Being and Doing

5th Sunday of Easter
Just these lines, my friends …

… to say that I loved worshipping with you on Sunday. Bishop Lawson Bryan’s message for us was riveting and engaging. We have been living in a season of stretch, but that is the calling Jesus has place on each of our lives … to STRETCH (Mark 3:5). You can worship with us and hear Bishop Bryan’s outstanding message by clicking here. One other thing: our music in all three morning hours was simply stunning!

At the It’s A Party Women’s Brunch this past Saturday, 130 women gathered to celebrate and embrace their confidence and purpose. They were inspired by a powerful message from April Diaz and savored delectable food lovingly prepared by the United Methodist Men (UMM) group. The men’s preparation and sharing of their talents greatly benefited the ladies in attendance and everyone had a wonderful, fun experience!

I am thrilled to share some personal news with you. Our 5th granddaughter was born yesterday to our youngest daughter MacKenzie & her husband, Tyler. Her name is Myla Chase Bridges, and she is a gift to us all!

General Conference

I want to remind you again that General Conference got underway on April 23 in uptown Charlotte at the Convention Center. Hold all of it so closely in your prayers. Please click here for the prayer we’ve invited you to pray.

I’m also asking all to spend some time with the pastoral letter (We are on the Way to a Better Church) from our bishop, Ken Carter. This is an important summation of where The United Methodist Church stands as we enter General Conference 2024. The letter gives some background to the General Conference and is also intended to be an alternative to statements about our church that may be inflammatory or inaccurate. Thank you for reading and sharing.

I do love our marvelous church and our deep traditions. As you hear me say all the time, we are a community of faith where nobody is perfect, everyone is welcome, and because of Jesus, anything is possible.

Have you noticed in our building at several places this beautiful turn of words by our bishop, Ken Carter:

“Bear witness, friends, to the love of God in this world. It is a love for all people. We are on our way to becoming a church that says, clearly and boldly, that we are here for everyone, no exceptions.”

Below are some links to resources that will be helpful for General Conference.

• Western North Carolina Conference General Conference Webpage – This is an excellent information place for you during the days of General Conference.
• Glossary of Terms for General Conference
• What to Know About General Conference Proposals

Video Devotional

I hope you’ll take a few minutes to watch my devotional for the week titled, Being and Doing.

Pastoral Transitions

On April 5, 2024, Heath Gilbert, the Servant Leader for our Staff Parish Relations Committee, received a letter from Rev. Daniel L. Pezet, the District Superintendent for the Metro District of the Western North Carolina United Methodist Church. Superintendent Pezet informed Heath, in part, of the following:

“The Book of Discipline of The United Methodist Church requires that every pastor be appointed for one year at a time. On behalf of the Western North Carolina Cabinet, I am pleased to inform you that the Reverend Chuck Wilson (beginning his 9th year), the Reverend Paul Craig (beginning his 19th year), the Reverend Corey Milliet (beginning her 12th year) and the Reverend Roldan Flores (beginning his 12th year) will again be appointed to Matthews in the Metro District, effective July 1, 2024. We believe this will continue to be a good appointment for both your pastor and your church.

Thank you for the conscientious way you have cooperated with this process. Your Bishop and Cabinet have tried to be faithful to our task and our responsibility for making missional appointments based on the uniqueness of our churches and the gifts of our clergy.”

Heath and the Staff Parish Relations Committee (SPRC) have asked that we express the following to the church:

“As United Methodists, part of our process is to make a recommendation to the Annual Conference as to the clergy appointments on a yearly basis. Earlier this year, the Staff Parish Relations Committee unanimously and enthusiastically recommended to the Annual Conference the re-appointment of our pastors for another year. We are pleased to report that Bishop Kenneth H. Carter, Jr. and his cabinet have agreed with our recommendation, and that as a result, Pastors Chuck, Paul, Corey, and Roldan will continue leading us in Matthews for the next year. We are most pleased to have these fine examples of Christian faith and servanthood to continue with us as we care for and worship with each other and the community in our mission to Reach, Teach, Praise and Serve.

It is also with great sadness that I also must inform our congregation that Pastor Jenny informed the SPRC that she was not seeking reappointment to Matthews for another year as a member of the clergy. Pastor Jenny has the blessing of grandchildren living in the area, and she desires to spend more time with them. Pastor Jenny will stay an active member of the church and continue to volunteer with the hospitality team. She may indeed seek reappointment to the ministry in the future, however for now, she has decided to focus her time with family. We are sad to lose such a faithful servant, but we know that just as she was called to ministry, she is also meeting her calling at this time and we fully support her in her decision. We will celebrate Pastor Jenny’s ministry with us on Sunday, June 30, in all our morning worship services and a reception following the 11 am service. You’ll be hearing more about participating in ways to say “thank you” to her.

SPRC is actively working on a successor for the role that which Pastor Jenny performed and will communicate that with the congregation over the next few weeks as that comes to light.”

