March 2016 Messenger - The Independent Presbyterian Church of

IPC Messenger
A W eekly Publication of The Independent Presbyterian Church
O ffi c e 912-2 3 6 - 3 3 46 | F a x 912- 236-3676 | E-Mail [email protected] | Website www. ipcsav.org
Volume 16 • No 10
MARCH 2016
Christian Motivations
You Were Bought With a Price
S
IPC Messenger
1 Cor 6:20
ermons have always played a key
role in my spiritual growth. My
boyhood pastor, Brother Canavan, made
an important impact on me through
his preaching. Pastor-teacher John
McArthur’s preaching during my college
years had a transformational impact week
after week for months on end. Perhaps
the greatest sermon I’ve ever heard was
delivered at the Banner of Truth Trust’s
annual conference in Leicester, England in
the spring of 1979. Let me tell you about
it. I attended the conference with several
fellow classmates from Trinity College
in Bristol, England. The preacher was the
American Reformed Baptist, Al Martin,
his sermon entitled “Nothing but Christ
Crucified,” from 1 Corinthians 2:2. I had
not heard of Al Martin, so I came to that
conference session blind, so to speak, and
by the end of his message, close to deaf.
Volume
The sermon was absolutely overwhelming. It was overwhelming in every
way. For sheer volume, I had never in my
24 years heard anything so loud. I say this
as one who grew up listening to vehement
Baptist preachers. Those who sat in the
front rows claimed he parted their hair. He
preached with an urgency, I’m tempted to
say ferocity, that astonished me. His voice
would build over course a single sentence,
beginning at a normal level and building to
a fever pitch within a single breath.
Content
What did he say that was so profound?
Martin demonstrated that every attribute
of God comes to its ultimate expression at
the cross. The justice of God? The wage
of sin had to be paid if sinners were to
be forgiven and reconciled to God (Rom
6:23). God is just when He justifies (Rom
3:26). The wrath of God? Look at the
suffering of Christ. His sacrifice is one
which propitiates, that puts away wrath
(Rom 3:25; 1 Jn 2:2). The love of God?
Does it get any clearer than at the cross?
“God so loved the world…” (Jn 3:16).
“Greater love has no man than this, that he
lay down his life for his friend” (Jn 15:13).
So also it followed: the righteousness of
God, the goodness, kindness, grace, and
mercy of God, all find their decisive,
clearest expression at the cross.
Climax
The climactic point of the sermon for
me, whatever that point may have been or
the preacher’s intent, came when he turned
to ethics. How does “Christ crucified”
relate to Christian moral practice? As I
recall, Martin began to ask, “What does
the Apostle Paul say to the immoral man,
to the man who has united his body to a
prostitute, who has become one flesh with
her? He plants the cross right in the middle
of it,” Martin insisted, “For you have been
bought with a price: therefore glorify
God in your body” (1 Cor 6:20, NASB).
Continued Page 2
CONTENTS
2
Music Ministry
3
Moral Concerns
4 Student Ministries
5
Children’s MInistry
6
Family Corner
7
Missions
8Women’s Ministry
10
Announcements
and Events
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Music Ministry
S
pring is a very busy time in the Music Ministry of the church.
The choirs are preparing for our annual Missions Conference
weekend and Palm Sunday and Easter.
Here is the upcoming schedule for the Missions Conference:
March 3 Thursday The Women’s Choir will sing
March 4 Friday The Sanctuary Choir will sing
March 6 Sunday a.m.
The Sanctuary Choir will sing
Chapel Choir is not having rehearsals due to construction.
For the Youth Choir, there WILL be rehearsal on Easter
Sunday, March 27. The Choir is anticipating a choir trip on April
8 through 10. Rehearsal attendance is necessary for participation
in this trip. Two absences are allowed from January-April 3. If
more rehearsals are missed, the student needs to sing the music
to me, to ensure knowledge of the music. Even with approved
absences, the student will need to sing for me if more than two
INTERN CORNER
S
ince last month we have had a few things happening in the
college ministry.
