Rev. Andrew Chappell
Senior Pastor
achappell@NewnanFUMC.org
770.253.7400 (x202)
Dear Friends & Family of Newnan First UMC,
As we enter into a season of Advent, we enter a time of anticipation. We anticipate celebrating the arrival of the Christ child, and we who were born after Jesus’ lifetime also anticipate his second arrival here, when God’s New Creation will finally be realized and we know what it means to be in full communion with our loving God.
Until then, we are in this strange period of knowing that God has already saved us and the world, but not yet feeling the full realization of that New Creation. Advent is about remembering thatwe are in the already/not yet part of humanity’s story. Even as we celebrate the times when we have witnessed the inbreaking of God’s kingdom, we also recognize that the world is still broken. We yearn for the fullness of deliverance that God has promised.
So we wait together, and remind one another why it is that we have received “a glimpse of hope, [and] a weary world rejoices.” I hope that you can join us as we worship and anticipate Christmas this Advent season. Together, we anticipate the coming of Emmanuel, “God with Us,” and the unbelievable joy given by that promise!
-Connor
Rev. Connor Bell
Associate Pastor
cbell@NewnanFUMC.org
770.253.7400 (x208)
WELCOME NEW MEMBERS
and Logan Maloy
MONTHLY FINANCE
Ruby
Update Missions
ERT: Our Early Response Team has been busy with assisting with relief from Hurricane Debby and Helene, serving in Savannah, Valdosta, and the Thomson areas since September working with homeowners to rebuild their lives after a disaster. We’re hoping to have 5-6 more people join our crew! ERT helps with debris removal, chainsaw work, tarping roofs, and most importantly, provide a caring Christian presence. If you are interested in learning more about ERT, please contact either Aileen or Ted Burnett. No skills are needed, just a heart to serve our brothers and sisters in Christ.
The Coat Drive was a big success. We collected more than 100 coats for One Roof!
RIse Against Hunger Update: The meals that we packed were just shipped to Burkina Faso, a small, landlocked country in Western Africa! Thank you for supporting this mission.
UPCOMING MISSIONS
View & Download Mission pictures
Newnan Emergency Shelter Team (NEST): NEST assists the homeless population in our community when the temperatures fall below 35 degrees for more than two hours prior to 4am. Our church will provide dinner and transportation to the hotel on Saturday nights and transportation back to Newnan City Church on Sunday mornings. Contact Aileen Burnett or use the QR code to the left to sign up to serve. You will need to be Safe Sanctuary certified!
Joy Tree: The Joy Tree provides Christmas gifts to children in foster care in our local area. We had tags for a total of 200 children this year to provide gifts of both clothing and toys. Each child is allowed a “wish list” for toys and clothing and our congregation has always been extremely generous in helping to fulfill these lists.
Mission Guatemala | August 16-23, 2025
This is an United Methodist mission partner dedicated to serving the basic needs of under served communities through health, education, nutrition, and meaningful missionary service. Our church sent a team in 2023, and the experience was wonderful and transformative. If you are interested in finding out more, please contact our Missions co-chair, Lee Berry, at lee@leeberry.com.
JOY TREE DROP-OFF (Annex 3rd Floor)
Sunday, December 1 9:30am-12:30pm Friday, December 6 4:00pm-6:00pm
Saturday, December 7 10:00am-Noon
Sunday, December 8 9:30am-12:30pm
Christmas Luncheon - December 5th
Aileen Burnett Missions & Sr. Adult Coordinator
aburnett@NewnanFUMC.org
770.253.7400 (x206)
Christmas luncheon on Thursday, December 5th at 11:30am in the Annex Hall. We will enjoy a catered lunch, fellowship and Christmas sing-along. Cost will be $5.00 and RSVP deadline is Monday, December 2.
Please bring a word search/crossword book for Silver Bells and 4 dozen cookies to package for our Wesley Woods members. If you have any questions, contact Aileen.
