I'm a paragraph. Click here to add your own text and edit me. It’s easy.
Just click “Edit Text” or double click me to add your own content and make changes to the font.
Calendar:
Feb. 1 - Worship Service 11:00 AM Sermon: Who Is God the Father?
Feb. 5 - Health Fair from 2-4 PM free screenings and information; Free door prizes!
Feb. 7 - Community Men’s Breakfast at 8 AM, No reservation needed
Feb. 8 - Worship service 11:00 AM Who Exactly Is This Jesus?
Feb. 11 - Family Night Potluck supper at 6:00 PM! Y'all come!!
Feb. 12 - Today at 2:00 free seminar on weight management and medications presented by Scotland County Health Dept. Free door prize!
Feb. 15 - Come this afternoon to our Messy Unchurch for families and
decorate cupcakes to show someone you care! Event at 30021 Deercroft
Drive in Deercroft at 2:00 PM. Free take home crafts and stories of love!
Feb. 18 - What Were Jesus’ Seven Last Words? Come find out today at 12 PM. Soup and conversation are free!
Feb. 19 - Take care of yourself and restart those new year resolutions with a free workshop at 2:00 PM. Exercise can be fun! Free door prize too!
Feb. 22 - Come to worship service at 11:00 AM and hear how much God loves you.
Feb. 22 - Got The Winter Blues? Chase them away with a free gospel concert at 6:00 PM.
Feb. 25 - Curious about what Jesus said from the cross? Let’s explore it
together at 12 PM. Soup provided!
Feb. 26 - Free Heart Healthy Workshop today at 2:00 PM presented by Scotland County Health
Dept.
Feb. 28 - Come celebrate God’s love with us Sunday at 11:00 AM!
News & Events
Montpelier Messenger
Montpelier Presbyterian Church
P.O. Box 407, Wagram, NC 28396
910-369-2259
Pastor: Rev. Dr. Patricia Ramsden 269-362-1332
Editor: Barbara Holloway 910-318-3757
(email) hollowaybarbara064@gmail.com
No. 2 Vol. 56 February 2026
Mission Statement:
Montpelier Presbyterian Church is a loving family of God who welcomes everyone to join us as we worship our Lord Jesus Christ and celebrate his grace given to us all. We are learning together how to live out our faith by working to meet the needs of our community and our world.
Pastor’s Pen:
I started the new year by saying I would be looking in this column at questions that Presbyterians have about our denomination’s theology. This month I want to look at the doctrine of predestination. One misconception comes in its very name. It is pre-destination, NOT pre-determination. God has not pre-determined who you will marry or whether you get a close parking space in the parking lot at Walmart. (Our belief in free will will be the topic for next month.)
Predestination deals with our salvation.
-
How does God decide who is saved?
-
Who does God desire to save and how is that accomplished?
First we believe that none of us deserve to be saved, for all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. (Romans 3:23). Our salvation then is due to the very grace of God. God chooses to save us of his own volition, and it is a gift.
Because it is a gift, we do not control who receives it only the giver of a gift determines that - and, in this case, the giver of the gift of grace is God. That means we are free from the terrible responsibility of trying to earn grace that is freely given. Those who are free in Christ are free indeed (John 8: 36), for we know we no longer have the terrible need to “earn” our way into heaven. We also know Christ came into the world not to condemn the world but that the world might be saved through him. John 3:17.
-
So who does God save?
-
Who isn’t saved?
-
Is anyone not saved?
We don’t know. It is beyond our pay grade. Jesus commands us not to judge these things. (Matthew 7:1) We do believe though that salvation comes from and through Jesus Christ who is our Lord and Savior, but how God works that out is up to God, not to us.
This is obviously a very simplified version of a very complex theological idea that I’ll be happy to talk with any of you about in more depth. It should also be said that Presbyterians of good faith disagree and discuss among ourselves frequently what predestination means and doesn’t mean to us as we live out the faith together. Entire books have been written on the subject - many of which disagree with each other - and all of them have scripture to back up their understanding.
If you’d like to talk more about this, just let me know when we can get together. Until then, I’ll see you in church!
- Pastor Pat
Souper Bowl of Caring!
