Ebenezer's History 2019-2020

The articles stored on this page begin with activities in the year 2019 and run through to the end of 2020.

Worship Service Returns to Outside

We have returned to parking lot services until further notice. The worship service begins at 9:00 a.m. We will continue to broadcast the service on Facebook. When you are in our parking you can listen at 98.5 FM and keep your vehicle comfortable with the windows rolled up. NOTE: no Sunday school classes will meet until further notice.

Christmas Eve Service - Report (2020)

We moved the Christmas Eve Service to Wednesday at 6:00 p.m. because of inclement weather forecasts. Thirty people attended. We thank our people and musicians for braving the cold to participate.

Current plans are to hold this service outside around a bonfire in the barbecue shed area across Ebenezer Church Rd. The service will begin at 6:00 p.m. Participants are asked to bring lawn chairs. We will have some folding chairs available, too.

Bring your carol singing voices. Scriptures will be read, and carols sung around the fire with music provided by our church musicians.

Worship Service is now indoors

We are conducting our worship services inside the church now. You can opt to join us in the Christian Life Center for the actual, live service, or sit in the sanctuary and watch the service on the TV screen as it is broadcast through Facebook. We will continue to broadcast on 98.5 FM for those who prefer to remain in their cars in the parking lot. Please furnish your own masks for use in the indoor areas. Thank you.

Free Drive-in Community Meal

Ebenezer will be giving away a meal of chicken and fixings with dessert on Monday, November 23, 2020 starting at 5:00 p.m. Drive by in your car or truck and pick up plates to go. Come early, because when it's gone it's gone. Happy Thanksgiving from Ebenezer UMC!

Trunk or Treat 2020 Report

We thank everyone who helped make this event successful. There were 14 decorated cars and trucks in the line, and lots of children and their parents came by to get some candy and show off their imaginative costumes. All had a good time on All Hallows Eve at Ebenezer UMC!

We are collecting candy now to be given out on Saturday, October 31st, from 5-7:00 p.m. at our annual Trunk or Treat event. All of the event will be held in the parking lot or under the breezeway in case of rain. We will have a collection box at each service to accept candy for this event. We invite our members to dress up their cars and trucks with spooky things as usual. Come join us for a good time and a safe Halloween.

We are still collecting school supplies

See the list below, and bring the supplies on Sunday, or drop them off at the office through the week. We thank you for supporting our schools and school children and teachers.

School Supplies Collection List

South Caldwell Christian Ministries is requesting 4-8 FILLED book bags to give to needy children this fall. See the lists below for items needed for each grade level (1-2 bags per level):

Kindergarten-First Grade: pencils, pens, glue, glue sticks, crayons, colored pencils, erasers, highlighters, notebook, notebook paper, folders, rounded scissors, pencil box, and writing tablet. Optional items: facial tissues, antibacterial wipes.

Grades Two-Five: same as above to scissors then pencil pouch, tissues, wipes and calculators.

Grades Six –Eight: notebook paper, dividers with tabs, folders with pockets, 2 spiral notebooks, pencils, colored pencils, 2 colors highlighters, black, blue, red pens in a book bag.

Grades 9-12: 1 notebook and notebook paper, 4 spiral notebooks, pencils, pens, highlighters and divider tabs in the book bag.

Suggestion: The adult or youth Sunday school classes could purchase the materials for the book bags and then let the children’s classes put them together.

BAGS ARE NEEDED BY AUGUST ?.
These items will be handed out on August ?.

Please leave items at the church in the fellowship hall and we will get them to SCCM, or deliver them directly to local schools this year. Thank you!

SCCM will also accept individual items as donations. Wipes, hand sanitizers, and masks may also be included this year.

Blood Drive Success - 2020 Report

We had a good turnout for our American Red Cross Blood Drive on Monday, July 13th. Our goal was 27 pints of blood, and we collected 34 pints. Praise the Lord! We thank everyone who came and gave, and those who tried to give, but were unable to do so. May God bless you all for your willingness to give.

Getting to Know Pastor Alan

On Sunday, July 12th, 2020 Pastor Alan presented his first sermon. He gave us information about himself and his family, going over every child by name and age. He and Debbie, his wife, adopted some of their children. He explained that his call was to ministry in the church, but Debbie's call was the ministry of adoption. She insisted that they would be adopting children even before she and Pastor Alan married.

