April2014 Newsletter

A Letter from Pastor Mark Dear Friends, I want to thank you for the way you responded to the request for you to extend invitations to your family, friends and neighbors to come to church on Easter Sunday. I saw many of you coming to church at the Easter service of your choice and many of you had guests with you. Others told me that they had extended an invitation to one or more people but those they invited had not been able to come. I still want to thank you for extending the invitation. Sometimes the answer is no or not yet. I also want to ask each of you to continue to pray for those whom you invited whether they came or not. I believe is God is faithful and maybe sometime in the near future they will feel a need to connect with the church in some way and maybe that will be by attending worship. Maybe those who did come will return. Let me share something with you. Several months ago we decided to approach our Easter attendance differently this year. In the past we have sent flyers advertising the Easter services to zip codes in the immediate vicinity of the church. In the past we have advertised our services in some local newspapers. On some past Easters we have put out yard signs on Southport Road and Madison Avenue with our service times listed on the signs. We did none of that this year. Why did we pull back on all of this advertising? We did that because we decided to put all of our eggs in one basket this year. We decided to ask you to pray and invite others to Easter services and then see how God would work through your efforts. We were very confident that we would not be disappointed. We were not. Easter 2014 was one of the largest Easter celebrations that Southport United Methodist Church has ever seen. The total attendance for our Easter services was just a few people less than a thousand.

Worship Celebration Times: Thursdays at 6:00pm Sundays at 8:15, 9:45, and 11:15am

1947 E. Southport Rd. Indianapolis, IN 46227 (317) 784-9508 www.sumc.org

Why was this approach of personal invitation so successful? The reason we saw such great results is because well over 90% of people who go to church for the first time report that they go in response to a personal invitation. Quite frankly, that is how most people start attending church. Someone asks them to come and they respond. Study after study shows that people are much more receptive to coming to church if someone they know invites them to come. Churches that develop a culture of invitation become growing churches. When people in a church invite others on a regular basis you know that church will always be receiving new people as guests. Will everyone respond to an invitation? No. However, some will. I hope we will all think about this and continue to keep in mind those people you know who are unconnected to any church. First, pray for them and then extend an invitation for them to come to church with you. As we do this on a regular basis we will be amazed of the impact that we will have on our community. In Christs Abundant Love, Pastor Mark

Connect JOURNEY GROUPS FOR THE SUMMER It is time again to continue our journey by growing in our faith in Christ and by making connections with others that are on the journey to grow in their faith in Christ. Journey Groups will start soon. You have several ways to sign up. Visit the sign up table in the Gathering Place during May. Call or email the church office. Sign up online. (If you have a login to our online system, after logging in, on the home page you can click on Available Small Groups and see all of the Journey Groups available. The Journey Groups will show a picture and will allow you to Join Group online.) Here are the Journey Groups for the summer. More information can be found online or in the Journey Group catalog that you can pick up in the Gathering Place. Monday 5/12/14, 6:30pm 8:30pm: Kids Gone Wild (led by Child Care Answers). Monday 5/12/14, 7:00pm 8:30pm : Monday Night Womens Bible Study (Discerning the Voice of God) Tuesday 5/20/14, 6 sessions, 7:00pm 8:30pm: SUMC Leadership. Monday 6/2/14, 6 sessions, 7:00pm 8:30pm: Son Of God. Tuesday 6/3/14, 6 sessions, 6:30pm 8:00pm: Storytelling (Telling Your Story). Tuesday 6/3/14, 9 sessions, 7:00pm 8:30pm: Generation Change (for youth). Tuesday 6/3/14, 9 sessions, 7:00pm 8:30pm: Financial Peace University. Wednesday 6/4/14, 4 sessions, 10:00am 11:30am: Gods at War. Thursday 6/5/14, 5 sessions, 7:00pm 8:30pm: Sticky Faith. Thursday 7/10/14, 6 sessions (offsite), 6:30pm 8:00pm: Go Fish. Saturday 6/14/14, 6 sessions (every other week, offsite), 10:00am 12:00pm: The Daniel Plan Something for everyone! See you on the journey!
Leadership Team Jim Cooney Mark Fisher Jeremy Konkle Beverly Riddle Brenda Crawford Connie Klipsch Jean Ann Myers Sandy Webb

Jason Young

Serve Interfaith Hospitality Network (IHN) Southport UMC continues to be an important and much appreciated supporter of IHN/Family Promise. Through this ministry we have the opportunity to serve families who are currently in a homeless situation. We will welcome IHN guests at our next rotation, May 25 through June 8. During this two week period we will accommodate families at our church. More information will be coming soon on how you can get involved. However we have an opportunity to help now by supporting the Family Promise Spring Clothing Drive. We are collecting gently used clothing through May 11. Clothing ONLY - no shoes or household items can be accepted at this time. Bags will be delivered to the Day Center during the week of May 12-May 18. Goodwill Industries will then send a truck to pick up the bags and in turn give Family Promise vouchers for clothing at their stores. IHN guests and Aftercare clients can then shop at a Goodwill store and are able to choose what clothing size they need for their families. Spring is here and it is a great time to clean out closets and dressers and bring those no longer needed, gently used clothing items to the church for the Family Promise Clothing Drive. Please bring your clothing donations, in white kitchen trash bags if possible, and place them under the coat area in the hallway leading to the east wing.

