A Newsletter for the Members and Friends of Bethesda Presbyterian Church
Bethesda
November 2014
IN THIS ISSUE
From the Parson’s Pen
Announcements
Health Cabinet
Presbyterian Women
Youth and Christian Education
Prayers and Sympathy
Birthdays
Calendar
STAFF
Rev. John Hallman
Minister
Mr. Brent Kendall
DCE
Mr. & Mrs. Bo Dickinson
Directors of Music
Mrs. Joy Parrott, RN
Parish Nurse
Mr. Tim Calhoun
Clerk of Session
Mrs. Alice Brice
Moderator, Presbyterian Women
Mrs. Leslie Williams
Director Bethesda Christian School
Mrs. Clara Fenton
Office Manager
Mrs. Holley Platt
Secretary
Mr. Tom Hoke
Facility Technician
Church office telephone
432-4593
Church office fax
432-3585
Church email
[email protected]
Bethesda’s Website:
www.bethesdapresbyterianchurch.org
E-mail addresses:
John: [email protected]
Brent: [email protected]
Leslie: [email protected]
Joy: [email protected]
Clara: [email protected]
Beacon
From the Parson’s Pen
Greetings in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. My
how time flies! It seems just a moment ago we were all enjoying vacations, taking some well deserved time off to spend with family and
friends. October and November are the traditional times for stewardship campaigns here at Bethesda. Last year during our congregational
event, I mentioned that one of the most frequent complaints about the
Christian church is that the church is always trying to raise money. As
many of you know, I am not a huge fan of stewardship campaigns. I
have been a part of every-member visits, pony express, and many other
strategies to make the congregation aware of the church’s financial
needs. I have always understood stewardship from a more holistic
point of view. All of us know that it takes three things from every
member to make a church work and work well. I’m speaking of our
time, talents and our treasure.
As Christians we understand that the entire created order belongs to God (Gen. 1:1). As such, all that we have and all that we are,
our time, talent and treasure, are gifts from God. Each one of us holds
these gifts in trust for God who in turn charges us to be good stewards
of these resources. How we use our God-given gifts says a lot about
who we are and what we honestly believe. Do we give from the first
fruits of the harvest or from the leftovers? In my last pastorate, financial counseling was offered to the families who patronized our food
bank. As you can imagine, one of the first questions asked was
“Where does your money go?” As our clients were guided through the
process of developing a monthly budget, very few included their
church as one of their commitments. When listing their monthly expenses, only one person (out of hundreds) placed the church at the top
of their list.
Scripture tells us, “For we must all appear before the judgment
seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for the things
done while in the body, whether good or bad” (2 Cor. 5:10). I believe
that I will be readily forgiven for what I said when I missed the fourth
putt on the fifteenth green. However, I also believe the most crucial
moment will be when my Lord reminds me that I was given intelligence, energy and prosperity, and what did I do with those gifts? The
life lived before the face of God is a life lived in gratitude.
Grace and Peace,
John
Bethesda Announcements
November 2014
COFFEE FELLOWSHIP
November 9, 2014
Westminster Hall
10:00 AM
Join us for a cup of coffee, a little snack, and a moment
to chat with your fellow Bethesdans. Blood pressure
screenings available.
During the months of November
and December, we will be working on the handicapped access
ramp and the porch to John Knox
Hall. This project serves two purposes: to bring our handicap
ramp up to ADA compliance;
and to allow our school to put a door out to the
porch. The doorway will allow us to use the interior
room for keeping infants. Construction is projected
to take between four to six weeks. Please bear with
us as we make these much needed improvements.
Financial Update
2014 Budget $534,439
Contributions YTD $401,352
Expenses YTD $410,501
Budget Need YTD $445,360
Congratulations to Jacob and Cora Brimmer
Young on the birth of
their daughter,
Madeline Lucielle, born
August 24, 2014. The
proud grandparents are
Howard and Maria Brimmer.
Men’s Breakfast
Tuesday, November 18
7:30 A.M.
Join us for good food and fellowship!
Don’t forget!
Daylight Saving Time ends
Sunday, November 2nd! Set
your clock back one hour at
midnight Saturday night.
I LOVE TO TELL THE STORY
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 1, 2014
9:00-12:30
WESTMINSTER HALL
MEN, WOMEN, YOUTH WELCOMED!
Arrive early to enjoy light refreshments.
Please RSVP to the church office or email to
[email protected].
Bethesda Presbyterian Church
502 DeKalb Street
Camden ,SC 29020
Non Profit
Org.
US Postage
PAID
Return Service Requested
Camden, S.C.
29020
Permit No. 68
November 2014
Through Thornwell Home for Children, God has been working with hurting children and broken families. We are
most grateful for all you do for the children God has entrusted to our care.
