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Daily Digest: January 28, 2014

"There are the 12 disciples and then 72 others without the business cards. All of us are ‘the 72 others.’” — Steve Pool, a United Methodist and chef who promotes missions through businesses.

Chef with a hunger for mission

GORE, Okla. (UMNS) — Steve Pool, a certified executive chef, filled his plate of life with United Methodist missions. People are fed physically and spiritually because of his ongoing commitment, Holly McCray and Ron Wallin of the Oklahoma Annual (regional) Conference report.
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UMTV: Restaurant owner on a mission

Bishop asks prayers after D.C.-area mall shooting

WASHINGTON (UMNS) — “A deep sense of tragedy hangs in the air,” Bishop Marcus Matthews of the Baltimore-Washington Annual (regional) Conference wrote as he called Jan. 25 for prayers in the wake of the shooting at the Mall in Columbia, a few miles from the Conference Mission Center.
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United Methodist expert on baptism, sacraments dies

DURHAM, N.C. (UMNS) — The Rev. Gayle C. Felton, 71, a clergy member of the North Carolina Annual (regional) Conference known for her published works on baptism and the sacraments, died Jan. 25. She was the primary author of the 2004 denominational statement on Holy Communion.
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Arkansas scoutmaster receives valor honor

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (UMNS) — Barry Bray, scoutmaster of Troop 12 at Pulaski Heights United Methodist Church in Little Rock, has been honored with the Boy Scouts’ highest valor award for single-handedly guiding to safety a confused motorist who was barreling down the wrong way on busy Interstate 40. The Associated Press reports how Bray maneuvered ahead of the 90-year-old motorist, forcing him to stop.
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Maryland church finds bell in unlikely place

SYSKESVILLE, Md. (UMNS) — Bethesda United Methodist Church may have an average attendance of just 22, but its voice rings through the valleys on Sunday mornings. The Carroll County Times tells how a more than a century-old bell fulfills the dream of a congregant’s mother.
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Wesley pilgrimage open to church leaders

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (UMNS) — United Methodist clergy and lay leaders will have the opportunity to immerse themselves in the Christ-centered leadership of John and Charles Wesley this summer during a 10-day Wesley Pilgrimage to England. The pilgrimage, sponsored by the United Methodist Board of Discipleship and the Board of Higher Education and Ministry, will begin July 14.
To learn more
To register

Emory professor explores food and faith

ATLANTA (UMNS) — Jennifer Ayres, director of the Religious Education Program at Emory University's Candler School of Theology, is the author of the new book “Good Food: Grounded Practical Theology.” The book explores the link between food and the Christian faith.
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History of Hymns: ‘O Young and Fearless Prophet’

DALLAS (UMNS) — This hymn by S. Ralph Harlow calls us to become more Christ-like, following the prophetic example of Christ’s life. History of Hymns, a weekly feature made available by the United Methodist Board of Discipleship, is written by C. Michael Hawn of Southern Methodist University’s Perkins School of Theology.
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