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In this week's Family News (Scroll to Learn More):
- What Will Emerge from CONVERGE?
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On the Way in April and May: Email Lee to Participate!
- Music Celebration Sunday THIS Sunday!
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Cinco De Mayo Party on May 5: Register Here
- Have you seen the NEW website?
- Community and State Mission Offering
- Mercy Bags Available Now
- Nursery Volunteers Needed!
- Senior Adult Picnic Save the Date
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Baby Finn Is Here, Meal Train for the Blackwells: Sign Up Here
- Special Guest Amanda Tyler on Pentecost Sunday
- Women of the Church Retreat Save the Date
- Summer Worship Series
- Prayer List, Sympathy, and Celebrations
- Financial Update
- Minister On Call Schedule
- Staff Contact Info
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What Will Emerge from CONVERGE?
by Dennis W. Foust, Senior Minister
You did it! You made the commitment to participate in CONVERGE ‘24 and you showed up.
As Elizabeth Peacock Miller (didn’t she do a splendid job as coordinator?) mentioned last Sunday, ‘more than 75 church members had a hand in creating CONVERGE.’ Then hundreds of you contributed to twelve conversations around tables last Sunday in Broach Hall. The breakfast was scrumptious and the spirit of the day was splendid! As one deeply committed member of the diaconate said to me later, “Now the work begins.” He is right. This important information will be compiled and processed by the Church Council, Deacon Panels, and Resource Teams. Directional alternatives will be considered and identified. At some future date (yet to be determined), a report will be presented with some recommendations for adoption by the congregation.
Important decisions will be made in the next few months. Please pray for clarity and courage.
As senior minister, please know that I am excited about the future of St. John’s. We have more young members now and more children involved in our ministries than we have known for the past twenty years. We also have wise, experienced leaders who are creative and open to new approaches.
Let us be proud of our heritage that offers us an identity founded upon missional service, progressive theology, ecumenical partnerships, and Baptist principles. And let us embrace the opportunities of the future with active faith, deep trust, and commitment to a shared vision that will emerge from CONVERGE!
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On the Way for April & May
Please Email Lee Gray at LGray@sjcharlotte.org to sign up to participate in either or both of these outings.
3 SPOTS LEFT FOR THIS FRIDAY, APRIL 26!
This Friday, April 26 we will go to lunch at Gary’s Bar-B-Cue in China Grove, NC. We have a bus that will hold 15 people and only 3 spots left! We will meet at the church at 10:15am to leave by 10:30am sharp, returning between 3:00 & 3:15pm. On this day, you just need to bring your own lunch money and ice cream money. If you want to go, this is your last chance. Let Lee know today!
On Thursday, May 16 we will go to the Flat Rock Playhouse to see “Jersey Boys,” the story of Frankie Valli and the 4 Seasons for the 2:00pm show. We have a 15 passenger Bus and 15 tickets reserved. Please meet at the church at 9:00am so that we can leave by 9:15am. We will return to Charlotte around 5:30pm that evening. Please bring your lunch money and a check for $70 made out to St. John’s to cover the cost of your ticket and bus rental.
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Music Celebration Sunday
THIS SUNDAY, April 28
April 28 is Music Celebration Sunday! Come hear the choir sing lots of music, along with instrumental and solo vocal selections, as well as an appearance by our Children’s Choir. This will be a celebration of our Music Ministry for this year.
Please see the new exhibit "Celebrating Music at St. John's" in conjunction with Celebration Music Sunday from our Heritage Room team.
We hope you will celebrate with us!
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It’s Nacho Ordinary Party!
Let’s celebrate Cinco de Mayo at Independence Park immediately following worship on May 5th! Sabor Latin Street Grill will cater the taco bar. You bring your favorite festive dessert and an appetite for food and fun!
The cost is only $10 per person. Sign up by May 1.
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Have you noticed our NEW website?
A few weeks ago, we made our new website live! Since then, we have been working with the team at Savvy Pioneer, who designed and built the site with our direction, to work out any glitches and errors. This phase can be tedious but it is worth it!
Savvy Pioneer is a marketing agency local to Charlotte whom we have had the great privilege of working with for the past year to get to this point of launching a new website for our church.
At this point, we feel thrilled to present our new site to you!
It features updated language, colors, our new logo, photography that captures the spirit of St. John's, and helpful resources for visitors to our site. Overall, it looks fresh and alive.
We wanted those who might be looking for a new church experience to be able to navigate the site with ease and learn exactly who we are as a community of faith. We are continuously working on making sure our site shows up for folks in Charlotte looking for a new church to call home.
In the meantime, please peruse each aspect of the new website. If you see anything that doesn't look quite right or a link that seems broken, send an email to Mallory Brown and she will take a look.
Thank you for your patience with us as we worked on this project. Thank you to our Media and Messaging Resource Team for their diligence and insight into each aspect of this project. Thank you to Ann, Rebecca, and Steve from Savvy Pioneer for their amazing work and expertise.
