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GOOD NEWS AND WORSHIP UPDATE
MORNING WORSHIP
Sunday, March 26, 2023 @ 11 am
Fifth Sunday in Lent
Sermon - "The Lord's Prayer" | Scripture reading - John 17:1-26
Rev. Brandon Davis, Pastor
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both in-person and on Facebook or YouTube (click here)
Comments: We have set our YouTube channel to accept comments. If you are viewing, we ask that you say hello or to let us know you are there so we can count you as part of our attendance.
ELDER OF THE MONTH - SHERRY SNODDERLY BAILEY
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SPECIAL NEWS AND INFORMATION | |
LENTEN THOUGHTS
In the Gospels Matthew and Luke, Jesus teaches the disciples how they should pray. We know this prayer deeply and recite it each Sunday. We call it The Lord’s Prayer. And yet, the Gospel of John does not contain this moment of teaching the disciples how to pray. Instead, towards the end of this Farewell Discourse, Jesus sits with his disciples and offers up his prayer for his last days, and for his friends. Think about that? What would it mean to hear Jesus praying for you face to face? How might this change the way that we think about prayer? Come this Sunday and explore what this Lord’s Prayer is teaching and revealing to each of us.
Yours In Christ,
Brandon
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LENTEN STUDY / SERVICES
There are just two session left on our weekly Lenten study with Covenant Presbyterian Church that continues on Mondays through April 3rd. We are exploring what it means to be the Church by looking at a diverse group of theologians and scripture. The Study alternates between WAPC and Covenant. We hope that you will join us!
Holy Week services includes Maundy Thursday potluck dinner and service on April 6th at Covenant and Good Friday service on April 7th at WAPC. Both services are at 6 pm. Look forward to seeing you here. More detailed to follow soon.
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LOAVES & FISHES THANKS
On Saturday, March 18th, friends and members of WAPC served “Loaves & Fishes” to the needy at the West Main Street Christian Church. According to minister Jeff Douds, we were the first church to have in-person meals there, after a 3-year pandemic-related hiatus. It is estimated that 117 meals were served, plus about 25 take-outs. About 100 sack lunches were also handed out.
Another pastor (John) and his wife were also there to help, after they had distributed new blankets from their van. Jeff said that most of the folks were homeless, but that the two young teenagers there did have a place to stay. He related a story of how deeply grateful people were to receive items of use (clean socks, used coats).
Thanks go to the WAPC event coordinators and to the many people behind the scenes who cooked the food, baked the cupcakes, and packed the bag lunches. Thanks also to those who served the meals and cleaned up afterwards. WAPC’s next meal is tentatively scheduled for Saturday, August 19th.
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ADULT SUNDAY SCHOOL CLASS
The Adult Sunday School class is currently reading and discussing Adam Nicolson's book, "God's Secretaries: The Making of the King James Bible." They hope to conclude their study in April.
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The class as selected Philip Yancey's book, "Vanishing Grace: what ever happened to the Good News?" as their next title, which they begin reading and discussing on Sunday, April 30th. You should have plenty of time to secure your personal copy and join them in class. Good used copies can be found on Amazon, as well as BetterWorldBooks.com.
The class meets in the Poteat Library at 10 am. If you wish to join the class there is always room for one more.
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FOOD, FOOD AND MORE FOOD
The Lunch Bunch / Meal Schedule for MARCH
March 26 @ Fellowship Easter Potluck Lunch
This month's potluck has an Easter theme. We want to see those meat and vegetable dishes, those salads, pastas and potatoes, along with desserts and fruit. We know all will be delicious.
IF ANYONE HAS SUGGESTIONS FOR LUNCH BUNCH DINING IN 2023, PLEASE CONTACT THE CHURCH OFFICE SO IT CAN BE ADDED TO THE LIST!!
Please note: our annual Church in the Park Father's Day service and picnic will return this year on Sunday, June 18 at the Meredith Pavilion / Winged Deer Park. Southern Craft BBQ has been selected as the food provider.
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CHURCH DIRECTORY UPDATE
We would like for everyone (members / regular attendees / our stay-at-home members / friends of the congregation) to be included in our upcoming church directory. We would like everyone to please submit the following information so we can check it against our existing files and to issue a new directory. A deadline has been set for Sunday, April 16th. You are welcome to submit your information to us by email (office@wataugapc.org) or to drop it into the collection basket in the narthex.
