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January 12, 2007
Table
of Contents
Click on one of the links
below to go directly to an article.
Worship
Services
Reflections
Church Family Focus
Stewardship 2007: Growing Our Gifts
First Graders Sing For Leah Rose Residents
Keeping the Rhythm In Wellness
Groundbreaking
Christine Brown Honored
Belmont Welcomes Taunia Rice
Contact Us!
Choirs Resume
Wednesday
Night At Belmont
Music Schedule
New Members/Baptisms
Youth Notes
Children’s Corner
Worship Services
Second Sunday After Epiphany
January 14, 2007
John Collett, preaching
8:15 a.m. - Communion in the Chapel 9:15 a.m. - Sunday
School
10:30 a.m. - Worship in the Sanctuary
Scripture Lessons:
Isaiah 62:1-5; Psalm 36:5-10; I Corinthians 12:1-11; John 2:1-11
Sunday School Classes collecting the offering for January
include
Friendship, Harbison Fellowship, Genesis, 7th & 8th grades
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Reflections
By John Collett, Senior Pastor
You did it again! You helped us finish strong in 2006 and lay the
financial foundation for 2007. Our business office is preparing to
close the books on 2006, and again, you made it possible for us to reach
our operating budget, meet our ministry commitments, and contribute 100%
of our fair share to the United Methodist family of local and worldwide
ministries. We also owe gratitude to our Finance Committee for guiding us
in cost savings and encouraging sacrificial giving to balance our
operating budget of approximately $1.4 million.
Now we turn our attention to the challenges of 2007. And this is the
time to set new goals for our individual giving. Our Finance Committee is
undertaking a new approach to financial planning beginning this year.
Instead of developing our operating budget based on pledges, we will base
our planning on actual giving. This means that we will anticipate at
least the same level of giving for each household unless otherwise
informed of an increase or decrease. And we will closely monitor our
regular giving as the year proceeds. But here’s the challenge: growing
our gifts by increasing our regular contributions, forwarding an
estimate of giving card to the business office or calling or e-mailing
Marianne at 383-0832 ext 11, or mschneider@belmontumc.org.
Each of us has to decide what level of personal giving faithfully
represents our blessings. Most of us can discover ways to increase our
charitable giving simply by forgoing a portion of unnecessary spending.
Others of us can grow our gifts by establishing a weekly or monthly
discipline for regular contributions to the church. All of us can grow our
gifts if we allow God’s goodness to lead our hearts to
generosity.
It is important that all of us try our best to grow our gifts because
we, as a church, are still working our way through building renovation and
expansion and generational change. It goes without saying that the
challenges to renovate our older facilities, build a new multipurpose
community center for recreation and dining, and redesign our campus for
maximum use will require more of us. And it is true that we are still
making a transition from an older generation of Belmonters to a new one.
But all these changes are promising because of the faithfulness of so many
of you and the excitement our new people bring. An optimistic sign for our
future is that we are birthing and adopting children into the congregation
at a rate commensurate with the eternal departure of the faithful.
Growing Our Gifts is our call for this month, this year, and
for years to come. Few of us can give at the level we would like, but most
of us can take steps to grow our gifts. What step forward will you take
this year?
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Church
Family Focus
As of January 4,
2007
In the Hospital
Lynda Wagster - Baptist
Hugh Wright - Centennial
Out of the Hospital
Winfrey Willis
Altar flowers for January 14, 2007
Are given to the glory of God by Dorothy Beck in loving memory of Marian
Dorsey.
Memorials
MAXINE JOHNSON
Donors:
Beverly & Rueben Job
Sarah Circle, UMW
ELLEN DAHNKE
Donors:
Beverly & Hatton Hardison
Sharon Helton & Wayne Wood
Beverly & Rueben Job
Betty & Richard Smith
Sue Smith
Katherine Wright
Nancy & Elmer Young
FRANKIE GRAHAM
Donors:
Betty Brooks
Beverly & Rueben Job
Nancy & Elmer Young
Graham-Inquirers Class
CHRISTINE BROWN
Donors:
Andrea & John Brooks
Betty Brooks
Louise Crain
Jean Dawson
Mary H. Graham
Neva & Tom Graves
Sue & George Haley
Beverly & Rueben Job
Peg Morris
Gerry & David Oldashi
Marion H. Parr
Ann Price
Ruth & Ray Randolph
Monty Smith
Sue Smith
Kathryn Warren
Laura White
All States Club
ELOISE ROBERTS
Donors:
Betty Brooks
William H. Carothers, Jr.
