2016

Visitor

Transition Team Update

Your Transition Team is especially grateful to the 35 members who braved the snow and participated in our third congregational event on January 17. We had vigorous and productive discussion about leadership and congregational process in our church.

While the team has not completed its analysis of the input received, there were some clear themes that emerged from each discussion table. Members of the team commented afterward that participants echoed the same concerns that had been expressed in Team meetings. In other words, there seems to be a great deal of consensus in our congregation overall and about our leadership and process challenges in particular.

One major theme that surfaced is that members are not clear about congregational process: who is responsible for what and how decisions are managed. They are not sure where to go with questions or which leadership group deals with what issues.

Clarity of process is important for trust to be strong in a congregation, so your Team will be consider-ing recommendations about how PCC can develop a simpler and more streamlined structure and process that is clear to membership.

Another major theme that emerged in our discussion is that current search process language in the Bylaws might not reflect best practices for recommending a new pastor. The Team will likely suggest that this section of the Bylaws be rewritten to reflect a process that is more open to the congregation and more open to candidates outside the DOC denomination.

Your Team will meet again on January 31st to go over the input received and to develop recommenda-tions about next steps. The training of our Search Committee is scheduled to begin in February, so addressing revisions to our search process will need to be “on the front burner.” Please watch these pages for future up-dates. Your Transition Team is committed to communicating our work to the congregation.

Our next congregational feedback event will be Sunday, February 21st after morning worship. Please stay for lunch that day and be part of what God is doing at PCC. We will be addressing the importance of part-nerships in the mission of PCC, including how the church relates to her denomination and other organizations involved in ministry.

The Transition Team,

Tony Bryant, Ann Fletcher, Rev. Dr. Ken Massey, Dinah Myers, Evelyn Nifong, Jill Robertson,

Jackie Romanello, Ruth Saalweachter, Paul Shropshire

PFAFFTOWN CHRISTIAN CHURCH RETURN SERVICE REQUESTED

(Disciples of Christ)

3323 Transou Road

PO Box 130

Pfafftown, NC 27040

Phone: 336-924-9925 Fax: 336-924-2501

Email: Office@pfafftownchristian.org

Website: www.pfafftownchristian.org

Church Staff

Rev. Dr. Ken Massey,

Interim Pastor

Rev. Lori Carter,

Interim Pastor, Congregational Care

Rev. Tim Shoaf,

Minister of Music & Programs

Jane K. Hoover,

Office Administrator

Pfafftown Christian Church, 3323 Transou Road, Pfafftown, NC 27040

Phone: 336-924-9925 - Email: office@pfafftownchristian.org - website: www.pfafftownchristian.org

Pfafftown Christian Church

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Hold in Your Prayers:

Church Family

Owen Clodfelter and his parents; Bud Barker,

The Family of Ruth Myers, Doris Spaugh

Loved Ones in the Military

Sgt. Samantha Goliat, OH;

PRAN Joshua Hughes, Norfolk, VA;

Chase Lee, Guam; USS Key West;

Captain Hope Poster, NG Commander, Winston-Salem, NC

1LT John G. Van Hoy, IV, WA

Others Laura Bass, (friend of Ken & Vicki Davis);

Joy Beck (Jo Stanley’s mother);

Cathy Bryant;

Meredith Burns (friend of Skip Stanley);

Bob Chadbourne (Jill Robertson’s cousin);

Bobby Johnson (son of Helen Johnson);

Lacy Mabe (uncle of Scott, Jill & Emma Robertson);

Sue Miles (friend of Jo Stanley);

Dwayne Sloan;

Darlene Stewart (sister of Ann Fletcher),

Wade Tuttle (Jill Robertson’s uncle)

LENT: A Call to Spiritual Renewal

The season of Lent is a 40-day period which will

begin on Ash Wednesday, February 10 and ends on

March 27, the day before Easter. Sundays are

excluded when we count the forty days, because Sundays commemorate the Resurrection. The origin of the

word Lent is from the Anglo-Saxon word “Lencten,” meaning “Springtime.” Christians celebrate Lent as a

time for a renewing of the Spirit, a springtime of the soul, when nature itself mirrors the promise of Christ’s

resurrection. Like the earth, long weary under the burden of winter, all that is within us seem to cry out for

spring, to sense the burden of David as he pleads, “Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit

within me!”

Lent, then, is your invitation to spiritual renewal, or awakening. It is a time to discover and claim the bless-

ings God has for you. It is a time to deepen your own prayer life— to renew your study of Scriptures — to

share with someone who needs the expression of God’s love in human interaction.