NAME: ______________________________________________________________
CURRENT ADDRESS: _____________________________________________________________
TELEPHONE: (LAND) __________________________ (MOBILE) ___________________________
EMAIL: __________________________________________________________________________
BIRTHDATE: (MO. / DAY) _____________________
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HIGHLIGHTS FOR THE COMING WEEK | |
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Sunday, March 26, 2023 - Fifth Sunday in Lent
10 am Adult Sunday School - reading "God's Secretaries" by Adam Nicolson
11 am Morning Worship, Rev. Brandon Davis, Pastor (in-person YouTube / Facebook)
12:15 pm Fellowship Easter Potluck Lunch
5 pm Lenten Meditations on Love @ Jonesborough PC Fellowship Hall
Monday, March 27, 2023
6 pm Lenten Study 5 @ WAPC Fellowship Hall
Wednesday, March 29, 2023
4 pm Meditation Circle (via Zoom)
6 pm Chancel Choir rehearsal
Sunday, April 2, 2023 - Palm Sunday
10 am Adult Sunday School - reading "God's Secretaries" by Adam Nicolson
11 am Morning Worship, Rev. Brandon Davis, Pastor (in-person YouTube / Facebook)
12:30 pm Lunch Bunch @ Cootie Brown's (N. Roan St.)
2 pm Afternoon walk at Winged Deer Park to view the bluebells (weather permitting)
5 pm Lenten Meditations on Love @ Jonesborough PC Fellowship Hall
Monday, April 3, 2023
6 pm Lenten Study 6 @ Covenant PC Fellowship Hall
Wednesday, April 5, 2023
4 pm Meditation Circle (via Zoom)
6 pm Chancel Choir rehearsal
Thursday, April 6, 2023
10 am April PW meeting in the Fellowship Hall
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GENERAL FUND: YEAR TO DATE: | |
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[2023 Annual Budget - $ 177,600
Budget through March 17, Week #11 ($37,569)
Receipts $ 73,275.49
Disbursements -$ 36,646.30
Balance $ 36,629.19
We will be receiving the ONE GREAT HOUR OF SHARING special offering
on EASTER SUNDAY, APRIL 9th.
We hope that you will give to One Great Hour of Sharing, and join in God's call to share our read with the hungry, to aid and shelter people overcoming catastrophe and conflict , and to resource communities working to cast off the bonds of poverty and oppression.
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The Chancel flowers this past week were given in celebration of the
March birthdays of grandchildren Victoria and Alden
by Bea Ellis.
PLEASE NOTE: WE ARE UNABLE TO SECURE EASTER LILIES THIS SEASON FOR OUR ANNUAL GIVING IN MEMORY OF LOVED ONES.
ALSO NOTE: THE 2023 FLOWER LIST IS AVAILABLE ON THE BULLETIN BOARD IN THE SIDE ENTRY FOR YOUR CONVENIENCE IN REQUESTING CHANCEL FLOWERS.
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For Friends
The Ferguson and McQuiston families in the loss of Stephen Patrick's cousin, Linda Ferguson Strock; Susan Turner (fractured ribs); Karen Martin and family in the loss of her mother, Doris Martin; Sally Gerhardt (in rehab); Beth Gerhardt's friend Teri Chapa and son, Ormar Torres; Jonathan Sharp; Michelle Browning's step-father, Rick Elm; Fred Burrell; Janice Hollingshead; Ginger Helm's brother, Larry Ray Davis (pancreatic cancer); Don Loughry; George, Jo & Nikki Rolling; Rev. Maggie Lauterer; Sue Shanks' friend Judy Klein; Sarah Suptin; church neighbor, Dorothy Harvey; Kelly Hodges.; Edna Campbell.
UPDATE on Sally - new address - Givens Estates, 100 Wesley Drive, Apt 404, Asheville, NC 28803. (Sally should be moved in by Friday.)
Prayers for others
Continue to pray for the four major ongoing international crises: the Turkey-Syria earthquake; Sao Paulo, Brazil flooding; the Horn of Africa hunger crisis and the Ukrainian Humanitarian Crisis. These emerging crises also need our prayers: the aftermath of tropical cyclone Freddy in Madagascar & Mozambique; flooding in Brazil, Columbia, and Cameroon; forest fires in Liberia, Sierra Leone, and Laos; earthquakes in Ecuador; Argentina, Chile, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Japan, Papua New Guinea, and the Philippines. Additional prayers for the women of Afghanistan. And especially prayers for our nation and for strength, endurance, faith and courage for all.
CENTER FOR DISASTER PHILANTHROPY - https://disasterphilanthropy.org/
UN OFFICE FOR THE COORDINATION OF HUMANITARIAN AFFAIRS (OCHA) - https://reliefweb.int/
INTERNATIONAL RESCUE COMMITTEE - https://rescue.org
US FEMA - DECLARED DISASTERS - https://www.fema.gov/disaster/declarations
GLOBAL DISASTER ALERT & COORDINATION SYSTEM (GDACS) - https://gdacs.org
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Our remarkable pollinator garden is now in its 4th year.
The groundbreaking was in March 2019.
