Posts by Category: News

Thirty-nine teams from 14 churches headed to Mount Horeb United Methodist Church, Lexington, last month for the 43rd annual South Carolina Methodist Youth Program’s Youth Basketball Tournament. By Jessica Brodie

In the summer of 2019, five travelers set out from South Carolina to visit Zoe Ministries in Kenya: Bishop Jonathan Holston and Felicia Holston, the Rev. Ken Nelson, Janice Holiday and myself. By Dr. Clay Faulk.

The South Carolina United Methodist Advocate invites applications for a $1,000 scholarship for South Carolina United Methodist students who are planning to enroll or are already enrolled at one of the four United Methodist colleges in South Carolina: Claflin University, Columbia College, Spartanburg Methodist College or Wofford College. Deadline 3/1/20.

This January and February, South Carolina United Methodists will have the opportunity to voice concerns and share hopes and prayers with the South Carolina delegates to General Conference 2020. By Jessica Brodie.

Step outside Andrews Chapel United Methodist Church, Pinewood, and all you’ll see for miles is fields. “It really is in the middle of nowhere,” says Andrews Chapel’s pastor, the Rev. Mary Everhart. Yet it is there that Everhart says the Holy Spirit is breathing a fresh wind of new life. The 150-year-old church had been in a decline over the years, but now the church has gone from four to seven people to 30 or 40 most Sundays. By Jessica Brodie.

When Herb Thompson heard God call him to “feed My sheep,” he thought the Lord meant spiritually. It turns out God was calling him, with the help of two Timmonsville United Methodist churches, to start a new food ministry for people in need. By Jessica Brodie.

Five decades after the assassination of one of the civil rights movement’s greatest heroes and servant-leaders, South Carolina United Methodists are honoring Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. with a weekend dedicated to service. On the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday weekend, Jan. 18-20, the South Carolina Conference of The United Methodist Church is hosting a Disaster Recovery Day of Service where volunteers will have the opportunity to work on homes impacted by Hurricane Florence. By Jessica Brodie.

Just a few weeks remain until the 2019 books close, and conference financial leaders are hopeful. As of Dec. 16, the conference had collected 76.95 percent of its apportionments, compared to 77 percent this time last year, said Beth Westbury, conference treasurer. That translates to $13.7 million collected so far of the budgeted $17.8 million for 2019. By Jessica Brodie.

They started out simply as “fellow church members” at St. John’s United Methodist Church, Anderson—a quick wave or a nod in the pew, knowing each other by sight but no deeper. Now, thanks to the fellowship fostered in a witty email chain and hard work doing side-by-side hands-on mission work, they’ve become a family. By Jessica Brodie.

A group of social justice advocates are doing what they can to help the world—and Washington—have a heart for people in poverty. This month, South Carolina United Methodists will take part in Poor People’s Campaign: A National Call for Moral Revival, organizing a neighborhood voting drive, hearing testimonies and hosting a rally and march, all in the hopes of opening people’s minds about the plight of the poor. The canvassing and voting registration activities will be Saturday, Jan. 11, and the march and rally will be Monday, Jan. 13, culminating at Cherokee Place UMC, North Charleston. By Jessica Brodie.

What do classic cars and men in South Carolina have in common? The ability to be restored to full, functional and optimally working “machines,” able to do all that their creator intends and more. But while cars can only be restored to a certain point, men have the advantage. For in Christ, men can become entirely new creations, not only restored but renewed, refreshed and revitalized, all for the glory of God. That is the message of a conference-wide United Methodist Men’s spiritual weekend, set for Feb. 28-29 at Mount Horeb United Methodist Church. By Jessica Brodie.

Two small churches join forces for big mission project.

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.