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DECEMBER 2011<br />

Celebrating<br />

Advent


Contents December 2011<br />

FEATURES<br />

3 Advent – a special time of year<br />

A time when we look back at our Savior’s birth and look ahead for<br />

his return.<br />

—Rev. Ben Wingard<br />

Ready for Christmas Ready for Christ<br />

As Christians, it is Christmas that gives us hope.<br />

4 Santa Christ<br />

MINISTRIES<br />

19 Christian Ed Ministries<br />

20 Bonclarken<br />

21 Erskine<br />

EVERY MONTH…<br />

22 Outreach North America<br />

23 World Witness<br />

—Lois Bell<br />

Jesus is not to be identified with Santa Claus; just as worldly thinking<br />

is not to be confused with biblical truth. —Dr. Sinclair Ferguson<br />

6 His Government & Peace<br />

His leadership brings hope and change we can believe in. —Rev. Tony<br />

Locke<br />

7 The Miraculous, Ushered in by the Unexpected<br />

God’s miracle of providing salvation took place in the most<br />

unexpected way.<br />

—Rev. Meredith Cavin<br />

8 Moderator’s Focus<br />

Seek the Lord, then get involved!<br />

—Rev. Andrew Putnam<br />

9 Synod Emphasis: The Free Offer of the Gospel<br />

The Gospel and the College Campus. —Rev. Paul G. Patrick<br />

24 <strong>ARP</strong> Women’s Ministries<br />

COVER<br />

PHOTO<br />

The Tribble family lights a candle on<br />

the Ora <strong>ARP</strong> <strong>Church</strong> Advent wreath.<br />

From left, Ann Marie, Kathryn and Bill.<br />

ISSN 0362—0816<br />

THE ASSOCIATE<br />

REFORMED<br />

PRESBYTERIAN<br />

VOL. XXXVI NO. 10<br />

Delores P. McDonald, Editor<br />

Susan L. Tanner, Assistant Editor<br />

Advertising rates on request; ask<br />

for current rate card. Advertising<br />

competitive with any agency or institution<br />

of the <strong>Associate</strong> <strong>Reformed</strong><br />

<strong>Presbyterian</strong> <strong>Church</strong> is not accepted.<br />

Publication of advertisements<br />

does not necessarily constitute an<br />

endorsement by this magazine.<br />

BOARD OF THE ASSSOCIATE<br />

REFORMED PRESBYTERIAN<br />

Dr. Oran Smith (2013), Chairman; Walter F. Payne<br />

Jr. (2012), Vice Chairman; Rev. Charles Hammond<br />

(2014); Leslie Milling (2013); Joel Reed (2015); Rev.<br />

Sam Roper (2017); Charles Walden (2015); Gail<br />

Fowler (2017); John Wingate (2017); Martha Waldrop<br />

(<strong>ARP</strong> Women’s Ministries representative).<br />

The <strong>Associate</strong> <strong>Reformed</strong> <strong>Presbyterian</strong> (Publication No.<br />

USPS 414770) is published monthly by the Board of<br />

The <strong>Associate</strong> <strong>Reformed</strong> <strong>Presbyterian</strong>, One Cleveland<br />

St., Ste. 110, Greenville, SC 29601-3696. Telephone<br />

(864) 232-8297, Ext. 236. Subscription rates: $20 one<br />

year, $38 two years, $54 three years. For churches in<br />

the <strong>Church</strong> Club Plan: $16.50 a year (90% participation)<br />

or $17.50 a year (75% participation). Periodicals<br />

Postage paid at Greenville, SC 29601, and additional<br />

mailing offices.<br />

POSTMASTER: Send address correction notices to<br />

The <strong>Associate</strong> <strong>Reformed</strong> <strong>Presbyterian</strong>, One Cleveland<br />

St., Ste. 110, Greenville, SC 29601-3696.<br />

10 Family Pages<br />

12 News in Brief<br />

15 Prayer Calendar<br />

28 All in Our Family<br />

31 Classified Ads<br />

Scripture taken from the Holy Bible, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 International Bible<br />

Society. All rights reserved throughout the world. Used by permission of International Bible Society.<br />

Scripture quotations marked (ESV) are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway<br />

Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.<br />

LOOKING FOR A RESOURCE FOR<br />

CURRENT <strong>ARP</strong> INFORMATION<br />

Sign up for our weekly e-mail newsletter, <strong>ARP</strong><br />

News Update or check the <strong>ARP</strong> <strong>Magazine</strong><br />

web page:<br />

www.arpmagazine.org<br />

To sign up for the newsletter or contact the<br />

<strong>ARP</strong> <strong>Magazine</strong>, e-mail:<br />

arpeditor@arpsynod.org<br />

2 THE ASSOCIATE REFORMED PRESBYTERIAN


Advent – a special time of year<br />

By Rev. Ben Wingard<br />

What a wonderful time of<br />

the year – as we enter into<br />

the celebration of our dear<br />

Savior’s birth!<br />

The Advent Season is a special<br />

time when we look back at the birth<br />

of Jesus Christ and look ahead for<br />

his return.<br />

Even in all the busyness of parties<br />

and purchasing gifts, we, as Christians,<br />

are reminded of the heart of<br />

the message, which is at the heart of<br />

the Bible!<br />

The very central theme of Scripture<br />

is God’s love for humanity and<br />

thee story of his relentless love for his<br />

chosen people.<br />

God’s desire for all of creation was<br />

to make a people for himself. God<br />

did this in the beginning and this will<br />

come to final fulfillment in the new<br />

heavens and earth! Throughout the<br />

Old Testament, God sought his people<br />

and promised a coming Messiah<br />

to deliver them.<br />

In the story of Christmas, we see all<br />

those promises of the Messiah coming<br />

to fulfillment as the Son of God<br />

enters the world in human flesh – to<br />

meet humanity in their sinfulness,<br />

commonness and neediness.<br />

In the Christmas story, we see the<br />

whole story of God’s love for his<br />

people tied together in the birth of<br />

the most important child who was<br />

ever born!<br />

In the Christmas story, the meaning<br />

of Genesis through Revelation<br />

– and everything in between – is clarified<br />

completely!<br />

In the Christmas story, we see<br />

what a wonderful Savior and Lord<br />

we really have. Won’t you come and<br />

worship him this Christmas season<br />

Won’t you come and bow down<br />

before the One who is the King of<br />

Kings, who came to us and still comes<br />

to us today<br />

Won’t you invite someone to<br />

come and discover what a wonderful<br />

Savior Jesus Christ really is<br />

Rev. Ben Wingard is pastor of<br />

Crowders Creek <strong>ARP</strong> <strong>Church</strong>.<br />

Ready for Christmas Ready for Christ<br />

By Lois Bell<br />

While looking through some back copies<br />

of The <strong>ARP</strong>, I came across this December<br />

1984 WSU Spiritual Life devotion to share<br />

with you. It’s by Lois Bell of Due West<br />

– wife of the late Dr. Jim Bell.<br />

Merry Christmas! May this be<br />

the most joyful Christmas<br />

you have ever experienced!<br />

No matter your circumstances, you<br />

can celebrate with real joy – if you are<br />

a Christian. Even if Christmas finds<br />

us this year in the midst of sickness,<br />

bereavement or other sadness, our<br />

joy can be real, because it is Christmas<br />

that gives us hope.<br />

How will we celebrate<br />

Sometimes I think the Martha<br />

shows up in us more at Christmas<br />

than at any other time. We are so anxious<br />

to have the house decorated to<br />

the hilt, the food ready and tempting,<br />

the bows tied just right, etc. We want<br />

so much to have things nice for our<br />

loved ones, but in so doing, don’t we<br />

sometimes squelch the Mary in us<br />

too much<br />

Maybe our loved ones would like it better, and our Lord be better glorified,<br />

if just sometimes we would sit down with our family for a cup of tea and some<br />

kind words, or read a child a story, or give Grandpa an extra pat on the shoulder,<br />

or have family devotions – even if the house isn’t perfect.<br />

My husband found this little poem by an anonymous author several years<br />

ago. He wrote it on a scrap of paper. We have no idea who published it. It is<br />

