Pastor’s Pen
I have had an increase of people asking me what does "Come journey with
us" mean that is on lots of my clothing. Most of those asking are people I
meet as I am out and about. I tell
them that it means our church will
welcome you no matter where you are
in your faith or life journeys because
we realize that all of us are on a journey. They are intrigued; and for some,
that is not what they thought church
would be about. Some even say they
would like to go to a church like that.
There is a need for this type of welcoming environment, especially at
this time in our nation. There are
great divides in our country which
often lead people to see the worst in
those who do not agree with them.
What if we realized that what each
person believes has value, has worth,
and is shaped by the journey they
have been on? How would things
change if we realized that what they
believe is based on what they have
experienced in their life?
No two journeys are the same both
in lives and in travel.
I can drive down to Frederick on Rt. 15
when there is no traffic at all, and the
roads are great. My wife can take the
same journey a half an hour later, and
because of weather that has quickly
come in or an accident that just oc-
curred, it can take her double the
amount of time. We have had this
happen many times. Do I tell her she
is wrong and that it couldn't have taken her that long because I just drove
it? Or do I accept her experience of
her journey? Of course I accept it! The
church should be a place where we
accept what others have experienced
on their journey.
One of the current failures in this nation is the self-segregation into
groups that believe exactly as we do
and listen to the same media or read
the same news as us. This limits our
capacity to understand the journey of
others. It warms my heart that on a
Sunday morning I see people at fellowship time sitting and talking with
one another who hold very different
views and opinions on politics and
culture. I am moved, when on a Sunday morning at Toms Creek, I hear
from people that were moved by
Trumps inaugural speech and others
who were excited to share their experience at the Women's March. I know
that on both sides they want what is
best for America. I know that they
care about helping this nation and
want the people of this nation to
move forward. Yet, because people
have taken different journeys and experiences, they see the situations and
possible solutions very differently.
10926 Simmons Road
Emmitsburg MD 21727
301.447.3171
[email protected]
Pastor
Rev. Heath Wilson
410-758-7707
[email protected]
Sunday Schedule
Traditional Worship………...8am
Coffee Hour………….…...…...9am
Sunday School………...….9:30am
Family Worship…….…...10:30am
Fellowship
Oldies & Goodies…3rd Thursday
F & F @ Flick’s……2:00 Thursdays
Pastor’s Pen Continued...
I enjoy listening to all sides, allowing others to share their joys and fears, because
I realize that what they are sharing is their beliefs based on their own journey. I
become a more balanced, knowledgeable person having listened to their views
shaped by their journey; even if they share something I don't believe or think is
wrong. I always try to remember that it is true and real to them from what they
have or have not experienced in their life. For example, if someone has never
been homeless or close to being homeless, it is difficult for him or her to understand the plight of the homeless. They may not be able to understand that anyone could be in that position who has worked hard, has spent their money wisely, and has done all the things people say they should do to improve their situation. And no matter how much I say, the person’s opinion may never change
because homelessness has not been part of their journey in life.
I pray that our church can be a place where we always live into the aspirational
statement of "Come journey with us". All-Knowing God, help us to want to get to
know about the journey of the drug addict, the gossiper, the award winner, the
veteran, the homeless, the newly released prison inmate, the motorcycle rider,
the BMW driver, the politician, the business owner, the environmentalist, the
anarchist, the widow, the newlywed, the feminist, the conservative, the progressive, and anyone who we separate from ourselves.
Pastor Heath
February is Black
History Month
2017 Administrative Council
Sandy Negro
Chairperson
Marge Graham
Vice Chair
Christine Shaffer
Ann Sanders
Bill Coburn
Neil Price
Kay Martin
Frank Negro
Shannon Hess
Linda Myers
Secretary
SPRC Chair
Finance Chair
Finance Secretary
Treasurer
Trustees Chair
NOW Team
Christian Education
Karen Wivell
Lay Leader
Donna Ohler
Lay Leader
Annual Conference
President of UMW
At-Large Members: Andrew Boller,
Pat Baughman, Curtis Baughman,
Virginia Wantz, Mary Harner
Black History Month is an opportunity to celebrate the achievements
and contributions people of African
heritage have made for the world. It
is also a time to reflect on our sad
history of prejudice and slavery and
to advocate for equal rights for all.
February marks the observance of
many important milestones in African-American history. On February 1,
1865, Abraham Lincoln signed the
13th Amendment abolishing slavery. The 15th Amendment, granting black men
the right to vote was adopted on February 3, 1870; on February 12, 1909 the
NAACP was founded; and on February 25, 1870, Hiram Rhodes Revels, the first
black US Senator, took the oath of office.
