|
April Devotional |
|
|
How
Peculiar!
By the Rev. Brad
Palmer, Epperson
It
was peculiar! In fact, she was most
peculiar. She was an
eccentric individual who had lived in her community for
many years. But the years had
not been kind to her. She had become a
recluse. Then one day
everyone in the community received an invitation to a
party at her home. It said to wear
your finest clothes, for all were invited to her house
for a party, and it would be a spectacular
event.
To read the
rest of the devotional, click here. |
| Did someone share our
e-newsletter with you? |
 |
| Cracking a Tough
Nut |
|
From the monthly column of
General Assembly Moderator Joan
Gray.
Evangelism
continues to be a really tough nut to crack for
many Presbyterians.
We worry about our shrinking churches, but we are
not comfortable, by and large, talking with people
outside the church (or sometimes inside it!) about our
faith.
What can we do to help change this culture of
silence into one that connects with people who need to hear
good news?
To
read the rest of the article, click here. |
| PET Calendar |
|
|
2008 Presbytery Meetings:
Saturday,
May 3 @ 10:00am - First,
Knoxville
(packet deadline: Apr.
15)
Tuesday,
August 19 @ 10:00am - Location
TBA
(packet deadline: July
31)
Saturday,
November 15 @ 10:00am - Location
TBA
(packet deadline: Oct.
28)
April Clergy
Gatherings:
Clergy Women:
Mon. 4/7, 10am @ home of Kerra English
April Mission
Team/Committee Meetings:
Support Mission Team - 4/3, 3:00pm
@ First, Sweetwater
Structure Task Force - 4/3, 1pm @
New Providence
Committee on Representation - 4/5,
12:00pm @ Rivermont
Budget and Finance - 4/7, 6:00pm @
PET office
Committee on Ministry - 4/8,
11:00am @ Mars Hill
Equip Mission Team - 4/10,
10:00am @ Mars Hill
Structure Task Force - 4/10,
10:00am @ First, Sweetwater
Serve Mission Team - 4/10, 12:00pm
@ Cracker Barrel, Farragut
Committee on Nominations - 4/14,
10:00am @ First, Sweetwater
Connect Mission Team - 4/14,
3:30pm phone conf.
Coordinating Council - 4/15,
10:00am @ Rivermont
Presbytery Meeting Planning Team -
4/17, 10:00am @ Mars Hill
Committee on Preparation
for Ministry - 4/17, 12:00pm @
Powell
GA Delegate Training - 4/23,
11:00am @ PET Resource Center
Structure Task Force - 4/24,
10:00am @ First, Sweetwater
New Pastor & Educator
Orientation - 4/29, 10:00am @ PET Resource
Center
Events
at John Knox Center:
Dates for Summer Camp 2008 online at
the JKC web site. Once there, click on
Summer Camp.
For the latest meeting and
events information, go to the presbytery website: www.presbyteryeasttn.org
and click on the Calendar of Events
link.
Church Info-Pak Deadlines
for 2008:
These Info-Paks include information
for pastors and sessions, notices of churchwide events,
resources for church educators, and the presbytery
calendar. Info-Paks are mailed to all churches,
affiliated colleges and agencies, at-large and retired
ministers, and current members of PET mission teams and
committees.
|
| Board of Pensions
News |
|
Here's what you'll find
in the latest newsletter from Helen Locklear, our
regional BOP representative:
*Board of Directors Meeting
Summary
*Middle Governing Body Grant Applications
for 2009 - to support practical skills training
for pastors
*Eastern Regional Benefits
Consultation, April 23-24
To read the full newsletter, click here. |
| 2008-09 Presbyterian Planning
Calendars |
|
|
Last chance for bulk
discount!
It is time to
order the Presbyterian Planning Calendar for
2008-09. The bulk price remains at $6.60
each. The order form and payment must be
received in the Presbytery Office by April 21 to be
included in the bulk order.
To print or download the order
form, click here.
|
| News from Montreat |
|
Presbyterian Heritage Center Grand
Opening
The Presbyterian Heritage Center (PHC) at Montreat
will hold its Grand Opening on Memorial Weekend
- at 10:30 am, Saturday, May 24,
2008. The Center will offer an
innovative, interactive and educational museum and
research facility (onsite and online) presenting
Presbyterian history and Reformed heritage, the church's
tradition of worldwide mission, and the interesting role
of Montreat. For more information visit the Center's
website at www.phcmontreat.org.
Reclaiming the Text Conference,
May 26-30
Consider a
continuing education that does not cost a fortune.
Montreat's annual Reclaiming the Text Conference (aka
Preacher's Conference) will be May 26 to 30 in the
beautiful mountains of Western North Carolina.
This year's theme is
"New Life Emerging from
Ancient Texts: Breathing New Life Into the
Lectionary"and our keynote speaker is Dianna Butler Bass
along with many seminary professors, deans, and
chaplains who will lead the multiple workshops
offered. Details can be found at www.montreat.org.