Upcoming Events

• Feasibility Study FOCUS GROUPS for Sanctuary/Auxiliary Space Improvements – Provide Your Response as MUMC explores facility upgrades & accessibility.

Focus Groups Open to ALL, No registration required:
– May 5 at 11:00 am in Room 158
– May 12 at 9:30 am in Room 106
– May 12, 11:10 am in The Gym (following Family Worship)
– May 19 at 9:30 am in The Commons Email

• All-Church Gathering: Monday, May 6, 7 pm in the Sanctuary or via Livestream here. Refreshments served in the Sanctuary Reception Area at 6:30 pm. Come learn about everything that happened at General Conference, as well as all the wonderful things going on here at MUMC. Details
• Leadership Information Session: Wednesday, May 8, 7 pm in Room 94 or via Zoom. Come learn what it means to serve in elected leadership on one of our formal committees. Details
• Congregational DEPRESSION AWARENESS Program (CDAP) – Thursdays, May 9-May 30, 5:30-7:30 pm. Program aims to disseminate valuable information about depression to those directly or indirectly impacted by depression. Instruction, resources, & ongoing support provided throughout sessions. Led by Dr Daniel Hale. In-person & Online. Register
• Softball at MUMC – A long standing MUMC tradition has been our men’s softball team. It has been a part of MUMC for over fifty years! The season has already started and our team needs your help! If you are interested in some fun, fellowship and exercise, please reach out to Coach Chet Weaver by contacting the Church office.

This Sunday in Worship

We invite you to join in worship this Sunday at 8:15 am (Traditional; in person only), 9:30 am (Contemporary; in person or online here), 11:00 am (Traditional; in person or online here) or 12:30 (Spanish; in person or on demand here).

This week Pastor Roldan will conclude the worship series preparing our CCH Community for General Conference. It is titled, The Elephant in the Room. His sermon title for this week is from Mark 10:1-9 and is titled, Learning from the Teacher.

Another great bishop of the church is coming to Matthews on Sunday, during these days of General Conference. We are privileged to have Bishop Sue Haupert-Johnson with us this Sunday. Bishop Sue, as she really likes to be called, is the bishop of the Virginia Annual Conference, the largest Annual Conference in The United Methodist Connection. She was elected bishop in 2016. Her first assignment as bishop was to the North Georgia Conference beginning September 1, 2016. She was assigned to the Virginia Conference in 2022.

A Florida native, Bishop Sue is a graduate of the University of Florida (B.S. in Business Administration), University of Florida College of Law (J.D.), and Candler School of Theology at Emory University (M.Div.). She was a federal law clerk and a litigator with the Tampa law firm of Carlton, Fields before she answered her call to ministry. After graduating summa cum laude from Candler, she was ordained a deacon in the Florida Annual Conference in 1996 and an elder in 1998. She subsequently served pastoral appointments as an associate pastor at First UMC, Lakeland; and as a lead pastor at Hillsborough UMC, Tampa; First UMC, Cape Coral, and First UMC, Ocala. Bishop Sue served as the North Central District Superintendent of the Florida Annual Conference of The United Methodist Church from 2013-2016.

Bishop Sue is married to Rev. Allen Johnson. They have a daughter, Samantha. She enjoys NCAA football and basketball, all things Broadway, reading and movies.

The bishop’s sermon for Sunday is titled God’s Extreme Makeover from II Corinthians 5:16-22. She wrote me a note saying, “My sermon will focus on the Method for United Methodists and how it opens us up and empowers us to be one with Christ, one with each other, and one in ministry to all the world.” I’m delighted Bishop Sue is coming our way to put the Word into words for us.

It is a joy to serve this great congregation and I am thankful that I will be returning as one of your pastors next year (our appointment year runs from July 1 through June 30) and that pastors Paul, Corey and Roldan will be returning as well.

On Sunday we will continue to express our deepest gratitude in worship and offer our best to God. Be sure to invite someone to church, everyone needs to know they are loved and a child of God … and, just like last week, they may have never met a bishop.

And now, during these disconcerting, uncertain, confusing and yet, hopeful days, remember … God does God’s best work in moments like this.

Jesus is on the loose!
Dr. Charles (Chuck) W. Wilson II

 

Did you know that Jordan Bare and Lilly Martin were married this past Friday, April 19, in Birmingham, Alabama? Jordan is the son of Mike & Patti Bare, and lives in Huntsville, Alabama. Congratulations, Jordan & Lilly!

 

Did you know that Ron Headen and Jim Cornell are growing mustard and turnip greens in the Genesis Garden? They delivered 6.5 lbs of greens to our friends at Legacy (the Ukraine preschool using space at MUMC). As Earth Day was this past Monday, we give thanks for God’s creation and the food that is being harvested and shared!

 

Did you know Chandler McGrath submitted the drawing below to be the cover of his Providence Spring Elementary School Yearbook? Please notice what Chandler sees when he thinks of his school. “And a little child shall lead them.”