Lessons in Discipleship
October 10-24
As progressive Christians, cross language makes us a bit squeemish. However, burdens are a reality of life. In fact, Jesus taught that sometimes discipleship requires taking up a cross.
For three Sundays, we will eavesdrop on Jesus’ conversations with the first disciples to learn, experience, and imagine what discipleship might look like for us today. Join us in person or online at 10:30. Find the Order of Worship here.
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Sunday afternoon, October 10, at 1:30pm, we will gather to remember and celebrate the life of Jim Lester. As Jim was an avid sports fan, those attending are urged to don their favorite sports shirts, hats, etc., in his
memory.
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Thank You to Our Cleaning Crew!
We had a great time and got a lot of work done. The windows and fountain garden have never looked better. Thanks for all who joined us for some work, pizza, and fellowship!
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September is the beginning of our justice ministry year and we kick it off with our listening process. The pandemic will prevent us from being together in each other's homes; we will be meeting virtually and at the church.
These meetings are an opportunity for us to hear one another's stories and recommit ourselves to bringing forth these stories to the attention of our public officials.
Our final meeting will be:
October 9 at 10:00 AM in person
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We often think of the Bible as something that we have to be taught by an expert, information that must somehow be conveyed and explained.
While there are parts of scripture that are difficult to understand as well as parts that we might find troublesome, scripture can also be a guide and practice to our spiritual life. You don’t need to know Hebrew or Greek or even have a commentary to partake of the wisdom of sacred text. Sure, those things can be helpful, but there are practices we can engage that can help us hear the voice of the Still-Speaking
God in the words of scripture. There are ways we can allow scripture to read us.
Join us fo this mini-workshop where we will discuss some practices such as lectio divina and scripture journaling that will help us find our way into the Bible from wherever we might be.
We will meet via Zoom at 7:30 on October 20th. You can join us by clicking here.
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For the Advent, we are going to gift one another and the community a book of daily readings for the season. For each day of Advent we will have a brief, paragraph or two, entry. It can be something based on the scripture readings
for the day, a reflection on what the season means to you, or other inspirational thought. We will have a sign-up list. We are asking for commitments by October 24th and all entries to be turned in by November 7th. We will have a couple of workshops during this time to help anyone that might be interested in participating. Be watching for more information!
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Beginning Thursday, September 30, at 6:00 PM, we will be engaging a twelve-week study of the enneagram with master enneagram teacher, Suzanne Stabile. This particular class is a great way to discover for yourself what your enneagram number is.
There will be a 6 person minimum to hold the class. If there are not enough that want to participate at this time, we will postpone it until after the first of the year. If you have already gone through this class, you might consider experiencing it again as a review, or with a spouse or partner. This will be a hybrid class. We will meet in person in the church parlor and by Zoom. If you
need the book, the cost is $25.00
The enneagram is an ancient, newly discovered tool that is beneficial for people in the personal, interpersonal and social spheres of human existence. It is extraordinarily useful because it works. Each of us has life experience that has given us a degree of self-knowledge; however there is always a deepening clarity we discover through our Enneagram type. The awareness that comes is like a light shining in
one’s closet. If you would like to participate, please see Pastor Jason.
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Library of Spiritual Practices
Over on our website we have started a "Library of Spiritual Practices," activities to engage that creates space for the work of God in our lives.
We have added an entry on centering prayer to our "Library of Spiritual Practice." Centering prayer is a central contemplative practice that many have found meaningful.
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Carolyn Ludwig, our treasurer for the past four years, will be retiring from the position at the end of this year. This volunteer officer position is well-supported by our trustees and bookkeeping service. If you would be willing
serve in this position, please contact Pastor Jason.
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- Gary Sitler
- Mark Stanford
- Harvey Littlefield
- Phil & Nancy Johnson
- Ruth Merchant
- Bob Davis
- Barbara Derryberry's grandson, Sam Limauro
- Nancy Lydon
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Thursday Morning Chat & Fellowship
Join us on Thursday mornings at 10:00 for virtual chat and fellowship in our “virtual parlor.”
You can join us by clicking here. The password, if you need it, is fcclw. If you join us by computer, clicking the link will download the necessary software and take you right into the “parlor.” If you are joining on your smart phone or pad, you will need to download the Zoom app from the Apple App Store or Google Play. You can also call 646-558-8656 and enter Meeting ID: 718 419 400 and then Passcode: 839769.
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As another way of connecting with our congregation and our community, we have started a YouTube channel. Here, you can watch (and share) sermon and teaching videos as well as videos from our life together.
Go to our channel, subscribe to it, and share it with others. When we get to 100
subscribers, it unlocks some additional features we can use.
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Facebook
First, go to our page and "Like" us. However, just liking us does not mean that you will see everything we post. Each of our Facebook posts only goes to about 2% of the people who like our page. To make sure you see everything, after you like us, go to the pull-down menu on the "Like" button and click
"Get Notifications." This way everything that we post will show up on your own Facebook wall. If you are on Facebook, you can keep up with what is happening "between Sundays" on our Facebook page.
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As much as we love gathering together on Sunday mornings, there are times when we are out of town or otherwise unable to be there in person.
You can now watch our worship service live on Facebook right on your computer, tablet, or smart phone. At 10:30 on Sunday just head over to our Facebook page and join us!
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Thank you for your consistency and your generosity in your giving during our current unique and challenging circumstances.
Have you explored the opportunity of electronic giving? You can choose to have a set amount taken from your bank account on a regular basis or you can make a one (or more) time gift by checking account or credit card on our website. Your regular electronic giving means that your gift is available for ministry even when you are away (or forgot your checkbook!). Thank you for your continued
support of the ministry of First Congregational Church!
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