Are you looking for something to do in February? Well, you’re in luck! We’ve got so much going on at Cokesbury UMC this month that they had to add an extra day! Hopefully there is something in this list that is speaking to you where you can plug in with us.
We are continuing with our partnership with New Francis Brown UMC and St. Andrews Parish UMC in volunteering with NFB’s food bank. We received so much food last month that we are going to do two distributions in February. Please join us on Thursday, February 1st or Friday, February 2nd at 8am if you can help us either get the bags ready to distribute or help distribute them. We will come together again on February 15th & 16th and do it all over again.
Do you have a spare hour in your week and would like to make a difference in a young person’s life? Reading Partners South Carolina is still look for volunteers to help elementary school children in our neighborhoods learn to read. No experience is necessary. They teach you all you need to know. If you are ready to be a source of good news and encouragement to a young person, this is the opportunity for you!
We also have a night out with the South Carolina Stingrays planned for February 17th. Tickets can be bought through February 3rd for $15 apiece here: Stingrays Hockey. Join us for a fun night of fellowship as we watch some fast-paced action on the ice.
If you are looking for something a little more soothing than a hockey game or just looking for a great way to wrap up the weekend, then join us on February 18th as we host the Robert Wesley University’s Wind Ensemble. They will be joining us for worship that morning at 10:30 am, breaking bread with us at a fellowship meal immediately after, and then performing a concert for us at 2 pm that will be a mixture of classical, secular, and religious music.
February is also the month we celebrate Valentine’s Day, and the people of New Francis Brown UMC have invited our Yah-Yah’s to be their valentine! After service on February 11th the older adult ministries from both congregations will come together in the Family Life Center for a fellowship meal. There is nothing for you to do other than to let us know you are coming and then show up.
But wait! There’s more! Lent starts early this year, and we have quite a few events centered around Lent. On Tuesday February 13th from 5pm-7pm, come have dinner with us as our youth host us for a Shrove Tuesday Pancake Supper. Cost is $5 per plate and the proceeds will go to support our youth ministries.
Then from 7am-9am on February 14th, I will be in the parking lot for Drive-Thru Ashes for those who wish to receive their ashes at the beginning of Ash Wednesday. Could there be a better demonstration of love on Valentine’s Day than wearing the symbol of God’s love on our foreheads? Later that evening at 7pm, St. Andrews Parish UMC will be joining with us on our campus for our Ash Wednesday Service as we begin our Lenten journey of reflection and repentance together.
Back by popular demand are the Lenten Community Worship Services at 12 pm on Wednesdays. Each week we will join together with other area United Methodist congregations for a brief worship service followed by a fellowship meal. If you do not already have the locations for each service, please contact the office and we will let you know where you need to be and when.
Finally, we will be having a special study together during Lent, so I hope you will make plans to either join the Monday evening group at Sticky Fingers or the Wednesday morning group in the library. As United Methodists we have a set of rules we live by called the General Rules. They are Do No Harm, Do Good, and Stay in Love with God. Easy to say, but they are much harder to do. We are going to read through and discuss Bishop Rueben Job’s book, Three Simple Rules: A Wesleyan Way of Living. Together we will explore what it means to be followers of Christ and to call ourselves United Methodist.
So, besides weekly worship, what else from this list of events have you put on your calendar? As you can see, we have a lot of different ways for you to be engaged with us this month. We hope to see you frequently as we walk our faith journeys together. And if you don’t see something that is speaking to your heart, then come talk to me. We will discern together how God might be speaking to you. I am convinced that not only does God love each and every one of us, but that God is also calling to each of us to be partners with Jesus and one another in revealing God’s kingdom in this world.
Grace & Peace,
Pastor Bryan