Newsletter 4 / 2009

Newsletter 4 / 2009

From Dan's Desk

In light of recent events, I’ve been reflecting on Dr. John Piper’s assertion in his video series, “When I Don’t Desire God,” that God reveals himself to us through two different books: the “Book of Revelation” and the “Book of Creation.” In each of these two books, says Piper, God speaks the truth; the problem is that only one of them is unambiguous.
Our Reformed tradition holds that the first book, the “Book of Revelation” (the Bible), is God’s Word written – inerrant, infallible, authoritative, the only rule for faith and practice. In it God reveals himself and his purposes in human language through the words of apostles and prophets who spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit. When we understand the meaning of their words, we can be confident that we know “true truth” (as Frances Schaefer has put it.)
The second book, the “Book of Creation” (the world around us), is not so readily understood. Though “the heavens declare the glory of God,” the things that occur under those heavens are too ambiguous for us to know with certainty what God means by them. We can hope to make sense of this second book only when we “read” it in light of the first book.
Think about two well-known incidents from scripture: one, the handwriting on the wall in Daniel 5; the second, the phenomena of tongues in Acts 2. In both cases, the event itself was plain – the handwriting was there for all to see; the tongues were audible for all to hear; it was the meaning that was missing. Only when God’s inspired messenger spoke was there understanding. Brought before the king, Daniel said, “This is what these words mean…” Standing to address the crowd, Peter said, “This is what was spoken by the prophet Joel…” The book of creation was interpreted by the book of revelation; God’s world was illuminated by the light of God’s word.
The problem is that happenings in our world today don’t come with God’s messengers on hand, like Daniel and Peter were, to interpret them precisely. In their absence, we can only ponder an event’s import from our own limited, incomplete and fallen perspectives. What, for instance, did God mean by the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami that killed nearly 230,000 people, one of the deadliest natural disasters in recorded history? What might his purpose be in the recent horrific shooting at Fort Hood, where 13 people were killed and 30 wounded? What does it mean when a loved one dies or you lose your job? God’s word doesn’t directly give us the meaning of such things.
What God’s word does do, however, is assure us that, in the midst of turmoil, fear, uncertainty and change, God is still in control. When we don’t understand what we’re “reading” in the book of creation as events swirl around us, threatening to overwhelm us and tempting us to despair, reading the word of God gives comfort, assurance, wisdom and strength. We can rest in God’s loving presence and know his ultimate purpose when by faith we confidently claim the truths about God which have been written in the book of revelation.
Two books, creation and revelation, reveal God to us; which do you turn to first to chart your course through life?

Results of the Stewardship Campaign

Great Valley’s Stewardship Campaign for 2010 is now history. For the first time in Great Valley’s history the Session, Trustees and the Stewardship Campaign Committee requested that congregants provide a faith promise to help determine those ministries and missions that are a priority for our 2010 Unified Budget. These faith promises are voluntary, made with dependence upon the Lord, and are not spiritually or legally binding. Pledges were made confidentially with no pastors or staff knowing who has pledged. Only the Stewardship Campaign Chairman, and one elder, needed to know so they could add them up.

The results of the campaign are very encouraging. A total of 85 faith promises were received. This represents only 39% of the total 216 campaign letters sent out. Even so, these 85 faith promises pledged a total of $400,878 toward the 2010 Unified Budget. When coupled with the anticipated $75,000 foundation gift and $20,000 preschool contribution, the $495,878 total represents 77% of the now approved $638,995 Unified Budget for 2010. We believe these results reflect a very generous and supportive spirit within the congregation. And we believe this same generosity will carry over to the other members of our congregation who did not turn in a faith promise.

Our 2010 Unified Budget is a challenging one! It totals $26,510 more than our current 2009 budget. Coupled with a drop of $25,000 in foundation giving, this represents a $51,510 (8.4%) increase in giving over 2009. We believe that God is blessing our ministries at Great Valley and the results of the campaign help bear that out. Our 2010 budget includes a number of important things we envision, including putting greater emphasis on small groups and continued emphasis on outreach to the community. It also allows for us to continue our ministries during the summer months while Pastor Dan Stewart takes a sabbatical. And, how can we forget our celebration of the 300th anniversary of Great Valley Presbyterian Church!

