SOTH on Flickr!

Hey, all!

One of the new tools our church is utilizing is an online photo application called Flickr. You can check it out at the following URL:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/sothumc/

We are always looking for new photos to post for the congregation to have access to, so if you have some you would like to share, please email them to Mike at mike@sothumc.net.

Toodles.

Meet Your Maker, Vol. I

As many of you may know, Adam and I have been leading a group of students through a Confirmation class Sunday evenings from 4:00pm-5:00pm. In it, we have covered a wide range of information that we consider to be important to our lives of faith as Methodists. One of those topics is the life and importance of John Wesley.

Adam and I shared a short conversation after teaching the youth in which we pondered the percentage of people (nice alliteration, right?) in our congregation, more particularly adults, who know who John Wesley was and why his name is associated with our denomination. It's an interesting question - How many of our congregants would be able to speak intelligently on John Wesley? By "intelligently," what I mean is who could give us more than: "He felt his heart strangely warmed and 'bam' there was Methodism"?

I've been a Methodist for ten years now, and I am able to give a pretty decent account of John Wesley's life. It's not without its holes, but it is passable. I want to encourage you to do some research on his life. In his life is the root of our movement as Methodists. You can very easily find fairly comprehensive biographies through search engines or even at the library.

I am calling this on-going blog article "Meet Your Maker," because with it, I plan on taking you by the hand as I read John Wesley's teachings. Once a week, you will find yet another volume of this post here on the SOTHblog in which I will post an excerpt from one of his teachings and comment on it. My hopes are that you will not only join in the commentary by posting your own thoughts, but that you would also grow a greater understanding of some of the foundational thoughts behind our particular set of beliefs.

If you are like me, you seek knowledge when it is readily available. As I sit in my office, I face four bookshelves full of books; many of them, as Adam showed me this afternoon, are devoted to the life and teachings of John Wesley. So I am taking what is readily available to me and making it readily available to you. Each week, you will literally be a click or two away from the same materials I have access to.

Join me each Friday as I expand my knowledge of what we profess each Sunday morning.

Rain

My back was turned on the two women who stood talking at the counter.

I was pondering whether to put sugar in my coffee.

A sentence tumbled from their conversation into my ears. I put the sugar in (just a little, I promise), and began pondering her words.

"You better be appreciatin' the rain!"

"I know," said the second woman, "but it always rains on my days off, then it's beautiful as soon as I go to work. Here I am, and it's supposed to rain again today!"

"Would you rather have a drought?" asked the women behind the counter.

Good point.

Well...would you?

Think about it: "you better be appreciatin' the rain."

That, my friends, is a profound spiritual truth. And like all good, profound spiritual truths, it sounds great in principle, and it's tough to put into practice.

We human beings tend to like rain only when it comes on our terms. We like a gentle rain that falls early in the morning. The kind that provides the perfect soundtrack for a great night's sleep.

We don't like rain at picnics. Or ballgames. Or on the golf course. Or "on our parade."

We certainly don't like "spiritual" rain.

Rainstorms like lost jobs, or hurt feelings, or being misunderstood. The rainstorms of health problems, or anger, or loss. The rain that falls during times of grief or depression or brokenness.

Sometimes we even meet people who feel like rainstorms themselves, and it sure would be great just to move on quickly into some sunshine.

But that's not the path that God has given us.

It's life. Sometimes it rains. Thanks be to God.

Not 12 months ago, Georgia was still caught in the grip of a terrible drought of historic proportions. All of us were "praying for rain."

This Spring, have we complained about it?

Most likely. We're human beings.

But the Good News is that God loves us enough not to let us stay the way we are. We can get better, in Him.

I'd like to start by embracing the rain. All kinds of rain. Even the rain that falls on "my parade."

Because after all...the parade really belongs to Jesus. It all does. And it's just a privilege to stand along the side and watch what happens as he passes by.

"We better be appreciatin' the rain."

Grace & Peace,
Adam

In Memoriam

In honor of those who have made the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom, the text of Lincoln's famous speech, given in dedication of the battlefield at Gettysburg, PA:  November 19, 1863. 

Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.

Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a great battle-field of that war. 

We have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this.

But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate -- we can not consecrate -- we can not hallow -- this ground. 

The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract. 

The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced.

 It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us -- that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion -- that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain -- that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom -- and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.

