Newsletter - May 2015

P A S A D E N A C O V E N A N T C H U R C H May 2015

Words can’t express how thankful and blessed I am to be part of a

church who is so giving and gracious! With guidance from the Lord,

we all came together and created a special space for our conference

team, fellow pastors, and delegates from all over. His spirit was felt by so many through

conversations, prayer, worship, meals, and more. Thank you to all who volunteered their time to

help make this event memorable and worthy of our Lord.

Thank you to ALL of the following for taking precious time out of your busy schedules to help:

Kim Dorman, Kristen Annes, Joanne Doyle, John & Mary Barkman, Jean Campbell, Paul &

Tonia Fletcher, Steve Stuckey, Judy Pruitt, Susan Aoki, Jack & Judy Balswick, John & Judy

Wipf, Dave & Connie McGee, Nasline Banerjee, Kathleen Fresquez, John Herring, Jose Luis,

John Regret, Jordan Dally, Lola Engwall, Eagle Rock Covenant Church, Village Covenant

Church, & Dunamis Pasadena Church. We couldn’t have done it without each and every one of

you.

A special thank you to Nancy Stuckey, for all her hard work in coordinating her volunteers,

calculating the snack & beverage needs, purchasing of so many supplies, and always adding her

touch of beauty to the presentation. You are truly gifted in hospitality!

Thank you Thomas for ALL you did to create a great space of worship along with setting up of

all the equipment, sound systems, running sound, and much, much, more. You’re hard work and

giftedness did not go unnoticed.

Thank you Anita Eyer, for your guidance and loving spirit! You have amazed me by all you do

and with such grace.

~ Doreen Rudder

Adult Bible Class: 9am Sundays Come to the Adult Bible Study Class at 9am Sunday mornings in the Fireside Room, hosted by the Couriers. All are welcome to come. Refreshments are served.

We praise God for his servant Betty (Junvik) McCreight who passed away in early

January, and we send our love to Betty's children, Bruce and Cathy, to Lucille, and to

Betty’s dear husband, Bill. The family has decided to wait awhile to hold the memorial

service, but here are the details for the celebration.

Betty McCreight Memorial/Celebration Service July 19th, 2:00pm at Cornerstone Covenant Church

73-605 Dinah Shore Dr., Suite 100, Palm Desert, CA 92211

ONE CHURCH, ONE BOOK” is here! Beginning at 9am on May 10 in the Corner House,

we invite you to join us as we read and reflect on

Mark Labberton’s The Dangerous Act of Loving Your

Neighbor: Seeing Others Through the Eyes of Jesus.

Labberton’s writing is thoughtful, provocative and

penetrating. Prepare to be challenged to become a

person of justice, reoriented to the heart of Jesus,

reaching out to your neighbors. As we focus this year

at PCC on “Going Wider,” our adult formation

elective on Sunday morning will continue for several

months into the summer. If you would like to be a

part of this, we will pick up half of the cost of the

book for you. Please contact Anita Sorenson to be

included in the group and to order a book before the

group begins. [email protected].

Memorial Service

Sarah Circle will meet on Tuesday, May 19th, 9:30am - noon in Fireside. We welcome all women to join us for service projects, fellowship and refreshments. All women are welcome. We have a rolling start so come when you can.

For more information, contact Julie Maljian at (818) 790-5911.

Women’s Book Club The Women’s Book Club meets Tuesday, May 26th, from 7:30-9:00pm in the Corner House. We will be discussing “What Alice Forgot” by Liane Moriarty. Newcomers and one-timers are always welcome. If you have any questions, please contact Jennifer Mawhorter at [email protected].

The Urban Ministries Team will meet on

Monday, May 11th, at 6:45pm in the

Santa Barbara Room. Everyone is welcome

to come to see how Pasadena Covenant is

partnering with others in Pasadena. For

more information, contact Wayne Aoki at

[email protected].

The Men's Book Club will meet on

Thursday, May 14th, at 7pm at the Corner

House to discuss THE MEANING OF

REVELATION, by H. Richard Niebuhr,

which explores God's revelation in scripture,

in history, and in personal experience. For

more information, please contact Rich Doyle

at [email protected].

The next Koinonia Prayer and Praise

potluck scheduled for Sunday, May 3rd is

canceled. If you have question, email Kim

Dorman at [email protected].

