Friday, March 27, 2020

Sunday at First Presbyterian1. Missionaries of the WeekRachel and Rich Ernst—Wycliffe, ThailandThe Ernst family will be assigned to Southeast Asia where they will work to support missionary wellness. Rich is an adult and child psychiatrist and will serve by promoting emotional and spiritual health and reducing burnout amongst missionaries and their families throughout Asia. Another goal is to spread the gospel while developing relationships withnationals. Pray for a good transition to their new home and ministry.

2. Sunday Services Livestreaming at 10 a.m. and 6:30 p.m.First Pres YouTube Channel | First Pres Website HomepageWe are livestreaming our Sunday morning worship service at 10 a.m. and our evening service at 6:30 p.m. You are invited to watch from your homes at those times, so that even remotely, our hearts can be joined in worship together. If you are unable to watch live, recordings of the services will be available on our website and on YouTube. We would love to see photos of you gathering for worship in your homes. If you post a photo to Facebook tag our page, First Presbyterian Church of Augusta or on Instagram tag @firstpresaugusta in your posts and stories. Use the hashtags #firstpresaugusta, #fpcaugusta, or #FPCATrustsInJesus as well. Make sure to follow us on social media!

3. Officer NominationsThe Session asks church members to prayerfully consider nominating men for the offices of Ruling Elder and Deacon. Complete the online Elder and Deacon Nomination form. Submitted names will be reviewed by the Session.

4. Virtual Gatherings for Many GroupsWhile activities on the First Pres campus are temporarily suspended, ministry leaders are coming up with creative ways to gather remotely. Watch your email for information about your groups.

5. Keeping the Lines of Communication OpenFor More Information Contact Vonnie EidsonAlthough it is currently necessary for us to be physically distanced, we want to stay closely connected as a church family. Here are some of the ways we ask you to help us keep you informed:

• Check Your Email Frequently. This is one of the best ways for the church to reach large groups and the full congregation.

• Stay Open to Receiving Texts. When necessary, the church will use group texting to send out urgent messages, as we did last weekend to let you know that on-site services were canceled.

• Visit Our Website Often. We are updating information on the home page of our website frequently. When you click on the block titled “Livestream” there is a direct connection to the current and upcoming live broadcasts. The block labeled as “Worship” provides easy access to prior broadcasts of livestreamed sermons, corresponding bulletins and announcements, resources for worship, and Prayer and Praise services. We are adding information to the three columns labeled Resources and News often and adding recordings of our Sermons as usual. When you click one of the titles under any of these three columns and open a file, you can scroll to the bottom of the page and subscribe to receive email notifications when we post something new.

• Subscribe to Our YouTube Channel. Stay on top of everything new we post to YouTube and get notifications when a livestream is about to start by subscribing to our YouTube Channel.

• Use Facebook and Instagram. The church will be posting updates on our Facebook and Instagram accounts, and whether you are a fan of social media or not, we would challenge the First Pres family to sign on, even if for this short period of time, to receive updates from your church family and help raise social media to a higher level. We can do this by sharing First Pres posts with friends who may not attend church, or posting some of your favorite Bible verses, positive quotes, and encouraging messages with others. Follow our Facebook page by searching for First Presbyterian Church of Augusta, and follow us on Instagram by searching @firstpresaugusta.

Our Church Family

Upcoming Events

7. Noon@FirstPresFirst Pres YouTube Channel | First Pres Website HomepageEach week day at noon, our pastors are doing a short broadcast with a devotional, a time of prayer, and information that the church may need to share with you. Again, if you miss the livestream at noon, you can watch it later in the day on YouTube or our church website. Stay in touch with friends, family, colleagues, and neighbors by inviting them to follow these broadcasts.

Discipleship6. Lenten Study and DevotionalLearn More: firstpresaugusta.org/lent-2020We are excited to provide a series of resources and worship opportunities to coordinate with our “Journey to the Cross” sermon series leading up to Easter. We are using Michael Card’s book, A Sacred Sorrow, as the primary resource both for common curriculum in adult Sunday School classes and as a devotional throughout the Lenten season. Please visit the church website for more information and the devotional reading schedule.

8. Prayer and Praise Service, Wednesday, April 17 p.m. | Facebook LiveSign on to Facebook at 7 p.m. this Wednesday for a Prayer and Praise service led by Kirk Sauers and Chris Williams. Go to our Facebook page to request your favorite hymn or worship song.

9. Conference Offering Goal: “50 for 50”Investing in the Future by Caring in the PresentReceived to date $34,381For the 50th anniversary of the missions conference, our offering goal is $50,000 with a focus on care. We care for others by supporting indigenous Christian workers, the persecuted church, and disadvantaged Christians. We care for FPC’s own as they are on the field and as they go to/return from the field. You can give online (“Jubilee Missions Conference”) at firstpresaugusta.onlinegiving.org or by check with “Missions Conference” noted on your check. Please prayerfully consider how God would have you give to care for missionaries now and in the future.

