theconnection FIRST UNITED METHODIST CHURCH CARY Join Us for Holy Week Palm-Passion Sunday: March 25 All Sunday morning worship services. Holy Thursday: March 29 Service of Worship and Holy Communion: 7:00pm in the Sanctuary. Good Friday: March 30 Stations of the Cross, Meditative Reflections and Worship Available from 10:00am to 4:00pm, Sanctuary. Stations of the Cross, adapted for children: Interactive worship offered by the Children and Youth Ministry Teams Available from 10:00am to 4:00pm, Templeton Building. Praying the Labyrinth Available from 3:00 to 5:00pm, Columbarium Memorial Garden. Choral Tenebrae Service of Worship, Chancel Choir and Orchestra 7:00pm in the Sanctuary. Prayer Vigil 9:00pm Good Friday through 6:00am Easter Sunday. Easter Sunday: April 1 Sunday Worship 6:45am Sunrise Service in the Columbarium Memorial Garden, followed by breakfast in the fellowship hall. 8:25, 9:45, 11:05am in the Sanctuary 9:45, 11:05am 1st on Chatham at The Cary 11:11am Celebration in the fellowship hall Sharing the heart of Christ from the heart of Cary. March 23, 2018 Worship: Sunday Sanctuary: 8:25, 9:45, & 11:05am Sunday Celebration: 11:11am 117 South Academy Street Cary, NC 27511 Sunday 1st on Chatham: 9:45 and 11:05am The Cary, 122 E. Chatham Street, Cary, NC 27511 office: (919) 467-1861 pastor on call: (919) 467-1862 firstcary.com Lori Barmer Communications Coordinator OUR MISSION To make disciples of Jesus Christ who grow in faith and love through worship, fellowship, service and witness to one another and the world.
Sing for Joy! On Saturday March 10, fourteen of the Asbury choir members, along with members of children s choirs from five other churches in the district, gathered at Fuquay Varina UMC to spend the morning learning more about singing and being a good musician. The guest director for this year s Sing for Joy! Children s Choir Festival was Paul Flowers. Mr. Flowers is the choral director at Hope Middle School in Greenville, NC, and also director of the Greenville Choral Society. The singers spent the morning learning from Mr. Flowers how to make beautiful musical sounds together. All of the participating singers had spent a few weeks in their own choirs learning the four anthems and worked together as a large group to polish what they had learned. At 2:00 that afternoon, a concert was presented by the group to the parents. It was a wonderful time of worship through song as they declared the glory of God, remembered that God guides us always, that we are children of light, and because of this we can keep a joyful song ringing in our hearts. What a blessing to see all these young future worship leaders working together singing praises and growing in their faith. Sing for Joy! Children s Choir Festival came about in 2014 when several of us who lead children s choirs in the area met and decided that we would begin a festival here in this area. There is a festival in the western part of the state, but this was the first one offered here in many years. So, in 2015 the festival was hosted by Apex UMC and in 2016 by Soapstone UMC. The festival committee plans to host this event every other year at various churches within the district. Our next festival will be in 2020. Thanks to the NC Chapter of the Fellowship for sponsoring this festival. Patti Cook, Director of Children s Music Library Honors Women s History Month Mother Teresa Come Be My Light: The Private Writings of the Saint of Calcutta by Mother Teresa and Brian Kolodiejchuk, M.C. This collection of Mother Teresa s writing and reflections reveals the depth and intensity of her holiness. It is a moving journey of her spiritual life, including her own dark night of the soul as her inner life burned with the fire of charity. [B Mot] Stories Behind Women of Extraordinary Faith by Ace Collins. If you like to read stories about people, this book will tell you about twenty remarkable women of faith. The author s gift for storytelling will bless and inspire the reader as surprising details about these women are included. [In memory of Jane Bland donated by the Esther Circle.] [920 Col] A Woman s Place: House Churches in Earliest Christianity by Carolyn Osiek and Margaret MacDonald. This carefully researched material tells about women in the context of ancient households and highlights the power of social perceptions in shaping the lives of early Christian women. The book provides an important resource to learn about the role of women in early Christianity. [270 Osi] Strong Was Her Faith: Women of the New Testament by J. Ellsworth Kalas. The author focuses on eleven different women of great faith and importance to the story of the New Testament. He examines the Scriptures to see what we can learn about these women and what we can learn from them. The book includes a discussion guide. [225 Kal] A Faith of Her Own: Women of the Old Testament by J. Ellsworth Kalas. In this book Kalas focuses on women of the Old Testament. He examines the Scriptures for their defining characteristics and how they fit into as well as shaped the Old Testament story. He tells how their stories of strength, courage, perseverance, and faith have shaped our lives as believers today. This book includes a discussion guide. [221 Kal] Women Speak of God by Amy Oden. From the earliest days of the church, women have spoken and written of their faith. In this study you will hear their stories of how God works in difficult times and places. Women from the earliest church to recent times are included. The set includes a DVD, Leader s guide, and participant book. DR Library Church Library Team
