Check out what's happening in the Presbytery of New Covenant

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Presbytery of New Covenant

What's Happening in New Covenant?

Tuesday, April 23, 2024

April 28 is the fifth Sunday of Easter!

Invite a friend to church!

This week's image is found here.

2024 - The Year of Church Innovation and Vitality

How are your good fruits seen in your community?

Join the conversation at ncconnect.org

Church Innovation involves reaching out in new ways to your community.

How well do you know your neighborhood?

Demographic studies for congregations

using Mission Insite can be accessed here.

View as Webpage

Administrative Professionals Day

is Wednesday, April 24.

How are you celebrating your church administrative staff?

Groundbreaking at St. Paul, Houston

The congregation of St. Paul would like to invite you to come worship with them as they pray for their new church building and site! They are very excited to share all the amazing ways in which God has been moving. The interior of the building is still being worked on, so the service will be outdoors on Sunday, April 28 @ 9:30 am.

Church Anniversaries

Congratulations to the congregation of St. Paul's in Needville on celebrating

100 years of ministry on April 21.

And to the congregation of Emmanuel in Galveston

on 75 years on April 28.

Earth Care Congregations

In honor of Earth Day, April 22, we thank these congregations in our presbytery who have been certified as Earth Care Congregations by the PC(USA):

Atascocita Presbyterian Church

Clear Lake Presbyterian Church

Community of the Servant-Savior

First Presbyterian Church - Lufkin

Northwoods Presbyterian Church

St. Philip Presbyterian Church

St. Thomas Presbyterian Church

Webster Presbyterian Church

Woodlands Community Presbyterian Church

Click here to learn more about becoming an Earth Care Congregation.

Northwoods Earthcare Sustainability Workshop - May 4

God calls us to be "Stewards of the Earth! but Are We?". Come join us May 4th at 8:30 AM to Noon for a delicious Breakfast and Workshop to help us explore "What can we do to improve and extend the livability of God's planet Earth".

We welcome anyone interested in caring for God's land and/or learning more about it to join us. For more information, contact Nancy Ingram at nancy.ingram@yahoo.com or text/call 281-630-7856.

Northwoods Prebyterian Church is located at 3320 Cypress Creek Pkwy (FM 1960), Houston, TX 77068. Come Join Us!

Grant Funds Available

The Presbytery of New Covenant offers several different types of grants to help our congregations fund new projects, community involvement, mission outreach, and building repairs. There are five categories found on the Universal Grant Application form: Vision Initiative, Lynn Johnson Social Justice, Peacemaking, Outreach, and Elder Care. Descriptions of each are found on the application form. The deadline to apply for these grants is May 31. Funds will be awarded in June.

Additionally, Kelso Grants of up to $5000 per year are offered to help with building projects or repairs. These grants can be applied for any time during the year. We also offer low cost loans (up to $20,000) for building projects and repairs through the Weaver King fund.

Please send completed grant or loan applications to Lynn Hargrove and Charlie Leibold.

Be Inspired by Music in Worship

Are you looking for ways to make your Sunday music inspire greater spirituality and engagement while maintaining its rich sacred heritage? Consider enrolling in this graduate level course designed specifically for clergy and church music professionals. Music in Christian Worship (WRSP 70970) is a foundational course for clergy and musicians about the music of the church, covering theological underpinnings in various traditions, various worship streams and how music relates to them, congregational song, choral song, music leadership, language, service planning, and staff relationships.

Dr. Charlotte Kroeker, executive director of the Church Music Institute and recognized sacred music scholar, is the organizing professor. Classes will be taught by professors well known for their expertise in the particular topic of the day. Faculty includes Wilma Ann Bailey, Michael Joncas, Zebulon Highben, Anthony Ruff, Don Saliers, Paul Westermeyer, and Ellen Johnston. Each day’s classes will begin and conclude with services using the music studied that day which is applicable to current worship.

The online course, Music in Christian Worship, provides 3 graduate level credit hours through Brite Divinity School at Texas Christian University or can be audited. Click here for the Prospectus, Course Outline, and Registration information.

June 10 – 21, 2024 - Online

Classes: Monday – Friday

8:00 a.m. – 12:00 Noon, CDT

Deadline for Registration: May 1, 2024

Innovation: Vacation Bible School

How are you innovating around offering Vacation Bible School?

After learning that most of those attending were the granchildren of the volunteers (who were exhausted by the end of the five day Monday-Friday traditional model), a congregation made the move to offer an evening program which included dinner. By shortening the format to two hours, families were able to attend together. Dinner was from 6:00 - 6:30, with stories and crafts from 6:30 - 7:45. The various class groups reconvened until 8:00 for a recap including singing and prayer time. The shorter format required fewer volunteers, and people went home feeling fed in both body and soul.

Other congregations have gone to a "Done in a Day" model where VBS is done on four Saturday's spread out across the year. This has allowed for a deeper understanding of the meaning of the liturgical seasons, and why we do what we do, especially in worship. Depending on the size of the congregation, the older kids might help the younger kids to learn the stories and songs.

How might you innovate with your Vacation Bible School this year?

Please share your stories of Church Innovation with Lynn Hargrove.

