Weekly Word - Sunday, January 22, 2023

Sunday, January 22, 2023

8:45 and 11:00 a.m.

Join us this Sunday at 8:45 and 11:00 a.m. as Dr. Ryan Baer will preach a sermon entitled, The Inaugural Address. The scripture lessons for this week are Psalm 1:1-3 and Matthew 5:1-20.

At the 11:00 a.m. service, the Chancel Choir will sing Teach Me, O Lord, by Thomas Attwood, as the offertory anthem.

You can follow the livestream of the service on Facebook or YouTube. For instructions to follow livestream through Facebook or YouTube, click here. Find the text and audio from previous weeks' sermons, along with a copy of the bulletin, here.

Matthew 25 Aligning Hearts and Hands Workshop

As we begin a new year, the Matthew 25 Commission invites you to a visioning lunch following worship on January 22. We’ll focus on how to live out the Matthew 25 values through adult faith formation and mission and outreach. The three-hour conversation is just a starting point, a way to set some guideposts for Mission & Outreach and Education & Discipleship Commissions to engage in their own, separate discernment. We want as much input from the congregation as we can gather. Help us discern how to align our hearts with our hands in 2023. Please RSVP here by tomorrow at 9:00 a.m. For more information, contact Leigh Bonner or Kim Ness.

Elder Recognition Reception

Sunday, January 22

Please join us this Sunday in Fellowship Hall immediately following the 11:00 a.m. worship service to thank our Elder class rotating off Session for their service and to welcome the new class of elders as they begin their service.

Annual Congregational Meeting

Sunday, January 29

Please join us in Fellowship Hall for our Annual Congregational Meeting on Sunday, January 29. We will receive the Annual Report and review the pastors’ terms of call.

Interested in Membership?

Join us for “First Things,” an informative class about First Presbyterian Church, 1:30 p.m. – 4:00 p.m., Sunday, February 5. Please call the church office (706-543-4338) or e-mail Lucy Bell Johnson at lbell@firstpresathens.org by Wednesday, February 1, to make a reservation. Child care available upon request.

Stephen Ministry

Are You Experiencing a “Winter” in Your Life?

In addition to the cold weather outside, many people experience winters in their personal life. A recent loss through death, divorce or relocation may leave them feeling lonely. A hospitalization, a cancer diagnosis, or ongoing medical problems may leave them feeling isolated. The loss of a job, the fear of layoffs, or a financial setback can devastate one’s self-esteem. Family and personal struggles may leave them with nowhere to turn for support.

If you are going through a difficult time, our Stephen Ministers can bring God’s warm love back into your life. They provide confidential, one-to-one Christian care. They will meet with you privately on a weekly basis to listen, to support and encourage you, to pray with and for you, and to walk with you for the duration of your crisis.

To find out more about Stephen Ministry and how you or someone you know could be matched with a Stephen Minister, talk with:

Margaret Davis: margaret@firstpresathens.org, 706-206-9896

Lisa Oelke: lisakoelke@gmail.com, 706-540-4251

Our Stephen Ministers are ready to care for you!

News from Family Promise of Athens

We are running low on supplies at our static site and day center! With the start of school, we have seen an increase in families asking for household supplies because they have had additional expenses this past month. Some of the items that we need include:

65 gallon trash bags
Paper Plates and Cutlery
Paper towels
Laundry detergent
Clorox wipes
Toilet Paper
Lotion, shampoo, body wash

You can shop on our Amazon wishlist here, or drop items off at our Day Center (First Baptist: 355 Pulaski Street) or our Static Site (Milledge Avenue Baptist Church: 1690 S Milledge Ave)

Click here to read Winter@First.

Our Church Family

Christian Sympathy to:

The Ferguson family on the death of Richard Cloud Ferguson.

January 19

Randy Dudley

Tenny Ness

Caryl Woosley

January 20

Cash Morris

Dianne Wilson

January 21

Kathy Compton

Sue Ellen Patterson

Beth Shackleford

January 22

Andrea Doornbos

Beau Hodgson IV

January 23

Jean Bock

Ashley Dunn

Jerry Rogers

January 24

Paige Oelke

January 25

Hensley Barrett

Jimmy Wilfong, Jr.

Katie Sue Martin-Williams

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Please see FirstPresAthens.org for more information about the life of the church.

Looking Ahead

January 22

Ordination and Installation of Elders

Worship Service at 8:45 and 11:00 a.m., Dr. Ryan Baer preaching

Sunday School

Godly Play

Reception for Elders

Matthew 25 Aligning Hearts and Hands Workshop

St. Andrews Choir Rehearsal

Cherub Choir Rehearsal

Celebration Singers Rehearsal

Youth Group

January 23

Suicide Prevention Group

Handbell Choir Rehearsal

January 24

Stephen Ministry Meeting

January 25

Associate Pastor Nominating Committee Meeting

Chancel Choir Rehearsal

January 26

Weekday School Chapel

January 27 and 28

Session Winter Retreat

January 29

Worship Service at 8:45 and 11:00 a.m., The Rev. Leigh Bonner preaching

Sunday School

Godly Play

Annual Congregational Meeting

St. Andrews Choir Rehearsal

Cherub Choir Rehearsal

Celebration Singers Rehearsal

Youth Group

First Presbyterian Church

185 E. Hancock Avenue

Athens, GA 30601

(706) 543-4338

www.firstpresathens.org