This two events will serve as a fundraiser for our students attending MIX and MOVE Summer Conferences 2024.
This is a great time for a date night or to get some Christmas shopping done. FPC Youth Group will offer babysitting services for parents and guardians wishing to find some alone time in the midst the holiday season. (Supervised, of course, by background checked and Child Safety trained adults.) Parents can drop off their kids and hit the town.
Children ages 12 months–Grade 5 are welcome to attend. (6mo-5th grade for FPC church members)
Cost is $15 per child with a family maximum of $45. (Families of more than three age-appropriate children will be charged a maximum of $45.)
RSVPing is required, no walk-ins. Register by Dec 6 for Dec 8
Feel free to bring your kiddos favorite blanket and pillow for movie time.
Drop Off: 5-6 PM Pick Up: 8:00 PM (late pickup fee may apply)
Dinner: Kids should come having eaten dinner. Snacks: A snack will be provided.
This is my last Reverend Reflection before my family and I depart for Ohio, and I want to use this space to simply say, “Thank you.”
I am grateful to have had the opportunity to serve you and to know you these past five years. It has been a great privilege of mine to have served as your pastor, and I am thankful that you gave me this opportunity. You took a risk in hiring me as your pastor. I had never served as a pastor on staff at a church before First Presbyterian Church. My only experience had been as a chaplain in a hospital or as a pastoral intern, but by God’s grace you took a flier on me. For that I am profoundly grateful. This experience has changed my life.
It is my most sincere prayer that I have served you and our God well. I know my faults all too well, and I know that you also witnessed them in me. It is my comfort that God deals with me according to his grace and love, and I thank you for dealing with me in the same spirit. You bore with me and showed me love during my time at First Pres. I can only hope that I have honored your love through my labor on your behalf.
May you continue to grow in the likeness of Christ long after I am gone and may the next pastor benefit from having served here as much as I have. I am confident of this hope, because I am confident of Christ’s work in you.
You will always hold a special place in my heart and story, and you will always be in my prayers. I hold much love in my heart for you, First Presbyterian Church. Thank you.
The Lord bless and keep you, now and forever, world without end.
Spring Break Meet Up For those around during spring break, we are going to have a bring your own picnic at the Bob Henry Park on March 22 at 5:00 p.m. We will meet at the pavilion by the main playground. All are welcome!
Church Information Survey
If you haven’t already, please fill out our brief survey, which includes questions from the CIF. This is the last day to complete the survey.
The Christian Education (CE) Committee has sent out personalized emails to the congregation to participate in the Adult CE survey. If you did not receive an email, you can still participate at fpcsiloam.com/adultcesurvey and be sure to check with the church office to update your info. All surveys are anonymous.
Holy Week Sunday, April 2 – Palm Sunday Wednesday, April 5 – Stations of the Cross (6-7:30 p.m.) Friday, April 7 – Good Friday Service (6 p.m.) Saturday, April 8 – Easter Eggstravaganza (10:30 a.m.) Sunday, April 9 – Community Sunrise Service at Chautauqua Amphitheater (6:30 a.m.); FPC Easter Sunday Service (10:30 a.m.)
Spring Break No Sunday School, Youth Group, Family Gathering, or Evening Office from March 19-26.
Hidden Word Class A 6-week scripture memory class for children 3rd grade and above, including middle schoolers on Wednesdays from 6-7 p.m. April 29 – May 3. Students will be challenged, as Psalm 119:11 says, to hide God’s word in their hearts. There will be prizes and an opportunity for students to share their word with the congregation. Please pre-register your students at fpcsiloam.com/hiddenword so we know how many to expect. High School students who want to be helper-teachers can sign up there as well.
Easter Eggstravaganza Mark your calendars for our annual Easter Eggstravaganza on Saturday, April 8 at 10 a.m. We’ll have fellowship, refreshments and an egg hunt for the kiddos. In the case of inclement weather, the egg hunt will be inside. We have many empty eggs from last year, but you can bring candy donations and place them in the gray baskets at each entrance now through April 2.
