#TBT Fall Festival

With our St. Mark Presbyterian Fall Festival approaching, here's a look back at some photos from previous years

1999

Sally E., Ken D, Bob B. 2000

2000,  Lynn Dauve

The Marshalls

2001

2001 J. Hunt, C Polak, L. Huizenga, N. Kinder, J. Sparks

2001 M. Stoll, B. Larez

2005 N. Fish, G. Nuckolls

2005

2005

Don't Miss St. Mark's Fall Festival - Fellowship & Fun 

Sunday, October 12th 12:00 pm to 3:00 pm

Bounce Houses - Great Food - Apple Butter - Lolli the Clown - Kona Ice - Games - Face Painting - Fall Family Pictures - Live Music from Debra Hyland & Ensemble

Adult Education

In addition to Sunday School Classes and Small Groups, St. Mark Presbyterian has several other opportunities for Adult Christian Education:

MIDWEEK:  WORLD RELIGIONS

Coming in October:

• BaHai Tradition, Culture and Tradition of
• Judaism, A Holocaust Survivor Story
• Mormonism and more!

Program in Fellowship Hall on Wednesdays at 6:15 pm.

ALL CHURCH BOOK READ:

We will be studying The Book Thief by Marcus  Zukav.  Group discussions in October and November…pick up a copy and join us!!

THE RED TENT GATHERING meets in Fellowship Hall

10-11 am.Join us as we spend Advent with Mary.

Not a Silent Night by Adam Hamilton

• Thursday, November 6:  Beginning with the End; The Piercing of Mary’s Soul
• Thursday, November 20: Amazed, Astounded, and Astonished/Mary, Full of Grace
• Thursday, December 4: It Was Not a Silent Night

Imagine Jesus from Mary’s point of view; proud of her son, in awe of his gifts and mission, guided by love for him as a person and so much more.

Worship from Sept. 21

PRAYER IN PREPARATION FOR WORSHIP:  Lord, I know that You have been calling me all of my life.  You want me to come into Your presence and share my very soul with You.  The problem is I am afraid that if I do that, You will reject me.  Help me to set aside my fear of You so that I will come to You just as I am.  Fill me with a sense of Your Love, so that I can come to know You more fully.  In the name of Your Son I pray, Amen.      l                                                            

CALL TO WORSHIP

Leader:      Let us sing of the loving kindness of the Lord forever;

People:      To all generations we will make known Your faithfulness.

Leader:      The heavens will praise Your wonders, O Lord;

People:      Your faithfulness will be praised in the assembly of the holy ones.

Leader:      In Your name, O Lord, we will rejoice all day long,

People:      And by Your righteousness we will be exalted.

PRAYER OF CONFESSION

Lord, You show Your faithfulness to us in so many ways and all you want from us is to be faithful in return.  The problem lies in the fact that so often we put our own interests ahead of our relationship with You.  Forgive us for putting You in the "optional" part of our life.  Teach us through Your Spirit, to respond to Your faithful love of us with faithfulness on our part.  This we pray in the name of Jesus, AMEN.

Click here for Steve Ranney's sermon  for September 21 

Pork Tenderloin and Brownies at Midweek

 St. Mark Presbyterian Church has begun Midweek Dinners again.  This week, we had pork tenderloin,  roasted potatoes, green beans, cheesy biscuits, green salad with apples and pecans.  Yum!

 The recipe for the tenderloin:  2 pork tenderloin, Marinade  1/4 c. fresh lemon juice, 2 large cloves garlic, minced, 2 t. coarse salt, 1 t. black pepper, 2 T chopped fresh rosemary, 1/2 c. extra virgin olive oil.

 Place marinade ingredients (see note below) in a ziploc bag with tenderloins, refrigerate for 4-6 hours.  Line a baking pan with foil and then spray the foil with non-stick spray.  Place the tenderloins in the baking pan (discard the marinade).  Roast in pre-heated oven at 400 degrees for 30 minutes.  Let the tenderloins sit for 10 minutes before slicing.

 For dessert were brownie "bowls" for ice cream.  Basically brownies were baked in muffin tins.  Then while they were still warm, another muffin tin (sprayed) was placed on top to make the bowls which held ice cream---see below for details.

Youth and Children's Events

Middle School and High School Events

The youth of St. Mark Presbyterian are ready for the program year! Our overall theme is Hospitality. We are using the scripture:

“Above all, maintain constant love for one another…Be hospitable to one another without complaining. Like good stewards of the manifold of grace of God, serve one another with whatever gift each of you has received.” 1 Peter 4:8a, 9-10.

This program year, Middle School Sunday School will be at 9:30 am in the Youth Lounge to allow students to participate in worship with the Senior Highs. 6th and 7th graders, JOIN US!!

Senior High Youth Group will be meeting weekly at 11:30 am—1 pm on Sundays beginning SEPTEMBER 7th, and the Middle School Youth Group will meet 6-7 pm weekly on Wednesdays beginning SEPTEMBER 10th.

Looking ahead, please SAVE THE DATE for: 

• September 26th: All Youth Lock-In at church
• October 12th: CROP Walk at Eden Seminary
• October 26th: All Youth to Six Flags Fright Fest
• Stay tuned for additional dates, as we will send a full calendar soon!

Saint’s & Sibling’s Fellowship 2014-2015

Welcome to St. Mark’s Fellowship for children. We hope to see you twice a month during the school year for fellowship and mission projects.