1.) We've started our Bible study at Armstrong. After finally
landing on a day on which to have it (Thursday night), we've had
several newcomers to the study. We also hope to start opening up
channels to get them to I.P.C. Please pray for fruit to be produced
by our efforts there.
2.) We've had several visitors from SCAD over the past month.
Please make it a point to get them to fill out an information card
located in the pew racks and, if possible, introduce them to me.
3.) For this Sunday school quarter we are going to have a standalone college Sunday school class. If you're a college student, plan
to join us (I hear there will be food and drinks involved!). The
location will be advertised in the other I.P.C. publications.
Please continue to pray for our college students, both local and
away, that the Lord might continue to work in and through them!
Kyle Brent
T
he Career/Twenties Group is healthy and growing. Please
pray that the momentum continues and that the Lord would
be pleased to bring many to Himself and His church through this
outreach. Over the last month many of our young women attended
the W.O.C. retreat and several of our young men got together for
flag football. We continue to meet for Bible study, singing, and
fellowship on Thursday nights at 7 p.m. on the 4th floor of the
Whitaker St. Building. Please send any post-college-aged young
adults to the Bible Study! Tim Shaw
PAGE 2
rehearsals are missed. The choir will leave church late Friday
afternoon, have a fun day on Saturday, April 9 (plans yet to be
completed). On Sunday morning, we will sing at an Atlanta area
church, returning on Sunday afternoon. We are looking forward
to a great time together.
The Sanctuary Choir is working on several difficult anthems for
Maundy Thursday, Easter, and the Kirkin’ service. New members
are always welcome. Choir meets on Wednesdays from 6:308:30 p.m. Please notify me or any choir member in order for you
to get in the building.
Please continue to pray for the Music Ministry of our church.
“I will sing unto the Lord as long as I live: I will sing praise to my
God while I have my being.” (Psalm 104:33).
In Christ’s Service,
Kathryn Van Eck
Christian Motivations from page 1
“Bought with a price,” he shouted. Why should we refrain from
immoral acts? Because we were purchased by Christ at the
cross at the cost of His own precious blood. Consequently, we
are no longer our own (1 Cor 6:19).
It was one of those moments for me, something like a
revelation from God. The centrality of the cross was clear in a
way that it had never before been. “Nothing but Christ crucified”
does not mean that we repeat the same gospel facts every time
we preach, with soul–suffocating monotony. Rather, Jesus
Christ is the center around which all of Scripture revolves, and
the cross is the hub around which all Christian practice turns.
He is found in “all the Scriptures,” as Jesus demonstrated to
the disciples in the greatest survey of the Bible every taught
(Lk 24:27). “Moses… wrote of me,” Jesus says of the Old
Testament (John 5:46). “Him we proclaim,” the Apostle Paul
says simply (Col 1:28).
Christian theology, then, is cross and Christo-centric. Christian
ethics, likewise, are cross and Christo-centric. “Follow in His
steps” of selfless sacrifice, says the Apostle Peter (1 Pet 2:21).
“Have this attitude which was in Christ Jesus,” the attitude of
looking out for the interests of others and regarding others as
more important than oneself, the attitude that is obedient even
unto death (Phil 2:5ff). “Just as I have loved you,” Jesus says,
“you also are to love one another” (Jn 13:34). Christianity is
Christ, as a book title of a previous generation succinctly put
it. He is the Alpha and Omega of all that we know and all that
we have to say.
MARCH 2016
Terry Johnson
IPC
A Call To Prayer
“Before I formed you in t
he womb I knew you,
before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you prophet to the nations.”
Jeremiah 1:5
“Truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never
enter it. And he took the children in his arms, placed his hands on them and blessed them.”
T
hese verses are just an example of the
overwhelming love that God has for his
most precious creations, Humans:
Mark 10:15-16
"Then God said, “Let us make man in
our image, after our likeness. And let
them have dominion over the fish of the
sea and over the birds of the heavens
and over the livestock and over all the
earth and over every creeping thing
that creeps on the earth.”
