The Arkive: Ark and Dove's Newsletter
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You're invited! This Sunday, 9:30 (choir led) and 11:00 (band led) worship services!
So then, putting away falsehood, let all of us speak the truth to our neighbors, for we are members of one another. - Ephesians 4:25
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Dear Friends and Members of Ark and Dove,
You are very supportive of our summer youth discipleship and mission experiences. I am sure many of you have heard about the 2018 GenOn Youth Summit and The Center day camp, but I wanted to tell you a little more.
At the GenOn Youth Summit, we gathered in Wheeling, West Virginia with seven other churches for a week of worship, Bible study, fellowship, and games. I am always encouraged by the sense of community that occurs here. Youth, young adults and adults enjoy the company of people from very different backgrounds and traditions. Everyone is accepted at Summit, no matter who they are or how they express themselves. Many of our youth and young adults say that this is the best week of their year. All are treated as a children of God. Imagine what would happen if we created this kind of community every week of the year.
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A couple weeks ago, ten of us collaborated with
The Center (a ministry of our Presbytery) and
STAIR (a reading development program) to put on a reading theater camp in Eastport, Annapolis. Every day, our youth helped campers develop reading skills and perform plays with the campers. I was so impressed by how our youth and adult leaders built friendships and inspired campers to read in public. So many of the campers struggled with confidence in reading at the beginning of the week, and we saw them gain courage and self-esteem by the end.
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Thank you for your generous support of our summer youth experiences. As a congregation, we are enriched by these weeks of worship, mission and fellowship. Please ask our youth, young adults and adult leaders about their trips. You will be encouraged by their spiritual growth.
Peace,
Jon
jgnelson1985@gmail.com
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Put away from you all bitterness and wrath and anger and wrangling and slander, together with all malice, and be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ has forgiven you.
- Ephesians 4:31-32
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Gracious God: grant me the strength to be more like you. To be kind, tenderhearted, and forgiving, that is what I want to be this day. You are steadfast in love and abundant in mercy. May this be my purpose today. I know I will encounter difficult people and troubling situations, so help me set bitterness, anger, slander and malice behind me. I put your goodness before me. Shine through me, that others might see your light. Amen.
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Thank you to everyone at Ark & Dove for a very warm welcome!
Many members introduced themselves to me on Sunday (and I apologize in advance for not remembering everyone’s name and needing a reminder!), and several introductions went like this: “Hi, my name’s ‘_________.’ So, Latvia…what was that like?” Well…intense, tuneful, and a little difficult to summarize in a short conversation. Latvia is one of the three Baltic countries, located in northeastern Europe (Estonia and Lithuania are the other two, and Latvia is in the middle of the Baltic sandwich.) Latvia is nicknamed, “the country that sings,” which makes it very attractive to a choral scholar. During my time there, as I tried to define what makes this singing nation just that, I participated in many activities. I’ll share more specific stories and adventures in later issues of the Arkive, but for now, if you’re curious, you can visit the blog I maintained during my stay at
http://choralmusicoflatvia.wordpress.com/
Justine Koontz
Interim Music Director
jkoontz@qis.net
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DONATE
ONLINE
!
Habitat for Humanity of the Chesapeake, Peace and Global Witness Offering
,
Capital Savings Fund
and more!
Many opportunities
await you!
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An experience of God's presence may seem extraordinary. However, according to
Tish Harrison Warren's book,
Liturgy of the Ordinary: Sacred Practices in Everyday Life, we can encounter God in the ordinary and everyday. Join us for a discussion of Warren's book on
August 21 at 7 pm. The book is available on Amazon and most booksellers. Contact Pastor Jon with any questions (jgnelson1985@gmail.com).
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Friendly Seniors will hold their next meeting on
Saturday, August 18, at 1:00 p.m. at Fuji's restaurant in the Village at Waugh Chapel. If you plan to attend, please confirm with Joan Berry (410-672-5237 or berry962@verizon.net) no later than
Wednesday, August 15 so reservations can be made. We hope to see you there to discuss the wheres and whens of future events!
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September 9
Sunday School kick-off!
