The Church Mouse Monthly newsletter for the members & friends of Community Congregational Church of Elburn The Pastor’s Page…. The Pastor’s Page…. The Pastor’s Page…. The Pastor’s Page…. As I write, it’s raining or it’s about to rain or it looks like rain outside – again. What do you do when warm weather comes and it isn’t warm weather? The past twelve months of weather in these parts have been somewhat erratic, even by Chicago standards. I no- tice, however, that most of us go about our ‘spring’ business just the same, that is, we’re opening our house windows, we’re planting gardens and caring for lawns, we’re dressed appropriately for the season, if not for the weather. And we wait for the warmth of daily sun. When it doesn’t come on a particu- lar day, I notice that we do not stop planting our gardens, opening our windows or dressing lightly. We just wait for the sun another day. This is because we have full expectation that spring will come … eventually. We’ve experienced enough weather-year cycles that, while there is some variation, even some dramatic variation in a given year, we can depend that each of the four seasons will come around in time. Given the circumstances that many folks are facing these days on the job front, on the home (or lack of) front, on the family front, on the health front, it may be that we need to fervently apply this principle to our faith life. It appears that many are in a long season of difficulty, for many reasons. But prior life experiences can teach us that while things that we want or need may not happen in desired time, or in predicted time, or even in desired fashion or order, they do come around eventually. There is an internal, mostly unseen divine weaving that goes on. Maybe this is the season when there are many snags in the pattern and God is busy at work weaving them into the whole, for the future. We Christians are encouraged to believe as strongly in the inevitability of the Son’s appearance to refresh, restore and lift up all the folks in difficult circumstances, as we believe that, in God’s time, daily sun will be the order of the day. It will make our praying more purposeful. Not to mention our days more hopeful. So, blessed spring! Pastor Michelle O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is Your name in all the earth! You have set Your glory above the heavens. From the lips of children and infants You have ordained praise because of Your enemies, to silence the foe and the avenger. When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have set in place, what is man that You are mindful of him, the son of man that You care for him? You made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory and honor. You made him ruler over the works of Your hands; You put everything under his feet: all flocks and herds, and the beasts of the field, the birds of the air, and the fish of the sea, all that swim the paths of the seas. O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is Your name in all the earth! ~ Psalm 8 May 2011 Church Office Hours: Monday through Friday 9:00 am to 1:00 pm. Phone: (630) 365-6544 [email protected]INTERIM PASTOR Rev. Michelle Prentice-Leslie MODERATOR Sharon Lackey VICE-MODERATOR Mary Royer TREASURER Barb Holloman FINANCIAL SECRETARY Cindy Doede CHURCH CLERK Karen Baston MINISTRY ASSISTANT Linda Miller +++ Beginning June 1, please use our street address when corresponding with the church: 100 E. Shannon Street Elburn, IL 60119 The Post Office will forward mail to us for about 18 months. +++ Our website is constantly being updated. Check it out! www.ccc-elburn.org
Transcript
The Church Mouse Monthly newsletter for the members & friends of Community Congregational Church of Elburn
The Pastor’s Page….The Pastor’s Page….The Pastor’s Page….The Pastor’s Page…. As I write, it’s raining or it’s about to rain or it looks like rain outside – again. What do you do when warm weather comes and it isn’t warm weather? The past twelve months of weather in these parts have been somewhat erratic, even by Chicago standards. I no-tice, however, that most of us go about our ‘spring’ business just the same, that is, we’re opening our house windows, we’re planting gardens and caring for lawns, we’re dressed appropriately for the season, if not for the weather.
And we wait for the warmth of daily sun. When it doesn’t come on a particu-lar day, I notice that we do not stop planting our gardens, opening our windows or dressing lightly. We just wait for the sun another day.
This is because we have full expectation that spring will come … eventually. We’ve experienced enough weather-year cycles that, while there is some variation, even some dramatic variation in a given year, we can depend that each of the four seasons will come around in time.
