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FIRST THINGS MaY 2020

FIRST UNITED METHODIST CHURCH

501 Church Street, Sweetwater, TN 37874

423-337-7903

Email: office1@sweetwaterumc.org

Website: www.sweetwaterumc.org

Church Staff:

Ron Fisher, Pastor Pam Haislip, Administrative Asst.

Crystal Ragan, Associate Pastor Jacqueline Mason, Children’s Minister

Margareth Urias, Music Minister _____________, Organist

Melinda Hendricks, Custodian Janet Standridge, First Kids Director

“Glorifying God—Offering Christ

Making Disciples—Serving Others”

I received a call early in March from Hugh Kil-gore, D.S, of the Hiwassee District informing me that I had been projected for a new church ap-pointment. The United Methodist Church has a "unique system of deploying clergy with its roots in the earliest days of Methodism." John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist move-ment, was an "itinerant" preacher, traveling from town to town in England, setting up Methodist societies. United Methodist pastors are sent, not hired. "Itinerancy" refers specifically to the commitment by pastors to go and serve wherev-er their bishops send them. The global pandemic brought a screeching halt to many things in our lives. However, Bishop Taylor & the cabinet were not prevented from making appointments in Holston Conference. I met in early April with the District Superinten-dent and the SPR Committee (of my projected appointment) through Zoom. This was the first time in my ministry of 38 years that I didn't have an introductory meeting in person. Due to social distancing and isolation, we relied on technology for the meeting just as we have been doing for Sunday worship services. I prefer to share this news with you in person, but due to the current situation I share this news with you in print. I praise God for my ministry at First United Methodist Church, Sweetwater. Becca & I are grateful for knowing you and the time we have spent together. Our lives have

REFLECTIONS from PASTOR Ron

been enriched by the love that you have shown us since we arrived almost four years ago. "For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, I have not stopped giving thanks for you, re-membering you in my prayers. (Ephesians 1:15) My last official Sunday to preach at FUMC will be June 14, and moving day across the confer-ence will be Wednesday, June 24, 2020. The pastor's first Sunday to preach in their new ap-pointment will be July 5. My projected pasto-ral appointment is Broadway United Methodist Church in Maryville, in the Smoky Mountain Dis-trict. During these uncertain days of social distancing, isolation, & worshiping in our homes, the work of the church has not been put on hold. The gospel continues to be preached and more and more people are hearing the "Good News of Jesus" as a result of churches relying upon "online" worship services. You are in my prayers and I hope to see you before leaving for my new pas-toral appointment. "The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face to shine upon you, and be gracious to you; the Lord lift his countenance upon you, and give you peace." (Numbers 6:24-26) Blessings & Peace,

Pastor Ron

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FUMC Welcomes New Pastor in July

On behalf of the Staff Pastor/Parish Relations Committee, we are both pleased and excited to an-

nounce that the Reverend Dr. Bradley H. Scott will be joining First United Methodist Church on Sun-

day, July 5, 2020 as our Senior Pastor. We remain grateful to Hugh Kilgore, Superintendent Hiwas-

see District, for his support in identifying an outstanding candidate for FUMC.

We are also continually grateful to Pastor Ron Fisher for his leadership during this time of transition.

He continues to be a blessing to this congregation.

By way of background, Dr. Scott is a native of Weber City, Virginia who grew up in the greater King-

sport, TN, area. His home church was his family’s church, Morrison Chapel United Methodist

Church, now in the Appalachian District of Holston. At an early age he felt called to preach and pas-

tor churches and upon graduation from high school entered Emory & Henry College as a Religion

Major. Upon graduation from Emory & Henry, Dr. Scott entered Duke Divinity School in North Caroli-

na where he earned a Master of Divinity degree.

Dr. Scott was assigned to churches in various parts of Southwest Virginia and upper East Tennes-

see and northwest Georgia prior to his upcoming appointment to Sweetwater First United Methodist

Church. He has been actively engaged in helping congregations find ways to be missional and to

grow in their discipleship. His interest in discipleship led to an additional degree from Memphis The-

ological Seminary where he earned his doctorate in ministry in 2003.

Dr. Scott is married to Tammie, who is a native of Richlands, Virginia. They adopted a son, Corion

Cornette, who now lives in Greensboro, NC, and they have a wonderful grandson named Cohen, al-

so in NC. Tammie is a tax preparer and has worked for several years at various locations of H & R

Block, and is an Enrolled Agent.

