Look What’s Inside!Sundays.. Parenting Bible Study ....... p4Sundays.. Spiritual Parenting ............ p5Sundays.. Co-ed Softball .................... p2April 8 ..... Knitters & Crocheters ....... p7April 9 ..... Palm Sunday ..................... p2April 14 ... Good Friday Service ......... p2April 16 ... Easter Sunday for Kids .... p4April 16 ... Easter Brunch ................... p3April 23 ... Missionary Visit ................. p5April 30 ... Youth Sunday .................... p4April 30 3rd Grade Bibles Presented .. ............................................ p4April 30 ... Raleigh Ringers ................. p3May 20 .... Tea in Africa ....................... p7July 17-21 . Vacation Bible School .... p4September 29-October1 NPC Family Retreat ........... p4

APRIL FOOLS! I came across a website that boasts a list of the “top 100 April Fools Day hoax-es of all time” (www.museumofhoaxes.com/aprilfools). I don’t

know which is more incredible — that some of these hoaxes fooled people, a lot of people, or that the website creator actually came up with 100+ of them for the list. I mean, come on, how hard is it to remember that one particular day of the year is ear-marked for practical jokes and tom-foolery? My favorite, oh, and it was #1 on the list too, was the “Swiss Spaghetti Harvest” gag of 1957. A respected BBC news program announced that ‘thanks to a very mild winter and the virtual elimination of the dreaded ‘spaghetti weevil’, Swiss farmers were enjoying a bumper spaghet-ti crop.” The commentators “good news” had proof-positive footage of Swiss peasants pulling strands of spaghetti from trees. Huge numbers of viewers were fooled, and many called wanting to know how they could grow their own spaghetti trees. “To this question,” reads the web-cap-tion, “the BBC diplomatically replied that they should ‘place a sprig of spaghetti in a tin of tomato sauce and hope for the best.’” Many people today say that Chris-tianity is a joke, and that the whole idea of Jesus rising from the dead is

CONTINUED ON PAGE 2

PASTOR’SCORNER

April 2017

The next issue of Neelsville News will be the May edition. Article submissions should be sent to neelsvillenewsletter@gmail.com by Monday, April 24th alotting a few extra days for Tax Day.

just a huge hoax that’s fooled people for centuries. So how do we know Jesus rose from the dead? It’s been said that the validity of Christianity rests upon the resur-rection of Jesus Christ. Sort of puts believers out on a limb, doesn’t it? Of all the world religions, only one claims that its founder returned from the grave. The resurrection of Je-sus Christ is the very cornerstone of Christianity. The Apostle Paul wrote, “If Christ was not raised [from the dead], then all our preaching is useless, and your trust in God is useless (1 Cor-inthians 15:14).” Wow, that’s a huge statement by Paul. Incredible that some people deny Christ’s resur-rection out of hand, yet still claim to be Christians. But I digress… We must be prepared with evidence that Christ’s resurrection was an event that occurred in history — not a hoax. As the Apostle Peter writes, “We did not follow cleverly invented stories when we told you about the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty (2 Peter 1:16).” From the earliest days of the church, people hearing the Gospel for the first time questioned what really happened to Jesus. But of all the evidence we have available, none is more compelling than the fact that over 500 people saw Jesus during a period of 40 days following his execution (1 Corinthians 15:6; Acts 1:3). Paul basically said, “Don’t take my word for it. Go chat with the eyewitnesses – most of them are still alive and eager to talk!” The Apostles

Pastor Pete

Page 2 N E E L S V I L L E N E W S • A P R I L 2 0 1 7

20701 Frederick Road • Germantown, MD 20876www.neelsville.org

You can reach the Office at office@neelsville.orgTEL: (301) 972-3916 • FAX: (301) 972-3255

Senior PastorRev. Dr. Peter Della Santina

pete@neelsville.org

Parish Associate ECO Ordination Candidate Rev. Derek Longbrake Paul Kim dereklongbrake@gmail.com paulkimjr@gmail.com

