montesano presbyterian church...
TRANSCRIPT
Montesano Presbyterian Church Newsletter April 2020
Congregational Life: Our church family is
in our prayers. We are canceling Fellowship
Hour and all group activities such as game day
and Life Groups until further notice.
We encourage everyone to stay home if you
feel sick, stay home and away from other
people if you are in a vulnerable group (older
or have serious underlying health conditions),
avoid discretionary travel, shopping trips, and
social visits, wash your hands for at least 20
seconds, frequently sanitize high
touch/frequently used items and surfaces
such as door knobs, faucets, appliance
handles, steering wheels, avoid touching your
face with unwashed/sanitized hands; practice
social distancing – at least six to ten feet away
from others, and follow the recommendations
to avoid gatherings of more than 50 people
(Governor Inslee) or more than 10 people
(President Trump).
Pray for each other. Take a break from the
media. Go outside and enjoy the spring
weather (while practicing social
distancing). Start the project you have
neglected for lack of time. Keep in touch by
phone or internet with friends and family.
Don’t panic, remember, most of those tested,
have tested negative. Most who get the virus
survive.
Well, we are mostly here, and
if asked, I would say the essential half is still
in Texas. Melani is doing well and working hard
to maintain motherly obligations and sell the
house, but we miss everyone a great deal.
Soren and I are now living in the church and
time is standing still it seems.
Psalm 1 says, “Blessed is the man who walks not
in the counsel of the wicked, nor sits in the
seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law
of the Lord; and on his law he meditates day
and night. He is like a tree planted by streams
of water that yields its fruit in its season, and
its leaf does not wither.”
From Stephen Covey and the Speed of
Trust.
The tree is rooted in INTEGRITY. Integrity
is the character that God creates in each of
us.
The base of the tree is INTENT based on
character, which will grow strong if nurtured
and pruned properly.
The branches and foliage are CAPABILITIES,
and the fruits are RESULTS. This personal
development gives way to competence.
Montesano Presbyterian Church
201 E McBryde Ave
Montesano WA 98563
360-249-3845 1883 - 2020 Author is licensed under
Covey says, "If the trust is high, things
happen faster and at a lower cost than when
trust is low. According to Covey these are our
core elements of trust. Trust grows where our
motives are straightforward and based on
mutual benefit."
Sunday March 22, I preached on the Sower
and the Heart. Like tree’s roots, the hearts of
our faithful family extend deep, sometimes
for miles as strong interconnecting, fostering,
restorative, vital organs that allow each tree
to thrive, grow, heal and live. We are just like
the Spruce, the Fir, the Cedar and the
Hemlock (I went hiking yesterday at Lake
Sylvia and learned my trees). Each and every
tree is unified by a rich soil, plenty of
nutrients and a system that works together to
benefit the forest, its life and the beauty of
all who come to find peace within it. Our
church family is no different; we are
connected in Christ to grow the Kingdom of
God and share the love we have for our Savior
and those He as redeemed.
P. COBB <><
Who’s Doing What & When
Welcome Team April 4 L. & T. Bullington
April 12 Jarvis & McCombs
April 19 McCullough Family
April 26 L. & J. Schallon
*Indicates change
Worship Leader
April 5 *P. Hildreth
April 12 G. Dalan
April 19 *L. Taylor
April 26 A. Oestreich
*Indicates Change
Coffee Hour
April 5 Open
April 12 Easter
April 19 C. & B. McDougall
April 26 P. Winkler
Birthday Lunch
Since there are no ladies having
birthdays in April there is no birthday
lunch scheduled for the month. If you
have questions about this event or you
want your name added to the birthday
list, please contact Sue Gurney at 360-
249-1488
Family Promise In order to protect our volunteers, the family
being hosted by Family Promise spent the past
weeks at the Day Center. They are on their
own now, though receiving some social
services. Interviews took place at first, then
by phone, but enrollment is now on hold. With
the two week “stay at home” order,
caseworker, Mike, will collect unemployment;
there is nothing for him to do right now.
Director Charles has Family Promise office
work, grant writing, coordination with social
service agencies, and contact with our
graduated families, plus another part time
job. We will keep reassessing as the pandemic
period go on. One project, for which a grant
to is being written, is purchase and installation
or a security/surveillance system for the Day
Center which will serve a number of useful
purposes.
Uganda Trip
We want to thank all of you who were praying
for us during our recent mission trip to
Uganda. We traveled safely and returned
home March 11. We have been 'isolated' since
then. While in Uganda we spoke at ten far-
flung churches attended by more than thirty
pastors and more than a thousand people. We
were also able to begin the purchase on one
at-risk church property, cover a number of
medical needs, and distribute Bibles in several
local languages. We hope to have a minute-
for-mission presentation at the church when
things have settled down a bit.
