St. John's Family News

Week of August 15-21, 2022 | Vol. 81 Issue 32

www.stjohnsbaptistchurch.org | @sjbccharlotte

Pastoral Leadership and the St. John's Pulpit

by Dennis W. Foust, Senior Minister

How do we step into a new church year as we transition from a pandemic to an endemic culture?
How do we bring together shifts in priorities, existing commitments, developing needs and new visions?
What have we learned about ourselves and our capacities to be creative in the past two years?
How do we enlist more volunteers to serve in our expanding preschool and children’s ministry?
How do we deepen spiritual growth and discipleship?
What have we learned about being compassionate followers of Jesus in a time of division and conflict?
How do explore meaningful connections with young adults and parents of children and youth?
How do we regather a congregation and build momentum in various streams of ministry?
What have we learned about being faithful stewards of God’s love in a season of isolation?
How do we expand our energies as we reach out through creative and consistent external messaging?
How do we increase our connections with households in Elizabeth and surrounding neighborhoods?
What have we decided we will be and do as the people of God to continue the ministry of Jesus?
How do we orient new staff members and nurture healthy staff culture while beginning a new church year?
How do we steward available resources in ways that invest in our church’s primary goals?
What have we remembered about Baptist freedom in the rise of hate-filled nationalism?
How do we coordinate resource teams, deacon panels, small groups, and missional residential partners?
How do we promote congregational fellowship through purposeful events, relationships and care?
What have we celebrated about our first century that we must faithfully take into our second century?
How do we strengthen existing ministries while welcoming new approaches and changes?

These are some of the questions I was considering during my recent summer planning days. Imagine that each of these questions is a thread and my role is to weave these together into a congregational leadership fabric. Because my primary opportunity to guide us in thinking together about these questions is the Sunday sermon, I want you to see a broad view of my preaching themes for the rest of 2022.

August 21 & 28: I will offer two sermons on the theme, ‘Future Church Now,’ amplifying ways St. John’s can pursue God’s mission with renewed purpose although seismic cultural shifts are reshaping local church ministries. This Sunday, we will consider ‘Why and How the Church Must Change’’ and, on August 28th, we will ask, “What’s Right About the Church?”
September 4 & 11: I will preach two sermons on how we share God’s love today. On Labor Day weekend, my sermon is entitled, ‘Love Never Fails – But Love is Hard Labor.’ Then, on September 11th, as we ordain new deacons and install our leadership for the 2022-2023 church year, my sermon asks, ‘Could You Bake and Deliver Brownies?’
September 18 – October 30: I will preach six sermons on the theme, ‘The Way of Jesus, Identity & Influence.’ Under the false flag of ‘Christian Nationalism’ (which is an oxymoron), it is essential that we revisit the foundations of our walk with God through the way of Jesus. His identity and influence provide us a clear path for our discipleship?
On Saturday, October 15th, Al Staggs will be with us to portray Dietrich Bonhoeffer. The next day, Sunday, October 16th, he will offer a dramatic sermon portraying the influential Clarence Jordan, founder of Koinonia Farm.
November 6 & 13: We will consider how a boy’s five barley loaves and two fish fed a multitude as we focus on our financial stewardship theme, ‘Giving What We Have: Trusting God to Multiply Our Commitments.’
November 20: We will welcome a youth & young adult group from the Yakama Nation in the state of Washington. They will lead us in worship through a presentation entitled, ‘Dancing Our Prayers.’
November 27 – December 18: Our Advent theme will be ‘Do You Hear What I Hear?’ Living in this age of anxiety can wear on our emotions and erode our capacity to hear God’s message of hope, peace, joy and love.

Beloved, we are wiggling our way through this pandemic metamorphosis. We have experienced changes and overcome numerous challenges. Although we have some additional changes and challenges to experience, like a chrysalis within a cocoon, let us embrace God’s vision of resurrection as we look forward to emerging as a beautiful butterfly in this next church year. Thank you for your faithfulness.

To the future!

Help Us Reach Our $25,000 Goal!

This year, we are supporting the Nyarweng School in South Sudan as well as Project Ruth to support those affected by the war in Ukraine.

$20,000 will go to support Nyarweng School

$5,000 will go to Project Ruth

So far, we have raised $15,935 towards our $25,000 goal!

You can give towards this goal today by donating online and specifying Global Missions (button below), or by writing "Global Missions" in the memo line on your check.

Give to Global Missions

A good problem to have!

Are you looking for a way to invest in the lives of children?

Do you love caring for babies and toddlers, preschoolers, or elementary students?

If you answered yes, we need your help!

