There will be no nursery on Sunday, November 3. Sunday school and worship care for 3s+ will meet as scheduled. | | |
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In this week's Family News (Scroll to Learn More):
- Dennis's Article
- Continuing to Support Those in the Wake of Hurricane Helene
- Soundboard and Livestream Volunteers Needed
- Happy Birthday!
- NAMI Walks THANK YOU
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Thursdays on the Town: Register here
- Fall Festival Success!
- Renaissance Festival with St. John's Young Adults
- Brotherhood of the Biscuit on November 15
- Basketball Sign Ups
- On the Way for November: Headed to Mama Ricotta's
- Join the Chancel Choir for Advent & Christmas
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Welcoming New Friends Dinner in November: Register for dinner here
- CROP Walk Report
- Friendsgiving Lunch & Thankful Art Party for Children and Families
- Youth News for November
- CBF Regional Gathering on November 21
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Room in the Inn Begins Soon!: Sign up here
- Prayer List, Sympathy, Thanks, and Celebrations
- Financial Update & Hurricane Helene Fund Update
- Minister On Call Schedule
- Staff Contact Info
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REMEMBERING THE REFORMATION
by Dennis W. Foust, Senior Minister
Written for Reformation Day 2024
October 31, 1517, is the date recorded to commemorate the beginning of the Protestant Reformation. In 1945, W. H. Auden penned a poem entitled ‘Luther’ to honor the vision and courage necessary for Martin Luther to speak God’s Truth to power. He speculates that Martin Luther, like all humans, cocks the conscience to hear the sound of thunder. Yet, what Luther heard was the Devil in the wind. Luther’s Christ-shaped conscience listened beyond the noise. Here is Auden’s poem:
LUTHER
With conscience cocked to listen for the thunder
He saw the Devil busy in the wind
Over the chimney steeples and then under
The doors of nuns and doctors who had sinned.
What apparatus could stave off disaster
Or cut the brambles of man’s error down?
Flesh was a silent dog that bites its master,
World a still pond in which its children drown.
The fuse of Judgment spluttered in his head:
“Lord, smoke those honeyed insects from their hives;
All Works and all Societies are bad;
The Just shall live by Faith,” he cried in dread.
And men and women of the world were glad
Who never trembled in their useful lives.
This poem causes me to recall the story of Elijah hiding from the powers seeking to squelch the message of God. In 1 Kings 19, we find this story. I am including it here from The Message:
“A hurricane wind ripped through the mountains and shattered the rocks before God, but God wasn’t to be found in the wind; after the wind an earthquake, but God wasn’t in the
earthquake; and after the earthquake fire, but God wasn’t in the fire; and after the fire a
gentle and quiet whisper.”
Many people refuse to listen to God’s Truth because they do not want to give attention to the ‘gentle and quiet whisper’ of God’s voice amidst all the thunderous shouting and noise of this world. I’m convinced that one reason why many people refuse to participate in a deeper exploration of Jesus’ teachings is their rejection of God’s authoritative role in their living. Therefore, much of what is purported to be ‘spiritual formation,’ ‘Christian education,’ or ‘Bible study’ is watered down and shallow so as to avoid upsetting anyone. It is as if the message of Jesus often has boundaries established by the most immature among us. To quote Bonhoeffer, ‘there is a cost to discipleship.’
God’s Truth revealed in Jesus Christ requires humility and a willingness – no, a desire – to be transformed into the character of Jesus. Hatred, bigotry, prejudice, exclusion, fear, abuse, immorality, blasphemy, idol worship, lying, etc. are never affirmed by Jesus. No rationalizations can silence the gentle and quiet whisper of God. To refuse to listen to this gentle and quiet Voice does not mean God is in the thunder. To ignore the reality that the Christ-shaped conscience recognizes the gentle and quiet whisper of God’s voice is always disobedience – never discipleship.
When Martin Luther allowed his Christ-shaped conscience to hear God’s gentle and quiet whisper, he listened beyond the thunder of his day. The protests resulted in reformations within the Church, still allowing each of us to listen beyond the thunderous noise if we have the vision and courage to do so. Our discipleship unto Jesus makes demands of us whether God’s voice is easy to hear or not. May those who have ears to hear God’s gentle and quiet whisper respond with obedience.
Amen and Shalom!
