on First Presbyterian Church

March 7, 2013

King Choir

Don't miss our own Sanctuary Choir in concert with the Symphonic Choir and Collegium Musicum of King University this Sunday, March 10, at 3:00 p.m., in our sanctuary! Under the direction of Dr. Pat Flannagan of King University and Steve and Vicki Fey, the combined chorus will present a wonderful program of sacred choral music in many different styles, all written by local composers. This region is gifted with many fine composers, including our own Ann Holler, and seven of the eight composers plan to attend. You will have a chance to greet them at a reception in the chapel after the concert. Suggested ticket donations are $10 for adults and $5 for students (ages 6 through college). Child care will be provided in our nursery for children three and younger.

Our Arts Series strives to share with the community events that enrich and inspire the life of the people of Bristol, to share our unique and marvelous facilities, and to encourage the artistically gifted of our region and beyond. For more information contact the church at (423) 764-7176.

Set your clocks ahead one hour before you retire Saturday night so that you can spring out of bed Sunday morning in time for worship. Daylight Saving Time steals in at 2:00 a.m. on Sunday, March 10. See you in church!

The season of Lent invites us to recall Jesus' singular obedience to God's will in his calling to be the Christ. Each step of the way, Jesus overcomes the temptation to misuse his gifts, to redefine his mission, to ignore God's will, and to avoid his costly sacrifice.

In our lives of faith, we face the same kinds of temptation. In thinking together this season about Jesus' faithfulness, we may discover power and insight for our own faithful journeys on the path toward God's will for us. The last two weeks we have thought about two temptations that might lead us astray: materialism and power. In successfully overcoming the devil's test, Jesus shows us the faithful and obedient human response that God seeks.

This week we consider the third of Jesus' temptations from the devil: the seduction of security. Read Psalm 91 and Luke 4:9-13, then come to worship ready to think about how security--a good thing--could divert us from God's will and the path that Jesus walks.

This week our special word will be faithfulness. We will learn about Daniel's captivity in Babylon and his efforts to remain faithful, even in what he ate. Children will learn to keep their word and why it is important to do so. They will learn, too, that Jesus cares about their faithfulness, especially in their commitment to him. With the aid of a Dr. Seuss classic, Horton Hatches the Egg, children will learn that although it can be hard to be faithful, Jesus is there to help us.

The way we use the word miracle can be pretty broad. And when our students talk about miracles, it can range from "Getting through that exam was a miracle" to "I need a miracle for my mom to be cured of her cancer." But miracles are about more than just the supernatural occurrence, whether that's making the grade or witnessing an unexplainable healing. A miracle reveals God's goodness and reminds us of who we can be. And the greatest miracle, Jesus' resurrection, is an invitation to put the past behind us and become a new creation, every day.

Join us each Sunday at 6:00 p.m. in the Student Ministries wing to take part in this Easter-facing series.

Week 1 (March 10): Redefine

One of the most memorable stories in the Bible is the feeding of the 5,000. It was the moment when Jesus took something as small as a few loaves of bread and some fish and miraculously fed thousands of hungry people. And when we look at this miracle, we tend to see what happened as the end of the story, as the only thing that really mattered. But for Jesus, this miracle, and every miracle that he ever did, was about more than just the display of power. It was a sign pointing towards something bigger. Because every miracle, whether big or small, is a clue leading us towards God and His work in our lives. Anything that draws our attention back to God is a miracle.

It is time once again to consider adding to the beauty of our Easter services with a lily in honor or memory of a loved one. Easter lilies can be placed in either the sanctuary or the fellowship hall. Order forms can be found in your Sunday bulletin and in the church office.

Lilies are $15 each. Please return your order form to the church office with your payment by Monday, March 25. We appreciate everything you do to add to the beauty of our life together!

The men of the church will have their regular breakfast get-together at 8:00 a.m., this Saturday, March 9, in the Fellowship Hall. All FPC men and their friends are welcome. For more information, contact Dave Welch at (423) 764-7176 or dwelch@fpcbristol.org. 

