Midweek Newsletter: Wednesday, August 23, 2023.

 

From:

The News Desk

 

To: First Presbyterian Church
August 23rd, 2023

Your Weekly Edition of Narthex News is here!

Welcome to your midweek newsletter. Last week’s cool weather, sadly, is a thing of the past! In its place are quite the warmer temps! Though students are back in school, it feels very much like summer weather, doesn’t it? It’s a good day for a tall glass of ice-cold lemonade! This week you will find the following in the weekly edition of the Narthex News:

·         REMINDERS

·         SESSION MEMBER TAKES ON NEW ROLES

·         CELEBRATIONS

·         GOURMET SEEKERS

·         LUNCH & MISSION UPDATE THIS SUNDAY

·         NURSERY DURING WORSHIP SERVICE IS AVAILABLE

·         FALL GREAT BANQUET

·         LOVE INC.’S FUNDRAISING BANQUET

·         MEMORY CARE RESOURCES

·         WEEKLY DEVOTIONAL & PRAYER ROOM

 

 Reminders:

  Liturgists! Liturgist for August is Echo Nunley. Elder of the month for August is Mary Frances Meyer.         Lunch after the service this week! Pizza provided, please bring appetizers and desserts to share! 

  Live & Learn! Come with a Bible and an interest to learn. Meet at 11:30 Saturday morning in the church     library. Lunch is part and parcel with this deal – a fun time together – consider coming and joining in the   fellowship. Great time to spend with your church family and wonderful time in God’s Word. Enrich your   spiritual life with Bible study and enrich your relational life with time with friends. Come Saturdays!

 This week Neal Crouse will be leading a teaching on the Gospels. Come for discussion, learning, and fun.   Always more gems to discover in the study of God’s wonderful Word!


Session Member Takes on New Roles: Sigmon Myers, the Chair of Finance on Session, is now also the Chair of the Nominating Committee and the President of the Corporation. The “President of the Corporation” is a legal/business role within the church, fulfilling certain functions within the Session meeting itself, as well as those of a legal nature as requested at the federal and state levels. Thank you, Sig!


Celebrations: Happy Birthday, Debbie Crouse, 8/26; Jenni Woods, 8/31! Happy Anniversary, Todd & Mary Frances Meyer and Dick & Janet Self, 8/30!

 

Gourmet Seekers August 25! The group is headed to the Heidelberg Café and Bakery, located on Pendleton Pike in Indianapolis. Please join us!

A group will meet at the church at 11:30 for the sake of carpooling to the Heidelburg restaurant. Some may choose to meet at the restaurant: Heidelburg Haus Café & Bakery; the address is:

7625 Pendleton Pike, Indianapolis 46226. Estimated time to meet at the restaurant will be 12:30.

 

Lunch and Mission Update this Sunday: This Sunday, August 27th, we have the pleasure of hosting Revd.’s Myung & Jieun Kim, liaisons for the PCUSA Mission in East Asia. Rev. Jieun Kim Han will preach the sermon. And both Rev. Myung and Rev. Jieun Kim Han will share a mission report after the service. This update will be held in the Fellowship Hall, over a meal of pizza, appetizers and desserts. You are invited to bring appetizers and desserts to share for this event.

 

The Nursery During the Sunday Worship Service is Available: Do


you bring a young child with you on Sundays? Do you know of a family who would come to worship on Sundays if they knew there was a nursery for their child/children? The nursery at FPC is now available. Please keep this in mind as you interact with friends and neighbors, and as you and your family prepare for worship on Sundays. Would you like to help in the nursery? Your assistance would be a gift. Please contact the Gretel in the office with news of your interest and willingness to help. Thank you.

 

Fall Great Banquet: The Zionsville Fall Great Banquets are just around the corner!  The Women's Banquet is September 21 - 24, and the Men's Banquet is September 28 - October 1.  The Banquets are held at Zionsville Presbyterian Church.  Come enjoy food, fellowship, and the love and grace of Jesus Christ for 72 hours.  Complete the Guest Application at zionsvillegb.org.  There is room at His table, and you are invited!

Love INC.’s Fundraising Banquet: This banquet will be held at Zionsville Fellowship Church. This banquet is the annual fundraiser for Love INC. The date for this event is September 7th. Plans are in the works to make it a fun event for all: a coffee bar, silent auction, and dinner, among other activities. Doors open at 5:30 pm, dinner begins at 6pm. Please register at: wwww.loveincbc.org/banquet or print a form off the website, fill out and mail in. Again, the Love INC banquet is at Zionsville Fellowship Church, 9090 W. Oak St, Zionsville. Bonus feature: Provide an item for the Silent Auction and receive a discount on a table reservation!

