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[Graphic of Redeemer Presbyterian Church logo]

[Graphic of Redeemer Presbyterian Church eNewsletter]
Vol. 12 No. 13 March 30, 2023



[Photo of the crown of thorns]

Good Friday Service
April 7, 2023 at 7:00 p.m.

Please plan now to join us for this
service of reflection on the suffering, death,
and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ.


In this issue…
  • Good Friday Service…
  • Sunday Worship on April 2, 2023…
  • Good Friday Men’s Breakfast…
  • Update from Mackenzie Hancock…
  • Update from Sierra Leone…
  • Charitable Golf Tournament: June 5, 2023…
  • Monthly Prayer Focus…
  • Children’s Scripture Memory Verses…
  • Church Goals: How are we doing?…
  • Events of Interest at Weis Library UMC…
  • Chronos Groups are on hiatus…
  • Christian Education classes are on hiatus…
  • Women’s Ministry…
    • Introduction…
    • Weekly Devotional for Women…
    • Women’s Discipleship Group…
    • Springhill Women’s Bible Study…
  • and more…
  • Directions to the Church…

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Please be sure to scroll all the way to the end so you don’t miss any of the important announcements. We welcome your comments. Please send any questions or comments to info@rpcerie.org. If you no longer wish to receive this eNewsletter, please simply click on the “Unsubscribe” link at the bottom of this page as it appears in your e-mailbox.


Sunday Worship

For Sunday, April 2, 2023—
Sixth Sunday in Lent

Palm Sunday

11:15 a.m.—  
Meeting at: Weis Library United Methodist Church
6020 Heidler Road
Fairview, PA 16415

Worship Theme: “Wise followers of Jesus consciously
 choose to embrace sacrifice.”

Sermon Title: “A Brave Entry”
  —Dean K. Wilson

Sermon Text: Matthew 21:1-12

Other Scripture Readings  

Psalter Reading: Psalm 118:1-2; 19-29

Epistle Reading: Philippians 2:5-11

(Please click on the Scripture texts above in order to
read them from the Engllish Standard Version)


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We welcome anyone who wishes to join us for worship.

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We welcome children of all ages in our Worship Service. At the Information Center in the rear of the Sanctuary, we offer children a “Book Bucket” with books and activities for their use. Parents, please do not be concerned if your young child cries. We believe that the cries of young children signal that the church is alive, well, and destined to continue for generations to come.

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After the Worship Service

We invite you to join us for a time of fellowship after each Sunday’s worship service.

We also invite those who wish to have a time of personal prayer for needs in their lives to please speak to one of the Ruling Elders—Jaye Moelk, James Stahl, or Bob LeSuer—and he or she will arrange for someone to meet with you and pray with you.




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Our Mission Statement

“As part of the global church of Jesus Christ, Redeemer Presbyterian Church exists to draw people into a life-long transforming relationship with Him by:

          Exalting God thoughtfully and joyfully
          Knowing God intimately
          Serving others wholeheartedly
          Sharing God’s love locally and globally”

Based on this Mission Statement, we have developed a statement of our “Core Values and Elements of Our Strategic Plan,” which you may read by clicking here.




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Belle Valley Presbyterian Church logo

Letter from Pastor Dave Edmunds

We have received the following letter of invitation from Pastor Dave Edmunds of the Belle Valley Presbyterian Church:

March, 2023

Dear Friends in Christ,

In hopes of deepening Christian friendship, we would like to invite the men and youth of your congregation to join us for a Good Friday Men’s Communion Breakfast on April 7, 2023, at 6:30 a.m.

We ask that you RSVP to me by April 3, 2023,—by phone call or text message at 814-397-1861—with a final count, so we can give the caterer a final count, as she prepares enough food for the buffet.

There will be a brief time of devotion, with Communion afterwards, for which you are welcome to stay—and we promise to get you on your way by 7:45 a.m. for those who have to report for work yet that day.

Please join us for this opportunity for genuine Christian friendship, fellowship, and worship, as we mark this year’s Holiest of weekends in the Christian faith!