Given the circumstances that many folks are facing these days on the job front, on the home (or lack of) front, on the family front, on the health front, it may be that we need to fervently apply this principle to our faith life. It appears that many are in a long season of difficulty, for many reasons. But prior life experiences can teach us that while things that we want or need may not happen in desired time, or in predicted time, or even in desired fashion or order, they do come around eventually. There is an internal, mostly unseen divine weaving that goes on. Maybe this is the season when there are many snags in the pattern and God is busy at work weaving them into the whole, for the future.
We Christians are encouraged to believe as strongly in the inevitability of the Son’s appearance to refresh, restore and lift up all the folks in difficult circumstances, as we believe that, in God’s time, daily sun will be the order of the day. It will make our praying more purposeful. Not to mention our days more hopeful.
So, blessed spring!
Pastor Michelle
O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is Your name in all the earth! You have set Your glory
above the heavens. From the lips of children and infants You have ordained praise because
of Your enemies, to silence the foe and the avenger.
When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which
You have set in place, what is man that You are mindful of him, the son of man that You care
for him? You made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory
and honor.
You made him ruler over the works of Your hands; You put everything
under his feet: all flocks and herds, and the beasts of the field, the birds of
the air, and the fish of the sea, all that swim the paths of the seas.
O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is Your name in all the earth!
~ Psalm 8
May 2011
Church Office Hours: Monday through Friday 9:00 am to 1:00 pm. Phone: (630) 365-6544 [email protected] INTERIM PASTOR
Rev. Michelle Prentice-Leslie
MODERATOR
Sharon Lackey
VICE-MODERATOR Mary Royer
TREASURER
Barb Holloman
FINANCIAL SECRETARY
Cindy Doede
CHURCH CLERK
Karen Baston
MINISTRY ASSISTANT
Linda Miller +++ Beginning June 1, please use our
street address when corresponding
with the church:
100 E. Shannon Street
Elburn, IL 60119
The Post Office will forward mail
to us for about 18 months.
+++
Our website is constantly
being updated. Check it out!
www.ccc-elburn.org
May 2011 Community Congregational Church page 2
Musings from the Moderator…Musings from the Moderator…Musings from the Moderator…Musings from the Moderator… When we think of May we think of Mother's Day and Memorial Day. We should also think of our Sunday School and the end of another successful Sunday School year. If you see Theresa Biddle, remember to thank her and all of her helpers for working each week with our chil-dren in Sunday school. What they are doing is so important to the lives of our children. Each Sunday during the children's message we see how much they have learned about Jesus and God's love. It brings us so much joy and hope. See you in worship,
Sharon Lackey, Moderator
TAIZE Prayer Services
The Bible tells us to pray without ceas-ing. We pray on Sunday, at Bible Study, before meals, in times of joy and sorrow. Looking for a new—or actually, very OLD—way to pray? Try a TAIZE prayer service. The first Friday of each month, Ascension Church in Oak Park hosts a TAIZE service at 7:30p, and Pastor Michelle invites you to join her. TAIZE is a quiet ser-vice of meditation, reflection, readings and music. The singing is repetitive, until the song sings YOU, as Pas-tor Michelle points out. Contact the church office if you are interested in attending on Friday, May 6. St. Charles Episcopal Church on north Fifth Ave-nue also offers Taize worship on Sunday, May 8 at 7:30p. Though not quite as majestic as the Oak Park site, this nearby opportunity will give you an idea of what Taize worship is all about.
Lazarus House Dinner Our friends at Lazarus House continue to
be in our thoughts and prayers as we pro-
vide the occasional dinner for them. As a
church we provide the evening meal on the fifth Friday of
every month that has 5 Fridays, which means that our next
opportunity is July 29. The sign-up sheet will be on the ea-
sel in Schneider Hall, ready for you to fill in the part of the
meal you’d like to provide. Remember, Lazarus House has
a stockpile of frozen foods from which to choose when
planning/preparing a meal. Contact Lazarus House in ad-
vance (630-587-5872), visit and select food, and store food
in church freezers until needed. Disposable pans are availa-
ble at church for delivering the meals. Won’t you sign up
to help? Thank You!