So God created man in his own image,
in the image of God he created him;
male and female he created them.
And God blessed them. And God said
to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and
fill the earth and subdue it, and have
dominion over the fish of the sea and
over the birds of the heavens and over
every living thing that moves on the
earth.”
(Genesis 1:26-28 ESV)
We start out small, growing every day,
finally entering the bright universe that He
created!
Choosing life is the most important
decision a mother can make for her child,
a decision that will shape both of their
futures.
The most “persuasive” argument for
abortion that inveigles the conscience is
one that admits the life of the unborn,
but decries it for the sake of the mother's
health, living condition, or the manner
of conception. Therefore, the difficult
but “necessary” choice must be made to
terminate the beginning life for practical or
societal reasons. “We'll all be better off; I
can't help you with your problem while I'm
creating an existence that suits my desires
and needs.”
MESSENGER
This apathy, fellow believers, we cannot
allow. We must acknowledge the suffering
that exists all around us, in our interactions
with people every day, whether young or
old. We have the hope of Jesus Christ! How
can we not share the glorious news, invest
our time and lives in eternal endeavors?
Life is precious in every stage, from
conception to natural death. And as we
go into our communities with this heart
and message, we will see the change only
God can bring. This is a call to pray for the
unborn and the women who haven't found
their hope in the Lord. May we be humbled
enough to be used by Him to bring these
precious lives into his fold.
In the words of C.S. Lewis:
“It is a serious thing, to live in
a society of possible gods and
goddesses, to remember that the
MARCH 2016
dullest and most uninteresting
person you talk to may one day be
a creature which, if you saw it now,
you would be strongly tempted to
worship, or else a horror and a
corruption such as you now meet, if
at all, only in a nightmare. All day
long we are, in some degree, helping
each other to one or other of these
destinations. It is in the light of these
overwhelming possibilities, it is with
the awe and the circumspection
proper to them, that we should
conduct all our dealings with one
another, all friendships, all loves,
all play, all politics. There are no
'ordinary' people. You have never
talked to a mere mortal. Nations,
cultures, arts, civilisations — these
are mortal, and their life is to ours as
the life of a gnat. But it is immortals
whom we joke with, work with,
marry, snub and exploit — immortal
horrors or everlasting splendours.
This does not mean that we are to
be perpetually solemn. We must play.
But our merriment must be of that
kind (and it is, in fact, the merriest
kind) which exists between people
who have, from the outset, taken
each other seriously — no flippancy,
no superiority, no presumption. And
our charity must be a real and costly
love, with deep feeling for the sins
in spite of which we love the sinner
— no mere tolerance or indulgence
which parodies love as flippancy
parodies merriment.”
— From The Weight of Glory
Submitted by Candace Sutlive
PAGE 3
STUDENT MINISTRIES
Students and Volunteers at this year’s Winter Retreat.
F
or our annual Winter Retreat, the
Student Ministry went back to Camp
Glisson in Dahlonega, GA. Thirtysix students and volunteers were able
to participate. Using our theme, “The
Greatest of These,” we studied Paul’s
initial preaching in Corinth and the
purposes of his first letter to the church he
began there. We also spent three sessions
examining the thirteenth chapter of his
first letter to the Corinthians. During
some of our recreation time, Dennis
Boatright became the oldest person to
ever complete a climb to the top of the
Alpine Tower (see picture on page 5).
WEDNESDAY NIGHTS
COMING UP:
Only Wednesday Night Fellowship on the
9th and 16th in March.
Normal Wednesday night schedule in April.
UPCOMING DATES
FOR MARCH AND APRIL:
March 25: Youth Hide Eggs at Point Pleasant.
Come help us hide eggs and decorate for the
church-wide egg hunt. Pizza and the gratitude of
many small children will be your reward!
Paul Rodgers with a guitar
riff at the Alpine Tower.
April 8-10: Youth Choir Trip
April 23: Youth Service Event
Join us in serving our community through a half
day of work at The Fresh Air Home.