In Christ,                

Dave             

Rev. Dave Edmunds

Good Friday Breakfast Invitation



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Hancock Update

Update from Mackenzie Hancock

Redeemer Presbyterian Church (EPC) through our Missions Committee is currently supporting the work of Mackenzie Hancock in Central Asia, Egypt, and Tanzania. Please click here to read her latest update.




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Photo of Sierra Leone Children

Update from Sierra Leone

Partnering with EduNations, our Presbytery has adopted the nation of Sierra Leone as our mission to people who remain unreached for Jesus Christ. Please click here to read the latest update.

 

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Golf Outing Logo

Please Save this Date!
Charitable Golf Tournament
and Dinner on Monday, June 5, 2023

On Monday, June 5, 2023, the Presbytery of the Alleghenies, in partnership with EduNations, is once again sponsoring a Charitable Golf Tournament and Dinner to benefit our mission to Sierra Leone, West Africa. The trounament will take place at the following location:

Avalon Golf and Country Club
1030 Forker Blvd.
Hermitage, PA 16148

Please encourage all your fellow golfers to attend. More details and registration information will be coming soon.




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[Monthly Prayer Focus logo]

April, 2023

At the Meeting of Session on August 9, 2022, the Ruling Elders voted to create a “Monthly Prayer Focus” and to ask the members of the congregation to pray for a specific topic throughout each month. As each new month rolls around, please watch this eNewsletter and the Weekly Worship Service Bulletin, in order to learn about the “Monthly Prayer Focus” for that month.

For the month of April, the Session asks that you pray for our Presbytery of the Alleghenies (POA). It is one of sixteen presbyteries of the Evangelical Presbyterian Church and is made up of 71 churches. The geographical extent of the Presbytery of the Alleghenies covers the eastern half of Ohio, western third of Pennsylvania, and parts of West Virginia, Maryland, and New York state.

Specific things to pray for this month include:

  • Church plants sponsored by the Presbytery: Bridge City Church, Cleveland, OH; Hope for Renewal, Youngstown, OH; Mosaic Community Church, New Brighton, PA; and SOMA, Beaver Falls, PA

  • Our own Bob LeSuer, as he travels and works as Moderator of the Presbytery.

  • The partnership of the Presbytery and the Trinity School for Ministry in Ambridge, PA. With a number of retiring pastors in the coming years, the Evangelical Presbyterian Church’s special educational tract at Trinity School for Ministry offers a vital training program for future EPC pastors.

  • World Outreach of which the Presbytery is the primary sponsor—Redeemer is a part of this effort. These include the evangelism and schools in Sierra Leone, West Africa in partnership with EduNations.

  • The health and vitality of the churches in the Presbytery. The Presbytery watches over each church to monitor health and growth of the congregations. It also provides small churches with programs and networking that demonstrates a small church has worth and significance because it is the people of God.




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Children's Scripture Memory Graphic

Children’s Scripture Memory Verses

We would like to invite your children to participate in a “Scripture Memorization Program.” Each month by email, you will receive a page of five memory verses. Your child should work to memorize these verses and the Scripture reference.

Third grade and above should aim to memorize all five verses each month. Grades One and Two should aim to memorize three of the verses each month.

Each child will recite his or her verses for an assigned adult. The adult will award prizes if the child has memorized the verses. Children should also be encouraged to find these verses in their own Bibles.

Below, you will find links to the Memory Verses for each month:




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As a Church, How are We Doing?

At the Meeting of Session on Tuesday, January 10, 2023, the Ruling Elders adopted Goals and Enabling Objectives for 2023. You may review these by clicking here.

As the people of Redeemer move forward, serving as abassadors for Christ and His Kingdom to a needy world, we must strive for continuous improvement. The Goals and Enabling Objectives give us some markers by which we can evaluate our forward movement.

Therefore, we urge each of you to very prayerfully and thoughtfully review the Goals and Enabling Objectives for 2023 and consider how you will help your brothers and sisters at Redeemer facilitate the the realization of these Goals through the effective implementation of the Enabling Objectives.

The month of April, we will focus on examining Goal One — Enabling Objectives One through Eight.

