WORSHIP SERVICES. Volume 8, Issue 4 February 24, 2016 Editor: Janice D. Gray. February 28, 2016 Third Sunday in Lent

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1 Volume 8, Issue 4 February 24, 2016 Editor: Janice D. Gray FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH 1400 South Elm Street Greenville, NC Phone: (252) Fax: (252) Office Hours: M-Th 8-5 Fri WORSHIP SERVICES February 28, 2016 Third Sunday in Lent 8:30 a.m. - Worship **11:00 a.m. - Worship William K. Neely preaching Observations of a Following Disciple Scripture: Isaiah 55:1-9 Luke 13:1-9 **Service broadcast live on WNCT 1070 AM FM radio starting at 11:00 am (also in New Bern and Jacksonville ) and streamed live at and PALM SUNDAY EGG HUNT The annual Easter Egg Hunt will once again be sponsored by the Youth and is open to all children of the congregation and friends of the church. We will have the hunt on Palm Sunday (March 20) immediately following the 11:00 service. The eggs will be divided up into different areas for the different age groups. If you would like to donate candy, please put it in the basket near the elevator. The Easter Bunny will make an appearance so be sure to bring your camera! LENT GATHERINGS Our Lenten Gatherings, have begun and will continue each Wednesday through Lent, beginning with Meditation and Music at 12:00 noon and lunch following ($5 donation). Here is the schedule for the Lenten Gatherings. February 24: Steve Prevatte, Devotion March 2: Kathleen Williams, Devotion March 9: Bill Neely, Devotion March 16: Steve Prevatte, Devotion Pick up a Lenten Devotional book in the Welcome Center. THANK YOU A huge thank you to all members of the congregation for your support of the Youth Spaghetti Luncheon! With the to go plate sales, diners, and tips, we were able to raise $1,840 to go towards the youth mission trips and Montreat. As the weather begins to get warmer (hopefully!), please remember to contact the Youth for any assistance with Spring Cleaning. All donations go toward the Youth Mission Trip. The next edition of our printed publication, FOCUS, will be published on Wednesday, March 2, Please submit all articles to janice@fpcgreenville.org by 9:00 a.m. Monday, February 29, 2016.

2 OUR MEMBERSHIP CARES Cypress Glen: Sarah Allen, C106, Ben Lattin, C120, Beth Clark, A105, Martha Coffman, C213, Margie Wright, 305 Francis Asbury Ln. Golden Living: Gladys Howell, Linwood Winbourne Spring Arbor: Thelma Flye, Rm. 112 At Home: Jerry Cox, Mary Smith, Odell Welborn Duke: Betty Bailey, Ashtyn Clark Vidant: Jim Finch, Joe Sullivan FPC Events. Wednesday, 2/24 9:00 am Prayers & Squares (R207) Lenten Devotion/Lunch 6:00 pm Prayer Shawl Ministry (Par) 7:00 pm Chancel Choir (R216) 8:00 pm AA (R202) Thursday, 2/25 10:00 am Bible Study (Parlor) 6:00 pm PCM (FH) 8:00 pm AA (BFH) Friday, 2/26 Saturday, 2/27 11:00 am Overeaters Anon (R211) 6:00 pm FPC Serves Shelter Meal Sunday, 2/28 8:30 am Worship 9:45 am Sunday School 11:00 am Worship 4:45 pm Children s Choirs 5:00 pm Youth Group Monday, 2/29 11:00 am Staff Meeting (HHR) 6:00 pm ECU Choir Rehearsal (Sanc) 6:30 pm Boy/Cub Scouts (BFH, Rms) Tuesday, 3/1 Age Venturers Trip 7:00 am MOC Breakfast (Seahorse) 7:30 pm ECU Choirs Concert (FH/San) Wednesday, 3/2 9:00 am Prayers & Squares (R207) Lenten Devotion/Lunch 1:00 pm Address Angels (R202) 6:00 pm Prayer Shawl Ministry (Par) 7:00 pm Chancel Choir (R216) 8:00 pm AA (R202) Thursday, 3/3 10:00 am Bible Study (Parlor) 6:00 pm PCM (FH) 8:00 pm AA (BFH) Friday, 3/4 Senior High Retreat Saturday, 3/5 Presbytery Meeting (Hudson Memorial PC, Raleigh) 8:00 am Scouts Pinewood Derby (FH) 11:00 am Overeaters Anon (R211) PCM Mission Trip (DR) FPC extends Christian sympathy to Rosemary & Mark Hayes and family in the death of her father, Charles Lalon Whitten, who died February 19, 2016, in Burlington. MOC BREAKFAST The Men of the Church will meet for devotion and breakfast on Tuesday, March 1, 7:00 a.m. at the Seahorse. Cost is $9.