God's Vision...The Flywheel...The Community

Dear SOTH Friends and Family --

A short time out today to share with you what it means to be your pastor...to live out my faith and calling with the people called Shepherd of the Hills.

It means more to me than you can ever know.

What a journey of ups and downs, twists and turns we have taken together. Almost four years ago, I arrived to be the pastor at SOTH in the midst of a lot of hurt and brokenness.

I entered into that hurt with you, and together we've experienced incredible healing and a new experience of God's strength at work within us.

A new sunrise of hope and possibility is breaking over the horizon.

It feels absolutely wonderful.

We are aligning behind a vision. The vision is not complete, and it is a work in progress. It always will be. But it feels so good to see joy everywhere in the life of our church, and to know that we are coming together to join in the work that God himself has given us.

I see the "flywheel" turning. In his famous leadership book Good to Great, Jim Collins describes how hard the first few turns of a big, heavy flywheel can be. But with each subsequent turn, a flywheel gathers momentum and begins to turn faster and faster under its own weight and momentum.

With prayer, humility and a sense of urgency and passion, the Jesus-following folks who are Shepherd of the Hills have managed to make those first, difficult turns together.

And now...it's time to fan the flame, and to open a conversation about the great things God still has in store.

Having just finished our outstanding "Listening Group" sessions in April, I wanted to share some results.

Here are the things that the people of SOTH said they celebrate right now in the life of our church (these are not the full list, but they are all of the things which were said at least 3 times):

Celebrations:
Our Pastor/Relevant Preaching (thanks!)
Warmth and a Welcoming Congregation
Our Music and the SOTH Band
Youth Ministry
Children's Ministry
LRE (Community Outreach/Visitation Ministry)
Missions (especially summer lunch and The Pantry)
Contemporary Style/Informality
Prayer Ministry
Worship Experience, especially use of video and new projection equipment
Relationships
Connect Groups

Folks, those are some pretty awesome celebrations!!! The flywheel is turning faster and faster!

God is good, and his steadfast love does truly endure. Our listening groups also asked the question, "what could God be calling us into next?"

We'll be working with all of your feedback and sharing some possible answers to that question (and getting more input from everyone) at a town hall meeting this summer. Then, this fall, you'll hear a detail ministry plan for fulfilling our vision in 2010!

In the meantime...how well do you know your neighbors?

SOTH has just completed a demographic study through missioninsite.com. This is the research company employed by our North Georgia Conference for the purpose of helping churches know
the communities in which they're located.

Most of us carry assumptions about the place we live...which may or may not be true.

We'll share more in detail at the town hall, but for now I thought I'd share some keys of what I learned:

1) SOTH's community is much more affluent than I realized. Average household income around our church is about $75,000 per year. Almost 25% of the households immediately surrounding SOTH (north to I-20, south to Hwy 166, east to Fairburn Rd. and west to Hwy 5) earn between $100,000 and $150,000 per year. These numbers are significantly higher than the household average for both Georgia and the United States. All of these income levels are projected to move higher in the next 5 years. In other words, we're getting MORE affluent, contrary to what we see on TV.

2) SOTH's community is child-focused. We have a significantly higher than average number of school age children in our community.

3) On the whole, the SOTH community is younger than the GA average, although not with young adults. We are lower than average in population of "20-somethings," but much higher than average in the 35-55 age range. We don't have many retirees, with our over 65 population running significantly behind the GA average. There are more 35-year olds with preschoolers (uh...Holly and me) in our community than you will find on average in other places.

4) Our community is very racially diverse, and rapidly changing. In 2000, 82% of the SOTH community was white. Today, that number is 60% and projected to drop to 52% by 2013. The African-American population has risen from 13% in 2000 to 32% today. It projects to 40% by 2013. SOTH's community is 5% Latino, with this segment projected to rise in the next 5 years as well.

5) Missioninsite.com classifies most of the SOTH community as composed of "Suburban Optimists," a group of hard-working, high-debt, high-earning households that drive 2 minivans or SUV's.

"They work in a mix of highly skilled blue and white collar jobs and enjoy vibrant, on-the-go lifestyles. They are very invested in their children and in team sports. They consider shopping another sport, relishing the challenge of finding the latest fashions at bargain prices at stores such as Loehmann's, Target and Marshall's. However, these consumers have a tendency to spend their disposable income on technology products, buying the latest video game players, laptops and home theater systems. They describe themselves as early adopters and influential leaders when it comes to consumer electronics. When it comes to their finances they are not big savers and exhibit low rates for owning investment and insurance products."

