Worship Online with Us

If you are unable to attend our Sunday morning worship services in-person, please join us online. We stream both services Sunday mornings live at 9 and 11 a.m. and both are available to watch later if you can’t watch live. We also have many previous services available to watch if you missed one. Please don’t forget to let us know you are watching with the “I’m Here” button at the top of the page.

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Pastor David’s Corner

It doesn’t take long for someone new to the United Methodist Church to hear the term “apportionments.” But what exactly does that mean?

In the United Methodist Church, apportionments are a system of giving in which local UM congregations are each assigned a specific amount to contribute. These funds support the denomination’s broader ministries and programs—from global mission work to church administration—allowing us to serve effectively far beyond what any one congregation could do alone.

Through your generous giving, First Church is part of this shared mission. Because of the connectional nature of the United Methodist Church, all UM congregations—locally and globally—help fund ministries that serve others in powerful and far-reaching ways.

What does that look like in practice?

Here are some of the major funds supported through apportionments:

• World Service Fund – Supports global mission work and outreach.
• Episcopal Fund – Supports the bishops and district superintendents in their leadership roles.
• Ministerial Education Fund – Helps educate and train pastors for ministry.
• Black College Fund – Supports historically Black colleges and universities, helping them thrive and grow.
• General Administration Fund – Provides the administrative infrastructure of our denomination.
• Africa University Fund – Supports Africa University in Zimbabwe, a United Methodist institution offering education in healthcare, teaching, and other essential disciplines.

Each of these areas plays a vital role in supporting the mission and ministry of the United Methodist Church around the world. Our connectional system allows First Church to be part of something much bigger—extending our impact beyond Phoenix, beyond Arizona, and into communities across the globe.

Yes, “apportionments” may sound like an odd or unfamiliar word, but they represent a vital system of giving—linking our local church to the wider mission of the global church. Your generosity helps make this possible. Thank you for the difference you make in Phoenix, throughout the Desert Southwest Conference, across our country, and around the world.

Together, we are making disciples for the transformation of the world.

See you in church,
Pastor David

Congregational Prayer Requests

(Please join us in lifting up the following items in prayer!)

PRAYER QUILT IN THE NARTHEX
A prayer quilt displayed in the narthex this morning is for Loraine Stewart. Loraine is a friend of Deby Campbell. Another prayer quilt displayed in the narthex this morning is for John Reinhold. John is a long-time member of our church. We invite you to stop, tie a knot, and pray for healing, grace and comfort.

DEATHS

Hedy Cunningham 3/26

Brenda North 4/ 6

PRAYERS FOR OUR SPECIAL CARE
Loraine Stewart, Brenda and Jim Unsworth, Elizabeth Vick, Bob Young, Selena Aldermann, Carolyn Allen, Bill Carpenter, Ruth Clark, Grant Cooper

PRAYERS FOR OUR CHURCHES

First UMC – Glendale

First UMC – Phoenix

First UMC – Sun City

(Got a prayer request? Need someone to pray with? Need support? Our congregational care team is here for you! Please contact the church office to have them forward your request to the congregational care team, fill out the form on our website https://firstchurch.church/prayer-requests/, or reach out to the congregational care team directly by emailing deby@firstchurch.church.)

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Congregational Celebrations and Praises 

(Please join us in praising God for these celebrations!)

WEDDING ANNIVERSARIES (Celebrating 50 or more years of marriage)

Dave and Charlene Kingston 4/10

Jack and Susan Sneathen 4/22

John and Vicki Beaver 5/2

SENIOR MILESTONES (Celebrating 80+ birthdays)

Ken McGinty 4/9

Darla Haller 4/13

Innocent Abiaka 4/16

Karen Champagne 4/18

John Ward 4/20

John Harapiak 4/24

Al Asendorf 4/25

Maxine Perkins 4/27

Nancy Maxwell 4/27

Bijan Mohraz 5/3

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Religious Trauma Symposium

Our church is hosting a religious trauma symposium on May 2nd at 7:00pm! This event is open to all ages, people from the church and from the community and it promises to be a really special night. Sammi and Jessica have worked together to create an amazing panel of speakers including authors, doctors, and therapists who will speak on religious trauma and religious trauma healing. The event is free and would be an amazing outreach tool, so please invite anyone you know who would be interested.

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Potluck

Change For Change Update

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First Church Foundation – Did You Know? (Part 1)

Ms. A: Did you know that First Church has a Foundation?

Mr. J: Of course, every building has a foundation.

Ms. A: No, not a foundation, a FOUNDATION—-the First United Methodist Foundation of Phoenix.

Mr. J: I did not know that.  Tell me more.

Ms. A: Well…in 1954 a group of members of First Methodist Church of Phoenix incorporated for the purpose of holding, managing, and making gifts for the benefit of First United Methodist Church of Phoenix.  While the original group of leaders had a vision of a greater future, they probably did not anticipate the significant degree of support the Foundation provides to FUMC and to the community that we have 70 years later.

