First Presbyterian Church www.fpcmorristown.com600 W. Main Street 423/586-4281Morristown, TN 37814 February, 2017

April 30

2017May 18

1867Save the Date So We Can Celebrate

First Presbyterian Church will celebrate itssesquicentennial this year. Can you believe it? Thischurch has been serving God for 150 years!!!!!! That issomething to celebrate. Just imagine all the lives thathave been changed over the years because people likeyou and me love Jesus and want to make the world abetter place. Imagine the baptisms, the weddings, thefunerals, the worship services, the hymns sung, and theprayers prayed from this spot on earth for the last 150years. Imagine just how many acts of service andkindness have been done here and all over the worldbecause someone like you and me responded to thenudge of the Holy Spirit. Now that is worthcelebrating. Not only will we celebrate what has beendone in the past but it is my hope and prayer we willuse this season as fuel to rocket us into faithful serviceto our Lord for the next 150 years.

A Sesquicentennial Celebration Committee (SCC)has already begun laying some ground work.Last year a dreaming committee calling themselves theSCC began to put their heads together. Bill Hale,Becky Jo Moles, Elizabeth Campbell, Sue Atkins andGary Kelly said let’s get this ball rolling.

One of the first things we had to decide was whento celebrate. The actual anniversary date was May 18th,1867, but we are going to have our celebration onAPRIL 30, 2017. Mark your calendar and tell all yourfriends.

Bill Hale has been working on a invitation list. Ofcourse you are all invited, but we also wanted to invite,former members and staff and lots of people we love,who grew up in this church, but have moved away. You can help us get in touch with them by sharing theircontact information. Read Bill’s article to find out allabout how you can do that and who we still needcontact information on.

Becky Jo has been working on our history andplans to help us learn more about it. Most of these

events will happen on Wednesday nights. There’s evena trip planned to where it all began, Bethesda . . . icecream social to be included. Read more about that inher article.

Elizabeth is in charge of our communication andshe has lots of other great ideas, like an open house,articles in the Tribune, and maybe some special musicalofferings.

Sue is in charge of the mission/service aspect ofour celebration. We thought it would be a funchallenge to have our congregation do 150 acts ofkindness/service in the next year. I know that soundslike a lot, but I think you are going to be surprised howmuch we do for others. You can even tell us when yousee someone else do an act of kindness. She and hercommittee have some big project ideas as well. Readmore about that in her article, also included in thisnewsletter.

Gary is charge of worship. We thought it would befun to bring in a special speaker for the day. Wecontacted Rev. Laura Jernigan (the daughter of Nedand Peggy Hollandsworth/former pastor) and sheagreed!!!! YEAH!

Each person has been tasked with getting otherfolks to join their committee. We are hoping everyonewill get involved and play some part. So if any of thissounds interesting to you contact the people in chargeand let them know you are willing to help. Hey, thatwould be an act of kindness/service. There will bemore to come, but for now mark your calendar for

APRIL 30, 2017 Blessings, Gary

Acts ofService

Have you heard that FPC is 150 years old in 2017? It'strue, and part of our celebration is doing 150 acts ofservice. It will take all of us working together toaccomplish this, but for sure we can do it. There areseveral underway already. The children areparticipating by going to the library to count and rollpennies for their fund-raiser project. We provide 100snack bags to Food on Foot every month. Membershave gone to Gatlinburg to help with rebuilding andcleanup, people serve on boards, the Youth are going on a mission trip to Charlotte in the summer, VBS will

be an outreach to an undeserved part of thecommunity along with our FPC children, and on andon. . . . hew! Our members do countless kind acts without thinkingabout them, it is just part of who they are. What weneed for you to do is write them down so we can countthem. There is a yellow box on the desk by theAmazing Grazing table, there is also a pad of paper andsome pens. Please help us by reporting your acts andthose of others. There will be more projects later inthe year, after all, we don't have to stop at 150!

