Older Adult Leadership Training, February 27

Dr. Richard Gentzler Jr. will lead the February 27 Older Adult Leadership Training session at Jackson First UMC,  315 E. Chester, from 9:30 AM - 2:45 PM. The deadline to register is February 20; the cost is $15 per person (lunch included). 0.35 CEU’s available. Sponsored by the Memphis Conference Older Adult Design Team.

Disability Concerns Design Team Meeting

On February 11, the Disability Concerns Design Team will meet at 6:30 PM at the Conference Center, 24 Corporate Blvd., Jackson, TN. All who wish to help with this vital ministry are welcome. Currently the team is working on raising awareness in each local church of the importance of making their facilities accessible to everyone. Call Dr. Emmy Lou Whitehead for information at (731) 668-6552. For directions, call (731) 664-8480.

Safe Sanctuaries: Reducing the risk of child abuse in the church

Required Training for clergy in “Safe Sanctuaries: Reducing the Risk of Child Abuse in the Church” is also being offered for church staff and Staff-Parish Relations Committees. The workshop, led by the Rev. Joy Thornburg Melton  and hosted by the Conference Clergy Sexual Misconduct Response Team, will be offered, 9 AM - 3 PM, at three locations:

• Feb. 13, Asbury/McKendree Districts, Grimes Memorial UMC

• Feb. 14, Dyersburg/Paducah/Paris Districts, Fulton First UMC, Fulton, Ky.

• Feb. 15,  Brownsville/Jackson Districts, Northside UMC, Jackson.

Lunch will be provided at the cost of $5 per person. Register by mailing a check by February 7 for the total number of persons x $5 to: Rev. Don Thrasher, Northside UMC, 2571 N. Highland, Jackson, TN 38305.

Positions available

• Part or full-time Secretary: Schoolfield UMC, Memphis. Knowledgeable in computer skills. Please contact: the Rev. Bill Tate, (901) 358-7441 or submit resume to: Rev. Bill Tate, Schoolfield UMC, 1621 Dellwood Avenue, Memphis, TN 38127.

• Full-time Minister of Discipleship: Hillcrest UMC, Nashville, TN.  Responsibilities include leadership for program ministries. Qualifications required: College bachelor’s degree. Preferred: Christian education training; five years related experience  in developing, planning, and guiding church programs; theology compatible with the UMC; personal life-style which reflects Christian commitment. Salary based on experience/training. Contact: Rev. Joe K. Shelton Sr. at 615-832-0157 or email: humc@bellsouth.net. Address: 5112 Raywood Lane, Nashville, TN 37211

• Full-time Director of Youth Ministries: Hillcrest UMC, Nashville, TN. Looking for a dynamic, spirit-filled leader to guide and grow our youth ministry. Salary based on experience and training, Contact Rev. Joe K. Shelton at 615-832-0157 or e-mail: humc@bellsouth.net.

Cokesbury Workshops

On Sat., March 8, 9:30 AM - 12:30 PM, Cokesbury will offer two seminars, one for youth ministry and one for children’s ministry. Both will be hosted by Northside UMC, 2571 N. Highland Ave., Jackson. The youth seminar will help registrants learn about junior high culture, new brain research, spiritual formation, building ministry teams, and creating multi-sensory youth worship services. The children’s seminar will help registrants learn how to touch children with Christ’s love and apply sensory learning styles in the classroom. Registration is $25/person. Register by calling (800) 251-8591. Or log on to www.ilearntoteach.com for children or www.ileadyouth.com for youth. 

Growing churches

HISPANIC CHURCH AT JACKSON AVENUE ADDS NEW MEMBERS:

More than 11 Hispanics (Latinos) have joined Jackson Avenue United Methodist Church since October, 2002. There are now between 80-100 Hispanics in attendance at the inner city church, forming the largest Hispanic congregation in the Memphis Conference. The 11 men and women were baptized earlier in the year by pastors Ron Rivas and B. H. Farnsworth. In addition to Jackson Avenue’s special programs for all church members, Rivas leads a spiritual enrichment fellowship for teens on Friday evenings. The program is funded by United Methodist Resources for Ministry (UMRM) and Hyde Foundation grants. Joining the church were: Felix Lazo, Elizabeth Lazo, Esperanza Trevino, Miguel Espinoza, Ever Joel Barrientos, Jose Lizama, Veronica Lizama, Gerardo Liconio, William Lachapelle, Edison Castro and Hermelinda Reyes.

THREE KINGS CELEBRATION DRAWS CROWD:

Asbury UMC was the scene of a very special Christmas celebration on January 5 for Memphis’ Hispanic community. Jackson Avenue UMC’s Hispanic band rocked to a Christian salsa beat, Asbury church members brought in the food, and Latino children attacking pinatas provided the squeals and laughter for a wonderful Three Kings Celebration. Pictured (left) is one of the Three Kings (the Rev. David Russell in disguise) handing out gifts to delighted boys and girls.

Sharing the Bread of Life: Part II

 Click here for the "Share the Bread 2003 Hunger Offering" Poster in PDF

By Gary Morse

World Hunger Task Force

I know there are hungry people because I have served in a ministry that feeds the hungry.

For some reason, though, when I read the obituaries in the local daily newspaper, I never read about anyone dying from starvation. In fact, I can probably pick up any newspaper in this country and not read about a child or an adult starving to death. If there are such cases, they are probably few and far between.

