News

Session approved in-person worship beginning on Sunday, June 7. There will be 2 services: 8:30 am Traditional in the Sanctuary and 11:00 am AWE (Contemporary) in the Light House. This arrangement will allow us to use the facility once a week, since it would be impossible to sanitize the Sanctuary and AWE Auditorium for a subsequent service. Our graduates will be presented to the congregation during the 8:30 am worship service on June 7. 

To keep participants safe, social distancing, masks and use of hand sanitizer will be required. The pews and chairs will be staggered and set-up for social distancing, and family units will be asked to sit together. To keep everyone safe, we will not be offering nursery or children’s church.

We plan to live stream our 8:30 am Traditional Service and our 10:45 am AWE Contemporary Service. If you prefer to view the Traditional Service at 11:00, you can re-play the 8:30 service at that time.

To view the Saxe Gotha Services and other resources, please go to: https://www.youtube.com/user/SaxeGothaPres.

A time of rest for parents and grandparents, and a time of learning and fun for little ones! Mother's Morning Out is for children ages 3-24 months. We offer flexible one, two and three day options (Tuesday through Thursday) in both fall, winter, and spring. Your child will have the opportunity to grow in a loving Christian environment through art, music and play. 

Register for the next semester at https://saxegotha.churchcenter.com/registrations/events/418124.

We would love to hear from you! Please contact Sara McCarter with questions: smccarter@saxegotha.org.

(usually the 3rd Tuesday of the month) 7:15-8:15 am, SGPC Parking Lot. Join together as we love and support community members in need of prayer. We will need prayer warriors, enthusiastic sign holders and traffic directors. 

To Volunteer, contact Loretta Gobbel at 319-4608 or Pete Eckert at 608-9835 or email missions@saxegotha.org.  

On May 12, we had 6 volunteers and 8 cars stopped by. So excited to have this ministry up and running again after a one month break due to quarantine.

On May 26, we had 10 volunteers, including an elementary school age child! Just one car stopped, but there was lots of encouragement from people passing by!

Saxe Gotha Presbyterian Church is planning to hold a graduate recognition service for our high school and college graduates this summer. If you have a student graduating from high school or college this spring or one that graduated in December 2019, please submit the following information by email to Mary Knobeloch, mknobeloch@saxegotha.org by Thursday, May 28.

Student's Name for Worship Bulletin

Name of High School or College

College Degree earned

Parents’ Names

In addition to the classes mentioned below, we have a vibrant Men's Bible Study meeting on Monday morning at 8:30 am taught by Scott Welborn.

If you are interested in participating in one of these classes, please contact our Associate Pastor Helen Harrison Ham at hhham@saxegotha.org, and she will provide you the information needed to sign-in to the class of your choice.

Devotionals: If you have missed one of our daily devotionals, you can go to the Saxe Gotha Devotional Playlist. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLea6ndHzArf_GGgSnTna8lW6cUZHQlCew.

Senior Adults:

Caring Connections Brotherhood Virtual Lunch: 
Tuesdays at noon

Kids:

Wednesday nights at 6:00 pm (contact Melinda Boyle for login info: mboyle@saxegotha.org)

Children:

Club 45 on Sunday evenings at 4:30 (contact Patricia Zeigler to get login info: pdmz@rocketmail.com)
Story Time on Facebook, Tuesdays at 7:00 pm (contact Melinda Boyle for info: mboyle@saxegotha.org)
Child Development Center Conference Call for Preschoolers: Wednesdays at 11:00 am with Hope Andrews (For login info, go to: www.saxegotha.org/ministries/cdc)

Youth:

Contact Justin Hall to get connected: jhall@saxegotha.org.

Where you can take the fun of VBS into your own home virtually OR choose to be a host family and invite your neighborhood friends!!

Simply pick up your tool box from us and tune in each day via the Saxe Gotha YouTube Channel for your favorite VBS friends to teach and lead you in fun activities! Your friends and family will explore a world of concrete and cranes, rivets and rebar, bulldozers and backhoes, they will learn to build their faith on Jesus as they uncover the truth that He who began a good work will be faithful to carry it on to completion.

COVID-19 has not only affected people physically, but also mentally and emotionally. Please join Helen Harrison and Patrick for a webinar with Paul Bishop, a licensed counselor, to learn more about how we cannot just survive, but thrive mentally and emotionally during this tough time. 

All of us are experiencing stress that we have never experienced before, therefore, we would like to offer this counseling opportunity to all and hope this event begins to take away the stigma of reaching out for counseling help. This webinar is available now at: https://youtu.be/K57u5-cVLmo.  

Paul Bishop is the Counseling & Missions Pastor at First Baptist of Lexington and oversees the Bridge of Hope Counseling Center. He graduated from Columbia International University with a Masters’ Degree in Intercultural Studies in 1998 and a Masters in Counseling in 2001. 

We look forward to gathering together virtually for a time of support and fellowship.

Are you or someone you know mourning the loss of a loved one? GriefShare offers a 13-week support group which some churches are now offering online due to COVID-19. Each session includes a video featuring some of the foremost Christian experts on grief. If you would like to find one just go to the GriefShare website, Griefshare.org and search within 100 miles. Then look for the word “Online”. 

Would you like to send out a Welcome Message to your Saxe Gotha family?

If so, we would like you to record a 10-second video of you or your family saying "Hello" to fellow Saxe Gotha members. Please record in landscape orientation and send to mandrews@saxegotha.org. We think this will really help people feel more connected while we are all worshiping at home.