Sue Atkins

A Faithful Past — A Hopeful Future —The Mission Continues

Sesquicentennial Wednesday Night Programs Wednesday, April 19 at Bethesda Re-enactment of 1867 Church Service — Old Hymns and Hymnals —

Stories about Bethesda — Ice Cream Social — Covers 1832 - 1867

Wednesday, April 26 in the Presentation about First Building — Ministers — Revolution -Reconstruction

Theater and Heritage Room Covers 1867 - 1877

Wednesday, May 3 in the Presentation about Additions to Building — Ministers — Reconstruction -WWII

Theater and Heritage Room Covers 1877-1947

Wednesday, May 10 in the Presentation about Additions to Building — Ministers — WWII - PresentTheater and Heritage Room Covers 1947 - 2017

Wednesday, May 17 in Birthday PartyFellowship Hall

Your Help Needed To FinalizeSesquicentennial Mailing List

The sesquicentennial committee is nearing completionof a contact list with physical addresses or e-mail addresses

of church members and former church members. We need contact information for those listed below!

Will you review this list and send in anycontact information you may have on these folks?

If your children or anyone else you see are not on this list, please send their information.Please call or e-mail Bill Hale with this information.

423-312-2868 or wthale@musfiber.comThank you.

Allen, Steve & CarolArnold, SusieBacon, AnneBacon, DavidBagnall, KennyBagnall, MichelleBales, JoeBales, TomBarile, BreauBarile, JasonBennett, AustinBenz, Steve & CindyBlack, GloriaBlack, JustinBlack, BrandonBrazil, VirginiaBreeding, PhilipBreeding, LaurenBrewer, AlexandraBrewer, Gary & LauraBridgeman, Rev. Stuart G.Brimer, AlanBrimer, AdamBrimer, AndyCampbell, AshleyCartwright, CindyChesney, SuzanneChesney, AndyChesney, KaseyClarke, ConnorClarke, HunterCole, Mark & JanetComer, TedCooper, DavidCooper, KimberlyCooper, David & Cathy Cooze, SamCraine, BoweCraine, AbbeCraine, MatthewCulvern, EmilyCulvern, ChrisCulvern, Linda

Cunningham, MaryCunningham, JamesDafferner, DonnaDafferner, DanaDavenport, JimDavis, CarterDavis, LloydDickerson, Bryan & LauraDixon, HarlanDuby, BenDuby, RachelDuke, PansyEdmonds, ReidEdmonds, SherryEichelman, BrianEichelman, AlanFielder, ChelseaFinley, CoreenFleenor, BrendaFoust, AndyFoust, RustyFoust, AshleyFoust, EricFoutch, Bill & LindaFoutch, ElleryGallagher, ClarkGallagher, JennyGallagher, DavidGeorge, HarrietGentry, Beth (Ricker)Griscom, DanGriscom, GraceGriscom, DickGrossman, LeslieHacker, StephanieHacker, AndyHadden, JohnHadden, JoeHadden, BeckyHagwood, ScottHale, RebeccaHandel, LisaHardison, Sue

Holtkamp, KatieHoltkamp, DanielHyatt, HeatherJamison, Kathy & AllenLeonard, Dan & LindaLogan, TylerLogan, AJLong, Susan ShieldsLovelace, Donna GeorgeLucas, TylerLucas, KaraLynch, SteveLynch, DanLynch, MichaelLyons, P. MillerLyons, WileyMaden, Jim & LizMaloy, GeraldMcAnear, ErinMcAnear, MatthewMcIntosh, Mary (Butler)McIntosh, ScottMcIntosh, ChrisMedford, JeffMick, JenniferMick, JessicaMueller, Wendy (Miller)Mueller, JeffNewman, Margie LeeNewman, DanPayne, DonnaPearson, WoodyPearson, JoePeoples, SuzannePeoples, StevePhipps, Kraig & CynthiaPigg, JamiePortrum, Anna BethPratt, DarinProvost, Emily Pysh, DanyaPysh, MatthewRager, Cheryl

