The Pastor’s Post

Providence Presbyterian Church 1580 Clinton-Raymond Road Clinton, MS 39056 (601) 924-4747P (601) 924-4709F www.ppcpca.com

I have come across several ideas this past month that seem to suggest patterns that God uses in our lives. First, from Dr. Ralph Winter: “Curiously, the most important key to the growth of God consciousness - of integrity of heart - is what happens daily. ‘Nothing will ever dominate your life that does not occur daily.’”

Excellence in anything demands continuing endeavor. The Scripture calls us to persevere in faith and not to give up in doing good. Jesus says

we are to take up our cross daily and follow him.

A second idea from Dr. Winter is what he has termed ‘horizontal accountability’. “Not one in a hundred people can rise to their highest without the support, encouragement, and appreciation of other people. That is why God put

us in families, small groups, and churches.” Paul David Tripp puts it this way: “God uses people, who are themselves in need of change, as instruments of the same kind of changes in others.”

It seems to me that those are crucial matters for Christians. We need one another and we need daily commitment to experiencing, learning, and doing the things of God.

John Reeves

God’s Patterns

THE PROVIDENCE HERALD

The Pastor’s Post From the desk of John Reeves

Newsletter Information

Please submit to Al Ward:

[email protected], or call

924-4747

Submittal deadline is Friday,

February 22nd!

A publ ication of Providence Presbyterian Church

Volume 2, Issue 2 February 2008

February marks the two-year anniversary of our new nursery facilities. As the number of children has increased, our volunteer rotation has gone from just a few volunteers to over sixty a month!

One of the greatest strengths of the nursery has been that of the Nursery Director position, filled admirably the past three years by Paige Atkinson. Sadly, Paige has decided to step down due to family responsibilities and time constraints. The Nursery Committee fully supports her decision, but we already miss her smiling face every

Sunday and her faithfulness and love to our covenant children.

As a consequence, the nursery is in need of not only more volunteers for rotation, but also a new Nursery Director and an Assistant Director. These are paid positions. The Nursery Committee asks that the congregation would pray that these positions be filled quickly.

Please contact a member of the Nursery Committee if you are willing to serve as a volunteer or if you might be interested in either position.

Urgent Nursery Needs Thank you, The Nursery Committee Mary Lewis Govero Kathleen Foster Elizabeth Thorton Lola Bennet Pam Miller


Meet Your New Council!

The Providence Herald

Baby WatchBaby WatchBaby WatchBaby Watch

Kathleen Foster 2/2/08

Annie Hale 2/29/08

Kim Cheezum 3/15/08

Beth Albritton 4/28/08

Jen Holbert 6/12/08

Jackie Branch 8/12/08

TLC February:

Dot Rosamond 922-3098

In Sympathy…

Our prayers and sympathy are extended to:

John and Inez Burris in the death of John’s brother Christopher.

Allison and Al Ward and family in the death of Allison’s grandmother Hazel.

In my Father’s house are many rooms… John 14:2

Welcome!Welcome!Welcome!Welcome!

Patrick “Asher” Sanders: Born January 2nd; 8 lbs 10 oz; 22 inches. Congratulations to Matthew and Jenny Sanders!

Zemmie Haddassah Medeiros Heindl- “Haddie”: Born January 6th(5 weeks early); 5 lbs 3 oz; to Paul and Adrianna Heindl. Thanks for all the prayers and support for this baby: she is home now from the NICU!

Exercise, Anyone? Two opportunities exist to get on track in 2008 in the area of fitness. One is a program designed for women who want to complete a 5K race. $75 for a 10-week program; lots of goodies for this fee. Initial meeting is Tues, Feb. 19th. Melanie Clyatt (925-0633) is helping coach the group. The second is the CF cycling event in October. Contact Josh Sullivan at 924-7367.

What is Women in the Church (WIC)? WIC is the female population of a PCA church, whether they are members or not.

What is the purpose of WIC? “The purpose of the Women in the Church is that every woman know Christ personally and be committed to extending His kingdom in her life, home, church, community, and throughout the world.”