Children & Family MinistryJamie Swope

neelsvillekids@gmail.com

Youth Ministries DirectorAndy Herman

amichaelherman@gmail.com Treasurer Choir Director Wendy Coulliard Steve Kimtreasurernpc@gmail.com kieunstevekim@gmail.com

Neelsville News is published by Neelsville Presbyterian Church. Submit Word files

and photos by the 15th of each month to neelsvillenewsletter@gmail.com.Sherrie Cardea, Melissa Blount

pointed to the resurrection as proof-positive the gospel was not only good news, it was true (Acts 17:18, 31). Lots of conspiracy theories and alternative explanations have been hatched and re-hatched. But reason always weighs the compelling evi-dence in favor of the eyewitness testimonies recorded in Scripture, corrob-orated by a great wealth of extrabiblical material and historical data. We know the last thing the Romans wanted to deal with was rumors of a Mes-siah-come-back-from-the-dead churning an already volatile situation. They wanted to make sure nobody came near that tomb. The Jewish religious leaders were even less likely to steal the body since that would only stir up the very troublemakers they were trying to squash. And what motive would the disciples have in taking the body; I mean, who would willingly suffer and die for a cause they knew was just a hoax? It is plausible that some-one would die for the truth, but would hundreds of his follower’s be willing to die for what they knew to be a hoax? Join us Easter Sunday. We invite you to meet the real, living, risen and reigning Lord Jesus!

PASTOR’S CORNERCONTINUED FROM PAGE 1DEACONS

FINANCIAL SNAPSHOTFINANCIAL UPDATE – FEBRUARY 2017

General Operating Fund: The Operating Fund Income to date through February was $97,302 and February expenses to date were $90,871. Building Fund: Building Fund Income through February was $4,370 and the Building Fund mortgage payments through February were $5,547.The Budget Committee thanks you for your generous and faithful giving.

Operating Income Received $97,302

Total Operating Expenses $90,871

Building Funds Received $4,370

Total Building Fund Expenses $5,547

Year

To

Dat

e

THANKS NEELSVILLE!Dear Pastor Pete and NPC Elders,

Leigh, the girls and I have been reflecting lately on God’s blessings

in our lives over the past 3-1/2 years. From 2013-2016 NPC did

so much to help us in many ways during our times of need. The

personal gifts, gifts from the benevolence and funeral funds, the

cards, the visits, pastoral care, the prayers and words of love and

encouragement helped us through a fruitful but also difficult time in

our lives. We are forever grateful for NPC and we will continue to

pray for your ministry. May God bless you. We love and miss you

all.The Grafs

A NOTE OF THANKS FROM THE DEACONSThank you very much for your support of The Ash Wednesday Soup Dinner on March 1st. It was vey well attended with a variety of delicious soups, won-derful fellowship and a very heartening Worship and Communion Service that followed as we prepared ourselves to begin the journey to Easter. Thank you!

Page 3N E E L S V I L L E N E W S • A P R I L 2 0 1 7

RALEIGH RINGERS HAND BELL CHOIR CONCERTConcert on Sunday, April 30th, 3pm at Trinity Luther-an Church in Hagerstown. Their concerts are always technically spectacular, fun and entertaining, including both sacred and secular music, additional instruments, and crazy props or costumes! Check them out on You Tube. Amazing! Tickets $20.00. Their website is RR.org. The Hagerstown church office phone number is 301-733-2878.

WORSHIP FELLOWSHIP

ELDER NEWS

EASTER BRUNCHOur annual Easter Brunch will be held on Easter Day, Sunday, April 16th. It will be held in the Fellowship Hall between church services with coffee service starting at 9am and the brunch ending at 11am (when the second service begins). We are asking the congregation to bring finger foods to share. Please make sure that your dish is already plated and ready to be placed on the table. We are asking for finger foods because they require no plate or utensils. Please, we need volunteers to help with clean up during and after the brunch. Many hands make light work and everyone will be able to attend services. You may sign up on a poster in the Welcome Center, Facebook, the Sign-up Wizard (www.Neelsville.org) or contact Barbara Miller, Gerry Da-vis, Chris Fletcher or Marilyn Splete.

