This year we have TWO options for free devotionals to help guide your Lenten journey.
Devotional Booklets (hard copy or digital)
1) Our Lenten Devotional Booklets from A Sanctified Art are available for pick-up beginning Feb. 11. You can pick up in the church lobby or in the plastic box outside the office doors. If you prefer a web-based version or would like a hard copy placed in the U.S. mail, please contact the church office. (This is the devotional that the Adult Sunday School class will use to guide their conversations throughout Lent.)
About the devotional: "Beginning with the First Sunday in Lent, this weekly devotional follows the scriptures of our Wandering Heart series through the Second Sunday of Easter. Each week offers commentary, poetry, visual art, hymns, and reflection prompts. We encourage you to walk through these weekly readings at your own pace throughout the season, following the rhythm that works best for you. The devotional features biblical commentary by our guest writers, Dr. Terence Lester and Dr. Karoline M. Lewis, and art and reflections by our guest artists, Rev. Nicolette Peñaranda and Rev. T. Denise Anderson.” (from sanctifiedart.com) Daily Devotional Cards (via e-mail)
2) For those who prefer a daily devotional, we are pleased to offer Daily Devotional cards via email. Receive a daily invitation to a Centering Practice, Reflection Question, and Prayer. These cards were also created by A Sanctified Art and follow our Wandering Heart theme. If you’d like to receive one each day in your inbox, please email devos@uccmanhattan.org and we’ll get you added to the list.
Use one or both of these great resources to guide your spiritual journey this Lent. And....don't forget about the Spotify playlist for when you need some music.
Join us on Sunday, Nov. 12th immediately after worship for our November Congregational Meeting. The meeting will be held in the sanctuary and you can attend remotely via Zoom by staying in the same Zoom room that we use for worship (http://www.uccmanhattan.org/online). All are welcome to attend and members will also be invited to vote. We will be previewing the 2024 budget and approving the slate of officers for 2024.
Hard copies of the draft budget and slate of officers will be available in the church building. If you need a digital copy, please contact the church office so we can email you a link. This week marks the beginning of the fall semester at First Congregational and we can't wait to see you!
Join us during worship for the Blessing of the Backpacks and Educators + hear from our youth about what they learned on their summer service learning trip. And....the choir is back! Plus...it's time for Sunday School for all ages to kick off again! 🎉 Kids ages 3 through 5th grade are invited to join us in the church building for Sunday School at 9:30 a.m. 💡 Adults also have Sunday School at 9:30 a.m. and we meet in-person or via Zoom for this class. This class begins with a two week series on praying the Psalms. We will study some of them and then write our own prayer based on the Psalm we choose. This will be a guided activity. Come! Be like David and write a Psalm! 🍩 Youth in grades 6-12 are typically meeting twice a month - once for donuts and conversation and once for Confirmation Class. This Sunday is our first Confirmation Class at 9:30 a.m. If you're not receiving regular updates from Pastor Caela about youth events, please let us know.
This summer we have THREE special worship series at First Congregational. Learn all about them here! Compassion Camp - for all ages!As we look around the world, our deep need for compassion becomes increasingly evident with each passing day, perhaps now more than ever. Join us on Sunday mornings this summer for Compassion Camp. People of all ages are invited to cultivate compassion for each other, ourselves, and the world! During Compassion Camp we will explore what all living things need to live—shelter, food, water, and air —and how we can have compassion for the living earth, especially in our local ecosystems. Through awareness, gratitude, wonderment, reciprocity, and kinship, we will consider how to become co-sustainers and participants in the work of God’s creation. Sundays at 10:45 a.m. in-person and via Zoom: 🏠 June 18 - every living thing needs shelter 🍎 July 2 - every living thing needs food 💦 July 23 - every living thing needs water 💨 August 13 - every living thing needs air AND....don't forget to order your First Congregational UCC t-shirt, inspired by Compassion Camp here by June 25th. Speak with the Earth.......and it will teach you. "I don't think it is enough appreciated how much an outdoor book the Bible is," wrote Wendell Berry. Join us this summer for a sermon series inspired by Speak with the Earth and it Will Teach You by UCC pastor, Rev. Daniel Cooperrider. This book takes us on a journey through rivers, trees, mountains, and clouds to read God's "first testament" - nature. Join us Sundays at 10:45 a.m. in person or via Zoom for this series. 🌊 June 4 - rivers 🌳 June 25 - trees 🏞 July 16 - mountains ☁️ July 30 - clouds Shared Worship with Ecumenical FriendsThis summer we'll be sharing 3 worship services with our friends from Manhattan Mennonite Church and the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship (UUFM). Worship will be available via Zoom and at in-person at the locations below: June 11 - shared worship at Manhattan Mennonite Church (1000 Fremont) July 9 - shared worship at First Congregational August 6 - shared worship at UUFM (481 Zeandale Rd.) For those gathering on Zoom, we'll provide the Zoom link the day-of at uccmanhattan.org/online - just like we normally do. First of all, thank you to the over 20 volunteers who have already joined our new Sunday Helper Teams! With your generosity, we have covered Sunday morning volunteer needs for most of 2023!
But wait, are you someone who would also like to be involved? Wonderful! Help us "bear each other burdens and share each other's joy" by joining a Sunday Helper team. Choose your preferred Sunday and duties - serving as greeter, hosting fellowship and/or reading scripture. Then you will be assigned a monthly Sunday (e.g. first Sunday of month) and your preferred duty. You and other volunteers on your team will cover duties for that Sunday each month. You can switch out dates with your team when you are traveling, ill, etc. We also have a floater team to help cover last minute openings. Get involved by completing this brief Sunday Helpers form. Support and training is provided as needed. If you have children or youth in your family, they are especially welcome to be involved! The Deacons: Julie, Kerri, Mechelle and Dona Have you taken a moment to look at the Chrismon Tree in Pioneer Hall? The tree is decorated each year with ornaments called Chrismons that were created by Women’s Fellowship in 1996. The idea of a Chrismon tree originated in 1957 at Ascension Lutheran Church in Danville. Virginia. In fact. Ascension Lutheran Church holds the copyright on the word “Chrismon.” The word is a combination of the words “Christ” and “monogram.” Thus, a Chrismon is a “monogram of Christ." The ornaments use only the colors of white a gold and each is a Christian symbol.
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