January 2022 Pine Grove Happenings Newsletter
This and That . . .
- Sunday Services Schedule (unless noted otherwise) 10:00 am Sunday School for all ages and 11:00 am Worship Service In-Person and via Zoom and Facebook Live*
Ø Scheduling Church Facilities: Please email Nancy L. Burleson at office@pinegroveumcalbemarle.org to reserve the Fellowship Hall or Sanctuary. Requests will need to be approved by Leadership Council and/or Pastor Ron.
You can also check availability on the calendar on our website at https://pinegroveumcalbemarle.org/ prior to making your request.
Prayer requests: send an email to the address above or call the church office and leave a message (704) 982-3647.
This Month…
Saturday, January 1 New Year’s Day
12:00 pm High Noon AA Meeting
6:00 pm Community Inn
Sunday, January 2 Mission Sunday
10:00 am Sunday School – All ages
11:00 am Worship Service along with Zoom & Facebook *
After Worship – Take Down Christmas Tree
6:00 pm Reflections Group Meeting (FH)**
Monday, January 3 12:00 pm High Noon AA Meeting
6:00 pm Community Inn – Dale Burleson is Lead
Tuesday, January 4 12:00 pm High Noon AA Meeting
7:00 pm United Methodist Women (Room behind Sanctuary
Wednesday, January 5 12:00 pm High Noon AA Meeting
6:00 pm Community Inn – Robin Hinson is Lead
Thursday, January 6 12:00 pm High Noon AA Meeting
Leadership Reports need to be to Makayla Hinson by today!
Friday, January 7 12:00 pm High Noon AA Meeting
Saturday, January 8 12:00 pm High Noon AA
Sunday, January 9 10:00 am Sunday School – All ages
11:00 am Worship Service along with Zoom & Facebook
After Worship – Church Council
6:00 pm Reflections Group Meeting (FH)
Monday, January 10 12:00 pm High Noon AA Meeting
6:30 pm Dinner & Short Choir Practice (FH)
Tuesday, January 11 12:00 pm High Noon AA Meeting
Wednesday, January 12 12:00 pm High Noon AA Meeting
11:30 am Young at Heart – Parkway House Restaurant, Albemarle***
6:00 pm Community Inn – David & Kathy Odell are Leads
Thursday, January 13 12:00 pm High Noon AA Meeting
6:00 pm Community Inn – David & Kathy Odell are Leads
Friday, January 14 12:00 pm High Noon AA Meeting
Saturday, January 15 12:00 pm High Noon AA
6:00 pm Community Inn – Ritchie & Linda Stiller are Leads
Saturday, January 15 10:00 am Sunday School – All ages
11:00 am Worship Service along with Zoom & Facebook
After Worship – Tabulators Meeting for all Tabulators and anyone else interested in becoming a Tabulator.
6:00 pm Reflections Group Meeting (FH)
Monday, January 17 Martin Luther King Jr. Day
12:00 pm High Noon AA Meeting
6:30 pm Choir Practice
Tuesday, January 18 12:00 pm High Noon AA Meeting
Wednesday, January 19 12:00 pm High Noon AA Meeting
Thursday, January 20 12:00 pm High Noon AA Meeting
Friday, January 21 12:00 pm High Noon AA Meeting
Saturday, January 22 12:00 pm High Noon AA Meeting
Sunday, January 23 10:00 am Sunday School – All ages
11:00 am Worship Service along with Zoom & Facebook
6:00 pm Reflections Group Meeting (FH)
Monday, January 24 12:00 pm High Noon AA Meeting
6:30 pm Choir Practice
Tuesday, January 25 12:00 pm High Noon AA Meeting
6:00 pm Community Inn – Sam Lambert is Lead
Wednesday, January 26 12:00 pm High Noon AA Meeting
Thursday, January 27 12:00 pm High Noon AA Meeting
Friday, January 28 12:00 pm High Noon AA Meeting
Saturday, January 29 12:00 pm High Noon AA Meeting
Sunday, January 30 10:00 am Sunday School – All ages
11:00 am Worship Service along with Zoom & Facebook
6:00 pm Reflections Group Meeting (FH)
Monday, January 31 12:00 pm High Noon AA Meeting
6:30 pm Choir Practice
*Covid Update
We are asking everyone to maintain physical distancing of 6 feet between family units. We recommend that everyone regardless of vaccination status wear a mask during worship and fellowship as well as meetings. We will limit singing and the choir will not wear masks while singing.
**Sunday’s 6:00 PM Reflections Group
See Pastor’s Heart for January below for details!
***Young at Heart
Young at Heart plans to have their first gathering of the new year on Wednesday, January 12, 2022 at Parkway House Restaurant in Albemarle. The address is 515 Hwy NC 24, Albemarle, NC. Please let Pastor Ron know if you plan to come so he can give the restaurant an accurate count.
