St. Paul's Epistle
Week of August 25 - August 31, 2021
Pastor's Perspective
Gathering to Pray for the State of the World “Pray at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints.” – Ephesians 6:18
In Ephesians Chapter 6 (the Scripture reading for this Sunday), the apostle Paul says listening to God) and to make supplication (which is asking God for things for ourselves and others). We are to persevere in prayer and make supplication for all the saints (other Christians).
There are so many things to pray and make supplication about in the world today. Three recent events in our world today deserve our prayer and supplication. They are:
The people of Haiti – Haiti has endured one tragedy after another.They have only recently received vaccines for the Coronavirus.Their president was assassinated this summer, they experienced a 7.2-magnitude earthquake on August 18.They had not fully recovered from a 7.0-magnitude earthquake in 2010.Lord have mercy upon them.
The people of Afghanistan – With the withdrawal of U.S. forces, the government of Afghanistan has fallen to the Taliban – a radical, Islamic terrorist group known to oppress Christians and women.Lord have mercy.
The Coronavirus Pandemic – Just when we thought the pandemic was over, infection rates and new cases are on the rise as the “delta variant” of the virus wreaks havoc at home and abroad.Will this ever end?Lord have mercy.
Last week, Chris Zoll called me with these issues on his heart. Chris said, “I just think the church needs to gather and pray about these issues.” Chris is correct. Just as St. Paul says in Ephesians, we should pray and make supplications at all times, trusting God to answer our prayers for our good in His good time.
That is just what we will do on Thursday, August 26. We will gather in the church from 6:00PM-7:30PM to pray about these issues and any others that may be on your heart. We will make supplications, asking the Lord to intervene for our sake and for the sake of others. We will also listen for Him to speak to us, since prayer is two-way communication. There is no agenda for the prayer meeting other than prayer. You may come and stay as long as you are able, pray quietly, you may pray with others. You may want to consider praying through Psalm 31 for Haiti, Psalm 140 for Afghanistan, and Psalm 46 for the pandemic. The point is to pray and intercede for a world in need; for a world that needs Jesus, a world that needs the supernatural intervention of the Creator of the universe Who loves His creation. Please come and join your church family in prayer on Thursday, August 26. And may God have mercy on the people of Haiti, the people of Afghanistan, and us all. Amen.
Faithfully,
Jason +
The St. Paul’s Day School opens soon. Let’s help get the school year get started fully stocked with supplies. Please donate unscented baby wipes, Lysol disinfectant spray, and Clorox wipes. You may bring them to church with you on Sundays or drop them off in the church office during the week. Deadline to donate is Sunday, September 5th. Thanks for your generosity!
Join us for an evening of prayer at St Paul’s Church. The church will be open from 6-7:30pm on Thursday, August 26th. This will be a drop in event. Please come to the church anytime within that time frame and find a quiet place to pray. If you cannot make it in person please spend some time in prayer at home. Some areas of prayer we would like to lift up, Haiti, Afghanistan, Covid, our country, our community, and our church. We look forward to your participation as we spend some time interceding with God.
Fall Small Group Ministries begin with an ice cream social on Wednesday, September 1st from 6-7pm under the church belltower! We will have a Mr. Softee Ice Cream truck and fellowship, fun for all ages. This event is for the entire church family and is free to everyone. Come and enjoy!
Virtual Healing Prayer Service – Sunday, September 5, 2021
Our September Healing Prayer Service will be virtual. Our trained healing prayer ministers will pray for your needs and the needs of your friends and family. The teams will pray for any prayer requests submitted ahead of time. To submit a prayer request, fill out a Connection Card and put it in the “Tithes & Offerings” box at church. Or, you may send an email to prayerteam@stpaulsconway.org or text your prayer request to (843) 492-4521. All prayer requests are confidential. If you would like a prayer team member to call you and pray with you over the phone, please include your phone number on the prayer request. Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.
St. Paul’s Church Small Group Ministries are returning for the Fall of 2021.
Sign up for Discipleship, Fellowship, and Service opportunities
beginning this Sunday!
Our Journey of Hope Ministry at St. Paul’s Needs YOU
“Hope you’re feeling better.” “I hope it rains today.” With hope, I’ll win the lottery.” “I hope he/she wins.” These are common sentences we have said or heard about hope. Biblically there are multitudes of scriptures about hope. For instance: 2 Corinthians 4:16-18, Isaiah 40:31, Romans 15:4, 15:13, Hebrews 11:1, Deuteronomy 31:6, Psalm 39:7, Psalm 147:11, Lamentations 3:24, Proverbs 24:14, Titus 2:13…etc., etc., etc.
