Grace Covenant Presbyterian Church

Grace Notes
Volume 42, Issue 9

September 2012

RALLY DAY 2012!

As our summer winds to a close, let's look ahead at what's coming up this month at Grace Covenant. We invite everyone at Grace Covenant to join us on Sunday, September 16, for Rally Day as we kick off our Sunday School year. Meet us in the Fellowship Hall of the church at 9:00 a.m. for breakfast, and at 9:30 a.m. hear about all the Sunday School classes we offer (for all ages) and meet the teachers. If you wish to help out with the breakfast on Rally Day, please contact Christof Meyer (christof_meyer@me.com) or Erika Tabor (e.g.tabor@juno.com). Thank you to all the summer adult Sunday School teachers, who discussed insightful and inspiring heroes of the faith. We hope to see you at Rally Day! -Christian Education Committee

Nominations for Officers

Your Nominations Committee has the weighty responsibility of bringing before the congregation nominees to serve as officers of the church. They willingly put in hours of prayer, discussion, and conversations with potential nominees in order to discern Gods will for Grace Covenants leadership. One of the foundations of our Reformed tradition is the priesthood of all believers (cf. 1 Peter 2:9). That belief is expressed not only in the election of officers by the congregation (as opposed to being appointed by the pastor or the presbytery), but also by the congregation when they suggest nominees to the Nominations Committee. Last years committee was particularly grateful for the many recommendations it received from the congregation. Those suggestions allowed it to concentrate on prayer, discernment, and discussion. Please continue that tradition of strong support this year by forwarding your recommendations to the committee. This fall we will elect 5 Ruling Elders, 4 Deacons, 4 members to the Nominating Committee, and 1 Trustee. Nomination forms are available in the Narthex and next to the Choir Room, although you may also email your recommendations to Jordan Ball, Nominations Committee chair, at jball11@verizon.net (if you do so, please include a few sentences supporting your recommendation along with the name or names). Please make your recommendations soon, so that the committee is not pressed for time in its deliberations. Thank you for your support of this congregation In Christ, Brint

Page 4

Stewardship Corner and Financial Update

Julys contribution total of $35,400 was down substantially from Junes $51,900 total, an unusually high month. Year-to-date contributions are about 22% higher than last year. Julys total income of $49,500 included a transfer of $10,000 from Restricted Funds to meet rather high expenses of $72,700. Their expenses included $12,300 in insurance costs and $16,100 in improvements for tenants in the Stuart Circle Building. Julys expenses also included $5,000 for masonry re- pointing on the sanctuary exterior which was reimbursed by the Building Fund in August. Expenses in July exceeded income by $25,200, and for the first seven months of the year the deficit totaled $25,200, compared with $51,500 at this time last year (exclusive of repayments from the Child Development Center and an advance from the Radio Fund). Our Loaves and Fishes contributions in July were $1,681, while the Five Cents Per Meal offering was only $68.

Loaves and Fishes Fund Update

The Loaves and Fishes Fund is an opportunity to support local families in need and international mission work. To date, we have received pledges (including the anonymous donor's matching gifts) of $22,332 for this year! Of that pledged amount, we have received $13,699.64. We recently allocated over $3,000 to help a family with a newborn child who had many unexpected medical needs. They now have a reliable car to get them to and fro! We are so thankful for everyone's generosity and look forward to sharing more stories with you. We also want to know about families that we might be able to help in the future. Please contact Matt Hartman at 212-1961, or mchartman@vcu.edu if you know of a family in need.

Openers/Closers
September 2 September 9 September 16 September 23 September 30 Wayne Casey Cal Gray Lloyd Bostian Charlie Appich Rob Rosebro

Elementary Sunday School

September 16 September 23 September 30 Rally Day Erika Tabor Megan Meyer Erika Tabor Megan Meyer

Worship Kits
Lisa Cardwell

Sunday Fellowship Hour

September 2 September 9 Carol Wood Kent Cardwell Jean Appich Ann Pais Jan Kessel The Savages

Childrens Worship Kits

We need volunteers to help with Worship Kits. Worship Kits are small bags we give to children to help them follow the sermon with a bulletin and an activity sheet. Worship Kits volunteers are based on a monthly rotation. Please contact Lisa Cardwell, at 285-7044 if you are willing to serve in this ministry. Filling the Worship Kits can be done on Sunday mornings as well as during the week.

