I am so excited about worship this Sunday. It is Joy Sunday as part of the Advent Season. Yes, I know it has been a hard year for many BUT joy is something that you can have even when things are not going well. I think that the worship this Sunday will bring joy to you as you join us in worship. I know some have been lighting candles with us as we light the advent wreath at church. Join us in creating light in the darkness as we worship.
Before I get into all the different ways you can join us for worship I want to give some pointers. First, our amazing tech team monitors comments and there are lots of things they can fix but there are some things they can't. It is common for there to be a little blip or a little loading circle when you are watching live worship. Sometimes it is on our end and sometimes its not and know often it will come back if you are patient. AND if it does not come back quickly be patient our tech team will be on it if it is on our end. We keep a video recording of the service so if we need to we will upload the whole service later on in case of a major issue. Also, for those calling in we think we might have found a better way of providing quality audio for you. All you need to do is call in like you have been and hopefully this week it will be clearer sound throughout the whole service. One possible warning if it works like we hope it will, it might be much louder than it was in the past.
The bulletin for this Sunday is attached for you to print off or view electronically. We are still providing in-person worship but it is downstairs in Fellowship Hall. We have a huge television that can be seen and heard anywhere in the room and an altar set up down there to add to the space. This is for those that do not have a good way to watch from home or that just need to get out and be with people. No questions are asked and it is alright for you to come even if you have good internet. Masks are required and 6ft distance for all people not coming from the same household is required. We are trying to be as safe as possible but know sometimes you just need to be in God's house and this option is provided for anyone who needs it. And now onto all the other options available to join in worship.
You can catch the Facebook Livestream at: https://www.facebook.com/tomscreekumc .
We will start the Facebook Livestream at @8:50am and you will see announcements scroll and hear music playing. This is the best option if you want to interact with others online. Feel free to chat to each other before and during the service. You can put prayer requests in the chat. This is great way to be able to interact with others if you watch it live with others in your church family who are staying home but want to worship as part of an online community.
You can catch this livestream on our Toms Creek UMC channel at: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCX6E7eCwH2ZGYspkSCF0CGw/featured. We will start the YouTube Livestream at 8:50 am and you will see announcements scroll and hear music playing. This format is best if you are watching on a television or large screen with lots of people gathered around. You can have it fill the whole screen and just watch it without any distractions. There is a way to chat on YouTube but it normally has a lot less people and is normally a lot less chatty than the our Facebook livestream. If you subscribe to our channel it will let you know when we go live in future weeks.
You can go to our website here https://www.tomscreekumc.com/service-videos and by Monday morning there should be shortened version of our service that will contain the Scripture, the Middle Hymn, the Sermon, and through the end of the service. Sometimes the whole service is there instead of the shortened version depending on an technical issues we might have had.
You can also use a phone to listen to our service by calling 857-799-9465 from any phone starting at 8:50 am. This will only have sound coming through and you will not be able to see anything that is occurring. We are hoping that this week the sound will be the best you have ever had it but we have only tested it and don't know how it will work when we go live. If you would like we can we make a DVD of the service for you to watch just let the church office know.
To give your financial offering you can sign up to give electronically here: https://www.eservicepayments.com/cgi-bin/Vanco_ver3.vps?appver3=oo37DPDB_IkRvUYRT4XYFR9HODrOVn_HRoRVzfIf6wIC8Jr39BzhtDTFkxI3DZSBugLUwNICM4mn_Vn6Yqj7ze3avdPht8ScFTxSmF__f6NGGfZi-D-1l6WdFZHC1c8U
OR
you can go to our website and hit the donate button on our webpage
OR
you can mail your offering to:
Tom's Creek United Methodist Church
10926 Simmons Road
Emmitsburg, MD 21727
Friends, this is going to be a joyous worship. Let us come together across different formats, across different counties, and states. Let us come together ready to have our soul stirred and be reminded of the constant joy we should have as those that have received the glorious gift Christ came to give us.
Advent Blessings,
PH
Comments