Clinton United

Presbyterian

Church

The CUP

The Rev. Laura

E. Strauss

Minister

Each of you should give what you have decided

in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under

compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.

– 2 Corinthians 9:7

What does 2% look like? On one hand,

it may look like the blue label on the milk you

pick up from the grocery store. On the other

hand, it may look like an increase in each of

our respective giving this year.

Each of us is called upon to annually

meet with our households to discuss how we

will give to the church in the coming calendar

year. We take a look at our expected income.

We then discern how much God is calling us to

give our “first fruits.” This amount is

traditionally 10%, which comes from Scripture,

and is called a “tithe.” (“Tithe” literally means

“a tenth.”)

Some people are faithful in their tithe. Others

are faithfully working toward a tithe. They

may have started their household at 1% of

their income, increasing annually by a

percentage with the goal of reaching a tithe.

Other households need to scale back due to a

change in income, a family emergency, etc.

My challenge this year for each of our

households is to have a discussion of whether

or not this may be the year that we increase

our giving by 2%, ever closer to that Scriptural

tithe. For some households, the discussion will

be short. It won’t be a feasible option. For

other households, though it may be a little bit

of a push, 2% will be a realistic and achievable

goal. The overarching goal is to have the

conversation.

Discussing our giving within our

households, even with children and youth

present, is spiritually beneficial to our families.

These discussions open the road to

communication about the role of faith within

our homes, the priority of Jesus Christ in our

family budget, and the realities of where we

struggle to be faithful in the ways we use God’s

resources.

It’s not a secret: our tithes and

offerings make up a part of our worship! What

we give isn’t a conversation to take place in

the pew during the Sunday announcements.

Nor is giving a practice in giving to our Lord

what’s “left over.” Giving is as much a

discipline as prayer, devotions, and Sunday

morning worship. And, as with all spiritual

disciplines, giving is blessing as far as the

cheerful giving of our offerings draws us closer

in trusting the God who gives. We bless our

families when we are intentional with our

giving, planning our giving together.

Can you do 2%? You talk with your

people; I’ll be talking with mine.

In Christ’s Service,

Pastor Laura

Scripture Readings in October

October 7, 2018

Worldwide Communion Sunday

Gospel Reading: Mark 14:22-26

New Testament Reading:

1 Corinthians 11:23-32

October 14, 2018

The 21st Sunday after Pentecost

Guest Preacher: Kevin Vinay, Candidate under

Care of Pittsburgh Presbytery

October 21, 2018

The 22nd Sunday after Pentecost

Old Testament Reading: Genesis 28:10-22

Gospel Reading: Matthew 23:23-24

October 28, 2018

Reformation Sunday

Sermon Title: Can Money Be Spiritual?

New Testament Reading:

2 Corinthians 9:6-11

Come Encourage Kevin! October 14 is a special

Sunday in the life of a young man seeking to

become a Presbyterian Pastor. Kevin Vinay, a

candidate under care of Pittsburgh Presbytery

and the mentorship of Pastor Laura, is

preaching at our congregation that Sunday for

one of his final examinations on his way to

becoming a Minister of Word and Sacrament.

His elder mentor, Ken Ference, will be present

in our congregation to listen to and evaluate

Kevin's sermon that day. You are invited to join

us during the 11:00 a.m. worship service to

ENCOURAGE Kevin as he continues his journey

toward ordination.

Mission and Evangelism Lecture Pittsburgh

Theological Seminary (616 N. Highland Ave,

Pittsburgh) is hosting the Rev. Dr. Jehu J.

Hanciles on Tuesday, October 2. The lecture is

at 4:00 p.m. and is entitled, "Christian Unity and

Witness in a New Age of Migration." This event

is free and open to the public.

Short Stories By Jesus All adults are invited to

join us for Sunday School Sunday mornings

beginning at 9:45 a.m. We will be studying

"Short Stories By Jesus," based on the book by

Rabbi Amy-Jill Levine. This study will explore

new ways of hearing Jesus's parables from the

perspective of their original Jewish listeners.

Church Wide 2019 Mission Trip! All youth in

grades six and up, as well as all grown-up's, are

invited to mark their calendars for next

summer's mission trip to Pike County, KY. The

dates are August 4-9, 2019. More information

to come

Trunk or Treat All children are invited to come

in costume to Trick or Treat through our church

parking lot on Monday, October 29 th at 6:00

p.m. Decorate the trunk of your car for Trunk or

Treat; recognition will be awarded for the best

decorated trunk!

Crop Walk 2018 Mark your calendars for

Sunday, October 21st 1:00 – 3:00 PM for the

CROP Walk located at the Findlay Twp Activity

Center. Visit cropwalk.org/oakdalepa/cup or

contact Dakota Lamb for more details!