"Suburban Optimists residents have youthful, entertainment-minded media tastes. They frequently watch cable TV networks like MTV, VH1 and Spike. They enjoy watching network dramas, comedies and reality shows like American Idol."

Does that sound like our Douglasville to you? Kind of spooky, huh?

There are other significant groups in our community too, and of course this is just a thumbnail, general sketch.

But it gives us a clue about where the flywheel should turn next.

What are "Doug and Debbie Douglasville" struggling with in their lives? How can SOTH help?

How can we offer them Christ?

Let me hear from you. And know that I'm so proud and humbled to be your pastor.

Grace & Peace,
Adam

Romans 8

Some encouragement for the journey...sit with this for a while and you will be better...

Romans 8

The Solution Is Life on God's Terms

^1-2With the arrival of Jesus, the Messiah, that fateful dilemma is resolved. Those who enter into Christ's being-here-for-us no longer have to live under a continuous, low-lying black cloud. A new power is in operation. The Spirit of life in Christ, like a strong wind, has magnificently cleared the air, freeing you from a fated lifetime of brutal tyranny at the hands of sin and death.

^3-4God went for the jugular when he sent his own Son. He didn't deal with the problem as something remote and unimportant. In his Son, Jesus, he personally took on the human condition, entered the disordered mess of struggling humanity in order to set it right once and for all. The law code, weakened as it always was by fractured human nature, could never have done that.

The law always ended up being used as a Band-Aid on sin instead of a deep healing of it. And now what the law code asked for but we couldn't deliver is accomplished as we, instead of redoubling our own efforts, simply embrace what the Spirit is doing in us.

^5-8Those who think they can do it on their own end up obsessed with measuring their own moral muscle but never get around to exercising it in real life. Those who trust God's action in them find that God's Spirit is in them—living and breathing God! Obsession with self in these matters is a dead end; attention to God leads us out into the open, into a spacious, free life. Focusing on the self is the opposite of focusing on God. Anyone completely absorbed in self ignores God, ends up thinking more about self than God. That person ignores who God is and what he is doing. And God isn't pleased at being ignored.

^9-11But if God himself has taken up residence in your life, you can hardly be thinking more of yourself than of him. Anyone, of course, who has not welcomed this invisible but clearly present God, the Spirit of Christ, won't know what we're talking about. But for you who welcome him, in whom he dwells—even though you still experience all the limitations of sin—you yourself experience life on God's terms. It stands to reason, doesn't it, that if the alive-and-present God who raised Jesus from the dead moves into your life, he'll do the same thing in you that he did in Jesus, bringing you alive to himself? When God lives and breathes in you (and he does, as surely as he did in Jesus), you are delivered from that dead life. With his Spirit living in you, your body will be as alive as Christ's!

^12-14So don't you see that we don't owe this old do-it-yourself life one red cent. There's nothing in it for us, nothing at all. The best thing to do is give it a decent burial and get on with your new life. God's Spirit beckons. There are things to do and places to go!

^15-17This resurrection life you received from God is not a timid, grave-tending life. It's adventurously expectant, greeting God with a childlike "What's next, Papa?" God's Spirit touches our spirits and confirms who we really are. We know who he is, and we know who we are: Father and children. And we know we are going to get what's coming to us—an unbelievable inheritance! We go through exactly what Christ goes through. If we go through the hard times with him, then we're certainly going to go through the good times with him!

^18-21That's why I don't think there's any comparison between the present hard times and the coming good times. The created world itself can hardly wait for what's coming next. Everything in creation is being more or less held back. God reins it in until both creation and all the creatures are ready and can be released at the same moment into the glorious times ahead. Meanwhile, the joyful anticipation deepens.

^22-25All around us we observe a pregnant creation. The difficult times of pain throughout the world are simply birth pangs. But it's not only around us; it's within us. The Spirit of God is arousing us within. We're also feeling the birth pangs. These sterile and barren bodies of ours are yearning for full deliverance. That is why waiting does not diminish us, any more than waiting diminishes a pregnant mother. We are enlarged in the waiting. We, of course, don't see what is enlarging us. But the longer we wait, the larger we become, and the more joyful our expectancy.

