Today in the Mission Yearbook - Visits that sing

Panelists tell how the Vital Congregations initiative helped prepare them to lead during pandemic

February 28, 2021

The Rev. Rebekah Carpenter (left) and Debra Levray sing in the lobby of a large apartment community in their church’s neighborhood. (Photo courtesy of Sion Presbyterian Church)

On day one of the 2020 Virtual Vital Congregations Gathering, four panelists from Trinity Presbytery described how beginning the two-year VC initiative in January 2020 — and its Seven Marks of a Vital Congregation  — helped prepare them as church leaders for the pandemic.

The Rev. Rebekah Carpenter of Sion Presbyterian Church in Winnsboro, South Carolina, told nearly 100 participants she didn’t realize how quickly the seven marks and the Bible verses that go with them would become part of her thinking.

“I have to admit I didn’t know how much of this had sunk in,” she said. “But once you start looking at them, you naturally begin to embody the marks.”

Carpenter said when the pandemic hit, she found herself thinking about the mark “Outward Incarnational Focus” — and for ways Sion could get out of its comfort zone. Realizing church members and friends wouldn’t be able to do traditional pastoral care visits in the same way, she wanted the church to be aware of not only their own needs but the needs of their neighbors as well.

“Out of that focus we came up with the idea of singing visits,” Carpenter said. “We haven’t been refused by anyone.”

Together with Sion’s associate director of music, Debra Levray, Carpenter has joined small groups of choir members to sing at people’s businesses and in apartment buildings in the community.

At Sion’s upcoming session retreat, Carpenter said church leaders will look more closely at the mark of Lifelong Discipleship Formation and then have conversations about each of their church programs around what has been working and what hasn’t.

The Rev. Leon Page Jr. of Oak Grove Presbyterian Church in Prosperity, South Carolina, said the mark of “Spirit-Inspired Worship” helped him when in-person church services were canceled due to the coronavirus. At first, he worshiped with his congregation by phone via a conference call.

Now they’ve transitioned to drive-in church services. People come in their cars to the church parking lot, where a local disc jockey and member of the church has speakers and microphones set up.

“More and more elders and congregation members are participating in this new way of worship,” Page said. “They’re so excited to be back together as a congregation while following all of the procedures to keep us safe.”

The Rev. Dr. Phyllis Sanders, the vital congregations coordinator for Trinity Presbytery, said it is more important than ever to experience vitality in the midst of the pandemics of COVID-19, poverty and racism. She said that comes through prayer.

“It’s where God gives us unexpected surprises,” she said, “and answers to things we didn’t even pray for.”

As Sanders was wrestling with how to do digital training for the VC initiative at Trinity Presbytery, the idea came to her to adopt a “study buddy” approach to learning the seven marks during the pandemic. Instead of learning them in one large group digital setting, pastors work in pairs, changing buddies for each mark. Sanders believes the study buddy approach is one of the reasons why participating pastors have already begun to embody the VC initiative in the life of the congregations they serve.

During opening worship, Mel Tubb, mission specialist for loan repayment assistance in Financial Aid for Service, gave a short message on Exodus 16:1-12. Tubb preached from the New International Version, which uses the word “grumbling” instead of “complaining” to describe how the Israelites cried out to their leaders because of the lack of food in the wilderness.

“Grumbling is a form of resistance, a refusal to disappear and not have our voices heard,” she said. “Grumblers are trying to tell us of a deep need.”

Noting that the dominant structure makes life difficult for Blacks and other people of color, for the poor, for those experiencing mental health issues and for others on society’s margins, Tubb said that now is the time to join in the grumbling.

“We have the opportunity to dismantle what we’ve created,” she said. “While it may be hard to hear our churches have caused pain, we must create structures that examine that. If we don’t, we won’t have vital congregations or have resilience for life in the pandemic.”

 Paul Seebeck, Communications Strategist, Presbyterian Mission Agency

Let us join in prayer for: 

PC(USA) Agencies’ Staff
Angela Duffy, Presbyterian Foundation
Amy Dusatko, Presbyterian Mission Agency

Let us pray:

Loving God, we pray for this broken world. We pray for strength to realize the wonderful promises you have for our lives. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Today in the Mission Yearbook - Savannah students on the RISE

Clergy-led coalition provides seven church-based learning pods for about 150 students

February 27, 2021

Some of the members of the RISE Coalition, or Religious Institutions Supporting Education. Rev. John Ruehl is in the tan jacket, while Dr. Eric Mason is at left. (Photo courtesy of Rev. John Ruehl)

Thanks to the Rev. John Ruehl and a handful of other faith leaders in Savannah, Georgia, about 150 students in the Savannah-Chatham County Public School System began virtual learning for the 2020-21 school year in person in a place they might know well — their local church.