Thank you to Barb Angenendt, Rowland & Stevie Bate-
man, Norm & Diane Bergquist, and Mary Whitney for
providing and delivering the April 29 dinner.
Beginning in June 2011, please address all mail to the church using our street address:
100 E. Shannon Street Elburn, IL 60119 The Post Office will continue to forward mail to us for about 18 months.
May 2011 Community Congregational Church page 3
Vaca�on Bible School
July 11 – 15 9:00 – 11:45 am
Cost $10.00
In this kid-friendly café full of chef's hats and aprons, pots and pans, tablecloths and music, kids explore the Bible as a cookbook filled with recipes for living out God's word.
Vacation Bible School is in the planning stages. We have started recruiting workers and materials. This month you will find a display in the Narthex listing supplies you can donate to VBS. There will also be volun-teer forms listing things you can do to help make VBS a success. Materials we need donated, but will return: rolling pins (10), salad tongs (4), turkey basters (5) Materials we need donated and not returned: empty paper towel rolls, empty coffee cans with lids, artifi-cial flowers (several different kinds), empty 2 liter bottles (5), empty water bottles (25), craft bells (40) Food donations will be listed on our VBS display as the date gets closer. Positions to be filled: photographer, snack assistants, games leader, registration leader, shepherd to lead small group to each activity, and a seamstress. A BIG THANK YOU to those already committed to VBS: Pastor Michelle, Linda Miller, Regina Kurth, Jessie VanDevelde, Theresa Biddle, Barb Holloman, Judy Taylor, Anastasia Kurth, Jason Biddle, Kayla Stasell, Alex Siebert, Ryan Siebert, Lauren Parnell.
Volunteers Needed for 2011 If you have looked at the bulletin board in the Narthex, you will notice that there are many opportunities to serve the church during or after worship on Sundays. Won’t you consider participating in worship in one of the following ways:
Altar Flowers Honor the birthday, anniversary or memory of a loved one.
Worship Assistant Assist Pastor Michelle by leading prayers and reading scriptures.
Fellowship Make the coffee & tea water, and provide a simple table of refreshments, such as fruit, cheese & crackers, cook-
ies or coffee cake. A team effort makes this a lot easier.
Communion Prep & Serve Provide bread, wine and grape juice, set up the trays, and help Pastor Michelle serve Communion the first Sunday
of the month. See the office for details.
Illinois Conference Women’s Retreat
October 7-8, 2011 Pilgrim Park Camp
Princeton, IL Details about costs, program and the fun opportu-nities will be available on the bulletin board in the Narthex as soon as we get them. Reserve the date and help spread the word!
May 2011 Community Congregational Church page 4
It’s not your imagination! This month’s MOUSE looks a little bit different, and not just the front page layout! After some messing around, I found a way to print so you can actually READ EVERY WORD!!! No more grey lettering! Crisp black words from now on! Woo-hoo! MOUSE editor, Linda Miller
at 1:00pm in Schneider Hall. Bring a friend! This isn’t an
actual “church” meeting, just a gathering of friends for
coffee, treats, laughter and conversation. There’s always a
seat for you around the table.
Because we all enjoyed the “healthier” menu from
April, everyone is encouraged to bring some sort of salad
or healthy side dish: fruit, veggies, hearty bread, light des-
sert. Last month, we had about 14 people around the ta-
ble, so plan accordingly and join in the fun and fellow-
ship!
FOUND One pair of women’s glasses on Tuesday, March 22. They could have been from the memori-al service the previous Saturday or from church on Sunday. Claim them in the church office. Also, a pair of children’s prescription glasses were found in the nursery on Sunday evening, April 17. They are also in the church office waiting for an owner to claim them.