One further word on stewardship. Let us not forget that we still owe some $260,000 to Malvern Federal for our building loan. Our $1,050,000 capital campaign initiated in 2006 has always been funded by “above and beyond” giving, and we strongly encourage people to continue to do so. We would like to be able to get that outstanding loan down to $200,000 by year-end 2010. Contributions to the building loan can be made by designating your check “building loan”.

Great Valley Presbyterian Church 300th - #2 Snippet

First Pastorate

From the 1710 Presbytery minutes we know that two separate groups of Welsh Presbyterians had formed a united congregation, one body living in the Welsh Tract in Pennsylvania and the other in
Delaware at Pencader. These churches were among the twelve organized prior to 1770.

David Evans was an elder, probably having been ordained in Wales. He preached to both these congregations but the Presbytery refused to ordain him until he had received further theological training. In 1713 he graduated from Yale College in a class of three. Soon after his graduation, Rev. Evans received a call from the church in Delaware, which he accepted, and was ordained in 1714. He has the distinction of being the first candidate for the ministry taken under the care of any Presbytery in our land. He was also the first man ordained to the Christian ministry in this country according to the brief history of the church published by Dr. Arthur Willis Spooner, who was a minister at Great Valley a hundred years later.

The people at Great Valley did not unite with the Delaware Church in that call. They were authorized by the Presbytery to form themselves into a separate and distinct body.

Apparently discouraged by the long wait for Mr. Evans, the Great Valley congregation was by then enjoying the ministering of Rev. Malachi Jones who preached to them “as occasional supply in private homes and in the woods”. It was “by his labors” and under the authorization from the Presbytery that “ they were induced to the form of a congregation, constituted to worship God according to His Word, and for this purpose bound themselves by a written compact dated the 10th day of October,. 1714”.

log_church_small During the six years following the formal organization of the Church, it was without a pastor and was dependent upon the Presbytery for supplies, of whom Rev. Malachi Jones was the most frequent. Then, in 1720 trouble arose in the Delaware congregation which led to the dissolution of the pastoral relationship. Rev. David Evans was then called to Great Valley and, under his ministry, it grew considerably.

It is interesting to note that the Upper Octorara Church was at first connected with Great Valley Church, for in 1721, Rev. Evans was directed to spend one-fourth of his time there, the distance between the two being about twenty-two miles. In 1738, he was appointed to supply also once a month the Norriton Church in Montgomery County, which was about ten miles in the other direction.

Rev. Evans remained as the resident pastor at Great Valley for twenty years. He was a talented speaker of fiery eloquence, but grew to be eccentric, vacillating and volatile, and he created friction with in the church. When he announced that he would preach his final sermon, it was delivered to a packed house. It may well have been the briefest sermon on record, consisting of only ten words.

According to tradition, his parting shot was “It’s goats I found ye and goats I leave ye”, which was not well received by the members of the church, and he had to jump out the window to escape.
That was in 1740.

However, he soon forgave and forgot, and two years later he addressed “the goats” as a “church of Christians”. He died in 1751.

It is interesting to note that, following a short interim of another pastor, Rev. Samuel Evans, a son of Rev. David Evans, was installed at Great Valley in 1742 and served for five years.

Betty Colmery
History Committee Chair
GVPC 300th Committee

Preschool in the Valley

preschool_sign The Preschool in the Valley began the month with a “service of dedication”, which was well attended by families and teachers. The children sung during the morning worship service, and listened to a children’s sermon from Pastor Jim. A special prayer was said for the Preschool. the teachers, and the students, dedicating the upcoming year to the Lord.

To commemorate fire prevention month, we had a visit from the Paoli Fire Department. The children were allowed to climb into the truck. The next week we had fire drills to reinforce what we had learned.

Later, the teachers will all be taking a CPR course at the Paoli Fire Station, and the company will be donating a brand new AED machine to our church.

The month was ended with a Costume Parade and Harvest Parties. Much fun was had by all! A new addition to our playground is the wiggle worm crawl tunnel. Funds for this purchase were
raised by the parents, and matched by the Preschool Committee. The tunnel fits perfectly in our newly expanded playground and will be enjoyed by all.

Karen Erickson

First deluge ever at the Philadelphia Homeless Run (PHR) and it was a blessing.

