Missions

Missions & Ministries

Prison Ministry

We have a team of individuals who visit local area prisons and help them know Jesus Christ.

Russia Mission

Our church sponsors an orphanage located in the small village of Sanchursk, in the Kirov region of western Russia. Currently there are 175 children living in the Sanchursk Orphanage. Most of these children are labeled “small brained” and have varying degrees of mental and physical handicaps; this label hinders their future opportunities. The children range in age from 5 to 16 and are split into groups based on their age and learning level. The children attend school at the orphanage Monday through Saturday learning basic writing, history and arithmetic.They attend Mass on Sunday at the Russian Orthodox Church next door. They have daily chores which include mopping the floors of the large institution with rags from their worn-out clothes attached to wooden handles. Some days the children are gone all day working in the gardens and harvesting potatoes.

Through our sponsorship efforts with Children’s HopeChest and their Russian affiliated group Nadezhda Fund, the children also receive lessons from the Disciplers, Russian believers, who visit them weekly and talk with them about living godly lives and making good life choices. The Disciplers also translate letters between the Russian children and their American sponsors at our church.

As the children become older and get closer to being on their own, the orphanage caregivers teach them some life skills such as cooking, making tea, sewing and infant care. Many of the children will choose to go to tech schools where they are taught skills such as house painting and carpentry. Some of these tech schools have dorms, which may or may not be safe places to live; however, some of these schools have no affiliated dorms and the children are left to provide their own housing. Many end up on the streets, falling into drugs, prostitution, and the Russian Mafia. Once a child leaves the orphanage, 15% are dead within two years, mainly due to suicide. The life expectancy for an orphan is 30 years of age.

Our church has sponsored the Sanchursk Orphanage since first going there in October 2002. When our first team went over, they were shocked at the condition of the facility and the children. Our team met with the staff to discern their greatest needs. The assistant director said the children needed warm coats and boots for winter. Upon their return home, the team traveled to churches in Florida and Alabama, explained the dire need of the children to the congregations and Sunday School classes. Within two months, over $6000 was raised and a team flew out on January 4th, 2003 just in time to arrive in Russia and buy enough warm coats, boots and a few toys for the children to celebrate a wonderful Christmas on Orthodox Christmas, January 7th. When this team arrived, the assistant director, with tears in her eyes, told them that many groups had come in the past with promises to help, but no one had ever returned – until now!

On our first trip to Sanchursk, a young orphan, a 14 year old boy named Gilder, sang a mournful song for our team which we had translated as follows:

The House with Windows Overlooking the Garden

In my dream I see the house with the windows overlooking the garden. There my mother is waiting for me. It was there that she used to sing soft lullabies to comfort me. Now, the house with the windows overlooking the garden is covered by the golden leaves of fall and the fresh blue snow fall. I will return one day, but maybe a little too late. The southern wind of the night brings the smell of the apples. Now, everything disappears. The house in the garden, love, sadness and the gate to the garden are all in darkness. The house with the windows overlooking the garden and the sounds which used to wound my soul, are they all gone?

Since our first trip to Sanchursk in 2002, our church has been committed to fulfilling our dream of helping these children lead full, productive lives, knowing God’s love and saving grace. In addition to having regularly sent teams to visit the children and share God’s love, we have purchased computers and sewing machines, as well as a portable saw mill to help the children learn productive skills while they are still in the orphanage. Through the donations of our caring congregation, we have been able to purchase necessary items for daily living including bedding, furniture, glass for broken windows, kitchen appliances and dishes, hot water heaters, and an industrial washing machine. We have also purchased comfortable furniture, televisions, stereo sets with karaoke and games for the children’s “relaxation rooms” so they can have a family type setting in their institutionalized lives, as well as having some fun and stimulation while learning. If you are interested in learning more about sponsorship of one of these precious children, please email Marri Helen Taylor.

United Methodist Men

Butch Phillips, President

Purpose Statement:  UMM shall be a creative, supportive fellowship of men who seek to know Jesus Christ, to grow spiritually, to seek daily His will, to declare that Christ is first in the lives of men and in all their relationships. Dates and Times for UMM meeting:  Second Saturday of every month at 8:00 to 10:00 am in the Stephen Center.

UMM Bible Study is every Thursday morning at 6:30 to 7:30 am in the Stephen Center.   From the song “If We Are The Body” by Mark Hall we like to think of this song’s lyrics as what we are to do.  Let’s be His arms reaching, His hands healing, His feet going, His words teaching and His love showing them there is a way!

United Methodist Women

United Methodist Women meet once a month and have a Craft Fair every fall that benefits the church.  They also created and now maintain a meditation garden adjacent to the sanctuary.

Emmaus Cluster

Our church has an active Emmaus Cluster that supports the Body of Christ with our regular Prayers, Study and Service.  Make it a priority and come share your Fourth Days with us at our monthly gathering on the third Monday of each month in the Church Sanctuary at 6:30 PM and our Agape Workshops are usually scheduled for the fourth Monday of each month in the Stephen Center at 6:30 PM.  Please contact the church office (850)231-4928 to see if one is scheduled that month or not.  We are part of the Blue Lake Emmaus Community which is in the Alabama-West Florida United Methodist Church Conference and the Walks are conducted at the Blue Lake Camp Assembly which is south of Andalusia, AL just off of State Route 137.
Point of contact for any questions is Butch Phillips – please email bdphillips@mchsi.com or home phone (850)231-1978 .

Nathan Bush is the Director of Missions.