Shippensburg First Church Of God Blog Site: "I Feel Seen"

Sunday is Coming!

There’s a phrase that has taken root in our cultural conversations – “I Feel Seen”

Someone might say this when they hear a story or see a meme that they highly relate to. It refers to the sense of being understood, or relating to someone who has had a similar experience or similar thoughts or emotions that you do.

According to an article in Psychology Today, “Every person has an innate desire to feel seen, heard, and understood.” And whether or not we feel seen, heard, and understood can drastically affect how we perform at work, how well we relate to our spouses, parents, or family members, and whether our self-esteem and self-image is healthy or unhealthy.

According to psychologists, there are measurable advantages to the feeling of being seen & understood:

*Productivity at work

*Creativity in the arts

*Health (both physical & mental)

*Grades in schools

*Community stability

Studies have shown that all of the above things improve in measurable ways if people feel “seen.”

Think of your own work settings or school experiences. How does it feel when people notice your efforts or your struggles? When people praise your progress, or come along side you to help you through difficulties?

Certainly, there is an underlying spiritual truth at work here, and there are even greater spiritual advantages to consider as well.

This month we will talk about how we SEE the world, but also… more importantly, how we see God, and how God also sees us more clearly than we could ever know—and he loves what he sees!

On Sunday, we will look at one of the earliest accounts from Genesis that address this truth, but first, take a moment to consider a few words of Jesus on the subject that frame this matter from a Biblical standpoint:

“Do you have eyes but fail to see, and ears but fail to hear?”

--Mark 8:18

Jesus often reminded his disciples and the crowds of people that listened to his teachings, that there is a difference between simply looking and listening, and actually seeing and hearing in a meaningful way that produces life change. On the positive side, Jesus also said to his disciples privately,

“Blessed are the eyes that see what you see. For I tell you that many prophets and kings wanted to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it.”

--Luke 10:23-24

According to Jesus, seeing and knowing Him (and being seen and known by Him) is the greatest blessing! It’s what the prophets & kings of old desired.

Jesus reveals for us the clearest vision of God the Father himself.

As we consider the theme of “seeing” this month this will also be a good time to reflect on our vision and mission as a church. The mission statement of SFCOG is:

“Loving God, Loving His Family, and Loving our Neighbors.”

We want to spend some time together thinking about how we SEE God (which also involves how we see ourselves), how we SEE God’s Family (our church family), and how we SEE our Neighbors (our community & world).

I hope you can join us all month as we consider what it means to “see and be seen” by our God who goes by many names in scripture—one of which is “The God Who Sees”

The angel of the Lord found Hagar near a spring in the desert; it was the spring that is beside the road to Shur. And he said, “Hagar, slave of Sarai, where have you come from, and where are you going?”

--Genesis 16:7-8

This Sunday

8:30 –We will Praise our God with a variety of Hymns:

Praise to the Lord, the Almighty #210

Under His Wings #620

His Eye Is on the Sparrow #624

Great is Thy Faithfulness #139

11:00 –We will Celebrate the Love God with some favorite songs:

Death was Arrested

Build your Kingdom

How He Loves

In Tenderness

Check out our Spotify playlist featuring a variety of songs we sing on Sundays at 11:00:

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/7E8YRF1NCIGbFoMNYNPn9K?si=ZivXqX5MRWe3nIDG1nx_qw&pi=u-Y90v2ygGSTKK

Spring Congregational Meeting

May 5, 2024 at 6:00

Plan to join us for a celebration of the growth we have been experiencing, a financial update, and a report on council actions since the November Congregation Meeting. Any items to be brought to the meeting from the congregation should please be given to President Troy Shively for consideration by April 17. The meeting agenda will be posted by April 21, in accordance with our Constitution and Bylaws.

Upcoming Opportunities

April is our final month of our Wednesday evening Community Night programs, and it’s not too late to begin participating in these activities. There’s something for every age group. We will have a closing program on Wednesday, April 24.

The first outing of our Living Stones ministry for age 50+ adults is next Tuesday, April 16! Meet at 3:00 at the Mopar Museum at Shively Motors on King Street for a tour. Sign-up sheets are located around the building.

Next Saturday morning, April 20^th, from 8:30-12:00, we will be hosting the Kiwanis Club’s Pancake Breakfast (8:30-10:30 in Crossroads Station) and Bike Rodeo (10:30-12:00 in our Parking Lot). This event is for the benefit of Children of our Community. Proceeds from the Pancake Breakfast will allow the Kiwanis Club to continue their efforts to support local children in various ways, and the Bike Rodeo, provided in partnership with the PA State Police, will feature a bicycle obstacle course and safety instructions for children 4-13 years old. Free books and other giveaways will also be available. Pancake Breakfast is $10 at the door.

On April 22 at 7:30pm, we will again be hosting a concert for the Shippensburg University Concert Choir and Madrigal singers.

On 4 Wednesday evenings in May (beginning May 1), we will be holding a special seminar to help you discover your SHAPE! SHAPE is an acronym for Spiritual Gifts, Heart, Abilities, Personality, and Experiences. This special 4-part class will help participants learn how God has uniquely designed each of us to serve the world for his purposes! Sign-up sheets are located around the building. We are hoping to learn if childcare would be beneficial to provide, and are looking to line up some people who may be willing to serve in this way. Feel free to respond to this email if you are interested in participating in any way or have any questions.

These events highlight a wide range of age groups and activities. To learn more, see the FYI newsletter or our weekly bulletin, located at the welcome desk or in the middle of the Sanctuary.

Communications Update!

Our weekly and monthly communication methods have been updated!

We are returning to a weekly bulletin that lists the worship songs for both services each Sunday, some helpful information to help you stay connected, and brief announcements for the week.

The “FYI Newsletter” has been a weekly printed publication, but we will be switching this to a monthly format and expanding it slightly. The first monthly edition for April is available now.

If you have information you would like to communicate, communication request forms are available from the church office or in the Gathering Place.

Look for both of these resources at the Welcome Desk or in the center section of the Sanctuary. The weekly bulletin will also be available online.

We are now on Instagram! Follow us @ShipFirstChurchofGod

Council Highlights

This week, the Council of Shippensburg First Church of God met for our monthly meeting. We discussed at length some revisions for our facilities use policy. With the completion of CRS, this tool is being revised to better guide us as we strive to steward our resources well, and also offer these resources for our church family and others to use for ministry opportunities and the betterment of our community. We briefly discussed the agenda for our upcoming Congregational Meeting, scheduled for May 5, 2024, at 6:00 pm. Meeting Agendas will be shared with the congregation two weeks in advance, on April 21.

Let us continually worship God who Sees us!

Pastor Rodney Bistline

Shippensburg First Church of God

seniorpastorbistline@shipfcog.org