storm damage as well as sprucing up for our new minister. Marga-

ret Crow, as parsonage chairperson, has done an excellent job with the

help of Dan Mackenzie and Jane Boyette. John Howard and Jeff Wil-

bourne have also volunteered their time making repairs at the parsonage

as well as various church members who helped clean. This has been a

collaborative effort trying to save money while sprucing up, and if I failed

to mention a specific person, please forgive me. This year we have had

dead trees removed, removed trees downed by the storms and replaced

sod, pressure-washed siding and porch/garage ceilings, had porch col-

umns repaired, sandblasted and painted, had carpets cleaned, and have

scheduled for the roof to be replaced in the coming months. The roof is

being handled by an insurance claim due to storm damage, however, we

have a $5,000 deductible that will have to be paid for from our major

maintenance fund.

Look for more of this report next week!

(And thanks to our trustees for all of their hard work!)

Dear FUMC,

We are getting near to that time of year when just stepping outside can cause so much

perspiration that one feels as if a change of clothes is necessary. Yes, even we Southerners

who are born and raised Southern aren’t quite used to our heat. And, unfortunately, we

find ourselves moaning and groaning about it. Then of course, we still do everything that

we choose to do anyway and the heat doesn’t stop us. (granted, we may do some things

earlier or later). Then winter comes. And even if we don’t have but 4 weeks of actual

cold weather, some of us groan about how cold it is. I suppose everyone has their pet

peeve. Sometimes we may be aggravated by having to drive behind someone going 2 miles

slower than the speed limit. Other times, we may be aggravated by the fact that the first

grocery store in which we shop may be sold out of our favorite flour. We may even be indignant that this store

would do this to us.

Some people even have what you might call the Joe Btfsplk complex. This was a character not known to most of us

today from the Li’l Abner comic strip. This well meaning little guy always had a rain cloud over his head. (even his

name was messed up) He could never catch a break and was a jinx to others. These people always feel that bad

things happen to them when much of the time it turns out to be decisions they have made that cause these

unfortunate incidences.

As usual, this brings to mind a hymn. I would like to quote from an account written by Civilla Durfee Martin: “Early

in the Spring of 1905, my husband and I were sojourning in Elmira, New York. We contracted a deep friendship for a

couple by the name of Mr. and Mrs. Doolittle-true saints of God. Mrs. Doolittle had been bedridden for nigh twenty

years. Her husband was an incurable cripple who had to propel himself to and from his business in a wheel chair.

Despite their afflictions, they lived happy Christian lives, bringing inspiration and comfort to all who knew them.

One day while we were visiting with the Doolittles, my husband commented on their bright hopefulness and asked

them for the secret of it. Mrs. Doolittle’s reply was simple: “His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me.”

The beauty of this simple expression of boundless faith gripped the hearts and fired the imagination of Dr. Martin

and me. The hymn, “His Eye Is on the Sparrow” was the outcome of that experience.”

So friends, when we get in one of those pity party moods, perhaps remembering this will be a blessing.

I look forward to seeing you on Sunday. God bless — Billy

The mission of First United Methodist Church is

to be and make disciples of Jesus Christ for the

transformation of our church, community and world. Birthdays

Saturday, June 24

► Sylvia Acosta

Mary Lou Shaw

Sunday, June 25

► Hana Priest

Gene Watson

Thursday, June 29

► Rosie Fillingim

Sydney Claire Givens

Hey, youth — be on the lookout

for more information about our

next Elevate Tuesday of the

summer!