Charles Town Presbyterian Church

“…they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.” (Acts 17:11b).

“You shall therefore lay up these words of mine in your heart and in your soul, …You shall teach them to your children, talking of them when you are sitting in your house…”
(Deuteronomy 11:18,19).

Do you accept the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments to be, by the Holy Spirit, the unique and authoritative witness to Jesus Christ in the Church universal, and God’s Word to you? (Book of Order W-4.04b; Ordination Question 2)

This past Wednesday, I restarted my Wednesday Night Bible Study. We began to review Hebrews, a book written to Christians and Jewish converts to Christianity in the mid-first century. It was a great beginning to this study. Hebrews is an inspiring, wonderful part of the scriptures! For over a decade now, I have been leading a Bible Study on Wednesday nights. It is scheduled then because it is the only night each week where no committee meetings are ever scheduled. For over a decade, many of the same handful of people have attended Bible Study.
I am grateful for the people who attend, but I’m surprised at the number of people who could attend but do not. Learning the scriptures is an integral part of who we are as Christians. And so, I’d like to answer some of the common objections for missing Bible Study:

• “I can’t come every week.” No one at Bible Study is there every single week. Even if your attendance is sporadic, time spent at Bible Study is never wasted, even if you weren’t there the week before.
• “I’m already so busy.” We are all busy. There will always be something competing for every moment of your day. Put Bible Study on your calendar and make it a priority. You will be glad you did.
• “Everyone there knows more about the Bible…I don’t want to look stupid!” Even if you know nothing about the Bible, you can’t change that by skipping Bible Study. If you start attending, you will learn.
• “I already do so much at church.” Believe me, I am grateful for this, but every Christian needs two things in addition to worship – a place to serve, and a place to be built up. Bible study is a great tool for growing in your faith.

Bible Study meets on Wednesdays at 7:15pm, for about an hour, in the church parlor. I hope you will consider attending!

Blessings,

-Pastor John

Why I am a Chaplain

For the better part of ten years, I have served as a chaplain to first responders in Jefferson County. I talk about this very informally and very frequently, but I’ve never really explained what I do in that role. I thought I’d take my column this week to explain what I do as a chaplain.

A chaplain is very different from a pastor, but there are some similarities. Chaplains, like pastors, often find themselves in the role of counselor. We offer prayers, both informally and formally. Occasionally, we officiate weddings, and sadly, we perform funerals.

But there is much more to this work. When there is a critical call, chaplains may be called to the scene simply to be present. We are there in case some-one needs to talk to us, and very often, simply being on scene gives the first responders the confidence they need to continue to perform their duties well. Chaplaincy can simply be a ministry of comfort.

Sometimes, a chaplain will have to provide pastoral care to the victims of the trauma. In those cases, the work of the chaplain is to eventually hand off the pastoral care to the victims’ pastor. For people with no church connection, that pastoral care can be ongoing.

After a critical incident, chaplains will often follow up by providing stress management tools to the first responders. This is done through individual and group follow up. Sometimes, the chaplain will recommend that a first responder seek additional counseling.

I came into this ministry after a phone call in 2010 from one of the local fire departments. They needed a new chaplain. Not knowing what I was getting into, I said yes. A decade later, I count it a major blessing to have served so many men and women who give themselves for others. This ministry has opened my eyes to some of the horrors that fill our world. I have gained an amazing amount of respect of what it takes to be on the front lines helping people in life and death moments.

I have seen tragedy and death; I have witnessed miracles and life. It has been a privilege to be part of all of it.

Blessings,

Pastor John

Happy New Year!

As we get going with this new year, I want to be sure you know what’s coming up in the life of the church.

• Waking Up White Book Study
  Saturday, I will begin a monthly book study on this challenging book. If you are interested in this important topic, please get a copy of Waking Up White by Debby Irving. It is available on Amazon in paperback or Kindle. We plan to cover the introduction and chapters 1-5.
• Installation and Ordination
  Elders and deacons who begin their terms in 2020 will be ordained and installed during worship on Sunday. Ordination and installation is one of my favorite acts in the life of the church! I hope you are able to come and be part of this significant moment in the life of the church.
• Annual Congregational Meeting
  Following worship, we will hold the annual congregational meeting, where we will hear reports from each of the committees, vote on the pastor’s terms of call, and take questions on the 2020 budget.
• Leadership Retreat
  Elders, deacons, trustees, and staff will be participating in a leadership retreat next Saturday 9am-2:30pm (we are extending the time by thirty minutes). This is an important retreat and we encourage all our leaders to attend.
• Wednesday Night Bible Study
  Weekly Bible Study will resume on Wednesday, January 22, at 7:15pm, in the parlor. We will study Hebrews this winter and spring. If you want to deepen your knowledge of scripture, and particularly with how the Old and New Testaments connect, this will be a study you don’t want to miss!

I’m excited! We have so much going on at a time that is usually much more dormant! And I haven’t even touched on all of it! Please be sure to look through the rest of the newsletter for all the ministry opportunities at CTPC!

Blessings,

Pastor John

I hope you didn’t miss it.

