■ Worship each Sunday at 10 a.m.
Outdoors when the weather permits;
live streaming on Facebook

■ Online worship available later on YouTube and the church website

I am so grateful for the love, devotion, and commitment that Jenni Cain, Don and Lynn Aspray, Cathy Rogers, Kim Miller, Mary McNair, Jan Taylor, Chris Rogers, and Jack Rogers all have of making music for Swift worship services.

They have practiced countless hours collectively during this Lenten season, yet, you’ll not hear any complaints from any of them. They do it for the love they have for God, for you the members and friends of Swift, and for the joy of bringing music to life that so many composers and arrangers put on paper in their love of serving God.

As I write this, Holy Week has begun, and I look ahead to our journey this week. I can honestly say that this is my favorite week in the church year to lead others in their preparations for bringing these holy days alive through music.

I always think of the difficult times in my own life (though they are nothing compared to what Christ experienced) and I’m humbled by the ways in which I was ministered to by music and the words and actions of others. The rich harmonies always stir the pain and sorrow of what Christ had to endure — for us. There is no greater love than that. I pray that you are touched by His deep and relentless love for you.

No matter what challenges life is giving you at this time, know this:

God is with you, Christ died so that you might live, and the Holy Spirit moves within and around you to offer you never-failing guidance through your toughest battles.

My prayer for you is that the power of music will remind you of your membership in the family of Christ and give you peace and strength during the days ahead. Just listen, my friends, to His story.

Our fellowship groups, Two or More Lunch and Butterfly Girls and Guys Night Out, are not currently meeting. Watch for updates on when we will meet again.

The Swift Church session met via Zoom on Monday, March 15. The meeting opened with prayer.

■ We received the financial report.

• • The driveway repairs were more than we had in our driveway fund. They encourage contributions to make up the $5,000 difference.
• • An in-house audit was conducted. Some recommendations were made on how to tighten our already good system.

■ Personnel — Yearly performance evaluations have been completed, with the exception of Pastor Jody Beth.

■ Asked the COVID-19 task force to meet and look over our church policy in light of decreased infections and mask mandates ending on April 5.

The meeting closed with prayer led by Pastor Jody Beth.

One Great Hour of Sharing
During the month of April, our mission again will focus on One Great Hour of Sharing.

In a world of disaster, hunger, and oppression, millions of people lack access to sustainable food sources, clean water, sanitation, education, and opportunity. Each gift to OGHS supports efforts to relieve hunger through the Presbyterian Hunger Program, promote development through the Presbyterian committee on the self-development of people, and assist in areas of disaster through Presbyterian Disaster Assistance.

At the meeting of presbytery on Feb. 20, the presbytery voted to encourage giving to those affected by winter storms through gifts to Presbyterian Disaster Assistance.

Please donate as your heart leads you for this worthwhile charity.

Food pantry
In March, our food pantry served 20 individuals which comprised 41 family members. The pantry will be open on April 14 and 28.

If you are interested in helping with the food pantry, please contact Kathy Menk, who has volunteered to serve as our director. Kathy’s contact information is 251-518-7966 or mkmenk9010@gmail.com.

‘How did you hear God speaking to you?’
April 15 – May 27 • 10 to 11:30 a.m.

The Thursday morning online Bible study group has finished the Lenten Bible study series. We are grateful to the Rev. Mike Brewer for his leadership. He shared his wisdom and his warmth and helped facilitate thought provoking biblically based conversations. We appreciate that he shared his time and talent with the Swift Church family.

We are going to continue with the format of focusing each Thursday on the previous Sunday’s Scripture and sermon as we did during the Lenten study. This time, we will be asking one another “How did you hear God speaking to you?” each week.

Because we have several participants who live too far away to attend in person, and because Swift offers two outstanding in-person Sunday school classes as group Bible study options, the Thursday morning group will continue as an online study using Zoom technology. Pastor Jody Beth and Philip will facilitate. New to Zoom? We can set up a “practice session” for you to learn the basics.

 Contact Pastor Jody Beth, 251-213-6625 for the Zoom links, a practice session and/or for more information.

— Pastor Jody Beth

Our class is saddened by the passing of Bob Sizemore. He kept discussions lively. He is missed by us all. Condolences to Betty.

Class meets at 9 a.m. in room 2 of the annex. All are welcome. Chapter by chapter, we are getting through the New Testament. We are learning that times today are not a lot different than they were in Paul’s day.

We would enjoy your joining us.

— Cheryl Jensen

“Snacks with Susan and Daryl” (well, just coffee for now) will begin a study on Moses April 11. The study from Adam Hamilton will take a broad look at Moses and the book of Exodus to learn about one of the most important Old Testament figures in our faith. The sessions are:

■ The Birth of Moses
■ Two Moments That Defined the Man
■ The Exodus
■ The Ten Commandments
■ Lessons from the Wilderness

Don’t forget … . Pass it on.

If you have not joined us before, you may be wondering what we do … so here is an overview. When we start a new study, we will order books for it for anyone who is interested (the book is definitely not required, some folks find it a helpful addition. Normally I try to get these for about $5 each to keep it affordable for everyone. Each week view a video in the series and then talk through the points the study has raised- everyone’s opinion and thoughts are welcome. If you just want to listen, that is OK, too. If you have been thinking about joining us, this is a great series to give it try.

We hope you’ll join us in the fellowship hall at 9 a.m.

— Susan and Daryl Pichoff

 Brett Cardwell | elder/children • Tracy Akins | elder/youth 

Sunday school classes for children and youth,
SWAG (Saved with Amazing Grace),
GphiG (Glori•fy•ing God), and Refuel will not meet until further notice.

Youth are meeting again

The youth are meeting again on the first and third Sundays of each month from 4 to 6 p.m. at the church. The next gathering will be April 18. All youth are welcome!

We may meet inside or we may meet outside. We may enjoy the fire pit or it may be too warm. But one thing is for sure: We are back and we will have fun. Join us!

Generosity describes the Christian’s unselfish willingness to give in order to make a positive difference for the purposes of Christ. Extravagant generosity describes practices of sharing and giving that exceed all expectations and extend to unexpected measures.

Thank you for your generous pledges and ongoing offerings. Your financial support will enable Swift Church ministry to plan for the coming year. Your support and commitment to our church is greatly appreciated.

Using your “smart phone” and this box you can connect to the church’s online giving page. You can set up for automatic donations of your tithes or one-time gifts to a number of funds benefiting ministries of Swift Church. Use this by either entering your credit/debit card information or your checking account information. Of course, this is a secure website.

You can also do the same thing by clicking a donation link on the church’s website.