Sojourner Truth: A Life and Legacy of Faith
Sojourner Truth was born into slavery about 1797 in Ulster County, New York.
Known as Isabella, her parents were James and Betsey, the property of Colonel
Johannes Hardenbergh. As a child she spoke only low Dutch and, like most slaves,
never learned to read or write.
About 1815 Isabella married Thomas, a fellow
slave, and bore five children -- Diana (b. 1815), Peter (b. 1821), Elizabeth (b.1825), Sophia (b. 1826)
and a fifth child who may have died in infancy.
Isabella was sold to four more owners, until she
finally walked to freedom in 1826, carrying her
infant daughter, Sophia.
She settled in New York City until 1843, when she
changed her name to Sojourner Truth, announcing she would travel the land as an itinerant
preacher, telling the truth and working against
injustice.
All-Church Birthday Party
will be held on
Sunday, February 12th at noon in the church Fellowship
Hall. Those who would like to bake a special cake for one
of the 12 months, please use the sign-up sheet located in
the church lobby.
Thank You
To my Prayer Partner for the Beautiful Altar Flowers
that decorated our church over Christmas & following Sundays. ~ Virginia Wantz
Apostles S.S. Room
Take a peek inside. Beautiful yellow cloth with Spring
Flowers adorning the table. Makes it feel like Spring not far
away & the sense of God. Thanks to Mary Springer. We
have been discussing the meaning of different LOVES
and "Feed My Sheep" Will start on how to be truthful in
our life. Come and join us some Sunday. ~ Virginia Wantz
Relay for Life
The Taneytown area Relay for Life will be held on May
20th this year in the Carroll Vista community. The past few
years, Tom's Creek has sent a team. In order for us to participate this year, we need a coordinator. If you are interested, call Nancy Williams who is the contact person at 410
756 1001.
Mission Trip to Kenya
Anyone interested in going to Kenya on a mission trip in
July 2018 is invited to come to Elias Lutheran Church in
Emmitsburg Sun Feb 12 @ 12:30 to hear how the process
begins. You will not be committed at this time. It is a
learning experience to hear what one does on this kind of a
trip and how perhaps your talents can be used. Youth are
welcomed. Lunch will be provided. You may also talk to
Phyllis Kelly who has been on this trip twice and can answer any questions. These mission trips are sponsored by
the Emmitsburg Council of Churches and are interdenominational trips taking the gospel with us.
Scholarships
The Baltimore-Washington Conference will offer college
scholarships for the 2017 fall semester. Students can apply Jan. 3rd - March 1st using an online application system.
Students must be an active member of a church for at
least one year and be attending (or will attend) an accredited college or university within the United States
full-time. Students will need to provide their official
transcript (high school or college) and contact information for two church references (pastor and another
member of the church). In addition, the student must
have a minimum GPA of 2.5 or higher on a 4.0 scale. For
additional information and to
apply, visit www.bwcumc.org/
administration/finance/localchurch-resources/scholarships.
Women’s Bible Study
Spring 2017
The holidays are behind us and spring is approaching; although, the temperatures outside today do not feel like
spring. This short article is a reminder that our ladies’
study of the Book of John will resume on March 2, 2017
beginning with John 11. I hope to end the study by May 4th
or 11th depending on whether we meet the Thursday before
Easter. Please bring your Bible and notebook. Any additional information you find on the chapter we are reading
would be much appreciated. We will continue to use Pastor Rick Warren’s, “The Chapter Summary Method of Bible
Study” for our study of the Book of John. READING and
WRITING will be required before each session. Please
bring your Bible and journal.
I hope you all will be returning but if you were in the study
last fall and have decided this method of study is not for
you, please notify me. If you were not in the study and
would like to join us, just give me a call, or send me an
email and we can set a time for me to explain the chapter
method of Bible study to you. New members are always
welcome. Our meetings will be on Thursdays, starting at
9:30 am and ending by 11:00 am. Should we have inclement
weather, we will follow the Frederick County Public School
schedule. If they close we will NOT meet, if they have a
two-hour delay we should be fine and meet at our regular
time.
Hope to see you on
March 2nd!!
