Presbyterian Visitor
April 4, 2025
During the month of March the Women’s Association held their first, of two, Pre-Tasting Dinners. At this meeting 12 members and 4 guests sampled Main Dishes and Salad recipes. After sampling everyone completed their rating sheet to vote on which recipes will be featured at this year’s Tasting Luncheon which will be held on June 27th.
The Women also held their first Birthday Gathering at Rejavanated. Those attending had a wonderful morning celebrating March birthdays.
During worship services, we have started having the Children’s Time again. Volunteers are taking on the task of doing these messages. If you would like to volunteer to give a Children’s Message during service, please see Pastor Hand. We have several helpful resources that you may use for these messages.
Sessions members will be taking part in a Retreat on Saturday, April 5th from 10:00 a.m. till 1:00 p.m. at the church.
The next New Members Classes will take part on April 6th and 13th following worship service. Anyone who is interested in becoming a member of the church are welcome to attend.
Our church will be hosting a Red Cross Blood Drive on Monday, April 7th. If you would like to donate, please go to Redcrossblood.org to schedule an appointment. Walk-ins are also welcome. Please consider donating, each donation has the possibility to help save 3 lives.
We will be hosting Soup on Saturday on April 12th at the Methodist Church. Volunteers are needed to provide soup, sandwiches, desserts, drinks, and to work. Please see the sign-up sheet on the bulletin board.
The Trustees will be meeting on Monday, April 14th at 6:00 p.m. in the Seekers Room.
Holy Week and Easter are fasting approaching. Our church will be hosting a community Good Friday Service on April 18th starting at 6:30 p.m. Planning on joining us for reflections on the 7 Last Words from the Cross given by area ministers.
Easter morning will start with an Easter Egg hunt, on the church lawn, for children of all ages starting at 9:30 a.m. Donations of candy are greatly appreciated and may be left in the church office. Please have candy to the church office by Sunday, April 13th. In the event of rain the hunt will be held inside the church.
Following Sunday School and the Easter Egg Hunt plan on joining us in the sanctuary for a wonderful Easter service. We invite everyone to bring in a potted tulip, or other spring flower, to adorn our sanctuary on Easter morning. Please do not bring lilies, we have several people in the congregation that are allergic to them.
Full Life Development will be hold their Annual Potted Pant sales again this year. To get this project started, they will be having Potting Day at Bradfield’s on Saturday, April 12th starting at 9:00 a.m. The cost of the pots will be $24 and they will be ready for pick up on May 9th and 10th. Orders can be made by contacting the church office at 812-384-8424 or completing the order form on the back of this page and returning it to the church office.
Women’s Association News & Activities
Thursday, April 10th will be the second of the Pre-Tasting Dinners at 6:00 p.m. in Fellowship Hall. This dinner will feature Vegetables and (everyone’s favorite) Desserts. Please remember to bring your recipe along with your dish. The hostess will be Jane Lueking with devotions given by Bobbi Vandeventer.
The ladies will be hosting the Legion Dinner on Friday, April 11th. Volunteers are needed to help prepare the food. Please see the sign-up sheet on the bulletin board if you would like to help. At the Women’s last meeting, they voted to donate all the proceeds from this dinner to the Legion Back to School Bingo program.
The women are taking donations of treats, chips, and drinks for the Life Skills Class Spring Party which will be held on Wednesday, April 16th. If you would like to help with this project, please see Deb Cullison.
This month’s Rotary Luncheon will be held on Tuesday, April 29th. Phyllis Holt will be serving as the chairperson for this luncheon. Volunteers are needed to help provide food. Please see the sign-up sheet on the bulletin board.
Pastor’s Message
Easter is later this year than usual, so even as trees are budding and some early spring flowers are blooming, we’re only just now getting to the point in Jesus’ story when he will lose his life in order to bring new life to all. He will plant the seed of his life in a cold empty tomb in order to bear fruit for his followers, and for all who will eventually believe in him.
Jesus tells us that a grain of wheat must spend quiet time in the dark, moist earth if it is to produce fruit (John 12:24). It must bide its time there and choose the right moment to break open its husk and begin drawing on its sugar stores to put out new shoots that become roots and leaves.
Jesus has judged that the time is right, that the state of the world is conducive to his death becoming something more than a tragedy. His perception of the timing is important, because once Jesus willingly loses his life, he will have no control over the conditions of the still-living world. Jesus’ followers are likewise helpless to bring Jesus to new life. All they can do is watch, and wait.
This is what we do with so much of what we plant. This past fall, I dug about 50 bulbs of different types into various parts of our yard at home. As soon as there was the slightest hint of warmth in the weather, I began pacing the yard every afternoon, looking for new green shoots, but helpless to make them appear.
But watching and waiting isn’t nothing. We can wait expectantly, and with hope.
We can look for signs of new life peeking out of the dark soil, out of the dead-looking twigs.
We can show others how to watch and wait, planting our own seeds of hope in the soil of their lives.
When we spot new life, we can proclaim it, point to it, run and tell others about it, as Mary ran to tell the disciples when she met the risen Jesus on Easter morning.
And we can give thanks that, with God, death is never the end of the story. There is always new life waiting in each bulb and seed.
Waiting expectantly with you,
Pastor Hana