Holy Week Services. Centerville Presbyterian Church. the

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1 Centerville Presbyterian Church the A Church committed to Jesus Christ through worship, nurture, care, and growth. MONTHLY NEWSLETTER Celebrating 163 Years of Ministry MARCH 2018 Senior Pastor Rev. Dr. Greg Roth Associate Senior Pastor Rev. Dr. Marsha Roth Assistant Pastor for Families, Young Adults & Intercultural Ministries Leedah Wong Visitation Pastor Rev. Dr. Jim Schoon Director of Traditional Worship and Choral Ministries Darryl Guzman Director of Contemporary Worship Thomas Bañuelos Interim Children's Events Coordinator Alana Bischoff-Chan Interim Children's Sunday School Coordinator Katelyn Bañuelos Youth Ministry Director Seth Beardsley Holy Week Services Palm Sunday Services March 25, :00 am Contemporary Service 10:30 am The Foundry Service (Millennials) 11:00 am Traditional Service Maundy Thursday Service March 29, :30 pm in the Sanctuary Good Friday Service March 30, NOON in the Sanctuary Preschool Director Linda Hall Facilities/Office Manager Tammy Sawyer Finance Manager Sally Suryan Accounting Assistant Julia Knutson Ministry Assistants Alana Bischoff-Chan Val Cooley Polly Walker Easter Sunday Services April 1, :00 am Contemporary Service 10:30 am The Foundry Service (Millennials) 11:00 am Traditional Service

2 THE SHORT SIDE OF LIFE BEFORE HEAVEN Recently, I was reminiscing about my early years. I recalled how the words getting older seemed so distant. When I was in my 20 s, the getting older people were my parents and then my grandparents. Then I had a revelation the old person is now Me. And that sort of changes things. I came to CPC almost 24 years ago and my, what a difference 23 years makes! It seems like just yesterday. It makes me start to look at life on the short side! And, well, it s getting shorter all the time. In light of this fact, it s wonderful to know that we belong to God and He belongs to us, isn t it? In viewing life on the short side, God wants us to discover how much and how deeply we desire Him. Paul said, that I may know Him (Phil. 3:10) and he also said, Now we know in part, then we shall know even as we are known. Now we see through a glass dimly, then we shall see face to face. (I Cor. 13:12) In the past weeks, it s dawned on me that there s something about us as believers, that no matter how much God has blessed us or how much we ve come to know Him there still awaits that event when we shall see Him and behold His face. So, it behooves us to ask now What will Jesus look like? What will it be like when He physically embraces us? What will His Father look like? Jesus came that we might not only know Him, but His Father as well. And one of Jesus greatest delights is when we are able to see His Father, whom He has loved through all eternity. (John 4 describes the Father on the throne; Revelation 5 describes Jesus on the throne.) When that time arrives in heaven, we will no longer need to hope or walk by faith. What will it be like to no longer walk by faith but at last by sight? I believe Jesus desires that this longing in each of us would be fanned into a flame of passion. It is our Father s desire that we longingly look for the Blessed Hope. So, take a moment now and imagine with me, what will it be like to see Him as He is?! One of my favorite Psalms is Psalm 84 since it urges us to long for heaven. When this Psalm was written, every believing Jew longed to go to Jerusalem s temple. It was their greatest joy to walk through the gates of the temple square and enter into the place where the burnt offering occurred. Had they made the trip before, they knew what to expect the lamp stands would be it, the show bread on the table, and beyond the veil to the place called The Holy of Holies. To the devout Jew, this is the actual place on earth where God dwelt. Although God had taught them that He was always around them, the tabernacle or temple was the focal point, the special place where God resides. (See I Kings 8:23.) So, if the Jewish person was a great distance away from Jerusalem, naturally their soul longed to be there. For us Christians today, it is hard for us to grasp their huge desire to be with God in this magnificent place. The nearest analogy I can think of would be our longing to go home to heaven. Do you have that desire to be where God resides? Is it growing more each day? It is true that all of us in Christ will one day be with Him in our eternal home. Will it be 2 years, 3 or 5 years? 10, 20 or 30 years? I believe God desires for us to desire Him, to actually want to be with Him, to hear His voice and see His face. If most of us give an honest response, it is, We desire to go to heaven, but not right now. Sadly, for many who are close to the finish line, there is no sense of anticipation, as if the trip was not on their minds at all. That seems strange to me. In my years of ministry, I ve observed that many senior saints express an interest in being with Father God, but it s not an intense passion. My Aunt Karen is one of the few believers that I can point to whose conversation is often centered on heaven. With a sparkle in her eyes, she is always suggesting to me a new book she studied on the subject. Her conversational tone is not morbid, but flavored with a joyful anticipation of seeing her Lord and all those she s loved here on earth who ve changed their address to a heavenly residence. How much I ve learned from her about the wonderful reality of that Glorious Day of the Lord, when we shall know in full the Kingdom of God. She reminds me of the little sparrow building its nest near the temple. And in our Psalm, the writer is envious of this bird so close and cozy to the temple. In verse 5 we re told how blessed is the person who dreams of the trip to Zion. Do you have a sense of excitement as you get ready for the best trip of your life? I hope so! To prepare us for the journey, after Easter Pastors Greg and Jim will be preaching on Heaven. Get ready to fasten your seat belts because it s getting shorter on the short side of Life shorter every day! Pastor Marsha 2

