If you are interested in participating in the Staff Christmas Gift, please make your check payable to the church and write Staff Christmas on the memo line. All contributions should be made by December 18.

  The Missions Committee will be getting wrapped boxes ready again this year for those who wish to participate in the Advent Box project again this year. A list of items will be put out next week. Delivery of the boxes will be December 22. Hoping you will all be able to participate.

As a self-described introvert, I tend to leave the writing to people like Todd who has an excellent way with words. However, as a member of the Open and Affirming committee, I am ecstatic with the vote. The discussion was brief but important views both pro and con of having a vote were shared.  I value both sides as I hope everyone else does as well.

I would like to share my viewpoint with you that comes from a personal as well as a stewardship perspective. As shared during the special meeting, some of us that have grown up gay were forced to not acknowledge who we are and that is a sad and lonely place.  When we joined FCUCC as a family, we knew that we were accepted for who we are and what our family makeup is has no bearing on the love we feel in our Church. However, it isn’t only important for our gay and lesbian members to know that we are accepted but also for the greater Siouxland community to know that regardless of who you are, you are accepted in our church family.  We view the vote for Open and Affirming not only about LGBTQ acceptance but also that acceptance of all truly means “ALL”!

The vote on November 27, 2022 won’t really change anything inside the walls of our church. We will be able to hang the banners acknowledging that we are an Open and Affirming church. And, that may be the biggest change you see when you step inside.

But, more importantly, it will allow us to do some public relation work in our community. We still have baggage within the community and even within the UCC conference. The vote was less about the members of FCUCC and acknowledgement that we accept all who enter our doors, however, more about our opportunity to share with others that we are accepting.  Some of our image is based on perceptions coming from the departures of Pastor Dowell Baum and Pastor Castle. While searching for a permanent full-time pastor, the applicants we received and chose to interview questioned their departures, transparency about what they were told about those departures from the conference and then questioning why we weren’t a sanctioned Open and Affirming church. None of those applicants had the energy to do the work that the Open and Affirming committee needed to do and chose to not proceed with us. Applications have become non-existent.  We are in good hands with Pastor Del, however, it is important to remember we are still in the process of a pastoral search. When interviewing Pastor Del, I asked him if he had the energy to take us through the Open and Affirming process. He was up for the work and in turn, he asked me to participate in the committee.  It has a been a good experience and we have a good message to tell. We have the chapter of “are we or aren’t we open and affirming” behind us, it will be an important piece of our story that we get to tell in a positive light as we renew our pastoral search.

I am not sure why we didn't receive a 100% vote, however, if any of you have questions about the process or why it is important to acknowledge all of our members, I would be happy to buy you a cup or coffee or glass of wine and have a discussion.

Sincerely,

Earl

Another year is almost over and once again, we are in the season of Advent preparing to celebrate the birth of Jesus.

It has been a rather difficult couple of years for this congregation following the departures of Pastor Dowel-Baum and Pastor Castle. Some people have left the congregation and either joined another congregation or are not attending any church. I am sad these things happened and that we are worshiping a small fraction of what this congregation did in the past.

Rather than dwell on the past, however, I pray that all of you can move forward and find your way back to the church that has been important to you in the past.

It is my honor to serve as your bridge (interim) pastor. Good things are happening here. Music is played and sung, the word of God is being proclaimed, the sacraments are being administered, fellowship happens, all people are welcome.

I invite you to prayerfully consider contacting me to schedule a confidential visit during which you can share your thoughts and concerns about the congregation and also letting me know what things I might possibly do to help this congregation heal and move on to continue to be a safe place where all are welcome.

I also pray that you and yours may have a Merry Christmas and a Blessed New Year.

Advent. While the hours daylight continues to get shorter, we continue in this season of the Church year preparing to greet the True Light of the World, Jesus. This coming Sunday we will light three candles on the Advent wreath to symbolize our journey toward the Light.

Advent hymns are selected that help us wait while also recognizing the eagerness with which we wait. Each Sunday another candle on the Advent wreath will be lit and on Christmas Eve, the white Christ candle in the middle will be lit to announce the birth of Jesus.

Christmas Tree. I’ve been asked about when the Christmas tree will be set up in the worship space. Before I tell you my answer, I will share some thoughts. I am not Ebenezer Scrooge with this “Bah, humbug” approach to Christmas. I am, however, a believer in the Church being counter cultural. In the secular society, we move from Thanksgiving into full-blown Christmas overnight. Facebook posts that several of my clergy friends have posted include pictures which bear out my previous sentence. 

I, on the other hand, find importance in waiting and allowing the Advent readings selected for Sunday worship to heighten our eager anticipation of what we already know is coming. I faced this when I was serving in the churches of my two previous calls. At the first one, in Watertown, SD, I formed a worship arts committee who assisted me in creating beautiful visual banners and displays for the seasons of the church year. Most of the stoles and chasubles (the sleeveless outer vestment I wear on Communion Sundays) were handmade by one of the members of that group. That group and I started a new tradition of setting up the Christmas trees for the First Sunday of Advent. Two sets of lights were strung, blue and white, but they were not lit. On the Second Sunday of Advent, we added blue spherical ornaments. On the Third Sunday of Advent, we added wide blue ribbons cascading from the top of the trees. On the Fourth Sunday of Advent, we plugged the blue lights in. All this demonstrated the idea that with each week, we got closer and closer to the birth of the Light of the world, Jesus. 

 

Show Synopsis: Karol, a disillusioned social worker, is trudging home one cold December night when she encounters an old man sitting on a park bench. Mistaking him for homeless, Karol offers the stranger some food -- a seemingly innocent gesture, until he turns up in her apartment claiming to be Santa Claus. Thanks to a malfunctioning security system, Karol finds herself trapped with “Mr. Claus” and forced to confront her feelings about Christmas once and for all in this touching musical battle between cynicism and belief.

This production is family friendly and it’s the perfect thing to get you in the mood for this holiday season.  

Two additional performances of ‘Another Night Before Christmas’ will be on December 16th & 17th at 7:30pm. This means you still have 10 chances to see this fantastic musical! 

Piano. Does anyone have an upright piano they would be willing to donate to Bickford Cottage? Please let Pastor Del know. Thank you.

If you are someone you know would benefit from a pastoral visit, please call the office, and let Michael or me know.

In Christ, 

Pastor Del

In supporting the 'gift' of moving on, we fill lives with hope and household essentials for those leaving transitional housing at Safe Place and Welcome Home.

bath towels

cake pans

can openers

3-quart saucepans

pot holders

small plastic glasses

 The family of Marv Iddings

Kelley McCarthy 

A big "thank you" goes out to our volunteers who helped with services this week.

Worship Leader- Suzanne Johnson

Live Stream- Jerrod Kiernan/John Kiernan

Sound/Lighting- Mike Timblin

To access the directory online visit members.instantchurchdirectory.com and you should be able to create a login using the email listed in the church directory. If you need any help accessing the directory or would like a copy emailed to you, contact the church office for assistance.

Click HERE

Giving last month amounted to $7,783, from mail-in, online giving, and Sunday offerings.

You can help us stay on track by mailing in your check or setting up an automatic payment from your bank. You can also contribute through a simple app called Tithe.ly. 

Go to http://get.tithe.ly to sign up online, or download the app on any iPhone/Apple or Android device.

Sunday 11:30am-3:30pm

Monday-Thursday 9am-1pm

Monday 8:30am-12pm, 1pm-4:30pm

Tuesday 1pm-4:30pm

Wednesday 1pm-4:30pm

Thursday 8:30am-12pm, 1pm-4:30pm