First Presbyterian Church News (Clarksville, TN)

Thank you all for submitting your favorite hymns back in February! During the "Faith Like a Child" sermon series, we are singing almost exclusively hymns from this list. We hope the familiar words and music transport you to sweet memories of growing up or feeling connected to God. CLICK HERE for the complete list of FPC's Favorite Hymns.

Faith Focus presents FPC's Got Talent on Wednesday, May 21! Dinner starts at 5:30 followed by the program at 6:00 p.m. in Fellowship Hall. Childcare is provided. This is a fundraiser for music ministry needs, such as paid singers. If you would like to perform (music, poetry, juggling, magic tricks, comedy, you get the idea!), please contact Carolyn Riggins/the office no later than May 4. 

Our April  Literary   Roundtable   selection is  Winter's Bone , a haunting, rural-Ozark novel by author Daniel Woodrell. The book follows Ree Dolly's search for her missing father, who has skipped bail, putting the family in danger of losing their house and the protection of their clan. The saga of this warrior-woman's quest unfolds at a rapid, suspense-building pace, with a poet's facility for stunning language and a storyteller's ear for backwoods vernacular.  Join APSU Prof. Joey Grisham and Pastor Greg to discuss the book on Thursday, April 24, from 6:30 to 8 pm at Hudubam Booktraders. Copies are available to borrow outside the church office on a first come, first served basis. The book has been adapted for the screen in a Lionsgate movie by the same title, starring Jennifer Lawrence, John Hawkes, Kevin Breznahan, and Dale Dickey.

FPC is hosting the Gateway Chamber Orchestra on Sunday, April 13 at 3:00! Get your tickets here and bask in an afternoon of gorgeous music featuring string quartets and other small ensembles. 

The Cumberland Winds invite you to their Jazz Project concert on Friday, April 11, 7:30 p.m. in the sanctuary! It is free to the public. Grab your seat early as space tends to fill up. 

Enjoy a free concert at FPC by the Cumberland Winds on Friday, March 21st, at 7:30 pm! Sarah Queen is the guest vocalist. 

Do you love singing? No matter your level of "training," you are invited to sing with the choir on Easter Sunday, April 20! Rehearsal is at 9 a.m. in the sanctuary. Choir members are also available for one-on-one assistance with our special piece, "O Happy Day!" You may also attend a Wednesday rehearsal at 7:30 p.m. to see what regular choir is like. Talk to Hannah Cruse if you need any other accommodations. SHEET MUSIC: https://api.fluro.io/download/67d2f7942ff09b00363acfc3?withoutToken=true PRACTICE TRACKS: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLm63QVM1EDp0l6zgzy2aC1SVI_TpI9zga&si=mg5Wl1FGo5sdqJrw

Our March Literary Roundtable selection is  There, There , a novel by Arapahoe and Cheyenne author Tommy Orange. The book follows twelve characters as they navigate their relationships to indigenous identity and their connection to Oakland, CA, with their stories converging at a shooting at the Big Oakland Powwow. At its core,  There, There  is a powerful exploration of family and lineage.   Join APSU Prof. Joey Grisham and Pastor Greg to discuss the book on Thursday, March 27, from 6:30 to 8 pm at Hudubam Booktraders. Copies are available to borrow outside the church office on a first come, first served basis.

FPC will feature artist Courtney Gatewood during ArtWalk in March. Come see her work in the Chapel from 5 to 8 pm on Thursday, March 6!  Courtney is a wife, a mother of three children, and working artist living in Tennessee. Originally from northwest Tennessee, she traveled a bit only to find herself back in this great state. After attending college as a non-traditional student, she quickly absorbed a wealth of knowledge about being a working artist. She engages with patterns to establish connections with individuals who may experience various emotions. Art serves as a medium to communicate with others when physical presence is not possible. Her objective is to embed memory within her work, allowing the audience to reflect on their experiences and seek connections to what they may have encountered previously. To maintain an element of intrigue and contemplation, Courtney has intentionally designed certain marks to render the patterns unrecognizable.