3 By Linda Hall, Director of CCP Early spring greetings to you all. Our Bible verse this month is "God hears our prayers." from Luke 1:13. We'll be focusing on the color yellow and will be creating some adorable Yellow Day Chicks. We will also be doing two spring related painting projects using all the pastel colors in the rainbow. In addition, we will do a paint stamping project with real citrus fruits that make our sense of "smell" very involved in the project! Our academics this month will include the alphabet letters: "P", "Q", "R" and "S". The shape of ovals will be introduced (Easter is coming) and then we'll have some fun with learning about the numbers 6 and 7. This month the preschool will be doing our Spring Fundraiser with See's Candy again. Anyone interested in placing pre-paid orders can pick up an order form in the church office Mon.-Thurs. between 8:00 am. and 4:00 pm. All orders are due by March 12th for delivery during the week of March 19 th (great Easter Basket fillers). I will contact you by phone when they are here and available for pick up. Friday March 2nd the preschool will be closed as our staff be attending the BASS conference and then Friday March 30 th - April 6th for Spring Break. Easter Blessings to all of you!! Miss Linda and Miss Peggy The 38 th Annual Centerville Presbyterian Church Women s Retreat Redwood Christian Park ~ March 16-18, 2018 Anchored in Hope Hebrews 6:19 (NIV) We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. Hebrews 6:19 Our retreat is coming soon!! Pattie Fisher, our speaker, is excited to share with you about how God is teaching her to FEAR NOT by anchoring her soul in Him. Praise God with Antoinette Rodrigues as she engages your heart with songs that will deeply connect you to our Lord. We hope you will join us as we anchor ourselves in Christ! Anchored in Christ, 2018 Retreat Committee: Sylvia Garrett, Pat Lum, Teresa Schmit, Lisa Dutra, and Sue Mayer Retreat Committee Contact: Sylvia Garrett ; sandjgarrett@comcast.net *Reserve April 28 th for Retreat Reflections 2018* 3

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5 CPC YOUTH! WE LOVE GOD & WE LOVE YOU! SEEK TRUTH EMBODY LOVE LIVE TO INSPIRE IMPACT SCHED. 6th-12th graders 6:30-8:30pm at CPC in the gym MAR 4: How to Read the Bible Wk. 5 Games: Go Get It Headbandz MAR 11: Series: How to Read the Bible finale Games: Scatterball Crowd Charades 2 We had a great time with our middle school students and leaders at Winter Camp! We spent the weekend with 3 other Fremont Churches: Resonate, Bridges, and Tree of Life. We talked about what it means to be rooted in God s love from Ephesians 3. Students returned to Fremont challenged to stay connected to God and remained rooted in His love. It was really cool to be altogether as Fremont Church for Winter camp. MAR 18: NEW SERIES! Games: Around the Room Pull-Up MAR 25: POTLUCK! Games: Chair basketball Child Drawings Mexico Meetings: 3/11 3/18 SUNDAY MORNING YOUTH SCHED. 6th-12th graders 9:30am-10:30am at in C205 Mar 4: No SMY Communion! Mar 11: New Series! Stressed Out Cast Your Cares on Him Mar 18: Stressed Out Trade Your Stress for His Strength Mar 25: Stressed Out Choose joy now Mexico Mission Trip fundraisers coming up: Mar. 4 Tacos Fundraiser Mar. 25 Pancake Breakfast Fundraiser 5

