Saxonburg Memorial Presbyterian Church

Today we worshiped at Saxonburg Memorial Presbyterian Church, 100 W. Main Street, (mailing address: PO Box 466), Saxonburg, PA 16056, 724.352.2888, www.saxonburg.org, Rev. Douglas M. Dorsey, Senior Pastor.

 

Scripture – Acts 2:1-13 NIV

When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.

Now there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven. When they heard this sound, a crowd came together in bewilderment, because each one heard their own language being spoken. Utterly amazed, they asked: “Aren’t all these who are speaking Galileans? Then how is it that each of us hears them in our native language? Parthians, Medes and Elamites; residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene; visitors from Rome (both Jews and converts to Judaism); Cretans and Arabs—we hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues!” Amazed and perplexed, they asked one another, “What does this mean?”

Some, however, made fun of them and said, “They have had too much wine.”

 

Bob’s thoughts:

I was looking forward to seeing the pastor but with all the restrictions on churches, I wasn’t sure what to expect otherwise. You would think by now I would be better at recognizing God’s leading; He doesn’t drag me to church, just gently nudges.

The sanctuary has a giant cross over a round window with flowers and butterflies at the base, making a perfect focal point.

We got to greet the pastor before the service. They did have three services but are down to one service with about 50 worshipers.

The small praise band sounded terrific leading the congregation; I think maybe the masks muffled the church’s singing.

The children stayed in their seats for their message, which was well done. She asked in the course of her message what synonym would reflect for your thought of being redeemed by Christ. My strong sense was rescued from my life of sin. The message about Fanny Crosby, who had written some 9,000 poems/hymns, a line from her song: “I sing because I cannot be silent.” With all her accomplishments while being blind, what mattered to her was that when she got to heaven, Christ’s face would be the first one she saw.

The message was divinely directed for the pastor, for the church, and for us. The first Pentecost was the giving of the Spirit dwelling in us. With all that has changed in the church, this is the very message we all need right now. Invite the Holy Spirit in and you won’t recognize this church; this is the perfect time for the fire to return. Surviving is not enough – God is calling you now!

 

Jan’s thoughts:

We searched for a church with an indoor, in-person service and landed at Saxonburg.

In the 10 years since our last visit, they have secured a new pastor whom we knew previously, so we were especially glad to be visiting here.

The building is lovely, tastefully decorated, and with plenty of space. Social distancing was observed, which unfortunately made it difficult to talk with people.

The music was led by a praise team that sounded wonderful together. And I appreciated the timing of the words projected on the screens: there was no lag that left me wondering what came next.

The children’s message was marvelous: Molly spoke about Fanny Crosby, how she wrote 9,000 hymns and eventually used a pen name so people would not think she wrote the entire hymnal. Remarkably, she was blind from the age of 6 weeks and accomplished a great deal in her life in addition to writing hymns. She also gave several synonyms for the word “redeemed” and asked everyone to silently identify the one that spoke to them. Mine was “rescued” because that’s what He did for me.

In the sermon, “The Holy Spirit-Here-Now”, the pastor focused on the first Pentecost after Christ’s resurrection and how the giving of the Holy Spirit both proved God’s power and fulfilled His promises. God sent the Holy Spirit to give His people His power and strength and so we would never be left without His presence. As believers, He is with us in every single battle we face, and His strength is at our disposal. The question was: what could God accomplish through us if we took God at His word, asked for help from the Holy Spirit, and stepped out in faith, willing to be stretched and live boldly.

I was grateful God led us here…I needed an uplifting, encouraging, challenging word today.

 

Our prayer for this church:

Gracious God, we pray the Spirit’s fire comes upon Your Church now. Awaken us all to more than we ever thought we could be and remind us what it means to be Your Church. Amen.

New Life Christian Ministries

Yesterday we worshiped at New Life Christian Ministries, 139 Knoch Road, Saxonburg, PA 16056, 724.524.1547 www.newlifexn.org, Dr. Chris Marshall, Lead Pastor.

Scripture – ESV

Proverbs 18:24 –

A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.

Proverbs 27:6 –

Faithful are the wounds of a friend; profuse are the kisses of an enemy.

Proverbs 27:10 –

Do not forsake your friend and your father's friend, and do not go to your brother's house in the day of your calamity. Better is a neighbor who is near than a brother who is far away.

