My En . . . dless . . . love . . . rang out on my phonograph every evening that summer at 11:00 PM sharp. It was the sound of young love. Not my young love mind you, but my brother Tim's. It was 1985 and the phonograph was in my room, so every night my brother would get on the upstairs phone, next to my bedroom door and call his beloved Kristine AND to that nauseating tune they would say good night to one another. Clearly, I did not share their appreciation and sentiment for this tune. I wondered what on earth was all the fuss about! It was only later that I would be entranced by my own Endless love.

     We all desire an endless love, someone who will love us in the rose colored moments as well as in the gray ones. Yet, if we are honest, love seems to be very conditional these days. My . . . end . . . less . . . con . . . di . . . tion . . . al . . . love is more like the tune today. I am not trying to be pessimistic. But it seems pretty clear that endless love is about more than our most earnest desires.

     Whenever I prepare couples for marriage we talk about the difference between a contract and covenant relationship. I spoke about this kind of difference in my sermon last Sunday. Contractual love says, "I will love you if you fulfill my needs. But if you are unable to do that, then I will not be constrained to stay with you." We hear the realities of this kind of relationship in the phrase, "We outgrew each other." The subtext seems to be, "You only go around once! At the end of life, I am responsible for fulfilling my whole potential."

     But that is not covenant marriage. That kind of marriage says, "I will be faithful to you, devoted to your wellbeing forever; even if you cannot be faithful and devoted to me." It is beautiful but, at the same time, a heartbreakingly devoted promise. It is not based on loving the other for this life alone, but for all of eternity. Its subtext is that life is eternal in Jesus Christ and marriage is but a reflection of God's Endless, love for his family of faith. This Covenantal love is difficult, but IT IS the very ideal of love that my brother Tim and Kristine dreamed about so long ago.

     Costly, yet enduring is the love we yearn for because it is the love God embodies and created us to reflect back to the world . . . it is HIS LOVE. God will never outgrow us, never leave us for another people who will fulfill His needs better. Question is, "Have you experienced this kind of Endless Love with your Savior? Does God's unconditional love emanate from you . . . out into the world, in your relationships, or are you looking for another God to fulfill you? Can the world tell you are in love with God? Do you impatiently wait for your times with God, no matter what life has brought that day, to sing love's sweet refrain back in prayer or are you impatiently wondering, "What on earth is all this fuss about?" "Ask and ye shall receive . . . Seek and you shall find" --God's En . . . dless love.

Blessings, Rev. Ellen

 

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On Saturday, July 18th, the following members of our Senior High Youth Group will be leaving to attend the Montreat Youth Conference:

 

Logan Barnette

Cheyenne Cheeseman

Madison Cox

Leslie Gibson

Stephan Schmidt

Victoria Schmidt

Joshua Sholly

Jacob Smith

 

They will be accompanied by Brandi Coley, Sandra Cox, and Phillip Eckels.  Please keep this group in your prayers that they will be safe and enjoy the "Montreat experience" which has been a significant spiritual factor in the development of the Christian lives of our youth here at Bethpage Church.  The group will return on Saturday, July 25th.

 

 

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This Sunday, July 19th, we are privileged to have a member of Bethpage Presbyterian Church, Elder Dennis Graybeal, preaching at our 9:55 AM worship service.  We welcome Dennis' leadership to our worship service as he looks forward to sharing this time with you!

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The flowers in the Bethpage Presbyterian Church sanctuary this Sunday, July 19th are given by Sherry Childers to the Glory of God and in loving honor of her mother, Barbara Shifflett.

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More than one in four children in North Carolina struggle with hunger. During the summer, the struggle for children to find a meal gets even harder, as only one of seven students who receives a free or reduced price lunch during the school year will get lunch on any given summer day. To help combat that issue, Cooperative Christian Ministry will be holding a summer food drive. As part of this food drive, Bethpage Presbyterian Church has elected to participate in the 1,000 Can Challenge, another project being offered to area churches to raise 1,000 cans of food for CCM through their congregations. Any canned foods may be donated, but most used items are pork & beans, corn, peas, and green beans. Your food offering may be brought to the church any time during the summer and can be dropped off in the narthex, in the hall outside the sanctuary, or in the hall outside the church office.  To learn more about CCM and their summer food drive click on the logo below.

