FIRST REFORMED CHURCH OF CARY

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1 FIRST REFORMED CHURCH OF CARY FAMILY TIMES JULY-AUGUST, 2013 FIRST EDITION, VOL. 6 P.O.Box 4373, Cary, North Carolina The Rev. Dr. Charles A. Wiessner, Pastor (Office) pastor@caryreformedchurch.org JULY-AUGUST CALENDAR July 2-6:30PM - Empty Nesters, Mimi s, Cary July 5-1:30pm - Open Art Workshop July 6-6:30pm - Game Night July 7-10:30am - Prayer Service before worship in the Education Building (same schedule all summer) July 9-7:30 PM - Consistory Aug 4 - Worship/ Communion Aug 13-7:30PM - Consistory August 22 - Newsletter Deadline The beginning of September will mark five years that we have been in our present building. The Consistory is in the process of designing appropriate festivities. When we moved there was excitement and enthusiasm for the future. One way we are working on Seeking celebrating is trying new ideas to revitalize our congregation. Several of Wisdom these ideas will enable you to ask friends and neighbors to something at church. In mid-august we are offering a series called Boundaries. You will hear more information about this program in the next few weeks (see page 3 in this newsletter). While faith based, it is a program that will benefit anyone whether a church member or not. We are also planning a Bring a Friend Sunday in October. We will talk about how to invite people in September and then have a service in October that will be friend friendly. Consistory has been working hard during the last year to come up with ideas that will help us address the issues our congregation faces. However, we do not feel that we are the sole repository of heavenly wisdom. Therefore we are asking you to prayerfully consider what you think we should be doing as a congregation. Toward that end we will be meeting for prayer on Sunday mornings at 10:30 in the Library, beginning on July 7. This will be a time to be together as church members, praying together for the same purpose. We also will be providing pieces of paper in the bulletin during the coming month upon which we are asking you to share your thoughts things you think are going positively, things you think could be changed, and new ideas to try. My favorite Bible passage is Jeremiah 29:11-13, For surely I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for your welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope. Then when you call upon me and come and pray to me, I will hear you. When you search for me, you will find me; if you seek me with all your heart. Let us be assured that God does have a good plan for us! And let us all seek God in prayer as we determine how we can best bring God s plan into worldly reality. Pastor Chuck Pastor Chuck s Summer Sermons July 7 Swing Low II Kings 1-14; Psalm , July 14 The Hard Truth Amos 5:10-27 July 21 Are You Plumb Amos 7:7-17; Psalm 82 July 28 Heavenly Parent Hosea 11:1-11; Psalm 107:1-9,43 Aug 4 Communion Micah 6:1-8 Aug 11 By Faith Micah 6:1-9 Aug 18 A Vine Psalm 80; Isaiah 5:1-7

2 JULY MISSION OF THE MONTH RCA Missionaries Shelvis and Nancy Smith-Mather Working in South Sudan RECONCILE, (Resource Centre for Civil Leadership), is an indigenous ecumenical Christian organization which was established in March 2004 by a national church council. It promotes peace-building by providing training in trauma recovery, conflict transformation, and civic education. RECONCILE's activities are in areas of high inter-ethnic conflict, with the churches often being the typical point of entry into these communities. Shelvis and Nancy participate in RECONCILE's training events that address inter-ethnic conflict. Shelvis is also principal of the Peace Institute, which offers three-month courses in communitybased trauma healing, peace studies, and conflict transformation. Learn more about the Smith-Mathers and see a mini-video of their calling by clicking on the RCA website below. pid=7297 Date Ushers Baby Lyric, new grand-niece to Liz W.- recently allowed to go home. Ethel Y. asks for continued prayers for her 11-year-old neighbor, Elizabeth, who is undergoing chemotherapy for leukemia. John and Sandi T s daughter Julie for her health and well-being. The Knetsch family as they begin a church plant in the Triangle. Annette and Nathaniel DeVries. Carole Angrilla asks for prayers for her sister-in-law, Linda Murphy, who has cancer. Our church and its mission in doing God s work Our prayer services on Sundays during the summer. Jane Dewitt s son, Tom, who needs a liver transplant. The McDonald family, friends of the Ellisons. Linda Olson s Mom in Virginia experiencing back issues. Doug Sonderfan s father, Peter, diagnosed with prostate cancer. RCA Colleges and Seminaries - our August Mission partner. July 7 Barbara Araromi, Pete & Barbara Nickel, Heidi Wilson July 14 John & Sandi Torrant, Megan & JusEn TriveGe July 21 Jane & Jeff DeWiG, Noriko Hawk, Zandt Johnson July 28 Carole Angrilla, Bill, Jason & Marie Thompson THE NEXT NEWSLETTER WILL BE PUBLISHED IN SEPTEMBER. THE DEADLINE IS AUGUST 22, HAVE A GREAT SUMMER!

