Paul writes to the Church,

“therefore, since we are sur-

rounded by such a huge

crowd of witnesses to the life

of faith, let us strip off every

weight that slows us down,

especially the sin that so easi-

ly hinders our progress…and

let us run with endurance the

race that God has set before

us. (Hebrews 12:1)

I don’t know if you are into

football or not. If you are, then

you are probably aware of the

significance of the upcoming

“Super Bowl”. If you are not,

you should know that this is

one of the biggest sports

events of the entire year.

There will be an estimated

140 million people from near-

ly 200 countries tuning in to

this colossal contest. If fact,

“Super Bowl Sunday” might

as well be declared a holiday

as bazillions of dollars are

dished out to devour such del-

icacies as Domino’s pizza and

Dr. Pepper. Have you ever

thought about how your view

on the Super Bowl says some-

thing about you as a person?

To me, Super Bowl Sunday

brings out three types of peo-

ple. First, the inquisitive…these

are people who enjoy all the

new commercials and the food

that goes with the game.

Then there are the indifferent…

they could care less about the

game or the food, they just en-

joy being around friends while

relaxing for a few hours.

Then last, there are the interest-

ed. To them, this really is about

the game of football…it is the

ultimate championship where

for months 32 teams have fought

to become Lord of the Rings

(Super bowl Rings)!

Perhaps you can relate to one of

these groups of people…yet,

what I would like for you to do is

to consider this weekend (Feb.

5th) is how the Christian life re-

lates to Super Sunday. Stay with

me now!

When we trusted Jesus, we join

his team. We were drafted from

darkness into the light, from the

power of Satan to the power of

God (Acts 26:18). Every day we

are engaged in a contest that is

larger than all the Super Bowls

put together and it is a battle

that involves the entire world.

And just like the big game, it

generally brings out three types

of people!

FIRST UNITED

METHODIST

PASCAGOULA

Inside this issue:

From the Pastor

(continued) 2

Art of Marriage 2

Lenten Activities 2

Seashore District 2

Sweet Heart Banquet 3

American Boychoir 3

EASTER Musical 3

Prayer Requests 4

Volume 5, Issue 2

February 2012 Call Debbie Horn to reserve a Sunday to put altar flowers in the church. Debbie may be reached at 769-6826 or 217-3095. Please call after 3:00pm. You are welcome to leave a message if necessary or you may also email her at dhorn@psd.ms.

. . . . . . . . continued page 2

ASH WEDNESDAY SERVICE

We will be having our Ash

Wednesday, Imposition of Ashes

Service at 6 PM,

February 22nd. Children, Youth

& Adults are invited.

LENTEN LUNCHEONS Lenten Luncheons will resume on

Thursday, February 23rd. We

will meet in the BCLC each

Thursday at 12 noon.

Bring your own lunch and enjoy

the fellowship!

2012 Seashore District Leadership Training,

Tuesday, February13, 6:30 PM…

Caswell Springs UMC CLC at 7 PM.

Finance Committee will have David Stotts,

Conference Treasurer on hand.

Rev. Bill McAlilly will be speaking on

“Vital Congregation”. This training is for

church staff, Church Council members and

all church leaders.

2nd Thursday Senior Day!

Senior Valentine

Program and Party!

February 9, 10:00 am

Location: Music Suite

Program: “FUMC Praise Ringers”

Bring your favorite pick up food to share. Invite a friend to come along.

The first are the inquisitive…they

know there is a spiritual war go-

ing on, but their focus is con-

cerned with entertainment. The-

se folks are into the latest fads of

religion.

The second group of folks are al-

so the indifferent. Becoming a

believer was for fire insurance

only so they could party and not

worry about this life. They could

care less about god’s Kingdom

and fighting the good fight, after

all, there are too many church

functions going on. They are not

worried about any battle that

might be going on.

The third group of Christians are

still the interested…thank you

Lord! To them, life is about how

to defeat Satan with help from the

Holy Spirit. Their motto reflects

the words on one of heaven’s

best MVPs, the Apostle Paul:

“therefore I do not run like a man

running aimlessly; I do not fight

like a man beating the air. No, I

beat my body and make it my

slave so that after I have

preached to others, I myself will

not be disqualified for the

prize.” (1 Cor. 9:26)

So, while you are watching

the game, remember that some-

one else is watching you to see

how committed you are as a be-

liever…and also remember that

God’s starting team has plenty of

positions open…are you interest-

ed?

Grace and peace….Bro. Jim

You don’t want to miss this outing…Friday, March 9, 7 PM, Mobile Civic Center. Tickets begin at $20 each. Buy Online at: www.gaither.com or charge by phone: 1-800-745-3000…for Group Tickets call: 1-800-713-3773. The concert will feature the Gaither Vocal Band, Charlotte Ritchie, The Martins, The Isaacs, Gordon Mote & Kevin Williams.

There is a ringing position open in the Handbell Ringers, the large 5-octave choir. No prior experience or music read-ing ability necessary. If you might be inter-ested would you please speak with Dr. Paul or any of our current bell ringers?

Around Town . . .

First Baptist is presenting the African Childrens Choir on Tues-day, Feb. 7 @ 6:30pm (not related to Daraja Children’s Choir.)

