Newsletter

LET GO. TAKE UP. FOLLOW CHRIST. MOVE FORWARD.

During the Season of Lent there are many things we could choose to focus on—to take on or to give up, as might be the custom or tradition for this season. We follow a discipline of giving up or taking on to help us focus on our relationship with Jesus and the ways in which Jesus calls us to follow and practice our faith. As this journey takes us to Holy Week and Easter, we have the opportunity to renew our understanding of what Jesus gave for us.

What, then, can we offer to Jesus? What can we give to God, to our neighbors and one another in this seasons to strengthen our commitment to serving God?

The theme we will focus on this year during Lent, Holy Week, Easter and Eastertide is LET GO. TAKE UP. FOLLOW CHRIST. MOVE FORWARD. With each step of this journey, we’ll work together to discern for ourselves (individually and collectively) how we are called and gifted to serve God and neighbor where we are—right here in Tryon, right where God has placed us.

As your pastor, I’m asking you to start preparing NOW. Here’s what I will encourage us to do in intentional ways:

Prayer

· From the time you receive this until we begin our journey on Ash Wednesday, please take time each day to pray this Prayer of Yearning (from The Abingdon Worship Annual 2024)

God of Love and Truth, we long to walk in your paths. We yearn to follow you in the ways that lead to life and wholeness. Yet, it is hard to know if we are taking the right paths on our journey of faith. We worry that we will wander off, even when we don’t mean to. May your love set us right. Forgive us of our mistakes. Show us where we should go. Amen.

· Beginning on Ash Wednesday, our church will be praying a daily prayer. Look for emails and prayers in the weekly Sunday bulletins.

· Participate in Intentional prayers and meditations during Wednesday Lenten Devotions and Meditations.

Worship Services

· Worship Services each week from Ash Wednesday through Eastertide will focus on some aspect of the theme of LET GO. TAKE UP. FOLLOW CHRIST. MOVE FORWARD.

· We will offer special services throughout Holy Week. Check your email and the Sunday bulletins for announcements on worship services.

· Midweek Lenten Meditations and Devotions and Fellowship Luncheons. Each week beginning Wednesday, February 21st at 11:30 a.m., we will gather in the sanctuary to have times of prayer and meditation and to share devotions. We will share meals together after each gathering.

· Lenten Disciplines. This season, our church-wide Lenten discipline is to plan to invite a friend or someone in our community to join us for these midweek gatherings. Extend invitations to people you know who may not attend church, but may be looking for a community like ours.

Upcoming Worship Services and Events at Tryon UMC

February 4—Tryon UMC Quarterly Gathering and Potluck Lunch. Join us for lunch after worship. We’ll go over some of the good things happening at church and things to look forward to. AND, we’ll enjoy lunch together.

February 13—Shrove Tuesday Pancake Supper and Game Night 5:00 p.m.—7:30 p.m. As we prepare to enter the season of Lent, let’s enjoy the a “guilt free” yummy breakfast meal. Bring your favorite game to share or choose one we’ll have available. Bring a sweet treat to share to celebrate Valentine’s Day. Invite your family and friends!

February 14—Ash Wednesday Service. 5:30 p.m. Sanctuary. Join us for this service as we begin the season of Lent. Invite your family and friends to share in this important service as we journey to Holy Week and Easter.

February 21st thru March 27th-- Lenten Devotions and Meditations and Fellowship Lunch begin Wednesday, February 21st. 11:30 a.m. Sanctuary. We will gather for a time of meditation and devotion for this holy season. We’ll conclude with a Fellowship Lunch in the Comfort Shawl Room.

March 25th thru April 7th—Stations of the Cross. During Holy Week and the first week of

Eastertide, you are invited to walk the Stations of the Cross. The display of will be set up in the Gathering Area and will offer readings of Scripture and time for prayer at each station.

March 24th—Palm Sunday Service

March 28th—Maundy Thursday Service

March 29th—Good Friday Tenebrae Service

March 31st—Easter Sunday Service

WEATHER POLICY FOR TRYON UMC

Sunday Morning Worship Services

Check the TUMC website at www.tryonumc.org or the TUMC Facebook Page.

Any changes to our schedule will be posted on both of those sites.

The following local television stations will scroll closings and cancellations at the bottom of the screen

and they will post them on their websites:

WYFF Channel 4 - www.wyff4.com

WSPA Channel 7 - www.wspa.com

FOX Carolina Channel 21 - www.foxcarolina.com

WLOS Channel 13 ABC - www.wlos.com

When possible, a blast email from the church will be sent out by Pastor Lynnette Sills.

PLEASE MAKE SURE WE HAVE YOUR CORRECT EMAIL ADDRESS IF YOU WANT TO BE ON THAT LIST.

When possible, a message will be left on the church answering machine that will let you know what to expect.

The church phone number is 828-859-9218.

If it is difficult for you to either check the local TV stations by viewing or on their websites and/or if you do no

t have access to email, PLEASE CONTACT THE CHURCH OFFICE TO BE ADDED TO A PHONE TREE

so that you will be alerted to any cancellations by the church.

Tuesday Bible Studies each week at 11:00 a.m. in the parl

The Ten Commandments: What Do They Mean for People Today?

The Ten Commandments are more than a list of ancient rules. Beneath the surface,

they offer a profound invitation to healing and transformation.

In this unique Bible study, inspired by the book by Rev. Eugenia Anne Gamble (Presbyterian Church

USA), we will look at these Commandments as words from the heart of God, given to reconcile creation to the

Creator and God’s people to one another. We’ll examine the modern-day application of these words for us as

followers of Christ.

January 21 through February 11, 2024

9:45 a.m. Parlor

This often puzzling and frequently misunderstood book is presented with a refreshing approach that captures not only John's hope for his first listeners, but implications for today’s believers. In selected passages, students find new ways to read an ancient vision that speaks about the past and the present, too, not simply the future.

By interweaving the ancient world of the original John with the concerns of today’s church, this study helps learners see that Revelation does reveal truths to those seeking to hear its original message. Readers are challenged to study Revelation

from the vantage points of the history, culture, original audience, and literary

skills of its writer.

For those eager to explore a new way of reading Revelation, this provides a deeper appreciation for this most strange of New Testament books. The study books cost $6.00 plus shipping through Smyth & Helwys. If you need assistance with

purchases, please contact Pastor Lynnette.

Wednesday, February 18 through Palm Sunday, March 24

11:30 a.m. Sancuary

Bible Study for Lent 2024

The Gospels are full of stories of Jesus sharing meals with people. Whether multiplying bread to feed a whole crowd, relaxing with his inner circle, or telling curious elites stories about even greater banquets, Jesus imparts wisdom and forgiveness during meal times. This study provides biblical insights along with thought-provoking queries regarding our own time, such as whom should we invite to Sunday dinner and who is left out and left behind in our culture today.

YOU DO NOT HAVE TO PURCHASE A BOOK TO PARTICIPATE IN THE STUDY.

Tom Lake, by Ann Patchett

February 19, 2024

In the spring of 2020, Lara’s three daughters return to the family's orchard in Northern Michigan. While picking cherries, they beg their mother to tell them the story of Peter Duke, a famous actor with

whom she shared both

a stage and a romance years before at a theater company called Tom Lake. As Lara recalls the past, her daughters examine their own lives and relationship with their mother, and are forced to reconsider the world and everything they thought they knew.

Tom Lake is a meditation on youthful love, married love, and the lives parents have led before their children were born. Both hopeful and elegiac, it explores what it means to be happy even when the world is falling apart. As in all of her novels, Ann Patchett combines compelling narrative artistry with piercing insights into family dynamics. The result is a rich and luminous story, told with profound intelligence and emotional subtlety, that demonstrates once again why she is one of the most revered and acclaimed literary talents working today.

Breakfast With Buddha

by Roland Merullo

March 18, 2024

When his sister tricks him into taking her guru on a trip to their childhood home, Otto Ringling, a confirmed skeptic, is not amused. Six days on the road with an enigmatic holy man who answers every

question with a riddle is not what he'd planned. But in an effort to westernize his passenger--and amuse himself--he decides to show the monk some "American fun" along the way. From a chocolate factory in Hershey to a bowling alley in South Bend, from a Cubs game at Wrigley field to his family farm near Bismarck, Otto is given the remarkable opportunity to see his world--and more important, his life--through someone else's eyes. Gradually, skepticism yields to amazement as he realizes that his companion might just be the thing. In Roland Merullo's masterful hands, Otto tells his story with all the wonder, bemusement, and wry humor of a man who unwittingly finds what he's missing in the

most unexpected place.

New Years 2024

Dear friends and family,

Merry Christmas to you and a happy New Year! We hope and pray you and your family have had a joyous holiday season celebrating the birth of Jesus in our world. Since the New Year in Albania is the most celebrated time of year, the holiday season is extended a bit more than in the US. This wonderful time of year allows us to stop and reflect on the past year and look ahead to the new one.

Family Updates:
It seems this fall has flown by. Aside from our local work in Albania, we have been busy helping Thomas navigate university and scholarship applications as well as the numerous music auditions he has with the various music colleges he is applying to.

We are thankful that Thomas has done well and has already been offered one music scholarship and awaiting on others, we hope! At this point, he is looking to enter Commercial Music in guitar and Audio Production.

Luke and Eli are both doing well at school and playing sports and music. Eli is drumming often for school events and Luke loves to sing and play his bass guitar.

Ministry Updates:
Holle and Jamie have been supporting our TMS Global team here in Albania which is still working on the opening of a small smokehouse style restaurant in the neighborhood next to "By The Grace Motors". The vision for this small restaurant is to be a place of welcome, care and conversation with the neighbors.

Jamie is closing Litany Motors workshop. Jamie's role has become much more of a mentor and prayerful listener and caregiver for issues in men's lives. For those of you who have financially the Litany Motors project, we want to let you know that your support is no longer needed for that project. Would you prayerfully consider re-allocating your donations to our family mission account with TMS Global (Account #0543)? Any re-allocated funds will help to make up for our budget shortfall with the rising costs of living in Albania in addition to the declining exchange rate of the US Dollar.

Jamie is thankful for a man from South Africa who is working as a mechanic with Eno at By The Grace. He is a follower of Christ, and his family worships with our church fellowship each Sunday. He has been a blessing to Jamie and Eno and is a good mechanic. He brings kindness and love - a beautiful witness to Albanians that interact with him via the shop.

What's Up Next:
Sabbatical Fall of 2023
We are returning to the US this summer to launch Thomas into university. Since we are approaching the completion of our 7th year of service in Albania, we are taking a sabbatical next fall. This will be a time of rest, reflection and reengagement. We would love your prayers as we transition away from life in Albania for a time. Over the next 6 months, we will be scaling back on ministry responsibilities and making preparations for our time back in the States.

As always, we thank you for your continued love and support of our family in Albania. We know for sure that we could not do this life and work without you. May God continue to be with you…
-Holle and Jamie

“Souper” Bowl for Outreach—Month of February

During the month of February plan to bring cans of soup to help stock the food pantry at Outreach. Our goal for 2024 is to bring 224 cans of soup.

We also come together in February for….

Quarterly Gathering and Potluck Lunch

Sunday, February 4, 2024

After worship we will meet in the Fellowship Hall for lunch and have a short conversation about what’s ahead for Tryon UMC in 2024. Please bring a sides dish or a dessert. Meat and drinks will be provided by the church

Shrove Tuesday Pancake Supper

February 13, 2024 5:00-7:00 pm

Join us for a delicious pancake supper and fellowship before we enter the season of Lent. Sign up! To help us plan, please sign up for the supper on the sign-up sheet located outside the sanctuary entrance (education building side). Or send an email to Pastor Lynnette to let her know you plan to come and how many people will be joining you.

Support the Ministries at Tryon UMC

Your offering and gifts to Tryon UMC make it possible for us to do the work and ministry God calls us to do in our community, as well as continue the day-to-day op

erations of the church. You can give in person during Sunday worship services, you can drop off your offering in our locked mailbox outside the church office, or you can give on-line with your credit card through our website at www.tryonumc.org. Click on the “giving” link to make your offering.