With hopes of further enlarging our 9:30 Choir, we are making changes and membership is easier for you. First, the 9:30 Choir has been renamed The Chancel Choir. Beginning in September, the choir will sing in worship and rehearse as follows:

Services

On 2nd and 4th Sundays of every month

Rehearsals

• Twice monthly on the Wednesdays preceding the performance Sundays from 6:25–7:30 p.m.
• Twice monthly on performance Sundays, 8:15–9:15 a.m.

Membership Expectations

As a member, you attend both Wednesday and Sunday rehearsals. If circumstances prevent you from attending on Wednesdays, you can join us for Sunday morning rehearsal. Childcare is available for all rehearsals.

9:30 Worship Music Leadership at a Glance

• 1^st Sunday—Taizé Ensemble and Wind Ensemble (in alternation)
• 2^nd Sunday—The Chancel Choir
• 3^rd Sunday—The Sanctuary Choir and/or The GraceNotes Ensemble
• 4^th Sunday—The Chancel Choir
• 5^th Sunday—Varied: Taizé Ensemble, Handbells, Youth Choir

This new schedule provides 9:30 worship with excellent and varied musical leadership. Won’t you join us—especially those of you who attend the 9:30 Service?

Background

Churches offer multiple services for reasons of either convenience or necessity, but multiple services stretch human resources. Providing choirs for multiple services is a perennial challenge for most churches, including ours. Nine-Thirty worshippers, if you want a choir, please join us. Historically, some Sanctuary Choir members have lent support to the 9:30 service, but this is typically neither a popular nor a long term solution. It requires that they sing for approximately four hours on Sunday, and most would simply prefer to do something else with their Sunday time, like attend a class. In recent years our Chancel Choir (9:30 Choir) has experienced some welcomed growth but still depends on support singers from the Sanctuary Choir. So, we need more singers! We need you! Won’t you join us?

Remember:

1. No audition is required
2. You do not need to “read music” (for any of our choirs—a typical misconception)
3. The rehearsal/performance schedule is not demanding.
4. You will have fun in the company of friendly and musical folks.
5. You will be serving your church and be blessed! Rehearsals begin Aug. 25. For more information, call Tom Brown (director) at 587-7943.

Mondays, 8–9:30 p.m.
FE Gym (4th floor)

Adult Open gym basketball is back on Monday nights. Whether you are a young hot shot or a more mature “experienced” player, come enjoy the thrill of the game and the wonderful fellowship.

For more information, contact Russell McFarlane at jmcfarlane2@austin.rr.com.

The MoMs Group meets on the first and third Mondays of the month from 9:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. in the Parlor of the Sanctuary. Please join us for coffee and a snack and some fellowship with other moms.

Our last meeting of the year will be Monday, August 30. We will be having our Summer Brunch off campus. Join us for a well deserved break, and don’t forget to check your closets for the most ridiculous white elephant gift you can find for our entertaining gift exchange! Thanks for another wonderful year of MoMs!

For more information, contact Monica Wells at texas@mwells.org or Rebecca Hendriks at texiwi@verizon.net.

Please make childcare reservations at least 48 hours in advance by contacting childcare@covenant.org or 334-3020.

Welcome back from your summer adventures. It’s time for a new season of Armchair Travelers.

Join us in the Sanctuary on Thursday, Sept. 1, at 7 p.m. as Dave Mead takes us on a tour of the Middle Eastern portion of Virginia to see Colonial Williamsburg, Yorktown, Jamestown and Virginia Beach. All ages are welcome. This is a great show to acquaint the children with our priceless American heritage, so come and enjoy.

If you want to volunteer programs or cookies, call Dave Mead at 467-2044. Armchair Travelers is open to anyone interested in seeing the world through someone else’s eyes.

Eighteen preteens joined 58 seniors and 10 guests in August for our first Intergenerational Senior Activities Day. During the morning game session the bingo tables were lively—of 27 players, 10 were children. And the other Club 56 participants (fifth and sixth graders) played board games and puzzles with the adults in the fellowship hall. Two recent Club 56 graduates even helped serve the lunch. The afternoon movie Holes completed this very pleasant intergenerational experience.

The next Senior Activities Day on Sept. 7 starts at 10 a.m. in the fellowship hall with puzzles and games (bingo, dominoes, bridge etc.). Lunch is at noon followed by the movie Evan Almighty (2007) at 1 p.m. Starring Steve Carell, Morgan Freeman and Lauren Graham, Evan Almighty follows Congressman Evan Baxter as he builds an ark in preparation for a great flood. The tagline for the movie is “A comedy of biblical proportions.”