Bob’s thoughts:

Sometimes we are blessed to see God’s orchestration to get a message through to us.

I recently went to the VA to get my hearing aid repaired and, as usual, steered the conversation to Christ and our church visits. The church we talked about sounded familiar, and today, needing an early service, we came to take a look.

I don’t always remember a church, but this one was familiar right away. We first worshiped here the second week they were in this location and God has blessed them in growing His church.

I was lamenting the loss of the large cross that was on the wall until I looked up and saw the cross toward the ceiling.

We were greeted and some thanked me for my service, including a time later in worship. I was surprised that only once did the laser lights shine on the congregation. There were patterns projected on the ceiling and overhead cross. The volume was good and I liked the harmony and lead singers. The three screens made it easy to see, even when I had to sit down.

Christ’s message for me personally came through when I read the title of the pastor’s sermon, Necessary Endings: Friends. When Christ claimed me, I had a lot of friends and they all went away. I lamented the loss till I realized Who was doing the pruning.

I have been cleansed in that regard but have a lot of things weighing me down. After a few deaths in the family I received a lot of tools and other things. It wasn’t long before I realized they were more of a burden than a blessing. Many truckloads went away at that time, but now I’m sure it’s time to do it again. I worked in many fields and created artistically in mixed medium, but I know He will lead me through in prayer. I’m looking forward to where I’ll be next, and who I’ll be.

Jan’s thoughts:

Bob met someone from this church so we visited at her invitation, also because we sought an early service and they have one at 8:30 in addition to Sunday services at 10 and 11:30 and one Saturday evening at 6:30.

We last visited this church four years ago, and last week they dedicated a recently completed expansion. There seems to be a great deal going on here. The signage was helpful, as was the coffee, and the service began shortly after we found our seats.

Three projection screens in the front made it easy to see what was going on even from the very back.

The stage was lit with spotlights, which gratefully did not wander into the seats. The cross that was on the wall at our last visit had been moved to make room for one of the screens, and it is suspended at an angle above the stage. It was truly striking.

Veterans were recognized and prayed over, which was deeply touching.

The message began a new series based on a book by Dr. Henry Cloud called Necessary Endings. He began with a quote: “Sometimes, in order to thrive, something else must die. Nowhere is that more true than in relationships.” He emphasized his Take Home Point: True friends build us up, but false friends can lead us to destruction.

He pointed out that followers of Christ should approach necessary endings with truth and love, and that they are easier to embrace and execute when you believe something normal is happening.

I appreciated this message and have downloaded the church’s app so I can hear the subsequent parts to this series.

We were grateful for the time given in conversation by both the pastor and Bob’s friend.

Our prayer for this church:

Lord, the growth is impressive, and we pray Your church continues to be a beacon where You have planted them. Amen.

New Life Christian Ministries

Today we worshiped at New Life Christian Ministries, God’s Mission Outpost, 139 Knoch Road, Saxonburg, PA 16056, 724.524.1547, www.NewLifeXn.org, Dr. Chris Marshall, Lead Pastor.

Scripture – James 2:14-17 NLT

What good is it, dear brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but don’t show it by your actions? Can that kind of faith save anyone? Suppose you see a brother or sister who has no food or clothing, and you say, “Good-bye and have a good day; stay warm and eat well”—but then you don’t give that person any food or clothing. What good does that do? So you see, faith by itself isn’t enough. Unless it produces good deeds, it is dead and useless.

Bob’s thoughts:

We were just late enough to miss the greeting time so I can’t speak to any welcome, but the only one to speak to us was a pastor after the service while we were sitting in the narthex.

I am always happy to worship at a church that isn’t embarrassed to have a cross prominently displayed and the spotlight that framed the cross in light was especially powerful.

I did need my earplugs but was amazed that some of the female lead singer’s voice came through.

Communion was served, albeit silently, with the Words of Institution and prayer spoken easily. It is always great to celebrate together on World Communion Sunday. There was an explanation of what I call “Christ by osmosis”…when you bring seekers into the company of Christians there are some who will come to believe by our witness of how we act.