Helen Ewers
Beverly & Hatton Hardison
Beverly & Rueben Job
Stella Maples
Ann Price
Ruth & Ray Randolph
Arinthia Stone
Graham-Inquirers Class
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Stewardship
2007: Growing Our Gifts
by John Pearce, Finance Committee Chair
At Belmont our vision for ministry causes us to continuously expand and
improve our programs. As a result, Belmonters need to continuously
grow our giving to ensure that we continue to be in ministry in the ways
that we are called. While we can grow our giving at any time, many
of us find that the start of a new year is a good time to adjust our
giving.
As we project our 2007 operating budget, we plan to start with an amount
of at least what households are currently giving. Then based on your
response so far and our history of consistent and positive trends in our
personal giving along with our experience of year to year costs, we will
develop a plan for 2007. Our preliminary projections indicate that
we need an overall 10% increase in giving for 2007 to fully support our
planned ministries.
If you had a record of giving to Belmont in 2006 you should have received
information regarding those gifts in early December. Included in
that information was an estimate of giving card that you may use to
indicate your plan for giving in 2007. If you did not have a record
of giving in 2006, now is a great time to start. To grow your giving
you may simply indicate an increase to Marianne in our business office via
phone, e-mail, note or estimate of giving card. You may increase the
amount of each contribution or perhaps an increase each month until your
giving is reflective of your blessings. You may also choose to give
on a monthly basis via automatic debit and information is available for
that method as well.
When we give to Christ through Belmont we give to a vision of
what God is doing in our lives and in the world. We give to our
understanding of God’s vision of the goodness and blessedness of life.
We join what we have and give it to Christ, and he multiplies it.
The more we bring, the more Christ has to work with. Let’s
all join together to grow our gifts and the vision of what God is doing
among us.
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First
Graders Sing for Leah Rose Residents
On Sunday, December 24, the first grade class went to the Leah Rose
Residence where they caroled for the residents. Pictured above from left
to right: Lauren Cato, Sean Cato, Ethan Bagwell, and Macgregor Hinson.
Back Row: Isabelle Kohler, Sabrina Siharath, and Henry Rhodes.
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Keeping
the Rhythm in Wellness
Belmont UMC Health Fair
Saturday, January 27, 2007
10:00am-2:00pm, Parker Hall
Get your hearing tested and your blood pressure checked. Ask a
pharmacist about medications. Learn about nutrition. Go for a bike ride.
Eat a nutritious lunch prepared by the youth. As well as many other
informative booths and activities. And bring your children for fun fire
safety activities. For more information contact Linda Johnson at 383-0832
or Marie King at 347-5904.
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Groundbreaking
Belmont is excited to be Building on the Legacy our ancestors in faith
entrusted to us. By God’s grace and the dedication of many people, we
have plans and funding to further Belmont’s ministries in many areas.
These plans include: renovations to our existing church building
including restroom updates, heating and cooling equipment upgrades, and
elevator access to all floors of the education wing; a new
multi-purpose building for large group dining, recreation, and
conferencing; additional parking; an enhanced and relocated Homeplace; a
youth mentoring ministry in the Edgehill community; and construction of a United
Methodist conference center in Malawi, Africa.
On Sunday January 21, we will celebrate groundbreaking for the new
multi-purpose building in the area outside Thomasson Hall currently known
as Belmont’s parking lot. (NOTE: There will be no parking in the lot
behind Thomasson Hall on January 21; please use parallel parking available
on Magnolia Ave.) After the 10:30am worship service, we will process
outside to the building site, so please dress appropriately. (Children may
wear construction hats from the playground groundbreaking.)
