The MISSION STATEMENT

A publication of Mission Orthodox Presbyterian Church, Saint Paul, Minnesota • June/July 2012

Upcoming Events at Mission OPC Sunday, July 22, 5:00 p.m. James Newcomb Trumpet Concert at Mission OPC Wednesday, July 24, 7:00 p.m. Men’s Group.

What’s News New Deacons Installed Jon Fitzpatrick and Harold McCabe were installed as deacons. Page 1. Cinco De Mayo Outreach Cold water and the gospel message made for a successful day ministering to Saint Paul’s Hispanic community. Page 2. Garage Sale Success The Mission OPC garage sale raised more than $700 for the food shelf that will be located at the church. Page 3. Prayer Corner. Please pray for the many concerns within our body. Page 3. On The Move Thanks to the volunteers who assisted Dick Sears with his move. Page 3. Hard Hat Zone Check out what has been going on with updates to the church building. Page 4. Financial Update Year-to-date giving is $61,770 as 5/31. Page 5. Departures We said goodbye to a number of friends and members. Page 5. Rob Sieg Writes from China. Page 6.

New Officers On April 22, 2012, Mission OPC had the joy and privilege of ordaining and installing two new deacons: Jon Fitzpatrick and Harold McCabe.

The office of deacon is described in this excerpt from the Book of Church Order:

“The Scriptures designate the office of deacon as distinct and perpetual in the church. Deacons are called to show forth the compassion of Christ in a manifold ministry of mercy toward the saints and strangers on behalf of the church. To this end they exercise, in the fellowship of the church, a recognized stewardship of care and of gifts for those in need or distress. This service is distinct from that of rule in the church.

Those chosen to this office should be of great faith, exemplary lives, honest repute, brotherly love, warm sympathies, and sound judgment.

The board shall oversee the ministry of mercy in the church and shall collect and disburse funds for the relief of the needy. Other forms of service for the church may also be committed to the deacons.”

One of the many important functions of the deacon board is to take on jobs that will free up the Session to do what they do. Many hands make light work, as they say.

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Cinco De Mayo Outreach On May 5, 2012, Mission OPC took the opportunity to engage our community at the Cinco De Mayo Celebration in Saint Paul. Many who attend Mission supplied water and candy for distribution at the festival as well as gospel tracts and information on the reformed faith. Twelve daring souls helped man our church’s canopy and literature table during the day. More would have come out to help if not for the deluge of rain durning the last couple of hours of the festival. Men, women and children all participated in the sharing of the gospel through dialogue, tract distribution and the handing out of coins with the Ten Commandments and the gospel on them. We had literature in both Spanish and English. Handing out cold water as a kindness to those participating in the festival had a very positive impact on our outreach event. People receiving water would often ask for tracts and literature when coming to our tent. When walking the grounds following the festival, less than ten pieces of our literature were found

on the streets. Because people approached us to get water and asked for literature it seems they valued it more. Please continue to pray with us that the literature and coins brought home will be used by the Holy Spirit to “convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment” (Jn 16:8 ESV). When talking with people, we had opportunities to pray for individuals who were seeking truth or who just had a need that they wanted brought before God. People also saw the smiling faces of people from Mission OPC and left our tent having had a positive encounter with us. It was great to bring the gospel to the growing Hispanic population in

Saint Paul. Besides encountering those not yet a part household of faith, we also encountered believers from many traditions. More than once we had people come up to us excited to see the word Presbyterian related to evangelism. One group of young adults where part of the Presbyterian Church in Trinidad. Others were encouraged by the presentation of the gospel and the presence of a church at the event. Our experience was very positive and we learned a lot at this initial outreach event. We are looking forward to reaching out at the Hmong Festival in July which brings over 50,000 people to a park just two blocks from our church. Please continue in prayer for Mission OPC as we explore multiple ways to bring the good news of our Lord Jesus Christ to our community. We are giving thanks to God for his providential leading in conversations we had. Pray for those who received literature and that God would provide divine appointments during future evangelism efforts. Additional photo on right bottom of page 3. --Dave Murphy

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Mission OPC Garage Sale Many thanks to all of the volunteers who organized on Friday night, arrived in the wee hours of Saturday to set out and price items, haggled with and charmed customers, cleaned up and tore down in the late afternoon, and ultimately made about $700 for the planned MOPC food shelf. Events like this are important, not only so we have cleaner basements and closets at home, and not only because it earns money for the food shelf, but also because it is a way to let people of the community know that we are their neighbors and a lasting part of the neighborhood. We had the opportunity to have meaningful spiritual conversations with many of the shoppers. Let's pray that the Lord will bless the neighborhood and bless MOPC through last week's sale.

On The Move On Saturday, May 26, we had the opportunity to assist member Dick Sears move his belongings from a storage facility to his new apartment. A number of members and friends from the church showed up despite the rain. The entire move was completed in under three hours.

