First United Methodist Church of Mount Ephraim News & Events

We have merged with Haddon Heights UMC! We are now Fellowship UMC. Please visit our Facebook page at https://bit.ly/2XCfgWZ for the latest updates. Thank you!

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Wayne Wentworth

Easter Egg Hunt 2018

Upcoming Events

Teddy Bear Sunday 2018!

PB&J, Warm Clothing, and God's Love!

Christmas Eve Worship

Upcoming events!

JACOBS BROTHERS CHRISTMAS CONCERT

SUNDAY, DECEMBER 3, 2017 at 6:00PM

The Jacobs Brothers, veterans of gospel music, are dedicated to the ministry of spreading the Gospel through music. Since 1962 the group has traveled millions of miles, produced more than fifty albums, and hosted many international tours.

Presently the Jacobs Brothers weekly television program is seen by many Central Pennsylvanians on WGCB-TV, Channel 49, Red Lion, PA and on Direct TV. The King's Campground, another branch of their ministry, provides a Christian camping experience for many families year-round. Their ministry also brings thousands of people to Central Pennsylvania each July for a week of gospel music.

The group is comprised of two brothers, Bob and Mike Jacobs, who are original members of the group that started in the small town of East Berlin, PA in 1962. The third member, Mike Lawver, joined the group in 1972, and comes from McClure, PA.

The word "versatility" best describes the Jacobs Brothers program. Although they specialize in traditional and sacred music, their approach to the Gospel is varied by using the diversified talents of the singers throughout the concert. The end result is a program which is appealing to all ages in the audience. Many have testified that attendance at a Jacobs Brothers concert is truly an unforgettable experience.

We will have a time of fellowship and refreshments immediately following the concert!

WINTER IS JUST AROUND THE CORNER...

...and the food pantry is in need of cereals (hot & cold), granola bars, canned soups, canned meats (tuna, chicken, etc.) and other non-perishable foods for families who come to us for assistance. **Cans with pop top lids are especially appreciated as some families are in transit or homeless and don't have access to can openers to enjoy the food they receive** Please bring your gifts any Sunday morning and leave them in the basket at the entrance to the sanctuary. Help us feed a family and warm their hearts!

CRAFT NIGHT WITH THE SPARROWS

During the coming months, we have an opportunity to meet together and enjoy the evening making crafts to assist the Sparrow program with items to sell at their winter bazaar. Our first crafty night is Wednesday, Sept. 20th from 7-8:30pm in the social hall. Come join us and bring a friend for fun, fellowship, and crafts to help the Sparrow program! All craft items will be provided.

RUMMAGE & BAKE SALE

Planning is under way for our first big project since Pastor Sandy's arrival! We are having a Rummage & Bake Sale on Saturday, October 14th! Clothing, toys, vintage items, jewelry, household items, books, arts & crafts supplies...and so much more! Come find some treasures, eat some goodies, and enjoy the friendliness of our church family!

FALL IS JUST AROUND THE CORNER...

...and the food pantry is in desperate need of cans of soup and canned meals such as beef-a-roni-ravioli, mac and cheese, etc. for families who come to us for assistance. Cans with pop top lids are especially appreciated as some families are in transit or homeless and don't have access to can openers to enjoy the food they receive. Please bring your gifts any Sunday morning and leave them in the basket at the entrance to the sanctuary. Help us feed a family and warm their hearts!

July 2017

We are excited to welcome Pastor Sandra Campbell as our new Senior Pastor! Sandy has an Associate degree in Human Services, a Bachelor degree in Communications and Marketing, and she completed the five year Course of Study at Wesley Seminary. Her ministries include serving six UMC churches in Pennsylvania and New York. She was born and raised in the beautiful town of Wellsboro, PA. Sandy has two sons - one on earth and one in heaven.

We invite everyone to come out for Sunday morning worship service to meet Pastor Sandy! 

UPCOMING JULY EVENTS

Do you want to share an evening of discussion with your new pastor? We're hoping that everyone's response to this question is a resounding "YES, OF COURSE!". Then mark Monday, July 24th on your calendars and join the rest of your church family at the parsonage at 7pm that evening! This will be an evening of sharing our hopes, dreams, visions and plans for ideas that will help to shape the future of our church's ministry together. Bring your best thoughts and a willingness to be open to God's Spirit among us as we listen, share and plan ways to reach out into our community as well as among our own church family in ways that will make God's Love, Grace, Mercy and Presence known through us.

April 2017

Please join us for our annual Easter Egg Hunt! This year we will hold the event on Sunday, April 9th at 11:30am immediately following our morning worship service. We'll have nearly 1,000 candy filled eggs for the children to find. All are welcome to join in the fun and as always, all are also welcome to attend our worship service at 10:00am prior to the Easter Egg Hunt! Hope to see everyone there! 

February 2017

Thank you to all who participated in Teddy Bear Sunday 2017! We collected 248 teddy bears to be donated to the Osborne Clinic of Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital in Camden. These furry friends will be matched with chronically and terminally ill children who come with their families to Osborne for treatment. Each bear donated will carry with it the love and prayers of our church family. We ask that you continue to pray for the children and families who will receive your bears, and be mindful that everything we do in Jesus' name is a blessing of tremendous value! 

December 2016

Our Christmas Eve services will be at 4:00pm and 11:00pm. Since Christmas is on a Sunday this year, we will be having an informal service at 10:00am downstairs in Fellowship Hall. Bring your favorite breakfast item to share and we'll sing Christmas hymns and read the reason for the season from God's Word! Everyone is welcome! 

