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 ensure that you continue to receive emails from us, add remarks@stmarkumc.org to your ISP address book & ISP safe list today.

If you haven't done so already, click to confirm your interest in receiving these weekly eRemarks.
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.
Click here to provide general updates to your church record.

View The Remarks online at http://www.stmarkumc.org/remarks/
For this and other information, please visit our website at http://www.stmarkumc.org

Bon Appétit!

Our Wednesday night fellowship dinners resume next week on January 16. We are excited to welcome our new chef, Keith Hand! Recently, Keith has been catering many of our special events.

Upcoming programs include:

• January 16: Church-wide scavenger hunt
• January 23: Ministry Opportunities at Saint Mark
• January 30: Compline Service

Click here for more information about AND to make a reservation for a Wednesday Dinner program, call 404.873.2636 x50, or complete the registration form in the pews and place in the offering plate.

Training Opportunity for Church Leaders

The 9th annual Training Event of the Atlanta-Emory and the Atlanta-Decatur-Oxford Districts will be held this Sunday, January 13, 2:30 - 5:30 pm at the Norcross United Methodist Church. Those individuals who have accepted specific leadership positions at Saint Mark are encouraged to attend.

Twenty-one different workshops will be offered, including such topics as Reaching Out to Our Neighbors, Doing and Being the Church in the 21st Century, Do You Have a Complete Mission Plan? and Conflict Resolution.

The schedule provides an opportunity for each person to attend two of the workshops. This is an excellent way to prepare for leadership responsibility in the new year. Brochures and registration forms are available in the church office – for more details, contact Christia Holloway, cholloway@stmarkumc.org, 404.873.2636 x16.

Living in 2008

by Jimmy Moor

The beginning of a new year is an appropriate time to think about the shape of our lives and how we might improve ourselves. John Wesley has some timeless advice that is worth our consideration s we move into 2008. Wesley’s General Rules have been revived recently in Bishop Reuben Job’s new book, Three Simple Rules. Wesley’s guidelines are straightforward.

Number 1: Do no harm. This means that I will live so that none of my actions will cause injury to another of God’s children or any part of God’s creation. We regularly have opportunities to do no harm.

Number 2: Do good. All of us have multiple opportunities every day to do good. This applies, obviously, to our interactions with other individuals. But it also an invitation to think about the common good, and to consider whether or not something I am about to do promotes – or hurts – the common good.

Number 3: Stay in love with God. Maybe the most important rule, and the one that is at the heart of any strong, authentic Christian life. Wesley would say that spiritual disciplines such as prayer, receiving communion, Bible study, and fasting were keys in helping us stay in love with God.

Not bad rules for us to practice in the new year.

In a related vein, I want to invite you to worship the next two weeks as we think about the coming year at Saint Mark. This Sunday we will explore some of the implications of our baptisms as we live as disciples. And on the 20th I want to think with you about what is before us in 2008. Join us. I am looking forward to sharing this fresh new year with you.

Jimmy

Remarks Announcements

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED

Looking for an opportunity to get to know some of our senior members better? We need one more Sunday Driver to add to our 2008 Drivers List. You'd be picking up and returning our seniors one Sunday a month and would need a car and a good driving record. Our riders are so very appreciate of this small effort, and it's a great way to have some one-on-one conversations. For more information, call Greg Brown, 404.869.9280.

CAN YOU HELP?

A member of the Saint Mark community is in need of a sitter who is available to volunteer his or her time to assist this individual for a few hours, twice a week during the next two weeks. For more information, please contact Rev. Phillip Thomason, pthomason@stmarkumc.org, 404.873.2636 x12.

YOUTH MINISTRY ANNOUNCEMENT

We regret to announce Pat Riley’s resignation as Saint Mark’s Director of Youth Ministries, due in part to Pat’s second (full time) job and the sense that Saint Mark was not a good match for his gifts. Youth and adults involved in the youth ministry are currently working on the next step in finding leadership for this important ministry.

IMPORTANT DATES FOR JANUARY

• Tuesday, January 15: Called Finance Committee meeting, 6:30 pm
• Wednesday, January 16: Wednesday Night Fellowship Dinners resume
• Monday, January 21: Martin Luther King, Jr. Day (church office closed)
• Tuesday, January 22 Regularly scheduled Finance Committee meeting, 6:30 pm
• Monday, January 28: Administrative Council meeting, 6:45 pm (dinner, 6pm)

A NEW'S YEAR RESOLUTION

Are you making resolutions for 2008? Maybe to get more exercise, lose weight, or check-in more often with family members? If you have not already done so, consider including as one of your resolutions making a financial commitment to Saint Mark’s 2008 operating budget. Doing so helps us carry out the ministries we believe God has given us, and you will find the spiritual discipline of giving will enrich your life. Now is the time. The Finance Committee will recommend a budget to the Administrative Council later this month. Your participation makes a difference! You can make a pledge by going online or by calling Deana Hilton in the church office. Thank you.

Click here to make a contribution securely online.
Click here to make your make your 2008 Operating Budget Pledge online.
Click here to make your make your Capital Campaign Pledge online.

ATTENTION, COMMITTEE CHAIRS!