Pastor Alan comes from a Southern Baptist Church background; something several of our current members can identify with. He said that he was schooled in church doctrine, but also made to feel an "abundance of guilt" in the Baptist Church. He found out about the grace of God in the Methodist Church.

Welcome to Ebenezer UMC, Pastor Alan and family! May God bless you at Ebenezer, and you bless our church family while you are here.

Trusting in God - Psalm 13

How long, O LORD? Will you forget me forever?
How long will you hide Your face from me?
How long must I wrestle with my thoughts
and every day have sorrow in my heart?
How long will my enemy triumph over me?

Look on me and answer, O LORD my God.
Give light to my eryes, or I will sleep in death;
my enemy will say, "I have overcome him,"
and my foes will rejoice when I fall.

But I trust in your unfailing love;
my heart rejoices in your salvation.
I will sing to the LORD, for ye has been good to me.

Finding Hope Ministries Update

Nathan Merrill has sent us a link to a video about what they are doing during the COVID-19 quarantine in Romania. He has also sent a written report and thank you for our continued prayers and support.

Finding Hope Ministries' Update

We have another update from Nathan Merrill for Finding Hope Ministries. Access the newsletter for February 2020 here.

We have received an update from Nathan Merrill's Finding Hope Ministies in Romania. They are doing a great deal of good through their children's homes. Please read their November 2019 newsletter and pray about how you can support their ministries.

New Pastor Speaks on Sunday

Our new Pastor, Alan Gaylord, will bring us his first sermon on Sunday, July 12th, 2020 at 9:00 a.m. at our drive-in service. Please park facing the front of the sanctuary. You may listen on the radio at 98.5 FM or bring a lawn chair and sit near your vehicle. Please come out and support our new pastor as he begins his service at Ebenezer UMC.

July 2020 Newsletter is now online.

Bood Drive Coming July 13th - 2020

We will have our summer blood drive for the American Red Cross on Monday, July 13th from 2:30 p. m. to 7:00 p.m. Packaged snacks and drinks will be provided for the participants. You may schedule an appointment online at RedCrossBlood.org. Enter Ebenezer UMC. You can also go online to RedCrossBlood.org/RapidPass to complete your pre-donation reading and health history questions on the day or your appointment.

Drive-In Services Continue

Our guest speaker for Sunday, July 5th is Roy Hamby. We hope you will come and worship with us, and support Roy as he brings the message to us.

UPDATE: We now have an FM transmitter. You should be able to listen to the service on your car radio. Tune in to 98.5 FM, and keep your air conditioning running with the windows up if you want to.

We will continue to have drive-in worship services only until further notice. The service begins at 9:00 a.m. You may bring a lawn chair and sit outside of your vehicles. Umbrellas or hats (and sunscreen lotion) are recommended for shade, because the days are getting warmer.

Drive-In Service, May 31st, 2020 9 AM

We invite you to our third drive-in worship service on Sunday, May 31st at 9:00 a.m. Please park your car facing the front of the sanctuary, and roll down your windows to listen in while we worship and praise our God. One person used an umbrella to give her shade on the sunny side of the car. Some people have suggested bringing lawn chairs and sitting outside their vehicles. Go for it if you want to!

We had a good turnout for our first Drive-In Worship service on May 17th, and even more people on the 24th for the second service. Thanks for participating. Let us pray that we will be allowed to worship together in the church in the near future.

Drive-In Services Continue - 2020

Our guest speaker on Sunday, June 28th, will be Todd Harris. Mr. Harris is a cancer survivor, and has spoken at our church before. We hope that you will come and support him as we worhsip the Lord this Sunday. 

Sunday, June 21st: This is Pastor Tom's last service with us. He will serve Communion to those who wish to participate. We invite you to bring a card, letter, or small gift to give to Patsy and Tom to show your appreciation to them for their service to our church and community. We will collect the cards, etc. when we take up the offering.

Happy Mother's Day

We hope that everyone who can will show their mothers their appreciation for them on Sunday in some way. No one of us would be here without a mother (and a father, but he has his own day). It used to be true that most of us interacted with our mothers more than with anyone else. But whether or not your mother was or is at home more than Dad, she is an important part of your growing up, and becoming an adult.