With nineteen babies born in the church family in the last couple of years, we have a growing children's program and an increased need for loving volunteers to provide care in our nursery and children's classrooms on Sunday mornings.

For safety, we must have at least two workers in each classroom. Volunteers are asked to commit to just one Sunday a month. Children's programming will resume after Labor Day on Sunday, 9/11/22.

If you are willing to work in our nursery or one of our children's classrooms one Sunday a month, or if you would just like to substitute, please contact Mindy Vergakis at mindyvergakis@hotmail.com or Amanda Morrison in the church office.

Women of the Church Luncheon

Save the Date for September 18!

Save the date and mark your calendars for the 2022 Women of the Church Luncheon after worship on Sunday, September 18!

More details to come.

St John’s is looking for greeters!

Are you interested in serving?

St. Johns is looking for 5-10 greeters to welcome members and guests on Sunday mornings between Sunday School and Worship Service in the 10:05 - 10:35 time slot.

You will only need serve one Sunday every couple months or more often if you wish. The duties are simple, just give a St. John’s welcome to anyone who is joining us for worship and point them in the right direction. It's a great way to meet and greet those joining us for worship and just happens to be a fun and enjoyable experience.

If you are interested and can spare a few minutes in this time slot on Sunday mornings please send Jeff Almond a note or give him a call- Jeff.Almond@me.com or 704-957-6018. He will be glad to sign you up starting this fall as our new church year begins.

Icecream Social This Sunday!

St. John's invites you to lunch and an icecream social THIS SUNDAY, August 21 directly after worship in Broach Hall.

Little change of plans. We will have hotdogs and hamburgers for sale, as well as chips. Bring a tub of your favorite flavor icecream to share! No need to sign up. Just come and enjoy time together! After lunch, we will participate in the Charlotte Pride Parade in Uptown Charlotte.

Charlotte Pride Parade THIS SUNDAY!

The Charlotte Pride parade returns to Uptown for the first time since the pandemic shutdown THIS SUNDAY, August 21.

We need to get a headcount of who is going to join us as soon as possible, so please register in Realm [button below] if you plan to march with us.

Sign-Up for Pride Here!

CROP Walk Coordinator

St. John’s is seeking a person (or duo) to coordinate our participation in the CROP Walk on October 16. The Charlotte CROP Walk office provides materials, training, and support. Most walkers now register and collect payments online, so less paperwork for you!

Help us support refugees, eradicate hunger, and provide disaster relief for those in need in our nation and around the world.

If you are interested or would like more information contact James Laney at jamesmlaney@yahoo.com

St. John's Women's Fall Retreat

November 4-6, 2022

St. John's Women's Fall Retreat

Blowing Rock, NC

The spiritual growth team of the WOC is excited to offer a retreat experience guided by the story of The Woman With The Alabaster Jar.” Following her example, we will explore how to cultivate deeper intimacy with The Divine and deeper connectedness with one another.

This year, our speaker for the retreat will be our very own Lia Benton. Lia is an M.Div. graduate of Union Presbyterian Seminary in Charlotte and a Candidate for ordination in the Presbyterian Church, USA. She has completed one unit of Clinical Pastoral Education at Atrium Health-CMC Main and is a practicing lactation consultant with Atrium Health. She is married to Kevin and is a mother to David, Tyler, and Nora Frances Benton. We are looking forward to hearing from Lia during the retreat.

Please consider joining us! More details and registration soon.

Faith Journey Book Study Announcement

Faith Journey Book Study books (What Good Is God? by Philip Yancey) are available in the church office for $12. There are extra books if you have not preordered.

The study starts on Monday, September 12 at 11:30 in the church lounge. All are welcome!

St. John's Community Presence in the 1960s

The 1960’s brought increased awareness of St. John’s presence in the community and beyond. In June 1960, instead of a Sunday night worship service, Sunday nights became a time for Bible Study and discussions about various issues. That fall a study began on Sundays and carried over to Wednesday nights entitled “Know Your Neighbors” to acquaint members with beliefs and practices of other religions—Catholic, Episcopal, Presbyterian, Methodist, Lutheran, and Jewish. Other Sunday night topics included Christian Unity, World Missions, World Religions, Alcohol, and Christian Responsibility, and current events such as “The Problem of Red China”. A series in 1962 was entitled “Our Church, Our Town”. One of the first speakers was Stan Brookshire, the Mayor of Charlotte whose topic was “Community Facts of Life”, This series was followed by “Charlotte’s Other Side” – the problems of poverty, health services, second-class citizenship, crime, education, and housing with the question “What Can the Church Do?” There were also programs to acquaint the church with institutions, organizations, and agencies in the community who ministered to “forgotten and neglected groups."