^26-28Meanwhile, the moment we get tired in the waiting, God's Spirit is right alongside helping us along. If we don't know how or what to pray, it doesn't matter. He does our praying in and for us, making prayer out of our wordless sighs, our aching groans. He knows us far better than we know ourselves, knows our pregnant condition, and keeps us present before God. That's why we can be so sure that every detail in our lives of love for God is worked into something good.

^29-30God knew what he was doing from the very beginning. He decided from the outset to shape the lives of those who love him along the same lines as the life of his Son. The Son stands first in the line of humanity he restored. We see the original and intended shape of our lives there in him. After God made that decision of what his children should be like, he followed it up by calling people by name. After he called them by name, he set them on a solid basis with himself. And then, after getting them established, he stayed with them to the end, gloriously completing what he had begun.

^31-39So, what do you think? With God on our side like this, how can we lose? If God didn't hesitate to put everything on the line for us, embracing our condition and exposing himself to the worst by sending his own Son, is there anything else he wouldn't gladly and freely do for us? And who would dare tangle with God by messing with one of God's chosen? Who would dare even to point a finger? The One who died for us—who was raised to life for us!—is in the presence of God at this very moment sticking up for us. Do you think anyone is going to be able to drive a wedge between us and Christ's love for us? There is no way! Not trouble, not hard times, not hatred, not hunger, not homelessness, not bullying threats, not backstabbing, not even the worst sins listed in Scripture:

They kill us in cold blood because they hate you.
We're sitting ducks; they pick us off one by one.
None of this fazes us because Jesus loves us. I'm absolutely convinced that nothing—nothing living or dead, angelic or demonic, today or tomorrow, high or low, thinkable or unthinkable—absolutely nothing can get between us and God's love because of the way that Jesus our Master has embraced us.

Sunday, May 17

On Sunday night, snack supper was provided by Angie Stargel: Many, many thanks! Chicken biscuits, chips, salsa, queso, Gatorade, fruits and veggies!

We played freeze tag for the game, and it was more than entertaining. Watching Doug Dean crawl under the legs of kids half his size made me laugh out loud!

I played David Crowder's "Here is Our King" for worship; a fantastic song that just bleeds praise! Brittany Hammond tried to convince me to play "Blind Man" again, but I had to decline. I dont want to wear that song out too quickly.

I talked about how the youth should not feel that they cannot make a difference in their world because they are too young. I dislike that phrase: "Too young." I mean, it has its place, for sure, when referring to people too young to drink or see a rated R movie, but using it as a means of placing a limit on someone's ability to make a difference in their school, community, state or even nation is ridiculous. I pointed to the examples of David slaying Goliath (which promised victory to the Israelites over the Philistines - an act that changed a nation...arguably forever), the story of Jesus feeding the 5,000 in which a little boy gives his lunch (a meager offering that Jesus takes and performs a miracle with), and the story of Johnathan of his armor bearer who, at a young age, single-handedly struck fear into the heart of an opposing army and changed the tide of war.

Farbeit from us, I explained, to limit God's ability to work in mighty ways through the young. In fact, 1 Timothy 4:12 echoes that stance:

"Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity."

The "Do Not Read" List, for Those Who Don't Want To Change

By Randy Baskin, Chair, SOTH Finance Team

I try to read the Bible every night and/or morning.

If I were a baseball player, I'd probably be sent back to the minor leagues because my average moves around so much and hardly ever stays over .500.

Needless to say, I want to improve in that area.

One thing that contributes to my low "BR" (Bible Reading) average is that I'll be moving along really good and hit on a verse that I should have skipped.

For this reason, I'm starting a "Do Not Read" list, so I'll know which verses to skip (the ones out of my comfort/strike zone). I think this will increase my average and get me in good with the "Big Guy."

I hear he's always out there scouting, so I think my own little playbook will increase my odds.

Since January, I've been involved with the SOTH Finance Team, actually as its Chair, and I've struggled with my own giving and tried to justify what my wife and I see as "tithing."

Not only do we see it differently between the two of us, but I think the Bible must be mistaken in some of the verses that I have read, and I should have skipped them.

So...here for "thou," my "Do Not Read" list, with the verses that make me uncomfortable with what the Bible says about tithing.

