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Mar 2023
At last Sunday’s Town Hall meeting about the potential merger with Sanctuary UMC, we were asked why a merger and why not just a shared ministry, a partnering, a cooperative model. This is an excellent question. After all, to merge or adopt or acquire or absorb another church means some pretty significant changes to St. Mark’s. We would take on their debt (they don’t have any, just a two-year lease on a building). We would have other voices at the table for all of our committees. We would have additional missions projects......
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Potential Merger Update
Guest writer: Marsha Dean What does the future hold for St. Mark’s and Sanctuary UMCs? I wish I knew the answer. I have been serving on the Merger Task Force for a couple of...
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Welcome to Lent!
This is our first Sunday in Lent. Lent began with Ash Wednesday this week and continues until Easter Sunday. It’s 40 days, plus Sundays. This season, we invite you to read through the Gospel...
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Happy Anniversary!
What were you doing 20 years ago? 20 years ago, I was appointed to my second churches, a two-point charge just south of Marshall, Illinois. Ron and I had been married almost two years,...
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Welcome!
Several times over the last few weeks, I have been in discussions with people who ask about advertising and about reaching new people. Let me share with you some best practices and some reminders...
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Grace / Sacraments
On Sunday as we join around the communion table, the pastors will pray, “Make us one with Christ, one with each other, and one in ministry to all the world until Christ comes in...
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Town Hall Meeting
What is our mission field? In worship a few weeks ago, Kelly Deyoe invited us to consider witnessing about our faith to other people. This is an important habit and spiritual discipline for every...
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The Trinity
Thank you, church, for being the church. As Kelly Deyoe shared in worship last week, God calls ALL of us to be the hands and feet of Christ. We share with others about Jesus...
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Evangelism and St. Mark’s
What has God called and equipped you to do? We often talk about calling when we talk about how pastors enter ministry, but our scriptures tell us that all are called and God equips...
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Happy New Year
As we get started on the new year with our resolutions to change our eating habits and change how much we exercise and change what we spend our money on, I wanted to ground...
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