Mark Lampley, associate
pastor at Sequoyah Hills, will
be glad to not only answer any questions, but also
carpool for the conference. Contact him at:
Attn: Church
Professionals
Montreat
is offering a special rate at the Assembly Inn for
church professionals - $55 per night, June 1-6
and July 13-19. For more information, click here. |
| We Want Your News! |
|
|
The purpose of this
newsletter is to provide you with the
information and support you need to keep in touch
and connected with your fellow Presbyterians in East
Tennessee. This monthly publication features news
and events from around the presbytery, resources to
assist you in your ministry, and devotionals authored by
our members.
We invite you to share
your news with us! All articles and news
items must be submitted by the 20th of the month prior
to publication. Send your information to Dana
Hendrix, preferably in electronic format. Her
e-mail address is Dana@presbyteryeasttn.org. | | |
| Interim Executive Presbyter
Update |
|
| From Jack Danner, Chair of the Search
Committee
The
Rev. Dr. Carl Schlich (HR) has accepted the call of the
PET Search Committee to be our Interim Executive
Presbyter. He will meet with the COM on April 8th
to be examined to become a member of PET as a minister
of Word and Sacrament. He will be presented to the
Presbytery on May 3rd and will officially begin his
duties on May 5th upon approval of his membership
at the PET meeting. He recently retired as Executive
Presbyter of the Savannah Presbytery of the Synod of
South Atlantic. Carl and his wife CarolAnn will relocate
to Knoxville and will look for housing arrangements
during their visit on April 8th. Please keep Carl and
CarolAnn in your prayers as they make this
transition. |
| Loaves & Fishes Experience
2008 |
|
|
April 4 & 5 at
Rivermont, Chattanooga
Keynote Speaker:
The Rev. Eugenia Gamble
Event Preacher:
Dr. Chuck Campbell
Numerous opportunities to learn and fellowship
together!
|
| From the John Knox
Center... |
|
"Handle With
Care" is the theme of our Summer Program
 God
made us for relationship - with God, with each other and
with creation. The call to relationship echoes
throughout the biblical witness. This summer campers
will study what it means to live in loving relationship
with God, each other, and creation with an emphasis on
how they can "Handle with Care" the relationship with
creation. They will spend time examining what the Bible
has to say about their role in God's creation and
consider what it means to handle the creation with care.
To learn more about this year's summer programs at
Camp John Knox, click here.
We want your old
binoculars!
 We
are rewriting the "For the Birds" curriculum here at
River Ridge and the John Knox Center. The class would be
perfect if we had 25 new sets of binoculars to really
make the students experience special! Dust off those old
sets of binoculars lying around your house or attic and
send them to Rachel Norris, Director of Environmental
Education, The John Knox Center, 591 W. Rockwood Ferry
Rd., Ten Mile, TN 37880. Or if you do not want to send
them via mail, email Rachel (director@rreep.org) or
give her a call (865-376-2236) and she can come
pick them up from your church! Many
thanks! |
| PET Marketing and Advertising
Update |
|
|
The New
Vision and Equip Mission Team marketing and advertising
program continues
with television advertising on Comcast and Charter cable
companies (did you see our ad during the
Tennessee/Memphis game?), and now our billboards are
ready to go up!
A series of boards will be installed the end of
March all around the Presbytery area, and they will
rotate every 30 days for the next 3 months. We are expanding
our horizons and our targets a bit, and the billboards
will hopefully begin to expose our message to a broader
demographic - everyone!
For more information about the
advertising and marketing program and resources
available to your congregation, click here. |
| ymiLIVE.org |
|
 Youth
Mission Initiative or "ymiLIVE" is an
online community sponsored by the Presbyterian
Foundation Group. Its purpose is to give
Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) youth an opportunity to
connect and engage with the entire Presbyterian
community regarding all things that matter the most to
them - faith, family, friends and mission.
A major focus of the launch of the site is a
video challenge for youth groups to produce a video
interpreting Micah 6:8. For more
information about the Youth Mission Initiative, click here. To go to the website, click
here. |
| How Inflation Can Save You Money
|
|
And Save God's
Creation, Too
This article was written
by Lee Ingram, a member of Environmental Care Team at
Westminster Presbyterian Church,
Knoxville, and originally appeared in the
church's newsletter.
 How
would you like to save about $1.50 every time you
fill-up? I'm so old that I remember when gas stations
had guys in bow ties that checked your tires every time
you bought gas. Nowadays, you have to get down and check
them yourself (yeah, right) and if they're low, you have
to fumble around for quarters to make a crummy,
coin-operated compressor grumble for a couple of
minutes. Didn't get all four tires blown up in time?
Tough. Find more quarters.
To read
some surprising facts about the cost of
underinflated tires and learn how easy it can be to
correct this problem, click here. |
| Presbyterian Disaster
Assistance |
|
Calling Youth to
the Gulf Coast - You Have a
Mission!
Presbyterian Disaster
Assistance is recruiting interested youth (16+)
and adults to serve on hurricane relief mission teams in
the Gulf Coast area this summer. For more
information, go to the PDA website: www.pcusa.org/pda.
