“Reign of Christ” Sunday

11/24/2023

This Sunday's Service -- "Reign of Christ" Sunday
Last Sunday's Service --24th Sunday after Pentecost: "Parable of the Talents"
New Members Class: This Sunday after Church
Flour Power Total!
Congrats to Peter Mueller: New GWA Liaison
Advent Devotional Sale
December Offerings at Retreat House Spiritual Center
CWS: Put Your Best Gift Forward
Farewell Brunch for Pastor Sal, December 17
Holiday Cookie Exchange! December 24
Sign ups for December Treats and Flowers
Call for Christmas Eve Choir Singers!!!
Our Giving Tree is Up, Ready for Holiday Gifting
Allegan County Senior Services Q&A in the Friendship Hall, November 30
Lakeshore Community Chorus Holiday Wonderland, December 2-3, Tickets on Sale
Birthdays & Anniversaries, Prayer Requests, Stewardship Drive and Financial Stewardship

This Sunday's Service: "Reign of Christ" Sunday

This Sunday (the last Sunday in the Season after Pentecost and the Sunday before Advent) is known as "Reign of Christ" or "Christ the King" Sunday. On this feast day, we celebrate Jesus as fully human and fully divine.

Join us this Sunday at 10 AM (either in-person or streaming live online), as we explore Jesus as both man and Messiah. Message: Pastor Sal. Music: Peter Black and Jeff Spangler

Download this Sunday's Online Bulletin:

order_of_service_november_26_2023.pdf
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Download File

Last Sunday's Service --24th Sunday after Pentecost: "Parable of the Talents"

The gospel reading for the 25 Sunday after Pentecost is Jesus's "Parable of the Talents." On the surface, this parable may sound like an uncomfortable story about greed, but Jesus is offering an important teaching about our own relationship to God. All of us are endowed with innate talents -- not to serve solely ourselves, but so that we can invest them, use them, and produce greater good for one another. As the late spiritual writer, Leo Buscaglia, said, "Your talent is God's gift to you. What you do with it is your gift back to God."

Please enjoy last Sunday's service, when we explored how to invest our gifts and talents to bring more of God's abundance into expression. Message: Pastor Sal Sapienza. Special Music: Michael Hulett

Here's The Homily!

New Members Class: This Sunday after Church

If you are interested in becoming a member of our church, Pastor Sal will be holding a New Members Class this Sunday, November 26, from 11:30 AM to 12:30 PM at our church's Isabel Graham Center (88 Spring Street). All are welcome to attend. (If you would like to become a member, but are unable to attend the class, please email Pastor Sal).

Flour Power Total!

Wow! Thanks to your generous giving, our church was able to provide 435 lbs. of flour to Christian Neighbors Food Pantry for their Thanksgiving boxes for families in need. Thank you to all who donated bags of flour, and thank you to church members, Bill Briggs, Wendy Hamlin, and Peter Black (pictured above) for delivering all of the flour.

Congrats to Peter Mueller: New GWA Liaison

Congratulations to our church member, Peter Mueller, who has been selected to serve on the United Church of Christ Michigan Conference Board of Directors.

Peter will be serving as the liaison between the UCC Michigan Conference and the UCC Grand West Association.

We are grateful for his leadership and service to our Conference and Association.

Advent Devotional Sale

The UCC Advent-Christmastide devotionals are here! You'll find them on sale in the Friendship Hall beginning this Sunday, for $5 each. Gather your copy there, or order yours online here:

Or Order Online Here

December Offerings at the
Retreat House Spiritual Center

Here are the Spiritual Center Offerings for December. Sign up for your space using the sign-up sheets in the Friendship Hall, or contact Julie Ridl to sign up for you.

Wednesday, December 6, from 10:30am to 12pm
Called to Care
Rev. Marty Rienstra

Have you ever spent significant time care-giving for a loved one?
Are you now spending significant time care-giving for a loved one?
Is there a possibility you will be care-giving for a loved one in the not-too-distant future?
If so, you are welcome to come together to share your experience and questions
and insights as we explore together how we can love, pray, and care in the best
possible way when that is what we are called to do.

