First News
January 19, 2022
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God Is Like Christ
In his book Credo, William Sloane Coffin writes, “Jesus is a mirror to our humanity and a window to divinity, a window revealing as much of God as is given mortal eyes to see. When Christians see Christ empowering the weak, scorning the powerful, healing the wounded, and judging their tormentors, we are seeing transparently the power of God at work. What is finally important is not that Christ is Godlike, but that God is Christ-like. God is like Christ. That’s what we need to know, isn’t it? Then we know how to pray— “through Jesus Christ, our Lord,” who gives us the right and confidence to pray the way we do.”
Coffin’s reversal of “Christ is Godlike” to “God is Christ-like,” speaks deeply to me and, I imagine, to many of you as well. How many of us, I wonder, live in relationship to God as if Christ is like God rather than God is like Christ? The implications of “God is Christ-like” are that God is much more accessible, much closer, much more relatable than many, if not most, of us imagine God to be. And it most certainly means that God is much more interested in how we live out love for others than how well we practice personal piety. God, the Creator, is at the same time unfathomably large and intimately close to us and these two things are not contradictory. If you live with an image of God as only infinite and distant, and, perhaps mostly a punitive record keeper, the truth that God is like Christ, might help you open your hearts to the closeness God seeks with us. “God with us,” shows God’s ability and relentless desire for us to know and relate to God intimately.
As Coffin rightly points out, “God like Christ” also means that Christ’s empowerment of the weak, his challenging and holding accountable the powerful and those who torment the weak, is God’s lived command. Indeed, in Christ we see “transparently the power of God at work.” Christ’s way of living makes transparently clear the way of living God calls us to. In the end, the disparities in this world between poor and rich, weak and strong, powerless and power-filled, work to separate us from one another and from God’s call to know ourselves and all others as beloved children of God. Distance from us is not in God’s nature nor is it how God wants us to be in relationship to one another.
To answer Coffin’s question, this is what I really need to know, what I really need to be reminded of over and over again, that God is like Christ. Ultimately, that’s what keeps me going on this journey of faith, that our God is like Christ.
Grace and peace,
Will
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Annual Congregational Meeting
The Session has called the annual congregational meeting for January 30, 2022 at the beginning of 11:00 a.m. worship for the purpose of voting on changes to the senior pastor’s terms of call as required by the Book of Order (G-1.0503). All active members of the congregation are entitled to vote, so plan to join us for this important business of the church.
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As we start each new year we provide contact information to our new sets of deacons. In an effort to make sure we are providing correct and up to date information we are asking that members complete the form linked below for themselves and members of their families. Please help us make sure we have up to date preferred contact methods for adults, youth and children of the church.
Information changes will go into our people management software that is restricted to staff and deacons. We will also update contact information in the Church Directory, unless you designate on this form not to.
Reach out to Maggie Wentzky with questions.
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Many of you have most likely heard about one of our mission partners - Daily Bread Ministries, located right here in Greer. Daily Bread ministries is comprised of the Greer Soup Kitchen and STEP (Shelter to Empower People). Both are dedicated to feeding the homeless and helping those that want to make their way out of homelessness. First Presbyterian Church Greer has been very active in supporting this ministry over the years with monetary donations, supporting STEP & the Tiny Homes (just recently completed), and providing the Monday Soup Kitchen volunteer group. Many of our members have worked on the Soup Kitchen Monday crew and/or have been on the Board of Directors for Daily Bread Ministries. Currently the Board of Directors is in need of volunteers to sit on the Board. Sandy Thomason has graciously volunteered for a term on the Board starting this year. We would love to see others from our church to come to a monthly meeting and get involved with this ministry. If you have questions or want more information about the Board, please email Ron Vanderhoff or myself.
Thank You! - Kathy Vanderhoff
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If you have a love of worship &/or music, please join us for Montreat Music & Worship Conference: June 26- July 2, 2022. While there are many offerings for musicians and worship leaders, there are also classes for bible study, theology, worship reflections and social issues applicable to our denomination.
Dr. Andre Thomas, world-renowned for his musical career, will be the choir director this year. Please email Lisa Dillard to let her know if you would like to attend for 1/2 tuition ($215) plus the cost of meals for the week. Thanks be to God for the generosity of our session and the Vaughn Fund that will provide housing and the remaining tuition.