September 16 September 23 September 30

Grace Notes Deadline: September 21 is the deadline for submissions for our October edition.

September Birthdays
1- Lisa Gray 1- Dana McKnight 1- Justin Sandford 1- Grace Brooks 3- Jack Pritchard 3- Wade Kennedy 6- John Davis 7- John Lootens 7- Joshua Zobule 8- Virginia Nelson 9- Virginia Hudson 12- Matt Hartman 13- Gloria Gregory 16- Caitlin Corby 17- Jody Hazlegrove 17- Jennifer Hackett 18- Charles Holmes 18- Sarah Nelson 19- Frances Mack 19- Eletta Michaux 19- Henry Hazlegrove 21- Nancy Plunkett 23- Samuel Weddington 24- John Martin Roberts 25- Elizabeth Ramsey 26- Jim Appich 27- Alexander Drew Wilson 28- Chris Tetzlaff 29- David Holt 30- Judy Motley 30- Vanessa Strait

Mothers Together
On behalf of the leaders and participants of Mothers Together, we want to say thank you for the generosity and hospitality that Grace Covenant has shown this ministry over the past six years. When we started meeting in 2006, eight women and their children gathered weekly in the Social Room to seek the friendship, Bible study, and spiritual community they so desperately needed in this season of their lives. In the past six years, this ministry has grown to more than 50 women and over 50 children, using two kitchens and up to ten rooms at a time during our Thursday morning meetings. We recognize that you have freely offered the use of the building, facilities, supplies, and staff assistance in order to see this ministry grow and lives changed. Even when Mothers Together became its own ministry outside the umbrella of GCPC, you generously offered the use of your facilities free of charge to us. Your gifts and sacrifices have been fruitful and have not gone unnoticed! The lives of women and children (and by extension, families and neighborhoods) are forever changed, drawn closer to the love and Lordship of Jesus Christ, because of your gracious hospitality. Thank you so much! As the ministry has grown, so have our needs to adequately care for the women and children who come seeking Jesus. Particularly in the area of our children's program, we have outgrown the available space and resources of Grace Covenant, so we have needed to seek out other venues to meet these needs. For this reason, Mothers Together will be meeting at another location (Third Presbyterian Church) beginning this fall. This change is bittersweet to us, because of so many rich memories of years past and the love and support this congregation has always shown to us. Grace Covenant has been home for us, and even though we move into a new space, you will continue to hold a very special place in our hearts and in our memories. Thank you again for the love of Christ demonstrated so beautifully to us and to the women, children, and families of Richmond. We pray for rich blessings and fruitful growth for Grace Covenant in the years to come. Your fellow servants of Jesus, Adrianne Thompson, Leslie Hartman, Lauren Luck, Jennifer Saval, Anna Martin, Patricia Clarke

Brothers and sisters in Christ Im writing this at my desk on my first day back in the office, catching up on news from the past few weeks and preparing for a September filled with promise and ministry. First, thanks to all of you for the week I enjoyed on vacation with my family in late July. It was a wonderful, unhurried time away, and time together. It reminded me of the singular importance of Sabbath-keeping, when God calls us to lay aside all earthly labor and concerns and simply focus all our attention upon Him. We cannot share the living water of Gods gracious love with others, except that we take the time to be filled ourselves. It is not automatic for Christians not even for Jesus. The Gospels all witness to His regular habit of taking time away to be fully and intentionally present to His heavenly Father in prayer. If you have not made Sabbath-keeping a part of your week, I strongly encourage you to resolve to do so, particularly as we re-enter the full schedules of the fall calendar. If you would like suggestions on how to go about this, please let me know. Secondly, thanks for the prayer, the wonderful cards, and the meals that so many of you provided during my surgery and convalescence. Thanks especially to God, for His healing grace and for the sublime miracle that is the human body. Healing restoration renewal is truly an extraordinary and amazing power that He has bestowed upon us in these earthen vessels we inhabit. We are designed to heal. When our bodies are the recipients of injury or trauma, their automatic reaction is to heal to mend what is broken, to protect what has been exposed, to restore what has been lost, to renew what has been damaged. This takes place even without our conscious or deliberate effort (a fact for which all parents of knee-skinning toddlers and children are certainly grateful). Its how God has made us. He has designed our bodies to reorient themselves toward life time after time after time whenever sickness or injury temporarily turns us aside. I confess that I take it for granted most of the time. After all, its what we expect. Consequently, when a person does not heal when wounds fester, when immune systems fail, when cells succumb to cancer, when memory decays it is a sobering reminder that, in this world, The Fall affects not only our judgment and behavior, but also the more concrete expressions of Gods perfect design. Nothing is free from its corrupting power. The Body of Christ is no different. It is designed to heal. The exercise of love and forgiveness which is no less than the Blood of Christ coursing through His Body repairs rifts, heals wounds, restores strength, alleviates pain. It is constantly re-orienting itself toward life, and away from death. It is one of the boldest and most powerful aspects of our witness in the world: that in the midst of a fallen world filled with pain and suffering and recrimination and self-preservation, the Church stands forth as a Body as a community that not only proclaims life, but models it by personal example. The Church announces to the world the gracious and saving power of our Lord Jesus Christ, and shows the world by its conduct what a life arising from this power looks like. Actually, there is one difference. Unlike the human body, the life-seeking power of Christs blood does not automatically manifest itself in His Body. Rather, it is something that His followers must make a deliberate choice to do (cf. Matthew 16:24; Joshua 24:15). That choice requires daily effort, for the enemy will not surrender his agenda of death and corruption just because one announces that one will follow Christ (cf. Matthew 26:35).

