From the Minister

Letter from the Pastor from the October Grapevine:

October is a special time in the life and history of our Bellevue United Presbyterian Church.
This is the month we celebrate 150 years of mission and ministry in the life of our worshiping
community. During the month of October, we will look to where we have been and where we
are going. We will celebrate our past and the saints who have gone before us, those who
reached out to our community and beyond.

October will be a month of celebration. It will be month of taking moments to pause and
thank God for our history. It will be a time to be renewed. It will be a month of turning our
focus to the future. We will intentionally work to see where our ministry and mission will lead
us. We are a church with heart! We are a church who loves Jesus and we still have people to
love and ministries to deepen.

Our world has changed amazingly over the past 150 years. We are probably closer to the
early church than we were in the first century, with small groups of people following Christ,
learning and caring for people they meet through each day.

October will allow for celebration. October will allow for reflection and pause. October will
allow us to make promises and to listen to God’s call to each one of us.

On Sunday mornings at 9:00, Jenny Tarrant is teaching/facilitating a study of the book of
Matthew. Matthew instructs us to reach out to those on the edges.

Our own Pittsburgh Presbytery is a Matthew 25 Presbytery. The Presbytery intentionally
states that they will do all that they are able to do, to live out Christ’s command to chare for
those who are hurting, to reach out to those in need, and to see each person as a child of
God.

As we move through the month of October, let us remember and be thankful. Let us take a
moment to pause and reflect on the gifts our church has to offer. Let us look to our next focus
ministry and the ways we fulfill Christs instructions for us to love our neighbors and to love
God with everything we have.

This is a wonderful congregation. We have gifts to share and people to care for. God has a
plan for us and it is a plan for good and for care. AMEN.

Blessings,
Ronee