Scripture:  Mark 4:35-41 (NKJV, The Word in Life Study Bible)

On the same day (this is the day that Jesus spoke to the crowds using various parables [Mark 4:1-34], when evening had come, He(Jesus) said to them, “Let us cross over to the other side.”  Now, when they had left the multitude, they took Him(Jesus) along in the boat as He was [I can only imagine how worn out Jesus was from preaching and teaching all day].  And other little boats were also with Him.  And a great windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that it was already filling.  But He(Jesus) was in the stern, sleep on a pillow.  And they awoke Him and said to Him, “Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?”

            Then He arose and rebuke the wind, and said to the sea, “Peace, be still!”  And then the wind ceased and there was a great calm.  But he said to them, “Why are you so fearful?  How is it that you have no faith?”  And they feared exceedingly, and said to one another, “Who can this be, that even the wind and the sea obey Him!”

                                                                        Amen

 By Robert Cross

Let us pray….Bless these words of faith and conviction that I bring to your people this day.  Let those who have ears to hear – hear you today.

Amen!

Good evening, Madman Moderator, Executive Presbyter, State Clerk, Commissioners, distinguish guests and visitors, and greetings to the Sheppard and flock here at First Presbyterian Church of Rochester.

I am Robert Cross, elder from Valley Community Church of Golden Valley, MN, and outgoing Moderator of your Committee On Representation (COR). It is my JOY and honor to come before you this evening and share with you my Faith Journey over the past several years.

It has been a challenge to hold fast to the FAITH and TRUST needed to do the things I felt called to do.  Early in life, I was taught by my mother, Dr. Rev. Dorothy Cross, to believe in a God who is – loving, caring and welcoming of ALL.  I a grew up in a multicultural setting at First Presbyterian Church of Chicago, IL., learning not only to be DECENT and IN ORDER, but also caring and sharing with all of God’s children.

In the early 1980’s, my WHITE wife, our 2 sons, and I moved to Minneapolis and spent some time looking for a church home.  To our amazement we could not find a Presbyterian church that looked like First Pres in Chicago until we walked into the Sanctuary at Bethlehem-Stewart Church in South Minneapolis.  Not only were there some people of color, but a white elderly couple (Bob and Wilma Fletcher) invited us to their home for dinner that very day – Perhaps the ultimate in hospitality.  We joined that church and I began my legacy of serving this Presbytery.

Perhaps out of a yearning for an inclusive Church like First Pres and out of a sense of calling, by the late 1980’s early 1990’s, I was serving the church as an elder and serving the Presbytery, Synod and General Assembly  in the areas of C.O.R., Urban Ministry, and New Church Development.  Leading my example, my mother showed me that if you are willing to serve, God will find opportunities for you.  “It may not be easy,” she would say, “being part of a predominantly white church.”  I remember her showing me the Book of Order and how the Presbyterian Church has a commitment to inclusivity and pathways for anyone to become even Moderator of the National Church.

So I served with the Book of Order in hand and a belief that God is calling us into right relationships. Now, when I say – “relationships – I mean the essence of our human existence, especially in this post-modern age.  From Genesis to Revelation, it’s all about being in relationship. In Genesis, humankind was first in relationship with God and all of God’s creation.  Then we fell out of this relationship. Throughout the rest of the Bible, God is yearning for a reconciliation.

Yearning for our return to relationship with God and all of God’s creation, God’s plan for our reconciliation, our call back into relationship, is Jesus Christ.

We all know Jesus, he’s the One who invites us to love one another as he loved us. To love one another as he loved us; to love one another as God loves him.

To me, even the parables in Mark 4 leading up to today’s lesson is all about being in right relationships with God and with your brothers and sisters.

In the mid 1990’s, with a Commission by the Presbytery, I marched into North Minneapolis under a banner made by Rev Lindsay Biddle.  A banner that lifted up Isaiah 1:18, “Come let us reason together…”  I did not go into community asking What can I DO FOR you, but more importantly – What can we do WITH YOU.  Thanks to Dr. Ralph and Rev. Allika Galloway, the belief that God is at work is now Kwanzaa Community Church.

With sadness I witness the winds of change and the seas of contentment close several inner city churches.  Thus begging the question – “What is it that we OUGHT to be doing?”  My belief and conviction is that we OUGHT to be yearning for and learning how to be in RIGHT RELATIONSHIPS!

Along with my work with COR I also sit with the Self-Development of People Committee (SDOP) of the Synod; and sit with the Human Resource Committee of the Minnesota Council of Churches.  In both settings, I am vigilant of inclusivity and right relationships.

In the summer of 2010, I had the honor and privilege to serve on the Mission and Cultural Tours Workgroup planning for General Assembly.  I saw that it was an opportunity to lift up the colorful threads of the fabric of our Presbytery and Synod.  At the opening ceremony, It was so humbling to recognize that we are guests in this Native Land.  It is a prayer and hope that I hold close to my heart that one day we will offer our apology to the Native People for stealing their land, committing Genocide of their people, and suppressing their spirits.