-continued on page 8-

September
Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday
2 Prayer 9:15 am Sunday School 9:30 am Worship 10:55 am Fellowship Hour 12 noon Disciple 1:00 pm

4 Care Team Meeting 3:00 5 Staff Meeting 1:00 pm pm Administration and Deacons Meeting 6:00 pm Chancel Choir 7:00 pm Intl. Student Cookout at CDC Staff Meeting 6:10 pm Fellowship Meeting 7:00 pm Reveleys 4:00 pm 3 LABOR DAY! CHURCH OFFICE and CDC CLOSED 10 Mens Lunch 12 noon Worship Ministry and Property Ministry 7:00 pm 17 Mens Lunch 12 noon CDC Parent Meeting 5:00 pm Conrad Center Outreach 5:15 pm 24 Mens Lunch 12 noon 11 Photo Day for CDC Staff Meeting 10:00 am PW CT Meeting 5:00 pm Finance Meeting 6:00 pm PW Salad Supper 6:00 pm Missions & PNC 7:00 pm 18 Staff Meeting 10:00 am
12 Carol Choir 4:30 pm CDC Board Meeting 5:00 pm Junior Choir 5:00 pm

9 Prayer 9:15 am Sunday School 9:30 am Worship 10:55 am Fellowship Hour 12 noon Disciple 1:00 pm 16 RALLY DAY!!! Prayer 9:15 am Sunday School 9:30 am Worship 10:55 am Fellowship Hour 12 noon Inquirers Class 12:30 pm 23 Prayer 9:15 am Sunday School 9:30 am Worship 10:55 am Fellowship Hour 12 noon Inquirers Class 12:30 pm
30

Chancel Choir 7:00 pm 19 WNL 6:00 pm BEGINS Chancel Choir 7:15 pm 26

Carol Choir 4:30 pm Junior Choir 5:00 pm

Carol Choir 4:30 pm PW Circles Meet see pg. 14 Junior Choir 5:00 pm

Care Team Meeting 3:00 pm 25 Staff Meeting 10:00 am Care Team Meeting 3:00 pm PNC Committee Meets 7:00 pm