It was easy to hear Christ speaking through the pastor. If you want people to hear the Good News, caring for them opens the ears and hearts to Christ. We can witness how Jesus has changed our lives, but we win more by our behavior. Our redemption by Christ is the greatest thing ever in our lives. How can we not want to share it?

Jan’s thoughts:

I made one wrong turn and that was all it took for us to find ourselves 10 minutes late. However one advantage of a contemporary service is that being a little late is not usually an issue.

Our first visit to this church just over a year ago turned out to be this congregation’s first Sunday in their brand new space, so it was nice to see it again since they’ve settled in. It is colorful and nicely laid out and decorated.

The large worship space, although a bit chilly, was filled with plenty of comfortable seating and almost filled to capacity. We were told that, unlike countless churches, this church has many more worshipers than members.

Bob will probably comment, but I want to add my two cents about how much I appreciated the large cross on the wall. The room was darkened when we sang and the simple design of this cross was transformed as a rectangular light created a frame around the cross…the unpretentious use of light used to stunning effect.

I was grateful World Communion Sunday was being observed and that it held a place of such significance that the pastor taught some of its history, including that its institution dates only to around the time of World War II…this was news to me. I thought the servers were efficient, and as the cup was shared the pastor asked participants to copy something he learned in Cuba: prior to drinking, he asked everyone to trade cups with a neighbor. The background music during the sacrament was lovely.

The message was the last in a series about belonging and was subtitled, “Caring as an Invitation to Know Jesus.” The Take Home Point was, “If we want people to hear the Good News, we must care for their daily needs!” The emphasis was on caring in practical ways, actually taking action to help others in the name of Jesus so that those who are helped can and are willing to hear about why we care. I liked the quote: “Hungry stomachs have no ears.” It’s about getting involved and doing something.

Some folks smiled at us but no one spoke until, following the service, as we sat in the fellowship area, an Associate Pastor introduced herself. In the course of a friendly conversation we learned we had much in common and we deeply appreciated her gracious prayer and her kindness.

Our prayer for this church:

Dear Lord, open our hearts to sharing our faith by our service to those in need. Amen.

New Life Christian Ministries

Today we worshiped at New Life Christian Ministries, 139 Knoch Road, Saxonburg, PA 16056, 724.524.1547, 724.256.0851, www.newlifexn.org, Dr. Chris Marshall, Lead Pastor.

Scripture

James 3:13-18
If you are wise and understand God’s ways, prove it by living an honorable life, doing good works with the humility that comes from wisdom. But if you are bitterly jealous and there is selfish ambition in your heart, don’t cover up the truth with boasting and lying. For jealousy and selfishness are not God’s kind of wisdom. Such things are earthly, unspiritual, and demonic. For wherever there is jealousy and selfish ambition, there you will find disorder and evil of every kind.

But the wisdom from above is first of all pure. It is also peace loving, gentle at all times, and willing to yield to others. It is full of mercy and good deeds. It shows no favoritism and is always sincere. And those who are peacemakers will plant seeds of peace and reap a harvest of righteousness.

Bob’s thoughts:

We were privileged to witness some of the excitement of a church worshiping in their new building as this was their second week in this new space. Had there not been good signage out front we would have followed our GPS a mile or so down the road to the school where they had been located. The space is so new that there is minimal signage; I think the paint was still drying on the walls. I hope the lack of a cross is one of those things they just haven’t gotten to yet.

I believe this is the first church that has provided ear plugs. They were much appreciated and necessary for us. I had trouble understanding some of the lyrics so the words projected on the screen was a plus.

We were welcomed at the door by the Lead Pastor, and later when I peeked into the kitchen a woman spoke with us, and a third person gave us a tour of the child care area after the children had left.

We witnessed a couple dedicating their children to God. Having one of our children now with God, this was very powerful.

The sermon was part of a series and I was pleased to find a hard copy of the message. At times I sense a call to pray for the pastor or church and with this I did not miss anything from the sermon.

The pastor told how early in seminary an instructor directed him to adopt a pompous speaking voice for the pulpit, advice that he thankfully rejected. I was reminded of a pastor I knew who had a perfectly normal voice on the street but who was horrid to hear preach.

Jan’s thoughts:

Today is the second Sunday this church has worshiped in their new space, so the excitement was palpable, as well it should be. This was a huge undertaking on the part of this congregation and they had worked hard to bring it to fruition.

