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PRESBYTERIAN
PERSPECTIVES Church
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April 2006 Vol. 21, No. 20
A Letter From Gautier Presbyterian ChurchDear Members of Orange Presbyterian Church, We cannot express to you the depth of gratitude we feel in our hearts as a congregation for the gift that you have made to our church for hurricane recovery. The devastation of Katrina, as you can imagine has left us with many needs, and the generosity of individuals and congregations like you has humbled us and reminded us of the great resource of love and support that one finds as a part of the family of God. Your gift will enable us to begin to bring our place of worship and fellowship back to where it was before the hurricane. As we worship our hearts will be filled with the added joy of knowing that the love of Christ has again blessed our congregation through you. Your gift has reminded us that in Christ we are not alone but are a part of a healing and helping community. Over and over again, members of our congregation express gratitude for the beautiful ways in which these gifts have met our needs. The words of thanks in this letter seem woefully inadequate to express our gratitude for your gift. However, we offer our thanks to you with a promise and a prayer. A promise, we will share with others as you have shared with us and our prayer that God’s richest blessing will be yours now and forever. Thankfully, |
One Great Hour of Sharing
Did you know that nearly 1.1 billion people worldwide do not have access to safe water? Nearly all of them live in developing nations. Without a safe and stable water source many people suffer from thirst, famine and disease. Your past generosity to One Great Hour of Sharing has helped to provide:
"When was it that we saw you thirsty and gave you something
to drink?' they asked. |
On Easter we will receive the One Great Hour of Sharing offering.
This offering brings fresh water to thirsty communities around
the globe.
THE PASTOR'S CORNERDear Friends, I don’t know if you remember, but it was on Palm Sunday last year that I first came to Orange Presbyterian Church to serve as your interim pastor. It’s hard to believe that an entire year has passed by. Though they haven’t yet located a new pastor, the PNC is hard at work every week reviewing Personal Information Forms (PIF’s) and conducting phone interviews with potential candidates. I want to remind you that if you have any questions about the search process, you are always welcome to ask any member of the search committee about anything except the names (or other personal information) of the pastoral candidates. On another subject, I hope you and your family will be in church on Easter Sunday to celebrate Christ’s resurrection and to welcome the members of this year’s confirmation class who will be joining the church on that day. Finally -- don’t forget to turn your clocks forward one hour on April 2nd! In Christ, |
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Pastor Nominating Committee: April Update The Pastor Nominating Committee has been working together for almost six months, having started in late September. The members are Moderator Bill Chapman, Clerk Anna Collins, Martha Clements, Ralph Graves, Lavinia Phillips, Margaret Thompson, and Travis Tysinger. We are supported by Reverend Todd McCoy, Pastor of the Louisa Presbyterian Church, who attends many of our meetings. Reverend Carson Rhyne, General Presbyter, has provided two training sessions here in Orange. We meet weekly, either on Mondays or Tuesdays, and begin each meeting with a devotional delivered by one of the members. We ask for prayers from the congregation each week to help support our mission, that of finding the best possible minister for OPC. We wish to thank Pastor Beth McCrary for getting us off to a good start with advice and support. Recently both she and Pastor McCoy helped us hone our interviewing skills with mock interviews. After publicizing our need with the required Church Information Form (CIF) to Presbytery we received 13 Personal Information Forms (PIFs) from computer matching in Louisville, of ministers who have indicated a wish to receive a new call, and 10 directly from ministers. We will have completed several telephone interviews by the end of March. We will continue to welcome interest in our position and will proceed from telephone interviews to face-to-face interviews when candidates seem promising. We will ask for tapes of sermons to review and finally progress to visits to churches or neutral pulpits to see ministers in action. Thank you for your patience throughout this long and detailed process. We are so blessed to have Beth McCrary in the pulpit while we do our important work. Bill Chapman
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Where Are Your Treasures?Jesus said, “Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: for where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” (Matthew 6:19-21). Treasure Seekers is to be the theme of the Vacation Bible School program which our missionaries are taking to Emerald Isle Baptist Church from June 17th to the 24th. We will be “digging” into the Bible to find these treasurers, which are God’s Promises. From day to day we shall learn that God Loves You, God Treasures You, God Forgives You, and God is with You. Also on our agenda for this trip is helping in a soup kitchen in nearby Morehead City, NC and visiting in a nursing home. Welcome to Betsy Reid who has joined our team of missionaries. Don’t you want to come along, too? Special thanks goes to our support team: our co-ordinator, Carole Sue Graves; The Mission Baking Company of Susan Anson, Fedie and Amy McClung who provided many baked goods at Christmastime for a fund-raiser; the ladies who made the pocketbooks for sale-Sharon Mohrmann, Diane Haberland, Elizabeth Szunyogh, Carol Sue Graves and others; and all you good stockholders! There is still time to buy pocketbooks and stock. Come see us in the narthex for your supply of “treasures”! |
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A Note of Thanks from the Presbyterian WomenMany thanks to all of you who turned in the cancelled stamps you received in the mail at Christmastime. Peggy Reinhold, who collects these stamps from a number of churches, reports that $6,635.38 was collected from the sale of stamps in 2005. Those who receive these funds are very appreciative. “Bibles and hymn books have been given to pastors/evangelists who formerly had pages from Bibles and hymns written on backs of canned food labels, cigarette wrappers or what have you, “ Mrs. Reinhold writes. Please keep on saving those stamps! “A stamp company,” Mrs. Reinhold goes on, “asked me to send as quickly as possible the new aircraft stamps, civil rights stamps, Christmas stamps (cookies). Of course, the Muppets, architecture, scientists, dances, soldiers, are good also. But every commemorative, whatever the denomination is helpful.” She also gets the regular flag stamp, etc. Collection envelopes are on the kiosk in the narthex and on the bulletin board by the church office. |