Available now through June 5th, there is an emergency outreach program in Lexington County for seniors adults (60 years and older) with meals during the COVID-19 crisis. Click here for the list of pick-up locations. Seniors need to drive thru to get their meals and must show a valid SC ID. They can start lining up at 9:30 am and the meals will be distributed at 10:30 am until the food is gone. Please share this information with any senior adults that you may know of who need help. For more information, please go to www.lcrac.com.

Melinda and Justin are looking for fun, engaging students to invest in our families this summer!

High school seniors and college freshmen and above: contact Melinda (mboyle@saxegotha.org) to work with kids (preschool through grade 5).

College sophomores and above: contact Justin (jhall@saxegotha.org) to work with students (grades 6-12).

What love is. 

What does it mean to love? 

Is love all accepting? 

What is the relationship between our love for God and love for others?  

Love is basic to living the Christian life, yet many people including Christians are confused about what love is. This series on the Apostle John’s first letter will better help us understand biblical love. He will show how a life of love embraces truth, walks in the light, confesses sins, obeys God’s commands and overcomes the Evil One. Life is about loving God and loving others. Let’s learn together what love is as we study 1 John.

Additional Resources:

To dig deeper into the sermon series on 1 John, please check out the following resources. On RightNow Media, Dr. Tony Evans has a video series on the letters of John. For information on how to sign-in to RightNow, email HH Ham at hhham@saxegotha.org. Also, Dr. Tom Wright has a very readable resource called "Early Christian Letters for Everyone: James, Peter, John and Judah." This book is available at christianbook.com.  The book of 1 John is rich, and you will be rewarded for digging deeper!

Join this Zoom small group on Wednesday nights at 7:00 pm. Contact Tim Kehoe at timkehoebuilds@gmail.com or 408-504-8800 for information on how to log on.

They will be connecting at 8:30 am next Monday for a brief lesson and to pray for each other and for other people. Contact Scott Welborn at bleedbabyblu@gmail.com for meeting information. This Bible study is open to men of all ages.

Our Missions Ministry has people standing by to help our congregation by running errands, picking up groceries or any essential items you may need.

Please contact Kathy Seymour at 4kathys@gmail.com or 803-920-7385 if you need this service.

In keeping with the response of offices and agencies at the national, state and local levels during the current public health situation, and being mindful of the well-being of our members and staff, the Personnel Team and SGPC leadership have determined that the SGPC offices will be closed to outside visitors until further notice.

Here is the specific link to it if you already have your account set up: https://www.rightnowmedia.org/CustomLibrary/8737. RightNow is like the Netflix of Christian media and Bible studies. And if you’re already tired of watching TV and scrolling the internet, then feed your mind and heart with good stuff! We have several different channels within Saxe Gotha’s custom library: Adults, Youth, Children, Worship and the Arts, Missions and Outreach, Marriage and Parenting. 

If you need help setting up your Right Now account, you can contact one of the following:

HH Ham: hhham@saxegotha.org

Patrick Cherry: pcherry@saxegotha.org

Justin Hall: jhall@saxegotha.org

Melinda Boyle: mboyle@saxegotha.org

Hal McIntosh: hmcintosh@saxegotha.org

The studies and videos inside Saxe Gotha’s library on RightNow are just suggestions from our staff. Please feel free to explore and enjoy the many wonderful videos on Right Now while you are at home!

(July 6-11) High School students will be going to The Laguna Beach Christian Retreat Center in Panama City Beach, FL, for Reformed Youth Ministries' High School Summer Conference. The cost of the trip is $550; there will be fundraising opportunities. Register at saxegotha.org/events and pay the $100 deposit due at the time of registration.

The Saxe Gotha CDC will reopen on Monday, June 8.

Registration (2020-2021): 2-4 year old Preschool spaces are available. Questions? handrews@saxegotha.org. 2's classes are now full, but there is a wait list. 3's and 4's classes have limited spaces available.

Afterschool and Summer Registration Dates:
Registration will resume when the Center reopens.

As part of Congregational Care, free soft blankets are available for any seriously ill child or a child who has lost a parent or sibling. Call Patti Schmitz at 467-6379 or Renee Starnes at 359-7770 ext. 37 or rstarnes@saxegotha.org.

Did you know that when shopping Amazon, they will make a donation to Saxe Gotha with no additional cost to you? The only requirement is to go through smile.amazon.com instead of Amazon.com and choose Saxe Gotha as your charity of choice. AmazonSmile is the same Amazon you know. Same products, same prices, same service, but with each purchase you help reduce the debt.

Lexington One Backpack Program:

Saxe Gotha partners with Lexington School District One to support the Backpack Program. Items Needed for Backpacks: juice boxes, cereal/granola bars, snack crackers, single serving cereal boxes/bowls, raisins, peanut butter, fruit cups/pouches (please no applesauce cups), pudding cups, oatmeal packets. If you or your small group is interested in donating food or packing bags to assist with this effort, please contact Holly Waldrip: waldrip@sc.rr.com. Also, you can place donations in the blue bin in the church main office.  

We are looking for new acolytes this fall. Any child that will be in 3rd grade

or above can by an acolyte. It is a great opportunity for your child to serve during worship. If you are interested, please contact Meredith Cully at mcully@saxegotha.org or sign up online via the link below.