food for thought.<br />

Ready for Christmas<br />

“Ready for Christmas,” she said with a sigh<br />

As she gave a last touch to the gifts piled high,<br />

Then wearily sat for a moment to read<br />

Till soon, very soon, she was nodding her head.<br />

Then quietly spoke a voice in her dream,<br />

“Ready for Christmas, what do you mean<br />

Ready for Christmas, when only last week<br />

You wouldn’t acknowledge your friend on the street<br />

Ready for Christmas, while holding a grudge<br />

Perhaps you’d better let God be the judge.”<br />

She woke with a start and a cry of despair.<br />

“There’s so little time and I’ve still to prepare,<br />

Oh Father, forgive me, I see what You mean!”<br />

To be ready means more than a house swept clean.<br />

Yes, more than the giving of gifts and a tree,<br />

It’s the heart swept clean that He wanted to see,<br />

A heart that is free from rancor and sin.<br />

So be ready for Christmas and ready for Him.<br />

DECEMBER 2011 3


SantaChrist<br />

By Dr. Sinclair Ferguson<br />

I<br />

took the hand of my toddler son<br />

(it was several decades ago now)<br />

as we made our way into the local<br />

shop on the small and remote<br />

Scottish island where earlier that year<br />

I had been installed as minister. It<br />

was Christmas week. The store was<br />

brightly decorated and a general air<br />

of excitement was abroad.<br />

Without warning, the conversations<br />

of the customers were brought<br />

to a halt by a questioning voice from<br />

beside me. My son’s upraised index<br />

finger pointed at a large cardboard<br />

Santa Claus. “Daddy, who is that funny-looking<br />

man” he asked.<br />

Amazement spread across the<br />

faces of the jostling shoppers;<br />

accusing glances were directed at<br />

me. Such shame — the minister’s son<br />

did not even recognize Santa Claus!<br />

What likelihood, then, of hearing<br />

good news in his preaching at the festive<br />

season<br />

Such experiences can make us bewail<br />

how the Western world gives<br />

itself over annually to its Claus-mass<br />

or commerce-mass. We celebrate a<br />

reworked pagan Saturnalia of epic<br />

proportions, one in which the only<br />

connection with the incarnation is<br />

semantic. Santa is worshiped, not the<br />

Savior; pilgrims go to the stores with<br />

credit cards, not to the manger with<br />

gifts. It is the feast of indulgence, not<br />

of the incarnation.<br />

It is always easier to lament and<br />

critique the new paganism of secularism’s<br />

blatant idolatry than to see how<br />

easily the church — and we ourselves<br />

— twist or dilute the message of the<br />

incarnation in order to suit our own<br />

tastes. But, sadly, we have various<br />

ways of turning the Savior into a kind<br />

of Santa Claus.<br />

Santa Claus Christianity<br />

For one thing, in our worship at<br />

Christmas we may varnish the staggering<br />

truth of the incarnation with<br />

what is visually, audibly, and aesthetically<br />

pleasing. We confuse emotional<br />

pleasure — or worse, sentiment —<br />

with true adoration.<br />

For another thing, we may denigrate<br />

our Lord with a Santa Claus<br />

Christology. How sadly common it<br />

is for the church to manufacture a Jesus<br />

who is a mirror refection of Santa<br />

Claus. He becomes Santa Christ.<br />

Santa Christ is sometimes a Pelagian<br />

Jesus. Like Santa, he simply<br />

asks us whether we have been good.<br />

More exactly, since the assumption is<br />

that we are all naturally good, Santa<br />

Christ asks us whether we have been<br />

“good enough.” So just as Christmas<br />

dinner is simply the better dinner we<br />

really deserve, Jesus becomes a kind<br />

of added bonus who makes a good<br />

life even better. He is not seen as the<br />

Savior of helpless sinners.<br />

Or Santa Christ may be a Semi-<br />

Pelagian Jesus — a slightly more<br />

sophisticated Jesus who, Santa-like,<br />

gives gifts to those who have already<br />

done the best they could! Thus, Jesus’<br />

hand, like Santa’s sack, opens only<br />

when we can give an upper-percentile<br />

answer to the none-too-weighty<br />

probe, “Have you done your best this<br />

year” The only difference from medieval<br />

theology here is that we do not<br />

use its Latin phraseology: facere quod<br />

in se est (to do what one is capable of<br />

doing on one’s own, or, in common<br />

parlance, “Heaven helps those who<br />

help themselves”).<br />

Then again, Santa Christ may be a<br />

mystical Jesus, who, like Santa Claus,<br />

is important because of the good experiences<br />

we have when we think<br />

about him, irrespective of his historical<br />

reality. It doesn’t really matter<br />

whether the story is true or not; the<br />

important thing is the spirit of Santa<br />

Christ. For that matter, while it would<br />

spoil things to tell the children this,<br />

everyone can make up his or her own<br />

Santa Christ. As long as we have the<br />

right spirit of Santa Christ, all is well.<br />

But Jesus is not to be identified<br />

with Santa Claus; worldly thinking<br />

— however much it employs Jesuslanguage<br />

— is not to be confused<br />

with biblical truth.<br />

The Christ of Christmas<br />

The Scriptures systematically strip<br />

away the veneer that covers the real<br />

truth of the Christmas story. Jesus did<br />

not come to add to our comforts. He<br />

did not come to help those who were<br />

already helping themselves or to fill<br />

life with more pleasant experiences.<br />

He came on a deliverance mission, to<br />

save sinners, and to do so He had to<br />

destroy the works of the Devil (Matthew<br />

1:21; 1 John 3:8b).<br />

Those whose lives were bound up<br />

with the events of the first Christmas<br />

did not find His coming an easy and<br />

pleasurable experience.<br />

Mary and Joseph’s lives were<br />

turned upside down.<br />

The shepherds’ night was frighteningly<br />

interrupted, and their futures<br />

potentially radically changed.<br />

The magi faced all kinds of inconvenience<br />

and family separation.<br />

Our Lord Himself, conceived before<br />

wedlock, born probably in a<br />

cave, would spend His early days as<br />

a refugee from the bloodthirsty and<br />

vindictive Herod (Matthew 2:13-21).<br />

There is, therefore, an element in<br />

the Gospel narratives that stresses<br />

that the coming of Jesus is a disturbing<br />

event of the deepest proportions.<br />

It had to be thus, for He did not<br />

come merely to add something extra<br />

to life, but to deal with our spiritual<br />

4 THE ASSOCIATE REFORMED PRESBYTERIAN


insolvency and the debt of our sin.<br />

He was not conceived in the womb of<br />

Mary for those who have done their<br />

best, but for those who know that<br />

their best is “like filthy rags” (Isaiah<br />

64:6)—far from good enough—and<br />

that in their flesh there dwells no good<br />

thing (Romans 7:18). He was not sent<br />

to be the source of good experiences,<br />

but to suffer the pangs of hell in order<br />

to be our Savior.<br />

A Christian Christmas<br />

The Christians who first began<br />

to celebrate the birth of the Savior<br />

saw this. Christmas for them was<br />

not (contrary to what is sometimes<br />

mistakenly said) simply adding a<br />

Christian veneer to a pagan festival—<br />

the Roman Saturnalia.<br />

They may have been doing what<br />

many Christians have done in marking<br />

Reformation Day (which happens<br />

to fall on Halloween), namely,<br />

committing themselves to a radical<br />

alternative to the world’s Saturnalia,<br />

refusing to be squeezed into its mold.<br />

They were determined to fix mind,<br />

heart, will, and strength exclusively<br />

on the Lord Jesus Christ. There was<br />

no confusion in their thinking between<br />

the world and the gospel, Saturnalia<br />

and Christmas, Santa Jesus<br />

and Christ Jesus. They were citizens<br />

of another empire altogether.<br />

In fact, such was the malice evoked<br />

by their other-worldly devotion to<br />

Christ that during the persecutions<br />

under the Emperor Diocletian, some<br />

believers were murdered as they<br />

gathered to celebrate Christmas.<br />

What was their gross offense Worship<br />

of the true Christ — incarnate,<br />

crucified, risen, glorified, and returning.<br />

They celebrated Him that day for<br />

giving His all for them, and as they<br />

did so, they gave their all for Him.<br />

One Christmas Eve in my teenage<br />

years, I opened a book a friend had<br />

given to me as a present. I found myself<br />

so overwhelmed by its teaching<br />

on my recently found Savior that I<br />

began to shake with emotion at what<br />

had dawned on me: the world had<br />

not celebrated His coming, but rather<br />

had crucified Him.<br />

Doubtless I was an impressionable<br />

teenager. But should it not cause us<br />

to tremble that “they crucified my<br />

Lord” Or is that true only in song,<br />

not in reality Are we not there when<br />

the world still crucifies Him in its<br />

own, often-subtle ways<br />

The truth is that unless the significance<br />

of what Christ did at the first<br />

Christmas shakes us, we can scarcely<br />

be said to have understood much of<br />

what it means, or of who He really is.<br />

Who is He in yonder stall<br />

At Whose feet the shepherds fall<br />

‘Tis the Lord! O wondrous story!<br />

‘Tis the Lord! the King of glory!<br />

At His feet we humbly fall,<br />

Crown Him! Crown Him, Lord of all!<br />

And we might add:<br />

Who is He on yonder cross<br />

Suffers for this dark world’s loss<br />

‘Tis the Lord! O wondrous story!<br />

‘Tis the Lord! the King of glory!<br />

At His feet we humbly fall,<br />

Crown Him! Crown Him, Lord of all!<br />

Let us not confuse Jesus Christ<br />

with Santa Claus.<br />

From Ligonier Ministries and R.C. Sproul.<br />

(c) Tabletalk magazine.<br />

Website: www.ligonier.org/tabletalk.<br />

Email: tabletalk@ligonier.org.<br />

Toll free: 1-800-435-4343.<br />

DECEMBER 2011 5


His Government<br />

& Peace<br />

Rev. Anthony R. Locke<br />

For unto us a child is born, unto<br />

us a son is given: and the government<br />

shall be upon his shoulder:<br />

and his name shall be called Wonderful,<br />

Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting<br />

Father, The Prince of Peace. Of<br />

the increase of his government and peace<br />

there shall be no end, upon the throne of<br />

David, and upon his kingdom, to order<br />

it, and to establish it with judgment and<br />

with justice from henceforth even for ever.<br />

The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform<br />

this (Isaiah 9:6-7 KJV).<br />

Ronald Reagan once joked that<br />

“The nine most terrifying words in the<br />

English language are: “I’m from the<br />

government and I’m here to help.”<br />

Washington’s short-lived solutions<br />

for small town problems erode liberty,<br />

foster codependency and diminish<br />

self-reliance. The solution is often<br />

worse than the problem.<br />

Our nation is quickly learning that<br />

big government can’t bring peace to<br />

the world. Every American president<br />

for the last 50 years has worked to<br />

bring peace to Palestine, North Korea<br />

and Cuba, but to no avail.<br />

World peace won’t be created by<br />

the DC establishment or United Nation<br />

members. We need someone who<br />

isn’t tainted by the political machine,<br />

by money and the poison of bitter<br />

partisanship. We need a hero.<br />

We need a Savior<br />

And following our moral failure in<br />

the Garden of Eden, God has promised<br />

just such a Savior. God’s nominee<br />

has no scandal waiting to burst<br />

out onto the front page and ruin Him.<br />

He is morally fit for the task.<br />

God has chosen someone who<br />

might be considered a commoner. He<br />

is a plain-spoken, blue-collar worker<br />

who is going to make good. He comes<br />

from humble beginnings, but rises to<br />

the pinnacle of power and influence.<br />

This Savior will bring radical<br />

change to government. He will transform<br />

all social structures and bring<br />

lasting peace to the world.<br />

And God the Father has given us<br />

His name. He is wonderful. He is<br />

hope. He is change that we can believe<br />

in. He is the desire of the nations.<br />

And His name is Counselor. He<br />

has the necessary insights into world<br />

affairs and the human condition. He<br />

can see a path out of the mess we are<br />

in. He can outline a road map to sustainable<br />

prosperity.<br />

And His name is Mighty God. Lots<br />

of political leaders have ascribed the<br />

activities of deity to themselves. Mere<br />

mortals have assumed they could<br />

lower the sea levels, end world hunger<br />

and stop wars by the power of<br />

their personality.<br />

God’s man also ascribes to Himself<br />

these powers. And He is not self-deceived.<br />

God’s recommended Savior is<br />

the Everlasting Father.<br />

This title is clear – God is talking<br />

about God. And this person who is<br />

God will also be a man. He is one of<br />

us. For unto us a child is born, unto us<br />

a son is given... (Isaiah 9:6). This Son<br />

of Man has absolute moral perfection.<br />

He is perfect humanity. He is the sinless<br />

Son of God.<br />

God the Father will place on God<br />

the Son, our Savior, the full responsibility<br />

of government. And His government<br />

will be big. Of the increase of<br />

his government there shall be no end...<br />

(Isaiah 9:7).<br />

Every day the Kingdom of God<br />

gets bigger and bigger. Every day<br />

the expanse of His power grows. You<br />

might say that Jesus doesn’t believe<br />

in limited government. But alongside<br />

His power is everlasting peace.<br />

Not peace through a rod of iron, or<br />

a clenched fist, but love and joy. His<br />

leadership brings hope and change<br />

we can believe in.<br />

Absolute Power<br />

Jesus has aspirations to sit in the<br />

seat of absolute power and rule with<br />

an everlasting dominance. He has aspirations<br />

to reorder the universe as it<br />

was before sin and before the rebellion.<br />

Jesus comes to reorder the world<br />

with true judgment and justice from<br />

henceforth and forevermore.<br />

He will lift the social welfare for<br />

every one. The rising tide will lift all<br />

boats. Everyone will see the glory of<br />

our blessed Savior and be blessed.<br />

These future events will happen<br />

according to the predetermined will<br />

of God. You could say that God is excited<br />

to make these prophesies a reality.<br />

He is passionate about the glory<br />

of Jesus being displayed before all nations.<br />

God is filled with zeal to lift up<br />

Jesus and draw the world to Himself.<br />

The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform<br />

this.<br />

Are you filled with zeal for Christmas<br />

this year God is passionate<br />

about the Christmas season. We join<br />

with the passion and zeal of God<br />

when we celebrate the glory of His<br />

Son, our Savior, born in a manger on<br />

Christmas morn.<br />

And as we submit to His governance<br />

in our life, we embrace more<br />

than just His leadership, we invite His<br />

peace to enter our life and our soul.<br />

Tony Locke is pastor of First <strong>Presbyterian</strong><br />

<strong>Church</strong>, Tucker, GA.<br />

6 THE ASSOCIATE REFORMED PRESBYTERIAN


The Miraculous, Ushered in<br />

by the Unexpected<br />

FALL 2011 ARTS CALENDAR<br />

By Dr. Meredith Cavin<br />

we do just that. We try to figure things unimportant virgin Jewish girl would<br />

Therefore the Lord himself will give out, down to the details, and when conceived and bear a Son – and was<br />

Please join us for the arts at Erskine this season.<br />

you a sign: The virgin will conceive<br />

and give birth to a son, and sibility of something happening which save his people from their sin.”<br />

they do not add up, we deny the pos-<br />

told to name him Jesus, “... for He will<br />

will call him Immanuel (Isaiah 7:14). For cannot be empirically determined.<br />

Theater Productions<br />

Those who were wise in their own<br />

to us a child is born, to us a son is given, Our problem with disbelieving understanding completely missed out<br />

and the government will be on his shoulders.<br />

And he will be called Wonderful<br />

the virgin Erskine birth and Players the coming present of Shakespeare's on this unbelievable The Tempest and earth shattering<br />

4, 7:30 event. pm My prayer is that we would<br />

the Messiah is secularism. November We tend to 3 &<br />

Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father,<br />

Prince of Peace. Of the greatness of<br />

equate Jesus with Santa. Our culture<br />

November 5, never 2:30 grow pm tired of hearing this good<br />

cannot tolerate anything which may<br />

news that Jesus, the promised Messiah,<br />

came fulfilling all scriptures, and<br />

his government and peace there will be no<br />

hint of the miraculous. The very words<br />

Visual Arts<br />

end. He will reign on David’s throne and<br />

Christmas and Merry Christmas offend<br />

the minds of those who desire to<br />

his desire is to live in our lives, so we<br />

over his kingdom, establishing and upholding<br />

it with justice and righteousness<br />

Through December care for us.<br />

Art Department Faculty would never Show forget his great love and<br />

see everything related to Christianity<br />

eradicated from the public scene.<br />

8<br />

from that time on and forever. The zeal of<br />

May we experience the Lord Jesus<br />

At the incarnation, God’s miraculous<br />

means of providing salvation<br />

the LORD Almighty will accomplish this<br />

in ways which allow us to sing a new<br />

(Isaiah 9:6,7).<br />

for the human race was taking place<br />

Music song of praise to our God!<br />

I sometimes wonder why those religious<br />

leaders at the time of our Lord’s<br />

Talich String Quartet Rev. Cavin is pastor of Brighton<br />

in the most unusual and unexpected<br />

way. A poor, completely unknown, <strong>Presbyterian</strong> <strong>Church</strong>, Brighton, TN<br />