REGULAR STUDENT MINISTRY SCHEDULE
SUNDAY SCHOOL 9:30 – 10:30 a.m.
Middle School (2nd floor Whitaker), High School (3rd floor Whitaker)
Paul and Jan (Antony & Cleopatra) standing with the costume
winners at this year’s Valentine Party: Abigail Taylor for Best
Female Costume (Penelope Cruz’s character Angelica from Pirates
of the Caribbean), Santi Clavijo for Best Male Costume (Forrest
Gump) and Chris Pitts for Why Did You Bother? (a minion).
PAGE 4
SUNDAY NIGHTS
Youth Choir
4 – 5 p.m.
No Sunday dinner, Emmaus Road, or Small Groups due to renovations taking place in the Axson Building.
WEDNESDAYS
6:30 – 8:15 p.m.
Middle & High School Dinner and Fellowship
MARCH 2016
IPC
STUDENT MINISTRIES continued from page 4
Children’s Ministry
Sunday School Updates
Our Sunday School classes are continuing their study of the
Catechisms. First through fourth grades are moving through the
Children’s Catechism with Bev Van Grouw and Sue Hinely at
the helm. Congratulations to Lucy Baynes Kelly for completing
the first section, questions one through 50. Take a peek into our
four–year–old and kindergarten classes led by Linden Helmly,
Candace Sutlive, and Carol Dusek…there are some fun times
going on in these rooms!
I.P.C.’s Annual Egg Hunt
and Breakfast
P
The Alpine Tower. We climbed and even swung from this tower
on the Winter Retreat, February 12-14, at Camp Glisson in
Dahlonega, GA. On the retreat, Dennis Boatright became the
oldest person to ever complete the climb to the top!
The Church Budget and
Giving 2016
In order to inform the congregation of the financial status
and needs of the church, the following snapshot of our
current financial condition is provided. Thank you for your
faithful support.
Received
Needed
Over/Short
January
$ 146,376
$183,670
-$ 37,294
February
$ 128,640
$146,936
-$ 18,296
Totals
MESSENGER
$ 275,016
$330,606
-$ 55,590
lease make plans to join the fun on March 26, at
our beloved Point Pleasant campus for the egg
hunt and pancake breakfast. Pancakes, bacon, and fruit
will be served at 9:00 a.m. with the egg hunt to follow.
Three golden eggs (one for each age group) will need
to be found and fun to be had with everyone. This is a
great time to invite friends, visiting family, or maybe
unchurched neighbors. Everyone is welcome! Please help
us make sure we have enough pancakes and bacon to
serve everyone. You can R.S.V.P. several different ways:
call the church office at 236-3346, complete a pew card in
the rack and place in collection plate, or email amartin@
ipcsav.org.
Please help defray the costs by donating a dozen plastic
candy–filled eggs for each child participating in the hunt.
Collection baskets will be located at the church office, in
the church narthex, and in front of the chapel. Don’t have
time to fill the eggs? Just drop the candy and eggs in the
collection basket and our wonderful youth group will take
care of the rest!
This event gets bigger every year with over 200 in
attendance. Even if you don’t have children, please plan
to come and join in the fun!
Youth Group Invitation
It is that wonderful time of year again when you get
to dye over 200 eggs, hide over 1,800 plastic eggs, set
and decorate seating for over 200 of our closest friends!
Please join your friends on Friday, March 25, at 10:00
a.m. at Point Pleasant. After we complete our tasks, there
will be pizza and coke for lunch. (There may be candy
for dessert!) We will be finished by 12:30, which gives
you the rest of the day to play! Call Paul Rodgers or Amy
Martin with any questions at 236-3346.
MARCH 2016
PAGE 5
Family Corner
MARCH 2016
Years 1-10
Years 11-15
“Alas! and Did
My Savior Bleed”
“O God Beyond
All Praising”
Isaac Watts, 1707; Alt. 1961
Michael Perry, 1982
Alas! and did my Savior bleed,
And did my Sovereign die!