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Beginning Monday, July 20th, the Girl Scout's Trailblazer District Day Camp will be held here at Bethpage Presbyterian Church.  The camp will be held daily, 8:00 AM until 4:00 PM, through Friday, July 24th.  The group will wrap up their week with a sleepover in the BPC Fellowship Hall on Friday night finishing up by 12:00 Noon on Saturday, July 25th. 

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Church contribution statements reflecting your contributions through June 30, 2015, have been sent via email or postal mail. If you do not receive one or have questions, please contact the church office at 704-933-2209 or info@bethpagechurch.org. If you wish to receive your statement via email and you did not OR if you have more than one email address and you are not receiving your statement at the preferred address, please contact the church office and let us know. 

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Bethpage Church, together with the congregation of Latin Mission Christ Savior, invite all children to gear up at Camp Discovery Vacation Bible School. At Camp Discovery VBS, your children will learn how Jesus works through them in their everyday lives. Discover His plan! Discover His purpose! Campers discover five Bible truths that excite and challenge them. Jesus, their True North, gives them the wisdom and the courage to step out in faith and serve - whether they're at school, playing with friends, or helping out at home. The fun begins Monday, July 27^th and ends on Thursday, July 30^th. The schedule for each night will be - supper beginning at 5:30, followed by the program starting at 6:15 and ending at 8:00 PM. The adventure includes fun songs, crazy crafts, yummy snacks, awesome games, and more!

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Kannapolis Area Presbyterian Men will be serving hot dogs and burgers with all the trimmings, (plus chips, cold drinks, and desserts) on Saturday, August 8^th from 11:00 AM until 6:00 PM at Second Presbyterian Church, 1578 Dale Earnhardt Blvd., Kannapolis. The cost is $6.00 per person for eat-in or take-out. Proceeds will go to Children's Hope Alliance (formerly Barium Springs Home for Children and Grandfather Home for Children.)

  

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Bethpage Presbyterian Church is pleased to offer a preventive health event. Life Line Screening, a leading provider of community-based preventive health screenings, will host their affordable, non-invasive and painless health screenings on August 20, 2015, in the BPC Fellowship Hall. Five screenings will be offered that scan for potential health problems related to: blocked arteries which is a leading cause of stroke; abdominal aortic aneurysms which can lead to a ruptured aorta; hardening of the arteries in the legs which is a strong predictor of heart disease; atrial fibrillation or irregular heart beat which is closely tied to stroke risk; and a bone density screening, for men and women, used to assess the risk of osteoporosis. Register for a Wellness Package which includes 4 vascular tests and osteoporosis screening from $149 ($139 with our member discount). All five screenings take 60-90 minutes to complete. In order to register for this event and to receive a $10 discount off any package price above $129, please visit their web site or call 1-888-653-6441.

 

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Worship Bulletin

Serving Sunday

Lectionary

Church Calendar

7/12/2015 Sermon

E-Mail Us

More Info

 

 

OUR ATTENDANCE STEWARDSHIP
7/12/2015 Sunday Morning Worship Service - 96 Sunday School - 45
OUR FINANCIAL STEWARDSHIP
	7/12/2015	Year-to-date
General Budget Giving   Weekly Budget Needs	$4,563.00    $4,620.95	$116,202.29   $129,386.60
10¢-A-Meal Offering received for 2015: $2,052.02

            

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Rev. Ellen Campbell Gardner's sermon from Sunday, July 12, 2015.

"A New Promise"  Galatians 3:15-25

The Lie:  Only works will save you.

The Truth:  Only the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ will save you.

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