Join the St. Matthew’s Family
If you are living in this area and do not have a local church home, we invite you to join us. Our pastor will be happy to talk with you; or you may indicate your interest in joining the next Exploring Covenant (membership) class either by marking the attendance register (“wish to join”) or calling the church office, 301-262-1408. The next class will start on May 1, 2011 and continue for five weeks.
Christian Formation and Spiritual Growth
Today church school children are meeting Jesus on the outskirts of Jerusalem (the sanctuary) and will be waving their palms to honor their promised king.
CHURCH SCHOOL CLASSES FOR CHILDREN AGES 3 THROUGH FIFTH GRADE WILL MEET ON EASTER SUNDAY. The children will visit the tomb to look for Jesus and anoint his body.
Rabbi Steve Wiseman will be the guest speaker at the Pastor’s Bible Study THIS Tuesday, April 19, 9:45 a.m., in room 126.
Mission and Service
TODAY is St. Matthew’s designated collection day for the Bowie Food Pantry. However, drop-offs can be made at anytime to the shopping cart which is located in our coat room. Items especially needed this month are canned meats (especially chicken and ham), as well as cake mixes and frosting. Your faithful support of the Food Pantry is greatly appreciated. As always, monetary donations are welcome – write your check to St. Matthew’s UMC and put “Food Pantry” on the memo line.
Christmas In April Home Fix-up Event, Saturday, April 30. Our event will be mostly yard work. Bring rakes, loppers, shears, wheel barrows, gloves for yourself, if possible. If you have small yard plants you can donate, they would be appreciated. Meet at the church at 7:30 a.m. and travel to the house by 8:00 a.m. This is a rain or shine event. Need more info? Contact Bruce Thoman or Dan Blades.
Congregational Life
Youth News – Both UMYF groups will meet tonight at 6:30. High school will continue with play practice. Middle school will experience our Holy Week Meditation Stations. REMINDER – there will be NO church school or UMYF next week for Easter!
Dinner Theatre Tickets on sale! On May 1, 5:00 p.m. in Fellowship Hall, our youth will present “Promedy” for our annual dinner theatre. Come watch as the student body leaders at Lowzund High bicker and argue about various prom themes. They finally decide to combine all of their ideas into one to create a medieval-futuristic-under-the-sea dance. Tickets are on sale TODAY after each service. Cost of tickets is $10 for adults and $8 for children 13 and under. The cost includes dinner, dessert and the show. All proceeds will help support our ASP trip.
Family Ministry Easter Egg Hunt – All families are invited to join us after the 11:00 service today for an Easter Egg Hunt. We will meet in Fellowship Hall for some bunny snacks and Easter crafts, then head out to the playground for our Egg Hunt. Please BYOB – Bring your own basket!
The United Methodist Women cordially invite all middle and high school girls to participate in a cookie baking event in the church kitchen on Monday, April 25 (Easter Monday) from 1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. While baking a variety of cookies to share with their families and others, this promises to be an afternoon of fun and fellowship! Please RSVP to Lorri Meadows by Monday, April 18. We are happy to help with transportation; moms are welcome!
LAST CHANCE TO ORDER EASTER FLOWERS IS TODAY -The Altar Guild is offering flowers to beautify the sanctuary this Easter. Donations may be made in honor or memory of a loved one or special person. The cost of the flowers is as follows:
Azaleas (pink or white) $14.00 Hydrangeas (pink or blue) $16.00 Lilies $9.00
Special flower envelopes and donation forms are available on the table in the narthex. Please fill out the form including the type and color of plant and the dedication message. Please PRINT CLEARLY. Enclose the donation form and a check payable to St. Matthew’s in the envelope. Place the envelope in the offering plate or drop it off in the church office. Contact Sharon Heidenreich (301) 262-1408 with any questions.
Podcasts of Rev. Ginger’s sermons are now available on our church website. In the “Sunday Services” box on the right side of the home page click on “Sermons audio Podcasts.”
Boy Scout Garage Sale will be here at St. Matthew’s on Saturday, May 7, 8:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. Anybody interested in contributing items to the sale can bring them to the church beginning on Tuesday, May 3 and placing them in the back of Fellowship Hall. You can arrange for pickup of heavy items by calling Pete Saderholm. Plan on coming out for the sale on May 7 and identifying a few items of other people’s treasures that you most certainly need to take home! At the end of the sale all items of value will be donated to Mission Central.
