This Sunday, November 1, at 3:00 p.m., the BucsWorth Men's Choir of East Tennessee State University will present a concert in our sanctuary. The choir will sing a mix of traditional and contemporary choral music under the direction of Dr. Alan Stevens. Admission is a suggested donation of $10 for adults or $5 for students.

The group was formed in the early 1990s primarily as an a cappella chamber ensemble called 10 BucsWorth, a reference to the number of guys in the ensemble as well as to the ETSU mascot, the Buccaneers. In 2013, the ensemble was expanded to a full men's choir.

Dr. Stevens is the Associate Director of Choral Activities and Coordinator of Vocal Music Education at ETSU where he also conducts Greyscale, an unaccompanied vocal ensemble that explores alternative music through a fusion of styles. Greyscale has performed at invited concerts in New York City, Washington, D.C., and extensively throughout the eastern Appalachian region.

BucsWorth has had the privilege of working with Alice Parker, Daniel Gawthrop, Ola Gjeilo, Chanticleer, New York Voices, and many local ensembles. In March they will collaborate with the Appalachian Men's Ensemble, Cantemus Women's Choir, and the East Tennessee Belles to present a special four-choir concert in Johnson City. In May, BucsWorth will tour Ireland.

Prior to moving to Tennessee, Dr. Stevens was based in Arizona and sang for two seasons with the Grammy-winning Phoenix Chorale. He sang for three seasons with the Tucson Chamber Artists, and was the Assistant Director for the 2011-2012 season. He appears on the album Far in the Heavens: Choral Music of Stephen Paulus (2015, Reference Recordings). He also appears as a featured soloist with the CORO Vocal Artists on the album Sweet Music Here (2013, Coro Publishing).

Dr. Stevens maintains an active conducting schedule in addition to academia. He is the Artistic Director of the Appalachian Men's Ensemble (Johnson City), and the Artistic Director of the Knoxville Gay Men's Chorus). As a singer, Dr. Stevens is under contract with the Tennessee Chamber Choir and True Concord (formerly the Tucson Chamber Artists). Additionally, he regularly performs with Dada Cabaret, an experimental chamber ensemble that pushes the boundaries of classical music and explores the divide between audience and performer. Dr. Stevens and three other musicians founded the nontraditional ensemble in 2013. In 2015, Dada Cabaret was featured at a regional conference of the College Music Society.

Daylight Saving Time Ends

Daylight Saving Time ends at 2:00 this Sunday morning, November 1. Remember to set your clock back one hour when you retire Saturday night. We'll see you on standard time Sunday morning!

Talk with "Pastor Mo" Nov. 3

"Pastor Mo"

Mohammad Yamout, a Lebanese pastor, will speak next Tuesday, November 3, at 7:00 p.m. in our Fellowship Hall. "Pastor Mo" will share his insights into current conditions in the Middle East and the ways in which he sees God at work in the region. The evening will be "child friendly," so feel free to come as a family.

Mohammad Yamout was born in 1966 to a Muslim Sunni family in Lebanon. At the age of 14, he began attending an Evangelical Church Sunday School ministry where he gave his life to Christ. Mohammad's family rejected him, and he had to leave his home and spend his next years working and living in a warehouse. Two attempts were made to kill him by fundamentalist groups because of his zeal in evangelizing, but Mohammad's local church continued to disciple him and helped fund his education.

For the past seven years, Pastor Mohammad, his wife, and their five children have lived in the city of Tyre in southern Lebanon, where they have dedicated their ministry to planting a church among Muslim Shiite people and winning them for the Kingdom of God. Pastor Mo's vision is to see local churches planted in all of the countries of the Middle East by establishing Outreach Centers. For more information, contact John Vann at vannjm@gmail.com or (423) 360-1153.

Of Songwriting and Psalms

Mariel Story

In our next Wednesday evening program, we will explore how songs move from personal prayers and poems to corporate expressions of worship. Mariel Story will discuss the inspiration and composition of a hymn written by Dr. Craig McDonald and set to music by herself.