October 17, 2009 was a memorable day. We had never had rain during the PHR and that dates back to January 2005, the inaugural month of the PHR. Oh sure, we’ve had sprinkles. We’ve even driven through a torrential downpour during the ride into Philadelphia and the ride home from Philadelphia. But in between, during those two hours with the homeless, not a drop of rain fell. It was as if a divine umbrella was always sheltering us. We thanked God for His blessings in always providing a beautiful day for this ministry.

But on that day, it poured, and it was relentless. It rained from the time we woke up that morning and all the way through our time in the city and all the way home. Add to that, temperatures in the low 50s and it was a bone-chilling day. Marie Raws and our friend, Nora, met us down there. All fifteen of us were soaked from head to toe and when we first arrived at Logan Square Park, I must admit that I felt a little foolish standing in the downpour at 7:45 in the morning as Mike Cartularo tried to organize a tent building committee.

Then something wonderful happened. We could see the homeless, some half a block or more away, some sleeping on the steps of the St. Peter and Paul Basilica rolling up their belongings and leaving their shelter to meet us. They all arrived with big grins on their faces as they greeted us in utter disbelief that someone would actually come to see them in this kind of weather. They felt blessed, but we were the ones who were blessed.

The song, “Refiner’s Fire” comes to mind when I think of that day. On that day, we learned how to be resourceful, creative, patient and even more relentless than the rain. The sixty or so homeless men and women, who came to meet us that day, came because they received something that was more fulfilling than food or clothing. It was the assurance that God loves His people and that He will take them just as they are, where ever they are.

God builds our character through fire and in this case, rain. The rain was a small inconvenience for us that day. But as we strive to reflect the character of Jesus, God challenges and tests us so that we may learn through our struggles. And as we seek His strength and His wisdom to overcome each adversity, our faith is strengthened and we become even better witnesses for His Kingdom.

Update from Alec and Tammy Millen

God gave us a great two weeks as we travelled around the northern part of Tanzania. We put nearly 1000 miles on our vehicle (many of those on rough roads), but it was great to be together. For those of you who like to follow our travels on Google Maps, we travelled from Dodoma to the town/cities Of Singida, Mwanza, Musoma, and Arusha.

Have you ever considered this?... Our God is not only the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; not only the God of such a great Salvation in Messiah Jesus; not only the God who is building His Kingdom by calling people from every nation, tribe, and tongue to worship His Son; but God is also the God of FLAT TIRES!!! Let me explain: when we were on our way from Musoma to Arusha, we had to travel through the Serengeti on a terrible road for hours and hours. We had heard that there was a place to stay overnight in the game park that would possibly negotiate a decent price, if you were simply in transit rather than being a tourist on a safari. When we arrived at 4:30pm (after 5 ROUGH hours of driving), we were told in no uncertain terms that there would be no negotiating. The price was $480/room/night and since only 4 were allowed in a room, we would need 2 rooms. $960 for one night!! (Think twice before planning a safari in the Serengeti!!) Well, there was no way we could pay that, so we began to look for other options. Local places to stay, even a room with mattresses on the floor. A very friendly local agreed to show us around, but every place he took us was full. At this point, we began to panic – it was already dark and we were in a place where lions and hyenas roamed freely! Hardly a place to sleep in the car! Anyway, the man suggested one more place, way out; but when we got there, it was all locked up. Our only option was to return to the lodge and BEG for a reduced rate, and then I (Alec) could sleep in the car, so we would only need one room. As we were pulling away from the locked building, we heard our local friend exclaim, “You’ve got a puncha”… TRANSLATION, we had a flat tire. Now, we had to change our tire, in the sand, with our car fully loaded, in the dark, in a place where lions lived!!! Sound like fun?? Anyway, as we got the tire off the car, a vehicle pulled up and in the car was a lady with the keys to the guest house. The family went into the house, I changed the tire, and we were able to stay in a 3 bedroom research station guest house for $50. This is why I say, “We worship the God of Flat Tires!” because had we not been delayed, we would have missed the lady with the keys. THIS IS THE LESSON WE LEARNED: When God brings/allows “flat tires” (or any trials), we must choose to worship Him, because He is working all of these things together in a grand plan to bring Himself glory and to provide every thing we need. Some “flat tires” seem unbearable, and yet NOTHING comes into our lives that does not come through the tender hands of One who loves His children passionately. Sometimes, it takes minutes to see the blessing (as in our case), and sometimes it takes years, but He is calling us to trust Him even with our FLAT TIRES.