View & Download All 2024 Fun ‘n Frolic pictures
phall@NewnanFUMC.org 770.253.7400 Patty Hall Church Hostess WNF
Wednesday Night Fellowship 5:00-6:15pm, Parish Hall
While supper is served 5:00-6:15pm, those enjoying fellowship are welcome to stay later even if Patty and helpers are packing up! Remember to RSVP by noon the Tuesday before supper. This helps give us an accurate count when making food!
In addition to dinner and fellowship, we will have several make-and-take craft projects set up to help you have a meaningful Advent at home. Projects include an Advent Wreath, an Advent Calendar Garland with daily scripture readings and various Christmas Ornaments, plus a kids’ craft table. All ages are welcome!
WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 4 PARISH HALL
5:00-6:15pm - Dinner is Served 5:00-7:00pm - Crafts Available
December 4th WNF is Christmas Dinner Turkey, Mashed Potatoes, Sweet Potato Casserole, Corn, Dressing, & Dessert.
UTH & ROOT345 SUNDAY NIGHT MENUS - NOVEMBER December 1 - Soup
$8.00/person $25.00 for a family of 4 (12 & under)
Prepare Your Heart for Christmas: Advent Devotions
Advent begins on December 1st, marking the start of a new liturgical year and a season of preparation for the Christmas celebration. This special time is meant to help us prepare our hearts for the birth of Jesus, remembering God’s promises fulfilled.
To guide you through this meaningful season, we invite you to join us in our Advent devotions. This year, you can access daily devotions digitally or pick up a printed copy at church. Whether you’re looking for a personal reflection, a family activity, or a way to connect with your community, our Advent devotions, study and festival offer powerful ways to deepen your faith and prepare for the joy of Christmas. We look forward to journeying through Advent together, may you be blessed this Advent season!
NEW Advent Study: “A Weary World Rejoices”
Sundays, December 8-22 at 9:45am & Wednesdays, December 4-18 at 10:00am in the Annex Hall
mwebb@newnanfumc.org
770.253.7400
The season of Advent is upon us—a season that invites us into the tension of ‘already’ and ‘not yet,’ where we hold the fragile hope that everything broken will be made whole, that every sorrow will be met with joy, and that every deep longing will be filled with love. If you are not already connected to a Sunday School class, we hope you’ll join us for this seasonal study as we attempt to embrace the Advent and Christmas season just as it is - beautiful, imperfect and real. Led by Melody Webb. No book or preparation required! Bring yourself and your bible.
Wednesday Night Fellowship: Christmas Dinner & Advent Festival
Wednesday, December 4 in the Parish Hall | Dinner Served 5:00-6:15pm, Crafts until 7:00pm
In addition to dinner and fellowship, we will also have several makeand-take craft projects set up to help you have a meaningful Advent at home. Projects include an Advent Wreath, an Advent Calendar Garland with daily scripture readings and various Christmas Ornaments, plus a kids’ craft table. All ages are welcome!
Women’s Christmas Gala
Tuesday, December 10 at 5:30 pm in Parish Hall
It’s not too late to gather a group of friends for a table at our annual Women’s Gala. Friends get to choose a theme and decorate your own table, then gather for a scrumptious dinner, decadent desserts and an evening of fellowship and fun! Childcare is provided for children through 5th grade (request when purchasing tickets). This year’s entertainment features Atlanta-area jazz band, Tones Collective, who will provide jazz stylings of Christmas favorites. See Lynn McKibbin for tickets.
Blue Christmas Worship
December 19 at 5:30 pm in the Chapel Know someone feeling “blue” about the holidays? Someone who has lost a loved one, had a job, health or relationship change, and may be experiencing more grief than joy this year? Invite them to this brief service of grief and lament as we comfort each other with songs and prayers, and light candles to remind each other of the hope we share, that a Light is coming that will overcome all darkness.
Women’s Christmas Gala
December 10th 5:30pm in the Parish Hall
TICKETS, $25 PURCHASE FROM LYNNMCKIBBIN46@GMAIL.COM
WOMEN OF ALL AGES ARE INVITED! GATHER YOUR GROUP OF 8 (OR LYNN WILL PAIR YOU WITH A GROUP). GROUPS CHOOSE THEIR TABLE THEME/COLOR SCHEME AND BRING THEIR OWN ITEMS TO DECORATE ACCORDINGLY.
