Birthdays
7/1
Martha Hocutt
7/4 Gary Rice
7/6 Angelica Brown
7/6 Bobbie Morrow
7/19 Abby Rushing
7/22 Brett Winningham
7/29 Cathy Hagler
MEN’S PRAYER BREAKFAST 7:00 A.M.
Vacation Bible School
July 11 - 13
5:30 – 8:30 p.m.
Thursday & Friday VBS Classes
Saturday Celebration, Cookout & Fun
14837 Highway 69 N, Northport, AL 35475
SUN 7/7
“The Church on the Lake”
CALENDAR OF EVENTS
Macedonia United Methodist Church
Anniversaries
“The Church on the Lake”
Rock Stone, Pastor
14837 Hwy 69 N, Northport, AL 35475
205.339.6360 (Office)  205.792.3301 (Cell)  205.339.6610 (Fax)
E-mail: pastor@thechurchonthelakeumc.org
secretary@thechurchonthelakeumc.org
thechurchonthelakeumc.org
facebook.com/thechurchonthelakeumc
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FROM THE ROCK PILE
Happy Fourth of July! No matter what your political convictions are or even your
spiritual convictions, we are blessed to live in this great country. For even with all of our
problems, again no matter how you identify the problems, we have been blessed as a
country. Compared to the rest of the world we are certainly at the top. I know that I would
desire to live nowhere else, at least not right now. So with that being said I hope that you
take a moment or two on the 4th to be thankful. We certainly need to say a thank you for
those we have defended this great country and certainly to be mindful of those who have
given the ultimate sacrifice for this country. As Christians we know where the greatest
freedom comes from and that is found in Christ. Paul reminds us in Galatians chapter 5
that Christ gave His life for us that we might enjoy such freedom. So while we may
celebrate the freedoms that we have here in the United States of America, we know that the
greatest freedom to celebrate is the freedom found in Christ! So celebrate my friends,
celebrate!
With July comes our Vacation Bible School. Hay Day VBS will be July 11-13
from 5:30-8:30 each night. I love VBS for it is an opportunity for all of us to once again act
like a kid and it be ok! We can get down on the children’s level and not only have fun but
be able to extend the love of Christ to those who are near and dear to His heart. Please be
in prayer for our VBS. This is such a wonderful evangelism opportunity for us to reach out
to our community with the love of Christ. We not only extend the love of Christ to the
children who attend but also share with the parents of the children. Parents can sense if we
are “real” as well as their children can sense. When we open our hearts to the children with
the honest love of Christ we just might reach some parent who is looking for a church to
attend. If we are “real” in our sharing then we just might help the children and their parents
experience our Risen Lord. That indeed would make for a very successful Hay Day VBS.
As I type this edition of “The Rock Pile” I would like to take the opportunity to
share with you some very exciting news. There is a new church growth program that has
been brought to the North Alabama Conference known as ABIDE. ABIDE – A movement
for Renewing the Fruitfulness of Smaller Churches. The concept comes from John 15:1-11;
Abide in me…Bear much fruit. The emphasis is on; Churches Abiding in Christ,
Advancing God’s Mission, Alive in Christ’s Glory. I honestly cannot tell you how excited
I am about the opportunity for Macedonia to be a part of this outstanding program! This
program has been around for a few years and done in about 5 states but this is the first time
it has been in Alabama. There are less than 15 churches being offered this elite program
and Macedonia UMC, “The Church on the Lake” is one of that number! I am so excited
about this program. Your ABIDE team has been meeting almost weekly since March.
This month we will start what is called the Incubator. This will cover the next 12 months
with a commitment of meeting for 8 hours each month to cover the material. We have
decided as a team that we will meet twice a month for four hours each time to get our
required eight hours in for the month. I can honestly tell you that your team is really
beginning to bond together and our meetings already have become a very important part of
our spiritual growth. The Macedonia team is at present; Carol Booth, Abby Rushing,
Marcia Khoury and myself. I am praying and have discussed with the team about adding at
least one more member to the team. Please put the ABIDE team on your prayer list. The
next 12 months could bring to our church some exciting new avenues of church growth. I
believe it to be true and so does the team. We believe that our church and more
importantly the growth of God’s Kingdom is worth our time and sacrifice. We pray that
through our faithfulness that God will bring to Macedonia growth first through the Spirit
then through numbers. The Spiritual growth of this His church is our main concern but we
also want to see increase in number to our fellowship and certainly increase to the
Kingdom of God. So I say again please pray for your ABIDE team. I look forward to
sharing with you more of what is taking place with ABIDE in the coming months.
We have been having some wonderful worship services here at Macedonia both at
8:30 and 11:00. Both services continue to see visitors which is always exciting for any
church. We set a record at a WoW service on Father’s Day when we had 5 boats in
attendance. We are accustomed to having anywhere from 1 to 3 boats every Sunday but 5
was a sight to see. This service will certainly continue to be an avenue for sharing the
Gospel of Jesus Christ in our unique way. We as a church should be proud and excited
about this awesome ministry. Macedonia UMC, “The Church on the Lake” is certainly an
exciting church on the move. Until next month; continue to Believe, be Blessed, become a
Blessing. Shalom
PRAYER REQUESTS
Prayer Requests: The Lost and Unchurched, Our Homebound:
Elsie Guy, Bobbie Morrow, Joe Robertson, Corendene
Rushing, Betty Weissinger, Susan Shirley, Evonne Brown,
Duffy Hagler, Joe Ed Brown, Jack Hagler, Carolyn Gunter,
Eloise Medders, Frank Landry, Elvie Darden, Jewel Walters,
Sara Lee, Mandy Latner, Jack & Naomi Brown, Nellie Ray,
Peggy Atkinson, Charlie Smelly, Troy Turner, Linda Smelly, Darlene Hall, David Hall,
JB Hall, Willie Turner, Shelby Brown, Shelly Cleckler, Debbie Medders, Jeanette
Sellers, Mark Davis, Faye Kirkley, Rhonda Poe, Becky Hess, Julia Blazer, Melissa &
Stephanie Coleman, Kim O’Leary, Barbara Fergenson, Averee & Olivia Farley, Brenda
Lafoy, Florence Caddis, Morrell Coleman, Frances Etheridge, Patty Jean Armstrong,
Sharon Evans, Deborah Sellers, Phil Robinson, Jeff Turner, Jacob Rhodes, Minor
Medders, Wendell Shirley, Brandon, Dale Stewart, American Leaders, Military, Our
Nation, Our Church
Worship on the Water
Sunday School
Sunday Morning Worship Service
Sunday Evening Worship Service
Wednesday Night Bible Study
8:30 a.m.
10:00 a.m.
11:00 a.m.
6:00 p.m.
7:00 p.m.
HAYDAY! Vacation Bible School
July 11, 12, 13
5:30 – 8:30