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Readings

~3rd Sunday of Easter- April 14, 2024

Acts 3:12-19, and Ps. 4

1John 3:1-7; Luke 24:36b-48

~4th Sunday of Easter-April 21, 2024

Acts 4:5-12 and Ps. 23;

1John 3:16-24; John 10:11-18

~5th Sunday of Easter-April 28, 2024

Acts 8:26-40 and Ps. 22:25-31 & Ex. 19:1-6 & Ps. 118:19-25 ;

1 John 4:7-21; John 15:1-8



~6th Sunday Of Easter-May 5, 2024

Acts 10:44-48 and Ps. 98;

Psalm 101; John 5:1-6; John 15:9-17

HOMESTEAD SPOTLIGHT

Teresa Bartlett

How Long have you been a Presbyterian member? 

I have been a member of Homestead Presbytery since January of 2017. I was ordained in November of 2009 at the First Presbyterian Church of Keokuk which was my “home church” and started me on the path to ministry.

Prior to serving in ministry, I worked in the women’s retail business in Shenandoah, Iowa and also in Keokuk, Iowa for eleven years. After the business closed, I started work at a bank in Keokuk and worked in several positions including consumer loans, retail loans and as a branch manager. I left the bank and moved to Dubuque to finish my undergraduate degree at the University of Dubuque and then attended seminary at the Dubuque Theological Seminary.

I moved to Wayne, from southeastern Iowa, a small town called Miles in East Iowa Presbytery which was my first call. I have family in Iowa, my mother in Red Oak Iowa and a sister in Ankeny, so it’s nice to be within reasonable travel distance. I also have a younger brother who lives in the Dallas area.

What Committees do you serve on?

  I currently serve on the Steering the Ship Team before the restructuring I served on the Nominating Team.

         I am also active in the Presbytery with Presbyterian Women and am honored to be serving as the current moderator.

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What are some of your Outside interests?

  I enjoy working in my lawn and flower garden, always looking for something new to add to my landscape. In early spring I’m awaiting the tulips and daffodils as well as the creeping phlox to start blooming.

         I do a variety of craft and sewing projects from things for my home to wall quilts. I have tried my hand at a full-sized quilt and will try that again in the future.

         I also have become my family historian and have been busy scrapbooking and organizing photos, slides, VCR tapes and audio tapes from my parents and maternal grandparents. Lots of treasure yet to be mined.

 How do you keep busy in your free time?

  I serve on the Wayne Family Coalition as well as the local Salvation Army unit and I am a member of the Wayne Lions Club. These groups are active in Wayne and that keeps me active in the community. In my free time I work in the yard and on my scrapbooking, crafting, home improvement and quilting projects.

What are you looking forward to in the future with Homestead Presbytery?

Change isn’t easy however I am thankful for the leadership over the last few years who have worked so hard to create a new path forward for Homestead Presbytery. It will take a while for us to get used to and live into this new model which challenges every pastor in the Presbytery, active and retired to be engaged. The world around us is changing and it makes sense that the church and the way the church operates must change as well. As members of the Presbytery, we will have opportunities to work together, to share information and ideas as well as build relationships with each other. I look forward to the opportunities the future holds for all of us.

Commission and guests at the installation of Rev. Teresa Bartlett at First Presbyterian Church, Wayne, March 5^th, 2017

Front row left to right- Karen Johnson, Wayne, Rev. Teresa Bartlett, Rev. Duncan Nichol, Tekamah,

Center row – Rev. Charity Potter, Wakefield/ Thurston, Teri Wendel, Norfolk, Rev Sarah Gengler, Schuyler

Back row – Rev. Steven Breazier, Pender, Rev. Mike Hill, North Bend, Moderator Elder Steven Pointon, FourthPresbyterian,  Lincoln

HOMESTEAD PRESBYTERY MAY STATED MEETING

HOMESTEAD PRESBYTERY TEAMS

Attention Clerk of Session:

Erica will be presenting the necrology report at the

May Presbytery Stated meeting in Fairbury.

Please email your necrology reports to Erica if you haven't already.

Necrology reports are due APRIL 30th. 

PRESBYTERIAN WOMEN

RETREATS

Scholarships

available on

 Registration page

CAMP: A Planning Retreat for Clergy

Are you a pastor who is yearning for time away to prepare worship for the year? Or are you a commissioned pastor/ruling elder excited about getting your creative worship juices flowing in a community of other leaders? If you are the key worship leader for your worshipping community, we hope you’ll join us for a nurtured retreat where you can step aside for private or collaborative planning, along with moments to have your soul tended and minds sparked by a team of worship and music guides.

CAMP 2024 will take place amidst the stunning Rocky Mountains, near Estes Park, Colorado, at the YMCA of the Rockies. We are thrilled to offer support for worship planners from a dynamite team of leaders, including the Rev. Drs. Anna Carter Florence and Jake Meyers (Columbia Theological Seminary), and Robert Williamson Jr. (Hendrix College and BibleWorm).

Whether you long to take in the Rocky Mountain vistas, seek inspiration for your narrative or revised common lectionary preaching, hope for collaborative worship-series planning, want a music brainstorming buddy, or yearn for a preaching tune-up, we think you’ll find the right formula at CAMP. Congregational leaders from across the country are invited, with reduced rates and scholarship opportunities to leaders in the Omaha Presbyterian Seminary Foundation’s Middle America region.

For more information check out:

• Event Website
• Event Flyer
• Register Here

If you have questions, please reach out to OPSF’s President, the Rev. Shelli Latham, at slatham@opsf-omaha.org.