If I may, let me finish with some current prayer items:
(1) Last week, we received our first (small) rain, after nearly 5 months of drought. It “feels” like rain is coming, but we would appreciate your continued prayers for more rain.

(2) From Wednesday to Saturday, I (Alec) will be travelling without the family up to Rangi-land. I will be with a Rangi man who is the lead translator for their Bible translation. The plan is to travel to 7 villages, and meet with key leaders to discuss translating the “Story of God and Man” into Kirangi (i.e. Rangi language). Also, we will be discussing in each place the prospect of doing a small scale development project to provide safe drinking water to their people. Please pray that God would give us favor in the eyes of the leaders, and give us wisdom to know where to start our project.

(3) Please pray for safety on this rough journey of approximately 4 hours one way to the main town, and lots of additional travelling to smaller villages.

(4) Pray for Tammy and the kids to do well and stay healthy in my absence (Amber just recovered from a fever).

(5) We are very close to moving into the new house. Please pray that the workers would complete the kitchen, so that we can move in after I return from visiting the Rangi villages.

(6) We are happy to say that there has been some improvement in the private extended family matter that we’ve asked prayer for. There is still much we would like to see God do.
Please pray that God would intervene and grant repentance, reconciliation, and healing in the lives of our hurting family members.

IN Christ,
Alec and Tammy Millen
(Chelsea, Amber, and Benjamin)

Alec & Tammy Millen
Missionary Ventures – East Africa
078-818-6155 (Alec) / 078-818-6156 (Tammy)
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it / This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

International Marketplace Returns to Great Valley on Sunday, November 22nd.

Great Valley Presbyterian Church will be the site of an “International Marketplace” on the two Sundays bookending the Thanksgiving holiday (November 22 and November 29). Mike and Elizabeth Jochum, missionaries with Pioneers will bring us handicrafts made in countries where Pioneers is working to share the gospel. By purchasing these beautiful, hand-crafted items, we are able to encourage those who are involved in a micro-enterprise developed by believers. In many of the largely Muslim countries where Pioneers serves, the persecution of Christians makes it very difficult for them to earn a living. By shopping for gifts at Great Valley during this special event, you can select beautiful gifts for people you love and support struggling craftsmen at the same time. This marketplace is sponsored by the Missionary Society. Thank you for making some of your Christmas purchases here to support this worthy venture!

Do you love to receive Christmas Cards?! Doesn’t everyone?! Each year we try to remember all of our missionaries at Christmas with a personal greeting from one or two Great Valley families. We make available a variety of Christmas cards, already addressed and stamped with the proper postage, for mailing to our missionaries in the states and around the world. Although it may seem a bit early to start thinking “Christmas”, we are planning to have those cards available on Sunday, November 15. Please come over to our table in Dickerson Hall and pick up one or two. Thanks for taking this opportunity to make our missionaries feel like “one of the family.”

We celebrate Missions at Great Valley!

As we conclude another Missions Celebration, I am reminded anew of the great heritage we have here at Great Valley. We have many who serve with gifts of hospitality, intercessory prayer, youth work, generous giving, and active involvement in our community. Our church staff is evangelical, Biblical and supportive of missions endeavors. Our Great Valley family includes an incredibly diverse group of missionaries working in our local area, around the United States and worldwide. Our keynote speaker, Charles Patton (New Tribes Mission, Brazil) was amazed at the groundswell of support that missions, both local and worldwide, has in our congregation! While that is a great tribute to those who serve God so faithfully here in the Valley, it also constitutes a challenge to each of us.

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us
throw off everything that hinders us, and the sin that so easily entangles, and
let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on
Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith.” Hebrews 12:1

The Missions Team would like to support you in your journey of faith, encouraging you to find ways to carry on “your mission”. Why? Because we have something too good to keep to ourselves and because our Lord directs his followers to carry the good news of Jesus’ love and forgiveness to all nations. In the coming months, our Missions Team will be endeavoring to identify and implement more ways we can serve our local community. We look forward to seeing how God leads as we attempt to live out our 2009 Celebration theme - “Reaching the World in Our Own Backyard”.
Your GVPC Missions Team – Betty Orr (Chair), Jonathan Schuck (Session member), Louise Cartularo, Bob and Shirley Morley, Paul MacDonald, Brian and Cathy Gilbert, Arnold Reinikka, and Steve Lynn.

