First Sunday in Lent, February 26

10:00 a.m. worship in person and online

Lucy Forster-Smith preaching

Worship bulletin

In person and streamed from the Sanctuary on our YouTube channel: www.bit.ly/fpcvideos

Audio available by phone (toll free) by calling 888.916.9166

Livestreamed worship services and concerts are accessible by going to www.bit.ly/fpcvideos, subscribing to our YouTube channel, or clicking on the photo with a “Play” arrow on the home page of the Fourth Church website.

4:00 p.m. Jazz at Four worship in person

with Communion

in Buchanan Chapel

Nancy Benson-Nicol preaching

Worship bulletin

Lenten Candles

Each Sunday during Lent we will be extinguishing a candle at the front of the Sanctuary. Just as we lit candles on the Advent wreath to symbolize the light coming into the world through the birth of Christ, so now our extinguishing of candles points to the Lenten progression from light to the shadows of Good Friday and the crucifixion. 

Exchange of Peace

Also during Lent our worship will include the Exchange of Peace. In the Reformed tradition this follows the Declaration of Pardon and is a response to God’s forgiveness. This exchange of signs and words of unity and of Christ’s peace is an ancient greeting of siblings in Christ.

It is a time when we extend to one another what we ourselves have received from God in Christ. We might simply say “The peace of Christ be with you” or “Peace be with you,” the greeting of Jesus Christ to his disciples after his resurrection. By exchanging the Peace of Christ to one another, we witness to God’s reconciling love.

Sermon Series

This Sunday we begin the sermon series “I believe...” — an opportunity for us to take a closer look at the Apostles’ Creed, which we use as one of our Affirmations of Faith.

If you have ever wondered why we often say this ancient creed in worship, have found yourself pausing after stating “I believe,” or maybe have at times thought that perhaps you did not believe all of the phrases, we hope you will join us in worship this Lent and Eastertide as we explore what we believe together!

Welcoming Musicians

This Sunday we will welcome guest musicians to the morning service: Gigi and Morrison Luban, of Fourth Church Youth, and the Alma Choir of Alma College, a Presbyterian Church (USA)-affiliated college in Alma, Michigan.

We are grateful to them for sharing their musical gifts with us in worship leadership!

Digital Pew Pads

On Sundays we ask all those who are worshiping with us to please fill out an information form so we might know they are with us in worship and to ensure we have current contact information. In the Sanctuary this happens by passing the pew pads down the row.

Those worshiping with us online will find a link to the online form—a digital pew pad, as it were—included in the descriptive text below the video player. (For those who are viewing full screen, you will need to briefly exit full-screen view to see the description and link.) A QR code is also displayed during the “Welcome and Announcements” that can be scanned with a phone camera to take worshipers to the form.

Thank you for taking the time each Sunday to let us know you are worshiping with us!

“Faces at the Cross”

This Sunday, February 26, Betsy Storm and Kat Evans will be presenting the one-session adult education class “Faces at the Cross” at 11:15 a.m. in Borwell Dining Room. (This class will meet in person only and will not be recorded.)

We know the story of the resurrection well from oft-told Bible stories, but what about hearing them from the breaking heart of Mary, whose beloved son has died brutally, or Pontius Pilate, the man who sentenced Jesus to death? How did these major characters experience Holy Week and the resurrection itself?

In poetic and often riveting words, author J. Barrie Shepherd’s book Faces at the Cross: A Lent and Easter Collection of Poetry and Prose regales us with clearly imagined stories in the voices of Mary, Pilate, and others. Join us as we share, aloud, several selected readings from Shepherd’s well-loved book. There will also be time for small-group discussion.

Register online

“The Ancestors in Genesis”

Next Sunday, March 5, a favorite Fourth Church adult education instructor, Tom Dozeman, will return to teach a class on the ancestors in the book of Genesis, who are meant to provide identity both for ancient Israel and for contemporary readers.

This course will explore the themes of identity that emerge in the three cycles of stories about Abraham, Sarah, and Hagar; Isaac and Rebekah; and Jacob, Leah, and Rachel—stories that are complex and hardly heroic. We will also look at the aim of the biblical authors in composing the literature and different ways in which readers have found identity in the stories.

The class will meet in person only on Sundays, March 5–19 in Borwell Dining Room.

Register online

Finding ways to care for creation. Awakening the inner terrain of God’s Spirit. Kindling connections with others from Fourth Church.

If this sounds intriguing, consider joining Nancy Benson-Nicol and Lucy Forster-Smith for a Ghost Ranch Pilgrimage of Faith and Learning this May 15–19 in Abiquiu, New Mexico.

Mornings will be spent in conversation with a speaker; there will be hiking and exploration of the area in the afternoon; and evenings will offer time together as a group with guided conversations and worship. There will also be one afternoon and evening in Santa Fe enjoying the museums, dining, and wonder of that city.

To express interest in the trip, please complete the simple “Expression of Interest” form at www.bit.ly/ghostranchinterest23; an application, which will be due March 15, will be available in the coming days.

For additional details, email Nancy Benson-Nicol or Lucy Forster-Smith.

Are you interested in joining the Fourth Church Choir trip to India in February 2024?

This seventeen-day trip will include visits to Old and New Delhi, Agra, Jaipur, Jodhpur, and Mumbai.

Travel details for this tour, which is open to singers and non-singers alike, are included in the trip brochure and are also available by contacting Emily Cox.

Marriage

We give thanks to God for the gift of life together.

Gillian LaCoste and Gerald Grant

Married February 18, 2023