HOLY WEEK EVENTSApril 9 Palm SundayApril 14 Good Friday Service at 7:30pm will be filled

with music and scripture led by the Chancel Choir. The string quartet that played Christmas Eve will also play. Join us for some awesome music; the mood of the service will be suitably somber for remembering the crucifixion.

April 16 Easter Services at 9:30am and 11:00am with the same message and music at both.

Name of Elder Committee Chairs and/or LiaisonsSam Amoako-Atta New Immigrant Outreach and ConnectionCraig Arold Stewardship Chair/ Discipleship and Discernment Team ChairWendy Couillard Global and Local Missions LiaisonAroon Datta Adult Sunday School Chair / Nominating ChairJason Evans Trustees LiaisonJoan Ginetis Clerk of Session / Budget ChairKevin Hutto Personnel ChairMichele Kelly Worship ChairMargaret Kemngang Fellowship and Deacons LiaisonChad Porter Family MinistriesTheogene Rudasingwa New Immigrant Outreach and ConnectionPete Della Santina Sr. Pastor / Session ModeratorDerek Longbrake Pastoral Associate of Local Missions

ELDER COMMITTEE CHAIRS AND/OR LIAISONSHave you ever thought about whom to call if you want to find out information about something at church or to see who the liaison of a committee is? The chart below should aid you in that communication effort:

PLAY (SOFT)BALL!If you are 16 or older (no upper age limit), male or female, come join the Neelsville Co-ed softball team! What bet-ter way to enjoy the outdoors and have fellowship with your NPC family? We will play Sunday afternoons at 2pm starting April 2nd through July, with no games on holiday weekends. Games will either be at Clear Spring Park in German-town (near the church on Scenery Drive) or at Cedar Creek Park by NWHS on Richter Farm. Information is posted on the NPC website or contact Tamyra Porter for more information or to sign up! We’d love to have you join the fun!

Page 4 N E E L S V I L L E N E W S • A P R I L 2 0 1 7

Hi Neelsville Families! The past couple of years, our family has started a tradition of baking these “resurrection rolls” as a hands on way to learn the story of Jesus’s buri-al and his resurrection. Here’s a recipe with story telling you can share with the children in your life. I suggest tell-ing the following story as you prepare the rolls with your children. This is adapted from http://www.lifeway.com/kid-sministry/2014/03/31/easter-recipe-resurrection-rolls/

Ingredients16 large marshmallows2 cans of crescent rolls (like Pillsbury)½ C melted butter¼ C sugar2 tablespoons cinnamon

Script and Instructions Jesus, the son of God came to earth to pay the price for our sins. The white of the marshmallow reminds us that Jesus never sinned. After Jesus died, his body was prepared to be buried. During this time, it would be a usual practice to prepare a body with oil and spices. (Dip the marshmallow in butter and then in sugar and cinna-mon). Jesus was wrapped in linen and placed in a tomb with a large rock rolled in front. (Wrap the marshmallow in one triangle of dough covering it completely so it looks like a rock and then do the same for all 16 marshmallows. Place in the oven for 10-12 minutes. Allow rolls to cool.) Three days passed and his friends came back to visit, but the rock was rolled away and Jesus’s body was no longer there. (Open or bite into the roll to show that it looks like an empty tomb.)

Read the story of the Resurrection from Matthew 28, Luke 24, John 20, or Mark 16 or use a Bible story book written for children. Pray, and thank God for the gift of Christ dying for our sins.

A PARENTING BIBLE STUDY and fellowship time is be-ginning in April on Sunday mornings at 9:30am. Contact Tamyra Porter at porterpo5@gmail.com for more informa-tion.

BIBLES FOR THIRD GRADERS enrolled in our Sun-day School program will be presented Bibles during services on April 30th for Youth Sunday. If your third

grade child is not currently enrolled, please contact Jamie Swope at neelsvilelkids@gmail.com.

FAMILY RETREAT has been scheduled for the weekend of Friday, September 29th through Sunday, October 1st at Mar-lu-Ridge Retreat Center. This event is for parents and their children. More information on pricing and sched-uling will be coming soon!

