It’s not too late to get involved with the Poor People’s Campaign’s 40 Days of Action in Topeka. Needs include people present at the rallies, volunteers for specific tasks on rally days, and those willing to participate in direct action. If you are interested and are not currently on the Kansas PPC mailing list, please email the church office to learn how to get on the Kansas PPC Mailing List. 

Upcoming dates/themes are as follows:
Week 3 (TUESDAY May 29)
The War Economy: Militarism and the Proliferation of Gun Violence
Week 4 (Monday, June 4)
The Right to Health and a Healthy Planet: Ecological Devastation and Health Care
Week 5 (Monday, June 11)
Everybody’s Got the Right To Live: Education, Living Wages, Jobs, Income, Housing
Week 6 (Monday, June 18)
A New and Unsettling Force: Confronting the Distorted Moral Narrative
Week 4 (June 3-9)
The Right to Health and a Healthy Planet: Ecological Devastation and Health Care

Week 5 (June 10-16)
Everybody’s Got the Right To Live: Education, Living Wages, Jobs, Income, Housing

Week 6 (June 17-23)
A New and Unsettling Force: Confronting the Distorted Moral Narrative

​Week 3 (May 27-June 2)
The War Economy: Militarism and the Proliferation of Gun Violence

​Week 2 (May 20-26)
Linking Systemic Racism and Poverty: Voting Rights, Immigration, Xenophobia, Islamophobia, and the Mistreatment of Indigenous Communities

​Week 1 (May 13-19)
Somebody’s Hurting Our People: Children, Women and People with Disabilities Living in Poverty

Photos by Rachel Shivers of Vibrant Life Photography. Used with permission. 

The Vitality and Outreach Committee invites you to join us for a Dinner Discussion with the Ministry of the Decorative Scissors on Friday, May 18 at 6pm. Come for a simple supper and great conversation with new and old friends. Members of the Ministry of the Decorative Scissors will join us to talk crafting!

​Our neighbors at First Lutheran Church are opening their kitchen and fellowship hall to us to allow us to continue serving our Second Helping Meals while our floors are under renovation.  We will be cooking and serving there on April 15th and 22nd.  In return, the Board of Missions is encouraging us to help them in their mission by bringing personal items to our church on Sunday, May 20; we will take them to the Lutheran Church to help them stock their Donation Closet, from which their guests can choose two personal items each week.  Since the First Lutheran Church serves an average of 60 people each week, we feel this would be an appropriate way to partner with them in mission to our local community.  Items of special need include packages of toilet paper, soap, feminine hygiene products, razors, and regular-sized containers of shaving cream, deodorant, and toothpaste.

Living Room Worship Night
Sunday, May 6
6:30 - 8:30 pm
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A casual evening of acoustic guitar, singing, prayer, and fellowship.
If you are hungry to deepen your connection to God and each other,
join us in the living room! Location: 205 Cedar Drive, Manhattan 66502

Summer in a college town often marks a change of pace, even for those of us who aren’t affiliated with the university. The town empties out a bit and it’s easier to park  in Aggieville, go for a stroll downtown, or simply rest in any of our beautiful natural areas near Manhattan. In the years that I’ve been at First Congregational, we’ve often focused on a communal spiritual practice each summer. In 2014, when I first arrived as your pastor, I spent the summer meeting with about 75 of you one-on-one. Together, we practiced the holy act of “holding space” as I was able to hear your stories and we started to get to know each other. In 2015, we had several social meet ups around town – going for walks, having drinks, playing at the playground. Again, we “held space” in community – laughing together and swapping stories. Last summer we focused our attention on Keeping Sabbath. Our boards and committees each took a month off and we found breathing space in our shared ministry. Additionally, I made an intentional shift in how I focused my own time, carving out more space for my own spiritual practices, big dreaming and pondering, Bible study, and more. My guess is that focus on making space for Sabbath will continue in the summer of 2018….and that the Holy Spirit is probably smiling about that.
 
This summer, the Deacons and I want to present two new options for your consideration. Both are very minimal and flexible time commitments. Both would be a blessing to you. Both would deepen your sense of connection with God. I hope you’ll consider participating in one of these spiritual practices with us this summer. If you have any questions, please do reach out!

​- Pastor Caela

Are you interested in learning to pray, deepening your faith, or connecting more intentionally with someone else at First Congregational? You are encouraged to sign up for a summer Prayer Partner. You and your partner will check in on a weekly basis in-person, via phone, or text. You can simply share prayer concerns with one another or spend time in prayer together. The Deacons will send tips as you begin your partnership so you won’t be confused. We will also host an optional kickoff event at 6pm on Wednesday, May 30 for participants.  Prayer Partnerships will begin June 1 and wrap up mid-August. Sign up here or contact the church office to sign up by May 21st. 

