From the Pastor… (Page 5)
December News
First Church Family: I pray that you are experiencing a blessed Advent. One of the things I look most forward to during this season is holiday music. And on Sunday, December 11, our Chancel Choir will present its 2022 Christmas offering: Festival of Christmas. Please be there for that presentation, and invite friends and family to join you. One of the Advent traditions of members of our local Latino community is the experience of Las Posadas. That term is Spanish…
Thanksgiving
First Church Family: It is the day before Thanksgiving, and I have to tell you that my mornings are busy. I rise early and get started on my day – with chores, emails and texts, planning for worship, sermon preparation, and much more. This morning, I took time to pause to remember the things for which I’m thankful. I finally had to make myself stop, because the task proved to be much lengthier than I had imagined. There was the…
Bless This meal
First Church Family: I pray that you are doing well and staying warm after a few cold, wet days. It’s a perfect occasion for a hot bowl of homemade soup, don’t you think? We have a big weekend ahead of us at First Church, as we feed 150 deserving, impoverished families through our Bless this Meal Thanksgiving project. Thank you for your support of that ministry. Through it we are making a difference in our community, sharing the love of Jesus. We could…
All Saints’ Sunday
First Church Family, We have moved over into November, the month which begins our most celebrated holiday season. And the month begins with All Saints’ Day. I’ve always thought it interesting that All Saints’ Day immediately follows our observance of Halloween. And truly, there is reason for it. Halloween is a celebration observed on the eve of the Western Christian feast of All Hallows’ Day (also All Saints’ Day.) Actually, in the church there is a three-day period named:…
November News
First Church Family: What a year it’s been! The way we have reached out to serve our community and world in 2022 has been astonishing! We raised more than $20,000 dollars last December and January that enabled us to provide fresh water for people who had none, digging and building two wells in Guatemala. This spring we raised more than $25,000 that is enabling us to build a Habitat for Humanity house for a family without a roof…
Not a Fan
First Church Family, I’m sitting in a coffee shop in Green Bay, Wisconsin… and it’s snowing outside! I’ve been with my son, Christopher, for a long weekend; and we’ve had a wonderful time together! Like many of you, I’m a huge sports fan. This coming Sunday, we will begin exploring that and about how it translates into thinking about our faith. Very few people in the entire world are not fans of Jesus. How could you not be a fan?…
God Is Good
First Church Family: I pray that you are enjoying fall! I had my first fire in my outside fire pit last night. God is good, all the time! What wonderful in-person worship we experienced on Sunday, and we had good numbers online! There was a great spirit about our place! And there were so many children at the 11:00am children’s sermon, and in the nursery—an answer to prayer and something to build upon. Continue to pray with me about the future of…
October News
First Church Family, I write this on the first day of Autumn, the most glorious season of the year here in Lenoir (in my opinion). We’ve just completed a busy summer, and have already jumped into our fall programming. We had quite a celebration Sunday, September 18. Many thanks to those who provided us with a scrumptious BBQ meal and desserts on “Back to Church Sunday,” and also to those who cleaned, refurbished, and updated our congregation’s beautiful…
Fear Not
First Church Family, We had our first really cool morning this morning, and it brought a smile to my face and warmth to my heart! And my heart needed warming, as perhaps does yours. I write that because we have just remembered the 9/11 attack on our country twenty-one years ago. Sometimes we try to forget tragic, unpleasant things. I know I do. But, this past Sunday, during the children’s sermon, as I was talking to our little ones about…
September News
First Church Family, I certainly love September, but wow is it busy! Please notice everything in this issue of the DOME. Much important information is included. Be sure to file it away and/or paste it to the front of your refrigerator. In worship, during the first half of September, we will continue to explore the faith of Heroes of the Bible, with Moses, David, and Jonathan as our focus. Our official Back-to-Church Sunday will be September 18 (as it will…
Regular Worship Schedule
First Church Family, I pray that this weekly email newsletter finds you keenly aware of God’s blessings. That is not always the thing we think about first when waking, but when that is my focus, it certainly makes my day more fulfilling. What a week we just finished, after spending much time with 33 children and a dozen youth during Vacation Bible School! Thanks goes to everyone who had a part to play in that wonderful experience, including a number of adult…
August News
First Church Family, There are several things that happen that make me realize summer is moving to its end. One is that I notice a yellow jacket’s nest on my property. That happened Thursday, and thank goodness, this year I saw the nest and took care of it before I ran over it with a weed eater (which is usually what happens.) Another reminder that summer’s end approaches is the fact that anyone who grows tomatoes, okra, or…