This past Friday I had the chance to see the film, “Dakota 38.”  It is a film about Native Americans taking a journey to Mankato to honor the 38 who were hung to death.  A mass execution ordered by our U.S. Government.  There was a certain detail about the hanging that pierced my heart.  I learned that the Dakota hymn the people sung while the men were being hung was taught to them by a Presbyterian Chaplain from the Indian Boarding School – We have much to ask forgiveness for!!!

Currently,  I facilitate Circles of Antiracism Study and Dialogue.  We study the works of various authors of antiracism perspectives.  One of whom is Joe R. Feagin who writes about “The White Racial Frame,” stemming from Colonialism to present day.  His writing is encouraging of developing a counter Frame that would dismantle racism and move us into right relationships.  Another author is Joseph Barndt.  In his book, “Becoming an Antiracist Church,” he exposes the way that the bible has been used to support the convention of racism.  There are many who would proclaim “I am not a racist”  In his book he encourages us to reclaim the stories of the bible and return to what God is really calling us to be – to be an Antiracist – to be in right relationships.

I believe we can do it.  I believe that as children of God, we know in our hearts and can understand with our new minds not only what is decent and in order – but also what is right.

So, in stepping down from chairing the COR, I pray that you will not let the winds of change or the seas of contentment keep you from nourishing the seeds of inclusiveness and antiracism so that we will see more fruit like Kwanzaa, the Church of All Nations, Familia de Fe, and other New Church Developments, and ALL human kind included in the decision making of the church.

Amen.

Job Description:   Presbyterian Church of the Apostles is seeking a part-time

pianist to accompany choir rehearsals on Wednesday evenings (7:30-8:30pm)

on a regular basis.  The pianist will be available to perform the rehearsed

pieces approximately three Sundays a month at the Sunday service (10-11am)

with a run-through rehearsal before the service.

Qualifications:  Skill in accompanying a choral rehearsal as needed by the

conductor.

Terms: This is a temporary contract position for six months with the possibility

of renewal at the end of the contract.  Compensation is $1300/six months

(September 2012 – February 2103)

Contact:  Jerri and Steve Johnson, Choir Directors  651-688-6515

jerrijohn@aol.com

For more information about Presbyterian Church of the Apostles:

presbyterianapostles.org      Joy Smith, Pastor   952-890-7877

701 East 130^th St.  Burnsville, MN  55337

Buffalo Presbyterian Church is located in Buffalo, MN, 45 minutes northwest of Minneapolis.  The congregation is currently looking for a Stated Supply/Temporary Supply Pastor to serve the congregation part-time.  Click on the link below to read the job descriptions.  Interested persons should contact the following persons:

Please click on the link below to read the official Call to the Presbytery Meeting, which includes directions to Oak Grove.

Call to the June 2012 Special Presbytery Meeting

That was the time when the May 2012 Presbytery Meeting officially adjourned, 10:36PM, May 8 at First Presbyterian in Rochester.

The Presbytery of the Twin Cities Area had several issues to tackle at this meeting, including the election of new officers, the commissioning of elder commissioners to the 220th General Assembly this summer in Pittsburgh and approving the proposed Gracious Separation Policy.  All of the issues up for consideration were completed on May 8 with the exception of the Gracious Separation Policy which was postponed until a special presbytery meeting on June 12.

You can read what happened at the May 2012 meeting by download the latest issue of Highlights, the unofficial record of the meeting.  You can also look at our image gallery of the sights and sounds from the meeting.  To read Highlights, click on the link below.  To view the images, scoll to the bottom of this page.

Highlights: May 2012

[Show as slideshow]

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Christian Education in a Small Church, by Kara Root

Come and “Catch the Spirit!” by Julie Mass-Kusske

What’s in Your Backpack, by Cathy Kowley

Creating Space: Christian Education with Young Adults, by Joanne Lee

By Joann Lee

Christian Education is a lifelong pursuit to study Scripture and the issues of Christian faith and life, and yet, too often, as we cross the threshold from child to young adult, that piece of our faith gets left behind.  Too often, as we grow and develop into adulthood, our understanding of our faith changes and grows, but our understanding of Christian Education remains stagnant.  As such, we cannot reconcile what “Christian Education” meant to us as children with who we have become as young adults.

As an Associate Pastor for Family and Young Adult Ministries who works closely with each stage of development, I witness first-hand how Christian Education must change, adapt and adjust to suit the different stages of our faith journey.  In the Presbyterian Church (USA), the term “young adult” is ordinarily used to categorize those between the ages of eighteen to thirty-five.  Within this already vast age range, includes people from all different stages of life, faith, family and work, and needless to say, there is great diversity among those whom we label “young adults.”