Goal One: Prayer — Striving to become, more and more, a people of prayer.

Enabling Objectives One through Eight

During the week ahead, please take some time to consider whether or not you have purposely taken time to pray daily …

  • for the needs of our individual family members.

  • for the people whom God brings across the pathway of our lives who share their needs with us.

  • for God to bring people into our lives who are open to having us share the good news of Jesus Christ.

  • for the missions and missionaries that Redeemer Presbyterian Church supports.

  • for the work God is doing through missions and missionaries from all sending organizations that support authentic and orthodox Christian beliefs.

  • for the needs of Redeemer Presbyterian Church, for the members of Session, for the chairs of our Committees, and for our “Monthly Prayer Focus.”

  • for the needs of the Presbytery of the Alleghenies and the Evangelical Presbyterian Church.

  • for the needs of our Townships, County, Commonwealth, Nation, and the World.

During the month, if you did pray daily for these critical needs, give yourself a pat on the back and make a note of this fact in your Personal Prayer Journal or Notebook. If you were not able to do this, consider how you could improve next month.

Through this process of self-evaluation, each person who attends Redeemer Presbyterian Church can move more positively toward helping Redeemer become more effective in sharing the message of salvation in and through the Lord Jesus Christ.




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Upcoming Events of Interest

We remain very grateful to the pastors, leadership, and congregation of Weis Library United Methodist Church for their kindness in allowing us to rent the use of their facility for our Sunday morning Worship Service, and for other events.

Because we desire to be supportive of the work and ministry of our gracious host—and because we share their desire to provide an effective ministry to the community—we want to share with our readers events that Weis Library United Methodist Church has scheduled that may be of interest to the the greater community, as well as to the members and friends of Redeemer Presbyterian Church (EPC).

If you wish to review the latest news and schedule of events at Weis Library United Methodist Church, please click here to visit their Facebook page.



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Women’s Ministry

Introduction: The Women’s Ministry of Redeemer Presbyterian Church offers many opportunities to the women from our church and from our community. We welcome you to keep in touch with our ministry activities. Please click here for more information…

Weekly Devotional: Every week our Women’s Ministry posts a Weekly Devotional for Women. If you haven’t yet read this week’s devotional, please click here.




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Women’s Discipleship Group

During the school year, the Women’s Discipleship Group typically meets on specific Thursday mornings from 10:00 a.m. to noon in various homes.

We are studying the book, Lent for Everyone: Matthew, Year A: A Daily Devotional, written by N. T. Wright.

Women interested in joining this group should please contact Laurie LeSuer at church for information regarding the meeting location, the date of the next meeting, and with any other questions, or click here to please send her a message via email.

Note: Clicking on this link will launch your computer’s default email application. However, if you normally connect to your emailbox over the web by webmail—such as AOL or gmail—and do not use a dedicated email application on your computer, you will need to launch your webmail and send your email to “womens-discipleship@rpcerie.org”



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[Graphic of Springhill Women's Bible study group]

Asbury Springhill Ladies’ Bible Study

In conjunction with the Women’s Ministry of Redeemer Presbyterian Church (EPC), Asbury Springhill Senior Living Community will host a weekly Ladies’ Bible Study on Thursday afternoons at 3:00 p.m. in Room 317-C—Resident Activity Room—of the Commons Building (Main Building) at the

Asbury Springhill Senior Living Community
2323 Edinboro Road (1/2-mile south of the Millcreek Mall)
Erie, PA 16509

Led by Shirley Wilson, this Ladies’ Bible Study is open to all women in the Erie community, as well as the women in residence at the Asbury Springhill Senior Living Community.

We are currently studying “The Parables of Jesus.” Please bring your personal copy of the Bible.

Women interested in joining this group should contact Shirley Wilson at church with any questions, or click here to send her a message via e-mail.

Note: Clicking on this link will launch your computer’s default email application. However, if you normally connect to your emailbox over the web by webmail—such as AOL or gmail—and do not use a dedicated email application on your computer, you will need to launch your webmail and send your email to “SpringhillBibleStudy@rpcerie.org”






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Becoming a Missional Church…

We continue to pursue ways to effectively fulfill The Great Commission. We invite you to visit our website and view the recurring local, national, and international Mission Projects we continue to support through our time, talent, and treasure: Read more...







