“Christ our Lord invites to His table all who love Him …”
The community of Shoe Heel, now known as Maxton, was established by Scottish settlers between 1750 and 1800. By 1884, records show that Shoe Heel Methodist was a thriving part of what was then known as the Red Banks circuit for itinerant preachers. Since there were no church buildings in town, services were held in a carriage shop owned by the Burns Brothers. The community of faith, led by the Rev. E. McWorter, launched a great building project on a lot that was donated by A. J. McKinnon. The blocks used to build the church were all hand-made by John B. Gibson and volunteers from the church and community. Finally, in 1906 the building was completed, and the name of the church was changed to St. Paul’s Methodist Church. The church continued to thrive as they opened the doors and welcomed those living in their surrounding community.
One century later, the congregation continued the practice of graceful hospitality and found new ways to welcome the communities they had yet to reach. They committed themselves to invite all of God’s people to experience God’s love and transformative grace. New worship opportunities, community meals, and fellowship lead towards a shift in our congregation. What was once a predominantly white congregation became a multicultural congregation. A worship space where people of different backgrounds and views could come together and become the body of Christ.
Today we are known as the church that welcomes and helps all people. We give thanks for all the faithful disciples who came before us and participated in building up the Kingdom of God.
God of all, we give thanks for Jesus Christ who loves us unconditionally and teaches us to love each other. We give you thanks for the many ways you are present at St. Paul’s United Methodist Church. We pray, open our ears that we might hear your words and live them out in our daily lives; Open our eyes that we might see all people; And create in us a new heart that we might love all as you have loved us. Amen.
Reba McMillan serves as the Lay Leader at St Paul’s UMC in Maxton, NC.
Our theme for this year’s Lenten reflections is Graceful Hospitality. 2023 marks the 70th anniversary of the Ten Dollar Club, now known as the New Room Society. We give thanks for our Conference’s ongoing commitment to co-creating new places for new people to gather in communion with Jesus Christ and extending graceful hospitality to all of God’s children.