First Congregational Church
First Congregational Church
Message from our Executive Board
As I hope you have heard, our Executive Committee made the difficult decision to pause our worship beginning this Sunday, March 15. We are so thankful for leaders who face such decisions prayerfully, thoughtfully and faithfully, especially when such decisions are difficult. One of the things we discussed last night was how vital community is right now.
What will community and worship look like if we are not meeting in person?
· -- Our deacons and Thandiwe are available for pastoral care, prayer and conversation any time. Please reach out to them.
· -- Videos and manuscripts of my sermons will be emailed to you by Sunday morning at 10:00 and they will be on our Facebook page and website. If you need/want these manuscripts mailed to your home, please contact the church office.
· -- Join a Sunday morning Zoom Meeting call at 10:00 am. We will share joys and concerns, a time of prayer and communion. All are invited to participate.
Sunday Worship Gathering by Zoom (Computer & Phone)
Time: Mar 29, 2020 10:00 AM Mountain Time (US and Canada)
Every week on Sunday at 10:00 am
To Join Zoom Meeting using your Telephone:
Dial 312-626-6799
If that number is busy, you can try one of these other access numbers:
301-715-8592
253-215-8782
646-558-8656
Enter the meeting id followed by the pound: 966 390 616 #
You will be asked to enter your user number or press pound. Simply press #
To Join Zoom Meeting using your computer or smartphone
click on this link: https://zoom.us/j/966390616
Then click “Join Meeting”
Meeting ID: 966 390 616
Sunday Worship Gathering on Facebook Live
You DO NOT need a facebook account to watch our worship on Facebook Live
Click on this link: https://www.facebook.com/LovelandUCC/
When asked if you want to sign in simply click “Not Now” and you should be taken directly to the church’s facebook page with the livestream going.
· -- Join a Thursday evening conference call at 7:00 pm. We will share joys, concerns, and a time of prayer. Call-in numbers are the same as for Sunday.
· -- Reach out to one another, your family, neighbors and friends. Telephone calls and good old-fashioned snail mail are particularly powerful forms of communication right now.
· -- Check your email and the church’s Facebook page for prayers, reflections and updated resources about COVID-19 and recommendations for our wider communities.
· -- Don’t have Facebook or email? Our church officers will be working to implement a phone tree system to keep everyone connected.
· -- Please mail Financial gifts to the church to support our ongoing ministries. Our Trustees are working to enable giving through our website. We realize that many of us have been impacted financially by the coronavirus and that contractors and those working in certain fields face uncertainty about income in the weeks to come. Please continue to give to our church at whatever level you can so that we can continue to minister to and support those in our community in need of care and assistance.
Thank you for being patient as we use unfamiliar technology and learn as we go.
You can read a Letter from our Pastor here.
March 24, 2019, “Change Your Hearts and Lives”, Rev. Thandiwe Dale-Ferguson
Luke 13:1-9, Isaiah 55: 1-3, 6-9
It seems appropriate this morning, with my mother here, to tell you one of her stories. This particular story comes out of her book, “The Learning Spirit” -- the book is on the table in the narthex with some other books on spirituality and Christian practice. My mom is an amazing story-teller, so I’ve done very little to change the story. Come with me now, to rural South Africa where my parents serve as ministers.
The rains have finally stopped, and the South African sun shines brilliantly. Uprooted trees lie across our road. Leaves torn from their stems litter the ground. What an irony that in the midst of this destruction we have a service of thanksgiving.
I greet the people at the church door -- Mrs Shandu who lost her bedroom in the flood, Mrs Ngema who lost her kitchen, Mr. Mkwanazi who lost everything but the clothes and the blanket he wears today. Twenty-five of us gather to give thanks to God that the torrential rains have passed and that everyone in our community is safe. We gather to receive emergency relief money that has come from the church to supplement the insufficient government relief funds.
March 17, 2019, “Let Me Hear”, Rev. Thandiwe Dale-Ferguson
Psalm 85: 8-13
Pray with me. Holy God, give us the listening ear. The eye that is willing to see. Open our hearts to your Spirit and your message of peace. And now, may the words of my mouth and the thoughts of all of our hearts be acceptable to you, our rock and our redeemer. Amen.
Let me tell you a story about a writer, Charles Swindoll, who found himself overwhelmed with too many commitments in too few days. Perhaps you know the feeling -- you can’t help but be tense. There is not enough time in the day to get everything done. And with a family, Swindoll was married and had children, it is all too easy to snap at the people you love the best, to rush through meals, to feel irritated by each unexpected interruption.
March 10, 2019, “Open the Eyes of My Heart”, Rev. Thandiwe Dale-Ferguson
Luke 4:1-13, Matthew 6:19-2
A couple of years ago, the deacons at a church I served decided to read Marie Kondo’s best-selling book: “The Life-Changing Art of Tidying Up.” It is a small tidy book with tidy ideas about tidying up. I enjoyed our time reading the book and yes, I followed Marie Kondo’s advice and cleared out some of my things, though I must confess I did not follow her method to a T and kept some items that do not give me joy, which is the criteria she gives for keeping things -- they must give you joy. I must also confess that I still use her method of folding clothing. Instead of folding clothes flat, you fold them into a little rectangle that will stand up in your drawers so that you can see all of your t-shirts or pajamas or pants all at once.
Previous sermons
March 3, 2019 - Luke 9:28-43, God’s Light Revealed
February 24, 2019 - Psalm 37:1-7a, Luke 6:27-36, Love Your Enemy
February 17, 2019 - Luke 6:17-26, Like a Tree Planted by the Water
February 10, 2019 - Luke 5_1-11, Launching Out to the Deep
February 3, 2019 - 1 Corinthians 13, Love Is
January 27, 2019 - 1 Corinthians 12 Many Members, One Body
January 20, 2019 - 1 Corinthians 12_1-11
January 13, 2019 - Baptism of Jesus
January 6, 2019 - Star Gifts
December 24, 2018 - Christmas Eve Reflection Ready or Not
December 23, 2018 - Sermon Living Out of Love
December 9, 2018 - Preparing God’s Way of Peace
December 2, 2018 - The Light of Hope
November 25, 2018 - Look, Consider, Strive
May 27, 2018 - Mysterious Encounter
April 22, 2018 - Love in Deed
April 8, 2018 - Hope Renewed
March 4, 2018 - Living in Covenant: The Way to Freedom
February 18, 2018 - Living in Covenant: The Earth