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Fun with Music

Returning September 8 at 10am.

Step into a world of giggles and song with “Fun “with Music at Pender! This is not just any music class – it’s a journey through sound and imagination designed especially for preschoolers and their favorite grown-ups. Since 2013, Jim and Roberta Pont have been creating a space where tiny toes tap, and little voices echo with joy, crafting a magical musical experience for children from birth to five years old.

Wave ‘hello’ and join us every Monday morning for a delightful 30-minute musical escapade! Our littlest musicians and their families come together at 10 AM to sing, dance, and make friends with tunes. We dive into a treasure trove of stuffed animals and toys, transforming the room into an enchanting stage for our budding performers. With every stuffed lion’s roar or elephant’s trumpet, your child’s imagination will soar!

After the musical fiesta, it’s time for a yummy snack, followed by playtime where kids can explore and make-believe. Meanwhile, moms, dads, grandparents, and caregivers can relish a homemade brunch prepared with love – a perfect chance to mingle and share stories.

Our box of wonders is always brimming with surprises! One day it’s a car zooming around, another day it’s a train chugging along. Flip it over and voilà, it’s a drum or even a rumbling thunder to match the beat of our songs. From “The Wheels on the Bus” to sparkling new Bible-based rhymes, we have tunes that will make your little one’s heart dance with every beat!

One week, our pint-sized percussionists marched on bubble wrap to the rhythm of a march, popping and hopping with glee. And guess what’s next? A tunnel adventure awaits their curious little eyes and eager hands!

So, if you’re a parent with a playful tot between zero to five, and Monday mornings are open, come and make a splash in our sea of melodies at ‘Melody Mornings’. It’s not just fun; it’s a musical hug for the heart and soul. Can’t wait to sing and swing into a new day of joy with you and your little one!

This class meets every Monday starting September 9 at 10 am except for school holidays.

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Posted by MaryO on August 2, 2025 in Ministries, Pender UMC, Videos

Tags: dance, education, Fun with Music, grandparents, music, parents, preschool, sing, snack, video

Memorial Day

26 May

https://youtu.be/NOcl17HIa7c

A UMNS Report by Barbara Dunlap-Berg*

From sea to shining sea, United Methodists are finding special ways to observe Memorial Day in the United States. Here is a sampling of ideas.

Pray for all who have given their lives for our freedom. “The major emphasis of the Memorial Day worship time,” said the Rev. Alan Brown, Hayes Memorial United Methodist Church, Fremont, Ohio, “is not on a secular observance; rather, it is the message of the gospels and the sacraments of the church.”
Read the names of fallen veterans, and toll a bell after each name is read. The Rev. Walter L. Graves encourages people to read the names when they see a war memorial. “Remember,” said the pastor of Reelsboro United Methodist Church, New Bern, N.C., “that was a person who had… dreams and desires.”
Provide special worship music with a PowerPoint presentation. “My church has a slide show of friends and family, living and dead, who have served in the military,” reported Leslie Haggs, lay leader at Angelica United Methodist Church in New York.
Offer a candlelight service. Bishop James Swanson of the Holston Annual (regional) Conference will preach at joint services of three congregations — Mount Wesley and New Victory, Telford, Tenn., and Mayberry, Jonesborough, Tenn. A candlelight service for those interred in the church cemetery will be part of worship.
Wave a flag. Youth of First United Methodist Church, Koppel, Pa., raised money to buy an American flag for all 225 residences in the little town. “I’m a flag-waver,” admitted the Rev. Donald A. Anderson. Quoted in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, he expressed hope that the flags would “bring Koppel a sense of pride in participating in this great holiday honoring those who fought to protect our freedoms.”

