Weekly E-Pistle: Third Sunday in Lent

3/18/2022

In This Week's E-Pistle, You Will Find:

This Sunday's Service Notes — Third Sunday in Lent, "Bearing Fruit"
Last Week's Service Video — Second Sunday in Lent, "Strong & Tender"
Celebrating Jack and Peg Donohue
Quiet Contemplation, Thursdays at 5pm
Maundy Thursday Service, April 14, 6pm
Order Your Easter Lily Plants
Call for UCC Board Candidates
UCC Issues Appeal for Ukraine
Dontate to help Ukrainians
Save the Date, DUCC's 140th Anniversary Block Party
Lenten Devotionals Available Online
Covid Protocol Update
Reports & Minutes
Birthdays & Anniversaries, Prayer Requests, and Financial Stewardship

This Sunday: 3rd Sunday in Lent - "Bearing Fruit"

This Sunday's Gospel reading is "The Parable of the Barren Fig Tree." Jesus tells the story of a fig tree that has not produced any fruit in three years. Though the vineyard owner wants to cut it down, the gardener says: "Give it one more year. Let me see what I can do."

Our purpose for being is to bear the rich, abundant fruits of the Spirit, so what is blocking you from experiencing the fullness of life right now?

Join us this Sunday at 10 AM (either in-person or streaming live online) as we explore together what this parable means for our lives today, especially during this season of Lent.
Message: Pastor Sal. Music: Peter Black and Stan Greene.

Download This Sunday's Online Bulletin:

order_of_service_march_20_2022.pdf
File Size:	728 kb
File Type:	pdf

Download File

Last Week's Service Video — "Strong & Tender"

An image of Jesus as a mother hen protecting her chicks graces the altar front of the Church of Dominus Flevit in Jerusalem. In our gospel reading for the 2nd Sunday in Lent, Jesus refers to himself as a "Mother Hen," strong and protective, yet gentle. Please enjoy last Sunday's service, when we contemplated this image together and celebrated the 2nd Sunday in Lent.
Message: Pastor Sal. Music: Peter Black and Jeff Spangler

Click here to read, listen to, watch and share Pastor Sal's Homily.

Celebrating Jack and Peg Donohue

This Sunday will be the last attended by our church members Jack and Peg Donohue, who will soon move from their home in Fennville to the Chicago area. We hope you can join us on Sunday to bless their path and wish them a safe journey.

Quiet Contemplation, Thursdays at 5pm

Photo by Mike Labrum on Unsplash

In this season of Lent, we remind you that we hold a contempletive prayer service each Thursday at 5pm in the Sanctuary. A good time and place to quiet your mind and heart during this sacred season.

Maundy Thursday Service, April 16, 6pm

Please join us on April 14 at 6 PM for our Maundy Thursday service. This powerful service commemorates Jesus's last meal with his apostles and his seven last words. We will begin in the Friendship Hall with a simple meal of soup and bread, followed by a time of prayer and reflection in the church, where we will darken the sanctuary in preparation for Good Friday. If you plan to attend, please sign the poster hanging in the Friendship Hall or email [email protected], so that we know how much food to prepare. Thank you.

Help us fill our Easter Altar with Lilies
in Honor or Memory of Loved Ones

On Easter Sunday, we hope to have our altar filled with Easter Lilies! Please consider purchasing an Easter Lily plant for $15. Please use the special "Easter Lily" envelopes in the pews on Sunday (or mail a check to Douglas UCC, P. O. Box 519, Douglas, MI 49406). You can purchase a plant in honor or memory of a loved one, whose name will appear in the bulletin on Easter Sunday, and you can take the plant home after our Easter service. Thank you so much!

Call for UCC Board Candidates

The Nominating Committee of the United Church of Christ General Synod is encouraging the best minds and creative souls across the denomination to use their gifts in service to the church on the UCC Board. Committee members are looking to identify a number of candidates in a process that begins in March, to join the UCC Board for a six-year term from 2023 through 2029.
There are 12 at-large board seats available. The nomination process is open through Oct. 1. Candidates can be suggested by Conferences of the UCC, ministers, members of historically underrepresented groups, and even by self-nomination. Any UCC member is eligible.
‘Wide array’ neededThe Rev. Rachel MaeRose chairs the 2022 committee. The pastor of Christ Community Church in Cortland, N.Y., has been serving on the committee since 2017. They said the group is “seeking nominees from a wide array of backgrounds and regions.”