VACATION BIBLE SCHOOL is coming to Neelsville July 17-21st 9am-12pm. This year’s theme for Vacation Bible School (VBS) is Maker Fun Factory! Check out http://neelsville.org/ministries/vacation-bible-school to sign up

as a volunteer. You can also soon register your kids with using this link. We are looking for over 40 volunteers to make this happen, so this is definitely an “all hands

on deck” kind of thing. Please be praying about how God could use

you to make this week awesome!

EASTER SUNDAY FOR NEELSVILLE FAMILIES! All children and their families are welcome to join us in the education wing from 9:30am-10:30am for a special Eas-ter Sunday event called “Rise Up with Jesus!” There will be interactive stations to explore the life and resurrec-tion of Christ. There will not be a drop-off as this is intended for families to experience together. Nursery care will be available. After this experience, join the church family in the fellow-ship hall for a potluck brunch and then head over to the sanctuary for the 11:00am worship service.

March 5th

Lent Worship Celebration

Practicing for Palm Sunday with Mrs. Kelly, NPC Kids Choir Director

Page 5N E E L S V I L L E N E W S • A P R I L 2 0 1 7

GLOBAL MISSIONSSUNDAY, APRIL 23MISSIONARY VISIT AND POTLUCK!On April 23rd, Howard and Jo-Ann Brant will be visiting Neelsville. The Brants have served with SIM (Serving in Mission) since 1971 in Ethiopia, Ghana, Sudan, Kenya and the US. Their last assignment was in Ethiopia work-ing with the Gurage people to whom they took the Gospel 40 years ago. They spent years training leaders in the scriptures at Bible School. Their discipleship emphasis has multiplied into several hundred churches and thou-sands of believers. In 2015, they officially retired from the international field; however they are headed back to Ethiopia in May and June! The Brants will give us an update of their work in both services on the 23rd, and will also spend time in Sunday School classes. POTLUCK! Please join the Brants and other Neelsville members at a potluck lunch after the 11:00 service on the 23rd. Bring a dish to share, and if you have an African specialty dish, please bring it. Our gathering will have an African theme to make Howie and Jo-Ann feel at home!

PRAISE NOTESBob Velthuis passed on an email he had received from John Quackenbush regarding the job readiness classes at the Clarksburg Jail: "I had a very heartwarming experience today. I help run a food pantry in Clarksburg, Maryland on Saturday mornings. Today a young man named A. F. came into the pantry. We recognized each other but I couldn't remember where I had met him. I asked him if he came to our church once, and he said with a big smile on his face, "No, you and I met at the county jail where you taught me Jobs Partnership. He then proudly told me he has had a job for almost a year now and said the things he learned in our class is what he thinks helped him make the difference. He looked great, seemed like he was doing well.” As this email shows, the time and effort in leading classes at the jail makes a difference in changing people's lives. Praise God for those who serve in this ministry. And another praise note: Karen Styer reported that her GED student passed her Language Arts exam with honors giving the student college credit. Well done! Thank you to all our Opening Doors Mentoring Ministry mentors. If you would like to be a part of a Local Missions ministry serving the Germantown/Upcounty communities, contact Merilee Worsey, chair, at librarianmaster@hotmail.com for more information.

LOCAL MISSIONS

For the last 8 years or so, Chad and I have been pursuing ways to equip our parents in their calling to raise their children in faith. We have been convicted by what scripture clearly presents as the role for parents and the role for the church and those who come alongside our parents in this high calling.

Parents — Deuteronomy 6:1-9Church — Ephesians 4:7-13

God is faithful! His timing is perfect and we are thrilled to initiate some focused time where we as parents can look at what scripture tells us, dig into what Christian researchers and leaders have synthesized and share our own insights on this task God has called us to. On that point, I want to extend this to all the aunts, uncles, brothers, sisters, adopted grandparents, etc. who play a role of influence in the lives of our young people at NPC. Understanding the role of parents also helps you understand more about your Father. Understanding these roles also helps us understand how we can support parents in this journey. If your kids are grown, there’s still something here for you, and you bring something important for many of us going through this process now. If you don’t have kids, you are also welcome. We also need you to support us and support our kids. Again, the primary objective is to equip our parents for this journey, but there is space for all. If you are interested in joining us on Sunday mornings, we’ll be meeting in the Historic Chapel Large Classroom starting at 9:30am during the Sunday school hour. Please be sure to order your copy of Spiritual Parenting by Michelle Anthony (on Amazon) so you can get the most out of this class.