Would He devote that sacred head
For such a worm as I!
O God beyond all praising,
We worship you today
And sing the love amazing
That songs cannot repay;
For we can only wonder
At every gift you send,
At blessings without number
And mercies without end:
We lift our hearts before you
And wait upon your word,
We honor and adore you,
Our great and mighty Lord.
Was it for crimes that I had done
He groaned upon the tree!
Amazing pity! Grace unknown!
And love beyond degree!
Well might the sun in darkness hide,
And shut His glories in,
When Christ, the mighty Maker, died
For man the creature’s sin.
Then hear, O gracious Savior,
Accept the love we bring,
That we who know your favor
May serve you as our king;
And whether our tomorrows
Be filled with good or ill,
We’ll triumph through our
sorrows
And rise to bless you still:
To marvel at your beauty
And glory in your ways,
And make a joyful duty
Our sacrifice of praise.
Thus might I hide my blushing face
While His dear cross appears;
Dissolve my heart in thankfulness,
And melt my mine eyes in tears.
But drops of grief can ne’er repay
The debt of love I owe;
Here, Lord, I give myself away,
’Tis all that I can do.
TUNE: MARTYRDOM C.M.
Hugh Wilson, c. 1800
(#254)
PAGE 6
TUNE:THAXTED 13.13.13.13.13.13.
From Gustave Holst, The Planets, 1918
(#660)
MARCH 2016
IPC
God Speaks Ebni
G
od is at work by His Word to powerfully
impact the lives of the Ebni people of the
Southern Philippines. Ann, a Bible translator
with whom we work, labored with little reward
since 1973 to translate the Ebni New Testament
and portions of the Old Testament for this people
group of another faith. In just the past 18 months,
Ann has witnessed growing responsiveness to
the Word, and the Ebni church is now reported to
include over 130 believers.
Two brothers who worked as hired killers
repented and turned to the Lord after a cousin
repeatedly read the Ebni New Testament to them.
The family of a young man who was killed in a
property dispute has decided to not pursue the
usual course of revenge because of their new
faith in Christ. A young man left his alternative
lifestyle in response to the Word, and is now
reading it boldly to co-workers, family members
and neighbors, many of whom have believed.
An old man made an arduous journey to another
island just to bring the Ebni New Testament
to a relative who now believes. As he lay
dying, another elderly man asked to be buried
with his New Testament, but his son pleaded
with the man to let him keep it instead. A
fish vender wraps his Bible in plastic to keep
it clean and reads it when business is slow,
saying, “It’s more valuable than diamonds.”
That’s significant from a man virtually
destitute by worldly standards.
Many of these new believers have
experienced staggering losses this year since
coming to faith; there have been multiple
deaths in some families, severe illnesses,
financial ruin and physical attacks. The
pastor’s name was put on a hit list, but he
was warned in time to escape his assassin out
the back window of his home, into a small
fishing boat. Through their fiery trials, our
new brothers and sisters in Christ are holding
fast to their faith, believing His Word.
Reports like this fuel our passion to support
the work of Bible translation. As we provide
computer and administrative helps to Ann, she’s able to focus
more on translation and on ministering to the Ebni believers.
Ann asks us to “Pray that each New Testament distributed
becomes a seed that will bear much fruit.”
With deepest thanks for your partnership in this work of
Bible translation,
That all the world may know,
Mark and Barbara Rustine
MESSENGER
MARCH 2016
PAGE 7
Our Women’s Winter Retreat
O
nce everyone was gathered in our
meeting room for dinner, the sights
and sounds of the women of our church
enjoying each other’s company was a
delight to see. The room was quite loud,
but it was a wonderful, happy loud.
Uninterrupted time to be together is an
important part of a retreat. Normal busy
life just doesn’t give us this kind of time.
