Cherub Choir Update

Greetings, Cherub Families!

2012 has started off marvelously for Cherub Choir and we've gained three new members. We are so happy to see 16 shining cherubs each week.

So far this year, Cherubs have learned about Epiphany, the Wise Men and their gifts and sang "We Three Kings." Then Miss Carol taught about Jesus as a young man and the Cherubs learned "The Twelve Disciples," reviewed the "Books of the New Testament" and learned the new song, "A Little Boy in Galilee."

Last week we began talking about love (keeping in tune with upcoming Valentine's Day) and Jesus' teaching of the First and Greatest Commandment in the Book of Mark, which the Cherubs recognized as the second book in their song.

Carrying forward with this theme, the Cherubs will sing in church for the introit on Sunday, Feb. 5. Miss Carol will be working at the Christian Education program at the church where she is employed that day, so Mrs. Garletts will lead the Cherubs. Please have your Cherub in the chapel by 10 a.m. to put on robes. After they sing, Cherubs come to the side door where Mrs. Garletts and Miss Anna will take their robes, then Cherubs return to their parents.

Since they're learning about love, Cherubs will sing the traditional "Jesus Loves Me" along with signing using American Sign Language. They will also sing (in keeping with the second Greatest Commandment) "Love Your Neighbor As Yourself."

There will be no Wednesday Plus on Feb. 22 due to it being Ash Wednesday. There is a church service that evening at 7:30 with child care provided.

We've said it before, but it bears repeating -- We are thankful that you think (as we do) that it is essential for your children to learn about God's love and wisdom for daily living enough to schedule the time to bring them to Wednesday Plus each week. We try our best in our teaching them about God in ways that will help them to grow up knowledgeable about God and His ways. God bless you and your family as 2012 continues to unfold.

In God's Grace - Miss Carol, Miss Emily, Mrs. Garletts and Miss Anna

Pastor's Pen: Requiem

The composer Robert Schumann saw genius in Johannes Brahms even at the early age of twenty.  According to Schumann, Brahms was already a great composer, "like Minerva sprung fully armored from the head of Zeus".  However, what was obvious to Schumann was not yet clear to others.  Both Robert and his wife Clara Schumann took an active interest in Brahms.  They made introductions for Brahms and encouraged his work.  When Robert Schumann was overtaken with mental illness in 1854 and finally died two years later, Brahms lost a mentor, a colleague and a friend.  

Perhaps Brahms was thinking of Robert when he wrote Clara Schumann in 1855, discussing an idea that he had for a composition.  It would touch on the themes of mortality and the fragility of life, yet it would also speak about hope in the midst of grief.  Historically, a requiem was a mass given for the dead.  Brahms took the musical form and transformed it into a piece that emphasized the comfort of the living.  Unlike traditional requiems, he rejected the Latin liturgy and set texts drawn directly from Martin Luther’s translation of the Bible.  Starting with “blessed are those who mourn” (Matthew 5:4) and ending with “blessed are the dead who die in the Lord” (Rev 14:13), Brahms’ work is a witness to a reality that transcends death and human suffering. 

The life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ reveal to us that reality.  The empty tomb gives us the assurance that we will not be left in the grave.  Our tears will turn to joy.  Ironically, the most explicit references to the resurrection were not in Brahms’ original.  The sixth movement which includes Paul’s words in 1 Corinthians 15:55, “O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?” was added later.  Some say Brahms added this movement in response to his mother’s death.  I wonder if it was because he realized that his witness was incomplete without the context of resurrection. 

The season of Lent gives us the opportunity to reflect on the sacrifice of Jesus Christ and anticipate the triumph of the resurrection.  This is not merely an intellectual exercise, but also an emotional and spiritual one as well.  In the past few years, many in our congregation have dealt with the reality of loss.  There is real pain and sorrow.  My prayer is that we make space to acknowledge our grief but place it in the context of Christ’s resurrection. 

This year we will journey through Lent with Brahms’ Requiem.  We will be exploring the Scriptures that he used in our sermons and prayers.  We will be studying the themes in our Sunday Small Group at 9am.  We will hear our choir sing selections throughout Lent, and then join the choirs of the Overbrook Presbyterian Church and St. Paul’s Lutheran Church for a full presentation of the Requiem on March 25^th at APC.  Join us as we find our comfort in the context of Christ’s resurrection. 

