Pastoral Notes for Sunday, August 4, 2024

Dear Cornerstone Family,

In case you missed the announcement two weeks ago, Sebastian Bjernegård, our new Assistant Pastor candidate, his wife, Ainsley, and their two children, Theo and Felicity, have landed on middle Tennessee soil. In between our two services today, please join me for a Q&A with Sebastian as we formally welcome the Bjernegårds to Cornerstone. 

Looking ahead, the next three weeks at Cornerstone are special Sundays. Next Sunday, August 11, is promotion Sunday for our Sunday School ministries. Children of all ages will make their way to their new classes as we focus in worship on the importance of discipleship for every age and stage. In addition, we will conduct an important Officer Election in the chapel during the Sunday School hour. All communing members of Cornerstone are strongly encouraged to participate in the election. Please pray for our elder candidates, Mr. Sean Kelley and Mr. William Tice, and our deacon candidates, Mr. Matt Michaud and Mr. Carl Ware, as they look for the confirmation of the Lord’s call to officership through the election.

The following Sunday, August 18, we’ll have the distinct privilege of sitting under the ministry of Dr. Derek Thomas. Many of you will have benefited from Dr. Thomas’s preaching and writing ministry. Dr. Thomas recently retired as the Senior Minister of First Presbyterian Church in Columbia, SC. He is a teaching fellow with Ligonier Ministries and a Chancellor’s Professor of Systematic and Practical Theology with Reformed Theological Seminary. In addition to his teaching ministry, Dr. Thomas is a regular contributor toTabletalk magazine and Banner of Truth, and he is the author of more than twenty books.

Finally, if the officer candidates are sustained in the election on August 11, we will conduct an officer ordination and installation worship service on Sunday, August 25. This is a special service wherein officer candidates make vows of service, receive the laying on of hands, and enter formally into the work of officership. We will take time that Sunday to be challenged by the Scripture’s teaching on officers as shepherds of the flock of God. We will also conduct a Cornerstone Family Meeting during the Sunday School hour to give an end of the fiscal year report and present the 2024-2025 budget. 

Please be sure these important dates are on your calendar, so you can fully participate in the ministry. Moreover, pray fervently for the effectiveness of the church’s ministry throughout the busy month of August. “Unless the Lord builds the house, we labor in vain” (Psalm 127:1).

May God be glorified in all we do!

Your servant,

 

Pastoral Notes for Sunday, July 28, 2024

Dear Cornerstone Family,

The Shurdens are enjoying some vacation time away as a family this week. We look forward to being back with the Cornerstone family next week. For today’s Pastoral Notes, I’ve asked Greg Wilbur to talk about the ways in which folks in the congregation can serve Cornerstone by volunteering and participating in the music and media ministries of the church—not only on regular Sunday mornings, but also for special services and other opportunities.

One of the great honors and pleasures in my life is the opportunity to assist in planning and leading worship at Cornerstone. I love our church, the leadership, and the families of the congregation. Part of that joy is the privilege to work with a host of volunteers in the music and media ministries of the church.

Each Sunday, the volunteer players and singers gather at 7:00 a.m. to run through the music and prepare for the services. At the same time, others are setting up the sound system, video cameras, and livestream. These tasks are beautiful ways to serve the congregation and support the work and worship of the Church.

Part of the joy of leading the music at Cornerstone is the opportunity to work with seasoned musicians as well as those who are growing in their musicianship and desire to serve. Our calling is to serve the Body with the gifts that God has given us. Part of that calling is to equip players and singers to continue to lead in worship for years to come. For Sunday mornings, we need a larger rotation of singers and instrumentalists of all kinds. (Contact: Maxwill Shell at max@cstonepres.org)

In addition to playing or singing on Sundays, the seasonal choir will start rehearsals in mid-September to prepare for a combined Reformation Service in late October with other churches in our presbytery, the Christmas Concert in early December, and the annual Lessons and Carols service. Choir is a wonderful time to meet other folks in the church, fellowship, and sing beautiful music. Singing together unites our voices and our hearts as one. You don’t have to be a trained singer or necessarily read music. For instrumentalists, these same services provide an opportunity play as part of a chamber ensemble. It would be great to add more singers and players to these choral services. (Contact: Greg Wilbur at greg@cstonepres.org)

The needs for the media teams are similar—a knowledge or proclivity towards sound or video is helpful, but not necessary. Everett Vencel and Jay Palm are happy to train people on the equipment and prepare them for serving in this area. There are weekly needs as well as needs for special services, concerts, and other church events, so if you have any inclination towards one of these areas and are not already serving within the body please reach out to us (Sound contact: Everett Vencel at everett@cstonepres.org, or Video contact: Jay Palm at jlpalm2@att.net). We would all be glad to talk to you, explain the roles, and have you serve the needs of the Body on Sunday mornings.

