April 2017 Tidings Newsletter. First Presbyterian Church. From Pastor Rachel

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Colleen Stevenson
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Palm Sunday: Our monthly Children s Sunday will take place on Palm Sunday. The children will process with palms, and help to hand them out at the conclusion of worship.

1 April 2017 Tidings Newsletter First Presbyterian Church From Pastor Rachel This month I write to highlight ways you can take part in worship as Lent climaxes in a glorious celebration of our Savior s resurrection. For your own spiritual nourishment and growth, I urge you to take part in as many as you can (and invite others, too!). Palm Sunday: Our monthly Children s Sunday will take place on Palm Sunday. The children will process with palms, and help to hand them out at the conclusion of worship. Maundy Thursday Seder: We will have a Christian version of a Jewish Passover Seder held in Patterson Hall. This is a worshipful way to remind ourselves of the Old Testament basis for the sacrifice Jesus made of Himself as the perfect Lamb of God. The seder will take place on Thursday, April 13, at 7. Please call the church office to make a reservation by Monday, April 10. Good Friday: On April 14, we will meet at 7 to meditate on our Savior s death through music, prayer, and Scripture readings. Resurrection Sunrise Worship: This year, the sunrise service will be held at Wysox Presbyterian Church s cemetery at 7:30. Pastor Rachel will preach, and the Wysox church will provide a light breakfast afterward. Resurrection Worship! Then at 10 AM we will exalt the name of Jesus. We will have a special children s message in worship, and adults will hear the Gospel in its richness. Who will you invite to come along with you?

Day of Prayer - April 5 For local, state, and national leadership to seek God and His wisdom in their personal and professional lives.

For the Lord to bless our Elders as they begin the Flourishing Churches curriculum and discern its benefit for us all.

For those in our community who struggle with addiction of any kind to find the help they need, and turn to Christ for His grace to help them now and forever.

2 Day of Prayer - April 5 For local, state, and national leadership to seek God and His wisdom in their personal and professional lives. For our Lent and Holy Week events to be blessed by the Lord and have great participation, so we can grow stronger in our faith. For the Lord to bless our Elders as they begin the Flourishing Churches curriculum and discern its benefit for us all. That the Lord will bless our ministries to children and youth, and give energy and enthusiasm to the adults who care for them. May each child receive the gift of salvation through Jesus! For those in our community who struggle with addiction of any kind to find the help they need, and turn to Christ for His grace to help them now and forever. For us to be confident in sharing our faith in Christ with others, and invite many to take part in our Resurrection worship on Easter Sunday. Pastor Now on Hospital Board Early this year, Pastor Rachel was asked to join the Board of Trustees of Memorial Hospital in Towanda. After approval by Guthrie, she took part in her first board meeting on March 23. She intends to represent our church and the Christian community as best as she can in this new role. She will attend one lunchtime board meeting per month. If you have any questions or concerns about Memorial Hospital, please don t hesitate to contact her. Pastors Band to Perform and Please On Friday, April 28, a pastors band comprised of local ministers will perform at the Community Cup starting at 7 PM and lasting for about an hour. They will perform worship and praise songs with a variety of styles. The band consists of Pastors Jira Albers, Karen Ballard, Bill Klees, Rachel Stahle, and Phil Wanck. Come out for a lovely (and free) time!

3 Session Begins Flourishing Churches Program At their meeting on March 28, the Session began a new ECO program titled Flourishing Churches. This is a six-month study that focuses on developing a stronger discipleship culture in the congregation. In other words, what can we do to be better followers of Jesus, starting with the Elders and spreading out into the rest of the congregation? Each month, the Elders will meet to address regular agenda items. Then they will spend an hour with this material. The first two lessons explore how each elder can flourish as a disciple individually. Then they will consider how to flourish as leaders, as a church, and steps to flourishing beyond this curriculum. Those steps include how every Christian can teach other Christians, and also learn from other Christians. Taking part in this will help the Session to discern how we can grow spiritually and numerically now that we are in ECO. But the greater goal is for us all to grow closer to our Lord, and that people will come to new faith in Jesus through our ministry. Please be in prayer for the elders as they begin this exciting process! Come Enjoy an Uplifting Easter Film! On Saturday, April 8, we will show the film Risen in our sanctuary. Snacks will be available at 6:30 with the movie starting at 7. Here s the plot: Roman military tribune Clavius (Joseph Fiennes) remains set in his ways after serving 25 years in the army. He arrives at a crossroad when he's tasked to investigate the mystery of what happened to Jesus (Cliff Curtis) following the Crucifixion. Accompanied by trusted aide Lucius (Tom Felton), his quest to disprove rumors of a risen Messiah makes him question his own beliefs and spirituality. Come and see what Clavius learns about God and himself in this suspenseful and engrossing drama. Risen is rated PG-13 for biblical violence, including some disturbing images related to death and the Crucifixion. There is no strong language or nudity.

