The Long View: Embracing a slower story | | |
There’s a bench in the garden of the Highland Farms Health Care Center where I’ve spent a lot of Thursday afternoons recently just pondering what I’ve heard or been surprised by in my visits. The people there aren’t in a hurry. They’ve buried spouses, watched churches close, watched
churches somehow survive. They talk about decades the way I talk about weeks.
This fall, our new sermon series takes its name from something I keep noticing in those conversations: the elderly at Highland Farms have the long view. Not because they’ve stopped caring about what’s urgent — but because they’ve lived long enough to know that most of what feels urgent isn’t actually the whole story.
We live on news-cycle time. Everything is breaking, everything is now, everything demands a reaction before lunch. Scripture doesn’t run on that clock. It runs on what I’ve started calling Christian time — the time of a God who made covenants that took generations to keep, who let Israel wander forty years before Jordan, who is, even now, patient with a world that keeps asking for shortcuts.
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The Long View will spend the fall in that slower time. September widens the lens all the way out — Genesis, the stars, the whirlwind God speaks from in Job. October brings us back down to one plot of ground. November stretches the frame across memory and the saints who came before us. December sits in the dark before Christmas and waits, on purpose, without rushing to
the manger.
None of it is an escape from what’s hard right now. It’s a different way of standing inside it — the way the folks at Highland Farms have taught me to stand inside eighty and ninety, even one hundred years, without flinching and without hurrying past any of it.
Join us starting September 13 for worship and church school classes!
| | Church Life In September @ BMPC | | |
Don't miss it!
Sunday, September 13
Waterfront from 2-5pm
Potluck dinner at 5:15pm
Celebrate the end of summer with an afternoon of fun and fellowship at Camp Rockmont!
Enjoy swimming, games, and time together on the waterfront before gathering around the table for a church-wide potluck dinner. We’ll provide the fried chicken and drinks—just bring a favorite side or dessert to share.
We also need volunteers. Can you help? Sign up below!
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Starting September 2nd!
RAD Wednesdays is our joyful midweek ministry for children (ages prek - 5th grade), where faith comes alive through Bible stories, music, games, creativity, service, and community. This fall, children will explore God’s “Ten Best Ways”—the Ten Commandments— as gifts that teach us how to love God and our neighbors.
Every Wednesday we gather to laugh, learn, create, and grow in faith and friendship.
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Spaghetti Dinners
Wednesdays 9/2-10/28
Fellowship Hall
Wednesday evenings are about more than dinner; they're about community. Join us each week for a delicious meal, conversation, and fellowship before our midweek ministries begin. Whether you're coming from work, school, or home, there's always a place for you at the table. Please RSVP weekly for this meal. Cost is $5/pp or $20/per family.
| | | Calling All Mystery Lovers! | |
A new mystery book club will be gathering in the Fellowship Hall at 2pm on Sunday, September 27.
We'd love to have you!
Need more info? Contact Cheryl Wilson.
| | | Led by Mr. Blake and parent volunteers, Bible Journey is designed for our fourth and fifth graders as they begin exploring the big story of Scripture and what it means to follow Jesus. | | | |
Save the Date!
Sunday, October 4 from 4-6:30
@ The Barn in Montreat
Grab your boots and join us for an evening of music, laughter, and dancing! With live calling from Beth Gunn, everyone—from first-time dancers to seasoned pros—is invited to join the fun. Afterward, we'll enjoy a delicious barbecue dinner together. We'll provide the BBQ and drinks—bring a side or dessert to share.
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2nd and 4th Sundays at 9:45am
In the Church Parlor
Led by Ken and Kitty Kelly
Parenting is a journey best shared with others. Our Parents' Group meets twice each month to explore faith formation, discuss the joys and challenges of raising children, and encourage one another in nurturing faith at home.
Whether your children are toddlers or teenagers, you'll find support, wisdom, and community in this group.
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Saturday, September 26 at 11:30am
Church fellowship hall.
We’re excited to welcome all those who have joined the membership of BMPC from June 2025 through September 2026 to a special New Member Cookout!
This is a wonderful opportunity to gather around the table, get to know one another, and share how you’ve connected—or hope to connect—with the life of our church. Come enjoy good food, good conversation, and a chance to celebrate being part of the BMPC community!