Within this great diversity, however, I have consistently found that Christian Education with Young Adults is best summed up for me through a poem by Judy Brown entitled “Fire”:

What makes a fire burn
is space between the logs,
a breathing space.
Too much of a good thing,

too many logs
packed in too tight
can douse the flames
almost as surely
as a pail of water would.

So building fires
requires attention
to the spaces in between,
as much as to the wood.

When we are able to build
open spaces 
in the same way
we have learned
to pile on the logs,
then we can come to see how
it is fuel, and absence of the fuel
together, that make fire possible.

We only need to lay a log
lightly from time to time.
A fire 
grows
simply because the space is there,
with openings 
in which the flame
that knows just how it wants to burn 
can find its way.

I see my role as one who helps create space for young adults and who is called to pay attention to those “spaces in between.”

As a natural planner, my preference is to schedule out an entire year’s worth of curriculum and to set a Christian Education plan and agenda for young adults, piling on and packing in the logs too closely, if you will.  I must, however, reign in that desire and pursue, instead, to create space.

In fact, I have learned that I cannot plan out the year in advance and hope and expect people to show up, for so much of young adult ministry is mutual.  It is not about me choosing and laying down the logs, but making space for young adults to discover which logs they have the passion to pursue and to create, as the poem says, “openings in which the flame that knows just how it wants to burn can find its way.”

In this way, Christian Education with young adults is not something separate from ministry or fellowship with young adults.  Rather, it is an extension of sharing our lives with one another, for it is through these more casual, open-ended forums where ideas and passions for learning about our faith may be sparked and catch fire.

When space is made for young adults to lead and take ownership of their faith, Christian Education is shaped through their questions, passions and curiosity.  It becomes a response to what is most real, relevant and immediate in the life of a young adult.  And, perhaps most rewarding of all, the teaching and the learning is done mutually and in partnership.

“What makes a fire burn is space between the logs, a breathing space,” and when that space is tended to and carefully fostered, the fires of faith and life-long learning can be properly kindled and burn for a lifetime.

Joann Lee is the Associate Pastor for Family and Young Adult Ministries at the House of Hope Presbyterian Church in St. Paul, MN.

2 paid  positions available.

1 position for June-August only (9:30-11:30 a.m.)

1 permanent position beginning in June; summer hours 9:30-11:30 a.m., September-May  hours 9:30 a.m.-12:00 noon

Occasional weekday, evening and Saturday hours available.

Minimum age: 16 years.  Contact Jan Snell at 651-223-7547 orjans@hohchurch.org for a full position description.

The following is a blog post written by Teaching Elder Paul Moore, the Organizing Pastor of Chain of Lakes New Church Development in Lino Lakes, MN on the Ministry in a Changing World Seminar held at Valley Community Presbyterian Church in Golden Valley, MN on April 28.  It originally appeared on Paul’s Chain Link blog.

This past Saturday I had the privilege of attending the “Ministry in a Changing World” workshop at Valley Community Presbyterian Church. The workshop was organized by the Church Development Team of our Presbytery—Twin Cities Area.

The workshop was divided into two segments. In the morning M. Rex Miller presented. He immediately recognized that we only hadone person in the group who was a Millennial. The rest of us were Immigrants. His words were true not only for the people at the workshop, but many Presbyterian churches. We Presbyterians are getting older and not adapting to the needs of this and younger generations.

changingworldseminar-003

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The Fletchers are mission co-workers in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

John is a surgical consultant to the eight hospitals supported by the Presbyterian Community of Congo (CPC). He works with the hospitals’ staffs to improve their surgical knowledge, skills, judgment and techniques.

Gwenda serves the CPC as an education consultant. She assists the CPC’s Education Department in its efforts to enhance the quality of education in the church’s 702 elementary and secondary schools.

In January 2009, John and Gwenda Fletcher were appointed to serve with the Presbyterian Community of Congo (CPC) in the Kasai region of Democratic Republic of the Congo. This is by no means their first acquaintance with the Congo. The Fletchers were first appointed mission personnel by the PC(USA) in 1989, and they served in the Congo until January 2001. Both John and Gwenda grew up as children of Presbyterian mission workers in India.

The Fletchers will arrive in Minnesota on May 18 and begin their tour of the area the next day. Their itinerary is as follows:

•May 19th: Boutwell’s Landing, Stillwater 10AM

•May 20th: Peace Presbyterian, St. Louis Park 10:30AM

•May 21st: Arlington Hills Presbyterian, St. Paul 6PM

•May 22nd: Community Presbyterian, Rochester Noon & 5:30PM

•May 23rd: Westminster Presbyterian, Minneapolis 11:30AM

•May 24th: PTCA Offices, Minneapolis Noon

If you’re interested in attending one of these events, please RSVP to Mission and Witness Chair Teresa Roberts at mission@ptcaweb.org.

Come and hear how Presbyterians near and far are bringing the good news of Christ in Word and Deed.