This past Sunday, our “new” music director, Penny Liston, along with the musicians in our music ministry, presented the annual Christmas Joy worship service. We heard music from the Joy Singers, the Silver Bells ringers, the Joy Ringers, the Geneva Ringers, the children’s Carol Choir, and various other musicians from the church family. Without a doubt, it was one of the best Christmas Joy services in memory, and it affirmed the call we extended to Penny earlier this year, that she should be our music director. If you weren’t able to attend, you missed a wonderful worship service that I am certain blessed everyone who attended.

I hope you don’t miss it.

Christmas is but a few days away. There is always so much to do with this holiday. Like many people, I often reach a place where I feel like I just went to get Christmas over with. When I catch myself there, I mentally walk back and try to focus on what we are celebrating.
Christmas celebrates the birth of Christ. This past week, it was brought to my attention that when we usually celebrate the birthdays of living people. Christmas is a big deal for it ushers in the plan of God’s salvation, which is realized in the birth, death, and resurrection of Christ. He is living, and we celebrate his birth every year!

Maybe you didn’t get to do all that you wanted this season. Maybe you’ve been blessed to do exactly as you planned. But no matter what you do, don’t get so busy that you miss the reason we celebrate.

For to us a child is born,
to us a son is given;
and the government shall be upon his shoulder,
and his name shall be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Isaiah 9:6

I wish you all a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Warmly in Christ,

Pastor John

Finding Joy

It’s the holiday season, a time of joy and celebration. Everywhere we look, we find bright lights, beautiful decorations and joy, joy, joy! But what happens if we’re just not feeling it? What if we find that we’re just not in the Christmas spirit? What’s wrong with us?

Honestly, nothing. When we feel this way, it is a form of grief. There many reasons people observe grief in the midst of joy. For some, this is the first holiday season without a loved on who passed away earlier in the year. For people experiencing the “first round” of holidays with an obvious absence, the holidays are long and difficult. Almost every part of season makes the absence profound, and people experiencing such grief have to figure out a new normal. For some people, the holiday grief is about transition. When our children become adults and start doing their own thing, we can experience a grief. Again, everything is different, and this is especially true when our children are starting their own families. There are some people who have difficulty when they move to a new area, and the resulting change in the holiday routine leads to a mourning of what used to be. And there are also people who experienced a profound loss during the holidays, and every Christmas serves as a reminder of that loss.

Christmas grief is not dissimilar to grief any other time of the year, but it does seem harder to go through it when all around we hear people wishing one another a Merry Christmas. However, there are some ways we can encounter a little more joy when we are feeling blue. We can become reacquainted with the gospel. Isaiah describes the Messiah as, “…a man of sorrows, acquainted with suffering” (Isaiah 53). Reread the Christmas accounts in Luke and Matthew with an eye to God’s love and care. We can also push ourselves to go to special events. We have one such event this Sunday, the Christmas Joy service, at 3pm. Many churches have similar types of programs. Don’t try to go to all of them; rather, set a simple goal of one to three. Another helpful tool is to share our struggle with someone close to us. A spouse or best friend can be a huge support when we struggle to find joy. Finally, worship can help with grieving. It is common for people to distance themselves from God while grieving, but that is the exact time we must try to get closer. Worship affords us that possibility. If you are grieving, worship will help.

Remember, in this joyous time of the year, not all of us are feeling it. We need to be sensitive to people facing that struggle. We don’t have to abandon our own sense of joy, but we must remember that some of the people around us have a really hard time at Christmas. They will benefit from a kind word and an understanding heart. And we demonstrate that kind of love, we will be sharing the love and grace of Christ in a profound way.

Blessings,

Pastor John

Hello, Church!

I hope early December finds you well! It is a busy time of year for all of us. I want to take some time to tell you about two upcoming events, one this weekend, one beginning in January.

Christmas Parade

2004 marked my first Christmas Parade in Charles Town. I was very surprised that we had neither an entry into the parade, nor any kind of outreach as the parade and spectators made their way past our front doors. I asked around and two things became clear – families usually had kids in the parade in other groups like marching band, and some kind of outreach was a new idea. The reasons for our absence in the parade made some sense, but the lack of outreach on this day when hundreds of people were right on our doorstop – that was unclear to me. I gently pushed for a few years to no avail, so I dropped it.

Last year, though, the Missions and Outreach committee came up with a brilliant idea: To serve hot dogs, chips, and hot drinks to the crowd. We wouldn’t charge anything, but we would take donations. But the money wasn’t the point. We were there to serve and let people know what was happening this Christmas season at the church. And you know how this went. Bad weather shortened the parade and killed turnout. But we are not deterred. We are trying again this year, at the parade this Saturday! Stop by, say hello, welcome people and even help serve the food.

Waking Up White

In 2020 I am leading a book study on Waking Up White, by Debby Irving. Shenandoah Presbytery read this book last year and it made for some very challenging conversations. I will admit that I was reluctant to read this book; I never considered myself racist, and to be honest, I was afraid of what I might find. Waking Up White has served as launching point for me for some incredible learning and self-discovery. The first meeting of this book study will be Saturday, January 11 at 9:30am in the church parlor. Each participant is responsible for obtaining their own copy of the book, which you can find here. This study will be open to everyone, but I do ask that you come having read the material for each meeting ahead of time. For our meeting on January 11, please read the first five chapters and the introduc-tion (22 pages), and think through the question(s) at the end of each chapter.

This is a very exciting time of the year, and I look forward to all our activities!

See you at the parade,

Pastor John