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Calling all lovers of antique China, silver, crystal and vintage tableware!
Join us for a day trip September 24 to Replacements, Ltd., where we’ll enjoy a boxed lunch en route. You’ll have the opportunity to browse an incredible collection while enjoying fellowship among fellow enthusiasts.
Come share your passion and enjoy a relaxing day together. Contact DC Horne at revmomhorne1@yahoo.com for more information and to reserve your spot!
Lunch cost TBD depending on number of folks attending.
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ALL CREATURES GREAT AND SMALL
“O Lord, how manifold are your works! In wisdom you have made them all; the earth is full of your creatures.” — Psalm 104:24
This fall, our stewardship season takes its cue from the oldest hymn we know — creation itself, praised simply for being what it is.
Beginning in October, we’ll spend four weeks asking what it means to be stewards of a world already full, already good, already ours to tend rather than own. Watch for letters, a pledge card, and an invitation to give as an act of becoming who God made us to be!
-Brian Gardner, generosity chair
-Mary Katherine Robinson, pastor
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September Dads' Group
Where: Josh Gray’s house
When: Wednesday, September 2 at 7:30 PM.
Please bring a camp chair and snacks or beverages to share.
Call the church office or contact David Carter Florence to get the address or more info.
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Moms' Group
Where: Church Parlor
When: Third Tuesday of the month, Sept 15 from 7:30-9:30
We've been discussing the Fruits of the Spirit and this month we will focus on patience and have a craft project. All moms welcome! Bring a snack or drink to share. Email Brittany@bmpcnc.org for more info!
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Dads' Retreat will not happen in September;
we'll reschedule for a later date.
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Lift every Voice and Sing: Music Camp 2026
For one joyful week this August, the halls of BMPC were filled with singing, drumming, laughter, creativity, and the unmistakable energy of children making music together!
Our annual Music Camp welcomed 55 children from PreK through 5th grade for a week centered around the theme Lift Every Voice and Sing. Through singing, percussion, art, games, and community-building, children discovered new ways to use their voices and share their gifts.
One of the greatest gifts of the week was watching children encourage one another and discover that every voice has a place in the song. Whether they were singing together, keeping a beat, creating art, or simply cheering each other on, our campers experienced the joy of being part of a community.
Music Camp also reminded us of something we know so well at BMPC: ministry happens because people are willing to show up and share their gifts. We are incredibly grateful for the amazing team of adult and youth volunteers, 40 to be exact, who gave their time and energy throughout the entire week. From leading music and percussion to crafts, games, snacks, and lunch, they helped create a welcoming and joyful space for every child.
Thank you to our campers, families, volunteers, and everyone who helped make Music Camp such a beautiful week. We are already looking forward to hearing where all those voices—and all those gifts—will take us next!
“Let everything that breathes praise the Lord!” — Psalm 150:6
Blessings,
Brittany
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Amici Music, the award-winning chamber music organization created in Asheville, will perform its first concert at Black Mountain Presbyterian Church on September 11 at 7:30pm.
The program is entitled Tragic Trios and will be a musical commemoration of the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks.
Pianist/Artistic Director Daniel Weiser will be joined by violinist Frances Hsieh and cellist Franklin Keel to perform Piano Trios by Bedrich Smetana and Dmitri Shostakovich that were both composed at times of great tragedy.
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Attention residents of Highland Farms!
There will be a BMPC Music Salon in the Assembly Room at GHF on Saturday, September 19 at 2PM.
Our choir and handbell choirs will offer some worship music for your enjoyment, and we will also sing some hymns together! We hope to see you all there.
| | | Presbyterian Women is back for the Fall... | | |
Time to begin again! September is back to circle meetings and time for all women of Black Mountain Presbyterian to find a connection and circle community. The study this year will be United Through Christ, Bound to Each Other: a study of Paul’s First Letter to the Corinthians written by Rhonda Mawhood Lee.