Dr. Scott is currently a member of the Holston Conference Board of Ordained Ministry, where he

chairs the Conference Relations Committee, and has past experience as Chair of the Committee on

Investigation. He is also currently Chair of the Holston Conference Committee on Rules and Presi-

dent of the Holston Conference Historical Society. Dr. Scott is an avid genealogist and historian who

loves to listen to and engage in storytelling. In various communities he has served on advisory

boards and engaged in civil and fraternal activities.

In recent years Dr. Scott has come to enjoy being a part of the CrossFit Community and loves to

work out in the early mornings four or five times a week. In addition, he loves to sing and play instru-

ments and enjoys music from a variety of genres including Bluegrass and Bluegrass Gospel. He has

also been known to lose all control during a NC vs Duke basketball game, but tries to root for the ap-

propriate team in the places where he finds himself living.

Meanwhile, all of us on the Staff Pastor/Parish Relations Committee thank you, the members of First

United Methodist Church, for your prayers and ongoing support as we embark on this next phase of

our spiritual journey.

Linda Galyon

Chair, SPRC

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MISSIONS

During the evening of March 3 severe storms and an at least one tornado caused loss of life as it slammed through central Tennessee. Then on Easter Sunday, April 12, storms and a tornado caused major destruction in Hamilton and Bradley Counties, located in the Scenic South and Hiwassee Districts of Holston Confer-ence. Trained members of Holston’s Early Response Team took 504 Cleaning Kits and several hundred Hygiene Kits that had been assembled months prior to the storms to Chattanooga and Cleveland.

As Sweetwater FUMC members in the Holston Conference, we can help by re-sponding in the following ways: give financially, pray for those experiencing loss and hardship, and help replace Holston’s stockpile of Hygiene kits. Hygiene kits are needed and they provide basic necessities to people who have been forced to leave their homes because of natural disasters.

Hygiene Kit Materials are shown below. The estimated cost of 1 Hygiene kit is less than $15.00. · One hand towel (15 x 25 –17 x 27 inches) - No kitchen, cleaning, or microfiber towels · One washcloth - No kitchen, cleaning, or microfiber towels · One comb - Must be sturdy with at least 6 inches of teeth. No pocket combs or picks. Rattail and combs without handles are acceptable but must have at least 6 inches of teeth · One toenail or fingernail clipper - No emery boards or metal nail files · Bath-size soap (3 oz. bar or larger) - No Ivory or Jergen’s soap. Do not remove from packaging · One adult toothbrush - Do not remove from packaging · 10 adhesive bandages (¾ by 3 inches) - Common household bandages acceptable · One one-gallon size re-sealable bag

When we resume worship services and other activities in the church building, please bring the Hygiene kit items to the conference room. If you have any questions you can call me 770-286-2110 or email vmetz@bellsouth.net. God Loves You and So Do I, Vanessa Metzmeier Chairperson of Missions

We are planning to have the sale this summer. Watch your bulletin for dates and times.

True Purpose Women’s Center

Yard Sale Fundraiser

It’s time for Spring Cleaning! When you purge your closets and basements of serviceable but unneeded clothing and household items, please consider donating them to our yard sale to ben-efit the True Purpose Women’s Center.

True Purpose Ministries is a Faith-Based, Long-term, Addiction Recovery Program providing Ev-idence-Based treatment and housing to Men and Women in a Structured, Therapeutic Com-munity Environment in Madisonville.

90% of proceeds will go toward the True Pur-pose Women’s Center light bill, and 10% to the Church.

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Message from MelindaMessage from MelindaMessage from Melinda

I am missing all the folks in Young at Heart!

I hope you’re all staying safe. If you need

anything or it I can help in any way, please

let me know. I can’t wait to get together

again, and I’m looking forward to our out-

ings!

Love you all.

Melinda

SPECIAL BIRTHDAY GREETINGS SPECIAL BIRTHDAY GREETINGS SPECIAL BIRTHDAY GREETINGS

TO OUR SENIORS BORN IN MAYTO OUR SENIORS BORN IN MAYTO OUR SENIORS BORN IN MAY

May 2 Karen Hedden

May 5 Walter Babb

May 13 Gail Kallesen

May 15 Mike Hedden

May 15 Melinda Hendricks

May 24 Johnny Seiler

May 27 Patricia Crumpton

May 27 Betty Hunt

May 29 Mary Chappell Crabtree

EVENTS FOR THE LADIES

Ladies Breakfasts Suspended

Our monthly 2nd Saturday break-

fasts at The Dinner Bell are sus-

pended until the COVID-19 pan-

demic is over. We normally meet

at 9am on the second Saturday of

each month. We are looking for-

ward to getting together again and

hope you will join us!