We would love to send someone from our congregation to pray with you or simply give a brief blessing at your workplace or home during the week. Beginning June 1 there will be an online sign up to reserve your time slot, or you can contact the church office. One of our pastors and/or a Deacon will visit you at the time and location you select to offer a blessing.

During the month of May we will be worshiping in alternate locations TWO weeks in a row. Do not come to 700 Poyntz on May 6th or 13th. You won't find us here. Look below for information about what we'll be up to on those Sundays. We will re-gather here on May 20th for Pentecost. 

MAY 6 - SHARED WORSHIP AT FIRST CHRISTIAN
​​Join us at First Christian Church (115 Courthouse Plaza) at 10:45am for a shared worship service featuring the Thundering Cats Big Band! Our pastors will lead worship together and we will all enjoy this special service of beautiful music. Communion will be shared and the table is open to all. Sunday School will still take place at First Congregational at 9:30am. Additionally, the Thundering Cats are hosting a special benefit concert that same afternoon at 2pm, also at First Christian Church. A free-will offering for ECM (Ecumenical Campus Ministry) will be received at the afternoon concert.​ | Facebook event

PLEASE NOTE: We will have Sunday School on May 6th in our regular location (700 Poyntz). Adults will finish up the We Sing Freedom! class and nursery care/Sunday School is also available for the kids. May 6th  is the final day of Sunday School before we take a break for the summer. ​

May 13 - WORSHIP IN THE PARK & BLESSING OF THE ANIMALS

Join us at Long's Park for our annual worship in the park and blessing of the animals. Please bring along your own chair if you've got one. During worship, we'll bless our pets. Childcare staff will be on hand to care for young kids who want to explore the playground or the rest of the park. After worship, stick around for a good ol' fashioned potluck. Bring a dish to share and your own plates/silverware. Drinks will be provided by our Board of Deacons. | Facebook event

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​May 20 - PENTECOST + CHRISTIAN ED RECOGNITION + FLOORING DEDICATION
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It's Pentecost! We celebrate the gift of the Holy Spirit in worship on this Sunday each year and you are encouraged to wear red, yellow, or orange to worship so we can make a flame together. This year, Pentecost is also Christian Education Recognition Sunday. We will celebrate and bless children, youth, and adults who have participated in or led education activities. After worship, we will dedicate our new flooring during Fellowship Hour. Don't miss it!

A HUGE thank you to our Board of Trustees and other volunteers who came Saturday morning and did prep work for the new flooring project, which begins this week. Here are some before photos so you can see the space. We hope to post more photos on our Facebook page during construction. Construction should be finished by the end of the month. 

Can you help us STEP FORWARD together? We are almost halfway to our goal of $40,000. Help us replace these almost-thirty-year old floors, which are used many times a week for community and congregational events. You can make a one-time gift (please note "Step Forward" in the special instructions line) or fill out a pledge card before the end of April. Pledges can be paid before the end of 2018.

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE STEP FORWARD CAMPAIGN

See more photos of the project on the main photo page

​For the past four years, the Greater Manhattan Community Foundation (GMCF) has sponsored a fundraiser for community nonprofit groups called Grow Green. The event takes place on Earth Day each year (April 20 this year). Thanks to a very generous member of the community, donations made on April 20 to the GMCF accounts for churches and other organizations receive a 50% match. For example, your donation to the First Congregational Church’s account at GMCF goes into the principal of an endowed fund held by GMCF, but the 50% match is immediately available to the church. Please be aware that your donation to Grow Green is an additional gift to the church and is unrelated to any pledge you may have made toward the church’s annual budget.

You can go to the Grow Green website to find out more. If you click on the “How It Works” tab on the webpage, you will see that there are some restrictions. For example, the 50% match applies only to donations from $25 to $1000, and there are some additional rules that apply to donations made to two or more organizations through Grow Green.

As in previous years, the 50% match funds will go into the church’s annual budget in the budget line labeled “fundraising.” The endowed accounts at GMCF also support the church budget, in that a return of 4% annually is made available to the church for immediate use. These returns are considered part of the annual contribution of the investments to the church budget.

Please consider a gift to the church through the Grow Green event on April 20. You can do it in person at the Colony Square atrium or remotely from your computer. If you do it in person, your name goes into a hat for a drawing each hour for a $100 door prize that goes to your chosen organization. The church has benefitted from the door prize in each of the past two years.