Last month we baptized Jack Lloyd. I always get mixed emotions. On one hand, it is a joy to receive God's gift, to rehearse God's faithfulness, and to hope for the future. On the other hand, we make promises in baptism that can only be fulfilled by God's grace and our hard work.

 

In baptism we promise to live the Christian faith and to teach that faith to our children. And by "our children" we don't just mean our biological children; we mean the children of our congregation. And we don't just mean people under the age of 18; we mean all children of God. And with enough faith in God's vision of redemption, we recognize that baptism commit us to caring for and sharing the Gospel with all people.

 

So you can understand why baptism causes me mixed emotions. You can see how it requires God's grace and our hard work to fulfill our baptismal promises. It's why the baptismal liturgy begins with Jesus' commission (from Matthew 28:18-20) to "Go, baptize, and teach" (our hard work) and his promise to be with us (God's grace).

 

As a parent of young children, and as pastor of all the other children (you), these baptismal promises are always on my mind. One definition of faithfulness is the keeping of promises. Are we a faithful church?

 

More concretely. Do children feel welcome and cherished, especially in the core expression of our life together, namely worship? Do families with young children feel supported? Are our youth prepared to face the challenges to Christian living they encounter in school? Do we know how to pray, to hear God's Word in scripture and tradition, to invite others into our faith community? Do we serve others more readily than people who don't worship God in Christ?

 

As a parent and pastor, these are the questions that our baptismal promises ask me. But you know what? Baptism asks these questions of you also-all of you. Each of us has to answer these questions because we, each of us together, are the Body of Christ. For this reason, I will be putting these questions to us as a church more frequently, so that we can grow in our faithfulness to God by each growing in our faithfulness to our baptismal promises (see Ephesians 4:16).

 

You can begin by answering the above questions for yourself. We owe it to Jack Lloyd, to his older sisters Mary and Addy, and to his parents Sherri and Brandan. And we owe it to Christ. So by God's grace, by our hard work, and by doing it each of us together, let's keep our promises.

 

Dr. Tom

School supplies for Mercy's Gate

 

THANK YOU FOR YOUR GENEROSITY! Your purchases of school supplies and contributions for Mercy's Gate Health Fair and Back to School Program have provided 10 back packs and enough school supplies to outfit at least 40 children with almost everything they need for the coming school year. That is awesome! Some of these school supplies were provided by the children attending our Vacation Bible School. In addition to the school supplies that were donated, we were able to purchase  $255 worth of supplies using $190 in current contributions plus $65 remaining from prior year contributions.  

         

Your Community Service Ministry Team

Friday evening, Sept. 20, through Sunday morning, Sept. 22.

Members of Unbound taking part in the June Work Camp

In June the Unbound Youth Group held the annual Work Camp at our own home, Faith Presbyterian. It was a week full of work, fun and good fellowship. Work Camp consisted of renovating the following structures: 1) Fellowship Hall (repainting), Children's Ministry Wing (repainting and redecorating), landscaping, minor repairs, and Wade's Place (cleaning the rug, reorganizing, and redecorating). The theme for the week was focused on Acts 2:42-47, and we heard a few testimonies as well. It was a fantastic week organized and implemented by our adult staff, which included (but was not limited too) the Branch, Bellew, Jennings and Anderson families. These families helped in the preparation work, painting, organizing and leading the youth throughout the week. It is traditional for Work Camp to have a fun day, thus, on one day we went to the Zoo with Jim Hunter and saw many of God's wonderful creatures and had time to build our bonds further through a relaxed time. 

 

By the end of the week, and through much exhaustion, the group had become closer to each other and the congregation. We had various members come sporadically throughout the week to aid in the work, and we want to thank them for their support. It was a team/congregation effort, and the youth enjoyed learning from/about those who came to help. I'd also like to thank those who prepped meals for us; they were very delicious, and the youth enjoyed seeing you there. 

 

Lastly, I'd like to thank the congregation for its support, encouragement and prayers during this time. This Work Camp was exceptional, unique and filled with the Spirit's movement. We thank you for your participation and encourage you to continue the relationship by considering joining us next year! 

 

Matt McEnroe, Youth Director

 

The Unbound group gathered in front of the church

Is God calling you?

Your library needs to fill immediate vacancies.

Do you have a love of books? Do you want to serve God by helping people - both young and old - to find that certain special book? Faith Library needs at least two volunteers to step in as Library Co-Coordinators to keep our wonderful library operating smoothly.

 

The primary time commitment for a Library Co-Coordinator is to be available about 1� hours on Sunday mornings following worship. Even though there are many library tasks, most of them may be handled on Sunday mornings during Library open hours. Library Assistants staff the library during the school year, and are busiest serving patrons before and after Sunday School. The rest of the hour they are usually available to assist with routine needs.

 

Other tasks may be handled on an as-needed basis. These tasks include publicity (planning bulletin boards, Tidings articles) and cataloging and processing new materials.

No Co-Coordinator can be there every Sunday, which is why we need more than one. Planning sessions work best when Co-Coordinators can bounce ideas off each other. Creativity is a plus and so is familiarity with computers, but neither Co-Coordinator needs both talents.

