Dear Friends at First Pres,
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JANUARY 2012 contents A Bold Proclamation . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Junior McGarrahan Kingdom Connections . . . . . . . . . . 6 Julia Randall Meet Your Elders . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Of Pipes and Pedals . . . . . . . . . . . 10 Dale McClure
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E-News and Worship . . . . . . . . . . 11
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Contributing Writers: Paul Batura, Susan Buenger, Leah Landolfi, Dale McClure, Junior McGarrahan Contributing Editors: Pam Bland, Susan Buenger, Alison Murray, Julia Randall
Yours in Christ,
Graphic Design: Beryl Glass, Mark Rantal Photographers: Mark Rantal, Alison Smith Proofreading Team: Mary Bauman, Daisy Jackson, Betty Haney, Marty Kelley, Karen Kunstle, Gretchen MurphyBowman, Linda Pung All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, © 1984 International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved. First Pres Magazine January 2012, Volume Four, © First Presbyterian Church of Colorado Springs, CO. Published by First Presbyterian Church, a non-profit organization.
Jim Singleton, Senior Pastor First Presbyterian Church of Colorado Springs
To contact First Pres Magazine: 719-884-6231 or 219 E. Bijou Street, Colorado Springs, CO 80903-1392 or magazine@first-pres.org. Printed in the U.S.A.
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By Junior McGarrahan
A Bold Proclamation
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wish the church today could be like the New Testament church.” You may have heard this desire expressed, especially when the life of the church gets messy. Who wouldn’t want to experience the explosive growth and community life we see described in the first few chapters of the Book of Acts? What we forget, however, is that by the time we reach the end of Acts, the church is much different. Instead of thousands being converted like they were at Pentecost (Acts 2), the church in Rome can fit into Paul’s living room. Instead of fervent belief, faith in Christ was mixed with doubt (Acts 28). Every time the Apostle Paul turned around, he needed to correct errors in doctrine and the manner of life of new believers. What did Paul do when the church got messy? “Boldly and without hindrance he preached the kingdom of God and taught about the Lord Jesus Christ.” (Acts 28: 31, NIV) We are not the first followers of Jesus to live in a time when debates and divisions derail the church. As we prayerfully try to understand and navigate our current challenges, we have the wisdom and witness of the Apostle Paul to guide us. Like Paul, we have the opportunity to boldly proclaim the kingdom of God, letting the world know the radical and absolute claim that “There is not one square inch of the entire creation about which Jesus Christ does not cry out, ‘This is mine! This belongs to me!’”1 Like Paul,
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we have the privilege of teaching the truth of Jesus Christ so that our hearers will know not only that he is Savior but also why he is Savior and why he alone is worthy of our sole allegiance. John Calvin, writing during the great upheaval and messiness known as the Reformation, said that there are two things we must always get right in the life of the church: (1) the doctrine of our salvation and (2) the worship of the one God.2 This is our task in our day. The Doctrine of our Salvation. We need to teach three things clearly. First, we must teach that we are spiritually dead. We aren’t just ill-informed or weak, a mix of bad and good. “Jesus didn’t come to make bad people good. He came to make dead people live!” Second, we must teach the full humanity and the full divinity of Jesus. Jesus is nothing less than Immanuel—God with us. If Jesus were simply a really good person who set a good example and died an unfortunate but noble death, our faith would be empty and without hope. So third, we must teach that Jesus’ death was not a martyr’s death. As the Son of God and Son of Man, he voluntarily went to the cross where he intentionally absorbed the sin of the world and bore its penalty— death. Even more, he defeated death so that we could be born to new life! In the midst of our ultimate helplessness and cosmic messiness, God himself rescued us. The Worship of the One God. Given so great a God and so great a salvation, our
worship is a response of gratitude. We do not worship God in order to curry his favor. We worship God because his grace has been lavished on us. Our worship must be rich in thanksgiving, from the words we sing to the gifts we bring. But worship is more than what we do on Sunday morning. Worship encompasses all of life as we live each day in grateful obedience to Jesus Christ, the Living Word who is revealed to us in the written word, Holy Scripture. The greatest gift we offer in worship is our entire being, promptly and sincerely. As a congregation, we are facing serious decisions about our relationship with the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A) and what direction our future will take. We are like the New Testament church —there are specific challenges3 to our witness. In this time, as always, our preaching, our teaching and our witness to the Colorado Springs community must follow the bold example of the Apostle Paul and be defined by the prayer of John Calvin: May we preach the eternal truth of God and may our ministry be helpful to the world.4 Junior McGarrahan and her husband Dick recently moved back to Colorado Springs. Junior retired as Associate Pastor for Christian Formation from National Presbyterian Church in Washington, D.C.