Ratcliff, DexterRatcliff, RobertRatcliff, KellyRisdahl, JuliaRisdahl, DavidRogers , TommyRogers, LuAnnRush, Mary Ann BalesSayles, Tom & KathySchneider, PaulSentelle, RustySenterfitt, Patricia LyonsSmith, Rick & GraceSmith, RonSmith, AmySmith, BethSmith, DavidSmith, KatherineSommers, Rev. Dick and SallySparrow, LindseySteiner, Mary AnnStelzman, Steve & JanStreet, AndrewTaylor, Ann ElizabethTaylor, JohnThiel, SteveThompson, Ellie (Amador)Thompson, WillThompson, KatherineThompson, BlairTraywick, BenTucker, MichaelTucker, ChrisTweed, PattyWadlington, WillWadlington, JoeWallace, PansyWhite, ChuckWhitt, John & MaryWilliams, RobertWilliams, JackieWills, AmyWills, Susan

I am working through the ExperiencingGod: Knowing and Doing the Will of God byHenry Blackaby with some folks in ourcurrent Wednesday night ChristianEducation offering. To put it lightly, thisstudy has been fantastic. Through daily

interaction with God in our workbook, to the activities,poignant insights, and straight to the point teaching,Blackaby has allowed me to gain a different perspectiveinto my relationship with God. Trying to discern theWill of God, hear God's voice in our lives, andrecognize how God is working all around us can seemlike a daunting task. When I have said, "I desire aburning bush experience," I have come to realize thatGod is calling out to us all around. Blackaby also statesthat God's will can only be found when one is inrelationship with God. To that end, I want toencourage you in your walk with our Lord. Try andspend time with God everyday. Whether in prayer,reading God's Word (the Bible), enjoying God'screation, or some other expression of time with God,we all will benefit from time with God. Start small,increase gradually, and wait for the Lord. God is good!

The following devotional comes from HenryBlackaby's Experiencing God Day-By-Day devotional. You can read it and others at blackaby.net. Thisparticular devotion is titled When God Speaks, It Is So,and is from January 10th.

So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; Itshall not return to Me void, But it shall accomplishwhat I please, And it shall prosper in the thing forwhich I sent it. Isaiah 55:11

When God speaks, nothing remains the same. At thebeginning of time, God spoke, and a universe was created out ofnothing. God followed a pattern when He created the earth: Hespoke; it was so; it was good (Gen. 1:3-4). This patterncontinued throughout the Bible. Whenever God revealed Hisplans, things happened just as He said, and God considered theresult "good" (Phil. 2:13). God doesn't make suggestions. Hespeaks with the full determination to see that what He has saidwill come to fruition. Whenever Jesus spoke, what He said cameto pass. Lepers found that a word from Jesus meant healing(Luke 5:13; 17:14). The blind man discovered that a wordfrom Jesus meant sight (Luke 18:42). Through a barren fig treethe disciples saw that a curse from Jesus meant destruction(Mark 11:20). The sinner experienced forgiveness through aword from Jesus (John 8:11). How many attempts did it takeJesus to raise Lazarus from the dead? Only one (John 11:43). There was never a time that Jesus spoke that what He said didnot happen. What happens when Jesus speaks to you? Haveyou been reading the words of Jesus in your Bible withoutexperiencing His word that transforms everything around you?

Jesus condemned the Pharisees because they assumed thatknowledge of the written Scriptures would give them life. Theywere satisfied with having the words instead of experiencing theperson who spoke the words (John 5:39). How powerful a wordfrom God is to your life! As you read your Bible and pray, listento what God has to say to you about His will for your life.

May God's blessing be upon us all.

-Your Brother in ChristRev. Kyle Schmidt

What a questionAs some of you know, I'm working through a

study on worship created by the late great RobertWebber. Based on his massive eight volume

Library of Christian Worship, it's a series of sevenbooks, each with thirteen chapters specificallydiscussing the history and common practices ofChristian worship. When you complete each bookalong with all of the questions after each chapter,there's another book of "test" questions coveringeverything that was in that book. I've now completedfour of the books, and my answer sheet for "testquestions" is currently twenty-one pages long - singlespaced. Hobbies are great, but maybe next time I'll justget a toy train set.

The first question in the book is "Define BiblicalWorship". What a huge question! There have beenhundreds, maybe thousands of books over the yearsaddressing that question, and I'm supposed to answer itin just a page or so. Well, here's a summary of myanswer. I can back it all up Biblically and historically.Hopefully the professor isn't looking for a thesis.