Please look for information about the

upcoming June Prayer and Praise potluck.

Easy way to support Pasadena

Covenant Church If you shop at Vons or Pavilions, Fresh and Easy or Safeway, you could be easily supporting Pasadena Covenant with each purchase. It is as simple as going to escrip.com and registering to support Pasadena Covenant Church. Pasadena Covenant’s account is Group ID – 140713372.

If you could use some help, contact Pastor

Jim Tyberg, [email protected]

mailto:[email protected]

Stations of the Cross The Stations of the Cross are the artistic expressions of the traditional stations and these were

displayed for the two weeks leading up to Easter. Several artists within our community, of all

ages, were a part of what happened this year.

Journey to the Cross

During Lent Gradeschoolers spent seven weeks working with Ashley Thaxton, Anna Wiskerchen, and a team of volunteers exploring the themes of Lent and Easter. Together they created an original piece encompassing dance, drama, music, and movement to show the progression of the story from waiting, thru despair, and on to the hope and joy of the resurrection. They presented their piece in the Easter Sunday worship service.

The Courtyard

So many people to thank as we take in the beauty of the new courtyard. The key word about this whole project from beginning to end is “generosity”. There is the generosity of those who have financially contributed to this project, including church groups, tenants and individuals, as well as gifts from those who over years past have contributed to our investment account. The design

began with Kara Bjornlie from EPT Design, and she was able to help us out cost-wise by turning over the architectural project to Matt Lysne, who did a beautiful job putting together the plans and shepherding it through the permitting process. Bruce Rudder (E.B. Rudder Construction) did the quality work, meeting our deadline, and from beginning to end was such a pleasure to work with. Jose Nunez was the artistic, methodical and perfectionistic artisan who placed every element in place in just the right way. James Steinmeier designed a stunning pergola that is gorgeous and “tight” in all aspects, as is the gate he also constructed. James worked at a much lower rate in order to meet budget. Shawn McDonald, our own electrician, has been extraordinarily generous in his contributions and spirit, to provide the highest quality electrical connections for both low and

line voltage and for lighting. Shawn’s father and brother, Casey, contributed skillful volunteer labor, sometimes backbreaking support to make this happen, as Shawn did all this in addition to his full-time work, laboring into the wee hours for many days. The landscapers not only added and selected beautiful, healthy plantings, but also showed so much care in assuring that the project would come alive with God’s beauty.

So come into His gates with thanksgiving and into his courts with praise. Many of our prayers that we offered up at the beginning of the project have already been answered. Now may those prayers also come true for all of us, where you prayed that we will be hospitable, and will experience God in this place.

Cross-Cultural Communication Specialists’ Praise & Prayer Requests Tim and Wakako Clark, JAPAN

Tim was sent from Pasadena Covenant in January 1999. Tim and Wakako were married here in January 2007 and now have two sons, Makoto (age 5) and Hiroki (age 4). They’re with SIM and Asian Access.

Local Ministry: Church Planting Tim and Wakako serve with Fuchinobe Community Church which was started in 2010 and averages 15 in weekly worship.

Encouraging sign: Guests from last fall’s Parenting Course and the winter Alpha are continuing to explore faith and attending worship services.

Greatest challenge: Lack of space-- the church has no building. PCC’s grant in 2014 has helped by allowing FCC to rent a hotel’s meeting room for special events. 41 people attended the Christmas party and 38 the Easter worship at the hotel; two thirds at each were friends who don’t identify themselves as Christians. FCC will rent space in a community center for The Marriage Course starting June 6.

Please pray: (1) That several seekers will become life-long followers of Christ; (2) For wisdom in continuing to address the need for larger space.

National Ministry: Relationship Central Tim and Wakako work with Alpha Japan, introducing Alpha’s marriage and parenting courses to churches throughout the nation.

Encouraging sign: The Marriage Course DVD translation project is now being completed. Ten churches throughout the country are holding Marriage Courses specifically for Christian leaders – to share the course and its potential for reaching many – including those resistant to other forms of outreach.

Greatest challenge: Many pastors resist looking deeply at their own marriages.

Please pray that Alpha’s Marriage Course will become a major new ministry through which many in Japan believe.

