Weekly Update for April 5, 2019

Our Faith Summit of Child Poverty is next Wednesday and Thursday, April 10-11! Please make sure you sign up for the portions of the event you plan to attend so that we can have an accurate count for tables and food. For more information and to register, visit www.fpcspartanburg.org/povertysummit .

THIS SUNDAY
8:45am MorningSong* in Fogartie Hall &
Chapel Worship Service
9:45am Sunday School for All Ages
10:30am Monthly Fellowship in the Perrin Room
11:00am Sanctuary* Worship Service

(* Services with asterisks will be livestreamed at www.fpcspartanburg.org/live . Bulletins, scripture readings, manuscripts, and video archives can also be found on that page.)

Monthly Fellowship
10:30am in the Perrin Room
This Sunday, we will have our monthly fellowship time. Meet in The Perrin Room at 10:30am for doughnuts, coffee, and fellowship with your church family. Parents, please pick up your children from Sunday School by 10:30 so that everyone, including teachers, can enjoy the fellowship time together.

Sing Beethoven’s 9^th with the Spartanburg Philharmonic – Saturday, May 11
Rehearsals begin this Sunday at 6pm in the FPC Sanctuary
You are invited to join members of the Chancel Choir, Chamber Singers, and singers from around the area for Beethoven’s legendary Symphony #9, which will be performed with the Spartanburg Philharmonic on May 11. For more information contact Holt Andrews.

A Reflection and Prayer for the Fifth Week in Lent
from our congregation’s Prayer Committee
This year the Prayer Committee invites you to join us in a lectionary reading and prayer each week during Lent as we prepare our hearts and souls for Easter and renew our baptismal commitment.

Reading: The lectionary reading for the Fifth Sunday in Lent is John's account of Mary anointing Jesus's feet. Please read John 12:1-8 and consider our vow to profess Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.

Prayer: Our Lord and Savior, we thank you for the opportunity to honor our baptismal commitment declaring that you are our Lord. Help us to remember that as Mary spent her time and money on the most precious person she could, we should always declare that you are our Savior. Please give us the wisdom to know when we are tempted to honor something or someone else that guides us away from honoring you. We pray this in the name of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. Amen.

NEXT WEEK
SPIHN Informational Meeting – Monday, April 8
5:30-7pm in the Arthur Center
SPIHN is holding a casual information meeting for any potential volunteer and current volunteers. The Director of SPIHN, Beth Rutherford, will update us with what volunteers should expect, a little more info on our families, the direction SPIHN is taking and a time for Q&A. Refreshments will be served. Please RSVP at http://bit.ly/2NKxUr0. If you have any questions, please email Crystal Workman at workman06@charter.net.

Palm Cross Workshop – Wednesday, April 10
3pm-5pm in the Large Private Dining Room
Join your church family, young and old to make crosses out of palm fronds for each person who will worship with us on Palm Sunday. Bring your clippers or scissors - and stay for dinner and the Faith Summit on Child Poverty. If you would like to help, please contact Mary Lorick Thompson ( marylorick.thompson@salem.edu / 336-813-2678).

Check out Poverty Summit coverage on WSPA – Wednesday, April 10
Please tune in as WSPA 7 News interviews Muffet Chapman about the importance and potential impact of the Faith Summit on Child to our community! It’s a live interview and will air, Wednesday at 5am, 5:30am , 6am , 6:30am , 7am and 8am.

Wednesdays at First – Wednesday, April 10
5pm in Fogartie Hall
Menu: Salad Bar, Pot Roast, Rice, Green Beans with New Potatoes, Yeast Rolls, Dessert
Join your church family for Wednesdays at First! No reservations are necessary, but if you wish to pre-pay online, you may do so at: fpcspartanburg.org/waf.

Faith Summit on Child Poverty – Wednesday-Thursday, April 10-11
Recently the Racial Equity Index has exposed deep ills within our town on the topic of poverty. To create sustainable change in Spartanburg will require us to open our hearts to people all across our community. In partnership with the Spartanburg County Foundation. we are hosting a Faith Summit on Child Poverty to discuss these issues. Please join us for worship and an interactive kick-off workshop on Wednesday evening, April 10 from 6:00pm to 8:30pm and then a day of speakers, relationship-building, and table discussions on Thursday, April 11 from 8:30am to 3:30 pm. Questions? Contact Joy Jones ( jjones@fpcspartanburg.org / 864-583-4531). For more information or to register, please go to www.fpcspartanburg.org/povertysummit .

Palm Sunday Brunch – Sunday, April 14
9:45am in the Social Hall
On Sunday, April 14, after the 8:45 am Worship Services, come to the Gym and enjoy brunch with your church family! Bring your favorite breakfast food to share – coffee cake, fruit, breakfast casserole, muffins, biscuits. After a delicious brunch, head out to Montgomery Commons for the Palm Procession. There will be no Sunday School on Palm Sunday.

SERVICE OPPORTUNITIES
Find these and more in the Ministry Finder section of the website (under the “Serve” menu). There you can search for service opportunities that match your interests and schedule, and with one tap make contact with someone who can tell you more and/or help you to get involved.

Help needed at SPIHN – Week of April 21-28!
SPIHN's mission is to help temporarily homeless children and their families become self-sufficient by bringing together community resources to provide essential needs and life skills in a compassionate environment. Our next SPIHN week is April 21-28. These families need assistance by providing meals, supplies, and positive interaction. For more information or to volunteer, please click the links below.