October 2015

September 2015

The wind blows where it chooses, you hear the sound of it, 

but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with 

everyone who is born of the Spirit. Jesus (John 3:8)

Dear Sisters and Brothers,

Jesus encountered the forces of nature. 

He calmed storms on the sea, faced parched lands in the desert, 

and braved the heat of the sun in the wilderness. While he experienced 

nature’s wrath, Jesus also saw the movement of the Spirit. People born 

of the Spirit move to the places where God needs them.

For the four months following Superstorm Sandy, we have witnessed 

the Spirit’s winds of hope, healing and relief blow in our midst. People 

from Greater New Jersey and across the Nation have been Holy Spirit 

winds for those impacted by the storm.

Together, we have responded by:

    Providing more than 50,000 meals

    Providing day and night shelter for more than 5,000 people

    Distributing more than 11,000 cleaning buckets (flood buckets), more 

than 3,000 health kits, tons of clothing and other material supplies such 

as non-perishable food, heaters, and blankets

    Assessing community needs and mucking out nearly 2,000 homes

The Greater New Jersey Disaster Relief Team and congregations 

throughout the conference have done an outstanding ministry. The

 Middletown congregation, under Pastor Derrick Doherty's leadership, 

has been active in areas like Union Beach assisting people with food, 

cleaning out their homes and providing home assessments. The Atlantic 

Highlands & Navesink congregations, under the leadership of Pastor Jill 

Hubbard-Smith, drove through communities immediately following the 

storm providing coffee and meals to impacted residents and volunteers.

Pastor Jevon Caldwell-Gross of Hamilton Memorial UMC in Atlantic City

 has volunteered to be the secretary of the Atlantic City long term 

recovery group that will assess needs and channel resources to repair 

hundreds of homes.  Lacey UMC in Forked River provided meals, 

material distribution and housing for those without homes and still 

continues to provide housing for three families.

These are only a few of the many Spirit winds that have been blowing 

throughout Greater New Jersey. I give thanks to God for each of you as 

you volunteer, donate money and pray for the long term recovery of 

those impacted by Superstorm Sandy.

Today we begin to move from relief ministry to long term recovery 

ministry. Our recovery ministry will have three aspects:

    Repair - repair 300-500 homes of low income, elderly and disabled 

individuals. A significant part of the repair ministry is recruiting and

 housing as many as 15,000 volunteers.

    Rebuild - using the Communities of Shalom strategy, we will identify at

 least three communities where we will work with residents, businesses 

and elected officials to develop sustainable communities. Our rebuild

 ministry also includes repairs to church property. We had 113 church 

properties impacted by the storm. Most of these are covered by 

insurance but 12 properties will need our assistance.

    Renew- providing case management, spiritual renewal and counseling 

for the most hard hit families and individuals.

To support this ministry we are establishing host sites to house 

volunteers. These sites include three large capacity host sites; 

Highlands Church, First UMC of Belmar, and Pinelands Center, as well as 

several other local churches who can host anywhere from 15 to 30 

people. Through these host sites we will house up to 200 volunteers a 

week which will allow us to support the work of repairing as many as 

20 homes at a time.

Some have been asking why we have not moved to the repair phase more

 quickly. There are several reasons:

    Homes must be mold free before we begin repairs.

    Homeowners must have their resources secured (FEMA and insurance 

companies have a tremendous back log of cases).

    We have to wait for towns to identify repair and rebuilding plans (this 

has been slowed because of issues of elevating homes and waiting until 

environmental work is completed because some communities are prone 

to re-flooding).

    Developing our capacity to host volunteers, provide case management 

for homeowners, and manage worksites.

We will begin our first four homes in April. We will use these first four 

homes to test our volunteer enrollment, host sites, material acquisition 

and delivery, construction management, orientation and safety 

procedures, and logistics.

Here are ways you and your congregation can help:

    Volunteer to be a part of a work week or weekend work team. 

The online registration will be open March 15 and will be made available 

at www.afuturewithhope.org.

    Volunteer to staff and support a host site. This includes welcoming 

guest volunteers, cleaning, providing a meal, and supporting volunteer 

needs. The online registration will be open March 15 and will be made 

available atwww.afuturewithhope.org.

    Provide names of families that need our assistance to repair their 

homes or need counseling support.  .

This information can be emailed to 

SandyRecovery@afuturewithhope.org    .

    Contribute money to our ministry. The GNJ Sandy Relief Fund has

 raised more than $1.5 million. We are also requesting grants from 

UMCOR, the Red Cross, the Robin Hood Foundation, Governor Christie 

Fund, the State, and a variety of other sources. We have set a budget 

of $23 million dollars. You can contribute online at www.gnjumc.org or 

by sending a check to:

GNJ Sandy Relief Fund

1001 Wickapecko Drive

Ocean, NJ 07712

God’s wind blows where it chooses. There are fresh Spirit winds blowing 

the church into a ministry of relief, repair, rebuild and renew throughout

 GNJ. Thank you for choosing to be a Spirit movement.

Keep the faith!

John Schol, Bishop

The United Methodist Church

Greater New Jersey Conference

Sunday December 23rd during our worship service the children will be preforming a Christmas song. After the service we will be having a birthday party for Jesus! All are welcome for cake, crafts and games!! Our service begins at 10am.

Our Christmas eve services will be December 24th at 6pm then again at 11pm. Our 6pm service is our family service where the children will reenact the Christmas story. Our 11pm service is our candle light service. Everyone is welcome to attend one or both! 

We are collecting air fresheners for the sandy relief effort (aerosol and pump). All donations can be brought to church Sunday morning or dropped in the bin next to the side door anytime.