Serve As each person travels their own discipleship path we know we are to; CONNECT to God through Jesus Christ GROW in our faith in Christ SERVE in the world for Christ GIVE of ourselves and our resources for God's work through His church Becoming a servant for Christ, and using the gifts God has given us, will feel like a "get to serve" not a "have to serve." As we mature in our faith, our question will no longer be "what can the church do for me?" As a disciple we will ask, "what can I do for Jesus in the community and the world?" What a difference we can make in other lives when it is about following Jesus.

Announcements Boys to MEN We are having another boys to MEN retreat the weekend of May 16 through May 18. We teach the boys the skill of handling tools the proper way (safety). We teach them about respect, friendship, and serving other during Bible Time. Our game time is more for leadership and teamwork, and we have a kitchen crew that cooks all our meals. Its a fun weekend for the boys and the Men who serve in the ministry. Boys to MEN is one of three retreats for our middle school students. It is the longest running of the three, therefore it is the model the others are based upon. One Body-One Mission is a coed event in the fall and Daughters of Destiny is an event for middle school girls in the New Year. The boys and girls and the men and women who make these events special enjoy great blessings as they share and grow in Christina Discipleship.

Senior Recognition It is a joy to celebrate milestones in the lives of those we love. High School graduation is recognized with well wishes and lots of advice for young adults. June 1, at 12:15 p.m., a reception for this years senior class will be in the Gathering Place. Please plan to stay an extra few minutes to honor our graduates and send them into the next chapter of their lives with a strong sense of Christian support. There will be sheets available to sign up to maintain contact and Christian mentoring for each of our students. College and careers are major changes. It might not seem so different as long as there are individuals who are regularly praying for them and offering words of support and possibly even some times to chat.

Announcements Free Community Shredding Event May 10, 2014 St. Johns United Church of Christ is partnering with Technology Recyclers and Iron Mountain to offer the community a drop-off location for all Large or small electronics and appliances and secured paper shredding services on Saturday, May 10, 2014, from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Residents and local businesses can bring items to recycle such as;

All Appliances: large or small appliances in any condition (washers, dryers, refrigerators, stoves, ovens, dishwashers, microwaves, freezers) All Electronics: any device that operates electronically (phones, PDAs, stereos, iPods, game systems, computers, laptops, printers, routers, switches, cables, mouse, keyboards) All Other Items: metal goods (furnaces, A/C units, tools, drills, aluminum cans, lawn equipment, grills, bicycles, batteries) All Batteries: automotive and electronic TVs and Computer Monitors: * $5.00 disposal fee for TVs and Computer Monitors Documents: Confidential document collection and shredding provided by Iron Mountain FREE of charge

ITEMS NOT ACCEPTED at this event: mattresses, paint, oil, consumer waste, plastic bottles, glass bottles, foam, wood, chemicals, furniture, rubber fluorescent bulbs. For additional information, call St. Johns United Church of Christ at 317-881-2353.

When: Saturday, May 10, 2014 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.

Where: St. Johns United Church of Christ 7031 South East Street Southwest corner of US 31 and Southport Road Indianapolis, IN 46227 317-881-2353

News You Need to Know Life Line Screening

Life Line Screening has partnered with over 150 hospitals across the country and has screened nearly 8 million participants. Why? Because the ultrasound screening that we offer can help save your life. A Stroke Screening is Coming to You Neighborhood:

Where: Indianapolis Southport United Methodist Church Sponsored By: St. Vincent Health When: Tuesday, June 17, 2014 Pre-registration is required. Call: 1-888-653-6450
To register for your appointment and to receive a special $10 discount, please call 1-888-653-6450 or visit www.lifelinescreening.com/community-partners

February Totals

Budget Offering February 2 $19,481.93 February 9 $10,394.00 February 16 $14,873.89 February 23 $12,389.08 Faith Promise February 2 $640.00 February 9 $415.00 February 16 $660.00 February 23 $505.00

Capital Stewardship February 2 $3,218.82 February 9 $1,647.00 February 16 $ 890.82 February 23 $1,372.00 Attendance February 2 February 9 February 16 February 23 495 480 471 552