birth did not or could not understand<br />

Tuesday, November 15, 7:30 pm<br />

the reports that had come to their ears<br />

concerning the birth of Jesus.<br />

Dr. Craig Cramer, Organist<br />

Perhaps they were not expecting<br />

Thursday, November 17<br />

it. After all, hundreds of years had<br />

Masterclass – Choral Hall, 3:30 pm<br />

passed since the prophecies regarding<br />

the promised Messiah. It reminds<br />

Recital – First <strong>Presbyterian</strong>, Greenwood, 7:30 pm<br />

me of what Peter said regarding the<br />

last days: Above all, you must understand<br />

that in the last days scoffers will<br />

8 pm<br />

Erskine Student Chamber Music Ensembles<br />

FALL 2011 Friday, November ARTS 18, CALENDAR<br />

come, scoffing and following their own<br />

evil desires. They will say, “Where is this<br />

An Erskine Christmas<br />

‘coming’ he promised Ever since our ancestors<br />

Please join us for the arts at Erskine this season.<br />

Friday, December 2, 8 pm<br />

died, everything goes on as it has<br />

Saturday, December 3, 6 pm<br />

since the beginning of creation” (2 Peter<br />

(Ticketing Theater information: choirs@erskine.edu Productions<br />

or 864.379.8728)<br />

3:3,4). Perhaps they simply did not<br />

believe the Messiah would ever come,<br />

Erskine<br />

Women's<br />

Players present<br />

Chorale<br />

Shakespeare's<br />

Christmas Program<br />

The Tempest<br />

which would have meant they did not<br />

Tuesday,<br />

November<br />

December<br />

3 & 4, 7:30<br />

6, 11<br />

pm<br />

am<br />

believe God’s Word.<br />

November 5, 2:30 pm<br />

We too forget, as the religious<br />

leaders then forgot, what Isaiah reminds<br />

us: For my thoughts are not<br />

6, 7:30 pm<br />

Music Department Honors Recital<br />

Tuesday, Visual December Arts<br />

your thoughts, neither are your ways my<br />

Art Department Faculty Show<br />

ways, declares the LORD. As the heavens<br />

Through Opera Workshop<br />

December 8<br />

are higher than the earth, so are my ways<br />

Friday-Saturday, January 6 & 7<br />

higher than your ways and my thoughts<br />

than your thoughts (Isaiah 55: 8,9).<br />

As finite minds cannot comprehend<br />

the vastness of God’s doings, yet<br />

DECEMBER 2011<br />

Music<br />

For more information on arts events, call 864.379.8858<br />

Talich String Quartet<br />

Tuesday, November 15, 7:30 pm<br />

7<br />

Dr. Craig Cramer, Organist


Moderator of Synod<br />

Seek the Lord, then get involved!<br />

REV. ANDREW K. PUTNAM<br />

Moderator<br />

At the beginning of a new year,<br />

we can look back towards our<br />

past and know that as a denomination<br />

we are blessed.<br />

For more than 200 years, the Lord<br />

has been gracious in his provisions<br />

and has used the denomination to<br />

his glory. We have seen the establishment<br />

of new churches and new mission<br />

fields. We have grown from a<br />

regional church to a denomination<br />

with congregations on both coasts<br />

and in Canada.<br />

Our ministries have survived difficult<br />

times (financially and otherwise)<br />

and, despite our mistakes, we are still<br />

around! Clearly God’s hand has been<br />

on the <strong>ARP</strong> <strong>Church</strong>. As we look forward<br />

to the coming year, we should<br />

prayerfully ask the Lord to bless our<br />

efforts to serve him and minister in<br />

his name.<br />

We should not take the blessings of<br />

God lightly or for granted!<br />

As I have been saying, all of our<br />

statistics demonstrate a serious need<br />

for planting new churches and revitalizing<br />

many of our existing congregations.<br />

We need to be intentionally<br />

offering the Gospel to a lost world.<br />

Our programs, sermons, lessons,<br />

studies and activities need to be outreach<br />

and evangelistically focused. I<br />

realize that not every congregation<br />

can grow. Some are geographically<br />

bound (in the middle of no-where,<br />

with nobody around anymore) and<br />

(sadly) for others, new faces really<br />

aren’t welcome in the congregation.<br />

But we have a number of churches<br />

that can grow, can reach out, can evangelize<br />

their community. They have<br />

been given an opportunity to witness<br />

to their world for Jesus Christ. It will<br />

involve trying new things, bringing<br />

in folks that don’t look or act like the<br />

current members and it will be a step<br />

of faith for some. Faith that the God<br />

who has blessed you, will continue to<br />

bless you in a new venture.<br />

Challenge to Pray<br />

As we look forward to the coming<br />

year, we can see the need for growth,<br />

for change and for the church to be the<br />

church. So I want to challenge you to<br />

do something you may not have done<br />

in a while: pray for the <strong>ARP</strong> denomination<br />

on a daily basis.<br />

I’m asking for a serious commitment.<br />

If you can’t pray daily, commit<br />

to weekly prayer time for these issues.<br />

Begin by praying for the whole<br />

of the <strong>ARP</strong> and the ministry of the<br />

denomination. Specifically, seek out<br />

the prayer concerns of our boards,<br />

institutions and agencies. Lift up the<br />

employees, the missionaries (home<br />

and abroad), the mission developers<br />

and the leaders the organizations that<br />

make the <strong>ARP</strong> work.<br />

Pray for wisdom, growth, for occasions<br />

to share the Gospel or build<br />

up the saints. Also pray for the <strong>ARP</strong><br />

church to remain faithful to scripture<br />

while seeking to transform our world<br />

with the Gospel message. Then carry<br />

these prayers onto the local congregation<br />

you are involved with.<br />

Pray for the minister, elders, deacons,<br />

women’s and men’s leaders and<br />

the youth of your church. Lift up your<br />

Sunday school teachers, musicians<br />

and small group coordinators. Remember<br />

the “unsung heroes” of your<br />

church who labor out of sight (like<br />

the janitor, groundskeeper, cooks,<br />

etc). Change your prayer pattern, life<br />

and walk.<br />

The first step to revival of any congregation<br />

or denomination is prayer.<br />

Seek the Lord. Then, get involved.<br />

As a goal for this coming year, seek<br />

a new way to be used by God in your<br />

church. Perhaps giving up a long held<br />

position, so that you can have time to<br />

do something new and exciting for<br />

the ministry of your congregation.<br />

Take stock of the talents that Lord<br />

has provided and see what ministry<br />

opportunities are available. If none are<br />

available, create new ones. Try something<br />

new and let God do the rest!<br />

“The first step to revival<br />

of any congregation or<br />

denomination is prayer. ”<br />

8 THE ASSOCIATE REFORMED PRESBYTERIAN


The Gospel and the College Campus<br />

Synod Emphasis<br />

By Paul G. Patrick<br />

In June of 2011, I was called by the<br />

General Synod of the <strong>ARP</strong> <strong>Church</strong> to<br />

serve as the first <strong>ARP</strong>-RUF Campus<br />

Minister at Erskine College, forging an<br />

affiliation and ministry relationship with<br />

<strong>Reformed</strong> University Fellowship (www.<br />

ruf.org).<br />

Though employed by Erskine as chaplain<br />

for the previous nine years, this change<br />

in my call to ministry was beneficial for<br />

several reasons, not the least of which<br />

were establishing a clearly defined ministry<br />

and job description and articulating a<br />

philosophy of ministry. I have been asked<br />

to share these, as well as why it is both important<br />

and strategic to have a ministry of<br />

the Gospel on a college campus.<br />

Why have a ministry specifically for<br />

college students<br />

The “college years” – the years in<br />

which young people mature through late<br />

adolescence into young adulthood – are<br />

crucial ones for a person’s education and<br />

development. They either significantly<br />

contribute, or fail to contribute, to the<br />

formation and maturation of a student’s<br />

Christian faith.<br />

These years also mark the first time<br />

students have left their families and<br />

church families; and when a student<br />

becomes fully exposed to new and competing<br />

worldviews, which swirl about<br />

on every college and university campus.<br />

During these years, students will not only<br />

encounter new ways of thinking, but will<br />

also determine what they believe to be<br />

true. Influential relationships, habits, and<br />

patterns of living, as well as their ultimate<br />

beliefs, will be formed; all of which shape<br />

their lives as future adults.<br />

Having said that, perhaps it obvious<br />

why it is both important and strategic that<br />

the church extend an arm of Gospel ministry<br />

to the college campus. It is an investment<br />

in the future health of the church to<br />

have the presence of ministry on the campus,<br />

which takes both the Gospel and the<br />

university seriously. Pastoring students<br />

through these years (rather than hoping<br />

they “figure life out” on their own) is an<br />

important and strategic work of ministry,<br />

which takes the nature and the mission of<br />

the church seriously.<br />

What is the ministry of RUF<br />

Within RUF, each campus minister<br />

is tasked to develop and maintain three<br />

avenues of ministry: Large Group, Small<br />

Groups, and One-on-Ones. Together,<br />

these avenues of ministry to students are<br />

what RUF “looks” like. Each is developed<br />

and maintained through real relationships<br />

with real students.<br />

As those students begin to grow in the<br />

grace and knowledge of the Gospel, they<br />

become the most effective means of ministering<br />

to the whole campus. This happens<br />

naturally as students take the Gospel<br />

with them relationally (in an unforced<br />

manner) as salt and light within the campus<br />

community.<br />

Large Group<br />

The hallmark of RUF at Erskine is<br />

our weekly large group gathering, which<br />

meets outdoors and in a barn. On most<br />

campuses RUF meets in a classroom or a<br />

lecture hall. Those settings usually feel<br />

stale and institutional, making us grateful<br />

we have the warm and inviting context<br />

of The Barn at Erskine. Our large<br />

group provides a weekly cookout, which<br />

enhances our fellowship before we sing<br />

together and hear the Gospel preached<br />

from Scripture by the campus minister.<br />

This semester we enjoyed a series titled<br />

Close Encounters with Jesus: The Gospel<br />

of Luke.<br />

Small Groups<br />

Each semester, RUF offers a variety<br />

of small groups for students on campus.<br />

Several of those are led by the campus<br />

minister and interns, while some are offered<br />

by older students. Small groups are<br />

beneficial, not only because they create a<br />

context for deeper relationships and fellowship,<br />

but because they allow students<br />

to have conversations about the Scriptures,<br />

their beliefs, their struggles and to<br />

actually pray for one another.<br />

One-on-Ones<br />

Meeting with individual students,<br />

whether over coffee or lunch, on a walk or<br />

a run, to intentionally talk about “how life<br />

is going” is yet another way in which students<br />

are growing and maturing in their<br />

faith. Now in my 10th year at Erskine, I<br />

have countless fond memories of meeting<br />

with individual students all over town<br />

for one-on-one conversations. Those conversations<br />

with students about the Gospel<br />

and the Christian life definitely highlight<br />

some of my ministry memories.<br />

It certainly has been my privilege to<br />

take the Gospel to the Erskine College<br />

campus for the <strong>ARP</strong> Synod!<br />

DECEMBER 2011 9


True Delight in the Gift Giver<br />

By Diamond Tam<br />

All gifts pass away – no matter<br />

what they are. Even expensive and<br />

valuable gifts won’t last forever. Gifts<br />

are temporary, never meant to last.<br />

Don’t believe me Think about it<br />

– that awesome new computer, your<br />

high tech 3D TV, your shiny brand<br />

new car, that sweet iPhone or iPad.<br />

They will all break, get old, wear out<br />

with time. They really aren’t meant to<br />

last forever.<br />

Likewise, physical and spiritual<br />

gifts pass away too. The gift of athletic<br />

ability obviously doesn’t last<br />

forever. With age, our bodies become<br />

stiff, and move more slowly. With age,<br />

we also become less mentally sharp<br />

– so that we actually think and speak<br />

more slowly. As I get older, the gift<br />

I have to perform surgery becomes<br />

more diminished.<br />

The Bible has a verse with a profound<br />

and life-changing message for<br />

us. “Every good and perfect gift is<br />

from above, coming down from the<br />

Father of the heavenly lights, who<br />

does not change like shifting shadow”<br />

(James 1:17).<br />

What’s the implied message<br />

It’s that every gift comes from God,<br />

but our delight should not be in the<br />

gifts we are given, but in the Gift<br />

Giver – the One who never changes,<br />

never loses His value, never falls<br />

apart with age.<br />

As a father of two kids, I think of<br />

this verse when I see my children engulfed<br />

in the pleasure of a new gift,<br />

captivated by something different to<br />

the point that they totally forget who<br />

gave them the gift. I think that we<br />

all far too often, are guilty of acting<br />

like children and forgetting Who it is<br />

who gives us our gifts. We easily forget<br />

that every good and perfect gift<br />

comes from above – every gift! How<br />

easy it is to delight in the gifts we receive,<br />

but forget the Gift Giver.<br />

It blesses my heart when my children<br />

turn around in the middle of<br />

enjoying their gifts and come to me<br />

with an expression of thanks. Nothing<br />

makes me want to give my children<br />

more gifts than when they express<br />

their delight and thankfulness<br />

for gifts I give them. And nothing<br />

makes me regret giving my children<br />

gifts more than if they show hearts of<br />

ungratefulness. I believe it is the same<br />

with our Father in Heaven. What joy<br />

and blessing He must receive when<br />

we turn to Him and delight in Him as<br />

the Gift Giver.<br />

I, too, need to remind myself to<br />

show gratefulness for the gifts I receive<br />

every single day. My family<br />

is a gift from God. My wife is a gift;<br />

my kids are precious gifts. They have<br />

been entrusted to me to care for, love,<br />

and guide. I delight in them, but my<br />

great delight is in the perfect One who<br />

gave them to me. All my gifts – my<br />

skills, my career, my talent – mean<br />

nothing if I fail to delight in the One<br />

who is the giver of the gifts.<br />

Let us remember each day, with<br />

every single gift we enjoy, to delight<br />

not in the gift but in the Holy One<br />

who gives the gifts. Every moment<br />

we live, and every breath we take is a<br />

gift from God. Let us allow the heavenly<br />

Gift Giver to fill our thirsty souls<br />

with every good and perfect gift.<br />

Diamond Tam works at Stanford University<br />

and writes for Challenger.<br />

Spread Holiday Cheer<br />

Sweet News – Bake some homemade Christmas treats<br />

and share with your neighbors. Be sure to let them know<br />

the true meaning of this special season.<br />

Favorite Foods – What are your favorite foods to eat<br />

during the holidays Ask your friends and family to<br />

help you collect canned and boxed food for your local<br />

food pantry.<br />

Singing from the Heart – Do you enjoy Christmas<br />

music Do you play an instrument Ask your family and<br />

friends to get together to sing Christmas carols to and<br />

with people who live in a retirement home.<br />

Snow Service – If you live in a snowy place, spread<br />

God’s love by shoveling your neighbors’ driveway and<br />

sidewalk for free.<br />

10 THE ASSOCIATE REFORMED PRESBYTERIAN


Incredible Edible Nativity<br />

By Laura Fennell<br />

Make this nativity scene to share with family members<br />

or neighbors. Don’t forget to share the miraculous story of<br />

Jesus’ birth as you give it away!<br />

What you need:<br />

A sturdy paper plate<br />

A plastic knife<br />

Two whole Graham crackers (unbroken)<br />

A can of frosting or a tube of royal icing<br />

A small marshmallow<br />

Keebler elf cookies or small gingerbread cookies<br />

Animal Crackers<br />

One handful of crushed shredded wheat (optional)<br />

Sprinkles (optional)<br />

What to do:<br />

• Break the Graham crackers in half and set aside the four<br />

half-pieces. If you wish, decorate them with colored<br />

frosting and sprinkles. Wait for the frosting to dry<br />

before continuing with the next steps.<br />

• Using a plastic knife, spread frosting along the edges of<br />

three of the crackers, and “glue” them together to form<br />

a three-walled stable. “Glue” the stable to the center of<br />

your paper plate with more frosting.<br />

• Take the remaining Graham cracker and place it on top<br />

of the walls of the stable to form a roof. Add more<br />

frosting if necessary.<br />

• Spread frosting near the entrance for the stable and<br />

place a marshmallow in front of the stable as a manger.<br />

• Place two Keebler elf cookies on either side of the<br />

manger. These cookies will be Mary and Joseph. Add<br />

more cookies if you want to include shepherds in your<br />

nativity scene.<br />

• Place a few Animal Crackers around the manger to<br />

represent the animals in the stable. Sprinkle shredded<br />

wheat around the nativity scene for hay.<br />

• Let your nativity scene dry completely, then cover in<br />

plastic wrap to give as a gift to someone.<br />

What a tasty way to share the Christmas Story!<br />

Mac and Laura Fennell are members of New Albany <strong>Presbyterian</strong><br />

<strong>Church</strong> in New Albany, MS. They have twin boys,<br />

Andrew and Joseph, age 9.<br />

Family Memory Verse<br />

“On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother<br />

Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they<br />

opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold,<br />

frankincense and myrrh.” (Matthew 2:11).<br />

If you or someone in your church<br />

has an idea for The Family Page<br />

please send your ideas to Susan<br />

Tanner at stanner@arpsynod.org<br />

or call 864-232-8297.<br />

DECEMBER 2011 11


News in Brief<br />

Presbytery Fall Meeting Highlights<br />

SECOND PRESBYTERY<br />

• Heard student sermons from Asaph Din<br />

and Sungjune Kim.<br />

• Heard a report from Erskine College<br />

Chaplain Paul Patrick about his ministry<br />

and how it’s now an official RUF campus.<br />

• Approved the <strong>Church</strong> Extension Committee’s<br />

working with the Newberry <strong>ARP</strong><br />

<strong>Church</strong> to establish a RUF ministry with<br />

Newberry College. This will be in<br />

conjunction with ONA. The RUF candidate<br />

is Rev. Seth Starkey, who currently serves as<br />

an associate pastor in the PCA.<br />

• Heard a report from Mr. Starkey about<br />

these plans and the need for such a ministry<br />

at Newberry College.<br />

• Heard a report and greetings from the Moderator<br />

of General Synod Andrew Putnam.<br />

• Adopted the report from the Special<br />

Committee on <strong>Church</strong> Extension and<br />

approved a motion that this Committee<br />

work with the Standing Committee on<br />

<strong>Church</strong> Extension to formulate specifics as<br />

to how these finding might be implemented.<br />

• Examined Tanner Cline and approved his<br />

call to become pastor of the Hopewell <strong>ARP</strong><br />

<strong>Church</strong> in Covington, GA.<br />

• Examined and approved Dr. Leslie Holmes<br />

and Dr. Mickey Rice, both retired PC<br />

(USA) ministers. Dr. Holmes teaches<br />

homiletics at Erskine Seminary and Dr.<br />

Rice lives in Anderson, SC – where he has<br />

been working with Young Memorial <strong>ARP</strong><br />

<strong>Church</strong>. The effective date of receiving<br />

these men will take place at a later date.<br />

• Approved the honorable retirement of Jim<br />

Loughner as of Dec. 31, 2011.<br />

• Approved Mr. Loughner as stated<br />

supply for the Bethlehem <strong>ARP</strong> <strong>Church</strong>,<br />

and to be appointed as moderator of the<br />

Abbeville/Mt. Carmel <strong>ARP</strong> <strong>Church</strong><br />

effective Jan. 1, 2012.<br />

• Approved the appointment of a committee<br />

to study our smaller congregations and<br />

to make recommendations about what<br />

might be done to assist them.<br />

• Approved a motion for the Moderator to<br />

appoint a commission to deal with matters<br />

at the Devenger Road <strong>ARP</strong> <strong>Church</strong>.<br />

• The Memorial from the Spartanburg <strong>ARP</strong><br />

session, joined by the sessions of Unity,<br />

Redeemer and Oconee was defeated.<br />

• Approved a motion that a committee be<br />

appointed to draft a code of online conduct<br />

for ministers and ruling elders with special<br />

reference to the teaching in the Larger<br />

Catechism on the ninth commandment.<br />

• Elected Mark Hornby moderator beginning<br />

March 2012.<br />

Calvin Draffin, clerk<br />

CATAWBA PRESBYTERY<br />

Catawba Presbytery met at the Bethel <strong>Church</strong>,<br />

Winnsboro, SC. Dr. Bill Fleming served as<br />

moderator.<br />

• Adopted a motion to petition the Executive<br />

Board of Synod to act in behalf of the<br />

General Synod to postpone consideration of<br />

the Revised Form of Government for one<br />

year to allow more time for study by<br />

presbyteries, churches and members.<br />

• Heard the Senior sermons of Mark Hering<br />

and Paul Robelot, along with the Middler<br />

sermon of Kevin Vickery. Mr. Hering and<br />

Mr. Robelot were examined and licensed<br />

to preach.<br />

• Presented a certificate of appreciation to<br />

Rev. J. J. Diaz on his retirement, recognizing<br />

his years of faithful and dedicated service.<br />

• Approved a new mission work beginning<br />

Dec. 1, 2011, in Dallas, Texas, to be known<br />

as King’s Parish <strong>Associate</strong> <strong>Reformed</strong> <strong>Presbyterian</strong><br />

Mission. David Winburne is<br />

serving as Presbytery Evangelist for<br />

<strong>Church</strong> Development. A provisional<br />

session is to be named.<br />

• Approved the re-establishment of Iglesias<br />

Biblica Americano (IBL) as a mission of<br />

the Presbytery effective Oct. 11, 2011.<br />

Provisional Session members are: Garry<br />

Smith [Crossings Community], Dan Felker<br />

[Centennial] and Joe Wilson [Arsenal Hill].<br />

• Received Brad A. Anderson as a Student<br />

of Theology. He is a member of First<br />

Columbia and a student at Erskine Seminary.<br />

• Heard and adopted the report of the<br />

Special Committee on Small and/or Declining<br />

<strong>Church</strong>es. There will be several referrals<br />

to various committees, seminaries and<br />

boards.<br />

• Elected James D. McLurkin as Chairman of<br />

the Committee on Outreach, and Presbytery<br />

representative to the Board of<br />

Stewardship beginning July 1, 2012.<br />

• Heard a report from the Old Brick <strong>Church</strong><br />

Commission on restoration work being<br />

done at the church and the need for<br />

additional funding as the restoration<br />

work progresses.<br />

• Noted that the final closing date<br />

for the Pleasant Hill <strong>Church</strong>, Heath<br />

Springs, SC, is set for Nov. 6, 2011.<br />

Guy H. Smith, clerk<br />

VIRGINIA PRESBYTERY<br />

The meeting was held on Oct. 15, 2011, at<br />

Johnson Creek <strong>Church</strong>. Sermon by Andy<br />

Putnam, Moderator of Synod.<br />

• Adopted as second reading The Revised<br />

Presbytery Manual of Procedure.<br />

• Heard reports from Trustees and all<br />

standing committees<br />

• Reviewed a list of “concerns and<br />

suggestions” in regard to the Revised Form<br />

of Government as submitted by Sessions<br />

and individuals. This list will be sent to<br />

Synod’s Special Revision Committee.<br />

• Adopted the following petition to Synod’s<br />

Executive Board: “That Virginia Presbytery<br />

petition the Executive Board of Synod to act<br />

in behalf of Synod to postpone consideration<br />

of the Revised Form of Government<br />

for one year to allow time for study by<br />

presbyteries, churches and members and<br />

for the Revision Committee to carefully<br />

consider the concerns and suggestions sent<br />

to them from Presbyteries.”<br />

• Heard a report from the Wellspring Session<br />

that their new building is nearing<br />

completion. The Session invited Presbytery<br />

to hold the Spring Meeting at Wellspring.<br />

• Elected Albert Paxton, an elder at Johnson<br />

Creek, as moderator to take office at the<br />

spring meeting. Albert has been a part of<br />

the Johnson Creek <strong>Church</strong> since it was<br />

established and has served on a number<br />

of Presbytery committees.<br />

• Held a training seminar when Ken<br />

Priddy presented “Jump Start: Basic<br />

<strong>Church</strong> Vitalization.”<br />

12 THE ASSOCIATE REFORMED PRESBYTERIAN


Bonsenior 2011<br />

Photos by Susan Tanner<br />

From left, Joan Powers (Lake Placid);<br />

Bob Anderson (Faith <strong>ARP</strong>); David Walkup<br />

(Chapel By The Sea); Nelson Crews<br />

(Avon Park).<br />

It’s a bird, it’s a plane - it’s a Bonsenior!<br />

That daring Joan Powers on<br />

the flying zip line!<br />

Lucy Estridge of Mint Hill <strong>ARP</strong> paints<br />

a big smile on her snowman during<br />

craft time.<br />

Carolina Girlz show Bonseniors how to<br />

kick up their heels and line dance!<br />

Beth Perpall, left, and Marianne Wages<br />

(Peachtree Corners) paint their<br />

Bonclarken Chapel craft.<br />

Anne Crenshaw of Peactree<br />

Corners <strong>ARP</strong> picks out apples<br />

from Sky Top Orchard.<br />

Couple checks out the beautiful<br />

orchards and scenery at Sky Top.<br />

Connie & Nelson Crews of Avon Park (FL)<br />

<strong>ARP</strong> munch on Sky Top’s freshly made<br />

apple donuts.<br />

DECEMBER 2011 13


The <strong>ARP</strong> <strong>Magazine</strong><br />

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14 THE ASSOCIATE REFORMED PRESBYTERIAN


