If any of you is lacking in wisdom, ask God, who gives to all generously and ungrudgingly, and it will be given you.

James 1:5 NRSV

I wanted to thank everyone who attended the informational meeting concerning the sanctuary acoustics last Sunday. The meeting went far better than I had expected. To that end, I give thanks to God and thanks to you for praying for the meeting and coming together in a spirit of unity and love to solve problems.

In my estimation, the most important thing that happened at the meeting, beyond the reports, numbers, and explanations, was that everyone had an opportunity to ask questions and be heard. Those of differing opinions on these critical matters could hear from others who did not share their perspective. As the body of Christ, it is important that we listen to one another. Together, we listen for God's voice as we try and discern the right steps forward.

As we outlined at the meeting, we have made no decisions yet about the direction we will take. There are a variety of approaches for us to consider, and the Session will meet next week to take the question up for consideration. For those interested, we do have packets outlining the findings of the workgroup. If you would like to review the presentation, please inquire at the church office.

I ask that you pray for our Session, our congregation, and all who lead and serve that God would give us wisdom and discerning hearts. To that end, we all ought to consider closely the words of James to his readers. If we lack perspective and wisdom, we need to ask God for it. When the way seems dim and the path forward unclear, we need to take up the conviction that we "walk by faith and not by sight" (2 Corinthians 5:7). And the wonderful news about this proposition, as James tells us, is that we belong to a God who bestows gifts generously. The insight and wisdom we lack, God is able to provide.

What's even better, God is able to provide these things in love. God loves us. God loves the person who disagrees with us. God loves all who belong to Him. If we ask, it will be given unto us.

So, please, continue to pray for us. As we go through the process, we will do our best to communicate what we are thinking about and planning.

In Christ,

Pastor Sam

Most of us have some sort of to-do list either scribbled on scraps of paper in our pockets, hand written on well-designed organizer pages, or thumb-typed into a digital phone list. That to-do list can be a wonderful tool to help us accomplish more by holding our focus on these tasks. We all know folks who are driven by their to-do lists.

However, the very act of hyperfocusing on accomplishing each task may distract us from a more important list. We may be so intent on using the hours in our day, the energy in our life, and the money in our pocket to check off each "to-do" that we neglect our "to-be" list.

The to-be list is at a level above the to-do list. It guides our selection of tasks, determines how much time we give to each daily demand, and affects where our money goes. Our to-be list drives us to be a better parent, to be a better friend, to be a better spouse, and to be a better person.

Consider this your invitation "To-Be": to be a better pledger by filling out the 2020 pledge card and mailing it today; to be a better pledger by pledging whatever amount you feel is appropriate for you; to be a better pledger by committing your support for missions, for youth, for the community, and for the many other ways our church impacts the world; to be a better pledger by engaging in the 2020 pledge campaign. Please pledge.

This Sunday, we will gather as a congregation and bring our pledges forward after the regular offertory. This act will be done prayerfully, trusting that God will provide what we need for the ministry of the church through our generosity. If you have already turned your pledge card in, please just grab another and bring it up. Most importantly, what we are doing is about more than the paper, the pledging, or the amounts. What we are doing is saying that together, in Christ, Christ is Lord over our time, talent, and treasure. So please, come joyfully. Come generously. Come, knowing that we belong to the One who "is able to accomplish abundantly far more than all we can ask or imagine" (Ephesians 3:20). / Stewardship Committee

We will collect our quarterly Five-Cents-a-Meal offering November 3, at both services. The suggested offering is $13.65 per person, or about a nickel for each meal in a three-month period. Our contributions will help both local and global ministries to provide hunger relief. Last year our Five-Cents-a-Meal offerings helped Haven of Rest and Bristol Emergency Food Pantry feed the hungry in Bristol, and our missions in Ethiopia and Brazil feed the hungry in those countries. Please be generous!

Except when we have special presentations, we worship on most Wednesday evenings by praying, singing, and studying God's Word together. The evening begins with a fellowship supper at 5:30, and activities for children and youth follow at 6:00. The adult program begins at 6:15. Please join us October 30 to continue our study of 2 Corinthians with Pastor Sam. See you there!

It's fall cleaning time at FPC! The Building & Grounds Committee has scheduled Saturday, November 16, beginning at 10:00 a.m., as Basement Cleanout Day. We need volunteers from the congregation to help with this task. Fear not! We know for a fact that there are no monsters lurking among the odds and ends. In fact, there may be some treasures down there that the church no longer needs. So come on out! There is a large quantity of slate from previous roof replacements that those of you with an artistic flair can do something creative with. We're asking $2 apiece for roofing slate (we have to pay for the dumpster somehow!).

If you can help, please contact Randy Cook at 423-956-1541 (text preferred) or email [email protected]. Stay tuned to hear when the basement will be available for "shoppers" before cleaning day! / Randy Cook

The Children's Ministries will hold a Parents' Night Out from 6:00 to 8:30 on Friday, November 1, in the Education Wing. This event is for newborns through sixth graders. Please let Lilly Osborne know the number and ages of the children you will bring so that she can provide dinner and materials for all of them. To sign up, email Lilly at [email protected], call or text her at 423-383-5476, or use the Children's Ministries Facebook page.

