North Bethesda Contact United Methodist Church May 2017 Volume 46, Issue 5 6:30 AM Easter Sunrise Service Thirty-eight folks arrived for a lovely sunrise service. Ken Ow used a recording of a trumpet playing “Christ the Lord is Risen Today” on his phone, then amplified it through his bullhorn! Pastor Jeff started with the greeting and service. Karina Mobley did a superb job as the “Child of the Resurrection,” recounting her views of Palm Sunday, Good Friday, and Easter morning. Valerie Blane, as Mary, Jesus’ mother, told listeners highlights of Jesus’ life and the fulfillment of God’s promise with the resurrection. The delightfully yummy breakfast featured Natalie McManus’ famous egg casserole, Mark’s muffins and pastries, Virginia’s selection of cut fruits and special dip, as well as tea, coffee, and juice. Thanks to Ed Swanson for taking care of the chairs. Valerie Blane 10:00 AM Easter Morning Worship Service A joyous Easter celebration started with Tony’s trumpet piece on the organ, followed by bells on the organ. Truly, one could almost see the bell ringers! The altar was full of beautiful flowers and fragrant scents. A fresh, bright white drape hung from the cross. People wore smiles. Some children wore hats! (Do you remember back in the day when all females wore new hats for Easter?) The choir sang Randall Thompson’s “Alleluia,” an incredibly glorious piece, whose harmonies are intricately woven into insistent praise and thanksgiving. Liturgist Merlyn Vemury read the Easter story. Pastor Jeff gave a sermon on the empty tomb. We took a moment to bless Jennifer Fellows who left for a solo trip to Utah to visit her mother. Then everyone sang Handel’s “Hallelujah Chorus.” Wonderful! Be Easter people all the time. Valerie Blane North Bethesda United Methodist Church 10100 Old Georgetown Road Bethesda MD 20814 Phone: (301) 530–4342 E–mail: [email protected] 1 John Welton Website: www.NorthBethesdaUMC.org 2 Mary Ellen McCabe Office Manager: Chris Lee 4 Sam Northridge 4 Rachel Northridge Office Hours: Tuesday -Thursday 8:30AM– 3:00PM 4 Amanda Berg Pastor: Pastor Jeff Jones cell: (240) 994-1505 5 Mark Ball Minister of Visitation: Linda Thompson 6 Paul Beck Music Director: Tony Ashur 6 Jim Short Coordinator of Education: Vicki Morrison 6 Mel Thompson Contact Newsletter Editor: Valerie Blane 6 Tony Ashur [email protected] 7 Colton Hammond Contact Newsletter Publisher: Chris Lee 8 Ray Gilbert 8 Thelma Jenkins-Anthony 11 Bob Gawler 12 Samantha Santoro 15 Paul Hurlburt 17 Ryan Davis 20 Trevor Hammond 20 Ashley Egerton 20 Gregory Davis 22 Bets Bloom 24 Cynthia Spang 26 Heather Swanson 26 Peggy Lamoreaux 30 Ryan Workman For additions or corrections con- tact Diane Tabatabai at 301-983- 6878 or email: [email protected] Page 2 May 2017 Contact Preacher Feature May is always a mixed emotions month for me. The weather is getting better, school is about to be done for the year, plans for the summer are starting to be made. That means more people away from North Bethesda as a result. I miss you when you are not here. Mother’s Day can be sad for those who have lost their moms recently, as Elaine and I both remember our mothers and step-mother this year. I’m thankful that Rev. Joye Jones will be leading our Mother’s Day service this year. On May 24, 1738, John Wesley had his heart strangely warmed. He did know, for sure, that he was saved. He knew that Jesus had died for his own soul. As we celebrate the 500th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation, we remember that Wesley benefitted from Martin Luther’s translation of the Bible and his commentary on the book of Romans, which was the inspiration for Wesley’s heart-warming moment. Wesley was inspired and changed the world. Nearly one third of all Christians in the world today have a Wesleyan connection. We are still hoping and praying that some new John Wesley-like character will come forward to help set the world on fire. I pray that your own soul will become inflamed with the love of God and that you, too, will spread that love everywhere you go. May 31 – June 2 is the Annual Conference meeting in Washington. Our conference will deal with the issues all the churches are facing about having to make strategically appropriate decisions about money and staffing and programs for the church. Pray for Rose Aehle & Ken Ow and