the
Valley Vine
March 2020
Volume sixty-five, Number two
Valley Presbyterian Church
IN THIS ISSUE: Small Groups
By Beth Glady
Sanctuary Grand Opening A Night at the Movies By Robbie Peterson
Senior Pastor
DAVID JOYNT Friends, You and I were meant to belong to the company of the saints, the heavenly cohort. Our Heavenly Father does not want us to wait until we die to experience the love and full connection to others we will know then; before we get to heaven he wants to put some heaven into us. One very profound way he does this is through the relationships we can form in small groups. The intimacy we can experience with others as we gather and share our lives and our hearts is profound. It is a foretaste of the complete understanding that will come to us when we “know as we’ve been known,” because in the kingdom there are no barriers to life or love. This Lent our sermon series and devotional focuses on the theme “Belong and Become.” So much of the growth God plans for us is meant to happen through intimate friendships, where we express our pain and find healing, voice doubts and find assurance, admit our weaknesses and find encouragement, and where we seek God’s guidance and find direction. In gathered groups of Christians, we discover that God not only blesses us, but He speaks through us to help others. The New Testament calls this Koinonia, a distinctive kind of Christian community where we become as we belong. Already at Valley Presbyterian Church, we have many wonderful groups where this is operative. Some have gone on for generations like our Presbyterian Women’s circles, or several of our lay led bible studies. Other groups extend for six or eight weeks. We have prayer groups, community groups, study groups, and men’s and women’s groups. Some center on life’s challenges like our mental health and grief groups. Some focus on serving like our Stephen Ministers. Some of our committees and commissions are small groups too, where work combines with prayer and friendship. Hundreds of our members are involved in small groups but we want to grow that number. Dave Turner and I, under guidance of Beth Glady and our Discipleship and Spiritual Growth Committee, have been training folks to lead small groups. This Lent we’ll offer some sample groups, so members and friends can experience Koinonia. In the fall we’ll launch additional opportunities to gather and grow. Intimacy is our deepest longing and our greatest fear! It is also one of God’s great ways for his followers to become deep, influential, contagious, secure, and passionate. I hope if you are not yet connected to others through a small group you will try it in Lent or in the fall. Most of my growth as a disciple has happened in these beautiful small communities of care, learning, and connection. Blessings,
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Highlighte d
EVENTS
Register: vpc.church/oasis
Modern Church History
With Dr. Grayson Carter, Chair, Church History, Fuller Theological Seminary Wednesdays, March 4-May 13, 6-7PM, Upper Youth Room 512, Free
The Church continues to change in order to be relevant to those it ministers to. But how did we get where we are now? Join Dr. Carter as he takes us through the issues that shape the church of today.
University of Jamestown Concert Choir
Sunday, March 8, 7:30PM Landes Center, Free
Alzheimer's Support @ VPC
Heavy Hitters: Knocking Out Alzheimer's March 19, 9-11AM, Room 415-416 Guest Speaker: Dr. Pierre Tariot Director, Banner Hospital Alzheimer’s Institute Register: vpc.church/care
Dr. Tariot will share the progress in research and offer hope for a world without Alzheimer’s disease.
VPC's All-Church Nominating Committee (ACNC) needs your help identifying leaders in our church community. Nominations are open for Deacons, Elders, and Trustees of the Valley Presbyterian Foundation. Email the ACNC: acnc@vpc.church
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LIVING OUT YOUR FAITH
The Discipleship Committee’s continuing vision is to afford opportunities for deepening and living out one’s faith in a wide variety of formats, locations and times. Small group ministry is one such opportunity; through the regular study of God’s word, prayer, and fellowship with other believers members of these groups will form deeper bonds of community as well as strengthen the body of Christ. The goal of small groups ministry is to offer meaningful Bible study, prayer, and fellowship in a setting and format matched to where each individual is in their life and faith journey. Groups will be formed on a regular basis and members may be added as needed and desired. Groups will include a spectrum of connecting points, including women, men, couples, singles, married, life stage, and peer group.
Ed & Beth Glady By Beth Glady Discipleship & Spiritual Growth Elder
Small groups will be led by facilitators secured and trained by the Discipleship Committee and Pastors. Regular trainings throughout the year will equip facilitators with the knowledge, skills, and resources to successfully facilitate groups in the study of the Word. Regularly scheduled gatherings of facilitators will be held to offer support and additional training as well as form community among facilitators.