Abraham Kuyper, 19th Century Dutch statesman and theologian John Calvin in “The Necessity of Reforming the Church,” Letters and Tractates, Volume 1, page 126 3 See Top Ten Theological Challenges 4 John Calvin paraphrased in “The Necessity of Reforming the Church,” Letters and Tractates, Volume 1, page 233 1 2
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Kingdom Connections By Susan Buenger
Meet Reverend Mathias Subba— pastor, father, musician, evangelist, friend and partner to First Pres. Mathias serves with the Presbyterian Free Church of Kalimpong (PFCK) in West Bengal, India, where he directs the Himalayan Evangelical Fellowship, the outreach and mission arm of PFCK. This includes a Compassion Child Development Center for 250 children—69 of which members of First Pres sponsor—a hostel for 150 children, numerous church plants, prison ministry, and creative outreach events using music and other media. Mathias started Hyssop Ministries to reach out to his local community as well the Nepali Diaspora through movies, music and preaching. Mathias was with us this past September (see September issue of FPM) as he participated in our Partnership Conference and in worship on World Communion Sunday. While it took a year of planning for us to have Mathias with us, we never could have planned how God would use his trip and his presence with us. On that trip, Mathias travelled to Idaho to preach in a Nepali congregation. He visited a Nepali pastor and congregation in Denver. He received special recognition from Compassion International while he was with us, and then travelled home through Atlanta. 6 | www.first-pres.org | 1/12
Mathias had heard that many of the refugee students in our ESL program are of Nepali background. His warm outreach and encouragement to this group resulted in several invitations to their homes. As they became acquainted, he found that the brother of one refugee lives in Atlanta, and, to everyone’s surprise, Mathias had already planned to stay with the brother in Atlanta on his way home! John and Norma Robinson were the host family for Mathias. Along with John and Norma he joined our Food Service Ministry volunteers clearing tables in Fellowship Hall after the GTW meal. He joined in the Capernaum ministry with our high school students, prayed and shared in the life our congregation. Kingdom connecting. It is more than a project, deeper than activity together. It is respect, reciprocity, servant hood, love and dying to self. It is outrageous joy, listening at a heart level, joining as brothers and sisters in the family of God. Susan Buenger works on staff in Global Missions.
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MEET YOUR 2011-2012 ELDERS AN ELDER, SOMETIMES CALLED A RULING ELDER, to differentiate between those ordained and called to preach and minister, serves on the body called the Session and their role is to watch over the business of the church. An Elder serves a three year term. First Pres has 21 Elders with seven Elders turning over each year. The Elders in partnership with the Senior Staff Leadership determine the path of our church. We met four Elders in our September and October 2011 issues of FPM, here we meet four more! For information and updates from our Elders, meeting notes and Elder news go to first-pres.org/elders.
CA RO L GA L A M B O S
C R A I G E N G E L AG E Craig and his wife, Roseann, have attended First Pres for eleven years. “We were hooked the first time we visited,” Craig recalls. “It was Father’s Day of the year 2000. After listening to Big Blue and the preaching we knew this was to be our church home.” They have two children, Blake (18) and Paige (16). Craig and Roseann immediately joined the DawnTreaders Sunday school class. In the years since they’ve taught children’s Sunday school as well as the Marriage Mentoring program. You can also find Craig on Sunday morning ushering at the 11:10 A.M. service. Previously a Colorado Springs banker for 10 years, he’s spent the last 13 years of his career managing and investing in commercial real estate. For fun, Craig enjoys tennis, snow and water skiing, hunting pheasant in Kansas and playing baseball for the First Pres Grizzlies. A refined student of the cinema, Craig admits that “My absolute favorite movie is the critically acclaimed, Academy Award winning, frequently copied but never duplicated classic, Smokey and the Bandit.” 8 | www.first-pres.org | 1/12
R A L P H GAT E S
Like many in the congregation, Ralph and his wife, Robin, are currently on their second “tour” of First Pres. Having first joined in 1972, a calling to InterVarsity Pres in 1978 required them to relocate to Chicago. A position with David C. Cook afforded them an opportunity to return in 1996. The depth and strength of the children’s and adult’s Sunday School ministry first drew the Gates to First Pres—and the richness and robustness of the community and fellowship have helped to make it home. According to Ralph, nobody is a stranger—just a friend he hasn’t yet met. You’ll find him working with the Mission Resource Team as well as First Pres North. The Gates are the proud parents of four grown children, Laura, Corrie, Mark and Heather. They are delighted to have five grandchildren. His havorite book? Whatever he happens to be reading at the time, which would be Jesus Through Middle Eastern Eyes by Kenneth E. Bailey. His favorite movie? The Princess Bride.