Circles meeting on the first Tuesday of the month are:
Dorcas — 10am (Linda Stroupe and Cheryl Wilson)
Priscilla — 10am (Emily Phillips)
Esther — 10:30am (Karen Smith and Ann Wigg)
Ruth — 1:30pm (Betsy Wilson)
Naomi — 3pm (Sharon Welker and Janice Rausch)
Lydia Circle meets at 6:30pm on the second and fourth Tuesdays of the month (Betsy Hay and Brandon Ford)
Questions? Contact DC Horne at revmomhorne1@yahoo.com.
| | This new circle will meet on the first Tuesday of the month at 7:30pm in the church parlor and will be facilitated by Amy Kim Kyremes-Parks. This circle (name TBD) is for women ages 25-49 who are looking for a Bible Study and community within the church while navigating family and work. Circles meet once a month from September through May. Read more and sign up here! | |
| | A Bittersweet Farewell from the PW! |
Patti Pyle will be moving to Arlington TX on September 9th.
To thank Patti for all she has done for Lydia Circle, the church and community, and to bless her on her way, the Presbyterian Women recently held a luncheon in her honor and presented her with a Barbara Brinson original stained glass, taken from the former BMPC sanctuary windows!
We wish you all the best, Patti!
| | | | Get Connected in the Life of the Church! | |
- Sunday morning ushers or greeter
- Help with Spaghetti Dinners on Wednesday evenings
- Assit with our vibrant RAD Wednesdays program for prek-5th graders
- Sign up to help with a church event this fall - Annual Picnic, Barn Dance, Fall Festival
- Become a Youth Advisor and work with our Middle and High Schoolers
- Join a Faith Formation Class on Sundays or during the week
- Volunteer during a service project led by our mission team
And so much more!
Need help getting connected? Call the church office at 828-669-2725 and let us help!
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September Dates
2 - Parent Meeting at 7pm in the Fellowship Hall
6 - As Seen on Social Media 2-4pm FH
9 - Middle & High School Small Group 6:30-7:30pm CH
10 - Parents, Pastors & Coffee 9am Dynamite
13 - Donuts & Devos 9:45-10:45am
Church & Lunch
13 - All Church Picnic at Rockmont
16 - Middle & High School Small Group 6:30-7:30pm CH
20 - Paint Wars at Welch Field 2-4pm
23 - MS & HS Small Groups 6:30-7:30pm
25-27 - Fall Retreat, TN
29 - Margaritas, Mocktails & Moms (Moms of Middle and High School Students) Plant Swap Church House 7pm
30 - MS & HS Small Groups 6:30-7:30pm
| | You're invited to BMPC Youth! | | | | If you're in 6-12th grade, we'd love to invite you to join one of our youth group opportunities this month! Whether it's your first time or you've been before, there is a place for you here. Feeling nervous about coming alone? Bring a friend! Our students are welcoming, our leaders are friendly, and we work hard to create a fun and encouraging environment for everyone.We would truly love to have you join us! Contact katie@bmpcnc.org for more info. | | Thank you to all the youth group students who helped with VBS! | | |
We’re looking for adults who want to be part of the BMPC Fan Club, which is a group of church members who show up and cheer on our middle and high school students! Whether it’s a game, concert, theater performance, art show, or other event, we want to celebrate our students and let them know their church family is proud of them.
Contact Katie if you’d like to join the fan club and receive an email with events that week.
| | | Come enjoy some baked goods, great conversation, and meaningful time exploring faith together! Donuts & Devotions is a welcoming space for any student in 6th–12th grade to ask questions and dive deeper into the Bible. Students do not need to regularly attend youth group to be part of Donuts & Devotions. Everyone is welcome! | | |
Join us on the Fall Retreat!
Don't forget to register your youth group member for the Fall Retreat in Pigeon Forge, from September 25-27. Sign up by scanning the QR code!
| | | Come as you are. Everyone is welcome at The Table. | | |
Sept 17 - Bunco and Snacks 6:30pm in the Fellowship Hall
The Table is our young adult group which is a welcoming community for young adults in every stage of life. Whether you're a college student, starting your career, settling into a new season, or simply looking for a place to connect, there's a seat for you.
We know that "young adult" can look different for everyone, and busy schedules often make it difficult to build meaningful relationships. That's why we gather once a month in a relaxed, low-pressure environment where you can enjoy a meal, share conversation, and get to know others without expectations or obligations.
Our hope is to create a community where people can build authentic friendships, encourage one another, and grow in faith together. Whether you've been part of BMPC for years or are visiting for the first time, you are invited to come as you are. There's always a place for you at the table.
Email Katie at katie@bmpcnc.org to find out more!
