H old onto your horses and get ready for a

true tale from the Good Book like

you’ve never heard it before!

The Children’s Music Ministry of First Method-

ist Garland presents “Jonah’s Druthers,” a mu-

sical written by Cyndi

Nine, Rob Howard and

David Guthrie, at the 8:30

and 10:50am worship

services on Mother’s Day

Sunday, May 11.

Under direction of the

children’s choir staff, the

Carol, Aldersgate and

Wesley Children’s Choirs present this whale of

a tale about Jonah, the prophet of Israel who re-

ceives telegraphs to and from the Living God on

behalf of the people.

That is, until the Lord tells him to board the east-

bound train to that “dirty, rotten, flea-bitten”

Nineveh to preach the Good News.

Instead, Jonah hops a west-bound stagecoach to

Tarshish and… well, you’ll just have to be there

Sunday to find out what happens next!

A Mother’s Day gift of fun and God’s message

of love for the whole family!

JONAH’S DRUTHERS

R ebuilding. In more ways

than one. That’s the labor of

families in West, Texas. For

the whole community, in fact. Re-

building to a new normal.

Like moths to light, we are drawn to

stories of those impacted by the

West fertilizer plant explosion on

April 17, 2013. We pray for, won-

der about and seek to propel hope

their way.

Now after a long delay, West is

ready to receive build-back teams.

Who among us is ready to respond?

To pick up a tool and bring God’s

love and hope to West?

Three trips are in the works:

late May or early June

early Fall

Christmas intergenerational (youth, college, mature adults)

If you are led to say “Here I am,

Lord,” please contact Associate

Pastor Clay Womack, Jerry Coker

or the church office at your earliest

convenience.

A YEAR LATER PROPELLING HOPE IN WEST

Having fun, knowing God

Page 2

Upcoming events Page 2

Project

Transformation Page 3

New members

Page 3

Rebuilding from Colorado flood

Page 4

IN THIS

ISSUE

FIRST UNITED METHODIST CHURCH | GARLAND, TEXAS | 801 W. AVENUE B | (972) 272-3471

May 5, 2014 | Volume 04, Issue 26

firstmethodistgarland.org

S tudying the word. Building a

relationship with God. These

can be challenging for adults,

let alone children.

Yet they are important to both. And

that’s why Vacation Bible School is

so important to both.

“Programs like VBS give children a

chance to know God in a fun way

and build friend-

ships at the same

time,” said Ra-

chel Ragan, who

returns for her

second year as a

VBS volunteer when First Methodist

Garland presents Workshop of Won-

ders: Imagine and Build with God

June 15-19.

“I just loved watching the kids eyes

light up when they learned a new

song or made a memory with a new

friend,” she said.

Ragan also learned first-hand how

VBS provides opportunities for

adults to grow in their faith as well.

“Working with kindergartners and

first graders in music was such a spe-

cial time for me,” she said. “It helped

me find purpose and use my gifts to

glorify God.

“There were countless moments when

I would look out on those little smiles

and just know God had me in that

room for a reason.”

“You truly get a feel for how close

our church family

is when we come

together for this

joyous time,” said

Courtney Thomp-

son, last year’s

VBS director. “Having a fun, relaxed

atmosphere to teach our children

about God and the stories of the Bible

gives them knowledge and memories

that last a lifetime.”

This summer’s Workshop of Wonders

encourages children to experience the

love of Jesus thru adventure, imagina-

tion and creativity.

VBS at First Methodist Garland is

free of charge and open to children

age 3 thru sixth grade as of September

1, 2014.

More information and registration are

available online at firstmethodistgar-

land.webconnex.com/vbs2014.

Want to bless our children and be

blessed in return? Contact Caroline

Noll, Pastor of Children’s Ministries,

(cnoll@fumcgarland.org) to sign up

as a VBS volunteer.

“[VBS] helped me find pur-

pose and use my gifts to glo-

rify God.” - Rachel Ragan

VBS HAVING FUN, KNOWING GOD

UPCOMING EVENTS

WEDNESDAY WINDOWS May 7, 5:30pm Last before summer break. Dinner

(Chicken Fried Steak!) 5:30, programs

6:30, Holy Communion 7:22 and 7:30pm.