SUNDAY SCHOOL

Precious praises from our kids... one says “I praise you

God for helping my family get to America.”

Making door hangers with scripture.

...Lent Worship Celebration

Page 6 N E E L S V I L L E N E W S • A P R I L 2 0 1 7

WHAT KIND OF WORSHIP DO WE WANT TO CULTIVATE?FIRST: GOSPEL CENTERED

WORISHP

I use the word gospel here as a shorthand for the story of God’s grace shown to undeserving sinners through the substitutionary death of His Son. The gospel is not simply a story about events, but rather it is a story about who Je-sus is and what He has done. So . . . the central aim of Christian worship is to celebrate and cherish Jesus.Worship is in and for Jesus … because His mediating work alone makes our worship acceptable to the Father … Without the regenerating work of the Spirit, we are not capable of offering to God an acceptable sacrifice of ser-vice or praise because even our inner motives are stained with selfishness. We don’t naturally worship God from the overflow of a heart that is captivated with Him. Rather we worship God for a myriad of other reasons – to feel better about ourselves, to get God on our good side, etc. Once we are born again through faith in Jesus, our hearts are set free and turned right side out to worship the true God. And even after conversion, it is Jesus’ work as our medi-ator – coming between us and the Father – that makes our worship acceptable. In this life we will always struggle with sin, and Jesus cleanses our cold songs, our selfish prayers, and our formal readings in His blood so that the Father sees us as perfectly obedient and perfectly loving.Worship is for Jesus in several ways. First, Jesus is the fulfillment of the entire Old Testa-ment – the Law and the Prophets. The elaborate rituals of worship under the Israeli covenant were all meant to point to Jesus.

This is the first of seven articles written about Worship Values which will be shared in newsletters relating to our 2017 church-wide theme “Worship”

Posted March 11th, 2011 by David L. Ward, hymn writer, worship leader and founder of Reformed Praise The articles are edited to make them shorter but can be read in their entirety at http://www.thousand-tongues.org/search?s=Worship+Values

Second, worship is for Jesus because the aim of wor-ship is the glory of God through the glory of His Son Je-sus. At first it might strike you as strange that we should focus on Jesus – shouldn’t we focus on God (either the Father, or the God-head, all three persons)? In John 17, Jesus prays that the Father would glorify Him, so that, in turn, He might glorify His Father. Likewise as we focus on bringing Jesus glory by treasuring Him in worship, the ultimate source of His glory – His Father – is magnified.Does this mean that every prayer, every song, and every element of worship must be directly about the gospel? No . . . But if we understand the gospel as the hinge upon which the entire Bible turns – that every page of Scrip-ture is meant to show us something about Jesus’ person and work – we’ll see the gospel in songs and prayers that don’t explicitly mention it. Or we’ll see our songs and prayers as leading us through the story of redemption to the cross. May our worship services, times of private and family worship, and our conversational worship be more and more grounded in and oriented around the gospel, for the glory of God!

COMMUNION TABLE FLOWERSThere are two ways to provide flowers for the communion table for worship: 1) Write a check to NPC for $48.00 with “flowers” written in the memo section, or 2) Bring in your own cut flowers – we have glass vases available at church. Either way, please sign up on the Flower Chart in the Narthex and fill out a yellow card (from the attached envelope) and turn it in so your special dedication can be announced in the bulletin. Questions? Please contact the church office or Jannee Cummings.

A THOUSAND THANKS! We are so grateful to a team of men who worked very hard for a LONG time to accomplish the installation of the screen and projector in the sanctuary. This project has been on our church agenda for almost ten years. These are the people who were faithful over the years giving

countless amount of their time and skill: Rich Benning, Lewis Johnston, Craig Arold, and Gregg Couillard. Rich provided not only time and expertise, but heavy duty equipment and skilled workers from his own business. We look forward to utilizing this very professional installation and equipment in many ways to enhance our worship.