Thursday, December 7, from 10:30am to 12pm
Dealing With Loss and Change
Laurie Van Den Beldt, Stephen Minister

The objective of this session is exploring how to recognize our feelings and fears, and help
one another deal with them in a positive manner as we undergo the change in our
future as a congregation.

Beginning December 8, 10:30am to 12pm
Exploring The Whole Self: A Four-Part Series
(Please plan to attend all sessions.)
Jeremy Lund

Friday, December 8 from 10:30am -12pm
Friday, December 22 from 10:30am -12pm
Friday, January 5 from 10:30am -12pm
Friday, January 19 from 10:30am -12pm

"Only the whole self is ready for the whole God"
- Jeremy Lund

Is the story that you are telling yourself about yourself the whole story?

How do you learn to carry both the whole and the broken parts of your life together in
the same basket?

If God loves through "being," why are we not being our whole selves in this life?

I invite our beloved community to begin the journey toward awakening and
reconnection with the greater truth of our divine relationship within God's
abundant creation. For only when we name "our story" and move toward
becoming our whole selves are we able to embrace and love a whole God. When
we recognize that the Christ light has always been present and shared within our
creation, our community becomes expansive and supportive, our call to be
stewards of this shared abundance is understood, our unique gifts are revealed
and the contributions that we make in life are presented with love and purpose.
We understand that we have never been alone.

We will be reading and referencing the seminal novel, The Universal Christ, by
Father Richard Rohr as a road map for this quest of self-discovery. Books are
available through Jeremy Lund.

CWS: Put Your Best Gift Forward

Church World Service (CWS), the folks who organize the CROP Walk, have a great gift idea. Make a targeted donation and they will send you a card that you can put in someone’s Christmas stocking -- or use for any other kind of gift. They have items from $5 to $3000. You can choose farm animals, a beehive, a shovel, drinking water, diapers, books, rides to school, blankets, school supplies, immigration fees… even a well! You can go online now at https://cwsbestgift.org to order, or wait until we have printed catalogs available in the Friendship Hall. When you order online, make sure your order includes the number of “recognition cards” that you need. Contact Chris Clark if you have any questions. CWS is a cooperative ministry (37 Christian denominations) that provides humanitarian assistance without proselytizing. It gets top ratings from the Better Business Bureau, Charity Navigator, and Charity Watch.

Farewell Brunch for Pastor Sal, December 17

Date: Dec 17, 2023
Location: Douglas UCC Friendship Hall
Time: 11:30-1pm

Our Pastoral Relations Committee invites you to a farewell brunch for Pastor Sal, immediately following the Sunday service on December 17. Food and drink are already planned, so simply come as you are after service.

This gathering of our beloved Douglas UCC community celebrates the abundant gifts that have been shared with us during Pastor Sal's tenure.

We're celebrating him before the Christmas Season begins, and through the end of the year, to give as many people as possible the chance to say their goodbyes and offer their good wishes to our teacher, counselor, shepherd, and friend.

The PRC will be placing a card box in the Friendship Hall that morning for anyone who would like to drop in a personal card for Pastor Sal.

Pastor Sal's last church service at Douglas UCC is Sunday, December 31.

Holiday Cookie Exchange! December 24

Photo by Yulian Karadzhov on Unsplash

Following our worship service on December 24, we will be having a “Cookie Exchange” in the Friendship Hall during Coffee Hour! If you are able, please bring a plate of cookies to share and enjoy!

Sign ups for December Treats and Flowers

Photo by Karsten Winegeart on Unsplash

Now that we have your attention... December is coming! And we are looking for a few good members to sign up for December flowers for our altar and December treats for our Coffee Hour Table. Look for the signup sheets (on the bulletin board for flowers, on the table for treats) in the Friendship Hall, or email Julie Ridl if you are able!

Call for Christmas Eve Choir Singers!!!

Photo by David Beale on Unsplash

Our Director of Music, Peter Black, is calling all singers for our Christmas Eve Choir! All are welcome to join. There will be four rehearsals held each Sunday at 11:30 AM beginning November 19th. You don't need to be able to attend every rehearsal, but we hope you can make as many as possible. Please speak with Peter Black to sign up or email him at [email protected].