Student Ministries has many mouths to feed on four Sunday evenings. Will you help? We need people who can provide dinner for 35 to 40 students on November 3 and 10 and December 1 and 8. Families can team up together or do it individually. Our dinner coordinator, Sarah Gannaway, or our director, Katie Arnold, can suggest what to bring and easy ways to accomplish the feat. This is a beautiful way to serve and support our students! Please contact Sarah at 423-573-2680 or Katie at [email protected] to volunteer.

Our Fusion students had a fantastic time this past weekend at Holston Presbytery Camp in the mountains of North Carolina! We enjoyed the beauty of God's creation while ziplining and hiking. For our Bible lesson, we studied about Moses and the Israelites, who also camped in the wilderness. I can't wait for Fusion Retreat 2020! / Lilly Osborne

Start the new year right with FPC Bristol at Passion 2020! We're going to join thousands of 18 -to-25-year-olds at the Benz in Atlanta from December 31 through January 2. Passion is filled with incredible worship, dynamic speakers, and sweet time with your church family. The cost is $150 if you register by December 1 and pay a $50 deposit. After December 1, the cost rises to $200. For more information and to register, contact Katie Arnold at [email protected] now!

FPC high school students are invited to spend a week in Panama City Beach, Florida! We will leave from the church on June 19 and return June 27. We're going to BigStuf Camp for worship, engaging speakers, mission opportunities, and tons of beach time with hundreds of high school students from around the country. We will stay in a beachfront hotel at the convention center.

Spots are limited, so invite your friends and get the best price by registering now on the Student Ministries webpage or here.

The cost includes:

You are reading the last Mower Alert! of the growing season, but if you look sharp, you may still catch a glimpse of Bruce Gannaway (October 23 -26) keeping his pledge to mow the church lawn for Stewardship Sunday. Be like Bruce, and all the other faithful stewards on our mowing team.

	Ralph Vaughan Williams

Sunday's music: Our anthem this week is "O How Amiable" by Ralph Vaughan Williams (1872 -1958), considered the most significant composer of English sacred choral music. He studied at the Royal Conservatory of Music and Trinity College, Cambridge, and among his composition teachers were Hubert Parry, Charles Wood, and Charles Villiers Stanford. Vaughan Williams's music is known for its ability to look backward and forward at the same time, showing old techniques such as modality (versus tonality) in a modern light. He arranged older tunes, such as his orchestral work Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis, in a manner that was exciting for modern audiences but preserved the flavor of the original work. His piece "O How Amiable" is a staple of the Anglican tradition. The words are taken from Psalms 84 and 90 and affirm the blessings afforded to us by our creator. The organ writing in this work is particularly beautiful and shows off the range of timbres our instrument can produce.

Organist's footnotes: Continuing our sermon series on the Apostles' Creed, this week we examine "He ascended into heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of God the Father Almighty." For today's prelude and postlude, I have chosen arrangements based upon hymns which allude to Christ's glorified status in heaven.

Words to the tune mit freuden zart ("with high delight," prelude) may be found in hymn 645, but they are not the words originally associated with this tune. The tune first appeared in the Bohemian Brethren's Kirchengesänge, 1566. Jan Bender (1909 -1994) composed this lively, playful setting in 1974. Bender was born in the Netherlands and immigrated to the United States, where he taught at several college and universities.

	Tom Hay

In 1995, Central Presbyterian Church was undergoing its building expansion. As Music Director then, I suggested to the pastor, Tom Hay, that we needed a song to rally people around this project. Overnight, Tom penned the words to "A Blueprint for Discipleship," which I set to music; the congregation sang this hymn a number of times thereafter. I also arranged it for handbell choir. The Sanctuary Choir will sing the hymn during the offertory, and the Sanctuary Handbell Choir will play a shortened version of the handbell arrangement during the presentation of pledges on this Stewardship Sunday.

The tune middlebury first appeared in A Supplement to the Kentucky Harmony, c. 1821. The hymn "Come Away to the Skies," written by Charles Wesley, is most often sung to this tune. David Evan Thomas (b. 1958), a native of Rochester, New York, who now lives in Minneapolis, composed this setting, suitable for our postlude.

The bells, bells, bells, bells, bells, bells, bells: The call rings out from the Sanctuary Handbell Choir: O for new members or even substitutes! We practice from 6:15 to 7:15 on Wednesday evenings in room 212 upstairs, and play for the late worship service about once a month. We're playing this Sunday; watch and learn, then come to our next practice! Contact Bob Greene at [email protected] or 276-696-9091.

Sunday, October 27

9:00 a.m.       Worship, Fellowship Hall

10:10 a.m.     Session Receives New Members, Room 167

10:10 a.m.     Sunday School

10:30 a.m.     Sanctuary Choir, Room 202

11:00 a.m.     Worship, Sanctuary

6:00 p.m.       Student Fellowship

Monday, October 28

7:00 p.m.       Session of Elders, Room 123

Tuesday, October 29

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

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

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

Wednesday, October 30

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

5:15 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.       Adult Enrichment

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

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

Thursday, October 31

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

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

Friday, November 1

6:00 p.m.       Parents' Night Out, Education Wing

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