Please join us for our Adult Learning program November 4 at 6:20. We will gather in the Fellowship Hall at 5:30 for dinner, and the program will follow. Wednesday Night Kids and Student Small Groups will meet at 6:00.

October Session Highlights

The Session of First Presbyterian Church held its regular monthly meeting Monday, October 26. Here are highlights of some of the items acted upon.

The Session unanimously endorsed Dan Kreiss's request to move from Inquirer to Candidate in his ordination process. The ordination process comprises three stages: Inquiry, Candidacy, and Call, each of which takes a minimum of one year of commitment. With the Session endorsement and the appointment of a Session Liaison (Beth Flannagan), Dan will appear before Holston Presbytery for approval as early as December.
An Interim Pastor Search Committee has been appointed and approved by the Session. Elders on the committee are Tom Daniel (chair), Ernie Pennington, Brian Miller, Ann Abel, and Beth Flannagan. A member of the congregation will be asked to join the committee as well. This committee will have oversight for finding a temporary Interim Pastor. Part of the committee's responsibilities will be defining the needs and responsibilities for this position and keeping the Session informed. The Interim Pastor is a temporary pastoral relationship that will be under contract directly with the Session. The relationship typically lasts for up to 12 months and must be approved by the Holston Presbytery's Committee on Ministry. It is the second step in the three-step process required to find a new permanent pastor.
The Session received information from Betsy Galliher, Church Business Administrator, that Sunday's stewardship emphasis resulted in approximately $372,000 of pledges towards our 2016 budget.

Toward Stewardship in 2016

In worship on Stewardship Sunday, Dave Welch shared the stewardship lesson in the day's Gospel: "'Get up, move,' the angel tells Mary and Mary. 'You can't stay here, it doesn't do any good to stay here.' We are invited to be a part of God's work."

We are responding to that invitation and will continue to do so. We dedicated our 2016 stewardship pledges October 25, and pledges to date amount to promises of $371,964 in the coming year. We ask those who have not yet responded to prayerfully consider what you can contribute toward maintaining our church and our ministries for the coming year, then mail your pledge to the church, bring it in person to the office during the week, or drop it in the weekly offering some Sunday.

Your timely response to this request will help our Finance Committee draw up a budget for our 2016 ministry that is both ambitious and responsible. Our leaders are committed to a balanced budget; we cannot depend on estimates for unpledged giving. So we hope for bold, generous commitments to the ministry of Jesus Christ through First Presbyterian Church.

We strive to handle all gifts, pledges, and inquiries with the utmost fidelity and discretion. If you have any questions or need more information about the church's finances or your own giving, please feel free to contact Betsy Galliher at (423) 764-7176. The stewardship brochure and a printable pledge card are available on the Stewardship page of our website at http://fpcbristol.org/sending/stewardship/.

ONE Worship Service Next Sunday, Nov. 8

We will blend our usual two worship services into ONE on the morning of Sunday, November 8. We will gather at 10:30 in the sanctuary for worship; Sunday School will begin at 9:30. The Cherub Choir will not rehearse. Please be sure to join us for worship and stay for the congregational meeting afterwards.

Congregational Meeting to Elect Church Officers Next Sunday

The following names will be placed in nomination for officers of the Class of 2018 during the congregational meeting to be held immediately after worship next Sunday, November 8:

For the Session of Elders

Aaron Brooks, Randy Cook, Debbie McMillin, Stuart Parker, Chuck Thompson

For the Board of Deacons

Adam Abel, Nancy Butterworth, David Ginn, Rett Stocstill, Ann Woods

For the Board of Trustees

Charles Webb

Hoedown Next Sunday Afternoon

Last fall's hoedown was fun for everyone!

