The Remarks
For the week of February 2, 2010
Saint Mark United Methodist Church
Atlanta, Georgia
www.stmarkumc.org
Loving • Accepting • Serving
The Remarks
Saint Mark United Methodist Church Loving • Accepting • Serving |
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In This Issue
Quicklinks to stmarkumc.org
About The Remarks The Remarks is a weekly publication of Saint Mark United Methodist Church, Atlanta, Georgia. The email addresses used in this mailing were provided by the addressees for church use. To unsubscribe from our emails, follow the SafeUnsubscribe link at the bottom of this email. You can also update your email address for the eRemarks at the bottom of this email. To ensure that you continue to receive emails from us, add remarks@stmarkumc.org to your ISP address book & ISP safe list today. Click here to provide general updates to your church record. Please submit announcements for The Remarks to Christia Holloway, Remarks Editor, no later than the Friday prior to the week that the information should appear. Saint Mark |
Saint Mark is pleased to offer Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace University, a life-changing program that teaches you to achieve your financial goals by eliminating debt, saving for the future, and giving like never before. Classes will be held in Wade Hall every Sunday afternoon from 4-6 pm for 13 weeks, beginning February 21. Cost is $70 for the series. Pre-registration and payment for the class is required prior to receiving course materials. If you are interested in participating in the class but have concerns about the tuition, contact Deana Hilton. Financial assistance / partial scholarships may be available. Contact Christia Holloway, 404.873.2636 x16, to register. In this class series, you’ll learn how to beat debt, build wealth, find bargains, invest for the future, give like never before, and more. Lesson themes include: Super Saving, Relating with Money, Cash Flow Planning, Dumping Debt, Credit Sharks in Suits, Buyer Beware, Clause and Effect, That’s Not Good Enough, Of Mice and Mutual Funds, From Fruition to Tuition, Working in Your Strengths, Real Estate and Mortgage, and The Great Misunderstanding. To learn more about the program, visit Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University website or contact Rev. Jimmy Moor, 404.873.2636. Lent It feels like Christmas was not too long ago, but we are just around the corner from Ash Wednesday and the beginning of Lent. Lent, as you may recall is the forty day period (excluding Sundays) that leads up to Easter and it is a time of preparing in deep ways for what God does for us in Easter. I find it helpful to remember that Lent is part of a larger cycle going all the way through the fifty days of the Easter season to the day of Pentecost. A wonderful book a few year back captured the sweep of this great period in its title: From Ashes to Fire. But we think of Lent as a distinct season for planning purposes, and I want to lift up for you some of what is ahead for us. First, we are having a congregational reading of the Gospel of Luke during Lent. Mandy has developed a reading plan that you can find in the devotional guide and on the website. Read the Remarks each week for questions and ideas to help you in your reading. This is a good discipline and will bear fruit not only in Lent but throughout the year since Luke is the governing Gospel for 2010. Second, I will be doing a five part sermon series entitled "God’s Heart: Our Lives" beginning February 21. The first Sunday we will focus on the character of the God who made us and whom scripture says is passionately seeking to be in relationship with us. The rest of the series will focus on some of the ways we might respond to such a God: by reorienting our lives; by practicing disciplines that strengthen our relationship with God; by being compassionate; and by adoration. I hope you will join us for this series, and invite your friends. Third, there will be special learning opportunities throughout the season. Watch for materials from Mandy on Food for the Hungry Soul offerings. I plan to offer a five week class Sunday mornings beginning February 21. The class is entitled “Serious Answers to Hard Questions’ and features material from Wesley Theological Seminary. We will explore topics such as evil, the God of the Old Testament, and other religions. I will also offer this class on Wednesday evenings after the Wednesday Night Supper programs if there is enough interest. Be sure to register with Christia in the church office. More will take place during Lent. We will begin with our annual Ash Wednesday service at 7 pm on February 17. The Choir will present portions of Handel’s Messiah on Palm/Passion Sunday, and we will process down Peachtree Street to start worship that day. In all of this our goal is to grow in our faith and prepare ourselves for Easter joy. Join us for this Lenten journey, and bring your friends. Remember too that we begin Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace University on Sunday, February 21 at 4 pm in Wade Hall. Register with Christia. Blessings, Jimmy |