Our relationship with God puts us into a covenant community (church family) with our brothers & sisters in Christ. In the covenant community we have covenant privileges (to be ministered to) and covenant responsibilities (to minister to others). Providence has a WIC Council that

helps facilitate the ministries of women in the church. The representatives for 2008 include: President: Jody Pierce Advisor to President: Carol Spears Vice President: Kristen Bullock Secretary: Joyce Saltzman Treasurer: Betty Robinson Family Night Supper: Kathleen Foster Historian: Lola Bennet Hospitality: Karen Freeman & Mildred McNair Kitchen: Linda Elliott, Bess Malin, & Betty Robinson Missions: Albrey Elliot & Robin Elliott Nursery: Lola Bennet & Kathleen Foster Publications: Stephanie Gault

Spiritual Growth: Joanne Harrison TLC: Denease Bishop Circle 1: Amy Carter & Dot Salvant Circle 2: Bess Malin Circle 3: Paula Rodriguez

Ladies, look for a brief Spiritual Growth questionnaire to be distributed in February. Some sample questions include:

1. What in your life has caused you to grow the most spiritually? 2. What one thing do you think we could do in our church to help people grow spiritually?

Thank you in advance for your participation!

Stephanie Gault

Try Feast Groups! Feast Groups are a wonderful fellowship opportunity, in which several families meet together monthly to eat and become more closely acquainted. Ideally, each family will plan a get-together, either in the home, at a restaurant, some other venue (i.e. picnic)- or even at Providence.

The Kick-Off luncheon for this year will be Sunday, February 24th, at church after the morning service. Sign up in the narthex, or call Al Ward at 924-4747.

Valentine’s Banquet

The annual Valentine’s Banquet will be Saturday, Feb 16th, from 6:00-8:00pm in the Fellowship Hall. Purchase tickets now: steak ($15) or chicken ($12). The theme this year is “Sea Cruise”, and the live entertainment will ensure that laughs and nostalgia abound! Nursery will tentatively be available for a small charge. Call Bess Malin for more info at 924-4747.


decisions, instead using God’s Word to guide both the acquisition and management of income.

The Lord has given us the gifts that allow us to acquire income. We do not know why He gives certain people more than others, but we do know that He expects us to properly manage what he has given us! He does not want us to waste neither our gifts nor our incomes.

I would challenge each of us to set aside some time to peruse our check books and credit card receipts. We can discover where our hearts are by where we put our treasures. Do I tithe? Do I give sacrificially; above and beyond my comfort zone? Or are my spending patterns similar to those of the world, focusing on indulgence, self, and pleasure?

The world follows fashions and trends. If you notice these in your spending patterns, pay attention! Prayerfully ask the Lord to guide your hearts to a proper use of the treasures He has blessed you with. Worldly pressures make it difficult to be different, but as Christians, it is our call to be “a set apart people”.

In future articles I will discuss where God exhorts us to spend our money, and some traps that He wants us to avoid. With the support that our Father provides, we can tailor our finances to honor and glorify Him.

Ken Sinquefield

Ken Sinquefield has completed the Budget Counselor training provided by Crown Financial Ministries. He has 30 years of management experience, an MBA from St. Mary’s College of California, and is the Business Manager of Chamberlain-Hunt Academy. Ken, wife Antoinette, and sons Oliver (15) and Samuel (13) are residents of Port Gibson, and have been a regular part of the Providence worship family for some months now.

Fond Farewells to: Mike and Wendy Gant, Abigail, Michael, and Emily Claire. Mike will be a pastoral intern at a PCA church in Kingsport, Tennessee...they move Feb 11th. Harold and Laura Jones. They are moving to be close to a son. Their new address is:4714 29th Street, Columbus, Indiana 47203

God be with you till we meet again...

The central purpose of this column is to explore the Biblical model for personal financial management, offering suggestions that will hopefully provoke good stewardship. The wisdom offered will fall as folly to the worldly ear, and is only useful for the heart devoted to the Savior.