6 Session Notes February 2018 Submitted by Tammy Bergquist, Ruling Elder Our February meeting began with the gathering of staff and Elders for a time in prayer. Prayers were given for the release of Andrew Brunson from prison in Turkey, praise was given for the approval of the Centerville Pioneer Project by the Fremont Planning Commission and prayers for approval by the Fremont City Council. Praise to God was given for filling the Youth and Children s Director positions and Session asked the Lord to bring more youth leaders and teachers for Sunday School. When prayer ended we moved into a devotion by Pastor Greg on Creation from the Westminster Book of Confession and Catechisms. God s work is good! And because God s work is good we can have freedom from pressure, fear or worry. We can trust God in all things. Praise God for His providence and love. Pastor Greg shared the news that the proposal for the housing project would go before the Fremont City Council the following evening. Praise God for all the people who have been a part of the project and have been able to help move it forward. Pastor Greg asked that we all pray for the next step which would involve the hiring of contractors. Seth was tired as he had just returned back from the Junior High Retreat where three of our students attended. A large group of Fremont kids from other local churches went with CPC to the camp near Pinecrest and they had a fun time while focusing on God. He explained that the high schoolers will be raising money over the next couple months for their Mexico Mission trip, so be on the lookout for those opportunities to support our 15 high school students. Seth is still working on securing Sunday School teachers and youth group leaders, so if you are interested, please contact Seth. Pastor Marsha was excited to announce that the Deacons leadership gave a very generous gift of $1,000 to help the youth who are unable to afford to go the camps or to Mexico. She also talked a bit about the successful Deacons retreat with Randy Young. She was also excited about the growing Discipleship group. She shared stories of the power of the Lord in the lives of the congregation. What a blessing to hear about the activity of the Holy Spirit in our midst. Pastor Leedah reported that the Foundry leadership team will be meeting on a regular basis to prayerfully help lead the future of the Foundry. He also gave an update on a recent evangelism event where 12 Foundry members walked Central Ave sharing news of the Gospel and provided information about the Foundry. Foundry continues to average people per week in services. There are also two small groups meeting, along with prayer groups and one-on-one discipling. Session will be having a retreat in February. The church is using the services of an outside consultant to help facilitate the meeting. This is an exciting time when the Elders can come together in prayer and discussion to help discern the Lords will in our community and how that will shape the future of CPC. Pastor Greg along with other Elders that attended the most recent Presbytery meeting provided a report of the event. This was the first meeting of the new Presbytery within the EPC, the Presbytery of the Pacific Southwest. At the meeting, Pastor Greg made a presentation on Missions, as he is the Mission Team Leader for the Pacific Southwest. Tammy Sawyer explained that there are books and Bible studies available online through the website, The next Presbytery meeting will be May 18-19, in Reno Nevada and the following meeting will be in October at CPC! The evening ended with prayer from Pastor Greg. Session welcomes your prayers for wisdom and discernment of God s will as we continue to move forward in the leadership of the church. 6

7 C P C M I S S I O N S W E E K E N D Saturday morning, Feb 10, CPC had the privilege of hosting Rev. Dr. Richard Haney, Executive Director of Frontier Fellowship, along with Tara Chase, Jeff & Cindy Eidsen, Jake & Debbi Tyler, Simon & Becky Zeigler, and Carly Perez. It was an inspiring morning as Dr. Haney spoke about sharing the Gospel with Buddhists and the missionaries provided updates on their ministries. Tara sang a song written by EPC missionary Andrew Brunson who has been in a Turkish prison for over a year. Sunday morning Dr. Haney inspired us to be listening to the Lord s call to each of us. 7

8 Non-Profit Org. U.S. Postage PAID Fremont, CA 4360 Central Avenue Fremont CA PERMIT NO. 7 RETURN SERVICE REQUESTED Please Note: If you no longer wish to receive this Newsletter, please call our office at ext. 14 MARCH 9, 2018, is the deadline for submitting articles for the APRIL 2018 BELL Newsletter. Please submit to Val Cooley, Ministry Assistant vcooley@cpcfremont.org. All articles submitted are subject to approval, editing, and space available. Join us for Worship 9:00 a.m. Contemporary Service Led by Thomas Bañuelos with the Worship Team and Band 10:30 a.m. The Foundry (Millennials) 11:00 a.m. Traditional Service Led by Darryl Guzman with the Centerian Choir and CenterPeace Orchestra Office Hours: M-TH 8:00am 4:00 pm Office fax cpcoffice@cpcfremont.org 8