Moment of Prayer
All loving God, our hearts are broken with pain at the senseless deaths caused by gun violence. Our Families mourn, people are retreating in fear, and some in our nation respond by arming themselves with more weapons.
Grant us the ability to root ourselves in your unending love. Heal our brokenness, and turn us away from violence toward peace. Help us to transform our own hearts and to seek peaceful ways of resolving our differences.
Let our hands reach out to those who feel alone, those who live in fear, and those suffering from mental illness.
Let our voices mirror that of the prophets who demanded justice while proclaiming your hope and transformation.
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Presbytery Leader & Stated Clerk |
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Second Sunday of Easter
April 11, 2021
Virtual Worship Service
Created for Foothills Presbytery Worshipping Communities
Thank you to the Antiracism Ministry Team, Committee on Shared Ministry, Music Ministry Peer Group, the Worship Committee, and Presbytery staff.
A special thank you to the congregation of Mattoon Presbyterian for their hospitality and use of
their sanctuary for filming the service.
The worship service is 48 minutes long and can be accessed through the following methods:
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It is available on the Foothills Presbytery YouTube channel through a YouTube link sent to pastors, staff, and churches this morning. Please note that the service is not public on the YouTube channel. It can only be accessed through the link we shared.
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The worship service is also available in audio form and it may be downloaded as an MP3 file. This format may be best for congregations who are worshipping through conference call settings.
The recording of the worship service includes all the liturgy and hymn texts. We have also created a worship bulletin for your use. The bulletin is in a pdf format. If you need a bulletin in word format, please contact our office, 864-288-5774.
For questions, please contact the Rev. Pressley Cox at [email protected] or 864-288-5774.
If your church did not receive the worship service links, please contact our office at 864-288-5774 or [email protected].
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Foothills Presbytery is offering two different 5-week Cohorts.
- Each cohort of 8-10 participants will meet for 5 weeks during April-May to explore how to lead in a post-quarantine ministry setting. Cohorts will determine the best day and time for meetings.
- The experience will also include 1:1 coaching with Ministry Architects.
- Each participant will come away with an individualized plan based on their ministry setting. The plans may include virtual, in-person, or hybrid worship as well as educational components.
The total cost of this Continuing Education Cohort is $430 per person. Recognizing the financial burdens that some churches are facing at this time, Foothills Presbytery is pleased to offer investment option pricing for those interested.
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Our next
Pastors Forum
to check-in and support each other
(via Zoom) is
Monday, May 3, at 2 pm
We will center our time in prayer, check-in with each other, share ideas and connect resources.
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New Covid Resource:
Covid 19 So how does the vaccine inform our next steps? (and other "Why can't we throw open the doors of the sanctuary" questions)
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South Carolina Presbyterian Disaster Assistance Team
we will have a 30-minute educational webinar offered twice. Join us at 12 or 4 pm.
Monday, April 26
at
12 pm or 4 pm
These webinars will also explain how your congregation can use the Disaster Preparedness Plan in your context.
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PCSC Ambassador Meeting
Presbyterian Communities of South Carolina invites Ambassadors and Pastors to attend one of our annual Ambassador Meetings. Due to the ongoing pandemic, the Ambassador Meetings will take place via ZOOM. This meeting will provide an overview of our redesigned digital Mother’s Day Offering materials and reports on PCSC’s ministry to older adults from the CEO and the Director of Church Relations.
Foothills Presbytery
Wednesday, April 7 at 10:00 am
*If you are not able to attend your Presbytery’s meeting, please feel free to register for another meeting.
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Are you looking for great RESOURCES for LENT
that are suitable for
faith formation of all ages?
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Lent for Children
(Of All Ages!)
Visit the Foothills Website for a new Interactive Lent Garden each week.
Your journey through the Lent Garden each week will include: daily Bible readings and prayers, videos from church leaders, garden musings and ideas, hymns and songs, labyrinth visits, craft ideas and even recipes to try at home.
