Connecting & Informing the Presbytery of Arkansas
June 8, 2023
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After two “blended meetings” of “in-person” and “Zoom” participants, the 153rd meeting of the Presbytery of Arkansas gathered on June 3, 2023, on the Presbytery’s Zoom Account. We had about 94 people attending at the highest point.
Rev. Phil Blackburn led our opening worship with an inspiring sermon titled “The Bucket List” using Acts chapter 4. Emmett Powers was installed as our Vice-Moderator since he was unable to be present with us in March. Members from First Presbyterian Church in Springdale provided our music for worship. Our business was brief at this meeting which included items from the...Click to read more.
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Presbyterian Night at
A Traveler's Game
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Friday night, June 16th, join the Presbytery of Arkansas at the ballpark when the Arkansas Travelers play the Corpus Christi Hooks at Dickey-Stephens Park in Little Rock.
Gather your church group together and join other Presbyterians for a fun evening of hotdogs, baseball, and fireworks!
Click here for details and registration information.
The registration deadline is tomorrow, Friday, June 9 at 12:00 noon.
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Tackling Loneliness & Isolation In the Ministry |
This coming Monday, June 12 at 10:00am, Rebecca Spooner will be leading an online workshop called Building Clergy Community for our Presbytery's clergy who are actively serving (MWS & CRE). It will be a safe place to share, connect, and deal with feelings of loneliness and isolation in ministry. Those who are interested will be offered an opportunity to continue with the work they begin there.
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Transitional Youth & Young Adult Developer
Position Opening With The Presbytery
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The Presbytery of Arkansas is accepting applications for a Transitional Youth and Young Adult Developer. Compensation is listed at 15,000 annually plus travel expenses for visiting congregations and events in the presbytery.
Applicants can send resumes/work history to Stewart Smith (stewart@presbyark.org) or Kim Palmer (kim@presbyark.org) by email or regular mail at the presbytery office at 9221 N. Rodney Parham Road, Little Rock, AR 72227
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Ferncliff Seeking Volunteers |
To all in Central Arkansas, Ferncliff has two groups of volunteers that meet weekly to do various projects around camp. One group, Over The Hill Gang, meets on Mondays at 8 am (work till lunchtime) to work on mostly woodworking projects for camp use. They make or repair things, make lots of sawdust, tell tall tales and enjoy donuts and coffee. Anyone interested in using or learning basic woodworking is invited to join us.
The Amigos meet on Wednesday at 8am and work until lunchtime as well. This group works on a lot of outside projects to repair items around camp including construction projects and landscaping tasks. They also love to cut and split firewood.
Both groups invite new volunteers to join.
Interested? Contact Bradley Doherty at bradley@ferncliff.org or call 501-821-3063 to learn more. Both groups would be excited to have you use or learn new skills. They have lots of knowledge on safely working on the tasks.
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As 2023 opened, The Board of Pensions of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) entered a season of rebuilding — a two-year, transformative effort taken in collaboration with the Church to assess and redesign the Benefits Plan of the PC(USA) to better meet the needs of local congregations.
The season of rebuilding is an exploration focused on flexibility, choice, and cost control for local churches. The dues structure of the Benefits Plan has not changed in nearly 40 years, while the Church has not stopped changing. Shifting demographics, declining church membership, and rising healthcare costs have resulted in growing numbers of congregations being unable to afford to enroll their pastoral leadership in the plan. The goal of the season of rebuilding is to ensure that all pastoral leadership, regardless of installation status, have access to the Benefits Plan of the PC(USA).
The Board of Pensions encourages everyone to visit the microsite and to participate in upcoming Virtual Town Halls where We want to hear from you as we explore how to create more choices for congregations and their pastoral leadership. If you’re interested in sharing your feedback during an upcoming Virtual Town Hall in late spring/early summer, please register your interest below. In addition, if you have a question, please submit it here and we will do our best to address it during the event.
- Thursday, June 29, 2023
- Thursday, July 27, 2023
- Thursday, August 31, 2023
*All Virtual Town Halls will be held from 3:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. ET.
