On November 24, Tom and I participated in the Hanging of the Greens at Lewis Center United Methodist Church. Lewis Center is an active, faithful community of folks and Tom and I try to participate as we can when we are in Ohio. Most Sundays we serve as a greeter (me) and an usher (Tom). I sang with the choir for the Cantata on December 8. I also led an Advent Bible Study using “The Will of God” book by Leslie Weatherhead.
We like to do things where we have defined roles. But we also help out when things need to be be moved or set up. So we were excited about the Hanging of the Greens.
The day started with one combined worship service at 10 a.m. Usually there are two services. A traditional service at 9 and a contemporary service at 10:30. The one combined service was a joy to everyone. The sanctuary was packed. The bell choir rang, the praise band played, and Pastor Jessica gave a good message.
At the end of the service, Pastor Phil gave us instructions for the Hanging of the Greens. The church doesn’t have a lot of fellowship space, so half of us were supposed to eat the potluck dinner first while the other half decorated. It was still early for lunch and Tom and I chose to decorate first. Tom joined ten other men in moving out large packed boxes for the Samaritan’s Purse Shoebox ministry. I helped change the vestments and get out the large Advent banners. We put wreaths on the end of pews and on the doors.
Lewis Center doesn’t have any oversized decorations but they have lots of trees that get tucked in corners and make everything look very festive. Each of the trees is packed away with an accompanying box of decorations. Tom and I helped decorate the gold tree at the main church entrance. Others decorated the trees in the chancel or the fellowship area. By the time we finished decorating the tree, it was time to trade places with the people who had been eating.
Over 100 people stayed after the service to eat and help decorate. People brought in crockpots full of soup or sandwich fillings. I took some golden brownies. There were muffins and rolls. Plenty to eat for everyone. I love that about church potlucks – there is always plenty no matter how many people show up.
Tom and I had a great time Hanging the Greens. We don’t decorate the house much because we leave so soon after Christmas. It was fun to be a part of so many people working together to make the church look beautiful. Because so many worked, it didn’t take long to get everything decorated. Now the church looks beautiful and we are able to celebrate Advent.