“Without people from a wide array of experiences, perspectives and expertise, the UCC would lose part of our fundamental identity, and we would be much poorer for it.”
The UCC Board meets twice a year as a group in March and October. Virtual meetings have replaced in-person gatherings in Cleveland due to the pandemic. The UCCB, currently coming together on Zoom, works with the three elected officers to steer the vision, goals and actions of the national setting of the denomination.
Visit this link for more on candidate nominations.

UCC Issues Appeal for Ukraine

The United Church of Christ is issuing an appeal for the people of Ukraine and will be working with global partners to assist vulnerable communities within that country.
The appeal joins an earlier call to prayer issued by the UCC’s executive officers and an invitation from Global Ministries to pray with the worldwide interfaith community. The national ministries are also encouraging people to call on the Biden administration to offer Ukrainians more humanitarian assistance, both in the U.S. and abroad.

Read more about the UCC's appeal here.

Dontate to help Ukrainians

The United Church of Christ is appealing for support for refugees and for elderly and other vulnerable people who are displaced within Ukraine and unable to leave. As a member of the ACT Alliance, UCC support is being targeted to people most in need through humanitarian relief partners with a history of working in the region.

All donations will be deposited into the International Disasters fund designated for “Ukraine Relief.” Your generous financial support will be used by our partners in the areas of greatest need. One can also mail a check made payable to the United Church of Christ PO BOX 71957 Cleveland, OH 44194. Please be sure to note “Ukraine Relief Fund” on your check in the memo section.

Read more about how you can support the UCC's drive for the people of Ukraine here.

Save the Date, DUCC's 140th Anniversary Block Party

Photo by Gaelle Marcel on Unsplash

SAVE THE DATE! This year, Douglas UCC celebrates its 140th Anniversary! In celebration, we will be having a "Block Party" with food and live music in front of the church on Pentecost Sunday, June 5, from 11 AM to 1 PM. More details to follow!

Lenten Devotionals Available Online

The season of Lent began on March 2. As an aid for a daily contemplative prayer practice this season, this beautiful Lenten Devotional from Pilgrim Press can be ordered online here:
https://www.thepilgrimpress.com/products/the-long-haul-2022-lenten-devotional

Covid Protocol Update

Thank you for your adherence to health and safety requirements as they have evolved over the past 24 months. Considering the revised CDC guidance and Allegan County’s low risk designation, the decision has been made to adjust Douglas UCC's masking protocols. Effective Sunday, March 20, the face mask requirement will be lifted. Vulnerable people, including the unvaccinated, are encouraged to continue to wear masks, as are all people who simply feel more comfortable taking that precaution.

You can continue to track community levels for Covid-19 cases here.

Reports & Minutes

pastors_report_march_2022.pdf
File Size:	206 kb
File Type:	pdf

Download File

approved_church_council_minutes_february_2022.pdf
File Size:	154 kb
File Type:	pdf

Download File

Birthdays & Anniversaries

March 22- Tim Schwartz, 25- Meridith Ridl, 26- Michael Bojko, Bill Underdown

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

Roye McDonald; Michele Turner and Family; Family and Friends of Marilyn Fox; Judy Baxter (Kristine Sherman's Mother); Dan & Barb Witt and family; Kathy Hartman and family; Joann DeJonge; Richard and Joanna Weber's grandson Mattox (friends of the Ridls); Shirley Lawson & Family; Jane Grady & Family; Paul Burdick; Paul Murphy; Al Overweg; Beverly Willming (John Willming's mother); Jay North (friend of Dan Pierce); Hannah Sherman; Maureen Pierce; Helaine Miedema (David Miedema's mother); Ron Turks (Carol Cunningham's son-in-law); David Abbot; Sarah Johnson Lock; Linda Masten (Mark Reiman's friend); Vicki Latham (Ruth VandenBosch's cousin); Cole Hartman; Mike Sneedon (Peg and Jack Donohue's friend); Tim Reineck, Matt Brazys, Suzanne Cook, and Ken Cassbon (friends of Pete Wehle and Pamela Chappell); Richie Czarnowski (Mark Reiman's friend); Dale Lower; Sherri Kanten (Ruth VandenBosch's friend); Michael (a friend of Dan Mack's); Chris Stuart (Virginia Stuart's sister-in-law); Mary Elizabeth Loudin (friend of Laurie VandenBeldt); Chris Robinson (Peter and Kathleen Mueller's nephew); Daniel Ver Meulen (Susan Fleming's son); Marcia Sullivan (Jo Cooley's friend)

Financial Stewardship

In-Person Attendance, March 6: 50
Livestream Attendance: 61
Total Viewers for March 6 Online Service Videos: 553

Collection Plate & Mailed Donations: $1,225
Online Giving: $2,629.74

Total: $3,854.74

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.