Peekskill Presbyterian Church THE MESSENGER JANUARY Bow stubborn knees. WILLIAM SHAKESPHERE

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1 Peekskill Presbyterian Church THE MESSENGER JANUARY 2013 Pastor s Office Hours Wednesdays 10 am 3 pm Thursdays 4 pm 7 pm Fridays 10 am-3 pm by appt. Saturdays 11:30 am 4:30 pm Drop in and say hello Upcoming Events Jan. 6, Epiphany, 11am Joint Service with Gates of Heaven Jan. 10, Annual Reports Due Jan. 17, 4-6pm Food Distribution Jan. 12 & 26, 9am, Men s Breakfast Bible Study Jan. 23, 6pm, Connected, Prayer Ministry Jan. 24, 7:30pm 7:30pm, Thirsty, Social Hall Jan. 27, ANNUAL MTG Opportunities To Serve Jan. 6 Community Breakfast; speak to Linda Johns Soup Kitchen Prep; speak to Christine Button Thrift Shop Volunteer; speak to Charlene Woods Serve as liturgist on Sundays; speak to Marsha Vernon Be an Usher or Acolyte on Sundays; speak to Nancy Horton Host the Coffee Hour; speak to Brenda Martinez Prayer Reflections for the New Year! Prayer is not just spending time with God...If it ends there, it is fruitless. No, prayer is dynamic. Authentic prayer changes us, unmasks us. TERESA OF AVILA Prayer is our humble answer to the inconceivable surprise of living. RABBI HESCHEL Prayer oneth the soul to God. JULIAN OF NORWICH I prayed for twenty years and got no answer until I prayed with my legs. FREDERICK DOUGLAS Bow stubborn knees. WILLIAM SHAKESPHERE The fewer the words, the better the prayer. MARTIN LUTHER The guarantee of one s prayer is not in saying a lot of words. The guarantee of one s petition is very easy to know: How do I treat the poor? Because that is where God is. ARCHBISHOP OSCAR ROMERO When you pray, don t behave like the hypocrites; they love to pray standing up in synagogues and on street corners for people to see them. When you pray, go to your room, shut the door, and pray to God who is in that secret place. MATTHEW 6: 5-6 Pure love and prayer are learned in the hour when prayer has become impossible and your heart has turned to stone. THOMAS MERTON I have been driven many times to my knees by the overwhelming conviction that I had absolutely no other place to go. ABRAHAM LINCOLN On the Web & Facebook page 1

2 Prayer Reflections for the New Year (continued) When we pray to God we must be seeking nothing..nothing. ST. FRANCIS OF ASSISI We must move from asking God to take care of the things that are breaking our hearts to praying about the things that are breaking God s heart. MARGARET GIBB May your New Year be filled with fervent, passionate, selfless, active, brief, humble prayers. By Faith, Pastor Stephany $115,000 $115,000 We re not there yet $95,596 The steepest part of the climb is still ahead Please Pledge! Mount Stewardship Mount Stewardship Men s Bible Study Breakfast Happy New Year! Men s Bible Study/Breakfast will resume twice monthly meetings at 9am, January 12 and January 26. Now that the busy holiday season is over, we hope you will join us on these dates. On the Web & Facebook page 2

3 Joint Worship with Gates of Heaven Please join us on Epiphany Sunday, January 6 at 11am (not our usual 10am) for a lively joint worship service with the Gates of Heaven church. Breakfast Time on January 6 th has been changed! In conjunction with our later service hour on January 6 th, the Community-Congregational Breakfast will begin at 9:00 a.m. (one hour later than usual). This is not a permanent change. For this one day only, breakfast is at 9:00 because worship with the Gates of Heaven is at 11:00. See you there! Book Group Make a New Year's Resolution to read a classic American novel and join a lively discussion on Friday evening, January 25 at 7:30 in the church library/parlor. The book is The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald. It is a tale of "impossible love, incorruptible dreams and high-octane tragedy." Written in the "roaring twenties" it still holds a mirror to our own times and struggles. Everyone is welcome! See Cliff Heaton if you have any questions. Annual Meeting The Annual Congregational Meeting is January 27 following worship. Ministry reports for the Annual Report are due January 10. On the Web & Facebook page 3

4 Meet the Gonzalezes We adopted the Gonzalez Family for Christmas and then made a greater commitment to assist in their recovery from Hurricane Sandy. We thought you should meet them. The family is made up of 2 brothers, Henri and William, their wives and children. One more baby girl is on the way. We ll be sure to keep you posted on her. Above: The William Gonzalez Family, Baby Willie, Mother Martha, Brother Edwin, Sister Martha (missing Father William and sister Nathalie). At Right: The Henri Gonzale Family,Father Henri, Mother Lydia (+ 1 baby to come), Brother Henri, Jr., and Sister Emily January Birthdays ~ Deleted to protect your privacy online ~ On the Web & Facebook page 4

