This Sunday, May 19th, Rev. Scott Hoffman will lead us in worship. The sermon will be "By Our Love". The scripture readings are Acts 11:1-18 and John 13:31-35. The Word in Music will be These Walls by H. Sorenson. Please see below for preaching text and questions.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
Worship Returns to the Sanctuary Sunday, May 19!
We are very excited to share the good news that we will return to the sanctuary for worship this Sunday, May 19! After almost a year of worshipping in Fellowship Hall (and a month at Atholton Elementary school) we will finally be able to praise God in our beloved sanctuary. Worship will begin at 10:30 am in the parking lot and we will all process into the sanctuary together. Come one, come all!
Limited Meeting Space
The offices will be returning to the church at the end of May. With the closure of the temporary office and the offices at the church being occupied, there will be limited meeting space available beginning in June. If you need to have a meeting at the church, please contact the office (office@cmpcusa.org) to confirm availability.
Attention all graduates!
CMPC would like to recognize all of our graduates on Graduation Sunday, June 2nd! If you or someone you know from the CMPC family is graduating from high school, trade school, college, or graduate school, please send us a brief paragraph featuring the graduate’s name, the institution they are graduating from, and future plans. Please send write-ups to Kathleen at office@cmpcusa.org by Tuesday, May 21st.
Break Bread & Connect Lunches -- On June 6th, we are trying something a little different--let’s have a picnic! Pack a lunch or pick up something on your way and we’ll eat outside under the big shade tree at the Columbia Lakefront (between Clydes and Whole Foods). Bring a folding chair or blanket to sit on. If weather is disagreeable, we’ll move indoors to Whole Foods. Future BBC Lunch dates will be on 7/14 and 8/7. Check our BBC Lunches Facebook group for details, or contact Laura Frantz with any questions.
GenOn Donations
For 20 years, Christ Memorial youth and leaders have attended GenOn Youth Summit East. GenOn Summit is a week that provides participants time to examine their faith, grow in their commitment to Christ, and feel closer to God. Deep Christ-centered friendships are developed there too. Each year we have received tremendous financial support from our generous church family, making attendance affordable for all to attend.
For many of those 20 years, we have also raised funds to support another church attending the summit—Concordia Lutheran in Worcester, Massachusetts. Concordia relies on the support of congregations such as ours. They are not just a church that supports resettled refugees. Resettled refugees are Concordia Lutheran—these families are their congregation. The church struggles with the same fight to survive as their families. Concordia isn’t just a church “in need” or a community that struggles—they are people with whom we have deep, personal relationships because we have attended the summit those 20 years together.
CMPC has pledged $1,500 to support Concordia Lutheran’s attendance at the summit this year. We hope to gather those funds from our Fifth Sunday offering on June 30. What isn’t raised there, will come from our Envelope Wall displayed at the church (you choose the amount) and our annual Musical Treats & Sweets evening on June 9. After we have given to Concordia, the balance will be used to support CMPC’s attendance. All in, we need to raise $5,250.00.
Over the next several weeks, we will be sharing stories about our friends from Concordia to help you understand our passion for helping them. We thank you for your assistance in this mission.
Musical Treats & Sweets
Join us for CMPC’s annual Musical Treats & Sweets on Sunday, June 9 from 6-8pm! The event is held to raise funds for our high school and college students and adult leaders as well as to assist Concordia Lutheran Church in Worcester, MA to attend the GenOn Youth Summit in July. There will be musical performances, a silent auction, raffles, special snacks and other fun surprises! This year’s theme is
“Hopes & Dreams.” Suggested donation is $5 at the door. Fun for all ages. Nursery available.
All-Church Mission Trip
Once again this summer a group of folks from CMPC (and other churches) will descend upon Mars Hill, NC from July 7-13 for a week of hands-on mission work with our brothers and sisters in need. All ages are encouraged to join the group for this fun-filled and meaningful week of mission work. Children age birth to 11 years enjoy a day of VBS on a beautiful college campus while anyone over the age of 11 heads off to participate in home repair and refurbishment projects throughout the area. No specific skills are needed and a wide range of projects will be available. If working on homes is not your thing, perhaps you would like to volunteer with the children’s ministry for the week. If you are interested in joining the CMPC delegation be sure to contact Pastor Scott at pastor.hoffman@cmpcusa.org or 410-997-8011.
CARE Group Program
The Board of Deacons are excited to announce the start-up of a new CARE Group ministry at CMPC, which will connect members of the church with a caring church officer or lay person. Each household will be contacted by a CARE Group Leader a few times a year, to see if there are any special needs, requests or concerns. The program will be phased in over the next several months. We look forward to talking to some of you soon!
Capital Campaign
If you missed the opportunity to participate in the Realizing the Vision Campaign and would like more information feel free to pick up a campaign packet on the table outside of Fellowship Hall. Please direct any questions to Bob Clemens at 240-381-7083 or bobclemens3@yahoo.com.
Care and Wellness Committee
If you have a friend, family member, or know of someone that needs a little cheer and would like them to receive a card from “their friends at CMPC”, please email carecards@cmpcusa.org with their name and address. CMPC’s Care and Wellness Committee will see to it that they receive a caring card from “their CMPC friends” or “their CMPC family”. CMPC cares!
Ministry Group Prayers
Friends, our Presbytery ministry group (named “West Side Story”) has asked each congregation to lift up in prayer another congregation from the group each week. This week, please join in prayer for our own congregation, Christ Memorial Presbyterian Church.
When he had gone out, Jesus said, “Now the Son of Man has been glorified, and God has been glorified
in him. If God has been glorified in him, God will also glorify him in himself and will glorify him at once. Little children, I am with you only a little longer. You will look for me; and as I said to the Jews so now I say to you, ‘Where I am going, you cannot come.’ I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”
Preaching Questions
What trait do you share with other family members?
On a scale of 1 to 10 how do you think CMPC ranks against the standard of love?
Besides love, what are the other most important marks of a faithful Christian in your opinion?