Mary Beth McGreevy came to
speak to us about contentment, which
means that she also spoke to us about
discontentment. She gave us an
example of a woman who “wore her
discontentment like a cloak, making
others feel her deep discontent.” Do we
want to be this woman? The trouble is
that we can all be this woman. Eve’s
discontent (and wrong understanding of
God) led to the fall. Since the fall, we all
have struggled with misplaced longings
that can turn into discontentment. To
a large extent, longings control and
define who we are. What determines
our longings? Do we compare ourselves
with others and want what they have?
PAGE 8
Mary Beth told us that “all discontent
is pointing to something that we have
wrong.” We are aware of Paul’s words in
Philippians chapter 4 where he expresses
his gratitude to the Philippians for their
support, yet he wants them to know that
he has learned to be content in whatever
situation he is in. Mary Beth told us that
this statement by Paul is not speaking of
a one–time experience. It means that he
has learned contentment and is learning
contentment.
We are grateful to Mary Beth for
challenging us to think more deeply
about our desires, the sources of our
discontent, and the truth that only Christ
is big enough to fill the deep longings of
our hearts. Living for Him is the only
worthy goal. “If you live for something
that’s not worthy of your life’s goal, you
will always be discontent.”
Many hard–working and generous
women contributed their time and
efforts to our retreat. Debbie Scharold
worked hard to make the tables and
our surroundings beautiful and our
MARCH 2016
meals delicious. She attended to many
details that added to the success of our
weekend. Julie McDougall made our
name tags, book marks, the verses on
our tables, and put together our retreat
folders. Kim Lanier welcomed us on
Friday night and helped us to relax and
enjoy ourselves with a fun ice–breaker
game. Anna Liebing sang and played
the keyboard beautifully which added
so much to our time together. Most
importantly, 69 women contributed by
coming to be a part of the retreat. In
many cases it wasn’t easy to do. Women
have many life details to work through
and plans to make in order to be free.
Most of all, we are thankful to the Lord
for blessing our simple and stumbling
efforts. He gave us food for our souls,
and we will trust Him to help us always
to be learning the secret of contentment.
Jane Boatright
IPC
Independent Presbyterian
Spring Quarter Sunday School Classes ~ March – May 2016
College Class
Teacher: Paul Rodgers
Room 73 (2nd Floor - Administration Bldg.)
Examination of Christ’s One-on-One Conversations
What does it mean to be saved? This semester we plan on attempting an answer to this question by asking
Jesus Himself through a study of His teachings on the gospel and His one-on-one conversations about the
gospel. In our study we will discuss the truths a person must know and believe in order to be saved. We
will see that the teaching of conversion and salvation that is popular today fails to promote and produce
fruitful lives that are obedient to walking with Jesus as our Lord, and not merely claiming Him as Savior.
New Covenant Class
Teachers: Terry Johnson/Tim Shaw
(4th Floor - Whitaker Bldg.)
Lives of Old Testament Saints
What do we learn about God from the lives of Jacob, Judah and Joseph? Where is Christ in these stories?
What do we learn about the Christian life? Let’s study together.
Berean Class
Teacher: Dennis Boatright
Room 31 (3rd Floor - Axson Bldg.)
The Micah Mandate
Micah 6:8 commands the people of God do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with the Lord. This study
will seek to provide guidance for balancing these requirements in the Christian life that we might be more
faithful to our heavenly father.
Emmaus Class
Teacher: Kyle Brent
Room 32 (3rd Floor - Axson Bldg.)
The Christ of the Creeds
What does the Bible say about the person and work of Christ? How have faithful Christians throughout the
centuries interpreted the Bible concerning who Christ is and what He has done? In our study, we will look
at Jesus from Scriptures and from the historic creeds and confessions of the faith. Our topics will include
subjects such as Christ’s full divinity and full humanity, the various errors concerning Christ to which the
church has responded, the emotions and experiences of the incarnate Son, and others. Join us as we seek
our Savior and develop hearts of understanding and thankfulness for who He is and what He has done.
Agape Class
Teacher: David Gobel
Room 72 (2nd Floor - Administration Bldg.)