MENU*: SMOKED GOUDA & BACON ALFREDO, SPINACH SALAD, VEGETABLES, BREAD AND A VARIETY OF DECADENT DESSERTS
CHRISTMAS TUNES FROM ATLANTA JAZZ GROUP,
Tones Collective
Paul Mosley Youth Director
pmosley@NewnanFUMC.org
770.253.7400 (x219)
As we have just had a holiday of thankfulness and move into a season of anticipation, we want to start by saying thank you to everyone involved in UTH. From students to volunteers to parents, you have helped make this an amazing year at UTH. We accomplished so much this year, and are so excited for this advent season alongside all of you. The advent season is one in which we are anticipating the Lord’s arrival, and we know He is going to show up! He will be at our gatherings of friends and family. He will be in all the holiday cheer. And Christ will be with us as we move into the new year and get ready to see what all He has in store for us. I don’t know about you all but I am excited!
We are closing out the Fall semester at UTH with our Small Group Scatter on December 1st during the UTH hours and wonderful Christmas party, planned and organized by your very own student leadership team, on December 15 from 6-8pm. The Small group Scatter has our students select an activity for the small group to do just to enjoy some time together.Our Christmas party is a celebration of Christ’s birth, these students, and the awesome year we have had; we will be decorating cookies, watching some Christmas classics, Christmas Games, and of course, karaoke!
Ski Trip Details:
Our annual UTH Ski trip is just around the corner. We will be traveling up to Lake Junaluska for our Ski Retreat, and will be skiing at Cataloochee Ski Area in Maggie Valley. Both facilities are wonderful. We will be spending two days on the slopes while also growing our faith and our relationships with one another. This trip costs $550 (registration deposit is $225) which covers ski passes and equipment for two days, meals while at Lake Junaluska, and all other program costs. Students will need money for meals on the way up and back and any other items they need to purchase while on the trip. We are so excited to spend some time in God’s wonderful creation and cannot wait for you to join us. As always, if students are in need of scholarship, we have that available. Please reach out to Paul Mosley, our director of student ministries.
2025 UTH Ski Trip 2025 UTH Ski Trip 2025 UTH Ski Trip
View & Download All 2024 Uth pictures
UPCOMING EVENTS
December 1: Small Group Scatter 6:00-8:00pm
Middle School Boys: Sports Night in Parish Hall
Middle School Girls: Holiday Movie Night @ Mrs Kristy’s High School: Dinner @ Olive Garden
December 8: O Holy Night
December 15: UTH Christmas Party
December 22: Deadline for Ski Trip Signups
January 5: First UTH of Spring Semester BINGO night with Prizes!
January 17-20: UTH Ski Trip
“This gift of God we’ll cherish well, that ever joy our hearts shall fill. How great our joy!”
We find ourselves now in the season of Advent, preparing our hearts for the arrival of the Christ Child. In the hustle and bustle of daily life, it’s easy to overlook the quiet, profound moments of joy that come into our lives, often without warning. But when we stop to reflect on the deeper meaning of joy, especially the joy of the season, we are reminded of its sacredness—a joy that transcends circumstances, filling us with peace, hope, and gratitude.
As we prepare for “Meditations at the Nativity” on December 15th, I urge you to find time to reflect on the following:
What brings you joy, right now, in this moment? How might you allow joy to enter the quiet, ordinary places of your life today?
Consider the way the shepherds responded to the message of joy—they went quickly to see the child, to experience the miracle for themselves. How often do we rush toward things that bring us anxiety, and yet the invitation here is to quickly move toward joy, to receive it with open hands, without delay.
As we turn our hearts toward this manger scene, there will be no shortage of amazing music. The Children’s Christmas Pageant is always such a blessing as we usher in this season. The angels in the loft and the sheep coming down the aisles? It doesn’t get much more precious than that. Our traditional “O Holy Night” program will be on December 8th at 3:00 and 6:00p.m. The music shared by all ensembles of the music department here at the church will be a sure way to find joy in your day. We hope to see you all there! As Christmas Eve services approach, we’ll have time in worship together singing the old familiar carols and making memories to last a lifetime. I can’t wait to share that with all of you.
