|
|
March 10, 2010
The Spirit
of Ridgefield Crystal Lake Presbyterian Church
 St. Francis in the Americas: A Caribbean Mass
Sunday, March 21 - 9:30 & 11:00am
Adult and Jubilation Youth Choirs
The adult and Jubilation choirs will present “St. Francis in the Americas: A Caribbean Mass,” by Glenn McClure, Sunday, March 21, during 9:30 and 11:00 worship.
Mr. McClure characterizes the work as a fusion of “Latin American cultures and the spiritual legacy of the Medieval Italian saint, Francis of Assisi. This concert Mass sets several of Francis’ writings into languages and musical styles of the New World.”
“This Mass combines choir and soloists with various percussion instruments from Latin American traditions. Though the Agnus Dei uses African and Caribbean drums and rattles, the other movements feature the steel drum. The steel drum was invented on the island of Trinidad in the mid 20th century. In response to a legal ban on the use of drums, musicians began searching for other ways to play their music. They discovered that pounding dents into the bottom of a 55-gallon oil barrel could create pitches. Decades later, this instrument is now capable of playing music styles ranging from calypso to classical, from samba to jazz.”
Please invite your family and friends to worship and fellowship with us.
A Lenten Discipline challenge for all RCLPC
Lent is a time for focusing, or re-focusing, on our relationship with God. Traditionally this has been a time of fasting, or giving something up. Another form of Lenten discipline is to take something on—and this Lent, I challenge each of us to a Lenten Discipline that has two parts.
Pray every day for this church. Remember that prayer is a two-way conversation with God—so spend some time EVERY DAY talking with God about RCLPC.
Every week, make a phone call to someone you haven’t seen at church in a while. I know this is beyond most of our comfort zones, and it’s possible you’ll find they’ve just been going to another service or that they don’t want to talk about it...or it’s possible that you’ll find there’s stuff going on that needed to be talked about and that you can pray for and about!
These two seemingly small things can be the most important things we do for RCLPC during this time of transition. I will take on this discipline, and I hope and expect that you will all do the same. May this Lenten season be one of growing together in God, re-focusing our attention, and preparing for a new season of resurrection.
~Teri
|
 YOU ARE INVITED
to an Old Fashioned
POTLUCK DINNER!
Sunday, March 21 at NOON in FELLOWSHIP HALL
To celebrate our guests of honor,
the dedicated members of the
Adult and Jubilation choirs
Happiness for us is being led in worship by our choirs.
Following the cantata performances (at 9:30 and 11:00) on the 21st,
we will gather, celebrate, and eat together
with a true POTLUCK dinner/lunch.
That means you all bring a generous dish(es) to share.
Pick a main dish? side dish? salad? dessert?
The true spirit of “potluck” is the element of surprise and faith.
We are giving it to you to make the choice and
the fellowship team will supply table service, beverages, and rolls.
Minimal oven space is available to keep your dish warm.
We are so blessed to receive the gifts of these talented, dedicated musicians every week. We think it is time to celebrate and thank them for their participation in our spiritual growth.
And... besides... Doesn’t it sound like FUN?
Questions? Call Jodie LeFevre or Karen Hutchings. |
Men of RCLPC
 Join us as we welcome Easter with a devotional message from Jim Bauman, last minute discussion on our Easter Breakfast, and some great fellowship with friends. As always it takes place at our Men's Breakfast at 8:00am on Saturday, April 3, at the Colonial Café in Crystal Lake. Join us in our Easter sharing!
|
Easter Breakfast - April 4, 8:30 - 11:00am
The Men’s Breakfast Group cordially invites you to breakfast on Easter Sunday, April 4th. The menu is planned, the men are ready to serve you and we look forward to a great breakfast. Proceeds from the breakfast will support the Deacons Family Emergency Fund that supports members of our church in need. We will start serving around 8:30am and will finish when your appetite is satisfied. More information will be shared with you during the announcements on the Sundays before Easter. Put a note on your calendar and join us for breakfast on Easter Sunday morning.
|
Family Seating Area
This Easter Sunday the Family and Accessible Seating Area in the front of the sanctuary will be returned to regular pews. Because several families with children have shared positive feedback for the Family and Accessible Seating Area during the trial period, it is possible that the idea will be revisited in the future. We will also implement an area in the sanctuary that will accommodate people in wheel chairs and with special needs by Easter Sunday.
