E-News from Memorial Drive Presbyterian Church

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Weekly E-News June 13, 2013

PASTOR'S CORNER

80% of success is showing up. - Woody Allen

Even though this quote is from a comedian, it is no joke!

Yesterday I went to Walmart for their Associates Day. They presented a $2,000 check to Memorial Drive Presbyterian Church in support of our efforts to address hunger through the Holiday Boxes and Bountiful Bags. We received two grants - $500 for Bountiful Bags and $1,500 for Holiday Boxes. But this didn't just happen out of thin air!

When Commissioner Sutton holds community forums, I show up.

When she connected us with a job fair for Walmart, I showed up.

And when her office informed me to submit grant requests, I showed up!

One of our biggest successes is a great worship turnout with 80% of our members showing up on any given Sunday! We need to get our participation in the missions and ministries of the church, in service days and special events, to match the commitment to worship. Your commitment to the continued mission and ministry of Memorial Drive, your desire for a church that is vital and growing, depends on you showing up!

If you are in that 20% of the congregation that consistently shows up then you need to invite someone to join you.

If you are in that 80%, of the congregation that shows up sporadically, I am asking you to make a deeper commitment to your church, to make our ministry a priority beyond Sunday worship. Showing up is an act of faith. Showing up says, "I believe in that God is active in the life of the church and I want to be a part of what God is doing!"

In the power of the Holy Spirit,

George

140 adults, 80 children, seven churches, one great mission.

Halleluiah for Clarkston!

Sara Hayden

You dug, you painted, you sweated (or "glowed" ;), you wrestled tree stumps from asphalt, you taught kids about gardens and God's love, you shared, you cooked, you prepared, you led, you sang, you prayed, you climbed ladders and crawled on the floor, you built cribs and cleaned toys, you endured 80% humidity while painting bathrooms with no windows, you built a chancel, you organized, you measured and cut, you unveiled storage closets and filled a dumpster with old stuff, you "wo-maned" the first aid kit, you watered plants, you trimmed bushes and pulled weeds, you donated, you collaborated, you showed forth God's kingdom.

There is NO better, more powerful feeling than the one you ushered into my heart (and perhaps into yours) as 140 of us adults and 80 kids piled into Memorial Drive Presbyterian Church at 7:30 am to love God and our neighbor, especially those in Clarkston. Thanks to our team leaders, our seven congregations -- Northwest, Trinity-Atlanta, Shallowford, Morningside, North Decatur, and, of course, Shalom and Memorial Drive, and the leaders and teams of these churches -- for making such a powerful day possible.

Thanks to our newest church, Shalom, and Pastor Gad Mpoyo, for inspiring in us the will to seek the Shalom of the Community. Truly, it is in her Shalom, that we have found ours.

READINGS

lectionary

Revised Common Lectionary Readings for Sunday, June 16, 2013, the Eleventh Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C)

MISSION OPPORTUNITIES

INTERNATIONAL RESCUE COMMITTEE

This summer, 12 noon - 4:00 pm, Monday - Friday, we are partnering with International Rescue Committee - a refugee resettlement organization - as a part of their Youth Futures Summer Program.

BOUNTIFUL BAGS

Partnership with MDPC, Shallowford Church and Indian Creek Elementary

Family Food Packing will be held on Tuesdays and Thursdays, at 4:00 pm in the Jim Guess Building. Our goal is to serve 40 families a week this summer. Please call Dil at the church office 404-292-8212 to volunteer.

Please see the link to the calendar:

MDPC Calendar

June 19 - Men's Breakfast at 8:30 am - Original Pancake House

June 23 - Installation and Ordination of New Elders

June 23 - Session and Committee Meetings

PW Birthday Offering

The PW Birthday Offering will be collected on Sunday, June 23. This is an annual offering to celebrate the lives of Presbyterian Women.

The 2013 Recipient, to receive a $500,000 grant is Westminster Neighborhood Ministries Child, Family and Adult Education Connection, in Indianapolis. The offering will help provide educational services to children and adults, and provide financial counseling to families.