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Valley Vine November 2020 Vol. 65, No. 10 Valley Presbyterian Church
Senior Pastor
DAVID JOYNT
Dear friends, The US is the leading importer of mahogany, a lumber prized for its beauty, durability, and color, used for furniture, boats, and instruments. So says Wikipedia. At VPC, we know the most important use of mahogany was for our pews! Stained dark, they were fastened to the Sanctuary floor. Sunday by Sunday, people gathered in those pews to experience the gifts and blessings of God. Like sturdy and silent sentinels they witnessed as fervent prayers received beautiful answers. They saw slump shouldered participants sit up straighter as forgiveness lifted burdens. They heard praises, songs, and anthems transport men and women into heaven’s joy. If the pews could speak they’d tell stories of people who found faith, learned truth, found sacramental sustenance, exercised generosity, and made decisions to follow and serve. Now they have been removed. Removed to make room for our beautiful ash chairs. Removed in order to be recycled, recycled so they could be repurposed. Underneath the dark stain lay honey colored wood of many hues and grains which now provides the beautiful tables in our Awaken Café and Plaza. In November, on the weekends, and in the New Year during the week, you will be able to gather with family and friends around those tables. Our new indoor and outdoor spaces provide an opportunity for the gifts and blessings of God’s grace inside the Sanctuary to spill outside. The old and beautiful wood will now bear witness again as friendships are formed and people of every age discover God’s amazing grace, over coffee and tea. My challenge for you is simple. Bring someone you know, invite them to an experience around those tables. Help God to claim the space beyond the Sanctuary, particularly the sacred space in everyone’s soul. Trips to the Café and Plaza, for a simple social purpose or a business meeting, can bring friends and neighbors not only into the heart of our campus, but closer to the heart of God. The mahogany of our furniture is a reminder of the lasting connection we have with our precious past and also a testimony to the power of God to make things new and beautiful. May many people discover that power through you.
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Love and Blessings,
GENEROSITY & THE GRATITUDE NEXT GENERATION Stories of
We are in an unusual time to say the least. Amidst the COVID-19 pandemic students are gradually trickling back into schools, families are trying to re-establish rhythms of consistency, and all of us are quite tired of what seems to feel like an ongoing difficult reality. As we discern and begin to safely gather again in these challenging times, some common questions continue to surface: Why is this happening? What is God doing through all of this? How are we to respond?
Pastor Travis Kingma Next Generation Ministry & Contemporary Worship
Paired with these pandemic-infused quandaries, we have been afforded an opportunity, through brand new spaces to use as tools, to invite friends and new people to VPC. This is such an amazing gift to be recognized and appreciated! With the opening of these spaces it is easy to feel puzzled about the timing of how all these things are converging.
Viruses and weird timing are also common occurrences throughout the Bible. In 2 Samuel 24, the land incurs pestilence as a result of King David’s oddly timed sin of taking a census of Israel (the thing that is wrong about taking a census is that it suggests reliance on human power). After heeding the words of the prophet Gad, David is urged to go offer generous gifts of sacrifices in an act of surrender and worship: “David built there an altar to the Lord, and offered burnt offerings and offerings of well-being. So the Lord answered his supplication for the land…” (2 Samuel 24:25a). In 2020, are you tempted to follow David’s error by trying to hoard or control what is happening around you? What would happen if instead we began with David's response—by making an offering to the Lord? Crisis exposes our hidden allegiances and self-serving agendas. Maybe this season is a deeper invitation to be generous and sacrificial people. The next generation is navigating unchartered waters and facing unique problems that none of us have faced in our lifetime. Amidst feelings of isolation and distance, our call is to still go deeper in our walk with the Lord. It is to embody the love of Jesus as a church by being a radically generous people. One question I like to raise with our students is, “Are you ever feeling bored? Then start thinking of and caring for the needs of your neighbor." This gets them "un-bored" fast. Our time, money, and priorities shift outward when we focus our hearts and minds to new levels of worship and faithfulness to Jesus. As a Pastor, I am constantly learning from and utterly grateful for the many amazing people who are deeply integral to VPC's mission. All the generations are coming together to discern how we can demonstrate the love of God in how we give, love our neighbors, and treat one another. May we continue to live into the generosity Christ is calling us to in the new season ahead!