Ruehl, an at-large member of Savannah Presbytery, was appointed by Savannah Mayor Van R. Johnson II last summer to organize and head the RISE Coalition, or Religious Institutions Supporting Education.

Ruehl said the idea to make pods for in-person virtual learning possible in churches and in a few Savannah-area businesses came simultaneously to him and to Dr. Eric D. Mason, pastor of the Jesus First Community Church.

“I called him and told him I’d had this idea back in June,” Ruehl said. “With the school year looming, maybe it’d be the opportunity for churches to step forward and provide space for small pods of kids to do online learning. He had the same idea and was in the process of writing a proposal.”

Mason brought the idea to Mayor Johnson, who appointed Ruehl to chair the RISE Coalition. “We thought maybe if there were two people thinking the same way independently, there was something of God that could be part of the imagination,” Ruehl said.

The coalition managed four Zoom meetings between its founding and the first day of pod-based instruction. Nine churches and a number of businesses and agencies joined the coalition, including United Way of the Coastal Empire, which Ruehl said “offered a pool of volunteers.”

With a long list of needs — mentoring, counseling, health care, school and food supplies, technology, transportation, clothing and hygiene — those volunteers were sorely needed, according to Ruehl.

“That pool of volunteers from United Way supplements what’s already available” through the nine churches, which includes Isle of Hope United Methodist Church, where Ruehl’s wife, the Rev. Chrissy Ruehl, is minister of children and families.

“The public school system in Savannah is starting the school year virtually and much help is needed,” she wrote in an email, “especially for working families navigating this difficult time.”

The Ruehl children — a 7-year-old daughter and a 5-year-old son — were among the 150 who began their school year as part of the RISE Coalition of virtual learners opening their school year in small pods.

Participating churches already have “their own infrastructure,” including Sunday school rooms, and “guidelines for child safety,” he noted. “The fact that we could partner up and work in a concerted effort has encouraged me in my own faith.”

Savannah-Chatham County Public School System Superintendent Dr. M. Ann Levett was in on “a number of our Zoom calls,” Ruehl said. Mayor Johnson announced last week an anonymous donor had offered the coalition 160 desktop computers, which RISE Coalition members are working to install at each learning pod.

“People have different interpretations on how long virtual learning will last,” Ruehl said. “We think it’s wise for our partners to consider providing something that lasts for at least a semester, if not through the end of the year (2020–21) school year.”

Even if the district opens schools for hybrid or in-person learning in the coming months, “there will be a fair number of people uncomfortable with that,” he said.

Ruehl credits Mayor Johnson for catching the vision of churches helping students to succeed even as COVID-19 has forced the public schools to make virtual learning as engaging as possible for their students.

“The mayor has been great,” Ruehl said. “From the beginning, when the virus was bearing down on us, he pulled together a clergy task force to make recommendations to the religious community about worshiping together. We were one of the first communities in Georgia to have a mask ordinance, and there’s been a strong difference of opinion about that. He has been open, supportive and accessible, and he sits in our Zoom calls when he can.”

“As clergy and as a parent, I feel the anxiety of crossing this threshold from summer and going back to school,” Ruehl said. “I think that’s a powerful step.”

 Mike Ferguson, Editor, Presbyterian News Service

Let us join in prayer for: 

PC(USA) Agencies’ Staff

Elle Drumheller, Presbyterian Publishing Corporation
Kate Duffert, Office of the General Assembly

Let us pray:

Gracious Lord, equip and empower your followers to join you in preaching good news liberating the oppressed and proclaiming the Lord’s favor. Amen.