As Christians, we're all on the same team, so I feel comfortable sharing my secret to success in the game of salvation with each of you.

My Do Not Read List from the Holy Bible:

1. Do Not Read  Malachi 3:6-10

"I am God—yes, I Am. I haven't changed. And because I haven't changed, you, the descendants of Jacob, haven't been destroyed. You have a long history of ignoring my commands. You haven't done a thing I've told you. Return to me so I can return to you," says God-of-the-Angel-Armies.

"You ask, 'But how do we return?'

"Begin by being honest. Do honest people rob God? But you rob me day after day.

"You ask, 'How have we robbed you?'

"The tithe and the offering—that's how! And now you're under a curse —the whole lot of you—because you're robbing me. Bring your full tithe to the Temple treasury so there will be ample provisions in my Temple. Test me in this and see if I don't open up heaven itself to you and pour out blessings beyond your wildest dreams.

2. Do Not Read Leviticus 27:30-34

"A tenth of the land's produce, whether grain from the ground or fruit from the trees, is God's. It is holy to God. If a man buys back any of the tenth he has given, he must add twenty percent to it. A tenth of the entire herd and flock, every tenth animal that passes under the shepherd's rod, is holy to God. He is not permitted to pick out the good from the bad or make a substitution. If he dishonestly makes a substitution, both animals, the original and the substitute, become the possession of the Sanctuary and cannot be redeemed."

3. Do Not Read  Deuteronomy 12:17

Nor may you eat there the tithe of your grain, new wine, or olive oil; nor the firstborn of your herds and flocks; nor any of the Vow-Offerings that you vow; nor your Freewill-Offerings and Tribute-Offerings. All these you must eat in the Presence of God, your God, in the placeGod, your God, chooses—you, your son and daughter, your servant and maid, and the Levite who lives in your neighborhood. 

4. Do Not Read  Malachi 3:10 (worth a second reminder not to read)

And now you're under a curse —the whole lot of you—because you're robbing me. Bring your full tithe to the Temple treasury so there will be ample provisions in my Temple. Test me in this and see if I don't open up heaven itself to you and pour out blessings beyond your wildest dreams. 

5. Do Not Read  Ecclesiastes 5:10

  The one who loves money is never satisfied with money, 
   Nor the one who loves wealth with big profits. It's just more smoke.

6. Matthew 6:24

 ²⁴"You can't worship two gods at once. Loving one god, you'll end up hating the other. Adoration of one feeds contempt for the other. You can't worship God and Money both.

7. Do Not Read  I Timothy 6:10

Lust for money brings trouble and nothing but trouble. Going down that path, some lose their footing in the faith completely and live to regret it bitterly ever after.

This is just the start, and I know that there's much more dealing with the subjects of money and tithing that we should not read, not to mention all the other subjects that also have verses that land outside of our comfort zone.

As a team of Christians, don't we owe it to each other to warn of possible verses that could set us back on points scored?

I mean, if we don't know what they say, then it can't be sin, right? I mean, St. Peter will have to open those pearly gates for sure!

By the way, who decided that we should have an updated version of the Holy Bible? I mean, I liked the King James Version just fine.

I could read it, still not have a clue what it said and interpret it in a way that fits my lifestyle. I probably wouldn't need a "Do Not Read" list if we could just go back to the good ol' King James!

Randy Baskin
SOTH Finance Team

Loving, Relating and Encouraging: We Can Do It!

A Word from SOTH Member and LRE Ministry Coordinator Jamie Blankenship about our new ministry of "calling and caring" on those with whom we've lost relationship.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Loving Relating Encouraging: Our Church Family

Wouldn’t just be great if we all could be all that we can be through Christ, today? Right now?

I mean, what would the world look like if every person was living at their best potential in Christ? It would be pretty amazing.

Heck, it would be pretty amazing if people could maintain this through one rush hour in traffic!

We all fall short. We all struggle. But, at Shepherd of the Hills UMC, we are all on the path of life together.

What if, as we walk along this path together, our comrades fade? What if a friend in Christ disagrees with us? What if a brother or sister in Christ decides the path is too steep to keep going and they need a “break”? What if one of our friends decides they just don’t want us on their path? What if someone in our church family is too depressed to walk with us because they have lost hope?

Do we just let them fade away?

I don’t think so.