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2024 Community and State Mission Offering
This year, our Mission Resource Team has chosen to invest the first $5,000 given toward our Community & State Mission Offering in the important community effort being initiated in rural North Carolina with Anna and LaCount Anderson. Conetoe is a rural community with a population of 294 in Edgecombe County. The Andersons will be with us in worship on Sunday, May 5, to help us better understand how our financial gifts will help transform one rural community. Please make plans to be present and participate in our Community & State Mission Offering. You may give online through Realm or by cash/check in an offering envelope.
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Mercy Bags Available Now
Offering Hope to Our Neighbors
You will find mercy bags in the Main Entrance and in outside Kheresa’s office. We invite you to please take a few bags, keep them in your car, and the next time you see another child of God standing on a street corner with a sign that reads, “Please help,” help. Roll down your window and offer hope and mercy in a bag.
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Nursery Volunteers Needed for April 28
Ministering with our youngest friends on Sunday mornings
We MUST have 2 additional volunteers to serve with our nursery (infants - 2 years of age) during Sunday school and worship (9:15 a.m. - 11:30 a.m.) on Sunday, April 28. One volunteer is not enough to care for our children.
Please contact Kheresa immediately to help.
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Senior Adult Picnic Save the Date
Sunday, June 23 in Broach Hall
Senior Adults (75+), save the date of Sunday, June 23rd for the annual Seniors' Picnic held in Broach Hall immediately after the worship service. Details coming soon! Sponsored by Women of the Church.
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Provide a Meal or Gift Card for the Blackwells
Welcoming Baby Finn!
Interested in sending Haley and Austin a meal as they begin this parenthood journey?
Please see this link below to access the Meal Train set up to support the Blackwell family. Both Haley and Austin will appreciate your loving care with meals, gift cards and prayers as they care for Finn and themselves in the days ahead.
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Special Guest on Sunday, May 19-Pentecost Sunday
by Dennis W. Foust, Senior Minister
For the past several years, we have expressed our worship on Pentecost Sunday with our sisters and brothers of the Together in Christ International Ministries community. We have invited them to be with us again this year. We will experience the various languages recognized in the Acts 2 record of the Pentecost encounter in Jerusalem. Russell Nelson and our Worship Resource Team have planned some additional meaningful moments as well.
We will also welcome Amanda Tyler into The St. John’s Pulpit on Pentecost Sunday. Amanda is executive director of BJC (Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty), in Washington, DC. Since 1936, this organization has been the leading voice for the historic Baptist principle of religious liberty: defending the free exercise of religion and protecting against its establishment by government.
Amanda Tyler’s message title for Pentecost Sunday is ‘Holy Pluralism.’ Based on Acts 2:1-21.
Amanda is also the lead organizer of BJC’s Christians Against Christian Nationalism campaign and co-host of BJC’s Respecting Religion podcast. She is author of How to End Christian Nationalism, which will be published by Broadleaf Books on October 22, 2024. The book is available for pre-order now.
Tyler’s constitutional law analysis and advocacy for faith freedom for all have been featured by major news outlets. Religion News Service named Tyler one of “2022’s rising stars in religion.” In addition to preaching in Baptist churches, she speaks at denominational gatherings, and leads sessions on college campuses and with community groups of all sizes.
A member of the Texas and U.S. Supreme Court Bar, Tyler has experience working in Congress, in a private legal practice, and serving as a law clerk for a federal judge. She testified before Congress in 2023 on the threats of Christian nationalism to religious liberty, and her 2022 testimony before Congress discussed the ways Christian nationalism proves cover for white supremacy. In 2018, she appeared before a U.S. Senate Committee to testify about threats to religious liberty around the world.
Originally from Austin, Texas, Tyler grew up hearing about the cherished Baptist principles of religious liberty and the separation of church and state as a member of Highland Park Baptist Church. Because she was committed to these principles, Tyler sought out BJC when she moved to Washington to attend Georgetown University, and she began volunteering in the office.
She graduated from the Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University with a bachelor’s degree in foreign service, magna cum laude. She was hired by BJC to serve as assistant to the general counsel, working closely with Brent Walker, James Dunn, Melissa Rogers, and Holly Hollman. During this time, she wrote columns for Report from the Capital, drafted statements on religious liberty issues, presented educational programs, and coordinated the broad coalition in support of the Religious Land Use.
Tyler left BJC to enroll in The University of Texas School of Law, where she received her J.D. with honors. In 2019, the school named her their “Outstanding Young Alumna.”
Following law school, Tyler worked in private practice and served as a law clerk for a U.S. district court judge in Dallas, Texas. She later joined the staff of U.S. Rep. Lloyd Doggett in Austin and Washington, D.C. In Austin, she served as the congressman’s district director, leading the staff in the development and execution of an outreach agenda for a 7-county congressional district, as well as serving as a spokesperson for his office. She later served as Rep. Doggett’s counsel for the Ways and Means Committee.
