Pastoral Notes for Sunday, April 30, 2023

I asked Preston Brooks, Cornerstone’s Acting Youth Director, to tell us about the upcoming Youth Mission Trip for this week’s Pastoral Note.

Dear Cornerstone Family,
A little over a year ago, the Women’s Ministry hosted a retreat and invited Martie Kwasny to be the speaker. That weekend was plagued with several issues, not the least of which was an ice storm that nearly prevented Martie from being able to come. But Martie made it, and after the close of the retreat, my wife, Martha, and the Women’s Ministry team went to dinner with her where she told them all about her role in Joni and Friends Ministries and the organization as a whole.

Martha came home that night telling us all about the camps they put on, how they always need volunteers, and how our family could possibly plug in. In fact, the whole Women’s Ministry Team was enthusiastic about this ministry and was thinking of ways to participate—specifically how we could get our kids involved.

Fast forward to January when Ben Griffith and I were making decisions about the summer. While we liked the idea of something new, with my position being temporary (see “acting” youth director) and the possibility that we might have new leadership by the summer, the thing to do seemed to be to go back to RYM (Reformed Youth Ministries) for the third time—the Youth love it, RYM does an amazing job at teaching and equipping teens to live for Christ, and it would be familiar should there be a new face leading the Youth by summer.

The day registration opened for RYM, Ben hopped online and couldn’t get through. RYM’s website was overloaded with users, and the camp (1,000 spots!) was filled in six minutes. Six. Minutes. Our group was waitlisted. We kept our name on the list but began to think of how we could pivot. Joni and Friends came to mind again. Martha texted Martie, and within an hour I was on the phone with her assistant chatting about a camp they put on a mere two hours from here in Dayton, Tennessee. They were opening registration for volunteers that week. My call could not have been timelier. Almost as if it were orchestrated beforehand...We took our names off the RYM waitlist.

We put the opportunity out to our Youth Group and quickly put a group of folks together. They have begun preparing for the trip, completing paperwork, submitting references, and participating in phone interviews sharing their personal testimonies with Joni staff members. It’s already been a growing exercise for our kids. We are all set to head to camp July 15 - 20. Our Youth will be paired up with a child or teen with special needs and serve as “buddies” for the week. As a “buddy” they will become a part of their family, participating in VBS and summer camp-type activities and even eating meals together. There will be times where our group will have time to enjoy the camp together as a Youth Group, and we will stay in cabins of our own, but most of our time will be spent with our buddies and their families. We are already so excited about this good work the Lord has prepared for us!

There are two main ways our congregation can help:

  1. Prayer: Please be praying that the Lord will bless the trip with safety and good health and that the Youth of

    Cornerstone Presbyterian can show the love of Christ to all those who will be in attendance. The names of our kids participating are listed below. Cut them out and stick them on your fridge or in the pages of your Bible—somewhere you are likely to see and pray for them often.

  2. Financial giving: The cost for each of our Youth to go on the trip will be $450. We are opening up giving toward our trip and ask the congregation to support us as you feel led. You can go straight to the giving page by scanning the QR code below, access the link through the church website and app, or drop a check in the offering box with “Youth Mission Trip” in the memo line.

Thank-you in advance for participating in this good work! We are grateful.

Preston Brooks

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Pastoral Notes for Sunday, April 23, 2023

Dear Cornerstone family,

I asked Meredith Suits, our Children’s Coordinator, to share with us about the soon-in-coming Cornerstone Vacation Bible School for this week’s Pastoral Note.

Summer is quickly approaching, and I hope you are relishing these 70-degree days before it gets much warmer here. The children’s ministry at Cornerstone will be kicking off our summer fun with Vacation Bible School, and I have lots of information for you today—including how you can sign up your children, be a volunteer, and help even if you can’t volunteer during VBS week.

This is Cornerstone’s third VBS! We’ve had such fun the last couple of years hosting our Cornerstone kids and their friends at Jim Warren Park. The theme this year is The Wind and the Waves, and we will look together at Jesus calming the storm from Mark 4:35-41. We will be learning what happens when we look at the big waves instead of looking to Jesus, and we will be thinking about how our fears often prevent us from trusting in the only One big enough to overcome any storm that might head our way.