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Continuing to Support Those in the Wake of Hurricane Helene
As we continue to support those affected by Hurricane Helene, we are asking you to add one or more of these actions to your prayers:
- Giving to Our Designated Fund for Hurricane Relief. We will only distribute our designated funds for disaster relief when we are sure the monies will be used to help legitimate needs. (choose in Realm OR notate in memo on check)
- Connecting Volunteer Teams with Ashe County Short-Term Projects of Clean-up and Chain Saws.
- Provision of Necessary Supplies. (Ex.: current need for flat face shovels -like snow shovels to scoop mud.)
As we respond to the recovery in Western North Carolina, we will offer God’s love in tangible ways. Even the buckets we provide express faithful servanthood as we continue Jesus’ ministry through God’s mission.
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Volunteer on the soundboard and livestream on Sundays!
Do you have talents in the area of tech and video?
Volunteers are needed to help run sound and video live stream during worship on Sunday mornings. If you are interested in training on the system, please contact Russell Nelson.
Email: rnelson@sjcharlotte.org; Call/Text: (980) 228-6244.
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Happy Birthday!
Happy birthday to Mabry Miller on November 3. She is the daughter of Elizabeth Peacock and Steven Miller.
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Thank you for your support of NAMI Walks!
Thank you, St. John's, for your support of NAMI Walks. We had a wonderful team of five walk on Saturday and were able to raise $1,100, exceeding our goal.
Thank you to all those who have contributed to this amazing cause. All money given goes to support NAMI and mental health for ALL!
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Thursdays on the Town: Sign up by TOMORROW!
November 7
Parents of children, ages birth - 5th grade, please join us on Thursday, November 7 (rescheduled date) at 6:00 p.m. at Catalina Kitchen and Bar (1942 East 7th St.). Find their menu here.
Free childcare will be provided.
Please register and reserve childcare by November 1.
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Fall Festival 2024: A great time for all!
On Sunday, October 27, our church spilled out onto the sacred grounds of our Main Entrance parking lot, rolled up our sleeves, set up tables, inflated bounce houses, grilled hotdogs, festively and creatively decorated 17 trunks, made room for a small petting zoo and a face painting station, and welcomed more than 200 guests from the Queen City to our Fall Festival and Trunk-or-Treat!
Thank you to everyone who shared their resources, their support, their time, and their trunks. More than resources, support, time, and trunks were shared. The love of Christ was shared lavishly with children of all ages. This is what the body of Christ is and does. Thank you, St. Johnsians!
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Young Adults Head to the Renaissance Festival
Saturday, November 16
We’re excited to invite the young adults of St. John’s to join us for a fun-filled trip to the Renaissance Festival on Saturday, November 16 from 10:00 AM to 1:00 PM. Let’s meet at the church around 9:30 AM to carpool.
Tickets are $34 for adults and $20 for kids ages 5-12, and the easiest way to grab them is through the Renaissance Festival's website (click below). See you there!
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Brotherhood of the Biscuit
The Brotherhood of the Biscuit will meet again on Friday, November 15 at 6:30 am in the church lounge. Our guest speaker this month will be Norris Frederick and he will share a little about his life, faith, and work as a philosophy professor at Queens University. Please email Lee Gray at LGray@sjcharlotte.org if you plan to join us.
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Basketball Registration
It's time to register for church basketball!
Remember to use the code MEMBER if/when you register your child so that you will receive $50 off of the cost to play. If you know that your child will play you can register them below. (We are currently receiving registrations from people with some connection to the life of the church and those players who have played before.)
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On the Way for November: Mama Ricotta's
Outings for Retired Adults and Friends
Thursday, November 14 – We have reservations for 20 at Mama Ricotta’s Italian Restaurant (601 S. Kings Dr.) at 11:30 am. We will carpool from the church and depart at 11:15 am or you can meet us there. Sometimes parking can be crowded though. Please let LGray@sjcharlotte.org know if you plan to attend by Tuesday, November 12 so final adjustments can be made to our arrangements at Mama Ricotta’s.
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Join the Chancel Choir for Advent & Christmas!
If you would like to make a short-term commitment to the Chancel Choir for our Christmas season, now is the time to join us!
If you can join us on Wednesday nights for all of November and part of December, there’s a place for you. We will present a full service of music on Sunday, December 15.