December Prayer Calendar<br />

Synod’s Committee on Worship has authorized this calendar for use in private devotions and family altars throughout the denomination.<br />

Scripture readings, memory verses and Westminster Shorter Catechism questions correspond with those used in the Adult Quarterly<br />

Sunday School curriculum published by Christian Education Ministries. In support of the <strong>ARP</strong> denomination, we ask that you include<br />

the churches and individuals listed below in your daily prayers.<br />

MEMORY VERSE<br />

I will bless those who bless you, and whoever<br />

curses you I will curse; and all peoples<br />

on earth will be blessed through you<br />

(Genesis 12:3).<br />

SHORTER CATECHISM<br />

Q.61. What is forbidden in the fourth commandment<br />

A. The fourth commandment forbiddeth<br />

the omission or careless performance of<br />

the duties required, and the profaning the<br />

day of idleness, or doing that which is in<br />

itself sinful, or by unnecessary thoughts,<br />

words, or works, about our worldly employments<br />

or recreations.<br />

1<br />

Isaiah<br />

2<br />

Matthew<br />

3<br />

Hebrews<br />

4<br />

Genesis<br />

51:1-6. Wrens <strong>ARP</strong> <strong>Church</strong>,<br />

Wrens, GA: Rev. Gary Jones, pastor.<br />

Missionaries: Mr. & Mrs. Eric<br />

Lockamy, Mexico.<br />

3:1-10. Retired minister:<br />

Rev. Charles L. Mitchell, Rock Hill,<br />

SC, on his birthday.<br />

6:13-20. Rehobeth <strong>Presbyterian</strong><br />

<strong>Church</strong>, Waxhaw, NC: Rev.<br />

Joseph Rolison, pastor.<br />

12:1-9. Westminster <strong>Presbyterian</strong><br />

<strong>Church</strong>, Albemarle, NC:<br />

Rev. Lee Shelnutt, pastor.<br />

WEEK TWO<br />

MEMORY VERSE<br />

Abram believed the LORD, and he credited<br />

it to him as righteousness (Genesis<br />

15:6).<br />

SHORTER CATECHISM<br />

Q.62. What are the reasons annexed to<br />

the fourth commandment<br />

A. The reasons annexed to the fourth<br />

commandment are, God’s allowing us<br />

six days of the week for our own employments,<br />

his challenging a special propriety<br />

in the seventh, his own example, and his<br />

blessing the sabbath-day.<br />

5<br />

Hebrews<br />

6<br />

Hebrews<br />

7<br />

WEEK ONE<br />

11:8-16. Missionary: Judy<br />

Buis, Ireland.<br />

11:17-22. Retired minister:<br />

Dr. Kenneth F. Morris, Madison, GA,<br />

on his birthday.<br />

Romans 4:9-15. Wood Avenue<br />

<strong>Presbyterian</strong> <strong>Church</strong>, Monticello,<br />

8<br />

9<br />

10<br />

11<br />

AR: Rev. Michael L. Garvey, supply.<br />

Romans 4:16-25. Trinity <strong>ARP</strong><br />

<strong>Church</strong>, Tampa, FL: Rev. John A.<br />

‘Jac’ Coad, pastor.<br />

Psalm 105:4-11. Unity <strong>ARP</strong> <strong>Church</strong>,<br />

Lancaster, SC: Rev. Charles Hammond,<br />

pastor. Missionaries: Mr. &<br />

Mrs. Sebastien Benicourt, Turkey.<br />

Hebrews 13:17-21. Westview <strong>Presbyterian</strong><br />

<strong>Church</strong>, Mt. Holly, NC: William<br />

Spencer Cain, supply.<br />

Genesis 15:1-6, 12-18. Sharon <strong>ARP</strong><br />

<strong>Church</strong>, Brighton, TN: Rev. Charles<br />

Todd, supply. Grace International African<br />

<strong>ARP</strong> Mission, Charlotte, NC: Rev.<br />

Zachary Kariuki, mission developer.<br />

WEEK THREE<br />

MEMORY VERSE<br />

“Do not lay a hand on the boy,” he said.<br />

“Do not do anything to him. Now I know<br />

that you fear God, because you have<br />

not withheld from me your son, your<br />

only son” (Genesis 22:12).<br />

SHORTER CATECHISM<br />

Q.63. Which is the fifth commandment<br />

A. The fifth commandment is, Honour thy<br />

father and thy mother; that thy days may<br />

be long upon the land which the Lord thy<br />

God giveth thee.<br />

12<br />

13<br />

14<br />

15<br />

16<br />

17<br />

Philippians 4:15-20. Prosperity <strong>ARP</strong><br />

<strong>Church</strong>, Harvest, AL: Rev. C. Dana<br />

Crowell, pastor.<br />

Galatians 4:21-28. Tradewinds<br />

Christian <strong>Church</strong>, St. Pete Beach,<br />

FL: Rev. Michael Avato, pastor.<br />

Genesis 22:15-19. Missionaries: Rev.<br />

& Mrs. Scott Andes, Ukraine. Christ<br />

Community Mission, Ruskin, FL: Rev.<br />

Charlie Lewis, mission developer.<br />

James 2:14-24. Trinity <strong>ARP</strong> <strong>Church</strong>,<br />

Chatham, ON: Rev. Henry Bartsch,<br />

mission developer.<br />

Joshua 22:21-29. Piney Creek <strong>Presbyterian</strong><br />

<strong>Church</strong>, Taneytown, MD:<br />

Rev. Paul Matthews, pastor.<br />

Proverbs 21:1-5. York <strong>ARP</strong> <strong>Church</strong>,<br />

York SC: Rev. Tony Grant, pastor.<br />

Christ <strong>Presbyterian</strong> <strong>Church</strong>, Grove<br />

City, PA: Rev. Iain Duguid, mission<br />

developer.<br />

Genesis 22:1-2, 6-14. White Oak<br />

<strong>ARP</strong> <strong>Church</strong>, Senoia, GA: Rev.<br />

Thomas Shoger, pastor; Rev. James<br />

McManus, associate pastor.<br />

DECEMBER 2011 15<br />

18<br />

MEMORY VERSE<br />

Understand, then, that those who have<br />

faith are children of Abraham (Galatians<br />

3:7).<br />

SHORTER CATECHISM<br />

Q.64. What is required in the fifth commandment<br />

A. The fifth commandment requireth the<br />

preserving the honour, and performing<br />

the duties, belonging to every one in their<br />

several places and relations, as superiors,<br />

inferiors, or equals.<br />

19<br />

20<br />

21<br />

22<br />

23<br />

24<br />

25<br />

WEEK FOUR<br />

2 Corinthians 1:18-22. Soonshin Bible<br />

<strong>Presbyterian</strong> <strong>Church</strong>, Plainview,<br />

NY: Dr. Chong Ku Ree, pastor.<br />

Nehemiah 9:6-10. Union <strong>ARP</strong> <strong>Church</strong>,<br />

Richburg, SC: Rev. Allen Derrick, pastor.<br />

Galatians 3:6-12. Triangle Onnuri<br />

Korean <strong>Church</strong>, Raleigh, NC: Rev.<br />

Abraham Ji, mission developer.<br />

Galatians 3:13-18. Young Saeng<br />

<strong>Presbyterian</strong> <strong>Church</strong>, Los Angeles,<br />

CA: Dr. Hae Soung Kim, pastor;<br />

Rev. Bonseok Koo, associate<br />

pastor; Rev. Sangkil Lee, associate<br />

pastor; Rev. Bok Chun Pack, associate<br />

pastor; Rev. Young Bong<br />

Choe, associate pastor.<br />

Luke 1:26-38. Stony Point <strong>ARP</strong><br />

<strong>Church</strong>, Stony Point, NC: Rev. Chris<br />

Parnell, pastor. White Oak <strong>ARP</strong><br />

<strong>Church</strong> (30/1), White Oak, SC: Dr.<br />

Clyde McCants, supply.<br />

Luke 1:39-45. Westminster <strong>Presbyterian</strong><br />

<strong>Church</strong>, Conway, SC: Rev.<br />

Randy Riddle, supply.<br />

Luke 1:46-55. Retired minister: Dr. John<br />

deWitt, Columbia, SC, on his birthday.<br />

WEEK FIVE<br />

MEMORY VERSE<br />

The LORD was with Joseph so that he<br />

prospered, and he lived in the house of<br />

his Egyptian master. (Genesis 39:2).


SHORTER CATECHISM<br />

Q.65. What is forbidden in the fifth commandment<br />

A. The fifth commandment forbiddeth<br />

the neglecting of, or doing any thing<br />

against, the honour and duty which<br />

belongeth to every one in their several<br />

places and relations.<br />

26<br />

27<br />

28<br />

Psalm 105:16-22. Erskine Seminary<br />

Professor: Dr. Douglas White,<br />

Professor of Christian Education.<br />

Acts 7:9-16. Young Memorial <strong>ARP</strong><br />

<strong>Church</strong>, Anderson, SC: Rev. John<br />

J. Bost, pastor. Jang Dae Hyun<br />

<strong>Presbyterian</strong> <strong>Church</strong>, Woodside,<br />

NY: Rev. Heung Ik Cha, pastor.<br />

Luke 22:39-46. Wildhurst <strong>Presbyterian</strong><br />

<strong>Church</strong>, Roanoke, VA: Dr. William<br />

Harris, supply.<br />

29<br />

30<br />

31<br />

1 Corinthians 10:1-13. Salem <strong>ARP</strong><br />

<strong>Church</strong>, Atoka, TN: Rev. Charles<br />

Todd, pastor. Tapestry <strong>ARP</strong> <strong>Church</strong>,<br />

Charlotte, NC: Rev. Jarvis Ross,<br />

mission developer.<br />

Psalm 119:25-32. Erskine Seminary<br />

Professor: Dr. Mark Ross, <strong>Associate</strong><br />

Professor of Systematic Theology.<br />

Genesis 39:1-6. Future Vision <strong>Presbyterian</strong><br />

<strong>Church</strong>, Flushing, NY: Rev. Jin<br />

Hwa Kim, mission developer. Gaston<br />

Community <strong>Church</strong>, Gastonia, NC:<br />

Rev. Mark Tankersley, pastor.<br />

* denotes mission church.<br />

Lessons and/or Readings based on International<br />

Sunday School Lessons. The International Bible<br />

Lessons for Christian Teaching, copyright © 2001<br />

by the Committee on the Uniform Series.<br />

December Events<br />

2 Classes end, Erskine Seminary<br />

6 Classes end, Erskine College<br />

5-9 Final Exams, Erskine Seminary<br />

8-13 Final Exams, Erskine College<br />

23 E.E. Pressly birthday (founder of<br />

Erskine College and Seminary<br />

23-27 Christmas Holidays,<br />

<strong>ARP</strong> Center Offices Closed<br />

25 Christmas Day<br />

26 Boxing Day (Canada)<br />

30 <strong>ARP</strong> Center Closed<br />

110 Calvary Home Circle, Anderson, SC 29621<br />

864-296-5437<br />

www.calvaryhome.org<br />

“Providing help and hope to children in need<br />

through the power of Christ”<br />

16 THE ASSOCIATE REFORMED PRESBYTERIAN


A Devotion From<br />

Serenity Acres<br />

THE SPIRIT OF CHRISTMAS<br />

By Barbara Thayer<br />

Christmas preparations seem to take place earlier and earlier each year! Even<br />

before Halloween, I saw stores pulling out Christmas displays, and some<br />

folks even begin decorating their homes in early October with thousands<br />

of lights.<br />

As I thought about this, I came up with a theory. Most of us look forward to the<br />

holidays. There seems to be more good will and happiness than at any other season;<br />

so I believe that people like to start celebrating early because they are looking for<br />

joy and light in an otherwise darkened world.<br />

With the economy sagging, unemployment high, and tensions between nations,<br />

we need something to sing about, smile about and look forward to. Blaise Pascal<br />

wrote that man has a God-shaped vacuum in his heart that nothing or no one can<br />

fill but Christ.<br />

Society can try to dodge the “Light of the World” by removing public crèche displays<br />

and taking Christmas plays out of the public schools in order to be “religion<br />

neutral.” But no one can eradicate the Word made flesh who dwelt among us full of<br />

wisdom and truth. He is the light of the world that no one can extinguish!<br />

God’s Gift<br />

While some declare this season to be far too commercial, I see it from a different<br />

perspective. God was the first gift giver. When we were lost in sin and our minds<br />

were darkened, He sent His only Son into the world to save us. John 3:16 reads: “For<br />

God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes<br />

in Him should not perish but have eternal life.”<br />

God gave the most costly gift of all, so that by the blood of our Lord Jesus Christ<br />

our sins would be covered and washed away. Jesus took on our sins and gave to<br />

us His righteousness. What a gift exchange!<br />

We can never repay Him, but<br />

we can obey Him by demonstrating His<br />

love to one another.<br />

Certainly, down through the years,<br />

the custom of gift giving at Christmas<br />

reflected not only God’s greatest gift to<br />

us but also reflected the gifts which the<br />

Wise Men brought to the Christ child.<br />

Have we really taken time to consider<br />

this aspect of our celebration<br />

When I was growing up, my family<br />

exchanged gifts as a way of demonstrating<br />

their love and respect for one another.<br />

Honoring the Lord was foremost in<br />

our festivities, but when we gave gifts,<br />

it was with the understanding we were<br />

in a very small way showing the love of<br />

Christ to another. Cost was not a factor.<br />

It was the intent of the heart that mattered<br />

most.<br />

My widowed grandmother gave us<br />

cookies, homemade fudge and other<br />

treats as her gift. I cannot think of anything<br />

better, because she labored over<br />

this with love. The reflection of her faith<br />

is what made every bite sweet!<br />

Whether it is gift giving, taking time<br />

to visit with a friend, or passing along<br />

our faith at work or play, we keep<br />

the Spirit of Christmas alive by demonstrating<br />

the love of Christ to those<br />

around us. There is no power which<br />

can stop God’s Word from going<br />

forth and bringing the results He desires.<br />

We are His instruments and<br />

ambassadors in this dark world. This<br />

Christmas, let us do all for the glory of<br />

God and radiate the love of Christ to<br />

those around us. This is the real meaning<br />

of our celebration.<br />

DECEMBER 2011 17


Christian Education Ministries<br />

TIMOTHY AN UNLIKELY MISSIONARY<br />

Author: P. Frank van Dalen<br />

Publisher: Christian Education Ministries, <strong>ARP</strong> Synod, 2011.<br />

