The Wesleyan

November 2009

From the Pastor...
Dear Friends,
What a party. I am still reeling from last Sunday's celebration of our 120th year at 146 Main Street. The First United Methodist Church has been in its present location for over 120 years - wow! That is a lot of ministry, baptisms, weddings, funerals and a whole lot of meals have come out of that kitchen. What a blessing to Amesbury over the years.

The All church conference, originally scheduled for Tuesday, November 10, 2009 at 7 p.m. has been postponed. The new date for the meeting has not yet been set.

November 7th is the Church Fair with all kinds of crafts, baked goods, take out meals as well as lunch prepared right here.

November 29th is Thanksgiving Sunday with our annual commitments made to God through our church.

We have three small groups currently meeting. First, a Sunday morning group meets at the church at 8:30 a.m. for an hour. Second, is a Sunday Evening group which also meets at the church at 6:00 p.m. Third is a week day group which meets on Wednesdays at 9:00 a.m. at rotating home sites. Each group has a different focus and feel, so why not try each one of them to see which fits you.

There are two worship services. The main worship service at 10 a.m. on Sunday mornings and the second is an informal service at 7 p.m. on Thursday evenings.

I am amazed that for a group our size we are studying and worshipping so much - Praise God!

We are moving into an evaluation phase of our congregational development. Each year our program of ministry needs to be revisited and evaluated. We have a consultant, Curtis Brown, from the conference office of Congregational Development working with us. He has taken what we have done thus far and is helping us expand and develop it even further. He is not changing our course of action but he is helping us develop it further. Praise God for change. Can you imagine what it would be like if I never changed - not a pretty picture.

Lastly, if you have not seen the renovations to the sanctuary please come and see. Will Hodge and his crew have done a marvelous job putting the sanctuary and other parts of the building back together. And if that was not enough, he also is replacing the roof, one section at a time. All of these repairs and renovations keep us going in the space first given to us 120 years ago.

I can hardly wait to see what God has for us in the future. Come, share and rejoice in what God is doing. Taste and see that the Lord is good, God's mercies never cease.

May goodness and mercy follow you all the days of your life,
Dr. Bob

Office Hours
If you need to speak to Pastor Bob, please call the church office at 978-388-1726 and leave a message. He tries to be in the office for several hours on Tuesday and Thursday and will get back to you as soon as he can. He is also available by appointment for counseling or any other needs you might have. Pastor Bob may also be reached on his cell phone at 978-835-4527.

Wesleyan Deadline
The deadline to submit articles for the next Wesleyan is November 15th. This issue will combine the months of December and January. News and views can be given to the church secretary, Linda St. Marie or put in an envelope marked ATTN: Linda St. Marie, `for the Wesleyan' and placed through the mail slot in the Parish House door (140 Main Street).

Upcoming Events

It's Holiday Fair Time!
The Fourteenth Annual Village of Church Fairs will be held Saturday, November 7th from 9 a.m. - 3 p.m. Come down and check out our bake table, the book table and the meals to go table. There will also be tables of crafts and other interesting items. Something for everyone.

"Arise, Cry Out"
An invitation to Moms / Aunts / Grandmothers and all women who want to pray for a child in their lives. Join women around the world on November 14th for Arise! Cry Out!, a worldwide day of extraordinary prayer for children and schools.
This generation is in desperate need of our Loving Father. Will you join us in praying for the children of our community and those around the world? All Saints Anglican in Amesbury is excited to be a local host site for this powerful, life-changing time of prayer.
Imagine women in hundreds of locations throughout the United States and in countries around the world praying in one heart for God to bring repentance, restoration and revival to the children in our own communities and those around the world. Imagine the impact our prayers could have throughout our schools, throughout our community, throughout our world and throughout the generations.
We will be meeting at All Saints Anglican in Amesbury from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on November 14th and would love to have YOU join us. Make plans now to attend. Call Bethany Plante at 978-388-7140 or register at www.momsintouch.org. There's also a great promo video of the event at the website.

Thanksgiving Service
The Amesbury Council of Churches invites all to come start the holiday season on a prayerful note. An Ecumenical Service will be held at the Rocky Hill Meeting House at 3:00 p.m. on Sunday, November 22nd. Please dress very warmly, there is no heat in this historical building.

