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January 14, 2010
Weekly E-Communique
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We are going to start having a note from a conference or associate conference minister in each week's E-Communique. This week's note is from Jonna Jensen, associate conference minister in Eastern Iowa.
Some
years ago, on a busy Sunday, I misplaced my paycheck. After worship, one of the fathers of our
congregation greeted me with an outstretched hand. "Looking for this?" It was the missing check. "Your kid put it in the plate." When I asked three-year-old Noah about it, he
answered with a patient sigh, "Jonna, I HAVE to have OFFERING." Amen.
When we worship God, we offer gifts.
I write
to you on the morning after the earthquake in Haiti. My beloved, we have to have offering. Please write a check to your congregation
today, directed for One Great Hour of Sharing - Haiti. If there are children in
your home, help them to make an offering alongside yours. Don't worry that your check is too
small. In the face of overwhelming need,
checks for $1.00 or $5.00 can feel barely worth writing. They are absolutely worth writing today.
Yours
in Christ's love,
Jonna
Jensen
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Send yearbook forms by Feb. 5
Regional Youth Event next summer
Opportunity for worship planners
Same-Gender weddings workshop March 11
Worship team training March 11
Pilgrimage dates
Lost and Found
Seminary Sunday Feb. 28
Condolences to Ed James
Workshop on domestic violence in Sioux City
Child sexual abuse prevention training
Des Moines-area hunger meeting
Worship webinar January 20
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The national UCC office is hard at work updating
the UCC Yearbook. That means the support staff at the Iowa Conference office
needs your help! Someone in your church will be receiving a packet of yearbook
information in the mail in the next few days. The forms are very important and
easily filled out once you have gathered the information. Please return the
forms by Friday, Feb. 5. Thank you in advance for your help !
Twenty-six weeks and counting! Regional Youth Event planning
is in process. Your RYE Iowa planning group is hard at work getting
organized for the summer event through conference calls, meetings in Missouri, and
work sessions. Start talking up this first-ate opportunity with your
youth. Applications will be available soon. Watch for the
announcement here. Support their journey!
"Celebrating Worship and the
Sacraments" is as series of two weekend classes designed to help you
understand, design, and develop meaningful worship for your congregation.
"Celebrating Worship and the Sacraments" is part of the regular curriculum of
CENTER/LEARN participants, but it also offers a great experience for those who
love to plan worship for the local congregation. Creativity and resources
combine to make memorable worship. Learn from one of the best: Rev. Maren
Tirabassi has published numerous books about worship and is a dynamic teacher,
a favorite among CENTER/LEARNers.
The classes meet on February 5 &
6 and March 12 & 13. 5:30 p.m.-9:30 p.m. Friday evening and 8:30 a.m.-4:00
p.m. on Saturday. Cost is $180 + book fees for the entire class. Supper
and lunch are included. We meet at Plymouth Congregational UCC in Des Moines.
Maren will have a new book out All
Those Whom God Has Joined -- Resources for Clergy and Couples for Same
Gender-Loving Marriage. It will have services and how to adapt existing
services, premarital counseling information that is tailored for same gender
marriage, advice on dealing with church councils/deacons about this issue as
well as some history on marriage and some practical stuff like whether or not
to invite one's family! The cost of the workshop will include a copy of
her book.
What is a worship team supposed to
do? Is it more than choosing hymns? Explore ideas and resources
with Maren Tirabassi, best-selling Pilgrim Press author.
Some of Maren's books include:
Touch Holiness: Resources for
Worship
Blessing New Voices: Prayers of
Young People and Worship Resources for Youth Ministry
Gifts of Many Cultures:
Worship Resources for the Global Community
Before the Amen: Creative
Resources for Worship
Pilgrimage 1 February 12
& 13
Pilgrimage 2 May 14 & 15
Pilgrimage 3 19 & 20
Does anyone have a leader's manual
for Pilgrimage? It is light blue and about 4 inches thick. If you
have a copy, please send it to the Conference Office as soon as possible.
We will be training Pilgrimage leaders in January, and it would be nice to have
enough manuals to go around.
Seminary Sunday is
February 28. Please
plan to participate in celebrating the work of CUE, (Chicago, United, and
Eden Seminaries) on Seminary Sunday, February 28, 2010 (or
any Sunday that is convenient for your church). The role of our seminaries
in the life of our churches is critical. Chicago, United, and Eden
Seminaries train individuals for ordained ministry, and they provide resources
for lay leadership programs, Christian Education and youth programs. In
addition, our seminaries provide leadership, preaching, and continuing
education opportunities at conference and association meetings. All of
our churches are enriched by the work of our UCC seminaries.
If you would like CUE brochures, posters, or
offering envelopes, please email CUE Development Coordinator, Kiely Todd Roska. Printable
bulletin inserts will be available in early February, and can be emailed
directly to your church.
Ed James' beloved friend and companion, Betty Cool, passed
away yesterday after her bout with cancer. Please keep Ed in your
prayers. The funeral will be today at 11:00 a.m. It will be held at First Cong'l UCC in Waterloo. If you
would like to send a card to Ed his address is 1522 Wisconsin St., Waterloo,
Iowa 50702.
Dan Lozer tells us that the Council for Sexual Assault & Domestic Violence will
be offering a two-part workshop on faith response to domestic violence. They
take place in Sioux City. The first is Feb. 8th at 6-7 PM at Community of Christ Church (Transit Ave east
off of Hwy 75). The second part is March 8th at Mayflower Cong. UCC (from
Hamilton and 19th, go west until you pass the flood control ditches. Then
turn south to 18th St. and follow it to the church). Contact Pastor
Theresa Herwynen.
If your church is a United Church of Christ Insurance
Board-insured church, you get FREE
online training in child sexual abuse prevention for
churches. Contact Pastor Dan Lozer
at inholyservice@yahoo.com
. He especially likes the third of the three courses, but learned from
all of them----even though he already had experience in having to deal with
this issue in churches he's served. Unfortunately, it can happen to you, and
prevention is better than aftercare.
"HOPE FOR THE HUNGRY: Feeding Greater Des Moines" will be held January 30, 2010 at Walnut Hills United Methodist Church, Urbandale. Cost is $15 (plus fee) / $20 at the door.
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During Rev. Michael Piazza's two decades of
leadership, the Cathedral of Hope grew from 280 members to more than 4,000.
Most of this growth was caused by effective worship that blended ancient
liturgy and modern technology seamlessly and effectively. As the architect of
one of the most powerful and effective weekly worship experiences, Rev. Piazza
can share specific advice about how to transform your service and create a
transformational experience for your congregation. This is worship that grows
the church. Join him NEXT Wednesday, January 20, for his webinar
"Effective 21st-Century Worship."
The webinar begins at 2 p.m. EST and will
last one hour. For more information and to register, please visit www.progressiverenewal.org and
click on "Events." Please contact David Plunkett at david@progressiverenewal.org if
you have any questions.
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