The following verses instruct us to guard ourselves from worldly desires:

“And do not be conformed to this world...” Romans 12:2

“Do not love the world or the things in the world...” 1 John 2:15

“For Demas has forsaken me, having loved this present world…” 2 Timothy 4:10

Realizing that we have been called by God to be different from the world, we know that this calling affects our entire lives; especially finances! We must not use worldly standards to direct our financial

Volume 2, Issue 2

Christians and Their Finances

The Group (20s) The Group will gather this Sunday, February 3rd, for a Spaghetti Lunch at 12:00 in the Fellowship Hall. Spaghetti and garlic bread provided for $1/adult...children are free! Bring your favorite side dish or dessert. Contact Susan or Nathaniel Inman at 601-420-9533 or [email protected] to sign up!

A Wedding Invitation Lael Rodriguez is engaged to be married to Marcus Olsson, of Uppsala, Sweden. The nuptials will be May 17th...in Uppsala! They will tentatively be here in June, and, if so, there will be a reception in Clinton for them. However, if you’d like to be there for the wedding firsthand, call Paula Rodriguez at 601-953-4506 or [email protected] for info!

Got Change? The Session of Providence is encouraging our congregation to bring all spare change during the month of February, until the 24th, and place it in the available labeled receptacles in the church. This is for the purpose of paying off building debt! Another local church recently raised $13K this way: what can we do? Paper money is also accepted!

The Fellowship (30s-40s) The Fellowship will hold a game night on February 23rd from 6:30-8:30pm in the Fellowship Hall. Bring a des-sert and your favorite game. Nursery will be provided at a cost of $12-$15 per family (depending on turnout). Sign up by February 17th!

Pros (60+) The Pros will resume their monthly potluck luncheon next Tuesday, Feb 5th, at 11:30. The Darlins’ of the Decades will entertain with song, as well as a humorous glimpse at the graces of “Suthun” etiquette at both weddings and funerals.

The Providence Herald

What is Evangelism, and Who Should Do It?


New Mexico Trip The 5th annual mission trip to the Navajo Reservation in the New Mexico community of Crystal will take place July 10th-July 19th.

There are needs for many types of people on this trip! We will be teaching VBS to nearly 50 children ages K-12, leading evening worship services, performing work projects, and interacting with the people in Crystal.

Trip costs are estimated to be $500-$600/person. The team will fly into Albuquerque, and drive from there.

If you were unable to attend the information meeting, but are interested in going, please call Al Ward at 924-4747 or email at [email protected].

Where’s Walker? Walker Moller is serving a two-year mission term with Operation Mobilization aboard the Doulos in Asia. If you would like to be on the list to receive Walker Moller’s monthly newsletter update, send an email to Sara Moller Renick at [email protected].

Make Your Plans Now! The 2008 Providence Missions Conference is right around the corner. Please plan on being with us at this important and vibrant time.

Theme: “Hearts for the Harvest” Matthew 9:37-38

Sunday, March 2nd: Combined Youth/Adult Sunday School: Dr. George Hutchinson, Church Planting International leading K-6 Sunday School: New Mexico trip members AM and PM Worship Services: Dr. Hutchinson

Thursday, March 6th: 6:00-6:45 Great Chili Cook-Off (FNS) 7:00-7:45 Keith Kanavel (MTW-Africa) talks

Saturday, March 8th: 8:00-9:00 Men’s Prayer Breakfast w/speaker 11:30-1:00 Women’s Luncheon w/speaker

Sunday, March 9th: Combined Youth/Adult Sunday School: Dr. and Mrs. Richard (Kathy) Konieczny, OMF International AM and PM Worship Services: Dr. Konieczny

And Jesus came and said to them, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age." Matthew 28:18-20

In Matthew 28:18-20, we find the clearest exhortation in Scripture for the work of the universal church: to spread the good news of Christ to those who do not know of Him. The Greek word which is important here is euangelion (yoo-ann-gael-ion), which means “the gospel; the good news of Christ”, and is the root for the English verb ’evangelize’- the act of proclaiming Christ.