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Book Club News The Saint Mark Book Club will meet on Thursday, February 4, 7 pm, at Jason’s Deli (located at the corner of Piedmont and 10th Street), to discuss Unaccustomed Earth by Jhumpa Lahiri. All are invited to participate. For more details, contact Deia Joel Nourse, facilitator. February Communion Offering The communion offering on Sunday, February 7, will go to the Haiti relief effort through the United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR). Support for relief efforts can also be made to Haiti Emergency, UMCOR Advance # 418325. 100% of gifts to UMCOR through the Advance support the designated project. More events are being planned to help the people of Haiti - preparation of health kits at a Wednesday Fellowship Dinner and also involvement with a mission trip to Haiti. If you are interested in participating in these or other projects for Haiti, contact Rev. Phillip Thomason. Hill Hope Elementary School Mentoring Program Join us for an organizational meeting immediately following the 11:15 Morning Worship service on Sunday, February 14, to plan for ongoing support of Hill Hope Elementary School. We will meet in the parlor to discuss some of Hill Hope’s needs, including tutoring, mentoring, and special events. Contact Rev. Phillip Thomason or Mary Murray for more information. Dancing with the (Saint Mark) Stars: Ballroom Dance Classes Activities and Recreation Committee (ARC) chair Larry Lucas will be teaching 2 sessions of ballroom dance classes, each for 6 weeks. Classes meet in Wade Hall on Mondays, 6-7:30 pm and Thursdays, 6:30-8 pm. To sign up or learn more, contact Larry Lucas. Coming to Saint Mark in February Theology on Tap Theology on Tap begins next Wednesday, February 10 and will meet for 7 weeks every Wednesday night, 7:45 pm, at Vickery’s on Crescent. We’ll enjoy good fellowship and conversation as we read The Complete Stories of Flannery O’Connor, discussing where we see God in our lives. Contact Rev. Mandy Flemming for more information. Lent begins Saint Mark's Lenten Devotional Guide will be available at our Ash Wednesday service, February 17, 7 pm. Click here to subscribe to the Lenten Devotional Guide (or other Saint Mark mass-emailings). Serious Answers to Hard Questions, A Lenten Study Beginning Sunday, February 21, during the Christian Growth hour, Rev. Jimmy Moor will lead this study for five Sundays in Lent. The class will also be offered on Wednesday evenings at 7:30 if we have registrations for this time. Topics will include Evil, Religion and Science, Other Religions, Evangelism and Tolerance, and the God of the Old Testament. There will be videos on each topic from Wesley Theological Seminary with outstanding scholars presenting. Come and join us for as many sessions as you can as each session is stand alone. Study books are available. Contact Christia Holloway by Wednesday, February 17, to register. Lunch with Saint Mark Resumes Beginning Sunday, February 21, Lunch with Saint Mark will be offered again after the 11:15 Morning Worship service on the 3rd Sunday of each month. We are in the process of arranging brunch at Straits Restaurant (corner of Juniper and 5th) for February 21 - more details to follow. You provide your lunch money and we’ll provide the fellowship! If you have a favorite restaurant or would like to be a host, contact Regina Robuck. New Member Class and Lunch Offered February 28 If you have joined Saint Mark recently, make plans to attend our upcoming New Member class and Luncheon on Sunday, February 28, immediately following the 11:15 Morning Worship service. Contact Rev. Mandy Flemming for more information. Sunday Morning Christian Growth Opportunities Couples Class series How deep is your love? begins this Sunday, February 7. Join the Couples Class for a 2 part discussion about how our preconceived ideas about God, ourselves and others can be an obstacle to understanding the depth of God’s love expressed in the Scriptures and in our lives. The 2 week series (February 7 and 14) will be facilitated by Rev. Jeff Carey, founding pastor of Just As You Are, a faith community and ministry of reconciliation for those who have become disenchanted with or disenfranchised from "church." The Couples class meets every Sunday, 10:10 am, in Room 206. For more information, contact Matthew Malok. Reflections: A New Christian Growth Community Formerly called the Women of the Bible Christian Growth Class, the Reflections class meets on Sundays, 10:10 am, in Room 204. The class will feature both individual lessons and short series, taught by both Saint Mark members and guest speakers. We will discuss the Bible, current events and our identity as the Christian church, always reflecting together in our discussion on how we can grow in our own individual and group faith journeys. This Sunday, Saint Mark's seminary intern Anna Tew begins a 3 week series on the Christian Year and its seasons and celebrations. Mandy Flemming will offer an upcoming 4 week series on 1 Corinthians and discovering our spiritual gifts. Anyone at Saint Mark is welcome to participate. If you are searching for a community of support at Saint Mark, or if you just want to join us for a few weeks to take part in our upcoming series, we'd love to have you. Contact Katie Olliff for more information. Women's Spring Retreat - Save the Date! This spring Saint Mark is offering a Women's Retreat, Friday-Sunday, March 19-21. The theme will be Do What You Have the Power to Do, utilizing Helen Pierson's book of the same title. If you're interested, please contact Rev. Mandy Flemming - more information will follow. Worship Attendance: Sunday, January 31
Morning Worship: Sunday, February 7
Wednesday Fellowship Dinner
More information AND reservations, 404.873.2636 x16, or complete the registration form in the pews and place in the offering plate. Financial Report Year-to-Date Actual Operating Income/Expense Report: Through December 31, 2009: Capital Campaign IV Pledged to Date $ 1 237 011 Click here to make a contribution securely online. In Sympathy Saint Mark extends heartfelt sympathy to Mary Abbott and LuAlice Waite on the death of their mother Mary Nell Waite on January 27. A memorial service will be held later on St. Simon's Island. Rhiannon O’Connor's great uncle, Henry Larzelere, passed away on January 26, in Lynchburg, Virginia. Sally Foster's mother, Vera Rollo, passed away on Wednesday, February 3, in Atlanta. A memorial service will be held Saturday, February 6, 2pm, Kingswood United Methodist Church on Tilley Mill Road. Visitation will be afterward at Ms. Rollo’s home. A memorial service for Ken Capelle will be held this Saturday, February 6, 3 pm, in the Chapel and followed by a reception in Wade Hall.
Click here to view the February 2010 calendar.
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