Medical Missions Live - March 2 | MBF

The Future of Training Medical Professionals 7:00 PM Central  |  Tuesday, March 2

David C.Thompson MD, FACS, FWACS Dear Ministry Partner,  On Tuesday, March 2nd we have the opportunity to talk about how the landscape is changing for training medical professionals wanting to serve in lower-resourced countries. Our guest is a very well-known surgeon and international leader, Dr. David Thompson.   Dr. Thompson is regarded as the key pioneer in establishing surgical residencies in Africa whose personal experience spans numerous countries in different settings throughout the world. Born in the U.S, he grew up in Cambodia where his parents worked for 16 years. When he was 14, he and his father tried unsuccessfully to save a Cambodian man who was seriously injured when a truck and a bus collided. God used the incident to plant a desire in David's young heart to become a doctor and help people who had limited healthcare access. David graduated from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine in 1973 with an M.D. and eventually completed five years of residency in general surgery in Southern California. In 1977 he and his wife Rebecca moved to Gabon, Africa and for the next 34 years built a 150-bed full-service hospital to provide medical services to Gabon's least served provinces.   In 1996, Dr. Thompson helped establish the Pan-African Academy of Christian Surgeons (PAACS), an organization that trains African surgeons at Christian hospitals throughout the continent and oversees teaching programs in 8 countries with 105 residents in training. Since 2014, Dr. Thompson has been working as a volunteer to train Egyptian surgeons at Harpur Memorial Hospital.   This is a discussion you do not want to miss. Join us on Tuesday night, March 2, 2021, at 8 pm eastern / 7 pm central. Please have your questions ready for us. We look forward to you connecting with us live via Zoom or on Facebook Live on Tuesday, 3/2/2021 at 5 pm PDT/7 pm CDT/8 pm EDT. If you choose to view with Zoom you will need to pay attention to both the login and the passcode included for you below.   Blessings   E. Andrew Mayo  President and CEO  When: Mar 2, 2021, 07:00 PM Central Time (US and Canada) Topic: The Future of Training Medical Professionals Please click the link below to join the webinar: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89922163248?pwd=MFRtelJKQzE3NVlZblluUVdGSlNNZz09 Passcode: 854269 Or iPhone one-tap :  US: +13462487799,,81290361210# or +12532158782,,81290361210#  Or Telephone: Dial(for higher quality, dial a number based on your current location):  US: +1 346 248 7799 or +1 253 215 8782 or +1 669 900 6833 or +1 301 715 8592 or +1 312 626 6799 or +1 929 205 6099  Webinar ID: 812 9036 1210 International numbers available: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kdLSF9s4vm https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84975449192?pwd=MjMzanhvY2h6cndnb1FQV3cwNDZYQT09 Together we can heal lives and secure futures. INTERNATIONAL HEADQUARTERS 9555 W. Sam Houston Pkwy South, Suite 170 Houston, TX 77099 1.800.547.7627 | 1.281.201.2043 | www.medicalmission.org

Today in the Mission Yearbook - Showers and blessings

First Presbyterian Church of Plano, Texas, cares for its neighbors with both suds and duds

February 26, 2021

First Presbyterian Church of Plano, Texas adds to the blessing of Streetside Showers, a mobile trailer that provides “20 minutes of hot, soapy solitude” by bringing clothes to those who take advantage of the shower. (Contributed photo)

The people of First Presbyterian Church of Plano are adding blessings to the showers a local organization provides for homeless people.

The church, north of Dallas, has operated a clothes pantry for 53 years, but that ministry was paused when the building was closed due to the pandemic. Thankfully, this turned out to be not an ending but a new opportunity for the church to serve others.

First-Plano connected with an organization called Streetside Showers, which provides a weekday mobile shower unit for the homeless. On Wednesdays, church volunteers haul clothes from the pantry and other items purchased from area thrift stores to bless the recipients of the showers.

First-Plano is among churches throughout the Synod of the Sun that are finding ways to respond creatively to ministry challenges during the coronavirus outbreak. Often, this involves partnerships with other ministries to accomplish what neither could do alone.

“They have this mobile shower unit. We looked at what they are doing and said, ‘We can help you guys,’” said Ted McKown, a church elder not currently serving on session.

Streetside Showers brings a mobile trailer to underserved communities “to provide our guests with 20 minutes of hot, soapy solitude so they may leave with a heightened sense of dignity,” according to its website.

Lance Olinski began Streetside Showers in 2017 with a small trailer containing two bathrooms and shower stalls. He takes the trailer to locations in the Dallas area, including Plano on Wednesdays.

McKown said the church discovered it could “add value” to this ministry by bringing clothes to the shower location in Plano every Wednesday, where 30 to 40 people are served. Streetside Showers provides guests with new underwear, a bag of toiletries and a clean towel.

“They would shower and put their old clothes on, and we thought, ‘We can do better than that.’ We have a clothes closet at our church that has been going about 53 years. Now during COVID, we’ve shut down the building,” said McKown, who also moderates the church’s mission study team.

