Discernment
Discernment Information
We have disaffiliated from the United Methodist Church and are now affiliated with the Global Methodist Church. This page was originally designed to keep the congregation updated on our church’s discernment process. You’ll find links at the bottom of the page to click and research for yourself. We plan to keep this page active only for a short time.
“Every Christian revival movement begins with a follower of Christ making a radical commitment to follow Jesus. This is the beginning point and foundation. But be forewarned: being a follower of Jesus is not for the faint of heart! Following Jesus does not eliminate life’s problems or difficulties. On the contrary, as a believer you will likely have to suffer for your faith. Your commitment to Christ will be resisted and attacked in one form or another, as all Christians are called to identify with Christ’s mission ….” – Winfield Bevins, Marks of a Movement
“The disciple is one who, intent upon becoming Christ-like and so dwelling in his “faith and practice,” systematically and progressively rearranges his affairs to that end. By these decisions and actions, even today, one enrolls in Christ’s training, becomes his pupil or disciple. There is no other way.” – Dallas Willard, The Great Omission
Disaffiliation Announcement 2/27/2023
Dear Church Family,
Yesterday, our church members voted to disaffiliate from the United Methodist Church by a 76% to 24% margin, and to affiliate with the Global Methodist Church by a 93% to 7% margin. It has been a long road to get here, but we are finally at the point where we know our church’s direction. Change is always difficult, but we believe that we are moving forward to continue to be a Christ-centered community based on the authority of God’s Word – the whole Bible for the whole world!
There will be many details to take care of between now and the May 1 deadline, when we must submit paperwork to the North Alabama Conference to be included in the May 11 Annual Conference vote on churches requesting disaffiliation. One of the pressing items is to pay the separation fee to the conference, which totals $228,574. This fee was calculated by the North Alabama Conference to cover our unpaid apportionments for 2022 and 2023, our church’s share of the unfunded pension liability, and the repayment of a $3,000 technology grant we were given in 2020 to help defray some of our tech expenses during COVID.
Now is the time for our membership to step up financially and to participate in fundraising for this fee. There will be other expenses associated with the disaffiliation process (attorney fees, replacement of signs, rebranding as Helena Methodist Church, etc.), so our goal for this fundraising is $250,000. If we can reach this goal, we will be able to keep intact our current cash and reserve accounts, which totaled $284,164.66 at the end of January. We have worked hard, and made sacrifices to build our reserve, and the plan is to preserve it as much as possible.
Please prayerfully consider how much financial support you can provide for our church. If we raise more than the $250,000, we intend to use the overflow funds to help pay down our mortgage which stands at $1,126,186.35. Wouldn’t it be great to eliminate that leading “1”, getting the mortgage below the one-million-dollar mark?
Please pray and think about your personal budget and how much you can afford to make a one-time donation. Perhaps you are getting a big tax refund, or you have some other unexpected windfall, or you just have a little extra in your budget that you could allocate to this important request for funds. Your Finance Committee is continuing to analyze the finances of the church and our financial obligations to ensure that God’s money is being spent appropriately. We ask that you continue with your gifts and tithes to the annual budget and this new fundraising effort would be in addition to your regular gifts to the church.
Thank you for your continued support and the prayerful consideration of the request for funds to complete the disaffiliation project. Please mark your gift with “Designated Disaffiliation Fund” by using the memo line on a check or the comment box with Venmo or Elexio e-giving. For large donations, a check may be the best option, so that the church can avoid the fees that Elexio charges for the e-giving (1%-3%), or the transfer limitations on Venmo.
Your Finance Committee
Hebrews 13:16
Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God.