But, when I look at statistics that tell me that millions of people are starving to death in this country and in the world, I have to wonder: What are these organizations saying? Are they just trying to think up ways for people to give money so that they will have something to do?

What does hunger mean, anyway? I decided to take a look…at information from the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations:

Undernourishment: How hungry are the hungry? Meaningful action to end hunger requires knowledge of not just the number of hungry people around the world but also of the depth of their hunger.

A look at the number of kilocalories missing from the diets of undernourished people helps to give us a picture of food deprivation in a country. Where the undernourished lack 400 kilocalories a day, the situation is more dire than in a country where the average shortage is 100 kilocalories. The greater the deficit, the greater the susceptibility to nutrition-related health risks.

A weak, sickly person cannot fulfill his or her individual potential. A nation of weak, sickly persons cannot advance. Christians cannot proclaim the message and the meaning of the Word without physically helping people who are in need.

The diets of the 800 million chronically hungry people lack 100-400 kilocalories per day. Most of these people are not dying of starvation. However, the presence of chronic hunger is not always apparent because the body compensates for an inadequate diet by slowing down physical activity and, in the case of children, growth.

In addition to increasing susceptibility to disease, chronic hunger means that children may be listless and unable to concentrate in school, mothers may give birth to underweight babies, and adults may lack the energy to fulfill their potential or to perform adequately at work.

Where the average kilocalorie deficit is very high, many people’s diets are deficient in everything, including the starchy staple foods (carbohydrate-rich maize, potatoes, rice, wheat and cassava) that provide mostly energy.

But where the deficit is more moderate, people generally get enough of the staple foods. What they often lack is a variety of other foods that make up a nutritious diet: legumes, meat, fish, oils, dairy products, vegetables and fruit that provide protein, fat and micronutrients as well as energy. Rounding out their diets is crucial to food security.

So, this information tells me that while I may not read of direct starvation in this country, malnourishment is a fact among millions in the United States and the world that undoubtedly leads to poor health, susceptibility to disease, and to early death.

The world can sit idly by and allow the proliferation of ignorance and want  and the degradation of humanity, while power and greed proclaims its dominion of no conscience. Christians are informed differently and respond with compassion. We can transform by the One who transforms us. Christ we share.

The United Methodist Church responds to the hungry of the world with the World Hunger Fund. This fund contributes to: world hunger projects, Heifer Project International, The Society of St. Andrew’s Potato Project, area food banks, the Appalachian Service Project, Reelfoot Rural Ministries, and other food projects. When you are asked by your local church to contribute to the World Hunger Fund, please respond with compassion.

Please share the bread of life with those who are in need.

Lambuth University offers special lectures and book signings

Lambuth Announces “Lunch with the Pros Spring Series”

Lambuth University’s School of Business and Economics announced the “Lunch with the Pros Spring 2003 Series.” The series enables students to speak with distinguished business entrepreneurs in an informal setting. Guest speakers explain career opportunities in their area of expertise, how they prepared for their careers, and what they think a student needs to do to prepare.

• On Feb. 19, Aubrey B. Patterson, Chairman and CEO of Bancorp South, Inc., will be the keynoter. Patterson is a highly decorated U.S. Air Force veteran. He currently serves as Chairman of the American Bankers Association, on the Executive Committee of Mississippi’s Partnership for Economic Development, and on the Board of the University of Mississippi Foundation.

• On March 19, Lambuth welcomes Jeff Campbell, vice-president of sales at Porter Cable. His responsibilities include the company’s North American industrial sales division with over 60 employees. He currently serves on the Board of the Woodworking Council and on the liaison committee for the power tool’s leading association, Specialty Tool and Fasteners Distributors.

The series is being sponsored by BancorpSouth and will be presented in the Jack Morris Ballroom of the Wider Student Union from 12:15 PM to 1:00 PM. For more information, contact Cyndi Hill at  731-425-3214.

Jan. 28 Book Signing by Authors writing about the History of Jackson and Madison County

At 4 PM on January 28, at the Luther L. Gobble Library, the Jackson community can visit with three authors who have recently published works on the history of Jackson and Madison County. Harbert Alexander, who currently serves on the Lambuth Board of Trustees, and illustrator Richard “Dick” Brown, a retired Associate Professor of Music, will be available to sign copies and discuss their work entitled: Tales of Madison: Historical Sketches on Jackson & Madison County, Tennessee.

Eddie Ashmore, currently the Vice President for Business Affairs at Lambuth, will also be available to discuss his latest work entitled: A Chronicle of Law Enforcement in the South: The History of the Jackson, Tennessee, Police Department. Books will be available for purchase and refreshments will be provided by the Library Committee. For more information, call 731-425-3290.

Feb. 3 lecture on comets: Fire & Brimstone in Historical Times

It would, quite literally, be the end of the world should an asteroid the size of the one that hit the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico ever strike again.The discovery in the 1980s of the ancient impact crater provides the strongest evidence yet of the reason for the extinction of dinosaurs.

But what many people do not realize is that accumulating evidence indicates that impacts and close encounters with comets in historical times have profoundly affected and even destroyed ancient civilizations. 

Descriptions found in historical documents as well as climate records from tree rings, indicates that the human race has experienced catastrophic and near fatal brushes with cometary debris at least four times in the last 4,500 years.

A special lecture on the subject will be held on February 3 at 7 PM in Hyde Hall (room 215) by Dr. Gerrit L. Verschuur, astronomer and adjunct professor of Physics at the University of Memphis.  The lecture is free-of-charge