Now the clothes closet is going to where the people gather who need it — just another example of how the church of Jesus Christ is being the church during challenging times. Often people arrive before the showers are open to pick out the clean clothes they will be putting on afterward.

On Tuesday nights, about five church workers sort and prepare items for the next day’s donations. When they are short of clothing needed for that week, they shop local thrift shops to fill the void. Others donate money to fund purchases.

Gary Schultz, who also serves on the mission study team, said they discovered Streetside Showers while searching for opportunities in which a small congregation with limited resources could make a difference in the community. The partnership with Streetside Showers made sense, and the church produced a YouTube video inviting neighboring churches to join the effort.

Schultz and his wife, Judy, said participating in the ministry has been “eye-opening,” especially because of the opportunity to build relationships, which destroys stereotypes. Among the recipients of clothes are those who are preparing for job interviews or who are underemployed — not making enough money to provide for daily needs. Judy Schultz met a gig worker who because of the virus lost her contract job setting up stages for performances.

“There’s a real satisfaction knowing you are going right to the people in need,” her husband said. “There’s no middleman.”

 Rev. Matt Curry for the Synod of the Sun, Special to Presbyterian News Service

Let us join in prayer for: 

PC(USA) Agencies’ Staff

Simon Doong, Presbyterian Mission Agency
Jhanderys Dotel-Vellenga and Ian Vellenga, Presbyterian Mission Agency

Let us pray:

Gracious God, we praise you. May your peace cover the land, show your compassion anew and bring tragedy to an end. Make your church a sign of our compassion in a hurting world. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

Today in the Mission Yearbook - Small but mighty

Meet New Mexico’s White Rock Presbyterian Church, the personification of congregational vitality

February 25, 2021

Volunteers with White Rock Presbyterian Church in north-central New Mexico volunteers prepare food boxes for delivery to the Navajo community that has been adversely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. (Photo courtesy of White Rock Presbyterian Church)

If you’re looking for a congregation that personifies the spirit of Matthew 25 congregational vitality, you will find one in White Rock Presbyterian Church (WRPC) in White Rock, an unincorporated community of nearly 6,000 people in Los Alamos County in north- central New Mexico. “We’re a small little church,” said Jennifer Holmes, who serves as a deacon at White Rock. “When we used to go to church, prior to the pandemic, we would have between 20 and 25 people in service. And that includes the pastor and the pianist and any little kids that happen to come. It’s really small. We’re one of those little churches you read about. In some ways you might look at it like we’re just barely hanging on, if you look at our numbers and our budget. On the other hand, we are so vital in our community and in our larger community.”

White Rock Presbyterian Church exemplifies that vitality through its ongoing work with the Navajo Nation. According to the Navajo Nation Department of Health, the Navajo Nation has one of the highest coronavirus infection rates in the country. WRPC, in partnership with Navajo House of Fellowship near Bread Springs, south of Gallup, has worked through a small nonprofit organization, Nihitaa’ Binaanish, meaning “Our Father’s Business,” to assist the Navajo Nation community during this unprecedented time. The nonprofit was started with assistance from WRPC to help funding go directly to the Navajo community.

“This is more than a project,” said Holmes. “This is just woven into the fabric of our whole church. It was there way before the pandemic started and it will be there way afterwards.”

“This is an ongoing partnership and there are so many unique things about it,” she said. “But one of the interesting things is the Navajo church. It’s a local kind of almost house church. It’s led by two Navajo pastors who are so dedicated to serve, serving their community and just being the hands and the feet of the church.”

“It’s a humble little church. The church has no running water,” she said. “They are just servants. They’re on the ground, and they’ve been doing that work for 20 years before we started partnering with them in 2008.” Holmes says the Navajo church came to their town to help the White Rock congregation.

“The Navajo House of Fellowship congregation comes up periodically to help us. When we were recently in between pastors, Pastor Fred (Fred Thomas) came up and preached for us. They came up and worked on fundraising events for Nihitaa’ Binaanish.”

White Rock Presbyterian Church and Navajo House of Fellowship through Nihitaa’ Binaanish have collaborated with other organizations, including the National Guard, private entities like food banks and other nonprofits to bring needed items including food to the Navajo people during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Holmes says the response has been tremendous. She says five National Guard truckloads of water and supplies have been delivered to the Navajo people. Just last week there was a large dairy truck that delivered needed products, and 500 boxes of food was distributed. “People just pulled up in their cars and we put it in their trunks and at the same time, we’re really trying to promote the Navajo Nation’s Department of Health protocols by educating people on the importance of wearing masks, social distancing and hygiene,” she said.