Bible & Missionary Conference

firstpresaugusta.org/we-can-help

Care10. We Want to Know You!Please Upload Current Photos to Our DatabaseContact: Lesley Hamm, lhamm@firstpresaugusta.orgEspecially during trying times like these we want to be People Who Care. The better we know each other, the better we can care for each other. With that in mind, we are asking each First Pres family to make sure a current photo is uploaded of each of their family members. This can easily be done through the First Pres website by following the steps below:

• Go to firstpresaugusta.org and click on the Login tab in the upper right-hand corner of the home page.

• Login using your user name and password.• If you have not set up an account, click on Create Account, and

follow the steps to set up your account.• Once you are logged in, click on Choose File to select current

photo to upload.• Click Upload Selected File.• To add photos for other family members, click on the drop-down

arrow next to your name and follow the same steps for each family member.

11. We Can Help!Visit the First Pres website to learn moreWe will be updating the We Can Help web page as we learn of ways we can reach out to our community. If you have a need, or know of someone who does, please reach out to your parish elder or email the church office, churchoffice@firstpresaugusta.org.

Hope for Augusta12. March Ministry in Focus: Hope for AugustaLearn More and Support Through Giving: hopeforaugusta.org Contact: Stephen Pittman, stephen@hopeforaugusta.org Hope for Augusta is our focused ministry for the month of March. HFA is our inner city mission to children and teens. This year, HFA’s goal is to enable up to 135 children in Pre-K through eighth grade to participate in College for Kids, and seven high school students to intern with College for Kids during the month of June. Visit hopeforaugusta.org to learn more about the great work God is doing through this ministry. Please prayerfully consider if he might have you sponsor a student (or students) for this summer.

13. Hope for Augusta Book Drive: Reaching Into ReadPurchase books for RIR through Amazon at: amzn.to/32WvVY9Reaching Into Read is an initiative that started at Hope for Augusta to help children with reading difficulties in underserved schools. First graders at Hornsby Elementary are the main focus this year. You can help with these efforts by purchasing books from the RIR Book Fair Wish List at amzn.to/32WvVY9. When you check out, choose “Reach Into Reading’s Gift Registry Address” to have the books sent directly to HFA. Children will have an opportunity to purchase books for a nominal fee at a book fair currently scheduled for April 26-28. Children who enjoy reading are more likely to succeed in school and in life in general, but at the heart of this movement lies a fundamental question and answer, “Why do we need to read? To know God’s Word.”

Generous Giving14. Financial UpdateDuring this time of many uncertainties, we encourage you to continue giving as you would during regular Sunday morning worship gatherings. Please pray that the Lord would allow us all to continue with faithful giving during this crisis.

There are several ways to give:

Online giving. You can give online through our website. From our home page, click on Give in the upper right-hand corner of the page.

Church app. You can also give through our church app, which can be downloaded through Google Play or the Apple Store by searching for First Presbyterian Augusta.

U.S. Mail. If you would like to send a check to the church, the correct mailing address for our office is 615 Telfair Street, Augusta, GA 30901.

Stock Donations. If you would like to donate stock to the church, pleasecontact Pam Turley, pturley@firstpresaugusta.org, for information. Pam can also provide information on how you can give gifts of real estate or bequests to the church.

Church OfficeOur church offices are currently closed due to the Coronavirus. Many of our staff members are working remotely, and our phone lines and emails are being checked frequently throughout the work day.

Church Office/ReceptionPatty Hood | Nicole Novakchurchoffice@firstpresaugusta.org706.262.8900

Departmental InformationNursery & Children’s MinistryElizabeth Barone, Ministry Asst.ebarone@firstpresaugusta.org706.262.8832

Youth MinistryBeth Benson, Ministry Asst.bbenson@firstpresaugusta.org706.262.8849

Adult DiscipleshipJess Romer, Coordinatorjromer@firstpresaugusta.org706.262.8855

Music MinistryLeigh Fleury, Directorlfleury@firstpresaugusta.org706.262.8826

Outreach/MissionsDrew Jackson, Missions Asst.missions@firstpresaugusta.org706.262.8860

FacilitiesHallie Merry, Coordinatorhmerry@firstpresaugusta.org706.262.8820

Finance/AccountingPam Turley, Managerpturley@firstpresaugusta.org706.262.8821

Communication/PublicationsVonnie Eidson, Directorveidson@firstpresaugusta.org706.262.8822

For more information on the mission, ministries and events at First Presbyterian Church, please visit firstpresaugusta.org.

615 Telfair Street • Augusta, Georgia 30901706.262.8900 • firstpresaugusta.orgStreet address: 642 Telfair Street, Augusta, Georgia 30901

Mailing address: 615 Telfair Street, Augusta, Georgia, 30901706.262.8900 · firstpresaugusta.org