We're having a hoedown next Sunday, November 8, at 4:30 in and around the Fellowship Hall. There will be plenty of outdoor games, a photo booth, and irresistible music. FPC will provide beverages, hamburgers, and hotdogs, and the musicians will provide the zest! Attendees are encouraged to bring the extras, according to the list below:

Last name:

A-H

I-P

Q-Z

Please bring:

Dessert

Side dish

Salad

Anyone interested in serving at the hoedown should contact Katie Arnold (karnold@fpcbristol.org) or Lilly Osborne (losborne@fpcbristol.org).

Men's Breakfast Next Saturday

The men of the church will meet for breakfast and Bible study next Saturday, November 7, at 8:00 a.m. in the Fellowship Hall. All men of the church are encouraged to come for good fellowship and a great start to the weekend. Bring a friend!

2015 Leaf Day Falls on Nov. 14

What a turnout for Leaf Day 2014!

Our annual Leaf Day will be Saturday, November 14. We are recruiting people to serve on Leaf Teams armed with rakes, blowers, and ladders to take care of leaves and gutters. We are also looking for people who have jobs for these teams to do.

To Serve

If you are interested in serving on a Leaf Team, fill out a sign-up form (available at the church) or call the church office. On the morning of November 14, team members will meet in the Fellowship Hall at 9:00 for coffee, doughnuts, and directions, then head out on their rounds. Each team should be finished by noon.

To Request Service

If you would you like a visit by a Leaf Team, please call the church office at 423-764-7176 to let us know what we can do to help. We will call back to confirm before the event.

We're Collecting Diapers for Local Families

Families with young children often go to Bristol Faith in Action for assistance to get them through a rough patch. Our Evangelism and Outreach Committee is asking our church family to help by donating disposable diapers in all sizes.

We'll be collecting these diapers throughout the month of November and will take them to Bristol Faith in Action to distribute to local families in the name of Jesus Christ. Diapers, and packages of diapers, of any size will be welcome; BFIA will repackage them before giving them out.

Please bring disposable diapers to the church and put them in the box labeled "Diapers" that the E&O Committee will soon place beside the little red house in the Fellowship Hallway. Thank you!

And Teddy Grahams for Fairmount Students

We are collecting Teddy Grahams, the original kind, for those among our young friends at Fairmount Elementary School who cannot afford to bring snacks from home. We want to make sure all the children have the energy they need to attend to their lessons. You can help by bringing in one or more boxes of original Teddy Grahams and placing them in the little red house in the Fellowship Hallway. We appreciate it, and so will our neighborhood schoolchildren!

Operation Christmas Child Takes Place This Sunday

This Sunday evening, FPC youth and children will work together to fill shoeboxes with Christmas gifts for children overseas. This global missions event will take place November 1 in the Fellowship Hall during the Student Fellowship time, which begins at 6:00 p.m.

In choosing gifts, parents are asked to remember that we don't know whether your box will go to Siberia or Senegal, so avoid anything that is climate-specific or fragile or that has instructions in English. Give only universally recognizable toys, like marbles, but not yoyos, play-doh, board games, or stuffed animals.

Approach filling a shoebox as you would approach choosing a gift for a friend's child. Following are some ideas for gifts that will be truly appreciated.

Best Gifts

Best mini soccer ball that fits into the box when inflated (or a deflated ball with a pump)
Brand-new, nice, short-sleeved shirts in solid colors, stripes, or pretty designs and with no writing or symbols on them
Small flashlight with batteries (most families don't have electricity)
Good melamine plate, bowl, and/or cup
Soap and a plastic soap dish with a cover and a toothbrush in a toothbrush holder (for bathing and brushing outdoors)
Pencils, erasers, colored pencils, and sharpeners for all school-aged kids
Good pens in black, red, green, and blue for kids aged 10 to 14

Good Gifts

Jump ropes
For the youngest girls, a baby doll with light brown skin and no hair (good for a child of any color)
For the youngest boys, toy car, truck, or airplane larger than Matchbox size (so that wheels are big enough to work well in dirt)
Band-Aids
Hard candy and gum
Comb
Hair elastics or headbands for girls
Harmonica
Simple watch for older kids
Solar calculator for older kids
Sunglasses for older kids
Socks

Fusion Fun

The photos below show some of the fun enjoyed by members of the FPC Fusion group of fifth and sixth graders at Cleek Farms last Sunday. Our next fellowship activity will be on Sunday evening, November 22, from 6:00 to 8:00.