In His Service,
Linda Myers
Call or email Linda Myers at
717-337-3486
[email protected]
BUFFET BREAKFAST & PORK SALE
Tom’s Creek UMC will host its semi-annual breakfast from
6:oo am until 10:00 am on Saturday, March 11th! Bring
your friends and neighbors to this incredible meal and
time of fellowship. The menu includes Pancakes, Scrambled Eggs, Sausage & Bacon, Home Fries, Chip Beef Gravy,
Fruit & Orange Juice, Coffee & Tea. The cost is $8 for adults
and $4 for children ages 5-10. Proceeds benefit the mortgage fund.
PORK SALE ORDERS:
Dottie Davis: 301-447-2403 or 301-693-1505
Ernie Staub: 443-605-2995
February TCUMC Book Club
unthinkable happens and Kasia is sent to Ravensbruck, the
notorious Nazi concentration camp for women. Their stories cross continents--from New York to Paris, Germany,
and Poland--as Caroline and Kasia strive to bring justice to
those whom history has forgotten. In Lilac Girls, Martha
Hall Kelly has crafted a remarkable novel of unsung women and their quest for love, freedom, and second chances.
It is a story that will keep readers bonded with the characters, searching for the
truth, until the final pages. Advance
praise for Lilac Girls "Rich with historical
detail and riveting to the end, Lilac Girls
weaves the lives of three astonishing
women into a story of extraordinary
moral power set against the harrowing
backdrop of Europe in thrall to Nazi
Germany. Martha Hall Kelly moves
effortlessly across physical and ethical
battlegrounds, across the trajectory of a
doomed wartime romance, across the
territory of the soul. I can't remember
the last time I read a novel that moved
me so deeply."--Beatriz Williams, New
York Times bestselling author of A Hundred Summers and The Secret Life of
Violet Grant "Inspired by actual events
and real people, Martha Hall Kelly has
woven together the stories of three
women during World War II that reveal the bravery, cowardice, and cruelty of those days. This is a part of history-women's history--that should never be forgotten.
The TCUMC Book Club will meet on Friday, February 10th
at Trudy Price’s home (3440 Emmitsburg Road, Gettysburg). Dinner will be served at 6:00 p.m. and book discussion at 7:00 p.m. The February selection will be Lilac Girls
by Martha Hall Kelly. The book is available at Adams, Carroll and Frederick County Public Libraries. Please join us for an enjoyable evening. Call Trudy at 717-337-2897 if you
plan to attend (she will need an accurate count for dinner).
Book Summary
Inspired by the life of a real World War
II heroine, this powerful debut novel
reveals an incredible story of love, redemption, and terrible secrets that were
hidden for decades. New York socialite
Caroline Ferriday has her hands full
with her post at the French consulate
and a new love on the horizon. But Caroline's world is forever changed when
Hitler's army invades Poland in September 1939--and then sets its sights on
France. An ocean away from Caroline,
Kasia Kuzmerick, a Polish teenager,
senses her carefree youth disappearing
as she is drawn deeper into her role as courier for the underground resistance movement. In a tense atmosphere of
watchful eyes and suspecting neighbors, one false move
can have dire consequences. For the ambitious young German doctor, Herta Oberheuser, an ad for a government
medical position seems her ticket out of a desolate life.
Once hired, though, she finds herself trapped in a maledominated realm of Nazi secrets and power. The lives of
these three women are set on a collision course when the
March Book Club
What Was Mine by Helen Klein Ross
March 10th — Anita Hill
February Worship Assistants
8:00
February 5
February 12
February 19
February 26
Greeter/
Usher
Joan & Earl
Keller
Carol & Kathy
Amoss
Heather &
Brian Fogle
Velma
Stambaugh
Nancy Baker
La
y Reader
Linda Myers
Andrew Boller
Rose Woodsmall
Ann Sanders
Coffee
Hour
Vicki & Jim
Cramer
Stambaugh,
Baker, Glass
Elza Hurst
Dottie Davis
10:30
February 5
February 12
February 19
February 26
Olivia Imirie
Amber Price
Trudy & Neil
Price
Donna Ohler
Debbie Wivell
Greeter/
Usher
Lay
Reader
Lynn Fraley &
Rita & Jim Allen
Jeff Wentworth
Phyllis Kelly
Olivia Imirie
Acolyte
Kameron Kneer Cayden Messler
Auora Munro
Ana Schaffer
Nursery
Trudy & Amber Heather Fogle
Price
Greta Nettleton
Cheryl & Bert
Waybright
Phyllis Kelly
Rita Allen
Oldies & Goodies
The Oldies and Goodies met on January 19 at the church for a soup and
sandwich luncheon. Velma congratulated those with birthdays and anniversaries in January. The annual Easter Egg making will begin in mid February. Roy's goal is to sell even more
eggs than last year. Please plan to
help with this major fundraiser for
our mortgage fund. Watch the bulletin in the coming weeks for details.
