the HillTopper HPC Vacation Bible School! Setting sail June 1 st 5 th 9:00 Noon Kids will become part of the crew when God sends us on a life changing journey with Him as we follow Jonah s route to repentance. We ll find out if we have a Jonah attitude or a JEHOVAH attitude, whether our journey with the Lord is headed to Tarshish or Ninevah & we ll have fun along the way! Our voyage will include: Building your own sticker sea scene as you memorize Bible verse Completing Seaquest logbooks (full of great puzzles, Bible truths, etc) Keeping your body fed & seaworthy (snacks, fun reactional activities & the Kona snow cone truck!) Fun, hands-on activities & crafts which reinforce our lessons & theme Much, much more! Age Requirements for crew members: Ages 4 years old through rising 5 th grade Register ONLINE today Adults This Fleet Admiral (Mrs. Julie) needs ALL HANDS ON DECK to make this week fun and meaningful for the children! This a great way to serve your Father and have a good time doing it. We have a place for every age, talent, ability and schedule. Please complete a Volunteer Registration at http://www.hixsonpres.org/vbs. Don t miss this blessing get on board today! H I X S O N P R E S B Y T E R I A N C H U R C H V o l u m e 4 4 I s s u e 5 M a y 2 0 1 5
The Church Has Left the Building Work Day Report The day was a great day over at Bethel. We were one of 4 Churches that showed up for the work day and with our large group we made it the largest crew they have had. We pulled weeds, spread hay, put furniture together, cleaned houses and spread our love through Christ. All projects were complete! They were very pleased and thankful for all that we did. Greg, please extend my sincere appreciation to all at Hixson Presbyterian Church for the work accomplished last Saturday by the team. The carpets and fence look new! Mary Ellen Galloway, Director of Family Promises WOW!! You guys are amazing...i don't know that our yard has ever looked this nice! Thank you all so much! It will be such a help to us to start the season with weeds pulled and shrubbery trimmed!! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Susan, Director of Channels of Love Highlights from our morning at Choices -- Dug a ditch that allowed drainage of up to a foot of standing water in the Memorial Garden. -- Planted five Azalea bushes provided by HPC -- Trimmed trees & bushes; weeded; cleaned off all sidewalks; hauled off nine 40-gallon bags of clippings/weeds Inside: deep-cleaned in kitchen and three bathrooms; dusted in all rooms/offices; vacuumed all carpeted floors; scrubbed kitchen and bathroom floors; cleaned baseboards. Bottom Line: we left Choices a whole lot cleaner and tidier--both inside and out--than when we arrived. Dan and Denise Jennings, point person from Hixson Presbyterian to Choices The Missions Correspondence Team was 3 children, 5 and 6 year olds, and 3 adults. The children made 19 cards that will be sent to missionary children. Other cards are going to 18 missionary families. We have enough materials to also send out cards to some of our shut-ins. (That is what you call baskets left over--mark 6:43) As far as a report from the Prayer Team their petitions are before the throne of grace being kept there eternally for God's praise and glory. So those who interceded were priceless!! Lots of people, lots of work accomplished, ONE GREAT GOD!! 2
Pure Religion Sunday School Update HPC 101 Classes Pure Religion: Small Steps to Make Big Changes In May we will be hearing from various ministry leaders about orphans in their distress. On May 3rd the Mullins will be joining us in discussing a biblical response to James 1:27 and looking at people in history who have done this well such as George Whitefield, Charles Spurgeon, and George Muller. On May 10th, Dan Cruver, Director of Together for Adoption, will join us. He will share with us a biblical view of orphans and orphan care, and how our Theology shapes the Christian response to orphans. On May 17th Rick Morton, author of Orphanology director of Lifeline Children's Services will be teaching on transitional ministry to orphans. Are you or someone you know, interested in learning more about HPC or about becoming a member? We have a weekend event especially for you. It is called HPC 101. HPC 101 is designed to introduce you to Hixson Presbyterian Church. You will learn about our central beliefs, our history and vision, our philosophy of ministry and our discipleship group ministry. We will explore how you can best take advantage