The Salt Shaker
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The Salt Shaker “You are the salt of the earth . You are the light of the world.” — Jesus (Matthew 5:13-14) J ANUARY 2 0 2 0 Parkville PresbyterianOUR MISSION Church 600 × 337 “ To all who received Where Everyone him, who believed in is Loved, his name, he gave Where Everyone power to become Belongs children of God, who were born, not of blood or of the will of the flesh or of In this Issue : the will of man, but of God. 3. Pastor’s Perspective 4. SPEAC Renovation And the Word became flesh and One Service Sundays in 2020 and lived among us, and we 5. Extravagant have seen his glory, the glory Generosity, Per Capita as of a father’s only son, full 6. The Year in Pictures of grace and truth.” 7. “Be the Church” — John 1:12-14 8. Children’s Pageant 9. Featured Folks Your generous Christmas donations have been — or are being -- delivered. Among them: Christmas gifts for two families at Hillcrest Transitional Housing, coats, sweaters, and snacks for veterans at the VA Hospital in Leavenworth and homeless women at Cherith Brook. And bright, beauti- ful welcome bags for international students at Park University. The mis- sion team delivered 31 bags to Park University to welcome the incoming international students for the 2020 spring semester. A huge thank you to Hillcrest Gifts everyone who donated items, assembled the bags and helped with the de- livery. This ministry would not be possible without the help of the congre- GOD’S MISSION gation and the SPEAC food pantry, so again thank you! Park University is FOR US: very grateful for our partnership. A few students have already arrived but To accept, most will arrive January 9 and 10. embrace, and love all people, For your many gifts, in the best Park U. Welcome Bags through Christ spirit of the season, thank you! who loves us! January Banneker Benefit—Feb. 24 Food Pantry NEWS 1/1 Herb Tillinghast 1/3 John Broyles SPEAC Food 1/4 Wanda Moore A few tickets remain! Pantry is being 1/5 Anna Davis 2020 Banneker School Foundation reconfigured Breakfast— Mon, Feb. 24 1/7 Steven Shrawder, Michael Gunn in January 7:30 AM – 9:00 AM— Park 1/11 Blair Walker, Jack Miller and only com- University—8700 NW River Park Dr 1/13 Finley Bogener modities will Mabee Learning Center 1/14 Paige Cook be distributed, Commercial Underground Please join us in our annual 1/15 Carol Lehman, Jessica Bloomer so NO SPEAC fundraiser breakfast! We will have 1/17 Bob Grant FOOD DONA- a keynote guest speaker as well as TIONS ARE an update with the restoration 1/17 Mary Ann Bleish BEING RE- project. Tickets are $35.00 1/20 Sandra Annis QUESTED AT 1/21 Laura Ozenberger THIS TIME. Spring All-Church Garage Sale 1/22 Hunt Listrom If one of your New Year’s resolutions 1/23 Ken Selvidge See article includes reorganization and cleaning 1/24 Randy Smith, Greg Nook, Melissa Overfelt about the pro- out those closets and storage 1/25 Aaron Wilt ject on page 4, containers, remember to set aside and we’ll an- items for the Spring All Church 1/26 Pamela Godlove, Jan Myers ticipate being Garage Sale. You can even price your 1/27 Missy Wilt ready to re- items as you set them aside. All 1/29 Sharon Adair proceeds will go toward local ceive dona- mission projects. The date will be set tions and cus- soon. tomers again Looking Back in February! on Christmas Eve Blessed are they . Happy are those . We had three beautiful worship ser- However your New Testament vices on Christmas Eve. Thank you to the many folks who served as ush- renders the translation, Jesus’ Sermon ers, readers, Communion assistants, on the Mount is a favorite teaching and candle lighters. Thank you to for many of us. And during the Johanna Strother for staying through month of January we will have the all three services and helping in in- opportunity to study it with fresh numerable ways. Thank you to our eyes, ears and perspectives in the choir for their incredible offering Sojourners’ Sunday School class at of Messiah at 7pm. It was a beauti- ful Christmas Eve. Thank you! 9:40. Rev. John Brentlinger will lead the studies in Room 312. Join us! The Salt Shaker P a g e 3 Pastor’s Perspective ~ Rev. Steve Andrews These are questions I hear all the time: three services reminded us of Christ’s hum- ble beginnings and the message that sent Why did Jesus say the poor will always about God and his values. be among us? It means something that, when