Reminders:
Live & Learn is at
11:30 on Saturday in the Church Library: lunch and bible study.
Liturgist for
October is Arlene Quinn; Elder is Sig Myers.
Music Notes:
Presbyterian Ringers bells rehearsal on
Wednesday the 11th (That’s today!) at 6:30pm in the church
sanctuary. Come ring-a-ling and have some musical fun!
Celebrations: May sunshine greet you at the door to enlighten,
encourage, and bless your day.
Happy
Birthday to: Bess Wilkes, October 15th
Happy
Anniversary to: Rob & Donna Bevington, October 22nd
Faith Circle Meeting:
Faith
Circle will meet on Wednesday, October 11th (that’s today!), at
1:30pm in the Church Library. This is the last meeting of the year for Faith
Circle.
October 15th Service
Update:
October 15th
( this coming Sunday) is Live for Life Sunday with a luncheon following
the service. The co-founder for Live for Life, Karen Young, will be a guest
speaker. As their website states, she and Michelle Standeford started Live for
Life “to support local women who need guidance through troubling times.”
Please
join us for the service as well as for the luncheon afterwards. The luncheon
will be the FPC-family-favorite Kroger fried chicken. Please bring side
dishes and desserts to be served along with the fried chicken. The
following update is from Debbie Crouse:
“For Live
for Life Sunday this weekend, Karen Young will be speaking at our service about
Live for Life. She will be staying for the fellowship meal, to be available for
anyone who may have questions, and to just enjoy fellowship with us. I was told
by Michelle Standeford that the donations we (FPC) make have helped a girl stay
with them for a week. They are very thankful for the donations we have made. It
is really making a difference! Keep them coming!”
BYOB, Friday the 13th:
This acronym stands for: Bring Your Own Burger.
(As Pastor Je mentioned recently, it’s not “beer”! Don’t bring your own beer!
And if you don’t like burgers then bring your own chicken or tuna or pb&j
or whatever!) Meet in the church library this Friday at 11:30. Why? We had so
much fun recently with the large group that came to Gourmet Seekers in
Brownsburg, great stories were swapped and laughs shared, Pastor Je decided –
let’s do this more often! This is a time for encouragement and fellowship- no
agenda, no stipulations. Here’s hoping you can come and spend time with us on
Friday.
Lebanon Downtown Events and
Street Closures:
October 14th: Klooz
Fall Festival; Time: 4-8pm
Neighboring
downtown streets closed from 1-11pm that day (this Saturday).
Furniture Free for You: The church library furniture is receiving an upgrade in the near future –
which means the current furniture must go! If you are interested in the
sofas, chairs, or coffee table in the library, please speak with someone at the
church THIS SUNDAY or call or email the office ASAP. Any furniture you want
needs to be removed before Wednesday the 18th (that’s next
Wednesday!). On Wednesday the 18th, all furniture we are not keeping
which is still in the library will be moved out to a resale shop here in
Lebanon. We are happy to coordinate a time for you to come pick up any items of
interest. (Ideal time would be this Saturday after Live & Learn or this
Sunday after service/lunch.) gretel@lebanonfpc.org or 765-482-5959.
PPM Bundt Cake Fundraiser:
The tastiest fundraiser! Seriously folks, these mini
bundt cakes are delicious. If you’ve been a part of this fundraiser for PPM in
the past, then you know what I’m talking about. If you haven’t, then you are
missing out! If you are not a cake fan, you may know friends or family who are.
The mini bundt cakes are $6 a piece, are made by Zionsville’s Nothing But Bundt,
and come in a wide range of flavors. (Flavors: Chocolate Chocolate Chip, Lemon,
Red Velvet, White Chocolate Raspberry, Carrot, Confetti, Classic Vanilla,
Strawberries and Cream, Snickerdoodle, Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Cookie)
The orders and payment are due Nov. 7th, and will be in before
Thanksgiving. These cakes freeze very well, so you can stock up and share or
enjoy them at a future time. Make checks out to PPM. You can send your order to
Gretel via email and bring/mail-in money separately or fill out the order sheet
on the hallway bulletin board on a Sunday morning and leave the payment on Gretel’s
office desk. Thank you for helping support PPM’s sweet ministry with this sweet
fundraiser!