The newness of the facility was obvious, but the ever-helpful restroom signs were up and many hospitable touches were apparent such as a table of information about the church, cards with their contact information, pens, a large-print edition of the message, and even earplugs. First-time guests were also given a copy of the Lead Pastor’s book, “Life Cycle of a Christian.”

Several people took time to welcome us and chat, and with all the excitement and the fact that they have three services, I was surprised anyone noticed visitors. I observed many animated, friendly conversations and it looked like things operated smoothly.

As the Lead Pastor welcomed the congregation he detailed some tweaks that had been made since last Sunday and listed others still to come. From the perspective of this first-time visitor, and recognizing that this is a work in progress, I thought all the hard work was apparent.

The current message series, which is based on the book of James, is titled “Faith Works.” He reiterated last week’s take-home point: “Our words either build up or tear down.”

In this message full of teaching he stated that wisdom is the ability to apply knowledge, that honor and humility are seldom taught in the world but that Jesus’ ways are not the world’s ways. This week’s take-home point is: “Worldly wisdom leaves us dead; godly wisdom leads to life!”

James tells us God expects us to be pure, peace-loving, gentle, yielding to others, merciful, full of good deeds, showing no favoritism, and sincere. Most of us would say that’s impossible for us, and we would be right. But God’s Holy Spirit within us gives us the ability to do what He would have us do and be the people He created us to be.

We must remember to ask daily to be refilled with God’s Spirit to enable us to become more and more like the One in Whose image we are created. After all, as the pastor pointed out, we can’t live it if we don’t have it.

Our prayer for this church:
Lord, thank You for blessing this congregation with this new space. Guide them to use it to Your glory. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Clinton United Presbyterian Church

Today we worshiped at Clinton United Presbyterian Church, 197 Glade Mill Road, Saxonburg, PA 16056, 724.352.3855, www.clintonchurch.org, Rev. Jason M. Sinagra, Pastor.


Bob’s thoughts:

This is a rather small church, but it could benefit from some signage as I didn’t see any.
We were warmly greeted and welcomed, but more, we were treated like family.

We were told of an upcoming event, “Bring a Friend Sunday,” and I would think this will get a good response.

I was happy to see mission was above 10% of budget…God will bless these efforts.

I really enjoyed the Anthem: that was a lot of harmony from four people.

I read in an advice column today about a woman who asked for prayer for her husband and the pastor refused because he was a member of a different church. Hearing this pastor open prayer requests to those outside the church (“the people you meet this week”) was an uplifting Christian concept.

The sermon started with the question, “Who wants to be a moron?” I should have stood since being a fool for Christ is the highest calling I have ever had. God doesn’t work within man’s expectations; He colors outside the lines and is a rule breaker (ours, not His).

God works in unexpected ways…He takes a lowly, broken sinner like me, comes into the cesspool of my making, and raises me up to do His will. Absurd? Yes…thanks be unto God.

Jan’s thoughts:

This is a pretty little country church, well kept, clean, and family-oriented. In touring the upstairs we found a storage area and several classrooms; unfortunately we did not see the downstairs.

The only signage I saw was for the restroom, which was conveniently located right off the Narthex.

The bulletin was informational; the back page contained many notes geared to visitors (nursery and restroom locations, parking, members of the Board of Session and Board of Deacons, and even the meaning of the liturgical color of the season).

The people were friendly – nearly everyone within a several pew radius greeted us, introduced themselves, welcomed us, and some even invited us to return. A very welcoming church indeed.

The Prayer of Confession in the bulletin was actually confessional in nature. These prayers can sometimes move quickly from a brief confession into supplication, but when we finished reading this prayer I felt as if confession truly had taken place.

Four people sang the unlisted Anthem, but their voices sounded fantastic together.

Today was “special music Sunday” so the soft cover hymnal, “Sing the Faith” was used. This one is new to me, but I enjoyed the more up-to-date songs.

The sermon, titled “Simply Jesus,” was based on I Corinthians 1:18-31. He stated that the Greeks viewed Jesus as weak because He came to Earth as a man, and the reason He was a stumbling block for the Jews was the fact that He hung on the cross (Deuteronomy 21:23 states, “Cursed is the one who hangs on a tree.”). Both of these “reasons” have caused people to reject Jesus to this day.