5 Congratulations! It s a.... Family! In worship last month we all heard the call to adopt families whose homes were washed away by Hurricane Sandy. Our Church is responding to that call. Peekskill Presbyterian Church is making a commitment to provide ongoing assistance to the Gonzalez family as they try to rebuild their lives. The Gonzalezes live in the trailer community in Stony Point that was completely destroyed in the hurricane. They spent a couple of months in a shelter and only last week moved back into a trailer. However, basic shelter is only the first step. The Gonzalezes lost everything and need a lot more help. Our help will include material things, like gently used furniture, appliances, and household goods, as well as emotional and spiritual support. We will include them in our congregational prayers; we hope you ll add them as a regular part of your personal prayer life. We ll invite them into the worship and fellowship of this congregation. So many of our brothers and sisters are in need right now. We can t help everyone, but for this family of near neighbors, we can do our bit. Please help. So far, we ve managed to organize: 2 couches, 1 reclining chair, 1 set of bunk beds with mattresses, 1 air conditioner, 1 toaster oven, 1 table with 4 chairs, 1 car seat, and the Christmas gifts that you wrapped on the 9 th. But more is needed. We re looking for: o Crib & Mattress o Disposable Diapers o Plywood o 2x4 Lumber o 2 Stoves o Bed Linens (esp. twin) o Twin Bed Comforters o Bureau o Desk & Chair o Dryer If you have any of these items available to donate, please contact Phyllis Froebrich, Linda Johns, or any other member of the Mission Ministry as soon as possible. If you can t spare these items, but you have other small household goods to share, please let us know. If you have a Facebook page or blog, please put out the call to your friends. We know that with your help and God s favor, the Gonzalez family will be back on their feet in no time. On the Web & Facebook page 5

6 Let s be blunt: Clean Up Your Mess! There are great things going on at Peekskill Presbyterian Church. Everyone sees it. Everyone feels it. The presence of the Spirit is filling our Church. There is just one problem. Sometimes all that rejoicing and renewed life leaves behind a big mess. If you are participating in any ministry or activity in the Church it is your responsibility to leave the building ready for the next user. And be aware, our calendar is filling up. The next user may be arriving in less than an hour. Dishes need to be washed, toys need to be put away, glitter and crumbs need to be swept off the floor, tables and counters need to be cleaned, and garbage needs to be emptied. When you re sharing space it s just not right to make the next guy clean up after you before he or she can begin their ministry. As is often said, Your mother doesn t work here. At PPC we might add, Neither does Ray, anymore. Please clean up after yourself! ~ Thank you, from your Session, on behalf of you, the next user. Christmas Day Dinner Wow! We did it again! With your help we were able to serve the community Christmas Day Dinner. You helped make it the success it was through your donations of turkeys, food items, carving, cooking, and food delivery. We hope you received just as much pleasure in participating in this project as the diners and recipients did. God bless you all! - Thank you from the Christmas Day Dinner Committee On the Web & Facebook page 6

7 JANUARY 2013 Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Every Sunday: 10:00 am WORSHIP with nursery care Gates of Heaven: 12 1:30 Rev. Graham Office Hours: W, F: 10-3pm Thrs: 4-7pm Sat: 11:30-4:30pm 1 NEW YEAR S DAY OFFICE CLOSED 2 6:15pm Lord s Attic Mtg. 7:30pm-Chancel Choir 3 7pm C&B Mtg EPIPHANY 9am Breakfast 9am Cong Life Mtg. 11am WORSHIP with Gates of Heaven 1pm Good News Mtg. 7 7:30-9 Boy Scout Troop # PAPA Mtg. 2pm Yorktown Soup 6:45-8:15pm Fitness, 7:30 pm Ch Ed Mtg. Gates of Heaven Prayer Service 9 7:30pm-Chancel Choir 10 ANNUAL REPORTS DUE 7:30pm Session Mtg am Men s Bible Breakfast 13 11:30am Bible Study 14 7:30pm Mission Mtg. 7:30-9 Boy Scouts 15 6:45pm Fitness 7pm Deacons Mtg. 7:30 pm Gates of Heaven Prayer Service 16 MESSENGER ARTICLES DUE 1pm Bridge, Button s 6:30pm Worship Mtg. 7:30pm-Chancel Choir pm Westchester Food Bank distribution Third Sunday 11:30 Bibel Study 4pm Peekskill Martin Luther King Event 7-8:30pm Scout Ldrs. 21 Martin Luther King Jr. Day OFFICE CLOSED 22 9am Presbytery Mtg., Stony Point 5:30pm Mission Soup 6:45pm Fitness 7:30pm GOH Service pm Connected Prayer Ministry 7:30pm Chancel Choir 24 7:30pm Thirsty 25 7pm Spanish Class 7:30pm Book Discussion Group 26 9am Men s Bible Breakfast 7:30pm Bridge, Heaton s 27 9am Stewardship 11am ANNUAL MEETING 28 7:30-9 Boy Scout Troop # :45-8:15pm Fitness, 7:30 pm Gates of Heaven Prayer Service 30 7:30pm-Chancel Choir 31 Church Office: 8:00 2:00, M Th phone fax peekskillpresby.org Thrift Shop: (845) Tu, W, Th, & Sa 10:00 3:00 On the Web & Facebook page 7

8 NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATION US POSTAGE PAID 705 SOUTH STREET WHITE PLAINS, NY PEEKSKILL, NY PERMIT # 6604 THE MESSENGER PEEKSKILL PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH TIME DATED MATERIAL PLEASE DELIVER PROMPTLY RETURN SERVICE REQUESTED