Roof Repair – Due to the bad weather and high winds that we have had recently, we are going to have to replace the roof over the sanctuary. The cost is going to run approximately $13,000 to replace and repair the roof. This was an unanticipated expense for the church. The Board of Trustees has set up an account, if you are interested in helping, for donations to help defray this additional cost to the church. Please make your check payable to St. Matthew’s UMC and indicate fund code #323, roof replacement on the memo line. Thanks in advance for your help.
Join us for “Remembering Bowie’s Religious Heritage” to be held on Wednesday, April 20, 7:00 – 8:00 p.m. at the Bowie Senior Center, 14900 Health Center Road, Bowie. All congregations of all the places in Bowie are invited to attend. There is no fee to attend. This event, as a major part of Belair at Bowie’s 50th Anniversary, will be a recorded oral history of Bowie’s places of worship from the earliest days to the present. For additional information call 301-809-3089 or e-mail museumevents@cityofbowie.org.
Drug “take back” event to be held in Bowie on Saturday, April 30, from 10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m., at the Bowie City Hall (2614 Kenhill Drive) and the Bowie Senior Center (14900 Health Center Drive). Controlled, non controlled and over-the-counter substances will be collected anonymously. This is a wonderful opportunity to go through your medicine cabinets, round up expired medications, look through your loved ones prescriptions and get rid of outdated drugs. It is NOT safe to flush them down the toilet or dispose of them in the regular trash. They find ways into the environment and water supply and are dangerous.
Employment Opportunities – The Baltimore-Washington Conference, located in the Columbia, Maryland area, serves the 650 United Methodist congregations in this region and has several positions open. These include IT/Property Manager; Administrator for Connectional Ministries; Administrator for Communications; Washington Region Administrative Assistant and Director of Archives and History. You can learn more about these positions by going to the following website: http://www.bwcumc.org/employmentopportunities.
Upcoming Events and Opportunities at St. Matthew’s
Ongoing: Feed the hungry! Contribute non-perishable food items to the Bowie Food Pantry;
End malaria! make a donation through “Nothing But Nets;”
Care for the earth!—and support our youth ASP trip—by bringing your recyclable paper to the yellow/green bin in the parking lot;
Support the EEC – by bringing in Box Tops for Education, Campbell’s Soup Labels for Education, used ink cartridges, and Capri Sun empty foil packs.
Today: Sunday, April 17
8:30 a.m. Worship Sanctuary
9:45 a.m. Sunday School Classes Various rooms
9:45 a.m. Narthex Committee Room 123
9:45 a.m. Spring Into Service Meeting Room 102
11:00 a.m. Worship Sanctuary
11:00 a.m. Children’s Choir Room 124
11:30 a.m. Children’s Church Room 126
12:15 p.m. Family Ministries Easter Egg Hunt (Activities) Fellowship Hall
2:30 p.m. Disciples IV Room 123
6:30 p.m. Middle and High school UMYF Sanctuary
Youth Dinner Theatre tickets for “Promedy” on sale following each service
This Week: April 18 – April 23
Monday 6:45 p.m. Gloria Ringers Room 124
7:00 p.m. Koinonia Circle Room 102
Tuesday 9:45 a.m. Pastor’s Bible Study & 11:00 a.m. Angel Gang Room 126
Thursday 7:30 p.m. Maundy Thursday Worship Service Sanctuary
8:30 p.m. Prayer Vigil Starts Sanctuary
Friday 6:30 p.m. Prayer Vigil Ends Sanctuary
7:30 p.m. Good Friday Worship Service Sanctuary
Saturday 9:00 a.m. Altar Guild Workday Sanctuary
Monday, April 18 – Friday, April 22 Meditation Stations in the Sanctuary during normal church hours
Mark Your Calendars!
Sunday, Apr 23 6:30 a.m. Easter Sunrise Service Garden
8:30 & 11:00 Easter Worship Services Sanctuary
Monday, Apr 25 1:00 p.m. UMYF & UMW Cookie Bake Main Kitchen
Wednesday, Apr 27 7:00 p.m. Administrative Board meeting Fellowship Hall
Saturday, Apr 30 7:30 a.m. Christmas In April meet in church parking lot
Sunday, May 1 6:00 p.m. UMYF Dinner Theatre Fellowship Hall
