God, thank you for your Spirit
that flows from generation to generation
and is always at work in us.
Amen.
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We Lift Up In Prayer...
New:
Ongoing:
The Rev. Fred Gates, Honorably Retired, and spouse or the Rev. Dr. Sharlyn Gates, Pastor of Holly who recently fell and broke his hip. Fred is currently in rehab and anticipates returning home in a couple of weeks.
The Rev. Dr. Tom Schacher, Pastor of Midland-Memorial and his family and congregation
as they deal with his recent diagnosis of Parkinson's Disease.
Pam Brackbill and the Rev. Tom Brackbill, Pastor of Alma-First as they deal with all that encompasses Pam's diagnosis of Younger Onset Alzheimer's Disease. Pam is under the care of Masonic Pathways.
Mission Co-Workers:
The Rev. Cathy Chang and family who are serving in the Philippines.
Michael and Rachel Ludwig
,
our Mission Co-Workers
who are serving in Niger.
For those Teaching Elders (Ministers of Word and Sacrament) and Commissioned Ruling Elders (CREs) who are celebrating Ordination or Commissioning Anniversaries in September and October:
The Rev. John Becker (9/17) - 45 years -
Honorably Retired
The Rev. Dave Myers (10/10) - Temporary Supply of Saginaw-Countryside Trinity
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When I am on Facebook, I rarely use the "Wow" reaction. But, the recent visit of General Assembly Co-moderator Denise Anderson to the Presbytery of Lake Huron was most definitely a "Wow" event that will have a lasting impact on our presbytery.
It is a rare occasion when we get to host a sitting General Assembly moderator - the last time was in 2010 - so it is a special opportunity for us to share our gifts, our mission, and our hopes for the future, as well as to learn about and connect with the larger church. Special thanks need to be extended to Midland Memorial Presbyterian Church for being gracious hosts for Rev. Anderson at their 150th anniversary celebration and for the Presbytery meeting two days later; to Flint First Presbyterian Church for arranging and hosting an extraordinarily helpful introduction to the Flint Water Crisis (and to Presbyterian Villages for our group lunch); to Flint Trinity United Presbyterian Church for hosting the workshop on Race and Reconciliation; and to Alma College for hosting her for Diversity Dialogue Day on campus. Every event was well-run, well-attended, and powerfully moving.
Two events had special resonance for me. The workshop at Trinity United on Race and Reconciliation challenged us to recognize the ways we allow racial privilege and subtle racist assumptions and practices to marginalize and subjugate people and to taint our witness to God's love in Jesus Christ. Rev. Anderson directed us to two church-wide book studies that she and her co-moderator Rev. Jan Edmiston have invited the church to undertake:
Waking Up White by Debby Irving explains the author's personal story of becoming aware of her own assumptions and practices of privilege, and how they function in society;
Always With Us? by Presbyterian scholar
Liz Theoharis exposes the misinterpretation of Jesus' words in Matthew 26:11 and lays out a biblical understanding of poverty and God's design to address it. Study materials for both books are available
online. I hope many of our congregations will undertake the study of one or both books in the year ahead.
The other event with special resonance was the multicultural worship service at our Presbytery meeting. Thanks go to our Presbytery worship planning team, and particularly the Rev. Desiree Lawson, for putting this together. The drummers from
Saginaw Korean Presbyterian Church and Flint Unity Presbyterian Church were amazing, and Rev. Anderson's sermon on the life-giving water Jesus offers us was both inspirational and challenging. One feedback response echoed my own feelings: "Best worship ever! Best meeting ever!"
Thanks to all who planned, assisted, and participated in making this visit such a success, and thanks to General Assembly Co-moderator Denise Anderson for giving so generously of her time and talent. Now, let us become the communities of faith, hope, love, and witness she has challenged us to be.
Faithfully,
Dan Saperstein,
Executive Presbyter
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Boundary Training
*** TOMORROW ***
On
Thursday, September 21, 2017
we will be holding Boundary/Misconduct Training from
10 AM until 3 PM
at
Mt. Pleasant First Presbyterian Church
. This will be a joint offering with the Presbytery of Lake Michigan. The Stated Clerk for Lake Michigan Presbytery, Rev. Fran Lane-Lawrence, is skilled in leading this type of training. She will come provide the leadership. Lunch will be provided as well as any materials needed.
NOTE: The online registration is now closed. Please feel free to show up at the event as there is still space available.
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Order The 2017-2019 Book of Order
The presbytery will be ordering a bulk order of the
2017-2019 Book of Order to allow churches to purchase them at the reduced rate of just $8 per copy.
Orders must be received by the presbytery
no later than October 11th.
Click here for the order form with complete details.
Note: You may download a free PDF copy here. While it would not be cost effective to print it would make a handy "on the go" resource to have on your tablet or phone.
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Pastors In Transition
The fall session of the Pastors in Transition Seminar will be held October 30-31, 2017 at the
St. Francis Retreat Center in DeWitt, MI. This is primarily for clergy and CREs in new calls and interims and other clergy interested in leading transition. However, all are encouraged to attend.
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Harvest Dinner
Beaverton-First is hosting their Annual Harvest Dinner on
Thursday, October 12th from 4:00pm to 7:00pm at the church located at 201 S. Ross in Beaverton.
Click here for more details.
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Connect With Other Churches In The Lake Huron Presbytery
There are so many wonderful things going on in all of our congregations. Several of our churches have set up Facebook pages to help spread the good news not only to their members but to all who may be interested. Liking other church Facebook pages is a great way to connect with others in the presbytery and to share ideas with each other. Here are some of the churches that have Facebook pages:
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'Like' Us On Facebook
The presbytery has a Facebook page and would like you to join us. Get updates and information faster. Connect with others to share ideas and to post information about events happening in your congregation. Join us today!
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Staci Percy Communications Manager/Recording Clerk spercy@presbylh.org 989-799-7481 x2 |
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About the
Bi-Weekly Brief
Hundreds of elders, educators, and church leaders read the Presbytery of Lake Huron's email sent out every other week.
You can reissue or modify this content for your own church bulletin or newsletter, without crediting the Bi-Weekly Brief, but please credit any organizations, photographers, etc, that we credited.
NOTE: The Presbytery of Lake Huron retains permission to modify submissions for clarity and length. Inclusion of an item in the Bi-Weekly Brief means that we think it's interesting and/or important, and does not constitute an endorsement of its point of view or its journalistic accuracy.
Commission on Preparation for Ministry
September 20
10:00 am
Worship Planning Team
September 20
1:00 pm
Boundary Training
September 21
10:00 am
Personnel Team
September 25
10:00 am
Commission on Ministry - Outreach and Administration Team
September 27
11:00 am
CRE Policy Review Team
October 2
11:30 am
Coordinating Team
October 11
10:00 am
Harvest Dinner
October 12
4:00 pm
Commission on Preparation for Ministry
October 18
10:00 am
Personnel Team
October 23
10:00 am
Commission on Ministry - Outreach and Administration Team
October 25
11:00 am
Installation of Dawn Stoker
October 29
3:00 pm
Pastors in Transition
October 30-31
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Details on these meetings can be found on the presbytery's website on the calendar.
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