3 CONFIRMATION CLASS RETREAT Maundy Thursday: March 24, 7:00 p.m. at Immanuel Baptist Church, Bill Neely preaching Good Friday: March 25, 12:00 noon, Stations of the Cross at St. Peters; 7:00 p.m. Tenebrae Service at FPC, Bill Neely preaching Easter Sunday: March 27 6:30 a.m. Outdoor Sunrise Service, (casual and warm dress) followed by breakfast at Immanuel Baptist 8:30, 11:00 a.m. Worship services in Sanctuary 9:45 a.m. Children meet in the Godly Play room for a short lesson & Butterfly Release Don t forget to bring blossoms from your yard for our flowering cross on Easter Sunday! PRESBYTERIAN WOMEN Circle Meetings: Cypress Glen Circle will meet March 8, 10:00 a.m. at Cypress Glen; Circle 6 will meet March 8, 7:00 p.m. at the church; Circle 1 will meet March 14, 10:30 a.m. at the church; Circle 3 will meet March 14, 2:00 p.m. at the home of Doris Robinson, 3453 Providence Place, Winterville. Special Shout Out to the Presbyterian Women! My wife and I were thrilled to be a part of the PW Neighbor to Neighbor Luncheon. The hard work that was put into this event was evident and we truly enjoyed an amazing meal. Between all of the delicious baked goods, the gorgeous decorations, and the incredible lunch, we were truly in awe of the hard work that went into the event - all for such a worthy cause. Thank you for including us! Brian and Koryn Dilday March 19th: we will meet at the church at 8:15 to go do yard work and help clean up the neighborhoods surrounding the 3rd Street Community Center. We will finish there around 12:30, return to church for lunch and the retreat. All should be finished by 2:30. YOUTH MISSION TRIP The Youth Summer Mission trip will be a construction trip to the mountains of NC, June 18th-26th. If you are interested in joining us to help a construction team of youth, please let me know. We would love to have you. We will spend a week completing a variety of construction jobs along with painting and yard work. The trip will end with a little bit of fun at Carowinds. FIRST FRIDAY CLUB First Friday s next meeting will be March 11, when we will play games at the church. Cost will be $5 to cover the cost of food. High School Seniors/College Students Deadline is fast approaching!! Applications are available in the church office for scholarships provided by the Presbyterian Women. You will find an application form and guidelines for each of the scholarships awarded. The deadline for applying is March 1. The same form is used for all scholarships the PW Scholarship, the Hubert and Mary D. Bryant Scholarship, the Anna Belle Boyd Sugg and Fordyce Harding Sugg Scholarship, and the Pandora s Box Scholarship. There is also an application available for a Women of New Hope Presbytery Scholarship. That application must be mailed and received by the Presbytery by March 1. Contact Mary Beth Pugh, / dcmbpugh@suddenlink.net if you have any questions.