Worldwide Communion Sunday The sacrament

of communion will be observed next on Sunday,

October 7 during the 11:00 a.m. worship

service. This is Worldwide Communion Sunday.

Please prepare your hearts for the Lord's

Supper by forgiving one another.

CROP Walk for Hunger The annual CROP Walk

raises funds for the West Allegheny Food Pantry

and Church World Services' hunger causes

around the world. This year's walk will take

place on Sunday, October 21 at the Findlay

Township Activity Center in Imperial

Registration begins at 1:00 p.m. The walk will

begin at 1:30 p.m. Hot dogs, water, and chips

will be provided. Please bring a water bottle.

Registration envelopes are available in the back

of the sanctuary. If you have questions, please

contact Dakota Lamb.

Fine Tooth Combs Needed The youth group are

creating Disaster Kits for the victims of

Hurricane Florence. They need donations of

NEW fine tooth combs. Combs can be placed in

the basket on the desk in the back of the

sanctuary. The last day to drop off donations is

Saturday, October 27.

Save the Date: Thanksgiving Dinner You're

invited to a Church Family Thanksgiving Dinner

on Sunday, November 11 at 5:00 p.m. Our

brothers and sisters from Grace Memorial

Presbyterian Church have been invited to join

us for this potluck style dinner followed by

family-friendly games.

A Book Club is Coming! Rev. Gavin Walton of

Grace Memorial Presbyterian Church and our

Rev. Laura Strauss are coordinating a Book Club

for our two congregations that will meet once a

month beginning in January. Our two churches

will take turns hosting each month. We will

have dynamic conversations about the books

read, and our unique perspectives on modern

society and God's place in it. Be on the lookout

for our first Book Club reading pick - it's sure to

be a page turner!

News from World Mission Initiative at

Pittsburgh Theological Seminary

WORLD MISSION INITIATIVE HIGHLIGHTS

OK, OK! I’ll admit it! These days it seems I just can’t

keep from singing! Maybe your church sings these

19th-century classic lyrics with the same joy I do

these days:

“My life flows on in endless song;

Above earth's lamentation,

I hear the clear, though far-off hymn

That hails a new creation;

No storm can shake my inmost calm

while to that Rock I’m clinging.

Since Christ is Lord of Heaven and Earth

How can I keep from singing?”

American Baptist pastor Robert Lowry wrote this

hymn (How Can I Keep from Singing?) in 1869 right

after the U.S. Civil War to lift up the inner joy and

calm believers feel when they are centered on the

Rock, Jesus Christ. With so much turmoil around the

world, I’m finding that “centeredness” increasingly

important nowadays.

There’s another reason for my singing, though. As I

watch the way God is bringing to fruition the many

seeds planted two decades ago by Glendora Paul,

Don Dawson, Scott Sunquist, and many others, I just

can’t keep from singing:

Beginning in 2020, all master of divinity students at

Pittsburgh Theological Seminary will be required to

participate in one of the World Mission Initiative’s

intercultural mission trips! This allows WMI to

connect with many more students than was

previously possible!

Beginning this January, each student who

participates in a WMI trip will take a course Kimberly

Gonxhe (Metro-Urban Institute director) and I will

team-teach, called Intercultural Experiential

Learning. The course will consist of 20 hours of pre-

trip orientation (theology of short-term mission,

“spiritual disciplines for mission”, and “how to lead

a mission trip”), the 10-12 day trip, and 20 hours of

post-trip reflection and integration to bring the trip

learnings back into ministry here at home. This deep

preparation and reflection using the WMI mission

trips as the textbook puts Pittsburgh Seminary in a

class of its own in the preparation of cross-cultural

mission workers—whether they labor on the

mission fields of the Middle East, Central America,

downtown Pittsburgh, or rural Western

Pennsylvania!

Our McClure Lecture in World Mission and

Evangelism on Tues., Oct. 2, 2018, will feature Dr.

Jehu Hanciles, associate professor of world

Christianity at Emory University’s Candler School of

Theology at a 4:00 p.m. lecture and we’ll follow with

the WMI annual banquet at 6:00 p.m.! This year,

we’ve expanded the impact of the McClure Lecture

by partnering with the Presbytery of the Western

Reserve (Cleveland) and the United Church of

Christ’s Global Ministries office to hold a day-long

pastors’ retreat with Dr. Hanciles as the main

speaker.

And back on the home front, Pittsburgh Theological

Seminary just admitted the largest entering class in

years with students from Western Pennsylvania to

Texas, Nicaragua, and Myanmar. We are excited

about all God is doing here from church-planting to

urban ministry to global mission!

So, now can you see why I can’t keep from singing?