Today Thornwell has 85 residents on campus. These children live in cottages with family teachers(caregivers) who
interact with them throughout the day, much like you do in your own families, giving them the tools to become successful adults.
Whether on the Thornwell campus or in the community-based service, Thornwell is committed to serving the child,
emotionally, physically, academically, and spiritually.
Praise God for this place called Thornwell. Praise God for people who have a heart for children’s issues. God is
working miracles in our midst. You can be part of this miracle.
There is a place for you at Thornwell. You can pray, for we covert your prayers. You can support this ministry
through charitable gifts, for it takes money to do God’s work. You can become a Champion for children, learning
more about this ministry and ways in which you may become more involved.
Bethesda Church will collect our annual offering for Thornwell on Sunday, November 23rd. Please make your check
payable to Bethesda and indicate for Thornwell on the designated line.
302 S. Broad St., Clinton, SC 29325
www.thornwell.org
1-888-310-9387
NOVEMBER BIRTHDAYS
2014
2. Helen Young
Marie Wilson
Allison McLeod
Jessica Ford
Cameron Hinson
Linda Kanatzar
9. Greg Morris
Larry Parrott
Susan Brewer
Berkeley Platte
Catherine Hinson
Coleman Hinson
16. Sydney Kline
Gail Sinclair
3. Ari Dickinson
Gabriel Holland
10. Michele Hinson
Brannon Hough
23. Roy Issacson
5.
11. Sarah Jowers
John Stevenson
6. Charlotte Sanders
Polly Todd
Rickie Tiller
Sam Ferguson
7. John Wilson
Ginger Munnerlyn
8. Mary Carol Sanders
Chuck Nash
19. John Stephenson
20. Sydney Morris
24. Molly Kornegay
Nicholas Butler
12. Mary Martin
Quinn Baker
Ben Kelly
25. Barbara Hoke
13.
28. Max Ford
Joe Denton
14. Margaret Buckholz
Curtis Stewart
15. Terry Hancock
Chip Whitehouse
26. Rick Todd
29. Howard Brimmer
30. Sean Bates
Release 3 Campaign- releasing children from poverty in Jesus’ name
Please join me in teaming up with Compassion International to find sponsors for each of these three
children: Snehamol from India; Ashley from Honduras; and Allan from Uganda. Please pray for these
children and that they will receive a much needed sponsorship this month. My family and I participate
and adore the Compassion International program. We write our sponsored children about 4-6 times a
year and send $38/child/month. We send optional birthday and Christmas money gifts as well. We receive about the same amount of letters from our sponsored children. We receive at least one letter per
year from the pastor of the Compassion International church school that they attend. It has been so
wonderful to receive their letters and pictures over the past few years watching them grow and knowing that we have helped them learn about Christ, receive education, nutrition, and medical care. I could
go on and on, but please contact me for more information on our experience with Compassion or go to
their website (www.compassion.com or release3.compassion.com). Bethesda family, let’s come together to pray for these three children. Please also prayerfully consider sponsoring one of them before
the end of October. We have reached the end of October and the end of the Release 3 Challenge.
Please contact Lisa O’Bradovich ASAP if you want to sponsor one of these three children or if you have
questions. Thank you.
Contact: Lisa O’Bradovich (432-8111; [email protected])
Youth and Christian Education
New EPIC Youth Curriculum Begins November 9th with a movie!
We will then begin a study of the movie, Left Behind which stars Nicholas Cage. While there
may be some non-biblical assumptions in the movie, we will look at the second coming as
promised in the Bible.
Triggertyme PAINTBALL!
We are planning a paintball war on Sunday, November 23rd from 1:45-6:00 at Triggertyme
Paintball Center in Blythewood. Cost is only $20.00 (Regularly $38) RSVP by November 16
by giving John or Brent your $20.00. (Yes, you can shoot at Brent, Not at John, Kathryn, or
Kathleen!)
There will be no EPIC Youth Meeting on November 30th!
HAPPY THANKSGIVING!
November is here and with it comes Thanksgiving! (Actually, we should be giving thanks every month!) I do not
want to miss the opportunity in this month’s Beacon to tell you all how THANKFUL I am to be here at Bethesda
Presbyterian Church! You have been (and are) such a blessing to me! I am extremely grateful and thankful to be
your DCE.
I would like to encourage and challenge all of us this Thanksgiving season to keep Psalm 100:4-5 on the forefront of our hearts and mind. “Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise; give thanks to Him
and praise His name. For the Lord is good and His love endures forever; His faithfulness continues through all
generations.” In just this one verse we have plenty of reasons to give thanks and praise our God’s name….1) The
Lord is good, 2) The Lord’s love endures forever, and 3) The Lord’s faithfulness continues through all generations!
