News

Dear FPC family and friends,

            So, have you spent more time in prayer this week?  On Sunday I challenged all of us to identify a time in your day, or more than one time, when you are able to put yourself in the presence of God by going to God in prayer.  I hope you were able to do that on a consistent basis this week.  If not, then let this serve as a reminder.  The church draws its direction and guidance only when we go to God in prayer individually and corporately.  We have to find the time to pray outside of Sunday and make it a part of our relationship with God on a daily basis.

            There is an important weekend that is coming up in June to which I wanted to call your attention.  On June 10^th we will have an opportunity to once again be in the presence as we gather to pray and read Scripture at 10am.  With Carole Turano’s leadership I have found it to be a time that absolutely goes by without me realizing how much time I have spent in the presence of our Savior Jesus Christ.  Then on June 11^th we will be having a time of renewal, rededication, and baptism.  We have a couple of people who have expressed a desire to be baptized and others who have expressed a desire to be rededicated.  We will gather at the Hess pond at 125 Sides Mill Road right after the second service, so around 12:15, and have an opportunity to be immersed in this ancient Christian tradition of being washed clean of our sins.  Mark your calendars for June 10, being in the presence, and June 11, a time of rededication and baptism.

            Even if you aren’t thinking you want to be rededicated or baptized come on out and join us anyway for a time of fellowship and rejoicing in our renewed devotion to Christ.  On Sunday I mentioned that without a purposeful relationship with Jesus, without us doing something that puts us in a position to acknowledge in a meaningful way the presence of Christ in our lives, then our faith is dead.  Without prayer there is no relationship with God.  I hope that doesn’t sound too harsh.  I like to be the good guy, but there really is no other way around that statement.  We need to be in relationship with God through prayer, period.

            There isn’t much of an appropriate segue from that statement to any other, so I’m going to go in a very different direction.  So much of what we do in the life of the church is about building a relationship between God and with each other.  One way that we stay in touch with each other is through information that we receive and information that we exchange.  Did you know that today we just launched our new website?  Check it out at www.strapres.org.  There was a team of people who headed up that work.  I do need to give a shout out to Mark Feiler, Heather Schnader, Ray Reeder, Dale Groff, and Alicia Eltman pitched in as well.  It has been nearly a two year process but it certainly has paid off.  It looks great and it should be easier for folks to find things on this new site. 

            My prayer for all of us is that we deliberately and purposefully look for a time to spend in prayer on a daily basis and that this will all draw us closer to God and to each other.

Your servant in Christ,

Pastor Bob

HAPPENING IN THE LIFE OF FPC…

Bible Study on Thursday at 6pm:  Join us on Thursday May 11, and every Thursday, at 6pm here to study Scripture together – Youtube

Wear Red on Pentecost Sunday:  Join us in celebrating the birthday of the Christian Church on Pentecost, May 28 by wearing red.  At both services we will experience the presence of the Holy Spirit in a way that God will be present in a palpable way. 

Day of renewal and baptism:  Join us on June 11 right after the second service, so around 12:15 at the Hess Pond for a time of renewal and baptism.  There will be a light lunch served as well.

Being in the presence:  On June 10 at 10am in Fellowship Hall we will gather for a time to be in the presence of God led by Carole Turano.  You are welcome to invite friends and family members to come and join as well.

Tour the Holy Land:  We will be having an organizational meeting on June 10 at 1pm in room 3/4 for all those who might be interested in traveling to Israel in 2024.  The tentative dates for the trip are March 14-23.  Come and find out more like what we will be seeing, the cost of the trip, and many other bits of information.  Join us!

Memorial Day Float and picnic on May 29  Ÿ  Once again FPC will have a float in the Strasburg Memorial Day parade.  We would love for you to join us as we walk along Main Street and represent the church.  Afterward there will be a service followed by our annual hot dog festivities.  Come and be a part of all the events!

No streaming of our church service on June 25…

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