Don’t forget to contact Christia, cholloway@stmarkumc.org, 404.873.2636 x16, to confirm that your committee / work group’s regularly occurring meetings (monthly, quarterly, etc.) carry over from 2007 and are scheduled correctly on the 2008 church calendar. To avoid confusion, everything needs to be noted on the church calendar. Thank you for your cooperation!

If you are new to the position of chairperson, did you know Saint Mark has created a handbook especially for you? It contains all the information you need to know about how to schedule and publicize your group’s events, make arrangements for Ministry Moments during Morning Worship services, manage your committee’s budget and reimbursement for expenses, etc., etc. Click here to view the Leader's Guide online.

MAC WINTER CLOTHING DRIVE

The Midtown Assistance Center (MAC) is a non-profit organization dedicated to preventing homelessness and hunger among families living in Midtown and Downtown Atlanta. During the month of December, MAC is conducting its Men’s Clothing Drive, collecting all types of winter clothing:

• Dress & casual shirts & pants
• Suits
• White dress shirts, black pants, dark shoes & tuxedos (for food service industry jobs)
• Jeans & t-shirts (for construction jobs)
• Ties & belts
• Shoes, boots & new socks
• Pajamas & new undergarments
• Personal hygiene items: razors, deodorant, soap, etc.

Take your items to MAC (30 Porter Place, Atlanta 30308) or bring to Saint Mark.

Green Team Tip of the Week

To report a water restriction violation, call:

• City of Atlanta, 404.982.1414
• Fulton County, 770.640.3040
• Dekalb County, 770.270.6243
• Cobb County, 770.419.6278
• Gwinnett County, 678.376.7100

Click here for the Green Team's previous Tips of the Week.
Click here for more information about Saint Mark's Green Team.

Club M.A.R.K. - Making a Real Konnection

Book Club

The Book Club meets on the first Thursday of each month at Jason’s Deli (located at the corner of Piedmont and 10th St) at 7 pm. The next Book Club will meet on Thursday, February 7. All are invited to participate!

• February: Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel Garcia Marquez; Steve Hargrove, facilitator
• March: Old School by Tobias Wolff

Click here for more information about the Club M.A.R.K. Book Club or contact Cheryl Thompson, cherylcrt@aol.com 404-918-9240.

Save the Date! Mark your calendars for the Saint Mark Gala, Saturday, February 9.

Club M.A.R.K. events are open to everyone - all are invited to participate!
Click here for more information about Club M.A.R.K.

Remarks Reports

Worship Attendance, Sunday, January 6

• 8:45 am - 225; 11:15 am - 336; Total - 561

Morning Worship: Sunday, January 13

• Baptism of the Lord
• Open Membership Sunday
• Jimmy Moor to preach
• Matthew 3:13-17

Wednesday Fellowship Dinner: Wade Hall, 6:15 pm

Our Wednesday Fellowship Dinners will resume on January 16.

• January 16 - Church-wide scavenger hunt
• January 23 - Ministry Opportunities at Saint Mark
• January 30 - Compline Service

Click here for more information about AND to make a reservation for a Wednesday Dinner program, call 404.873.2636 x50, or complete the registration form in the pews and place in the offering plate.

Welcome New Members

We are pleased to welcome Cindy Hanson, Sharon McSwain, and Joseph Maxwell to our church family!

In Sympathy

Saint Mark expresses Christian sympathy to Bruce Stagner on the death of his brother, Byron Stagner, in Fayetteville, Georgia, on January 7; to Jimmy and Stan Moor on the death of their uncle, Henry “Speedy” Meaders, on January 5, in Marietta, Georgia; and to John Taylor on the death of his aunt in Adel, Georgia, on January 1.

Congregational Care

Coming up at Saint Mark

Links to www.stmarkumc.org

CONTACT US!

Please submit all 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 United Methodist Church

781 Peachtree Street NE
Atlanta GA 30308-1205
Phone: 404.873.2636
After hours emergency: 888.334.9490
Prayer line: 404.873.2636 x31 or prayer@stmarkumc.org
Fax: 404.873.2639
E-mail: office@stmarkumc.org
Web: www.stmarkumc.org

STAFF DIRECTORY

Rev. Jimmy Moor, Senior Pastor
  jmoor@stmarkumc.org, telephone extension 11

Rev. Phillip Thomason, Associate Minister of Outreach & Pastoral Care
  pthomason@stmarkumc.org, extension 12

Rev. Mandy S. Flemming, Associate Minister of Christian Education & Spiritual Formation
  mflemming@stmarkumc.org, extension 13

Rev. Joshua M. Noblitt, Deacon in Residence
  jnoblitt@stmarkumc.org, 404.739.5162

Jane Burke, Minister of Fine Arts
  jburke@stmarkumc.org, extension 15

Jackie Jenkins, Children's Minister
  jjenkins@stmarkumc.org, extension 24

Boyd Darsey, Staff Assistant
  bdarsey@stmarkumc.org, extension 10

Deana Hilton, Business Administrator
  dhilton@stmarkumc.org, extension 14

Christia Holloway, Assistant to Rev. Moor
  cholloway@stmarkumc.org, extension 16

John Richardson, Associate Director of Fine Arts & Organist
  jrichardson@stmarkumc.org, extension 22

Amy Holloway, Fine Arts Assistant
  extension 22

Kathi Urban, Fine Arts Assistant
  kurban289@comcast.net, extension 22