If you’d like to receive more information about this resource, please email Pressley Cox, Associate for Shared Mission and Ministry, at [email protected]
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The next
Zoom gathering of the
Western Region pastors and CREs is
April 5 at 9:00 am
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The next
Youth Roundtable
is
12:00 - 1:30 pm
Tuesday, April 13
by Zoom
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The next gathering of Foothills
MUSIC MINISTRY LEADER’S
is
9:00 am
Wednesday, April 14
by Zoom
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The next Zoom
Educator's Gathering
is
11:00 am
Thursday, April 15
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Look who made the cover of Presbyterians Today! |
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Easter Hope is Blooming
After a full year, “pandemic fatigue” has left lots of us feeling more than defeated. If we ever needed a good measure of Easter hope, it is now. In 2020, many churches took their message of “He is risen!” outdoors. This year, Presbyterians are continuing their public witness of hope with a beautiful practice that invites community participation in a safe way: the flowering of the cross. In the March/April issue of Presbyterians Today, we check in with several churches around the country and share their Easter worship traditions.
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We are excited to share our 2021 Summer Camp schedule AND limited Camperships are also available!
The Committee on Shared Ministry is pleased to offer campership assistance to the first 30 campers to register who are members of Foothills Presbytery Churches.
During the online registration processes, you will be asked to identify as a member of Foothills and list your congregation. Applying the code FOOTHILLS25 will request the $25 campership be approved for your account. (Please contact [email protected] for questions or assistance.)
If you have already registered for camp, please contact [email protected] to help credit your account.
We have additional, limited scholarships for summer camp at Camp Fellowship available through Foothills Presbytery.
The deadline is April 19, 2021.
Applicants will be notified of Scholarships awarded by May 1.
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Available Jobs
postings on our
website.
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Registration Deadlines
This year, early registration is open through March 31st. On-time registration begins on April 1st and lasts up until the conference begins. There is no late registration period.
COVID-19 Safety Precautions
PAM is committed to offering a safe, in-person option as well as an online option for participating in the conference. Visit our special Covid Protocols webpage to learn more about our commitment to your health and safety as we look forward to worshipping together this summer.
Visit the PAM Website to Learn More!
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A Conversation About Easter and Passover with YDS Professor Joel Baden and Berkeley Divinity School Dean Andrew McGowan
The spring holidays of Passover and Easter have been intertwined since the earliest periods of Christianity. Each represents the defining event of Judaism and Christianity, respectively: the Exodus from Egypt and the resurrection of Jesus.
YDS Professor Joel Baden and Berkeley Divinity School Dean the Rev. Dr. Andrew McGowan have created a 4-week Yale Bible Study on the biblical origins of the two holidays. We encourage you to take advantage of this free study in the weeks approaching Passover and Easter, and then join them for a webinar on Tuesday, April 13 at 12:00 pm where they will discuss how Easter originated from Passover and how these observances have changed over the centuries. Don’t miss this opportunity to ask the experts your questions about the relationship between these ancient holidays. The webinar is offered free of charge and questions can be submitted in advance to Megan Lukens.
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Leading the Church into the Post COVID World
Tuesday, April 27, 2021, Eastern time
3:00 - 4:30 pm
via ZOOM
Rev. Dr. Tod Bolsinger
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Presenter: Tod Bolsinger (MDiv, PhD), Associate Professor of Leadership Formation at Fuller Theological Seminary, author of Canoeing the Mountains and Tempered Resilience.
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May 17-21, 2021
At the 2021 Festival of Homiletics, you’ll hear respected and thoughtful speakers present on the theme: Preaching for the Future Church.
But to get the most out of the Festival of Homiletics, purchase the recordings for full access to on-demand content you can view anytime:
- All sessions in audio and video formats
- Live workshops
- Bonus sermons and lectures from top speakers
- Private social networking with other pastors and leaders
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YDS Summer Study - Online in 2021
The Center for Continuing Education at Yale Divinity School is pleased to announce that the Summer Study program will be online this year! Taught by renowned YDS faculty, Summer Study offers an opportunity to immerse yourself in courses essential to practical church ministry and personal enrichment. Courses will meet Monday - Friday via Zoom, at either 9:00-11:30am or 1:30-4:00pm. Don’t miss Professor Almeda Wright’s course on “Developing a Faithful Generation” in the afternoon sessions!
Optional activities include daily worship; a keynote address - Five Decades of YDS, by David Kelsey, Luther A. Weigle Professor Emeritus of Theology, on Tuesday, June 8; and Andover Newton at Yale Founding Dean Sarah Drummond will offer a workshop, Leading Change - Three Schools of Thought, on Wednesday, June 9.
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Who are our teachers?
The Psalmist says, “God from my youth, you have taught me…” Psalm 71:17. But it could have also said, “God from the youth, you have taught me” and stated something almost as true. With a foundation in faith built in the early years, our youth can teach us something about leading movements for change in their own communities and in the world.