Operation Christmas Child
Operation Christmas Child provides gift filled shoe boxes and information about Jesus and Christianity to children throughout the world. Our church would like to participate again this year. Shoe boxes are filled with clothing, toys, writing materials, non-liquid hygiene products, etc. We will be collecting the shoe boxes on Sunday, November 22nd. Use the following list of acceptable items to place in the boxes. If each family member fills a box we will have quite a delivery to make. Why not try diverting some coffee, pizza or movie money to filling a shoe box? You'll be glad you did!
HOW TO FILL A SHOE BOX GIFT -- 1. Find an empty shoe box (standard size, please) or a small plastic container. You can wrap the box (lid separately), but wrapping is not required.
2. Determine whether your gift will be for a boy or girl, and the child's age category: 2-4, 5-9, or 10-14. Remove the appropriate boy/girl label from your brochure or download off the Samaritan's Purse Web site. Mark the correct age on the label, and attach the label to the top of your box.
3. Fill your shoe box with a variety of gifts: > School supplies: pens, pencils and sharpener, crayons or markers, stamps and ink pad sets, coloring and picture books, writing pads or paper, solar calculators, etc. > Toys: small cars, balls, dolls, stuffed animals, kazoos, harmonicas, yo-yos, jump ropes, small Etch A Sketch, toys that light up or make noise (with extra batteries), Slinky, etc. > Hygiene items: toothbrush, toothpaste, mild bar soap in a plastic bag, comb, washcloth, etc. > Candy: hard candy, lollipops, mints and gum are all acceptable. Please place all candy in a ziplock bag. > Other: sunglasses, flashlights with extra batteries, ball caps, socks, T-shirts, toy jewelry, hair clips, watches, etc. We encourage you to enclose a note to the child and a photo of yourself or your family. (If you include your name and address, the child who receives your box may write you back.)
4. Please DO NOT INCLUDE the following items: * Used or damaged items * Toy guns, knives, military figures or other war-related items * Food or chocolate * Out-of-date candy * Liquids of any kind (shampoo, lotion, bubbles, liquid soap, etc.) * Medicines of any kind (vitamins, cough drops, etc.) * Breakable items (china dolls, snow globes, etc.) * Aerosol cans
5. Please donate $7 or more for each shoe box you prepare to help cover shipping and other project costs. If you prepare more than one box, please make one combined donation. Place a rubber band around each closed shoe box and remember to bring to worship on November 22nd.

Women's Book Club
There will not be a meeting of the book club in November. The next meeting of the FUMC WBC will be on Saturday, December 12th. The book chosen for this meeting is The Christmas Sweater by Glenn Beck. NOTE CHANGE! The meeting will take place at 9 a.m. at The Hollow Cafe in Amesbury. All are welcome! Speak to Ronda Hodge (978-388-9098) or Janet McBrien (978-388-6173) for more information about the club.

Member News

Celebrating November Birthdays...
3 Lynn Teel
4 Kate Morris
5 Lois Charte
11 Donna Wright
13 Charlie Felch
14 Christine Lynch
18 Elaine Schuster
19 Greg Hoyt, Gary Wright
22 Shawn Eaton, Christina Mulcahy
24 Alexis Reishus
28 Patrick Lamott, Kelli McLaughlin
29 Janice Sears

Please keep the following people in your prayers:

In our nursing homes / shut-ins: Ruth Armstrong (Harborside Healthcare); Charlie Felch (at home); Denis Levesque (VA Medical Center); Joanne Phillips; Norman Sanborn (at home);

Special concerns: David Charte (Lois's son), Jeff Cleary (Gail Sanborn's brother-in-law), Elizabeth Cuckler (Kay Hanley's mother), Bud and Mary Dolan, Matthew Foley (Gwen St.Marie's father-in-law), David Fowler, Patrick Godley (Ronda Hodge's cousin), Judy Hanley (Kim Spears' friend), Annie Haskell, Thomas Jankoski, Ken Kuster, Stephen Lattime, Alice and Jim Lynch, Mike Magowan, Alex McBrien, Jean Moore (Wanakee Co-Director, leukemia), Sally Morrill, Autumn Nanartowich (Cathy Berry's niece), Marie O'Leary, Hannah Phillips (Charlie & Shirley's great-granddaughter), Kerri Ryan (Lily's friend's daughter), Gianluca Sarchi, Darrell Spears (Kim Spears' father-in-law), Ashley and Chris Stalik (Charlie & Shirley's granddaughter and husband), Arthur Titcomb, Shaun Vynorius, Mary Walsh (Terry Hanley's aunt), Jenney Ward (Gail Sanborn's sister-in-law).

The church extends condolences to those who have recently experienced the loss of a loved one.
Our thoughts and prayers go out to Ronda Hodge and family upon the death of her uncle, Jim Godley and to Gail Sanborn and family upon the death of her mother, Harriet Ingalls.