Please contact Russell Nelson if you are interested or have questions.
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Welcoming New Friends
Building relationships with newly arrived individuals and families from other countries and cultures by becoming a Fruitful Friend
We invite you to join us for “Welcoming New Friends” on Wednesday, November 13 from 5:30 PM – 7:00 PM in Broach Hall. We will share a buffet meal, followed by a program that focuses on the work of Refugee Support Services and their Fruitful Friends program. Fruitful Friends pairs volunteers with RSS program participants to build friendships, share cultures, and provide support. Sharing experiences, information and insights with us will be Pamela Dellinger and Esther Schmidt from Refugee Support Services.
Make dinner reservations by noon on Friday, November 8.
$15/person or $36/household
Must pay for dinner AT THE DOOR by cash or check.
Register on Realm or contact Amanda Morrison in the office at amorrison@sjcharlotte.org or 704-333-5428, ext. 0. No reservation needed for program only, which begins at 6:00PM.
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Congratulations St. John's for our fantastic 2024 CROP Hunger Walk success! We had 18 Walkers and raised $10,327, doubling our goal!
All of your funds will go directly to support people in need in the U.S. and around the globe providing hunger relief, disaster assistance, refugee support, clean water, sanitary latrines, medical clinics, and many other support programs.
If you have funds which have not yet been submitted please contact James Laney or Debbie Pittman.
The citywide CROP Hunger Walk will collect funds for a few more months, and we currently have about $140,000 out of a goal of $200,000.
Thanks for your continuing support of the Charlotte CROP Hunger Walk!
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Friendsgiving Lunch & Thankful Art Party
Sunday, November 17
All children and their families are invited to bring their favorite sweet or savory pie and artistic skills to Broach Hall immediately following worship on Sunday, November 17, where we will join Cindy Osborne for a Friendsgiving Lunch and Thankful Art Party.
Cindy, a retired art teacher, will guide our children and their families to create a harvest printmaking project using paints and vegetables for printing.
Our event is free, but registration is required. Please register by Thursday, November 14.
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Youth News for this Month
This Sunday night, all youth are invited to SNL starting at 5pm. Anna Cushman is coming to speak about her work with immigration law and will debunk some myths about immigration.
See the rest of November's schedule in the graphic above.
We will also make hygiene kits together. Please use the button below to sign up!
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Room in the Inn Begins in December!
For the 2024-25 season, St. John's and our partners at Caldwell Presbyterian Church will again jointly host 8 homeless neighbors vetted by Roof Above within the Room in the Inn (RITI) program on TEN Friday/Saturday nights.
Caldwell volunteers (plus van drivers from St. John's) will host at Caldwell on the third Saturday night of December through March while St. John's volunteers will host on the second and fourth Fridays of those months at St. John's.
RITI hosting at St. John's will begin on Friday, December 27 and runs through Friday, March 14, 2025. Just as information, St. John's members are needed to drive our van for BOTH churches on all TEN hosting nights and the following mornings. The signup list below includes van driver signups for ALL TEN hosting nights and the following mornings.
Please contact Dale Johnson at 704-454-8931 or Alice Wirz at 704-222-6208 if you have any questions on any of these tasks.
Thank you for your support for Room in the Inn at St. John's!
If you would like to go ahead and sign up, please do so below.
Dates for this season:
- 12/27/24
- 1/10/25
- 1/24/25
- 2/14/25
- 2/28/25
- 3/14/25
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Prayers, Thanks, and Celebrations
Current Prayer Concerns: Shirley Ballard, Pauline Funderburk, Arnold Philemon, Anne Sutton
Continuing Prayer:Tom Bryson, Kathleen Bumgardner, Carolyn Hall, Mary Rickenbaker, Jeck Warren
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Financial Update
2024 Full Year Budget: $1,211,000
Income Received Through October 28: $897,220 (74%)
Through September:
Budgeted income: $908,250 (75%)
Annual income received: $800,453 (66%)
Income over (under) budget: ($107,797)
Actual expenses paid: $871,642 (72%)
Income/expense surplus (deficit): ($71,189)
Western North Carolina Disaster Relief Fund
Received through October 28: $12,865
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Staff On-Call Rotation
- October 28-November 3: Dennis
- November 4-10: Russell
- November 11-17: Lee
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Staff Contact Information
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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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