Women’s Monday Morning Bible Study

Did you know that we have a Monday morning

Women’s Bible Study group? We invite you to

join us after the COVID-19 pandemic is over.

We meet in the church conference room every

Monday at 10am. When we resume, we will be

studying the Book of Revelation.

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Dear Friends, Hope all of you are doing well! I have been praying for you, and I miss you so much!

It has been two months since the fight against the Corona virus started. I was so hopeful that by now we would be back to some kind of normal, but unfortunately it seems that it will take longer than we expected.

I’m so happy we can record our services, but I have to confess that rehearsal nights and Sun-days still make me a little sad. There’s nothing like being in the House of the Lord worshiping with all of you. I never took our gatherings for granted, but more than ever I feel the im-portance of the rehearsals with the kids, adult choir, and praise team, and also Sunday ser-vices!

I believe God has a time and a purpose for every single thing, but sometimes it is hard to un-derstand the why. and also it is very easy to get worried and anxious. This week I was re-minded of some verses in Matthew 6:

“That is why I tell you not to worry about everyday life—whether you have enough food and drink, or enough to wear. Isn’t life more than food, and your body more than clothing? Look at the birds. They don’t plant or harvest or store food in barns, for your heavenly Father feeds them. And aren’t you far more valuable to him than they are? Can all your worries add a single moment to your life? And why worry about your clothing? Look at the lilies of the field and how they grow. They don’t work or make their clothing, yet Solomon in all his glory was not dressed as beautifully as they are. And if God cares so wonderfully for wildflowers that are here today and thrown into the fire tomorrow, he will certainly care for you. Why do you have so little faith?”

Matthew 6:25-30 NLT

These verses are refreshing to me. I feel safe in God’s hands, I’m thankful for God’s love and his care and I’ll keep on trusting and praying! I really hope we will be making a “joyful noise” unto the Lord very soon!

I love and miss each one of you and pray blessings upon you and your families!

Margareth Urias

MUSIC MINISTRY

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MESSAGE FROM CRYSTAL

YOUTH NEWS

Hello Church !! I miss you all so much and can’t wait to shake your hand or give you a hug... but until then we will continue to adjust, accept and respect this “new normal.” Tonight, the Youth had a Zoom meeting, which was the first for us. We read scripture from Hosea 13:4-6 and Deuteronomy 13:1. So I ask you, just like I asked my kids... what have you done with your time since you have been cut off from the busyness of the world? The busyness of everyday life where we run ‘til we drop, where we are consumed with all that the world offers us, and we push aside our first love, Father God. We are all in this together. We are all guilty of forgetting to put God first. We are all guilty of asking for prayer when life gets hard. And we’re all guilty of failing to acknowledge God when life is all good. We take on the role of “I can do all things, for all the people, all of the time.” But in this, we put God last. We claim His glory for all that “we” can do. These two selec-tions of Scripture are beautiful and sobering reminders. We MUST remember that God is STILL, AND ALWAYS WILL BE, in Control and desires for us to Need Him, to WANT Him !!! We have forgotten, and God has reminded us. HE has slowed us down, removed many of the things of this world, and revealed what truly matters most. “It MUST be God first, God second and God third, until the life is faced steadily with God and no one else.” Oswald Chambers Much love, Crystal Ragan

Screen shot of first Youth

meeting held via Zoom!

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Message from Miss Jacqueline

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VACATION BIBLE SCHOOL

“ROCKY RAILWAY”

Mark your Calendars for July 19-23 for VBS!

Join us on Rocky Railway, where we learn that

through life’s ups and downs, "Jesus' Power

Pulls Us Through". I will post what I need for

servants to sign up in June. We have had some

time off to get rejuvenated, so I hope you’re rest-

ed and you’ll be willing to help these kids to

come back and get to know the word of God.

Hey kids, what are you doing? I will have more experiments and devotionals in TASK mes-

senger coming next week! So be watching for them!

I’m hoping we can get together between the end of May and second week of June for a

pool party. We will do preschool choir one day and then TASK kids. Our Vacation Bible

School materials are here, so get ready for some fun in July!

I have a challenge: do a 5k as a family for fun or to raise money for TASK snacks. You can

give $5 per person or $10 per family. Let’s see some pictures!

Kids, I’m here if you need me. My phone number is posted in TASK. I would love to hear

from you! If you’ve learned something new or made something or just wanna talk, please

give me a call.

- Miss Jacqueline

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Happy Mother’s Day to all of our mothers

and to those who have filled in as mothers

for so many of us and our children.

We love you and appreciate you!