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Prayer Requests

More and more, we want to become a praying church. Thus, we want to continually hold each other up in prayer.

We want to celebrate your joys. We want to rejoice with you concerning the answers you’ve received to your prayers. And, we want to know about your trials, sorrows, difficulties, and concerns so that we can earnestly and fervently pray with you and pray for you.

Please don’t wait until Sunday to share with us. We welcome your Prayer Requests all week long.

If you have a Prayer Request during the week, you may connect with our prayer warriors through our Facebook “Praise and Prayer” page. Or, especially if your prayer request is of a more confidential nature, please send an email to the email address noted below.

Upon receipt, we will either activate our Prayer Chain enabling our prayer warriors to pray for your request; or, if you mark your request “Confidential,” we will only share your prayer request with the Pastor and our three Ruling Elders.

To send us a Prayer Request by email, please just click here.

Note: Clicking on this link will launch your computer’s default email program. However, if you normally connect to your emailbox over the web by webmail—such as AOL or gmail—and do not use a dedicated mail application on your computer, you will need to launch your webmail and send your request to “prayer@rpcerie.org”



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Please “Like” our Facebook Page

That’s right, Redeemer Presbyterian Church (EPC) has a page on Facebook. If you’re also on Facebook, we invite you to “Like” our Facebook page. If you do, you’ll receive all the updates we post throughout the week.

You can become a "Redeemer Pres. Ambassador." Here’s how: Once you “Like” our Facebook page, you will begin to receive our updates on your Facebook newsfeed. If you see one of our updates that you would like to share with your Facebook friends, all you have to do is simply click the “Share” button. This will place the update you “Share” onto the newsfeed for your Facebook friends and also onto the timeline of your own Facebook page where all your Facebook friends can view it.

While our website will remain the principal source of information regarding our services and activities, and while this eNewsletter will continue to provide a once-weekly summary of what’s going on at Redeemer Pres., our Facebook page will offer a fast-paced, up-to-the-minute way of keeping in touch throughout the course of your day, whenever you log into Facebook.

To visit our Facebook page, just click here.

You may also always reach our Facebook page by clicking on the “Facebook badge” that is located on the left-side menu column of any page on our website.

We also have a “Redeemer Pres. Prayer and Praise” Group that you may access from our Facebook page. To join this “Closed Group” you must be invited by an existing member. So, just mention your interest to one of the current members of the Group and that one will gladly add you to the Group.




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About Us…

Have you ever wondered how we describe ourselves to people who come across our website while they are surfing the world wide web?

Well, wonder no more. Just click here to read a description about Redeemer Presbyterian Church.

Then, please pray that people will find us and that the Holy Spirit will continue to draw those He wants to become a part of our fellowship. And, don’t forget to invite your family and friends to join us for Christian Education and Worship on Sunday.




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Tithes, Offerings, and Love Gifts

We appreciate your consistent generosity in giving to support the ministry of our church. Please make your checks payable to “Redeemer Presbyterian Church.” We also have Pledge Cards available for those who may wish to indicate the extent of their giving—as God provides—throughout the coming year.




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“God Hunt” Sightings

We include this announcement each week to express our sincere hope that you are still going on a daily “God Hunt.” Every day please look for one or more of the following:
  • Any obvious answer to prayer, or...
  • Any special evidence of God’s care, or...
  • Any help to do God’s work in the world, or...
  • Any unusual linkage or timing

Then, please write your “God Hunt Sightings” down in a journal or notebook. Next, as God opens up an opportunity for you to share with someone what He is doing in your life, please take that opportunity to do so.





Photo of Directions to Redeemer Presbyterian Church

Weis Library United Methodist Church is located at the intersection of Millfair Road and Heidler Road, not far from the intersection of either Heidler Road and Sterrettania Road or Millfair Road and Sterrettania Road.

Please click on the aerial photo below to obtain specific directions
from your location to the Weis Library United Methodist Church.




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