Messenger | April 23, 2025

 This week's release at a glance:

• Pastor’s Message
• Pastor J.C.’s Installation Service
• Grab a Slice & Support WoodsWork
• New Adult Class on the Life of the Apostle Paul
• Pastors’ Bible Study
• Get Ready for VBS
• Mother’s Day Food Drive to Support SPAN
• Help Provide Medical MAP PACKS for Malawi
• A Night at the Opera
• Open Dance Classes
• Batter Up! Softball Season Begins
• Langton Green Produce Baskets
• Job Opening: Woods Children’s and Youth Ministry Coordinator
• Funeral Service for Carolyn Kinnamon
  

Pastor's Message

Friends, I am excited for the Service of Installation as your Pastor this Sunday afternoon, April 27, 4PM, with a reception to follow at Boone Station! It is a momentous occasion in the life and ministry of any pastor and congregation, and I hope you will be able to attend as we celebrate this new chapter of our ministry together. This is actually a service of worship for the Presbytery of Baltimore, since pastors are installed by members of the presbytery, rather than a local congregation, so we will have some special guests with us from the Presbytery. I’m also delighted to welcome two personal special guests to help lead the service: my good friend, the Rev. Dr. Scott Black Johnston, Senior Pastor of Fifth Avenue Presbyterian Church in New York City, who will be preaching the sermon for the service; and my fiancée, the Rev. Dr. Sarah Johnson, Senior Pastor of the The New York Avenue Presbyterian Church in Washington, D.C., who will be offering the Charge to the Pastor.

I will admit, though, that the term “installation” sounds a little strange at first, especially when I think about the last installation that I was a part of, just a couple of months ago. In some ways, it wasn’t so different from this one coming up: people showing up at a special time to help facilitate an important transition, wearing their particular marks of office, and taking longer than was probably really necessary to do what they’d been asked to do (!).

The main difference, though, was that the service took place in my new house, and the special people who came to do the installation were from Verizon to install my WiFi service. They showed up in their uniforms, and though it seemed to take an awfully long time to do it, all the work basically boiled down to putting the hardware in its special slot and connecting the plugs. Then with a flip of a switch, the whole thing was installed. And then they presented me with a bill from the company that literally read, “for installation service.”

Aside from pastors, most of the things that we “install” are technical or mechanical: we install internet access and air conditioners and ceiling fans and dishwashers. And when we need to install one, we generally just choose the one that fits into the slot that we already have and the functions that we already want to do the job we’ve already decided needs to be done the way that we want it. That doesn’t seem like a great way to think about pastoral leadership!

No, a pastoral installation is not like a mechanical installation, fitting the perfect part into the pre-existing slot. But it is like an art installation. The definition of an art installation is “a site-specific work designed to transform the perception of a space through complex and multiple associations.” In other words, when you do an art installation, you do place something new into a pre-existing space, but once the two are put together, the combination creates a new reality because of all the different ways the two things uniquely interrelate.

That’s what we are doing this Sunday. This installation is a site-specific work. Now, to be clear, it is God who is the artist, not the Presbytery, which is actually doing the installing; we’re just the workers putting the thing together the way the artist has instructed. But I am confident that it will transform us all in extraordinary and unexpected ways, and together we will create something unique and new.

I hope you can be a part of this wonderful event on Sunday, and I look forward to seeing you there!

Peace and blessings,

—Pastor J.C.

Church News

Pastor J.C.’s Installation Service

Woods joyfully invites you to the Installation Service of Pastor J. C. Austin on Sunday, April 27, 4PM. Join us as we celebrate this special occasion, welcoming Pastor Austin into leadership and seeking God’s blessing on this new chapter in our church’s journey. All are welcome to attend! A reception will follow the service at Boone Station.

Grab a Slice & Support WoodsWork

Support our WoodsWork 2025 youth mission team by eating at MOD Pizza on Thursday, May 1!

Bring in the flyer or use the code MODGIVES25 online, and 25% of your total will go to support WoodsWork, our house building mission trip for High School youth. We hope to see you there on May 1!

Children's News

Get Ready for VBS!

Register today for Vacation Bible Study! This year’s program will be held July 14–17, 4–7PM, with dinner at 6:30PM.

Education & Small Groups

New Adult Education Class Begins on April 27

Adult Education will be offering a new study on Sundays, April 27–June 8, 11AM, featuring The Call: The Life of the Apostle Paul by Adam Hamilton.

Follow the journeys of Paul, beginning with his dramatic conversion, as he spread the Gospel through modern-day Greece and Turkey. Travel to the early church sites and explore Paul’s conversations with the new believers. In this six-week study, you are invited to experience faith through Christ’s greatest teacher and missionary.

Join us in the Office Conference Room and on Zoom. Books are available in the office.

Pastors’ Bible Study

Lead Pastor J.C. Austin and Associate Pastor Nancy Lincoln Reynolds offer a weekly Bible Study on Wednesdays, 12PM, to examine the upcoming Sunday’s scripture readings before they are presented in worship.

Please note, there will be no Pastors’ Bible Study on Wednesday, April 23.

Join us on Zoom and gain a new understanding of scripture and enhance your worship experience.

Mission News

Mother’s Day Food Drive to Support SPAN

There is an urgent need to help stock the shelves at SPAN for the summer, when donations are not as plentiful. There will be tables set up near the SPAN bins behind the Welcome Desk on Sundays, April 27, May 4, and May 11.

