News
March 14, 2025
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
Change for Change Lent Challenge
-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 Al Smith. Al is a brother of Terry Smith. We invite you to stop, tie a knot, and pray for healing, grace and comfort.
DEATHS
Ulises Estrada’s aunt, Cynthia Lorena Araiza, passed on March 1.
Mary Lou McWilliams passed on March 2. (Her service is on March 28 at 10 a.m., Life Center, Beatitudes Campus, 1610 W. Glendale Ave in Phoenix.)
PRAYERS FOR OUR SPECIAL CARE
Elizabeth Vick, Bob Young, Selena Alderman, Carolyn Allen, Bill Carpenter, Ruth Clark, Grant Cooper, Hedy Cunningham, Laura DeNinno, Yvonne Fischer
PRAYERS FOR OUR CHURCHES
Dove of the Desert UMC – Glendale
Maryvale UMC – Phoenix
Faith UMC – Phoenix
(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)
SENIOR MILESTONES (Celebrating 80+ birthdays)
Pat Kelly 3/9
Patricia Magyar 3/17
Terry Lutz 3/18
Fred Moor 3/20
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Reminder About Scholarships
A friendly reminder to any students who will be applying for a college or graduate school scholarship through our church this spring that the application deadline date is March 17th at 4:00pm. Late applications will not be able to be considered by the scholarship committee, so make sure to get them in early! https://firstchurch.church/scholarship-application/
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New Member Class
Our church’s next New Member Class will be coming soon on March 23rd! If you are new to the church, or if have been attending for a while but have never become an official member and would like to, please call or email the church office and we will get a membership packet ready for you! The membership class will be quick, filling the 10:00 hour that Sunday, just a brief informational session about our church, about the Methodist denomination, and a time for questions and answers.
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Blood Drive Results
Thank you all for another successful blood drive! From the amount donated, we were able to save 42 lives!
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Work Day at Iglesia Aliento
The mission’s committee is sponsoring a work day at Iglesia Aliento on March 29th from 9:00am-noon. Tasks available will include yard clean up, garden work, sweeping and mopping sanctuary floors, and cleaning chairs. Please contact the church office if you are interested in signing up!
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Giving Report
We had a month of good giving! Thank so much for all your continued generosity towards our church.
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Tools of the Soul Retreat (Hosted by United Women of Faith)
Tomorrow, on March 15th, starting at 8:30am, our church’s United Women in Faith groups will be hosting a retreat led by Mary Hollan focused around self – compassion and life balance. These important topics will be explored through music, crafting, meditation, and community. For those who are interested in signing up, registration is now open; please contact the church office to let them know you will be coming. The fee to attend is $30.
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Change for Change Lent Challenge
During Lent, bring your loose change and place in the 5-gallon water jug located in front of the sanctuary. Our goal is to fill the jug to the brim before Easter. You might be surprised how when putting our change together can bring a change to others. This season’s Change for Change will benefit Iglesia Aliento and their ongoing ministry to the Latino community. Thank you for your participation to make a change with your change. – David
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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 April 6th, hosted by the church’s fabric groups. 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 $40. Email the church office for more information: info@firstchurch.church.
Afternoon Book Group
The Afternoon Book Group meets on the fourth Tuesday of most months at 1:30 p.m. in room 116. We welcome all who love to read and discuss and travel the world through books.
Business Directory (Attention Business Owners!)
Our church has a business directory for all church members to receive a complimentary listing if they are self-employed, an independent contractor, or a business owner. This will be a classified ad-style listing with one sentence about what you do, including your contact information. This will enable our members to support one another when looking for a business professional. Please email info@firstchurch.church with your information if you would like to be included.
Visit our website https://FirstChurch.church and click on the “Give” button at the top of the home page, or scan the QR code at the bottom of this message with your mobile device for a quick and easy link to the giving page. You can set up a recurring frequency or give when you want to by making a one-time gift using your checking or savings bank account.
You may also give electronically using your bank’s bill pay service.
Another way to give electronically is Text-to-Give with your debit or credit card.
- Enter (888) 303-7535 in your cell phone text messaging program and a dollar amount without including a “$” sign as the message (example: type 20 to give twenty dollars).
- You will receive a reply with a link to enter your contact and debit or credit card information.
- After you complete the registration, you will receive a verification text as well as a receipt by email.
- 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.