Reservations are required for lunch and can be made by calling Covenant Hall at 454-5231 up until 11 a.m. on the Friday immediately before the activities day. You also can sign up on the patio on either of the two Sundays beforehand. Donations are accepted for lunch. For more information call Martha Bombaugh at 345-5916.

Parents and children: Save Wednesday afternoons!

Children’s choirs start Wednesday, Sept 8 from 4:30-5:30 in the Fellowship and Education Building on the first floor. Five choirs will accommodate children from four years (by Sept. 1, 2010) through 6^th grade.

For more information, contact Alice Sessi at 346-3487 or asessi@covenant.org.

Lost your job?
Concerned about losing your job?
Looking for a job change?

Covenant’s Career Transitions Ministry
Thursdays, September 9-October 14
7 – 8:30 p.m.
FE 100

Check out the Career Transitions blog.

Covenant is launching its fall program of Career Transitions. The six-week curriculum takes participants through a new stand-alone topic during each class. You can attend one or all of the sessions. We anticipate each week to be a working session to help you build your skills and create a plan of action. The program is Christ-centered, so you also gain confidence and strength from the foundation of faith. Topics for this spring program include the following:

• September 9
  “Using LinkedIn as a Job Search Tool” presented by Gary O’Neal, CEO, Talent Branders
• September 16
  “Interviewing Skills” presented by Karen Harrell, VP of HR, Wincor Nixdorf
• September 23
  “Résumés that Work” presented by Angela Loeb, CEO, InSync Resources
• September 30
  “Smart Networking” presented by Scott Carley, CEO, Growth Dynamic
• October 7
  “Manage Significant Change” presented by Dr. Chris Thurman, Psychologist
• October 14
  “The Non-Traditional Search” presented by David Hughen, CEO, AustinWorkNet

Membership at Covenant is not required. The class is FREE and open to all. We invite our neighbors to come and learn how to fine tune their career options in this challenging economy.

For more information or to register, call Covenant Hall at 454-5231.

“I was in the spirit on the Lord’s Day, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet.” This verse from Revelation 1:10 epitomizes the dramatic language that John of Patmos uses to convey his vision of our being witnesses for Christ. It also provides a perfect introduction to the 2010-11 Horizons Bible study, Journeys through Revelation: Apocalyptic Hope for Today. Beginning in September, Lesson 1 (“An Apocalypse, an Author, and a Witness”) will introduce the three elements that will guide us through the symbolism and mystery of John’s writings to understand the most important message of hope.

The women’s study groups and circles gather monthly during the school year for Bible study, prayer, fellowship and mission opportunities. Times vary so choose a group that fits your schedule, or start a new group. Study guides are available for $10. For more information, contact Suzanne McIntosh at 431-0221 or smcintosh1@austin.rr.com, or one of the chairs listed below.

• Deborah meets Thursday, Sept. 9 at noon in SA 104
  Chair: Clare Hawkins (346-4030)
• Dorcas meets Tuesday, Sept. 14 at 9:30 a.m. in the Parlor
  Chairs: Dorothy Elliott (345-0367) and Helen Fletcher (280-4124)
• Esther meets Tuesday, Sept. 14 at 9:30 a.m. in members’ homes
  Chairs: Sue Breuer (892-5633) and Hester White (371-3542)
• Lydia meets Thursday, Sept. 9 at 7 p.m. in members’ homes
  Chairs: Fran Langfitt (231-8503) and Bretna Hackert (284-9010)
• Sarah-Elizabeth meets Thursday, Sept. 9 at 9:15 a.m. in CO 208
  Chairs: Bonnie Hartmann (345-4181) and Joanna Hoffman (343-2529)

New! Wednesday Afternoon Group meets Sept. 15 from 4:30-5:30 p.m. All are welcome to attend. Contact childcare@covenant.org to reserve childcare. For more information, contact Julie Pitner at 258-5483 or jaherz@yahoo.com.

Crown Financial Ministries® has equipped more than 50 million people in 80 nations with the life-changing message of faithfully living by God’s financial principles. Crown is a Christ-centered, Bible-based ministry whose core values include recognition of God’s ownership of all things, the need to pray, and the desire to equip and serve others.

In a nationwide survey of Crown graduates, 38% reported a decrease in personal debt, 78% said their relationship with their spouse was strengthened, and 64% read the Bible more frequently. While 57% already reported a close walk with the Lord, another 34% reported a closer relationship with Christ. Many self-help financial plans available in today’s troubled economy focus on changing behavior; Crown Ministry also focuses on changing hearts.