Also, WRPC members have made masks, donated supplies and financially supported the efforts. “We feel that God has called us to do this work,” she said. “We have a wonderful pastor, Deb Worley, who just came on last year and she has just jumped in the middle of this and been so supportive.”

While White Rock Presbyterian Church may be small by some measures, but it’s obviously doing a very mighty work. It is a living example of a Matthew 25 church.

Gail Strange, Director of Church and Mid Council Communications, Presbyterian Mission Agency

Let us join in prayer for: 

PC(USA) Agencies’ Staff

Carla Dobson, Presbyterian Foundation
David Dobson, Presbyterian Publishing Corporation

Let us pray:

Gracious God, we pray for your pastors and churches and for all who suffer. Send your Holy Spirit to lift them and to replenish them for the work ahead. Amen.

Today in the Mission Yearbook - ‘Healthy Church’ in Taiwan is a blessing for mission co-worker

The Rev. John McCall celebrates with members of Taiwan’s Amis culture

February 24, 2021

The Rev. John McCall, second from left, is pictured with a church elder, the chief, and the pastor, his former student. (Contributed photo)

When a mission co-worker is invited to speak at a Sunday service, the road that takes them there and the service itself can look very different than what we are used to.

The Rev. John McCall, who has served in partnership with the Presbyterian Church of Taiwan for more than 20 years, has learned that each invitation is different and sometimes challenging to navigate. But when he leaves, he always feels blessed.

 In a letter to supporters, he talked about one of those experiences, pre-COVID-19, when he was asked by an aboriginal pastor from one of the pastor leadership groups, he works with to speak at one of the church’s weekend retreats. The plan was to speak on Saturday afternoon and preach on Sunday morning. He was told to take the mass transit system to the last station and a church member would pick him up.

“We left the station and began to wind up a mountain road,” he wrote. “I had taken this road many years before, but ever since the new highway was built, this road has been the road less traveled. I found that it is now traveled by many motorcycle enthusiasts, so on Saturday morning there were lots of people out enjoying the fresh air.”

They arrived at the retreat center, down a narrow mountain road to the river, to meet church members of the Amis tribe, one of 16 official tribes in Taiwan. The Amis tribe is the largest tribe numerically in Taiwan and traditionally have lived along the ocean, making their living as fisher folk. McCall has been a clergy member of the Western Amis Presbytery (which includes most of the urban Amis churches) for 20 years, so he immediately felt welcome.

After lunch and worship, McCall stood up to teach.

“From the meeting room we could see the river and the white water flowing through big boulders. As I looked out at the faces, I saw many folks whom I have known for many years,” he said. “The name of this church is the ‘Healthy Church,’ and it truly is a group of healthy Christians. I talked about the depth of God’s love for each one of them, and how God can use them to be a blessing in this time of uncertainty and challenge.”

Later, McCall met with a young couple whose daughter he would baptize the following morning.

That evening the group gathered in an open pavilion for an evening of thanksgiving and celebration of the Amis culture. Every rural village has a harvest festival, but this group of urban aboriginals leave the city to every year to come to this location by the river to join in traditional songs and dance.

“It was a privilege for me to participate with them in this intergenerational thanksgiving event. Each fellowship group in the church presented its own unique dancing and singing. Then at the end of the evening the chief led all of us in a huge dance which moved us through the pavilion,” he said. “There was joy on each face, and it was a beautiful thing for me to see the way as marginalized people in Taiwan, they embody dignity in their identity as indigenous people and as God’s children. Their natural sense of belonging and community is powerful in our isolated world.”

As a gift, they presented McCall with a new Amis vest and handmade shoulder bag to carry supplies. Before retiring, the chief put his net in the river and the next morning harvested a full bucket of fish.

On Sunday morning, McCall preached and conducted the baptism.

After worship, church members walked among eight different grills of fish, pork and chicken in order to fill their plates.

McCall said when he returned to the city to get on the train, it was with a full heart.

“It was full of the love which these people share with each other. It was full of the beauty of that place beside the river. It was full of faith which is being passed from generation to generation in true and authentic ways,” McCall said. “Every time I am with them, they continue to teach me so much.”

