Dear Church Family:

This Sunday we enter Holy Week, the brief but pregnant season of the church calendar in which we ponder the stories and embody in our shared life of faith the momentous events that produced our salvation in Christ. The climax of this journey is, of course, Jesus’ death on the cross (Good Friday), his descent to the grave (Holy Saturday), and his glorious rising into the new creation life on Easter morning. Our combined service this Palm/Passion Sunday (10:00) will help us to begin this journey of faith with purpose and a right spirit. 

Throughout the week, there will be opportunities at Pender for prayer and worship, for reflection and meditation, for thanksgiving and celebration on the various stages of our annual pilgrimage to the cross and empty tomb of Jesus. Your church is preparing a variety of ways for us to experience the fullness of the gospel of Holy Week, including silent meditation (Time with God), embodied practice (Holy Communion and foot-washing), drama (Good Friday evening), pilgrimage (Stations of the Cross), encounter (Easter sunrise), and gathered celebration (Easter morning), and with special music through it all. You will find all these events listed on the bulletin this Sunday and on our website calendar. I encourage you to participate in as many as your schedule allows, confident that God will give you much grace to grow in faithfulness to the crucified and risen Christ who calls us all to be his followers and church of witnesses in our time and place.  

Some of our Holy Week activities will be familiar to us and some may be new. A few people have asked me about our service of Holy Communion and foot-washing on Holy (Maundy) Thursday, March 28. This service traces the events chronicled in John 13 at Jesus’ last supper with his disciples, when, in view of his redemptive passion and self-revelation as the Son of God, Jesus reinterpreted the traditional Passover meal to become the Lord’s Supper, and then washed the feet of the disciples to illustrate what he meant by his instruction that his disciples are to “love one another as I have loved you.” In many churches foot-washing is a common practice, and especially at this time of year, in obedience to the Lord’s command. It’s not enough to hear about Jesus’ humble love; Christ expects his followers to embody it in our lives, fellowship, and through the church’s ministry in needed and tangible ways.  

At the same time, this service may be new and feel uncomfortable for some. At our worship on Holy Thursday, no one will be expected to do something they are not ready to do, but all will be invited as an act of faith to experience the grace of serving one another in this humble way. Those who participate will be paired with someone of the same gender and will take turns pouring water over each other’s feet and drying them with a towel. You may wish to wear slip on shoes that evening. Those who choose not to participate in the foot-washing part of the service are encouraged to come anyway, to observe and meditate on Jesus’ words and call upon our lives. Our actions are not about hygiene but are symbolic of a growing love for Christ and a life of humble servanthood, starting in our own fellowship. The service on Holy Thursday will happen in the Gathering Place to accommodate the use of water and will not be live-streamed.

Holy Week is an opportunity to hear again and live into the saving mysteries of God with us to save and make us new. I encourage you to take full advantage of this brief season when the love and grace of God is on powerful display and available personally to us all.

Pastor Bruce  

One Combined Worship Service at 10:00 am

Holy Thursday, Communion and foot-washing at 7:30 pm on March 28

Holy Thursday, or Maundy Thursday, commemorates the events that occurred in the Upper Room. 

Good Friday Drama The Passion of Jesus March 29 at 7:30 pm

The Easter Egg Hunt is free, but we can only accommodate 150 children plus their parents.



 Please let us know you're coming!

A Play on Words 

When it was almost time for the Jewish Passover, Jesus went up to Jerusalem. In the temple courts he found people selling cattle, sheep and doves, and others sitting at tables exchanging money. So he made a whip out of cords, and drove all from the temple courts, both sheep and cattle; he scattered the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables. To those who sold doves he said, “Get these out of here! Stop turning my Father’s house into a market!”

The Jews then responded to him, “What sign can you show us to prove your authority to do all this?” Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days.”

John 2:13-16, 18-19

“If you need help building an ark, I Noah guy!”

“Did you know that airplanes were in the Bible? Yeah, Pontius was a Pilate!”

Okay, okay, one more…

“Did you know that baseball is in the Bible? It’s right there in Genesis 1 – in the big-inning!”

Each of these statements is a “play on words.” The entire statement, taken together, makes us think about the words in a new way. Whether it’s Noah, or Pontius Pilate, or “In the beginning God created…,” a play on words makes us think about things in a new way. Jesus does the same thing in today’s reading. He makes us think about things in a new way.

The Jewish leaders didn’t want to believe that Jesus is God. When Jesus started flipping tables and driving out the animals, they asked: What sign will you give us to prove that you can do this? They didn’t believe that Jesus was God, so they demanded proof. Show us, right now! What gives you the right to do this? Show us! Prove it!

And instead of giving proof, Jesus answers with a prophecy—a play on words: “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up again.” The Jewish leaders didn’t want to believe that Jesus is God, so they scoffed: “No one can do that!”