Grace & Peace,

James Hodsden

2012 PCUSA Mission Yearbook

 Waiting for you on the narthex tables - Copies of the 2012 Presbyterian Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study with the theme: Bearing fruit and growing in the knowledge of God.  This book is an excellent way to work your way through the Scripture and also learn about what is happening in Presbyteries across our country and with Presbyterian mission partners around the world.  If you find all the copies gone from the table, please leave a voice mail for Joanne Poorman, Mission Committee (Ext. 19) and additional copies can be ordered.

Are you interested in reading today's entry in the Mission Yearbook, click here.  

(Y)Ardfarmers Update: Matthew 25:35 Project

AN UPDATE AND REQUEST FROM THE MATT. 25:35 PROJECT:

The Matt 25:35 Project ("For I was hungry and you gave me food ...") is a joint project of Ardmore, Overbrook, and Calvin Presbyterian Churches, and is located at Calvin Presbyterian, at the corner of 60th and Master Street in West Philadelphia.  Many of you will remember that Calvin Church's 'Care Closet' was the recipient of the bounty of the APC vegetable garden last spring and summer (see the APC 2011 annual report for details) and will be again this year. 

The Matt 25:35 project has now expanded to include a nutritious, sit-down, family-style meal each Thursday noon at Calvin Pres., which now attracts over fifty people.   It is called the Heavenly Harvest Meal at Calvin's Kitchen. Prepared by a professional chef, with much of the food donated by local supermarkets, this meal is accompanied by  conversations on healthy eating, which will soon be supplemented by formal presentations from the Penn State University Extension Service.  In addition, APC's Sherina Poorman is teaching a children's after-school group the basic gardening skills that will prepare them to start a vegetable garden at Calvin Presbyterian Church this spring.

The Thursday lunch project is staffed by an enthusiastic crew of volunteers, but has been so successful that they could use a few more!  Needed are people willing to come between 10:30 am and about 1 pm to help prepare the food, serve it, and clean up.  There will be a brief orientation for any new volunteers, then a task will be assigned.  A big part of the project is the participation of volunteers in fellowship, so they are also encouraged to sit down and enjoy the meal with the guests.  No one needs advanced culinary or serving skills -- just a willingness to learn and help.  Calvin Pres. is easy to get to -- only about 15 minutes drive from APC, straight east on Lancaster Avenue, across City Line to 60th St., then less than a mile south to 60th and Master St.

If this project fits your schedule and seems to be part of God's calling for you at this time, send a email with your contact information  to Kristin Jacobson at Overbrook (kristinsjacobson@gmail.com) with a copy to Mary S. Van Leeuwen at APC (mvanleeu@eastern.edu).  If you do not have access to email, fell free to call Mary Van Leeuwen or speak to her at church.

David Hackett Resources

ARTICLES BY REV. DAVID HACKETT

1.      Lausanne Committee for World Evangelism, Cape Town 2010 “Conversations” (Partnership Subject Matter Specialist)

a.       Networks benefit by bringing together practitioners from a variety of approaches

            http://conversation.lausanne.org/en/resources/detail/10778

b.      "Partnership" in Major Global Mission Declarations

            http://conversation.lausanne.org/en/resources/detail/10416

c.       The Four Key Questions of Collaboration

            http://conversation.lausanne.org/en/resources/detail/10372

d.      Nurturing a Culture of Exchange

            http://conversation.lausanne.org/en/resources/detail/10119

e.       Are You a Network Owner or a Network Steward?

            http://conversation.lausanne.org/en/resources/detail/10071

f.       A Partnership of Two is Inherently Unstable

            http://conversation.lausanne.org/en/resources/detail/10056

g.      Sure-fire ways to kill a partnership

            http://conversation.lausanne.org/en/resources/detail/10387

h.      On-the-Grounders Missing Media-Generated Inquirers

            http://conversation.lausanne.org/en/resources/detail/10203

i.        Crossing the Will/Skill Divide

            http://conversation.lausanne.org/en/resources/detail/10083

j.        Partnerships: Scarcity-minded or Abundance-minded?