Well, if we're just talking about what it looks likeon the outside, it can be a pretty big spread of answers. Many Charismatics or Pentecostals might look atDavid's worship center in Zion and say Biblicalworship is singing and dancing and clapping hands andlots of instruments - basically a great big partycelebrating God. And they'd be right. Many in moreformal churches like maybe Catholics, Episcopals, etc,might look at the Temple and say Biblical worship is avery structured and God-ordered time when we followspecific rituals which draw us to focus and rememberGod's awesome greatness. And they'd be right. Manymainline Protestants like Presbyterians or Methodistsmight look at the synagogue and say Biblical worship isa time to learn and grow in our knowledge about thegreatness and majesty of God decently and in goodorder. And they'd be right. People in the HomeChurch Movement are looking at the book of Acts.The Bible pretty much says all these things are great.Gather together, "sing responsively a hymn to Christ as

to a god" (Pliny the Younger), and you're good.But, you can look in Amos, or Malachi or Isaiah

and see where God rejects festivals and sacrifices andrituals. We can assume that because he rejected them,they must have been doing them. And when Godrejects rituals and sacrifice or offerings, it doesn't seemto be because they messed up the form. So maybe justgoing through the motions, even very accurately orcorrectly, doesn't cut it. What we do and how we do itreally doesn't define worship. The actions and "styles"really aren't what defines worship. Which Bibletranslation doesn't really matter. What songs you singdoesn't really matter. What you wear doesn't reallymatter. Micah, Isaiah, and others say God's looking fora contrite, humble heart. He's looking for justice andcompassion. He wants us to reject our evil ways and becleansed from our sins, not just by a ritual or action,but really from within your heart and mind, and tofocus on Him.

So, a guy is in the front row singing and dancingand lifting his hands, but all the while he makes surethe cute blond across the room notices his big bicepsas he busts a holy move. The action is there but is itbiblical worship? Probably not so much. Or a lady sitswith her bulletin joining in the responsive reading withgreat articulation and vocal intensity, but's frustrated onhow slow it's going because she wants to beat theBaptists to Shoney's. The action is there, but is itbiblical worship? Probably not so much. Or a guykneels down to enter into a prayer of confession, butjust thinks about how that person in front of himtaking up two seats needs to go on a diet. The action isthere but is it biblical worship? Probably not so much.

On the other hand, a guy is in the front row sittingin his wheelchair dreaming about the day he'll be ableto dance before the throne of the great God he loves.The action's not there, but is it biblical worship?Absolutely. Or a lady who never could learn to read sitsquietly holding her bulletin listening intently to thewonderful words about her Lord and Savior. Theaction's not there, but is it biblical worship? Absolutely. Or an elderly man can't kneel any more, but bows hishead fully trusting in God's grace to wash his sins away.The action's not there, but is it biblical worship?Absolutely.

So, I guess I'd have to say that biblical worship iscoming before God with all your heart, mind, soul, andstrength in true heartfelt love and faith. That's all thatreally matters to God. What the motions look like isreally secondary.

Rick Kopituk

Theologian in Residence

Tusculum College will once again host guests onTuesdays in February, with Dr. Travis Williams, AssistantProfessor of Religion, back as our lecturer. His topic thisyear is Jesus in Early Christian Memory: Remembering,Reconstructing, and Rehearsing the Past. Please contact Janieto sign-up. The church bus will depart the FPC parkinglot at 8:45am each Tuesday, 2/7, 14, 21, 28. Brochuresare available on the bulletin board across from the FPCmain office.

Wednesday ActivitiesWe are working through Henry Blackaby'sExperiencing God: Knowing and Doing the Will ofGod. If you would like to join us you can stillcatch up. When you recognize where God isworking, you can join Him in what He isdoing. Then you will experience God doingthrough you what only He can do. We meet Wednesdaysevenings from 6:30-7:30 in the Theater.