I’ll leave you with this prayer that I’ll be meditating on over the coming weeks:
God of Light and Love,
Thank you for the great joy that You offer us—joy that does not fade with circumstances, but remains steadfast, filling us with peace and hope. May we have hearts open to receive Your joy, in the quiet moments and in the loud ones. Help us to quickly embrace the joy of the season, of life, and of Your presence. We are grateful for the gift of joy, and for the reminder that You are with us always. Amen.
Soli
Deo Gloria, Caitie
SUNDAY, DECEMBER
8:30am & 11:00am
First KIDS
Director of Children’s
We have had a very busy November full of fun things! As we wrap up the month and enter into December we are focused on the birth of Jesus!
In Sunday School, our younger group is wrapping up our journey with Moses. We will be exploring all the wonderful lessons surrounding the birth of Jesus! We will be having fun while we learn, making fun crafts, and doing fun activities! Our older Sunday School group is wrapping up Exodus and hopping right into Leviticus and Numbers. They will round out the end of December in Deuteronomy.
770.253.7400 (x209) Andrea Stuart
Ministry
astuart@NewnanFUMC.org
View & Download All First KIDS pictures
Our Children’s Worship will be exploring the Nativity and learning about the great hope that came to us with the birth of Jesus! We cannot wait to wiggle and play with praise! We will create and express our gratitude for Jesus’s birth! Please note that we will have Communion Sunday, December 8th this month and will not be having Children’s Worship so that families can enjoy communion together.
December is a busy month for our church! We will have our Christmas Pageant December 1, 2024 in the Sanctuary during the Sunday School hour. We will be having our Happy Birthday Jesus Party in the Parish Hall during the 11am service on December 1, after the pageant. We have a very special guest that day! You do NOT want to miss him!
That evening we will have our ROOT345 Christmas party in the Annex Hall. We will watch a movie, make cards for the residents at Wesley Woods, and eat! ROOT345 will break for the holiday after the party and then resume meeting January 5, 2025! We cannot wait to see you all during the fun! Please reach out if you have any questions!
If you need child care during the services, we have an amazing staff of people that can help take care of your children. They are located in the Pre-School, located below the Parish Hall.
December 1 December 1 9:45am | Sanctuary 9:45am | Sanctuary
4-yr-olds through 6th Graders are invited to participate in the pageant (ALL invited to see it on the 1st!). Use the QR Code to sign your child up by November 30.
It has been such a remarkable and rewarding school year so far. I have been so blessed to be a part of such a wonderful Church and school and I thank each and everyone of you for your hospitality in welcoming me so far!
In December at the Preschool we focus on why we celebrate Christmas. The teachers plan activities and lessons around the story of the birth of Jesus. They emphasize why he is the reason we celebrate Christmas. They reflect with the children on the many blessings we have been given because of the gift God gave us in Jesus. Each classroom holds a “Birthday Party for Jesus” before we go on break for the year.
We had a wonderful Thanksgiving program! Thank you to our music teacher Miss Abbie for working with the students on their music and for planning the program! On December 6th at 11am, our Pre-K and K students will be singing at Barnes and Noble to help with a fundraiser for the Carnegie library. A portion of sales from that day will be given to the library.
We hope everyone has a wonderful and joyous Christmas and a happy New Year! Blessings to you all!