The thing is, “The cross is the answer to death, and Jesus’ surrender to death is what conquered it.” My favorite line from the sermon: “God breaks all the rules except His.”

One of the things about our God that most delights me is that He, in Christ, has taken so many of our accepted assumptions and beliefs and turned them on their heads. He creates paradoxes that point to the only solution or explanation as His, and yet I still have trouble understanding Him. What I need to do is stop trying to figure Him out and simply follow in humble submission and faith. I know, I know…easier said than done. Daily reminders help, but I’m still working on it.

Saxonburg Memorial Presbyterian Church

Today we worshiped at Saxonburg Memorial Presbyterian Church, 100 Main Street, Saxonburg, PA 16056, 724.352.2888, www.saxmem.org, Rev. Dr. Dave Brewer, Pastor.


Bob’s thoughts:

This was a contemporary worship service held in the lower level fellowship hall. Aside from the restroom signs above the respective doorways I saw no signage and was disappointed not to see a cross.

There was a generous table of donuts and fruit offered with the coffee. There seemed to be some problem with the audio early on; the voices of two young women overcame the others with a very tinny sound. It seemed much better during the very well-done offertory. Late in the service there was an annoying mechanical bass noise on the right speaker. Even with the audio problems, the contemporary worship songs were good and two that I hadn’t heard before.

The sermon was on Galatians 6:7, that God is not mocked, that what man sows, so shall he reap. It was presented as a series of stories, but I realized that the congregation really got the message from this presentation. This minister seems an excellent fit for this congregation.

Had I not read the reports from Session I would not have known that there was any mission activity beyond a mission trip. I enjoyed this insight of the church.

We were warmly greeted by some of the church officers, and probably the first time that someone had heard of our blog and came to meet us. There was a healthy mix of young children and “gray hairs” along with quite a few young adults. I thought this service was well attended till the pastor mentioned that the attendance was off a bit. Don’t know if the other services were affected.

After the service we looked upstairs at the main Sanctuary and were impressed. The Narthex area is open and bright and is unrestricted into the Sanctuary. There is a large cross over a round window with a butterfly. May need to go back just to experience worship there.


Jan’s thoughts:

This church has a traditional service at 8 in the “Little Church” across the street, a contemporary service at 9 in the fellowship hall of the main building, and another traditional service at 10:30 in the main Sanctuary of the main building; a unique solution to several issues they must have faced when planning for three services each Sunday.

We attended the contemporary service, so the atmosphere was almost boisterous as we entered. We were grateful for the well-placed signage which allowed us to locate the restrooms quickly.

Seating was plentiful, but it definitely filled up. I particularly enjoyed the icicle lights hanging from the ceiling, giving such a pretty, festive look. The bulletins for this service did not include an Order of Worship (which is standard for a contemporary service) but did contain a plethora of information, as well as a full page insert (front and back) of “Session News.”

The people were quite friendly, several greeting us even before worship began, and even more during the service. The general feel was relaxed, comfortable, friendly, enthusiastic, and very welcoming. We were given a gift bag with a folder full of information about the church along some small gifts.

There were lots of children and an encouraging mix of ages in the congregation. We observed to the pastor that most of the seats were filled and some folks stood in back. He stated that this service is only about 16 months old, and attendance was light this morning.

After the service we wandered up to the Sanctuary and were stunned to find a most beautiful worship space. The colors and designs were light, spacious, and well coordinated. On the rear wall of the Chancel is a large cross in front of a circular window, and painted on the window is a butterfly, one of my favorite symbols of new life. We may return to experience worship in this space in a traditional format.

This morning’s message centered on Galatians 6:7 in which we’re told that we reap what we sow. He spoke of how we remember others and how they remember us, of our internal scars about which others may have no clue, and of God’s intention for us to build others up.

He contrasted the stories of two very different men: John Wooden, whom even those of us who don’t follow basketball have gotten to know some since his recent death, and Reinhard Heydrich, second in command in the Nazi SS organization and nicknamed “The Blond Beast.” These stories included the childhoods of these men and the events and influences that made them the adults they became, but especially the personal choices that affected the outcome of their lives and legacies. I found it quite fascinating and educational, and it reinforced some things God has recently taught me.