February Menus:Feb. 1 - Brunch of: Ham Enchiladas (Ham, Onions,Cheddar Cheese in Flour tortillas), Mixed Fruit Bowl,Cookies

Feb. 8 - Beef Stew with Vegetables, Simple Salad, CreamedCorn Mini Muffins, dessert

Feb. 15 - Smoked Pork Butt Sandwiches, Overnight ColeSlaw, Baked Beans, Lemon pudding Pound Cake with Fruit

Feb. 22 - Baked Chicken, Mashed Potatoes, Green Beans,Lemon Tarts and Chocolate Tarts

Men’s Breakfast Join us as we work through the Old Testamentwith Tim Mackie's Read Scripture series. We wantto help you to read through the Bible withoutgetting lost or giving up. This series has a video

for every book of the Bible that outlines its literary designand main ideas, showing you how it fits into the entireBiblical story. We meet Thursday mornings at 7am in thetheater.

Mark Your CalendarSouper Bowl of Caring - February 5Theologian in Residence - February 7, 14, 21, & 28Ash Wednesday - March 1Presbytery Meeting at FPC Greeneville - March 4Daylight Savings Time Begins - March 12Jefferson Co. Spring Break - March 20-24Hamblen Co. Spring Break - March 27-31Palm Sunday - April 9Maundy Thursday - April 13Good Friday - April 14Easter Sunday - April 1630 Hour Famine - April 28Sesquicentennial (150) Celebration - April 30Mother's Day - May 14Presbytery Meeting at Strawberry Plains PC - June 3Pentecost - June 4Underground Mission Trip (Charlotte, NC) - June 4-9Trinity Sunday - June 11Underground Mission Trip with Casas por Cristo (DR) -June 11-17 (tentative)Father's Day - June 18Church at the Lake - June 25 (tentative)Presbytery Meeting at Holston Presbytery Camp -September 5Daylight Savings Time Ends - November 5Christ the King Sunday - November 26Presbytery Meeting at Watauga Avenue PC - December 5Christmas Eve - December 24Christmas Day - December 25 (every year)

Community CashKeep Buying Groceries as Mission Work! Our Community Cash program is like awin-win. You buy groceries and FoodCity/Ingles gives us money for mission

work. I know you are still buying groceries, getting gas,and possibly filling prescriptions in the respectivepharmacy. Why not use one of our convenient cash cardsand help the youth make 5% to use for our missionefforts? We have both Food City and Ingles cardsavailable and have sold over 96,000 in cards, totaling over$4,800 in proceeds for Youth Missions. CommunityCash cards can be used for any item sold in the respectivegrocery store. As you do your shopping for food, get gasfor your errands, or anything else at Ingles/Food City,please remember us. You can get cards from the youth atthe table in the Gathering Hall on Sundays or from Janieor Kyle during the week. Whomever purchases thecard that puts us over $100K will receive a free $50card

New signs around FPCSoon there will be some additions to the main entrypoints to the FPC buildings. Session this past Sunday,1/22, approved a Buildings & Grounds motion to makethe FPC campus tobacco free. This includes cigarettes,chewing tobacco, and Vapors. We have been smoke-freeindoors for many years, but felt this policy was needed toallow members and guests to enter the facility withouthaving to walk through smoke-filled areas. This will bean adjustment for some and ask your "kind" assistance tohelp us communicate the change. The signage, pictured[below] states,

This sign is in both English and Spanish.

Presbyterian Women Book Club

PW Book Club will be reading "A Man CalledOve" by Fredrik Backman. Meet Ove. He's acurmudgeon-the kind of man who points at people hedislikes as if they were burglars caught outside his bedroomwindow. He has staunch principles, strict routines, and ashort fuse. People call him "the bitter neighbor from hell."

But must Ove be bitter just because he doesn't walk around with asmile plastered to his face all the time? Behind the cranky exteriorthere is a story and a sadness. So when one November morning achatty young couple with two chatty young daughters move in nextdoor and accidentally flatten Ove's mailbox, it is the lead-in to acomical and heartwarming tale of unkempt cats, unexpectedfriendship, and the ancient art of backing up a U-Haul. All ofwhich will change one cranky old man and a local residents'association to their very foundations. The PW Book Club willmeet at the home of Judy Aiken on Friday, February24 at 6:00. Everyone is invited and please bring adish to share. Also, let Judy know if you plan tocome.