Dear First Pres,
Happy Veterans Day. If you know someone who served in any branch of our armed forces, I encourage you to send them a note or give them a call today to express your gratitude. And, if you are a Veteran, thank you for your service and sacrifice. We appreciate you.
Here are a few quick updates on things First Pres:
Facility: The leak in the Sanctuary is fixed and the water is back on. We praise the Lord that it was a pretty simple fix with relatively little impact. This Sunday you can expect the area around the leak to be blocked off as we’re still working to get the hole patched up. But the Sanctuary bathrooms will be fully operational.
Also, after many delays, we’re finally seeing some action to get our solar panels fully operational. Please join us in praying that the Lord facilitates the completion of that project before the end of 2021.
Congregation: With the influx of so many new folks in the life of our church, we’ve decided on a few strategies to help folks connect (and reconnect) in the life of our congregation.
- Name Tags: As many of you know, we’ve had a long tradition of putting name tags out on Communion Sundays. Well, for a season, we’re going to put name tags out every Sunday. Our prayer is that this will help us learn each other’s names, and be an even more hospitable place on Sunday mornings. So, when you come onto the church campus this Sunday, please find one of our name tag stations, write your first and last name in big legible font, and stick it on ya. Let’s be intentional about getting to know one another so that we can encourage each other in faith.
- Newcomer Connect: We’re also going to be initiating a once per month Sunday morning gathering for newcomers between services called Newcomer Connect. This will be a casual time for newcomers to meet me, hear a tiny bit about our church, and connect with other FPC folks. The first Newcomer Connect will be on Sunday, December 5 starting at 10:05 a.m. in The Commons. What I’m working on right now is building the leadership team for this ongoing gathering. If you love welcoming newcomers and using your God-given gift of hospitality, please contact me directly (jvaccaro@fpcfresno.org).
Finances: This week I had the privilege of sending some thank you notes to folks who have recently begun giving financially to our church. What a joy it is to welcome people into the shared ministry of supporting First Presbyterian Church Fresno, a shared ministry that has been ongoing since 1884. I am so grateful to be part of the generational generosity of this congregation. Thank you. And, as we approach the end of the year, I encourage you to prayerfully consider making an extra gift to your church. We finished October about $18K behind what we budgeted to receive year to date (as you can see at the very bottom of this email in the Financial Update).
I encourage you to scroll down through all additional information below. There’s always something going on in our church family. And, may the Lord encourage you with His presence and love today.
Blessings,
Pastor Jeremy
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