he came What should I do when I see people beg- to Earth and took on human form, the One ging at the intersection? we worship did not simply give up the trap- How much do I have to give, and when pings of divinity, he chose not to adopt the and where should I give? trappings of a wealthy or prestigious human life. He did not come in fancy clothes. He did Am I a wealthy person, and what does not have a royal or noble birth. He did not that have to do with a camel and the eye grow up to seek a formal education. He was of a needle? not a great entrepreneur. In our day and When our God came to age, in our society, Earth, he was born in pov- questions of faith, erty, lived in poverty, and wealth, and poverty died in poverty, while are natural. We can teaching rich young rulers see signs of inequal- that they ought to give all ity all around us. We their possessions to the know of neighbor- poor (Mark 10:21), remind- hoods—or we come ing us that God will always from neighborhoods, meet our needs (Matthew or our family mem- 6:33) whether we are poor bers live in neighborhoods—where opportu- or rich, and declaring that the poor would nities are scarce, life is hard, and only the always be among us (Matthew 26:11, quot- exceptional kids feel they have a chance to ing Deuteronomy 15:11). move out and move up. What do we make of all this? How do we Surely Jesus, who speaks about matters answer the pressing economic questions of of money more than almost any other topic, our time, and how does Scripture inform has something to say about this. and guide us? These are the questions we’ll In our upcoming worship series, from be exploring from January 5th to February January 5th to February 16th, we will explore 16th, In our upcoming worship series, God’s these and other questions of faith, wealth, Economy. Join us, and let’s embark on this and poverty. We began, in a way, on Christ- journey together! mas Eve, where messages at each of our Little Dresses for Africa Workday: Friday, Jan. 3, 1-4 pm, Whipple Hall SPEAC is Reconfiguring! During the month of January, you will hear the sounds and see the sights of renovation in PPC’s basement. Our own SPEAC (Southern Platte Emergency Assistance Center) food pantry is reconfiguring the basement space to expand storage, add new refrigerators and freezers, and prepare to serve even more clients in the coming year. In these times, demands on food pantries everywhere are growing, and SPEAC is no exception. In addition, because of SPEAC’s relationship with the USDA, we are receiving new dairy commodities on a regular basis and need places to store them. In response, SPEAC is paying for renovations in the basement area of PPC, reconfiguring some of the walls you see when you walk in through the east doors off Route 9. The walls separating the main storage area from the current SPEAC office and waiting room will come down, resulting in a new, expanded storage area, and new walls will go up to define this space. At the same time, SPEAC will move its office to the back hall- way, and a new, smaller waiting area will be created there. The new space will better meet the needs of SPEAC operations and clients, and help our food pantry serve even more people in need in 2020. Praise be to God! Save the Dates for ONE WORSHIP SERVICE SUNDAYS! Mark your calendars for February 23rd, 2020, when we will gather for one worship service at 10am for Trans- figuration Sunday. Sunday School will be at 9am. For 2020, the Session has approved four one-service Sun- days: February 23rd (Transfiguration Sunday), May 31st (Pentecost Worship in the Park), October 4th (World Communion Sunday), and November 15th (Thanksgiving Sunday). Mark your calendars are plan to join us for all four of these special services of worship! We enjoyed writ- ing Christmas greetings to Veterans on December 23! The Salt Shaker P a g e 5 A Note about 2020 Boxed Contributions Envelopes and Per Capita Envelopes Please pick up your offering envelope box in the Narthex, placed in alphabetical order by last name. The 2020 per capita amount ($43.04) is written on the box and the per capita blue envelope is the first one in the box. A couple of notes about the offering envelopes: 1: Most giving numbers have changed for 2020 so please do not continue to use 2019 envelopes into the new year! 2: If you checked DO NOT want envelopes on your pledge card, there shouldn't be a box with your name on it.