of, and become involved in, the many opportunities that come with being a part of our community. HPC 101 is generally offered twice a year, once in the spring and once in the fall. While HPC 101 is a prerequisite to joining HPC, there is no obligation to do so. The weekend is designed to give you a broad range of information about our church and ministry so that you can make an informed decision as you consider becoming a part of the HPC family. For more information please visit our website: http://hixsonpres.org/membership-info New Upcoming Summer Sunday School Classes Spiritual Disciplines (June 7th - July 5th) This class will disclose and discuss the various disciplines of the Christian faith such as prayer, scripture reading, and fasting and will familiarize the believer with the array of tools which are designed to graciously lead us in a life of growing in grace. It is the objective of this class to equip the believer with a grace-centered understanding of the importance of practicing the disciplines of grace and how these disciplines aid in transforming us into the disciples of Christ. - Teacher, Josh Huff Biblical Gender (July 12th - August 9th) Is there a theological difference between women and men? Has God uniquely called women and men for gender-specific roles? What does the Bible say about gender? Why do some churches allow women to preach/teach and others do not? This class will answer these questions and more. The objective of this class is to offer a biblical understanding of the unique roles of men and women in the home, church, and society. - Teacher, Scott Bennett * Please note the different start dates. Move Team Update One of the most important congregational meetings in the life of our church will take place on May 3. As a church we will vote on whether to proceed with the sale of our current property and move to a new facility on our new property. It is important that every member who can participate in this vote. If you missed the April 12 congregational meeting during which Robert presented the vision for why the leadership is proposing the move from our current facilities to new ones, you can view the presentation (which also includes a presentation by the architect on the conceptual design of the new facilities) on the church s website. In addition, you can view a video of the entire meeting including the presentation and the subsequent questions and answers. Just go to www.hixsonpres.org and click on The Move. If you don t have access to a computer, you can call the church office and ask for a copy of the presentation. 3
HPC Kids Lots of things are blooming in the Children s Ministry! I planted, Apollos watered but God gave the growth. 1 Corinthians 3:6 May is a busy month for families with children. I ll be praying for you all as you wind down the school year and prepare for summer. This year, VBS will come soon after the school year ends. This decision was made to best accommodate the summer preschool schedule & in hopes that more children would be able to attend (and adults volunteer!) before summer camps, trips and activities are in full swing. Please check http://www.hixsonpres.org/vbs for information. Sunday May 24 Final Children s Church until fall Sunday May 31 : Final day for fall/spring Sunday School Monday June 1 Friday June 5 th : Summer Sequest VBS (9:00a.m. Noon) Sunday June 7 th VBS Sunday / Family Luau Sunday June 14 First kid s Summer Sunday School (Fruit of the Spirit Theme Park curriculum!) ****************************************************************************** The month of April was full of fun, meaningful lessons, experience and activities for the kids at HPC. Here are a few of the amazing things God did through our boys and girls: Easter Sunday breakfast & Living wreath decoration. Broken Night at Camp Quest (Lesson on how sin breaks us & only Jesus can heal that kind of break!) God used kids of all ages to do some serious yardwork & manual labor at Bethel Bible Village & other great organizations for our The Church Has Left the Building community missions day! 4