Susan
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Traditional Worship
8:30am & 11:00am | Sanctuary
Joy Tree Drop-off
9:30am-12:30pm | Annex 3F
Children’s Christmas Pageant
9:45am | Sanctuary
Kids Happy Bday, Jesus Party
11:00am | Parish Hall
Youth Ensemble
4:30pm | Choir Room
Youth Choir
5:00pm | Choir Room
UTH Small Group Scatter
6:00pm | Meet at Youth Lounge
ROOT345 Christmas Party
6:00pm | Children’s Wing
2 Joybells
4:30pm | Bell Room
Inspirations
5:45pm | Choir Room
3
Men’s Prayer Breakfast
8:30am | Gathering Room
Celebration Singers
9:30am | Choir Room
4
UTH Biscuits & Bibles
7:00am | Truetts’ CfA
December Calendar
4
WNF: Advent Festival
5:00-7:00pm | Parish Hall
Vespers
5:00pm | Chapel
Cherub Choir
5:15pm | Main 200
Carol Choir
5:15pm | Choir Room
Chancel Choir
6:45pm | Choir Room
5
FnF Christmas Luncheon 11:30am | Annex Hall
6
PS Singing for Carnegie 11:00am | Barnes & Noble
Joy Tree Drop-off 4:00-6:00pm | Annex 3rd Floor
7
Church Alliance Meeting 9:30am | Gathering Room
Joy Tree Drop-off
10:00am-12:00pm | Annex 3rd Floor
Youth Fruit Pickup
8am-Noon | Parish Hall
Historic Church Tour 5:00-8:00pm | Sanctuary
8
Traditional Worship
8
Sunday School
9:45am | Varying Locations
Confirmation Class 9:45am | Annex Conference
O Holy Night
3:00 & 6:00pm | Sanctuary
Angel House Meeting 11:30am | Main 201
Parkinson’s Support Meeting 2:30pm | Main 200
Women’s Christmas Gala 5:30pm | Parish Hall 11
UTH Biscuits & Bibles
7:00am | Truett’s CfA
Advent Bible Study 10:00am | Annex Hall
Breaking Bread 12:00pm | Gathering Room
Chancel Choir
6:45pm | Choir Room
Parents Morning Out 9:00am-1:00pm | Parish Hall
Meditations at the Nativity 8:30am & 11:00am | Sanctuary
Advent Bible Study 9:45am | Annex Hall
16
Martha Circle 9:45am | Main 200
Advent Bible Study
10:00am | Annex Hall
Breaking Bread
12:00pm | Gathering Room
Bellissimo
4:30pm | Bell Room
8:30am & 11:00am | Sanctuary
Joy Tree Drop-off
9:30am-12:30pm | Annex 3F
Advent Bible Study
9:45am | Annex Hall
Sunday School 9:45am | Varying Locations
UTH Christmas Party 6:00pm | Youth Lounge
Finance Committee Meeting 6:00pm | Annex Hall 17
Men’s Prayer Breakfast 8:30am | Gathering Room 18
Dementia Support Meeting 10:00am | Annex Conference
Advent Bible Study 10:00am | Annex Hall
Breaking Bread 12:00pm | Gathering Room
Chancel Choir 6:45pm | Choir Room
19
Blue Christmas Worship 5:30pm | Chapel
22
Traditional Worship 8:30am & 11:00am | Sanctuary
Advent Bible Study 9:45am | Annex Hall
Sunday School 9:45am | Varying Locations 24
Christmas Eve Services 11:00am, 4:00pm*, 11:00pm Sanctuary
*YouTube Live Stream 25-27
Church Office Closed
29
Traditional Worship 10:00am | Sanctuary
In The Life of Our Church
Baptisms
Margaret Elizabeth Mewborn
November 17, 2024 | Margaret Gail & Patrick Mewborn
Extending our Christian Sympathies
Anita and Peter Ludlow on the death of their daughter, Sally Ludlow.
See the full 2024-2025 “Yearbook” album here!
CHURCH STAFF
Rev. Andrew Chappell, Senior Pastor
Aileen Burnett, Missions & Sr Adult Coordinator
Seth Crile, Facilities Manager
Caitlyn Dixon, Minister of Music
Danika Ford, Nursery Coordinator
Janet Marie Gunnels, Communications Director
Patty Hall, Kitchen Hostess
Tiffany Hanson, Church Sexton
Carol Hartenbower, Administrative Assistant
Carrie Horsley, Church Sexton
Rev. Connor Bell, Associate Pastor
Bonnie Krider, Asst. Director of Music
Owen Lambert, Finance & Business Director
Dr. Dawn McCord, Organist
Susan Mitchell, Preschool Director
Paul Mosley, Youth Minister
Julie Perkins, Accompanist
Kim Stokes, Finance Secretary
Andrea Stuart, Director of Children’s Ministries
Melody Webb, Discipleship Director