            http://conversation.lausanne.org/en/resources/detail/10061

2.      Lausanne World Pulse Magazine

a.       Global Internet Users Present Vast Opportunities for Online Evangelism

            http://www.lausanneworldpulse.com/perspectives/304/?pg=1

b.      Casting a Global Net

            http://www.lausanneworldpulse.com/worldreports/60

c.       Partnering in Mission: A Better Way to Change the World

            http://www.lausanneworldpulse.com/themedarticles.php/1333/10-2010

3.      Christian Leadership Alliance Magazine

a.       Working Together—It's a God Idea

            http://www.christianleadershipalliance.org/?page=working_together

4.      The Mission Exchange “eXcelerate” Magazine

a.       Equipping the Next Generation for Collaboration

            http://www.themissionexchange.org/downloads/eXcelerate2010.pdf

b.      Linking Arms for a Common Cause

            http://www.themissionexchange.org/downloads/eXcelerate09.pdf

5.      Christian Web Trends

a.       Internet Evangelism Idea #15: 3 Creative Ideas from the Non-Western World

http://blog.ourchurch.com/2010/04/22/internet-evangelism-idea-15-3-creative-ideas-from-the-non-western-world/

6.      Cause Collaboration Course (MA/PhD-level Course curriculum)

a.       The Sub-Saharan Technology Evangelism Movement (a fictional teaching story presented as a model for the main course assignment) (available on request to dhackett@visionsynergy.net)

7.      Quoted or Interviewed In

a.       Adeney, Miriam. “Kingdom Without Borders: The Untold Story of Global Christianity”, InterVarsity Press

b.      Petersen, Jonathan. “Mobile, Glocal & Evangelism”, Lausanne World Pulse Magazine

c.       von Buseck, Craig. “Netcasters: Using the Internet to Make Fishers of Men”, B&H Publishing

d.      Whittaker, Tony. “The Twenty-first Century Roman Road–Signposts along the Way”, Lausanne World Pulse

RECOMMENDED BOOKS

1.      Well Connected, by Phill Butler, World Vision (now available for free eBook download at www.powerofconnecting.net)

2.      Kingdom Without Borders: The Untold Story of Global Christianity, by Miriam Adeney, InterVarsity Press

3.      The Next Christendom: The Coming of Global Christianity, by Philip Jenkins, Oxford Press

4.      Jesus in Beijing: How Christianity is Transforming China and Changing the Global Balance of Power, by David Aikman

5.      A History of Christianity in Asia: Vol 1 Beginnings to 1500, by Samuel H Moffett, Orbis

6.      A History of Christianity in Asia: Vol 2 1500 to 1900, by Samuel H Moffett, Orbis

7.      The Dictionary of Global Culture, edited by Kwame Anthony Appiah et al, Knopf

8.      How the Irish Saved Civilization, by Thomas Cahill, Anchor Books

9.      The Church of Facebook: How the Hyperconnected Are Redefining Community, by Jesse Rice, David C Cook Publishers

10.  Netcasters: Using the Internet to Make Fishers of Men, by Craig von Buseck, B&H Publishing

11.  SimChurch: Being the Church in the Virtual World, by Douglas Estes, Zondervan

12.  The Gospel: For Here or To Go?, by Keith Giles; download at http://www.internetevangelismday.com/docs/The_Gospel_For_Here_Or_To_Go.pdf

13.  Social by Social: A practical guide to using new technologies to deliver social impact; download for free at http://www.socialbysocial.com/content/download

14.  See many free downloadable eBooks at http://IEDay.net/eb

Welcoming Rev. Dave Hackett to APC

This weekend we welcome David Hackett from the Seattle area as our main speaker at the fourth annual Spiritual Enrichment Retreat.  In writing about himself, Dave says...

I work with Phill Butler and a small set of others as global partnership specialists based in Edmonds, WA at www.visionsynergy.net. My focus includes, first, advising international Muslim-outreach related networks (to my joy) such as the Arabian Peninsula Network, the Southend Partnership, and the Libya Partnership; and secondly, advising networks promoting collaboration among those doing international evangelism online, such as the Muslim Internet Evangelism Network, the Turkey Internet Evangelism Network, the Internet Evangelism Coalition for Africa, Internet Evangelism Day, and more.