Baskets, Ribbons, Candy, Toys, Bibles and God s Love! Baskets of Hope at First UMC Cary provides Easter baskets to children in Wake County who may be in need of a little extra love and a reminder that God is with them and loves them! This year we sent out 780 baskets!!! We had an amazing year! The congregation blessed us with almost 300 baskets!! The rest of the baskets were made by families, Youth and RockStars at the packing parties! We couldn t have made as many baskets as we did without the help of so many servants. During the packing parties, some servants put together baskets for kids their own ages. They know what an eight- to eleven-year-old boy would like because they are an eight- to eleven-year-old boy! That extra love wrapped up in the baskets makes this an even stronger ministry. We worked with different organizations including Boys and Girls Clubs, Bridge the Gap Mission, InterAct, Dorcas, Mighty Mondays, and Motheread to identify the children who could use a basket. Kelli Pfitzner with Bridge the Gap, said, [The baskets] are wonderful! I love that we are able to give the teenagers a basket as well. Beautifully blessed! The baby baskets are a wonderful addition!! [The] children are always so grateful and enjoy [the baskets] very much. I love Baskets of Hope for many reasons. It gives our members of all ages an opportunity to serve others that we may never meet. We serve for others not for recognition for ourselves. Everyone who packed, organized or delivered a basket may not be there to see the children receive the baskets, however the love and prayers will remain in their hearts. When Otis Hardy saw all the finished baskets, he told me that what we did with the baskets was a wonderful blessing to so many. We won t see it after the baskets leave our church but that makes the feelings last forever. Thank you to everyone who worked with Baskets of Hope this year. Thank you for your time, your energy and your talents. Rest up we will be wrapping God s love into even more baskets next year! Kris Gustafson, Baskets of Hope Coordinator
Favorite Scripture Galatians 5:22-25 (nrsv) By contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against such things. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also be guided by the Spirit. Pastors On-Call Your pastors continue to seek ways to provide you with quality pastoral care while balancing the other demands of ministry. In an effort to be available, we have an oncall system. If you need to reach a pastor in an emergency situation, you may call (919) 467-1862 to reach the on-call pastor for that week. There is also an option to dial this line directly when calling the church office. When you call this number, the pastor on call for the week will respond as soon as possible. Please be mindful when calling this number, as it is for true emergencies only. This includes a death, sudden critical hospitalization of a member, or other such situations. Pastoral care for non-emergencies, such as scheduled hospitalizations, can be arranged through the front office. Staff Profile: Elizabeth Rhoads In this issue, we d like to highlight Elizabeth Rhoads, Congregational Care Coordinator. Where did you go to school? I graduated with a degree in Biological Sciences from Clemson University. After that, I attended the Medical University of South Carolina and graduated with a degree in Occupational Therapy. I worked as a pediatric Occupational Therapist in my previous life. Tell us about your family. In May, I will celebrate my 21st anniversary with my husband, Dean. We have three children, all of whom attend GRACE Christian School. Madison is a junior in high school, Thomas is in eighth grade, and Emily is an fifth grade. We also have a six-year-old dog named Marty. We moved to Cary in 2007 from Charlotte. All of the rest of our family live South Carolina, mainly the upstate area. March 28: Parables Class Boneless pork chops, egg noodles, green beans, salad, dinner roll What do you do for fun? My favorite thing to do is to spend time with my family at the beach. My best memories are with my family at the beach. Whether it s spending time sitting or playing on the beach or exploring the inlet or eating crab legs, it s always special. We also tend to play lots of games at the beach and no beach trip is complete without a family UNO tournament. I also really enjoy a good book, pretty much any movie, and I ve always loved to travel. What is your role, and how long have you been on our team? I joined the First UMC Cary team on an interim basis in December, 2016, before beginning part-time in March, 2017. I work closely with Rev. Heather Wong and Rev. William Green and our Congregational Care Ministers. I also work closely with our senior adults and the JOY Council. Dinner begins at 5:30pm Cost: $7 for adults, $6 for seniors 65+, $4 for children 12 and under, $22 max Small Groups begin at 6:30pm for adults, youth and children RSVP by noon the Tuesday before at firstcary.com or call 919-467-1861.