Beyond Our Walls by Loren Watson Whose Is It, Anyway? We are justifiably upset over the notion that politicians can extract from us money and wealth legally and rightfully ours and give it to those who have no claim on it whatever. If we have earned it legitimately it is ours, isn't it? There is another way to look at it. God says in His Word that everything is His and that it is He who gives us the power to gain wealth. We, then, are actually owners of nothing before God, but are stewards or managers of His wealth. "The earth is the Lord's and everything in it, the world and all who live in it" (Psalm 24:1). Our responsibility is to treat all material things that come to us as actually belonging to God. In the Old Testament, God required a tithe, or one tenth, of all gains be recognized as His in a special way. In the New Testament, this concept is not nullified, and in fact, is built upon by our being instructed to give generously from the heart as He gave Himself for us. One aspect of our financial management of God's affairs comes in our support of those missionaries we have taken into our church family as part of our obedience to the Great Commission of Christ. Giving by the congregation is vital in our ability to help meet their needs. We are not doing as well in this as we have in the past. Consider also that when we die, it is still all the Lord's. Are we including in our wills provisions that reflect our belief that it is all His? It is worthy of our consideration to bequeath some of our assets for the global outreach of the Gospel of Christ. Let's seriously ponder these matters and commit them to the Lord. Surely we want to be good managers of things God has placed in our hands, both in this life and after we have gone. We need prayerfully to ask God to guide us in this. P r i m e t i m e r s N e w s In May, the Primetimers are having their traditional Indoor Picnic with a box lunch from Subway. It will include a ham sandwich, chips and a cookie. We will also have cold drinks. A treat for this last luncheon of the year ~ There will be NO CHARGE! Again, as an end of the year custom, we will have our own Loren Thomas entertain us as he sings and plays the guitar to a variety of music. Hope to see you there! P r a y e r R e q u e s t s f o r t h e P C A G e n e r a l A s s e m b l y i n C h a t t a n o o g a t h i s J u n e Thanks for your continued prayers and support in preparation for GA. Here are some specific requests which were presented at last weekend s TVP meeting: For the committee chairs as they work with final details and the worship speakers as they prepare Dr. Bryan Chapell, Rev. Kevin Smith, and Rev. Rankin Wilborne For the commissioners (TE s and RE s) to show real wisdom and understanding, well prepared and eager to do the denominational business For the PCA it s peace, purity, unity, outreach, and meeting denominational needs For the presence of the Holy Spirit before, during, and after the Assembly For the outcome of GA may God be glorified, honored, and praised, and may the Assembly be a witness to Chattanooga, this area, and the country Also, volunteers are still needed to help with the children s ministry at FPC. Dana Lail would like greeters to be available at 7:15am during drop off/arrival, as well as some additional volunteers arriving in the afternoon to assist with dismissal. Please pray for the Lord to provide individuals who can help in this way, and if you know anyone interested, they may contact dlail@1stpresbyterian.com. Thanks again, and blessings to you and your congregation! 5
B i r t h d a y s & A n n i v e r s a r i e s May Birthdays 3 - Joe Fitzpatrick 4 - Billie Connell 7 - Kendel Pilgrim 8 - Teresa Hoppe & Ethan Stoddard 9 - Viola Hembry 11 - Rachel Hutchings 12 - Lacey Furr & Janie Smith 13 - Penny Freeman, Leslie Gidcumb Daniel Johnson 16 - Casie Runkle & Tobie Thayer 17 - Laurel Pilgrim 18 - Jennie Landreth & Rachel Monsees 19 - Lynne Haas & Bethany Fordice 20 - J.D. Bonner, Scott Sigette &Taylor Thompson May Anniversaries 3 - Jon & Teresa Hoppe 4 - Arch & Kay Brown 5 - George & Sarah Stewart 6 - Steve & Alene Johnson 9 - Chuck & Sheri Conlon Bill & Becca Johnson 14 - Mike & Krista Fugate Doug & Becky Moore Scott & Donna Williams 17 - Scott & Wendy Sigette 22 - Josh & Christa Mullins 24 - Keith & Pat Palm 25 - David & Leslie Gidcumb 31 - Don & Bonnie Davis 21 - Evan Alexander & Carolyn Case 22 - Randall Payne 23 - Angela Marlin 25 - Harris Armstrong 27 - Sharon Gill 28 - William Johnson (Ginny) 29 - Kristin Livermore 30 - Wil Kessel 6
May 2015 Sunday Mon Monday Tue Tuesday Wednesday Thu Thursday Fri Friday Sat Saturday 1 6:00 to 10:00 pm Parent s Night Out 2 3 10:00 Sunday School 5:00-7:00 pm Church BBQ at the Property 4 5 7:00 pm Session Meeting 6 7 8 7:00 pm Ladies Craft Night 9 10 9:30 Sunday School 11 12 7:00 pm Deacon Meeting 13 4:30 pm Youth HHD 14 15 16 17 9:30 Sunday School 18 19 20 21 22 23 24/31 9:30 Sunday School 25 26 27 28 29 30 7