01/06/21 451 Hogan Road, Nashville TN 37220phone: 615-832-2897 website: www.crievewoodumc.org  Because of the Titans playoff game and our desire to maximize participation in our event, we are going to change the Project Thrive congregation-wide conversation on Zoom to Sunday, January 24, at 1:00 pm. Here is a link to a new RSVP form for the rescheduled meeting, or you can use the button under the Pastor’s Pen.  Pastor’s Pen The Titans are in the playoffs! It is fun to celebrate the success – sporting and otherwise – of our city. I’m reminded that when some of the people of Israel were sent into exile by Babylon, Jeremiah sent a letter encouraging them to “seek the welfare of the city” (29:7) where they were going. I think those same words apply to us today – to work to make the communities where we live to be the best that they can be. So, along with lots of other work we are called to do to alleviate suffering and seek justice, I’ll be rooting for the Titans on Sunday at noon. We were scheduled to have a congregation-wide conversation this coming Sunday as part of our participation in Project Thrive. Because we want to maximize participation in the conversation, we are going to postpone it until Sunday, January 24, at 1:00. The conversation will take place on Zoom, will mostly be done in small groups, and will focus on our past experiences with Crievewood. It is super helpful to our planning to know how many to expect to participate, so we are asking everyone to RSVP for the conversation. This is a new link for the new date, so if you already RSVPed for the previous one, please do so again with this link. As 2021 begins, we have the opportunity to recommit ourselves to the work of God in our church and our communities. This coming Sunday during worship on Facebook Live at 10:45, we will hear the story of Jesus’ baptism and be reminded of our own baptisms and how they call us to this good work. We invite you to have some water with you (in a small bowl or dish) as you watch the worship service so that you can more fully participate in the congregational act of remembering our baptisms. Because of cold temperatures, we will not have outdoor worship during the month of January, so we hope you’ll make plans to join us online each Sunday at 10:45. Grace and peace, John HillRSVP to Rescheduled Project Thrive MeetingOngoing Missions Crievewood ServesSouth End UMC is extending their Food Program into January, and they are still in need of volunteers during multiple time slots on Wednesdays. There are plenty of opportunities to volunteer! Here is the Sign-up link: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70A0D4DAEA62DAAFF2-south Norman Binkley Food Packs Our Crievewood Youth and Kids grades 3-6th will continue to create bags of food for children at Norman Binkley Elementary School throughout the school year. You can help collect the food donations to put in the gallon bags by supplying the following: canned fruits, vegetables, or beans, canned tuna fish, canned soups, boxes of rice, pasta, or mac n cheese, breakfast bars or protein bars, boxes of raisins, fruit cups, or applesauce. Donations can be brought to the church anytime. Altar Flowers If you would like to enhance Sunday worship or celebrate God’s blessings in your life, consider donating flowers for the altar. The altar flower calendar for 2021 is now posted in the church office. To offer the gift of altar flowers, just sign the chart for the week that you want or call the church office.  Each Sunday morning at 10:45, we will livestream a worship service to Facebook from inside the sanctuary (with no in-person congregation). You can access the livestreamed service at https://www.facebook.com/CrievewoodUMC/We anticipate cold temperatures in January, so we are pausing outdoor worship for the month of January. Watch for updates as we head into February. Tuesday Bible Study Tuesday Bible Study has resumed this week. The members are continuing their discussion of the book “Short Stories by Jesus” where they left off at CHAPTER 3: The Kingdom of Heaven Is Like Yeast. At the last class, the group decided that their next upcoming study will be the book that the church Lenten sermon series will be based upon called Embracing the Uncertain by Magrey DeVega. Those study books are currently being ordered so they are available when Lent begins. New participants are always welcome. If you would like to join the group now or when they begin the Lenten study, please contact Chelsey for materials. The first Tuesday of the Lenten study will be February 23rd.  