February 6, 2007

This is for YOU!

I know. You’ve been meaning to do it. It’s on the kitchen table, or the dining room table. Perhaps you’ve been carrying it back and forth to work, planning to fill it out when you have a moment of down time, perhaps while waiting for some appointment or another. Maybe you are having difficulty deciding which of the wonderful workshops you will attend, which excellent presenters to hear; I know that I am.

Well, the time has come! The Big Event is less than two weeks away, on February 17^th! It is time to revisit your Big Event brochure, or visit the Big Event website, make your workshop selections, fill out the registration form, write a check or jot down your credit card info and turn in your materials to the Presbytery office to pre-register for the Big Event 2007!

This event is for YOU! There is such a variety of workshop topics this year. Whether you are a pastor, an elder, a deacon, a worship leader, a local church committee member, a Sunday school teacher, a parent, a youth leader, a community advocate, a writer, an artist, or a church visionary there is a workshop for YOU! A children’s program and toddler care are also available. Follow the links within this article to refresh your memory about the Big Event. Search workshops by topic or by time of day. Share this article with a friend – bringing a friend is a great way to get the most out of the Big Event. You can each go to different workshops and then share what you’ve learned with one another over dinner afterwards or during the drive home.

I’m really looking forward to hearing Brian McLaren, the keynote speaker. This will be the fourth time I’ve heard him speak; each time I learn something new and feel encouraged to hear a prominent and prolific writer and speaker who really “gets” the concept of the authentic faith community that I and many of my Gen X and Gen Y peers are seeking. My parents, baby boomers, also find that his messages resonate with them.

I’m excited to worship with Warren Cooper and experience his unique musical fusion of Gospel and Jazz as a means to explore the Kingdom of God. You can hear a snippet of his rich, golden voice in the Big Event PowerPoint presentation on the Big Event website.

I’ve had numerous conversations with people throughout the Presbytery who are excited about attending the Big Event but have not yet registered. Please, don’t delay – register now while it’s on your mind. It will be a great help to the Big Event Committee for workshop space and meal-planning purposes. Plus, you won’t have to deal with the hassle of on-site registration; you can just sign in, pick up a nametag and a packet, grab a coffee and relax! I’ll do it with you. And hey, it’s one more thing off our to-do list, right?

See you February 17^th at the Big Event!

Love in Christ, Janice Kominski, Coordinator of Communication

Inside this issue

Event of the Week:

Ordination of Sang-Kyu Park as

Associate Pastor at Glen Burnie

Korean PC

Feb. 11 4:00pm

Glen Burnie Korean PC

Deadline for pre-registration for the Big Event
Feb. 12

Take Note/Act Now

§ Free Office Furniture

§ Seeking Organist & more

§ Free Bibles

§ Brian McLaren @ First & Franklin

§ The Rev. Dr. Andrew Purves

§ An Inconvenient Truth

§ Gulf Coast Mission Trip: DMPC

§ Letter from GA to Churches

§ Free Pastor’s post-Easter Respite

§ Presby. Women, Summer Retr.

§ Multi-media workshop

Prayer Concerns
First PC of Annapolis

People

Jane Moore, wife of the late Rev. Allan G. Moore, died peacefully on January 31^stat the age of 87 in West VA. A memorial service at Woods is being planned for March 16^that 10am.

Mary Jo Dean is the new interim pastor at Hancock PC. She started on February 1^st.

Jan Stover is the new interim pastor at Havre de Grace PC. She started on February 5^th.

Eric Myers, pastor of Frederick PC, is one of the co-authors of a newly-released Alban book entitled, "The Work of the People: What We Do In Worship and Why."

