Tinney Chapel Today

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Quilting Party

This quilt, photo collages above, donated by Angela Tinney Wylie, winner of several blue ribbons for her quilts, was made by Angela, with the quilting done by her aunt Sandra Coffee, in a stunning feather design.

The quilt, balanced here by Gailya Gearner, left, and Angela, right, measures 6'9"x6'9" (81"x81") and was donated for raffling by Tinney Chapel Ladies ministry.

The tickets are $1.00 each, and are available NOW. Church phone is 903-629-7696.

The final raffling will take place on Nov. 13, from 9 am to 3:30 pm, at the annual Christmas In The Park Bazaar, held at the City Park Auditorium. You need not be present to win.

For more information, contact Joy Privette of Tinney Chapel Ladies Group, or call the church office, 903-629-7696, during church business hours.

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Lions and lambs join forces:
East District Laity Celebrate Partnership with Clergy

It was reminiscent of lions and lambs dining together, singing hymns, discussing theology, actualizing age-old prophecy.

Ten-dollar dinners in cardboard boxes, appropriately blessed to unplugged, acoustic sounds (Crying Holy Unto The Lord) supplied by Cuthand UMC’s old-time string band, Cuthand Creek, kicked off the North Texas Conference’s (NTC) only continuing annual Laity Celebration—with a healthy sprinkling of clergy--at Greenville’s Wesley UMC Family Life Center on Sunday evening, Sept. 12.

That would be the old/new East District, which combines all the old Paris-Sulphur Springs District churches, plus all the new additions from NTC’s Strategic Plan reorganization, adopted at Annual Conference in June, for a grand total now of 91 churches, most of whom viewed a PowerPoint presentation here of “Ministry Moments” during the past year from their own congregations.

New District Superintendent, Rev. Paul Gould, no doubt devoted overtime to plan this first key event of his new administration for his new District.

By the time everyone had consumed superior sandwiches of sliced cheese and cold cuts, sipped gallons of iced tea and heard heavenly sounds by Cuthand Creek (Mansion Over The Hilltop), guitarist/singer Kolton Hall (How Great Thou Art) of Mulberry UMC (near Bonham) and an impressive District “combined choir” (We Are Your People, O God) directed by Joan Wright of Wesley UMC, the mood was clear, and would be repeated several times by this Celebration’s keynote speaker, Bishop W. Earl Bledsoe:

“The blessing is in the room!”

It was the Bishop’s way of speaking to his selection of Scripture, Ephesians 4:4-8, 11-16, which dwells on the Body of Christ and His gifts of the Spirit which equip and empower us to do the work He calls us to do.

“Each of us receives a particular gift,” emphasized Bishop Bledsoe, whose primary concern appeared to be one of encouraging cooperation between laity and clergy. “We need each other,” he added. “And neither of us should ever regard the other as an ‘enemy’ because we are all on the same team and must stay together—both outwardly and inwardly.”

The Bishop spoke of the need for leadership in making the new Strategic Plan work: “But leadership is a team sport, especially when accompanied by prayer,” he said.

For example, Bishop Bledsoe quoted Conference Lay Leader Richard Hearne’s suggestion that all of us attempt to mentor a young person, which he acknowledged as a good idea. However, the Bishop countered that with another suggestion, from Rev. Jim Ozier, NTC Director of Church Transformation, who believes that all of us should try to find a young person who is willing to mentor us, and help adults better understand the needs of young people!

Whether our current mission is to understand the needs of young people or to help eradicate malaria from the African Continent by the year 2015, one thing is for sure, said the Bishop:

“The blessing is in the room!”

That’s because of at least two things: The Connectional System of the United Methodist Church (UMC) and the Scriptural Promise that the Spirit equips and empowers us to do whatever He calls us to do: “With our Connectional System, we can probably eradicate malaria from Africa earlier, perhaps by 2014, in part because United Methodists believe in vital piety and social witness.”

Here, Bishop Bledsoe cited Jesus’ example with the original 12 Disciples: “These were guys who didn’t really understand Jesus at first, but they were sufficiently obedient to tell everybody about the Good News, thus ensuring by their example that the Church would continue to grow, because we continue to do that today.

“The blessing is in the room!

“We need to support each other,” explained the Bishop. “We need to pray for each other. We need to bear each other’s burdens. We need each other.”

At this point, Bishop Bledsoe praised Rev. Gould, recently appointed as Superintendent of the new East District: “This is a new District, with a lot of work to be done, and I think Paul is the one to make it happen. In fact, I’d say that we have one of the finest teams in all of Methodism here:

“The blessing is in the room!

“Pray that God will take Paul, and all of us, to a new level of ministry,” concluded the Bishop. “Amen, amen, amen.”

After the Bishop’s charge, Associate District Lay Leader David Stanton of Tinney Chapel UMC dedicated the offering of time and treasure, to the healing and Hope of God’s people in Africa though the “Imagine No Malaria” campaign.

“Did you know that every 30 seconds an innocent child in Africa dies of malaria?” asked Stanton, rhetorically. “And, we have a chance to make a difference.

“Imagine No Malaria is a ministry of the people of the world-wide UMC to eliminate death and suffering from malaria in Africa by 2015,” explained Stanton, who called on the leadership of the East District to set the example for NTC.

“Just take time to Google the program, Imagine No Malaria, and learn about the five-step plan and let’s take it back to our 91 congregations, then mobilize them to give of their time and treasure to make eradication happen.