Summer Worship Hours We’ve just celebrated Easter and we’re jumping right ahead into Summer. With the fickle weather, it’s been difficult to imagine days of sun and warmth and all the outdoor activities that come with. While you are at your calendar counting off the days, be sure to mark this change on your calendar. Summer Worship Schedule beings:
Sunday, June 6, 2011 No Sunday School 9:30am worship
May 2011 Community Congregational Church page 5
Just from Jessie……
Please let me know if you have any jobs for us to raise money for our mission trip to South Dakota. We are less than 2 months away and still need to raise $580. Each students costs $300 so if you would like to donate any money that would be very much appreciated as well. Thank you, Jessie
The Elburn Days Rummage Sale Returns!
As many of you know, the church is making some changes for Elburn Days 2011. The biggest change is that we won’t have a tent at Lion’s Park. We will be doing all the things we usually do—selling food and bever-ages, including our famous pie—but right here at the church! Along with this change, we are bringing back the Rummage Sale. Leah Miller has volunteered to co-ordinate the sale and is asking for your help. When you do your spring cleaning and sorting, remember that the church can use your gently used cast-offs for our sale. We will accept donations of clothing, household items, sporting goods and small furniture items begin-ning RIGHT NOW! Bring your things to the tables on the west side of Schneider Hall during regular of-fice hours. (9-1p M-F) Questions? Want to volunteer to help with pricing and sorting? Contact the church office or Leah Miller.
It’s Spring—Time to clean out your closet!
A Grateful Thank YouA Grateful Thank YouA Grateful Thank YouA Grateful Thank You During Lent, many people chose to participate in a special Lenten Offering by filling folders with the quarters from their spare change. All of the funds from this special offer-ing will go to Feed My Starving Children, a humanitarian organization with a warehouse in Aurora.
A number of our members—especially Jessie and the Youth Group—have worked at FMSC and have had such fun actually packaging food that will save the lives of thou-sands of children around the world. We can actually see our work in action!
All of those quarters in the Lenten Offering folders added up to over $280.00! At 24¢ per meal, that means we will provide 1166 meals with our donation. Thank you for your generosity!
Usher Teams for May
• May 1—Team #3 Captain: Merfeld Family • May 8—Team #4 Captain: Pangborn Family • May 15—Team #5 Captain: Jessie & Youth Group • May 22—Team #1 Captain: Karen Baston • May 29—Team #2 Captain: Kurth Family
May 2011 Community Congregational Church page 6
May 1 ~ Second Sunday of Easter 9:00 a.m. Sunday School 9:20 a.m. Bible Study 10:30 a.m. Worship with Holy Communion 11:30 a.m. Fellowship 5:00 p.m. Hope Anglican Worship Service
May 8 ~ Third Sunday of Easter 9:00 a.m. Sunday School 9:20 a.m. Bible Study 10:30 a.m. Worship 11:30 a.m. Fellowship 5:00 p.m. Hope Anglican Worship Service
May 15 ~ Fourth Sunday of Easter 9:00 a.m. Sunday School 9:20 a.m. Bible Study 10:30 a.m. Worship 11:30 a.m. Fellowship 5:00 p.m. Hope Anglican Worship Service
May 22 ~ Fifth Sunday of Easter 9:00 a.m. Sunday School 9:20 a.m. Bible Study 10:30 a.m. Worship 11:30 a.m. Fellowship 5:00 p.m. Hope Anglican Worship Service
May 29 ~ Sixth Sunday of Easter 9:00 a.m. Sunday School 9:20 a.m. Bible Study 10:30 a.m. Worship; Reverse Offering 11:30 a.m. Fellowship 5:00 p.m. Hope Anglican Worship Service
Summer Worship Schedule begins
Sunday, June 6 No Sunday School Worship at 9:30am
Thank You for Your Support!
Dear Friends,
Carl and I cannot thank you enough for all of the wonderful
expressions of love that we have received from our congrega-
tion! Many of you brought hot meals to our home. What a bless-
ing! With so much happening with both Carl's and my health, the
warm food reminded us that God was with us and was extending
His love through you! It is humbling to be on the receiving end
this time around, but it has encouraged us to go on, knowing that
all of you are watching over us, in prayer,
with cards, food, and phone calls. We are thankful and grateful
to have such a strong support system!
