Office Hours:

Monday-Friday 9 a.m.—12 Noon

398 East Broadway, Sparta IL

Phone: 618-443-2025

Secretary: Emily Waldron

Email: office@wpcsparta.com

Facebook Page

www.facebook.com/wpcsparta

NEW WEBSITE:

www.wpcsparta.com

Contact Rev. Chris Williams

Email: pastor@wpcsparta.com

(In an emergency) Call:

Home: 618-443-5294

Cell: 563-580-3344

In This Issue

Notes from the Pastor

Christian Ed News

“Hymns” or Hers”

Committee Reports

Prayer Lists

Schedules

Pantry Needs

Pastor’s Notes….

Have you ever purposely skipped a meal, or meals, as an act of wor-

ship? Have you ever taken the time to write a letter or prayer to God

as an act of Christian discipleship? Have you ever purposely sat for an

extended time in complete silence and meditation; listening as an act

of prayer? Have you ever sat down in advance and set aside a per-

centage of your annual income to give back to God as an act of devo-

tion?

October marks a month of discipleship here at Westminster, as we ex-

plore four Christian disciplines that are often misunderstood, and ig-

nored by mainline protestants in our nation. During this month we are

going to talk about fasting, journaling, silence and solitude, and tithing

as life-giving and nourishing Christian disciplines to practice.

In addition, I would like to invite everybody to come practice these dis-

ciplines with me. Starting on October 6th, fast with me for one meal

(lunch in my case) each Thursday during October. During part of this

time, when we would normally eat, we will be taking time to journal and

write about our experiences as an act of prayer. Then, from 6:00 PM,

Wednesday October 26th to 6:00 PM on Thursday, October 27th, I

would like to invite you to join me in a 24 hour fast, as we prepare to

discern what God is calling us to tithe for the 2017 calendar year. We

will be breaking the fast at Westminster that evening, with a soup and

sandwich potluck dinner. Finally, in worship on October 30th, we will all

be invited to participate in a prayer of silence for a short period as part

of our Sunday worship service, before we dedicate our gifts that day.

Come stretch yourself as a Christian disciple this month, as we join

together in practicing these powerful and historic Christian acts of dis-

cipline.

Blessings,

Chris

A Look Inside Westminster Presbyterian Church Reverend Christopher Williams

October 2016

Knowing Christ ✞ Building Believers ✞ Serving All

This month we are sending a “shout out” to Welcome Here, Welcome Home Celebration Committee. These individuals gave of their time and talents to provide fellowship and re-connecting opportunities. It is always fun and renewing when we join with our church family.

“…Well done, good and faithful servant!..”

Matthew 25: 21

This year’s church theme is “Love Like Jesus.” To get every-one focused on this goal, we are issuing a monthly challenge to our congregation—the “Love Like Jesus” challenge. We are asking every person to tangibly do something to represent the love of Jesus by serving others. This will not only serve our community but will assist in spiritual growth. There are many ways you can represent “Love Like Jesus” in our com-munity and around the world. The way you choose to do that is completely up to you. You are not limited, so feel free to do many acts of love, if you are so moved. In October, we chal-lenge you to rake leaves for a neighbor, do a chore for some-one without them knowing, or something of your own choos-ing. The youth have been challenged to rake leaves for a neighbor, set the table for dinner or something of their choos-ing.

On Wednesday, October 5, from 4:30-6:45 p.m. Calvin’s Kids begins! Children in pre-school through grade 8 are invited to attend. The evening includes a lesson, choir and meal. Con-firmation class (grades 7-8) will meet during this same time period. Registration forms are available in Eva Beever Hall or the Foyer. Parents, please remember to come to the foyer to sign out your child.

Upcoming Events:

Oct. 5—Calvin’s Kids begins

Oct. 16—Youth Choirs sing during Worship

Oct. 26—UNICEF collection and Fall Festival

Women’s News

The Westminster Women’s Association met for their

September meeting and started with the annual pot-

luck. Several decisions were made that we would like

to share with you.

1. It was decided to order pecans again this year. At

the time of this writing we are not sure of the price but

they should be pretty close to the cost in the past.

They are ordered and as soon as we know the price

we will let everyone know. Please start taking orders

with those that you know that would like some. If we

know the number of bags that you need before the

pecans come in we will have them bagged and ready

for pickup for you at the time of arrival. They should

be here close to Thanksgiving.

2. It’s that time of year again and soon the boxes for

“Operation Christmas Child” will be going out. Start

shopping now for all those special things you would

like to pack in your box. Remember---nothing liquid or

breakable and nothing that would remind the children

of war or violence!! Many of them deal with that daily.

