Worship from June 22

PRAYER IN PREPARATION FOR WORSHIP:  God of refreshment:  call us from the concerns of our daily lives to be nourished anew by your presence, that we may live faithfully as sisters and brothers in your church and as servants in your world.  May our service drive us to worship and our worship empower us for service; through Christ, our risen Savior.  Amen.

CALL TO WORSHIP (Adapted from Psalm 72:18-19)

Leader:        Praise be to the Lord God, the God of Israel.

People:       Who alone does marvelous deeds.

Leader:        Praise be to God’s glorious name forever;

People:       May the whole earth be filled with God’s glory.

Leader:        Let us worship our glorious God.

PRAYER OF CONFESSION

Lord, after all of the ways we have dreamed up to hurt You, it would serve us right if You would not want to have anything to do with us.  You should have left us to destroy ourselves and each other.  We thank You Lord that You did not give us what we deserve.  We thank You that Your love for us has never waned.  Give us a clear understanding for all the things that You have had to forgive in us and help us to respond to Your call to us with gratitude and love.  Thank You for loving us and for coming after us when we ran from You.  In Jesus name we pray, Amen.

Click here for the sermon "Winston and Chuck (Part 1)"

The Boyds' Ordination

In 2010, David and Jill Boyd began to sense that God had big changes in store for them. They were beginning to feel that God might be calling them to serve God in a new way:  they began to explore that call by enrolling in evening classes at Eden Seminary. That led them to apply to Austin Seminary, one of our fine PCUSA seminaries. 

In 2011, they uprooted their lives and moved to Austin, Texas to began the course of study that would prepare them to serve as Teaching Elders in the Presbyterian Church U. S. A.. Three years later, after graduating at the top of their class, they have been called to serve as co-pastors in Gothenburg, Nebraska. 

As they walked this long path, St. Mark Presbyterian has been privileged to walk with them, supporting them in a variety of ways. Because of that, we have been granted the honor of hosting their Service of Ordination. It will be Sunday, June 29^th at 3:00 pm. They would love to have you there for this important step in their lives. Please join us and them.

 

For more about the Boyds and their journey, click here.

#TBT: Work Trip Darien Georgia 1994

 Under the leadership of Jim Kinder, Ed Perantoni and Sally Dougherty, the Senior High Fellowship of St. Mark Presbyterian went to Darien, Georgia.  This was a unique experience in that once the students got there the group was broken up and assigned to work with students from all over.

 The students had a talent show.  Jim Kinder reports he still has the T-shirt with the logo between the St. Mark "talent" below.  He also recalls attending a dinner on the last night provided by one of the locals of a crayfish boil.  Some of the girls who attended were:  C. Prentis, R. Morgan, K. Dougherty, S. Sherman, M. Dehls, S. Bach, M. Johnson, M. Rozell, S. Hatfield, T. Connelly and J. Dehls  Some of the boys were M. Peters, C. Dundon, J. Dauve, M. Drake, J. Krob

Let's remember our youth who are currently on a work trip in Mobile, Alabama. Click here for a prayer for travelers.

New Work Day

St. Mark Presbyterian's Shelter Committee has another work day scheduled.  We are going to work with Beyond Housing on Saturday, June 28.  In the past we have laid flooring, installed fencing, cleaned up brush from yards and general cleaning.  No special skills are necessary, only a willing heart to serve.

Please contact G. Knopf or S. Collier as we need to let Beyond Housing know how many volunteers we will have on this day.  This helps them determine the job we will be assigned.  A typical work day lasts from 8 to 4.

Ecclesiastes

3 There is a time for everything,
    and everything on earth has its special season.
² There is a time to be born
    and a time to die.
There is a time to plant
    and a time to pull up plants.
³ There is a time to kill
    and a time to heal.
There is a time to destroy
    and a time to build.

Food for the Mature, Part 2

PRAYER IN PREPARATION FOR WORSHIP:  God of yesterday and of tomorrow:  Always you startle us into new understandings just when we think we have it all sorted out.  Startle us again.  Break open our preconceptions and confound our pat answers, that we might be gifted with new vision.  Praise be to you, Surprising One.

CALL TO WORSHIP (Adapted from Psalm 103:10-13)

Leader:      God does not treat us as our sins deserve;

People:      or repay us according to our iniquities.

Leader:      For as high as the heavens are above the earth,

People:      so great is His love for those that revere Him.

Leader:      As a father has compassion on his children,

People:      so the Lord has compassion on those who revere Him.

Leader:      Let us worship the God who loves us like a father.

PRAYER OF THANKSGIVING

Lord, on this day when we honor fathers, we want to thank You for the many good fathers that You have given to us.  For fathers who trained us to know and love You, we thank You.  For fathers who gave of themselves to provide for our needs as You have done, we thank You.  For fathers who saw us through difficult times in our lives, we thank You.  For fathers who have loved us as You love us, we thank You.  Most of all, Lord, for fathers who have tried to mirror You to us, we give You thanks. This we pray in Jesus name.

To hear the sermon from June 15, Click here.