I spent childhood years in Saudi Arabia where my father was pastor to expats, which embedded my love for Muslims and Arabs. I served as a Presbyterian missionary (Volunteer in Mission), teaching English and Economics at a Presbyterian university in Korea from 1979-1981. (My uncle and aunt are Dr. Samuel and Eileen Moffett, career missionaries in Korea and professor emeritus at Princeton Seminary. They influenced me greatly.) My seminary work was at Fuller Seminary and Oxford University. I was ordained a PCUSA pastor in 1985 and had pastoral calls as mission pastor for eight years in two large churches in Tulsa OK and Bellevue WA, and then shifted for 12 years with Presbyterian Frontier Fellowship, coordinating Presbyterian mission work among UPGs, serving as executive director there. In 2003 I was on the founding board of visionSynergy with Phill Butler and in 2005 shifted over from PFF to visionSynergy to become a staff member. visionSynergy advises networks and equips the global Church in mission partnership. My wife Sandy is also a Presbyterian pastor and we live in Bothell, WA with our youngest daughter (of three) still at home.

 Here are some articles that Dave has recently written....

1.      Lausanne Committee for World Evangelism, Cape Town 2010 “Conversations” (Partnership Subject Matter Specialist) 

a.       Networks benefit by bringing together practitioners from a variety of approaches
b.      "Partnership" in Major Global Mission Declarations
c.       The Four Key Questions of Collaboration
d.      Nurturing a Culture of Exchange
e.       Are You a Network Owner or a Network Steward?
f.       A Partnership of Two is Inherently Unstable
g.      Sure-fire ways to kill a partnership
h.      On-the-Grounders Missing Media-Generated Inquirers
i.        Crossing the Will/Skill Divide

j.        Partnerships: Scarcity-minded or Abundance-minded?

2.      Lausanne World Pulse Magazine

a.       Global Internet Users Present Vast Opportunities for Online Evangelism
b.      Casting a Global Net
c.       Partnering in Mission: A Better Way to Change the World

3.      Christian Leadership Alliance Magazine

a.       Working Together—It's a God Idea

4.      The Mission Exchange “eXcelerate” Magazine

a.       Equipping the Next Generation for Collaboration
b.      Linking Arms for a Common Cause

5.      Christian Web Trends

a.       Internet Evangelism Idea #15: 3 Creative Ideas from the Non-Western World

6.      Cause Collaboration Course (MA/PhD-level Course curriculum)

a.       The Sub-Saharan Technology Evangelism Movement (a fictional teaching story presented as a model for the main course assignment) (available on request to dhackett@visionsynergy.net)

7.      Quoted or Interviewed In

a.       Adeney, Miriam. “Kingdom Without Borders: The Untold Story of Global Christianity”, InterVarsity Press
b.      Petersen, Jonathan. “Mobile, Glocal & Evangelism”, Lausanne World Pulse Magazine
c.       von Buseck, Craig. “Netcasters: Using the Internet to Make Fishers of Men”, B&H Publishing
d.      Whittaker, Tony. “The Twenty-first Century Roman Road–Signposts along the Way”, Lausanne World Pulse 

8.  Also if you get a chance, read his blog from a few years ago.

9.  Or follow Dave Hackett today on Twitter.

January 16th Update from the Masseys

16^th Jan 2012,

Dear Prayer Partners,

Although we reached the middle of January we haven’t had time to relax. Children had practiced dances and skits which they presented at the parents’ meeting. After Christmas we took all the 63 children for a picnic to a riverside. They had a sports and essay-writing competition. The winners received their prizes in from of their mothers who came for the Parents meeting. Shobha spoke to them from the Word of God on how to bring up their children.

There was a wedding in Shobha’s family which we attended in Bangalore. The organization that supported our Children’s Home sent auditors to do check 10 years accounts. As they left we had two overseas guests from UK and USA.

Shobha is suffering from bronchitis and she needs prayer. She has a Ladies Retreat from 19^th till 21^st of Jan. Many are planning to come from our project areas. Please pray that God’s Spirit will move among these women. Shobha is the speaker for opening meeting and needs your prayer.

We are asked to hand over the building where our children are living to the organization that supported our Home all these years by 31^st Jan 2012. We have made a written request to them to sell the property to us. Please pray that they will consider our request and will transfer the property to us.

Since some days our internet is not working and we are sending this from somewhere else. Melissa is doing all right. Her laptop is not working properly so it is very frustrating when every 5 minutes it shuts down while speaking to her on skype. Please pray that the Lord will provide another one to replace it.

We expect wonderful blessings during this year for you. May you experience them day by day.

Thank you for your sincere prayer support for us and the ministry here.

Yours sincerely,

Arun & Shobha Massey.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
For more information about this ministry, follow this link.  

Introducing Patty Rich, Director of Youth and Children Ministries

Good Afternoon, Here's an update on our efforts to find a new Director of Youth and Children Ministries.

