A Sign to Help Show the Way—To “Peace”

by Cheryl Hodges

On a rolling hillside overlooking one of the Valley’s busy thoroughfares—Cloverdale Road—there sits an inviting little church that was literally built by the hands of its members, bricks, mortar and all, about five years ago.  The building replaces the trailer that for many years the surrounding community knew as Peace Presbyterian Church.

Therein lies a bit of a dilemma; according to Leisha Cook,  a member at Peace, people aren’t quite used to the idea that there is an updated new building housing the Peace congregation.

Cook, who is also Chair of the Fellowship Committee, explains that “If you say ‘Peace Presbyterian Church,’ people often look at you quizzically for a second and then they say, ‘are you the ones  that were in the temporary building for a while?”

After much thought and prayer, Cook and her fellow Peace Church members are looking to God for a sign – a literal one that is. She said that “several years ago the congregation decided we really need a sign to identify where we are and to let the community know what we are doing.”

Making the sign a reality is proving to be a challenge, but it has also gotten the group thinking more creatively along the way. Cook ticks off various fundraising efforts: “We applied for grants; we have a change jar where folks are asked to dump their loose change … we’ve talked about car washes,” but their sign fund still has a long way to go. In an epiphany moment, Cook recently sent out an “email to all the Presbyterian women across the United States that I know asking them to keep us in their prayers” regarding the effort to raise funds for the sign.

She relays that, “there must have been an angel sitting on my shoulder whispering in my ear to send out that message because I received an email back” from nationally acclaimed author and speaker Donna Tyson, saying “I’ll be glad to do a program for you guys and all the proceeds (donations) can go toward the sign fund.”

Tyson will be at Peace Presbyterian on Saturday April 2, at 10 a.m., which Cook is still finding hard to believe. Probably not coincidentally, Cook attended a women’s conference a couple years ago when she was going through a difficult time and loved hearing Tyson, who was one of the speakers.

Cook says, “I can honestly say many of the things that she said still resonate with me today. Donna has been where many of us have been so she isn’t just trying to sell us a bag with some stuff and fluff in it to make us feel good for the moment. She’ll give you her phone number and really mean it when she says ‘call me.’”

Tyson’s Facebook page says, “I am very blessed! I love this chapter of my Life! I know who I am and why I am here on earth. What a gift!” Tyson’s unbridled enthusiasm combined with wit and wisdom is what Cook is hoping many will sign up to hear, and be changed by.

Cook also hopes the event will bring more visibility to Peace Church, whose core congregation ranges in age from five to Nadine Abbott, a charter member who is now 95 years old. The “come as you are” church has  the building and the “mission heart”  and is now focusing on getting the word out to the community.

It may be a little while until the church’s sign fund reaches its goal, but the encouragement along the way is making the sign one worth waiting for. Besides, as Cook will readily tell you, it’s not really about the sign after all, but what the sign will be pointing to.

For information about the program and to register, contact Leisha Cook at 366-8117. A box lunch from Lucky Dog Deli will be provided by reservation for $7.00 and Donations to the Church Sign Fund are appreciated!  Donna Tyson will be available to sign copies of her book The Red Bow.Visit drtyson.com and peacechurchhome.org for more information on these ministries.