We Lift Up In Prayer

Ordination and Commissioning Anniversaries:



Elder Jon Essex (3/1) - Commissioned Ruling Elder of Beaverton-First

Rev. Karen Blatt (3/12) - Honorably Retired

Rev. Jamie Milton (3/18) - Pastor of Bay City-Westminster

Rev. Hakbae Moon (3/19) - Pastor of Flint-Unity

Elder Mark Garavaglia (3/24) - 5 Years - Commissioned Ruling Elder of Sandusky and Yale-First

Rev. Linda Graham (3/25) - Temporary Supply of Davison-St. Andrews

Rev. Jan Chambers (3/29) - Honorably Retired; Pastor Emerita of Tawas

Rev. Andrew Miller (4/4) - Pastor of Mt. Pleasant-First

Rev. Dong Won Park (4/15) - Honorably Retired

Elder Jon Baker (4/26) - Commissioned Ruling Elder of Rosebush

Rev. Hoon Koo Lee (4/27) - Member-At-Large

Additional contact information for anyone on this list

may be obtained by replying to this email.

From the Moderator of Council

Greetings to all,

I want to start with the gift of information. After the Presbytery meeting in December of 2025 when the proposal to have a Listening and Discovery committee was voted on, Council formally started the committee at their January meeting. This committee started with the Thumb area (Region 4), by asking people to meet and answer some questions. We are in the early stages of listening to the different churches and understanding the needs of the churches.

Several points have been raised in these conversations. Three items that can be addressed are as follows:

1. Moderator & Communion training. Rev Ted McCulloch agreed to a training session on April 11 at 10:00am at Fairgrove. This is for all the Lake Huron Presbytery. You can call Fairgrove 989-693-6043, email fgpresch@sbcglobal.net or contact me to register.
2. Is that people would like to know what it means to be Presbyterian, the Rev. Robbie Carnes has written a series of articles to go in the Bi-weekly brief, to answer this question. (The first one is included below.)
3. Is that there were questions of what is happening with Presbyterian Women of Lake Huron. They are in need of officers. All officers’ terms are up, so we are looking for new officers. That includes Moderator, Secretary, Treasurer, Communications, and regional representatives. If you are willing to serve on PWOLH, call, text 810-404-1966 or email wolfgang@airadv.net, CRE Chris Wolf who is serving as the current Moderator of PW. We look forward to having new people involved.

The last point I would like to make. This Sunday my granddaughter was baptized. The Congregation was asked the following questions: “Do you as members of the church of Jesus Christ promise to guide and nurture the person by word and deed with love and prayer?” Everyone responds, “We do.” “Will you encourage them to know and follow Christ and to be faithful members of his church?” Everyone responds, “We will”. Here is my point: We are the church. In everything we do, we represent the Church of Jesus Christ and the PC(USA) denomination. WE are at the Presbytery of Lake Huron! WE are the Church of Jesus Christ! We are all in this together, even if we are grumpy with other parts of the body of Christ. Together in Love is the only way we will live into our calling, to be the Church.

Respectful,

Beth Ann Asperger, Ruling Elder

Council Moderator

Clerk of Session, Fairgrove Presbyterian Church

New Series of Articles:

What Is The Presbytery

One of the items that came out of the initial discussions of the group mentioned above was an interest in sharing information about "What Is The Presbytery?". The Rev. Robbie Carnes (Pastor of Fenton-First, member of COMMP and member of the Listening and Discovery Team) has composed a series of articles that will be featured in the next few Bi-Weekly Briefs. Here is the first one.

What Is The Presbytery? 

What does Presbytery mean to you? You might see our four annual presbytery meetings as ‘family reunions’ in which old friends are reunited and partners in ministry are sent out. You might feel frustration at an ‘invisible hand’ that has too much control over the day-to-day matters of your church. You might be disheartened that more churches aren’t involved in what you see as a vital function of being Presbyterian. You might have checked out from the political machinations of the Presbytery to focus on your local mission calling. 

The word comes from the Greek for old or elder (leaning heavily on the connotation of wisdom). Over time the word has been used for a particular area in the church where the clergy sit and eventually to refer to the priest’s house. It wasn’t until 1570 or so that the Presbyterians used it to describe ‘a body of elders in the Presbyterian system'.

The Book of Order’s description of the Presbytery gives us a clear expectation for provision and nurture to come from the Presbytery through vision and practical structure. The Presbytery is responsible for the government of the churches in its bounds, for assisting and supporting the witness of its congregations, and nurturing communities of faith, hope, love and witness (G-3.0301). This mission is informed by three prior sections of the Book of Order that speak theologically, practically, and aspirational about the mission of the Presbytery. The Presbytery ‘shall keep before it’ these three statements.

In F-1.0302 of the Book of Order we have an expansion of a line from the Apostle’s Creed highlighting 4 ‘Marks of the Church’. These marks are the responsibility of all of us, not just the Presbytery, but they do focus the Presbytery’s mission. They include Unity, Holiness, Catholicity, and Apostolicity.