• September 28 Eckert’s Fun Farm Watch Billy Bob’s Pig races and enjoy an afternoon picking apples for the Fall Festival.
• October 5 Pet Blessing
• October 12 St. Mark’s Fall Festival
• November 9 Lunch at church and decorate Angel Tree
• November 23 Epic 6
• December 7 Children/Youth caroling 
• December 14 Lunch at church/wrap Circle of Concern gifts followed by tour of Tilles Park

Worship September 14

PRAYER IN PREPARATION FOR WORSHIP:  

Eternal God, you have called us to be members of one body.  Join us with those who in all times and places have praised your name, that, with one heart and mind, we may show the unity of your church, and bring honor to our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.  AMEN

CALL TO WORSHIP

Leader:      Shout joyfully to the Lord, all the earth.

People:      We will serve the Lord with gladness; and come before Him with joyful singing,

Leader:      We are God's people and the sheep of His pasture.

People:      We will enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise.

Church Office

 St. Mark Presbyterian recently installed new office furniture giving the office a sleek 21st century look.

Carol and Doreen have been loyal church staff for a few years. . . .we decided to do a Throwback Thursday to honor them and the others who have worked "behind the scenes".

The first office was across from Fellowship Hall (which was the sanctuary) in 202 (a pre-school room).  The second office was in 106 (the conference room).  Then, it moved to 102 while we waited for funds to build the current office in 111.  The current office looked finished from the outside but was just gravel on the inside---affectionately known as "the rock garden".

L-R The Wus, Jan Fisher, Ruth Fortel, Elsie Clark and Howard Gleason

Doreen and Paula Walls,1986

Doreen and Carol Murphy,1986

Doreen, 1986

These photos above were all taken in what is today the Conference Room

Carol Pfeil, Pam Jenks, Doreen Manhal, 1999

Carol Pfeil, Becca Pecher, Doreen Manhal, 2002 (above and below)

Carol Pfeil 2000
 Thank you to all of you who have made a wonderful contribution to the life of St. Mark Presbyterian Church:  Dorothy Scheifer 1968-1971, Carole Hackman 1971-1973, Darlene Hayes 1973, Elsie Clarke 1973-1981, Doreen Manhal 1981-present, Barbara Bush 1982-1985, Carol Murphy 1984-1986, Tammy Guerke 1986-1986, Paula Walls 1986-1987, Pam Jenks 1985-1986, Pam Jenks 1987-1999, Norma Lockman 1990-1992, Carol Pfeil 1992-present, Becca Pecher 2000-2003.

Red Cross Blood Drive

RED CROSS BLOOD DRIVE - Sunday, Sept. 21 - 9 AM to 1 PM in Gleason Hall

It's time to roll up our sleeves again for our last blood drive of 2014. It will be held on 

Sunday, September 21, from 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM in Gleason Hall. 

Please bring your Driver's license and Blood Donation Card if you have one. 

Congratulations St. Mark.  We gave 22 units of blood at our June drive. This is two more 

than the minimum requirement.

The Red Cross makes is very convenient for us to donate by showing up at our doorstep. 

This is a great opportunity for us to help save lives. Fact about blood needs: Blood cannot 

be manufactured - it can only come from generous donors like you. 

Little Dresses in India

Mary Beth:  The dresses arrived and the girls have them.  Will have more pictures at the PW Table this weekend.  Thanks for all you did to make this possible.  See the letter and photo below from Terri Rider.

24 August 2014

Feed a Fellow Feeling Foundation – Habsiguda, Telegana India

Mary Beth & Others,

Christmas came early this year for the girls of the Children’s Home in the town of Habsiguda. These girls are coming from lives of neglect, abuse &/or extreme poverty, living in tattered tarp tents. They very seldom receive anything new. If they do receive new clothes, it is only (1) set per year.

When the girls were told they would be receiving new dresses, how their faces lit up! One by one the girls came forward to be dressed in their new outfit. Once dressed, they would look at their dress in more detail and smile. The girls ranged in ages from 3-11/12. The older & middle girls, the dresses fit them nicely. The younger girls, well, adjustments will be needed to shorten the length. It was such a cute site to see all the girls wearing new clothes and wearing a smile. Both are a rarity. There was sufficient amount of dresses for ALL the girls to receive two each! They were so excited about that!!!

In addition, the luggage was left for the owners to use for storage or other use. They too were very appreciative to receive that gift. [the dresses, made by St. Mark women, were packed in suitcases from the ABC Sale:  click here]

A couple of the photos are not as clear. However, I tried to capture their happy appreciation. When people here have their photo snapped, they are instructed to not smile. That is why there are few smiles seen. After photo is finished, they carry on with the smiles and laughter. One photo has me, a man & woman in the back row. These are the founders/manager of FFFF.

Thanking You again for sharing the love of Christ in such a tangible way to these girls who are less fortunate.

For His Glory

Terri [Rider]

A Season of Peace

“A Season of Peace” begins September 7 and completes October 5, World Communion Sunday. The Peacemaking Offering will be collected during that time.

What does “A Season of Peace” mean? PCUSA has made a commitment to be active in working to transform cultures of violence into communities of peace. That may mean working to end violence against women, children or others, establishing lines of communication with groups and communities with whom there is little contact, and many other initiatives.

Our participation in the Peacemaking Offering provides funds for those programs and St. Mark will retain 25% of the total for local use. Session voted that those funds would go to the Presbyterian Children’s Homes and Services of Missouri and St. Martin Peace Meal.