Prayer Concerns

First PC of Annapolis

asks for prayers:

· Of gratitude for the vibrant partnership with the Letohrad Parish of the Evangelical Church of Czech Brethren

· For Jirina Kacenova, their new pastor, in whose installation Bill Hathaway was able to participate

· Of strength, depth and passion for their leaders, especially during their annual officer’s workshop on Feb. 9^th and 10^th, “More than Meetings: The Spiritual Life for Church Leaders”

· For their new staff members: Interim Assoc. Pastor, Carol Davis, Youth Director, Chris Dunn, and for the work of our Assoc. Pastor Nom. Cmmte., Debbie Mitchell, Chair

· Of Thanksgiving for the many volunteers who assisted during their week of hosting the Winter Relief Homeless Shelter

Contact Information

For the Presbytery Offices
Phone:
410-433-2012 or

800-511-0087

Office E-mail: office@baltimorepresbytery.org

Website: www.baltimorepresbytery.org

To Unsubscribe:

email Alice McGee or call the office

Take Note/Act Now

Baltimore Presbytery Items (non-dated items first; dated items in date order)

The Presbytery has been cleaning out its storage areas and has office furniture and other items available for the taking. Any takers? Please contact Wanda Morgan by Feb.15th.

The First PC of Frostburg, Maryland is currently seeking an Organist/Pianist (part-time, paid) and a Director of our Children's Music Ministry (part-time, paid). For more information contact the church at 301.689.3538 or info@frostburgpresbyterian.org.

Could your church, community or mission project use free RSV Bibles? Grove PC has 105 Red 1962 RSV Bibles in excellent condition with a legible font size. Contact Sheila in the office, 410.272.0896, M-F, 9am-1pm. Brown Memorial Park Ave PC has 44 RSV bibles available. Contact Sharon in the office, 410.523.1542, M-F, 9am-3pm.

First and Franklin Street PC is pleased to welcome guest speaker Brian McLaren on Sunday, February 18^th during their 10:30am worship service. All are welcome (more).

The Rev. Dr. Andrew Purves, Professor of Pastoral Theology at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary, will be Central PC’s “theologian in residence” for the weekend of February 23^rd-25^th. All are welcome to come on Friday evening at 7:30pm to hear Dr. Purves’ message, Avoiding Burnout in Ministry. Dr. Purves will also preach on Sunday (more).

An Inconvenient Truth will be screened at Maryland PC on Saturday, February 24th at 7:00pm. Following the 90-minute film there will be a discussion of climate change issues led by Karen Zeller of the Chesapeake Climate Action Network (more).

Dickey Memorial PC is leading a mission trip to the Gulf Coast June 16^th-23^rd and has space for 6-8 more adults and/or youth. Reservations are due March 1^st (more).

Synod and General Assembly

The General Assembly has distributed a letter to pastors and a letter to congregations in response to the possible intention of some churches to leave the denomination.

Massanetta Springs invites pastors, associate pastors and families to enjoy a free après-Easter respite, April 8^th-13^th. There will also be a free buffet breakfast on the 10^th (more).

The Synod Summer Gathering of the Presbyterian Women will be held June 14^th–17^th at Massanetta Springs Conf. Center in Harrisonburg, Virginia. Information, brochures, and registration forms are available from the Presbytery’s website.

Other Items and Events

Looking for a tutorial workshop on creating multi-media presentations for worship? Midnight Oil Productions will be leading a few workshops as a part of WorshipExpo in Ellicott City on April 27^th-28^th. Jane Johnson took a related seminar by this group and found it very helpful (more).

Also on our website

Don’t miss all the new Local Church Announcements at: http://www.baltimorepresbytery.org/announcements.html Presbytery Yearly Calendar

Past Issues of Tidings are available at: http://www.baltimorepresbytery.org/midweekmail.html.

Peter Nord, Executive Presbyter

pnord@baltimorepresbytery.org

Bill Millen, Associate Executive

bmillen@baltimorepresbytery.org

Charles Forbes, Stated Clerk

cforbes@baltimorepresbytery.org

Deb Milcarek

Associate of Mission and Justice

dmilcarek@baltimorepresbytery.org