Forest Home Camp High School
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GIVE TO GOD COMMITTEE IN GRATITUDE Stewardship
*A condensed version of this article appears in the 2021 Faith Giving Brochure*
Some Christians are uncomfortable talking about faith giving and tithing. They shouldn’t be. Generously returning to God a portion of His gifts to us is as much a part of what makes us Christians as everything else we do as part of our faith journey. What’s not to talk about? The Protestant faith was born in part from an honest discussion by Martin Luther about the Catholic Church’s practice at the time of Jon & Caryll Kyl requiring “indulgences”—monetary gifts—as the price of forgiveness VPC Stewardship Committee Chair for sins. By candidly and forcefully challenging that practice, Luther put the purpose of our giving in the right Christian context. It doesn’t buy forgiveness. Rather, it is one of the things God expects of us as disciples, as “whole” Christians. And, it is a joyful pleasure for us to give to God in gratitude for His greatest gift to us—forgiveness for our sins and a life everlasting—by the sacrifice of His son, Jesus Christ! Jesus taught that everything we have is a gift from God, and that God wants us to return a generous measure to Him through the Church to support His kingdom. Doing so is a part of our faith, just as other Christian beliefs and practices are. We are taught to be good stewards of all of God’s gifts—time, talent, treasure and love. As we return them to God through the Church we become more complete Christians...helping to do the work of the Church. Each of us is at a different place in our faith journey; but, I suspect we all have a ways to go. When we give back to God, no less than when we worship, study the Bible or participate in church activities, we get further down that road. ALL of these practices build our personalities as Christians. Faith giving is a component part of our individual faith. That is why Christians should not be uncomfortable discussing how much and how to give, anymore than than being uncomfortable discussing our Bible lessons, our Minister’s sermons or anything else about building our faith. We will soon have an opportunity to pledge our faith giving for VPC’s new year. Some prefer not to make an explicit pledge, though pledges are helpful for budgeting purposes and, I believe, help discipline each of us to actually achieve our giving goals. Either way, however, we will go through the process of thinking about how much we want to give for the next year. Unless you tithe a certain per cent, there is no magic formula for how much to give. Many families do, however, try to increase their giving year over year either by a per cent or fixed amount. This is certainly appropriate when incomes increase. But, maybe a better way to approach the question is to focus on all of the ways we have been blessed, on all of the things for which we are so grateful and for which we thank God in our prayers. If we match our giving to what we have enjoyed from God, we can’t help but give very generously. And, if we “budget” for Him FIRST, if we give Him our best rather than our “left overs,” we will have come closer to following Christ’s teaching that “where your treasure is, there will your heart be also” Matthew 6:21. Our budget should give priority to God, certain in the knowledge that we will have all we need in the end. Our Arizona State motto says it all: Ditat Deus (God provides).
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VPC has been blessed with very generous givers. We have been able to support numerous missions both within and outside VPC itself. You have even increased giving during the pandemic, mostly by taking advantage of the many on-line giving methods. Next year promises even more excitement at VPC. Rev. Joynt’s sermon series VPC 2.0 will focus on the incredible opportunities for teaching and outreach provided by our new physical facilities and technologies, a return to in-person activities, and new ventures and new strategies for building community and initiating conversations. We are literally poised to begin a new era of numerical and spiritual growth at VPC, and you all can be a part of this. As you consider your pledge (or alternative commitment) for next year, the Stewardship Committee recommends you have a conversation about how much to give—with God. Give it prayerful consideration, and don’t be surprised if God gives you some good advice!
Congregational
CARE
REMEMBERING OUR LOVED ONES
During Advent we acknowledge family and friends who have passed into God’s Glory. If you have lost a loved one, feel free to come to the Memorial Garden to write the name of your loved one on a dove, place it on the tree and offer a silent prayer. The tree will be installed on November 21, and the doves & pens will be available.
David Turner
Pastor of Congregational Care
This tradition becomes more sacred with each passing year! The Dove Tree Service of Remembrance will take place on December 1 at 2PM. This year, due to COVID-19, we will have mitigation stations at the entrances to the Memorial Garden, and we will be providing socially-distanced seating. This service is a moving and meaningful time; a chance to remember and a chance to heal.