If you put candy in your box make sure it is not choco-

late or anything that would melt. Boxes will be availa-

ble on Sunday, October 9th and will need to be re-

turned back to the church no later than Sunday, Octo-

ber 30th. This is a great mission for our church. We

hope everyone gets involved. If you are not able to fill

a box but would like to make a donation towards filling

one someone will take care of doing the shopping for

you. Contact Kathy McConachie if you would like

more information. Also, there is a fee of $7.00 for

shipping on each box. If you are willing to help with

the cost of shipping you can make a donation to the

women’s association. We will pick up the balance for

whatever is needed to cover shipping.

3. Collection will be taken in October for the Hunger

Fund. There is another article in this newsletter to

explain that project. As in the past it is “two cents per

meal per person”. If you would like to make a dona-

tion to the Hunger Fund that comes to approximately

$25 per year. A donation in any amount will be great-

ly appreciated. Watch for more information in the

coming weeks.

Fellowship Committee News

The Fellowship Committee provided

breakfast for approximately 50 on

Rally Day Kick Off. A great meal was

served and everyone enjoyed the fel-

lowship before going to their Sunday

School classes. Thanks to everyone

that attended and especially to all of

those that helped to prepare and

clean up afterwards.

Our next project will be the Trunk or

Treat Fall Festival. If you are interest-

ed in helping with this exciting activity

contact Kathy McConachie. The

event will be held on Wednesday, Oc-

tober 26th.

“Hymns” or Hers”

Don’t Forget to Crown Him!

“But why do you call Me “Lord, Lord,” and not do

the thing which I say?”

Luke 6: 46

Christ wants us to be crowned king of our lives. We are to do more than call Him “Lord” We must allow Him to govern all our actions as well. Some of God’s children are content to let Him save their souls but refuse to submit their bodies to Him as a living sacrifice. A heartwarming story in the book Forward Day by Day tells about a song that especially de-lights youngsters. It’s called “Praise Him, All Ye Little Chil-dren.” Sitting at the piano one day, a father and his young boy were singing it together. It is one of those gospel hymns that runs on and on with many satisfying but seemingly end-less verse. They sang several stanzas: Praise Him, praise Him, all ye little children, God is love, God is love… Love Him, love Him, all ye little children… Thank Him, thank Him, all ye little children… Serve Him, serve Him, all ye little children. Then the father stopped. The boy looked up in surprise, still expecting more. “Dad, you forgot to crown Him!” he said. And so once again they lifted their voices and sang. “Crown Him, crown Him, all ye little children: God is love, God is love!” Without realizing it, the child had emphasized a great biblical truth. As believers we say we love Christ and may even serve Him, but often we fail to give Him absolute con-trol. Jesus deserves your best, for He has bought you, soul and body. Don’t forget to crown Him Lord of all! --Henry Bosch

4. Again this year we will be selling the Rada

knives as a fundraiser for the women’s associ-

ation. The proceeds will help us to continue

such mission work as Funeral Dinners, pur-

chasing laundry detergent for the food pantry

and many other projects that the women do.

Think about your Christmas giving and make a

purchase for a nice gift. Orders will be taken

form October 9th to October 30th. Any ques-

tions contact Sue Hooper. Sales of the “Just

My Pan” are also being considered for the

same time. More info will follow as information

becomes available.

The women are involved in many aspects

of the church. All women in Westminster are

invited to join us for all the mission work and

activities that we do. Meetings are held on the

third Monday of the month. Next meeting will

be October 17th at 6:30 p.m. Mark your calen-

dar and plan to attend.

Backstory

Nobody knows who wrote the lyrics for “Praise Him, All Ye Little Children,” but Carey Bonner wrote the music. He was a Baptist pastor from England and a pioneer in the growing Sunday school movement of the first part of the twenti-eth century.

CATECHISM

QUESTIONS

Review Questions

1-17

18.) Of what were

our first parents

made?

God made Adam’s

body out of the

ground and Eve’s

body out of a rib

from Adam.

19.) What else did

God give Adam and

Eve besides bodies?

He gave them souls

that will last forever.

20.) Do you have a

soul as well as a

body?

Yes. And my soul is

going to last forever.

Families: 149

Adults: 261

Children: 164

Canned Spaghetti Sauce, Ravi-

oli, Pasta Rings and Meatballs,

Fruit, Stew, One-Can Meals,

and Toiletries.

Military members prayer list: Matthew G. Wasson, Kenny Heaton,

Hannah Bodenbach, Zachary Sternberg, Jimmy Perkins, Kelly McLaughlin

(great niece of Alice Perkins), Quinn Tate, Shane Stover, Jamey Stover,

Jamey Stover, Aaron Stewart, Jeremy Wiley, Michelle Maybell-Kirwan, Mark

Kirwan, Jim Early, Glenn Jalivay, and Helen Steele.

Shut-Ins: Syble Moore, Ula Jean Austin, Dorothy Heuman, John Steele,

Mel Phillips, Marjorie Elwyn, Betty Ervin.