Amanda Tyler was named executive director of BJC in 2016, and she began her tenure in January 2017. She lives in Dallas with her husband, Robert Behrendt, and their son.
You can follow her on X: @AmandaTylerBJC. Or you can learn more about Amanda in her BJC staff Q&A.
McLeod Brown Lecture: On the evening of May 19, at 5:00pm, St. John’s own Landis Wade will interview Amanda Tyler in our sanctuary. This presentation is our 2024 McLeod Brown Lecture and will be publicized throughout metro Charlotte. The focus of the evening session is ‘Christian Nationalism and the Threat to Faith and Democracy.’
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Mark your calendars!
God's Tapestry: Woven Together in Power and Purpose
Please save the dates November 1-3 for our annual Women of the Church retreat. We are very glad to tell you that we will be returning to our beautiful mountain spot, the Blowing Rock Conference Center, for a weekend of food, fellowship, laughter, study, and growing together spiritually. Sabrina Gilchrist will be our facilitator for the weekend. Using the theme “God’s Tapestry: Woven Together in Power and Purpose," she will lead us in a study of Mary and Elizabeth, and guide us in learning how we, as a community of women, can affirm each other’s gifts.
Mark your calendar and be ready for more details as the time draws nearer.
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The Kind of Church Our World Needs
A Summer of Worship with St. John’s Baptist Church of Charlotte
June, July & August of 2024
Weavers skillfully combine different materials to craft durable fabrics and baskets. Similarly, the early Christians wove together Jesus' teachings and lifestyle to form loving communities. Embracing God's love and their love for humanity, they established resilient local churches. In today's world, we as a church, aspire to emulate this model, following Jesus' directive to love one another, exploring its implications in our worship and teachings. Our summer worship will consider various ways we can be this kind of church. Our equipping ministers will offer messages to explore practical applications of Jesus’ example of love.
See this summer's preaching schedule below.
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June 9 – A Church of Heartfelt Devotion, by Dr. Dennis Foust
June 16 – A Church that Forgives What Cannot Be Forgotten, by Dr. Dennis Foust
June 23 – A Church of the Vulnerable, by Rev. Kheresa Harmon
June 30 – A Church that Loves in Truth, by Rev. Lee Gray
July 7 – A Church that Models Interdependence, by Dr. Dennis Foust
July 14 – A Church Where Failure is Accepted, by Dr. Dennis Foust
July 21 – A Church that Lifts Up People, by Rev. Lee Gray
July 28 – A Church that Weaves New Clothes, by Dr. Dennis Foust
August 4 – A Church that Embraces Differences, by Dr. Steve Harmon
August 11 – A Church that Really Notices People, by Rev. Lee Gray
August 18 – A Church that Moves the World Forward, by Dr. Dennis Foust
August 25 – A Church that Shapes a People for God, by Dr. Dennis Foust
September 1 – A Church of Beautiful Grace in Action, by Rev. Haley Blackwell
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Prayers, Thanks, and Celebrations
Current Prayer Concerns: Haley, Austin, and Finn Blackwell; Dale Johnson
Continuing Prayer Concerns: Shirley Ballard, Kelly Belcher, Tom Bryson, Mary Rickenbaker, Jack Crymes, Jean Hutson, Betty Mullins, Arnold Philemon, Jane Winn
We express our sympathy to the family and friends of Gail Sifford. Gail passed on ahead of us on Tuesday, April 16. Please remember Gail’s children, Brad Sifford and Stephanie Westhues, in your prayers.
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Staff On-Call Rotation
- April 22-28: Kheresa
- April 29-May 5: Lee
- May 6-12: Russell
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Financial Update
2024 Full Year Budget $1,211,000
Income received through April 20: $311,202
Through March 2024:
Budgeted income: $302,750 (25%)
Actual income received: $245,093 (20%)
Income over (under) budget: $(57,657)
Actual expenses paid: $283,610 (23%)
Income/Expense Surplus (deficit): $(38,517)
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Staff Contact Information
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Rev. Haley Blackwell, Minister for Youth & Young Adults - 704-333,5428, ext. 2013; 620-515-3558 (cell) (ON FAMILY LEAVE)
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Rev. Dennis Foust, PhD, Senior Minister - 704-359-7234 (cell); 704-333-5428, ext. 2012
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Rev. Lee Gray, Minister for Congregational Care - 704-333-5428, ext. 2015; 704-451-1309 (cell)
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Rev. Kheresa Harmon, Minister for Children & their Families - 704-333-5428, ext. 2018; 910-890-3392 (cell)
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Russell Nelson, Minister for Worship & Music - (980) 228-6244 (cell)
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Mallory Brown, Media Coordinator - 704-477-3349 (cell)
- Chloe Hall, Children's Choir Director
- Noel Lance, Organist
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Amanda Morrison, Church Administrator - 704-333-5428, ext. 0
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Lydia Olmsted, Weekday School Director - 704-333-5428, ext. 2039
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