3 Give us this day our daily bread... O n e o f t h e m a n y things that ties us to t h e w o r l d J e s u s walked in is bread. Indeed bread is one of our earliest inventions and arguably one of the most important. So what modern bread is closest to the bread that Jesus would have eaten? In those days the most common grains were farro and spelt, both types of wheat, and barley. Wheat made the best bread but barley was easier to grow and thus cheaper. Of course they also didn t have modern milling techniques that allowed for removing the germ so their wheat flour would have been whole grain. While unleavened bread was required for Passover, leavened bread was quite common. Modern yeasts had not yet been developed so they would have used wild yeast, making a form of sourdough bread. Therefore most of the bread in the time of Jesus would have been either whole wheat, barley, sourdough or unleavened bread. The leavened bread could have been in the form of loaves, something much like focaccia. The unleavened bread would have been more like crackers or pitas. Submitted by Jeff DeWitt ***************************************************** First Reformed Church of Cary is hosting a self -help series entitled Boundaries, based on the book by Christian psychologists Dr. Henry Cloud and Dr. John Townsend. The series will run from August 18 through October 13, Sunday evenings from 6 8 p.m. Deadline for registration is August 4. We welcome all participants from the community. This study is appropriate for ages 15 and up. Boundaries is a biblically based study on When to say Yes... How to say No... To Take Control of Your Life. The study uses DVD presentations, readings, discussions and homework as the group progresses through the Boundaries book and workbook. The format is large group gatherings that break up into small group discussions that cover family, friends, spouses, children, work, self and God. The cost is $21 per person to cover books and workbooks. Participants can register on-line at Dear Ministry Partners, The last few weeks have been filled with honing in on location. We are currently renting a condo from family in Raleigh, but we have our siights set on purchasing a home in the area we hope to plant. Being geographically separated from the place we plan to plant does actually have its benefits. It gives me time to focus on the residency plan created in consultation with Home Missions. Part of that residency is setting up shop so to speak. For example, I had to find an experienced church planter in the area willing to serve as my residency site supervisor. I also had to find local church planters in the area in order to have a place of mutual support, accountability, encouragement, and networking. God