Join Us For Sunday School! – We offer Young Adult (18 to 35), Older Adult, and Children’s Sunday School classes. Come and check us out!
Daily Worship videos on Facebook – Monday through Friday:
Please join Pastor Ron for 5 minute of Daily Worship Monday through Friday on our Facebook page. They are available after 7:00 AM each morning. Share and Like our page to get notifications.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
SCCM Monthly Need for January
Canned Meat, Tuna, Chicken, Spam, Salmon
Financial Update for January –
as of December 31, 2021
YTD General Fund Contributions $ 110,065.15
YTD Expenses $ 98,338.60
2021 Weekly Budget Needs $ 2,083.31
12/19/2021 General Contributions $ 3,150.00
SPECIAL MINISTRIES FOR JANUARY
Tabulator’s for January………Alesha Morgan & Robin Hearne
+ PRAYER CONCERNS +
Pine Grove family:
Donnie Bowers
Melody Bowers
Kent Bunting
Trudy Bunting
Carolyn Burleson
Nancy A. Burleson
Oleamer Burleson
Max Hinson
Claudine Hinson
Glenda Huneycutt
Sean Maynard
Debbie Stiller
Luke Tucker
Matthew Whitley
Homebound/Nursing Home Members:
Sandra Almond
Betty Jean Burleson
John Burleson
Ann Mercer
Extended family:
Alice Alimonti – David Odell’s Mother
Terri Bennet – Kathy Odell’s cousin
Hailey Frank – Kathy Odell’s Granddaughter
Jonathan Hartman – Pastor Ron’s son Brenda Hill – Christie’s Mom
April Ward -Teresa’s daughter
Friends and neighbors:
Family of Amy Almond, Family of Bud Hatley, Reggie Barringer, Rex Burleson, Trent Burleson, Angela Frick, Jimmy Harris, Chris Harleson, Mandy Hill,
Ron Huneycutt, Todd Howell, Vicki Johnson, Lucy Seick, Holly Stairs, and all those affected by Covid 19.
Pine Grove Website Has Been Updated! – We have been working hard to keep our website up to date. Please take a moment and check it out at: https://pinegroveumcalbemarle.org/
Your Pastor’s Heart for January 2022
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ.
As I sit down to write to you, I have reflected on 2021 and how life unfolded with challenges and joys. For many of us the past year was a rough ride. I want to encourage you as I see looking back that God has been with us. God has held us up when we could not walk on our own.
As I look forward to 2022, I realize that we are setting sail into uncharted waters. This is time of excitement and fear. We are navigating through our current times in which the future course for our churches is unsure, even unsteady, and we have difficult decisions ahead. We are facing the decline of our churches that began over forty years ago. This decline in congregational engagement in worship attendance, spiritual formation, missional and financial stewardship has accelerated during the global pandemic. One thing is sure, we do not know what the long-term effects are for our churches.
The impending split within our denomination, made worse by the delayed General Conference due to the pandemic, has caused an unhealthy stress within our churches, for both laity and clergy. The stories of continued injustices and marginalization of people have reached new levels causing tension and harm. The political divide within the United States, is being played out in all areas of life, from elections to public health, dividing communities, households, and congregations. The result of this is polarized voices setting the tone for our conversations in the community and our church.
Sadly, our conversations within our churches and denomination have more closely mirrored that of our national politics than that of holy conversation. Even in conversation regarding matters that impact our ability to fulfill the call, ministry, and commission of the church, we tend to blame and cast false or damaging accusation or insinuation. It is so easy to say, it is all your fault. These prevailing attitudes shape our responses in the church.
As the church we are called to another way, a better way, THE WAY. We have the tools available to us to not throw blame. We have the tools to offer blessing and to not malign another. We have the tools to offer different attitudes for public conversation, public display of emotion and public life. And as a people of God, as a people called Methodist, we are to be formed and informed differently.
We are the church! We have Scripture to guide and inform us. John Wesley offers important instruction on how to engage scripture, not as a weapon to be used against one another, but as a means of grace and discerning the will of God by engaging both the Old and New Testaments and by regarding what we have read by examining our own lives through it.
As we lean into this year, I want us to use the historical guidelines of our tradition to offer blessings to one another. I want to use these guidelines to talk with one another, to engage in holy conversation, and to show the world how followers of Jesus interact with each other as we seek to grow in grace together! Our worship focus until Easter will be “Navigating These Uncharted Waters”.
As a part of this I will offer a “Reflections” small group that meets each Sunday at 6:00pm to process and explore with one another what we have heard through our worship time together, allowing the wrestling and struggling that comes with gracious accountability. My hope is that this will grow in grace together as we learn a different way of conversation. I hope you will join us.
Peace and Grace for a new year.
Pastor Ron