As we all know, safety and security is a pressing issue in our society. Not to be alarmist, but in light of various acts of violence in houses of worship over the past few years, the Session has decided to take some measures to reduce risk to our congregation. Here is an outline of our plan:

I know that this is a lot to take in, and the subject matter is not one we like to contemplate; you will need time to understand this new policy and ask questions. We expect to roll this plan out on Sunday, February 3. We will run this notice in Windows for the next several weeks, and we will discuss this matter during announcements. In addition, we will take your questions during the "new business" portion of the congregational meeting on Sunday, January 20, at 10:00 a.m. in the Fellowship Hall.

We want to lift up to you that these measures come at significant cost to the church. In total, the doors and keycard readers alone will cost more than $11,000. If, in response to the measures we have taken, God leads you to contribute to our efforts, we ask that you make a special gift to the church and write "Security - Door Installation" on the memo line of your check. We ask especially that you pray for our church to be spared such violence.

In Christ,

Pastor Sam

As you may have noticed, our acolytes in traditional worship are taking a break for January. Not to worry, however, for they will return in February. We are taking this month off to do some training so that they can expand their presence in our worship. We ask that you pray for our acolytes that God would bless and use them in a mighty way.

Pittsburgh Theological Seminary

Pastor Sam will travel to Pittsburgh on Monday, January 21, to begin two weeks of intensive coursework for his doctoral degree at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary. He will be back late Friday night, February 1. He will be unable to take calls while he is in class. If you need him, please leave a message in the office, and the staff will contact him.

It has come to our attention that a certain pastor, along with certain members of a certain congregation in a certain state to our south, is in mourning for a certain team, named after a certain animal, from a certain genus named Ursus, from a certain midwestern city, which we call home, who lost a certain so-called "playoff game" this past Sunday on the failure of a certain kicker (may his name pass in silence) to make a certain kick with five seconds remaining on the clock. To our southern chapter of the Superfans, we mourn with you. Maybe next year, and until then, may we never forget "da Bears!"

We will kick off our new semester of Wednesday night fellowship January 16 with " Comedy with a Pointe!" Dr. Doug LaPointe, the pastor at Cold Spring Presbyterian

	Doug LaPointe

Church, and his wife, Robin, will lead an entertaining and musical Adult Learning program. The first activity of the evening will be our fried chicken fellowship dinner at 5:30 p.m. The LaPointes' program will begin at 6:20 p.m. High School Small Groups, Middle School Gathering, and Wednesday Night Kids will meet at 6:00. Handbell ringers, and any adult who wants to learn, will practice in room 212 at 6:15. And if you want to help make our Wednesday evenings go, see Scottie Bales! She could use your help.

The Women's Wednesday Morning Bible Study will resume January 16. We will be studying Paul's letter to the Ephesians, guided by a book by John MacArthur. All women are welcome to join us from 9:30 to 11:00 a.m. in room 117, across from Dave Welch's office./ Dottie Havlik

In preparation for our upcoming congregational meeting January 20 at 10:00 a.m. in the Fellowship Hall, the Nominating Committee, in consultation with the Session, presents the following slate of candidates:

Trustee	Elders Class of 2021	Deacons Class of 2021
Jack Butterworth	Ann Abel	Ron Fox (2020)
	Randy Cook	Fred Harkleroad
	John Graham	Matt Kingsley
	Katie McInnis	Lisa McClain
	John Vann	Drew Rice
		Joyce Samuel

 

Officer Training Jan. 19

Church officer candidates should note that the second part of their training will take place Saturday, January 19, at 10:00 a.m. at the church. We will meet in room 123. Officer candidates should have already received an email outlining the first portion of their training. Those unable to attend will be given an alternate date for training.

Great news! We need only a few more casseroles for our service at Sharing Christ Downtown Mission on Saturday, January 26. If you can provide one, please contact Dottie Havlik ( [email protected] or 423-956-6747) for the simple recipe and to let her know what your delivery plan is.

Once assembled, this casserole can be refrigerated for a day or two before baking or freezing. If you bake yours on January 26, you can either deliver it to the mission on the corner of Sixth and State streets by 4:30 p.m. or take it to Dottie at her house a few blocks from FPC in time for her to load her car and drive downtown. If you bake it earlier, you can take it to the little kitchen at church. If you take it to the church before January 22, put it in the freezer. After the 22nd, put it in the refrigerator. Thank you!

Save the date for our annual Women's Retreat at Blowing Rock Conference Center! This beloved event is scheduled for February 22 -24 and will feature the Reverend Grace Kim as guest speaker. Grace has titled her talk, "Just As I Am." Mark your calendars now!

A choir sings during last year's Martin Luther King Jr. celebration at Lee Street Baptist Church in Bristol, VA. (Thomas Gray/WCYB)

Once again, Lee Street Baptist Church will host an annual service celebrating the life and work of Martin Luther King Jr. A community gospel choir under the direction of Lee Street Music Director Troy Shelley sings for the service every year, and anyone in the community may join them. FPC member Geneva King ( [email protected]) was in the choir for the 2018 service, and she will be happy to talk to anyone who is interested in participating.