We all have been truly blessed by God’s goodness, love, and faithfulness. It might be helpful to remember that it
was when our “first parents” (Adam & Eve) became “unthankful” that the human race began that terrible descent
into sin and judgment. Instead of being thankful for what they had, Adam and Eve believed Satan’s lie that the Lord
was holding out on them and this led to their sin. A thankful spirit is a triumphant spirit! So, let’s all make sure we
take some time each day this month to thank God and praise His name.
RightNow Media
One excellent resource for Bible Study that every church member can have access to is RightNow Media. If you haven’t
checked it out, please do so at RightNowMedia.org. It has over 3,500 video Bible studies for kids, youth, and adults. Teachers include: Andy Stanley, Francis Chan, Dave Ramsey, Max Lucado, Beth Moore, John Piper, Jen Hatmaker, Bill Hybels,
RC Sproul, Kay Arthur, Michael W. Smith, Steven Curtis Chapman, Charles Colson, and many more! Topics include: The
Christian Life, Marriage, Parenting, Family, Leadership, Finances, Work, People in the Bible, Books of the Bible, Women Bible studies, Men Bible studies, Real-Life stories / Documentaries, and much more! If you are interested, please contact me or
the church office and we will supply you with a password and login.
With that said, we have started looking over this year’s financial budget and working on the budget proposal for the new
fiscal year 2015. RightNow Media is one of the expenses we are considering whether or not we need to continue financing.
We just simply do not have any idea how many (if any) people are using this resource. If you are currently using this resource
– WONDERFUL! However, if we as a church family are NOT using it, we are not being good stewards of the church’s money. While it is an excellent resource…it is not FREE or CHEAP….and it is only excellent if we are using it, learning from it,
and growing spiritually from it. If no one is using it, let’s look for other areas to invest our resources. We have a little over a
month to decide if we should keep this resource or cut it from our expenses.
If you are using RightNow Media (OR are interested in using it), please contact me (or the church office) and let us know.
If we do not hear back from anyone, this may be a resource that we cut from our budget for next year. However, if it is being
used by members of our church family, by all means, we will keep this valuable Bible Study resource. Thank you!
Health Cabinet
November is Diabetes Awareness Month
The Health Cabinet is posting information on the bulletin board about a medical grant now being offered
to study type two diabetes. For those qualified applicants, mediations and treatments are free. The name
of the Study is GRADE (Glycemic Reduction approaches in Diabetes). This grant is supported by the National Institute for Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Disorders, and the purpose is to determine which
medications commonly prescribed are the best treatment long term for type two diabetes. The nearest
medical center for us will be Duke University in Durham, NC. If you would like to know more about this
study, you can go on line and type in GRADE for diabetes study. I have a brochure as well. Please let
anyone who has type two diabetes know about this worthwhile opportunity.
Joy Parrott, RN, Parish Nurse
Flu shot reminder:
It is time to get your flu shot.
Do you need to get rid of old medications?
Flu has arrived already.
Hospice Care of Tri County & Liggett Pharmacy is offering a Safe
This virus is
Medication disposal Day at Liggett Pharmacy 1053 Hwy 1 S
avoidable, so please get protected.
(Patterson Plaza Lugoff)
Thursday, November 20th at 1-1:30pm
Drop off your unused prescriptions to be safely disposed of to protect the environment.
No controlled substances accepted.
Celebrating National Hospice Month
The Light at Bethesda
Prayer Concerns for Members and Friends:
Sybil Carson, Beth Nettles, Gail Sinclair, Larry Reynolds,
Frank Dieringer, Curtis Watkins, Herb Shepherd, Parker
Young, Don Pullum, Clyde Jones, Larry Ogburn, Nancy
Tucker, Felix Mock, Alex Etters, Jim LaFrage, Richard
Holmes (Deborah Davis’ friend), Lou Beth Kelly (Jody’s
mother), Virginia McCrae, Ann Jackson Dixon (friend of
Bettysue Webber), Leigh Lown (friend of Lee Griggs),
Jim Holmes (friend of Serena Ogburn), Lisa Meares, Jim
McHone (Angie Guy’s stepfather), Susan Marshall, Norm
Duncan (friend of Susan Marshall), Ken Shroeder (friend
of Cindy Dieringer), Carmela Cooper (friend of Cindy
Dieringer), Pat Deal, Judy Terrell, Susan McFarland
(sister-in-law of Kay and Dickie Tiller), Dorothy Howell
(mother of Patricia Geddings), Mary Clair Dixon (Susan
Coble’s great niece), Suzanne Thigpen (Charlie and Alice
Brice’s sister-in-law), Walter Hickman, Mary McNeeley
(friend of Carolyn Drake), Rose Braz (friend of Shaylors),
John Grey Crosby (Freeman’s grandson), Jean Holland,
Pat Watts, Todd Loman (Kim Kelly’s brother), Bob Barr
(Sonny’s brother), Martha Ann Kennedy (Janet
McCorkle’s sister), Edna Bradley (Keith Bradley’s mother), Hannah Lynch (Susan Brewer’s daughter)
Nancy Tucker on the death of her
mother
Allen Roberts on the death of his
mother.