SYNOD OF LAKES & PRAIRIES

LEADERSHIP SUMMIT APRIL 16-28, 2024

Christ the King Retreat Center in Buffalo, MN.

The Leadership Summit is an annual event sponsored by the Synod of Lakes and Prairies to provide support and resources to its presbyteries in working with candidates, pastoral leaders, and congregations. It provides an opportunity for personal interaction with national staff as well as others doing similar work within the Synod. Each year has a particular theme. This year’s theme is Re-Imagining Our Work. Contact Deb DeMeester with your questions.

REGISTER HERE

PCUSA

Acting Stated Clerk joins 140 other Christian leaders calling

for a ceasefire in Gaza and a halt of arms sales to Israel

Together with more than 140 other church leaders from around the world, the Rev. Bronwen Boswell, Acting Stated Clerk of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), has signed a letter calling for a permanent ceasefire in Gaza and the halt of arms sales to Israel. Read the letter by Churches for Middle East Peace here.

“As Christians around the world prepare to commemorate the final suffering in the earthly life of Jesus Christ during Holy Week, we stand in solidarity with all in the Holy Land who suffer,” the letter states. “We repent of the ways we have not stood alongside our Palestinian siblings in faithful witness in the midst of their grief, agony, and sorrow.”

Regarding Ruling Elders: A Monthly Series for Serving Faithfully

If one were to inquire of an Artificial Intelligence tool, "What is God's activity in the world?", it would respond by acknowledging the complexity of the topic and suggesting approaches from biblical, theological, and experiential perspectives. Ultimately, the AI would conclude that God's activity in the world remains a mystery that transcends human understanding.

PODCAST

Ministry in the church can be life-giving and life-changing and, in the midst of it, we all need faithful companions along the road. The second season of Along the Road – a podcast on faith and leadership for ministry leaders of the PC(USA) - is available now. Stream episodes on your favorite streaming service or get more information and listen here.

LEADER WISE

When Every Day Feels Like the Ides of March

By Mark Sundby, MDiv, PhD, LP

“Beware the Ides of March!” According to Shakespeare, when Julius Caesar hears this, he pauses and asks his handlers, “What was that?” They reassure him, “It’s only a soothsayer,” implying that the warning should not be taken seriously. In a short while, though, Caesar is dead, assassinated by about sixty Roman senators.

Check In to Check Up,

So You Don't Check Out

The Relationship Checkup, a New Offering

By Ali Kenny, PsyD, LP



 Relationships are what constitute humanity. I am only a mother because I have a child, I am only a wife because I have a spouse, and I am only a psychologist because I work with clients. Self-care is about tending to who we are according to the relational roles we hold – How am I doing as a mom, spouse, and professional? What do I need in order to help me uphold these relationships with integrity? Given the fundamental value of our connections to important others, it is no wonder that our mental and physical health are directly tied to our relational well-being, particularly our romantic relationships (Jaremka et al., 2013).

Click on button below to get updated Pulpit Supply list.

If you would be like to be added to our

Pulpit Supply list, please call:

Jim McNeal (402) 645-3117 or Sheryl (402)443-4220

JOB OPPORTUNITIES

ONGOING SCHOLARSHIPS/GRANT OPPORTUNITIES

PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH (U.S.A) INVITATION TO SUBMIT A GRANT APPLICATION FOR

THE DECADE TO END GUN VIOLENCE

DESCRIPTION

Since the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) adopted Gun Violence, Gospel Values: Mobilizing in Response to God’s Call in 2010, the epidemic of gun violence has continued unabated and, in fact, has intensified and worsened. The 225th General Assembly in 2022 declared that It is time for the PC(USA) to reaffirm and strengthen its commitment to be an active and prophetic leader in the national movement to end gun violence. To that end, the Assembly approved a limited fund as seed money for PC(USA) congregations, mid-councils, worshipping community and institutions to conduct events to combat gun violence. Grants of up to $1,000-$2,000 per event are available. The funds are held by the Presbyterian Peacemaking Program and grant applications will be reviewed by the “Decade to End Gun Violence Working Group, formed by the Presbyterian Mission Agency (PMA).

Apply for a Doctor of Ministry Scholarship  

PCUSA clergy, from the OPSF service region, may apply for a scholarship of $1,000 to support their DMin studies.

Learn about application requirements and how to apply here.  

THE PRESBYTERIAN PROMISE

AN $80,000 SCHOLARSHIP OVER 4 YEARS FOR

ALL STUDENTS WHO ARE PRESBYTERIAN.

The Presbyterian Promise Scholarship is a commitment by Presbyterian College (PC) to recognize students for their merit and affiliation with the Presbyterian Church. PC seeks to develop students academically and spiritually in this signature scholarship. Students who are members of Presbyterian churches will receive a scholarship for a minimum of $20,000 per year for up to four years—that’s an $80,000 commitment to you. For more information and to apply, visit our site: 

www.presby.edu/presbyterian-promise

HOMESTEAD PRESBYTERY CONTACT

Remittance payments from all Homestead churches are made payable to "Homestead Presbytery" and mailed to:

Synod of Lakes and Prairies

2115 Cliff Drive

Eagan, MN 55122-3327

Always attach a remittance form with checks.

Click here REMITTANCE FORM to download

Homestead Presbytery Office: Sheryl hpoffice@homesteadpres.org (402)413-2143

Stated Clerk: Erica Nelson

statedclerk@homesteadpres.org (801)389-4975



Treasurer: Ed McClymont

edmc@homesteadpres.org (402)649-3630

Homestead Presbytery

2110 Sheridan Blvd., Lincoln, NE 68502

Monday-Thursday 9:00am-4:00pm

Friday 9:00am-12:00pm