FUMC-HERSHEY
WELCOME CENTER
(Photo
by Bill Fraley)
When visiting
FUMC-Hershey be sure to stop by our Welcome Center, which is
located in the Narthex, just outside the Sanctuary. At the Welcome
Center on Sundays, you can talk with members and learn about all
our activities. First-time visitors also receive a gift from the
church.
NEW MEMBER SESSION
Christian formation is an
ongoing ministry for our church. For new members, this formation
begins with our “New Member Session” held at various times
during the year.
If you are interested in joining our church and
would like to register for the next New Member class, contact
Penny
Bower, Witness Chairman, at 652-5709 OR call the church office
at 533-9668.
WE
ARE A PEOPLE WITH A PURPOSE
We
at First United Methodist Church of Hershey are a people of
purpose! Everything we do together is part of our mission, given
to us by Jesus, and explained in the scriptures.
Take a look at our Mission Statement:
“We
are a Church of Jesus Christ, In which... All people are welcome,
Every member is a minister, The world is our responsibility,
Disciple-making is our goal, And worship is our duty and delight.
This
statement is based on two very important scriptures, The Great
Commandment (Matthew 22:37-40) and the Great Commission (Matthew
28:19-20). Rick Warren, in his book The Purpose Driven Church,
uses these two scriptures to identify five Biblical Purposes
for God's Church: Fellowship, Evangelism, Ministry,
Discipleship, and
Worship.
These
purposes are the reasons God created the Church. They are also the
foundational purposes for our individual lives as Christians.
Let's take a closer look at these scriptures and purposes.
The
Great Commandment - "Love
the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and
with all your mind...And love your neighbor as yourself."
The
Great Commission -
"Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing
them in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and teaching
them to obey everything I have commanded you..."
Fellowship -
In Baptism we become a part of something larger than ourselves.
God is building a new community, and wants to connect us with
other believers. This is what The Church is all about.
Evangelism
- The Good News of Jesus is for all people on earth. Jesus has
commanded us to spread that Good News so that others can
experience it for themselves and come to believe.
Ministry
- Ministry is the million
different ways that we love our neighbor by responding to the
needs of others.
Discipleship
- As new infant Christians
saved by grace through faith, we need to grow. The process of
discipleship is a journey in which we grow to look more and more
like Jesus Christ. We deepen our faith, grow in holiness, discover
our spiritual gifts, hear our call to ministry, and serve.
Worship
- Worship is the act of loving
God in every possible way. In worship we celebrate God's Presence
and honor; God with our lives.
Here
at FUMC-Hershey, everything we do is organized to accomplish these
purposes. You are now becoming a part of our church, our mission,
and our purpose. As we take a closer look at these purposes, we
are beginning to help you find your place and purpose among us.
LIVING
WITH A PURPOSE
Regardless of where
we find ourselves in ministry, we strive to accomplish all five
purposes in whatever we do. We realize that every group provides
us with the possibility of supportive fellowship and healthy
relationships with other Christians.
Like evangelists, we
recruit new people to help in our work, constantly reaching out to
all people, regardless of their faith commitment. Every act of
ministry and service is an opportunity to connect someone with saving
faith. It is also an opportunity to stretch and grow as disciples,
as we love our neighbors as ourselves. Finally, all that we do is
an expression of our love for God. All of our work for Christ is
done prayerfully, with our work being a holy offering given to God.
FELLOWSHIP:
"We Are a Church of Jesus Christ"
“The work of connecting
people to God in salvation, to the Church in membership, and to
other believers in everyday life."
There is no such thing as a
solitary Christian. God is building a new community which we
call The Church. As we confess that we are a church, we confess
that we are part of THE CHURCH Universal, through the blood of
Christ, water of baptism, and anointing of the Holy Spirit. We
are saved by God's grace. In this process, we are connected, not
only to God, but also to every other believer in Jesus Christ. The
biblical purpose of Fellowship is the work of connecting people to
God in salvation, to the Church in membership, and to other
believers in everyday life. We have a variety of connecting and
fellowship ministries.
Baptism and Membership
We offer our "Welcome
Series" to prepare people for membership in Christ's
Universal Church (through profession of faith, baptism, and
confirmation), The United Methodist Church, and our local church.