Now, the point is not increase your knowledge of Greek grammar.

Rather, I believe it important during this season leading up to the Missions Conference to focus your attention on who exactly the Lord is commanding to evangelize– each and every Christian. That means you! He wants you individually to proclaim Christ to those in your sphere of influence and contact!

If this is an unfamiliar thought to you, I ask that you pray about it diligently. You see, this call is not made just for the “super Christians”: ministers, missionaries, or ultra-fervent folks. It is made to everyone who professes faith in Christ, and regardless of your comfort level with this idea! If you love the Lord Jesus Christ, then it should color every part

of your life, and you should tell others and show others that life-altering fact.

With this in mind, I hope that we will look at our missionaries a little differently as we approach the Missions Conference in March. You see, they are answering the call to spread the good news– they are spreading it in places abroad, far away from their native homes. They need our financial and prayer support in this endeavor. They need our loving kindness and hospitality as they visit Clinton. They need us.

But they are here to build us up in our calls to evangelize, as well. We need them! So listen. Learn. Pray. Change. Grow. For they are not simply missionaries which we support. They are our teachers; our role models in evangelism. Al Ward

Quote

“Did you realize that the truth is instrumental in salvation? People cannot be saved apart from hearing and embracing the truth...so the truth is everything to a Christian. That is why we are called to refute error, defend the truth, and proclaim Scripture as the supreme truth against every lie propagated by the world.” John MacArthur: Why One Way?

Volume 2, Issue 2

Ken was born to missionary parents in Cuba, and has himself been with MTW since 1982. His job titles have included Area Director for Africa and Latin America and International Director for Latin America. He traveled extensively in Latin America, preaching and building up those missionaries serving in Spanish-speaking countries. Suffice it to say his conversational Spanish is exceptional!

Ken now works at the MTW office in Atlanta, where he is the technical

guru dealing with computers, using internet to connect all the MTW missionaries around the world with evangelism, discipleship, and training materials.

Kim was born in Lansing, Michigan and sensed a call to missions early in life. She met Ken at Moody Bible Institute, where she graduated with a BA in Christian Education. Her teaching career was put on hold to raise her family: however, she plans to resume it this spring.

Ken and Kim have three children: Mary, 25, who was married in 2007; Ben, 20, an architect student at Southern Polytechnic State University in Marietta, GA; and Nathan, 18, a Music Technology student at Georgia State University.

John Turbeville

Ken and Kim Thompson are old friends of our congregation. We were first associated with them while they were at RTS in the early 80’s: they worshipped with us then (Westminster PCA at the time).

Ken and Kim were the Junior-Senior High Youth Directors, influencing this grateful writer in many positive ways. One lesson I remember in particular was on fasting. We didn’t just talk about it- we did it- fasting during a church lock-in! The fast was broken with a meal at the home of John and Emily Reeves. Ken also took us on leisure activities such as the Slip and Slide Water Park which was located on Frontage Rd (next to the new Deuce McAllister Dealership) and to Liberty Land in Memphis where we rode the rickety wooden roller coaster.


Missionary Profile: Meet the Thompsons

Thanks for your support of my participation in the Twin Lakes Camp in Trujillo, Peru. The director at Twin Lakes, Matthew Nasekos, headed the team. I was a providential last-minute addition, as others had to drop out.

I received my passport in a few hours in New Orleans, and all the needed support came in. We arrived in Peru on December 28th, and stayed until January 5th, with camp running the last four days. After visiting in Lima on Saturday, we flew to Trujillo and worshipped Sunday with one of the three planted churches located there. The love for Christ and the desire to know more about Him was apparent, transcending language and culture. God blessed it mightily!

Virginia Lavallee Reports on Peru On Monday, we enjoyed meeting our Peruvian helpers and translators, going over various activities and songs for camp. Camp was at a different location each day, requiring setting up and taking down. Activities included horseback riding, archery, swimming, super fun games, crafts, and other experiences. For most of the children, it was the first time they had done many of these activities.