In short, it’s not a time for “giving up” something, but for “growing up” into the kind of warm, caring, loving,

mature Christian God wants us to be! A good place to begin is by regular worship each Sunday morning and

participating in the special services and activities during the Lenten, Holy Week and Easter season.

May we experience the renewal of Christ’s presence in our lives as we anticipate and rejoice in His

resurrection and promise of eternal life.

I hope to see each of you in worship each Sunday during this most holy season! Peace to you, Tim

Ash Wednesday Service

We will begin our observance of Lent on Ash Wednesday, February 10, at 7:00 pm.

as we gather in the sanctuary to open our hearts to God in worship.

This quiet and reflective service concludes with the imposition of ashes—the marking

of one’s forehead with the sign of the cross. While the use of ashes as a sign of mortality, humility, and

penitence may be new to you, it has a significant history in Christian worship. The imposition of ashes is a

powerful nonverbal and experiential way of participating in the call to repentance. All who desire may come

forward for the imposition of ashes at the appropriate place in the worship service.

This service provides inspiration for the beginning of our Lenten journey which concludes with the joyous

resurrection on Easter Sunday. Please come and invite a friend.

Prayer Chapel for Lent

A Prayer Chapel will be available during the Lenten season as we prepare our hearts

to better know God and experience a closer relationship with Him. It will be located in the

Church Library and be open Monday – Friday from 9am to 1 pm, and before and after

church each Sunday during the 40 days of Lent. There will be resources available on the

table to help in guiding your prayer and meditation time if needed. I invite you to stop by

and spend some special moments with God. Please also pray for:

• People to build closer relationships with GOD

• Individuals listed on our church prayer list and others in our community and world.

• Our church, its ministries and mission, that GOD will continue to bless and guide us as a people of faith.

Let us remember these words of Christ: “But whenever you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to

your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.” (Matthew 6:6)

Please contact me for any additional information or resources. -- Tim

A Special Ash Wednesday Meal

At 6:00 pm on Wednesday, February 10th, Ash Wednesday, the CWF will

provide a pinto bean supper prior to the Ash Wednesday service of ashes.

You don’t have to do a thing but sign up and show up! Come and enjoy a

home cooked meal and time with friends followed by a meaningful Ash

Wednesday Service. Thanks CWF, for taking such good care of us.

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SERVERS for FEBRUARY, 2016

If you are unable to serve, please find a replacement and call Gerald or Ann Fletcher. If you cannot reach them, call Lynda Bryant or Jo Stanley.

ELDERS: Jo Stanley, Evelyn Nifong

DEACONS: Jackie Romanello, Jack Bryant

Debbie Fletcher, Kevin Deibert

COMMUNION: Vicki Davis

OPENING/CLOSING: Gerald Fletcher

Thank you for your part in ministry at PCC!

Week of Compassion: Feb. 16—28 (Sundays 21 and 28).

In a world where communities are being displaced by the catastrophes of war, famine

and natural disasters, the Church is called to reclaim the spiritual discipline of solidarity.

Christians are summoned to adopt and live out “a theology of acompañamiento

[accompaniment].” (R. Goizueta). As natural, economic and political forces disrupt and

uproot communities, the Church is called to stand in solidarity with these refugee commu-

nities as they seek to move beyond the trauma of displacement and toward a new life of

well-being and promise.

Ruth’s promise to Naomi defines what “solidarity” authentically entails; and it stands

as a challenge for Christians to intentionally walk with refugees as they seek to build a

new home in a strange land:

“Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay.

Your people will be my people and your God my God.” Ruth 1:16

Is this not the Gospel? Did not Christ, the Word of God who migrated and “moved in-

to the neighborhood” (John 1:14 The Message), accompany us in our alientation and

displacement? Did we not receive the Holy Spirit in our hearts to be our “advocate

(John 16:7) who “intercedes [for us] with sighs too deep for words” (Romans 8:26)?

Will we make Ruth’s promise our own?

Say yes through your donations the Sundays of February 21 and 28, 2016. (Photo by Paul Jeffrey; Text from Week of Compassion flier.)

Lenten Candles in Worship

As part of our Lenten worship experience, seven candles will be

displayed in the Chancel beginning on the first Sunday in Lent as part of

our liturgy. We will be extinguishing a Lenten candle each Sunday to

remind us of the approaching darkness of Christ’s betrayal and death.