Service of REMEMBRANCE
Dove Tree Service of Remembrance Tuesday, December 1, 2PM Memorial Garden
Feel free to come to the Garden, write a name on a dove starting November 21, place it on the tree, and offer a prayer. 5
Family
MINISTRY
A MILESTONE: THIRD GRADE BIBLES
All Scripture is given by God. And all Scripture is useful for teaching and for showing people what is wrong in their lives. 2 Timothy 3:16
Tina Gilbreath
Director Family Ministry
Each year we celebrate the tradition of Bible Sunday. A day when we place the scriptures into the hands of our third graders. This year we were thrilled to present new Bibles to the following third graders: Brevin Brammer, Kate Brigham, Bowie Chappell, Payton Comer, Quinn Fassett, Ryan Freeman, Emily Gottfredson, Kai Herrmann, Brooke Holliday , Alice Livak, Cassie Pondelik, Paul Sanders, and Vivienne Taylor.
In preparation for this moment parents and their 3rd graders attended a special workshop designed to encourage and support parents as they teach their children to read the Bible. At that workshop 3rd graders and parents were reminded that getting into God’s word takes practice and helps us grow closer to God, and that you need to practice anything that you want to improve. Families received a few tips and ideas for reading scripture together. Parents were invited to write a personal note that was included in their child’s Bible. We are thrilled to celebrate this milestone as a three way partnership between the children, their families and the church.
IN-PERSON SUNDAY SCHOOL Join us on Sundays!
We always follow our VPC Church Protection Policy and require our volunteers to be trained and background checked. With your help we will be taking the following additional measures to keep our children, families and volunteers as safe as possible: • • • • • • • • • •
Reservations will be required each week. All kids should pass through mitigation stations at the Sanctuary with their family. Ages 3 and up should wear masks. Check-in inside the north Sanctuary doors and receive name tag and guardian receipts. Children stay seated with parents during the children's message. Following the children’s message, kids will be dismissed out northwest double doors. Staff/volunteers will meet children there and walk them in two groups (upstairs/downstairs) to the classrooms. Following worship parents will exit the east Sanctuary doors and head north to classrooms to pick up children. All students will be picked up at door of classroom by parent or sibling age 12 or older at conclusion of service. Please return to your car/parking lot via West side of church to avoid incoming service foot traffic.
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This year Children’s Ministry has introduced virtual options for kids! Our goal is to support you as a family sharing your faith with your children. Each week we post links to parent guides, video lessons, and printables for Family Worship, Preschool Sunday School, and Elementary Sunday School. Whether you aren’t comfortable returning to in person worship yet, or had to miss a Sunday morning because of sports or other commitments, don’t miss this opportunity to help your kids grow in faith. There are multiple ways to connect online, and you can do it on your schedule! Family Worship Parent Guides include questions and printables related to the children's message and sermon each week. The questions are designed to help families engage in their faith together. The printables can be used whether you are worshiping at home through live stream or in person! Preschool and Elementary videos are recorded by our staff. Your children can watch and engage with the videos as Ms. Susie or Ms. Tina tell the weekly bible story. Other fun videos are included, to help share the story, extend the learning, and worship through song. We have even added our own 4th and 5th grade students as guest scientists to the elementary videos. All our videos include a biblical lesson, beeline to Jesus, music, prayer, and more. You can print the activity pages that go along with each video for your kids to enjoy before, during, or after. Your child can watch at a time convenient to your family. The parent guide questions will help you engage with your child and talk about your faith all week long. You can check all this out at: vpc.church/connect/events/children-vss/
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Student
MINISTRY
HOW FAR TO FOLLOW CHRIST—A JOURNEY WEST