Cost: $8.00<br />

Sourcing this book: www.arpcem.com www.arpbookstore.com<br />

By Dirk J. van Garderen<br />

<strong>ARP</strong> Executive Director of World Witness Frank van Dalen was born and raised in Mangere, New Zealand.<br />

He completed a law degree at Victoria University and went on to study at Westminster Seminary in<br />

Philadelphia to prepare for ministry. There he met and married Emily Wilder, a third-generation daughter of<br />

missionaries working in Pakistan.<br />

The challenge to both Emily and Frank to serve in Pakistan was truly a call prepared and made possible by<br />

God. They served there (mainly in Karachi) for 12 years (1983-1995). The Van Dalens, along with their three<br />

children, eventually returned and settled in South Carolina.<br />

I was recently made aware that van Dalen had published a little book (92 pages) about Timothy, whom<br />

he labels as an unlikely missionary. Its intent is to stir up and encourage young men and women today to<br />

consider becoming a missionary. Most of us, when challenged immediately, respond, “What Me” and then<br />

give a long list of reasons why that could not be!<br />

By examining the life and ministry of Timothy and especially the advice, guidance, directions and encouragement<br />

given to him by his spiritual mentor, Paul, as well as reflections on his own experiences in Pakistan,<br />

van Dalen presents a very readable and compelling challenge to young men and women to think again.<br />

I thoroughly enjoyed reading what this small book has to say and believe it would be helpful to place it in<br />

church libraries and as a good tool for elders and pastors who see young people as Paul saw Timothy. Upon<br />

reading it, I was great encouraged and also kept on thinking. “I must challenge _____ to read it!”<br />

The closing paragraphs are worth quoting:<br />

“Do you have what it takes to be a missionary Don’t ask yourself<br />

whether you are dynamic, clever, or have a vibrant personality. There<br />

is nothing wrong with these things. But the most important thing is<br />

to be a person who pursues godliness. If you have that, you have the<br />

first requirement for being a missionary. And then, if you ever have<br />

the privilege of becoming a missionary, let me assure you that it is the<br />

most rewarding life that you could ever want. There are difficulties<br />

and pain. But there is also a much greater appreciation of God’s grace,<br />

of His Word, and of His people.<br />

“Pray for your missionaries. But don’t feel sorry for them. For being<br />

a missionary like Timothy is one of the greatest privileges that a<br />

man or woman of God can have. I pray that the Lord may one day give<br />

you the privilege of being a missionary.”<br />

van Garderen is a minister of the <strong>Reformed</strong> <strong>Church</strong>es of New Zealand,<br />

where Rev. van Dalen was a member during his childhood.<br />

18 THE ASSOCIATE REFORMED PRESBYTERIAN


By Dr. Brent Turner<br />

First Disciple Makers Equipping Conference<br />

Christian Education Ministries<br />

held its first annual Disciple Makers<br />

Equipping Conference Saturday, Oct.<br />

15 at First <strong>ARP</strong> <strong>Church</strong> in Gastonia,<br />

NC. Christian educators and pastors<br />

from three states traveled for a day<br />

of workshops centering on Christian<br />

Education. CEM joined with Great<br />

Commission Publications to sponsor<br />

this event.<br />

We are thankful for the churches<br />

that participated in this event and<br />

would like to continue helping our<br />

local churches grow. One educator<br />

said, “The conference was a good<br />

way to focus/reflect as to why and<br />

how we do children’s ministry.” If<br />

you missed this year, please plan to<br />

attend next year.<br />

Conference Quotes<br />

As part of our on-going commitment to provide excellent Christian Education<br />

resources and training, those attending were able to mix and match the<br />

following workshops to meet their particular interests and needs:<br />

Bruce McRae (GCP)<br />

• Christ-Centered Discipleship: the Crying<br />

Need of the Hour<br />

• Equipping, Recruiting and Mobilizing<br />

Others for Service in the Body of Christ<br />

• Leading by Example, Living by the Grace<br />

of Christ<br />

• What is Biblical Christian Education<br />

Dan Boulton (GCP)<br />

• Helping Parents Prepare Their Children<br />

for Public Worship<br />

• How to Disciple Students Away<br />

From Class<br />

• How to Have an effective Sunday<br />

School in a Small or Midsize <strong>Church</strong><br />

• How to Prepare, Teach and Lead<br />

Youth Bible Study<br />

Christian Education Ministries<br />

“Thank you for the helpful and<br />

encouraging workshops last Saturday<br />

at First <strong>ARP</strong> of Gastonia. The conference<br />

was definitely beneficial.”<br />

-Sissy Baron<br />

“Thank you very much for teaching<br />

at this past weekend’s seminar.<br />

I really enjoyed the various workshops.<br />

I hope this is a repeat seminar.<br />

I will encourage other members of<br />

our church to attend. Please let me<br />

know if there are other such activities<br />

going on.”<br />

-Marty Gillian<br />

“The conferences provide a forum<br />

to gain insight of others in the same<br />

situation.”<br />

-Elaine Reed<br />

“The CEM workshops are effective<br />

and very helpful.”<br />

-Donald Spry<br />

Judi Hodges (CEM)<br />

• Ministry Across Generations<br />

• Creative Outreach Ideas; Moving the<br />

Walls Out<br />

• Planning a Year for Balanced Spiritual<br />

Growth<br />

Dr. Brent Turner (CEM)<br />

• Intentional Youth Ministry<br />

• Building a Youth Ministry Team<br />

Statistical Report Packages<br />

Annual Statistical Reports and Presbytery Forms go out by email (by mail to those who do not<br />

have email) December 1 in an effort to give adequate time for gathering all the data. Forms should be<br />

completed and returned to the <strong>ARP</strong> Center by February 1.<br />

Remember: The information provided by churches is important for a variety of reasons including:<br />

*membership statistics<br />

*stewardship totals<br />

*curriculum planning<br />

*denominational database updates<br />

<strong>Church</strong>es are encouraged to enter the data online. If you do not receive a packet of forms in early<br />

December, please contact Cindy (cscott@arpsynod.org or 864-232-8297 Ext 221).<br />

DECEMBER 2011 19


Pleasant Hill’s legacy will continue<br />

Bonclarken<br />

By Chip Sherer<br />

PRESIDENT<br />

No v e m b e r<br />

6th marked<br />

a sad day<br />

for our denomination<br />

as Pleasant<br />

Hill <strong>ARP</strong> <strong>Church</strong><br />

in Heath Springs,<br />

SC, held its last Sunday service. Since<br />

1899, Pleasant Hill has been very active<br />

in serving their community, Catawba<br />

Presbytery, Synod, and Synod’s<br />

agencies. The Pleasant Hill congregation<br />

had the vision for their church to<br />

leave a legacy upon closing, and their<br />

wonderful choice of this legacy is<br />

worth sharing.<br />

Bonclarken and Pleasant Hill will<br />

forever be linked through the servant<br />

leadership of Rev. J.L. and Mrs. Eva<br />

Maloney. Beginning in the spring of<br />

1950, Rev. Maloney became Director<br />

of Bonclarken, serving full-time during<br />

the summer season and returning<br />

to serve Pleasant Hill and Oak Ridge<br />

churches the rest of the year.<br />

This arrangement continued<br />

through 1960, with Rev. Maloney<br />

serving Bonclarken skillfully with his<br />

abilities in carpentry, electrical repair,<br />

and all things <strong>ARP</strong>. Rev. Maloney<br />

died in 1971. His wife Eva recently<br />

turned 102 and is still a regular visitor<br />

to their home just outside our south<br />

entrance. They were both inducted<br />

into our Honor Roll of Visionaries and<br />

Servant Leaders as Charter Members<br />

in 2004.<br />

This Bonclarken/Pleasant Hill relationship<br />

continued after Rev. Maloney’s<br />

death, as Pleasant Hill would<br />

hold church weekends with us for<br />

many years. However, it was through<br />

the church’s support of Camp Joy that<br />

the relationship thrived. Numerous<br />

volunteers from Pleasant Hill have<br />

served at Camp Joy in all areas of operation...from counselor to crafts to food<br />

service. For the past few years, a group of volunteers from Pleasant Hill have<br />

prepared all meals for each session.<br />

Honoring Maloneys, Camp Joy<br />

At the March 8 meeting of Catawba Presbytery, the motion to close Pleasant<br />

Hill was approved. Shortly thereafter, I received a phone call from Mitchell<br />

Faulkenberry, clerk of the Pleasant Hill Session, letting me know that the church<br />

desired to give Bonclarken $200,000 to establish the “Pleasant Hill / Dr. J.L. and<br />

Mrs. Eva B. Maloney Endowment Fund.” The proceeds from this fund are to be<br />

used solely for the support of Camp Joy.<br />

I spoke with Ann Brice, director of Camp Joy, regarding Pleasant Hill’s contributions.<br />

“Our wonderful friends at Pleasant Hill have played a major role in<br />

making Camp Joy happen for many years now. Not only with counselors and<br />

staff, but also through the work of Sheryl Thomas and her team of volunteers<br />

that provides our meals. Having Pleasant Hill honor Camp Joy with this wonderful<br />

gift means so much.”<br />

On May 1, I joined Ann and Brent Turner, director of Christian Education<br />

Ministries, in visiting Pleasant Hill. We were able to thank them for this decision<br />

to honor the Maloneys, Camp Joy, and Bonclarken through their generous gift.<br />

As demographics of an area change, churches are faced with difficult decisions<br />

such as the one faced by Pleasant Hill. Through the “Pleasant Hill / Dr.<br />

J.L. and Mrs. Eva B. Maloney Fund,” their church will live on in the changed<br />

lives of campers, counselors and staff of Camp Joy.<br />

What a fine legacy to leave.<br />

20 THE ASSOCIATE REFORMED PRESBYTERIAN


A time of flourishing for Erskine students<br />

Erskine<br />

DUE WEST, S.C. — Erskine’s homecoming<br />

celebration Oct. 22 marked the<br />

midpoint of a fall semester focused on the<br />

flourishing of mind, body and spirit.<br />

A series of meaningful events for the<br />

Erskine community took place around<br />

the time of homecoming, including a<br />

special convocation on science and faith;<br />

a productive meeting of the Board of<br />

Trustees; a fall concert by the Choraleers;<br />

the annual “Fall Barbecue and Hymn<br />

Sing” sponsored by Campus Ministry at<br />

Erskine, now officially called <strong>Reformed</strong><br />

University Fellowship (RUF) at Erskine<br />

College; and a special address by Erskine<br />

President Dr. David Norman – hosted by<br />

the Euphemian Literary Society.<br />

When the “Test of Faith” tour stopped<br />

at Erskine Oct. 20, students, faculty and<br />

staff members welcomed Dr. Ruth Bancewicz,<br />

a research associate at the Faraday<br />

Institute for Science and Religion, based<br />

at St. Edmund’s College, Cambridge<br />

University. A convocation featuring both<br />

Bancewiz’s remarks and clips from the<br />

documentary film “Test of Faith” was designed<br />

to spark an ongoing conversation,<br />

and a follow-up convocation a week later<br />

was led by Erskine science faculty and<br />

students in a panel discussion.<br />

The Erskine Board of Trustees met<br />

Oct. 20-21 and received updates from the<br />

president and his cabinet, including an indepth<br />

report from Chief Communications<br />

Officer Cliff Smith, and also heard from<br />

student-athletes about community life<br />

and spiritual formation.<br />

“I reviewed all the work we had done<br />

to support the recruiting effort, showing<br />

them the new admissions site and giving<br />

them a tour of the process of personalizing<br />

our interaction with prospects and<br />

inquiries,” Smith said.<br />

Four student-athletes from fall semester<br />

sports teams “each spoke of their<br />

enjoyment of the community life and<br />

how being an athlete at Erskine enriched<br />

their experience,” Smith said. Asked by<br />

the president about spiritual formation,<br />

all the athletes described Erskine as “an<br />

Erskine Alumni Director Buddy Ferguson, driver. Left to right: Senior Homecoming<br />

Representatives Taylor Wolfe, Gastonia, NC; Kate Setzer, Columbia, SC; Lane<br />

Bradley, Richburg, SC; and Amanda Reavis, Mocksville, NC. Also, Julia Price, N.<br />

Augusta, SC.<br />

excellent environment” in which to pursue<br />

their faith, and “each mentioned<br />

their team being a part of that endeavor,”<br />

Smith reported.<br />

The trustees gathered in small groups<br />

to discuss questions posed by the president,<br />

pondering, for example, what<br />

Erskine can do that no other institution<br />

can do, and also considering what might<br />

be the two or three greatest opportunities<br />

facing Erskine’s leadership. “Overall the<br />

mood seemed very collegial,” Smith said.<br />

Erskine student musicians took the<br />

stage Oct. 21 when the Choraleers, Chamber<br />

Singers and Fleetones, directed by<br />

the newest member of Erskine’s music<br />

faculty, Mark Nabholz, performed in a<br />

program ranging from Latin motets to<br />

artful hymn arrangements and including<br />

some secular compositions as well. The<br />

Choraleers finish the semester with “An<br />

Erskine Christmas,” their annual holiday<br />

concert, set for Dec. 2-3.<br />

Homecoming activities included the<br />

traditional float contest, parade, cookout,<br />

musical performances, athletic matches<br />

and homecoming court, with senior<br />

Taylor Wolfe of Gastonia named homecoming<br />

queen. Also scheduled during<br />

homecoming this year was the Flying<br />

Fleet Hall of Fame, inducting several<br />

alumni who have made significant contributions<br />

to Erskine athletics.<br />

For a number of years, many Erskine<br />

students have spent their Sunday evenings<br />

“at the barn” on Chaplain Paul Patrick’s<br />

property. In that tradition, a special<br />

concert and hymn sing with “Indelible<br />

Grace,” that included a catered barbecue<br />

supper, drew a crowd of students, faculty,<br />

staff members and guests Oct. 23. Indelible<br />

Grace Music describes its ministry as<br />

helping the church “to recover the tradition<br />

of putting old hymns to new music<br />

for each generation, and to enrich our<br />

worship with a huge view of God and His<br />

indelible grace.”<br />

The Euphemian Literary Society hosted<br />

an outdoor address by Dr. David Norman<br />

Monday, Oct. 24. Following an invocation<br />

and introduction by members of the society,<br />

the president spoke about community<br />

and what it means to be an authentically<br />

Christian liberal arts community.<br />

“God is our center and our ground, he<br />

is our example, he is our redeemer, and he<br />

is also our comforter,” Norman declared.<br />

“He is the creator, and yet he identified<br />

himself with his creation. He participated<br />

in our community even though he knew<br />

our community was so messy that the<br />

cross is the end result.”<br />

Christ’s example, Norman said, “calls<br />

us to be gracious with one another, to forgive<br />

one another.” <br />

DECEMBER 2011 21


Outreach North America<br />

DR. ALAN J. AVERA<br />

Executive Director<br />

When I came into the <strong>ARP</strong> <strong>Church</strong><br />

25 years ago, there were only<br />

seven presbyteries. Today there<br />

are 10. One day soon, there may be 11.<br />

Of the three new presbyteries formed<br />

since I became an <strong>ARP</strong>, two of the three<br />

are the result of an existing presbytery<br />

intentionally helping give birth to a new<br />

presbytery. Only the Pacific Presbytery<br />

was born without first being part of an<br />

existing presbytery.<br />

Planting a New Presbytery<br />

I was originally ordained in the Virginia<br />

Presbytery, but that presbytery soon<br />

helped give birth to the Northeast Presbytery.<br />

In the 1980’s, Virginia Presbytery<br />

provided a new home for several congregations<br />

from Maryland, Pennsylvania,<br />

and New York that had left the PCUSA<br />

and were looking for a more biblically<br />

faithful home. Northeast was formed<br />

from these transfer congregations and<br />

from new church plants.<br />

Very early in its history, Northeast began<br />

establishing new mission congregations<br />

in Canada. Many of these missions<br />

came from core groups that had broken<br />

away from another denomination, and<br />

were looking for a new home in the same<br />

way that most of the original Northeast<br />

Presbytery congregations had found a<br />

home in Virginia Presbytery.<br />

Before long, Canada became a significant<br />

region of ministry within Northeast<br />

Presbytery. The geography of the presbytery<br />

was immense; from suburban Washington,<br />

DC, to the northern tip of Nova<br />

Scotia. Soon Northeast began making<br />

plans for giving birth to a new presbytery.<br />

At the appropriate time, Synod approved<br />

making the Canadian Presbytery a new<br />

presbytery – distinct from Northeast.<br />

In the same way, Catawba Presbytery<br />

will some day in the near future help give<br />

birth to a new presbytery in Louisiana,<br />

Texas, and maybe farther west. Catawba<br />

has taken in new churches and established<br />

mission congregations in Houston<br />

and in Louisiana. Now they are launching<br />

a new mission in Dallas. In our From the<br />

Field article this month, we introduce you<br />

to the work in Dallas.<br />

Introducing King’s Parish <strong>ARP</strong> <strong>Church</strong><br />

Dallas, Texas<br />

By Rev. David Winburne<br />

Why have I uprooted my family and<br />

moved to Dallas, Texas, after serving as an<br />

<strong>ARP</strong> pastor for 10 years in Huntersville, NC<br />

First, you need to know that I love our denomination.<br />

Let me explain – I’m a city boy<br />

from Dallas. I did not grow up an <strong>ARP</strong>. I knew<br />

nothing of Bonclarken, the Bible Song Book, or<br />

the Old Brick <strong>Church</strong>. Nor had I experienced<br />

a kind, non-contentious <strong>Reformed</strong> group. I<br />

transferred my ministerial credentials from<br />

another <strong>Reformed</strong> <strong>Presbyterian</strong> denomination<br />