This year, our children’s Sunday School class is excited to tackle hunger in our community through the Souper Bowl of Caring! As the big game approaches, our young disciples are learning the importance of sharing God’s blessings by collecting both canned goods and monetary donations to support our church's Blessing Box. We invite you to join their huddle by dropping off non-perishable food items in the food wagon or by contributing a "dollar for the bowl" at the collection station in the narthex. We will be collecting this Sunday through the end of February. Every cent and every can help our kids see that even small hands can make a massive impact in the fight against food insecurity. If you have any questions or would like more information about donating contact Jamie Machmiller 910-318-5943. Thank you for supporting our children as they put their faith into action!
Peanut butter, Vienna sausages, canned chili, jelly, tuna, canned chicken, spam, crackers, salt and pepper, green beans, baked beans, applesauce, corn, dried milk, small boxes of cereal, mustard, catsup, beenie weenies, toilet paper, toothpaste, toothbrushes, snack crackers,
Pop tops on cans make it much easier for them to use.
Current Building Projects:
If you’re at the church you will notice that the entry to the sanctuary by the women’s restroom is blocked off. There is water damage to the flooring by that outside door and some old termite damage to a few boards in front of the entrance to the sanctuary there. We do NOT have live termites. This is old damage. However, it must be fixed and the flooring repaired. If you have questions, please contact Roger or Ben Ammons.
Also we are in the process of replacing the cabinet doors in the kitchen or by the time you receive this newsletter they will have been replaced! The old cabinet doors are vinyl clad and after years of use the vinyl was cracking off of them. Again, you can ask Ben or Roger if you have questions about this.
This month we will begin moving three short pews out of the alcove at the back of the sanctuary and moving them into the primary seating area to make the sanctuary more accessible to people in wheelchairs or those using walkers. Moving the pews will also mean replacing the carpet since they are bolted down. The current plan is to move the three long pews we are removing to the choir loft. The one alcove area will be used as a “family area” for small children and will have rocking chairs and other items to make it family friendly.
We are so grateful to the building and grounds committee for all their hard work on these and other projects with our building. We are grateful too for your support to make these changes and repairs happen!
Facebook Live!
Worship services now live on Facebook! Beginning in February, we will be live streaming our worship services on Facebook. If you cannot get to services this will be a way for you to join us in worship. Please let us know if you find this helpful or if you need help logging in! We will be happy to meet with you and get you set up.
Bible Study:
Come learn with us! The adult Bible study on Sunday mornings at 9:30 are lively discussions about scripture and how it relates to our living out the faith. We’d love to have you join us in the library as we share together.
Community Men's Breakfast:
Join us for Men’s breakfast Saturday Feb. 7 at 8 am. It’s the best breakfast in Wagram! Good food and good conversation! You can’t beat it!
Montpelier Presbyterian Church Website:
Check out our web page at Montpelierpres.org. It shares information about our church and features a daily prayer as well as Pastor Pat’s sermon and information about church activities.
Community Health Fair:
As a part of our mission outreach we are having a free health fair will be Thursday Feb. 5 from 2:00 - 4:00 PM that will have information on hospital stays, home health care, assisted living, long term care, and hospice care. Scotland Regional Health System, the Scotland County Health Department, Carolina Hearts Home Care, Scotia Village, and Scotland Regional Hospice will all be giving free information and talking with individuals about their needs. There will be door prizes and free give aways. Scotland Regional Health System will also be doing screenings including free blood screenings, blood pressure readings, and weight, height, and bmi checks at the Health Fair. All of these, including the blood screenings are free!!Throughout the month of Feb. there will be free workshops.
Feb. 12 at 2:00 PM is a workshop on weight management and weight loss medications presented by the Scotland County Health Department.
Feb. 19 at 2:00 PM will be a workshop on personal fitness, including some fun and easy exercises, by Sarah Laviner, the Wellness Director at Scotia Village.
Feb. 26 at 2:00 PM is a seminar on Heart Health presented by the Scotland County Health Department. All events are free. Please come and learn with us and encourage your friends and neighbors to join us too as we learn to take care of ourselves!
Sweet Talk:
Sweet Talk will meet Fab. 5 at 1:00 at the ice cream shop. We will be discussing what it means to be Episcopalian with Carolyn and John Baranek. Come join this ecumenical group that engages in safe conversations around a variety of faith related, life related topics. It’s open to everyone!
Family Night Supper:
Feb. 11 we will have Family Night Supper at 6:00. Come join us for good food and a good time!