It's time to sign up for Passion 2016 in Atlanta, a gathering for 18- to 25-year-olds, "the Jesus Generation united for His fame." From January 2 to 4, this conference will connect three locations in two cities to lift up the name of Jesus. Each location will experience live worship in each session, and speakers will be both live and live via video.

Katie Arnold has only a few slots left in her allotment. Please contact her soon at karnold@fpcbristol.org if you would like to attend. The cost is $100. Lodging will be provided, but attendees will be responsible for their meals. For more information, contact Katie or view the conference video advertisement at https://youtu.be/bviDevsn5fc.

If It's Still Growing, We're Still Mowing

October is drawing to a close. We've had a few chilly days, but the sun, as befits Halloween, pops back out and gooses the grass. Randy Cook will settle it back down for All Saints' Day this Sunday, but his is the last name on our 2015 mowing roster. Give him a treat by joining our mowing team. Just call Randy at 423-956-1541 or email him at npolecook@aol.com. Tell him that you'll mow once a month or once a year, or whatever your own schedule allows. If you've never used a Scag mower before, he will have you up and running in no time.

From Steve & Vicki Fey

Music Notes

Sunday's music participants: Sanctuary Choir.

Sunday's music: In the church year, the Ascension of Jesus is celebrated forty days after Easter, and it always falls on a Thursday. With our weekly worship structured around The Jesus Storybook Bible, we have the opportunity to observe this celebration on a Sunday. The psalm most commonly associated with this day is Psalm 47, "Clap your hands, all you peoples." The best-known choral setting of this text (in the KJV) is by English composer Ralph Vaughan Williams (1872-1958). Vaughan Williams was noted for a large body of sacred music, particularly hymn tunes and arrangements, as well as choral and solo works. First published in 1920, in the words of one author, "This is a piece clearly designed to fill the [church] with a grand noise in praise of God."

Program of Note: Voices of the Mountains, under the direction of Pat Flannagan, and accompanied by Vicki Fey, will present a program called World without End, the first half of which will include sacred texts through the ages set by some of the greatest composers, including local composer Kenton Coe. The second half will give a nod to All Saints' Day and All Hallows' Eve and will feature a likely world premiere! Also featured in the second half will be guest soloist Mark Owen Davis, singing with the chorus on Jester Hairston's "That Old House Is Ha'nted." This concert will take place in our sanctuary (instead of at King, as previously scheduled) this Saturday, October 31, at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $15 (free to all students) and can be purchased through Symphony of the Mountains or at the door.

Dr. Alan Stevens

Arts Series: As we "fall back" this Saturday night, you should be well-rested for both worship and our Arts Series program on Sunday, November 1! This Sunday, at 3:00 p.m. in our sanctuary, ETSU's BucsWorth Men's Choir, under the direction of Dr. Alan Stevens, will present a variety of choral music for male vocal ensembles. Suggested ticket donation for that program is $10 for adults and $5 for students from age 6 through college. Patron donations are still being received to support all of the very fine programs offered this season.

Christmas pageant: All children from age 4 through grade 6 are welcome to participate in our annual Christmas pageant, to be presented on Wednesday, December 16, and followed by the annual Joy Gift Dinner. Children's choirs have already begun rehearsing music and auditioning for speaking parts/singing Kings. Those auditions will continue until all those wishing to audition have done so. Children from age 4 through grade 1 choose whether to be angels, shepherds, the star of Bethlehem, or animals, while the older children have the speaking/singing roles, but all the children sing!