You might not know this but if you attend either the 8:20 or the 9:45 Sunday morning service, Carol has been watching you—from the choir loft of Big Blue—where she has been singing for decades. Members since 1963, Carol and her husband, Bill, hail from North Dakota. They first joined the church because someone invited them to attend. They’ve stayed because of the church’s commitment to Biblically-based preaching and teaching and the many opportunities to serve. In addition to singing, Carol has a passion for missions and MOPS, where she serves as a mentor mom. She also volunteers serving meals for banquet services. Outside of the building, you can find her tending to her flower garden, baking in her kitchen, hiking the mountains, reading C.S. Lewis or keeping up their two sons, Tom and John, and their 4 grandchildren on Facebook.
DAV I D J E N K I N S Long-time Colorado Springs developer David Jenkins has been a member of the First Pres community since 1957. That’s the same year he met his beloved wife, Sue, in the church’s youth department. Sue has been a member since 1943. They are the proud parents of three grown sons: Chris, Marc and Chad. With a strong devotion to developing the next generation of Christian leadership, David has served as a Youth minister as well as having worked closely with various high school programs and Young Life. On Sundays you’ll find him at the 9:45 service. In between his professional and family responsibilities you might encounter him cycling, skiing or attending a car rally. Favorite books? The Bible and Atlas Shrugged. Favorite movie? The Passion of the Christ. “We have been richly blessed with First Pres,” says David, “and are grateful for the outpouring of love from many.”
2 011 - 2 012 E L D E R S Dorothy Alvarez Paul Batura Howard Brooks Randy Case Tracy Elpers
Craig Engelage Jeff Freyschlag Carol Galambos Ralph Gates Lindy Keffer
David Jenkins Leah Landolfi Stuart Lark George Lenz Annie Moore
Cindy Sparks Dick Schultz Peter Teets Mike Trapp James Warmack Meredith Yorkston 1/12 | www.first-pres.org | 9
By Dale McClure
Pipes& Pedals
Rev James S. Black came to us as minister in 1884. He had a kindly face and was what we would call “full figured.” From the beginning of his pastorate, Black was annoyed “by the grunting, groaning and wheezing of that asthmatic hurdy-gurdy which for politeness sake was called an organ” and he was determined to do away with it. He talked with a few influential elders and contributors privately but was not able to obtain much support for a new organ. He arranged an unofficial conference with the Trustees but they felt that the church was not able to undertake such an expensive obligation at that time. Finally, Rev. Black called a joint elder and trustee meeting in which he presented his proposal to replace the little reed organ that we had been using for the past several years. Every man voted against it. Stymied but not stumped, Rev. Black asked if the men would accept a new organ if the church would not be obligated in any way. They said yes.
The organ was built by Charles Anderson of Denver, Colorado. He was a gentle, patient man, looking like someone you might see in a Norman Rockwell painting. The littered room on Fifteenth Street in which he worked was half carpenter’s shop and half musician’s studio. To him the organ was more than mere wood and metal; it was an entity with a soul. He had already built five organs in Denver and ours was to be the next. Starting with the pedals, he built upward. As he sawed and sanded he could imagine the music that would be made. When he finished the instrument, it was nothing short of magnificent. On November 24, 1886, Rev. Black presented to the congregation a $2,500 pipe organ for which the church paid absolutely nothing. Black’s own money and gifts from his friends had actualized his dream. This splendid machine boasted two keyboards and 31pedals. The pipes, some made of wood, others of metal, were mounted on the back wall of the chancel in three groups. The largest pipes, one sixteen feet in length, were clustered in the center and the smaller ones were symmetrically arranged on each side. The console was installed in the middle, below the pipes. There it was. A grand sight, Rev. Black thought, and when the hymns began, he was truly satisfied. This was a real organ! Dale McClure. . .
E-News Connecting to your community within First Pres is just a mouse click away. Access our website to sign-up for our regular e-newsletters, and to find our Facebook sites, www.first-pres.org/enews to locate e-newsletters for the following areas:
Children Route 56 (5th & 6th Grade) I-78 eBlast (7th & 8th Grade) 912 eBlast (High School) Community Life
Men’s Ministry Missions Women’s Ministry
Click on the tab on the First Pres Home page to access our First Pres Facebook page. For the Student Ministries Facebook page, click on tab on www.first-pres.org/students. http://vimeo.com/firstpres for First Pres Videos. If you don’t have access to a computer, call Congregational Support at 884.6144 for further details about these ministries.
Join us in Worship on Sundays First Pres Downtown—219 East Bijou Worship with Choir—Sanctuary, 8:20 a.m. & 9:45 a.m. Contemporary Worship—Fellowship Hall, 9:45 a.m. & Sanctuary, 11:10 a.m. Contemplative Worship—Sanctuary, 5:00 p.m.
First Pres North—Discovery Canyon High School, 1810 North Gate Blvd. Contemporary Worship—11:00 a.m.
First Pres—Inn at Garden Plaza – 2520 International Circle Traditional Worship—10:15 a.m.
First Pres Online—first-pres.org Live streaming broadcast of Sanctuary services beginning at 8:20 a.m. For church information, call 719.884.6144 or mail@first-pres.org
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