July 8, 2022
Hello FPC Wellness Warriors,
I was looking for a verse to begin this newsletter regarding taking good care of our health, but I couldn’t settle on one. Our healthcare journeys are so personal and verses speak to us in different ways at different times. This winter, Psalm 23 was read at a staff meeting. Despite hearing this so many times over the years, it spoke to me in a new way and provided me comfort in the weeks leading up to my surgery.

Kerry had been encouraging me to write about my experience, which I am happy to share if anyone has questions, but suffice it to say it was eye-opening!! Being a nurse, I thought I was as prepared as I would encourage others to be and would be able to navigate any challenges, but I was not. I neglected to take into account how much the medical system has changed in recent years and also the fact that I wouldn’t exactly feel well! I hope that what I learned through my experience will be helpful.

My two most important lessons were, the need to thoroughly educate ourselves about what we are facing and the importance of having at least one or two advocates on your side. This has become a necessity in our current healthcare system, which is challenged with fragmented care, more complicated treatments and technology, staffing shortages and increased workload for medical staff.

Our advocates, can be an extra set of ears at a doctor appt, a person who is knowledgeable about our health history and concerns and someone who can ask important questions when we might be unable to. Your advocate should be someone you trust and who is comfortable in this role. Our advocates should be in addition to our living will and healthcare power of attorney, not instead of. It is important to have them listed in your charts with all your doctors so that it is easy for them to get information if needed.
 
There are also advocates in the hospitals and in the community whose job it is to help you. The patient advocate I used in the hospital was actually suggested by my surgeon. If you would like more information on resources available in the community, please let me know.
Lastly, don’t be afraid to speak up! We can be good stewards of our health and still be considerate of the hard-working medical staff. It is our God given responsibility to care for our body…our “temple of the Holy Spirit”.
 
Healthy Blessings,
Dawn
Update on Pastoral Care
Please contact Dawn Skelly if you have any pastoral care needs. Dawn’s contact information is [email protected]. Dawn will be regularly checking her emails. During off hours, you can call 484-268-2919, which goes to an email that will be checked on a regular basis. 
There will be an on-call Pastor available for emergencies.  
A TIME FOR EVERY SEASON 
Our pastors notified our congregation of their intent to retire a few months back, and ever since then I (and maybe others) have felt enveloped in a haze. As happy as we are for this new adventure in their lives, I can’t help feeling a little bereft. As a leader of the church, I have wondered and worried as to what will become of us. Will people start to scatter “like chaff before the wind” (Anonymous)? Will we become a church that just dries up and fades away, much like the fate that has befallen other churches in the midst of upheaval? Even though we survived COVID and actually added to our congregation in the midst of it,
will we survive this?
Being the Church This Week

Sunday, July 10
Service of the Lord’s Day 9:30 AM. 
Rev. Anne Confer Martens, preaching.
Workcamp participants leave for Lynchburg, VA                        

Monday, July 11
Troop 146 - 7PM
                                                    
Tuesday, July 12
Yoga – 9AM – Community Room
Staff Meeting – 10:30AM
 
Wednesday, July 13
Yoga – 9AM – Community Room
                                        
Thursday, July 14
Community Meals – 5PM – Fellowship Hall
                                                           
Friday, July 15
Yoga – 9AM – Community Room
 
Saturday, July 16
Workcamp participants return from Lynchburg, VA
Every good gift, every perfect gift, comes from above. These gifts come down from the Father, the creator of the heavenly lights, in whose character there is no change at all.  (James 1:17 CEB) 
 
At FPC Pottstown, we believe that our time, our talents, our earthly treasures are not our own; they are gracious gifts from God. God entrusts them to us, and calls us to use our gifts and our lives to make God's love known in the world.
 
We continue to clothe, feed, educate and uplift one another, and our neighbors in need.  This work requires offerings of time, talent and treasure. Your giving makes that work possible. Thank you!