FaithLINK

Current news and information from Faith United Church
COMING UP @ FAITH UNITED CHURCH... Wednesday, March 10 - 6:30pm CROSSTRAINING BIBLE STUDY (The 10 Commandments) Wednesday, March 10 - 7:00pm NARCOTICS ANONYMOUS Wednesday, March 10 - 8:30pm Overflow Rehearsal Have YOU taken the Pastor's Fitness Challenge??? Our weight-loss contest continues from now through Mother's Day (May 9, 2010) What if you knew you had ONE MONTH TO LIVE? Jesus did. Join us, beginning March 14, 2010 for ONE MONTH TO LIVE, Pastor Steve's new sermon series.
What if you knew you had ONE MONTH TO LIVE? What if the doctors told you, you had one month, 30 days, left in this life. Not 29. Not 31. 30. ONE MONTH TO LIVE. Faith United Church invites you to join us for Pastor Steve's newest sermon series, beginning THIS Sunday, March 14. If you knew you had 30 days to live, would you do anything differently? Would your priorities change? How would it affect you? Come join us for this very special, 4-part series that will conclude on Easter Sunday. CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION.				FROM THE PASTOR Hello! On behalf of all of us who call ourselves Faith United Church, hello! Thank you for taking the time to check out our website. As cool as the internet is, it is no substitute for live, face-to-face human interaction. With that in mind, I'd like to invite those of you who don't have a church to call, "home," you to come Worship with us THIS Sunday at 11:00am. As usual, our clothes are casual, our music has a beat, our sermons have a point, our people have a heart, and our God is AWESOME. I hope to meet YOU in person THIS Sunday! Pastor Steve Wood

CLICK HERE TO VIEW LAST WEEK'S SERMON

NAME CHANGE STILL BEING CONSIDERED:
Faith United Church is in the process of PRAYERFULLY considering a name change. Why? Quite simply, a sentiment has grown among us that it is time for a "fresh start." A name change is one way for us to clear away negative, old memories once and for all, and create a new identity in our community.
In considering the possibility of a new name, we are very conscious of the fact that we must consider the following:

Pray about it. As we go through this process, let us keep in mind that this is Jesus’ Church. It is His to name. If we rename Faith United Church, let’s be sure it is the name He chooses for us.

Keep it simple. The best names are easy to say, easy to remember, and easy for the public to understand. Remember, less is more.

It must be unique. A name that is already in use in our area, or that is known nationally, will not work to identify us.

It must identify us. An effective name should be at least somewhat descriptive of our congregation.

The Procedure:

The Congregation was allowed to submit suggestions for a new name. Through this process 121 possibilities were suggested.
The Pastor and Deacons are presently working to narrow the list of suggestions to 12. When they have completed this task, a Special Church Conference will be called and a ballot vote will taken, with the top three possibilities being retained for further consideration.
A second special conference will then be called at which the membership will take another ballot vote, choosing one of the three for final consideration.
Finally, a third special conference will be called to consider an official name change.
Should the church choose a new name, a new logo will be submitted for consideration at a later time.

UPDATES!!!
(February 7, 2010): There were 121 suggestions submitted for the new name of Faith United Church! Of those, 23 were eliminated because they were already in use by another ministry somewhere in Genesee County.
(February 22, 2010): Pastor Steve and the Deacons have narrowed the list to 21 possibilities. Please continue to pray for them as they complete their task.

HalleLUAU! Grab 'yer board, dudes! Surfs' up at Faith United Church on Sunday, March 21, as we gather for the 8th Annual HalleLUAU! Hawaiian flower-type shirts are encouraged and flip-flops are welcome as we transform the Sanctuary into an island paradise for a day in an effort to encourage Spring here in the land of Our Worship Leader, DAN MALIN at "HalleLUAU!"

Our Worship Leader, DAN MALIN at "HalleLUAU!"

Flint. Of course, this event has never had any real effect on the weather, but it has warmed our hearts as we pull out the palm trees and let the beach balls fly. So, put on your shades and join us at 11:00am on Sunday, March 21, 2010.
NOTE - We will also have a Fellowship Meal following the Worship Celebration. MELANIE WOOD is coordinating the menu, along with BEVERLY BALDWIN and a host of others. Please contact Melanie and ask, "What can I bring to the 'HalleLUAU?'"

PEW BIBLES: Faith United Church is seeking to replace our Pew Bibles, most of which are about 30 years old and worn out. Our goal is to purchase 100 new NIV Worship Bibles by March 28 (Palm Sunday). WE'RE A LITTLE OVER HALFWAY THERE, IN TERMS OF DONATIONS!!! If you’d like to help by purchasing 1, 5, 10 or more Bibles, please see that your offering (above your Tithe) gets to GARY BAADE as soon as possible. The Bibles are $7.00 each. If you’d like to give your Bibles in honor or memory of someone, that can be noted on the inside cover of each one.

ANGEL FOOD: We are now accepting orders for MARCH. For more information about Angel Food CLICK HERE.

THE PASTOR'S HEALTHY CHALLENGE: Sunday, February 28 marked the beginning of the Pastor's Healthy Challenge and, so far 19 people have accepted the challenge and joined in our Weight Loss Competition. In addition, two individuals have accepted the challenge and committed to giving up smoking (as of today, BOTH of them are SUCCESSFUL!!!). Here are the Top Ten in our Weight Loss Competition, as of Sunday, March 7 (please note, points are not pounds, but are figured according to a formula):
          1. Melanie Wood                    19 points
          2. Steve Wood                        18 points
          3. Zana Forrest                       16 points
          4. Jeannie Shirk                      14 points
          5. Diane Jaskiewicz                13 points
          6. Margaret Becker                   9 points
          7. Beverly Baldwin                    6 points
              Iris Thompson                       6 points
          9. Mike Curtis                            3 points
              Kaitlynne Long                       3 points
              Sally Javor                             3 points

FITNESS CENTER OPENS: As part of our ongoing emphasis on physical health and its effect on our spiritual health, Faith United Church is extremely pleased to announce the opening of our brand new Fitness Center. Here are some pictures of the process of turning a room full of junk into a usable space. Thanks to: Melanie Wood, Caleb Wood, Beverly Baldwin, and Autumn Javor for their work in this project. Come by and check it out. Better yet, come by and USE IT! CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION.