Beginning February 21, 2010 we began worshipping together as a single congregation each Sunday at 10:30 a.m. in the Sanctuary!

At its January meeting, the Church Council prayerfully came to the consensus that Cameron would be better served as we move into the future by returning to a single worship service.  Over the past several months, we have worshipped as three separate congregations at multiple times on Sunday morning.  The Council noted the energy generated in a fuller sanctuary when we worshipped together in one service and also the opportunity to get to know each other better as we continue to build our community as two of the benefits in expanding vital worship in the coming year.

Some new opportunities are offered to you as we intentionally seek to know God and to deepen our life of faith. Please contact Janie Mitchell to indicate your interest or to learn further details about these events. Call her at the church (703 960-9505) or at home (703 548-1839).

Through March . . .

Join Janie and the Lectionary Bible Study – Sunday School at 9:15 am, Room 4. At this time we will be particularly reviewing the basics of our Christian faith. If you feel you want a refresher in "Christianity 101" or just have some questions to ask about United Methodist beliefs and ways – you are so welcome to join us

Sundays in March . . .

A Sabbath meal with warm soup and sandwiches will follow morning worship as we gather from 12:00 to 1:15 pm to learn and share around the book Becoming Jesus’ Prayer. Come explore the Lord’s Prayer and engage the words we say so often and may not deeply reflect upon. Here is a study to shape us anew as followers of Jesus. Books ($10) are available from Janie and will be helpful to you long after this class is finished. Please tell Janie of your interest and get your book. Come join us even if you have not attended other classes in this study.

Saturday, March 27

The annual Lenten Retreat is planned for this Saturday from 12:30 to 4:30 pm at St Matthew’s UMC, 8617 Little River Turnpike in Annandale. This is sponsored for our United Methodist community in the Alexandria and Arlington Districts and open to all ages. We will have a Labyrinth to walk and small groups to gather in learning and prayer. Come for quiet and reflection. Bring a friend. First time walkers of the labyrinth are reminded to bring a pair of white sox. This is a lovely opportunity immediately before the beginning of Holy Week.

A March Date TBA

A retreat and Friday evening pilgrimage celebrating the feast of Saint Brigid will be offered at the National Cathedral. As we go to press the rescheduled date has not been announced, but please look for an update in our Bulletin Announcements. Contact Janie who plans to go and can help with transportation. Saint Brigid’s day is associated with the coming of spring, with the practice of warm Christian hospitality, and with the new growth we experience in following Jesus Christ. Come for a time of quiet and renewal.

Other Upcoming Opportunities for Retreat

Richmond Hill is an urban retreat center within the setting of a historic monastery. This ecumenical Christian fellowship offers many occasions for prayer and spiritual retreat. To learn more, please look at their website www. richmondhillva.org for current details. Upcoming on March 6 and 7 is a quiet Lenten retreat called "Finding the Way of the Cross" and on April 16 to 18 there is a 48-hour retreat called "Grief Hurts . . . Grace Heals" especially for those who have known the death of a loved one. You may also come to have a safe place of rest and quiet in a beautiful place of gracious welcome and nourishing meals in community. Janie knows this retreat site well and would be happy to encourage you to try it.

 The Christian Education Committee is sponsoring four classes during Lent on The Apostles.  The classes will examine the lives and history of each of the 13 Apostles (including Matthias).  It will focus on learning who each was, what they did and their influence, and why they continue to speak to us in the 21st century.  This will be a fresh way of understanding the facts, tradition, and legends about the Apostles.  

Our class instructor is Rev. Ed Garrett, a retired United Methodist minister of the VA Conference.  He received his Bachelor of Divinity from Duke University, M. A. in Education from Union Theological Seminary in Richmond and his Doctor of Divinity from St. Mary’s Seminary and University in Baltimore, MD.  During his 42 years of pastoral service, he served Herndon and Syndenstricker UM Churches in Northern VA as well as churches in other areas of the Virginia Conference. 

Dr. Garrett has led Bible studies and taught various educational and training classes.   He is the author of two books, Get Set for Worship and Design for Worship, and has written curriculum materials and articles for several United Methodist publications.  He also is noted for his use of puppets in children’s sermons.   He and his wife have two grown sons, five grandchildren and live in Chester, Va.

Okay, ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, people of all ages and sizes, pack up those scarves and mittens, park your snowblower, stash your shovel in the corner, tidy up the snowmelt, take off your boots! Spring is on the way and with it....you guessed it.....the semi-annual UMW Children's Consignment Sale. We are looking for help and plenty of it. You can commit to all three days, two days, one day, part of any day, even one or two hours.  Please call Nancy Owens, (703) 313-0614, and let her know when you are available. There are many jobs to do -- you can take your pick -- and plenty of laughs and fun thrown in! We even have food and snacks to keep you going. This project helps many people in the surrounding communities, every item is put to good use somewhere.

We begin on March 24 at 6:30 pm with setting up Skelton Hall and other rooms. Much help is needed. On March 25, sellers will be dropping off items to be sold from 9:00 am until 9:00 pm---much more help is needed. On March 26, from 9:00 am until 8:00 pm, the sale will be open to the public----much, much more help is needed! On March 27, from 9:00 am until 12:00 noon, the sale is open to the public----much, much, much more help is needed! From noon until 4:00 pm we will be dismantling things, delivering donations to local charities and returning some items to sellers – as much help as we can get is needed!   Please consider joining in this worthwhile and rewarding effort. The good news is that salaries have TRIPLED from last year---I think the checks will be in the mail! No experience or interviews are necessary, come as you are! Can we count on seeing you there? We hope so! 

Lent, which began on Ash Wednesday, has historically been observed by Christians as a time of self-examination and preparation. The forty days of Lent (Sundays excluded as they are considered "little Easters") represent the forty days that Jesus spent in the wilderness.

The season of Lent comes to us with calls for prayer, fasting, and giving alms. During Lent we hold side by side the awareness of our sins and the promise of forgiveness, the call to repentance and the freedom of the resurrection.

During Lent we repent of, turn away from, those things that block our relationship with God and with others. Through prayer, fasting, and giving of ourselves and our resources, we turn our attention to God, to the good news of Christ's life, death, and resurrection.

The word Lent comes from the Anglo-Saxon word lencten, which means "spring." Lent began as a time of preparation for converts to Christianity (Easter was the traditional time of Baptism in the Early Church). So persons who were going to be confirmed would go through a period of prayer and fasting in preparation for their entry into the Christian faith. The season evolved into one which all Christians observed -- preparing themselves for the observance and remembering of the crucifixion, death, and resurrection of Christ.

Some ways you can observe Lent:

As I sit here on February 10 and watch the snow come down (yet again), and plan the music for Easter, I am again reminded of the meaning of that Holy Day. There is life after the storm, we’ll see the grass again, and the birds will sing once more. It was disappointing to cancel Cabaret after all the hard work by a number of people, but that, too, will come again in the spring. And so, we have no choice but to enjoy the beauty of the snow on the trees, and forget about buried cars for the time being. May March bring a renewal of hopes, dreams and plans as we move forward through the seasons.

For the March outing, Cameron women will dine at Chili’s in Manchester Lakes on Tuesday, March 2nd. If you are planning to go, please call Gertie Sykes, 703-971-6126 by Monday, March 1st. Meet at the restaurant 6250 Inter Parcel Rd (corner of Beulah and Manchester Blvd) at 6:45 pm.

Cameron Members stepped up when the need arose for Health Kits to be sent to UMCOR for Haiti. We shipped over 150 kits plus the funds to supplement the toothpaste and shipping. Good work!

Don’t forget that we will again be collecting Health Kits and School Kits in May and June to be taken to conference as we have every year. We have the bags ready for the school kits and will be publicizing the items for both kinds of kits next month.

Also 150 glue sticks were donated to Mt. Eagle School. In March the request is for #2 pencils. Please bring in March 21 or 28. The staff at Mt. Eagle is very appreciative of our support.

I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me. Matthew 25:40

Have you ever wondered where your communion offering goes?  Well, one-fourth of the money collected goes to the Mount Vernon Lee Child Development Center.  Located at Cameron Elementary School, a Fairfax County Public School, it is a licensed child care center that serves area children.  What better way to do ministry than to help children.  After all Jesus makes sure his disciples know the importance of children when he rebukes them saying, "Let the little children come to me."

Taking care of our children is an incredibly important task.  And we, at Cameron UMC, do just that when we give money during communion. This center presently serves children 2 years 6 months through 8 years 11 months.  Currently, for 2010, they are not at capacity; which is 75.  The center is open Monday to Friday from 7:00 AM – 6:00 PM with Carolyn McShane as the administrator.  Tuition is on a sliding scale depending on the amount each family can afford.     

The best thing about this mission is that it is not something we just put money into.   Twice a year, we take them clothing and toys that are not sold from our Children’s consignment sale.  These clothes are greatly appreciated as they always need extras in case of "accidents" and recently we were able to donate so many clothes that they distributed them to the families in the greatest need. 

The representative from our church is Martha Singleton.  She serves as the liaison between Cameron and the daycare center and attends their board meetings each month.   Currently Martha is our only representative though Cameron is permitted two seats on the Board. If you are interested in volunteering for this empty Board seat please contact the church office or Martha.

Please keep the Mount Vernon Lee Day Care Center, the administrator, all the staff and the children in your prayers.  The next time you kneel at the communion rail, take a moment to remember the children and hear Jesus say, "Well done, thy good and faithful servant."

There is a new search engine called www.Goodsearch.com   that donates 50 percent of its revenue to charities and schools designated by its users. Cameron UMC has been recently registered and money is now accruing. Would you like to help increase that total?

Basically, Goodsearch will donate 1 cent for every search made on behalf of Cameron. A penny does not sound like a lot, but the site is all about numbers—the more supporters we can find for our church who are willing to use Goodsearch for their Internet searches, the more money we will raise. For example, if an organization can rally 500 people to use the search engine, and the users do five Web searches a day, the organization could raise more than $9,000 (500 x 5 x 365). If you have a job that requires you to do lots of Internet searches, you could make a BIG impact on these numbers.