Please click the attachments to read an invitational letter from presbytery leadership about this upcoming process, as well as a page with three questions your congregation is asked to complete. Don’t miss this great summertime opportunity for your Session, church leaders, committees and staff to reflect together about your ministry, mission and the changes taking place within and around your community of faith. Your congregation’s responses, due September 5th, 2022, to Data and Communications Manager, Tayler Stone, cdmanager@nccpresby.org will be used to help set presbytery priorities regarding programmatic and financial resources for the coming few years.

She is an avid quilter and has a lifelong love of textile arts. She loves to play golf, kayak on still lakes, and spend time with her family.  “My family is the greatest source of joy - my 2 adult sons, my daughter-in-law and my 3 grandchildren -I am so fortunate to have them”, said Hall.  She has traveled to visit family members in Paris, Ireland, Edinburgh, London and the Channel Islands, and has a strong interest in genealogy research.  Janice is looking forward to meeting her father's Russian relatives found after years of struggling through language barriers and the Cyrillic alphabet  

Attached you will find the July Resource Center Newsletter.

Submitted by Karen Sturdevant

Called to be Prayerful, Courageous, United, Serving, Alive

Listening to people around the PCUSA and beyond, the 2020 Vision Team mandated by the 222^nd General Assembly (2016) sought to discern the will of God for us in this time and into the future. They heard “hope and frustration, expectation and anxiety.” In these difficult times, they were keenly aware that God is speaking to us now. Approved by the 225^th Assembly, this statement is offered to us. Portions can be used in worship, sessions and deacons can read it to open their meetings, small groups or adult ed classes can use it for study, individuals can use a line a day in their devotions.

Yes, when there is a change, there is a loss, even when the numbers increase! Yet, we are not called to dwell in the numbers, in the past. Remembering is learning about ourselves and celebrating God’s faithfulness. Then, we move into the future with greater awareness of who we are and whose we are!

To learn more about who is participating, compare with previous statistical report(s). With the pandemic, there was a disruption in our statistics, reducing the value of long term comparisons. Compare June 2022 with 2021 and maybe 2020. To learn more about your neighborhood, take a walk around, drive around in a five-mile radius. In addition, go to the Census website.

Use your knowledge to inform ministry online and in person. Rather than making decisions for others, make your first step be holy conversations. For example, you discover there are people with visual disabilities. A holy conversation can lead to some ideas for improvement that will benefit them as well as new people.

There are the annual statistical report stats. However, there are other important stats to track as well:

Worship…How many first time worshipers? Who is the Spirit bringing? Get basic info about each one. How are you doing with your follow up with them?

Volunteers…How many people are volunteering? How many are giving their time to serving those outside of the church? How many and who has volunteered for the first time?

Well-being…What are people saying about their lives right now? Once a year, you can invite folks to do a Wheel of Life Self-Assessment and share it anonymously.

Communication…Yes, track how many are watching online and who’s following you on social media. Also, and more importantly, who is coming to your church or volunteering because of social media? How many are signing up to get your emails?

Who You Are Connecting With…Who comes to the church for various reasons not just worship and how are you connecting with them? Who are you going to and what fruit do you see from those relationships? If you have a map of where everyone lives, also have a map of where everyone spends a lot of their time during the day. This can lead to new opportunities for ministry!

Note: The Spirit does not always bring the people we plan for. One small church noticed that the new people had mental health issues. A large church geared for seniors found the Spirit started prompting families with children to come because of the church “grandparent” types. Another found that the new people had been burned by previous faith communities.

Baptisms, Growing in Faith…How many people of all ages are being baptized? What are people saying about how their lives are impacted by a deepening faith? Are people sharing their stories in a variety of ways?

As you can see, stats can be road signs point the way to joining the work the Spirit is already doing!

Interested in finding a way to bring more hope and healing in these challenging times? Presbyterian Disaster Assistance Program invites you to consider spending time in one of our PDA Host Sites around the country where recovery work is ongoing, and volunteers are welcomed. Please see the article below and consider how your congregation or you might find a meaningful service opportunity in the coming year. One of those sites is in our own Presbytery - Trinity Oroville Presbyterian Church.

Thanks to Trinity Oroville for their vision, leadership, and compassion!

Davis Community Church will have a celebration of Pastor Chris’ ministry Sunday, July 24^th in the Fellowship Hall after the Congregational Meeting, around 12:15PM. Bring a salad to share, we will have kid-friendly lunch items, bread, drinks and dessert. COVID precautions will be in place and we will offer plenty of outdoor seating. For more information please contact: Deborah Jory at office@dccpres.org