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Point Pleasant Presbyterian Church
| Weekly News For
Sunday, August 16, 2015 | |
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Friends,
Parables don't need to be big to pack a powerful message. Jesus' Parable of the Pearl (sometimes called the Pearl of Great Price) is like that. It's just a couple of verses, but it captures the joy of discovering something new, unexpected, and of very great value.
The largest of pearls is small enough to nestle in the palm of a hand, but it's a great treasure nonetheless - an unimaginable windfall for the ordinary folk to whom Jesus told his parables. Today we label pearls "semi-precious," but in biblical times they were the most highly-valued of all jewels.
In our idle moments, we've all imagined what it would be like to have a treasure suddenly appear in our lives: to strike oil in the backyard, to receive a bequest from a long-lost relative, to win the Publisher's Clearinghouse Sweepstakes. Usually when we fantasize about such good fortune, we imagine our lives' circumstances changing, but not ourselves - not who we are at the most basic level.
That's not the story Jesus tells. There are hints, in this simple parable, that the man who's been seeking the great pearl all his life is himself changed when he holds it in his hand at last.
This little parable is about that moment of discovery, the sudden and unexpected joy of dreams fulfilled, the thrill of hopes realized.
What about our spiritual dreams, our yearning for a closer relationship with God?
Come to worship this Sunday. Let's talk about it!
Pastor Carl
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Sunday, August 16, 2015
20th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Dr. Wilton preaching: "STORIES JESUS TOLD: ALL IN"
10:00 a.m. - Worship/Baptism
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Receiving the Sacrament of Baptism this Sunday is Evelyn Sloan Johnson
daughter of
Ashley and Anthony Johnson
Sponsors: Katelin Wilson Linner
& Mark Linner
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"Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God." Philippians 4:6
The Prayer Person for the week of August 8 is Evelyn Hazard. Let us be prayerfully aware of Evelyn, as well as all our members and friends.
Prayer concerns: The family of June Lear (Marion Fittin's sister); Linda Lee Smithy and family, at the death of her niece, Karin; David Allen; Charles Badami; Elaine Flannelly; Carol Clayton; Nick Cox; Vincent DeMartino; Lois Francello; Faith Gallagher; Ethel Lemke (mother of Carole Smith); Jacob Mendelsohn; Maureen Oakley; Barbara Reid; Courtney Norton Rzeplinski;, Mary Steinert, Pat Vermeal (friend of Linda Lee Smith).
Long term concerns: David Allen; Bill Blauvelt (Jacque Thornton's brother in law); Fred Bierach; Jules Bierach, Jr; Kathryn Feldman (Bill Shoppell's sister); Elise Cason; George Griffiths (Cousin of Heidi Steinert); Nicholas Hudnut; Robbie Mangan (Uncle of Kerry Jones); Margie McGhee; Jane Millar; Maureen Oakley (Aunt of Heidi Steinert); Cherisse Petruzzi; Edith Pula; Gemma Roberts; Nancy Smith; Gail Ward; those struggling with addictions and mental illness.
Military: Michael Limpantsis; Matthew Warren; all those in the military.
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COFFEE HOUR - Please join us for a special coffee hour this Sunday as we say goodbye to Sue and Joe Friedrich as they move to Florida. The coffee hour is hosted by the Cooking Team which Sue and Joe faithfully served.
CHILD PROTECTION TRAINING will take place this week August 20 at 6:30 p.m. in the Chittick Lounge. Elder Jim McGuire will lead a Child Protection Training session for all who work with children or youth in the church. Jim is an experienced trainer with the Boy Scouts of America. At the training, forms will be available to apply for the criminal background check the church requires. No one will be able to work with children or youth without participating. Please RSVP to the church office.
 ANOTHER FUN NIGHT AT THE BLUE CLAWS - We are once again having a family fun night at the Blue Claws. The game will be on Friday, August 28 and starts at 7:05 p.m. at First Energy Park in Lakewood. Admission is $10 per adult and $8 for children 5-12 years old. That evening there will be a Post-Game Fireworks Spectacular - the biggest, brightest, most colorful fireworks show at the Shore! We have 17 people signed up but we would like to have at least 25 by this Sunday. For signup, see the sheet outside the church office or speak with Dee D'Amore ( 732-552-98732-552-9861) who is organizing the event for the Caring Committee.