When we begin worship, all seven Lenten candles will be lit. Following a Lenten reading,

another Lenten Candle will be extinguished followed by the singing of a Lenten response. A

significant symbol of our journey toward a world of darkness as we move toward Holy

Week and Christ’s Crucifixion. On Easter Sunday morning, all of the darkened candles will

be re-lit representing Christ’s glorious resurrection and victory — the Light of the World,

which darkness cannot extinguish.

Please join us in worship each Sunday as together we remember Christ ultimate sacrifice

for our salvation.

Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)

REGIONAL ASSEMBLY

Greenville, NC

April 22—24, 2016

Pfafftown Christian Church is enti-

tled to have four (4) voting delegates

attend the Regional Assembly.

If you are interested in attending,

please let the Church Office know by

February 15, 2016

A Note from the Worship Committee

The Worship Committee would like to thank our wonderful Chancel Choir and outstanding

Bell Choir for blessing us with such an amazing Christmas Cantata. Tim, you blow us away

every year! Each of you blessed us with the gift of peace in our hearts as we left the Sanctu-

ary.

We would also like to thank Lori Carter for her part in the Cantata, especially her

meaningful words at its conclusion.

Evelyn Nifong and her team did a “beautifully delicious” job with the reception. Your many

hours of time and effort are most appreciated.

I think we can all agree how extraordinary our sanctuary looks at Christmas time. We thank

all of our church elves who made this possible. They not only decorate, but have the gruesome

job of packing everything away for the following year. You all are awesome!

Now for our luminaires, what a beautiful “display of lights.” We thank all who worked so

hard to make this possible. It was truly illuminating!

Our Christmas Eve Candlelight Service was well attended. We appreciate Lori Carter, Tim

Shoaf and Steve Clodfelter for all they did to make the service a success.

The Worship Committee would like to wish all at Pfafftown Christian Church a year of hope

and new beginnings. We appreciate each of you and thank you for making our job easier.

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Special Valentine Visits! On Saturday, February 13, the children and adults of our church will

be making visits to our church homebound and healthcare residents

delivering some hand-made Valentine gifts and

sharing some special time with these wonderful people

that are a very important part of our church family.

We will meet at the church at 2:00 pm to begin our visits.

Notes from Tim

A hymn that is a “favorite” to many in our congregation as well as thousands

of people all over the world is the hymn How Great Thou Art. This hymn has an

intriguing history and story!

The history of the hymn begins in 1886 with Mr. Carl Gustaf Boberg (1859-1940). He was a Swedish pastor,

editor, and member of the Swedish parliament. Mr. Boberg was enjoying a nice walk in the beautiful countryside

on the southeast coast of Sweden. He was suddenly caught in a midday thunderstorm. A severe wind began to

blow and after the storm was over, Mr. Boberg looked out over the clear bay. He then heard a church bell in the

distance. And the words to How Great Thou Art began to form in his heart…

O Lord, my God, when I in awesome wonder, consider all the worlds Thy hands hath made.

I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder, Thy power throughout the universe displayed.

Then sings my soul, my Savior God to thee; How great Thou art! How great Thou art!

Can you imagine what Boberg felt as he formed these words? There had come such calmness after the fierce

storm he could only utter those words of peace and majesty.

This poem, titled ”O Store Gud” (O Great God) was published in 1891 in Witness of the Truth, the weekly

newspaper that Boberg edited. In 1907, Manfred von Glehn translated the text into German, “Wie gross gist

Du.” In 1927, a Russian pastor, Ivan Prokhanoff, made a Russian adaptation.

Carl Boberg wrote this poem with no thought of it becoming a hymn. He did not write any music for the text.

After publication, the poem was apparently forgotten, but several years later, Boberg attended a meeting and was

surprised to hear his poem being sung to the tune of an old Swedish melody. Stuart K. Hine, a missionary to

Poland, later translated the poem to English and made his own arrangement of the Swedish melody., and so we

now have our present version of “How Great Thou Art.”

The chain of events that made this hymn popular provides part of the intrigue. In 1951, James Caldwell

introduced it to audiences at Stoney Brook Bible Conference on Long Island. The Billy Graham Evangelical

team, which included Cliff Burrows and George Beverly Shea, began to sing the hymn at revivals spreading the

popularity of the hymn. From an obscure poem, it became a well known and loved hymn. The hymn drew new

attention in Sweden and America which led to its publication in many hymnbooks; bearing witness to the young

and old in proclaiming how awesome God is in nature and in life itself.