Thursday Small Group

If you stop by the Chapel at Great Valley on the First Thursday of each month, you will find a very special group of people! Retirees, Great Valley staff, and special guests gather at 11:30 each Thursday to fellowship, enjoy lunch together and find out about some little known talents or experience of others in our Great Valley church family.

In October, our own Pastor Dan revealed some unknown details about his life as a young man on the oil rigs of the North Sea and the trip to L’Abri in England that led to the dedication of his life to Christ.

First_Thu_Collage_A

Bruce Vessey was our November guest and he impressed the First Thursday attendees with his skill on the hammered dulcimer as well as his knowledge regarding the history of the instrument.

Our Christmas First Thursday celebration will be held on the First Thursday in December, December 3rd at 11:30 a.m. in the Chapel when we will enjoy a time of Christmas Carols led by Sharon Smoker. We will encourage everyone to share a favorite Christmas memory from your past as a means to share some of our little known experiences!

Bring a plate of cookies to share for dessert and to divide to take home. We hope to see you there! Questions? Contact Deacon Carol Jones.

Carol Jones
1127 Grove Road
West Chester, PA 19380
carolannejones @gmail.com

Great Valley Youth Group!

Yo 'Great Grace of God' (G3) Youth Group!

We are halfway through our fall semester … and we have learned a lot:

We have a large and active youth group, 50 to 60 strong!
We have a fine group of leaders, 15 strong!
There are a lot of new students to meet and get to know!
The focus on knowing our Lord and becoming more Christ-like remains the same.

We have already had multiple Sunday nights together, including high-energy games, Scripture study, and excellent worship time. We've also had a variety of special activities, such as our Kickoff at the Shacks, our Good Works Missions presentation, and our Bonfire at the Werts! In addition, the Middle School students just had their Fall Retreat at Camp Sankanac (we're still recovering …).

If you are in Middle School or High School, come join us!!!! We have a great YG this year! We meet every Sunday night, 6 to 7:30 PM, right here at our church. We start with games and activities, move to small groups (by gender and age), and finish with worship … a great format that we have enjoyed for years. Future fall activities include:

Thanksgiving football on Thanksgiving morning (after the service) with our college students.
Philadelphia Homeless Run sandwich making nights (11/19, 12/17).
Senior High Retreat on the weekend of Dec. 4th through 6th.
Christmas Extravaganza on December 20th!

So … It's On! … and we hope you'll join us. If you've never been to YG, come see Mr. Shack, so we make sure we get you on our sneaker mail and email list.

New Boy Scout Troop

Boy Scout Troop 573 sponsored by Faith Church meets on Monday evenings from 7pm until 8:30pm at Great Valley Presbyterian Church.

Celebrating 100 years, the Boy Scout program is very outdoor oriented with many camping and hiking opportunities. It focuses on developing leadership qualities in boys through reverence for God, as well as providing service and citizenship to the community and nation. The troop is open to all boys between the ages of 11 (or 10 year olds who have finished the 5th grade) and 18.

Please contact Andy Leisner, the Scoutmaster, at 215-817-0489 ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ) or Robert Fulcher, Troop Committee Chairman at 610-363-9567 ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ) to find out more. After the Christmas break, we begin meeting again on Monday, 1/4/2010.

Young People of Great Valley – we need your help!!!

stable painter We are looking for artwork … lots of artwork … for our big Christmas Celebration with the Choir, Youth Choir and the Sunday School Children on December 20.

Please get out your pencils, markers, watercolor … and get to work! pencils Pick one of the themes mentioned on the distributed sheets and draw a picture on a regular letter format white paper. Landscape format would be best.
Please attach a sticky note or an extra paper with your name and the theme to your artwork and hand it to Mrs. Wray or Mrs. Lang.

Everyone who participates by submitting a Christmas drawing by December 13, 2009, will receive a small Christmas surprise.

Christmas Concert/Family Worship Service

candlelight Christmas is a time for families and this holiday season our Great Valley church family will be participating in a special service of worship to celebrate the Birthday of a King! Sunday, December 20 during our 11:00 a.m. worship service, the Great Valley Chancel Choir, Youth Choir, Children’s Sunday School Classes, and Instrumentalists will present a concert of Christmas music. There will not be a separate Sunday School hour presentation; instead, all these groups will join together to lead us in worship at 11:00 in a unique Family Service.

Be sure to join us that day!

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