Click here to see the July calendar.Click here to see the August calendar.
WORSHIP FOR AUGUSTAugust 5 & 6 (Ordinary 18)2 Samuel 12:1-13a David’s Most Heroic Moment Calling this “David’s most heroic moment” may be counter-intuitive. He defeated Goliath, he captured Jerusalem, he fought all these great battles. True. But is that what true heroism is all about? In this story, Nathan the prophet confronts David for his awful behavior with Bathsheba. Nathan is bold to do it; not everyone who speaks truth to power lives to tell the tale. And as we know all too well, when powerful people are confronted with their own guilt, they often will do almost anything to cover it up. But that’s what makes this David’s most heroic moment. When judgment comes, he doesn’t try to cover it up or fight it or hide from it. He surrenders to it. And that allows reconciliation and healing to begin. David's surrender takes tremendous trust in God and a willingness to put the truth before self-interest and self-preservation. Would that we had a few more heroes in our world! August 11-12 (Ordinary 19) 2 Samuel 18:5-9, 15, 31-33 A Man After God's Own Heart This is effectively the end of David’s story. There are still more battles to fight, but David’s heart is not in them anymore. We have seen him grow from a young shepherd boy, defeat Goliath, lead a rebellion, become king, capture Jerusalem, dance before God’s ark, try to put God in a box, take Bathsheba as his own and have her husband killed, and then repent when confronted with his own sin. Unfortunately the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. Absalom, David’s son, wants to usurp his father and so he leads a rebellion of his own. It ends with David and his men putting down the rebellion and Absalom being killed in the process. The death of Absalom appears to be the final blow for David, and he never fully recovers. What might we take away from this wonderful, heroic, tragic story? David had feet of clay, like the rest of us. He's remembered as a man after God's own heart, and yet he faced suffering and tragedy along the way, as we all do. David’s story is our story, and the way he kept his heart centered in God through all the triumphs and tragedies of his life teaches us about the meaning of faith. August 19-20 (Ordinary 20) 1 King 3:3-14 Wisdom King David has died, and a bloody struggle for power has taken place between two of his sons: Adonijah and Solomon. People are settling old scores, eliminating rivals, traipsing around with other gods. Things are falling apart. Solomon gains the upper hand, but it is a very precarious situation. But grace comes: God will give Solomon whatever he asks for. How many times have we wondered how we’d respond to such an offer? Solomon could have asked for anything: long life, safety, the destruction of all his enemies, endless power and fabulous wealth, the sky's the limit. But instead he asked for wisdom. In the Bible, wisdom is more than knowledge. Wisdom combines understanding what is most important in life and having the strength of will to live by that understanding. (By asking for wisdom, he proves he already has it!) God grants him wisdom, and everything else, too. Maybe our deepest prayer should be for wisdom, for understanding what is most important in life and then ordering our lives around what really matters. August 26-27 (Ordinary 21) Amos 5:18-24 True Worship RCLPC’s worship life has been both wonderful and tumultuous. It’s a reflection of trends within the larger church, with battles brewing between more traditional and more contemporary factions. It's easy to get caught up in these things, but the prophet Amos gives us a “larger” perspective. God, speaking through the prophet, expresses "displeasure" (to put it mildly) at Israel’s worship, not because it’s too traditional or too contemporary, but because the people do not practice justice and righteousness. All the conversations around worship style, music, atmosphere, time, etc., are important, but they aren't what's most important. The bottom line for God is whether or not our worship produces just and righteous lives. If it does, it’s good worship. If it doesn’t, it isn’t. We'll talk about what "justice" and "righteousness" really mean in the Bible (it may not be what you think), and then wonder: is our worship empowering us to live just and righteous lives...? And For September... For the month of September (and into October) we will focus on God's creation. We will explore the glory of the earth, the glory of being human, the glory of the skies, and the glory of God's promised new creation. We are also planning a "blessing of the animals" for the second weekend of October. Stay tuned for more information.  