Salvation is a group activity, as
is discipleship. Heaven is not a lonely hideaway, but a holy city.
In joining our lives with the lives of other believers, we also
seek opportunities to grow' closer together.
Throughout the year, we hold a
variety) of events for the sole purpose of enjoying each others'
company and growing closer together. Some of these would include:
- Monthly
Fellowship Dinners - The second Sunday evening of every
month in our Social Hall.
- Family
Fun Day - An outdoor picnic with games, food, and
fellowship.
- Small
Group Experiences - Groups that allow relationships to
grow
EVANGELISM:
"In Which All people Are Welcome"
"We
bear witness to the Good News, explain it, and help all people to
experience it first hand."
Evangelism
has two parts: giving and receiving. We give the effort to
reach out to people who do not know Christ, have never heard of
Christ, and are unaware of just how much God loves them. They are
unconnected with God, and disconnected from His Church. God wants
everyone to be a part of His new creation, so that's exactly who
we are reaching out to.
As we look
around our congregation, we must constantly ask the question
"who's missing?" Evangelism makes the effort to
identify, relate to, and invite others to join in.
The second part
is receiving. As we reach out farther and farther, some people
will inevitably wander into our church on their own. We strive to
receive them with hospitality, clearing away all the barriers to
our church that may prevent people from coming in on their own.
It is God who
stirs human hearts, arouses curiosity, and encourages people to
seek Him. We bear witness to the Good News, explain it, and help
all people to experience it first hand.
Alpha
Course -
This is a 12-week small group introduction to Christian faith with
the freedom to question, wrestle, disagree, and discover.
MINISTRY:
"Every Member Is A Minister"
"Every
member is a minister" because God has created His Church for
the Purpose of Ministry, service to others, love of neighbor,
meeting the needs of others with a heart of love. " The
Greatest Commandment is to love God and love neighbor. It is
impossible to love God without loving neighbor. This loving
service is glue that holds this kingdom of God together. It is
also one of the primary missions we are being gathered together to
accomplish. This is one of the simplest purposes to accomplish
because the world needs help. There is no shortage of places
requiring our service and giving. It can be overwhelming. At
First Church we know that God is constantly calling us into new
fields of mission, and we make these opportunities to serve
available to all. Church is not a spectator sport in which we pay
the staff to "do ministry" for us. God has equipped
every one of us for significant life ministries. If grace is the
lifeblood of the church, then we are heartbeats of grace. And in a
congregation of this size, one heart is not enough.
Ministry
is also more than just helping other people to be all they can be.
Ministry is one of the ways God's Spirit makes us grow as
disciples. Through the risks, rewards, trials, and challenges of
meeting other peoples' needs with love, we grow into all God has
designed us to be. But with so man places to serve, where to
begin? We begin by discovering our spiritual gifts and learning to
hear God's call in our lives. Then we will know for sure when we
are to serve. This is the process of disciple-making that we will
talk about in a minute. But in the mean time, try everything and
anything and see where you fit in.
MINISTRY:
"The World Is Our Responsibility"
The world is a pretty big place,
and it contains a lot of people with a lot of needs. We realize
that God has given the gift of the Church to the world as a way of
touching those needs with a heart of love. By declaring that the
Church is to be salt and light in a dark flavorless world, God
intends the Church to make a difference. This makes us responsible
to God for the condition of our world. At FUMC-Hershey, along with
our sister congregations, we are in ministry all over the world.
A portion of every offering
dollar is given to the United Methodist World Service Fund, which
supports our common ministry around the world as United
Methodists. So by simply putting money the offering plate, you are
in mission around the globe! We connect with mission minded groups
like the United
Methodist Women and the General
Board of Global Ministries. We at FUMC-Hershey are directly
connected to and serving in places like Russia, Ukraine, and
Jamaica. The world is our responsibility, and our service is
global.
We also realize that Hershey is
part of the world, too. We are just as responsible for the poor,
hurting, broken people around us here at home. We are involved in
several hands on ministries here in Derry Twp. Dauphin County and
the USA as well. Click
here to see a list of missions we support.