Who are these young teachers
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Langley Hoyt, former Young Adult Volunteer (YAV), whose year as a YAV at the Office of Public Witness (OPW) reinforced the importance of her faith. She continues to discern how she wants “to live and be in the world,” particularly in the light of the PC(USA)’s Matthew 25 invitation to “build congregational vitality, dismantle structural racism and eradicate systemic poverty.” She is pursuing ordained ministry in the PC(USA).
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A NEW EARTH:
THINKING THEOLOGICALLY ABOUT
ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE
Sunday, June 13-Sunday, June 27, 2021
What does it mean to care for creation?
Are Christians called to respond to climate change?
Is it possible to live sustainably for the benefit of future generations?
Theologically curious high school students are invited to apply before January 1, 2021 for the 2021 Lux Summer Theological Institute. Safety permitting, the program will be held in-person at Presbyterian-related Monmouth College (Monmouth, IL).
Funded by the Lilly Endowment, the Lux Institute is an opportunity for students to engage with a topic of global importance and participate in a living-learning community through study, worship, service, recreation, and vocational exploration.
Scholarships are available to cover all program expenses for the two-week program, with the exception of travel.
A free shuttle to/from Chicago airports is provided.
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Faith formation can't happen if children and youth are spending just one hour a week at church - or much less these days, so what are the barriers families encounter when trying to establish faith practices at home?
The Rev. Traci Smith, author of Faithful Families, joins us on May 5 at 12:00pm to present the fundamentals of developing faithful family practices and outline the role that ministry leaders play in encouraging and supporting families. Discover how to help parents feel confident and well equipped as they nurture their children's faith development, at every age. We'll also spend time in an "Idea Lab" learning and sharing in small groups and we'll wrap up the webinar with Q&A.
Now is the perfect time for families to develop real habits and practices of faith at home. Following the webinar, participants will receive links to several short videos and outlines of spiritual practices that you can share with your congregation.
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Blue Hymn Books
FREE to a good home!
Fountain Inn church has about 70 of the blue hymnals boxed and ready to be taken or sent to a new home. These are the blue books “The Presbyterian Hymnal” printed in 1990.
Please contact the Fountain Inn church office at (864) 862-3341 if you have questions or are interested in the hymnals.
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For those who have already taken our Mediation Skills Training Institute (MSTI), we are pleased to offer a new one-day event: the MSTI Refresher Course!
Sessions are available on Tuesday, May 11 and Saturday, June 12. The fee is $99, and the event runs from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm Central Time. The full five-day version of MSTI is also available on May 3-7, June 21-25, August 2-6, October 11-15, and November 15-19, 2021. The session in August will include the option for in-person attendance in the Chicago area. Registration for all events being offered by the Lombard Mennonite Peace Center is open now at www.LMPeaceCenter.org/ticketspice/.
Questions? Please consult the attached MSTI Brochure, call 630-627-0507, or send an email to [email protected].
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John 3:22-36
by: The Rev. Dr. Christie Sweeny Gravely ’16
Can’t you hear the resentment and envy in the words of John’s followers: “But John, everyone is now going to him”? To them, Jesus’ building popularity posed a threat to John’s ministry. So it was entirely natural for them to ask, “What about Jesus, Master? He is baptizing. He has taken a page from your book; he is using your method—and everyone is going to him!”
But what an astonishing reply they get back from faithful John. When other men would have found some subtle way to express their envy, John says, “It was all the Lord’s doing. The Lord called me to this ministry. But I am merely the forerunner to this Jesus. He is the Lamb of God who will take away the sins of the world. The age of the Messiah is dawning over the world.”
This situation, where crowds are flocking to Jesus, was only the beginning. John knew that it must continue to be like that until everyone was with Jesus and no one was left with John himself. “Jesus must increase, I must decrease.” Read More
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Mark your Calendars for these Upcoming Events |
March
25 Committee on Preparation for Ministry meeting
28 Fourth's Pellett-Wearn Lecture Series
29 Foothills Presbytery Staff Meeting
April
1 (COM) Committee on Ministry meeting
11 Sunday after Easter Online Worship Service
12 Personnel Committee meeting (zoom)
13 Youth Leaders Roundtable
14 Music Ministry Leaders meeting
15 Children's Educator Gathering and Examinations Commission meeting
May 15, 2021
Nov 9, 2021
9:00 am - 2:00 pm Foothills Presbytery Stated Meeting # 118
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