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Luncheon CircleThe Presbyterian Women Luncheon Circle will meet on Thursday, April 6th at 12:30 p.m. in the East Room. Lunch will be served. Anyone is welcome to join us. |
Morning CircleThe Morning Circle will meet Tuesday, April 4th at 10 a.m. at the home of Elizabeth Szunyogh. Please meet at the church at 9:30a.m. to carpool. All are welcome to attend. |
From The TreasurerOur 2005 financial records have all been closed out and stored away. 2006 has gotten off to a good start with suggestions for improvement from Doug Cruickshank, chairman of the Finance Committee, and much attention to the details of the financial software by Karen Seale, Parish Administrator. If you have any questions about our procedures and policies, or about the financial health of Orange Presbyterian Church, please talk to me or Doug. Gail Chapman, Treasurer |
March Session Highlights
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PRAYER CONCERNS
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PNC RequestThe Pastor Nominating Committee asks the congregation to pray for our efforts during this important time. We are meeting on these dates:
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Announcing Twins!Rapidan Habitat for Humanity is pleased to announce the arrival of twin matching grants! The first arrival is from the George and Effie Seay Foundation, and weighs in at $15,000 when Habitat raises $30,000 in match (either money or materials). These funds are specifically for site preparation and the construction of foundations. The second arrival is from Coldwell Banker Select in Locust Grove. It is a 1 for 1 grant up to $20,000. So every $1 that is donated is matched by $1 from Coldwell Banker Select. This is a wonderful opportunity for Rapidan Habitat for Humanity, and also a wonderful opportunity for you. Please consider making a tax-deductible donation to Rapidan Habitat for Humanity now…your investment will be multiplied by one of these matching grants. Just think how much further your donation can go! Your $50 donation can be worth up to $100, and your $25 donation can be worth up to $50. That’s an excellent “return” on your investment in Habitat for Humanity and in your community. We hope you can help us meet this matching challenge! Our goal is to build three homes this coming summer, and we’ll need every bit of help we can get. Can we count on you? Donations can be mailed to Rapidan Habitat for Humanity, PO Box 65, Orange, VA 22960. Please mark “matching funds” in the memo line of your check. And if you have any questions or need more information about the work of Rapidan Habitat for Humanity, call Dwain Cox at 672-5041 or Cindy Reid at 672-3461.
We hope you can help us meet our goal of building 3 homes this summer for three families in need of a hand up, not a handout. |
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News from Blue Ridge Presbyterian ChurchNew Presbyterian Churches are a rare thing. The Presbytery of the James had not “planted” a new church for many, many years, until recently when Blue Ridge Presbyterian Church began in Greene County. Many of you will remember that OPC helped with finances and donations of materials while the Blue Ridge Church was getting started. New churches, like trees, take many years to become tall and strong. Blue Ridge is no exception. They have moved out of the café where they met originally and now have a new building in which to worship. Growth is slow but sure. After 3 interim or supply preachers, they have now called their first pastor, Rev. Jay Sanderford. They are making good progress, but progress can be slow and Blue Ridge Church needs our encouragement and our support. Following are some of the areas where Blue Ridge Presbyterian Church could use help: Financial help to meet their bare bones budget. The current size of the congregation has not yet reached a point where they can support the expenses of the church. The OPC Mission & Outreach Committee will be making a donation to this as a way to support new church growth. If you wish to make a financial donation, it could be sent to Blue Ridge Presbyterian Church, 6566 Spring Hill Road, Ruckersville 22968.
These are some of the things they need. A more complete list will be posted in the narthex. If these, or other items are within your power to give, please consider doing so. Planting a new church is a mission, and like planting a tree, it gives hope for the future. We can help nurture this beginning congregation, and surely growth will follow and Blue Ridge Presbyterian will become a vital part of Presbyterian life in our community. |
April Birthday Greetings To…April - |
Update on Our MissionariesMike Haninger was to be admitted March 10th for 5 days of chemotherapy followed by the infusion of his stem cells to renew his bone marrow. About 10 or 12 days after receiving his stem cells, he should begin to produce white blood cells thus restoring his immunity. He will be hospitalized for about 3 weeks, followed a couple of months later with radiation therapy to the site of the tumor. They may be able to return to the Congo in 6 months. Please keep Mike and Nancy in your prayers. |
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Michael Willis| April
Worship Helpers
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Nursery | Greeters
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| 2 | Sandra McLeod | Eric Frobom, Kim Dukes & family | |
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9
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Linda Nash |
Bugs & Elaine Gardner | |
| 16 | Alice Parcell |
Crawford & Liz Harmon | |
| 23 | Jim Reid | Fred & Winifred Higgins | |
| 30 | Terrie Richardson | The Hogan family | |
If you are
unable to help on the day assigned, you are expected to
obtain your own substitute and call the church office so
that the correct information will appear in the Bulletin
each Sunday. |
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ORANGE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH
Rev. Elizabeth McCrary,
Interim Pastor
Karen Seale, Parish Administrator
CHURCH OFFICE INFORMATION
Hours: 9:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m. Phone: (540) 672-4240
Web Address: http://www.OrangePC.org
E-mail: OPC@orangepc.org
is published by the Orange Presbyterian Church, 162 W. Main St., Orange, VA 22960. Send snail-mail address changes to Presbyterian Perspectives, 162 W. Main St., Orange, VA 22960. Send email address changes and additions to OPC@orangepc.org