This Sunday is World Communion Sunday which celebrates our oneness in Christ with all our brothers and sisters around the world.

Be sure to have your bread and drink ready as we celebrate communion virtually.

Be sure to check out our Virtual Sunday School Classroom with our new Growing in God's Love curriculum. For Pre-K through 5th grade children, this includes a monthly supply kit to take home and use with the virtual classroom each week.

The first bags are available in the lobby area of the Fellowship House. Be sure to grab your kit to be ready to go for the lesson this Sunday. You can access the virtual classroom by clicking here or by going to the First Presbyterian Church website! This month we are learning about creation. The content will change weekly as we hear a new story each Sunday.

*This is our last Sunday in our Creation Unit. October 11 will be our first Sunday with our new unit, "Brave Women and Men in the Old Testament." New kits will be prepared soon, so be sure to get yours to be ready for the first lesson!

If you are a family that has a Youth in grades 6th through 12th, be sure to sign up to receive the First Youth Fellowship newsletter. That is the best way to see all the ways youth can get connected and deepen their faith through service, community, and fun! Sign-up here to receive the Youth Newsletter for detailed information about all youth happenings. **If you didn't receive the Youth Newsletter last week, please be sure to check your spam or junk folder.

Reminder - Kick-Off Tonight, September 30th, via Zoom.

Please refer to your September 17th email for the login information,

or contact Rene Prager: the pragers@yahoo.com

Details are also available in Sign-up genius: click here

St James Lutheran Church (104 Union Street, South) has invited First Presbyterian Church to join them in a food drive for CCM on Wednesday, October 7 from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. On that Wednesday, simply enter the church back parking lot and stop near the portico at the back entrance of the church. A volunteer will remove your donations from your car and take them to the truck provided by CCM. During the drop off, social distancing protocols will be followed (masks, maintaining 6 feet of distance from others).

Items needed include canned vegetables, canned meats, beans, peanut butter, jelly, pasta sauce, toilet paper, paper towels, hand soap, dish soap, hand sanitizer, cough drops, coffee and filters, laundry detergent, and garbage bags.

Join us for a three series time of learning with Rev. Carol Hassell. We will discover the fullness of who God created you to be as we explore the 9 enneagram types, learn about the 3 Centers of Intelligence (head/heart/body), and use the Harmony Triads for a whole person response to God and life!

This class will meet virtually on Thursdays at noon on October 15, 22, and 29.

You will receive a code to the Wagner Enneagram Personality Styles Scale to begin your type exploration with an option for a one on one consultation with Carol before the classes begin. You will also receive a customized enneagram profile packet.

Cost for Class: $10

Cost for optional Consultation: $40

The customized enneagram profile packet is included in the registration fee.

Registration deadline is October 8. You can sign up here!

Please take the WEPSS no later than October 12.

Rev. Carol Hassell is a retired Presbyterian pastor and is currently serving as a spiritual director, enneagram teacher and workshop facilitator. She is certified for Enneagram work and has done training through The Enneagram Spectrum of Styles, The Changeworks, REALIFE Enneagram Circles, and The Enneagram Institute. You can find more information here: www.beenneaware.com

If you have questions, please contact Lynne at lynne.keel@firstpresconcord.org.

What Is It?

The Cabarrus County CROP Hunger Walk is a great opportunity for our church family to work together by donating money and time to end hunger in our community and in the world. This event includes a 1 mile and 3 mile walk. Fun for all ages.

As COVID-19 continues to impact our community, hunger remains a crucial issue and the needs have become even more urgent this year. The Cabarrus County CROP Hunger Walk is committed to continuing the fight against hunger in our community as well as globally. With your help, we will respond to the COVID-19 crisis by supporting the hunger fighting initiatives of our local agency partner (Cooperative Christian Ministry) and Church World Service.

When Is It?

Sunday, October 11th. The walk starts at 1:30 p.m.. This year the CROP Hunger Walk Planning Team is developing an event that is taking all necessary health and safety precautions for our participants. We will be modifying the Walk to be more of a virtual event with walkers continuing their fundraising efforts and committing to participate with appropriate social distancing, such as walking with their families or in small groups in their own neighborhoods, greenway trails or local parks.

How Can I Donate?

To make online donations click here. Once there, Select donate, Click team, and type First Presbyterian Church. You can also donate by mailing or dropping a check by the church office. Checks should be designated to the CROP Hunger Walk. We have been challenged to meet the $500 level goal this year.

How Can I Join In?

Click here to register for the team. You can also join in by walking in the event that day! All are welcome!

Is There Any Other Way I Can Help?

Yes! You can spread the word and encourage your friends and family to support this fun event.

Who Can I Contact with Questions?

Our church's CROP walk coordinator this year is Edy Johnston. Feel free to email her at johnstoniiip@aol.com or call her at 704.796.6230. If you have questions or want to help.

The Presbyterian Women of First Presbyterian Church cordially invite you to the Annual Spiced Sunday event. Guest Speaker: Beth Troutman (see following article) presents "Living a Purposeful Life", Sunday, October 18 at 2:00 p.m.