Youth Group Selling Chocolate Eggs Our Knight Life youth group has made chocolate eggs and will be selling them as a fundraiser for their summer mission trip.

All profits will support their mission trip to Pittsburgh at the end of July. While there, they will minister to the disadvantaged and homeless, and help a church with its VBS program.

Youth Group Hosting Easter Egg Hunt On Saturday, April 8, our youth group will be sponsoring a community Easter egg hunt, to be held on our lawn as well as the courthouse lawn.

4 Youth Group Selling Chocolate Eggs Our Knight Life youth group has made chocolate eggs and will be selling them as a fundraiser for their summer mission trip. The eggs have either a vanilla, peanut butter, or coconut filling and are covered with yummy chocolate. They will be sold Sundays in the Welcome Center. All profits will support their mission trip to Pittsburgh at the end of July. While there, they will minister to the disadvantaged and homeless, and help a church with its VBS program. Special thanks to Wanda Stahl for taking the lead in making the eggs! Youth Group Hosting Easter Egg Hunt On Saturday, April 8, our youth group will be sponsoring a community Easter egg hunt, to be held on our lawn as well as the courthouse lawn. It will start at 11 AM with games at 10:30. Inside the plastic eggs there will be candy, tickets for prizes, and simple Bible messages. We will also have Gospel tracts for children and adults available, and the youth group will be selling their chocolate eggs. The youth group took on this event as a service project because the Kiwanis could no longer do so. Please spread the word! If you would like to help supervise, please see Pastor Rachel.

Northeast Presbytery To Meet The next meeting of our Presbytery will be held May 5-6 in Liberty Corner, NJ. Anyone interested in taking part is welcome to attend.

The name of our new Presbytery is "Cornerstone," and includes churches from Williamsport east to Honesdale, and north into upstate New York near Albany. Library News!

5 Northeast Presbytery To Meet The next meeting of our Presbytery will be held May 5-6 in Liberty Corner, NJ. Anyone interested in taking part is welcome to attend. Please see Pastor Rachel if you would like to go. This is the last official meeting of the Northeast Presbytery, as it will officially divide into 3 presbyteries in July. The name of our new Presbytery is "Cornerstone," and includes churches from Williamsport east to Honesdale, and north into upstate New York near Albany. Library News! Come into the library and see the great bookshelves that Wayne Fuller has built. They are a big help to the library. While there, look at the books, CD s, videos and magazines the library has for checkout. If you have any book suggestions, please see Lois Smith. The following book has been donated to the library: Hearts of Fire, Eight Women in the Underground Church and Their Stories of Costly Faith. Thank you to the anonymous donor. April Birthdays 1 - Peggy Putnam, Stacey Walsh 2 - Carol Ann Anderson 3 - Sharon Horton 6 - Jesse Bacon 7 - Freda Shipley 8 - Ray Fleming 13 - Mary Ann Gallew 18 - Lee Stahl 19 - Beverly DeWitt, Baik Sung, Richard Kopetan 24 - Barb McLaud 25 - T.J. Scott

6 Calvary s Anthem Heavenly Father, You have led me singing to the cross, where I fling down all my burdens and see them vanish, where my mountains of guilt are leveled to a plain, where my sins disappear, though they are the greatest that exist, and are more in number than the grains of fine sand. For there is power in the blood of Calvary to destroy sins more than can be counted, even by one from the choir of heaven. You have given me a hill-side spring that washes clear and white, and I go as a sinner to its waters, bathing without hindrance in its crystal streams. At the cross there is free forgiveness for poor and meek ones, and ample blessings that last forever; the blood of the Lamb is like a great river of infinite grace, with never any diminishing of its fullness as thirsty ones without number drink from it. O Lord, forever will Your free forgiveness live that was gained on the mount of blood; in the midst of a world of pain, it is a subject for praise in every place, a song on earth, an anthem in heaven, its love and virtue knowing no end. I have a longing for the world above where multitudes sing the great song, for my soul was never created to love the dust of earth. Though here my spiritual state is frail and poor, I shall go on singing Calvary s anthem. May I always know that a clean heart full of goodness is more beautiful than the lily, that only a clean heart can sing by night and by day, that such a heart is mine when I abide at Calvary. From The Valley of Vision, edited by Arthur Bennett. Easter Grace May the celebration of resurrected life bring new hope to your being. May the victory over earthly death turn your eyes to the promises of heaven. May the empty tomb help you to leave your sorrows at the foot of the cross. So that God's hope, promises and forgiveness reign in your life forever. Holy Week Services Palm Sunday - April 9 Seder Maundy Thursday Service - April 13-7 PM Good Friday - April 14-7 PM Easter Sunrise Worship - April 16-7:30 AM (at Wysox Presbyterian Church Cemetery) Easter Worship - April 16 Amen.

Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in him.

Our annual carnival is April 26 and then KIDS CLUB will conclude on May 3 with Parent Night.

have to enter a grocery store! Just participate in the: KIDS CLUB SHOPLESS SHOPPING SPREE!

00 each 8 boxes of Garlic Toast $1.70 each Salad Bar ingredients $20.00 5 Angel food cake mixes $3.

00 Planning is continuing for this summer s Community Vacation Bible School.

7 Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in him. -Psalm 34:8 (NIV) Thoughts from Deb Fuller, CEC The regular season of KIDS CLUB is winding down this month. Our annual carnival is April 26 and then KIDS CLUB will conclude on May 3 with Parent Night. We ve served a lot of meals this year and need some help with the shopping for this special meal and you don t have to enter a grocery store! Just participate in the: KIDS CLUB SHOPLESS SHOPPING SPREE! Monetary Donations gratefully accepted to cover the cost of the following: 6 ziti casseroles $6.00 each 8 boxes of Garlic Toast $1.70 each Salad Bar ingredients $ Angel food cake mixes $3.00 each Frozen Strawberries-$10.00 Heavy Cream - $4.00 Planning is continuing for this summer s Community Vacation Bible School. The dates are June 25 through June 29 from 6:00 8:00 pm and this year we are hosting the event. This will be a great opportunity to grow our KIDS CLUB ministry as well. ONE of the ways you may be able to help is by cleaning out your paint closet! NEEDED: small group helpers leftover LATEX PAINT white, gray and brown ONLY

APRIL 2017 Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday 1 10:30AM Praise Team Practice 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 6PM Youth Group 5PM Trustees 1PM Worship Team 6:30PM Scouts 6:30 WBS 9AM BS at Fox

5:30PM Kid s Club 6PM Stewardship 6:30PM Choir 1PM Fellowship Easter Egg Hunt 10:30AM Crafts 11AM The Hunt 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 Palm Sunday (Bottle Dedication) 6PM Youth Group 5:30PM Outreach

10:30AM Praise Team Practice May Tidings articles due in the church office 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 Easter 7:30AM Sunrise Service at Wysox 6:30PM Scouts 6:30 WBS 9AM BS at Fox Home 9:30AM Prayer Group

9 APRIL 2017 Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday 1 10:30AM Praise Team Practice PM Youth Group 5PM Trustees 1PM Worship Team 6:30PM Scouts 6:30 WBS 9AM BS at Fox Home 9:30AM Prayer Group at Fox Home Day of Prayer 8AM Hezekiah s H. 5:30PM Kid s Club 6PM Stewardship 6:30PM Choir 1PM Fellowship Easter Egg Hunt 10:30AM Crafts 11AM The Hunt Palm Sunday (Bottle Dedication) 6PM Youth Group 5:30PM Outreach 6:30PM Scouts 6:30 WBS 9AM BS at Fox Home 9:30AM Prayer Group at Fox Home 5:30PM Kid s Club 6:30 Confirmation Maundy Thursday 6:30PM Choir 7PM Seder Service Good Friday 7PM Good Friday Service 10:30AM Praise Team Practice May Tidings articles due in the church office Easter 7:30AM Sunrise Service at Wysox 6:30PM Scouts 6:30 WBS 9AM BS at Fox Home 9:30AM Prayer Group at Fox Home 1PM Prayer Group at the Richard s Home 5:30PM Kid s Club 6:30PM Choir Pastor Rachel on vacation PM Youth Group 6:30PM Scouts 6:30 WBS 9AM BS at Fox Home 9:30AM Prayer Group at Fox Home 5:30PM Kid s Club Carnival 6:30PM Choir 10:30AM Praise Team Practice 6PM SESSION 6:30 Confirmation 30 6PM Youth Group

The First Presbyterian Church of Washingtonville

The First Presbyterian Church of Washingtonville The Good News-Letter April 2017 Sunday, April 16-10:00 AM Worship Service Rev. Glenn Henricksen First Presbyterian Church of Washingtonville Session Moderator