Bulletin 11.21.21

Calendar

Sunday, Nov. 21

  • Special Mission Offering for Afghanistan

    Please read the full announcement below (scroll down to Announcements) about this year’s Mission Offering. You may give online now through Nov. 30, the offering will be collected in worship on Nov. 21.

Thursday-Friday, Nov. 25-26

  • Church office closed

    The Church office will be closed in observance of the Thanksgiving holiday.

Sunday, Nov. 28

  • Advent begins!

    View the full calendar of ways we will gather together this Advent season to wait in joyful hope for the coming of our Savior. Vote now for your favorite Christmas carols- we’ll sing the most requested tunes during our “Community Carol Singalong” on Dec. 12 (5 p.m.).

  • Advent Wreath Workshop/Kit pick-up | 4-6 p.m. | Community Room and Rose Garden | Reserve a kit

    Shape a beautiful advent wreath using fresh greenery. Plan about an hour for wreath-making in the Rose Garden at Blacknall (weather-permitting). You may also pick up a kit (oasis ring and candles) to make your wreath at home. $10/wreath kit, please reserve one here and pay by credit card or bringing a check.

  • Changes to sanctuary worship seating options

    Beginning on Nov. 28 during both services, the center section of the main floor will not be socially distanced. The side sections and balcony will continue to have spacing between pews. Visit our Sanctuary Worship FAQ page for more detailed information.

  • Registration opens for all services through Christmas Eve

    Links will be published on our Registration page. Please register your family and any anticipated guests. Children’s program registration will become available on a week-by-week basis. Contact Leslie Petree with questions about children’s registration.

Announcements

Deacon and Elder Candidates

As part of the Officer Nominating Committee's discernment process, we invite members of the congregation to recommend potential elders and deacons to the committee. These recommendations are not official nominations, but they will inform the committee's work in bringing a slate of elder and deacon nominees to the congregation in the coming months. Please use this link to submit your responses. Please submit a separate form for each person you are recommending. The form will accept recommendations through November 30. Thank you for prayerfully considering these recommendations! If you have questions, please contact Evan Cate. (Note: Officers must be official members of Blacknall, though feel free to recommend someone even if you're not sure about their membership status. The committee will verify their status.) Visit this page for more information on the role of elders and deacons from the PCUSA Book of Order.

Meet our Interim Pastor, Rev. Mark Hutton!

Last Wednesday Blacknall’s Interim Pastor Transition Team shared with the congregation that we have called Rev. Mark Hutton to be our Interim Senior Pastor. Please view the recording of the meeting where you will hear about the process for the search that led us to him. About 40 minutes into the meeting, Mark joined us on Zoom and shared some of his background and sense of call to interim ministry. Let’s warmly welcome Pastor Mark! He will join our staff in early December.

Mission Offering

In the month of November Blacknall is collecting financial donations for its Annual Mission Offering.  This year our offering is directed to care for the people of Afghanistan who are in our community and who are in Afghanistan. 

The offering will be divided equally between three mission partners.  World Relief Durham, Samaritan Health Center, and International Assistance Mission.  We are expecting 1,000 Afghans to be resettled in North Carolina in the next 4-6 months with as many as 400 coming to the Triangle area through refugee resettlement agencies.  All of these refugees are entering our nation legally but because they are being so rapidly processed they are limited in their access to benefits including medical care, housing assistance as well as other support offered to incoming refugees.  This offering will help World Relief in resettlement efforts as well as helping Samaritan Health Center provide translation services, medication, and health care for these Afghan refugees.

International Assistance Mission continues to work inside Afghanistan.  They support Afghan-led community development, education, and health work.  This offering will not only support Afghan refugees but also the people of Afghanistan who still remain in the country. 

You can give to this offering online through the Blacknall web site and we will be receiving the offering in worship on Sunday, Nov. 21. If giving online, choose “2021 Mission Offering” under Designation. If writing or sending a check, put “Mission Offering” in the memo line.

Community Announcements

  • Families Moving Forward Gala

    Families Moving Forward’s annual fundraising gala will be held virtually this year on December 3 from 7 – 8:30 p.m. Attendance at the Gala is a fun way to learn more about the work of FMF and its impact on families experiencing homelessness in Durham and to financially support this important work. The Gala will include presentations from FMF staff and residents as well as an online auction of local products and experiences. Tickets are $50 and include a special basket of goodies delivered the day of the event for ticket holders. The online auction will also open early for Gala ticket holders, so you will have the first look and opportunity to bid on some incredible packages and experiences – so buy your tickets now!