“One child means the world to somebody...to all of us.”

In his offertory prayer, Stanton called on God to help the East District take ownership of Imagine No Malaria and strengthen us to make this cause a reality for our African brothers and sisters.

District Lay Leader Ben Bennett also called on this Laity Celebration congregation for continued support, as did District Superintendent, Rev. Gould.

Other worship leaders who participated in this event included Lori Massey, District Lay Speaking Director, Melba Harris, Associate District Lay Speaking Director, Sarah Perkins, Youth Representative to Annual Conference, Chris Bullok, organist, Carol Clayton, pianist and Rev. Gene Wisdom, host pastor of Wesley UMC, Greenville.

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Beth Bellomy Newkirk is 80 Today

Beth is a granddaughter of Ambrose Tinney, founder of Tinney Chapel UMC via a 1900 land grant.

She grew up in the Tinney Chapel Community, and lived nearby for most of her youth, until her graduation from Winnsboro High School (WHS). The picture above was probably made during her years at WHS or soon thereafter.

Her parents were the late Julia Lillian Tinney Bellomy, born March 25, 1901, and Wilson Bellomy. At one point, the Bellomys lived about a half mile from Tinney Chapel on what is now FM 312, and later lived about a half mile from Tinney Chapel on what is now County Road 4620, across the road from the old Vernon School and near the present home of Mollie and David Stanton.

Wilson Bellomy was a farmer, above average carpenter and an expert concrete finisher.

Lillian was the oldest child of Ambrose Tinney's "second family," which began after his marriage on June 13, 1900, to Elizabeth Caroline Gamble.

Beth will celebrate her 80th birthday tonight, Saturday, September 11, in the Tinney Chapel Family Life Center with a host of relatives and friends.

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Angela Wylie Wins Another Poetry Prize

Tinney Chapel Lay Speaker, Song Leader and Sunday School Teacher, Angela Wylie, has done it again.

Once again, Angela has won top prize in the adult category of the third annual Northeast Texas Poetry Contest.

Today, Angela read her winning composition, Summer Breeze, during presentation ceremonies in Whatley Foyer at Northeast Texas Community College.

Summer Breeze

Deep shadows slant dark across rust-colored needles,
softening footfalls and holding silent the sound
excluding all but the call of birds or the
incessant buzz of persistent cicada
that pierces through the gentle breeze.

A summer breeze that blows through the forests
and fields of deep East Texas, curling and swirling
around the scaly-barked pine and sighing soft
music through the slender green needles
before moving onward to other places.

Places where knurled oak, elm, and hickory
thrust up through the deep loam and hold
tenacious and hard in the rich clay, sinking down roots
and lifting bark and rustling leaves to the
questing favor of the balmy soft breeze.

Intimately aware that when the season turns
the breeze will not be warm, but cold,
and the leaves will be tossed down
crumbled upon the ground, decayed, turned,
reborn to feed new seedlings in the circle of life.

The breeze moves through weeds and grass
that sway with the motion of waves, eddying and fragrant
with bloom and pod, whisking away seeds
and blowing errantly through the land
welcomed in a hot, humid summer world.

The breeze blows through fence and wire,
ineffectual barriers marking property,
Blowing past paved roadways, concrete or black-top
heated by the sun and shimmering with shallow
mirages of false water from a fathomless blue sky.

Breezes from lush lakes meet and swirl
playfully creating ripples in deep still water where
bass and crappie swim in lazy silver shimmers
down deep where the water is dark and cool
moving in the slow dance of the season.

Summer breezes give hope of rain
from the towering white thunderheads,
rising as tall as mountains in the pristine blue sky.
Swollen with water vapor they drift over the thirsty world
their shadows teasing the parched and longing earth.

The breeze filters though sickle-shorn fields
where bales of hay are rolled up tight
Bundles of precious golden security against
the coming cold and the harsh grey skies of winter
But not now. Not this moment.

Now is the time for sun and heat,
A time of ripening and drying,
A time for standing still and letting the
breeze gently blow away sweat and fatigue
giving sweet relief for a grateful moment.

This is East Texas summer, diverse and potent
with potential and rich in wealth of soil and sky.
From tall swaying pine and mighty spreading oak
surrounding far-reaching meadows of Coastal Bermuda hay
to black-land fields of white cotton and green soy.

Contented cattle graze here and timber is cut.
Crops are harvested and towns abound.
Children are educated and life is lived
surrounded by winding county roads that meander
through forested hills and sporadic untamed wilderness.

Blow, Breeze, through this our world,
Caress the weary worker and the joyful child.
Blow through main streets and past busy shops.
Blow across wildflower-speckled fields and through tall trees.
Blow, Summer Breeze, and remember me.

Copyright: Angela Wylie, August 15, 2010

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For more information on this study, click on the live-link title at the top of this post.

Our study will be led by Pastor Sue Gross

Others participating:

Cheryl Ann Newton
Jenna Nelson
Frankie Brewer
Joe Dan Boyd
Gailya Gearner
Peggy Boyd
David Stanton
Mollie Stanton
Joe Matthews
Angela Wylie
Helen Miller (audit)
Alice Deitering
Susan Chandler

The study begins today, Wednesday, September 1, at 6 pm in the Family Life Center Conference Room.

Last minute walk-ins are welcome.