eNewsletter

 Still basking in that Easter resurrection glow? In this newsletter, you will see some beautiful pictures of glorious celebrations across the Presbytery.  But, but, but…Easter Monday came, and the next week came, and here we are…are you feeling as though you are living the promise of the resurrected Christ?  The Rev. Dr. John Hinkle, pastor of First Murfreesboro, noted that we tend to keep looking for the living among the dead, despite what we know – the living are not with the dead.  

What are you searching for?  Are you letting yourself find it? Is it peace from worries about your family? Is it security about your finances? Is it concern or fear for less fortunate members of your community? Instability in your country? The budget of your church? Feeling poor… or rich…in  spirit? Perhaps you cycle through all those in a single day. Perhaps you forget that we are through with  the days of Lent and well into the glorious days of Easter, even if the Easter chocolate and baskets and eggs are disappearing.  The freedom that Easter brings stays with us.  Dr. Hinkle used the words from two poems by Iain S. Thomas – this one is from “I Found You”:

I can’t believe you’re finally here. 

I've been looking for you for so long, 

Sometimes I forgot I was looking. 

Sometimes I forgot why I was here. 

But now you and me

we’re both here, 

The same time and in the same place, 

And I can finally tell you everything 

I've always wanted to tell you.

 What if you are still searching?  So what?  Aren’t we reformed and always reforming?  Perhaps our charge is just to accept all those times we fail to live in the resurrection.  Perhaps we can own Peter, Thomas, or Paul at their worst as the very people we are.  Perhaps we can also own them at their best. 

Dr. Hinkle offered this quote from Thomas’s  “Every Word You Cannot Say” 
 

I really do hope you find what you're looking for, 

       and I hope you find something new to look for after that, 

              and I hope some part of you is always looking 

                     and that you discover that searching 

                                is something beautiful we all should do.

Thanks be to God for the peace that comes from our search…and our acceptance of what we find.

The Presbytery of Middle Tennessee is working with the Presbyterian Foundation to assist churches in assessing the health of their property by using the Property Health Assessment form.  The purpose of this tool is to assist in gathering information on the history and current condition of your property. This form can be used as a resource to build a more complete picture of the health of your campus.  If you have any questions or suggestions, you can reach out to Evelyn Graham (mevelyngraham@gmail.com) or anyone at the Presbyterian Foundation listed at the bottom of page 5 of the form.  Find the form attached to this newsletter.

The denomination has many grant and scholarship opportunities. From students entering college to those pursuing advanced study to congregations or mid-council initiatives, there could be a grant for that! Click the link below to see if someone you know could benefit from this assistance:

Grants: https://pcusa.org/grants-scholarships

Come join your friends across the Presbytery at Second PC this Sunday, May 4 th from 5:30-7:30pm at the Nueva Vida Cinco de Mayo celebration and fundraiser. Lots of fun, lots of good food,lots of good reasons to come!

Older Adult Sunday is May 4. Presbyterian Older Adult Ministries Network (POAMN) strives to equip faith leaders and volunteers with resources to sustain meaningful ministry with older adults.

POAMN has a worship service that congregations may use on Older Adult Sunday or any other Sunday that they wish. Find this worship service and other resources at https://poamn.org/older-adult-month/.  

Need a worship service for next month to honor older adults in your congregation? Check out this year's service from the 2025 Older Adult Ministry Resource Guide. This is a free resource for anyone to use. The service includes a call to worship, prayers, scripture readings, benedictions, and hymn suggestions. Use or adapt as needed with your sermon. https://poamn.org/oam25-worship/

Holy Week at First Presbyterian Church in Fayetteville

First Presbyterian Church in Fayetteville hosted mid-day Community Holy Week services this year.  Pastors from area churches brought the Word each day, including Pastor Bruce McVey’s “Stations of The Cross” message on Friday.  The guest pastors’ congregations served lunch Monday through Thursday in the First Presbyterian Family Life Center.  The mid-day services were streamed live on Facebook and broadcast on Fayetteville’s WYTM-FM radio.  

As is the church’s long-standing tradition, on resurrection Sunday the congregation placed a cross in the sanctuary and adorned it with live flowers and greenery.  The timbers used to construct the cross were recovered from the remnants of the church’s original 1832 sanctuary, which was destroyed by a tornado in 1851.