God designed women to be the ones who carry, nourish, and bring forth new human beings into this world. Our connection to our mothers is strong due to that intimacy experienced in our mother's womb. We give thanks to mothers everywhere who made the necessary sacrifices and endured the pain to carry us and bring us into this world. And, for most mothers, the caring does not stop at the birth, but continues to the day she dies or her children die. It is a non-stop, 24/7, job with joys unbounded, work unending, and daily sacrifice.

Thank you mothers everywhere for accepting your place in God's plan to continually repopulate the world. Proverbs 31 offers a description of the "capable wife." Hardly any woman can live up to the standards set in these passages, but it is a good place for every wife and mother to start looking for ideas on how to be a good wife and mother. But, above all else, remember:

"Charm is deceptive and beauty disappears, but a woman who honors the LORD should be praised. Give her credit for all she does. She deserves the respect of everyone." AMEN! (Proverbs 31:30-31 GNT)

Bake Sale for Missions May 9th, 2020

We will have a parking lot bake sale on Saturday, May 9th from 9:00 a.m. to noon. Come by and pick up a homemade dessert for this weekend. Proceeds will go toward our mission trip funds. Please observe social distancing guidelines while shopping.

Special Way to Continue to Give

Though our normal services have been suspended, we continue to have bills to pay. If you wish to give to our church, you can mail us a check (do not send cash by mail), or go online to the special page that has been set up by the Western North Carolina Conference for online giving. The Conference will pay the credit card processing fees, so your complete contribution will go directly to the church that you designate on the form at the bottom of the following page: https://www.wnccumc.org/online-donations-to-churches. Our church office remains open from 8:30-1:00 pm. if you prefer to drop off a cash contribution. We thank you for your continued support with your prayers and giving.

Updates of Church Activities - 2020

We will not have the children's Easter Party on Saturday, April 4th. We will not be publishing an April newsletter since we cannot really schedule any activities at this time. We will have no services or meetings of any kind through April unless restrictions are lifted.

We have attached two pdfs that you can open and read. The District Superintendent and Bishop Leeland have written to recommend that there be no "Drive-in" church services in April.

Pastor Tom has sent a note of encouragement to us all even though we cannot meet on Sundays.

Let us all keep in mind that we celebrate the Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ every Sunday, whether or not we are in church--and every day of the week, too. Our Easter service is delayed, but not forgotten. Keep praying and reading the Bible throughout the week. God is in control--even in this. Praise be to our God!

The church office will be open Monday-Friday, 8:30-1:00 p.m. Please call the office or Pastor Tom if you need assistance that we may be able to give, or to make prayer requests that we can pass on to our members. You may also drop off your contributions at the office or mail them in. See article below for another option for giving.

Parking Lot Service Canceled

We will not be able to have the parking lot service on Sunday, March 29th as previously announced. We will open the sanctuary on Sunday from 9-12 p.m. for those who wish to come in and pray and pay their tithes. The evening sessions Monday-Thursday have also been canceled.

Suspension of Services - 2020

To help stem the spread of the COVID-19 virus, we are suspending all services and meetings for the next two weeks, from Wednesday, March 18 through Wednesday, April 1. Volleyball and basketball are also cancelled.

The sanctuary doors will be open on Sundays from 9-12:00 p.m. and Monday-Thursday from 4-7:00 p.m. for those who wish to come in and pray.

The small Tuesday evening prayer group will continue to meet. You may call the office or send an e-mail to make prayer requests.

Please remember that your church continues to work on your behalf. We need your prayers and monetary support.

If you need assistance, please do not hesitate to call us.

We will announce later when we will be resuming our regular services and activities.

Let us continue to praise and glorify God and trust Him even through this time of uncertainty and anxiety.

Biscuits Sales - Date to be announced

On Thursday, SUSPENDED INDEFINITELY 6:00 a.m. 'til gone!, Ebenezer's famous ham biscuits will be served up again, along with livermush, sausage, bologna, egg, and jelly ones, and gravy and biscuits. You can also stop by and eat-in. Please order early on Thursday or pre-order on Wednesday for deliveries. We deliver orders of 10 or more in the surrounding area, which includes Lenoir, Granite Falls, Hudson, and Hickory. Businesses and individuals are encouraged to get them while they're hot.

