I love this time of year in our community! Summer is good and slow, but something about August wakes us up. School starts (your first day pictures have been great!), Georgia Southern students return to Statesboro, and there is an energy in the air that comes with a new semester.
At Pittman Park we are gearing up for the launch of a new semester of growth, community, joy, and service. And, here’s the big news: Wednesday nights are back on August 12! We have activities for you and your family to find your place here at Pittman Park.
If you have never come on a Wednesday, start with the meal. There is no charge and no catch. Everyone is a guest at that table, and that is the point.
Wednesdays at Pittman Park
5:00 PM
- Communion in the Chapel
- Kids Choir in the Choir Room
- Backpack Buddies Bag Packing in the Fellowship Hall
5:30 PM
- Open Table in the Fellowship Hall
6:15 PM
- English Class in the Parlor
6:30 PM
- Chancel Choir rehearsal in the Choir Room
- Park Kids Bible Club in the Faith Factory
- Youth Anchored Study in the Student Center
- Becoming More United study in Conference Room 2 — pick up a study guide online
Backpack Buddies could use your hands. Every week, a group of volunteers packs close to a hundred bags of food for children at Langston Chapel Elementary and Middle Schools. These are children our school counselors have told us go home on Friday without enough to eat. It takes about 20 minutes to pack the bags, and you will spend it shoulder to shoulder with people who will know your name by the end of it. I cannot think of a better way to prepare for Open Table than by making sure we can extend our table to hungry children in our community.
None of what I just listed happens because the staff makes it happen. It happens because members of this congregation show up, love, and serve one another as we serve Christ. My job, and the job of everyone on our staff, is to build the kind of systems that equip you to do the work God is calling you to do. Making disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world was never meant to be a staff assignment. It is the whole church’s work, and you are the ones who carry it.
And then there’s this Sunday
Stephanie brings us “The Wildest Ride in the Wilderness” from Exodus 13, continuing our Behind the Magic series. I am looking forward to hearing it right alongside you.
The Nine is at 9:00, Traditional worship is at 11:00, and Sunday School for all ages meets in between. Whichever one fits your morning, we will be glad to see you.
I am thankful for this new semester, this new start, and the chance to learn, grow, and love together.
God bless,
Jonathan Smith
For Jesus. For People. For Community.
P.S. – An Update on our Landscape Matching Grant
We have raised $14,284 toward our $25,000 goal, and every dollar given between now and August 31 is still being matched, so our running total is $28,568. If contributing to this effort to beautify our campus has been sitting on your list, this is the month it counts double. Give at pittmanpark.org/give and select “Landscape Matching Grant,” or send a check to the church office.