Food For the Mature, Part 1

THE FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT

 

 

Ø    Love - is the source of this fruit, growing out of God’s Love for us.  This Love gives us

 

Ø    Joy - as we realize that because of God’s love our future is secure in the knowledge that God will never forsake us.  It also brings

 

Ø    Peace - as we understand that God is not at war with us and that we do not have to be at war with others.  This gives us new eyes with which to see God and our world.  That peace helps

 

Ø    Patience - to grow in us as we see God working to bring good out of even the worst things that happen in our lives.  As we learn to wait on God, the Spirit gives us

 

Ø    Kindness - as our hearts are replaced with the heart of God.  That heart allows us to love our enemies, forgive those who misuse us and act with

 

Ø    Goodness - towards others, as we understand that all people are people that God Loves.  This understanding helps us to be

 

Ø    Faithful - in our love for God and others and this will give us

 

Ø    Gentleness - in our dealings with others as we act and react, not out of self interest, but out of God’s interest.  All of these elements take effect in our lives through our exercise of

 

Ø    Self Control - Because we have been set free from slavery to sin and slavery to a law, through Christ’s death and resurrection, we are free to live our lives to show our love for God, to live into the image of God that the Spirit is working to restore.  As we have received this freedom, we finally have a choice.

 

Ø                                                                                by Steve Ranney

ABC Sale

Want to know how you can help with the ABC sale? 

Please:

Save and clean items you wish to donate, bringing them between Sunday, July 6, and Wednesday, July 9.  (No items can be accepted after Wednesday; thanks for helping us with this deadline.)

Sign up to help Glenn Knopf load and unload the racks we borrow from St. Martin's. either Monday June 30, or Tuesday July 1.  (He will get back to you.)

Stay after the 10:30 service on July 6 to help unload cars. (Picnic fare will be available for a nominal fee from the Fellowship Committee.)

Sign up to help one of the departments any of the days from July 7- July 10.  (For a donation, you can eat breakfast and/or lunch on those days; we are fed quite well!)

Work a shift one or two days of the sale (July 11, 12).

Sign up for the Clean Up Crew, the group that starts at noon on Saturday, July 12, to pack and load things for the charity trucks and to "restore the church" to have it ready for the 5:00 service later that day.

Due to lack of space, new safety regulations, and the inability to "unload" certain items, we are NOT able to accept:

computers, monitors, keyboards, their cords, any of their parts

televisions of any kind or size

sofas and love seats

large entertainment centers

mattresses

encyclopedias or magazines

high chairs, car seats or cribs

Christmas trees

This is truly an all-church effort, our dedicated work resulting in financial help for so many deserving charities in our own hometown.  Some of the ABC jobs require muscle, some require patience, some require sitting, folding and smiling - but all require a giving spirit and a willingness to do all that we do in the name of Christ.  Please sign up in the narthex to do your part. Thanks!

The sale itself is Friday, July 11 (early bird for $5 from 7-8) from 8:00am to 1:00pm and Saturday, July 12 from 8:00a.m - 12:00p.m..

Contact any of us if you have any questions.

Cindy Bartell  

Glenn Knopf   

Becky Pierce  

Red Cross Blood Drive

Our next St. Mark Blood Drive will be held on Sunday, June 22, from 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM.  The need is great for your donation.  At our last blood drive 21 units of blood were donated just one over the minimum to make it worthwhile for the Red Cross to keep coming back.  They make it very convenient for us by showing up at our door step.

A few facts about blood needs:

• Every two seconds someone in the US needs blood.
• More than 41,000 blood donations are needed every day.
• A single car accident victim can require as many as 100 pints of blood.

The second most important commandment is this:  "Love your neighbor as you love yourself."  No other commandments is greater than these.  Mark 12:31

Cancelling My Deal With God

PRAYER IN PREPARATION FOR WORSHIP:  Out of earth’s dust you have breathed us 

into life, O God.  You have made us and we are yours.  Enable us in this worship to sense your strong presence and accept with humility your gentle guidance in all our living.  Amen

CALL TO WORSHIP

One:             One:  In the beginning was God.  God’s Spirit moved across space and time.  From chaos was order established; from darkness came forth light; from the very stuff of the earth was humanity created.  God gave life with the breath of God’s Spirit.

Many:  We rejoice in the life we have been given.  We come to worship God our Creator.  Thanks be to God!

PRAYER OF CONFESSION

O God, whose Spirit came in tongues of fire, save us from the fire of our tongues.  Forgive us the sharp comment, the unkind cut, the easy lie, the smooth flattery.  And pardon our silences:  the witness not made, the truth unspoken, the comfort held back, the praise not offered.  By your living Word, empower our words, that in the freedom of forgiveness we may serve you in joy.  Amen

To listen to the sermon from June 8, click here.

Social Media Policy

The Communications Committee (pictured above) which is in charge of the various ways we communicate with our congregation developed a Social Media Policy for Session last Fall.  With some tweaking, it was approved in 2014.

Guidelines for Social Media Usage at St. Mark Presbyterian Church                                                                                               

Background:

Social media is an important tool that allows St. Mark Presbyterian Church and the Presbyterian Church (USA) to communicate with its members, reach out to potential new members and share its mission with the world.  It is inexpensive, easy to use, timely, and reaches out to a broad demographic.

However, because it enables speaking to a large audience, it’s important that social media is used to speak with one voice.  Every post, blog and Tweet is speaking on behalf of the entire congregation, so being mindful of the messages shared and being respectful of the privacy of our individual members are key factors.

Guidelines:

For the purpose of these guidelines, ALL social media includes, but is not limited to blogs, Facebook, the St. Mark website, newsletter, Instagram, Twitter and Pinterest.

Each social media site can have several Administrators. Administrators can be church volunteers as well as church staff.  These Administrators are able to oversee each social medium and remove postings that are inappropriate and do not adhere to the church’s communication policy.  Inappropriate content will be removed from the social media site by an Administrator as soon as possible after an Administrator for that social media site is made aware of the inappropriate content.

It may become necessary for a staff representative to speak to the appropriate person or body who has posted something that is deemed inappropriate.  Any questions or concerns should be addressed to that person.  If necessary The Communications Committee will consult with a pastor and then with the person who posted, about removing posts that do not promote St. Mark’s mission.