The Crown Financial Ministries small group study is Sundays at 9:30 a.m. this fall in SA 103. The study begins Sept. 12 and will continue through December. The study requires some Bible reading at home, (short passages and answers to simple questions) along with weekly practical applications. It covers many areas of life, including God’s Part/Our Part, Debt, Honesty, Work, Giving, and even Eternity. The class is led by Bruce and Robin Pollock, both of whom experienced the results of the program in their lives. For more information, contact Bruce Pollock at 512-795-0431 or brpclan@netzero.net.

The MoMs Group will have its first meeting for the 2010-2011 year on Monday, Sept. 13 from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. in the Parlor of the Sanctuary. We will schedule our topics and speakers for the coming year. Please join us to help determine what our members would like to discuss in the following year. We look forward to providing helpful presentations, parenting ideas and fellowship with other MoMs.

The first regular meeting of the year is Monday, Sept. 27. Topics will be announced based on the response we get from the kickoff meeting.

For more information on MoMs, contact Monica Wells at texas@mwells.org or Alicia Gostylo at azappgo@gmail.com.

For free childcare, please make reservations at least 48 hours in advance by contacting childcare@covenant.org or 334-3020.

James Earl Jones reading Revelation is an experience you won’t want to miss! Everyone is welcome to gather in Eaton Hall on Thursday, Sept. 16, to hear a recording of Jones bringing the last book of the New Testament to life. Reviewers liken the experience to hearing the “voice of God,” and shared that “his reading of the much-explained Book of Revelation” reveals “it in a new, poetic light.” There will be time for coffee at 9:30 a.m. The “group listen” begins at 10 a.m. and will conclude by noon.

As it is written in Revelation 1:3, “Blessed is he who reads aloud the words of the prophecy, and blessed are those who hear, and who keep what is written therein; for the time is near.” We read and understand Revelation not alone but in community with others. This public reading is hosted by Presbyterian Women as part of their monthly Bible study, Journeys Through Revelation: Apocalyptic Hope for Today. For more information, contact Suzanne McIntosh, PW Bible study coordinator, at 431-0221 or smcintosh1@austin.rr.com.

On Friday, Sept. 17, VISIONS will tour the famous Waco Mammoth Site and the Arabians Ltd. Horse breeding farm. Baylor University staff, students and volunteers spent 30 years uncovering the bones of a nursery herd and creating the park, providing a glimpse into the lives of Columbian mammoths.

Lunch at the Cracker Barrel will be at your own expense. After lunch we will tour the horse farm. The farm recently celebrated 30 years of breeding, showing, and marketing Egyptian Arabian horses. Its stallions and brood mares are known the world over. We will watch a video about the Egyptian breed and the business of horse breeding, then see and pet the horses.

We will leave the church at 8:45 a.m. and return about 6 p.m. You can sign up on the patio before and after the 9:30 service Aug. 22–Sept. 12. The cost is $15 per person, cash or checks payable to Jackie Etheredge. For more information, contact Jackie at 459-5798.

Austin Samaritans
Third Annual Golf Scramble
Monday, September 20, 2010
Shotgun start at 1:30 p.m.
Forest Creek Golf Club
Register at www.helpaustinsam.com

Proceeds from the fundraiser support Austin Samaritans’ many ministries to the very poor, primarily in Nicaragua. We invite you to participate as a player, sponsor, auction item donor or volunteer. Ministries supported by Austin Samaritans include medical clinics in the poorest barrios, nutrition centers for starving children, safe havens for women seeking to leave the sex trade, diagnoses and treatment of cervical and breast cancer, and sponsorships for school children. Check us out at www.austinsamaritans.org and join us!

For more information, contact Nancy Kocurek at nkocurek@austinsamaritans.org or 465-2073.

The VISIONS Luncheon speaker for September is C. John Turnquist, who will take about “Life Defining Moments.” John is the brother of Mary Helen Mitchell, received a JD from the University of Texas in 1969, and served in various capacities for the Navy from 1969 to 2002. By presidential appointment, Turnquist served in the Office of the General Counsel and as Assistant Secretary for the US Dept of the Navy. After his service in the Navy, Turnquist was executive director of a non-profit agency in Virginia which provided a food pantry, homeless shelter, crisis hotline, and safe houses. John and his wife currently live in the Houston area.

The lunch is Tuesday, Sept. 21 at 11:45 a.m. in the Fellowship and Education Building. Cost is $5 per person at the door. Please call Covenant Hall at 454-5231 to make reservations.

Mary Mikhael, Ed.D., author of last year’s Horizon’s Bible Study of Joshua, will speak at Covenant on Wednesday, Sept. 22, at 6:30 p.m. Mikhael will give a presentation on the Middle East and the Near East School of Theology (NEST) in Beirut, Lebanon. NEST is the oldest interdenominational Protestant seminary in the world—supporting this ministry became a mission project of Covenant’s Presbyterian Women last year.