Sunday's Guest Minister

Mark Hutton

The Reverend Dr. Mark Hutton and his wife, Sherry (a seventh-grade teacher at Vance Middle School), grew up in Bristol. School, ministry, and life took them from Tennessee to Alabama, Virginia, and Missouri. They, along with sons Cooper, Baker, and Thatcher, returned to Bristol in 2014. Mark served on Young Life staff before becoming a coffee-roasting, fly-fishing, poetry-short story writing Presbyterian pastor! Currently, he serves as Stated Supply at Windsor Avenue Presbyterian Church. He is also a Fellow with Tactical Faith and adjunct faculty at King and Northeast State universities.

EPIC: Going Home

Our EPIC tale of the week is "Going Home," the story of Jesus' ascension into heaven, drawn from all four Gospels and retold in The Jesus Storybook Bible. Please join us on All Saints' Sunday, November 1, for worship at 8:30 a.m. in the Fellowship Hall or 11:00 a.m. in the sanctuary..

Pray for One Another

In Our Prayers

Becky Busler

Jane Crewey

Dorothy Dollar

Fred Frazier

DeeDee Galliher

Dorothy Giesler

Ron Grubbs

Will Hankins

Sharon Hatcher

Hawley Heglar

Vivian Hill

Nancy Preston

Mary Rice

Brenda Rogers

Virginia Rutherford

Faye VanNostrand

Deborah Whitaker

An extensive list of prayer concerns, "Pray for One Another," is available for pickup at the church each week.

Congratulations

We rejoice with Hannah Bailey in the birth of a son, Elijah William James Bailey, on October 18. Cliff and Lisa Bailey are his proud grandparents.

Birthday Prayer Fellowship

November 2 Frances Rowell, Erin Yates

November 3 Charles Webb

November 4 Nancy Preston, Paul Warhurst

November 5 Becky Adams

November 6 Louise Rutherford, Owen Smith, Karen Vann, Elliot Williams

Church Calendar

Sunday, November 1

8:30 a.m. Worship, Fellowship Hall

9:00 a.m. Cherub Choir, Room 209

9:45 a.m. Sunday School

11:00 a.m. Worship, Sanctuary

3:00 p.m. Arts Series Concert: BucsWorth Men's Choir, Sanctuary

5:15 p.m. Jubilate Youth Choir, Music Wing

6:00 p.m. Operation Christmas Child, Fellowship Hall

Monday, November 2

5:30 p.m. Sanctuary Handbells

7:00 p.m. Board of Deacons, Room 123

Tuesday, November 3

9:00 a.m. Staff Meeting, Room 123

10:00 a.m. Morning Prayer Group, Conference Room

7:00 p.m. Conversation with Pastor Mo, Fellowship Hall

7:00 p.m. Boy Scout Troop 3, Scout Wing

Wednesday, November 4

9:30 a.m. Lorri Looney's DVD Bible Study, Parlor

4:15 p.m. Children's Handbells, Room 212

4:45 p.m. Savior's Singers Children's Choir, Room 209

4:45 p.m. Youth Handbells, Room 212

5:15 p.m. Baby & Toddler Care, Rooms 34 & 35

5:30 p.m. Fellowship Dinner, Fellowship Hall

6:00 p.m. Wednesday Night Kids

6:00 p.m. Student Small Groups

6:20 p.m. Adult Learning, Fellowship Hall

7:00 p.m. 8:30 Worship Team Rehearsal, Sanctuary

7:15 p.m. Sanctuary Choir Rehearsal, Room 202

Thursday, November 5

7:00 a.m. Men's Bible Study, Parlor

12:00 p.m. Noon Bible Study, Room 117

7:30 p.m. Troop 3 Committee, Room 163

Saturday, November 7

8:00 a.m. Men's Breakfast, Fellowship Hall

Windows is a publication of First Presbyterian Church, Bristol, TN. Please direct questions and suggestions to the editor, Kathy Acuff, kacuff@fpcbristol.org.