Musaic Music Performing Arts School on south Market St. is host-ing a Multicultural JAM-FEST on Saturday, Feb. 18, 4-7pm, $5 dona-tion. The Messiah Chorus, directed by our own Dr. Paul, will be performing this spring on March 23, 24, and 25, with locations TBA.

. . . . . . . . continued

Art of Marriage

Weekend

February 10-11, 2012

Starting 7:00 Friday

pm and resuming at

9:00 am Saturday in

the Fellowship Hall.

A six session video

event

Hosted at:

First United Methodist

Church

2710 Pascagoula St.

Pascagoula, MS 39567

(228) 762-5222

A wonderful opportunity

to strengthen and enliv-

en your marriage. This

is a weekend to remem-

ber! Contact Sherry

Judy for more details.

Page 2

Page 3 2nd Thursday Senior Day!

Senior Valentine

Program and Party!

February 9, 10:00 am

Location: Music Suite

Program: “FUMC Praise Ringers”

Bring your favorite pick up food to share. Invite a friend to come along.

Our new worship times are 9:00 - Sunday School,

10:00 - fellowship in the Fellowship Hall, 10:30 – Worship in the Sanctuary!

Valentine’s Sweetheart Banquet

Saturday, Feb. 11th, 6:30pm

Steak Dinner…Tickets $10 each

Entertainment Provided!

Please make Reservations in Church Office!

Sponsored by United Methodist Men’s Club

10 for 1 4 Easter!

The Music Ministry is

sponsoring an invita-

tional program open

to all – 10 for 1 4

Easter! That’s 10

weeks of 1 hour prac-

tices to sing the

brand new hot-off-

the-press musical

“O What A Savior!”

on Easter morning.

10 Wednesdays prac-

ticing from 6:30 to

7:30pm in the Music

Suite. We want to fill

the choir loft for this

moving account of

our Lord’s sacrifice

and resurrection.

Men, women, teens,

children are all wel-

come into this short-

term all-generational

singing group.

Starts Weds. Feb. 1st

with a command per-

formance viewing of

the musical (DVD ac-

c o m p a n i m e n t )

followed by a recep-

tion in the Music

Suite. Join us for 10

for 1 – 4 Easter!

We have jumped at an incredible opportunity to have the American Boychoir perform here at our church on Thursday, March 1st. They had a cancelation in their tour itinerary and called us asking for a concert – at no expense to us! This is a professional world-class boy-choir based in Princeton, New Jersey near my alma mater Westminster Choir College. Nor-

mally we could not afford them. I’m thrilled to be able to host them here. The American Boychoir is a highly trained English-style choir that has sung all over the world and made several recordings. You will love the purity of their tone, their ability to sing in harmony both popular and sacred songs. And they’re so cute! Please mark your calendars for 7:00pm on Thursday, March 1. All that is required of us is to host the boys in our homes for that night and the follow-ing night, Friday March 2. If you have a guest bedroom would you please contact Margie Greenough, our Host Coordinator, and let her know that you’ll host a 2-4 of these well-behaved boys for 2 nights in your home? The nights are Wednesday, Feb. 29, and Thursday, March 1. The only meals you will need to provide are the two breakfasts for the boys. Please call Margie at 238-1686.

Prayer Concerns: Please send additional prayer requests to prayers@fumcpascagoula.org or click

PRAYER LINK on our church website.

Bro. Jim Fisher! Penny Fisher

(Bro. Jim’s mother) Madelyn Wallace Tommy McIlwain

Matthew Brandenburg Nathan & Kathy Oakes Lamar & Betty Spencer

Bowen & Taylor Mayfield (twin babies) & their families

Charlotte McFadden Dr. Amber Colville Sims

Steve Belcher Lou Ann Chilton

Phil Cook Frances Proffitt Ralph Griffin Lou Hewlett

Francis Haarala Alisha Martin

Jamie Cook Brandon Foster

Elliot Story

Peggy Hamlin Anna Brown

Mary Lee Billy Smith

Robert Kates Donnie Puckett Timothy Martin

Sue Lash Nancy Goggin

Nyshie Seymour Cailey Holliday

Our Confirmation Class: Karah Grady, Nijereya Byers, Audrey Sykes, Ashlynn Allen, Landon

Bowlin, Ally Massey, Jac Corlew, Clayton Wilder, Madeline Waddell, and Chloe Grantham

We are very excited to be starting on the

Computer Room for our Children's area!! We are in need of several more good used computers. If you would like to help our children in this area please call the Church office!

Fabulous Fun Friday Night

We will have our next Fun

Night on February 10, from

6:00 pm - 10:00 pm, in the

Gym. This evening is for chil-

dren in grades K - 5th. Guests

are welcomed. There will be a

fee of $5.00 per child. We

will be serving supper to the

children. Please RSVP before

February 8, by email

(cconner@fumcpascagoula.o

rg) or by calling the church

office. - 762-5222. Thanks!

Celebration Kids The children will be going bowling on

February 19 during the evening activity time. We plan on leaving the church at

4:30pm. We will provide more information closer to the event.

We have

started

planning this

year's VBS

program. We

are in need of

volunteers

for all are-

as. Please

make plans to

come join us!!!