The service will be held Sunday, January 20, at 4:00 p.m. at Lee Street Baptist Church, 1 West Mary Street in Bristol, VA. Three choir practices remain  before the event:

Sunday's music participants: Pat Flannagan, Bob Greene, Sanctuary Choir.

	Carson Cooman

Sunday's music: Our anthem, "Wondrous Love," is a familiar Appalachian tune. First published in 1811, it has been called a "white spiritual." The text draws on the themes of John 3:16, but there is no official scriptural reference. There is no certainty about either text or music. Some sources attribute the text to Alexander Means, a Methodist minister in Georgia; most sources attribute the tune to an English folk ballad, "The Ballad of Captain Kidd." Sunday's arrangement is by Carson Cooman (b. 1982), an American composer with a catalog of hundreds of works in many forms. His music has been performed on all six inhabited continents and in venues that range from the stage of Carnegie Hall to the basket of a hot air balloon. Cooman's music appears on more than 40 recordings, including more than 20 complete CDs. He also writes on musical subjects, producing frequent articles and reviews for a number of international publications.

	Alfred Fedak

Organist's footnotes: Alfred V. Fedak's (b. 1953) Jesu, Jesu, Thou Art Mine: Variations on a Melody by Johann Sebastian Bach, 1736 (our prelude) is a delightful set of four short pieces. The variations come first, and Bach's own harmonization comes last. The first stanza of this sacred song reads: "Jesu, Jesu, Thou art mine! While on earth I live and languish, Keep me ever only Thine, Thine alone in joy and anguish. Living do I make surrender, Nor shall death Thee from me sunder. All to Thee do I resign: Jesu, Jesu, Thou art mine!"

According to Matthew's gospel, Herod's infamous slaughter of innocent children was fulfillment of what was spoken by the prophet Jeremiah: "A voice is heard in Ramah, lamentation and bitter weeping. Rachel is weeping for her children; she refuses to be comforted for her children, because they are no more." Oskar Lindberg's (1887-1955) setting of a haunting and melancholy Swedish folk tune, "Gammal fäbodpsalm från Dalarna" (our offertory), seems an apt reflection on this poignant story.

Finally, on Baptism of the Lord Sunday, we will close out worship with a rollicking rendition by American composer Barbara Harbach (b. 1946) of the African American spiritual, "Wade in the Water" (our postlude).

Sunday, January 13

8:30 a.m.       Worship, Fellowship Hall

9:45 a.m.       Sunday School

11:00 a.m.     Worship, Sanctuary

4:30 p.m.       Finance Comm., Room 117

6:00 p.m.       Student Fellowship, Youth Wing

Monday, January 14

7:00 p.m.       Building & Grounds Comm., Room 117

7:00 p.m.       Worship Comm., Room 123

Tuesday, January 15

10:00 a.m.     Staff Meeting, Room 117

10:00 a.m.     Morning Prayer Group, Conf. Room

7:00 p.m.       Boy Scout Troop 3, Scout Wing

Wednesday, January 16

9:30 a.m.       Women's Bible Study, Room 117

5:00 p.m.       Baby & Toddler Care, Rooms 34 - 37

5:30 p.m.       Fellowship Dinner, Fellowship Hall

6:00 p.m.       Wednesday Night Kids

6:00 p.m.       Middle School Gathering

6:00 p.m.       High School Small Groups

6:15 p.m.       Handbell Practice, Room 212

6:20 p.m.       Adult Learning

7:15 p.m.       Sanctuary Choir, Room 202

7:15 p.m.       Worship Team, Fellowship Hall

Thursday, January 17

7:00 a.m.       Men's Bible Study, Parlor

12:00 p.m.     Noon Bible Study, Room 117

5:00 p.m.       Human Resources Comm., Room 117

Saturday, January 19

10:00 a.m.     New Officers Training, Room 123

Church Officers
ELDERS
Class of 2018	Class of 2019	Class of 2020
Aaron Brooks	Anna Booher	Nancy Allerton
Randy Cook	Lee Galliher	Rebecca Beck
Debbie McMillin	Pete Holler	David Hyde
Stuart Parker	Han Ong	Jordan Pennington
Chuck Thompson	Pete Stigers	Jerry Poteat
DEACONS
Class of 2018	Class of 2019	Class of 2020
Adam Abel	Sujean Bradley	Blake Bassett
Nancy Butterworth	George Linke	Rhonda Comer
David Ginn	Greg Roberts	Brenda Lawson
Rett Stocstill	Nate Sproles	Barbara Thompson
Ann Woods	Bill Whisnant
TRUSTEES
Class of 2018	Class of 2019	Class of 2020
Charles Webb	Nancy Cook	Peggy Hill