Kristen Thomas - Clarke When Kristen Thomas-Clarke informed me last August that she found a library position with the Kimberton Waldorf School, I was very sorry that she would be stepping down as our Director of Christian Education. Although she was not trained as a Christian educator, Kristen was competent and organized. From VBS to the Sunday School Program, she always had the best interests of our children and youth in mind. Ardmore Presbyterian Church is immensely grateful for the work that she did here. Nonetheless, Kristen had been waiting to find a library position for a long time. This is a great opportunity for her to use her talents to the fullest. Anne Foote In order to prevent the loss of momentum in our ministry, we approached Anne Foote to serve as an interim director. Currently the director of APC's Preschool, Anne has also served as Director of Christian Education in the past, and she was gracious enough to agree. She has worked very hard these last few months, especially considering that her husband Gren had some health issues during the same time. Anne is incredibly creative, and she brought that excitement and whimsy to the job. The Ardmore Presbyterian Church is especially thankful for the time and effort she gave to our youngest members. An Opportunity and a Difficult Decision Rather than simply filling the position, the Christian Education Committee and the session took a wiser course. They considered the vacancy as an opportunity to step out in faith. They redefined the position, looking at how we could expand our ministry to children and youth. During the recent stewardship campaign, several members of the congregation increased their giving in support of this decision. I am very grateful that this congregation remains invested in these ministries. After redefining and securing funding for the position, we had the hard task of finding the right person for the job. We reached out to potential candidates through our newsletter, the Philadelphia Presbytery, Eastern University and Palmer Seminary. We had a number of qualified candidates who applied, including some from our congregation. We should be thankful that our congregation has such a wealth of talented people. The decision was a difficult one, but we have hired Patty Rich as our new Director of Children and Youth Ministries. Patty Rich Patty has served as a ruling elder at the Marple Presbyterian Church in Newtown Square. She is also finishing her Masters of Divinity at Union Theological Seminary in Virginia. Prior to her training at the seminary, she served as a middle school and high school teacher at Marple Newtown School District. Over the years she has also volunteered her time working with youth in extracurricular activities such as directing musicals and producing dramas. Patty is married, and she has three adult children.

Over the next few weeks, please take the time to introduce yourself to Patty. Talk to her about our church and the wonderful opportunity we have to share God's love with our children. Then, pray about how you might get involved. Grace and Peace, James Hodsden Senior Pastor, Ardmore Presbyterian Church

Pastor's Pen: Tuning Our Hearts to Sing God's Grace

“TUNING OUR HEARTS TO SING GOD’S GRACE”

January 20‐22, 2012

Ardmore Presbyterian Church

Ask church folks about mission, and they will tell you about a recent mission trip or the missionaries that they support, or even the work of the mission committee. Each of these things is mission, but they don’t tell the whole story. Mission is not simply another program of the church. It is at the heart of who we are as Christians. When Jesus ascended into heaven, he gave his disciples work to be done:  “[Y]ou will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8). Jesus sent all of us, not just a select few, into the world.

We know the broad story of the Scriptures. The world was created good, but something went wrong.  Our relationship to God became broken. Most of the rest of the Bible describes God’s efforts to redeem and rescue his creation. God sends individuals like Abraham and Moses, but he also sends collectively the nation of Israel to bring the world back to God. These efforts culminate in the life, sacrifice, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. His disciples are now sent into the world to show others the way to Christ. As one missionary stated, “Christianity is one beggar telling another beggar where there is food.”

Practically, that will look different for different people. We all have differing talents, temperaments, and treasures. A violin sounds different from a saxophone or a tuba. One person may get excited as they work with young people. Another may be passionate about the poor of Philadelphia. A third may love to fix things. Each of these can be our witness to God in the world. Our mission begins where we are—our families, our jobs, and our neighborhoods. Mission is learning to play our song right where we are and in harmony with God’s song.

The focus of the 2012 Spiritual Enrichment Retreat is moving beyond talking about faith. We want to live it. The Ardmore Presbyterian Church’s annual retreat will be like the orchestra tuning before the beginning of a concert. We practice our scales listening to God and ourselves not so we may remain silent. Instead, we are tuning our hearts to sing God’s grace in the world.

For more information about this year's retreat, follow this link, or if you would like to register, follow this link.

Please join us January 20‐22 as we sing God’s song together.

Grace & Peace,
James Hodsden