The first visible change to the site will be utilities relocation. After
the utility work is complete, construction of the elevator in the
education wing and the new multi-purpose building will begin by early
April 2007.
At the 2006 Commitment Service, Belmonters received prayer rocks as
reminders to pray that God might use us to bless others as our
predecessors have blessed us. Please bring your prayer rocks to the
groundbreaking ceremony. Using our prayer rocks, we will build an “Ebenezer”
on the building site. In 1 Samuel 7:12, Samuel erects a large rock and
calls it Ebenezer to remind the people that they had come this far with
the Lord’s help. As we break ground to build upon the legacy entrusted
to us, we remember that God’s grace is our foundation, and we have come
this far by God’s help.
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Christine
Brown Honored
This plaque honoring Christine Brown hangs just inside the entrance to
the library where Christine offered her professional skills as a librarian
for nearly two decades. The inscription on it reads: Christine Brown,
Church Librarian, 1987-2006. Christine Brown faithfully served as
Librarian of Anderson Library for almost two decades. Under her
leadership, Anderson Library achieved the highest level of accreditation
offered by the Church and Synagogue Association. Library use increased and
the collection was expanded to over five thousand cataloged volumes.
During Christine’s tenure, she oversaw numerous summer reading programs
and coordinated book collections for seasonal liturgical reading and
special events. She worked closely with the Anderson Library Board,
directed volunteers, and warmly welcomed readers of all ages to the
library. Christine was enthusiastic in her support of the UMW Reading
Program and in her assistance to our ministers and Sunday school teachers.
Her dedication and professionalism made Anderson Library a model for other
churches. Sincere appreciation is also extended to Jeanette Brown
for her quiet support of the library through the offering of her excellent
clerical skills. Belmont United Methodist Church expresses deepest
gratitude to Christine Brown and Jeanette Brown for their witness and for
their ministry though Anderson Library.
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Belmont
Welcomes Taunia Rice
Taunia Rice
The Staff-Parish Relations Committee is pleased to announce that Taunia
Rice has joined the staff as Evangelism & Discipleship Assistant
effective January 1. This newly created part-time position will provide
administrative assistance for the ministries of Evangelism and
Discipleship and give support to the Associate Pastor. See the Belmont
website (www.belcomtumc.org/careers) for Taunia’s full job
description.
Taunia is currently a student at Austin Peay State University pursuing a
degree in political science and international relations. She is a member
of Phi Theta Kappa. She plans to graduate in December 2007 and then hopes
to continue her education by attending graduate school. Taunia is also an
artist and has created a line of children’s furniture and handcrafted
wooden books, along with various other works in painted wood medium.
In addition to attending school full time, Taunia is involved in several
community activities. She has been a literacy tutor with the Nashville
Adult Literacy Council. She is also a member of the Tennesseans Against
Genocide, the Interfaith Reconciliation Committee at Christ Church
Cathedral, and the Nashville Chapter of United Nations Association –
USA. Taunia has a teenage son, Noah, who is an eighth grader at University
School. Please drop by the office and welcome Taunia to Belmont!
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Choirs
Resume
January 10
6:15pm Children’s Choirs
7:15pm Sanctuary Choir
January 11
12:30pm Celebration Ringers
January 14
1:30pm Carillon Ringers
January 21
3:30/4:30pm Youth Choirs
February 7
6:25pm Orchestra
February 28
5:40pm Children’s Chimes
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Contact
Us!
Our staff is here to serve you. Please
contact us if we can assist you.