Your brother and sister in Christ,
Carl and Karen Diesel
Linger Longer Meal ~
Sunday May 29, 11:30a
Everyone is invited, whether you bring a dish to pass or not! There’s always plenty of food!
PLEASE CALL!!
If you are in the hospital and
would like a visit from Pastor
Michelle, call the church
office at 630.365-6544 or Pastor Michelle
herself at (630) 267-7555. Remember, be-
cause of the new privacy laws, we do not
always know when you are hospitalized.
PLEASE let us know or have someone call for
you.
May 2011 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat
1
Team 3 ushers
9a Sunday School 9:20a Bible Study 10:30a Worship with Holy Communion 11:30a Fellowship
5p Hope Anglican
2
6:30p
ELBURN DAYS
MEETING in Schneider Hall
3
9a Crafty Crafters 7:30p Scouts
4
11a Seniors Bible Study at Meadows
4p Midweek Bible Class 5:15p Confirmation 6p Youth Group 7p Prayer & Bible Study
5
7p Choir
6
11a Knitting
6p Den 11 Scouts
TAIZE WORSHIP in Oak Park—see Pastor Michelle if interested
7
8-2p Fox Valley Association Mtg.
8
MOTHERS’ DAY
Team 4 ushers
9a Sunday School 9:20a Bible Study 10:30a Worship 11:30a Fellowship
5p Hope Anglican
9
10
9a Crafty Crafters
7p Ministries
Meetings 7:30p Scouts
11
11a Seniors Bible Study at Meadows 4p Midweek Bible Class 5:15p Confirmation 6p Youth Group 6p Bridger Mtg. 7p Prayer & Bible Study
12
6p AMEN Group 6p Girl Scouts
7p Church Council
13
11a Knitting
1p Women’s Fellowship in Schneider Hall 6p Den 11 Scouts
14
9a All-Church
Clean-Up
15
Team 5 ushers
9a Sunday School 9:20a Bible Study 10:30a Worship 11:30a Fellowship
5p Hope Anglican
16
17
9a Crafty Crafters
7:30p Scouts
18
11a Seniors Bible Study at Meadows
4p Midweek Bible Class 5:15p Confirmation
6p Youth Group
7p Prayer & Bible Study
19 7p Choir
20
11a Knitting
21
22 Team 1 ushers
9a Sunday School 9:20a Bible Study
10:30a Worship
11:30a Fellowship
5p Hope Anglican
23
24
9a Crafty Crafters 7:30p Scouts
25 11a Seniors Bible Study at Meadows
4p Midweek Bible Class 5:15p Confirmation
6p Youth Group
7p Prayer & Bible Study
26 Pastor Parish Mtg.
27
11a Knitting
MOUSE Deadline
28
29
Team 2 ushers
9a Sunday School 9:20a Bible Study
10:30a Worship
11:30a Linger
Longer Meal
5p Hope Anglican
30 MEMORIAL
DAY Office closed
31 9a Crafty Crafters 7:30p Scouts
Mark Your Calendars!
Summer worship schedule begins
Sunday, June 6
No Sunday School
Worship at 9:30am
Mission Statement
The Community Congrega�onal
United Church of Christ
of Elburn
is called by God
to spread
the Gospel of Jesus Christ
to our community and beyond
by serving as
His heart, hands and feet
through worship, prayer,
Chris�an educa�on and
mission ministries.
Community Congrega�onal Church
100 E. Shannon Street, PO Box 308
Elburn, Illinois 60119
May 2011
ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED
God is s#ll speaking,
MAILING LABEL
Beginning June 1, please use our street address when mailing anything to the church office:
100 E. Shannon Street
Elburn, IL 60119
Member of the Elburn Chamber of Commerce
Save the date on your calendar!
Saturday, May 14 9am See the sign-up sheet in the Narthex, pick your task, bring your gloves and tools and willing heart to clean up the church and property for Spring! All hands are welcome! Let’s clean house!
