Winter 2019 IRONWoman

WINTER ISSUE • 2019

Vol. 03 • Issue. 01

by Kristen Thompson Happy New Year! As a new year begins, I’m sure we’ve all found ourselves asking, “What do I want to do differently this year?” or even “What are my New Year’s resolutions?” Eat less, sleep more, watch TV less, pray more, etc. And none of these are bad things — they can actually be helpful in shaping us to have good habits. Plus, we want to be growing, changing, and becoming more like Christ.

But in the midst of an ever-changing culture and world, don’t you find yourself longing for consistency? Just one thing that will stay the same without you having to worry about it?

As I think about all the things that will be changing this new year, the one thing that gives me peace and hope is that our God is unchanging. Immutable, constant, the same — however you want to put it. God is the same “yesterday, today, and forever.” Hebrews 6:17 refers to the “unchangeable character of His purpose.” (I’m sure we could do a whole Bible study just on that one phrase!)

When we think about our own lives, the one thing we can consistently count on is that they will change. New hardships will come, new joys will appear, maybe family will move, or new friends will be met. But no matter what our circumstances bring us, the one true constant we know is that our God will not change. He will not love us more (or less) because of what we do, He will not be more faithful (or less faithful) depending on the circumstances, He will not cease to forgive, and His grace will continue to be lavished on His people.

So in the midst of your New Year’s resolutions, don’t forget to hold fast to the One who will never change — whose mercies are new every morning, whose faithfulness will continue through all generations!

As we celebrate 50 years of that faithfulness of our God here at the Kirk, we hope this newsletter will keep you informed on our festivities for the Jubilee, help you get to know a few of our staff members better, and learn more about the Kirk’s involvement with Young Life among other things!

AT A GLANCE:

REFLECTING ON A YEAR IN THE STATES

BY SARAH KIRKPATRICK

OLYMPIA OF CONSTANTINOPLE A HISTORICAL PIECE BY SARAH WHITE

MEET JESSICA FADEL AN INTERVIEW BY KATY CLEMENT

REST FOR MY WEARY SOUL DEVOTIONAL THOUGHTS BY AMY WIERSEMA

Mathew 11:28-30 “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.

For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light."

The word “rest” is frequently found in my vocabulary, however it is usually coupled with the words “how do I…” These things are connected to thinking about how to keep my body healthy in order to do things well.

Since I became a kindergarten teacher, I have struggled to balance teaching, being a wife, and taking care of myself and my home even though these are all things I value and enjoy! This past season, rest has weighed even more heavily on my mind.

With Thanksgiving and then Christmas, I wanted to be sure I was “rested” for the long stretch that follows Christmas and precedes spring break as a teacher. Unfortunately, I have found my breaks to be less than restful. I have spent them traveling more than expected, trying to support my family in a time of deep loss and illness, and trying to be present in a time of uncertainty – I feel heavy laden. I feel I have labored in a way that has left me exhausted. And yet there is always more to do: around my house, in my kitchen, in my classroom. Even if I am not physically doing, the mental lists are constantly growing.

In October and November, the kindergarten classes at Kirk Day School memorized Psalm 23. This year, verse 3 echoed in my mind during the holiday season, “He restores my soul.” The more time I spent dwelling on Psalm 23 and talking with my class about what it means, the more I have looked at what the Lord is doing in my life.

God cares for us, He is with us, He is at work in our lives.

As I looked at different pieces of Psalm 23, I asked myself where I had seen the Lord work. The passage uses verbs in the third person, and each time it is God is doing the work.

He makes me lie down in green pastures, He leads me beside quiet waters. He restores my soul. He l

guides me in paths of righteousness for His name’s sake. Your rod and your staff they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil, my cup over flows.

The more closely I looked at the chapter, the more clearly I saw that He has shown me his presence and love regularly. If we are watching for it, we can see the Lord’s fingerprints all over our lives, even when things are difficult. God loves us, takes care of us, and is at work in our lives.

Rest in the Lord.

Every January most people make goals and try to start fresh with the new year. Usually it is exercise more, eat healthier, take better care of one’s self. In our current culture, there is a lot of talk about “self-care.”

But what does soul care look like for us?

Jesus says in Matthew 11:28–30 “Come to me all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest of your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

What does it mean to “rest” in the Lord? Maybe it is letting go of control, trusting in God’s omnipotence, reading the Bible more regularly, or offering your cares to him in prayer.

Whatever it is, Jesus calls us to him when we are looking for and longing for rest.

I invite you to join me in thinking through the question of what resting in the Lord looks like. I challenge you to lean into the Word of God, to find your rest and refreshment there, and to make the living Word the center of your “self-care” routine.