The City in Scripture
The seventeenth-century English poet, Abraham Crowley, once noted that, “God the first garden made,
and the first city Cain.” The city has long been viewed with great suspicion by Christians and yet we know
that the Lord is preparing for His redeemed people not a restored garden, but a city. Even now, we are
citizens of a city, “Whose designer and builder is God.” How then should we view cities on this earth?
This class will investigate this perennial question by examining Bible passages that concern cities from
Genesis to Revelation.
Garmer Class
Teacher: Timothy Foster
Room 30 (3rd Floor - Axson Bldg.)
The Book of Judges
This study will present an honest portrayal of Israel’s degeneracy and lawlessness. Israel’s cycle of
depravity—privilege, presumption, punishment and penitence—is told with graphic realism. It was the
“Dark Ages” for Israel, a time in the nation’s history when “everyone did what was right in his own eyes”
(Judges 21:25). Godly leadership was desperately needed. Join us for an in-depth study of this perplexing
portrait of heroism, accelerated apostasy, and God’s faithfulness.
MESSENGER
MARCH 2016
PAGE 9
ANNOUNCEMENTS & EVENTS
The Lord’s Supper
Flowers for 2016
The Lord’s Supper will be observed during our Maundy Thursday
Service on March 24. Because of the exceptional blessing we have
in this sacrament and the danger of eating and drinking unworthily,
it is necessary that we come to it with knowledge, faith, repentance,
love and with hungering and thirsting souls after Christ and His
benefits. The congregation is encouraged to use all appointed
means, public and private, to come to the Lord’s Table, depending
upon God for the gracious preparation of the heart according to
His promise (Psalm 10:17). The next Lord’s Supper will be held
on Sunday morning, April 3.
Sunday Evening at Point Pleasant
On March 6, we will have our evening service and fellowship
meal at Point Pleasant, 441 Suncrest Blvd. The meal will be
catered by Silk Road.
Maundy Thursday Service
Our Maundy Thursday Service of Lessons and Psalms will be held
on Thursday, March 24, at 7:00 p.m. in the sanctuary.
The flowers in the sanctuary on Sundays are donated by the
members of the congregation. This is a wonderful way to honor/
memorialize a special person in your life. If you would like to
donate flowers in 2016, please call Laurel Brewer at 912-7274418.
Dead Theologians’ Society
The Dead Theologians’ Society’s evening group will meet on
Wednesday, March 23, at 7:00 p.m. at the home of Rev. Terry
Johnson, 110 Lee Blvd. The other groups will meet on Thursday,
March 24, at 6:45 a.m. for breakfast at Henry’s Restaurant, 28
Drayton Street or for lunch at noon in the Administration Bldg.
Read The Mortification of Sin by John Owen (pp. 1‒80). Books
are available in the I.P.C. Bookshop.
Church Office Closed
The church office will be closed on Thursday, March 17, for St.
Patrick’s Day. It will reopen on Friday, March 18, at 8:30 a.m.
40 Days For Life Prayer Vigil
Session/Diaconate Meeting
Our regular Session/Diaconate meeting will be held on Monday
evening, March 21, at 5:30 p.m. and 6:00 p.m. Joint meeting in
the Assembly room at 6:30 p.m.
Tuesday Morning Circle
The Tuesday Morning Circle will meet on March 8, at 10:30 a.m.
at The Marshes of Skidaway Island. Mrs. Annette Hartley will
be our hostess (598-8018).
Please set aside an hour to come and pray to end the
evil of abortion. This vigil will be held at the Savannah
Medical Clinic, 120 E. 34th Street, on March 8, from 8:00 a.m. to
5:00 p.m. This will be a time of peaceful intercession on behalf of the
unborn and those who provide abortion services. A sign-up sheet will be​
available in the hall outside the sanctuary, or you may email Cindy
Sutlive at [email protected].
Thursday Morning Circle
The Thursday Morning Circle will meet on March 10, at 10:30
a.m. at the home of Mrs. Sandee Lomax, 63 Islanders Retreat,
598-2952.