Bethesda Church Members,
Thank you so much for the beautiful
arrangement of flowers you shared with our residents. What a delight for them to see as they pass
by! Your kindness and thoughtfulness are appreciated.
Sincerely,
Dianna
Morningside Assisted Living
SACKS OF LOVE
As Thanksgiving approaches, we are mindful of the many blessings God has bestowed upon us, blessings that we can never repay. Among our blessings, of course, are all of you
who are so willing to help us fill out sacks week to week. We can’t repay God’s blessings,
but we can share our blessings when we “pay forward” by purchasing and packing sacks of
food for children in our community who need it.
The items listed below are things that we use. Please pick something up when you shop for
groceries. They can be placed in the box in the hallway outside of Brent’s office.
Food List for Sacks of Love
*All should be individual serving sizes with pop-tops or tear-off lids*.
Tuna, chicken, spam
Peanut butter and cheese crackers
Beanie Weenies
Ramen noodles
Spaghettios, Beefaroni, or other canned pasta Poptarts
Pudding cups
Raisins
Instant oatmeal
Soup
Instant grits
Individual cereal boxes
Canned fruit or fruit cups
Applesauce cups
Canned vegetables
Juice boxes
If you are interested in volunteering or have any questions, please contact us at
803-713-8749.
Charlie and Alice Brice
Coordinators
Presbyterian Women
It’s hard to believe that Thanksgiving is almost here and that the holiday season will soon be upon us. My wish for
all of you is that your holidays will be filled with joy.
On October 4, Mary Carol Sanders and I went to the Presbyterian Women’s Fall Gathering at Bethelwoods and
had lovely morning with women from around Providence Presbytery. At that meeting Ann Barnwell, PW Moderator
for the Synod of the South Atlantic, issued a “$10 challenge” to benefit Mission Haven. As I am sure many of you
know, Mission Haven provides rent-free living spaces for missionaries who are returning to this country on furlough
or who are transitioning back into life at home. It is owned and operated by Presbyterian Women in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, South Carolina and Tennessee. The homes, however, are in need of some maintenance. Ann has challenged the women of each church to raise $10 for that purpose. Just $10! Not $10 from
each of us, just $10! Isn’t it nice to have such a doable request? Of course, any amount over $10 will be gratefully
accepted. Our Circles began collecting money at our October meetings, but if you were unable to contribute, don’t
despair! We will still collect money for Mission Haven at our November meetings.
Circles 1 and 2 will meet on Tuesday, November 11. Circle 1 will meet at 2:30 in John Knox Hall; Circle 2 will
meet at 10:30 in the Conference Room in the McArn building. The Evening Circle will meet at 7:00 on November
17. As of this writing the location has not been determined. Contact Amanda Godfrey at 320-4406 or watch the
Sunday bulletin for more information.
PW Coordinating Team
Our PW Coordinating Team meeting will be on Tuesday, November 4, at 3:00 in the Conference Room. Please let
me know if you will not be able to attend.
Alice Brice
Moderator
713-8749, 331-2423 ( C )
November 2014
Sun
Mon
Tues
Wed
Thurs
Fri
1
9:00-12:30
I Love to Tell
the Story –
seminar
Please check the weekly church bulletin for
changes or additions!
2
3
9:00 1st Worship
10:15 Sun. School
10:30 Member Care
11:15 2nd Worship
5:30 Youth
5:30 Islam Study
4
5
3:00 PWCT
3:00 Choir Plus/
Pioneer
7:00 CE Committee
6:00 Supper
Sat
6
7
8
13
14
15
20
21
22
27
28
29
7:00 Adult
Choir
9
10
9:00 1st Worship
10:15 SS & Coffee
7:00 Session
Fellowship
11:15 2nd Worship
Youth –movie
11
12
10:30 & 2:30 PW
Circles
3:00 Choir Plus/
Pioneer
6:00 Supper/
program
7:00 Adult Choir
16
17
9:00 1st Worship
10:15 Sun. School
7:00 PW Evening
11:15 2nd Worship Circle
5:30 Youth
5:30 Islam Study
18
19
7:30 Men’s
Breakfast
3:00 Choir Plus/
Pioneer
6:00 Supper
7:00 Adult Choir
23
COMMUNION
9:00 1st Worship
10:15 Sun. School
11:15 2nd Worship
1:45 Youthpaintball
30
9:00 1st Worship
10:15 Sun. School
11:15 2nd Worship
No Youth
24
25
26
Church offices
closed
THANKSGIVING
DAY
Church offices
closed