ADULT CHOIR RETREATThe annual adult choir retreat brunch is Saturday, August 26, in the fellowship hall, from 9:00-11:30a.m. All are welcome. If you are thinking about singing in the choir and haven’t yet made the plunge, this is a perfect time to meet new faces, fellowship and sing. Current adult choir members need to sign up in the choir room. Newcomers are our guests. Questions? E-mail Sherri Dees.THE MEN'S CHORUS IS BACK THIS SUMMER - and they're saving a seat for you!In addition to singing at selected worship services this summer including the 9:00am services July 23 and August 13, they'll be singing at the "State Fair"-themed gathering on August 5th. Hosted at Dorothy Vick's home, this summer gourmet large group gathering will feature food, games, music and great fellowship. Contact Jodi LeFevre for further "State Fair" event details.MEN'S CHORUS WILL BE REHEARSINGfollowing the 9:00am July 23 service, and on Wednesday evening, July 26, at 7:30pm, and the group is growing - come join us! For more information contact Sherri Dees, Jim Iddings, or Stephen Neilson.MARK YOUR CALENDAR FOR THE NEXT MEN’S CHOIR WORSHIP DATES:Sunday, August 13, 9:00 a.m.Sunday, September 3, 9:00 a.m.  SAVE THE DATE - SUNDAY, AUGUST 27 at 5 PMWe are planning a potluck dinner on Sunday, August 27 at 5 pm for an interpretation of our mission trip to Egypt. There will be plenty of pictures to show and discussion about our trip. All are welcome!ATTENTION Senior Class of ‘06:Save the date! We are planning an end-of-summer get-together for the Class of 2006 on Friday, August 4 at 7:00 PM at Jim & Andrea Pracht’s house. We are planning to grill-out, tell stories by the bon fire, and share a relaxed evening under the stars. More information will be sent out as the date approaches. Questions? Call Jim or Andrea.VBS - A SUCCESSThank you to all who helped make this year of VBS such a wonderful experience for the children of our community. Thanks to our efforts 63 children from 39 families (21 of which were non-church members) were able to learn about God in a fun and relaxing way. During our 4 days, children sang songs, heard stories, made crafts and played games reminding each, of God’s love for them. The children also collected needed school items for children in El Salvador as a mission project during the week. On day four the children celebrated all they had learned with their family and friends during a closing celebrating and ice cream social.Again thank you to all for your generous donations (decorations, supplies, monetary and time) that helped make VBS a success! Thanks to those who worked behind the scenes planning, decorating and teaching for VBS, without your help this would not have been possible. Special thanks to Nancy and Marissa Blakely for being elves and completing a great deal of clean up on Friday AM. Thank You to Debi Keyzer for her extraordinary efforts with decorating and assistance with ALL last minute changes to plans and schedules. I was blessed to have such a GREAT team to work with. Cheryl Lilly BUILDING & GROUNDS CORNERMost the inside doors close automatically behind me and that can be real inconvenient if I am coming right back, why don’t we just leave them propped open all the time?The reason for all those door closers is fire safety; they are fire doors that should remain closed. We have installed doorstops on some of them for your temporary use, but please be sure to fold up the doorstops afterwards so the doors may continue to meet the fire safety requirements. If we keep forgetting to do this, the fire marshal could ask that they all be removed. ROOMMATE WANTEDMust love dogs. House to share. Near Crystal Lake Beach. Contact Lyndette Bourne.FRIENDS, I will be part of two delegations to Colombia from August 3-25. The first 12 days I'll be with a delegation whose members are mainly from the Chicago Presbytery. We will be there to join in the celebration of the 150th anniversary of the Presbyterian Church in Colombia and to learn about the plight of Afro-Colombians. We will attend workshops on Reformed Thought in the Context of Globalization, Psycho Social Support for Victims of Violence, Reformed Spirituality, and Ecumenism and Mission. In addition, we'll meet with leaders of various Afro-Columbian groups and ecumenical organizations. During the remaining time I'll be part of a delegation sponsored by Witness for Peace. The focus of this delegation will be on drug policy in Colombia. Please pray for us as we make this journey. I look forward to sharing my experiences with you when I return home. Ann Legg PRAYER FOR PEACEThree and a half years ago a peacemaking group from our church struggled with the prospects of our country going to war with Iraq. We wanted to bring the congregation together in prayer for the Middle East and to include our sister church in Alexandria, Egypt. At that time we were facing the imminence of a preemptive war which could cause enormous