Of course, you can! So let me close with the last

stanza of that ageless hymn:

"The peace of Christ makes fresh my heart,

A fountain ever springing!

All things are mine since I am his!

How can I keep from singing?"

May we continue singing together!

The Rev. Dr. B. Hunter Farrell

Director, World Mission Initiative

Globalization and Migration: The Movement of

God’s Word - Oct. 2, 4:00 p.m. Pittsburgh

Theological Seminary

It is easy to believe that migration and globalization

shaped and expanded Christianity during the rise of

the Christendom era, but it can be hard for us to see

the same in today’s post-Christendom era.

Especially with all the anti-immigrant rhetoric in our

country and our world, it can be difficult to see our

immigrant brothers and sisters as potential

missionaries who are bringing to us the Christian

faith in a new form. But studies show that with the

rise of Christianity in the non-Western world, there

is a strong aspiration among Christians from Africa,

Latin America, and Asia to take the gospel and to

revitalize Christianity in Europe and the U.S. The

trend we see in our world today is that God is still at

work in new and exciting ways in spreading and

revitalizing the Church in the Western Hemisphere

through God’s humble servants who migrate to start

a new life both within our community and our

world.

World Mission Initiative along with the entire

community at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary is

excited that Dr. Jehu Hanciles, associate professor

of world Christianity at Candler School of Theology,

Emory University, will join us for the W. Don

McClure lecture Tues., Oct. 2, at 4:00 p.m. Dr.

Hanciles, who is a refugee and immigrant himself,

has done extensive research on the impact that

migration and globalization has on the spread of

Christianity. Hope you can join us and we urge you

not to miss this opportunity because there is much

wisdom we can learn on how to engage our

immigrant brothers and sisters in our midst.

The women’s group will be meeting on

Thursday evening October 4th at 6:30. We will

be discussing “Rejoice in the Lord’s

Sovereignty” from the book by Max Lucado

titled “anxious for nothing”. Please plan on

joining us for this interesting discussing and

mark your calendars for Thursday November

1st when Amanda Wade will discuss “Rejoice in

the Lord’s Mercy” and “Rejoice in the Lord

Always”. All the ladies in our church and your

friends are welcome to come and join us,

CHOIR NOTES

The choir is back in the loft and enjoying singing

for our service again. We are gearing up for the

holidays coming and working hard on old and

new pieces to sing. There is still plenty of room

in for new folks. If you would like to join us we

meet on Tuesday evenings at 7.

DOWN THE BOWLING ALLEY

The bowling league is underway and it looks like

another successful year. We have 2 new

bowlers and we always hope for more to join us.

This is a wonderful winter activity to get you out

of your house and with other folks for a

wonderful evening of fellowship. Please come

and join us on Wednesday evenings at Center

Lanes at 6:30.

Contact Cindy Macek with any questions at

(724) 899-3755.

Lisa McDowell……………1

Kristen Strubinger………1

Betty Jo Lapin……………..2

Kaylee Fields………………3

Brodie Stickley……..…….5

Lexie Adams……………….5

Rosie Kerr…………………..9

Scott McConnell………….9

Luke Frazier………………..10

Chad Wilson……….………10

Christina Nicastro....……10

Keri Laniewski…………….11

Caleb McCullough….…..12

Maxine Wilson……….…..14

Dale Huemmrich…………15

Gerry Hudak, Sr. …………19

Lexi Cogis…………………....25

Beverly Hilpert…………….26

Scott Hilpert………………..26

Oren Boustead……………..30

Church Wide Fall Fest!

You're invited to join your

church family for a Fall Fest

at the Hilpert Home on

Saturday, October 13 at

5:00 p.m.

(Contact Church office for

address)

There will be family-friendly

games, songs, and fun.

Bring a potluck dish to

share.

Hot dogs, s'mores, and

mulled apple cider will be

provided!

An Excerpt taken from the Ludwig’s Blog

“Out of the Dust & Us”

Wednesday, September 19, 2018

You Have to Choose Joy

We've said these things at so many

presentations, explaining to people the basics

of why our country is so hard to live in:

consistently ranked the least developed

country in the world, in the desert, with

unpredictable rains that often cause flooding,

extremely low education rates, surrounded by

countries with extremist factions... etc. But as I

look around at the people we know and their

situation again, I am becoming more and more

convinced that (outside of war zones) this

place is one of the hardest in the world to live. I

am not talking about our family because we

have a guaranteed income and know where

our next meal is coming from. But for the

locals, it is more and more impossible to even

have self-sufficient farming in this harsh land.

Even when someone gets some resources to

sell goods in the market, there is so little cash

flow and so many cultural inhibitors to building

up profit that it seems so few can make steps

forward.

We still have many reasons to smile!