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Let Your Faith Legacy Shine!
Join the BMPC Legacy Society.
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A NOTE FROM OUR WEEKDAY SCHOOL DIRECTOR
Thank you for supporting the Weekday School by linking your Ingles card! In June, we were able to purchase over $2700 in supplies for our classrooms. All cards disconnect in May and must be reconnected in August. Please reconnect your card today!
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Scan the QR code below or visit ingles-markets.com/tools-for-schools-link (Search for us using school ID 10820 or the name-Black Mountain Presb Church Preschool).
- Write your name and card number on the sign-up sheet in the Narthex. and we will connect it for you.
Thank you for helping provide the tools our teachers need to give our students the best education possible.
With Gratitude,
Cindy Capps
| | | | Outreach & Mission Updates | | |
Join Us For BMPC’s
Mission and Justice Speaker Series
Sponsored by BMPC Mission and Outreach Committee and our Peace and Justice Team
This month, we will host a speaker or team each Wednesday night from 6-7 pm in our sanctuary. We will begin with a global mission lens and move ever closer week after week, finishing with a focus on justice issues here in the Swannanoa Valley. We guarantee that you’ll leave each week better informed, deeply moved, and with clear avenues for advocacy and engagement.
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Series Dates
Sept. 2
Guatemala Partnership
Sept. 9
Malawi Mission
Sept. 16
General Assembly Report
Sept. 23
WNC Peace and Justice Panel
Saturday, Sept. 26
Appalachian Community Relief Tour
| | A "thank you" from Black Mountain Counseling Center | |
"Dear Jane and all the wonderful members of Black Mountain Presbyterian Church,
On behalf of everyone at Black Mountain Counseling Center, thank you for your incredibly generous donations of therapy workbooks for our clinicians and gas cards for our clients. These thoughtful gifts mean so much to both our staff and the people we serve. The workbooks provide valuable resources that our clinicians can use in their sessions, materials they often purchase out of their own pockets. They were genuinely excited to receive them, and I'm happy to share that they have already been put to good use with clients.
The gas cards have also made a meaningful impact. At Black Mountain Counseling Center, we believe that accessible mental health care means more than simply offering services, it means helping remove the barriers that prevent people from receiving care. Sometimes, accessibility is as practical as having enough gas to get to an appointment. Your generosity has helped ensure that clients can arrive for the support they need without the added stress of transportation costs.
Please know that your kindness has a ripple effect throughout our community. Your support not only equips our clinicians and assists our clients, but also helps make compassionate, accessible mental health care possible for those who need it most.
Thank you for your generosity, your partnership, and for caring so deeply about the well-being of our community. We are truly grateful.
With heartfelt appreciation,
Elaine Looney
LMSW Executive Director
Black Mountain Counseling Center"
| | Update: Lois Nix School Supply Drive | | |
BMPC showed up in a BIG way for the Lois Nix Hand in Hand School Supply Drive!
We completely filled a truck with more donations than ever this year! Our church has continually been one of the largest supporters of this project, and this year was no exception.
Thank you so much for supporting the teachers and students in our community
and for helping my mom’s legacy of
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giving continue. Her heart for helping others lives on through each of you, and I’m so grateful for the generosity and love BMPC continues to show.
Thank you for showing up and making such a meaningful difference in our community!
With gratitude,
Kristy Beaver
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Helping Hands:
Answering the Call to
“Has Everyone Been Fed?”
At Black Mountain Presbyterian Church, we center ourselves around a simple, searching question: “Has everyone been fed?” Not only with food, but with care, connection, and compassion — body, mind, and spirit.
Helping Hands is one way we live that mission among ourselves.
Sometimes “feeding” one another looks like:
- A ride to a medical appointment
- A meal during recovery or grief
- A visit in the hospital or at home
- Help with a small repair
- Assistance with paperwork or technology
These are not small gestures. They are the quiet work of Christian community.
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They say: "You belong here. You are not alone."
Our Helping Hands categories are:
- Errands & Transportation
- Light Household and Practical Help
- Meals – MealTrain and/or Freezer Casseroles
- Visit at Home, Hospital, or Assisted Living
- Digital Tools & Paperwork
- Minor Home Repairs & Maintenance
If you are willing to serve in one or more of these areas, please contact cullen@bmpcnc.org or to bob@bmpcnc.org and let us know which category (or categories) you would like your name listed under.