Let’s make it our goal to look for God’s continued work in our lives in the year to come.

REFLECTING ON A YEAR IN THE STATES

BY SARAH KIRKPATRICK

I will be honest about the transition not having been an easy one. It has for one given me a far greater appreciation for the work missionaries do overseas in cultures still more unfamiliar. But as my husband and I have begun to build relationships here we are feeling more at home.

We have loved getting to know so many of you at the Kirk, particularly through the choir, Sunday school classes, the nursery and Kirk Day School — thank you for being so welcoming to us!

A friend told me before I moved to the USA last January that the British and Americans are divided, not united, by our common tongue. I had not expected it to ring so true, but I have come to realise that, in spite of multiple language barriers, I have a far more inherent understanding of Europeans, who tend to be quieter and more reserved — or perhaps, more emotionally inhibited (!) — than Americans. For example, I was taken aback when on returning from a week’s vacation, I was greeted by coworkers presentationally more excited by my presence than my own family had been having not seen me for six months! This is just one of the many things that make living here feel very different as a Brit.

I have tried to adopt a semi-bilinguality — I look for eggplant not aubergine, zucchini rather than courgettes, chips not crisps, fries instead of chips.

The bonnet of my car is now the ‘hood’, the boot the ‘trunk’. I was unexpectedly grateful to “The News Show” whilst working in Kindergarten at Kirk Day School for helping me, as well as the assembled 6 year olds, understand and practice that the 25c coin is called a quarter, the 10c a dime, the 5c a nickel.

I have become [slightly] more comfortable with expressing my feelings publically than I was before.

Now working at Boeing in Global Trade, I have learnt to switch my ‘s’s for ‘z’s and my ‘c’s with ‘s’s authorisation/licence/defence vs. authorization/ license/defense. I try — and fail — to be more gentle in my expression than is my custom. I even cooked a Turkey in November! Thanksgiving is an entirely foreign concept for most Brits and Turkey is standard fare for Christmas day.

Though our food is different I have found it a great relationship builder, particularly with baking. I am yet to master all things American (if you would like to teach me, I’d love to learn!), but I will leave you with a very simple recipe for a typical English cake. It is, in spite of what the Great British Baking Show would have you believe, remarkably simple:

Victoria Sponge • Weigh four eggs • Weigh out the same quantity of each of the following: self-rising soft or cake flour, butter, and sugar.

• Combine all ingredients, divide between two 8" cake tins, and bake at 350 for about 20 minutes, or until a skewer inserted at the centre comes out clean.

• Fill with raspberry jam and vanilla buttercream.

You can experiment at will with flavourings and fillings, just be mindful to keep the proportions of wet to dry ingredients as close as possible to the base.

OLYMPIA (C. 362-408)

When we study the Reformation and later periods, we often have the privilege of learning about Christian women through their own words. The women of the church’s first few centuries, however, are more often a mystery to us, glimpsed primarily through the writings of others.

One such woman is the fourthcentury deaconess, Olympia (or Olympias), who carried on a lively correspondence with the prominent bishop and renowned preacher, John Chrysostom.

Olympia was the bishop’s trusted confidant, and he in turn encouraged her through periods of persecution, ill health, and depression.

Saint John Chrysostom Archbishop (drawing by Mary Evans Picture Library)

Olympia was born in the 360s, into a prominent family of Greek descent. Her father, a high-ranking figure in the Roman Empire, died when Olympia was young, so she was brought up by a devoutly Christian uncle, Procopius.

Procopius was close friends with the famous theologian of the Trinity, Gregory of Nazianzus, who himself became a father figure to the young woman. Thus, Olympia grew up knowledgeable of the Scriptures and theology, and she enjoyed the esteem and mentorship of some of the most significant figures in the history of the church.

Widowed following a brief marriage, Olympia chose to spend the rest of her life devoting her considerable inheritance to the service of the church. She gave generous gifts of money and land to the church in Greece, Turkey, and Syria and was patroness of

an orphanage and a hospital.

Little is known of her later years, except that she became an ardent supporter of John Chrysostom, even when, due to complicated political intrigues, he was ousted from his church in Constantinople.

After Chrysostom was exiled to the wilderness of Armenia, Olympia encouraged the bishop through her letters and tended to his needs as she could. Like many of those who supported Chrysostom, Olympia was denounced by hostile factions in the capital and even endured exile herself in 404, losing her home and finally dying of a long illness in 408.

From Chrysostom’s surviving letters to Olympia, we can glimpse an independent woman who was both openhanded with her gifts and honest about her weaknesses: • Chrysostom encourages her to take a realistic—that is, Christcentered—view of her struggles.