Our Giving Tree is Up, Ready for Holiday Gifting

Our Giving Tree is up in the Friendship Hall! The tree contains heart tags detailing items on the wishlists of our neighbors in need. Choose multiple heart tags if you like. Each gift tag includes instructions for purchase and drop off. Choose as many tags as you like, and we will replenish the tags on our tree while they are available.

This year we are asking that you drop off your gifts directly at Christian Neighbors. Gifts are needed by December 12 at the latest.

Allegan County Senior Services Q&A in the Friendship Hall, November 30

Our Safety and Wellness team invites us all to a special presentation and Q&A with Allegan County Senior Services on November 30 from 3:30 to 5:30pm. Allegan County Senior Services provides many services to seniors in our county. The event will include light holiday snacks and beverages.

The Safety and Wellness team are excited to be able to bring the opportunity to our church family and community.

To learn more about this program, visit the Senior Services web page at: www.allegancounty.org/departments/senior-services

Lakeshore Community Chorus Holiday Wonderland, December 2-3, Tickets on Sale

“Our Holiday Wonderland,” presented by the Lakeshore Community Chorus at the Saugatuck Center for the Arts, is a holiday concert celebrating the beauty of the lakeshore, and the wonder of the season! John Rutter’s “Gloria,” an exquisite setting of “O Magnum Mysterium” by Morten Lauridsen, and the premiere performance of “Our Wonderland,” composed especially for the chorus by Artistic Director, JK Hilbert, and chorus members, Wendy Gilbert Gronbeck and Mary Hannah Terzino, headline the concert with new and fun holiday songs. The Lakeshore Community Chorus, fifty-five members strong, will be joined on stage by the Lakeshore Brass, dancers, and soloists! Experience the love and wonder of the holiday season through music at the SCA December 2 and 3.

Tickets Online Here

Birthdays & Anniversaries

Birthdays: November 26- Dan McGavin, Orie Hawkes,
27- Linda McWebb, 28- Paul Burdick, 30- Max Brown

Birthday and Anniversary cards are a great way we can reach out to one another. If you wish to mail a card to one of our church members, addresses can be found in our Church Directory.

Prayer Requests

Mike Mok; Karen Clark; Dave and Shirley Lawson; Clark McMillion (Chris Clark's friend); Richard Mead (friend of Tom Fahlstrom); Ruth Fahlstrom (daughter of Tom Fahlstrom); Ann Hopkins, Pamela Chappell & Pete Wehle; Dan Pierce; Ruth Vanden Bosch; Mary Browning; Nancy Grib (Friend of Pamela Chappell); Stuart Family; Charlene Burdick (Paul Burdick's Mother); Diane Carr; Myron (Wendy Hamlin's grandson, Fred Hamilin's great-grandson); Betsy York; Mary Westenbroek; Brian Aikens; Jerry Elpers and family (Beth Howley's Dad); Edie Plantinga (Nancy Plantinga's mother); Joyce Potts (Ed Korson's Friend); Max Matteson; Eric Cooley (Jo Cooley's brother); Nicole and John (Wendy Hamlin's daughter-in-law and son)

Stewardship Drive

Stewardship Drive Giving Week ending November 19:
Pledges to Date = $225,649.00
Pledge Fulfillment to date = $76,062.16

Thank you to all who pledged toward our Campus Stewardship Drive. Weekly Stewardship
Drive totals are posted here and on the giant ‘thermometer’ poster in the Friendship Hall.
If you have not received a pledge card, you can pick one up
in the Friendship Hall.

Financial Stewardship

In-Person Attendance November 19: 106
Total Views for November 19 worship videos: 1,050

Collection Plate & Mailed Donations: $2726.00
Online Giving: $2754.43
Total, General Support: $5,480.43

Thank you!!
Your generous giving allows us to sustain our church community and our mission of service in the world. Please consider giving online, which is easily done by texting your donation amount to
844-931-2849, or sharing through the donate buttons on
Facebook or Instagram, or at our website.