Administrative Council and FinanceCommittee Report Our church has some great financial news to celebrate. As those of you who took part in Sunday’s online worship service know, we retired our debt at the end of 2020 and also paid 100% of our Connectional Giving (formerly known as annual apportionments). The Finance Committee would like to express its deep appreciation to the congregation for enabling a successful conclusion to a challenging year. The Finance Committee and the Administrative Council approved a plan in mid-December to pay off remaining debt from Crievewood’s $1.45 million renovation. The balance of $58,948.48 was paid last week. The plan also provides for ongoing funding of a capital reserve to cover unexpected costs. Given the age of the church and parsonage, the bodies deemed this a prudent course. The past year presented many financial challenges, but December proved to be an extraordinary month for giving, especially in the final week. Several members made large donations beyond normal pledges, allowing us to pay all our Connectional Giving (apportionments)—payments that support the work of our district, annual conference, regional jurisdiction, and The United Methodist Church around the world. Crievewood has been good about paying apportionments over the years, but in 2019 we were able to pay only 59%. Financial struggles in the early parts of 2020 were eased by a forgivable Payroll Protection Program loan of $44,741, which covered staff salary and other operational costs for a couple of months. All federal conditions were met, and that loan is in line to be converted to a grant. Longtime members will recall that in the last 30 years, three notes have been paid off—on the parsonage in the early 1990s, the adjoining Manley property (the later sale of which helped fund the church renovation), and now the renovation, which was planned 10 years ago and received many generous donations along with bequests from several estates. Thanks to our current and past generations of members, we have outstanding facilities to enjoy with no debt. Happy New Year! If there are any questions, please feel free to reach out to Adele White, Joe Buffler, or Steve Curry.Other Notes Leadership Training is scheduled from 9:30 -11:30 am on Saturday, February 6 and on Sunday, February 7, from 1-3 pm. If you are part of the 2021 Administrative Council, please plan on being present for these online (Zoom) sessions. Boxed envelopes for 2021 are now available in the narthex for those who requested them. End of the Year statements will go out sometime in the next two weeks. Please monitor your email for this document as this statement is issued for tax purposes.  Jan. 6 – Laura BensonJan. 7 – Mark Hattan, Lloyd Shular, and Brandon Sitter Jan, 8 – Meredith Sasser Jan. 9 – Michael Villines Jan. 10 – Emilee Williams Jan. 11 – Addie Bean Jan. 16 – Janet Bozeman Jan. 18 – William Edwards, Jeanne Gardiner, and Ava Parkes If you have a birthday between January 6 and January 19 and it does not appear in the list above, then it is not in our database. We would like to celebrate with you. If your birthday does not appear, please notify the church office at 615-832-2897. Thank You Dear Friends at CUMC, As we look back on 2020, we couldn’t end the year without again expressing our deep gratitude to you for our partnership in ministry. While not what we originally planned, we were able to pivot quickly together this year to meet critical needs due to the pandemic. Your generous support ensured that Project Transformation’s mission could continue, even when the world seemed to stop. Together, we distributed daily meals, supplies and “summer camps in a bag” so children could continue to learn from home. And volunteers provided a sense of care and connection to students through pen pal letters. Thank you on behalf of our children and young adults. Wishing you a Merry Christmas and trusting the best is yet to be! Praise be to God. With joy, Courtney Larson Still looking for more information? Below are links that may help. UM NewsLink to the Prayer ListCUMC Online GivingLive Stream Worship Sundays @ 10:45 a.m.Most gracious God, thank you for all the gifts you have bestowed on Crievewood United Methodist Church over the generations. By your Holy Spirit, grant us the grace that welcomes all of your children. Make us a community that reflects the full diversity of Christ’s body. Help us grow to love one another as You love us. Empower us to reveal Christ through worship and service. In your holy name we pray. Amen.Copyright © 2021 Crievewood United Methodist Church, All rights reserved. You are receiving this email because you signed up to receive the Crievewood United Methodist Church Newsletter. Our mailing address is: Crievewood United Methodist Church451 Hogan RoadNashville, Tn 37220 Add us to your address book Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list. |