It was a Sunday evening. Most of us had already gone to church that morning. But on Sunday 3/12/17 nearly 200 local Methodists gathered at PUMC for a Praise and Worship Concert. The silent auction before the concert and the love offering taken during the concert will be donated to our friends in La Palmilla Mexico to help them complete the construction of their new sanctuary.
Silent Auction
Before the concert got underway, tables in our Fellowship Hall were filled with various donated items, such as gift certificates to local restaurants and merchants, gift baskets of all sorts, art work, wood work, a vacuum cleaner, and even a dog bed with treats for “Fido.” Also on the tables was a basket allowing visitors to place a bid on the items. The highest bidder was given the chance to make a purchase at the bidded price.
Praise Band Concert
This wasn’t a competition! This group of musicians from several churches has “banded” together enough times to put any competitive juices behind them. This was all about glorifying God and sharing in His presence through worship. Each band brought their own style and tastes, but we all pulled together in the worship of our same Almighty God.
Several churches were represented, and each band led us in worship by playing three songs each. We then ended up with a rendition of the song “Carrier.” The following bands lent their talents:
- Pitman UMC “Praise Team”
- Mantua UMC “EONS”
- Richwood UMC “Sanctified”
- Glassboro UMC “Maginify”
- Trinity UMC (Mullica Hill) & “Synergy”
- Trinity UMC (Mullica Hill) “Youth Band”
Here’s a video of “Magnify” (from the First UMC of Glassboro), singing “Thrive”…
In between each band (while they were scurrying around in the background getting set up), members from the Mission Team spoke about the La Palmilla mission…
La Palmilla
The United Methodist Church in La Palmilla Mexico is bursting at the seams. For 18 years they’ve been 
scraping their limited resources together to build a new sanctuary. Their hard work and patience is about to be rewarded. They expect to (finally!) dedicate their new place of worship this summer.
Beyond the construction project, PUMC members are also actively involved in helping the children of La Palmilla attend school. Going to school in that region is very expensive; often far beyond what the people can afford. So we have sponsored many children, sending enough money to pay for tuition and supplies.
In a short time, people will be worshiping in that space and praising God for a group of NJ Methodists who gathered in worship one Sunday evening to give of their time and talents.
For more info, here’s the post that announced this event…
Announcement
On the evening of Sunday March 12, Praise Bands from several area churches will gather in our sanctuary to lead a special time of celebration and worship. The gathering of these “bands” has become a bit of a tradition (we did this last year, and recently we gathered at the First UMC in Glassboro to raise funds for their upcoming mission trip).
The following “Praise Bands” will participate by leading a few of their favorite songs: 
- Pitman UMC Praise Band
- Mantua UMC “EONS”
- Richwood UMC “Sanctified”
- Glassboro UMC “Maginify”
- Trinity UMC Youth Band” & “Sanctify”
La Palmilla
During the “concert”, a Love Offering will be taken to benefit our mission to the UMC church in La Palmilla Mexico. We are sending a mission team to LaPalmilla this summer. For years, this thriving church has been scraping funds together to build a new sanctuary. The construction is nearly finished, and our Mission Team will help wrap things up and to dedicate the new sanctuary.
Silent Auction
But wait… there’s more!
Before the concert, there will be a silent offering to sell off some treasures… and raise additional funds to help our friends in Mexico.
The PUMC Praise Team
Chris and friends celebrate the purchase of a new keyboard
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To learn more about our La Palmilla Mission, click this button: La Palmilla