 PW COOKBOOK UPDATE..... "Fish do swim" and we are floating along so if you have a few more recipes out there, please remember to get them in by the August 24th deadline. We are a little light on soups, salads, drinks, and side dishes. Our book is riding a wave to completion. Which way is the Beach?? - Nancy Jalowski and Karen Norby
ST. GREGORY'S PANTRY NEEDS - St. Gregory's Pantry gives temporary aid (a 4 day supply of food and personal items) to approximately 1200 individuals annually. Pantry stocks run low in the Summer. Items to be donated to the Pantry can be dropped off in the baskets in the Narthex. A lot of the Pantry's clients have microwave cooking only, so items that can be microwaved or eaten out of a can are always needed. Can openers are always needed. Do you have a surplus of produce from your garden this Summer? Consider dropping it off at the Pantry Monday-Friday from 10:00 a.m. to Noon. Clients especially love receiving fresh produce. Thank you for continually supporting this great need in our own community.
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Interfaith Hospitality Network (IHN) Arriving Next Week 
Once again we have the privilege of hosting the IHN families August 23-29. As a reminder, we need church members and friends to provide meals each night, host(s) to welcome the families upon their arrival and get acquainted with them and 2 members to stay overnight each night. In the past we have had no trouble getting members to provide meals and to be hosts.
Our biggest need is for people to stay overnight. If you know how to sleep, you can do this! Just a reminder of what that entails:
- Being in the annex by 9 p.m. when the doors are locked for the night.
- Sleeping on a bed which is set up downstairs in one of the Sunday school rooms.
- Being available in case of any emergency.
- Leave shortly after 7 am when the families leave for the day.
Why not find a BUDDY ( a spouse would be just fine) and spend a night in the Education Annex?
The sign-up sheet is in the church Narthex; or, just call or email Kim in the Church Office.
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This Sunday we welcome our friends from Lend A Hand. Groups for the remainder of the year include:
Sunday, August 16 - Lend A Hand, Carlisle, PA
Sunday, Oct 4 - Helping Hands of Lehigh Presbytery, PA and First Presbyterian Church, Warren, PA
Sunday, Oct 11 - Lend A Hand, Carlisle, PA
Sunday, Oct 18 - Scioto Valley Presbytery, Columbus, OH
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Leadership Changes
at the Volunteer Village
The Church's Sandy Recovery Team met this past week and made a number of decisions about new leadership for the Volunteer Village. Several volunteers who have been with this project since the beginning have asked, after nearly three years, if someone else can step up and relieve them. We're grateful for all they've done, and are pleased that others have enthusiastically agreed to receive the baton for this next lap in the race. The role of Host Site Coordinator has been ably filled by Frank Jones. The position's name has now been changed to Hospitality Liaison - a job that will be filled by Nancy Stout. She'll be the liaison between Presbyterian Disaster Assistance (PDA) - whose staff manages our volunteer work group bookings - and the incoming work group leaders, to prepare them for their week here. The role of Construction Manager that's been faithfully and effectively covered by Howard Gilbert has been renamed Worksite Liaison. This name change reflects our new focus on exclusively relying on local partner organizations - like the United Methodist disaster relief agency A Future With Hope (associated with the Ocean County Long Term Recovery Group), The United Way and Northern Ocean Habitat for Humanity - to do the actual construction management. We're also returning to our earlier pattern of rotating this responsibility among several people, each of whom will relate to a single volunteer group for one week, visiting them on the worksite daily and helping them locate tools and other equipment. Those who have expressed interest in doing this are Sue and Bob Hankins, Craig Lambie and Henry Stout and Bill Williams.There's room for more, so if you'd like to try this job out for size - or maybe just shadow one of the other liaisons for a few days, to check it out - please call the church office! Mandy Rauffer has lent her congenial and helpful presence to the role of Orientation Leader. This involves having dinner with each group on Sunday evening as they arrive, and afterwards telling them the story of how Superstorm Sandy has impacted our local communities and explaining what's ahead of them for their week of volunteering. Robin DeRosa has said "Here am I, send me" with respect to this important responsibility.  Bob Norton has accurately crunched our numbers as Statistician and has also been our On-Call Building Maintenance Responder. Bob's shoes are so big, it takes two people to fill them: Carol Bonebrake has stepped up as our new Statistician and Randy Crate will be on call as the liaison between work groups and the Session's Resources Team in addressing building-maintenance issues.
