Adult Education Opportunities
at First United Methodist Church
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Sunday Mornings
New Participants are always welcome in any of the Sunday Morning classes:
The Women of Faith Sunday School Class Sunday mornings at 9:30 a.m. you will find a group of women of various ages and stages of life meeting around the table in the Library. You’ll hear great discussion, laughter, expressions of “ah-ha” as personal revelations occur.
The group had fun studying The Questions God Asks Us and reading through a Gospel of choice, finishing the year by reading the Epistles of James and 1 John. The class will resume on September 19. We’re looking forward to a session led by Tracy Miles on creative ways of journaling. We may even take an in-depth look at the book of Revelation. Check back for more information as we get closer to September
Sunday School Class for Adults with Disabilities Our newest offering is this class for adults with special needs. The class meets weekly on Sundays in Room 6 at 9:30 a.m.
The selected curriculum is Access and is specifically designed for adults with special learning needs. Teachers are Cindy Boger, Erin Eckelberry, and Cathy Lee.
The Trinity Class meets in the 1st Floor Lounge at 9:30 every Sunday morning. They usually choose a book to study together.
The Seekers’ Class meets in the Student Lounge on the 2nd Floor at 9:30. They practice what is known as the Taize method - each week they read over a short Scripture passage, followed by a meditation or reflection on the passage. After reading and reflecting on the message, members of the class freely share their own thoughts as they feel comfortable. The class is very casual, and there is no out of class preparation. Just come and listen, think and share. They are currently on break until September 19.
Discerning God’s Call in Your Life The scripture, Mark 9:42-50, speaks of the stumbling block. It also speaks of what to do about that which causes the stumbling. Get rid of it!
Lack of clarity of God’s intention, God’s call in one’s life may be one of the biggest stumbling blocks of our current time. This seems to result in saying yes to anything that comes our way. Being unable or unwilling to seek out the avenues where ones call is best lived.
Have you spent quality time on this question? What is your God-Give-Purpose? Have you clarified it in such a way that you see it reflected in you calendar, your bank records, who others speak of you?
You are invited to participate in the “Focused Living Retreat”. This summer it is being offered in a 3 Mondays in a row format.
Dates: August 9,16 & 23
Time: 6:00-8:30pm
Place: First Floor Lounge
Please contact Pastor Mary Jo personally to sign up: yeakel@firstumcathens.org or (740) 707-0898.
DISCIPLE is a program of disciplined Bible study aimed at developing strong Christian leaders. It focuses on the disciple as learner, believer, follower, proclaimer, and servant while providing the fellowship of a small group for study, prayer, preparation, support, and servanthood.
Short-term Disciple series has recently become available and is offered at Athens First. These eight to eleven week in-depth, high commitment Bible studies are modeled after the basic design of DISCIPLE Bible Study, which has enriched more than 1 million lives. Short-Term DISCIPLE Bible Studies make these life-changing courses available for those busy people who are unable to commit to longer studies.
Our next offering in this Disciple series is Introduction to the Old Testament starting Thursday, September 9, led by Matthew Dalton. Introduction to the New Testament will be led by David Maze starting January 20th. We have other studies in this series including John, Romans, and Genesis that we hope to also offer
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Lectionary Studies
Pastor Mary Jo makes it a practice to preach on Scripture from the Common Lectionary. Every month we make available a printed version of these (One Plus the Power of You) in the tray outside her office and on the window ledge of the last window in the Sanctuary. They are also noted each week in the Calendar portion of the Bulletin Announcement Insert. There are two groups that study these each week: The Men’s Prayer Group and the Brown Bag Study Group.
The Men’s Prayer Group meets for breakfast every Thursday at 7 a.m. at Bob Evan’s
FOCUS (Fellowship Of the Clueless United by the Spirit), meets Thursdays in Fellowship Hall from 12:10-12:50 p.m. Bring your lunch, if you’d like. We're on break for the summer and will resume Sept. 16.
Small Group Studies
Living a Lifestyle that is Healthy During the spring, we offered an opportunity for adults to gather on Thursday evenings to explore topics around the theme Healthy Lifestyles. We plan to offer this series again in January.
Scrapbooking Bible Study Group: Busy Scrapbookers Gather on the 4th Sunday for Fun and Fellowship The Scrapbooking group, which incorporates Bible Study with this popular hobby, is led by Lisa Dael and is now meeting on the 4th Sunday at 12:30 p.m. in the Student Lounge. Lisa has done a wonderful job of assessing needs and adapting the class to meet the busy lives of scrapbooking enthusiasts.
Each session stands alone and requires no advance study prep – just gather the photos you would like to use that relate to these themes: My Purpose, Family, Church, Sisterhood, My Relationship with God and Freedom in Christ (just some of the topics to be discussed over the next few months). Bring a friend or family member and have them scrapbook along with us. The more the merrier!
For more information, please contact Lisa Dael (dael@ohio.edu) or see her at church.
Questions about any of our educational opportunities? Contact Sharon at 593-3977 x 11 or fink@firstumcathens.org