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Consider the
Raven's
How to become a member
These are exciting
times at Hartford First United Methodist Church! Again and again I
keep hearing the wonderful stories of faith that have shaped this
congregation into the church that we have come to know and love. I
would like to share a wonderful story in the life of our
congregation.
This past Friday
after Geneva County's first football game (Go Dawgs!), our youth
group met at the church at 11:00 p.m. to look into the future of our
youth ministry. They dreamed dreams and shared their vision for
where God was taking them as ministers of the Gospel. When attention
spans began to wane and the eyelids began to close, we called it a
night. we played a little pinpong and listened to some country
music... and then it happened! I asked 16 year old Raven Urquhart if
she had ever thought about joining the church. She said, "Yes, I
have. I just don't know what all that involves. What do you have to
do to become a member?"
That is a great
question isn't it? Perhaps you have forgotten or maybe never even
knew what it means to become a member of the United Methodist
church. Maybe, like Raven, you have been waiting to know. Our 2000
Book of Discipline, outlines membership in this way: As members we
"covenant together with God and the members of the local church to:
- Renounce the
spiritual forces of wickedness, reject the evil powers of the
world, and repent our sin:
- Accept the
freedom and power God gives us to resist evil, injustice, and
oppression;
- Confess Jesus
Christ as Savior, put our whole trust in his grace, and promise to
serve him as our Lord;
- Remain faithful
members of Christ's holy church and serve as Christ's
representatives in the world;
- To be loyal to
the United Methodist Church and do all in our power to strengthen
its ministries;
- Faithfully
participate in its ministries by our prayers, our presence, our
gifts, and our service;
- Receive and
profess the Christian faith as contained in the Scriptures of the
Old and New Testaments.
To make this long
story short, Raven joined the church at 1:30 a.m. on Saturday,
August 28, 2004. I am quite sure that we were the only church in the
state that added anyone to our membership at that time! Hartford
United Methodist Church is alive at 1:30 a.m.! Perhaps you have been
wanting to join our church in our mission to make disciples for
Jesus Christ through "welcoming everyone, spreading God's word,
and meeting spiritual needs" Perhaps you want to reaffirm your
covenant vows of membership in this great church.
If you have been
waiting for an opportunity to join, now is the time. Will you join
Raven in the ministry of this church? I invite you to come see me
and discuss your plans for ministry in our community and church. We
welcome you. We love you. We are waiting.
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