4 YOUTH NEWS: Wow!!!! What can I say?! As always, the Youth came together to put on an awesome Spaghetti Luncheon. We were able to raise $1,840 with the help of my awesome youth and their families. Thank you all for the donations and the time served on Sunday. I appreciate each and every one of you and I know that all of this could not happen without the time and talents of the families. I also want to give a special shoutout to Mr. Tom Harvey for his delicious sauce that he prepared from scratch to provide our congregation with an amazing lunch. Our thoughts and prayers continue for Ashtyn Clark. She will be undergoing surgery on Wednesday at Duke. Her address in Greenville is 2036 Copper Beech Way #203; home address is 1013 Bion Butler Road, Aberdeen, NC, I will put these addresses into the Youth . Ashtyn will check in on Tuesday night for surgery on Wednesday. If all goes as planned, they hope to have her home by Friday. Please continue to attend Sunday School. We will begin the Spring curriculum this Sunday. Sign ups--i know it is crazy to be thinking about spring and summer but we have several trips that you can begin to sign up for: 1. Mission Trip to the Mountains --(ages 13 and up) Carolina Cross Connection, June 18th- 25th: this will be a construction trip, so any adults that would like to put their construction skills to work, please join us. To close out the trip, we will be going to Carowinds. Deadline is this Sunday!!! 2. Montreat Youth Conference--(rising 9th-12th graders), July 23rd-30th If you are interested in any of the above trips, please begin letting me know and more details will go out as we get closer. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to contact me. I'm also looking for adult advisors that would be willing to attend with me. The church has paid for 17 spots and I need to be sure that we don't need more spots. The total cost is $260. February 28th--a $50 deposit is due for Montreat and the Mission Trip. Upcoming Events: February 28th--Regular Youth 5-7pm. The Sneeds and Chappells will be providing dinner. Thank you! Debbie Metcalf will be a guest speaker to discuss her recent trip to Northern Ireland and the Ulster Project. We are going to change things up a little bit to celebrate a job well done by having games from 5-5:30, dinner at 5:30, and our speakers at 6. March 6th--Regular Youth 5-7pm. The Silvernails will be providing dinner. March 13th--Regular Youth 5-7pm. The Pabsts and Melhops will be providing dinner. March 20th--Palm Sunday and Easter Egg Hunt/Cake Auction March 27th--Easter Sunday--no Youth Again, thank you to everyone for such a successful afternoon. When the youth come together, it is obvious to the congregation our level of commitment to the church and community. No matter what the activity, our youth (and families) step up to the plate and get the job done. It is with attitudes like these that we will continue to grow in our faith together. Brian Dilday, Youth Director , fpcyouthgreenville@gmail.com

5 WALK FOR AUTISM Come out and support the 8th annual Eastern Run/Walk for Autism on Saturday, April 30, at Greenville Town Common in Greenville. The cost of registration is $25 for the 5K or $15 for the walk. Proceeds will fund local programs of the Autism Society of North Carolina, the leading statewide resource organization serving the more than 65,000 people in NC across the spectrum throughout their lifespans. The Eastern Run/Walk for Autism will have a 5K competitive race, an awareness walk and kids dash. This is a family-friendly event with music, refreshments, and vendor space where local support resources are showcased. As many as 1 in 58 children may be diagnosed with autism in North Carolina. Everyone knows someone affected by autism maybe your family member, friend, neighbor, or co-worker. Our son Keegan was diagnosed with autism near the age of two. He is now 7 years old and in the first grade. Keegan has made great progress due to early intervention services and support from Autism Society. The personal assistance Keegan receives makes a huge impact on his life and our family. We invite you to join our team this year, "Keegan's Crew", to raise autism awareness and funds for local programs of the Autism Society. You can also help by making a contribution on our team page link below. We appreciate your support for this important fund raising event in our community. The Davenport Family Dear Brothers and Sisters, I was talking to Kathleen Williams, our church educator, recently, and she shared with me that she has ordered the caterpillars for the Easter Sunday butterfly release. This will be our third year of watching the butterflies on Easter Sunday, but few of us stop and consider the transition that has to occur for a worm to metamorphose into a beautiful butterfly. I m sure that Kathleen would welcome you into her office over the next few weeks to watch as the larvae consume their nourishment and then spin their chrysalis, eventually emerging transformed into their new selves. Lent is a time for transformation, for nourishing our spiritual selves on God s word, for taking account of who we are and who we would long to be. If, like the small caterpillars, we do the hard work of encasing ourselves in God s spirit, then when Easter comes, we will be transformed into God s new people through the power of Jesus Christ. Christ, after all, is our mentor, who shows us what it means to be transformed by both the renewing of our minds and hearts so that we, as Paul says, are no more satisfied to be conformed to the world but long for the transformation that only Christ can bring. May God help us through this Lenten journey as we allow the spirit to work in marvelous ways within and through us. Bill Neely