4 has graciously provided for these two important church planting puzzle pieces. I also continue to work my way through literature on church planting as well as work towards raising enough prayer and financial support before the residency ends in September. If anyone would like to be included in that prayer list, please do me. On the family front, the boys continue to grow up and Heather and I are setting roots. We are still very much excited about starting a new church, and the more people we are talking to in Raleigh, the more that excitement builds. Relationships continue to grow with local pastors and congregations as we learn and listen where exactly we should plant. Relationships continue to grow with our neighbors and those we meet at First Reformed and Christ the King Presbyterian. We are extremely grateful for their presence, as they support us through prayer and also through practical but essential things like a used photocopier and a place to store it. At the same time, I have been encouraged by the s and phone calls from those supporting us farther away. We feel very much connected as we reconnect with people and churches across North America. Thank you for your ongoing prayers and support. For a more in-depth update on how things are going, please read my blog at I update it weekly, so if you have not read the blog, there is plenty to read! You can also contact me at pastormark@churchplantnc.org or through the website above. Make God continue to bless you and guide you in where God has called you. God bless, Pastor Mark Here are the Top Ten Misconceptions about Church in Summer... Number 10: It is a natural thing to take the summer off. This is a holdover from when we all lived on farms, and less happened in church in the summer to allow for planting and harvesting. How is your South 40 this year? Number 9: Nothing goes on during the summer. Beeeep! We keep providing help and support to people around us; the pace changes, but the work of the church is going strong. Number 8: Expenses go way down in the summer. While we don t pay for heat, we pay to keep cool. Most expenses are constant regardless of the weather. Number 7: It s a good time to take a break from Sunday clothes. We are pretty informal. Wear your warm-weather clothes...even shorts. Number 6: Pastor Chuck would never do that. Don t bet on it! Number 5: There is nothing for the children to do. There is always the children s message with bulletins just for them. Why not bring their friends? Number 4: The church will fall down if I am in there when there is no Christmas tree. How would you know? Number 3: God expects us to be out and enjoying the weather. Maybe. But God would love to see you at His table before sitting at the picnic table. Number 2: But we like to sleep in, go to the beach, swim in our pool, go on vacation- and do whatever! Seek ye first the kingdom of God... And the Number 1 Misconception about Church in Summer: Summer is about the lazy, hazy crazy days of no routine. What if you turned to God in prayer and got a recorded message: God is not in right now, He is out getting away from His routine? God is always there for you. Are you there for God? --adapted from another church newsletter.

5 THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! On June 8, twelve FRCC members woke up bright and early to meet at Grace Sovereign Community Church, Apex, where they joined other volunteers and were greeted by the HFH crew who told us what to expect for the day. The sky was overcast and the day before was a total washout - we all silently hoped that wasn t the case this Saturday. God saw fit to keep the day dry and by lunchtime, the sun joined us to help build one of the seven homes under construction in one Apex neighborhood. Our jobs included sweeping the water out of the house, weatherproofing around the outside of the house, sawing wood strips to keep it in place, sawing wood to prep for drywall, setting the windows in place, some roof work and finishing up the porch. Our site boss, Gene, was very fussy when it came to preparing for the drywall and everything else we did as well. Heading out to the build site. Mark Knetsch and Mike Shafer prepare the outside for weatherproofing. Thank you to Dave and Paula Pynaker, Joe White, Justin and Megan Trivette, Chris Forte, Mark Knetsch, Bill Kalsbeek, Mike Shafer, Jason Thompson, Bill Leadbitter, and Sandi Torrant for their hard work to help make someone s dream for owning a home come true. The house FRCC helped to build.

6 Welcome to the Worship Committee! Well! 2013 finds FRCC with a newly elected elder, me, Doug Sonderfan, heading the Worship Committee as part of my responsibilities on the FRCC Consistory. When I first got started I didn t realize I actually had a committee so to speak. Turns out I have many people to thank for their previous and current efforts to assist me with my responsibilities. I was told that I m responsible for many things, from making sure our church banners are changed to reflect the different church seasons to making sure when Chuck and Lonieta are on vacation someone else is filling those spots! And there are many other things, I m finding out. As I am a hands-on type of person, this suits me well for the most part, but as many of you know I also volunteer my time in other ways in our church. So I want to mention some names of those who are a great help to me: Brooke and Zandt Johnson, Carol Angrilla, Nancy Dey, Noriko Hawk, Sabra Leadbitter, Liz White, Heidi Wilson (newly recruited) and any others I forgot or have yet to mention (as this committee hopefully expands?). Worship is a key aspect to our services...we come into God s presence to praise and worship Him every Sunday. While we follow a traditional RCA liturgy which includes readings, scripture and music, it is a blessing when we can expand that worship to include guests, special choirs and combined services. I would always welcome comments, suggestions and yes, criticisms to help improve the worship experience at FRCC. Regards, Doug Sonderfan LIBRARY NEWS Our main library in the Education Building has been improved and updated with new shelves and carpeting. The room is so inviting and friendly - just the place to read a book! When you see a book you would like to read just take it home, enjoy it and bring it back when you are done. There is no checkout; we operate on the honor system. We are so pleased to have this very special addition to enhance our Church life. Come and look it over!!