suffering for thousands of people. Now the Middle East is facing another crisis of violence which could have a devastating effect on the region and the entire world.The prayer which we shared with the congregation then seems equally appropriate today in light of the events of the past week. We can only add special prayers for the people of Lebanon, Israel, Gaza and the West Bank. I encourage you to put this prayer in a prominent place as a reminder to keep these people in your hearts and prayers. Alice Haznedl Prayer for PeaceLord, in these troubled timesWe pray for your peace in the world. We pray specifically for the people in the Middle East: For our brothers and sisters in Christ in our sister church in Alexandria, Egypt, For all Christians, Muslims and Jews in the region, For our friends and loved ones serving in the Armed Forces. We pray for Your wisdom to guide all world leaders. Soften our hearts to be your loving people. PENTECOST OFFERINGThank you to all who contributed to the Pentecost Offering this year. We collected a total of $811. The Youth Service Bureau of McHenry County will receive $324 to help support its programs for children and youth at risk. The remaining $487 will go to the General Assembly for ministries with youth and young adults, advocacy on behalf of children and scholarships for young adult volunteers. If you have not yet made a contribution but would like to, it’s not too late. Just write a check to RCLPC with Pentecost Offering on the notation line.MEALS ON WHEELSMany thanks to all the dedicated people who delivered Meals on Wheels during the week of July 3rd. Those who volunteered were Dawn Condill, Jodi Iddings, Rick & Lois Johnson, Joan Jensema, Laurie Jensen, Debi Keyser, Ann Legg, Cheryl Lilly, Joy Martin, Ellene Schmidt, and Dorothy Vick. Those who receive these nutritious meals are very appreciative of this service.Ann Legg Coordinator for July UPDATE on the "Spare Change for a Big Change" program....A big "thank you" to everyone for your continuing support of the "Spare Change for a Big Change" program! Since it was announced in February of this year, $521.14 has been collected. The money will aid various mission programs funded by the church. Just a reminder: This is an ongoing donation program whereby money is collected year-round in the cardboard mission boxes available at the entrances to the sanctuary.Though everyone's spare change donations taken individually may seem small and insignificant, when added to the donations of many others over time, a large and considerable amount can be realized. Ben Franklin addressed it best -- "Don't be discouraged by the size of your action; but stick to it steadily, and you will see great effects, for constant dripping wears away stones…and little strokes fell the big oaks." If you have any questions about the program, please don't hesitate to contact me. Have a great summer! NATIVE AMERICAN CONNECTIONAs I browsed the Letters to the Editor in the Dakota Lakota Journal, one from members of MADD attracted my attention as this group of three members talked about visiting with High School students at the Pine Ridge Reservation School and 7th and 8th grade students from Little Wound School.As the letter states, “This was our first trip to the Pine Ridge Reservation and I want to say thank you to all the students and community members who made us feel so welcome. It was an honor for our MADD chapter to share our message with so many good people.” “As Natives we honor the Creator and respect each other and the Lakota, Dakota & Nakota ways of life. For hundreds of years we have faced many obstacles and struggles in order to survive. We have learned to function in dysfunction. It is now time for us as adults to step up and find a way to save our children and families. We can’t sit back and wait for ‘somebody’ to do something about it. We are the somebodies. We can start by communicating with our families daily. Sit down with our kids, share a meal, hug them several times a day, and check into where they are and what they are really doing. We can look at ourselves and remember that we are their first teachers and that they learn from us. We should not surrender and let alcohol and drugs destroy us.” Good advice for all people, we would say. Joy Martin, Dawn Condill, Alice Haznedl, Ann Legg, Janet Pearce, Rod Russell, Gloria Thorson. DEAR FRIENDS, Thank you so much for the wonderful party and thoughtful gift of music to celebrate my retirement from directing the Jubilation choir. The fellowship, atmosphere and food were superb and the time spent at Ravinia will be relaxing and remembered for a long time. Thank you for the celebration and thank you also, for the opportunity to share my love of music with the children and youth of RCLPC, it was a privilege to serve. In peace- Sheila Mohler |