Pentecost, May 31, 2020

Celebrated on the fiftieth day after Easter, Pentecost is

the day on which the Christian church commemorates

the coming of the Holy Spirit upon the apostles and others

assembled in Jerusalem. It marks the beginning of the

Christian church and the proclamation of its message

throughout the world. Congregations often decorate with

the colors of fire and symbols of the Holy Spirit, such as

flames, doves or water.

Financial News Here is a quick update on the financial picture for the church. Our giving continues to be reasonably

strong and not significantly below past giving for this period, and I want to thank everyone for continuing

to remember our church during this time. With that said, I want everyone to continue their faithful giving

during this time of uncertainty. Our goal when the virus restrictions were put in place was to continue to

provide our staff with their normal salaries without their having to rely on unemployment or some other

source of income.

During this time of "stay at home" we have taken steps to ensure our church remains in a solid financial

position. The primary action we have taken is the application for and approval of a Payment Protection

Plan (PPP) loan. This loan is intended to ensure that all employees will continue to be paid until such

time as the COVID restrictions are relaxed. In case you are not familiar with the loan requirements they

are quite simple. First, the amount or the loan is capped at 2.5 months of your employee salaries. Sec-

ondly, if the money is used for approved purposes, the loan is forgiven and essentially becomes a grant

and doesn't require repayment. Finally, we are required to continue to employ our staff (i.e., we cannot

lay them off or terminate them). We anticipate complying fully with these requirements.

The other action we have taken is to minimize our capital payments in the short term. We typically pay

at least an additional $4800 toward principle each month. However, until things return to a more normal

situation, we have chosen to only pay our required monthly payment. While this will have a minimal im-

pact on our plan to pay the loan off on an expedited basis, the impact will be very minor and a small

price to pay to ensure financial flexibility and soundness in the event there are unforeseen challenges

ahead.

Micky Heatherly

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April 28, 2020 – Excerpt from A Word From the Bishop Covid-19

Dear Holston Friends,

We are all in this together. Holston Conference has churches in three states with three different governors which

causes a lot of confusion. The confusion is created when some government officials state that everything can be reo-

pened by May 1, 2020. Other health and government officials have disagreed with that timetable. There are so many

things that we still do not know about the Covid-19 Virus. We do know that certain populations are more at risk.

We do know that social distancing is making a difference. We do know that persons may not have any symptoms of

the virus, but may be spreading it to others. We do know that there is no vaccine or treatment to date. It is important

not to quit, after we have come this far. We do know that a Life Care Facility in Athens, Tennessee has fifty resi-

dents who have the virus. That came from somewhere.

Today in a Zoom meeting with the district superintendents, I learned that our United Methodist Churches are just as

confused by the mixed messages as everybody else is. Please hear me. This is not an easy decision, but the Cabinet

and I do not want our United Methodist Churches to be open at this time. Lives in our communities need to be pro-

tected. This virus has taken the lives of little children, medical personnel, young adults, older adults, African Ameri-

cans, Hispanic persons, those with compromised immune systems, and so many more. Our United Methodist

Churches are not to be open. We will reopen our churches when it is safe to do so across the entire Conference. We

all yearn to be able to gather together again.

…

As states begin to loosen “Stay at Home” orders and phase in the reopening of businesses and organizations, there

will continue to be differing opinions on the best process to follow that will keep communities safe while, at the

same time, provide economic stability. As an Annual Conference, we are aware that many people in our churches

will have differing opinions too.

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Conference has worked to keep health and safety as the top

priority when making decisions pertaining to church, district, and conference activities.

Keeping those priorities in mind while, at the same time, realizing a continued rise in case numbers and deaths, and

realizing that people can be carriers of the COVID-19 virus without knowing it or exhibiting any symptoms, the

Cabinet and I continue to believe that church buildings shall remain closed to the public until further notice. This

applies not only to times of worship and church activities, but also to outside organizations as well, such as, but not

limited to day cares, preschools, support groups (AA, NA, Al-Anon, Grief Share, Etc.), food pantries, and Scouts.

…

We understand these are difficult times but we also know we have a witness in our communities even in these un-

certain times. Thank you for the creative and innovative work you are doing to keep the church together during this

time of separation. Your ministry is allowing the church to be a bright beacon of light to guide God’s people

through this challenging time.

Please know that your Cabinet and I are praying for the pastors and congregations across our beloved Holston. We

trust that you are praying for us as well.

God’s grace, mercy and peace are always more than sufficient,

Bishop Dindy Taylor

Holston Conference

The United Methodist Church

Bishop Taylor: Churches to remained closed