He reminds her that God doesn’t often remove obstacles when we think He should, but sometimes when we aren’t expecting it, God acts “beyond all expectation, thus manifesting His own power, and training the patience of those who undergo these calamities.”

Afflictions shouldn’t surprise Christians, because through them the “sinews of the soul” are strengthened. No matter what type of trial one endures, human help only goes so far: “ceasing… to run after shadows (for such are human alliances), do thou persistently call upon Jesus.” He reminds her that trials befalling

IN THE LETTERS OF JOHN CHRYSOSTOM A HISTORICAL STUDY BY SARAH WHITE

the whole Church are also part of God’s inscrutable purpose: “thus…the fabric of the Church was wrought…and the ruined places were built up more firmly than before.”

• Chrysostom himself was inspired by Olympia’s greatness of soul. He tells her that her ability to “bear the things which befall you so bravely…is an evidence of a robust spirit, rich in the fruit of courage.” In the midst of Constantinople, she is “like a tower, a haven, and a wall of defense, speaking in the eloquent voice of example…And the wonder is that without … occupying the public centers of the city, but sitting all the while in a small house and confined chamber, you serve and anoint the combatants for the contest” (i.e., encourage fellow Christians).

Through her cheerfulness and fortitude in suffering, he assures her, he receives consolation in his own exile.

• He doesn’t downplay Olympia’s physical suffering.

Even as he urges patience, Chrysostom acknowledges that physical infirmity is one of the most difficult trials of faith. Being stuck in bed or homebound, he tells her, can be so wearying for the soul that it is like having “a perpetual executioner residing with you.” It’s hard for us to understand why the One who can raise the dead sometimes chooses to leave His children “in the furnace of sickness,” except that by His doing so, we “might therefrom contract a very great abundance of confidence” Saint Olympia of Constantinople, Widow in God. Therefore Olympia shouldn't consider herself iidle during illness, because God is accomplishing a work in her that may not be perceptible at the time.

• He counsels Olympia to actively fight against depression. He exhorts her to “reckon up the good things with the painful”—to balance awareness of sufferings with remembrance of God’s providence and comfort. He commends this to Olympia as a kind of spiritual homework assignment: “occupying yourself with this good employment may divert your mind from despondency.” In addition, she ought to be “making it your business to expel dejection from your soul,” rather than “[going] about collecting distressing thoughts, even inventing things…which do not exist, and tearing yourself to pieces for no purpose.”

• Chrysostom valued Olympia as a servant of the church, capable of exerting significant inffluence in the capital city during his enforced absence. In one of his letters, he entrusts her with the delivery of important correspondence to other churchmen. When the power to elect a missionary to the Goths (a Germanic tribe that had recently become Christian) fell to a hostile group of bishops, Chrysostom urged Olympia to do what was within her power to delay them, lest an ungodly appointment be made! He clearly relied on her good judgment and trusted her to act on his behalf for the greater good of the church.

It’s plain that Olympia wasn’t just a recipient of counsel, but one in whom God’s strength shone brightly. Today we can benefit not only from John Chrysostom’s pastoral wisdom, but from the reminder that Christ builds up His church through unlikely figures, overlooked and even scorned by the world.

SARAH PATTERSON WHITE GREW UP OUTSIDE OF PITTSBURGH, PA. SHE AND HER HUSBAND, KEVIN, NOW LIVE IN SAINT LOUIS AND ARE MEMBERS AT THE KIRK. SHE HAS EARNED A B.A IN ENGLISH AND RELIGIOUS STUDIES FROM HOLLINS UNIVERSITY, AS WELL AS AN MDiv FROM YALE DIVINITY SCHOOL.

MEET JESSICA FADEL:

NEW COMMUNICATIONS COORDINATOR

BY KATY CLEMENT

Katy Clement: Tell us a little bit about yourself.

Jessica Fadel: My husband, Eric, and I moved here from Colorado, which is where we met and grew up.

We met in sixth grade at church, went to Moody Bible Institute in Chicago for our undergrad, and moved to Wyoming after graduation to serve at a church in Casper. After five years, we moved back home to Colorado and then moved to St. Louis to attend Covenant Seminary in January.

media that the Kirk produces. This includes the weekly newsletter, signs, social media, advertisements, and the bulletin.

What is the best part about working for the Kirk?

Because of the nature of my job, I get to interact and work with almost everyone, which I really enjoy! It is fun to be able to express my creativity by working with different ministries and events.

How did you get connected to the Kirk?

I was connected with the Kirk through the PCA website while I was looking for a job in the St. Louis area, because my husband and I were planning on moving here to attend Covenant.

What kinds of things do you do in your job?

I design and layout most of the print, digital, and social

What is something you would like us to know about you?