There are at least 4,145 songs (secular and religious) with hope in their title or as their theme. Examples include: Imagine, Don’t Stop Believin', Lean on Me, We Shall Overcome, Bridge Over Troubled Water, One Thing Remains, My Hope Is In You, Promises, Standing on the Promises, Who You Are, Blessed Assurance, Rock of Ages, Trust and Obey, I’ve Got Peace Like A River, Great Is Thy Faithfulness, Oh God, Our Help in Ages Past, My Hope is Built on Nothing Less Than Jesus Blood. Most of us have sung these songs at one time or another in church or along with them on our radio/mp3 players.
But what is ‘hope?” According to Merriam-Webster hope is an optimistic state of mind that is based on an expectation of positive outcomes with respect to circumstances in one’s life or the world at large. Synonyms for hope include: desire, trust, confidence, watchfulness, dream, wish, ponder, strive, execute performance, endeavor, and idealism. In short, a positive word. But what happens to optimism if you or someone you know is given a diagnosis of the big C, i.e. cancer.
The Cancer Ministry program at St. Paul’s is entitled Our Journey of Hope for a reason. It is a ministry for training and mentoring anyone who is ready to make a difference and offer hope in the lives of those fighting cancer. Rather than tritely saying ‘you’re in our thoughts and prayers’ we want to bring practical support, courage, compassion and above all hope to every person affected by cancer at St. Paul’s and in Conway. This is a chance to convert “Christian” from a noun to an action verb. We want to feed your faith, not your fears.
Six weekly training meetings will begin on October 4 at 1:00PM for the day session and at 6:00PM for the evening session. for those who are willing to take up their cross and follow Jesus in this crusade to help those in need. The training materials are provided free of charge from Cancer Treatment Centers of America. If you have questions and/or want to sign up, please contact Deb Wright (sassyfrass55@yahoo.com), or call Rose Mary in the church office at 843.248.4706.
Like the Marines, we are looking for a few good women and men, forged by the Sea, who will Aim High, be Army Strong, Semper Paratus, to Be All You Can Be for those suffering from cancer.
The Good News Club at Conway Elementary School will launch on September 23, 2021. The Good News Club is an after-school program that introduces children to Jesus. There are two (2) volunteer spots still available on the team. For more information and if you can help, please contact Pat Milley at (843) 347-4972.
Volunteers are needed to help distribute the food. Please meet at the Conway Recreation Center at 8:30 a.m. if you are available to help!!
Happy Birthday To:
Aug. 25 Betty Richter, Margaret Gouty, Diane Russell, Mary Gillis
Aug. 26 L. Cole Smith
Aug. 28 Larry Biddle, Vernon Simmons, Victoria Black
Aug. 30 Suzanne Owen, Al Hogan, Andrew Roberts
Happy Anniversary To:
Anyone That May Have Been Missed
Sunday, August 29, 2021
VPOD-Bev Kimbell, Ryan Smith,
Altar Guild-Marie Bennet, Sue Harrison, Lee Brown, Lisa Bennett 7:45
Usher-Linda Benway
Master Server/Lector/Chalice-Willard Wadman 9:00
Greeter-VPOD 10:00
Usher-Larry Biddle, Joe Ruggion
Greeter-Kathy and Jack Benson
Master Server-Kay Hungerford
Chalice-Kay Hungerford, Lyn Snyder
Lector-Jeff Miller Lemonade-Ginny Biddle
Please pray for:
Short-term: Beth Artz, Joanna Beall, Melodie Beall, Theresa Benway, Bill Bethel, Unitas Maximus Bochnar, Sylvia Burkley, Martina Castillo, Michael Mefford, Cindy Palmer, Wayne Pounders, Steven Starosto, Logan Suter, Janelle Warthen, Alice Windish
Long-term: Wyman Boatwright, Laverne Bridges, Amy Brooks, Barbara Diaz, Shay Gaillard & Family, Mary Hembree, Ithalia Hewitt, Aaron Joyner, Jack Joyner, Keith Larimore, Jane LaTour, John Lesnansky, Carol Lorenze, Lynn Parsley, Amber Rabon, Ann Roberts, Cheryl Sweat, Elizabeth Sweat, Phil Reynolds, Norm Smith, Hugh Smith, Kate Strite, Ellis Todd, Tommy, Fran Tuohy, Andy Vos, Bob & Jackie Whitlatch, Richard, Natalie Wicks, Scott Wiley, Blair Zoll
Under Construction
The church system, Tithe.ly, is under construction to help us utilze it's many advantages. There is some great functionality that I am exploring and implementing. Some of you have already received emails or texts from the church system. I apologize for any confusion that has been caused. Please be patient with me. I am trying to make life easier for our volunteers. If you receive any messages that you don't understand please contact me atwdeborah772@gmail.com or (843) 698-0795.
