Orlando, Fla., RPC

Nathan Eshelman, pastor

Graciously, God continues to bring folks into our midst, stirring up their hunger for Him. Uniting us with the Eshelman family was His perfect means of accomplishing that. They have blessed our congregation in many ways since their ministry began here in Orlando a little over a year ago.

Several folks wishing to join have recently met with the elders and declared their interest in membership: Nicholas Goerner; Naphta Jean, along with her covenant children Zyra Rose and Edva; and Mike and Dominique Quiles. They took their vows of communicant membership before the elders and the congregation on Feb. 27.

Pastor Eshelman has set aside each fifth Sunday to be devoted to a Youth Open House at the “Eshel-manse.” It includes lunch, a devotion, and fellowship time.

The men’s prayer breakfast is scheduled to meet on the last Saturday of each month. The leaders of the church were encouraged that 29 men attended the preliminary meeting. The head count had not diminished when the next breakfast came around. They have been reading A Godly Man’s Picture by Thomas Watson.

At this writing, two of our dear ladies, with already well-established families, were awaiting their new arrivals. John and Vanessa Le have four children: three boys and a girl. Matthew and Katie Petra have three children: two boys and a girl. It is our prayer that their newborns will be healthy, along with their moms.

Four new officers were elected at a congregational meeting on Mar. 31. Kevin Duffey, Mark Goerner, and Alejandro Ramirez were elected as elders, and Paul Knutson was elected a deacon.

The current officers of the church have worked tirelessly and with great effort, and the congregation would like to thank them publicly—elders: Rev. Jim Pennington, Jonathan Schaefer, Joe Worsham, and Ed Forest (emeritus); deacons: Scott Bailey, Chuck Bloom, Becky Farrant, and Steve Garrow.

—Louise M. Turmenne, correspondent

______________________________

Springs (Colorado Springs, Colo.) RPC

The Front Range RP congregations, those daughtered and granddaughtered by the Westminster RPC, met on Apr. 23 for a psalm sing at Springs RPC for what would be the last psalm sing host-ed in the current building, which is due to be torn down and replaced with a large apartment build-ing.

Tori Mann, who grew up worshiping with her family in this building, shares a bit about its history:

When Springs Reformed Church (SRC), a newly planted church from the Westminster Reformed Presbyterian Church, moved into 229 South Weber Street in 1992, their 40-some people could fit into a back corner of the meeting hall. The building needed a lot of work; it had creaky wooden chairs and rough flooring. But it was a huge blessing to a small congregation who had begun in a living room and then moved to a repurposed multiple-car garage. Churches are more than buildings, and God often grants growth even without, but many can testify to what a blessing a building can be.

The previous church—Pillar of Fire—gave SRC a good deal because they were thrilled that another church would buy and use the building. Our then-pastor J. Paul McCracken envisioned SRC residing in this building for the foreseeable future. And we were for the next 30 years.

The Lord blessed SRC with much growth in those 30 years—the nearly empty meeting hall would eventually be filled to overflowing some weeks. SRC daughtered Tri-Lakes RPC in Monument, Colo. This new church joined the Salt and Light and Laramie congregations that Westminster had daughtered along the Front Range over the years, a picture of God’s faithfulness to and through that congregation.

The Weber property was itself a means of shaping the SRC congregation. With no fellowship hall, the meeting hall had to be transformed and then reset with each fellowship meal. Even after the main building was updated, there was constantly work to be done outside and in the old “church house” on the property, where several families lived at various times. Being downtown, the church had opportunity to minister to people who walked in the doors merely because it was in close proximity. But most importantly, the meeting hall where we worshiped was a place used by the Lord for the Word to be preached week after week, nourishing his people and witnessing to unbelievers.

Laura Brown, who has been a member of SRC for a couple of years, shares her reflections on attending the last psalm sing in the old building:

It was truly a blessing to attend the final psalm sing gathering at the old building and to enjoy fellowship with the saints from all of the Front Range RP churches. Much has been changing in the past couple of years, particularly with the pandemic. SRC is especially in a season of transition as we seek a new building and will soon be seeking a new pastor. It was bittersweet to close a chapter of SRC’s story while also looking forward to what the future holds.

But attending the psalm sing and joining in joyful chorus of the songs that God Himself inspired provided a comforting sense of stability and continuity in this time of change. Singing the same songs that God’s people have sung to Him and about Him for millennia helps me remember that no matter how our world and our circumstances change, God’s promises never change, and His faith-fulness endures forever.

No matter what building we worship in next, no matter who we call as our next pastor, and no matter what else may happen, we can trust that God will be faithful and that we will meet together to praise Him and sing the same psalms that we sang in the old building, the same psalms we will keep singing until Christ returns to consummate His kingdom, and the same psalms that we will sing to Him in His glorious presence for eternity.

—Tori Mann, Irene Huizing, and Laura Brown