Memory Care Resources: We are sharing some resources here with you which have come to our attention in the arena of memory care for senior adults. There is a website (Assisted Living, Senior Living, Home Care and Caregiver Support (caring.com) )which may be a helpful resource for you. This website is meant to be a resource to help you navigate the options available for memory care here in Indiana. The two following links are provided as an example of what the website (https://caring.com) has to offer. More information will be shared in the September monthly newsletter.

·         https://www.caring.com/senior-living/memory-care-facilities/indiana

·         https://www.caring.com/senior-living/memory-care-facilities/

Weekly Devotional: A Spirit of Adventure

In December of 1903 two brothers were in the throws of a project that would have an enormous impact on a global scale. Though they may have suspected the importance of what they were working on, they remained focused, diligent, and humble in their work. They understood that complications and setbacks were, though frustrating, part of the process.  They were also well acquainted with the reality that success inevitably resulted from failure. Their ambitious goal required trial and error, mistakes, experiments that were, many of them, doomed to fail. But, like Edison with the invention of the light bulb, these brothers also understood that they would learn from each failure. Difficulty and trial were an invaluable part of their education.  What was their goal? To fly. These two brothers were Wilbur and Orville Wright.

     What strikes me about their experience in December of 1903 is their perspective of hope and positive, forward thinking.  By this point they had been at it for over four years. Most of 1903 had been spent building a larger glider and the engine to go with it. November and December they were in Kitty Hawk, along the Outer Banks of North Carolina. Strong weather, parts that broke and needed to be reordered or rebuilt, not to mention the logistics of their rather rough living quarters, all of this was part of the process. On December 14th, they sent “the Flyer” airborne but it took a nosedive about a hundred feet from its launching point. Their machine needed mending and that meant delays and setbacks, but they were elated. Why? They’d built a track from which they could launch their machine and it had worked. When negotiating “take-off”, Wilbur miscalculated. His lack of experience with the new operating system was the only reason for trouble, and so the brothers considered the experience a success. The “crash” was a mere bump in the road for the brothers. They made adjustments, repaired, rebuilt, and but a few days later, they would take to the skies again. With five witnesses, the Wright brothers would achieve 12 seconds of manned flight, a distance of 120 feet. They also managed to capture what would become one of the most historic photographs of the century.

These gentlemen possessed an inherent sense of adventure. With that came an incredible capacity for hope. Their thinking was forward and positive. Their goal was to go up and, likewise, their perspective was “up” as well.

As I consider not just what the Wright brothers achieved but how they achieved it, I ask myself: do I have an upwards perspective? Am I willing to go forward as God would lead me, setbacks, challenges, struggles notwithstanding? Can I “crash” and still consider that “flight” a success?  How about you?

“Be strong and of good courage . . . Only be strong and very courageous . . . Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” (Joshua 1:6a,7a,9a)

Prayer Room:

Here at FPC, prayer is important to us. Are you interested in joining the prayer chain? Would you like to learn more about the role of prayer in our lives? Please contact Phyllis Duff, Prayer Coordinator, at (765)482-1485/ raduff2@att.net. 

The following prayer is based on the hymn “I’ll Fly Away” by Albert E Brumley, 1929.

Dear Heavenly Father,

We come to you today in a spirit of rejoicing. Though our trials on this earth may be many, and often we may feel encumbered by life’s burdens, still Your promise of “more” remains: more life, more light, more hope, and a greater hallelujah than we can possibly imagine awaits us one happy day. Glory be!


“Some glad morning, when this life is o’er, I’ll fly away. To a home on God’s celestial shore, I’ll fly away.

I’ll fly away, Oh Glory, I’ll fly away. When I die, Hallelujah, by and by, I’ll fly away.

 

When the shadows of this life have gone, I’ll fly away. Like a bird from prison bars has flown, I’ll fly away.

I’ll fly away, Oh Glory, I’ll fly away. When I die, Hallelujah, by and by, I’ll fly away.

 

Just a few more weary days and then, I’ll fly away; to a land where joy shall never end, I’ll fly away.

I’ll fly away, Oh Glory, I’ll fly away. When I die, Hallelujah, by and by, I’ll fly away.” 

Amen and Hallelujah!

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