On a second note, as El Padre and I were

talking the other evening I was lamenting that

God called us to such a difficult country. There

aren’t exciting animals, mountains, lakes, hikes,

touristy things to do. Before we moved there I

never heard of the Sahel on anyone’s bucket

list to visit. There are very few missionaries.

There is little Christian community. El Padre

reminded me that we wouldn’t be there if it

were an ‘easier’, more expat, more Christian

community. That is the challenge that we have

felt God preparing us for at this point in life.

But from time to time I find I allow myself to

feel sorry for myself for working here. In those

moments, it's clear that you need a bigger

reason to do what you do rather than just "I

like it and it feels fulfilling" or "it must be

important because it's hard"!

It also reminds me of the sentiments several

people have shared lately that echo a Henri

Nouwen quote:

"Joy does not simply happen to us. We have to

choose joy and keep choosing it every day."

~La Maestra

Community Involvement

The Deacon’s Giving Campaign If you know

someone that needs a visit or a meal taken to

them, we can help with that, please contact

Pastor Laura or Judy Heck. Our job is to serve

our congregation and community in helpful

ways. The Deacon giving campaign for October

is Pancake mix/syrup/oatmeal. You can bring

these items to church and place on the table in

the Narthex.

Faith In Action We are still here for our seniors

for Dr. appts., etc… we are in need of drivers. If

you have a few hours a month, please consider

driving for this cause. Contact Judy Heck for

more information (724) 899-3159.

WAFP Thank you for all the egg carton

donations. As of now, they do not need any

more.

Mark your calendars for Sunday,

October 21st 1:00 – 3:00 PM for the

CROP Walk located at the

Findlay Twp Activity Center. Come walk with us as we raise money to

support Church World Service (CWS)! Funds

will benefit both our local West Allegheny Food

Pantry and help to alleviate global hunger. Visit

cropwalk.org/oakdalepa/cup or contact

Dakota Lamb for more details!

Trunk or Treat

All children are invited to come in costume to

Trick or Treat through our church parking lot on

Monday, October 29th at 6:00 p.m.

Decorate the trunk of your

car for Trunk or Treat; recognition will be

awarded for the best decorated trunk!

Youth Group

Saturday, Oct 27

- Sunday, Oct 28

7:30 P.M. - 9:45 A.M.

Clinton United Presbyterian

Church

Snacks and breakfast will be

provided.

Be sure to pack: Overnight

gear, church clothes, and

your Bible

We'll celebrate the season

with homemade goodies,

prayer stations in the

sanctuary, and late night

movie.

The Finance Team at Clinton UP Church has initiated our Online Giving Program. If you

would prefer to make payments online, rather than cash or check, please check out the

Clinton UP Church website, or scan the QR code.

There are five categories to choose from when making an online donation;

General, Building, Mission, Per Capita,

and Education Loan Fund (for repayments on loans).

You can also set up reoccurring payments, just follow the instructions on the webpage!

Thank you for your financial support to Clinton UP Church!

Church Directory

The Reverend Laura E. Strauss

25 Wilson Road, Clinton, PA 15026

Church Phone: 724-695-7993 Church Fax: 724-695-7097

Church e-mail: clintupch@gmail.com Facebook: Clinton U.P. Church

Website: clintonupchurch.weebly.com Twitter: @ClintonCh1797

Administrative & Financial Asst.—Sophie Guzma

Choir Director—Cindy Macek

Organist—Erma Wilson Treasurer— Elder Mark Elek

Church Sexton—Leah Clydesdale

Session

Mark McConnell, Clerk of Session

Mark McConnell, Jennifer Rossman, Joe Miller---2018

Amanda Wade, Christina Nicastro- 2019

Mark Elek, Amanda Collins, Scott Hilpert--2020

Deacons

Marsha Beck, Barb Cook---2018

June Miller, Megan Kopko—2019

Beverly Hilpert, Bill Marburger--2020

Trustees

Dennis Macek---2018 Walter (Yum) Groom---2019

Dale Huemmrich---2020 Rich McConnell – 2021

Dan Heck --2022

Auditors

Lorrie Leonard---2018 Dakota Lamb- 2019

Heather Campbell 2020

Sunday School

Superintendent—Carol Elek

Asst. Superintendent—June Miller

Secretary/Treasurer—Maxine Wilson,

Cradle Roll—Amber Hilpert

Cemetery Board

Lawrence Wilson, Jr.---2018 Devin Messner---2019

Bill Marburger---2020 Dennis Macek-2021 Rick Lamb--2022

Nominating Team

Rachel Ayers, Judy Heck, Leah Clydesdale

Finance Team

Ethan Strauss, Thomas McCullough,

Lynne Hamil, Elder Mark Elek, Elder Scott