Except… Jesus did. His body was destroyed, and he died on Good Friday. On the third day, Jesus raised himself from the dead. He proved that he had the authority to cleanse the temple, because he had even greater authority: The power to lay down his life and take it up again.

Closing Prayer:

Christ, the life of all the living, Christ, the death of death, our foe,

who, thyself for me once giving to the darkest depths of woe:

through thy sufferings, death, and merit, I eternal life inherit.

Thousand, thousand thanks shall be, dearest Jesus, unto thee. Amen.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

After a four-year delay, the 2020 General Conference will take place April 23-May 3, 2024 in Charlotte, NC.

What is Pender UMC doing to prepare for the General Conference?

See the videos below and view the General Conference: Discerning a Faithful Path Forward PDF

NEWS from the Delegation

VAUMC General Conference Delegation Endorses Christmas Covenant Regionalization Plan.

Overview

The VAUMC General Conference Delegation unanimously supports the Christmas Covenant regionalization plan as the wisest and most hopeful way forward for the United Methodist Church. At the June 2023 Annual Conference, the General Conference Delegation made a short presentation on this matter. The Virginia Annual Conference then voted to endorse the Christmas Covenant regionalization plan as well.

In September 2023, the authors of the Christmas Covenant joined with the Connectional Table and the Standing Committee on Central Conference Matters to submit updated regionalization legislation for General Conference. This updated plan will be considered at General Conference 2024. If this regionalization plan passes, Annual Conferences will have to vote to ratify the resultant constitutional amendments. We, the General Conference delegation, are grateful that the Virginia Annual Conference voted to endorse the Christmas Covenant regionalization plan in advance of the 2024 General Conference.

Regionalization FAQs

The Social Principles are the topic of the latest Before Conference Conversations video, featuring Virginia General Conference delegate Alison Malloy. Alison serves on the General Board of Church and Society and worked on the task force that helped develop the proposed revision to the Social Principles.

Social Principles Video below

Finance Chairman David Kinard brings an exciting update to the Pender community about our dynamic financial endeavor, the "Bridge of Hope" campaign. This initiative isn't just a campaign; it's a journey towards a brighter future for our church, and every member's contribution is a pivotal step on this bridge.

As of March 21, 2024, our collective efforts have already amassed a remarkable $160,695! What's even more heartening is that $10,000 of this is a matching grant from a generous member of our church family. This means every contribution to the "Bridge of Hope" is effectively doubled, up to an astounding $92,000. Every penny you give becomes two, making your impact even more significant.

Pamela and I are personally committed to this cause. All our weekly offerings are now channeled directly to the "Bridge of Hope," ensuring we fully leverage this matching opportunity. We encourage you to consider doing the same. Remember, undesignated funds go into our general fund, so let's be intentional with our giving. It's as simple as marking "Bridge of Hope" on your check, envelope, or selecting it from the dropdown menu when giving online.

Our goal is to maximize this matching gift and double our financial strength. This campaign is more than just numbers; it's about sustaining our beloved church's future. Over the past few years, our savings have dwindled as we've struggled to cover monthly expenses. The "Bridge to Hope" is our path to financial stability, ensuring we don't deplete our reserves.

To help everyone understand the depth and importance of this campaign, we've prepared informative handouts and giving cards available in the Pender narthex. These include answers to frequently asked questions and contact information for any further queries you might have.

Join us in this remarkable journey of faith and generosity. Let's seize this opportunity to double our impact and secure our church's financial future. Your participation in the "Bridge of Hope" campaign is not just a donation; it's an investment in the heart and soul of our Pender community.

To give, click here and choose "Bridge of Hope" - thank you!

Hello Pender Family!

We're excited to see all the wonderful meetings and gatherings being planned within our community! To ensure everything runs smoothly, we kindly ask that all Pender meetings, whether they're happening on-campus, off-campus, or virtually via Zoom, be included on the church calendar. This little step helps us all stay connected and informed.

If you're looking to request a meeting, it's super easy! Just fill out this form, and voilà, you're on your way. We'll send you an email to let you know once your event is approved. Just a heads-up: if a room is already booked, we won't be able to schedule your event there, but we'll do our best to find a great alternative for you.

We appreciate your patience in waiting for the approval of your meeting. We know you're eager to get together, but it's best to hold off on resuming meetings until you get the green light. This ensures that your space is confirmed and ready for you. Remember, completing the form is the first step, but your room isn't booked until you receive that approval email.

Thanks for helping everything run like clockwork at Pender! We can't wait to see all the amazing things you'll be doing in your meetings. 

Questions or need help? Email webmaster@penderumc.org.

Blessings and Happy Planning!

Meeting this Saturday (3/23/2024)

No meeting Saturday 3/30/2024

All are welcome to join us for a discussion to consider “Questions in Faith” that pertain to us all, no matter our station of life or faith. 

We will meet in the library at 10:30 to talk about biblical answers to questions about God, faith, and life that relate to us all. 

If you plan to come, contact me to make arrangement to get you a study book that will be the basis of our discussion. 

