“Our heart is wide open to you. There is no restriction in our affections but only in yours. In return—I speak as to children—open wide your hearts also.”

2 Corinthians 6:11-13

For over 180 years, First Presbyterian Church has sought to live with wide open hearts. Open to one another, to all who come through our doors, to our community, and to the world. And while we have not always opened our hearts as wide as Christ would have us open them, in our striving to do so, we constantly challenge ourselves to follow ever more closely the open-hearted way of Christ. The way of love, compassion, and the sacrificial giving of ourselves to God and to our neighbors. 

Each year, we are reminded that the Biblical definition of tithing is to give 10% of our income to God’s church. While all of us may not be able to meet this goal, we are all called to give sacrificially; to ask of ourselves, “how can I open my heart even wider?” This may mean increasing your giving or pledging for the first time. Whatever your decision, we pray that your heart will be filled with joy as you prayerfully consider your pledge for 2026.

We invite you to join us on Sunday, November 9 as we bring our pledge cards forward during worship. You may also submit your pledges via your Realm account, by emailing our financial administrator Christi Yenser, or by mailing them to the church office.

Grace and Peace,

The Session of First Presbyterian Church 

“Live Into Hope”

If you were not here on Sunday for worship and for the Fall Festival you missed an incredible day! Reformation Sunday brought the rousing sounds of the bagpipes and liturgy from some of the reformers whose faithful courage led to the eventual formation of the Presbyterian Church. Our second new member class was well-attended and our lesson, Presbyterian 101, fit well on Reformation Sunday as we discussed the history of the church, our reformed theology, and how we are ordered. Later in the afternoon came the Fall Festival. So many of you volunteered to plan, prepare, cook, help with games, set up, break down, and reach out to new people. We opened wide our hearts to our community. It was truly a blessing to see so many new faces being welcomed into our church and greeted with the love and warmth this church is known for.

I would be remiss if I did not thank Annette Hull, Betsy Porter, and the Faith Formation and Evangelism committees for all the hard work they put into making the Fall Festival come together. Behind all the time and energy these volunteers gave was love for this congregation and our community. I often say that this is a special congregation. Not perfect, of course, but special in its striving to love and care for one another and for our community. This is a blessing from God and like all blessings we are given, is meant to be freely shared. God does not want us to keep our love and compassion to ourselves. God wants us to share it like Jesus shared with the world. To live with open hearts that, as I mentioned on Sunday, break at all the suffering and need in the world.

When we think about allowing our hearts to be broken, we might think of hopelessness, deep sadness, and the paralyzing effects these can have on us. But that is not what it means for Christians to allow our hearts to be broken. When we allow our hearts to be broken, we trust, as the story of the rabbi I shared in worship claims, that God’s word will fall inside. And God’s word is a word of steadfast love, compassion, hope, grace, and love.

Therefore, when this word falls into our broken hearts, we do not descend into despair, but instead, rise up in hope. Hope for a world where wounds are healed, where divisiveness gives way to unity, where love defeats hatred, and, as small as it may seem, where all might be welcomed in their favorite costume to enjoy a hot dog, boundless candy, and to try their luck at the cake walk. Broken hearts filled with God’s word allow us to see hope and beauty in the world. They allow us to rejoice in the “small” things: friends laughing while grilling hot dogs, kids running around in sugar-fueled delight, even the holy mess of popcorn strewn about the hallways of the church that bear witness to the joy that filled them the night before.

Opening wide our hearts and allowing them to be broken is not about absorbing all of the pain in the world, only God can do that. It is about letting all of God’s word enter into them. And underneath all the honest ups and downs that we read about in our scriptures, the true-life stories shared throughout the Bible, the honesty with which it talks about suffering, pain, and sinfulness, there is hope. Hope rooted in God’s love that through it all, never wavers and never leaves us. There is great risk in living with this hope. But we can look at our history and at the reformers, who lived under constant threat, and see the power of this hope to change the world. Therefore, let us be bold to live with the courageous hope that comes from opening our hearts to love the world that Jesus gave his life to save. 

Grace and Peace,

Will

Faith Formation News

DEADLINE TO REGISTER FOR BASKETBALL IS

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 31ST!!

VISIT THE CHURCH WEBSITE OR

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER.

The Cherub Choir for pre-school and younger elementary children will sing during 11:00 a.m. worship on November 9th. The final rehearsal will take place during Sunday School on November 2nd. Children should plan to gather in the children’s choir room at 10:45 a.m. on the morning of November 9th. 

The Young Ladies' Ensemble will sing "An Irish Blessing" during 11:00 a.m. worship on November 23rd. We will rehearse this song (as well as an Advent selection to be sung for services on December 7 and 14) in the Children's Music Room at 10:00 a.m. on the following dates: November 2, November 9, November 16, and November 23.

FPC Greer Financial Summary

Year to Date Actual Income

as of 09/30/2025 = $630,174.00

Year to Date Budgeted Income

as of 09/30/2025 = $662,602.00

Variance = (-$32,428.00)

Stock Donations - A "Tax-Wise" Way to Support the Church

If you plan to contribute a stock gift to the church between now and the end of the year, please reach out to our financial administrator, Christi Yenser, so that she can collect all of the needed information from you. If you have questions about donating stock to the church, Christi is happy to help. You can email Christi at christiy@fpcgreer.org or call the church office.

Thank you for your generous support of the

mission and ministry of FPC Greer!

Mission and Outreach News

Thank you for all of the ways this congregation supports the Backpack Buddies Pantry. As food costs rise, the need is ever greater and this important ministry of our congregation would not be possible without your help. 

We are currently providing weekend food for 71 students at Dunbar Child Development Center and Greer Middle. This adds up to 852 items each week going out of the pantry. We invite you to set up recurring donations through our Amazon wishlist that are shipped directly to the church.

Click HERE to shop the pantry wishlist.

You can also shop for items at the grocery store and bring them to the church. Needed items include applesauce and pudding cups, pop tarts, juice boxes, soups, small cans of vegetables and pasta entrees, individual snacks, and packets of grits and oatmeal.

Upcoming Fellowship Opportunities

Diana Babineau

Chris Castello

Beverly House

Arnette Johnson

Carol & John McClimon

We extend Christian sympathy to Angela May and family following the death of Angela’s mother, Alice Crosby, who passed away in Tallahassee, FL on October 20th. 

Dear FPCG Family,

For nearly 25 years, it has been our good fortune to worship and serve alongside you in this special place. We can never thank you adequately for the love and support you have given to our family over these years. You made us better parents and better people. You helped us raise our daughters in a loving and nurturing church. You loved us and prayed for us when our parents passed away. With every step we took during our time in Greer, you were on that journey with us. Your friendship, laughter, mission work, support, and love have had a profound impact on our lives. We were blessed to grow up in wonderful churches. This has been our second church home and so many wonderful memories have been made here. May God continue to bless this truly wonderful place. Thank you for welcoming us from day one and loving us until our departure. We look forward to our paths crossing again soon. When you are in the Lake Murray/Chapin area, look us up and visit — there's a good chance you will get to meet those grandkids we couldn’t wait to get closer to. 

Blessings to you all,

Christy & Ed Driggers

To My Church Family,

Thank you for your faithful care and concern for me. The cards, calls, meals, and rides to appointments mean so much and I am truly grateful for the support of my church family.

Sincerely,

Cindy Moore

Click HERE to View the Latest Church Photos!

The next issue of First News is November 18. If you have content for the newsletter, please email it to Lisa Johnson at lisaj@fpcgreer.org by Monday, November 17.