Hopewell United Methodist Church

Hopewell United Methodist Church

Pastor Timothy Barth

4585 Dry Fork Road

Dry Fork, VA 24549

Grace and Peace to you in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior,

It is certainly hard to believe that it has been a whole year since I’ve been given the honor to serve alongside of you. Brothers and Sisters in Christ, I praise God for you and I am so thankful that you have allowed me the gift of being in ministry with you! When I first came to Hopewell, I preached a sermon in which I told you that “God is not done with Hopewell United Methodist Church”. Even today I still stand by those words: God is not done with Hopewell United Methodist Church. Taking a look over this past year is proof that God is just getting started. When I first came here to Hopewell, the morale of the church seemed to be down. People may have been wondering how in the world did we get to this point where he have a 22 year old pastor. Yet, here we are. Morale is up, giving is up, apportionments are being paid, we are in fellowship more often; we have a new prayer chain and notification system in place, the newsletter has been revamped, a website has been created (which has been visited 128 times in the last 30 days), 32 kits were sent to Annual Conference, and the UMW has helped supply kitchenware and other things for a place that will house abused women. My goal this past year was to focus on communication, and to focus on healing as a church. I believe that both of these goals have been met. God is using us in many mighty ways!!

I will be asking the leaders (and anyone who desires) to read a book called:Autopsy of a Deceased Church: 12 Ways to Keep Yours Alivewritten by Thom Rainer. My hope and prayer is that this book will open up conversation about where we are as a church and where we want to be in the coming years. I will then hold weekly discussions on the book. You will see these books out and about in the next couple of weeks along with a schedule for reading the books and when the group discussion will be held. I know this is a busy time of the year for some so I will open another book study regarding this book later in the year. A signup sheet will be placed in the annex. In September I will be starting a prayer group and in the month of August I will be sending out forms, in hope of finding a time which works for many. My goal this year is to take a good hard look at how we are reaching out to our community and ways to make our church even more welcoming to those who are new to the church and the community in which we live. Over this coming year I will be meeting with members of the worship committee and church council to see how we can intentionally create a space for fellowship, and provide a place of hope, comfort and refuge to those who seek God’s grace. I encourage you to pray for Hopewell’s leaders and more importantly for those who have yet to walk into our wonderful caring church.

I thank God for each and every one of you. All of you are in my thoughts and prayers. I know God will continue to use us as we uphold our membership vows, as we pray for one another and the community, by our presence in worship and inviting others into the family of God, and by our gifts (time, talent and treasures) which we give in service to the mission of the church: To make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world!

As you take part in the mission of the church I pray that God’s love, grace, hope and peace will go forth with you! It has truly been an honor to serve in ministry alongside of you! Ciera and I are looking forward to all God has planned for Hopewell as we begin another year in ministry with you.

Your Servant in Christ our Lord,

Rev. Timothy Joseph Barth

Keep In Mind

• Nonperishable food items are ALWAYS needed by God’s Storehouse. Bring a can, or a

package of any nonperishable food item often and fill our basket!!

• Donations of gently used clothes and household items are also accepted for Helping Hands ThriftStore (located in Sherwood Shopping Center, Danville). Four Danville UM churches have partnered for this endeavor: Grace Design, Trinity, Fairview and Mount Vernon and is operated by volunteers. Leave your donations in the hallway next to the food collection basket.

• ATTENTION COMPUTER USERS! If your printer uses HP inkjet cartridges (#23 Color or #15 Black), please call Marcella. NEW packages (one of each) are available to be given away.