There have been some changes in many of the Cooking Teams who have been preparing delicious welcome meals for the groups on their first night. Linda Chase will be working with those teams in the coming weeks to reorganize their rosters, possibly consolidating some of the teams. There are likely to be fewer work groups coming in the future, which should enable us to avoid an increase in work load. Lynn Donley and Sara Sarbello have been faithfully doing most of the weekly shopping, using contributed funds to stock the kitchen with breakfast and lunch supplies for the workers. We don't want anyone to shop till they drop, so we're looking for a few other volunteer Shoppers to help out with this task - although the Sandy Team is also investigating using a grocery-delivery service like Peapod. See the article below to find out more about what Volunteer Village Shoppers do.
Want to find out more about these discipleship opportunities? Please contact one of the pastors, or Nancy Stout at nlstout@optonline.net .
Carl Wilton
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An Invitation To Shop
Each time our volunteer village hosts a team of guest volunteers, we provide them with breakfast, lunch and snack food. The cost of the food is covered by the per diem they pay. We are in need of a few grocery shoppers to help our current shoppers, some of whom have been doing this since we started hosting. You may wonder what this entails.
1. Check out existing supplies in the Annex kitchen. 2. Determine the quantity of food needed. An excellent "shopping list" has been created so that you will know how much food to purchase for the number of visiting volunteers expected. 3. Go to the store of your choice and purchase the items on your list (or optionally order through Peapod for delivery). 4. Bring all the items you purchased to the Annex kitchen and put them away (or meet the Peapod driver and then put them away). 5. Submit an expense voucher so that you can be reimbursed for your purchases. The teams rotate and you will be expected to shop about once every two months. We have been commended for the "great food supplies" that we provide to our visiting volunteers, and we would not have received such accolades had it not been for the outstanding job performed by our shopping volunteers. If you would like to serve in this vital part of our Sandy recovery mission or have any questions. please contact Nancy Stout via phone or email at nlstout@optonline.net
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Not Sure About Reopening a Sandy Claim?
 If you filed a flood insurance (NFIP) claim after Superstorm Sandy, and you were not satisfied with the amount of money you received from your insurance company, you can request a review of your flood insurance claim through FEMA.
The Ocean County Long Term Recovery Group is conducting two-hour free workshops to explain how to reopen a claim, through a process which does not require an attorney. For more information visit their website
In addition, Stop FEMA Now will be holding an information meeting THIS Saturday, August 15, 2015, 11 am till noon at the Point Boro Firehouse #75-1 located at 1 Memorial Drive, Point Pleasant. Additional information can be found on the following link. While there is no cost or obligation connected with the Stop FEMA Now workshop, participants should be advised that some of the information shared will come from attorneys interested in soliciting business for their firms.
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Cuban Presbyterians Are Encouraged By Diplomatic Progress
 Edelberto Valdes Fleites is a Presbyterian minister who serves as executive of the Central Presbytery of the Presbyterian and Reformed Church of Cuba. In previous years, he has visited Monmouth Presbytery, and will be coming to the USA again this fall as an International Peacemaker. In addition to his presbytery staff work, Valdes pastors three churches and two missions. He also directs his national church's Department of Programs and Mission.
"I graduated as a biologist and worked in my career 27 years," Valdes told the Presbyterian News Service about his journey to ministry. As the USA and Cuba move tentatively towards closer diplomatic relations, Valdes said he and his fellow Presbyterians are encouraged, even though there is still a lot of work to be done. He says the main challenges facing Cubans now are the economy and Cuba's relationship with the U.S. "We are changing from a socialist economy controlled by the state to one where we now have private business and state enterprises," he said. "The political scenario has changed, but we have fears about the impact of new policy in fields like human values, national independence and the economy."
Valdes describes Cubans in general as being more superstitious than Christian, which means there are many evangelistic opportunities.