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Our nation's first endangered species list was issued in 1966 with a goal to "conserve, protect, restore, and propagate" wildlife at risk of extinction. The bald eagle, grizzly bear, and alligator were among the inaugural group of 78 vulnerable birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians, and fishes. The Endangered Species Act, however, wasn't approved until seven years later. The landmark measure installed legal protections for imperiled species and "the ecosystems upon which they depend." The statute also required the implementation of recovery plans for compromised species. One observer called it "the Magna Carta of the environmental movement."
To date, 99% of listed species have evaded extinction. Presently, however, more than 1,300 species, including insects and plants, are considered endangered or threatened in the United States. This year, as we mark the 50th anniversary of the Endangered Species Act, federal officials are considering legislative upgrades to compensate for the effects of climate change and invasive species on historical habitats. We can only hope they will succeed. (GSN #141)
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WALK AT WILLOW SPRINGS
It was a brisk but sunny afternoon for our leisurely walk at Willow Springs. Nice and clean the views were wonderful. We hope that the weather cooperates for our next walk at Winged Deer on April 2nd.
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VIRTUAL CREATION ACTIVITY OF THE WEEK | |
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OREGON PACIFIC COAST
Visual Escape (May 2021 | 26:13 min.)
Beautiful film of the stunning Oregon coast with splashing surf, natural bridges, dunes and nearby forests. Relax and enjoy.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=crgmwx0fOaM&t=4s
MOUNT HOOD ABOVE THE CLOUDS
Andrew Studer (February 2022 | 1:26 min.)
Cinematic scenic aerial drone footage of Oregon's Mount Hood rising high above the clouds during a beautiful summer sunrise in the Cascade Mountain Range in the Pacific Northwest.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z5mwuHeSdoA
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IN THE POTEAT LIBRARY
NOTE: The books donated by Sally Gerhardt are currently in process; those books not being added to the library collection are being placed on a book truck in the Heritage Room for your browsing and taking. Please remember the library is open by appointment and you are welcome to drop by the church library if you are looking for something new to read. We ask that you to sign out any books on the register sheet found on the file cabinet in the corner with the call #, book title, your name and date checked out.
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The Exodus: How It Happened and Why It Matters
By Richard Elliott Friedman
(220.9/FRI)
Discover the real history of the Exodus and why it matters.
Biblical scholars, Egyptologists, archaeologists, historians, literary scholars, anthropologists, and filmmakers are drawn to it. Unable to find physical evidence until now, many archaeologists and scholars claim this mass migration is just a story, not history. Others oppose this conclusion, defending the biblical account.
Like a detective on an intricate case no one has yet solved, pioneering Bible scholar and bestselling author of Who Wrote the Bible? Richard Elliott Friedman cuts through the noise — the serious studies and the wild theories — merging new findings with new insight.
From a spectrum of disciplines, state-of-the-art archeological breakthroughs, and fresh discoveries within scripture, he brings real evidence of a historical basis for the exodus — the history behind the story. The biblical account of millions fleeing Egypt may be an exaggeration, but the exodus itself is not a myth.
Friedman does not stop there. Known for his ability to make Bible scholarship accessible to readers, Friedman proceeds to reveal how much is at stake when we explore the historicity of the exodus. The implications, he writes, are monumental.
We learn that it became the starting-point of the formation of monotheism, the defining concept of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Moreover, we learn that it precipitated the foundational ethic of loving one’s neighbors — including strangers — as oneself. He concludes, the actual exodus was the cradle of global values of compassion and equal rights today.
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Congregational Concerns / Prayer Requests - Please contact the church office or Sherry Bailey with information.
Flower List - The 2023 Flower List has been posted on the bulletin board in the side entry. Please sign up to sponsor flowers for our weekly worship services in honor or in memory of loved ones.
Arrangements are $65 each.
Liturgists - We are always looking for new people to be liturgists. Please contact the church office, if you would like to volunteer.
e-Avenue deadline - Please submit information to church office (office@wataugapc.org or 926-7942) at any time and for the April issue of the e-AVENUE, no later than Friday, April 17tth. This includes team and committee meetings, news, planned events and other newsworthy items.
Facebook - Please remember to friend and follow our Watauga Avenue Presbyterian Church Facebook page [https://www.facebook.com/Watauga-Avenue-Presbyterian-Church-94712920937/ ]. All news and events will be reported there.
Photos needed - We welcome contributions to our Facebook page via your comments and photos of church events and activities. Please also submit your photos to the church office for archiving. It will be wonderful to have a visual record of all of the positive things that Watauga Avenue Presbyterian Church does for our community.
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WATAUGA AVENUE PC IS ON .. click and see for yourself. | | |
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Established 27 September 1892, Watauga Avenue Presbyterian Church is a congregation of the Church of Jesus Christ. Reformed in theology and Presbyterian by way of organization, it is related to Holston Presbytery, the Synod of Living Waters, and to the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) | | | | |