Family Life: Tim and Wakako wish to thank everyone for praying for Hiroki’s healing from leukemia. Please continue to pray for no relapse or long-term effects.

Home Assignment Plans The Clarks will be in the US for ministry training and to visit churches from August 2015 to February 2016. They plan to visit Pasadena in early 2016.

Cross-Cultural Ministry Funds Available for Urbana 15 Are you or a family member planning to attend the Urbana Student Mission Conference sponsored by InterVarsity December 27-31, 2015 in St. Louis? If you answer yes, the Cross Cultural Ministry Team would like to help. We have set aside money for those interested in attending Urbana. Here is the grant application process.

Process for Urbana 15

#1 Register for the Urbana Conference at www.urbana.org before June 30 (Price increases July 1)

#2 Contact Steve Stuckey ([email protected]) by June 30 to be considered for a grant.

Door of Hope birthday Club—2.0!

Open to all-ages: 2nd Monday • 5:30-6:30pm

Our ministry to Door of Hope has been reconfigured to better meet their needs. We'll now be partnering with the afterschool program to provide a simple kids-only dinner (think: pizza!) and cupcakes each month to celebrate the kids' birthdays. Our team members will volunteer to serve approx. 4 months out of the year, providing either the cupcakes or the pizza/meal. This fun ministry is open to all ages, including kids, so is one your whole family can participate in together. Door of Hope is a program for families transitioning out of homelessness. If you'd like to join this amazing team for a really FUN ministry, contact Vikki Randall at [email protected].

Summer volunteer Opportunity (you choose how long: for a couple hours, a day, one week, two weeks)

Passionate about Arts, Sciences, or Sports/Fitness? Interested in lending your professional skills to help students to explore their creative interests for a few hours this summer? One of the local ministries Pasadena Covenant supports is Northwest Neighbors, and you can become a volunteer at Northwest Neighbors' Innovation Summer Camp 2015, July 13th-24th. Even if you can only help for a couple of hours during those two weeks, that will be a blessing. To learn more, contact Jenny or Rex Lee on Sunday mornings or please email Frances Castillo at [email protected]. Check the website at www.northwestneighbors.org to see how this ministry affects kids’ lives. You can also make a donation through the website.

http://www.urbana.org



Budget Update for – April 29, 2015 We want to give you a month-end status for our income versus budget ytd.

As we are able to “keep up” during the year, we can minimize the December push.

Thank you for your support of our ministries. Offerings Rents Giving/Rents ytd = 180,144.10 64,363.40 Year-End Target = 625,000.00 209,600.00 Anticipated ytd = 206,597.21 65,317.79 Surplus/(Shortfall) ytd = (26,453.11) (954.39)

We had an amazing Easter Offering of $11,870.00 to help support Karen Prater.

Mark your calendars: Journey in the Wilderness All-Church Camp-Out at Monrovia Canyon Park

Fri-Sat, June 12-14, 2015

This year's camp-out will feature a series of fun- meaningful outdoor adventures that take us on a Journey of Faith from the Slough of Despond, over the Hill of Difficulty, and through The Wicket Gate to the Palace Beautiful, with surprising and thought-provoking stops along the way. Camp is for singles, couples, families of all ages. You can register for the whole weekend, or just one day. ($32/family weekend; $15/person weekend; $8/person Sat. only; $15/family Sat. only; scholarships available). For more info contact Vikki Randall at [email protected].


Jesus in the Passover This year we celebrated "Christ the Passover lamb" through an interactive experience that tied

together the Old Testament lessons we're been studying about the Exodus with the Christian

declaration of Jesus as the Passover Lamb. We ate special foods that helped us remember both

how God delivered Israel in Egypt, and how God through Jesus Christ has delivered the whole

world from slavery to sin and death. We celebrated with food, song, crafts and more!

Journey to the Promised Land

Sunday mornings at 10:30 for Kids:

This year's theme for our Kids' programs is Journey to the Promised Land: Jesus is our Hope. We are focusing on Old Testament stories of the people of God journeying to the promised land. In those stories we find our own journey of hope following Jesus to the promised Kingdom. All grade levels (2 years thru 5th grade) will focus on the same biblical narrative each week, so families can follow up at home with your own conversations about our journey.