Please help by donating the following items that SPAN needs most during the summer:

• Canned meat and fish
• Peanut butter and jelly
• Tuna and Hamburger Helper
• Instant and canned white and sweet potatoes
• Pancake mix and syrup
• Oatmeal
• Cereal
• Coffee and tea
• Pasta
• Pasta sauce and other canned tomato products
• Canned vegetables and beans
• Soap and shampoo
• Deodorant
• Toothpaste
• Paper towels
• Laundry detergent
• Dish soap
• All-purpose cleaner
  

Help Provide Medical MAP PACKS for Malawi

We each have an opportunity to help supply medications and medical supplies for the mobile medical clinics of Ministry of Hope (MOH) Malawi. A Woods team is traveling to MOH in July, and we are able to take Medical Mission MAP PACKS with us. Each RX pack contains at least 300 treatments that are typically needed in developing countries. The packs provide thousands of dollars’ worth of medicine and supplies for medical mission teams at a cost of $200 per pack, plus about $50–$75 per pack for freight to Maryland.

If you are able to contribute to providing these necessary medicines to children and adults in villages where the only health care access is the monthly MOH mobile clinic, the team and MOH will be so grateful. You may contribute a monetary gift of any size at the Missions table in Fellowship Hall each Sunday in April, online through Realm, or in the church office.

For more information, call or email Pat Johnson at 443.994.3201 or paj10041949@gmail.com. To see more about MOH, visit www.ministryofhope.org.

For information on RX Packs, see www.map.org.

Music Notes

A Night at the Opera

Join us Saturday, May 10, for an enchanting evening of music and fine dining! Over a delicious spaghetti dinner, enjoy performances by talented opera singers: Soprano Kimberly Christie, Bass/Baritone Jason Buckwalter, Bass Shouvik Mondle, Alto Jennifer Cooper, and Tenor David Merrill as they serenade you with popular opera arias and classic musical theater songs.

Dinner Menu: Spaghetti, salad, bread, and dessert

Doors Open: 5:30PM

️Dinner Begins: 6PM

Performance Starts: 6:30PM

️Tickets: $25

For questions, please email Pam Ward at pward@woodschurch.org.

Open Dance Classes

Join our Worship Ministry for a series of free dance classes this spring! Professional teachers will offer a variety of dance styles—including jazz, musical theater, contemporary, tap, yoga, and more! Open to anyone ages 12 and over in and outside the Woods community.

All experience levels are welcome, though classes will be taught at an intermediate level with options for beginners and advanced students.

Our first class will be on Sunday, April 27, 1– 2:15PM. All other classes will be on Sunday’s May 4–June 1, 2–3:15PM, in Fellowship Hall.

For more information please email Alyssa Barlis at alyssabarlis@gmail.com.

Church Family News

Funeral Service for Carolyn Kinnamon

A Service of Witness to the Resurrection will be held for Woods member Carolyn Kinnamon on Tuesday, April 29, 1PM, in the Sanctuary. A reception will follow in Fellowship Hall.

Please keep Carolyn’s husband, John, and all family and friends in your prayers.

Woods Seeks Coordinator for Children’s and Youth Ministry

Woods is seeking a dedicated, organized individual to serve as Coordinator for our Children’s and Youth Ministry. This is a part-time job, 25 hours per week, with hours to include Sunday mornings.

The Coordinator will assist the Director of Children's Ministry as well as the Director of Youth Ministry in planning and implementing programs to engage the young people of Woods Church in their spiritual formation.

Click the button below to view the job description. Interested applicants should contact Kat Green at kgreen@woodschurch.org.

In Our Community

Batter Up! Softball Season Begins

Game On! This Sunday, April 27, 2PM, we’re taking the field against St. Jane Francis / OLC at Cypress #1.

No experience required and you already made the team! Qualifications include: you must bring a smile, and be at least 16 years of age by December 31. No full-time commitment is necessary.



If you are interested, contact Scott Wiley at 410.353.1491 or wilecoy2us@gmail.com.

Langton Green Produce Baskets

Langton Green, one of our mission partners, is an Anne Arundel County–based residential community that supports neurodivergent adults. They are offering produce baskets from June–October. For more information, see the attached flyer

A Moment of Prayer

Gracious and Loving God,

In the observances and celebrations of Holy Week, I come before you with a heart filled with wonder, reverence, gratitude, and hope.

As I follow Christ on the road to Calvary, help me to feel the power of Your love:

• A love that chose solidarity with those who are marginalized and suffering;
• A love that confronted those who are powerful with dignity and truth;
• A love that endured ridicule, torture, shame, and even death;
• A love that overcomes any obstacle or barrier to claiming us as your children and blessing us with abundant and eternal life.

On this path of Holy Week, strip away the distractions that dull my heart. Help me to walk slowly, attentively, remembering each step you took through Christ for me.

On Maundy Thursday, let me love and serve, as Christ knelt to wash feet and break bread.

On Good Friday, let me sit at the foot of the cross, in silence, in sorrow, in hope.

And on Easter morning, let me rise renewed in faith, emboldened by grace, a witness to Christ’s resurrection in my life and in the world.

Through Christ our Risen Lord and Savior, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

Amen.