Next Week at FPC (March 18, 2022)

Dear First Pres. Family,

This Sunday we welcome the Rev. Deborah Foster to our pulpit. Debbie is the Presbytery Leaser and Stated Clerk of Foothills Presbytery, the regional governing body to which our church belongs. She will be preaching in our MorningSong and 11:00am Sanctuary worship services.

Then next Sunday we will welcome the Rev. Alan Dyer, our new pastor. Read below for more information about what is happening then.

Blessings and Peace,
Craig Foster
Associate Pastor for Discipleship and Communications

THIS SUNDAY – March 20
8:45am MorningSong (Fogartie Hall)
8:45am Traditional Worship (Sanctuary)
9:45am Sunday School for children, youth, and adults
11:00am Traditional Worship (Sanctuary)
5:00pm Sunday Night Youth Group (Family Life Center)

Stream our services live on FPCSpartanburg.org/worship, YouTube, or Facebook.

Sunday School
Pre-K & Nursery – Clark Building, First Floor
Elementary – Clark Building, Second Floor
Youth – Family Life Center, Second Floor
Adults:

• Abide – Room 2200 (New permanent location)
• Bible Alive –Room 2208 and on Zoom
• Emmaus – Room 2207
• LIFT – Room 2201

FPC Educators Social – Sunday, March 20
3-5pm at the home of Donna and Norman Pulliam
RSVP here!
The Children’s Ministry Search Committee is inviting all public and private school educators in our congregation to an event on Sunday to say thank you for your perseverance and determination during these hard years of COVID-19. They would also share a bit about the children’s ministry search that is ongoing at our church. Come enjoy good fellowship with fellow educators in our congregation. For any questions contact Anna Blanton at blantonar@gmail.com or Jennifer Hoy at 864.435.7825.

NEXT WEEK
Wednesdays at First – Register Now for Dinner! (Register Here)
Join us this Wednesday for gyro sandwiches, homemade Greek potato chips, Greek salad, Greek dessert, and a beverage. The children’s menu is chicken fingers, mac and cheese, fruit cup, dessert, and a juice box. Register yourself and/or your family by Monday at 4:30pm.
If you would like to serve as a volunteer in some capacity to ensure WAF runs smoothly, please click here to sign up!

Children’s Choir Concert – Wednesday, March 23
6:30pm in the Sanctuary
Please join us to hear music from around the globe sing by our talented children’s choirs as they present their closing concert “Sing Praise to God”. You’ll be blessed by their energy!

Rev. Dyer's First Sunday – NEXT Sunday, March 27
Reception in Gym at 10am
On Sunday, March 27, we will welcome The Reverend Alan Folsom Dyer as our New Senior Pastor. Alan will preach at the 8:45am MorningSong service in Fogartie Hall and the 11:00 Traditional Service in the Sanctuary (no 8:45 Traditional Service, so that everyone will have an opportunity to hear Rev. Dyer). In between the services, there will be a Reception in the FLC Gym*, welcoming Alan, Erin, Sam, and Jack. Mark your calendars for this historic date in the life of FPC Spartanburg. * No Sunday School on Sunday, March 27; Nursery Available

Help Alan and his family get to know YOU!
Beginning on Sunday, March 27, and continuing throughout the month of April, please wear your nametag to services and church events to help Alan, Erin, Sam, and Jack get to know their new church family. This will also help us to get reacquainted with each other (for those brain cloud moments). Feel free to wear your Sonitrol Badge or one of those “older” nametags. If you do not have a Sonitrol Badge, no worries, there is still time to have one made. Additionally, we will have blank nametags onsite for visitors or anyone in need of a nametag. Nametags and pens will be located in the FLC Lobby, Tower Room, and Hospitality Room. Thank you!

SERVICE OPPORTUNITIES
Support for Ukraine
So many have heavy hearts over the war and violence occurring in Ukraine. We as a denomination invite you to pray for peace and strength, as well as for a change of hearts and minds so that world leaders can reach some agreement. If you would like to support humanitarian relief to those fleeing violence in Ukraine, Presbyterian Disaster Assistance (PDA) has set-up a fund to support organizations working directly with families on the ground. Donations can be made through a fund at the church at fpcspartanburg.org/give or directly to Presbyterian Disaster Assistance here.

Ministry Finder
Find all sorts of ways to get involved in serving God and serving others on the church website through Ministry Finder!

OTHER NEWS
Welcome Concert for Rev. Alan Dyer – Wednesday, March 30
6:30pm in the Sanctuary
The Chancel Choir will welcome our new Senior Pastor (and all of you!) with a presentation of Dan Forrest's "Lux: the Dawn from on High". This inspirational 40-minute work features soloists and a 23-piece orchestra.

VBS 2022
Save the Date for VBS 2022! The theme will be Discovery on Adventure Island and the dates are June 27-30 from 9am-12pm for Rising 4K – rising 6^th grade. More information coming soon!

Peace and Justice Task Force Spotlight:
Racial Healing Circles are conversations that honor and value each person’s humanity, better reflect our common humanity, and build mutually respectful relationships across racial difference to bring about racial healing and repair in communities. They were developed as part of the Truth, Racial Healing, and Transformation (TRHT) framework by Dr. Gail Christopher, who was the City of Spartanburg’s MLK Unity Celebration keynote speaker in 2020 just before the pandemic closed everything down. As she puts it, “A racial healing circle is not just a conversation, not just a safe space. It is an experience that engages the heart and requires the heart to be open and expansive. It re-affirms the humanity in all of us. It is a commitment to acknowledging that unconscious bias lives in all of us, and it is the spiritual work of affirming and loving ourselves.” To date, about 150 people in Spartanburg have participated in one. Please join us. To learn more and to register, visit https://justfuturespartanburg.org/racial-healing-circles.

LOOKING AHEAD
March 25 – 27 - Youth CROSS Urban Plunge Mission Weekend
March 27 – Welcome the Rev. Alan F. Dyer
April 10 – Palm Sunday
April 14 – Maundy Thursday
April 15 – Good Friday
April 17 – Easter Sunday
April 24 – Confirmation Sunday
May 15 – Church on the Lawn
May 22 – Baccalaureate Sunday
June 5 – Pentecost
June 27-30 – VBS

More activities and events can be found in First News.