Small Group Sampler with Pastor David Joynt Wednesdays, March 4-April 1 6-7PM, Chapel, Free Register: vpc.church/classes
We want you to be a part of a small group at VPC! This class will provide the opportunity to see how small groups work before committing to your own. There will be multiple small groups, each discussing the previous Sunday’s sermon. Small groups are a powerful way to grow closer to God, your church, and other people at VPC. We are excited to start this program!
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Facilitators will also over time encourage group members who are ready to consider becoming facilitators of new groups. Groups will not be “required” to split up and reform as new groups, but will be encouraged to empower members to consider becoming facilitators of new groups. (This does not mean that individuals must leave their current group —they may be a member of their original group and facilitate a second.) Facilitators will be provided with a RightNow Media Platform of resources. These will include examples of class studies that have been used by other groups, training materials, suggested topics, authors, and other supporting materials. Facilitators will inform the Discipleship Committee Elder regarding the materials they will be using each time a new study begins. Meeting times and places are open to the discretion of the group. If the group chooses to meet on the VPC campus at a time when child care is regularly available, they will be able to use the child care as long as advance notice is given and reservations made per the church’s child care policies.
Joining a small group will be done via the church website. Small groups should have their own page/ link. This page will describe the small group ministry, the sign up process and let people know that they will be contacted by a small group leader within a week and details of logistics will be confirmed. The page will also have a survey that will allow individuals to express preferences for the type of group (single - by age, couples, mixed, male, female, married) and time, day of week (may choose more than one), do they prefer to meet at church or in a home, and if not at church, the area of town. Once the program is up and running, we may add a listing of existing small groups that are open to adding new members, giving a description of type of group and when and where they meet. To start with DSG, along with the facilitators, will be responsible for putting together the groups from those who have signed up and their preferences.
Small
GROUPS 5
SANCTUARY
GRAND OPENING
After almost one full year of construction, the Sanctuary is ready to welcome VPC and the broader community to worship! This is an exciting and historic time for all of us, and we hope you take part in all the great activities we have planned.
Easter
SUNDAY, APRIL 12
Sanctuary 9 & 10:45AM
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Celebrate the resurrection in the remodeled Sanctuary
Worship
& Celebration SUNDAY, APRIL 19
Chapel 8AM Sanctuary 9 & 10:45AM
A morning of song & praise of music in all its forms
Mission in motion
SUNDAY, APRIL 26
Sanctuary 9:30AM
One Service
Join us after with Feed my Starving Children
New
Worship Times SUNDAY, MAY 3
Chapel 8AM Sanctuary 9 & 10:30AM The later service moves back to 10:30AM!
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A NIGHT AT THE MOVIES
One of the biggest events of the year at VPC, the Annual Foundation Dinner and Auction, is this month, on March 27, at the Arizona Country Club! Great food, live music and entertainment is on tap, along with some very exciting prizes you can win in our silent and live auctions. How would you like an all-inclusive trip to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, or a cruise to escape to Alaska next summer when it is 116 degrees here in Phoenix? Perhaps you'd prefer a new piece of heirloom jewelry or a Private Wine Class or Bordeaux Wine Experience for 10 of your closest friends? There is much more just waiting for you to take home, and it's even possible to get a jump on the bidding before the night of the dinner! Stay tuned to learn how!
Robbie & Doug Peterson By Robbie Peterson Valley Presbyterian Foundation Dinner Committee
In addition to being a fun time with our friends at VPC, the funds we raise on this important night are essential to so many things we accomplish at VPC each year. Did you know the annual event has raised and distributed more than $300,000 toward mission activity we support both here at home and worldwide as well as making it possible to be good stewards, completing ongoing campus improvements that directly support our congregation and community? These programs include Boy Scout Troop 441, MentorKids, Family Promise of Greater Phoenix, and much more. Specifically, this year's proceeds from the event and auctions will provide much needed, overdue improvements for our core classrooms that serve our preschool, elementary and high school students as well as adult education. These improvements will include upgraded video and teaching equipment, up-to-date security systems and a general refresh for some of the well-worn educational rooms. They will also include needed upgrades in our very special Kilgore Chapel! Most exciting of all, the theme this year is A Night At the Movies. It's your turn to be a star on the red carpet that night! There is also still time to make donations for our silent auction! Our generous members, friends and businesses make it all possible each year. Particularly popular items include gift certificates to your favorite restaurant, quality or estate jewelry pieces, and free admission to popular area attractions. If you own a business or can provide a service, your contributions of auction items are greatly appreciated as well!
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Get your tickets now online, from a Foundation member, or during pre-sales on the patio on Sunday mornings. But time is running out, so get them now. And plan to bring a friend to share the fun!