Hopefully, you’ve seen the save-the-dates in our newsletter, but if you haven’t, VBS will be May 30-June 2 at the Jim Warren Park enclosed pavilion and surrounding grounds. May 30 is our family kick-off night— we will have pizza for all, a craft for the kids, and a great time fellowshipping. VBS formally begins Wednesday, May 31, from 5:30-7:30 and will continue at the same time and place on Thursday and Friday nights. All children, ages 5 to rising 6th graders, are invited to join us. Parents, please sign up as soon as possible with the QR code below. We want to have plenty of materials for your kiddos and enough volunteers to make it all possible. Knowing who’s coming is pivotal in our planning right now.

Our next request is for volunteers! I am currently looking for three more group leaders—these are the adult volunteers who lead a group of kids from station to station each evening and get to know and encourage their group through all the events. This is an easy and fun way to serve our kids during VBS and be a part of all the action.

Lastly, please pray for VBS. Pray for the safety of all our children, for their hearts to hear and receive the good news about Jesus, and for God to use these early experiences with scripture and with the church to form them into adults who walk faithfully with Christ all of their lives. Thanks, everyone, for your support and your prayers as we prepare for such a large, multi-day event.

Sincerely, Meredith Suits

Pastoral Notes for Sunday, April 16, 2023

Dear Cornerstone family,

Last week was amazing. From the solemn sweetness of the Maundy Thursday service, to the sacred sadness of Good Friday, to the overflowing joy of Easter morn, it was, in my humble opinion, one of the most edifying Holy Weeks on record.

I want to personally thank the New College Franklin choir and the Cornerstone choir and musicians for their outstanding performances. Words fail to express how deeply we were blessed by your ministry. Behind the work of both choirs is our chief musician, Mr. Greg Wilbur, whose tremendous talents were on full display last week. What a gift he is to all of us! Let me also mention how grateful I am for our worship interns, Mr. Noah Aikens and Mr. Maxwill Shell, who worked tirelessly behind the scenes and upfront all weekend.

I’d be remiss not to mention Palm Sunday, and our lovely children’s choir led by Mrs. Jessica Michaud and Mrs. Jennifer Westerbeek. Not only did the students perform excellently in both worship services, but they also performed for the residents of Morning Pointe nursing home for our afternoon service. Needless to say, it’s always special to be led in worship by our covenant children.

Shifting gears, let me briefly update you on the work of your Security Team. In the wake of the Covenant School shooting, our security team revisited the current practices and protocols of our Watchman Team. After that evaluation, it was decided that in addition to the work of the Watchman Team, we would partner with the Franklin Police Department in order to secure an officer presence in front of the church each Sunday from 7:45 a.m. - 12:45 p.m. As you may have noticed, this new addition started on Easter Sunday. Our officer each week will be Lt. Clayton Cates, who is in the Special Investigations/Intelligence Unit. Though an important step forward in our commitment to maintain the safety of our fellowship, this is not the last step. The security team continues to work on additional protocols, including a lockdown plan in the event of an attack. If you have any questions about security or would like to know more about the Watchman Team, please contact Mr. Todd Russell. His contact information is on the back of the bulletin.

Finally, your Finance Team has pulled together a 3rd quarter financial summary. Please review it and rejoice with us, for the Lord has provided abundantly! On the behalf of the leadership, thank you for giving faithfully to the church. Through your tithes and offerings, we are able to invest in the expansion of gospel ministry like never before! May God give the grace, wisdom, and courage to do just that.

Your servant,

 

Pastoral Notes for Sunday, April 9, 2023

Dear Cornerstone family,

We are delighted to have you with us on this glorious Easter morn. Our prayer is that through today’s worship service, you will encounter by faith the risen Savior and come to know the power of his resurrection (Philippians 3:10). To that end, take a few minutes now to thumb through the worship bulletin, orienting yourself to the service. Then, come back here to meditate on the quotes below, reflecting on the significance of the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

“On the third day the friends of Christ coming at daybreak to the place found the grave empty and the stone rolled away. In varying ways, they realized the new wonder; but even they hardly realized that the world had died in the night. What they were looking at was the first day of a new creation, with a new heaven and a new earth; and in a semblance of the gardener God walked again in the garden, in the cool not of the evening but of the dawn.”—G.K. Chesterton