YOU TURN MY TEARS TO DANCING by Hannah Cruse When I felt secure, I said to my God, "I never will be shaken." Finding beauty was so easy then, when you called, when you called my name. But these days I question everything, wailing, "Have I lost your favor?" Then you lift me for a moment, Lord, when you call, when you call my name. (Chorus) You turn my tears to dancing! You stir my heart to joy. You turn my tears to dancing! I can’t help but sing Your praise. In despair, I hold onto your Word; weeping lasts just through the night. In the morning, true rejoicing comes, when you call, when you call my name. (Bridge) When life feels bleak and painful,  we must search for all that's bright.  There's a lot of love to go around,  when God calls our name. IN THEE IS GLADNESS, 16th cent. text In you is gladness amid all sadness, Jesus, sunshine of my heart. By you are given the gifts of heaven, you the true Redeemer are. Our souls are waking, our bonds are breaking; w...

Find wisdom, song, and spiritual practice to nourish your life’s journey in sacred community with our ancestors and each other during this Faith Focus experience led by musician poet duo, Hannah Cruse and Joey Grisham. Join us for Faith Focus on Wednesday, February 5, from 5:30 to 7 with dinner and childcare!

Local rocker Kenny Settle, friend of Anita Randolph, will grace us this Wednesday with some music and his faith story that has grown since losing his family years ago in an accident. Please join us for Faith Focus at 5:30 in Fellowship Hall, with dinner and childcare.

A Psalm Singing Companion Written by Hannah Cruse, FPC Director of Music & Creative Arts The story of Psalm singing is inseparably intertwined with that of congregational singing. That is how strongly music of Christian worship is tied to Psalmody. In 1721, Cotton Mather, minister of Boston's original North Church, raised the issue of the purpose of Psalm singing in worship. He answered that singing the Psalms helps the worshiper commit Scripture to memory and to apply it to Christian living because "there is a natural aptitude in singing to compose and unite the thoughts, to engage and fix the attention." Singing together shapes our belief and then how we live out our belief. Singing together witnesses to the solidarity of the Church across time, space, and circumstance. We also understand from experience that singing together has the mystical power to heighten or reveal emotions that might be hard to communicate otherwise. And then of course, if you’re still unconvi...

Come through the FPC Chapel from 5:00 to 8:00 p.m. on Thursday, February 6th, for First Thursday Art Walk! Carolanne Nadeau and Kris Lee have collaborated on this duo show called "Double Vision" to display their own interpretations of several images from Carolanne's travels.

Literary Roundtable returns in February, featuring the Pulitzer Prize winning poetry of Emory professor Natasha Trethewey (Poet Laureate of the United States, 2012-2013).  Trethewey's  Native Guard  is an elegiac honoring of her mother alongside a confrontation of her own fraught childhood amid the racial history and legacy of the Deep South.  Her verse offers a haunting conversation between personal experience and national history.   Join APSU Prof. Joey Grisham and Pastor Greg to discuss the book on Thursday, February 20, from 6:30 to 8 pm at Hudubam Booktraders. Copies are available to borrow outside the church office on a first come, first served basis.

Consider being a part of one of our ensembles this spring! Regular rehearsals are on Wednesdays (6:30 bells; 7:30 choir) and 9:15 a.m. on Sundays (choir). Please reach out to Hannah Cruse or Carolyn Riggins for more details. We'd love to nurture and be blessed by your gifts!

Art Walk on January 2 will feature work by Learning Center students! Come see their art from 5 to 8 pm in the Chapel that Thursday or anytime during January.

The final Open Mic Night at Sanctuary on Main is Saturday, December 14, from 7 to 9 pm. The cafe will be open for you to purchase drinks, sandwiches, and baked goods. Play, sing, or just watch the show!

FPC is excited to feature Kitty Harvill for Art Walk on December 5. Enjoy her work from 5 to 8 pm in the chapel. See more artists displayed by studios downtown!   

Sunday morning worship on Dec. 8 will be very special this year as it will incorporate the nine readings of Lessons and Carols, big music from the choir, as well as art and performance by the children and youth. Second Sunday Lunch will follow. Highlight 10 am on Dec. 8 in your calendars!