in 2001.<br />

While pastoring in Huntersville, I learned<br />

much. Hopefully, I learned how to study, pray,<br />

preach and be a friend. People do not want a<br />

professional coming to see them when they<br />

suffer, they want a friend to weep with them,<br />

rejoice with them, and remind them of the presence<br />

and promises of God in good times and in<br />

bad. I also learned that the <strong>ARP</strong> was my home.<br />

I had stumbled into a group of pastors<br />

with whom I did not have to compete. I<br />

love the <strong>ARP</strong> because I do not have to be a<br />

celebrity to be in the club. Here, I am content<br />

with being faithful, prayerful, and kind.<br />

The <strong>ARP</strong> really is an older, kinder, gentler<br />

<strong>Reformed</strong> body the rest of the world needs to know about! That brings me to this whole church<br />

planting thing.<br />

While in North Carolina, I had people I had pastored before in Texas asking me to return and<br />

serve there. My answer for well over nine years was, “No! I have found a home here and there is<br />

much work to be done in seeking to bring myself and my church to maturity.”<br />

I so wanted the church to be a family that deeply celebrated the person of our God, sought to<br />

comprehend the Scriptures, strove to build a rich, caring community, and showed the compassion<br />

of Christ to the world. My dear session and I fought for that vision for 10 years. Now, by the grace<br />

of God, I can say the church is fairly healthy.<br />

Taking the <strong>ARP</strong> Home<br />

In my tenth year at Huntersville, the call came again to return to Dallas. This time the call sunk<br />

deep into my heart. Suddenly, a dream was born. I deeply desired to take what I had grown to<br />

love and appreciate about the <strong>ARP</strong> to my hometown that needed a church reformed in doctrine,<br />

pastoral in nature, and evangelistic in heart.<br />

I arrived in Dallas, with the support of Catawba Presbytery and ONA, in June of 2011. There<br />

was a group of 19 committed future <strong>ARP</strong>s waiting on me! We started meeting in one of our homes<br />

for singing, prayer, preaching, and planning. This group is excited and faithful, and they spread<br />

the word to their friends. We have grown and started meeting in a public building. Visitors are<br />

coming and returning. <strong>Church</strong> planting is hard, but really fun work.<br />

There are few <strong>Reformed</strong> churches in this city of 1.2 million people (and a surrounding metro<br />

area of 6.5 million). As far back as 1998, ONA has desired to see the <strong>ARP</strong> expand to Dallas, but until<br />

