Doing things “DECENTLY and in ORDER”

“Let us behave decently”….

Romans 13:13

Dear Friends, 

A familiar phrase in Presbyterian circles is that we do things ‘decently and in order’.

We have a Congregational meeting coming up in September with two issues that will require us to act decently and in order.

The first issue is electing a person from the congregation to serve on the elder nominating committee for the class of 2029. This five person nominating committee is made up of: one person from Presbyterian women, one person from Presbyterian men, two elders from the class of elders rotating off session and one person from the congregation at large, representing the whole congregation. These five will then do the work of finding three persons who meet certain qualifications to be nominated . The first qualification for serving as an elder states that “elders should be persons of faith, dedication and good judgment” ( see the Book of Order G-600300). Considering that more than one third of our congregation of 186 members has joined the church in the last four years and that one third has been at New Wappetaw almost all their lives, its important that we keep everyone informed about our polity .

The second issue coming up is a report from the Pavilion committee who have been working hard the last several months gathering information and working with an architect and then pricing out what construction could cost. The reasoning for this POSSIBLE building project is SPACE. We are limited in having space for fellowship events and for community events that often center around New Wappetaw. We recently had an inspection by the fire Marshall who has set our seating capacity in the fellowship hall at 38! The Pavilion Committee will be available to answer questions before a vote is taken. This is a BIG project and our book of order requires a congregational vote since this involves a property issue.

The session has approved calling for a congregational meeting following worship on Sunday, September 13. Information and plans will be handed out and then there will be a second congregational meeting after worship on Sunday, September 20th. The vote will be by paper ballot and any member can vote on either Sunday or be invited to turn in a sealed ballot during the week between the two Sundays.

Regardless for what the congregation decides, know that as your pastor, I am excited that space is an issue and our church is growing and not like so many small town churches that are closing. My prayer is that we will do everything we can to insure that our children and the next generations have this very special community of faith in which to worship .

It’s a joy to be your pastor,

Mike

 
ECCO – The next ECCO food drive will be September 2nd-20th
Communion – Sunday, September 6th
Labor Day – Monday, September 7th
Men’s Dinner – Thursday, September 10th
Presbytery Meeting – Saturday, September12th
Congregational Meeting – Sunday September 13th
Covered dish luncheon – Sunday, September 13th
Refreshments on the Lawn – Sunday, September 20th
Church Directory – Copies of the church directory are available in the Narthex