As we prepare to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ, and as we look back on all the ministry that our congregation has done in 2017, I am awed at how God is using Auburn First UMC to make disciples and transform the world! It’s been a busy year, full of worship, fellowship, and mission opportunities. Here’s just a brief overview of some of the amazing projects we’ve participated in during 2017:
- We had over 35 children from our community attend Vacation Bible School, and they kicked off our annual school supply drive—which, by the end of the summer, provided full sets of school supplies for 21 low-income students at Auburn Middle School.
- Seven children and youth from our congregation attended United Methodist summer camps this year; more than half of them were assisted by our church’s camping scholarship fund.
- We purchased and filled 20 buckets of flood relief supplies for UMCOR’s Hurricane Harvey disaster response.
- We hosted yet another memorable “Preschool Pumpkin Day” at Lord’s Acre, and this year’s pumpkin sales brought in over $3,000 for local hunger projects!
- Our youth group raised a whopping $5,700 for Heifer International—and because we hit our fundraising goal a month early, we were able to take advantage of Heifer’s “Cyber Monday Match” program. This means that our gift’s impact was doubled, and that our kids actually contributed $11,400 to fight global poverty!
This is just a tiny sampling of the ministry that has happened at Auburn FUMC this year. We have experienced meaningful worship and small group ministry, we have grown in faith and in relationships, and our members have shown Christ’s love to countless people in daily interactions with friends, family, and loved ones. We have been blessed to be a blessing, and I am excited to see what God has in store for this congregation as we enter a brand-new year.
Please join us in worship throughout this Advent season as we anticipate the Good News of Christ’s birth. We will continue our series on “The Five Senses of Christmas”, and on Sunday the 24th we will be hosting two worship services: one at 10:00 am, one at 7:00 pm. Both will feature special music, Holy Communion, and an opportunity to contribute to our special Christmas mission offering (more information on that will be coming out next week!)
Have a blessed Advent—let’s continue to make 2017 a fantastic year of faith and service!