Return to flip book view

From the transitional pastor — Rev. Dr. Robert C. Anderson The Covenant Courier Covenant-First Presbyterian Church June 2022, Vol. 27, Issue 6 Sharing the heart of the Gospel in the heart of the city Philippians 4:6-7 (NLT) says: “Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank Him for all He has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand.” Don’t worry about anything…what?! That’s easier said than done, right? Worrying is like breathing in and breathing out. You’re not human if you’re not worrying. Worry adds little to our lives, and robs us of the peace we need. I recently came across these statistics about worry – take a look: • 40% of the things we worry about never actually happen. • 30% of the things have already happened, and there is nothing we can do about it. • 12% are needless worries about health. Plus, worrying actually counteracts the efforts we do put into health. • 10% are really just petty, trivial, and miscellaneous issues. • 8% (if that) are genuine worries, of which half are something we can’t do anything about, and the other half we can only do a little about. That’s a lot of worrying. Worry saps our spiritual energy and blocks our focus on God’s loving care for us. Worry distracts us and keeps us trapped in that “squirrel cage” of anxiety – around and around we go, getting nowhere. I think we’re doing the opposite of “Don’t worry about anything…” What do you think? So, what do we do? “… pray about everything… .” It’s so easy to fill our lives with busyness and worry that we for-get to pray. We forget to just talk to God. In this verse God encourages us to pray about everything! Tell God your first worry and the rest will come easily — remember, God wants to hear what’s distracting you from his love! • “Tell God what you need.” When you pray, be specific about what you truly need. Be honest with yourself and be honest with God. He already knows our hearts. • “And thank Him for all He’s done.” It’s so easy to become ungrateful people. Sometimes, I just stop in my tracks when I’m rambling on in my prayers and forget to be thankful. • Writing a list of all the ways God provides for you today and has provided for you yesterday will help give you a grateful perspective. “Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand.” Here’s a quick summary of Philippians 4:6-7 that provides a direction for discovering the peace we long for. 1. Don’t worry. 2. Pray about everything. 3. Tell God what you need. 4. Thank him for what he’s done. This summer, let’s live in God’s peace and know the peace that exceeds all we can understand! — Pastor Bob

June 1 June Holley 4 Rod Ford 6 Hugh Ralston 8 Mark Dupree 11 Josephine Balz 11 Cindy Standen 17 Sophie Horst 22 Dwight Poffenberger 25 Maxine Homan July 2 Kathy Ross 4 Tom Helsinger 7 Patricia Kimbrel 10 Jennifer Maxwell 13 Rene McPhedran 19 Eli Maxwell 23 Polly Prieto Page 2 The Covenant Courier The Senior Singles Outing The next gathering scheduled for the Senior Singles is scheduled for June 23 at 6 PM. It will be held at Pepp and Delores, 1501 Vine St., Over-the-Rhine. Please contact Pat Beckman to reserve your spot at the table, attendance is limited to 12, so register early. Send an email to Pat Beckman (beckmanpat@yahoo.com) if you are interested, or call Pat at 859-394-4620. David and Carleen Heath/ Wycliffe Bible Translators Our long-time mission partners David and Carleen Heath will be visiting Covenant-First on Sunday, June 5. Be sure to be in worship on June 5 to hear their updates. Called Congregational Meeting — Sunday, June 19 Immediately following worship Mark your calendars and plan to be in worship on Sunday, June 19. Immediately following worship, the Session has called a special Congregational Meeting, for the sole purpose of electing our Pastor Nominating Committee. Our congregational Nominating Committee has completed its work, and will present their slate of candidates: Phil Cameron, Carol Carhartt, Rob Heidenreich, Barbara Lambing, Mike Millhaem, Cindy Standen, and Jack Weis. This meeting is the next, critical step in our pastoral search process. After the PNC is elected, they will meet for required Presbytery training, led by CFPC member and Executive Presbyter, Lisa Allgood. This team will then begin the formal search for our next installed pastor. The meeting will likely be just 15 minutes or so in length; we’re hoping every member can join for worship and the meeting. Session Notes Your Session met for its regular meeting on Monday, May 10. The elders spent time reviewing prayer needs and praises for the congregation, and Pastor Bob also led a devotional time focused on the theology of the Lord’s Supper. The Session also approved a request from Cindy Standen to organize the now on-going book collection to support the summer program at West Cincinnati Presbyterian Church; we anticipate additional opportunities to volunteer and participate in this summer program during the summer. Session also received updates from the Nominating Committee, from Pastor Bob, and the from Church Administrator. The Session will next meet on June 13; contact any elder with any questions or concerns. Rob Heidenreich Clerk of Session