One of the coffee pots in the kitchen
is not working. Jim Glass will fix it.
The part will cost $62. Travel bags
filled with goodies were given to each
person attending. They were given to
Velma by Guy with the Frederick
Rescue Mission. The next meeting
will be on February 16th.
~submitted by Karen Wivell
New Year’s Eve Party
Tom's Creek's annual New Year's Eve party was held
on Saturday, December 31st from 5-10 pm. Once
again, Pastor Heath made his homemade pizzas
with lots of toppings. Everyone brought food to
share. There were many intense games played
throughout the evening. Shortly before 10, everyone
gathered in a circle where Pastor Heath held a short
prayer service. Many thanks go to Pastor Heath for
planning this very nice evening!
Candlemas
is celebrated on the 2nd day of February of
each year. The day is celebrated as a day of renewal, hope,
and purification.
According to an old Jewish custom, a woman who gives birth to a child will be unclean
and homebound for a certain number of
days after the birth. The days for this custom differ for the birth of a boy and a birth
of a girl. If a boy child is born, the woman is
unclean for seven days and then she remains at home for an additional thirty-three
days for a total of 40 days. If a girl child is
born, the woman is unclean for 14 days and then she remains at home for an additional sixty-six days for a total of
80 days. During these time periods, the woman touches
nothing holy.
February 2nd is exactly 40 days after the birth of Jesus
Christ and it is on this day that Mother Mary along with
Joseph brought forth their newborn son, Jesus, to the Temple. Mother Mary was cleansed on this day. Jesus was presented to the Lord in the Temple on this day. During this
time, an elderly holy man named Simeon was staying in
Jerusalem. Simeon was told by the Holy Spirit that his
death would not come until he saw the Messiah. When
5 Communion
6
7
Worship 8&10:30a
SS 9:30a
NOW 7p
Prayer Group 9a
Simeon held the baby Jesus, he knew that Jesus had come
for the salvation of all. Simeon stated that Jesus was "A light
to the revelation of the Gentiles and the
glory of thy people of Israel.
The light was the inspiration for the celebration with candles. It was and still remains to this day a Christian celebration of
the purification of Mother Mary and the
first appearance of Jesus in the Temple.
During the early years, people would place
their candles outside the church in order
to be blessed. They would then carry them
in a procession to church in order to imitate the appearance
of Jesus in the Temple.
Candles are an important symbol used on Candlemas Day.
Also, the snowdrop flower appears in a long ago rhyme
which states:
"The Snowdrop,
in purest white array,
First rears her head
on Candlemas day."
1
2
Choir Practice 7p
Linda Linton
F&F@Flicks 2p
Praise Team 7p
Al-Anon 7:15p
3
8
9
10
11
Christine Shaffer
F&F@Flicks 2p
Praise Team 7p
Al-Anon 7:15p
Ann Sanders
Joe Coleman
Shannon Bitzel
Barb Maly
18
Jessica Linton
Colton Houch
David & Denise
Shriver
12 All-Church
13
14
15
16
17
Worship 7p
Prayer Group 9a
Choir Practice 7p
Earl Keller
Barb & Scott Maly
Dick & Nancy Glass
Bill & Marge Coburn
F&F@Flicks 2p
Praise Team 7p
Al-Anon 7:15p
Birthday Party
Worship 8&10:30a
SS 9:30a
George Bruchey
Allen Phelps
4
Katerina Kane
Chester & Linda Fogle
19
20
21
Worship 8&10:30a
SS 9:30a
Christian Ed 7p
Prayer Group 9a
Trustees 7p
Anita & Jimmy Hill
Dale Kaas
Anastasia Kane
Eirn McGrew
Marge Coburn
Lynn Fraley
David Shriver
22
23
24
25
F&F@Flicks 2p
Praise Team 7p
Al-Anon 7:15p
Neil & Trudy Price
26
27
28
February’s symbolic flowers
Worship 8&10:30a
SS 9:30a
Lindsey Hoover
Jonathan Wantz
Prayer Group 9a
Violets herald hope and that inspirational trust when their petals emerge in the
snow. Primroses initiate energy into action with courage to forge ahead even in
the midst of bleak and challenging conditions, and also remind of the continuous
renewing cycles, while staying devoted to our hearts.