Prices vary from $1.50-2.50. Call: Ebenezer's church office at 396-2214 (Mon.-Fri. 8:30 a.m.-1:00 p.m.). Ebenezer's Rainbow Sunday School Class is now in charge of this fundraiser. Proceeds will go to the ART (Area Response Team) Fund, and the money will be used to help people in need in the area.

Guest Speaker - Sunday, March 8 - 2020

One of the Finding Hope Ministries orphans from Romania, Ally Corina, will be our guest speaker on Sunday, March 8 during the 9:00 a.m. worship service. Come and see how much good orphanages are needed in Romania, and confirmation of the good service being accomplished by Finding Hope Ministries.

Community Volleyball Moves - 2020

The Community Volleyball activity has been moved back to Thursday evenings at 7:00 p.m. Anyone in the community may participate.

Sunday Lasagna Lunch - 2020

Ebenezer UMC will be offering a lasagna lunch with drink and dessert on Sunday, February 16th, starting around 11:30 a.m. You may eat in or take-out for a donation to our missions fund. Members of the local community are invited to come eat, along with our members. We thank you for your support.

Christmas Eve Candlelight Service - 2019

Our annual Candlelight Service will be at 6:00 p.m. on December 24th. We invite you to join us as we remember the first coming of our Lord and Savior. Our worship and praise service will include Communion.

Christmas Play and Jesus Birthday Party, Dec. 22 at 6 PM - Report - 2019

We thank everyone who helped make this event so much fun, and nourishing for our souls and bodies. We had a good turn out, and the children did a good job. We also had plenty of good food to eat afterwards as we celebrated the birthday of Jesus. We offer special thanks to our special guest, who spent time with the youngsters as they told him what they wanted for Christmas.

Interviewing the donkey who brought Joseph and Mary to Bethlehem.

Children as the animals and angels around the manger of Jesus the Savior.

Santa Claus talks to two children on his lap about what they want for Christmas.

Our children are working every Sunday evening to prepare their program that will remind us once again of the true reason for this holiday season. We invite you to join us for this joyful event, and stay afterwards as we celebrate Jesus' birthday with a party. If you can, please bring a finger food or sweet to share. We will provide the cake and beverages. We expect a special visitor after the play that many of the younger children will enjoy meeting.

Merry Christmas!

Arts & Crafts Show Coming in Dec. 7, 2019

Ebenezer will host another Arts and Crafts show on Saturday, December 7th, 4-7:00 p.m. Local artists and craftmakers are encouraged to bring their products to show and sell. (Artists/craftmakers retain all proceeds from sales of their products.)

Food will be on sale to those who come to see the products of our local talented and skilled artisans. This is an opportunity to buy a special and unique Christmas present for your family or friends; or a wonderfully unique piece of art or craft for your home.

Tables will be available for participants to display their wares on.

Community Thanksgiving Service

The annual Community Thanksgiving Service will be held at Grace Chapel UMC on November 24th at 6:00 p.m. All members of the community and surrounding church families are invited to attend as we thank God for his many undeserved blessings of the past year.

UMW Country Store

Ebenezer's United Methodist Women will open their annual Country Store on Saturday, November 9th from 8:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Breakfast biscuits will be sold in the morning, and hamburgers and hot dogs will be on sale around lunchtime. There will be lots of handmade crafts, canned goods, and gently used items on sale. Come and eat, then stay to look for bargains or Christmas gifts for your friends and family.

Proceeds will fund the women's ministries in the coming year. We thank you for your support.

Trunk or Treat - Safe Halloween - 2019

Rain or Shine! Everything free! Come to Ebenezer for a safe Halloween with lots of free candy handed out from spookily decorated car trunks and truck beds on Thursday, October 31st from 5:30-6:30 p.m. (Please note: we will not be serving hot dogs this year, but only giving out candy.)

Homecoming/$10,000 Sunday - Report 2019

Praise be to God! The Lord answered our prayers. We received over $23,000. Over $22,000 of that went to our General Fund. We thank everyone who attended our service and the meal, and gave so generously to our church on this special day. We pray that our regular members and attendees will continue to give to fund our church ministries and services. Thank you!