WNL 6:00 pm BEGINS Chancel Choir 7:15 pm

Page 7

Thursday

Friday

Saturday 1

7 Community Group 5:45 pm

13

14

15

20

21 GRACE NOTES DUE! SESSION MEETS 7:00 pm Community Group 5:45 pm

22

27

28

29

-continued from page 5While the cells of our bodies fulfill their designed function according to the programs of their genes, and without our conscious direction, we members of the Body of Christ only work together and fulfill our divine function insofar as we deliberately choose to obey our Lord and yield to His Holy Spirit. Furthermore, this faithfulness and obedience is not something we can accomplish on our own strength (1 Cor. 12:21). We need the support and coordination of other members if we are to faithfully and obediently witness the life-giving, sin-healing, world-saving Body of Christ to the Fan, and to Richmond. The Small Groups ministry is designed precisely to nurture and strengthen this fundamental witness. It began somewhat organically in the first days after Jesus resurrection (Acts 1) as a continuation of the fellowship of the twelve disciples, and continued throughout the centuries. The author of the Epistle to the Hebrews emphasizes both its importance and its character when he writes, let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another (Heb. 10:24-25 [ESV]). It is the logical and necessary complement to our Christian Education & Discipleship Ministry. The aim of schooling and learning is to prepare one for living. The medical student studies before beginning practice as a doctor; so too, the musician, the financial analyst, the engineer, the teacher, the mechanic, the chef, the social worker. No one disputes that a healthy and fruitful vocation is one whose practice is continually strengthened and honed by continued study and by regular, honest, constructive interaction with ones peers (such is the foundation for the multi-billion-dollar conference and convention industry in the US). Years ago, when I applied to Georgetown Universitys School of National Security Studies, I learned that they valued peer experience so highly that they categorically refused applications to this masters-level program from anyone who did not have a minimum of five years post-BA experience in the workplace. They recognized that what students brought to the classroom in terms of real-world experience was just as critical as the readings the professor assigned and the lectures that were given. As followers of Christ as His disciples we have no reason (or excuse) to aim lower in the practice of our faith than we do in the performance of our vocations. Numerous surveys have shown that a consistent mark of healthy, growing churches regardless of size, age, or denominational affiliation is a vibrant small groups ministry. The Mission Study team recognized this fact and incorporated it into its recommendations; the Session likewise understood it when they approved and accepted the Mission Study. The intentionality and the design of small groups ministry is an indispensable part of faithful living as a disciple of Christ. I have heard a number of comments indicating a reluctance even a resistance to engaging in small groups. Some have been willing to share the details of their concerns with me, and for that I am very grateful. I am personally still a bit confused as to why Christians would resist such an elemental aspect of discipleship, and the more I learn and understand about peoples concerns, then the better able I am to respond to them. Most of what I hear could be described as undercurrent e.g., someone heard that someone said that someone was apprehensive about small groups. Again, without knowing the specific concerns, Im unable to provide any specific responses. But allow me to address a few points: It is not a compulsory ministry, any more than any other of our ministries are compulsory. We dont force people into ministries at GCPC. Details (such as who will be group leaders, when and where small groups will meet, what groups will focus on during their time together) have not been determined, and may well vary among different groups. -continue to top of page 9-

Page 9

Grace Notes

One fundamental element of small groups is that their membership does not remain static, but changes regularly (just as the Dinner for Six groups are changing membership for the fall). This helps prevent the inadvertent formation of cliques and helps keep group dynamics from becoming stale or too comfortable. Ruling Elder Wayne Casey will be coordinating this ministry, and you will be hearing more from him in the weeks and months to come. He has both experience with, and a great heart for, this ministry. As with any new initiative, speculation begins when people first start talking about it, before folks have had a chance to work out details, and so answers are not immediately forthcoming. Were not going to rush this ministry, and the more we hear of peoples concerns beforehand, the better prepared we will be to implement it in a way that respects and addresses those concerns. But I want to close by stating that my earnest hope indeed, my honest plea is that peoples initial reactions to this promising and biblicallygrounded ministry are characterized more by gratitude for the Sessions leadership and by prayer that this ministry bear fruit to Gods glory, than by hesitancy, apprehension, and reluctance. Even though the physical therapy Im currently undergoing is a bit uncomfortable at times, I can see in my own body the increased strength, the improved circulation and bloodflow, the daily broadening range of motion, and the increased confidence in my own walk and bearing. Not only I, but others have commented on it, as well. In the same manner and by the grace of God the exercise of this small groups ministry will bear fruit in deeper faith for members, in stronger relationships with one another, and in a more radiant and winsome witness to the world. It is our calling as Gods people and what a blessing it is to be so called. Your brother in Christ,

Dinner is served from 6:00 - 6:30 p.m. Menus for September:

September 19: Pork barbeque, cole slaw, baked beans, apple crisp for dessert September 26: Potato bar, salad, and Nells Famous Pies

Programs for September:

September 19 Nicole Williams will present a program of the developments of the CDC. September 26 TBA a program on evangelism is being planned.
Wednesday Night programs are from 6:30 - 7:15 p.m. every week in the Fellowship Hall. Programs include special guest speakers or people in our own congregation, sharing various topics.