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Pulaski County Volunteers Needed
Long-Term Recovery from March 31 Tornado
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Before long, Pulaski County faith-based and other nonprofit groups will begin to focus on long-term recovery for many of the homeowners whose properties were destroyed by the March 31 tornado. Some Presbyterian money will be added to contributions from community individuals and organizations so that collectively we can help some storm survivors meet their unmet needs.
The Wynne community will be involved in its own long-term recovery and a couple of Wynne Presbyterians have stepped up to serve on a Wynne long-term recovery group when the time comes.
--AR Presbytery Disaster Preparedness & Response Subcommittee
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Mission of The Church Grants |
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The Mission of the Church Committee is now accepting applications for the second round of Mission Initiative grants. The purpose of these grants is to assist congregations and ministries of the Presbytery of Arkansas in proclaiming the love of Christ beyond their walls. Our goal is to help empower congregations in their efforts to extend the love of Christ by serving and walking alongside the most vulnerable in our communities.
So, you see the needs and you have a dream, a plan for helping, for serving, but you don't have enough funds to carry it out. Then click here for our guidelines and application requirements. Applications for the second round of grants are due by July 15. (There will be one more round with an October 15 deadline if funds allow).
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Office of the General Assembly in Louisville
Call Seeker Webinar: Introduction to CLC
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The transition to a new CLC system IS FINALLY HERE! This means that the new CLC site is the official site in clc.pcusa.org and that the old system will not accept new PIFs or new MIFs. If you do have active PIFs or MIFs you will be able to continue your process until August 31st. So, we want you to know the in's and out's of how to navigate and use the new system for your process.
That's why the CLC Team will host a Call Seeker webinar on Wednesday, June 14th at 3:00 pm EST. We will cover from signing up to completing a call and will answer the questions you give us, live. Registration is limited to 500 participants. If this number is reached, those who don't get in, will be able to view it later in equip.pcusa.org or in our CLC Page
You can download a Personal Discernment Profile (PDP) blank form as a PDF here: NEW PDP BLANK FORM
As always, our CLC Consultants are available to support you and your ministry call process through CLC. Let us know how can we help you at clcsupport@pcusa.org.
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Inquiring Minds Results on Confirmation |
Confirmation was the topic of the last Inquiring Minds. The majority of responders thought:
- 6th/7th grade was the best age to have it.
- 4 to 6 weeks of classes was the best length of time.
- Big God, Big Questions (PCUSA) was the overall curriculum of choice.
Other thoughts shared:
- Have kids write a statement of faith.
- Have parents as Mentors in the class.
Thanks to all who contributed!
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Join the 23-24 Youth A-Team! |
Do you want to help plan events in the Presbytery of Arkansas?
Do you want to get to know your fellow youth from around our Presbytery better?
Do you want to be more involved with Youthquake and summer trips?
Then sign up to be a part of the Presbytery's Youth A-Team (aka, Youth Advisory Team or YAT)!
Who can apply?
- 10th-12th Grade Students
- College Students
- Adults
What is the commitment?
- Attending two weekend planning meetings (Aug/Sept and Jan/Feb)
- Being part of the Leadership Team for at least one YAT Event
- Participating in YAT programming throughout the year
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Full Tuition Scholarships For Presbyterians |
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Austin College in Sherman, TX announces the largest single gift in the College’s history, a $20 million bequest from the estate of Clifford J. Grum. The gift will fully fund the Westminster Scholarship Program for Presbyterian students to attend Austin College with full tuition paid, beginning in the 2024-2025 academic year.
With this gift, the Westminster Scholarship Program will now cover full tuition for any student on the membership roll of a Presbyterian Church (USA) congregation.
The fund will additionally cover room and board for children of PC(USA) clergy and staff!
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Friday, 6/9, 12 Noon Deadline to Reserve TravelersTickets
Monday, 6/12, 10am Building Clergy Community
Tuesday, 6/13, 10am Staff Meeting
Tuesday, 6/13, 6pm Naturals Game in NWA
Wednesday, 6/14, 11am Resource Team Meeting
Friday, 6/16, 6:30pm Travelers Game in LR
Sunday, 6/18-23, Jr. Hi Presbytery Week @ Ferncliff
Tuesday, 6/20, 10am Staff Meeting
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Presbytery of Arkansas
9221 N. Rodney Parham Road
Little Rock, AR 72227
501-663-2424
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