I love studying the Bible and theology and enjoy writing about how the gospel of Jesus transforms our hearts, minds, and lives. I enjoy being in nature to take pictures, especially flowers, eating chips and salsa, and curling up on the couch to watch a good movie (Arrival is my current favorite)!

BEHIND THE SCENES: MEET OUR NEWSLETTER TEAM Kami Belmont, Katy Clement, Michelle Howard, Jessica Martinez, Bonnie Saffa, and Kristen Thompson

Want to write for an upcoming edition of IRONWoman?

Have photos from a recent Kirk event to share?

Contact us for ways to get involved!

@thekirkstlwomen @thekirkstlwomen

SPOTLIGHT MINISTRY: YOUNGLIFE BY: TRACY GONSIOR

Have you heard of Young Life? Young Life has been serving teens for 75 years, and is a nondenominational organization that works to introduce Jesus to high school (and in some cases, middle school) students in public schools. Mostly this is done through volunteer leaders (our own David Gnanadhas is a leader at Parkway West!) who visit high schools and host weekly meetings to build relationships with teens, both Christian and non-Christian.

Ultimately, this serves to create a community of trust where the gospel can be shared—and spread— on a real level that feels both accessible and applicable to young adults.

The Kirk is blessed to host Kirk Day School, which ffeeds into Westminster, and so it may seem impractical to support a mission that serves in public schools. However, many students in our youth groups attend public schools, and Young Life offers them Christian relationships with adults and other teens in their own school setting, which they otherwise might not have. More importantly, it gives these teens a place to invite their non-believer friends, ones who might be wary of visiting a church but open to attending a Young Life meeting at a friend’s house. A young girl came to speak at a recent committee meeting, and shared that after she

had been attending Young Life meetings for some time her mother agreed to host one for their group. After hearing the leaders and teens meet, the mother was also stirred by the also gospel; and now both she and her daughter are attending a local church! This leads to another great reason to support Young Life: as these young adults and their families respond to the gospel, they are often at a loss as to where to even begin.

When churches like the Kirk come alongside them, we can offer a welcoming home and guidance to these new Christians. It’s such an exciting opportunity!

As Young Life spreads into Parkway, we have need in three areas: volunteer leaders (willing tovo meet with and invest in the high school students); committee members (making sure that each Young Life group is prayed for, provided for, and promoted); and supporters (willing to pray, give financially, help with YL club support or one-time events, or share Young Life with other small groups or churches). If you are willing to help in any area, or just want to learn more about Young Life, please contact John or myself. We are so passionate about creating a Christian community within our local public schools and would love your support! Thank you so much!

MARK YOUR CALENDARS: UPCOMING EVENTS January 25th - Trivia Night, at 6 pm in the Fellowship Hall March 30th - Spring Tabletops, Saturday morning in the Gym April 30th - Kirk 50th Anniversary Jubilee Celebration

THOUGHTS ON THE PCA "ONE" CONFERENCE

BY BUNNY HATHAWAY

The 2018 PCA Women’s Conference came to St Louis this October on its fourth stop around and what a blessing it was. Courtney Doctor, our very own former Director of Women’s Ministry Kirk, was the keynote speaker, giving three presentations at each location. She was joined here women who presented workshops including, again, our very own Anna Johnson, as well as McGreevy, Dr. Tasha Chapman, Jessie Swigart, and others.

the country, here at the by several Mary Beth

The title of this conference was “ONE — One Hope... One Faith... One Church.” We were encouraged to think biblically about our oneness as Christians. Courtney led us through the prayer of Jesus the son to his father in John 17. In three 45- minute sessions, she taught us that we are “ONE... because of WHOM we believe,” “ONE... with all OTHERS who believe,” and “ONE... so that the WORLD may believe.”

(back) Debbie Stair, Katy Groves, Jodi Howell, Anna Johnson, Sue Pitzer, Karen Schumacher (front) Anna Porter, Stephanie Stair, and Katy Clement (L to R) Katy Groves, Jodi Howell, Courtney Doctor, Katy Clement, and Stephanie Stair

We were reminded that Oneness is not an optional pursuit, but rather God’s eternal purpose. We are to be one, yet in that oneness, beautifully diverse, for we need each other. We should acknowledge that walls exist, work to break through them one deep true friendship at a time, and pray for God to help us tear them down so the world will see we are connected in the temple of the living God. What we do and how we live must closely resemble the word we proclaim. Only through God’s spirit and prayer in Christ are we changed so we can love as He has loved. What a message. What a blessing.

The audio for this conference will soon be available. The Women’s PCA Conference will return to St Louis in 2020.

@thekirkstlwomen @thekirkstlwomen