For a PDF of a full color flyer, click here. |
| New Presbyterian Hymnal
Committee Forming |
|
 The Presbyterian Publishing
Corporation, in consultation with the
Presbyterian Association of Musicians and the Office of
Theology and Worship, is currently accepting
applications for the new Hymnal Committee. Persons with
a deep love for the song of the church, who can think
theologically about music and musically about theology,
who have experience in worship planning and leadership,
who are able to work collegially, and who are able to
make a commitment to attend all meetings of the Hymnal
Committee are encouraged to apply. All application forms and completed
reference forms must be received by PPC before
July 11, 2008.
For more
information, including application forms, click
here. |
| General Assembly Funds for
Mission |
|
The General Assembly Council has sent all sessions,
presbyteries and synods the 2008 listing of
unassigned General Assembly Restricted Funds, along with
information on how to apply to have specific funds
granted to them for mission efforts that fulfill the
intent of the donor. Application instructions may
be reviewed and downloaded from the PC(USA) Finance and
Accounting website by clicking here.
Session applications must be submitted to the
Presbytery for endorsement and then forwarded to the
Synod by June 1. Therefore,
applications must be submitted to PET's
Serve Mission Team by April 9 in order to be
reviewed in time for the May 3 Presbytery
meeting. Please send applications to the
moderator of Serve, Rev. Paul Rader, at First
Presbyterian Church, 620 State St., Knoxville, TN
37902. |
| News and Events Around the
Presbytery |
|
Mission Festival at First, Knoxville -
April 6
 "Everything You Want to Know
About Presbyterian World Mission," featuring Hunter
Farrell, Director of Presbyterian World Mission, and
Ruth Farrell, PC(USA) Mission Co-worker in
Peru - Sunday, April 6 - 9:00am to
3:30pm, First Presbyterian Church, 620 State
St., Knoxville.
For more information, click here.
Managing
Multiple Priorities in a Church Office - April
16
The Office of Church Relations at
Maryville College is hosting a lunch
and program for church professionals entitled "Managing
Multiple Priorities in a Church Office" - Wed.,
April 16, 11:30am to 1:30pm. For
additional information, click here.
Presbyterian Women Annual Spring Event -
April 25
The theme of this year's PW Annual
Spring Gathering is "We Are the Hands of
Christ" and will be held at Sequoyah
Hills Presbyterian Church in Knoxville.
The speaker and worship leader will be Mary
Webber, moderator of the Coordinating Team for
Presbyterian Women, Synod of Living Waters.
Registrations are due Tuesday, April
15. For a registration form with
additional information, click here.
"Urban Appalachia Revisited" Conference - April
28-29
The Coalition for Appalachian
Ministry is sponsoring a conference entitled
"Urban Appalachia Revisited" at Community of Faith
Presbyterian Church in Covington, KY on April 28
and 29. For more information and
registration forms, click here.
"PET Rocks" Orientation, April
29
 Pastors and educators who are
new* to the presbytery will gather Tuesday,
April 29, for "PET Rocks", an orientation
session designed to help build a solid foundation of
presbytery support. (*Your
definition of "new" is up to you - if you still feel
"new" after several years, please
come!)
Sponsored by the Support
Mission Team, the event will be at the
presbytery office in Knoxville from 10 a.m. to 2
p.m. including lunch. There is no
charge.
For more information,
click here.
PW at
Rivermont - "Sew" Fine
 Last
November, Ashley Aakesson, Executive Director of the
Children's Nutrition Program of Haiti,
shared a need the PW members
at Rivermont Presbyterian
Church, Chattanooga. "Learning of this need
stirred the hearts of many of the women who heard,"
explained Debbie Smith, PW Moderator. Faithful member
Margaret Lynch organized a talented group of women to
cut and sew almost 100 dresses for nursing mothers in
Haiti. To learn more about this project,
click here.
VBS Project
Idea
Are you looking for a great Vacation
Bible School project this summer? You might want
to consider doing what Brown Hill Presbyterian
Church did last summer. Twenty-five children
brought in jars of change each day during VBS as they
learned about malaria. Malaria is the number one
killer of children under five in Africa, claiming more
than 1 million lives each year. The money
collected made possible the purchase of 48 mosquito nets
through an organization called Malaria No More.
For more information on Brown Hill's program, click here. To check out the Malaria
No More website, go to www.malarianomore.org.
|
| Quick Links |
|
Mission Team
Blogs:
The Tool Box - Equip
Resources for ministry, conference
announcements, grant application forms,
etc.
Care Cafe -
Support
Special events for
clergy and their families, area clergy lunches,
conference info, link to BOP, etc.
|
| Spread the News! |
|
| Don't keep the good news of our presbytery to
yourself! You can easily forward this newsletter
to others (friends, family, church members, etc.) by
using the convenient "Forward email" link at the bottom
of this newsletter. To help them get on the list
to receive our newsletter directly every month, you
can tell them to go to our website -- www.presbyteryeasttn.org -- where we
have a sign up button right in the middle of our home
page. We appreciate your
help! | | |