Your servant,

Greg Wilbur

Pastoral Notes for Sunday, July 21, 2024

Dear Cornerstone Family,

Over the years, the Lord has graciously supplied Cornerstone with a steady stream of young men and women interested in pursuing ministry vocationally. To help identify calling to ministry and assess aptitude for ministry, we started an intern program nearly ten years ago. Our interns are provided opportunities to study with pastors and ministry leaders, observe the work of the church from the inside, and gain practical ministry experience through serving in the church.

As the Lord would have it, most of our interns move on to pursue additional seminary level education in view to becoming pastors, missionaries, educators, and counselors. As a support to our interns, the church partners with interns financially by helping alleviate a portion (typically one-third) of the seminary tuition and book costs each year.

However, we have noticed over the years that students often need additional support while in seminary. There are number of reasons why additional support may be needed. A student may have an emergency (medical procedure, vehicle repair, etc.) incurring significant costs beyond what they are able to provide. A student may lose a job while in seminary and be without pay for a few weeks or months. A student may be from another country and limited by their visa as to where and how much they can work. In situations like these, which are real life situations former Cornerstone interns have faced, students are often left with one of two options: accumulate significant debt or consider taking a break from seminary to help replenish resources.

Recognizing this challenge, the Finance Committee has established a new Seminary Student Support Fund to help further support former interns of Cornerstone who are answering a call to vocational ministry and enrolled in seminary education. This fund is designed to be a support fund for former Cornerstone interns who are pursuing vocational ministry and are enrolled in seminary. The application process, approval, and disbursements from the Seminary Student Support Fund will be overseen by the Missions Committee. Only students who were interns of Cornerstone and are pursuing vocational ministry are eligible to receive help from the Seminary Student Support Fund.

Over and above your normal regular giving to Cornerstone, please consider a gift to this special fund. When you give, simply designate your gift for the Seminary Student Support Fund. If you have any questions about the fund, please contact our Mission’s Committee chairman, Mr. John Millard, at johnfrancmillard@gmail.com.

Your servant,

 

Pastoral Notes for Sunday, July 14, 2024

Dear Cornerstone Family,

Three weeks ago, we announced exciting news. The elders extended a call to Mr. Sebastian Bjernegård to be an Assistant Pastor at Cornerstone. If you missed that announcement, please go back and read the pastoral note from Sunday, June 23 on the website or app.  

Since that announcement, Sebastian and his wife, Ainsley, as well as their two children, Felicity and Theo, have been busy making preparations to move from Edinburgh, Scotland to Franklin, TN. Just this last week, the Bjernegårds made their way across the pond. They are wayfaring in North Carolina right now with family. If all goes according to plan, they will transition to Franklin later this month. I can’t wait for you to meet them!

On that note, we will officially introduce the Bjernegårds on Sunday, August 4. During the Sunday School hour that day, I will conduct a Q&A with Sebastian so you can get to know him and learn firsthand about his call to ministry and why he and Ainsley are excited about serving at Cornerstone. Please mark your calendars!

Speaking of marking your calendars, we will have a chock-full August with exciting opportunities for ministry. Because of all that’s going on, our Sunday services and Sunday School hours will be a little different in August. Please take note of the schedule below so you can be fully involved in the life of ministry in August. 

July 21 & 28 – Sunday School Break 

August 4 – Q&A with Sebastian Bjernegård during the Sunday School Hour

August 11 – Start of Youth and Children’s Sunday School; Officer Election

August 18 – Dr. Derek Thomas preaching and Q&A during the Sunday School Hour

August 25 – Officer Ordination/Installation Service; Cornerstone Family Meeting during the Sunday School Hour

Your servant,

 

Pastoral Notes for Sunday, July 7, 2024

Dear Cornerstone Family,

Due to the in-and-out nature of the summer schedule, we’ve often chosen to take a break from book length sermon series to focus on singular texts and stand-alone sermons. For that reason, we’re breaking from 1 Corinthians till the fall and are starting a slow meditative walk through Psalm 37 in a series titled, A Faith to Live By.

Why Psalm 37? Well, as the moral foundations continue to collapse and as enemies align themselves against the church, it’s critical that Christian’s are steeped in the tried-and-true never changing truth of the gospel. Speaking to the heart and full of wise instruction, Psalm 37 gives us reason for hope when all around us evil appears to be winning the day. Please pray this summer series equips us to trust, delight, and commit our way to the Lord.

Last week on the behalf of the session we announced the unanimous recommendation of Mr. Sean Kelley and Mr. William Tice for election as ruling elders and Mr. Matt Michaud and Mr. Carl Ware as deacons at Cornerstone Presbyterian Church. The election will be held during the Sunday School hour on Sunday, August 11. All communing members of Cornerstone are eligible and encouraged to participate.

In order to help you get to know these brothers and vote your conscience on August 11, I’ve asked each man to provide some basic biographical information for your review. Please take a moment to read the information below. Moreover, pray for these brothers as they pursue the confirmation of the Lord’s call to officership through the election on August 11.

Your servant,