Love and Serve

Prayer

Ministry Partners

Durham—We pray for the ministry of Meals on Wheels as they serve those who are homebound and in need of food.  We pray for the relationships with clients.  We pray against the loneliness of many clients and pray for greater connections between neighbors.  We pray for Meals on Wheels to find the needed volunteers to maintain this ministry.

Campus & National—We pray for Dean Storelli, on staff with Navigators, working in Durham focusing on 20 year-olds post-college as well as at Duke.  Dean and his wife, Anne, are members of Blacknall and he asks for prayer for: 1) Strength, peace, and grace to finish the semester well as I minister in word and deed to students here at Duke 2) Wisdom and heart in my growing role as a staff supervisor for the Navigators (three couples and three singles) 3) A strong end and a smooth transition out of the various writing projects I have been engaged in over the past few years 3) Rest and recovery for both Anne and myself--it has been a trying year and a half!

International—We pray for the Blacknall-supported ministry, Empower Believers’ Connection [né Empower Bihar] -- a network operating in several North Indian states and in Nepal. Its strategy is to train teachers to equip disciple making Christians. Neighbors are invited to attend a home meeting where they hear the gospel. As the neighbors turn to Christ and grow in their faith, the group divides and forms a second home meeting. In this way, some groups have spawned dozens of house churches over the past decade.” Prayer requests: (1) safety and protection for leaders who are traveling regularly to meet goals set for this year; (2) progress in establishing businesses to generate revenue for outreach ministries; (3) a colleague who is trying to build bridges among 8,000 Afghan refugees living in Delhi: that he will find “people of peace” [cf Luke 10:6]; (4) the spread of the gospel and the multiplication of house churches in North India and Nepal. (The photo is of C., the founder and director, their daughter in the middle, and his wife, P., on the right.)

Griefs

  • We pray for David & Cindy Chapman and Hise & Scarlett Chapman on the death of David and Hise’s mother on Nov. 12

  • We pray for Jim & Sandra Hagood on the death of Sandra’s mother on Nov. 10

  • We pray for John & Virginia Greene on the death of John’s cousin, 25, when struck by an SUV in his wheelchair.

  • We pray for Rich & Margaret Frothingham on the death of Rich’s mom, Mary Frothingham, on Nov. 7.

  • We pray for Gloria & Jack Simonds on the death of her brother-in-law, Bob Russo on November 6.

  • We pray for those who have lost loved ones to the coronavirus.

Joys

  • We rejoice with Ashley & Chad Kersey on the birth of their son, Samuel Glenn on Nov. 6.

  • We celebrate with Don & Karen Turner on the wedding of Evan & Kimberly Turner on Nov. 7.

  • We celebrate with Andrew & Lauren McCrary (and big brothers, Luke, Ty, & Hayes) on their receiving their foster son, Josiah.

Concerns

  • We pray for Sean Condon recovering from eye surgery last week

    We pray for Peter French who is recovering from a motorcycle accident. 

    We pray for Jo Oldham and Margaret Scearce, who are both fighting cancer.

World

  • We continue to pray for the release of the 17 missionaries and their driver in Haiti.  We pray for a cessation of the violence and chaos in Haiti.

  • We continue to pray for the nation and people of Afghanistan, and particularly for Christian brothers and sisters there.  We pray for attempts to rescue those whose lives are in danger.

Life Together

  • We pray for our men at Blacknall as they meet together in various backyard gatherings this weekend.

  • We pray for our 2021 Mission Offering being received this month to care for the people of Afghanistan both here in Durham as well as those still in Afghanistan.  Pray that we might generously respond to demonstrate the love and care of Christ for these people.

  • We thank God for the wonderful Women’s Retreat last weekend.  We pray that relationships with the Lord and with each other will have been deepened.

  • We give thanks to God for his guidance and provision of Mark Hutton who will be our new Interim Senior Pastor, beginning on Dec. 5. 

  • We pray for our continued searches for a Communications & Program Coordinator and a Choir Director.

  • We pray for Leslie Cenezy and Carol Smith as they manage our building and financial concerns at Blacknall.  We thank God for the spirit with which they serve us.