now it has not happened. We have much work to<br />

do. Please pray for King’s Parish.<br />

We want to do three things: Worship the living<br />

God; worship together (in everyday community);<br />

and take our worship (through extending<br />

the friendship of Jesus) to those who deny Him.<br />

Texas does need our Savior, and we think it also<br />

needs the <strong>ARP</strong> denomination. We want to see a<br />

pastorally-involved, graciously-reformed church<br />

for every 300 people. That means a lot of new <strong>ARP</strong><br />

churches in Dallas! May it be so, Lord Jesus!<br />

22 THE ASSOCIATE REFORMED PRESBYTERIAN


THE LORD IS AT WORK IN GUADALAJARA<br />

FRANK VAN DALEN<br />

Executive Director<br />

of World Witness<br />

World Witness<br />

Iam used to seeing empty cathedrals<br />

when I have visited<br />

them on weekdays. However,<br />

one Sunday evening, as I was<br />

in downtown Guadalajara with<br />

some World Witness missionaries,<br />

I stepped inside the doors of the<br />

main Roman Catholic Cathedral<br />

to observe the worship.<br />

I was surprised to see every seat<br />

filled with well over 1,000 worshippers,<br />

each intently observing the<br />

priestly rituals at the front. I was<br />

greatly challenged by the overwhelming<br />

task of reaching this city<br />

of nine million people, 98 percent<br />

of whom are Roman Catholic.<br />

Then I recalled the morning’s<br />

worship service at a <strong>Presbyterian</strong><br />

church led by PCA missionary,<br />

Rev. Kenton Wood. The Lord has<br />

blessed him with many talents,<br />

and he has used them well. Every<br />

Sunday, there are five Hispanic services<br />

at the <strong>Presbyterian</strong> <strong>Church</strong> in<br />

central Guadalajara, where he pastors.<br />

There are also at least four<br />

church plants which have been<br />

sponsored by that congregation.<br />

The Rev. Kenton Wood is eager<br />

to see <strong>ARP</strong> involvement in the<br />

task. With nine million people in<br />

Guadalajara and only 1 percent<br />

evangelical Christian, there is still<br />

much work to be done to reach<br />

those who God has chosen to be in<br />

His <strong>Church</strong> in that city.<br />

Missionaries sharing breakfast with the Rev. Kenton Wood<br />

on right<br />

World Witness missionaries in front of the main Roman Cathedral<br />

DECEMBER 2011 23


<strong>ARP</strong> Women’s Ministries<br />

God’s Word – More Than a Historical Document<br />

ELAINE REED<br />

President<br />

By John E. Kuykendall, Ph. D.<br />

In the beginning was the Word, and<br />

the Word was with God, and the<br />

Word was God. He was in the beginning<br />

with God. All things were made<br />

through Him, and without Him nothing<br />

was made that was made. In Him was<br />

life, and the life was the light of men. And<br />

the light shines in the darkness, and the<br />

darkness did not comprehend it (John<br />

1:1-5 NKJV).<br />

During the advent season we celebrate<br />

the point in time that Christ was<br />

born fully human yet fully divine. For<br />

33 years Jesus lived on earth, requiring<br />

food, water, and rest. He was tempted<br />

and endured pain. There were times<br />

He enjoyed the fellowship of His followers<br />

and there times His followers<br />

denied Him. But He still came.<br />

John 1:1-5 is the most succinct genealogy<br />

of Christ: He has been with<br />

God from the beginning. John’s use<br />

of the term “Word” captured the attention<br />

of Jews and Gentiles. The<br />

Greek definition, when applied to the<br />

universe, means “the rational principle<br />

that governs all things” (NIV<br />

Study Notes). In the Jewish culture<br />

the term was a way to refer to God.<br />

God has provided His written<br />

Word to us within the pages of the<br />

Bible. For Christians it is more than<br />

a historical document, it is our guide<br />

that governs all things. Through<br />

the revelation of the Holy Spirit, as<br />

we read our Bibles, we learn about<br />

the character of God, His commandments<br />

and statutes for our lives, His<br />

relationship with His people throughout<br />

history and about the development<br />

of the Christian church.<br />

At the October Disciple Makers<br />

Conference hosted by Christian Education<br />

Ministries, Dr. Bruce H. McRae<br />

called the Bible “the most interesting<br />

book in the world.” But as the director<br />

of <strong>Church</strong> Relations for Great<br />

Commission Publications, Dr. McRae<br />

has seen first-hand the results of the<br />

trend to teach the morals behind Bible<br />

stories rather than the context.<br />

Alarming Test Results<br />

In August 1999, Christianity Today<br />

published Gary M. Burge’s article,<br />

“The Greatest Story Never Read.”<br />

Burge described a study completed<br />

by the Bible and Theology department<br />

at Wheaton College. For four<br />

years the researchers studied the<br />

biblical and theological literacy of incoming<br />

freshmen.<br />

The group represented every state<br />

and the vast majority of protestant denominations.<br />

The results were alarming:<br />

“One-third of the freshmen could<br />

not put the following in order: Abraham,<br />

the Old Testament prophets, the<br />

death of Christ, and Pentecost.<br />

Half could not sequence: Moses in<br />

Egypt, Isaac’s birth, Saul’s death, and<br />

Judah’s exile. One-third could not<br />

identify Matthew as an apostle from<br />

a list of New Testament names.<br />

When asked to locate the biblical<br />

book supplying a given story, onethird<br />

could not find Paul’s travels in<br />

Acts; half did not know that the Christmas<br />

story was in Matthew or that the<br />

Passover story was in Exodus.”<br />

Burge concludes: “This presents<br />

a formidable problem for anyone<br />

wishing to understand the spiritual<br />

thought-world of the New Testament.<br />

Each of the New Testament writers<br />

was steeped in the biblical stories of<br />

the Old Testament, and they all employed<br />

allusions to these stories in<br />

order to convey deeper meaning to<br />

their message.<br />

Students who cannot identify<br />

Samuel or David with ease (much<br />

less understand the deeper nuances<br />

in their stories in the Old Testament)<br />

are at a loss to understand the<br />

New Testament.”<br />

Reversing The Trend<br />

If asked to defend our faith or<br />

share the message of the Gospel,<br />

would you or I fare much better<br />

Only through the reading and proclamation<br />

of God’s Word will this trend<br />

be reversed. As we approach 2012 it<br />

is a good time to consider how we<br />

might improve our own understanding<br />

of scripture and develop a richer<br />

and deeper relationship with the One<br />

who makes it possible.<br />

There are several versions of reading<br />

through the Bible in one year,<br />

such as Harvest House Publishers’<br />

The NIV Daily Bible: In Chronological<br />

Order or Crossway Books & Bibles’<br />

The One Year Bible produced in several<br />

versions. There are a wide variety<br />

of reading plans: chronological, historical,<br />

beginning to end, or daily Old<br />

and New Testament readings.<br />

In today’s cyber age, you can track<br />

your progress online. There are even<br />

apps available for the iPad, iPhone,<br />

and Android phones to aid you in<br />

your quest (for a list of resources go<br />

to www.arpwm.org). Regardless of<br />

how we incorporate God’s Word in<br />

our lives, may it be intimate and deep<br />

so that we might better know, love,<br />

and serve Jesus.<br />

Chairman, Department of<br />

History and Political Science,<br />

Charleston Southern University<br />

24 THE ASSOCIATE REFORMED PRESBYTERIAN


ELIZABETH M. BURNS<br />

Coordinator<br />

For to us a child is born, to us a son<br />

is given, and the government shall<br />

be upon His shoulder, and His<br />

name shall be called Wonderful Counselor,<br />

Mighty God, Everlasting Father,<br />

Prince of peace (Isaiah 9:6).<br />

These words are most precious to<br />

all Christians all over the world all<br />

year long, but they are particularly<br />

so at this time of year as we prepare<br />

to celebrate the birth of Christ, God’s<br />

greatest gift to the world.<br />

Living in a confusing world, overpowered<br />

by forces beyond our control<br />

leaving one to feel alone and unsettled,<br />

God has given to all humanity<br />

exactly what it needs: Christ Jesus, the<br />

Perfect Gift! But so few know the wisdom<br />

of His counsel, the power of His<br />

presence, the joy of being His child,<br />

or the comfort of His peace.<br />

Though the world craves these<br />

things, it will never find them, since<br />

those of the world refuse to recognize<br />

the purpose of God’s Perfect Gift: salvation<br />

through the forgiveness of sin!<br />

. . .you shall call His name Jesus, for He<br />

will save his people from their sins (Matthew<br />

1:21b). The world wants what<br />

Isaiah 9:6 promises, but not what<br />

Matthew 1:21 provides.<br />

I am reminded of a verse I once<br />

read in a Christmas card: “If our greatest<br />

need had been information, God<br />

would have sent an educator. If our<br />

greatest need had been technology,<br />

God would have sent us a scientist.<br />

If our greatest need had been money,<br />

God would have sent an economist.<br />

But since our greatest need was forgiveness,<br />

God sent us a Savior.”<br />

May it be the prayer of God’s people<br />

this Christmas for the eyes of the<br />

blind to be opened that they may see<br />

God’s Perfect Gift<br />

who Jesus truly is, not just who they<br />

want Him to be. Then and only then<br />

will the benefits of God’s Gift be realized<br />

and enjoyed to the fullest!<br />

Purpose of Gift<br />

Recognizing a gift and it’s purpose<br />

is important in others areas of life as<br />

well. How silly it would be to receive<br />

a Kitchen-Aid stand mixer, only to<br />

use it as a doorstop. Though heavy<br />

enough to do the job, the full benefit<br />

of the gift will never be realized if it is<br />

never used for it’s intended purpose.<br />

While the gift of a treadmill or exercise<br />

bike may make a convenient<br />

clothesline, it doesn’t do a thing for<br />

your waistline. This same truth applies<br />

to the individual gifts God gives<br />

to His children for the building up of<br />

the body of Christ.<br />

How uncomfortable it is to isolate<br />

someone with the gift of hospitality in<br />

an office, attending to administrative<br />

duties. What gain is there in confining<br />

someone with the gift of teaching<br />

children to the kitchen washing dishes<br />

Where is the wisdom in assigning<br />

a gifted musician to greet and usher<br />

in the people instead of welcoming<br />

them in with song<br />

Certain times and situations will<br />

require each of us to help out in an<br />

area or areas not in keeping with our<br />

specific gifts or talents. But if our<br />

goal is to see the body of Christ<br />

work efficiently, effectively and<br />

with great joy, the way God intends<br />

it should, then you and I have the<br />

responsibility to recognize the Godgiven<br />

gifts of others and to encourage<br />

them to seek places and opportunities<br />

to use their gifts that all may enjoy<br />

the benefits to their fullest.<br />

Use, Share Gifts<br />

While this may sound impossible<br />

to some, I have seen this truth at work<br />

in Women’s Ministries of Rowan <strong>ARP</strong><br />

in Lugoff, SC. I have had the privilege<br />

of meeting with these ladies twice for<br />

fellowship and worship. I am amazed<br />

by their relationship with one another<br />

and the ease with which each woman<br />

works in this body of believers.<br />

These women are not only sensitive<br />

to the gifts and abilities of<br />

one another, they encourage each<br />

other to use and share their gifts<br />

so the entire group is built up and<br />

strengthened. While I and the ladies<br />

of Rowan know they are not perfect,<br />

they lack no good thing. They understand<br />

God has brought them all<br />

together, each with particular gifts<br />

for His purposes; and only as they<br />

recognize and appropriately use the<br />

gifts He has given, will the good<br />

things He has promised be fully realized<br />

and enjoyed.<br />

Is this your experience in your<br />

Women’s Ministries As you pray for<br />

the eyes of the blind to be opened to<br />

the Perfect Gift, will you also pray for<br />

God to open your eyes to the gifts of<br />

the women in your church, so all may<br />

be encouraged and enjoy the benefits<br />

of God’s gifts to the fullest!<br />

DECEMBER 2011 25<br />

<strong>ARP</strong> Women’s Ministries


<strong>ARP</strong> Women’s Ministries<br />

Preparing for a Milestone Event in 2014!<br />

By Joanne Hamilton<br />

Every year in July, the women of the<br />

<strong>ARP</strong> <strong>Church</strong> gather together at Bonclarken<br />

for their Annual Meeting in order to conduct<br />

the business of the organization and<br />

set the course for the coming year. In July<br />

of 2014, we will be doing much more than<br />

that—we will be marking the 100th Annual<br />

Meeting of the <strong>ARP</strong> women! What<br />

a momentous opportunity to give thanks<br />

for the faithful women in our history, take<br />

stock of where we are today, and affirm<br />

our vision for the future!<br />

The <strong>ARP</strong> Women’s Ministries Board<br />

has already begun to brainstorm how to<br />

celebrate this milestone event, and we<br />

have concluded that one afternoon will<br />

not be sufficient to engage all the wonderful<br />

ideas that have been springing forth!<br />

Contemplating a two day celebration is<br />

generating a lot of excitement!<br />

A special committee will be appointed<br />

to oversee the planning. That committee<br />

will be assisted hopefully by many<br />

women across the denomination. It is our<br />

prayer that women of all ages—younger,<br />

older, and in between—will be inspired to<br />

help create a memorable event that will<br />

bring glory to God and a renewed spirit<br />

to His people.<br />

We are counting on many of you to<br />

bring your time, talents, and memories to<br />

the planning table. Please be in prayer as<br />

to your own participation, and watch for<br />

updates in the <strong>ARP</strong> <strong>Magazine</strong> and on our<br />

website (www.arpwm.org).<br />

Scripture is full of references to the<br />

importance of remembering what has<br />

gone before. From 1 Samuel 7:12: Then<br />

Samuel took a stone and set it up between<br />

Mizpah and Shen, and called its name<br />

Ebenezer, saying, “Thus far the Lord has<br />

helped us.”<br />

May our celebration of the 100th Annual<br />

Meeting truly be our recognition of<br />

the Lord’s hand in all that came before,<br />

and our petition that He would continue<br />

to help us in our quest to serve Him<br />

through women’s ministry.<br />

Presbyterial History<br />

By Sandra Miller<br />

Presbyterials’ Dates of Organization<br />

1907 Second Presbyterial Union in<br />

Louisville, GA<br />

1909 First Presbyterial Union in Chester, SC<br />

1909 Arkansas Presbyterial Union in<br />

Monticello, AR; disbanded in 1928<br />

1911 Tennessee/Alabama Presbyterial in<br />

Prosperity, TN<br />

1915 Woman’s Synodical Missionary Union<br />

in Due West, SC<br />

1919 Memphis/Louisville Presbyterial Union<br />

in Memphis, TN; dissolved in 1933<br />

1919 First Presbyterial Union divides,<br />

retaining NC churches; SC churches<br />

become Catawba Presbyterial Union<br />

1922 Virginia Presbyterial Union in Steeles<br />

Tavern, VA<br />

1933 Former organizations Memphis/<br />

Louisville and Arkansas combine to<br />

form Mississippi Valley Presbyterial<br />

Union in Salem, TN<br />

1963 Florida Presbyterial in Bartow, FL<br />

As you can tell by the organizational<br />

timeline, the work of the women in the<br />

<strong>ARP</strong> <strong>Church</strong> has a long and distinguished<br />

history—which will be joyfully celebrated<br />

at the 100th Annual Meeting in 2014.<br />

How would we know what to celebrate<br />

if not for the faithful recording by local<br />

and Presbyterial historians over all<br />

these years<br />

Whether your Presbyterial functions<br />

are September to August or January to<br />

December, it’s important for today’s historians<br />

to be mindful of collecting information<br />

all through the year in order to<br />

simplify the task of writing histories at<br />

the end of the year.<br />

As historian, you are entrusted with<br />

recording the activities of your women’s<br />

ministries as they relate to your church,<br />

the various <strong>ARP</strong> agencies, and your community.<br />

One way to accomplish this task<br />

is to use a large binder notebook containing<br />

six double sided pocket folders.<br />

With a pocket for each month, you can<br />

collect notes, photos, bulletins, newspaper<br />

articles—anything relative to your<br />

ministry that would be mentioned in a<br />

year-end history. Information to include<br />

would be names of WM officers and<br />

committee chairmen; special programs<br />

and events; assistance given to your<br />

church or community; and individuals<br />

honored through certificates or pins.<br />

In addition to the WM information,<br />

also include the church information, such<br />

as pastor name(s); officers; church sponsored<br />

programs/events; births; deaths;<br />

weddings; new members; award recipients,<br />

etc. Remember, your news today is<br />

your history tomorrow!<br />

All histories should be printed on acid<br />

free paper. Locals should get their histories<br />

to their Presbyterial historian no later<br />

than March 1. The Presbyterial historian<br />

should forward two copies of each local<br />

history and two copies of the Presbyterial<br />

history to Sandra Miller, 100 Downing<br />

Place, Greer, SC 29650, arriving no later<br />

than April 1.<br />

As we anticipate celebrating the 100th<br />

Annual Meeting, please be thinking about<br />

how your local church and your Presbyterial<br />

might celebrate. Is there a significant<br />

event in your history that should be recognized<br />

when we gather in 2014<br />

26 THE ASSOCIATE REFORMED PRESBYTERIAN


SECOND PRESBYTERY<br />

President<br />

Carole Ellis<br />

236 Pimlico Road<br />

Greenville, SC 29607<br />

864-288-5078<br />

Bellis236@charter.net<br />

President-Elect<br />

Cherry Murph<br />

1110 Humphries Road<br />

Cowpens, SC 29330<br />

864-461-6377<br />

ghbaskets@chesnet.net<br />

Secretary<br />

Cynthia Cooke<br />

4 Welwyn Court<br />

Greenville, SC 29615<br />

864-292-2862 (H)<br />

864-350-3093 (C)<br />

Cooke611@charter.net<br />

Treasurer<br />

Arina Meeuwsen<br />

693 Glochester Place<br />

Norcross, GA 30071<br />

770-378-2714<br />

arinameeuwsen@yahoo.com<br />

Historian<br />

Peggy Harrison<br />

953 Sunset Drive<br />

Greenwood, SC 29646<br />

864-223-0802<br />

ostsbrw@yahoo.com<br />

2012 Retreat Chair<br />

Carole Sexton<br />

654 Weaver Falls Court<br />

Loganville, GA 30052<br />

770-466-7701 (H)<br />

770-876-9491 (C)<br />

sextoncarole@yahoo.com<br />

Conference Chair<br />

Bobbie Anderson<br />

1312 Stillwater Drive<br />

Seneca, SC 29672<br />

864-654-6716<br />

Bobbie.anderson24@gmail.com<br />

Carolina Piedmont Rep<br />

Sandra Miller<br />

100 Downing Street<br />

Greenville, SC 29646<br />

864-244-5737<br />

cnmspm@netzero.net<br />

Old Ninety Six Rep<br />

Joanne Stewart<br />

2546 Highway 54<br />

Clinton, SC 29325<br />

2012 <strong>ARP</strong> Women’s Ministries Officers<br />

864-833-0273<br />

Jts61@bellsouth.net<br />

Savannah Valley Rep<br />

Rita Hodgins<br />

716 Central Road<br />

Thomson, GA 30824<br />

706-595-3739<br />

Ritapearl@bellsouth.net<br />

Western Georgia Rep<br />

Sue Shoger<br />

2548 Highway 54<br />

Moreland, GA 30259<br />

770-253-3794<br />

s.shoger@yahoo.com<br />

CATAWBA PRESBYTERY<br />

President<br />

Carolyn R. Taylor (Columbia First)<br />

4639 Pamlico Circle<br />

Columbia, SC 29206<br />

803-787-8796 home<br />

803-606-2249 cell<br />

yotaylor@earthlink.net<br />

Vice-President<br />

Cathy Wilson (Ebenezer)<br />

4333 Wood Forest Dr.<br />

Rock Hill, SC 29732<br />

803-328-0787<br />

boycewilson@mac.com<br />

Past President<br />

Eve Huffman (Columbia First)<br />

First <strong>Presbyterian</strong> <strong>Church</strong><br />

1324 Marion St.<br />

Columbia, SC 29201<br />

803-799-9062 Ex. 250<br />

ehuffman@firstprescolumbia.org<br />

Treasurer<br />

Mary Anne Brewer<br />

(Columbia First)<br />

4737 Devereaux Rd.<br />

Columbia, SC 29206<br />

803-782-0638<br />

mab@mabrewer.com<br />

Care Ministry<br />

Ruth Rogers (Edwards Memorial)<br />

1211 Hulon Circle<br />

West Columbia, SC 29169<br />

803-739-1323<br />

Ruth-rogers@juno.com<br />

Secretary<br />

Jenny Edwards (Columbia<br />

First)<br />

4718 Bethel <strong>Church</strong> Rd.<br />

Columbia, SC 29206<br />

803-790-6886 home<br />

803-240-8332 cell<br />

jltedwards@msn.com<br />

Christian Education<br />

Ann Hicklin (Edgemoor)<br />

2141 Hicklin Bridge Rd.<br />

Edgemoor, SC 29712<br />

803-328-0907<br />

hicklr@comporium.net<br />

Historian<br />

Meg Duncan (Centennial)<br />

6457 Goldbranch Rd.<br />

Columbia, SC 29206<br />

803-732-6817<br />

mduncanlbd@aol.com<br />

Spiritual Life<br />

Bessie Ashe (Tirzah)<br />

1183 Parham Rd.<br />

York, SC 29745<br />

803-366-7649<br />

bashe@comporium.net<br />

Training Coordinator<br />

Betsy Rushing (Lancaster First)<br />

1932 Terra Lane<br />

Lancaster, SC 29720<br />

803-285-4579<br />

rushinghome@comporium.net<br />

Missions and Outreach<br />

Lisa King (Columbia First)<br />

4701 Anderson Street<br />

Columbia, SC 29203-4201<br />

803-691-3397<br />

lisak704@gmail.com<br />

Scottish Heritage Tour<br />

Women’s Ministries is planning<br />

to emphasize our Scottish<br />

heritage at the Family<br />

Bible Conference in 2012. Rev.<br />

Athole Rennie, mission developer<br />

at Leith, Scotland, is to be<br />

one of the speakers. I have been<br />

asked to lead a heritage tour of<br />

Scotland in September, 2012. I<br />

will be happy to do so if there<br />

is enough interest. Please let me<br />

know of your interest and a brochure<br />

will be sent to you when<br />

available. Dr. C. H. Carlisle,<br />

Box 185, Due West, S. C. 29639.<br />

Phone 864-379-2266. Email<br />

carlisle@erskine.edu.<br />

<strong>ARP</strong> Women’s Ministries<br />

DECEMBER 2011 27


All In Our Family<br />

By Sharon Griffin<br />

Personal Mention<br />

BETHANY (MS): Terry Hood recently participated<br />

in a marathon. She finished 14.2<br />

miles in 3 hours, 4 minutes.<br />

BETHEL (AL): Olivia Dale was Ninth Grade<br />

Maid in the Wilcox Academy Homecoming<br />

Court.<br />

CAMDEN (AL): Haas Strother was presented<br />

the 2011 Book of Golden Deeds<br />

Award by the Camden Exchange Club.<br />

FAYETTEVILLE (TN): Joshua Martin received<br />

the Eagle Scout award Sept. 22. Maggie<br />

McKamey was a semifinalist in the 57th<br />

annual National Merit Scholarship Program.<br />

FROSTPROOF (FL): John Van Slooten<br />

turned 90 years old on Sept. 18.<br />

GASTONIA FIRST (NC): Elizabeth Maney<br />

was selected as a member of the homecoming<br />

court at Highland Tech. Ashley Fretz<br />

received the Nursing Excellence Award<br />

in the Case Management Department at<br />

Gaston Memorial Hospital. The following<br />

recently celebrated special wedding anniversaries:<br />

Joe & Pat West (53rd, Aug. 22);<br />

Maurice & Carolyn Canaday (54th, Aug.<br />

24); Whitelaw & Dot Carson (66th, Aug.<br />

26); Becky & Russ McKay (50th, Sept.<br />

30); Brenda & Sid Craig (52nd, Oct. 24).<br />

LAKE PLACID (FL): Gene & Maxine Killion<br />

marked 58 years of marriage recently.<br />

LAKE WALES (FL): Edwina & Duane<br />

Hull’s 70th wedding anniversary was celebrated<br />

Oct. 1.<br />

NEELY’S CREEK (SC): Charles Montgomery<br />

has completed 37 years of perfect<br />

attendance at Sunday school, and Marie<br />

Simpson has completed 40 years!<br />

OLD PROVIDENCE (VA): Katherine Davis<br />

turned 88 on Sept. 4.<br />

POTTSVILLE (AR): Mr. & Mrs. C.O. “Junior”<br />

Reasoner celebrated their 50th wedding<br />

anniversary recently.<br />

SEBRING (FL): These couples recently celebrated<br />

their 60th wedding anniversaries:<br />

Don & Ginny Groves (Sept. 1) and David<br />

& Jane Watford (Sept. 23).<br />

SHERWOOD FOREST (SC): On Sunday,<br />

Sept. 18, the congregation voted to honor<br />

Rev. Ron Beard as Pastor Emeritus.<br />

UNION (SC): Lindsey Burton, an eighth<br />

grade student at Lewisville Middle School,<br />

was inducted into the National Junior Beta<br />

Club.<br />

WILDHURST (VA): Percy & Gail Moore celebrated<br />

their 53rd wedding anniversary Oct. 4.<br />

Marriages<br />

COLUMBIA FIRST (SC): Ashley Gray &<br />

Phillip Cease, Sept. 17. Miriam Wingate<br />

& David Ashworth, Oct. 7.<br />

GASTONIA FIRST (NC): Mark Hamm &<br />

Sarah Jarvis, Oct. 8.<br />

GREENVILLE (SC): Abigail Ashley Junker<br />

& Brent Lyle Erickson, Oct. 8.<br />

LAKE PLACID (FL): Tim Sewell & Barbara<br />

Villegas, Oct. 1. Jason Cloud & Linda<br />

Segert, Oct. 8.<br />

NEELY’S CREEK (SC): Philip Edward<br />

Williams, Jr. & Robin Suzanne Young,<br />

Oct. 15.<br />

POTTSVILLE (AR): Annalee Smith & Andrew<br />

Whitehead, Sept. 10.<br />

YORK (SC): Brittany Gibson & Phil<br />

Leake, Oct. 15.<br />

Births<br />

AVON PARK (FL): Matt & Dena Sboto, a<br />

daughter Alma Gloria, July 19.<br />

BACK CREEK (NC): Rev. & Mrs. Jonathan<br />

(Joanna) Rockness, a daughter Addison<br />

Joy, Sept. 11. Tracey & Nate Brubaker, a<br />

daughter Annah Catherine, Sept. 24.<br />

COLUMBIA FIRST (SC): Jill & Scott Timmons,<br />

a son Patrick Scott, Jr., Sept. 13.<br />

Brittney & Christopher Jones, a daughter<br />

Iyla Ruth, Sept. 17. Christie & Joe Eller,<br />

a son Alexander Joseph, Sept. 19. Lauren<br />

& Gregory Hudgens, a son Gibson Childress,<br />

Sept. 22. Mary & Bryan Caskey, a<br />

son Henry Lawson, Sept. 26. Kennerly &<br />

Will Jordan, a daughter Grace, Sept. 29.<br />

DUE WEST (SC): Steven & Molly Ellis, a<br />

daughter Avery Christine, Sept, 17.<br />

EBENEZER (SC): Andrew & Kathleen<br />

Cope, a daughter Penelope Lynn, Sept. 18.<br />

Sam & Misty Shillinglaw, a son Isaac Bailey,<br />

Sept. 30.<br />

FROSTPROOF (FL): Tim & Kristy Christensen,<br />

a son Nicholas Alexander, Sept. 18.<br />

Joey & Stacy Chambers, a daughter Destini<br />

Nichole, Sept. 19.<br />

GASTONIA FIRST (NC): Sarah Fisher, a<br />

daughter Sarah Ann “Sally”, Aug. 3. Gwynn<br />

& John Wharton, a daughter Elizabeth<br />

Gwynne, Sept. 16. Bobby & Jetty (Cope)<br />

Mulwee, a son Ayden Jaxson, Sept. 22.<br />

GOOD NEWS (AZ): Crystal & Walter Reidy,<br />

a son Easton, June 11.<br />

HOPEWELL (MS): Jeff & Amanda Covington,<br />

a daughter Amelia Frances, Sept. 2.<br />

LANCASTER FIRST (SC): Jeff & Shannon<br />

Schrage, a son Walter Maxwell, Sept. 25.<br />

NEELY’S CREEK (SC): Jeff & Katie<br />

Lesslie, a daughter Avah Elizabeth, Sept,<br />

22. Matt & Hope Lawrence Craven, a<br />

daughter Caylin Elizabeth, Sept, 26. Robert<br />

& Nicole Rodriguez, a son Garrett<br />

Landon, Oct. 3.<br />

PISGAH (NC): Andy & Charity Greene, a<br />

son Jacob Alexander, Sept. 25.<br />

Deaths<br />

AVON PARK (FL): Jamie Scranton, 38,<br />

died Sept. 14.<br />

BARTOW (FL): Natalie Becker Bergquist,<br />

82, died Sept. 9. Tom Rowland, 85, died<br />

Sept. 12.<br />

BETHANY (SC): Louis DePaolis, 88,<br />

world-renowned wildlife artist and illustrator,<br />

died Sept. 15.<br />

BURLINGTON (NC): Brenda Macon, 69,<br />

died Oct. 6.<br />

COLUMBIA FIRST (SC): Roy A. Little, Jr.,<br />

84, life-long member, elder, clerk of session,<br />

died Sept. 13. William B. Curtiss, 86, dea-<br />

28 THE ASSOCIATE REFORMED PRESBYTERIAN


IN MEMORY OF ELDER CLARENCE (Wes)<br />

WESLEY RAINEY<br />

February 21, 1917 – November 5, 2010<br />

Clarence Wesley Rainey, 93, beloved and faithful member of the Spartanburg<br />

<strong>ARP</strong> <strong>Church</strong>, died Friday, Nov. 5, 2010, at Spartanburg Regional<br />