There
are ways that we are responsible for the world other than simply
meeting their direct need. Just feeding the hungry, or providing
shelter for the homeless may not be enough. Sooner or later we
also have to look at the causes of poverty, hunger, illness, or
homelessness. For some people, their hardship is due to bad
luck. For others it is a national, global, economic or political
problem that needs a larger solution. Like prophets, the General
Board of Church and Society and every congregation must speak up
to change laws, customs, or actions that are unjust, unfair, or
just plain wrong. A just society where everyone gets a fair shake
is what the Kingdom of God is all about.
DISCIPLESHIP:
"Disciple-Making Is Our Goal"
"We must always continue
to grow in our faith, because God is never finished with us."
At the heart of it all, "Disciplemaking
is our goal." The Purpose of Discipleship is the point around
which all the rest of this revolves. Based on the faithful
proclamation of the gospel, Discipleship is a process through
which we are forgiven of our sins, saved, reborn, adopted as
children of God, and through the work of the Spirit, we grow in
our faith, discover our gifts, and become more like Christ. God's
kingdom is a lot like the Milton Hershey School. As kids adopted
into God's kingdom, we are a little rough around the edges at the
start, but grow over time in the spirit learning discipline and
growing in character until we can boldly take our place in this
world as a disciple.
Every
living thing on earth is either growing or dying. So it is with
our faith. We must always continue to grow in our faith, because
God is never finished with us.
WORSHIP:
"Worship Is Our Duty and Delight."
We take advantage of every
opportunity to love God with everything we have, both through
corporate worship and private prayer and devotion. There are tshirts
that read: "Christianity is not a religion. It is a
relationship." That is true. We exist as a church as the
gathered collection of people in a love relationship with the
God of Creation through Jesus Christ. Every good relationship,
like every good marriage, needs time, and attention to keep it
healthy. A worshipful life is one in which every possible
opportunity is taken to express and deepen this love relationship
with God.
At FUMC-Hershey, we also worship
in a variety of ways. We offer traditional worship on Sundays at
8:00 a.m. and 10:45 a.m. These services use written prayers,
responses, choirs, hymns in a reverent and thoughtful proclamation
of the gospel. It draws heavily on the traditions of the church's
past and offers them to a new generation.
Our Celebration Service at 9:30 a.m. uses an informal setting, video
projection, and contemporary praise and worship music. Instead of
drawing on the traditions of the past, it strives to communicate
the Good News in a fresh way. If traditional worship emphasizes
reverence, Celebration Worship emphasizes celebrating! As
Christians saved by the grace of God, the blood of Christ, and the
gift of the Holy Spirit, we have something to celebrate! Worship
is our duty, an obligation to give the Lord our respect and
obedience. It also our delight, as we pour out our joy, love,
faith, and praise.
ORGANIZED
FOR MINISTRY
Our
congregation's ministry is organized into a series of teams who
sit together at our Church Council roundtable. The purpose of this
council is to discern God's will for our future, promote the
mission of our church, and recruit as many persons as possible to
discover God through meaningful, life enhancing ministries. Of all
the phrases found in our mission statement, none are as important
to our council as "Every member is a Minister." Each
team is responsible for recruiting and guiding people into new
opportunities of service in their respective ministry areas,
fulfilling all five biblical purposes in their work.
Click here for a listing of our current leadership.
While the list of
ministries and opportunities in each area is constantly growing
and changing, our
administrative ministries handle three important resources:
people, property, and finances.
SPRC - The Staff Parish
Relations Committee works like the Human Resources or Personnel
department in a company. They handle all details of the hiring and
evaluating paid staff, and assist our bishop with pastoral
appointments.
Lay
Leaders - These lay persons
assist the pastors by providing oversight of and support for the
lay ministries of the congregation.
Trustees - This
is a large church with a big building. The Trustees are
responsible for caring for the building, property, and equipment.
It is more than just upkeep. It is the visionary work of
anticipating our ministry needs and providing the space and
equipment necessary to meet God's mission.
Stewardship
and Finance - The
work of this group is more than just money. In addition to leading
us to be good stewards through collecting, budgeting, and managing
our offerings, this group also takes the lead in teaching about
the spiritual discipline of giving through yearly commitment
campaigns and our offering envelope system. It also oversees our Financial
Ministry.