Save the date - Feb. 27th @ 11am - children in worship
You’re Invited!
Duo-Pianists Lisa Dillard & Erica Pauly
Feb. 19th @ 7pm
Daniel Recital Hall @ Converse University
Featuring works by Bach, Schubert, Ravel & Milhaud
Free admission/ masks required per Converse policy
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Reflections from Al
As I write this, Covid numbers are surging, winter storms make 50 miles of I-95 a cold overnight rest area; time to start a new year tax folder; my roof is leaking; my daughter begins pulmonary treatments for lung disease; today is the end of Christmas season…but tomorrow is Epiphany—star-following non-religious but spiritual wise guys sought out a Jewish baby-king. Like them, I am seeking a fresh experience of the living Christ.
Advent has been a time to watch and wait, Christmas a time to go and adore, Epiphany a time to see Christ in our lives now. Howard Thurman’s “The Sacrament of Christmas” is my hopeful mantra for 2022:
“I make an act of faith toward all humankind, where doubts would linger and suspicions brood.
I make an act of joy toward all sad hearts, whose laughter pales and tears abound.
I make an act of strength toward feeble things, where life grows dim and death draws near.
I make an act of trust toward all life, where fears preside and distrusts keep watch.
I make an act of love toward friend and foe, where trust is weak and hate burns bright.
I make a deed to God of all my days—and look out on life with quiet eyes.”
An Epiphany prayer from The Book of Common Worship:
O God, who by the shining of a star did guide the Wise Men to behold your Son our Lord: show us your heavenly light, and give us grace to follow until we find Him, and finding Him, rejoice. And grant that as they presented gold, frankincense, and myrrh, we now may bring Him the offering of a loving heart, an adoring spirit, and an obedient will, for His honor, and for Your glory, O God Most High. Amen.
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New Part-Time Staff Members
We are pleased to welcome Natalie Hogue to our nursery staff. Natalie is a freshman at Furman University, majoring in Elementary Education. A lifelong Presbyterian, Natalie is from Columbia, SC and was raised in Spring Valley Presbyterian Church. She is active in UKirk at Furman and hopes to be on summer staff at Montreat this summer. We also welcome our own Timbre Cruz, a sophomore at Bob Jones University, to her new position as AV assistnant. Please introduce yourself to Natalie and Timbre when you see them around the church.
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It's time to start thinking about Camp!!
Camp Fellowship has released all of their schedules and registration information for Summer 2022.
We'd love to have all of our FPCG campers there at the same time so please fill out the poll link below, so that we can pick a week that works best.
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The First Presbyterian Book Club meets next on February 1st at 3 p.m. in the Agape Room to discuss The Daughters of Yalta by Catherine Grace Katz. We welcome anyone interested in reading and discussing books to join us. Contact Jenny Munro at jennymunro@yahoo.com for more information.
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A memorial cross honoring Reverend Wayne Cole’s life and service to our Lord has been placed on the Japanese maple tree near the Columbarium gate. Wayne served our church as Associate Pastor from September 2000 to February 2017. We invite you to seek out the cross when you are in the garden.
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Prayers for the FPC Family
Luanne Baker
Dick & B.J. Baldwin
Roy Coker
Vincent DeMaria
Bill Harrill
John McWilliams
Marie Moore
Donna Palmer
Loren Pinkerman
Ronnie Richards
Rosalind Stringer
We extend Christian sympathies to Cindy Moore whose mother, Quinlyn, passed away on December 22nd, to Dottie Metropol whose brother-in-law, Lyn Ham, passed away on January 6th, and to Susan Tompkins and Jennifer Jones in the death of their mother and grandmother, Jean Bridger, on January 13th.
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Thank you to the prayer shawl group. I am enjoying the new shawl. It is such a lovely color and it offers so much encouragement to me. I also appreciate all the cards and emails I have been receiving from The Sisterhood Class as well as the members of the church. They are my source of hope on many days.
Love & blessings,
Glennis Griner
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The next issue of First News is February 23rd. If you have content for the newsletter, please email it to Lisa Johnson at lisaj@fpcgreer.org by Friday, February 18th.
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