Messy Unchurch:
Messy Unchurch will meet Feb. 15 at 2:00 at Betsy Brown’s house. This event is for all children and this month we will be making heart shaped cupcakes to share and talking about what it means to love someone.
Session:
Session will meet Tuesday February. 17 at 9:00. We have changed our meeting times to the third Tuesday of the month and are now meeting earlier in the day.
Lenten Soup and Study:
We will have a special study on the Seven Last Words of Christ from the cross on Wednesdays at noon beginning February 18th through April 1st of Holy Week. Everyone is invited to attend and the study will be led by Pastor Pat over a simple lunch of soup and a drink. If you can provide soup for one of the lunches, please let Pastor Pat know.
Ash Wednesday Service:
Ash Wednesday service 6:00 Feb. 18. Ash Wednesday is the first day of Lent, and many Christians begin Ash Wednesday by marking a Lenten calendar, praying a Lenten daily devotional, and making a Lenten sacrifice that they will not partake of until the arrival of Easter.
Many Christians attend special Ash Wednesday church services where they receive ash on their foreheads or hands, as the wearing of ashes has been a sign of repentance since biblical times. The imposition of ashes is typically done with the sign of the cross, signifying that the recipient is a follower of Jesus.
Ash Wednesday derives its name from this practice, in which the words accompany the placement (imposition) of ashes, "Repent, and believe in the Gospel" or the dictum "Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return." The ashes are prepared by burning palm leaves from the previous year's Palm Sunday celebrations. This marks how easier our shouts of Hosannas can change into cries of “crucify” with our sins.
Session Committees:
The session re-elected Debbie Neverve as Clerk of Session and as the church treasurer. The following individuals will serve on committees. If you would like to serve on one of these committees and are not listed, please let us know. We’d love to have you!
Financial/Administrative: Debbie Neverve, John Lewis, LeighAnn McKay
Building & Grounds: Roger Ammons, Ben Ammons, LeighAnn McKay, Dennis Peden, and Harold Harrington
Outreach/Mission: Roger Ammons & Betsy Brown
Hospitality/Membership: Betsy Brown, John Lewis, Sissy Cooley, and Betty Ammons
Christian Education: Debbie NeverveWorship: Debbie Neverve, Roger Ammons
Nominating: John Lewis, Ben Ammons, Roger Ammons
Scholarship: John Lewis, Debbie Neverve, Elizabeth Cooley
175th Anniversary: Sissy Cooley, Betsy Brown, Beth Ammons, Betty Ammons (the church’s 175th anniversary will be next year!!)
Fund Raising: Roger Ammons, Betsy Brown
Women’s Circle of Friends:
The Women’s Circle of Friends is taking a winter hiatus and will start up again in April.
Share us on Facebook!
Share our Facebook Posts! We hear from members who no longer live in the area and from non-members how much our Facebook posts mean to them and keep them up with all we are doing and all we are sharing. It makes them feel a part of our congregation. Please continue to hit share or post activities and prayers on your own Facebook pages!
Areas of Focus for 2026:
The session has set three areas to focus on during this coming year: reaching our community through outreach projects and mission; taking care of our people through care and concern; and maintaining our building while making it more accessible.
Invite a friend to one of our special events or activities! You’ll both be glad you did!
Blood Drive:
Watch for information on our Blood Drive March 30! Make an appointment on line or sign up on the sheet in the narthex!
Soup Supper Fund Raiser:
Thanks to everyone for their help with the soup supper. The money we earned is going toward our building fund projects. At the end of Wednesday night that came to a little over $800.
Gospel Concert "Beating the Winter Blues":
Our free gospel concert Beating the Winter Blues was postponed from January because of the weather. It has been rescheduled for this month on Sunday February 22 at 6:00 PM. We will be featuring Kat’s Kool Kats, the same band we had last year, and they will be playing such favorites as I’ll Fly Away, Victory In Jesus, and He’s Got The Whole World In His Hands. Invite a friend and come join us for a good time.
Note from the Blessing Box:
One day as he was filling the Blessing Box, Roger Ammons found this note taped to the inside of the door: Hello, I just wanted to say thank you for the kind gifts and food that ya’ll have provided for me and my family lately. It is a true blessing to us. Tax 4th grade. God bless you.