At Arlington (Va.) National Cemetary, flags decorate the tombs of those who died in the service of their country. Photo courtesy of Arlington National Cemetery.
Lay a wreath. In Illinois, Malta United Methodist Church will have a special worship service. The congregation invites veterans of the community to pay tribute to fellow soldiers by marching as a unit from the church to the township library, where a wreath will be dedicated.
Decorate veterans’ graves. “After Sunday service,” said the Rev. Charlie Johnson Jr., a local pastor serving three congregations in the Lynchburg, Va., area, “we go into the church cemetery, remove the old flags placed on the graves of veterans last Memorial Day and replace them with new ones…We remember our active-duty military every Sunday during prayer.”
Do a project for active troops. In Maine, the North Searsport United Methodist Church is recruiting the community to join parishioners in a mission project to benefit soldiers going overseas. Participants will sew small pillows for military personnel. The project is in response to recent articles about soldiers having to pay for pillows on their flights.
Make military care packages. The congregation of First United Methodist Church, Alice, Texas, brought items for military care packages to mail to troops serving overseas. “Many of us have loved ones who are serving in the military,” member Stefany Simmons explained. “Each of us signed cards to include for the troops.”
Be part of a community-service day. Manatee United Methodist Church is one of two Bradenton, Fla., locations for the Journey of Remembrance, an annual community-service day honoring U.S. military veterans and their families for their care and sacrifice.

Parades are one way to honor those who sacrifice daily for our freedom. A web-only photo by Dee Dee Cobb.
Learn about issues affecting veterans. At Christ United Methodist Church, Troy, N.Y., a guest speaker will focus on the history and social justice issues related to military mental illness. “At Christ Church,” said the Rev. Nina Nichols in the Bennington Banner, “we honor those who serve their country, who served with the hope of bringing justice on behalf of our nation. But as a people of faith, we must not fail to call for a better way to peace than war. This Memorial Day we pray for peace for the war-weary.”
Glorify Jesus as the Prince of Peace and reach out to those whom others may forget. On Memorial Day – as he does throughout the year – John Alexander, a member of East Lake United Methodist Church, Birmingham, Ala., will be involved with Kairos Prison Ministries. A Christian, lay-led, ecumenical, volunteer, international prison ministry, Kairos brings Christ’s love and forgiveness to incarcerated individuals and their families.

*Dunlap-Berg is internal content editor for United Methodist Communications.

News media contact: Barbara Dunlap-Berg, Nashville, Tenn., 615-742-5470 ornewsdesk@umcom.org.

From http://www.umc.org/news-and-media/twelve-ways-to-observe-memorial-day

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Posted by MaryO on May 26, 2025 in Holidays, Memorial Day, Military Ministry, Ministries, Pender UMC, Posts of Interest, Videos

Tags: freedom, holiday, Memorial Day, music, pray, United Methodist, video

Lenten Hymn and Devotion, Week 5

02 Apr

Lenten Hymn and Devotion 5, Beneath the Cross of Jesus

Brian Stevenson, Pender UMC Director of Music, presents a series of hymn-based devotions on Wednesdays during Lent.

The Fifth is Go Dark Gethsemane

https://youtube.com/watch?v=dphOddIXzuY%3Frel%3D0

“Go to Dark Gethsemane” is a Lenten hymn that spotlights scenes from the last 12 hours of Jesus Christ’s life.

It takes us on a journey from the Garden of Gethsemane where we are charged to stand and watch, to the judgment hall and our denial of him, to the cross where we witness his death and his grace, and finally to his glorious resurrection and our redemption. We become part of the drama of Christ’s passion and resurrection.

The poet repeats the phrase “learn of” at the end of each stanza, charging us to apply each scene to our lives. James Montgomery uses repetition to draw attention to what he considers important about each scene and each stanza.

“Learn of Jesus Christ to pray” encourages us to remember the scene of the garden and to go to God in fervent prayer. “Learn of Christ to bear the cross” is a charge to lay down our lives, take up the cross and follow Christ. “Learn of Jesus Christ to die” is a reminder of what Paul wrote in Galatians 2:20: “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me.”

Montgomery, considered one of the most important hymn writers of the English language, wrote this beautiful hymn in 1820. He was born on Nov. 4, 1771, in Irvine, Ayrshire, Scotland, the son of Moravian missionary John Montgomery, and died April 30, 1854, in Sheffield, England.