But, I also sometimes don’t want to know if someone doesn’t want me on their path. That could really hurt me. I don’t want to get in their business, that may offend them.

Of course, I would hate to think that one of my friends was stumbling on OUR path, and no one stopped to lift them up. That would be the worst.

Why? Not everyone will like me. We are not called to liked by all. That is something every person has to accept at one time or another.

Some people may not welcome me, but checking on a friend to see if they are ok isn’t the worst thing I could ever do to them. I think they will respect this act of friendship and concern, even if they don’t like it, because they know we are called to love each other in Christ. But ignoring them? I am positive that is the worst thing that can happen.

If one person falls, the other can reach out and help. But people who are alone when they fall are in real trouble.

Ecclesiastes 4:10

Please come out TONIGHT and learn the best way to reach out to members that are missing from our path. Their reason for fading away is unimportant. Our reason for going to them is ultimately important.

See you tonight at 6:00 at The Ranch!

Upcoming Week at SOTH

Tonight, May 7th, Join us at the Ranch at 6PM for a night of LRE Training!

Men’s Bible Study – Friday’s at 7 AM. Meet at Douglasville IHOP

Ladies Lunch Bunch – Friday, May 8, Meet at SOTH at 11 AM to carpool to Wallace’s Bar-B-Q

SOTH Announcements – Sunday, May 10

Worship: 9:30 & 11 AM Sermon: “The Big 10 - #3 (Really #5) Honor Your Mother & Your Father” Scripture: Exodus 20: 12

Children’s Bible Connection: 9:30 AM Sunday School: 11 AM Youth Sunday School: 10:15 AM – Ranch

Youth Group/The Flock: 6 PM Sanctuary

The beautiful altar flowers this week are given to the glory of God in honor of Morgan Berry’s 16th birthday by Patti & Robert Berry.

DESSERT AUCTION!! THIS SUNDAY, MAY 10 after the 11 AM Worship. Show your mother how “sweet” she is to you. All proceeds benefit the ministries of the CCC (Congregational & Community Care Committee) The CCC uses funds raised and donated throughout the year to assist those in our congregation, as well as in the community (i.e. Summer Lunch Program, grocery store gift cards and assisting with utility bills, etc.)

May Supper – Pizza Palooza Tuesday: Please note that Wednesday Night Supper is switching to Tuesday nights for the summer. Tuesday, May 19, 6 PM, Menu: Pizza, Salad, Drinks & Dessert Plan on an evening of fun as the adults enjoy the SOTH version of the Newlywed Game “The Truly Wed Game” Supervised activities for the children.

Loving, Relating, Encouraging—LRE Ministry— We go out into the community to meet our neighbors and make some new friends We meet weekly at the “Ranch”, Thursdays at 6:30 PM, for prayer, scripture and sharing.

Feeding the Hungry: We are collecting non-perishable food items for The Pantry. There is a wooden box available for your donations. Our collection box is very low right now. Occasionally, we have families that drop by needing immediate help with food.

WOMEN of SOTH Meeting Monday, May 11, 7 PM. Everyone is invited to join us in the Sanctuary.

SPR MEETING: Tuesday, May 12, 7 PM, Ranch

Listening Group Review Meeting (Faith in Action Steering Committee Members): Next Sunday, May 17, 6 PM, Ranch

SOTH Preschool Registration for 2009-2010 is going on now! Classes for children 6 months—4 years old. Did you know that graduates of SOTH Preschool test exceptionally well on skill and development tests? Many are in the gifted program at their elementary schools. Our teachers respect and love children. Children in the 4 year old class learn to recognize some words before they graduate and enter kindergarten. Preschool is an important developmental step for a child. They learn social and cognitive skills. For some children, this is the only place they hear about Jesus and God. Please tell your friends and neighbors about the great Preschool at SOTH!!

The Preschool will also be open for Summer Play dates for children 6 months old through 4 years old. Tuesday and Thursdays from 9 AM—Noon. Pay a $50 deposit to hold your spot and the deposit is applied to June tuition. We will only have 10 spots. For more information email johari@sothumc.net or call 678-715-0513

HELP HOPE FIGHT CANCER FUNDRAISER at SOTH Saturday, May 16, from 11 AM to 5 PM.

