Calvary Presbyterian Church

Today we worshiped at Calvary Presbyterian Church, 1099 Sixth Avenue, Beaver Falls, PA 15010, 724.843.6790, Rev. Dr. Paul Holland, Stated Supply Pastor.


Bob’s thoughts:

God has been busy showing me the fallacy of my misconceptions, and I am so thankful when He opens my eyes.

This is an older inner city church with great wood work ceiling, etc., the style of the old Presbyterian churches. Some of the things God brought to my attention: for those who have trouble making it up the steps to the Sanctuary, the service is broadcast to a TV at ground level. There is an internally-lit glass cross hung in front of the organ pipes. The stained glass is stained and dirty, much like us, but it shone with the morning sun.

The congregation is small in number: the pastor said about 20 in worship out of a membership of 50. I think they hope to stick it out till the end, but they are not quitting. This weekend they held a Hope Chest Ministry to give out free clothing, etc. to the needy of the neighborhood. They may be small in number, but are doing what they can to serve Christ.

We were warmly greeted by a number of people.

I think I would have thought the organ was too loud, but with the few worshipers it had the opposite effect – the people sang louder. The choir was two people. I admire a church that won’t quit…they are still serving Christ.

The sermon raised some interesting points and gave some things to think about, especially the invitation to harass God.

Something I appreciated was after the pastor laid up the basics of his sermon, he took time to pray for enlightenment.

Jan’s thoughts:

A beautiful older facility with lots of steps, nicely cared-for and lovingly kept. The building is older, but there are many points of interest: remarkable stained glass, an incredible pipe organ, arc-shaped pews, and an amazing multi-faceted wooden ceiling.

The people were quite friendly and helpful; many introduced themselves and greeted us with genuine warmth. The pastor explained that the congregation understands their mission to be that of serving the immediate neighborhood, so they carry out various projects to support their outreach efforts.

The bulletin is user-friendly and easy to read.

The sermon was based mostly on Genesis 18:22-33 but also various verses of Psalm 106, and was entitled “Grace & Gratitude.” After pointing out how Abraham spoke to God in pleading over Sodom and Gomorrah, he pointed out that we, like Abraham, approach God on the basis of our past relationship with Him. That on that basis we have a level of comfort in our relationship with God that means we don’t have to be afraid and that because we know God more we are better able to receive His blessings. He said that we have not only the right to harass God, but that when Jesus taught to “persevere in prayer” He was actually inviting us to harass God.

I understand that to some degree we approach God on the basis of our past relationship with Him, but I believe that mostly we approach Him on the basis of our faith in Christ and His atoning work on the cross. No, we do not have to be afraid (scared) of God, but we should definitely fear (respect) Him. Hopefully we experience a comfort level with God that allows us to ask and continue to ask, but we’re to ask in faith. To my mind this means our faith drives us to ask (as did Abraham’s when he said to God, “Far be it from you! Will not the Judge of all the earth do right?” Genesis 18:25b) based on our faith in Who God is.

Any time I have been on the receiving end of harassment, the “request” was, without exception, something for which the “requester” had no right to ask. I believe Jesus gave us permission to ask – and to continue to ask – and if we trust Jesus’ statements about persevering in asking, the harassment question is moot.