Upcoming Discussion Groups are Planned

Fall programming is under way in our churches and here in the Presbytery, we'll be offering a few discussion groups that you might be interested in joining:

The Presbytery's Lectionary Study Group that meets weekly on Tuesdays, would like to remind everyone that next Tuesday, October 7, the group will help the Rev. Gus Nelson with a critique of the outline of a book, Why Bother with the Church? The group will meet from 9-10 a.m. at the Presbytery of Des Moines office in Urbandale. (This will be before our normal lectionary text discussion time at 10:00 a.m.) The outline is online for your review.

Attend the Brown Bag Planning Event for Advent. Those interested in planning for the Advent season experience are meeting Tuesday, October 14, 12:15 p.m. at the Presbytery Office in Urbandale. Bring your own lunch and let's put our heads together to plan some great events for this holiday season here in the Des Moines Presbytery. We'll look at the lectionary text and any ideas that you bring along to share. For any questions and to RSVP, contact Rev. Mark Davis at 515-770-5601 or markdavis@heartlandpresbyterian.org. (If this date doesn't fit your schedule, please let Mark know.)

Finally, Communications Director Kim Coulter would like to remind everyone of the Lunch and Learn Series at the Presbytery office. The next gathering will be Thursday, October 16, from Noon-1 p.m. We'll be discussing annual reports and the do's and don'ts of these yearly documents. This is just in time for our session committees planning their year-end reports for their church members. Bring your lunch, reports and questions and we'll offer support and help as well as beverages.

Hopefully, we'll see you at the Des Moines Presbytery office, 2400 - 86th Street, Ste. #20, Urbandale, IA 50322 in the next few weeks!

Lectionary group discusses The Church Unbound @ 9am Tuesday, July 15

The Presbytery's Lectionary Study Group that meets weekly on Tuesdays, will be having a special discussion Tuesday, July 15, from 9-10 a.m. on the recent Montreat conference titled The Church Unbound. Pastor Mark Davis of the Heartland Presbyterian Church in Clive attended the July 1-5 conference and will give his reflections on the event.

The conference was based on a quote from Shane Cailborne, the author The Irresistable Revolution – Living As An Ordinary Radical, "Let's move beyond complaining about the Church we see, and start becoming the Church we dream of." (NOTE: New PCUSA 218th General Assembly Moderator the Rev. Bruce Reyes-Chow attended the Montreat event and took time to podcast with conference participants, Zach Sasser, Shawn Coons, and Carol Howard Merritt talking about church, technology and young clergy.)

Then the LORD said to Moses, "Go in to Pharaoh and say to him, thus says the LORD, 'Let my people go, that they may serve me.'" – Exodus 8:1 (RSV)

How can the PC(USA) become a church for the next generation? What will it take to bridge the boundaries of age, culture, gender, race, and theological differences?

What is the church you're dreaming of? Be part of this conversation from 9-10am and then stick around for the normal Lectionary Study from 10am-Noon on Tuesday, July 15 at the Des Moines Presbytery Office, 2400 86th St., Ste. 20, in Urbandale, Iowa.