In Christ,
Jim and Donnie
(A little humor in this time of stress)
“Poverty Social” February 22, 1895
If ever there was a poverty-stricken looking
crowd in Montesano it was to be seen at the
“poverty social” given by the ladies of the
Presbyterian church, Tuesday evening, in the Byles
storeroom. The distress of the beggar Arabs, in
the streets of Cairo, would not call for more
sympathy than the tattered garments and woe-
begone appearance of some of the guests. The
room was too small to accommodate the crowd, and
considerable confusion resulted, but this did not
prevent the social being a financial success, the
ladies announcing their total receipts to be
$29.97.
(Taken from the Feb. 20, 2020 Vidette)
Mission Meals April 21
Linda Anderson Delivers & Devotional P. Hildreth 470-1973 Hot Dish
S. McCombs 249-3338 Hot Dish
P. Gillespie 249-5601 Hot Dish
S. Royce 240-4262 Salad & Dressing for 20
J. Morrill 581-2551 Salad & Dressing for 20
L. Taylor 249-5948 Salad & Dressing for 20
Furnishing dessert for 60 Diana Hill
March 17 Delivers & Devotional
J. Tanner 249-2074 Hot Dish
K. Jarvis 249-5502 Hot Dish
R. Toyra 249-5888 Hot Dish
K. Case 249-6392 Salad & Dressing for 20
S. Jobst 581-2551 Salad & Dressing for 20
J. Wills 593-0558 Salad & Dressing for 20
Furnishing dessert for 60 Don Bingham
Monte Pres always furnishes the meal on the
third Tuesday of each month
From our friends Patty and Stan
Dear friends and family,
As all of you are experiencing many changes
to your lives because of the virus causing the
Covid-19 sickness, we also have been. Last week
we emailed you on Wednesday 18th that, as per
the doctor’s request for high-risk people to leave
PNG, we were preparing to return to the U.S.
because of the pandemic. On Friday we looked
into buying tickets but it was going to be around
$10,000 1-way for both of us because one airline
had drastically increased their price, so we
thought we couldn’t do it. Then on Saturday that
price went way down, so we booked flights to
depart from Ukarumpa Monday morning, from
Port Moresby Wednesday to Singapore, then on
to San Francisco. Australia had already banned
entry of anyone even transiting through their
airports because of the virus, so we couldn’t go
that route. Then on Sunday the news came that
Singapore had also imposed a ban on people
transiting through their airport as of midnight
Monday. There were several people from
Ukarumpa who were booked on our Wednesday
flight to Singapore. So we’ve all had to cancel and
just stay here, as there were no other routes
out. Sunday afternoon we gave our refrigerator
food to our neighbors, as we were to leave
Monday morning. And thankfully they were
happy to return it Monday morning, because the
store was unexpectedly closed for all the
managers to meet. We really enjoyed our
breakfast.
So now we’ve spent hours on the phone and
internet canceling flights and trying to get ticket
refunds. And we are de-stressing about the trip,
which would’ve included spending the night
sleeping on the Changi Airport floor in Singapore
with air conditioning and no blankets amidst
crowds of people with theft going on—and also
finding a place to live in the U.S.
Yesterday all Ukarumpa residents received
orders for each household to begin practicing
isolation, as you in California are familiar with,
and to keep a 'social distance' of two meters
between people when visiting together. Two
days ago the Clinic discovered the first person
with Covid-19 symptoms, but there are no test-
kits here. If you would like to be praying with us,
following are some prayer needs:
1) For God's peace to reign over all of us here at
Ukarumpa, and over all of the PNG people.
2) for good physical and mental health for
everyone here, especially that no more people
would get the virus. (There’s only one confirmed
case in the country as of today.) There are no
medical evacuations of Covid-19 patients allowed
into Australia. And there’s a very small supply of
oxygen canisters at our clinic.
2) for Dr. Tom and the Clinic staff—for God’s
strength, grace, wisdom, coping ability, and rest.
3) That the course of the virus will finish quickly in all the world, and that people will turn to the Lord through it all. We had good times in prayer this morning,
took communion together, and are thankful that
we belong to God and His wonderful family. And
also thankful for a beautiful day here.
Thank you so much for praying for us during
this time. We so appreciate your standing with
us, and are praying for each of you to be
experiencing God’s peace and blessings in the
midst of all of the turmoil. Please let us know if
there's something we can be praying with you
about.
With much appreciation,
Stan & Patty