Mr. J: Well…how did the Foundation grow to the influence it has in 2025?

Ms. A:  Over the years, many individuals have come to realize how their gifts can have an impact on the community.  It is one way of establishing your legacy.  A gift today can have a positive, lasting impact on the Church and the community.  It is a long-term means of practicing our Christ-inspired benevolence.

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Bringing Faith Home Updates From Jessica

Bible Sunday

📖 Bible Sunday is Coming Up!: On Sunday, May 4th, we’ll be celebrating Bible Sunday by presenting Bibles to all 2nd graders moving into 3rd grade and 3rd graders moving into 4th grade. Parents—keep an eye out for an email from Julie and/or myself with more details. We can’t wait to celebrate our amazing kids and this special milestone in their faith journey!

Bringing church Home:

🏠 Bring Church Home – Thank You! A big thank you to all the families who participated in Bring Church Home throughout April! If you joined in, we’d love to hear from you—please send any comments or feedback to Jessica via email at Jessica@firstchurch.church The next set of materials will be available on Sunday, May 4th for the month of May. We’ll be taking a break in June and July and will return with new content in August. Thanks for being part of this journey! 💛

First Church Kids Crafts

🎨 Coming Soon: First Church Kids Crafts! Starting in August, we’re launching First Church Kids Crafts—a fun new program for kids who aren’t in choir and for parents who’d like to attend Sunday School. It will run between services from 10:00–11:00 AM.

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Youth Promotion, Graduation & Scholarship Celebration!

Join us on May 18th from 5:30–7:00 PM as we celebrate our amazing First Church Youth—including 8th grade promotions, high school graduates, and scholarship recipients!

This special event is open to all youth and their immediate families. Dinner will be provided, and we’d love for you to bring a sweet treat or a drink to share!

Please use the link below to RSVP with the number of people attending (including kids) and let us know which graduate(s) you’ll be celebrating.

We can’t wait to celebrate together! 🎉

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Food Pantry Updates

The shelves of our food assistance pantry are in need of the following items: cases of bottled water, Vienna sausage, packaged or canned tuna, canned soup, small jars of jelly and peanut butter (plastic jars please), fruit cups, apple sauce, granola bars, hard or chewable candy. For all canned goods, please provide only pop top cans. If you are able to help with any of these items, please drop them off to the church office.

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Giving Report

Here is our most recent giving report. Thank you to everyone for your continued support.

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Sunday Social Hour

Please join us for our First Sunday Social Hour Gathering every first Sunday of the month between services at 10 a.m. in Wesley Lounge. The next one will be May 4th hosted by Staff Parish. We look forward to seeing you!

Axios Unaltered (LGBTQ+ Small Group)

Axios Unaltered is our resident queer small group that meets every week here at the church for a time of discussion, Bible study, and prayer, as well as service projects to support the community. If you are LGBTQ+, please join us on Tuesdays at 7 p.m. to connect with other like-minded individuals and grow in your faith. Contact Sammi Burkhart, visit axiosunaltered.com, or search @axiosunaltered on social media for more information.

Young Adult Small Group

This is a small group for anyone in our church 18-40 looking to dive deeper into their faith and connect with other younger people. We meet every Sunday afternoon in room 102 at 3:00pm for a time of community, Bible study, and prayer (and if anyone away at college would like to join in, contact Sammi Burkhart for a Zoom link to participate virtually). Come join us in the book of Romans.

Community Yoga Classes

First Church offers two weekly yoga classes to our community. Classes meet Tuesdays, 9:30 – 10:30 a.m., and Thursdays, 4:30 – 5:30 p.m. The cost is $12 per class or four classes for $40. Email the church office for more information: info@firstchurch.church.

Afternoon Book Group

The Afternoon Book Group meets on the fourth Tuesday of most months at 1:30 p.m. in room 116. We welcome all who love to read and discuss and travel the world through books.

Visit our website https://FirstChurch.church and click on the “Give” button at the top of the home page, or scan the QR code at the bottom of this message with your mobile device for a quick and easy link to the giving page. You can set up a recurring frequency or give when you want to by making a one-time gift using your checking or savings bank account.

You may also give electronically using your bank’s bill pay service.

Another way to give electronically is Text-to-Give with your debit or credit card.

1. Enter (888) 303-7535 in your cell phone text messaging program and a dollar amount without including a “$” sign as the message (example: type 20 to give twenty dollars).
2. You will receive a reply with a link to enter your contact and debit or credit card information.
3. After you complete the registration, you will receive a verification text as well as a receipt by email.
4. For future giving, simply send a text message with the amount you wish to give. That’s it!

Check Your Spam and Junk

Sometimes email from our Church’s domain, “.church” isn’t recognized by all email providers. Please check your spam and junk mail folders periodically to see if something from First Church or other senders to your address might be filtered out of your inbox.