South Carolina Conference leaders are preparing to release another multipart sermon series on discipleship. Titled “Come Follow Me: A Disciple’s Journey Through Lent,” it will be released in January 2020 to use this Lent, which begins Feb. 26 and runs until Easter.

Now, the St. Paul UMC family awaits the grand opening of a respite care ministry called God’s Parlor. God’s Parlor will provide a safe place of comfort and support for loved ones living with special healthcare needs while allowing their caregiver to participate in Sunday school, worship service or any other St. Paul ministry.

By Jessica Brodie. When Stephanie Robinson lost her young daughter, Saylor, this summer, she received an unexpected gift in the form of a “butterfly cart”—something she never could have imagined, but something that made her child’s passing a bit more bearable. Now, inspired both by a desire to help other grieving parents, and by a way to honor the beautiful impact of Saylor’s short life, the Robinson family has spent the last several months purchasing all the items needed to supply the pediatric intensive care unit at The Medical University of South Carolina Charleston with a butterfly cart of its own.

By Jessica Brodie. What do South Carolina United Methodists want to know about General Conference, and how can the South Carolina delegation help? That’s the purpose of four 2020 General Conference Delegation Listening Sessions, being scheduled for January and February in districts across the state.

By Jessica Brodie. Using their building to host mission teams was not part of Aldersgate UMC, Charleston's, ministry plan. But God had other ideas. It all started a few years ago when the South Carolina Conference of the UMC needed a place for a disaster recovery volunteer to stay while he coordinated construction efforts in the area. Aldersgate UMC had the empty space, said pastor the Rev. Erik Grayson, so they offered it on a short-term basis. It was just supposed to be temporary. Now, the church has decided to fully embrace this new plan God has for them, launching what they have called Holy City Mission.

By Jessica Brodie. Year-end apportionment giving is looking good for The United Methodist Church in South Carolina. As of Nov. 15, the apportionment collection percentage is running close to 2018 with 69.7 percent collected this year compared to 70.4 percent this time last year. That translates to $12.4 million collected so far of the budgeted $17.8 million for 2019.

By Jessica Brodie. Eighteen months ago, many thought Bramlett UMC, Gray Court, was like an hourglass quickly running out of sand. Once thriving and filled with large farming families who lived nearby, the small rural church in the Upstate had dwindled to 20 people on Sunday mornings. But now the church has more than 100 active members—including a children’s and youth group. “It went from a flatline on the operating table to being a church that’ll survive,” said the Rev. John Fahrney, Bramlett’s pastor. “A lot of country churches are dying, but this one is growing.”

By Jessica Brodie. It took building new walls for one church—Shiloh UMC, Gilbert—to realize tearing down walls is really what God’s church is all about.

A group of United Methodist runners in the Upstate laced up recently to raise funds for two local charities. The team, comprising people from Mount Zion United Methodist Church, Central, plus a few others outside the church, participated in the Spinx Run Fest in Greenville Saturday, Oct. 26.

On Friday, Nov. 15, volunteers gathered from across the state to build a special love project in the form of a wheelchair ramp for Trinity United Methodist Church in the Orangeburg District. This was no ordinary project. It was inspired by Robert Jackson of Trinity UMC, who has been remodeling much of the interior at Trinity from major termite and water damage for more than one and a half years, doing the work basically by himself with some help from a Baptist pastor. By Billy Robinson.

This year, St. Paul United Methodist Church, Greenville, gave its former fall festival a makeover, transforming it into a Fall Block Party designed to serve as an outreach to families all over the community. The festival had been designed primarily for families and kids inside of the church, but the block party is designed for families outside of the church.