"One Spectacular September"
Dear Friends,
Summer is coming to a close and the Fall season at First Presbyterian Church is gearing up! As you can see in this newsletter, there is a lot happening in September. That’s not to say that we took it easy this summer. In the last month we completed a very successful Vacation Bible School that ended with an awesome Sunday morning service featuring a choir of thirty children singing their hearts out under the wonderful direction of Matt Rupcich! Again, I have to say, how amazing it is to see all the dedicated volunteers who enable us to have such a great VBS year after year; it really is inspiring.
The remaining Sundays in August: we hosted Re-Creation; many of you participated in the survey and discussion groups concerning the state of First Presbyterian and its future (Thank You!); the Book Club met: the Good News Café opened as usual on the second and fourth Saturdays: the Thursday Morning Bible Study continued; and we had a fantastic Worship Service and Church Picnic at Promised Land State Park. As I have said before, this church does not slow down in the summer.
Looking ahead, our Sunday School program kicks off with Rally Day and the Ice Cream Social on Sunday, September 8th. Our 18th Annual Golf Tournament and Family Day at Woodloch Springs takes place on the 15th – please register now! On Sunday, September 29th our choir with guest soloists and strings, will be offering the musical masterpiece, “Gloria” by Antonio Vivaldi during the morning worship service. (By the way, Matt will be presenting a lecture about Vivaldi’s “Gloria” following worship on the 22nd.) Then in the afternoon on the 29th, I hope you are planning to attend a retirement celebration of my ministry, especially our ministry together here in Hawley, starting at 3pm at Woodloch Pines.
God has richly blessed our ministry to the community here at First Presbyterian. As I enter my last Fall season as your pastor, I am so optimistic about the future of First Presbyterian Church. I know some of you are a little anxious about the future and that’s understandable. But I want to remind all of us: “We may not completely know what the future holds, but we know Who holds the future!” Thanks be to God!
Grace, Peace, and Love,
Pastor Bill
