| Spirit of home decorates Christmas WHITE HALL When the three churches on the Norrisville Charge decorate their Christmas trees this year, it will be with a particular mission in mind. Members are asked to make or buy ornaments with a theme of Home, small decorations that show the warmth of home. When the trees come down, the decorations will be packed away and given next year as a house-warming gift to the churchs Habitat for Humanity family. On Nov. 9, the youth group made cookies for the reception that opened the first offices of Harford Habitat for Humanity in Bel Air. The churches are currently recruiting volunteers to help with the building of the Habitat house in the spring, said Michaelann Meehan, the Norrisville UMC youth director. Living Nativity helps prepare for Christmas  BELTSVILLE A Living Nativity is part of Emmanuel UMCs preparation for Christmas. For the fourth year, more than 100 members of the church and their friends will come together to present a re-enactment of the night Jesus was born. Boy Scout Troop 1033 will camp out overnight to watch the live animals used in the Nativity scene. The re-enactment takes place Dec. 21 and 22, from 5 to 8 p.m. It is free and open to the public, although canned food donations would be appreciated to replenish the Beltsville Food Closet. The church is at 11416 Cedar Lane in Beltsville. Contact the church at (301) 937-7114. Bicycles make life easier  CLARKSVILLE Members of Linden-Lithicum UMC spent the morning Nov. 16 collecting used bicycles to send to Honduras. This year is the first time the church has joined the national program called Pedals for Progress ministry. They collected 56 good, used bicycles, reported the Rev. David Carter-Rimbaugh. The bikes will be shipped to partner agencies and reconditioned before distribution at low or no cost to poor working adults. Pedals for Progress is a charitable, tax-deductible organization that in the 11 years since its founding has collected more than 60,500 bicycles, which were shipped to Latin America, Africa and the Pacific Islands. To learn more about this ministry, see www.p4p.org. Church celebrates 211 years OXON HILL The congregation of St. Paul UMC spent a week in October celebrating its 211th anniversary. Close to 300 people attended the celebration that began Oct. 6 with The Story of Creation, told in dance and presented by the children of the Liturgical Dance Ministry, reported Cara Savoy, the churchs administrative assistant. The week ended on Oct. 13, with retired Bishop Forrest Stith speaking at the worship service. In between, the church held a youth revival and a community family fun day.
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