Bring your Bible with you and invite a friend.  

Support our First Responders by helping us restock our Rest Stop.

The following donations are currently needed: 16 oz bottled water and energy drinks.

Donations can be dropped off in the Church Office.

Our officers continually let us know how blessed they are to have a safe place here at Pender! In turn, we are safer because of their presence!

BlackGirlScientist, LLC. will sponsor a FREE STEM Workshop (Lava Lip Gloss Lab) at Pender UMC for the maximum of 30 middle school age girls. The goal will be to expose young girls to STEM through an interactive workshop.

STEM is an acronym for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. It's a term used to group together these related technical disciplines. STEM is often used in the context of education policy and school curriculum choices.

Register today!

Hi Sunday School Families & Friends, 

There are some wonderful family/children's activities happening ithis year. Please come and enjoy! All are welcome -- and invite a friend!

Discover a supportive space for new beginnings! Join us every Wednesday at 6:00 PM in the serene ambiance of Pender UMC's Library.

At 5:00 PM there is a time of casual chat, known as the "meeting before the meeting".

Engage in meaningful conversations and find camaraderie at our AA meetings, guided by the experienced Tom O, a dedicated long-term member.

These are open meetings.

OPEN (Open to anyone interested in Alcoholics Anonymous' program of recovery from alcoholism)

DISCUSSION (Group participation in discussion of topic relevant to the AA program)

STEP (Group discussion of the 12 steps of AA)

Pender VBS Registration is open!

VBS will be the week of June 24 through June 28

In the bustling, whimsical world of Hero Hotline Headquarters, superheroes of every shape, size, and superpower come together under the watchful eye of the wise Professor and the legendary Super Meer, a daring Meerkat hero.

Here, in this vibrant hub of heroism, young and old heroes alike answer the call of duty, joining forces to lend their extraordinary talents to Hero Teams across the globe.

Whether it's solving perplexing puzzles, battling dastardly villains, or rescuing those in peril, these superheroes are always ready to save the day with a dash of fun, a sprinkle of humor, and a whole lot of heart.

Register at https://penderumc.org/vbs

Western Fairfax Christian Ministries ("WFCM") Current Request for Donations

WFCM has been providing food and services to the community for 35 years. Pender was one of the twelve founding churches that set the path and began the journey. Becky Bryan is our current liaison with WFCM.

Thanks goes out to all of you who continue to support WFCM many programs.

~~~

The WFCM blue cart is outside the church.

WFCM pantry needs:

• Canned peaches and canned fruit cocktail, no sugar added
• Oatmeal, grits
• Canned tomatoes, stewed or crushed
• Risotto
• Brown rice
• Toiletries: toothpaste, lotion, toilet paper

All donations of food and toiletries are welcomed and needed.

Please no:

* Expired food

* Glass jars

* Egg Cartons

Thanks to all of you who faithfully extend your loving mercy to those in our community who may face food insecurity without the donations we make to WFCM. Usually this Pender weekly email does not contain the entire letter from WFCM with their monthly update. Since it may have been awhile since you’ve seen how your contributions make a difference, please take a couple of minutes to read this. You’ll also learn about the various ways WFCM gets food to those who need it. 

Below is an excerpt from the letter which I want to bring to your attention. 

Please consider a recurring monthly donation. How does this help? We are able to turn your monthly donation of $50 into $300 of groceries.

When you give a cash donation to Pender designated for the WFCM Food Pantry, Pender will forward the donation to WFCM with the restriction to use it for the food pantry. In March we have sent $1,000 – which multiplies into $6,000 worth of food when WFCM makes bulk purchases.

If you have any questions, please contact me, Becky Bryan, or you may contact WFCM directly.

Again, thanks to each of you who continue to support this important ministry.

Read this month's WFCM Newsletter.

The WFCM Food Pantry is accepting outside donations at their address below. There is a greater need for food but fewer donations.

You can also help by ordering from Amazon for delivery to WFCM. Rice, beans, canned fruit, diapers (Sizes 4, 5, 6), pasta, pasta sauce, etc.



                   WFCM

                   4511 Daly Drive, Suite J

                   Chantilly, VA 20151

Financial contributions are also accepted (cash, check or through our website). Please mark your tax deductible donation "WFCM Food Pantry." This will be recorded on your giving statement.

Thank you for your continuing support of WFCM. In 2021, Pender donated 6,128.74 pounds of food and personal care items to help the needy in the community. Thank you for your ongoing and generous support of WFCM.

Pender is an open and welcoming church. We accept and embrace all persons, period. All people are blessed children of God. Pender is a caring and praying church community; we believe as Christians that we are called to follow and practice the ways of Jesus Christ, who is our ever present and living God.

Our mission is to practice and embrace, providing unconditional love and acceptance of all of God's children as He loves and accepts all of us.

We do not discriminate based on age, mental, physical, or intellectual ability, culture, gender, race, religious belief or unbelief, or sexual orientation.