This year’s proceeds will support upgraded audio & visual technology on VPC campus.
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HE
nce
Follow the Money?
—Woody Johnson, VPC Stewardship Team
The word "tithe" is full of history and misconception. The first tithe was an act that began with Abraham's gift to Melchizedek (Genesis 14:17ff) and continued throughout the Old Testament. It was a standard of obedience God required of His people. Ten percent of all that the people produced went into the storehouse to provide for the Levites and the priestly work they performed. Today we refer to our offerings as “tithes and offerings.” Yet, in the New Testament there is precious little mention of tithes. When Jesus spoke of tithes, it was to call attention to the scribes and Pharisees and their cheap tithing of mint, dill, and cumin while neglecting mercy and faithfulness (Matthew 23:23). Jesus was not condemning the tithe; He was setting a higher standard. So Christians today seem to face a dilemma, what does it mean to tithe? Are we called to the Old Testament 10%, or the way Jesus uses the term? A close reading of the scriptures speaks of many things a devout Christian must do and be as we serve Christ, but He incorporates the subject of money most often. Recall the widow and her two copper coins, all she had; or the rich man whom He told to sell all he had and give to the poor. The widow gave out of love for the Kingdom of God and the other who was trying to buy himself the gift of salvation. Jesus knew their hearts as He knows ours. The catchphrase “follow the money” has its origins in political corruption, but it has spiritual applications as well. Jesus knew of the corrupting nature of money and the pursuit of it. He knew how we spend our money would be tied to the desires of our heart, he knew that the things of this world and the things of the Kingdom would pull us in different directions. Do you desire a more personal joyful fellowship with the King of Kings and are you willing to take a step in that direction? You can choose to postpone your decision, but it's always there. God has a way of begging the question in our lives. For those who desire to give sacrificially to the cause of Christ, it begins with a decision. A commitment to become who we are called to be. C.S. Lewis wrote “prosperity knits a man to the world. He feels he is finding a place in it when it is really finding a place in him.” There is a new and refreshing freedom when our lives are brought into closer fellowship with our Lord and Savior. Our lives will become more structured, our hearts will follow the money into a peace that surpasses all understanding (Phil. 4:7). It will take time and discipline, but along the way you receive showers of blessings in abundance, guaranteed!
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News from
SESSION
The Session welcomed the new Elders, Marilyn Cage, Boots Dunlap, Bryan Gottfredson, Christy Miller, Jim Schaller, and Tony Will to their first official Session meeting. An arrangement has been finalized to deed the Robert McCall mural, titled Gloria In Excelsis Deo, 1990, to the Museum of the Bible in Washington. DC. The mural had graced our old Choir Room, which is scheduled per the New Heart remodel to be a classroom for Student Ministry. There was no room for the mural on our campus. A balanced budget of $2,327,500 has been passed for 2020.
Karen Meyer Clerk of Session 480-368-6567
The following members were co-opted for this year: Finance & Operations- Vicki Tatum and Fred Fetters Outreach- Sharma Torrens Planning & Organization- David Winter and Mary Artigue. Mission: Scott Turner, Stephen Sciacca, Janel Willert, Kathy Oppenhuizen, Mark Nesvig and Becky Bennett. Please contact me if you have any questions or concerns at 480-368-6567.
Finances &
OPERATIONS
Blessings, Karen Gill Meyer, Clerk of Session
SERVING THE DENOMINATION
2020 "Per Capita," $37.35 per member In the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), each church pays a predetermined amount, determined by church membership, to bring leaders together and serve the denomination. VPC covers the $37.35 per member, but reimbursements coming in designated “Per Capita� allows us to support other areas of ministry.
VPC finances year-to-date as of January 31, 2020 Income
Budget $
Variance $
Faith Giving Other Income Total Income
254,700 7,200 261,900
250,000 8,100 258,100
4,700 -900 3,800
Pastoral Ministry Admin & Facility *Mission, Outreach, Cong. Care Christian Education Worship & Music Total Expense
38,100 95,100 9,600 25,400 16,100 184,300
38,400 96,700 10,000 27,900 16,700 189,700
300 1,600 400 2,500 600 5,400
77,600
68,400
9,200
Kris Bahr
Finance & Operations Director 480-991-6424 ext. 112 krisb@vpc.church
Actual $
Expense
Net Income less Expense
*In addition, $61,700 mission support to MentorKids, Family Promise, Ministry of Hope and Presbyterian Disaster Assistance provided upon repurposing of VPF Kurz Scholarship Fund
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