John Collett, Senior Pastor
615-383-0832 ext. 12 / collett@belmontumc.org
Linda Johnson, Associate Pastor
615-383-0832 ext. 25 / linda@belmontumc.org
Lisa Gwock, Minister of Discipleship
615-383-0832 ext. 24 / lisa@belmontumc.org
Lanecia Rouse, Youth Pastor
615-383-0832 ext. 26 / lanecia@belmontumc.org
Rebecca Griffeth, Director of Children’s Ministries
615-383-0832 ext. 27 / rlgriffeth@belmontumc.org
Gayle Sullivan, Music Ministries Director
615-383-0832 ext. 29 / sullivan@belmontumc.org
Amy Cooper, Children’s Music Coordinator
amycooper@comcast.net
Marianne Schneider, Business Administrator
615-383-0832 ext. 11 / mschneider@belmontumc.org
Alison Schmied, Pastoral Team Assistant
(Contact for Weddings, Funerals, Worship)
615-383-0832 ext. 13 / Alison@belmontumc.org
Angie Slade, Church Ministries Team Assistant
(Contact for The Reporter, Belmont website, church calendar and
room/equipment reservations)
615-383-0832 ext. 23 / aslade@belmontumc.org
Arnell Willis, Administrative Team Assistant
(Contact for membership and contribution information)
615-383-0832 ext. 16 / arnell@belmontumc.org
Anne Hoback, Receptionist/Adminstrative Assistant
(Contact for reservations and general information)
615-383-0832 ext. 10 / ahoback@belmontumc.org
Taunia Rice, Evangelism & Discipleship Assistant
615-383-0832 ext. 30 / taunia@belmontumc.org
Jean Voorhees, Director Belmont Weekday School
615-383-0832 ext. 18 / jvoorhees@belmontumc.org
Laura Hamilton, Belmont Weekday School
615-383-0832 ext. 18 / lhamilton@belmontumc.org
Lennie Minter, Property Manager
615-383-0832 ext. 14 / lennie@belmontumc.org
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Wednesday
Night At Belmont
January 17
Program: United States/Mexico Border Study – Melanie Harrell
& Jason
Sikma, room 124.
Prayer Focus: Children’s Ministries, Belmont Weekday School,
last
name L.
Schedule: 5:15-6:00 p.m., Meal Served/ Parker Hall; 5:45-5:50 p.m.,
Birthdays—children leave for program; 5:50-6:00 p.m., Announcements,
Joys & Concerns and Prayer; 5:45-6:00 p.m., Infant/Toddler childcare
(Room 111); 6:00 pm-7:00 p.m. Programs; 6-7:30 p.m. prayer time in
Ferguson Chapel.
Reservation Reminder - All meal reservations, cancellations or
additions must be made by 9:00 am on Monday. Make your reservations by
calling the church 383-0832, ext 15 (ext. 49 after 4:30 p.m. and on
weekends) or signing the attendance registration pad during the Sunday
morning worship services. Reservations may be made weekly, or you may
request a permanent reservation.
Menu: Chicken cacciatore, fettuccine noodles, steamed vegetables,
caesar salad, and peach cobbler (youth and adults); corn dogs/PB&J,
peaches, carrots, and cookies (children). Vegetarian option is available upon request (deadline for request
is same as meal reservation).
Pricing: Children age 3 and under: FREE; Children ages 4-11
$3.00; Youth & Adults $6.00; Senior Citizens (age 65 and older) $5.00;
Family maximum $24.00.
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Music
Schedule
January 14
TBA
To visit the Music Ministry's web page, click here.
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New
Members/Baptisms
To
visit the Baptisms/New Members web page, click here.
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Youth
Notes
Friday, January 12
6 pm Sr. High Pilgrimage of Pain & Hope: Memphis departs. Return on
January 15, at 12:30pm.
Sunday, January 14
9:15 am Sunday school, 3rd Floor; 6-8:30 pm Jr. High Movie Night at the
Cooper’s residence.
Monday, January 15
12:30 pm Sr. High Pilgrimage of Pain & Hope: Memphis returns.
Wednesday, January 17
6 pm Bible Study, 3rd Floor; 7 pm Knitting and Stuff in Lanecia’s Office.
Friday, January 19
5 pm Jr. High Overnight Retreat at Penuel Ridge departs from church back
parking lot.
To visit the Youth web page, click here.
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The
Children's Corner
January 14
TBA
To visit the Children's web page, click here.
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To visit the Archived Reporters page, click here.
To receive notifications of
website and news updates, subscribe to the weekly Reporter
email mailing list. To subscribe, email the webmaster at aslade@belmontumc.org
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