Red Hymnals Available

Our friends at Westminster in Nacogdoches have discovered about 80 of the "old red hymnals" (that date back to 1952) in a closet. Since they have no plans to use them, they wondered if someone else might be interested. Please contact Whitney Frazier.

Find the youth application here. Find the adult application here.

For questions or more information, contact Rosy Murphy: rmurphy@pbyofnewcovenant.org

EVENTS

Synod Youth Workshop - July 8 - 13 - University of Tulsa

Keynoter: Rev. Dr. Josh Robinson, Senior Pastor of Hope Presbyterian Church in Austin, TX

Register today for a chance to explore your faith in a safe environment, make lifelong friendships and experience God’s presence through worship, community service and lots of fun. Conference is for rising 9th graders through graduated seniors.

Scholarships are available. For questions, please contact Leah McFadden.

Upcoming Educational Opportunities

AUSTIN PRESBYTERIAN THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY

Education Beyond the Walls

INTERFAITH MINISTRIES OF GREATER HOUSTON

https://www.imgh.org/

MONTREAT CONFERENCE CENTER, NORTH CAROLINA

https://montreat.org/

MIDDLE SCHOOL CONFERENCE

"In the Middle of It All"

July 17-21

Maryville College, Maryville, TN

SENIOR HIGH YOUTH CONFERENCES

2024 Dates

Week 1 - June 2-8

Week 2 - June 9–15

Week 3 - July 7–13

Week 4 - July 14–20

Week 5 - July 21–27

Week 6 - July 28–August 3

https://montreat.org/events/myc-24

WORSHIP & MUSIC

"Lead Us Homeward"

Week 1 - June 16-21

Week 2 - June 23-28

Registration opened December 5!

Montreat seeks Summer Staff. Find out more here.

GHOST RANCH, ABIQUIU, NM

https://www.ghostranch.org/

HOPE AND HEALING CENTER, HOUSTON

https://hopeandhealingcenter.org/

Now offering the "Madness and Grace" podcast.

PRESBYTERIAN PEACEMAKING PROGRAM

Civil Rights Pilgrimage

May 28 - June 6, 2024

Birmingham, Montgomery, Selma, Jackson, the Mississippi Delta, and Memphis

THE ROTHKO CHAPEL

https://rothkochapel.org/

MO-RANCH, HUNT, TX

https://www.moranch.org

Churches Seeking Pastors

Please contact Mary Currie about open positions in the presbytery.

The Church Leadership Connection links are to the new and improved system.

Please update the link to your church information.

Brenham, Brenham (full time)

Covenant, College Station (interim)

First, Conroe (full time)

First, Galveston (full time)

Heritage, Houston (interim)

Spring Branch, Houston (Co-Pastor, full time)

Gulf Prairie, Jones Creek/Freeport (part time)

First, Livingston (part time)

First, Navasota

St. Paul's, Needville (full time)

First, Pearland

First, Rosenberg (part time)

First, Tomball (part time)

First in Vidor is seeking Ministers of Word and Sacrament to serve as Pulpit Supply. Please contact Kyle Lee.

OTHER OPPORTUNITIES

SEEKING A PROGRAM MANAGER OF EMERGENCY SERVICES Greenway Plaza

Christian Community Service Center is a well-established social service organization in central/southwest Houston working to alleviate the effects of poverty. CCSC is currently searching for a professional leader to join our staff as the full-time Program Manager of Emergency Services-Central. Emergency Services-Central is CCSC’s original program, created to meet the basic needs of clients in crisis. A team of staff and volunteers provides individualized services including groceries, clothing, referrals to other helping agencies, and emergency payment for rent, utilities or medical needs.

CCSC is committed to a diverse, inclusive, and equitable environment where all clients, volunteers, staff, and board members feel respected and valued regardless of gender, age, race, ethnicity, national origin, sexual orientation or identity, disability, education, or any other bias.

To find out more, click here.

SEEKING NURSERY WORKER

Atascocita Presbyterian Church (19426 Atasca Oaks Dr., 281-852-8990) is looking for a nursery worker for Sunday mornings. We hope to find an energetic and interactive older teen or retiree or anyone wishing to interact with our kiddos for a couple of hours on Sunday mornings. The hours are approximately 9:30-11:30(maybe a little longer). The pay is $15 per hour with a minimum of two hours. We can have anywhere between 2 and 15 kids. There will be two people working(at least). We are building a younger group of families with littles and really want a happy face to greet them and their parents! Let us know if you or"" someone you know is interested!

SEEKING DAY SCHOOL DIRECTOR

The St. Andrew’s Day School in Beaumont, Texas, is seeking a full-time director for the 2024-2025 school year. The director furthers Christ’s Kingdom by managing all aspects of the St. Andrew’s Day School, including customer relations, human resources, financial systems, recordkeeping, quality control, and facility management. The Day School and its director strive to provide each student child-directed play experiences and proven curriculum in a Christian environment. Applicants must meet one or more of the state-required combinations of education, experience, and certification. If you would like to apply or learn more about this position, please read the full job description at www.saintandy.org/dayschool/jobs.

SEEKING CHURCH MUSICIAN

Bethel Presbyterian Church in East Columbia seeks someone to lead the music ministry of the congregation, assisting to raise hearts and voices in praise and prayerfulness during the Sunday service and other special worship occasions. For more information about this part time position, please see the job description.