Join us  

sunday, January 17, 2020-10 A.m.

Our Sunday morning worship service is scheduled to be viewed online with Zoom, Facebook Live and YouTube.  


Preparing for Worship

“Wherever two or more are gathered in my name,” Jesus said, “there am I in the midst of them.” Whether you’re gathered around the breakfast table with your family, sitting in your favorite recliner, or taking a walk outside, we assemble Jesus’ name bearing witness to the Church’s identity and mission as Christ’s body in the world.


Today we celebrate the Baptism of Christ. The first Sunday after the Epiphany is all about beginnings. In Genesis we read from the creation poem. In the beginning, a wind from God swept over the waters, the formless void, and God called forth light. Wind, in Hebrew, is the same word as spirit and breath: ruach. God saw that it was good, and separated the light from the darkness, and the first day was created. In Mark’s gospel, we read of the beginning of Christ’s ministry—which starts with his baptism by John. It is a defining moment for creation, and for us, as the heavens are torn open and the Holy Spirit, the wind from Genesis, enters into Jesus. Jesus is infused with the Spirit from God. A new reality has come into the world, transforming all things, including the seen (the heavens and a dove) and the unseen (a voice). Through Jesus’ baptism, the Church is born and his faith washes over Earth through the baptized. By his baptism in the waters of the earth, the faith of Jesus made all creation sacred. We remember baptism as a sign of our “original name” (Thomas Merton) in the midst of challenging experiences that fill us with fear and doubt. Baptism reminds us that if God is for us, who can be against us?

    

Please click on the image to the left, for your copy of the January 17 bulletin.

Join Zoom Meeting

https://zoom.us/j/551983428?pwd=UjQrTjZEendEWEpBSWtlQW9rNWxYdz09

Meeting ID: 551 983 428

Password: 226217

If you do not wish to participate with video on Zoom, you can call in using the following number:

Dial: 13126266799,,

Enter Meeting ID: #551983428


Here are some things you need to know for the week of January 17, 2021:

  • The church office will be open Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday from 8 a.m. until 1 p.m. That said, you may call or email at any time, because I’ll be checking for messages regularly. Someone will respond as soon as possible.
  • Tuesday, January 12, Tea at 2 p.m. on ZOOM. Join Zoom Meeting https://zoom.us/j/667372055?pwd=U2l6RUp1ODFjQXc3N0ZvSGx2UEtvUT09. Meeting ID: 667 372 055 Password: 094684Call: 1-312-626-6799, enter Meeting ID: #667372055. 
  • If you need a new book of offering envelopes, let me know. They are available to pick up during office hours, or we are happy to mail to you, if you prefer.
  • For those of you who counted your Advent Blessings, please remember to mail or drop off your offerings to the church office no later than, Friday, January 15. Thank you!
  • Adam will be starting a new book study, What is the Bible? by Rob Bell, when Kirk Night Resumes Wednesday, January 27. Books are available in the church office for $10.

SUNDAY MORNINGS

We welcome one and all to worship God with us on Sunday morning.  Come as you are!  As Presbyterians we believe that in worship, the people of God acknowledge God present in the world and in our lives.  Worship is the offering of our lives back to God in response to God's grace, which also equips us for God's service in the world.


We worship at 10:00 a.m. pm Sunday mornings.  We offer coffee and donuts before worship beginning at 9:15a.m.


Children are welcome at our church and celebrated in our worship service. We do provide childcare but encourage parents to include their little ones in worship. From the youngest to the wisest in the congregation, all are needed to make up the body of Christ! 

What can you expect?

As Presbyterians, our worship service praises and glorifies God through the fullness of music, prayers, scripture, and the preached Word. The talented Chancel Choir lifts its unified voice to God in anthems as the congregation joins them, together singing both time-honored and modern hymns. The sacrament of Communion is celebrated on the first Sunday of every month. 


Children's activity worship bags are available outside our main sanctuary doors. The bags include fun and educational Bible-based activities for kids to do while they participate in the worship services.


When the worship hour ends at 11:00 a.m., our fellowship continues in the church parlor. Newcomers are especially welcomed to be part of our worship and our fellowship. We hope to see you in church this Sunday!





SErmons


Faith is meant to be spoken, and sermons are for the speaking of it, in part. There are myriad other ways to speak our faith, too. Where sermons are concerned, they are meant to be heard and experienced, and not only read. Sermons always have a context — the context being the shared life of a congregation, the pastoral relationships that have developed, and the overall life of the city in which the church dwells. Thus, we write sermons to be preached and heard, and not read, for it is when they are preached and heard that they (hopefully) come alive. When reading a sermon, one misses inflections, gestures, voice modulations, and so much more that make a sermon a sermon.


That said, we know that we are among those who have been shaped by reading sermons, thus we offer these to you. Perhaps you were not (or generally are not) able to be with us in worship; perhaps you appreciate the discipline of study and review; perhaps you want to share a thought with another. In any case, you are welcome to these our humble expositions for what we - your pastor/preacher - believe God to be saying and singing in our midst.


See below for our most recent sermon!

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