This is how we answer our own question.
This is how we make sure everyone is fed.
If you are experiencing a need, please reach out to any pastor or member of our church staff.
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Voter Suppression Efforts in Full Swing as Midterms Draw Nearer
Submitted by Jeannie Franklin
(At our May 11 meeting, the Earth Care Team decided to suspend our regular activities until the midterms and work to protect voting.)
A young Presbyterian man, James Talarico, who is running for the United States Senate in Texas, refuses to couch today’s problems in terms of red and blue, but in terms of corruption. “We don’t have a government of, by, and for the people,” he says. “We have a government of, by, and for the billionaires. We have an affordability crisis because we have a corruption crisis.”
This election is not just a political battle, he says. “This is a spiritual battle between selfishness and service, between greed and greatness.”
Furthermore, he calls us to return to “old-fashioned values of the greatest generation – service, sacrifice, doing what’s right even when no one is watching us.” Talarico has completed three years at Austin Theological Seminary.
The forces of selfishness and greed are hard at work, aiming to suppress the votes of Americans who will not vote for the agenda of billionaires. There is a nationwide effort to federalize our elections, whether for state office or national office like the Presidency.
• In 2020 the effort was to undermine voting by mail.
• In 2024 there were plans to mess with certification and empower election deniers.
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• In 2026 it’s all about data. According to election law attorney Marc Elias, “So far they are 0-19 (in the courts) in trying to get access to the most sensitive voter roll data. Now there are executive orders trying to get the postal service to leverage delivery of vote-by-mail ballots to get data." (An emergency decision is on the desk of the Supreme Court.)
• Most recently, the FBI has obtained the IP address (a unique digital mailing address assigned to each computer, phone, and server) of someone registered to vote in South Carolina. Elias says, “The IP address is the latest effort to try to leverage big data and AI to target voters they want to harass or stop from voting. They want to collect a lot of data about Americans – where they registered to vote, whether they moved. If they create a nationwide database on every U.S. citizen, they can then use that to disenfranchise voters who are registered to vote. They will have in hand information on voters who registered while out of town or country. This becomes a permission structure for election deniers or for seizure of ballots and for challenges, for deployment of troops at the polls and for refusal to certify. That is what all of these big collections of data have in common.”
As I write this on August 12, the Senate has adjourned for its five-week summer recess without passing the voter restrictions legislation known as the SAVE America Act. However, that effort is far from over.
What can we do now? Donate, volunteer, write letters to editors, protest peacefully, call in to talk radio and podcasts, be a poll worker or watcher, run yourself, help voters get photo ID and get to the polls, donate again and drag everyone you know to vote. This is an all-hands-on-deck moment if there ever was one in my lifetime.
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3 Rita Cruse
Ava Banzhoff
4 Samuel Edwards
Kenzi Acker
5 Maggie Schlubach
7 Suzane Churchman
8 Yvette Ballard
Billy Robinson
Tania Griffin
Thomas Dunn
9 Nancy Poling
Jonna Munroe
10 Betsy Ray
11 Karen Austin
Maddie Pomeroy
Will French
12 Jane Bannerman
Wink Ingersoll
13 Grace Hunnicutt
Nan Clarke
14 Rosie Johnson
Anthony Lee
Harper Day Fouse
Larry Berglund
Gillian Case-Meeler
Bray Teague
15 Deb Mullis
Anne Drummond
James Michael Georgeson
Bill Topham
16 Oliver Helberg Moffitt
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17 Robert Gamble
Jimmy Vance
18 Carly Campbell
Connie Gentry
20 Ellen Miles
22 Wilma Leary
Kevin Baker
Brian Gardner
Elsie Bolton
23 Helen Davies
Luke Hewitt
River Goins
Jack Neligan
Melisa Pressley
24 William Brown
25 Holly Childs
Tom Sinks
Nancy Ellington
Fritz Ackerman
26 Gracie Corn
John DeWitt
Rick Spielman
27 Steven Coward
Elizabeth Hunnicutt
Elizabeth Turnage
28 Sue Smith
30 Cindy Hile
Bill Cox
Julie Culpepper
Laura K. Robinson-Long
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