Member Dick Sears Providing Directions

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PRAYER

To keep in your prayers in the coming months: • Our members and their families as they struggle with illness and employment concerns. • Our denomination and its churches, pastors, and missionaries, both at home and abroad. • International Sewing Circle and ESL class – pray for conversions and discipleship. • Fruit from our ongoing community outreach. • The members of our congregation working with our children. • Give thanks for numerical growth and pray for more – also for a renewed zeal among us to witness and invite others to church. • Pray for increased financial stability, especially based on new commitments since last year. • Pray for faith and obedience; for protection from the regular attacks of the Devil.

• Pray for strengthened relationships in marriages and families within our congregation.

from Cinco De Mayo Outreach on page 2…

Member Dave Murphy mans the Cinco de Mayo outreach tent.

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Hard Hat Zone Just over a year ago, Mission OPC took possession of (and responsibility for) the building where we have met since our founding. At that time, we were also the recipients of a Presbytery-wide offering to help us with building-related expenses. Armed with these funds as well as building fund contributions from our members the trustees embarked on a study of our current building, its needs, and our plans for the future. After a year of planning, many of these projects are now underway or nearing completion: • Sound System: A new sound system was one of the first projects to be completed. This included a center-mounted speaker, improved lectern microphone, wireless headset microphone, and audio-video feed to a flat-screen TV in the nursery so nursery volunteers can keep up with the service. • Plumbing System Update: A good deal of the plumbing serving the kitchen and bathrooms was a mix of galvanized and copper pipes; such a mix causes galvanized fittings to corrode at a rapid rate. We have just finished replacing the leaking fittings and old galvanized pipe. This project included asbestos abatement. • Windows and Doors: Before we had even made an offer to purchase the building we knew that windows and doors would need some attention. New energy-efficient windows in the foyer and pastor’s office are currently in fabrication and will be installed sometime in July. Energy-efficient front and side doors are also on order. • Lighting Upgrades: We have completed energy audits and are finalizing plans to improve lighting in the entire building. These plans include upgrades to LED bulbs that will increase light output while reducing energy costs and heat output. The bulbs are heavily subsidized with rebates and we anticipate that these upgrades will fully pay for themselves within 3.5 years. • Heating (and Cooling?) Upgrades: We are currently in the process of an engineering study that will determine a new heating plant configuration as well as identify energy rebates. It is our hope that we will be able to secure low-cost financing from the denomination to help us upgrade our current systems to something much more scalable and energy efficient. The savings from this project may even allow us to add air conditioning at some point. We are still in the planning stages for rain gardens, roofing and drainage projects, signage, and painting. And there are always small ongoing maintenance tasks to complete. A work day will be coming soon to help with some of these tasks. If you have questions, concerns, or suggestions, please feel free to speak to any of the trustees: Randy Kreisel, Harold McCabe, Kevin Posterick, Amanda Welliver, or David Welliver. --Amanda Welliver

Saying Goodbyes

In June, we said sad farewells to a friend, Lauren, and two members, Lulu and Cici. Lauren returned to her home in Korea for the summer. She plans to work this summer and return to Carleton College in the fall to continue her undergraduate studies. We hope she has a restful summer and we look forward to having her back with us.

Lulu and Cici returned to China for a longer stay as Jack, Lulu's husband, has a new job there. We pray that they find a suitable church to attend, that they will grow in grace and the knowledge of Him, and that God will use them as a witness there. They hope to return to the U.S. at some point in the not-too-distant future and we look forward to that day.

In the meantime, let us continue to pray for these sisters in Christ (as well as Jack, and Aaron, Jack and Lulu's son).

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Financial Report – January through May, 2012

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An Update from Rob Sieg Greetings, brothers and sisters, from half way around the world. The Lord saw me saw me safely through to my final destination of Ningbo, China. I would say without a scratch, but it appears that during baggage handling one of the keys on my accordion broke off. Nothing a little super glue can't fix. I must thank you all for the prayers for safety and guidance on my behalf. The love and support you gave me during my last few weeks in Minnesota was very encouraging, and has kept me going strong here. With the last few weeks having been spent adjusting to my new surroundings - job training, apartment searching, language learning - I have not been able to concentrate on church shopping. I have no idea how that will turn out, but please pray for a church family to be sent my way which is faithful in preaching the gospel, sound in doctrine, and regular in the administration of sacraments. Of course, it wouldn't be unwelcome if they spoke English as well. Once I have a more regular schedule here, I hope to join you via Skype for some bible studies or worship services. I miss you all and look forward to a day when I can see you in person again.

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RETURN TO: 1040 Como Avenue Saint Paul, MN 55103

ADDRESS CORRECTION REQUESTED

MISSION Orthodox

Presbyterian

Church

Est. 2005 1040 Como Avenue

Saint Paul, MN 55103

Morning Worship 10:30 a.m. Sunday

Evening Worship

2:00 p.m. 1st Sunday 5:00 p.m. 2nd-- 4th Sunday

No Sunday School

July/August

www.missionopc.org 651-771-0125