Parenting Study: Mindfulness Learn more about how this tool can be a life changer for you and your family. Wednesday, March 28, 6:30pm to 7:30pm, led by Stephanie Purdy. Health Ministry: Dates to Remember April 7: Mobile Blood Drive at First UMC Cary, 9:30am-1:30pm. Donors receive a $10 Chick-Fil-A gift card April 13: Mental Illness Annual Conference, St. Thomas More Catholic Church in Chapel Hill, NC April 14: National Alliance on Mental Illness Walk, no fee, North Hills, Raleigh, NC Please email Health Ministry chair, Jenn George at jenngeorge@nc.rr.com with questions! ASP Rent-a-Team Our Work Day is April 14, 2018. Need help this spring with yard work? Your ASP team is here to help! The cost is $50-$100 per hour depending on size of the job, complexity, and difficulty of work task. An ASP team member will contact you to schedule and answer any questions you may have. To schedule work visit www.firstcary.com. All Faiths Women s Book Group The All Faiths Women s Book Group is now in its tenth year. Our next meeting will be held from 2:30-4pm on March 25 in room 124 at First UMC Cary. The book we will be discussing is Orange is the New Black by Piper Kerman. It is an autobiography/memoir of one woman s year in prison. All interested women are invited to join us for a lively discussion, food, and fellowship. For more information contact Susan Ciccarelli at Susan@SusanCiccarelli.com. MCC Director Position The Methodist Children s Center is seeking a Preschool Director. This part-time position is Monday through Friday from 8:30am-2:30pm, 11 month position. The Director will oversee daily operations of the preschool, implement and maintain all licensing, sanitation and fire policies and procedures, maintain the budget, and attend all MCC events. For a detailed job description, go to: http://firstcary.com/mcc/ and look under the tab Other Information. The job description and the application can be found there. Complete the application and send it along with your resume to Alicia Shelton at ashelton@firstcary.com by Friday, March 30. MCC Lead Teacher Position The Methodist Children s Center is seeking a Lead Teacher for our two-year-old class Monday through Thursday. This position is part-time from 9:00am-12:30pm August to May. To apply for this four day a week position, please visit our website at http://firstcary.com/mcc/ and go to the Other Information tab for a complete job description and to print a copy of the application. Return the completed application along with your resume to the Family Ministry Associate for Children, Alicia Shelton at ashelton@firstcary.com or you may mail it to Alicia Shelton, 117 South Academy Street, Cary, NC 27511. Applications must be received by Friday March 30, 2018. Mother s Day Cards & Crafts Courtesy of United Methodist Men Saturday, April 14, from 9:30am to 11:00am in rooms 124 and 125 Fathers, sons, and daughters: plan to join us for a morning of fellowship, fun and crafts. Parents you are also welcome to bring the family to the First UMC Cary fellowship hall for the United Methodist Men s Breakfast starting at 8:00am. Following the breakfast, there will be miniature golf for your children to play while you can listen to our guest speaker, Chuck Jenkins from Bridges/Puente, a prison re-entry ministry. Afterwards, fathers will join their children to help make their cards and crafts. To register for the Mother s Day Cards & Crafts visit: http://tinyurl.com/y78s4vtc. All Church Gathering, Sunday, April 29 Join us on Waldo Street for a time of fellowship and to celebrate the church s 147th birthday! We will have food trucks with a variety of lunch items; tables, chairs, bouncy houses and activities for all ages after worship until 2:00pm. We will be collecting donations to cover the cost of the food trucks. To register for the meal, please visit www.firstcary.com. Save the Date! The UMW Ladies Tea, May 19, 2018 ~ 4:00pm, Fellowship Hall Girls of all ages are welcome. Bring your daughters and granddaughters, nieces, and neighbors for fellowship, entertainment, and delectable treats. More information will be available soon. WORSHIP ATTENDANCE March 11 March 18 SANCTUARY: 723 817 CELEBRATION: 72 67 1st ON CHATHAM 203 204 TOTAL: 998 1,088