We invite our former members/attendees to our annual Homecoming Service on October 13th at 10:30 a.m. We will worship our Lord with extra songs during our worship, and then enjoy a pot-luck lunch afterwards. If you can, please bring a favorite food or dessert to share. We will provide beverages.

We are asking our members and friends to reach deep into their pockets and give an extra offering this Sunday as we try to raise $10,000 above our regular offering. We thank you for your support and faithful giving.

(Please note: Sunday school classes will not meet this Sunday.)

Cornhole Tournament Fundraiser - 2019

We will have a Cornhole Tournament with Soup to eat on Saturday, October 5th starting at 4:30 p.m. Register to compete for $10 per person (teams of 2). Test your cornhole skills or just come to watch, and enjoy a bowl of soup, too, for donations to the upcoming Romania mission trip to help prepare a new orphanage building for Finding Hope Ministries. Call Kim Ellis at 828-499-0886 to pre-register your team.

Jerry Kohnle Memorial Barbecue - Report 2019

Our current figures show that we raised over $9500 from the Barbecue fundraiser. Expenses will have to be deducted, but that is a great total and we thank everyone who bought the barbecue and helped supply labor and desserts for this event.

Our annual benefit barbecue fundraiser will be held on Friday, September 27 and Saturday, September 28 from 4-7:00 p.m. in memory of longtime Ebenezer UMC member, Jerry Kohnle. (Please make note of the time change for Saturday.)

Adult plates are $9, children's plates are $4 to age 12 (4 years old and under eat for free). Plates include: pork barbecue and sauce, slaw, baked beans, roll, dessert and a beverage. You have your choice of homemade desserts provided by our members and affiliates. Take-out or eat-in.

Proceeds will be used to help local residents with medical bills. We thank you for your support.

All-American Sunday, July 28th 2019

We will celebrate the United States of America and the liberty that we enjoy here to worship freely and publicly on Sunday, July 28th at 10:00 a.m. (Please note the worship time change.) Service personnel are encouraged to wear their uniforms to the service. After the worship and praise service, we will gather in the Christian Life Center to share a quintessential American meal of hot dogs, apple pie, and ice cream. (Note: Sunday school classes will not meet.)

VBS Ends Tonight, June 11th

After the regular VBS activities from 5:30-8:30 p.m., we invite the families of our VBS participants and the community to an Ice Cream Social tonight at 8:30 p.m. We will honor the children who attended Vacation Bible School this year and they will show us what they learned about how Good God Is even when Life is Wild! Roar!

P.S. Our meal tonight at 5:30 p.m. will be hamburgers and hot dogs, along with food left over from the previous 2 nights.

You can view our Monday night VBS newsletter here.

VBS Begins June 9th, 5:30-8:45 PM

We are getting ready for a great time at Vacation Bible School 2019. Come and ROAR! with us about our great and good God, who remains good no matter how wild life becomes. Here are some photos of the preparations.

We go all-out for VBS. Come have some fun learning about God and his love for us.

VBS Is Coming! Roar!

Vacation Bible School is June 9-11, 2019, 5:30-8:45 p.m.

Ebenezer is planning some Wild Bible Adventures at Vacation Bible School this year, because Life is wild; God is good! We'll be singing, playing great games, doing fun projects at the Imagination Station--all while learning how knowing God can make life good--even when bad things are happening; because God is good!

Some of the friends you will meet at VBS include Mack the Rhino, Hopper--the Hoopoe Bird, Marge the Cape Buffalo, Zion the Lion, and Savanna Giraffe. Come and Roar! with us at the 2019 VBS! All ages are welcome. A light supper will be served at 5:30 p.m. The adult class begins at 6:30 p.m.

Note Burning Service - Report

We were treated to good worship music from the praise band and the adult choir during the dedication of the Christian Life Center, and the celebration for paying off the mortgage. An emotional Rev. Eric Lane, our former pastor who served during the time of the building progect from beginning to end, spoke during the service. The 70 people in attendance then walked outside to symbolically throw copies of the "note" onto a fire. Though it had been raining earlier, there was plenty of sunshine as we tossed the papers into the flames. Back in the Christian Life Center, we shared some wonderful food while fellowshiping with one another. It was a wonderful time of worship, praise, and thankfulness to our Lord, and to all those who helped make this moment possible.