• SPIHN Meal Provider
• SPIHN Evening Host
• SPIHN Overnight Host

Cuba Mission Trip – September 20-25, 2019
Applications required by April 15!
Travel with First Presbyterian Church to Cuba September 20-25, 2019! We will meet various groups through our sister church, Villa Clara Reformed Presbyterian Church, attend worship services and spend some time sightseeing. Exceptional food, music and fellowship are guaranteed. The cost is $1500 per person. Due to VISA lead times, applications must be submitted by April 15, 2019 with a deposit of $750 to Katie Resumovic ( kresumovic@fpcspartanburg.org ) in the church office. You can pick up an application in the church office or download a form on our website at www.fpcspartanburg.org/cuba . Questions or concerns, please contact Kam or Emily Neely or Pat Tatham.

HOLY WEEK AND EASTER SCHEDULE
Palm Sunday, April 14
8:45am Worship (Chapel and MorningSong)
9:45am Intergenerational Brunch (Social Hall) - Bring a breakfast food to share!
10:40am Blessing of the Palms and Procession (Montgomery Commons)
with Church of the Advent and St. Paul Catholic
11:00am Worship (Sanctuary)
**There will be no Sunday School on Palm Sunday.**

Maundy Thursday, April 18
7:30pm Tenebrae Service (Sanctuary)

Good Friday, April 19
8:15am Worship (Chapel)
*Nursery care provided at 8:15am.
12:15pm Worship (Chapel)

Easter, April 21
6:45am Sunrise Worship (Columbarium)
8:45am Worship (MorningSong and Sanctuary)
10:15am Butterfly Release & Hot Cross Buns (Front Lawn)
11:00am Worship (Sanctuary)
**There will be no Sunday School nor Children's Worship on Easter.**

OTHER NEWS
JOY Fellowship Spring Luncheon – Thursday, May 2
11:30am in Fogartie Hall
The JOY Fellowship Committee is excited to invite you to our annual Spring Luncheon, Thursday, May 2^nd at 11:30 in Fogartie Hall. We’ll have great fellowship, food and entertainment. Please contact Joanie Shackleton at the church office to RSVP ( jshackleton@fpcspartanburg.org / 864-208-2132). If you are in need of transportation, please let us know when you make your reservation.

Vacation Bible School
Mark your calendar now for June 9-13 so that you can be part of this year’s Vacation Bible School. We’ll kick off the week for the children during a special Children’s Worship session (for all ages rising 4K to rising 6 ^th grade) on Sunday, June 9, and continue the fun with our first Summer Sizzle after the service. Want to volunteer? Contact Molly Jones at mollyjones01@gmail.com or text her at 843-412-1022. We hope you’ll join us as we deepen our faith in God and have fun while we do it!

Other Lenten Devotional Resources
Here are some great devotional resources available online (some with print options and email delivery):

· Presbyterians for Earth Care is an independent organization serving members and congregations within the Presbyterian Church (USA). They have pulled together some great writers to produce a weekly devotional resource with Bible readings, reflections, and prayers for the season of Lent.

• d365.org is a year-round daily online devotion that is a collaboration of the youth ministries offices of the Presbyterian Church (USA), The Episcopal Church, and the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship. Though designed with students in mind, they speak to people of all ages. Mobile apps are also available for Apple and Android .
• Upper Room is a publishing branch of the United Methodist Church, and the daily devotions they produce come from different writers around the world each day, and the devotional is published in 33 languages and 100 countries around the world. Each day’s devotion can be read online for free, and inexpensive subscriptions add email or print delivery.
• Our Daily Bread is another very popular year-round daily devotional published in 58 languages and 150 countries. The online edition is free and includes a well-produced audio version. Print editions , email delivery , and mobile apps are also available, and .devotions are also posted toFacebook and Instagram.

Chestnut Street Parking Safety Concern
Please make a point to remove ALL parked cars from the Chestnut Street parking spaces before 11:45am each weekday. Parked cars in the pick-up line create a dangerous situation both for children and motorists.

Church Directory – There's an App for That!
The ShelbyNext Membership App is available for both Apple and Android devices. Through this app you can search an always up-to-date membership directory, see the church calendar, modify your own information, contribute to the church's mission, view your contribution history, and print contribution statements. After you download and launch the app, enter "firstpres" for the domain and your username and password. To login, you must have a valid email address in our church database. For detailed information: www.fpcspartanburg.org/discover/member-login .

LOOKING AHEAD
April 8 – SPIHN Informational Meeting
April 10-11 – Faith Summit on Childhood Poverty
April 14 – Palm Sunday
April 18 – Maundy Thursday
April 19 – Good Friday
April 21 – Easter Sunday
April 21-28 – SPIHN
April 22 – Church Facilities Closed
April 28 – Installation of the Rev. Leslie Lang (One Service at 11am)
May 19 – Baccalaureate Sunday
May 19 – Blood Drive
May 26 – Begin Summer Worship Schedule
May 27 – Church Facilities Closed
June 9 – Pentecost
June 9-13 – Vacation Bible School
June 24-27 – CAST Camp
June 29-July 5 – Youth Wyoming Mission Trip
July 4 – Church Facilities Closed
July 8-11 – CAST Camp
July 12-27 – Montreat Youth Conference
July 28-August 4 – SPIHN
August 5-8 – CAST Camp
September 20-22 – Church Retreat at Montreat
September 20-25 – Cuba Mission Trip

Find out more in First News: fpcspartanburg.org/firstnews