Page 3 The Covenant Courier Prayer Points for the month of June • For the United States – wisdom for our leaders. • Pray for our police and fire fighters. • For our church fellowship, worship, Bible studies and those teaching and caring for our children. • Pray for the West Cincinnati Presbyterian Summer Program — teachers and students. • Pray for the end of COVID and other disease. • Take time to pray for your family members wherever they may be. • For our Pastoral Nominating Committee and the pastor search process. A few weeks ago our Covenant-First Wednesday Noon Brown Bag Bible Study studied Psalm 121 as part of our long sojourn through the Psalms. The Psalmist asks and answers the ques-tion about where to find his help. “I lift my eyes to the hills and ask, from where does my help come? His answer “My help comes from the Lord” — not from the hills, nor from the many gods who were worshipped on the hills, the “high places”, but from the God who made the hills. The Psalmist reminds us that it is very easy to look toward the false gods of material wealth or the ideologies of the current age. Rather, the writer moves us to look beyond the hills to the one God who created them. This God is quick to help us, “From of old no one has heard or perceived by the ear, no eye has seen a God besides thee, who works for those who wait for him.” (Isaiah 64:4). Do you need help like I do? Let’s call first to God and wait on him. Then the Psalmist addresses the thought so often expressed when we don’t call on God or when God doesn’t act as quick-ly as we wanted: “… he who keeps you will not slumber.” Our God is never asleep on the job, our God is always at work on our behalf! Let us trust God in these times of our lives. God loves to show his tireless power and wisdom and goodness by working for those who trust him. Jesus demonstrated this characteristic of God who loves us: “The Son of man came not to be served but to serve.” (Mark 10:45) Jesus works for his followers. He serves them. Do you need help? Look beyond the hills of the world to the heavens — God is up all night and all day to work for those who wait for him! — Pastor Bob Do You Need Help? I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come? My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth. He will not let your foot be moved, he who keeps you will not slumber. (Psalm 121:1–3)

COVENANT-FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH 717 Elm Street * Cincinnati, OH 45202 Phone: 513-621-4144 * Email: office@covfirstchurch.org www.covfirstchurch.org Pastor: Rev. Dr. Robert C. Anderson CHURCH STAFF Choir Director: Yolanda Ortiz-Parker Organist: Andrew Hackett Organ Scholar: Hayden Glasgow Church Administrator: Genita Heidenreich Choral Scholars: Zach Burnham, Lucy Evans, Jarrett Hazelton, Georgia Jacobsen, Madeline Jentsch, Jordan Krack, Clara Reeves, Emilio Vasquez If you are not receiving email updates from the church, send an email to covfirstoffice@gmail.com and request to be added to the email list. We can also mail the weekly bulletin and announcements, if you do not have email ac-cess. Call the office to request bulletins by mail. Weekly Events Sundays 9:15 AM Covenant Choir Rehearsal Sundays 9:15 AM Adult Sunday School Sundays 9:30 AM Teen Bible Study Sundays 10:30 AM Worship Sundays 11:30 PM Fellowship Time Wednesdays 12 Noon The Brown Bag Bible Study Saturdays 7:30 AM Men’s Bible Study The church office is open for regular hours Monday through Thursday 10 AM to 2 PM. Other hours are available by appointment by calling the church office at 513-621-4144. Upcoming Events June 6 through June 12 — Pastor Bob on vacation Sunday, June 5 — Neighborhood Fellowship following worship Sunday, June 5 — David and Carleen Heath visit to CFPC Monday, June 13 at 6:30 PM — Session Meeting Saturday, June 18 at 10 AM — New Members Class Sunday, June 19 — Congregational Meeting following worship Sunday, June 26 at 11:45 AM — Deacon’s Meeting ELDERS Alex Balz Carol Carhartt Rod Crousey Bill Forsstrom Rick Hopkins Jamie Jewell Rene McPhedran Mike Millhaem Dwight Poffenberger Rob Heidenreich, Clerk DEACONS Charlotte Goering Margaret Heidenreich Barbara Lambing Jennifer Maxwell, moderator Joan McAlonan Nancy Smith