The first two seem almost self-explanatory. Unity and Holiness are clear spiritual and biblical values. Presbytery nurtures these by providing avenues for connectivity and collaboration, as well as guidance and discipline.

The last two may be more difficult in that they are more removed from our church experience. Catholicity has traditionally been the effort to recognize and develop our connections through the Holy Spirit with the Church Universal. It is also used to draw together not only Christian faith traditions but all manner of identities (such as nationalities, races, genders, conditions, stations in life, etc.…). Apostolicity refers to the sending of witnesses (or missionaries) ‘into the world to share the gospel of God’s redemption of all things and people’. It also refers to the making of disciples that can include institutional missionaries, but also encompasses the sharing of the faith between individuals. This, like the other three terms in this section, are concepts that provide a theological foundation to the activities of the church.

To Be Continued...

March Stated Meeting

The minutes of the March stated meeting of presbytery are now available on our website. 

From Our Board of Pensions Representative, Luke Choi

Greetings,

By now, you’ve probably received an invitation to the Benefits Regional Summit events held in various cities across the country from the Board of Pensions. Since none of these locations are within a reasonable driving distance from you, I’ve decided to host our own condensed version of the Benefits Regional Summit virtually in partnership with the Presbyteries of Lake Huron and Mackinac.

So, join us for this informative virtual town hall, through which I hope to provide important updates and insights into the Benefits Plan of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) and related programs offered by the Board of Pensions to you the pastoral leaders and the congregational benefits decision-makers.

Title: 2026 Virtual Benefits Summit for Lake Huron & Mackinac

Date/Time: Monday, April 20, 10:00 AM – 11:30 AM (EST)

Please Register in advance for this meeting:

https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/ds9o6TwvS8W7RWfswiisBA

(After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.)

Among the topics you will hear about are:

• Medical Plan cost trends and changes in the healthcare system
• Dues package subsidies that would ease financial burdens for congregations, pastors, and their families
• Plans and programs that support those who serve the Church, including Assistance Program enhancements such as the new Child Care Support

You will also have the opportunity to ask questions.

Wishing God’s best for you,

Rev. Luke Choi

Church Consultant for the Synod of the Covenant, Western New York presbyteries, Korean American presbyteries, and KPCA



최정석 목사

언약대회, 서부 뉴욕, 한미 노회 및 해외한인장로교회 담당 연금국 컨설턴트, 한어권교회 관계 총괄

Synod of the Covenant Cultivating the Gift of Preaching Initiative

The Cultivating the Gift of Preaching Initiative (CGPI) is now recruiting participants to be part of our third year of training emerging lay preachers! The application can be found on the Synod of the Covenant’s webpage.

CGPI is a ministry in the Synod focused on training lay preachers. It is funded by a $1.25m Lilly Compelling Preaching Grant. The goal of CGPI is to strengthen the witness of the Church to the good news of Jesus Christ, by identifying, training, and providing ongoing support to emerging preachers.

We welcome applications from any member of a PC(USA) congregation withing the bounds of the Synod off the Covenant who has a call to preach. We also welcome applications from CREs who desire more formation in preaching.

CGPI is an 18-month, cohort model program. Participants are placed in a cohort of 5-8 participants and are led by a preaching mentor (an experienced Teaching Elder from the Synod with extensive experience regularly preaching in a congregational setting). Participants meet monthly online. In addition, there are four in person meetings, twice with everyone in CGPI at the Alma Conference each June, and twice with just your cohort.

This year, the program begins with a 5-day conference at Alma College in Alma, MI. This year that conference is June 4-8 (Thursday evening – Monday morning).

The cost of the program is $1,250; $250 to be paid by the individual and $1000 by your home church and/or presbytery. Scholarships are available as well as payment plans for the churches. The actual total cost is $11,000 per participant, the grant pays for the remainder. All travel and housing expenses, books, etc. are paid for by the grant.

Applications are due by April 15th, but we will continue to process applications on a rolling basis as long as there are open slots

If you have any questions, please contact the CGPI program director, Matt Aragon Bruce at

matt@synodofthecovenant.org / 609-712-4258. 

Save The Date

Synod of the Covenant Presbyterian Women Annual Gathering

Theme for 2026 is: Unity and Love in the Body of Christ

Scripture inspiration is: Psalm 133:1

July 24-25, 2026

Southminister Presbyterian Church in Dayton, Ohio

Any questions? Contact Anita Betts, 517-993-7000 or busybeemom50@yahoo.com

We Are a Virtual Office

The Presbytery Office is a virtual office. Our business hours are still Monday through Thursday. Please note that all staff members are part time and hours vary from person to person. Click the link below for contact information for each of us. (Our email and phone numbers remain the same.)

All mail should still be sent to our post box. You can continue to pay for things (per capita, calendars, etc.) via check. If you prefer, you may also pay online.

Presbytery of Lake Huron | www.presbylh.org