JONAH’S DRUTHERS Sunday, May 11, 8:30 and 10:50am A Mother’s Day presentation of the musi-

cal by Cyndi Nine, Bob Howard and David

Guthrie. Featuring Carol, Aldersgate and

Wesley Children’s Choirs. Directed by

Betsy Henderson.

RUNNING 4 CLEAN WATER Saturday, May 31, 8:30am New World United Methodist Church 5K Run, 1 Mile Fun Walk. Supports build-

ing safe drinking water wells in Africa.

VACATION BIBLE SCHOOL Sunday thru Thursday, June 15-19 Workshop of Wonders: Imagine and

Build with God. Open to children age 3

thru 6th grade as of September 1, 2014.

Register online at firstmethodistgar-

land.org.webconnex.com/vbs2014.

KIDS FOR ARTS, MUSIC & PRAISE Monday thru Friday, June 23-27 Be Strong and Courageous (Joshua 1:9)

is the theme for K.A.M.P.! 2014. Open to

children who have completed grades 1-5.

Cost $75 per child, $120 max per immedi-

ate family. Registration available online at

firstmethodistgarland.webconnex.com/

kamp2014registration.

DISTRICT ANNUAL CONFERENCE Sunday, May 18, 3:00 - 5:00pm Arapaho United Methodist Church Annual Conference for Metro District,

North Texas Conference of The United

Methodist Church.

CONFIRMATION SUNDAY May 25, 8:30am Worship Service

Page 2 | First News

E ngaging young adults in purposeful leadership and ministry. Sup-

porting underserved children and families. Connecting churches

to communities in need.

This is the mission of Project Transformation, an important outreach to

inner-city Dallas (projecttransformation.org) supported by First Meth-

odist Garland since the late 1990s.

Each summer, First Methodist Garland volunteers encourage children

thru reading at Pleasant Mound-Urban Park United Methodist Church.

They also support a cadre of dedicated college interns who lead chil-

dren in Christian community, programming and academic skills devel-

opment at Pleasant Mound and Casa Linda United Methodist Church.

“I found my time with Project Transformation to be immensely reward-

ing, both personally and spiritually,” said Laurie Serman, a First Meth-

odist Garland volunteer. “When we brought dinner, the interns were a

delight to visit and so appreciative of our time and efforts.”

Serman was also blessed by time spent directly with children and fami-

lies in need.

“The kids at Pleasant Mound really enjoyed us reading with them,” she

said. “I also helped provide dinner for Family Night at Casa Linda, and

the families were lovely people.”

This summer’s opportunities to bless and be blessed thru Project Trans-

formation include:

“I found my time with Project Transformation to be immensely rewarding…” - Laurie Serman

Monday, June 9, SMU

Burgers, Brats & ‘Dogs intern dinner

Thursday, June 26

Family Fun Night, Pleasant Mound

July 14-17, Pleasant Mound

Reading with Children

Thursday, July 29, SMU

Home Cooking Galore intern dinner

Sign ups begin on Mother’s Day, Sunday,

May 11 in the Garden Room.

“I hope everyone can take a few hours this

summer and lend their efforts to this wonder-

ful ministry,” Serman said.

Project Transformation LEADING, SERVING, CONNECTING

WELCOME NEW MEMBERS

Page 3 | First News

Serena Ladd Gerry Stewart Jessica Lillis

O n September 12, 2013, the

Big Thompson River Val-

ley of Colorado was

swamped by floodwaters reminis-

cent of a similar disaster in 1976.

Miraculously, only a few lives were

lost - far fewer than the 143 who

perished in the 1976 flood. But en-

tire towns were devastated, forcing

major rebuilding for the second

time in 37 years.

This summer - July 12-20, 2014 -

the youth of First Methodist Gar-

land travel to Lyons, Colo. to lend a

hand in this rebuilding effort.

The cost to participate is $150 per

youth and $75 per adult. A $75 de-

posit is due May 25, with the bal-

ance due by June 22. Scholarships

may be available for those inter-

ested but unable to pay.

For those not able to directly par-

ticipate, ‘nail cards’ are available

for your words of encouragement

and monetary donations.

YOUTH TO HELP REBUILD FROM COLORADO FLOOD

Page 4 | First News

To sign up, obtain a nail card or for

more information, please contact Randy

Adair, Director of Student Ministries

(radair@fumcgarland.org).

First United Methodist Church

801 W. Ave. B

Garland, TX 75040

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