Meals are:

$5.00 per adult

$2.00 children and students

$12.00 maximum per family

Page 10

Newsletter Title

From the Food Committee

The Lord has blessed us with a wonderful facility in the main kitchen, and we are grateful that we have been able to use it to support so many ministries over the year. Having just deep-cleaned it for the beginning of the fall ministry season, we kindly ask that you please be sure to clean up after yourself whenever you use the kitchen, so that it may be just as clean for the next user. If you have any questions about using or cleaning the kitchen, please contact Dottie-Ray Koch, chair of the Food Committee, at 749-4634. Thank you!
I feel having the opportunity to commit to reading the Bible frequently, discussing it, and being encouraged to apply the teachings to my life has aided me to increase in my Christian growth. I think Disciple Bible Study is a phenomenal tool to use to help Christians in the Christian journey.- Afua Ossei

We are looking forward to starting up new Disciple Bible Studies in October! We will be focusing on an 11-week study of the Psalms that will have its weekly meetings during the usual Sunday school time. Disciple Bible Study entails roughly 30 minutes of prayerful Scripture reading per day, as well as weekly gatherings with fellow participants to explore the Scriptures more deeply. It is a powerful commitment of time and energy to God that produces lasting spiritual growth. If you are interested or have questions, please contact Nelson Reveley nmr2uf@virginia.edu or at 387-8094. NOTE: If there is enough interest, we may be able to hold another 34-week Disciple Bible Study like the one finishing in the next few weeks. A 34-week study would run in addition to, and independent of, the study on the Psalms. Please contact Nelson if interested in either the Psalms or a 34-week Bible Study.

Fall Outing
Are apples one of your favorite fruits? Then joins us on Saturday, October 13, as the Fellowship Ministry leads a group to Carter Mountain Orchards near Charlottesville. We will meet at the church at 8:45 a.m. and leave at 9:00 a.m. to arrive at the orchard about 10:30 a.m. We will pick our own apples, lunch at the Mountain Grill (which has reasonable prices), and return early afternoon. If you prefer to drive separately, the address for your GPS is: 575 Thomas Jefferson Pkwy. For more information, please contact Carol Wood at 282.2446 or ctwood7@gmail.com.

Page 12

Newsletter Title

CDC
I am happy to announce that all is well at the CDC! With enrollment steadily going up, we are financially stable and have gotten through our dip in numbers that comes with the summer months. However our numbers are able to sustain the financial burden of providing for the children the staffing, nutrition, and equipment that they need. We always work hard to improve the standards of our child care program and curriculum. Pam Booker, a specialist from the Infant Toddler Network, came to assess our program, to assist in creating a quality improvement program, and to train our teachers to meet these goals. Pam has the experience of 26+ years of providing services to children and their families, as well as providing training and technical assistance to early childhood professionals, early intervention, preschool and Head Start programs across the country and the outer Pacific Basin. Ms. Booker obtained her Masters Degree in Early Childhood Special Education from Virginia Commonwealth University in 1991. To create our Quality Improvement Program, Pam has used a nationally recognized assessment tool called ITERS, the Infant Toddler Environmental Rating Scale. ITERS looks at different aspects of what makes quality care, and uses a comprehensive, specific guide to rating your program using these categories. The categories ITERS looks at are:
Parents and Staff - Does the administration support the teachers in the appropriate ways? Are the personal and professional needs of the teachers met on a daily basis? Are the parents supported by the administration? How is communication between parents, staff, and administration?

As you can see, this rating scale does not just look at what toys we have in our classroom. This scale provides a very well-rounded way to improve every aspect of our program, including critiquing the Director! We are all having so much fun learning and improving together! Pam held her first training on Teacher Work Day, which was on environments (the first category). This training focused on the eight most important aspects of providing the best quality environment for Infants and Toddlers. After the training, we took advantage of the rest of the day to put our new knowledge to use! Come check out what we've done! Are you wondering now how you can further support the Child Development Center? Well, you're in luck! We've got some great opportunities for you in the near future depending on your area of interest:

If you would like to volunteer in the CDC, come to Wednesday Night Live on September 19. I will have a volunteer sign-up sheet with scheduled dates for orientation and policy overview which will take about an hour. On Space and Furnishings - are your classrooms set up to pro- September 19, I will be the speaker for WNL. I'll be giving mote development? Is there ample room to explore? Are the ma- everyone an update, so even if you don't want to volunteer, be sure to be there! terials age-appropriate? Is there enough quiet space for each child to be alone when they are overwhelmed? If you want to support the CDC, but don't feel comfortPersonal Care Routines - Are we teaching the children the able around kids or have a too busy work schedule (who self-help skills they need to stay healthy and self-sufficient? doesn't these days?), pretty soon all you'll have to do is Listening and Talking - Is language being promoted to the continue with your regular shopping! Be on the look out in fullest extent? Are the correct language and pre-reading tools the Sunday bulletin for information regarding this year's being used according to classroom? A+ Martin's Rewards Program, which is headed up by Interaction - Are the teachers interacting with the children to Board Member Cherry Corley. their best benefit? Are the teachers facilitating the children interDon't shop at Martins OR have the time to come to the acting with each other, teaching them to social skills they'll need center? Please pray for our teachers and families to work to thrive in school? together, and make the right choices toward quality care. Activities - Are the activities in the class age appropriate? Thank you GCPC members for all of your support. You Do the activities encourage growth in all areas of development? should be proud of the service you are providing for famiProgram Structure - Are the transitions from classroom to lies all over the Richmond area!
classroom smooth and run well? Is the care each child receives consistent due to a well-organized schedule?

Nicole Williams

MUSIC MINISTRY
Music in the church is a ministry that traces its roots to Old Testament times. Through the centuries, music has given the faithful a way to express joy and sorrow, and to declare their faith. At Grace Covenant our music ministry is one of all who gather week to week, from the hymns we sing, to the often complex and difficult music sung or rung by our choirs. We are privileged to have such a diverse music ministry, one that offers so many people such glorious expressions of our love for God. The individuals who participate in our music ministry are faithful, committed, sacrificial givers of time and energy. Some devote up to six hours a week to Grace Covenants music ministry. They are a precious blessing! Our choirs are not only leaders of music in worship, they are also recognized training grounds for musicians, young and old. Our childrens choirs are laying an important foundation for the congregations future and for our children as they grow in understanding of, and involvement in, the worship of God. The Finance Committee has generously appointed a percentage of our operating budget toward the music ministry. Through our music ministry every effort is made to steward this support to honor the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ in our midst, to help you use your voice in His praise, and to experience more fully the delight and joy of praising God. Grace Covenants music ministry forges ahead into another exciting season, and we are always looking for new members in all choirs. It has always been my hope to see our chancel full with choir members, and to see every chancel step filled to capacity with children when they sing. Additional ringers are also needed in the Handbell Choir. New members are welcome at any time. If you are not a member of one of our choirs I hope you will consider joining us! For more information about participating in one of our choirs, please contact me at the church office or speak to me after the postlude one Sunday. We hope to see you at one of our rehearsals! Chris Martin, Director of Music (359-2463, martin@grace-covenant.org)

A special invitation is extended to all Grace Covenant women to be active in Presbyterian Women. It is truly a wonderful opportunity to serve God and to nurture our faith through service, friendship, and Bible study. All women members of Grace Covenant are included in one of three circles. Circles will meet Tuesday, September 18, and will continue to meet monthly on the second Tuesday of each month through May. Circle No. 1 meets in the evening (7:00 p.m.) and is led by Laura Leigh Savage. Circle No. 2 meets at 11:00 a.m. and is led by Pat Aldridge and Dottie-Ray Koch. Circle No. 3 meets at 9:30 a.m. and is led by Lynne Norris, Becky Reeves, and Lewis Rosebro. Circle membership listings are posted on the PW Bulletin Board. Please look for your name in one of the three circles. Feel free to call me at 288-7757 for more information. Our first general meeting will be held Tuesday, September 11, at 6:00 p.m., which will be a salad supper (bring a salad to share) hosted by Circle No. 1. A most interesting program will be presented that evening by Mr. Cal Esleeck, Jr., President, Families of the Wounded Fund. The Coordinating Team will meet September 11, at 5:00 p.m. The Horizons Bible study for circles this year is "Dispatches to God's Household The General Epistles" by Nancy Benson-Nicol. The six books of the New Testament explored in this study First and Second Peter, First, Second, and Third John, and Jude teach us what it means to live in community as disciples of Christ and what it means to belong to the household of God. It is truly enlightening to study the Bible in the circle setting presented by outstanding Bible leaders. We are looking forward to a fun and rewarding year together, and I hope to see you at our meetings and activities throughout the year. Suzanne Sizemore,