When Montgomery was 5 years old, his parents moved him to a Moravian settlement at Bracehill, Ireland, near Ballymena in Antrim County. Soon after, his parents accepted a call to the mission field and left him behind in Bracehill. He never saw his parents again. They both died while in the Barbados Islands.

At age 7, Montgomery was enrolled at Fulneck Seminary in Yorkshire, where he would remain for the next nine years. Struggling to meet the expectations of his instructors, he left the school at age 16 and became an apprentice at a chandler’s shop in Mirfield.

After five years, he tired of the work and took an apprenticeship with Joseph Gales, the owner and publisher of the Sheffield Register. For two years he learned about the publishing business, and in 1794, when Gales was forced to flee the country to avoid imprisonment, Montgomery took over the Register and changed its name to the Sheffield Iris.

Montgomery published and managed the Sheffield Iris for 32 years. He used the Iris as a tool to distribute the 360 hymns written throughout his life. His most well-known hymns are “Angels, From the Realms of Glory,” “Go to Dark Gethsemane,” “Hail to the Lord’s Anointed,” “Songs of Praise the Angels Sang” and “Stand Up and Bless the Lord.”

Montgomery’s “Go to Dark Gethsemane” is still one of his most widely used hymns, most often sung during Lent or during Holy Week. The first three stanzas are most commonly available in hymnals. The fourth stanza, though often omitted today, has been preserved in The United Methodist Hymnal.

Even though the text is now over 185 years old, it has rarely been altered. Many hymns from this era use language that is no longer common in today’s hymns or speech. Hymnal editors typically remove antiquated language and replace it with modern equivalents, but this hymn has remained essentially intact.

This beautiful somber hymn has stood the test of time. We benefit from the art and poetry of Montgomery still today.

Above essay from https://www.umcdiscipleship.org/resources/history-of-hymns-go-to-dark-gethsemane-1

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Posted by MaryO on April 2, 2025 in Holidays, Lent, Music Ministry, Pender UMC, Posts of Interest

Tags: Brian Stevenson, Christ, devotion, Go Dark Gethsemane, hymn, Lent, melody, video

Parking Lot Help Needed This Saturday, April 5!

02 Apr

We’re calling on helping hands for a Parking Lot Workday this Saturday, April 5, and we’d love your support!

The HOA across the street recently alerted us to a fallen tree on our property that needs to be cleared. Thanks to coordination by Robert Parker, head of Trustees, we have a tree cleanup scheduled for that day to take care of it.

In addition to the tree removal, we’ll be refreshing the parking lot with newly painted lines to clearly define parking spaces and give the area a much-needed spruce-up.

We’re also excited to share that KUMC Koinonia will be joining us to lend a hand — so it’s a great opportunity to work together, build community, and take care of God’s house!

Come dressed for outdoor work and bring any tools you might have that could help with clean-up or painting prep. Many hands make light work!

Thank you for supporting the care and upkeep of our church grounds!

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Posted by MaryO on April 2, 2025 in Get Involved!, Ministries, Pender UMC

Tags: church grounds, community, parking lot, parking spaces, tree

Lenten Hymn and Devotion, Week 4

26 Mar

Lenten Hymn and Devotion 4, Beneath the Cross of Jesus

Brian Stevenson, Pender UMC Director of Handbells and Ensembles, presents a series of hymn-based devotions on Wednesdays during Lent.

The Fourth is Beneath the Cross of Jesus

1. Beneath the cross of Jesus
I fain would take my stand,
the shadow of a mighty rock
within a weary land;
a home within the wilderness,
a rest upon the way,
from the burning of the noontide heat,
and the burden of the day.

2. Upon that cross of Jesus
mine eye at times can see
the very dying form of One
who suffered there for me;
and from my stricken heart with tears
two wonders I confess:
the wonders of redeeming love
and my unworthiness.

3. I take, O cross, thy shadow
for my abiding place;
I ask no other sunshine than
the sunshine of his face;
content to let the world go by,
to know no gain nor loss,
my sinful self my only shame,
my glory all the cross.

The United Methodist Hymnal Number 297