“Neutrality is not an option. Either Jesus rose and rightly demands your attention, repentance, trust, and obedience, or he stayed dead. If he only became a rotting corpse why should you follow him?”––John MacArthur

“The resurrection of Jesus Christ is one of the foundation stones of Christianity. It was the seal of the great work that he came on earth to do. It was the crowning proof that the ransom he paid for sinners was accepted, the atonement for sin accomplished, the head of him who had the power of death bruised, and the victory won.”—J.C. Ryle

“The resurrection means not merely that Christians have a hope for the future but that they have hope that comes from the future. The Bible’s startling message is that when Jesus rose, he brought the future kingdom of God into the present. It is not yet here fully but it is here substantially, and Christians live an impoverished life if they do not realize what is available to them.”—Timothy Keller

“It is a simple fact that throughout the history of the church, the single most important witness to the resurrection of Jesus has been the witness of the risen Christ within the heart of the believer!”––Robert Stein

Having prepared our hearts, let’s approach the throne of grace and worship God together.

Your servant,

 

Pastoral Notes for Sunday, April 2, 2023

Dear Cornerstone family,

Today is Palm Sunday. On this day, we remember the shouts of “Hosanna” as Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a humble donkey. We also remember that in the midst of this celebration, tears were streaming down Jesus’s face. The juxtaposition of joy and tears has led centuries of Christians to ask, “Why was Jesus crying?”

Were these tears of joy at the receptance he was receiving? As men, women, and children rejoicing at his arrival, was he overcome with tears of joy? Or were these tears of fear? The hour of crucifixion was fast approaching. Was Jesus crying because he was unable to enter into the festivity for fear of the soon-in-coming cross?

Turns out, these were neither tears of joy nor fear. These were tears of grief. As Jesus entered the Kedron Valley, he glimpsed the Holy City in the distance. When he did, the Scripture tells us he broke down in tears, for the people did not know the time of visitation (Luke 19:41-44).

On the surface, it sure seems like people knew this was the time of visitation. They were singing and dancing in the streets. They were laying down their cloaks in the road and waving leafy branches in celebration. They were even quoting Scripture and applying it to Jesus Christ appropriately. What’s the problem?

Suffice it to say, Jesus wasn’t fooled by all the excitement. He knew the people had ideas about who he was. He knew they had expectations about what he would do. He knew that the texts of Scripture they quoted were tied to very particular and earthly expectations of fulfillment. He knew all this, and he knew they were wrong.

He wasn’t coming, as they supposed, to reestablish the glories of David’s kingdom as an earthly political ruler. He wasn’t coming, as they surmised, to destroy Rome and free Jerusalem from Roman oppression. Instead, he came as a spiritual Savior, establishing a kingdom not of this world (John 18:36). He came to free his people from the oppression of sin and death, to secure for himself a people from every kindred, tribe, and nation (Romans 8:1-2; Revelation 7:9). His concern wasn’t, as they assumed, for the earthly stones of Jerusalem’s temple but, rather, the living stones of a new Jerusalem––a city whose builder and maker is God (1 Peter 2:5; Hebrews 11:10). In a word, Jesus was the deliverer the people needed, but he wasn’t the deliverer they were looking for.

As we enter Holy Week together, that haunts me a bit. I wonder how often I fall into a pattern of worshipping a Jesus of my own personal imaginings rather than the Jesus revealed in the Scripture. I wonder how much of the world’s assumptions have filtered into and shaped my perceptions about Jesus and the Christian life. I wonder as Jesus Christ approaches us today by the Word and Spirit in worship, does he weep? Does he see us quoting Scripture, singing, and waving palm branches, and yet misunderstanding who he is and what it means to follow him?

As we walk through Holy Week together, may God strip away false notions and prune earthly assumptions about Jesus and his mission. And may the Lord restore in our day a robustly biblical vision of who Jesus Christ is and what his kingdom is all about––that together we might declare the praises of him who called us out of darkness into his wonderful light (I Peter 2:9-10).

Your servant,