If you told me five years ago that I would end up at a church in a desert in the American Southwest, I would have been very, very surprised. My journey towards obedience in Christ is similar to that of many others—filled with mountains, valleys, and many uncertainties along the way. It has included the unexpected and joy filled moments of knowing without a doubt that no matter what, I am held by a good Creator and God. I would never have thought or chosen to move here had God not turned my heart and opened my eyes to the amazing Student Ministry Assistant Director opportunity at VPC. I grew up in a mixed faith home. My mother brought me to church and every Christian camp opportunity out there, while my unbelieving father debated Faith Anderson science and theology with me, wanting me to weigh the various ideologies Student Ministry the world had to offer. I’m grateful for the way both of them brought me up. It Assistant Director wasn’t until my teens that Jesus soon whispered He knew my name, and that He wanted me to follow Him. That has since been a theme of my life: How far am I willing to follow Christ? And more importantly, will I be obedient to His leading, or will I choose my own way? God has led me overseas at various time to wonderful places with beautiful people, and many lessons to learn about myself, others, and His love for us. I’ve been led to areas of the world for service in Mexico, Mozambique, England, Austria, and eventually to Thailand for a few years. Each place has its own culture and incredible people, and I am grateful for these experiences, lessons, and areas that God has used in my life to open my eyes to His purposes and plans for this world. A hard part of my story to share is when God showed me it was time to head back to America from Thailand. I didn't want to; I was working on becoming a better missionary. Within three weeks of coming back, my father passed away suddenly. My world shattered and my life changed in many unexpected ways. The way I saw life and people began to change. I realized how little time I have on this earth, and started reflecting on what following Jesus really means, and my part to play in His plan for the world. Applying and coming to VPC has already become a beautiful part of my story. After so much change, devastation, and grief from losing my dad, the desert has become a shelter from the storm I had endured. A couple of nights before I left Pennsylvania, I was startled reading Psalm 55—the deep and painful reflection from King David mirrored the feelings of my own experience and sorrow. David writes about his overwhelming pain and anguish, his desire to fly away on the wings of a dove, and to find shelter from the storm...in a desert. The desert was where he hoped to find healing, shelter, and His Creator. As I drove into Phoenix I remembered this Psalm. Oh that God would lead me on His wings to this beautiful desert state, and allow me to look upon the mountains here!
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I feel beyond blessed to be at VPC. Each one of us has a story filled with joys, fears, and hurts. I am so grateful to serve a God who sees all this, loves us, and whom has ways that are beyond anything we can imagine. In this new season, I am thrilled to use my love for discipleship, hospitality, and shepherding to walk with the students at VPC. I feel blessed to have been brought onto the team and into this community, and I look forward to all God has in store for VPC and the community that worships here.
On my way to Arizona Sandia Mountains, New Mexico My mom, Rachel and family friend, Ann
News from
MISSION
Pastor Chris Woodard Pastor of Mission & Engagement
MISSION IN MALAWI UPDATE
VPC's work with Villages in Partnership has blessed many lives, and we are excited to update you on the progress of the One Heart Secondary School in Malawi. Construction is almost complete - we are so thankful for all the time spent and efforts to all involved. God is amazing!
Main building & Head Teacher residence
Local workers & Teacher residences
For more information please contact Chris: chrisw@vpc.church
Advent.ure A great way to start the Christmas season Wednesday, December 2
6-7PM, Sanctuary Plaza Begin the Advent season with an event for the whole family.
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REASON TO OPERATIONS CELEBRATE Finances &
2020 is quickly coming to an end - reason to celebrate, right?! Actually, VPC has much to celebrate and be grateful for in this most unusual year.
The first thing that comes to mind is Kris Bahr TECHNOLOGY! Can Finance & Operations Director you imagine if this 480-991-6424 ext. 112 pandemic and the krisb@vpc.church resulting shutdowns had occurred as recently as 30 years ago? Without the ability to broadcast worship services online so we could worship from our homes, and given the length of the shutdown, we would have easily lost touch with each other. Praise God that even now, when we are able to gather in limited numbers, we can still tune in and feel like we are there. Committee meetings and Bible studies, “gatherings” of children, students, and families, and more, have found a way to meet by the miracle of Zoom. We have gotten pretty adept at signing on to those meetings after eight months of practice.