 

If you have questions or will consider volunteering as a Library Co-Coordinator, please contact Dr. Tom at the church office (596-4895).

 

Sincerely,

Robert Ryan,
Tidings editor

Please pray for our Session members:

 

• Carol Crable
• Bob Franey
• Mike Lawless
• Lloyd Nordhausen
• Steve Ryan

The Friday morning Bible study group will be dining monthly at local restaurants. All lunches begin at 11:30 a.m.

 

On Aug. 23 we will dine at Rocco's Italian Restaurant, 3878 Maizeland Road. For reservations for these lunches, please contact Mary Mardiguian, 532-1491.

 

Beginning Sept. 6, the Friday morning Bible study will be discussing the book Bad Girls of the Bible and What We Can Learn from Them by Liz Curtis Higgs. The price is $13. A Kindle version is also available. The author offers a unique approach to understanding Sapphira, Delilah, Jezebel, Eve and those "other women" in Scripture, mixing a contemporary retelling of their stories with a verse-by-verse study of their mistakes and what lessons women today can learn from them. To order your copy, contact Mary Mardiguian.

The Saturday morning book group will meet at the home of Kathryn Hermanstorfer on Aug. 10 at 9:30 a.m.  We will be discussing our PPLD Book Club selection of "State of Wonder" by Ann Patchett. This book presents a world of stunning surprise and danger, rich in emotional resonance and moral complexity as a researcher travels to the Amazon to find her former mentor. Please RSVP to Kathryn at 534-9069 or [email protected]  Her address is 3080 Mandalay Grove #1, and she asks that we park in the open spaces that do not have an assigned number.

Sunday School for children entering Kindergarten through fifth grade will begin on Sept. 8 (the Sunday after Labor Day) immediately following worship.  It will continue on most Sundays throughout the school year.  Kids of neighbors, kids of friends, and kids of members of Faith Church are all welcome. Contact the Children's Ministry at [email protected] to find out more or to volunteer to be a classroom helper.

Mark your calendars for the Crop Hunger Walk, Oct. 6 at 1 p.m. (this is a new time). More information to come in the bulletins and September newsletter.

Children's Ministries hosted a very successful Vacation Bible School from July 22-26. Thirty-five children attended the "Sharable Parables" course that focused on some of the stories Jesus told. 

 

Through songs, crafts, activities and teaching they had fun learning the basic truths contained in the parables. Our fantastic team of volunteers made it all happen. Please take time to thank Barb Nordhausen, Betty Dale, Camron Nilsen, Carol Schuschke, Charlene Yorke, Dale Sprowls, David Schell, Deb Branch, Elaine Morell, Haley Branch, Jan Boggess, Jan Jardon, Julie Judson, Kathy Klamm, Kee Nilsen, Maya Branch, Michelle Kelly, Nick Bellew, Sarah Manka, Sharon DeReus, and Toni Nilsen.

Alice Franey is taking over the Fellowship sign-up duties and is need of people willing to be greeters, ushers and servers for communion. If you are willing to serve in any of these capacities, please call her at 593-8134 or email her at [email protected]. Alice is hoping to involve as many people in the church as possible. It is a great way to feel a part of the church, and to quote Dr. Tom, "Ushers and Greeters are an important part of our ministry on Sunday mornings. They are the first face of worship for every guest we welcome to Faith, visitors and long standing members alike." Please be one of the friendly faces that greets and serves others who attend our church.

 

You do need to be a member of the church to serve communion, but you are not required to be a member to serve as a greeter or usher.  We would love to include all of our friendly faces (and I cannot think of one unfriendly face in our group) from young people up through our seniors. 

 

If you have a favorite Bible verse, please either email it to Alice Franey at [email protected] or write it on the blackboard in Fellowship Hall, and please include your name. I would like to put these on the bulletin board downstairs by the adult Sunday School class. Thank you,

 

Alice Franey

Hikes are the first Wednesday and the third Saturday of each month this year. We'll keep going through September. Here are the the remaining hikes planned for this summer.

• Wed. Aug 7: Aiken Canyon is south off of Highway 115.
• Sat. Aug 17: Almagre Mountain is 20+ miles up Old Stage Road.
• Wed. Sept. 4: Black Forest Loop is in the Black Forest off Vollmer Road.
• Sat. Sept. 21: Dome Rock is close to Mueller State Park.

High School: 

Carolyn Gimarc - Air Academy HS

Myla Hughes - Mitchell HS

Samantha Madden - Plymouth-Canton HS

Mitchel Trowbridge - Wasson HS

Luke Franey - Pine Creek HS

 

University:

Ryan Gimarc- Michigan State University

Eric Ryan - University of Colorado, Boulder

BenLawless - Colorado State University

Eric Zellmer - University of Colorado, Colorado Springs

Kara Maddy - University of Colorado, Colorado Springs

 

Graduate School:

David Gimarc - Georgetown University Medical School

Emily Morgan - Princeton Theological Seminary