Flooring Work in October:
The white flooring in the first floor front hallway, fellowship hall, and
back hallway will be replaced this month. October 19th, Buy Rite
will come in and begin tearing up that flooring. The demolition work will
continue through Sunday the 22nd. Currently, there is a service
still planned for that Sunday – just be aware that there will be limited access
to facilities and rooms on the first floor that include or branch off of that
white flooring. The new flooring will go down beginning Monday the 23rd
and continue at least through Friday the 27th, possibly into
Saturday the 28th. Therefore, from Friday the 20th
through Friday the 27th, PPM will be closed for Fall break, the
church office will be closed for in person visits, and Pastor Je will be on
study leave. You can contact the church office during that time by sending an
email to Gretel (who will be working from home.) You may also call and leave a
message on the office phone. Gretel will be checking messages. Be forewarned
that it may be later that day or the next before you receive a return call. Your
patience and flexibility during this time will be rewarded with beautiful floors
we think you will enjoy.
Learn More About the
Ladybug Pest & Wildlife Control: In the Boone County Magazine for October 2023 is an
article about Ladybug Pest & Wildlife Control. They are the company who
came to help us with our bat problem last year and are also our new pest control
company. Kind and knowledgeable, I think you’ll enjoy learning about what they
do and how they do it, particularly in regard to treating bat issues in the
surrounding area. A copy of this issue is on the table in the hallway.
PPM Update: October has been a busy month for us at PPM. The
children are learning about community helpers, the life cycle of pumpkins,
decorating for fall and so much more. PPM classes have invited
special community helpers to read this month. We had a therapist, a nurse,
a K-9 officer and his partner Chase. We have had a Sheriff (Miss Nakia's
husband) and a Lebanon Police Officer. Next week the firemen are coming to
visit. This is always a highlight for the children.
We have had a few staffing changes and are currently looking for a
teacher for one of our 2-year-old classes. We are blessed to have Kylie Little
(a ppm parent) join our staff. She will be transitioning to one of the
classes after fall break. Kylie will be working alongside Lori Glauber and me
with the 2-year-olds. Please pray for Kylie, the children and families of these
classes during this transition time.
I would like to ask that you pray for Lori Glauber and her group of
children. Lori stepped up immediately when the previous teacher stepped
down. She has done a wonderful job with this group of 3-year-olds and
families. PPM continues to be blessed by her leadership and caring heart.
We are having our Bundt Cake fundraiser, please see Gretel or me if you
would like to order a few. This year the money raised will go towards new
Dramatic Play and Science items for the classrooms.
We will begin practicing for our Christmas Program after break. We invite
you to attend on Friday, December 1st at 10:00am
Thank you for your continued prayers and support.
October Blessings to you, Lori Rowe
Teen Challenge Banquet: The 3rd annual banquet for Teen Challenge is this Saturday,
Oct. 14th. This supports The Refuge Girls Academy, Teen Challenge and
Grace House Women’s Adult and Teen Challenge in Indianapolis. This event is $20
per person or $150 a table – which seats 8 people. If anyone is interested,
please call the office asap. If it is possible to get a table, Gretel will try
to arrange it. You are also welcome to contact them on your own and set it up
that way. You can contact Missy at 765-482-2336, ext. 102 or email Missy Bowman
at MissyBowman@Indianatc.org There
is also a flyer on the church hallway bulletin board with a QR code. If you
scan that QR code, you can buy tickets, sponsor a table, or be a corporate
sponsor. (Also on the bulletin board is a flyer for each of the ministries: The
Refuge Girls Academy as well as Grace House.) You are welcome to donate to Teen
Challenge in lieu of attending the banquet, if attendance is not an option for
you at this time. Mailing address would be: The Refuge Girls Academy/ Teen
Challenge/ P.O. Box 572/ Lebanon, IN 46052. Website for this ministry is: refugegirlsacademy.com This event will be held at the Lebanon High School,
in the Community Room, at 6pm. The purpose of this event is to “celebrate the
lives of those changed due to the generosity of passionate people who are
making a difference in the lives of ladies” at these local facilities. “Beyond
all these things put love, which is the perfect bond of unity.” Colossians 3:14
General Election Early Voting Dates: There are dates and locations now available for early voting for the upcoming
election. Absentee Voting at the Boone County Courthouse will begin Oct.11th,
8am-4pm. This will be available Tuesdays and Thursdays from 8-4 from Oct.11 to
Nov.2. More dates, times and locations are posted on the bulletin board across
from the church office .