A main cause for celebration today is the substantial completion of A New Heart for the Valley! The Certificate of Occupancy for the Awaken Café and Education building is expected at any time, and plaza grass will be installed in November. The end result of the dreams, plans, challenges and joys of the past few years is stunning new spaces for worship, fellowship and education, and a completely refurbished organ. I invite you to come tour the spaces and see for yourself. May God hasten the day when this pandemic is behind us, and we can truly celebrate what has been accomplished. May these new spaces be just a tool to reach out to our friends and neighbors with the love of Christ and invite them into a personal relationship with Him. VPC finances year-to-date as of September 30, 2020 Income
Actual $
Budget $ Variance $
Faith Giving **Other Income Total Income
1,322,500 1,320,000 147,500 81,200 1,470,000 1,401,200
2,500 66,300 68,800
Pastoral Ministry Admin & Facility *Mission, Outreach, Cong. Care** Christian Education Worship & Music Total Expense
336,300 338,400 726,600 778,500 154,100 63,000 185,900 270,800 155,500 169,500 1,558,400 1,620,200
2,100 51,900 -91,100 84,900 14,000 61,800
Expense
Net Income less Expense
-88,400
-219,000
130,600
*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. **$95,100 in special giving was allocated to Navajo churches, Family Promise, MentorKids, and Malawi.
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News from
SESSION
OCTOBER MEETING UPDATE
At the October 27, 2020 Session meeting, Ed Glady, Building Committee Chair, noted the building project is almost done and the Committee is extremely excited about the outcome. VPC has received the Cerificate of Occupancy for the Education Building, Plaza, and the Café. The Café and will be opening soon. The Committee started work in March, 2018 and hopes to be able to be decommissioned at the end of December.
Karen Meyer Clerk of Session 480-368-6567
David Turner and David Joynt spoke about the opening of the campus. The mitigation process is working well and members are diligent in following the procedures. The 8:30AM Sunday service attendance has been about 150. The staff is checking on the possibility of adding seats outside on the south patio; they will be experimenting with the sound system and checking on screens. The staff is planning for the best way Christmas services can be done.
The Presbytery informed us we could have 5 delegates. The Session elected Jane Russell as a delegate to Presbytery. She will join Gary Green, Bob Aldag, Doug Eaton and Marilyn Cage. Tina Gilbreath reviewed the Children's Ministry for the past year. It has done an amazing job in presenting the curriculum and many other special activities to the children and their parents remotely. Valley is very fortunate to have such an enthusiastic, positive and talented Children's Ministry staff. If you have any questions or concerns, please reach out to me. —Blessings, Karen Gill Meyer, Clerk of Session Church Office will be closed on Thursday, November 26 and Friday, November 27 in observance of Thankgiving.
In-person Worship
WORSHIP
Sunday Worship | Sanctuary 8:30AM, Traditional 10:30AM, Contemporary
RESERVE YOUR SEAT! VPC.CHURCH/RETURN We are excited and thankful to be able to return to in-person worship with you!
Session approved a detailed mitigation plan that outlines the steps VPC and the community will take each week. We know that this will be a new and different way of attending in-person, so we ask that you familiarize yourself with the new requirements:
Reservations Required
If you plan to attend on a given Sunday, you must RSVP for you and your family. (The form requires contact name, number of those attending with you and their names, and which service you plan to attend.) The link to RSVP will go live each Monday at 9AM for the following Sunday and will remain open until we maximize attendance or close at 11AM on Friday. Seats are limited!
When You Arrive
All attendees will have their temperature checked when they arrive on campus. Masks are to be worn by those three years old and above. We discourage the use of valved or vented masks. Masks are also required for those who wear face shields.
Nursery- 2 to 24 months
We are dedicated to ensuring the health and safety of our congregation. To do so, we are limiting the number of children in the nursery and toddler rooms at this time. Registration is included on In-Person reservation form. We want to support all of our VPC families—if you are unable to register due to capacity limits, please contact Tina Gilbreath, tinag@vpc.church, so that we can make the proper accommodations for your child(ren). We are excited to see your little ones!
Not Ready Yet?
That is okay! Please put your health and safety first. We understand these are still uncertain times, and while we are grateful to return, we know it's not for everyone yet. Services will still be live-streamed. There are three easy ways to watch the VPC livestream: vpc.church, YouTube, and Facebook.
Ushers Needed
Join the VPC Usher Team and serve God and your local Church community— Ushering provides a great opportunity to meet new people, make new friends and be involved in VPC. If you would like to serve contact John Lee, 602-318-3008 or email, jwlims@aol.com.
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