This is a virtual event via Zoom. Please RSVP by October 9th via Sign-up genius

You can also sign up on the church's website here, or by calling the church office at 704.788.2100.

Beth Troutman is an Emmy Award-winning Television Personality and Documentarian who recently returned from a three-week documentary shoot in Pakistan. She has spent 20 years in the Television Industry working both in front of the camera and behind the scenes. Beth has hosted local and nationally syndicated TV shows and has appeared on The Today Show, Extra, HLN, Home & Family, Good Day New York, Good Day LA & Good Day Chicago.

Her career began in Los Angeles where a cold-call led to a position working for the hit show The West Wing. After four years with the show, she was asked to run for the US House of Representatives in North Carolina’s 8th Congressional District. At the young age of 27, Beth was first woman to run for Congress in NC-8. Although she lost the elections, she ran a close race and was then offered a job as the host of the television morning show FOX News Rising. While working for FOX, Beth covered everything from politics to pop culture and was a Red-Carpet Correspondent at the American Idol Finale during three of its most popular seasons.

In 2009 Beth landed a gig as the host of the nationally televised morning show The Balancing Act on Lifetime Television. In 2011, she moved back out West to help launch the nationally syndicated show Right This Minute. With Beth as the Lead Host, RTM was the #1 New Syndicated Show on TV. It aired in more than 200 television markets across the U.S. and was also syndicated internationally. She helped sign deals with MGM, Sony and FOX.

Beth returned to her home state of NC in 2015 to be the main anchor of NBC Charlotte’s evening newscasts. While at NBC, Beth covered the 2016 Olympics LIVE from Rio de Janeiro. She was also the host of the Sunday political show Flashpoint.

After leaving her traditional TV career behind, Beth spent time living at an orphanage in Haiti providing aid, assistance, and support to the local children and community. While in Haiti, she shot a series of short documentaries that won TWO Emmy Awards. She is currently the Host and Executive Producer of the documentary series Travel with Love.

I live in a suburban neighborhood that straddles the Mecklenburg/Cabarrus County line and my neighborhood is surrounded by similar neighborhoods with names like Moss Creek, Highland Creek, Davidson East, Summers Walk, and Wellington Chase. Most of these neighborhoods are built around neighborhood clubhouses and pools with single family homes (with some Townhouses) and cater to relatively affluent families with children.  Most of the residents of these neighborhoods are white (although there is a good representation of people from all racial backgrounds). Most are college educated. Most earn similar incomes. They root for the same football teams. Most are some flavor of “Christian.” These people have a lot in common with each other.

One of the ways that residents of these neighborhoods navigate suburban life is through an App called “Next-door.” Most of the postings on this app are mundane: “Can anyone recommend a good housecleaner? Does anyone know someone who does tilework? Can anyone recommend a good babysitter?” The snarkiest postings I have seen on the app (until recently) have had to do with complaints about people not picking up after their dogs!

This all changed last weekend when one neighbor innocently advertised on Next-door that she had signs (for one of the two Presidential candidates) available to anyone who wanted them. The reaction she received from others in the community was revealing. In evenly divided posts, neighbors either thanked her for making the signs available—or complained (many nastily).

This reaction to my naïve (but now wiser) neighbor, I think, is a good illustration of what is happening throughout North Carolina and around the country: people who in reality have much in common with one another are at odds because of the “algorithms” on the social media they consume.

We all basically want and need the same things: safe neighborhoods, affordable housing, quality public schools, affordable, accessible healthcare, meaningful work with opportunities for advancement, equal treatment and protection under the law, affordable higher education, freedom to worship (or not) as we choose, a clean and sustainable environment, and the ability to retire with dignity.

In a democracy, it is perfectly OK (and a tremendous luxury!) to have spirited debates about how best to achieve these things (i.e. more public sector involvement vs. greater reliance on the private sector). But differing views on these things does not make someone your “enemy.” This is, perhaps, the greatest tragedy of the times we are currently living through.

Believe it or not, the broad mainstream of the Christian tradition (both Protestant and Catholic) has a lot of helpful teaching regarding our current cultural and political impasse. Paul Lewis, a Professor of Religion at Mercer University in Macon, Georgia, has written two brief articles that summarize ways for contemporary Christians in North America to think through these issues. They can be found here:

If you are like me, I suspect you cannot wait for Wednesday, November 4^th, because all the inflammatory and factually inaccurate political advertising will have ceased! (Thou shall not bear false witness!). But whatever happens in the election, it is helpful to remember that as Christians our ultimate loyalty is to God—not a political candidate, party, flag, or ideology. At our best, we critique our politics through the ethical teachings of Jesus—not the other way around.

Blessings and peace,

Scott Kenefake

Interim Pastor

Our pastoral staff continues to preach and teach through various means of technology. Please join us for all of our worship opportunities on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/firstpresconcordnc/),

YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfpzVUz-ZgaCJuogIMor8Iw) or our Sermon Archives (https://firstpresconcord.org/worship/sermon-archives/).