As it is written, "The one who had much did not have too much,
and the one who had little did not have too little"!

2 Corinthians 8:15, see also Exodus 16:18

If you don't mind, I want to take a moment to celebrate what happened on our church grounds this past Sunday. If you were there, you know. If you weren't, we missed you, and hope you will be there when we do it next time. You see, this past Sunday wasn't about worship being on the grounds, the common meal we shared, or the ton or so of food we gathered and distributed. This past Sunday, our church re-created what the early church would do every Sunday that it gathered.

Justin Martyr (circa 100 -165 AD) records in chapter 67 of his First Apology that Christians would gather "on the day called Sunday" in one place and read Scripture and the letters of the apostles. The "president" of the assembly would instruct the hearers on what the readings meant and how Christians ought to live. The assembly would then rise to pray, share in Communion, offer more prayers and thanksgivings, and then share the bread and the wine together. Those who weren't present were sent portions by the deacons, and a collection of food and alms was taken up according to what each giver "thinks fit."

The president as well as those gathered would then take those collections and distribute them both inside and outside the community to those who had need. Widows and orphans were fed from the hands of believers who wanted to represent in the streets of the communities from which they came the Christ they had just worshipped. The sick and "the strangers sojourning among us" were given a portion they might otherwise never receive, and the community took "care of all who were in need."

If I may sum it up this way, our earliest accounts of worship involved what we call worship proper, fellowship and communal sharing, and mission to the surrounding community, all on the same day! Worship necessarily spilled over into mission, and mission was seen as an extension of worship. While we still have a tendency in the modern church to treat each of these acts as distinct, our church reversed course this past Sunday and embraced a more ancient expression of Christian identity.

If I may be so bold, it has never been about the music, the effectiveness or style of the preacher, or particular practices around and beliefs about the table that made Christian worship truly Christian. The presence of Christ's love in the assembled community, and from there and in us, out into the world is how Christ dwells among us. True worship is God inhaling, breathing us together into one body, and then exhaling us out into the world to bear fruitful witness to the Lordship of Jesus Christ.

I don't know about you, but I saw a glimpse of that this past Sunday as we worshipped, fellowshipped, broke bread, and served together in Christ's name. I can't wait to do it again. May all of it be to the glory of God!

In Christ,

Pastor Sam

Come and see what God has done! See what wonderful things he has done for his people!

Psalm 66:5

Join us Sunday, August 11, for an evening of celebrating all that God has done in and through FPC! Our church family will enjoy water slides, a potluck BBQ dinner, and fun fellowship followed by worship and Sunday School grade promotion. Bring family and friends, and let's have a wonderful time together!

                                                      4:00:     Games and water fun

                                                      5:00:     Dinner

                                                      6:00:     Worship & celebration of a new school year

We have trained our mission lens on the teachers of our neighborhood school for the month of August. They need a variety of office supplies. We invite the congregation to bring to worship on the Sundays of August 11 and 18, and to place around the communion table, the items shown below. For more information, contact Dave Welch at [email protected].

Our Wednesday program kickoff is scheduled for August 14, beginning as always with a fellowship supper at 5:30 followed by programs for youth, children, and adults. Be sure to join us! We are excited to begin the semester with an intentional multiweek opportunity for spiritual nurture. Our time together will include hymns and praise songs, prayer, and Bible study in the chapel. Among the other programs of the semester will be information about FPC's mission trips and supported programs. Please mark your calendars for Wednesdays beginning August 14.

Last Sunday 248 of us gathered on the church lawn for One Worship, and after Sunday classes we shared a picnic there. Properly fortified in mind, body, and spirit, a few score of us then packed a ton of donated food and took it all to the Bristol Emergency Food Pantry. What a wonderful day!

Thanks to Anna Booher for the photos of One Worship, and to Manda Fox for the picnic photos (see also https://www.icloud.com/photos/#07n66hWtYoiE4lT6jTrWD9nTA).

What does one ton of food look like? It's hard to envision, but last Sunday it looked like more than 100 boxes of canned, bottled, and packaged goods that required many more than 50 volunteers to pack up. We're talking about 2,500 to 3,000 food items! Transporting it took a cargo van, a pickup, and a flatbed truck, along with a slew of volunteers to load, carry, and finally place it all on empty shelves. Our congregation also made a number of financial donations to the cause, but those did not need to be hefted around!

You may not be able to picture it, but that's what you shared with friends and neighbors in Bristol through all the goods you brought to worship in July for our first-ever monthly mission emphasis! Well done and thank you were given and received on the congregation's behalf Sunday, as we restocked the shelves at the Bristol Emergency Food Pantry.

If you are interested in continuing to help, one simple way to do so is to volunteer directly with the Food Pantry. FPC volunteers gather there on the third Wednesday of every month from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m., but there are other options as well. We will have a sign-up sheet for volunteers at both worship services throughout August. For more information, please see Dave Welch (our local mission coordinator) or Jim White, who coordinates, nay, personifies, the Food Pantry.

