I
have a
confession
to make.
The longest
commute I ever
had to work was a whopping
3 miles
! I know this won’t bring
any sympathy from readers who
routinely travel over 50 miles into
New York City or beyond, but just
as commuting is a reality for many
business people, living and working
locally is part and parcel to being a
pastor. My commute was ALWAYS
to an office at THE CHURCH or on
the grounds of a church. So for the
first time EVER, I’m now commuting
to an office building where we have
moved our pastoral and business
office to mix with other commercial
enterprises at 22 Thorndal Circle.
This has been a
radical
change for
me. I’ve never worked before where
other business offices were located.
The sacred and the secular have
never been in the same building.
Since coming to Noroton, we have
never had so many personnel so
close together (come by and see
how we have fit three pastors, four
administrative assistants, two IT folks,
a business manager, three part-time
directors and all our duplicating
equipment into 2,000 square feet).
It is both exciting and challenging
as we work together, find lost files,
work with less than perfect internet
connections and rub shoulders with
our new neighbors. There are a lot
of new lessons God has for us in this
“pilgrimage” our whole church is on
towards a new and improved facility
for the 21st century. Let me just
share a few lessons I’m learning along
the way.
1) I know this is obvious - but it was
a hassle to sort through things, toss
many old files out and pare down to
what we need to make it through
the next year we will be in transition.
We had a shredder truck come to
the church four times as all of our
staff sorted through things. Even
ministries that stayed at the church
sorted and tossed and boxed things
up to move to new locations (Mickie,
Liz and Eileen will be in my old suite
of offices; David Lee and Julio will
move into the CE wing). Moving
is never fun but it acts as a spiritual
discipline to force us to lighten our
loads. I also reminded the staff that
dealing with change will deepen the
practice of our faith as we draw
upon God’s help for the challenges
ahead. That may be a good word
for our whole church to remember
The Spire
May 2014
Noroton Presbyterian Church
n
2011 Post Road, Darien, CT 06820
n
203-655-1451
Pilgrimage Reflections and
May 4 Groundbreaking
Worship Schedule
Chapel - 8:00 a.m.
Sanctuary - 9:00 & 10:30 a.m.
Open Doors - 5:00 p.m.
Upcoming Preaching Schedule:
5/4/14 -
Pastor Sam Schreiner
Matthew 5:13-16;
Colossians 4:5-6
“Seasoned Greetings”
5/11/14 - Mother’s Day
Pastor Sam Schreiner
Galatians 6:9-10
“Doing Good, Better”
5/18/14
8:00 a.m. -
Pastor Brandi Drake
9 & 10:30 a.m. - J.A.M Musical
“Testify to Love”
5:00 p.m - Open Doors
Pivot Ministries Choir
5/25/14 -
Pastor Sam Schreiner
Upcoming Baptism Dates:
June 15th at the 10:00 a.m.
Chapel service; June 22nd at
the 8 a.m. Beach service.
To schedule a Baptism please call
Leslie Ezzo at 203-309-5618.
Table of Contents
Foundations for the Future
...................2-3
Adult Spiritual Formation.................4-5
Caring &Women’s Ministry.................6
Children’s &Youth Ministry..............7-8
NPNS........................................................9
Music & Fine Arts................................ 10
Tot Drop.......................................... 10-11
Membership Ministry.......................... 11
Congregational Life Ministry....... 12-13
Mission Ministry............................. 14-15
NPC Calendar of Events.............. Insert
NPC Phone Directory................. Insert
NPC News & NPC Staff ................... 16
continued on page 2...