Medical Center. Born Feb. 21, 1917, in Starr, SC, he was the son of the late<br />

William Marvin “Jack” and Essie Brown Rainey.<br />

Wes was a retired county and district supervisor for Farmers Home Administration<br />

of the Department of Agriculture. He was a graduate of Anderson<br />

College and a 1939 graduate of Clemson College. Wes taught two<br />

years of agriculture at Gray’s High School (Jasper Co.). He also served in<br />

the US Army during World War II.<br />

Wes was past president of Westview Ruritan Club, a member of the National<br />

Association of Retired Federal Employees, and a 27-year volunteer<br />

for Mobile Meals, which was the longest serving volunteer at the time of<br />

his resignation. During his retirement he worked for nine years as a parttime<br />

fertilizer inspector for Clemson University.<br />

Wes was a member of Spartanburg <strong>Associate</strong> <strong>Reformed</strong> <strong>Presbyterian</strong><br />

<strong>Church</strong> for over 50 years. During his time, he served a variety of positions<br />

including church treasurer, deacon, elder, Sunday school superintendent,<br />

and teacher of the Men’s Bible Class. Wes was a mentor to many people<br />

in the church.<br />

In 2001, he was named Elder Emeritus. The ministry closest to his heart<br />

was foreign missions. He was chairman of the Foreign Missions Committee<br />

for many years and supported missions generously with both his general<br />

and designated contributions. Wes loved his Lord and Savior, Jesus<br />

Christ, and he proved it with his words and his actions.<br />

Wes was a devoted family man and is survived by his wife, Juanita<br />

Hicks Rainey; two sons, John Wesley Rainey of Spartanburg, SC, and Perry<br />

R. (Cindy) Rainey of Lexington, SC; and two grandchildren, Cameron<br />

Rainey and Trip Rainey.<br />

This resolution was adopted by the Session at its regular meeting on<br />

Oct. 17, 2011. It was ordered that a copy of this resolution be entered into<br />

the minutes of the Session, published in the <strong>ARP</strong> <strong>Magazine</strong>, and an original<br />

copy be delivered to his wife, sons and grandsons.<br />

Peter A. Waid, Moderator<br />

David Welch, Clerk<br />

con, choir member for over 30 years, died<br />

Sept. 20. Dorothy Collins Aitken, 76, died<br />

Oct. 3.<br />

CONCORD (NC): Richard Boyd Cochrane,<br />

Sr., 88, died Sept. 19. David E.<br />

“Buddy” Benfield, Scout master for over<br />

30 years, 84, died Sept. 24.<br />

CRAIG AVE./TABERNACLE (NC): Ida<br />

Neal R. Kennedy, 93, life-long member,<br />

died Sept. 8. Eugene Williamson, 90, died<br />

Sept. 9. C. V. Pearce, 89, deacon, elder,<br />

died Sept. 11.<br />

EBENEZER (GA): John T. Clark, 82, deacon,<br />

elder, treasurer, clerk of session for<br />

over 50 years, died Aug. 29. Fannie Belle<br />

Hobbs, 95, member for over 50 years, Sunday<br />

school teacher, died Sept. 22.<br />

EBENEZER (MS): Kenneth McKeown, 71,<br />

died Oct. 9.<br />

FROSTPROOF (FL): Lee Houchins, 87,<br />

died Aug. 27.<br />

GREENWOOD (SC): William Banks Patrick,<br />

40, died Oct. 4.<br />

LAKE PLACID (FL): Waldemar “Wally”<br />

Burger, 73, died Sept. 25.<br />

LANCASTER (SC): Emily McCoy Adams,<br />

91, died Oct. 10.<br />

LAUDERDALE (VA): Sandra Graves<br />

“Sue” Hartless, 73, died Sept. 29.<br />

NEW ALBANY (MS): Marjorie “Jodie”<br />

Shannon, 86, died Sept. 23.<br />

PEACHTREE CORNERS (GA): Frances<br />

May Adams, 88, died Aug. 23.<br />

PISGAH (NC): Isabel Carson Lutz, 79,<br />

died Sept. 13.<br />

UNITY (Lancaster, SC): Seth Austin Muennich,<br />

14, died Sept. 29. Harold Richard<br />

Steele, Sr., 83, died Sept. 29.<br />

WILDHURST (VA): Margie Downey Stott,<br />

86, died Oct. 5.<br />

New Communicant<br />

Members<br />

EBENEZER (GA): Kathy Burke.<br />

EBENEZER (MS): Jane Warrington Davis.<br />

FRENCH CAMP (MS): Tom & Sylvia Dickson,<br />

Michael & Audrey, Madison, Ian,<br />

Connor & Charlotte Paladino.<br />

GOOD NEWS (AZ): Doug & Lisa Douglas,<br />

Alexandria, Erin, & Tyler.<br />

HOPEWELL (MS): Lauren Montana Moody.<br />

LAKE WALES (FL): Carl & Joyce McCollum,<br />

Duane & Kristi Mathis.<br />

POTTSVILLE (AR): Gabriel Miller, Elijah<br />

Wheeler.<br />

PROVIDENCE (TN): Nicholas Adams,<br />

Julie Benedict, Mr. & Mrs. Clint Bowden,<br />

Betty Evans.<br />

RICHLAND (TN): Ryan & Katie Hughes.<br />

Special Services<br />

CONCORD (NC): A missions conference<br />

was held Oct. 15 & 16 with featured speakers<br />

Lonnie Humes and family, Mark Witte,<br />

and Sheila Osborne.<br />

EFFINGHAM (SC): Special services were<br />

held Oct. 9-11 with Rev. Ron Beard as<br />

guest preacher.<br />

NEW AMITY (NC): The 164th anniversary<br />

of the church and its 100th year in Scotts,<br />

NC, were celebrated Oct. 2 at homecoming.<br />

Rev. Andrew Putnam preached.<br />

PISGAH (NC): Rev. Neely Gaston, former<br />

minister, was guest speaker for fall services<br />

Oct. 9.<br />

DECEMBER 2011 29


Installations<br />

BARTOW (FL): Andrew Shoger was ordained<br />

and installed as associate pastor<br />

Sept. 25.<br />

CHALMERS MEMORIAL (NC): Elder -<br />

Tony Basinger.<br />

COLUMBIA FIRST (SC): Elders, Class<br />

of 2015 - James R. Augustine; David E.<br />

Baxley; Louie L. Cason, Jr.; Marion H. Davis;<br />

Thomas R. Gottshall; Henri G. Hart;<br />

Wilmot B. Irvin; James W. Stands; David<br />

J. Van De Water; Richard B. Werts. Elder,<br />

Class of 2013 - David G. Hodges. Elder<br />

Emeriti - Jack S. Graybill; Leif E. Maseng;<br />

Earle G. Tyler. Deacons, Class of 2014 -<br />

Jerry T. Brewer; Frank W. Cason; Charles<br />

H. Cate, Jr.; T. Joseph Chiles; Christopher<br />

Daniels; Kathryn G. Davis; Boyd B.<br />

Jones; Paul D. Kent; Clifton Kitchens;<br />

William D. Marshall, Sr.; John H. Reading;<br />

Harriet M. Rice; W. Marshall Taylor,<br />

Jr.; John A. Wadford; Andrew M. Wilson;<br />

Sandra L. Zimmerman.<br />

EBENEZER (MS): Elder - Glenn Duckworth.<br />

GUM TREE (MS): Elder - Trey Flanagan.<br />

Deacon - Chris Stevenson.<br />

ROCK HILL FIRST (SC): Elders: Spencer<br />

Anderson, Herb Hamilton, Greg Harbin,<br />

Charles Robbins, Max Smith.<br />

SHEPHERD ROAD (FL): Deacon - Rick<br />

Stout.<br />

Graduations<br />

FAYETTEVILLE (TN): Ashton Elizabeth<br />

Hill (Middle TN State University).<br />

POTTSVILLE (AR): High school: Isabel<br />

Wheeler, Thomas Morris, III. College: Annalee<br />

Smith (AR Tech University), Kristin<br />

Morris (University of Arkansas).<br />

Catechism Recitations<br />

EBENEZER (SC): Stephen Berry & Trevor<br />

Newman recited The Children’s Catechism<br />

recently.<br />

Women’s Ministries<br />

CATAWBA PRESBYTERY: The 93rd Annual<br />

Meeting of the Catawba Women’s<br />

Ministries met Oct. 22 at Arsenal Hill<br />

<strong>Church</strong> in Columbia, SC.<br />

CHAPEL BY THE SEA: A retreat was<br />

held Sept. 23 & 24 at Cocoa Beach. The<br />

theme was “Girlfriends Span Generations”<br />

with a biblical focus on the relationship of<br />

Ruth and Naomi.<br />

GASTONIA FIRST (NC): Betsy Smith<br />

was given the Life Membership Award recently.<br />

Officers for 2011-2012 are: Chris<br />

Stowe, president; Susan Williams, vicepresident;<br />

Marsha Keeter, recording secretary;<br />

Alice Auten, treasurer.<br />

PINECREST (NC): First quarterly project<br />

offering will be dedicated to Christ Coastal<br />

Mission for hospitality expenses incurred<br />

in expansion and growth of the church.<br />

SECOND PRESBYTERY: The 13th Annual<br />

Conference for Women’s Ministries<br />

was held Oct.1 at the Thomson, GA,<br />

church. Alena Pelfrey, executive director<br />

of Collins Children’s Home in Seneca,<br />

SC, was guest speaker.<br />

THOMSON (GA): The fall retreat was<br />

held at Fripp Island Oct. 13-16. Sharon<br />

Betters’ book Treasures of Encouragement<br />

was studied.<br />

Memorial Tribute to Mike Braswell<br />

Chalmers Memorial <strong>ARP</strong>C regretfully reports the death of Ruling Elder<br />

Mike Braswell on Saturday, October 22nd. Mike was also our Congregational<br />

Moderator. He was a graduate of UNC-Chapel Hill (Phi<br />

Beta Kappa.). His career included six years in the US Navy, many years<br />

as a mortgage agent at NCNB and N. G. Spiers. Mike was a faithful,<br />

smiling, loving asset to Chalmers <strong>Church</strong>. His wisdom was important<br />

to Session decisions. He is greatly missed.<br />

CHURCH PEW CUSHIONS<br />

Padded seats or reversible cushions<br />

DON GREEN UPHOLSTERY<br />

Call collect (864) 277-3795<br />

Write: 1401 Piedmont Hwy., Piedmont, SC 29673<br />

<br />

<br />

<br />

<br />

<br />

<br />

Structural Fiberglass<br />

STEEPLES<br />

All Sizes and Designs<br />

Call about free proposals<br />

and scaled line drawings<br />

for your church<br />

<br />

<br />

<br />

Box 388, Troutman, N.C. 28166<br />

Phone 704-528-5321<br />

For over 50 years.<br />

30 THE ASSOCIATE REFORMED PRESBYTERIAN


CLASSIFIED ADS<br />

Bible Chronology – Bible history without chronology is myth. http://paulhansen.mysite.com<br />

ANNOUNCEMENTS<br />

Erskine Director of Alumni Affairs Buddy Ferguson announces he will provide<br />

an Erskine representative to speak at your church. “We can come on<br />

a Wednesday or Sunday night, or speak at any other program that fits your<br />

schedule. We are excited to have a chance to meet with <strong>ARP</strong> churches and<br />

share with them about Erskine. Contact Buddy Ferguson, PO Box 608, Due<br />

West, SC 29639. Or call his office: (864) 379-8727. Cell: (864) 378-5836.<br />

Email: ferguson@erskine.edu. See Erskine’s website: www.erskine.edu.<br />

FOR RENT<br />

BONCLARKEN HOME Weekend or weekly rental at 200 Pine Drive: full<br />

kitchen; complete with washer/dryer and dishwasher. Cozily sleeps 10.<br />

Available year-round. Call 828-674-8277 for reservations.<br />

FOR SALE<br />

ROBAR CHRISTIAN BOOKSELLERS. We buy, sell and trade new and<br />

used Christian books. Contact us at Robarbooks.com.<br />

BONCLARKEN – Kit and Mary Grier’s home at 103 Sycamore Dr. Approximately<br />

1800 sq. ft. w/ central heat and air. 4 bedrooms, 2 baths, great<br />

room with vaulted ceiling. Family room with hardwood floor and stone<br />

fireplace. Two wooden decks and screened-in porch. Laundry room with<br />

W/D hook-ups. Great mountain view! Call Effie Jordan 864-379-2888 or<br />

Bill Grier 828-808-1492.<br />

REAL ESTATE<br />

BONCLARKEN - For Sale: Betty Stewart’s home on Bonclarken Lane,<br />

Flat Rock, NC. Two apartments: 1 with 2 bedrooms and 1.5 baths; other<br />

has 3 bedrooms 2.5 baths. Deck, garage, laundry room. 2 lots. Asking<br />

$250,000. Call Roxanne Spencer, 704-860-3384.<br />

SERVICES<br />

SABO GRAPHICS®<br />

Signs, Graphics and More: Info at www.sabo.ws or 864.268.4266.<br />

10% discount for all <strong>ARP</strong>s with this ad.<br />

SERVICES NEEDED<br />

MINISTRY OPPORTUNITY - Established congregation located in a growing<br />

population area in Catawba Presbytery is searching for a pastor with a heart for<br />

evangelism and church growth who is interested in a challenging bi-vocational<br />

call. If you feel God is leading you in this direction, contact Stephanie Bishop<br />

at Central Services, The <strong>ARP</strong> Center, by calling 864-232-8297, ext 222 or email<br />

sbishop@arpsynod.org to obtain a Ministerial Data Form.<br />

WOMEN’S MINISTRIES - Looking for adults or teenagers who can provide insight<br />

in using technologies such as: YouTube, Facebook, webcast, etc. Contact Elaine<br />

Reed at <strong>ARP</strong>WM.President@gmail.com if you are willing to provide information.<br />

<br />

Just be<br />

<br />

on Sunday<br />

<br />

Enjoy The <strong>ARP</strong> Psalter with Bible Songs through the week!<br />

Crown & Covenant Publications<br />

offers companion products for The <strong>ARP</strong><br />

Psalter and much more. Recordings • online<br />

helps • personalized gift edition • large print<br />

and songleaders edition • embossing.<br />

Ask about our 50% discount on bulk orders.<br />

JOHN DOE<br />

John Doe<br />

412-241-0436 • crownandcovenant.com<br />

DECEMBER 2011 31


Merry Christmas<br />

From the<br />

William H. Dunlap Foundation<br />

Serving orphans on behalf of General Synod since 1978.<br />

For information or to make a donation, contact:<br />

Dunlap Foundation<br />

One Cleveland Street, Greenville, SC 29601 * 864-232-8297

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