At each activity site, we presented the gospel through the means of various object lessons. Together we studied the four “I AM” statements

from John. We saw God work not only in the children, but also in the churches and neighborhoods. The three churches partnered together to work in a way the missionaries said had never happened before. Many fathers became supportive as their children returned home every day bubbling over with all they had learned!

I learned so much more about our God and His people. It was a joy and privilege to experience this trip. Thanks again for your prayers and financial support.

Virginia Lavallee

Fri 1st Al Ward *Enrichment School starts back!

Sat 2nd Kevin Hale *PDL ladies’ study 9-10:30am

Sun 3rd * Preschool Comm 5:00pm * Outreach Comm 5:00pm * Japan prayer group I 5:00pm * Philippines prayer group 7:05

Mon 4th Julia Branch, Joseph Ward, Reade Ward

Tues 5th *Men’s prayer meeting 6:30am * Pro’s Luncheon 11:30am * Prebytery @ Redeemer/Jacksn

Wed 6th Mildred McNair *CforC, Praisemakers 7-8pm *Martin, Ward small grps 7-8 N *Rodriquez grp 7-8 N *Youth grp 7-8:30 *Harrison grp Offsite

Thurs 7th *Women’s prayer 8:15am N *Women’s study 9:00am N

Sat 9th Sarah Albritton, Sarah Miller *Men’s prayer b’fast 8:00am *PDL ladies’ study 9-10:30am *Prince undershepherd dinner

Sun 10th Ethel Gammill *Deacon’s Meeting 4:45pm *WV Prayer Group 7:05pm

Mon 11th Mike Gant

Tues 12th Luke Govero, Beverly Kelley *Men’s prayer meeting 6:30am *Circle 2– 7:00pm

Wed 13th Sophia West *Circle 1– 9:30am N *Circle 3– 7:00 N *CforC, Praisemakers 7-8pm *Martin, Ward small grps 7-8 N *Youth grp 7-8:30 *Harrison grp Offsite


Sat 16 Andrew Reed *PDL ladies’ study 9-10:30am *Valentine’s Banquet 6:00pm

Sun 17th John Turbeville *CE Committee 5:00pm *Japan Prayer Group II 5:00pm

Mon 18th *Trinity Rehab Sing 2:30pm

Tues 19th Dustin Lucas, Kevin Lucas *Men’s prayer meeting 6:30am *Session Meeting 7:00pm

Wed 20th Gray Barnes, Denver Hale, Allie Reves, Andrew Perry *CforC, Praisemakers 7-8pm *Martin, Ward small grps 7-8 N *Rodriquez grp 7-8 N *Youth grp 7-8:30 *Harrison grp Offsite

Thurs 21st *Women’s prayer 8:15am N *Women’s study 9:00am N

Fri 22nd Matthew Elliott

Sat 23rd Matthew Carter, Dale Kilbourn, Steve Scott *PDL ladies’ study 9-10:30am *The Fellowship game & dessert night 6:30-8:30pm N

Sun 24th Todd Hall *Feast Groups Kickoff luncheon in Fellowship Hall 12:00 *WIC Adm. Council 4:45pm *Missions Committee 4:45pm

Tues 26th Ben Byrd, Samuel Cole, Virginia Lavallee *Men’s prayer meeting 6:30am

Wed 27th Michael Freeman, Daniel McNair *CforC, Praisemakers 7-8pm *Martin, Ward small grps 7-8 N *Rodriquez grp 7-8 N *Youth grp 7-8:30 *Harrison grp Offsite


****T.L.C. February**** Dot Rosamond

KEY: N Nursery provided CforC Cadets for Christ PDL Purpose-Driven Life

Birthdays & February calendar

Providence Presbyterian Church 1580 Clinton-Raymond Road Clinton, Mississippi 39056

The Pastor’s Post

Documents

Transcript of The Pastor’s Post