Caregivers: Karen Steele, Dorothy McIntyre, and Janet Rucks.

Larry Schulte October, 2

Kendall Diercks October, 3

Sarah North October, 3

Matt Sullivan October, 3

Katie Vickery October, 3

Christa Dahlem October, 6

Dan Peck October, 6

Kathy Brenning October, 7

Collin Crancer October, 7

Marcia Maybell October, 7

Karli Hanna October, 12

Zachary Hayes October, 13

Hadley JoAnn McMaster October, 14

Syble Moore October, 14

Robert Ethington October, 15

Doris Lehman October, 15

Lenora Kempfer October, 16

Kaden Jones October, 18

Bill Schorr October, 20

Chris Williams October, 21

Zackery Zepeda October, 24

John Adams October, 25

Lois McConachie October, 26

Scotty Misselhorn October, 27

Terry Nall October, 27

Kim Short October, 31

Terry and Valerie Nall October 10, 1969

Ward and Barb Brown October 12, 1996

Michael and Julia Hayes October 14, 2006

Scott & Amanda Bockhorn October 20, 2012

Doug and Jill Jackson October 28, 1997

Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat

FOOD PANTRY

10AM-12NOON

DEACONS MEET

6:00P.M.

QUILTERS MEET

10:00 A.M. 1

2

CONGREGATIONAL

MEETING

CEDARHURST AT

2:00 P.M.

3

4

FOOD PANTRY

10-00 A.M.—12 NOON

WORSHIP MEETS

6:00 P.M.

5

BENEVOLENCE MEETS

6:00 P.M.

CALVINS KIDS 4:30 P.M.

CHOIR MEETS 7:00 P.M.

6

FOOD PANTRY

10:00 A.M.—12 NOON

DEACONS MEET 6:00

PM

7

QUILTERS MEET

10:00 A.M.

8

9 10 11

FOOD PANTRY

10-00 A.M.—12 NOON

SESSION MEETS

7:00 P.M.

12

TRUSTEES MEET

6:00 P.M.

CALVINS KIDS 4:30 P.M.

CHOIR MEETS 7:00 P.M.

13

FOOD PANTRY

10-00 A.M.—12 NOON

RCCC PIE SOCIAL 5:00

PM

14

QUILTERS MEET

10:00 A.M.

15

16 17

WOMEN’S ASSOCIA-

TION MEETS 6:00 P.M.

18

FOOD PANTRY

10-00 A.M.—12 NOON

19

CALVINS KIDS 4:30 P.M.

CHOIR MEETS 7:00 P.M.

20

FOOD PANTRY

10-00 A.M.—12 NOON

NEWSLETTER

DEADLINE

21

QUILTERS MEET

10:00 A.M.

22

23 24 25

FOOD PANTRY

10-00 A.M.—12 NOON

SESSION MEETS

7:00 P.M.

26

RC HOUSING MEAL 12

TRUNK OR TREAT FALL

FESTIVAL 4:30 P.M.

27

FOOD PANTRY

10-00 A.M.—12 NOON

SOUP AND SAND-

WHICH POTLUCK AT

6:00 PM

28

QUILTERS MEET

10:00 A.M.

29

30

DEDICATION FOR PLEDGES

31

OCTOBER 2016

Acolyte Schedule

Oct. 2 Kole Jackson/Jayden Ethington

Oct. 9 Logan Shaw/Callie Peck

Oct. 16 Mason Ethington/Kaden Jones

Oct. 23 Lee Craig/Kade Jackson

Oct. 30 Ella Jones/Layla Jackson

Nov. 6 Katie Vickery/Della Dahlem

Nov. 13 Allison Rheinecker/Sydney Rheinecker

Nov. 20 Emily Howell/Logan Shaw

Nov. 27 Faith Sroka/Luke Sroka

Greeters

Oct. 2 Konnie & Carol Pirtle / Sid & Laurie Plunkett

Oct. 9 Tim & Amy Price / Ann Beth Rheinecker

Oct. 16 Corey & Jennifer Rheinecker / Don Rheinecker

Oct. 23 Sherry Ring / Tim & Janet Rucks (and Family)

Oct. 30 Jordan & Jordan Dawn Ruppert / Jane Russell

Nov. 6 Merle and Jeannie Schmierbach/ Gloria Schobert

Nov. 13 William & DonNita Schorr/ Staci Schuessler

Nov. 20 Larry & Laura Schulte / Glenn & Kim Short

Nov. 27 Kevin & Lorna Shubert / Jaimie and Bill Smith

Liturgists

Oct. 2 Gloria Schobert

Oct. 9 Barb Brown

Oct. 16 Carol Pirtle

Oct. 23 Bob Hayes

Oct. 30 Judy Crain

Nov. 6 Marleen Maybell

Nov. 13 Karen Steele

Nov. 20 Sue Hooper

Nov. 27 Anne Bourner