 Kathy Melvin, Director of Mission Communications, Presbyterian Mission Agency

Let us join in prayer for: 

PC(USA) Agencies’ Staff

Rebecca Dimon, Presbyterian Mission Agency
David Dinkel, Administrative Services Group

Let us pray:

Gracious God, we thank you for adopting us into the family of faith. Challenge us to find ways to join hands with others that we might together glorify your name. Amen.

Today in the Mission Yearbook - Getting faith formation and worship resources into people’s homes

Theology, Formation & Evangelism’s ‘Scattered Church’ project features three worship helps

February 23, 2021

Theology, Formation & Evangelism is helping churches and worshiping communities get the Growing in God: A Bible Story, the Book of Common Worship, Daily Prayer and the Glory to God Hymnal to people who are doing faith formation at home.

Church and worshiping community leaders, are you looking for ways to support families in faith formation at home during a time of pandemic? Would you like your community to have access to a children’s Bible, hymnal and prayers in their home?

If you answered yes, then Theology, Formation & Evangelism in the Presbyterian Mission Agency can help. Thanks to an endowment made possible by generous donors and a partnership with the Presbyterian Publishing Corporation and the PC(USA) store, TFE is making it possible for churches and worshiping communities to purchase a limited number of Growing in God’s Love: A Story Bible, the Glory to God Hymnal and the Book of Common Worship, Daily Prayer.

All three books have engaging resources to help parents, children and families in their faith formation activities and worship at home.

Growing in God’s Love includes 150 popular Bible stories organized by 13 themes including Strong Women and Men; Listening for God; Parables; Healing and Miracles; and more. It also features:

• Diverse work from more than 20 artists appealing to a variety of ages and learning styles.
• Three reflection questions — Hear, See, Act — are included at the end of every story to help children ponder the message they’ve learned.
• New companion curriculum for Sunday school classrooms that has a new in-home component.

The Rev. Dr. David Gambrell, associate for Worship in the PC(USA)’s Office of Theology and Worship, is excited about this opportunity to bring vital worship resources like the BCW Daily Prayer Edition and the Presbyterian hymnal Glory to God into each person’s home. He said the 2018 BCW Daily Prayer Edition was designed to be a convenient and accessible resource for prayer in every home. With that in mind, the 2018 edition has:

• Brief services of prayer at different times of the day, arranged in chronological order throughout the week
• Additional resources for the seasons and festivals of the Christian year.
• Chanting or responsive reading for all 150 psalms, with short prayers related to the themes of each one.
• A section of “ancient and classic” prayers and litanies, enabling users to pray with church leaders throughout the past 2,000 years.
• Prayers for various occasions including preparation for worship, baptismal discipleship, ministry in the church, mission in the world, human life and vocation, marriage and family, healing and wholeness, and death and resurrection. A house blessing is also provided.
• Two daily lectionaries: a three-year set of daily readings related to the Revised Common Lectionary and an expanded version of the two-year daily lectionary.

And the 2013 hymnal Glory to God features:

• 853 hymns, psalms, and spiritual songs in a wide range of musical styles, including classic, contemporary, gospel, spiritual, folk and global songs.
• Theological organization based on “God’s mighty acts” and “our response to God,”with “the church at worship” in the center.
• Hymns ordered according to the biblical chronology of salvation history, so users can sing through the story of the faith.
• Brief orders of worship for the Lord’s Day, baptism and reaffirmation, and daily prayers are provided in the front of the hymnal.

“With these three books in hand,” Gambrell said, “Presbyterians will be equipped to learn and share God’s story, sing new and old songs to the Lord and pray with the whole body of Christ.”

Already stories along with requests for funding to purchase these resources are coming in. While expressing gratitude, churches and worshiping communities are sharing stories about struggling with equipping families, digital worship and online Sunday school, and helping their members learn new prayers and sing the hymns they love.

Worshiping community and church leaders who need these resources are encouraged to go here. Scroll down to “Scattered Church Resource Support.” After clicking on the apply link, fill it out, indicating how which resources you’d like and how many. There is a limit of 10 of each resource, 30 in all. Depending on demand, priority will be given to smaller congregations and communities.

Paul Seebeck, Communications Strategist, Presbyterian Mission Agency

Let us join in prayer for: 

PC(USA) Agencies’ Staff

Christy Dickson, Presbyterian Foundation
Dawn Diggs, Presbyterian Foundation

Let us pray:

Gracious God, we pray for our pastors and churches and for all who suffer. Send your Holy Spirit to lift them and to replenish them for the work ahead. Amen.