me as we deliberate on the mission of our conference. During May at North Bethesda, we will do the same thing, to prepare our congregation to support our congregation’s ministry and mission. We ask everyone as a sign of thanks for all that God has done and consider giving more to support our work. We suggest a weekly gift of $1 for every $1000 of annual family income, as a place to start on our journey toward a fully blessed life. Plan to take some kind of step up to reflect your step up in faith. I have been blessed by reading and sharing with others, as we work through Mark Batterson’s Draw the Circle guide to prayer. We are reading together during Easter season leading up to Ascension, the forty days Jesus appeared to the disciples and others after his Resurrection. Special thanks goes to Tony Ashur for his glorious music on our new organ this Easter celebration. It is a complex instrument. We are grateful for the extra time and energy that Tony is putting into learning and sharing the many features on this organ. That means a special thank you to all who gave so generously to make the organ possible. Becoming a source of God’s love means we have to be connected to that source of love. Your prayers, presence, gifts, service, and witness will be better if you completely connect to Jesus in your heart, soul, mind, and strength. Each day, try to learn more about him, so you can act like him and introduce him to others. Blessings on all of you, always. Pastor Jeff Volume 46, Issue 5 Page 3 Worship Themes Still in Easter season, we discover how the Resurrection changes lives. We meet an Ethiopian who has discovered the power of the prophet Isaiah. We meet the church in Galatia. We see how we still wrestle with the letter and spirit of the Law. This leads to a more profound wrestling with our own understanding of faith and country. We choose each day to live as a follower of the Risen One. Mother’s Day will be special this year. Our own retired resident pastor, Joye Jones, will lead worship and provide the message. Our children and young adults will share their talents. We will be blessed by the love shown by our mother or those mothered us. 5/7 Holy Communion Isaiah and the Ethiopian with Phillip Acts 8:26-39 5/14 Mother’s Day with Rev. Joye Jones 5/21 Meet the Galatians Galatians 1:13-17; 2:11-21 5/28 Memorial Day Weekend The Law: Letter or Spirit? Galatians 3:1-9;23-29 Rev. Joye Jones Participating in worship is our response to the good news of God’s love for us. We come to the gathering of God’s people to give thanks to God for new life and the promise of eternity. We will The Lectionary May 7 broaden our horizons in understanding of what Acts 2:42-47 God is doing and support one another in the Ps.23 or UMH 754 or UMH 137 journey, especially during of our prayer time. 1 Pet. 2:19-25 John 10:1-10 Worship also tells God that we depend on Him May 14 for our lives and resources. Worship helps us to Acts 7:55-60 give thanks. Come be with us! Ps. 31:1-5, 15-16 or UMH 764 1 Pet. 2:2-10 Pastor Jeff John 14:1-14 May 21 Acts 17:22-31 Ps. 66:8-20 or UMH 790 1 Pet. 3:13-22 John 14:15-21 May 28 Acts. 1:6-14 Ps. 68:1-10, 32-35 or UMH 792 1 Pet. 4:12-14; 5:6-11 John 17:1-11 Page 4 May 2017 Contact Generosity Plans Generosity demonstrates our gratitude to God for all our blessings and a way to pay it forward. The ministry of North Bethesda UMC is a direct result of those who went before us these last 61 years to make sure we bless others. Your support for our work together will ensure the ongoing blessings continue into the future. We will hear from several of our members during the worship services about their experiences with NBUMC and the blessings they want to share with others. I’m grateful for their support. We will send you an Estimate of Giving card later this month. Please begin now to pray about what you should give back to God. Bring the card to worship on June 4 or mail it in. There will be several ways to give, including our new Vanco system, which will allow you to sign up for regular electronic giving. Thank you for doing that. Our fiscal year runs from July 1, 2017, to June 30, 2018, to match the typical program year of the church. If you feel like you need to catch up on this year, you have until June 30. We always encourage people to take a step of faith in their giving.