September 11
Parents' Night: Logos informational meeting
September 18
Logos kick-off!
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Everyone is invited to a Godly Play workshop being held on
August 26th, immediately following the second service. Come and experience Godly Play in action as Amy Tardiff, Ark and Dove's Godly Play organizer, leads us through a session. This is a great opportunity to see what Godly Play is all about. Light picnic style lunch will be provided. Please RSVP to Amy Tardiff, itsmemim@gmail.com or Laura Rockwell, laura.a.rockwell@gmail.com.
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Interested in helping with Sunday School and Godly Play?
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Christian Education is looking for individuals who are interested in helping with Sunday School and Godly Play. No experience needed! Please contact Laura Rockwell (laura.a.rockwell@gmail.com) for more information.
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Celebrating Great Music and Great Relationships
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Sunday, August 19th, will be Mark Edwards’ last day in worship with us. After the second service that day, you are invited to join in a celebration luncheon in honor of Mark. Mark has been directing our band at the 11:00 worship service for the past ten years, leading our youth band, and has been a key leader for worship skills during our LOGOS program, as well as the annual GenOn Youth Summit. You can sign up for the luncheon starting this Sunday after each service, or online
HERE. If you’d like to contribute to a church-wide gift for Mark, you may drop it in a labeled envelope in the offering plate, or visit our giving page
HERE. POCs: Amy Tardiff (itsmemim@gmail.com), Wendy Wellington (swt520@verizon.net).
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Back to School Program Update!
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Thank you to everyone who is sponsoring a student at
Meade Heights Elementary School or bringing supplies for Meade Middle. We have sponsors for 32 of the 35 Meade Heights students! If you are interested in signing up for any of the three remaining students (3rd, 4th, and 5th grade), please contact the church office or send an email to Greg Makar (GLMakar@juno.com). You can also contact Greg for any questions about our Back to School program.
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CAP West County Food of the Month
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Featured item for August is CANNED BEANS (red beans, black beans, chickpeas, etc.). Please drop off food items in the Mission Zone bin. Thank you for your donations!
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Antiracism and Social Equity
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Please don't forget in your prayers....
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The
alternative right, commonly known as the "alt-right", is a set of far-right ideologies, groups, and individuals whose core belief is that “white identity” and "white civilization" are superior and under attack. The movement is diverse. Some are virulently anti-Semitic and believe that Jews are to blame for the perceived plight to white culture. Others simply see Jews as other white people.
The alt-right are strongly prejudiced and discriminatory against people of color (POC). Many believe in the biological superiority of the "white" race, and believe POC are "polluting" via interracial marriage and cultural influences. Similar to some of the European movements, there are groups that want to create a white ethno-state, with no nonwhites allowed. Groups, like the Ku Klux Klan, espouse and act out violence toward blacks, immigrants, and others. These alt-right groups recruit mainly online. Remember Dylann Roof who murdered nine African Americans in a church? He wasn't a member of any of these groups, but he was greatly and tragically influenced by them through social media. See
The Miseducation of Dylann Roof.
The first
Unite the Right Rally took place on August 11 and 12, 2017 in Charlottesville, Virginia. There were a large number of armed neo-Nazis, white nationalists and other racist "alt-right" figures, as well as large crowds of counter-protesters, including many clergy. Heather Heyer was murdered and two police officers died. Unite the Right 2 will be held this weekend in Washington with the main event being on Sunday, August 12.
https://www.thecut.com/2018/08/unite-the-right-rally-washington-dc.html
Many of these folks have hate in their hearts --hate against people they have never met. Nonetheless, they are also children of God. Please pray for them, asking God to soften their hearts and to make a way for them not to be fearful or hateful toward those who appear different from them.
There also will be counter-protesters showing up for racial justice and fighting against racial hate. Diverse ways of protesting will be evidenced, I am sure. Some you may agree with; some you may not. It would be great if you could pray for them as well.
Thank you,
Linnie Girdner
girdnerlinda@gmail.com
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Training beginning this fall!