We will have a Note Burning Service on Sunday, May 5th, 2019 at 3:00 pm. to celebrate paying off the Christian Life Center mortgage. The service will be held in the Christian Life Center, though the note burning will be done outside. Special guests will include former pastor Rev. Eric Lane (the only person to confirm at this point). We invite every one who helped with the construction of the CLC, and who helped us pay off the loan through their gifts or by purchasing items during any of our multiple fundraisers for this building project.

We ask that our current members bring finger foods and sweets to share after the service.

Thank you to every person who contributed over the years to this project. We hope to see you at the service.

Hot Wings Challenge - 2019

The United Methodist Men are sponsoring a Hot Wing Challenge on Saturday, June 1st at 6:00 p.m. Up to 30 participants will eat 10 chicken wings each. The first one will have a mild hot sauce on it, and each subsequent wing will be hotter and hotter! An emcee will ask the challengers questions as they eat--and see if they can keep their heads while their mouths burn with the spicy heat.

Come join in the hilarious fun and have a hamburger or hot dog or wings without sauce and dessert for donations. Proceeds go to help a family in the community. Doors will open at 6:00 p.m. The challenge will begin between 6:30 and 6:45 p.m.

To enter the challenge, contact Jimmy Stone at 828-994-1764 or by email at listenjimmy@gmail.com by May 30th.

It's Paid For!

For all those who did not attend church on Sunday, you missed the announcement that the Christian Life Center mortgage is paid in full! We are now DEBT FREE! Praise be to God and to every one of you who gave faithfully and worked so hard to make this day possible.

Because of this wonderful accomplishment, we have now closed the Building Fund. All leftover Building Fund monies will be put in a new account called "Capital Improvements." Later on, we will use this fund to do some improvements and remodeling of the church building and grounds; but, for now, we would prefer that you give your tithes and offerings to the General Fund. We had to cut back on some of our ministries in the last couple of years to keep up the CLC mortgage payments. Now, we can spend more money on our current ministries, especially for our children and youth, and maybe on new ministries and services.

We have set Sunday, May 5th, at 3:00 p.m. as the day for our "note burning" ceremony and celebration. We will provide more information about this event later.

Journeys with Jesus

From March 24th to April 7th, we will have speakers during the Sunday morning worship service that will share stories of their "Journeys with Jesus." Our first guest speakers on Sunday, March 24th at 9:00 a.m. will be Irene Austin and a representative from Safe Harbor, a women's and children's shelter. All of our guest speakers will be regular (lay) people, not clergy, who will share their personal experiences and their faith journey with Jesus. Pass the word. Everyone is invited.

Todd Harris will speak about his journey with Jesus and his battle with cancer on Sunday, March 31st. On Sunday, April 7th, Kim Ellis and Kirk Austin will tell us about their mission trip to Belize.

Cornhole Tournament & Cornbread - Report

We had a great turnout for this event and raised over $1,000 to help with legal fees for Briar's adoption. Thank you to everyone! We even had soup left over to serve on Sunday morning for more donations to this fund. Everyone did a great job and gave generously. We had dust flying everywhere from the tournament, but it was great fun, too! Thanks again.

On Saturday, January 26, 2019 from 3:00 p.m. until, we will have a Cornhole Tournament. Cornbread and soup will be on sale to the players and watchers. The deadline to register your team is Friday, January 25th at 6:00 p.m. To sign up your team, contact Tasha Haas at 828-781-4530.

Proceeds will go to help pay legal expenses for the adoption of Briar by his grandmother.

Paint Party - Jan.19, 2019 -- Report

THANK YOU! We had a terrific turnout for this event and raised $795 to help with the legal fees for Briar's grandmother as she works to adopt Briar and continue to give him a stable home. Thank you again.

Come to Ebenezer and paint a 12 x 12 wood panel with a delightful winter-themed scene to decorate your home, and help us raise money for the grandmother of Briar, so that she can officially adopt her grandson. A $10 donation is all you need. All paint supplies will be provided. Please bring your own snack food and drink. The fun begins at 6:30 PM.

Please register by contacting Tasha Haas at nadeal05@yahoo.com or call the church office.

We thank you for your support.