NURTURE
MINISTRIES
Nurture Ministries have a lot to
do with Disciple-making. It is the group of ministries through
which people grow. We divide this work area into two sections:
Worship and Education.
Worship
- As shared above, we offer a
variety of worship
opportunities on Sunday morning, and soon will be offering
other services at other days and times.
Education
- We offer a wide variety of
Christian education opportunities throughout the week. Here are
just a few:
- Sunday
School - At 9:30 a.m., we offer classes for every age
group. Children and youth classes are divided by age. Adult
classes are divided by age, interest, subject matter, and
class format. You can choose a lecture format, discussion
class, straight bible study, or even a class on theology.
- Pastors'
Bible Studies - Both pastors offer classes, one on
Wednesday evenings, the other on Friday mornings.
- Disciple
Bible Study Series - Disciple is a 34-week study of the
bible that strives to connect scripture to daily Christian
living. There are now 3 levels offered at various times.
Special
Classes and Events - Short-term
classes and groups on various topics start all the time, such us spiritual gifts, strengthening marriage and
relationships, as well as premarital preparation classes. There
are far too many opportunities to list in this short introduction!
OUTREACH
MINISTRIES
As an introduction, here
are just a few of the service opportunities from our Outreach
Ministries:
Prison Ministry- Provides bible
literature to inmates, and at times leads bible studies.
Derry Twp. Social Ministry -
Provides food, clothing, and financial assistance to families
in need.
Heifer Project - A global hunger
relief effort that sends live animals to families in need.
Habitat for Humanity - Hands on
work of building and restoring houses for needy families.
VIM Work Camps - Volunteers in
Mission groups are short term missionaries who meet needs
around the world, such as flood relief in North Carolina or
rebuilding an orphanage in Russia.
Bethesda Mission - Harrisburg
mission that provides for the poor and homeless.
Neighborhood Center - A United
Methodist center that cares for families and children in inner
city Harrisburg.
Stephen Ministry - Lay people
trained to care for other lay people in times of crisis or
distress.
Caring Ministry - Teams care for
others by providing cards, transportation, meals, and visits
to folks who need it.
WITNESS
MINISTRIES
This
work area began as our Evangelism Committee, which oversaw efforts
to reach out into the community, connect with unchurched people
and introduce them to Jesus Christ. As this ministry area
develops, it will continue to offer programs such as Alpha Course,
which safely walks doubters and nonbelievers through the basics of
Christian faith,
Witness
Ministries will also strive to teach the congregation to share our
faith in Christ with others. We are not experts in Christ, but as
those saved by His blood, we can bear witness to what we have
experienced. In
addition to reaching out and connecting people with Jesus Christ,
Witness Ministries will be working in the process of connecting
people to the Church in membership.
You may have noticed a series
of television commercials highlighting the United Methodist
Church. This is the Igniting
Ministry campaign in which we may participate further.
AGE
LEVEL MINISTRIES
Nursery
- We provide paid, trained
nursery care during most church events. Infants have their own
section of the nursery.
Toddlers, ages 2-4 have their own area as well.
Seeds
- As part of our Children's
Ministry, Seeds is a children's discipleship group for
students in grades K-2. Seeds meet on Sunday evenings.
Sprouts
- Sprouts is the next level of
Seeds for grades 3-5. They also meet on Sunday evenings in
rotation with Seeds.
Vacation
Bible School - One week every
summer that can last a lifetime! This is open to children from
nursery to 5th grade and draws children from all over the
community. We are always looking for adult helpers for teaching,
crafts, snacks, etc.
Scouts
- We enjoy a long history with
the scouting. We offer all levels of boy scouts and now offer
several levels of girl scouts as well.
Youth
- The Youth
Ministry offers fellowship for grades 6-8 and 9-12.
Young Adults -
This is a new and sorely needed ministry for those who are out of
high school, college, and just starting out.
Age
Level Music Ministries - Under
our Music
Ministry, We offer voice and bell choirs for all ages, as well
as a summer Music Camp called the "Music Factory".
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