News from Presbyterian World Mission – February 2021

Mission Matters The Rev. Jed Hawkes Koball, a mission co-worker with his wife, Jenny Valles, in Peru, writes about the important Matthew 25 work of dismantling structural racism. Read mission matters →

Presbyterian Church in Congo reimagines caring for vulnerable children Serge, a young boy in Congo, was accused of being a sorcerer and forced to live on the street. Now he is learning masonry skills through a church-sponsored program for vulnerable children. (Photo by the Rev. André Manyayi) Read more →

Announcing the World Mission matching challenge for Spring 2021 Every day, mission co-workers like Cathy Chang and Juan Lopez Carrasco in the Philippines work to share the Word of God and the peace of Christ in some of the most troubled and desperate places on the planet. Your gift to Presbyterian World Mission will allow them to continue to promote social justice and solidarity against the ever-worsening human rights situation where they live and serve. And when you make your gift by Easter Sunday, April 4, you will double its life-changing impact thanks to a special group of our committed donors who has pledged to match all gifts for mission personnel support, up to $44,760. Thank you for your support of all our mission co-workers as, powered by your caring support, we live into being a Matthew 25 denomination. Double your gift →

Everyday God-Talk features mission co-workers in Korea Hyeyoung Lee and the Rev. Kurt Esslinger have lived and worked as PC(USA) mission co-workers in Korea since 2013. They recently shared more about their ministry on Everyday God-Talk, an online resource of the Office of Theology and Worship hosted by So Jung Kim, associate for theology in the Presbyterian Mission Agency. Read more →

A year of online service has taken many forms For the first time in the nearly 30-year history of the Young Adult Volunteer (YAV) program, the COVID-19 global pandemic forced the program to be a virtual during 2020–21. Read more →

Sunday at the border On a cool Sunday evening in Arizona, mission co-workers Miriam Maldonado Escobar and the Rev. Mark Adams (red hood) gathered with group of Christians on the border between Agua Prieta, Mexico, and Douglas, Arizona, for a prayer pilgrimage in solidarity with the "Not Another Foot" movement to call for an end to the massive border wall spanning the entire Southern border of the United States. (Photo by Jenea Sanchez) Read more →

Global partners working to help Mediterranean refugees On Oct. 3, 2013, the world watched in horror as photos emerged of a boat full of migrants from the horn of Africa, seeking refuge on the Italian island of Lampedusa, sank, killing more than 350 people. (Photo by Kathy Melvin) Read more → Young Adult Volunteer alumna leads two Presbyterian churches in rural Montana As her college graduation approached, Maggie Lewis remembers feeling that God was calling her to be a missionary in Africa. She didn’t know exactly how to make that happen, so she decided to do some research. (Photo by Nancy Lewis) Read more →

Looking back generations to see the path forward Accepting a first call to ministry and moving during a pandemic may not be ideal, but one thing is certain: The Rev. Katheryn McGinnis is following in the footsteps of a long line of Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) pastors, including her grandfather, great-grandfather, great-great grandfather and great-great-great grandfather. Read more → Reminding returning citizens they are ‘holy and beloved’ children of God The Rev. Riley Pickett, a Young Adult Volunteer alumna, is reentry pastor of Hagar’s Community Church, a 1001 New Worshiping Community inside the largest women’s prison in the state of Washington. Pickett, a YAV in New Orleans in 2016–17, assists women being released from the WCCW. Read more →

‘To go or not to go’ COVID-19 has changed the way congregations and presbyteries are participating in mission. Before you plan your next mission or service trip, consider whether or not you should go during the pandemic. This resource provides a few guiding questions about trips and some alternatives to consider. View resource →

Matthew 25 – A bold vision and invitation We recognize Christ’s urgent call to be a church of action, where God’s love, justice and mercy shine forth and are contagious. Over 680 churches and mid councils have accepted the Matthew 25 invitation to help our denomination become a more relevant presence in the world by building congregational vitality, dismantling structural racism and eradicating systemic poverty. You are invited →

In Remembrance The Rev. Durwood "Woody" Busse (Iran, Pakistan, Central Asia) Dates of service: 1985–2005 (2/7/2021) Ross Kinsler (Guatemala, Costa Rica) Dates of service: 1963–2001 (12/9/2020)

Coronavirus/COVID-19 — Latest church resources for congregations and members