Stations of the Cross Wednesday, April 5, we will have an Experiential Stations of the Cross downstairs in the classrooms for all ages. Walk through at your own pace anytime between 6-7:30 p.m. This will be the Family Gathering activity for the evening. The Hidden Word Class and those attending Evening Office are encouraged to go with their families after their class/office.
Youth Rummage Sale
As you do your spring cleaning, set aside and box up your donatable items for our youth’s final fundraiser! The youth will collect donated items to sell the week of April 23 and have a rummage sale during the Dogwood Festival.
The end of this month there is a special day that you may not thought a lot about and it’s not Halloween. October 31st is Reformation Day! This was the day in 1517 that Martin Luther, a Catholic Archbishop, nailed a list of 95 things that he wanted to see reformed in the church to the door of All Saints Church so that everyone who attended the All Saints Day Mass the next morning would see and read his arguments.
This act, along with several other events throughout Europe, sparked what we know as the Protestant Reformation. To be fair, Martin Luther’s intention was to reform the Catholic church, not to create a rift and a new branch of Christianity. He believed that it was possible to reform what was then the universal church. Unfortunately, he was excommunicated before that reform came. But it did come to the Catholic church, as well as the catholic church (the universal church that all believers are part of). Our Presbyterian denomination was one of several that came out of this reformation, thus the reference to being a “Reformed” tradition.
This significant day precedes another important church holiday: All Saints Day, where we remember those believers who have gone before us, like Martin Luther, John Calvin, and John Knox (who started the Presbyterian church in Scotland). Hebrews 12 reminds us that we are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses, which should encourage us to run the race of life with perseverance. They can give us the perspective we need to throw off everything that hinders us from running that race well. Their stories remind us that we run to and for Jesus with joy, no matter the circumstances we find ourselves in.
This season of just a few days comes in the middle of ordinary time, which is the time of growing a practicing all of the things we celebrate at the “high holy days” as Godly Play calls them or Christmas, Easter, and Pentecost. It comes as fall is settling in, which is nature’s way of reminding us of our mortality. Remembering the saints who have gone before us reminds us all “Mememto mori! Remember you will die.” It’s sobering, but it helps us to run the race more faithfully when we have that perspective. Perhaps there is a mature believer in your own life who has gone on to be with Jesus that you can remember and be inspired by.
This month, there are several things you can do to celebrate Reformation Day or All Saints Day taken from Sacred Seasons by Danielle Hitchen:
Have or make donuts – Donuts were originally soul cakes, eaten on All Saints Day. Eventually people started cutting holes in the middle of the soul cake, as the circle symbolized eternity. People were intended to meditate on their eternal souls as they enjoyed their donuts.
Carve a pumpkin –
As you carve the pumpkin you can say: Blessed are you, O King of the universe, who brings forth pumpkins from the earth to sustain our bodies and gladden our hearts; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
As you clean out the seeds you can say: Create in me a clean heart O God, and renew a right spirit within me.
As you place a candle inside: O Lord, we thank you that you have seen us and known us, sought us and bought us, and cleaned us of all unrighteousness. Grant us grace to be bearers of your light that we may illuminate the dark places and draw others to your glory; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Have a feast – All Saints Day (Nov 1st) is supposed to be a glorious feast to celebrate at home. It reminds us that those who have gone before us sit at the Father’s table that overflows with bounty. Make a fancy meal, whatever that means to your family. Remind your family that in the new heaven and the new earth there will be a banquet that never ends.
Dress like a Saint – If you’re dressing up for Halloween, consider dressing as your favorite saint.
Tell stories of the Saints – “Saint” is just another word for a faithful believer. Some Saints are formally recognized and canonized. Others may be someone you know. Some saints’ stories are recorded in books about martyrs and some are only recorded in memory. Some saints are already with Jesus, and others are right here with us. Spend some time this month telling the stories of the saints, both historical ones, and those you know personally. Consider inviting some of our senior members at church to lunch and ask them to share their faith stories.