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We are gearing up for the next Stephen Ministry training series and we'd love to meet with members or friends of the congregation who are interested in exploring Stephen Ministry here at Ark & Dove. Stephen Ministry is designed to train laypeople for Christian caring ministry, which allows us to help bring Christ’s healing love to those who are grieving, hurting, or experiencing other stresses in life. At Ark and Dove, our Stephen Ministers work arm-in-arm with our pastors and deacons to extend care to our members and friends who need that kind of one-on-one care.
We will begin our next Stephen Ministry training series this coming fall. If you are interested in exploring becoming a Stephen Minister, please plan to join us at one of two information meeting opportunities:
*
Sunday, August 26th after the 9:30am service (in the Marshall Room)
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Sunday, August 26th after the 11:00 am service (in the Marshall Room)
If neither of these times works in your schedule, but you're interested, please reach out to either Kelly Burnett (kellyb327@aol.com) or Laurie Barrow (barrowfl@aol.com) to set up a one-on-one meeting.
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Please keep the following people in your prayers this week:
PRAYERS OF HEALING AND SUPPORT for Donna Hahn; Kimberly Schroen; Al Furlow; Charlotte Davie; Jay Olson; Lillian Talbert; Lori Kronser; Mary Beckwith; Colette Efiom; Josh Ederheimer's father, Stanley; Kameron and Kamarii Miller; Karen Dodson; Don Ziegler; Cliff Wellington’s father, Roy; Rob Yeager’s mother, Rebekah Jennings, stepfather, Bill Jennings and grandmother, Peggy Jones; Cheryl Walcutt’s sister, Judy Walsh; Amanda Wehage’s family; Debbie Arey’s sister, Denise Dostoler; Julie Devers' cousin, Blane; Jon Nelson’s aunt, Linda; Chip Burnett; Laura Doughty's aunt, Marie; Ylonda Fauntleroy's aunt, Bernice Taylor; Diane Johnson's aunt; Brooks Emrick and her sister, Susan; Vaughn Brown and his sister, Kathie, and brother, Jim; Arlyce Lohr; Joy Dabbs; Ann Hirschy; Carol and Dick Baily; Christy Yeager's father, Leon Jordan; Donna Anderson's brother-in-law, Tom; Frances Keyes; Dot Forloines; Helene Marchand-Stancil; Laura Willoughby's father, Norman; Steve and Brandi Downs; Mary Stum's sister-in-law, Sandy; Julia Kirby's mother, Margaret Floyd; Amy Carskadon's nephew; Jason Ziegler; Erika Sealing's son, Trip, and grandmother, Margaret Schade; Sue Hanburger's grandson, Enzo; Laura Rockwell's friend, Adam Hurst; Edie and Richard Budd; Dotty Kaufmann's grandson, Nathan; Amy Benson's family; David Michels; Bill Jennings; Ashton Milcalski; Patrie Conroy; Don Griffis; Lori Reed and Antonio; Lisa Mezaache’s friend, Pearl McNamara; Abbey Boudreau’s cousin, Ross Walker; Dakota Miller; Dillon and Kaleb Benson’s grandmother, Jan Sheets; Clarence Scott; Marlene and Doug DeHaven; John Ricciuti; the DeCroix family; Sarah Wilson’s professor, Katie Cannon; Mike Stefanick; and Jerri Webb's best friend, Jodi and her best friend's mother, MaryAnn Van Orten.
PRAYERS OF THANKSGIVING AND PRAISE for the birth of Arden Jaye Echols on August 1, 2018, at 6lbs 12 oz., daughter of Rebecca Bell Echols and Eric Echols and sister of Anderson Echols.
THE LOVE AND PRAYERS OF THE CONGREGATION go out to the Davie and Mensi families on the death of Richard Mensi.
If you have prayer concerns or blessings that you would like to share, please contact Deacon Patriceo Green at patriceobgreen@gmail.com and he will add your concern to the prayer partners email chain.
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Ark and Dove Presbyterian Church | 410-674-6400 | admin@arkanddove.org |
www.arkanddove.org
| 8424 Piney Orchard Pkwy. Odenton, MD 21113
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