Page 7N E E L S V I L L E N E W S • A P R I L 2 0 1 7

SESSION NEWS

FELLOWSHIP

MARCH 2017 SESSION NOTES Session thanked the following members who spent much time and effort installing and ensuring that the new projector and screens work flawlessly: Craig Arold, Rich Benning, Gregg Couillard, and Lewis Johnston. Session also thanked the NPC discernment team for their work in sending out the Presbytery Congregational surveys in February, collecting them, and extended a special thanks to Chad for spending many hours correlating the informa-tion from the surveys. He also created the presenta-tion that was shared on March 19th at the congre-gational meeting after the second service. Craig Arold shared information about the up-coming Rebuilding Together. The project house will be in Silver Spring, MD. The entire kitchen is scheduled to be demolished and replaced. Craig has already received a donation of an entire kitchen (cabinets and appliances) and work is scheduled to begin in April on two consecutive Saturdays (April 22nd and 29th). Please contact Craig (craigarold@verizon.net) for more information. Chad Porter shared information about a Sunday school

class for parents starting April 9th. They will be following the book Spiritual Parenting by Michelle Anthony. There will also be a one time class for parents on “How to have The Talk” later on this year. Watch for the date!

CONGREGATIONAL MEETING NOTESThe congregation met Sunday, March 19th, for one hour after the second service for the purpose of electing a new

deacon and member of the nominating committee, as well as to hear a report on the congregational dis-

cernment survey. Elder Chad Porter presented the results and analysis of the National Capital Presbytery survey, that showed strong support of the Session’s recommendation NPC leave PC(USA) and join ECO, a Covenant Order

of Evangelical Presbyterians. Members of the congregation present at this meeting voiced the

opinion that the discernment process continue and that the Discernment Team clarity and define the ques-tions around church property and cost of disaffiliation.

TEA IN AFRICALadies: Please join us for Tea in Africa, Saturday, May 20th. This event will be held in the Fellowship Hall from 10am to 12:30pm. We will be experiencing all the wonderful things that the African continent has to offer. We will taste the teas, coffees and cuisine of countries like Egypt, Kenya, Ghana, Nigeria, Morocco and more. We will be enjoying the culture and music. There will be a devotion, door prizes and free child-care. Please sign up early via the church website, Facebook, poster or email. I encourage anyone needing free childcare to sign up as space may be limited. If you have any questions, contact Gerry Davis at gerry.davis@outlook.com or 301-990-4240.

TEA IN AFRICAVOLUNTEERS NEEDED This tea is a Fellowship event for the women of Neels-ville as well as an outreach to the community and it has

been successful for the church. We could use some help to make it continue and grow.

We need help with advertising, food, decorating, set up the night before and in the morning, clean up afterwards, and

donations of new and unused items for door prizes. We would like to make this an authen-tic experience and would welcome those who would be willing to bring a little of their culture to

the table via food, decorations, or music. Please contact Gerry Davis. Thank you!

KNITTERS and CROCHETERS MEETThe Knitters and Crocheters will meet Saturday, April 8th from 10am-12pm in the Conference Room next to the Library. All welcome! We are working on creat-ing “baby bundles” (a hat, blanket, and simple sweat-er). Bring your ideas and join us! Contact Marilyn Splete (amsplete@yahoo.com) for information.

DA Y

TAX

20701 Frederick RoadGermantown, MD 20876

ADDRESS CORRECTION REQUESTED

Worship,Grow,Go! Celebrate Changed Lives!

NoN-ProfitorgaNizatioN

US PoStage

PAIDSUbUrbaN, MD

20898PerMit No. 1012

Sunday, April 9 ......................Palm Sunday Services at 9:30 and 11:00Friday, April 14 ......................Good Friday Service at 7:30pmSunday, April 16 ...................Easter Services at 9:30 and 11:00 Easter Brunch beginning with coffee service at 9am and brunch served through 11am “Rise Up with Jesus” family experience 9:30-10:30am