There will be a chili cook-off with cash prizes, children's festival, live bands, food, and much more. Proceeds will benefit citizens of Douglas County who are affected by cancer. For more details visit website .www.helphopesothumc.org

WRAPPED CANDY & SMALL TOYS NEEDED: The Women of SOTH are sponsoring games and events during the Cancer Fundraiser and Community Fun Day on May 16. They need donations of wrapped candy and small toys for prizes. There is a special collection box for your donations!

Sunday, May 3

Another great, great night of conversation. We continued with week three of the relationship series by talking about what we should look for during the relationship as well as what we look forward to with the relationship.

Some of the things the students looked forward to:

1) Honesty
2) Spontaneity
3) Conversation
4) Friendship
5) Emotional intimacy

Some of the things the students said they should be wary of:

1) Physicality
2) Distance
3) Jealousy
4) Over-bearing dates

Cant wait for this weekend when we will close out the series with, appropriately, how to end a relationship properly.

The Confirmation class also went well. This week, we talked about our heritage as Methodists as well as our heritage as Shepherd of the Hills UMC. I believe that the kids really received a great insight into how we came to be both as a denomination and as a local church; this is something Adam and I both felt a lot of the adults who attend our church may be lacking in knowledge - something we may consider remedying in the future.

In other news:

I moved! I can now proudly call Douglasville my home. I moved to 8822 Countryside Way which is right behind DCHS and directly across the street from the public library. Feel free to drop by any time (with notice, of course!).

Holler.

April 18 and 25

Sorry for being out of the blog loop, folks. Life has been busy, what with finals, graduation hooplah, and work details. So here is the catch up:

April 18:

I kicked off the series on relationships that night with the idea that before we enter into a relationship with somebody else, we need to evaluate ourselves. Christ calls us to love Him before we try to love others, so we need to honor that order. I spoke briefly about how we should pursue a relationship with Him above and before all other relationships, and if we are not doing so, we are not ready for a relationship. I hinted at how a strong relationship with Christ strengthens all other relationships, too, and we will be exploring that as we journey forward through the series.

Confirmation also kicked off this week with a crowd of around 10. I flew solo because Adam had a prior engagement, and the kids and I talked about what Confirmation is, what our foundation should be as we continue down the path towards claiming the name, and what the church is. Great discussion and laughs. This class is going to be powerful and I look forward to it for several reasons including the fact that Adam and I are working very closely alongside one another to see it through successfully. And the kids involved dont seem uninterested at all, which is a huge bonus!

April 25:

Week two of four in the relationship series. That night, I talked about the importance of standards and how crucial it is not only to be aware of what yours are, but that you do not compromise in the least bit on any of them. After all, we date to marry, and we do not want to settle for less than what we are looking for in a husband or wife, so why do that when we date? I explained that standards vary from person to person, but for the group of people in that room, one should be universal: the person you are looking to date is a Christian. I spoke very little that night because I opened the floor for the students to be real and share their standards with the group. I explained that sharing your standards with your friends will make you more likely to uphold them because it forms a sort of accountability which is all important with relationships. It was truly awesome to witness, people: the youth really lived up to the "open hearts, open minds" aspect of our denomination that night, and I was honored and blessed to have been a part of the conversation. Some of the standards shared:

Cant be cross-eyed. (Funny, but a standard of one of the youth nonetheless).
Has to know who he/she really is.
Is not clingy.
Does not get upset if I hang out with members of the opposite sex.
Likes the outdoors.
Has to be taller than me.
Must have a sense of humor.

The list goes on, and I wish we had had more time to continue exploring and sharing. It was truly powerful!

I also pulled a little surprise on the youth that was priceless. I played a song called "Blindman" during which there is a point where I scream as loud as I can because the verse is about a possessed man. Of course, I didnt let the youth know this was the case, so when I got to that point in the song and screamed, almost all of them hit the floor! It was hilarious. I then explained to them that it was because I was possessed. We all laughed for a solid five minutes or so before I could finish the song, and then they begged me to play it again and again. I am pretty sure I played that song three or four times Sunday. New youth favorite!

The Confirmation class was great, as well. Good crowd. Active. Involved. Genuinely curious and eager to learn about our heritages as Christians reaching as far back as Judiasm. Great discussion about why we are not Jewish when Jesus was, and all that lead to the distinction.

I am really looking forward to this week and the lessons involved during both hours!