The Key to Abundant Living

The Key to Abundant Living

Published September 22, 2021

18th Sunday after Pentecost
Just these lines, my friends …

… to say that Sunday worship was a powerful and sacred time: the Confirmation of the Reece and Rowan Ficklin at 9:30 by their grandfather, Rev. Douglas Kanney; the presentation of Bibles to our First Graders; and our Flute Choir and Bandestra. What a day of worship! I’m so thankful we can gather in-person in a safe way. There is joy in the air at 801 South Trade Street.

In my sermon, I told an amazing story involving my son, Chase. If you didn’t get a chance to worship with us or hear my story, you can watch by clicking here.

As I hope everyone knows, while we are back in-person, Matthews United Methodist remains online, and in a robust way. We apologize that our service provider, Vimeo, experienced trouble last Sunday, which has now been fixed. We invite you to please view the recorded Traditional service this week. Every Sunday at 9:30 and 11:00 am, you can view our livestream from YouTube, Facebook, or our church website. We invite you to sing with us, pray with us, and to deepen your faith while listening to inspiring messages in real time from your computer or hand-held device. You can also help us promote these services: it is easy to do a little evangelism and to invite friends to experience our church at worship. Simply share the service on social when it goes live or send them the link to our site in advance (MatthewsUMC.org/Live) with a little bit of encouragement! Let’s do our part to share the good news of Jesus Christ with the world.

Also, if Sunday morning is not a time you can be with us, our weekly worship video provides soul-nourishing content on a day and time of your choice and convenience. Following the services, our weekly worship video is available to view all week long on all of our platforms.

Wednesday Devotional

I hope you’ll take a few minutes to watch my “The Key to Abundant Living” devotional for today.

Connecting with a Small Group

For many people at Matthews United Methodist, connection begins with the artful beauty of worship that often challenges our assumptions about faith but is also lifegiving in its grace and comfort. Over many years, we have learned that what really helps us feel a deep sense of community and belonging is connecting with a small group.

While we have many long-term and ongoing small group opportunities, a great way to dip your toe into the water is through a short-term study group offering each fall, winter and spring. These groups are beginning all the time and last anywhere from 4-6 weeks. They vary by interest from Bible study, grief support, etc. Hopefully there is something to peak just about anyone’s interest.

The gift of these groups is that they start fresh every season – everyone is brand new! You are invited to choose a group based upon your interest and meet for a short season (either virtually or in-person). These groups give you the chance to meet others with a shared interest and find connection that isn’t forced or awkward.

We really believe that building relationships is what allows our message of belonging to take flight. Through our study and shared experiences, we continue to grow and transform our theology into one that is life-giving and able to sustain us through the journey.

I hope you will take time to explore the options for connection and study through our small groups, short-term studies, and Weekend Adult Classes. I also hope you will consider inviting someone to join a group with you! It may help you/or someone you know feel that sense of belonging for which you have been looking.

Important Dates to Remember

  • October 3 – Transforming Minds: The Church’s Role in Mental Illness, 7 pm in the Sanctuary.
  • October 10 – Westward Road in Concert in our Sanctuary at 6 pm.
  • November 3 – Our Annual Matthews United Methodist Endowment Celebration – 6:30 pm in The Commons. Seats are limited and reservations are required (link available next week). Our featured speaker for the evening is our very own, Dr. Ken Lyon, the pastor of MUMC from 1995 to 2016. The entertainment for the evening will be Anne Lough. She will bring the finest of dulcimer music, song, and story. You will love hearing her mastery of the hammered and mountain dulcimer.
  • November 14 – All-Church Celebration of Engage. This will be the Sunday we make our annual financial commitments to the coming year for the work of God’s ministry in and through MUMC.

This Sunday in Worship

We invite you to join us this Sunday in person or online at 8:15 am (traditional – in person only), 9:30 am (contemporary), 11:00 am (traditional) or 12:30 (Spanish – in person only). Due to Mecklenburg County’s mask mandate, masks are required indoors at the church and at off-site ministry activities as we do our best to protect the most vulnerable.

In our Spanish-speaking CCH community, Pastor Roldan will be preaching from Nehemiah 8:5-10. His sermon is titled, A Task for Everyone.

At 8:15 & 11:00, Kathy White will return to the organ after a couple of weeks of rest and vacation. And at all three morning services, we will celebrate the 100th birthday of Melba Westphal!

All morning, we continue our fall worship series, Engage. My sermon for this week is titled Engage in Growth. You can prepare by reading I John 1:5-10. The challenge for each of us this fall season is to engage in those practices that enable us to experience eternal life (Zoe Life) and grow into life that is centered on loving God and loving others.

And now, as always, during these strange, uncertain, tumultuous, perilous, and hopeful days of pandemic remember … God does God’s best work in moments like this.

We are in this … together,
Dr. Charles (Chuck) W. Wilson II

Did you know 75 golfers (women & men) participated in our annual MUMC Men’s Ministry Golf Outing on September 16 to raise funds to enable our continued engagement and support for the men at the Charlotte Rescue Mission, Hoskins Park Ministries and A Roof Above?  Donations from 50 individuals and local businesses also contributed, bringing the grand total to $17,000.  Many thanks to Skip Hull and team for leading this effort!

Did you know that Ann Boyles had her 6th Hole-in-One this past week? Ann is the 13-time Women’s Club Champion at Pine Lake Country Club. Her Hole-in-One occurred on the 16th hole at Pine Lake. Way to go, Ann!

Did you know John Drum will be retiring from Atrium at the end of this month after many years of faithful service? His co-workers celebrated his many contributions at a Charlotte Knights game last week where he was able to throw out the first pitch. What a great moment for John and Martha Drum as well as their daughter, Lauren Smith, and her husband, John, and the Smith boys: Jackson, Evan and Brady. Way to go John!

Did you know that twenty of our fantastic First Graders excitedly received their own Bibles at Sunday services or through home delivery last week?