"In the Protestant field," he went on, "Cubans started the historic churches: Baptist, Episcopalian, Presbyterian and Methodist." But when Cuba gained independence, tensions developed. "When the revolution was won in 1959, the Protestant churches were seen as American agencies and the Catholic Church as favoring the rich, so there were many problems between churches and the state."
Historically, the Presbyterian churches of Cuba were part of the old Synod of New Jersey, which is now part of the Synod of the Northeast. Cuban pastors traveled to New Jersey for Synod meetings, and there were many close congregation-to-congregation partnerships. By 1967, relations between the two countries were at a low point and travel and the transfer of money impossible, so the Cuban Presbyterians established their own denomination.
 The years immediately following the Revolution were difficult. The well-regarded Presbyterian private schools were all nationalized and their property appropriated by the state. Although churches were allowed to stay open to offer worship services, all but the most determined believers stayed away, out of fear that local Communist authorities would discriminate against them. Many church buildings fell into disrepair. Life continued to be difficult for Cuban Christians until 1990, when a new constitution abandoned official state atheism and allowed for freedom of religion. Since then, Cuban Christians have enjoyed significant religious freedoms. The church has a stronger public image now, with its local mission efforts on behalf of the needy being greatly appreciated. Churches are growing rapidly and are attracting large numbers of young people. |
Installation of the new boilers in the CE Annex
is well under way. Thanks to all who contributed
or pledged to the "Summer Heat" appeal!
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CHURCH CALENDAR - The latest edition of the church calendar is available online, on the church's website. 
Sunday, August 16
10:00 a.m. - Worship/Baptism
Monday, August 17
Tuesday, August 18
Wednesday, August 19
9:00 a.m. - Women's Breakfast at the Rainbow Diner
Thursday, August 20
7:30 a.m. - Men's Breakfast at US Subs
6:00 p.m. - Youth Protection Training, Chittick Lounge
Friday, August 21
Saturday, August 22
Sunday, August 23
10:00 a.m. - Worship
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 Birthday Blessings
Aug 15 Joseph Friedrich
Aug 16 Virginia Aiello, Brielle Shekon
Aug 17 Emily Culos, Stephen Reid, Kenneth Winter
Aug 18 Christina Parrott
Aug 19 Lindsay Bucsek,Theresa Williams, Dawson Wittmann
Aug 20 Heather Jensen, Lois Thieleman
Aug 21 Samuel Nelson, Kaitlyn Ridge
Aug 22 Patrick Cox, Joseph DeRosa, Julie Nase, Lynn O'Hara,
Shayne Shekon
Aug 23 Jessica Nagan
Aug 24 Zachary Leek-Clayton
Aug 25 Sean McCrossan
Aug 26 Joan Borduin
Aug 27 Danielle Allgor
Aug 28 Courtney Bixby
Aug 29
Aug 30 Lynn Hahm
Aug 31 Elaine Flannelly, Lisa Van Winkle
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Start Up Dates in the Fall
August 24 - PW Coordinating Team Meeting
August 31 - Deacons Meeting 7:00 p.m.
September 9 - Dove Choir Rehearsals Begin
September 10 - Chancel Choir Rehearsals Begin
September 11 - Point Beach Prep Orientation
September 13 - Rally Day
September 14 - Choral Bell Rehearsals Begin
September 15 - Session Meeting
September 16, 7:30 - "GRIEVING WITH HOPE" Sandy Survivor Group Begins
September 20 - Youth Connection Begins
September 20 - Sunday School Begins
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Pastors
The Rev. Carl Wilton, Ph.D., Pastor
The Rev. Linda Chase, Associate Pastor
Office Staff
Kim Gaydos, Church Secretary
Donna Ferry, Financial Secretary
Dee D'Amore, Volunteer Village Bookkeeper
Music Staff
Sara Hoey, Organist
William Shoppell, Chancel Choir and Choral Bells Director
Rebecca Muraglia, Acting Dove Choir Director
Christian Education Staff
Courtney Rzeplinski, Youth Connection Coordinator
Tricia Stoffers, Sunday School Coordinator
Devlin House, Point Beach Prep Preschool Director
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