Mikhael is an elder in the Presbyterian Church in Beirut. She is an associate professor of Christian education at NEST. Mikhael became NEST’s first female president in 1994. She is interested in women’s issues, most particularly the role of women in Christian ministry and as decision-makers in society.

NEST programs provide a foundation to keep the Christian witness alive in the Middle East and beyond. All are invited to the Wednesday dinner at 5:15 p.m. before Mikhael’s presentation. Childcare is available by contacting childcare@covenant.org.

As the monthly Bible study groups continue in their book, Linda Southwick will lead a discussion on Lesson 2 (“Seven Letters to Seven Churches”) on Friday, Sept. 24 at 9:30 a.m. in the conference room (CO 108). This is a great opportunity to share ideas, get additional resources, and enjoy a lively exchange. For more information, contact PW Bible Study Coordinator Suzanne McIntosh, 431-0221 or smcintosh1@austin.rr.com.

Thursdays, Sept. 30–Nov. 18
6:30–8 p.m.
FE 104

Saturdays, Oct. 2–Nov. 20
9:30–11 a.m.
FE 104

You shouldn’t have to go through the grieving process alone. We welcome you to join one of our two new fall grief recovery sessions, the first of which will begin Thursday evening, Sept. 30, and our second group begins on Saturday morning, Oct. 2. Our purpose is to offer the outstretched hand of Christ to anyone who has experienced the death of a loved one, whether recently or in the last few years. Come into our Lord’s loving presence and experience the abundance of His tender mercies.

Classes meet weekly for eight sessions. There is a $50 fee to cover the cost of program materials. Scholarships are available and no one will be turned away due to lack of funds. It is necessary to limit the size of each group to 10 persons, so please register as soon as possible.

For more information or if you wish to register, contact Kay Austin at 334-3030 or kaustin@covenant.org.

Eighteen preteens joined 58 seniors and 10 guests in August for our first Intergenerational Senior Activities Day. During the morning game session the bingo tables were lively—of 27 players, 10 were children. And the other Club 56 participants (fifth and sixth graders) played board games and puzzles with the adults in the fellowship hall. Two recent Club 56 graduates even helped serve the lunch. The afternoon movie Holes completed this very pleasant intergenerational experience.

On Oct. 5, we start playing games and puzzles at 10 a.m. in the fellowship hall. Lunch is at noon, followed by our movie, You’ve Got Mail (1998) starring Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks. The owner of a small bookstore faces possible closure of her business due to competition from a large bookstore chain, and she doesn’t realize that the person she has fallen in love with online is a member of the family that owns the bookstore chain and vice versa. The tagline for this romantic comedy is, “Someone you pass on the street may already be the love of your life.”

Reservations are required for lunch and can be made by calling Covenant Hall at 454-5231 up until 11 a.m. on the Friday immediately before the activities day. You also can sign up on the patio on either of the two Sundays beforehand. Donations are accepted for lunch. For more information call Martha Bombaugh at 345-5916.

Austin Samaritans has scheduled two mission trips to Nicaragua in October 2010.

A general mission trip is Oct. 9–16. Activities on this trip include construction, Vacation Bible School, and hospital visits to deliver layettes to mothers of newborn babies.

A medical mission trip is Oct. 16–23 to conduct training in screening for breast and cervical cancer.

Application forms will be available soon on the Austin Samaritans website, austinsamaritans.org. For more information, contact Peggy Gentry at 327-1574 or pgentry1@austin.rr.com. You also can obtain more information by sending email to info@austinsamaritans.org.

The GBATTS (Getting Better All the Time Singers) will sing for the October VISIONS luncheon. GBATTS was founded by Liz Carpenter, former press secretary to First Lady Mrs. Lyndon Johnson, and is directed by Harvey Herbst, one of Covenant’s founding members. The group, whose average age is over 80, has delighted and entertained audiences for over 20 years at civic events, retirement homes, and charitable fundraisers. They may have their aches and pains, but they still find that life is all about having a good time. “We have as many parties as we do appearances.” says Herbst.

The lunch is Tuesday, Oct. 19 at 11:45 a.m. in the Fellowship and Education Building. Cost is $5 per person at the door. Call Covenant Hall at 454-5231 to make reservations.

Join us for the Women of Faith Conference in San Antonio Oct. 22-23. Imagine two days focusing on God and His love for you, filled with laughter, music and stories that make you chuckle even as you wipe away a knowing tear. Don’t miss it! We have floor seating this year. It is a great chance to worship God with hundreds of women from all over Texas and to recharge spiritually. For more information, contact Charlene Cole at 836-3612 or chcole@flash.net.