I.P.C. Day Camp Scholarships
This summer the Day Camp will again be bringing 20 campers
from the Urban Hope Ministry to camp. These scholarships
cost the camp $145 each for a total of $2900. If anyone is
interested in contributing to this program, please contact
Frankie Daniell (421-8118) or email [email protected].
Spring Forward
Daylight Saving time begins at 2:00 a.m. on March 13.
Remember to put your clocks ahead one hour before
you go to bed on Saturday, March 12.
PAGE 10
MARCH 2016
IPC
March Birthdays
1 Stephen Helmly
Ella Murns
Grace Stacy
9 Posey Helton
Priya Goeser
Louisa Laffitte
2
Gloria Horstman
Lauren Espinosa
Nathan Bristol
Jackson Biemiller
3
Paula Barlow
Judy French
David Wade
Hampton Rushing
Ella Sagar
10 Evelyn Singleton
Cole Bristol
Jackson Gift
Bellamy Fennell
11 Patty Demere
Bullock Demere
6 Nichole Ambos
12 Margaret Helmly
Frank Tilton
12 Saundra Winge
Emily Brown
13 Matthew Barlow
Jody Laing
7
8
14 Harriette Adams
Melba Gibson
Susan Mullininx
Mac Thompson
4 Kathryn Brodmann
Chris Barlow
Donna Parrish
Jaime Sullivan
Todd Fruit
Karen Hansill
Janet Johnson
15 Deborah Hosey
Tyler Butcher
17 Heather DeMott
18 Betsy Kelly
Creed Taylor
24 Amy Martin
25 Clifton Wilson
Mary Brodmann
26 Amy Milling
19 Charles Moody
Jim Scott
27 Julia Miles
28 Shirley Parker
20 Leah Brunson
Marina Dandass
Nancy Sullivan
Phillip Dusek
29 Emily Johnson
Will Black
Mae Nolen
Lorie Irish
21 Gordon Fenwick
Megan Mullininx
30 Art Broadwick
Leah Wade
Stella Helton
Frankie Longo
31 Peggy Campbell
Linda DePue
Sam Miles
22 William Rodgers
23 Katherine Berg
Ernest Mitchell
Dick Stewart
Thank You Notes
Church In Bereavement
The congregation of Independent Presbyterian Church
extends sympathy to:
. . . Mr. and Mrs. William Austin and family on the death
of Bill’s brother, James Allen Austin, who passed away on
Saturday, February 6, 2016, in Hernando, MS.
. . .Mr. and Mrs. Warren Hill and family on the death of
Warren’s mother, Elisabeth Jane Pate Meyer, who passed
away on Saturday, January 30, 2016, in Brewster, MA.
In Memoriam
Dear I.P.C. Church,
Thank you for providing a loving church home for our son,
Allen, while he is attending SCAD. We feel very blessed.
Allen and Jennifer Childress
Dear I.P.C. Church Family, 1-25-16
Many thanks for your calls, cards, and most especially your
prayers for me during my recent surgery and recovery.
What a great feeling of comfort it has been to know that I was
bathed in the prayers of my church family!
Lovingly in Christ,
Katherine Marie Schenk
Katherine Crutcher Chisholm
Entered the Lord’s presence Monday, February 1, 2016.
“Blessed are the dead,
which die in the Lord.”
Revelation 14:13

MESSENGER
Terry,
I am writing to thank you, the other pastors, elders, and the
congregation for nurturing my family and me during my illness
and recovery. The encouragement, concern, and faithful prayers
have held us up through this time. It has been a privilege to
receive Christ’s grace through the believers at I.P.C. I know it is
a glimpse of our heavenly fellowship and reward.
Drew and Heather DeMott
MARCH 2016
PAGE 11
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The IPC Messenger
INDEPENDENT PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH
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Spring
Inquirers’ Class
April 3 - May 15
Sanctuary — 9:30
am
The Independent Presbyterian Church of Savannah
207 Bull Street
(Corner of Bull and Oglethorpe Streets)