The monthly meeting of Presbyterian Women will be Tuesday, March 12. Circle will begin at 11:00, Bible study at 11:30, and lunch afterward in the parlor. Please make lunch reservations with the church office (423-764-7176), and remember to bring vanilla wafers for Fairmount children. We look forward to seeing you!

Don't miss the conclusion of Chuck Thompson's refreshing series of "lessons from the therapy room," Fruit from the Lemon Tree, Wednesday, March 13, at 6:15 p.m., in the Fellowship Hall. Please join us at 5:30 for our Fellowship Dinner, then stay for the programs for all ages.

Wednesday Night Kids

Beginning this week, we will learn about the Parable of the Wheat from John 12: 24-25. It seems a paradox that Jesus calls us to die so that we can live. While this concept may be hard for young students to understand, they can come to understand that living their lives should be all about Jesus and not about themselves. Chowdown the Apprentice will practice making pizza dough as he and Chef Emerald introduce the Parable of the Wheat.

Blood Drive Here Next Wednesday

The Marsh Blood Services bloodmobile will be in our front parking lot next Wednesday, March 13, from 4:00 to 7:00 p.m. Please sign up to give blood before or after our Wednesday evening program to help save lives in our region. Thank you!

Kenda Creasy Dean

All parents are invited to take advantage of a

wonderful opportunity to learn from an expert on faith and young adults. Kenda Creasy Dean, professor of youth, church, and culture at Princeton Theological Seminary, will speak on "How to Talk about Faith with Your Children without Feeling Like a Fraud" this Monday, March 11, at 7:00 p.m. at the Bristol Public Library. Her lecture is free and open to the public.

Lent is a very appropriate time for personal meditation and spiritual reading and reflection. Of course, any time is right if you feel the need and inspiration to seek God's comfort and guidance. But both Lent and Easter, when we are find ourselves more mindful of the approaching time of the cross and of Jesus' resurrection, are especially rewarding seasons. And we may have just the right book for you!

Bread and Wine: Readings for Lent and Easter, published by the Bruderhof Foundation of Farmington, Pennsylvania, is a new addition to our church library. It's a small volume, but it is chockfull of spiritual readings just right for this season. In all there are 72 of these selections, chosen from a surprisingly wide array of Christian thinkers and writers. They are divided into six major sections of about four or five pages each: Invitation, Temptation, Passion, Crucifixion, Resurrection, and New Life.

A book of this type invites you to look through the contents and choose those that appeal, and this is exactly how you should approach this book. It was not designed to be read from cover to cover, although you may find the selections so appealing that you will wind up doing just that. Contemporary writers of our time include such favorites as Wendell Berry, Frederick Buechner, Madeleine L'Engle, Kathleen Norris, Henry Nouwen, Barbara Brown Taylor, N. T. Wright, Philip Vancey, and many others. Among the older writers you will find a wide spread, including Augustine, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Oswald Chambers, G. K. Chesterton, E. Stanley Jones, C. S. Lewis, Martin Luther, Thomas Merton, Dorothy Sayers, John Stott, Mother Teresa, and Leo Tolstoy. What an inviting array of writers packed into this one volume!

You may be curious about the Bruderhof group that produced this volume. The Bruderhof originated in Germany in 1920 as a fellowship of Christians seeking to spread the simple message of God's love. In 1938 they were expelled from Nazi Germany and fled to England. With the onset of World War II, they moved again, this time finding a welcome in Paraguay. They first came to the United States in 1948, and their communities have since spread worldwide. Living in a close-knit relationship based on the family unit, they practice commonality of property and seek to serve their community neighbors by acts of caring and service, always emphasizing the power of God's love for all peoples.

You'll find this little book with its broad array of writers has a message for everyone. It's the volume you will want to pick up when you have a few moments to spare in the routine of the day, and you'll find it a refreshing preparation for the observance of Lent and Easter. Look for it on the table of new books, and if it's checked out, try again a little later. It may be written especially for Lent and Easter, but it will work its magic on you anytime during the year!

From Steve & Vicki Fey

Music Notes