During May we will begin the story of David. We will learn about God as the good shepherd who knows, leads, protects, loves, forgives, and chooses us.

Ideas for following up at home:

1. Spend some time taking care of animals—either your own pets, or setting out feed for wild birds. Talk about David as a shepherd, and how it prepared him to be king. Discuss how God is both our shepherd who cares for us and our king who leads us.

2. Use cookie cutters to make lamb-shaped cookies. Frost with coconut to look like wool.

3. Visit a farm or petting zoo to see real sheep. Observe how they are cared for.

Mighty Memorizers New to our kids' program this year is Bible memory. Memorizing portions of Scripture is one of the ways we "hide God's word in our hearts", allowing it to sink in and nourish our souls. We encourage families to learn these verses together, with our preschoolers learning a shorter version and our gradeschoolers (Logosland) learning the full text and reference. At the end of the year we will have a special celebration to honor all our memorizers.

The May verse is: The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not be in want. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he restores my soul. He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. - Psa. 23:1-3

This April we set out to work through the parables of Jesus. This is on the coattails of

finishing a series on James and before that the wisdom tradition of the Old Testament. The

discussion at TheStudy on Sunday has poured over into our Wednesday LifeGroup times, it’s

been a lot of fun. With CHIC and Campus by the Sea coming up this summer we are

making preparations in combination with: several plays, Godspell, Legally Blonde (to name a

few), some trips across the pond, prom, baseball, AP tests and graduation - folks have been

busy. We were able to pull off RUMMAGE: the sale on April 18, which went well. Thanks for

the donations! Pray that we cultivate the kinds of eyes that see God in the mundane happens,

and as we study the parables, that we notice new ways God's kingdom is breaking into our

lives and world.

peace.

dave

Sunday Mornings TheStudy: Numbers, Sunday mornings, 9-10:11am (Student Room)

All Wednesdays: LifeGroups, 6:30-8pm (Student Room)

Upcoming Camps

CHIC: July 12-16

For more information about upcoming events, please contact our Pastor for Youth Ministries, Dave Rinker, at [email protected].

Recycle outgrown toys!

Are you cleaning out your closets for Spring Cleaning PCC Kids Ministries can use the ones your kids have outgrown! We are in need of used toys in good condition for 4-6 year olds, particularly: dress up clothes, Legos, hot wheels cars & tracks, and baby dolls.

Pasadena Covenant Church

539 North Lake Avenue

Pasadena, California, 91101-1217

Return Service Requested

1 Friday 2 Saturday 3 Sunday 9:00am Classes 10:30am Worship Service 11:45am Hospitality Time 12:00pm Miriam Singers 4 Monday 7:00pm Trustee Meeting 5 Tuesday 6 Wednesday 5:45pm Children’s Choir Rehearsal 6:30pm PCSM Life Group 7 Thursday 8 Friday 9 Saturday 10 Sunday - Mother’s Day 9:00am Classes 10:30am Worship Service 11:45am Hospitality 12:00pm Miriam Singers 11 Monday 6:45pm Urban Ministries Meeting 12 Tuesday 13 Wednesday 5:45pm Children’s Choir Rehearsal 6:30pm PCSM Life Group

27 Wednesday 5:45pm Children’s Choir Rehearsal 6:30pm PCSM Life Group 28 Thursday 29 Friday 30 Saturday 9:00am Musical Dress Rehearsal 31 Sunday Children’s Musical 9:00am Classes 10:30am Worship Service 11:45am Hospitality 12:00pm Miriam Singers

May 2015 14 Thursday 7:00pm Men’s Book Club 15 Friday 16 Saturday 17 Sunday 9:00am Classes 10:30am Worship Service 11:45am Hospitality 12:00pm Miriam Singers 18 Monday 19 Tuesday 9:30pm Sarah Circle 20 Wednesday 5:45pm Children’s Choir Rehearsal 6:30pm PCSM Life Group 21Thursday 22 Friday 23 Saturday 24 Sunday 9:00am Classes 10:30am Worship Service 11:45am Hospitality 12:00pm Miriam Singers 25 Monday - Memorial Day Office & Facilities Closed 26 Tuesday 7:30pm Women’s Book Club

Trustee Meeting

Monday, May 4th 7pm in the Corner House

Newsletter - May 2015

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