eMount Monthly10/28/21
Welcome to the Emount Monthly! A new series and new service times are coming up soon. Enjoy a quick video from Pastor John and Pastor Andy, then scroll down for details.
NEW SERVICE TIMES
With an exciting decision for many of our attenders and staff, The Mount will adjust service times beginning November 7, 2021. Coinciding with Daylight Saving Fall-Back, service times will change to 9:00 and 10:30 am at the Stafford Campus going forward.
Why are we changing service times?
Three services on Sunday mornings, often extending close to 1:00 pm, is a big challenge for families of little children and volunteers needed to staff the later hour. Lots of adults need a Sunday afternoon nap, little kids too! Moving services earlier in the morning will allow all of our young families and volunteers to be well on their way before noon.
Many guests are choosing to attend online more often. The new practices and habits of a post-covid world increased guest’s comfort with an online experience
Does this mean The Mount is shrinking?
No! The Mount overall attendance and giving has remained high and exceeds national church averages for people returning to in-person engagement. The lead team and elders are consistently encouraged by how God has worked through the challenges of the last 18 months. New guests and families are connecting to The Mount each week, in part due to the vibrant and growing Mount community.
What if I serve at 9:30 and attend at 8:00?
Volunteers are the heart of The Mount! Many of our 8:00 attenders faithfully volunteer each week. With the reduction of time between services and new 9:00 start time, current 9:30 volunteers can now attend service at 10:30 and only add an extra 20-30 minutes on their day! Plus – an extra hour of sleep!
What about the other campuses?
STAFFORD 9:00 am and 10:30 am
FXBG 10:30 am
ONLINE 9:00 and 10:30 am
EL MONTE 2:00 pm
FIGHTING HUNGER AT THE MOUNT
For three days the auditorium was filled with people in bright blue Mount Volunteer TShirts. There was a sea of volunteers, but that was only part of the story.
“We packed a lot of meals during Food Fight that will make a difference to people. But everyday I was there, the thing that struck me was watching people from all over the community come together to do something good,” reflected Pastor Jerry.
That’s called an unintended benefit. Of course the prayerful vision of the event was to care for people in need and provide an opportunity for the church to serve. But, the result was an event where a wheel-chair bound senior citizen could serve alongside a young grandchild and it didn’t matter if you had ever been inside the church to join in.
Volunteers came from 12 churches, fire stations, school officials, the Sheriff’s Department, FCA, scouting troops and more. One group all arrived in bright pink TShirts marking their service in the month dedicated to breast cancer awareness.
“Sometimes the process was a little slower, watching little kids trying to do the jobs alongside their families. But, when I looked at their faces and saw them volunteering with their families, it just didn’t matter how many packages they made,” Pastor Jerry recalled.
Mount volunteers came out strong to pack 150,000 meals and create a space where a community could serve together. Food Fight was a partnership between The Mount and Feed My Starving Children. The goals of FMSC are unique because of the commitment to five elements of mission.
Sustainable Development: Providing FMSC meals to people without a sustainable source of food creates a solid foundation to help them regain their footing and provide for themselves consistently. FMSC partners are embedded in communities and help them advance as circumstances realistically permit. Meal supplies are reduced as the community progresses.
Nutritious Food Formula: Hope begins with nutritious food. Nutrition allows children to grow, thrive and develop to their full potential so that they can become productive members of their communities.
Volunteers: FMSC doesn’t use machines to package our meals because we realize the personal, impactful experience created by packing the meals by hand. It transforms an experience from just “something good to do” into something deeply personal.
Mission: We believe Jesus Christ has called us to feed the hungry and serve those in need. Jesus is the reason that Feed My Starving Children exists.
Food Distribution Partners: We donate meals to an exceptional network of missions and humanitarian organizations
For more information head to Feed My Starving Children.