Invite your friends and come to FPC's Fall Student Retreat at Doe River Gorge in Hampton, TN! This special weekend for students in grades seven through twelve is scheduled for August 31 through September 2. It will include wild fun, adventure in the great outdoors, worship, and bonding with your church family. We will leave Saturday and return Monday afternoon. Join us for a weekend of fun and fellowship with your friends!

If you register with a deposit by August 11, you will receive a T-shirt, and the total cost of the trip will be $150. After August 11, the price will increase to $175 and a T-shirt size cannot be guaranteed. Register at the link below and pay the $50 deposit. Turn in money to the church or pay online at https://onrealm.org/fpcbristol/Give.

Ready to go? ==> REGISTER HERE <==

First Presbyterian Church invites all students in seventh to eleventh grade to join our fall confirmation class, which begins Sunday, September 8. In this course, we will learn, discuss, and ask hard questions about faith, God, and more. The confirmation class prepares students for baptism or to confirm the vows of their baptism by professing their faith in Jesus Christ.

The confirmation journey is a two-year experience. At the conclusion of the two years, students will be invited to confirm their faith and join the church. Confirmation class will take place on Sunday mornings from 10:00 till 10:45 in the Big Room in the Student Ministries wing. Each class builds on the information from the previous week, so class attendance is very important. We ask you to make a commitment to attend every Sunday. If you miss a class, we can help you make it up, but we ask all confirmands to take this commitment seriously.

As you learn through discussion and activities, you will find the confirmation journey to be a time of both individual growth and relational growth with your church family. You will play games, watch videos, and meet friends in new ways. And in addition to your teachers, you will have two mentors, an adult and a high school student, to help you as you go through the process. If you are interested in participating in confirmation, contact Katie Arnold at [email protected].

Last Sunday we shared communion of several kinds under the oaks, or as close as we could get to them. This Sunday we'll share the rite of Communion in the great indoors, wrapped in blessings of several kinds, not least of which is air conditioning. JB Madison (July 31 -August 3) will have mowed the grass we will admire as we hotfoot it through the heat. The following Sunday, August 11, is Rally Day, with an evening party at the church. Who will have the lawn ready for the fun? Why, none other than Ron Fox (August 7 -10).

Sunday's music: "They'll Know We Are Christians by Our Love" is a tune composed by the late Catholic priest Fr. Peter Scholtes. A paraphrase of John 13:35 ("By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another"), the lyrics are also reminiscent of a phrase used to describe early Christians, "Behold, how they love one another." This choral setting is by ubiquitous choral composer and arranger Lloyd Larson. He has published more than 1,300 works, and they can be found in nearly every church and school in the United States. Larson holds degrees from Anderson University and Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and continues to direct choirs and serve music ministry in his home church in Minneapolis.

	Colin Mawby

Organist's footnotes: August Alexander Klengel (1783 -1852) was a German pianist, organist, and composer as well as a pupil of Clementi. Klengel was musically conservative and worked to revive the music of Bach. Chopin reported that "there is always something to be learned from Klengel." Ann Holler has arranged a piano piece by Klengel for the organ. Chris Bingham will assist as my "third hand" in playing her arrangement.

Colin Mawby KSG (b. 1936) is an English organist, choral conductor, and composer. From 1961 he was Master of Music at Westminster Cathedral, then from 1981 he was the choral director at Radio Telefís Éireann. He was awarded the Knighthood of the Order of St. Gregory in 2006. On Sunday I will play two or three selections from Gregorian Communion, Mawby's collection of 20 pieces for the organ based on plainsong melodies.

Sunday, August 4

9:00 a.m.       Worship, Fellowship Hall

10:10 a.m.     Sunday School

11:00 a.m.     Worship, Sanctuary

12:00 p.m.     Sanctuary Choir Picnic, Chapel

Monday, August 5

6:30 p.m.       Board of Deacons, Rooms 117 & 123

Tuesday, August 6

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, August 7

6:00 p.m.       Worship Team, Fellowship Hall

7:00 p.m.       High School Dinner & Devo, Off Campus

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

Thursday, August 8

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

8:30 a.m.       Meals on Wheels, Fellowship Hall

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

7:00 p.m.       Scout Order of the Arrow, Scout Hall

Church Officers
Class of 2019	Class of 2020	Class of 2021
ELDERS
Anna Booher	Nancy Allerton	Ann Abel
Lee Galliher	Rebecca Beck	Randy Cook
Pete Holler	David Hyde	John Graham
Han Ong	Jordan Pennington	Katie McInnis
Pete Stigers	Jerry Poteat	John Vann
DEACONS
Sujean Bradley	Blake Bassett	Fred Harkleroad
George Linke	Rhonda Comer	Matt Kingsley
Greg Roberts	Ron Fox	Lisa McClain
Nate Sproles	Brenda Lawson	Drew Rice
Bill Whisnant	Barbara Thompson	Joyce Samuel
TRUSTEES
Nancy Cook	Peggy Hill	Jack Butterworth