Moderator

All Circles Meet on Tuesday, September 18

PW Circle 2 11:00 a.m. Covenant Room

ircle 1 PW C Circle vening E 7:00 p 1 72 7 .m. age venue Park A

PW Circle 3 9:30 a.m. Social Room Hostess: Lewis Rose bro

igh Sav ura Le ss: La Hoste

Hostess: Pat Aldridge

1. Use your time in meaningful ways. 2. Meet new people and make new friends. 3. Give direction to the future of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) 4. Learn marketable skills, gain valuable experience, and share these with others. 5. Transfer your Christian belief into action. 6. Discover new outlets for creative expression and feel a sense of accomplishment. 7. Gain a sense of making a contribution to the lives of others. 8. Enjoy the fellowship and fun of working with others for a common purpose. 9. Grow and develop personally as a Christian woman and disciple of Christ. 10. Be challenged by Christs call to be servant leaders.

School Supplies for Honduras

Children in Honduras attend public school from February to December. Our mission team's planned visit in January is perfectly timed to bring muchneeded school supplies. Our goal is 120 boxes! Suggested contents include pencils, crayons, erasers, sharpeners, pens, children's sunglasses, stickers, small treats, and toys. Donations may be dropped off in the Narthex near the Honduras Missions Display. Thanks to everyone for your help. If you have any questions or would like more information, please contact Susan Pillsbury David at 387-2302 or clwturtle@aol.com.

The Staff
Brint Keyes

2012 Officers
Our Elders serve the church as leaders. Our Deacons lead the church in service. Please feel free to approach them with any questions or feedback about Grace Covenants ministries. CLERK OF SESSION: Everett Reveley ELDERS: Jordan Ball (14) - Nominating (M); Finance Kent Cardwell (12) - Fellowship (M) Wayne Casey (13) - Property, Small Groups (M); Jack Corley (13) - Finance, Mission Matt Hartman - Missions (M) Virginia Hudson (14) - Evangelism (M) Cheryl Jacobs (12) - Worship (M); Fellowship Katie McCullough (13) - Administration (M) Dana McKnight (14) - Finance, Worship, Stewardship Christof Meyer (12) - Christian Ed (M), CDC (M) Tom Miller (12) - Christian Education Joy Nevin (14) - Administration Everett Reveley (12) - Finance (M), Stewardship Robert Rosebro (13) - Property (M) Rob Turner (14) - Worship, Nominating DEACONS: Pat Ball (12) - Flowers Cherry Corley (12) - Communication Cards Susan Farrell (12) - Transportation, Care Nikki Hazlegrove (13) - Vice-Moderator - Meals Jan Kessel (14) - Care Team Jim McCullough (13) - Deacons Fund, Nominating Ann Pais (14) - Care Team Erika Tabor (14) - Secretary - Communication Cards Judy Waldron (14) - Moderator - Cards Dawson Watkins (13) - Care Team Carol Wood (13) - Prayer, Communication Cards Sid Yates (12) - Ushering TRUSTEES: Lloyd Bostian (13) Kent Cardwell (13) Caroline Leith (14) John Nevin (12) Taylor Reveley (12)

Interim Pastor
Revbrint@verizon.net Chris Martin

Director of Music and Organist

martin@grace-covenant.org Vanessa Strait

Administrative Assistant
strait@grace-covenant.org Martha Rubin

Bookkeeper

bookkeeper@grace-covenant.org James Greene

Temporary Sexton
Christopher Tweel

Student Assistant for Christian Education

Christopher.Tweel@upsem.edu Church Office Hours: Monday-Friday, 8:30 a.m.-5:00 p.m. Phone: (804) 359-2463 Fax: (804) 278-6298 www.grace-covenant.org Sundays: 9:30 a.m.
10:55 a.m. 12:00 noon

Sunday School for all ages in the Education Building Worship Service in the Sanctuary Congregational Fellowship in the Social Room

Grace Covenant Child Development Center Nicole Williams

Director director.gccdc@verizon.net