Weekly Devotional: Fog Bank
We sailed in
a pocket of time. Moments before we stood on a bustling dock: people coming and
going, cars, baggage, bikes, strollers, packages, ticket lines, tour groups. Now
the world had fallen away, blanketed in a fog so thick we could see only our
ferry and a few feet on either side. We knew off to the left was Mackinac
Bridge, ahead of us lay Mackinac Island, and coming up on our right before long
should be Round Island Lighthouse. But so mysterious was the bank of fog we
moved in that, for all we knew, we had slipped back in time.
Have you ever found yourself in such
a fog? Perhaps it was not a physical fog as such but a fog nonetheless: you
could not see where you’d been or where you were going. Maybe you were familiar
with the path you traveled and thought you knew what to expect. But suddenly, with
not so much as a whisper of warning, you
turned a corner and your world began to disappear. The closer you traveled to
your proposed destination, the more your familiar surroundings began to recede.
If you stretched out your arms and spun slowly in a circle, you could touch the
edges of your world. Maybe it was alarming, unsettling, frightening. Or maybe you
welcomed the quiet hush, the stillness. Maybe you needed your world shrunk down
to size. Maybe the settling of that cloud around you settled your spirits, and
you could finally, the first time in a very long time, take a deep breath. Whether
the fog is welcome or not, seen as friend or foe, it can be disorienting. How
do we move through these periods in our lives? They can be stifling, isolating,
discouraging. The effects of fog can linger long after the bank has lifted.
There is a hymn in the Glory to
God Hymnal with the subtitle “The Servant Song”. I discovered this hymn for
the first time this week. I’m not ashamed to tell you it moved me to tears. As
I read, and then played, through it, it was as if Someone was taking my hand in
His and guiding me forward, while at the same time showing me where I’ve been. I
share it with you here (in a separate space on this page) because I believe the
message in this song reveals one of the most important ways we move through the
fog: together. This coming Sunday is a Fellowship Luncheon; it’s not a business
luncheon or a sales-pitch luncheon but a fellowship luncheon. It’s a
chance to remind ourselves, simply by being together, that we do not travel
alone. Also this Sunday will be the opportunity during the service to sing this
very same hymn. While you do so, perhaps look around you. Notice who is behind
you, beside you, in front of you. These are your fellow travelers through the fog.
And as for me: I am here - maybe on the
other side of your computer screen, phone, or digital tablet. Maybe you meet me
in an envelope with a stack of papers and a sticky note or two. Maybe once in a
while we sit across the table from one another or you stop by my desk in the
office. But I am here. And the plea in this song is my plea to you: to serve
you. To walk with you, weep with you, laugh with you. To hold the light of
Christ for you when the world goes dark. To remind you that we are each of us
pilgrims on a journey, “we’re together on the road.” Indeed, as this hymn
sings, “I will hold my hand out to you, speak the peace you long to hear.” Thank
you, my friends, for the honor to serve you and to serve with you, for the
glory of God and the love of our Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.
Will You Let Me Be Your Servant
The Servant
Song
Will you let me be your servant, let me be as Christ to
you? Pray that I may have the grace to let you be my servant too.
We are pilgrims on a journey; we’re together on the road.
We are here to help each other walk the mile and bear the load.
I will hold the Christ-light for you in the night-time of
your fear. I will hold my hand out to you, speak the peace you long to hear.
I will weep when you
are weeping; when you laugh I’ll laugh with
you. I will share your joy and sorrow till we’ve seen this journey through.
When we sing to God in heaven, we shall find such harmony,
born of all we’ve known together of Christ’s love and agony.”
Text and music by Richard Gillard, 1977.
Prayer Room:
Prayer is
important to the body of First Presbyterian Church. 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.
Dear
Heavenly Father, This to You our plea we bring, on our lips and from within our
hearts we sing: may we be servants to the King. Today. Tomorrow. Forever. Glory
to the King. Amen.
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