There are many things in life that can be explained from a secular perspective, the lightning, the birds

singing, the sounds of thunder are just a few. There is also an awesome reality that those events, the beauty of

nature after a storm and the faith of at least two people who experienced those very things provided the backdrop

for people across the world to sing this hymn. For those in church on a Sunday morning, I hope we will always

hold the history of this hymn in our hearts. Especially as the sun shines through the stained glass windows or the

thunder booms outside the sanctuary, because there is a beauty that each of us can experience even in the storms.

This hymn shows that life can be unpredictable. It was not the original author of the poem or the author of the

music that brought this hymn into the hymnbook in churches today. It was through others that saw this hymn as

a means to worship and proclaim the awesome and powerful nature of our God.

Today millions across the world continue to sing this beautiful song. Giving God all praise, glory, and honor

for who He is -- the Creator of this vast universe!

Thanks be to our wonderful and loving God!

Tim

*Portions of this information were taken from 100 Hymn Stories by Kenneth W. Osebeck

and a document written by Dr. Lindsay Terry – The St. Augustine Record.

CWF NEWS

On Tuesday, January 19, the CWF

met for business and dessert. We

made plans for the Lenten

season which includes preparing and serving a

pinto bean supper for the congregation on

Ash Wednesday, February 10th at 6:00 pm.

Our next meeting will be on Tuesday,

February 16th at 6:30 pm in the DFH.

Stay tuned for more details on their plans.

And remember, ALL women of the church are

Goodtimers Valentine Lunch

Goodtimers! Come join your friends for

some great fun and fellowship on Monday,

February 8th at the church.

We will begin at 11:30 am with a delicious Valentine

lunch including Chicken Pan Pie, Cranberry Salad,

Almond Green Beans, and Strawberry Delight followed

by a special Valentine devotional, and a program full of

games and laughter!

Please be sure to invite your friends and join us as we

celebrate Valentines!

Fellowship of Prayer — 2016 Lenten Devotional The Way o f Dreams and Visions:

In this Lenten Devotional, The Way of Dreams and Visions, written by Sarah Griffith Lund,

we will journey together through the season of Lent, (February 10—March 27) opening ourselves

up to be inspired by the dreams and visions in scripture.

To succeed in revitalizing our faith and giving emerging generations faithful ways of being in

the world, we must first be rooted in the Spirit. Able to connect daily to the living Christ and firmly

planted in God, the ground of our being as first proclaimed by the prophet Joel and echoed by the

Apostle Paul: “In the last days it will be, God declares, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh,

and your sons and daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions.” (Acts 2:17)

This Lenten season, we will ask the question and discern together: How can our lives reflect the audacious dreams

and transformational visions that God has for each one of us, for our communities of faith, and for all of Creation?

Copies of the Lenten Devotional are available in the Narthex and may be picked up to prepare for February 10th

and will be available at the Ash Wednesday Service. The Church Elders will be delivering copies to our shut-ins.

Each Sunday morning, beginning on February 14th at 10:00 am you are welcome to meet in the LFH for a time of

reflection about the weekly meditations. We pray that God will enrich your Lenten journey.

Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat

Crisis Control

for February

100%

fruit juice

1

7pm Scouts/

Handbells

2

7pm

Brownies/

Girl Scouts

3

7:00 pm Chancel Choir

4 5 6

7 9:30 am

TT Team

11 am

Worship

8 11:30am GoodTimers

Valentine

Lunch

7pm Scouts/

Handbells

9

7pm Elders

10 6pm

Pinto Bean

Supper

7pm Ash

Wednesday

Service

11

7pm

NIN Board

12 13

2:00 pm

Special

Valentine

Visits

14 9:30 am

TT Team

11 am

Worship

15

7pm Scouts/

Handbells

16

6:30 pm

CWF—DFH

7pm

Brownies/

Girl Scouts

17

7:00 pm Chancel Choir

18 19 20

Week of Compasssion

Offerings:

Feb. 21 & 28

21 9:30 am

TT Team

11 am

Worship

Noon Congregational

Meeting

22

7pm Scouts/

Handbells

23

24

7pm Chancel Choir

25 26 27

28 11 am

Worship

29

7pm

Scouts/

Handbells

2016

FEBRUARY BIRTHDAYS 4 Erleen Rhein 17 Meghan Bryant

6 Dan Showers Jerry Edwards

10 Ruth Saalweachter Beth Faircloth

14 Amanda Davis 21 Betty Tilley

16 Julie Tilley 24 Caila Luper

Margie Sorrells

FEBRUARY ANNIVERSARIES

10—Ed & Amanda Davis

23—Kevin & Tracey Deibert

Pfafftown Christian Church