Easter Worship Services: 8:30 (alt), 9:30, 11:00
Session has approved to continue with our regular worship schedule for Easter Sunday, April 4th: 8:30 (alt), 9:30 & 11:00. The Men’s Breakfast Group will be hosting the Easter Breakfast all morning in Fellowship Hall.
Did You Know
Our Worship Environment Team is responsible for providing banners, decorations, and paraments to enrich the worship experience of the congregation. They coordinate with the church calendar and the worship emphases during the seasons of the church, such as Lent, Easter, and Pentecost.
You may have noticed how the sanctuary has been filled with people being “reconciled” to God and one another as they move toward the cross during this Lenten season.
Please let team members know how much you appreciate all that they do. The team leaders are Bonnie Sheehan and Joan Black and the team members include Kristi Geggie, Marge Stewart, Cheryl Brincks, Dale Prindiville, and Laura Gilmore.
Holy Week schedule:
March 28, Palm Sunday:
We join the crowds shouting “Hosanna” as Jesus enters the week of his passion.
April 1, Maundy Thursday, 6:30pm:
We remember Jesus’ last meal with his disciples,
as we worship and share a light dinner together in Fellowship Hall.
April 2, Good Friday, 7pm:
We enter the darkness, remembering Jesus’ death on the cross.
April 4, Easter, 8:30, 9:30, 11:00:
We come and find the tomb empty...God has made the world new, Jesus has risen!
Read With The Pastor Book Group!
 The next book you are invited to join Teri in reading is Home by Marilynne Robinson. This novel by the bestselling author of Gilead explores the question “what does it mean to come home?” Home is available in all our local bookstores and libraries, as well as from online booksellers. Join us on Tuesday, March 23 at 7pm as we discuss this book together!
Steadfast Hope is Coming to RCLPC!
The adult education series “Steadfast Hope: The Palestinian Quest for Just Peace” continues at WEAVE on Wednesday nights. We are exploring the common myths about the origins of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, viewing the situation on the ground, and will be inspired by how Muslim, Christian and Jewish peacemakers are working together for justice and reconciliation.
Steadfast Hope: the Palestinian Quest for a Just Peace, an excellent resource produced by the Israel/Palestine Mission Network of the PC(USA), will guide us through the history, perspectives, and the struggle for peace.
How appropriate that during this time of Lent we engage ourselves in this timely and crucial quest which involves not only the peoples of the land where Jesus walked, but the entire world. Sign up in the connecting link to reserve your copy of the magnificently illustrated 48-page book and DVD for only $5. Don’t miss this opportunity to learn more about our church’s peacemaking Mission in the Holy Land.
Vitamin Collection for Haiti
On behalf of the non-profit, humanitarian group Relief International, I am collecting vitamins that will be shipped down to Haiti next month. We have a family friend who is on the board of directors for Relief International. He is in Haiti now, and his organization has clinics and operations set up there as well. Their main objective is to provide help and relief in times of crises to third world countries.
One item they are requesting is vitamin donations - any brand, all sizes, shapes, adult’s and children's. Please donate vitamins that are new, unopened, untampered with, and not past their expiration date.
A collection basket which is set up just outside of the church office will be there through March 14. I have a contact that will be taking care of the shipping for this project. Thank you ahead of time for your care and contribution!
Susan Tredwell
Letter from PDA
Dear Friends,
Words cannot express our gratitude for your compassion and generosity in response to the recent earthquake in Haiti. Thank you for your gift to Presbyterian Disaster Assistance.
As a result of that earthquake, so many symbols of safety, sanctuary and security were suddenly destroyed. In the midst of the rubble the people of Haiti desperately seek signs of God’s presence. Presbyterian Disaster Assistance, working in concert with our partners, provides signs of God’s presence to the people of Haiti. Not by means of a big cathedral, but in fifteen food and clean water distribution sites coordinated with Action by Churches Together (ACT) Alliance and Church World Service. Your support demonstrates God’s presence not so much in buildings, but in thousands of tents and temporary shelters for the nearly one million homeless. You bring God’s healing by providing an electrical generator, staff and supplies at one of the area’s few working medical facilities, Holy Cross Hospital. The work is great and PDA will be there to walk with the people of Haiti through the long recovery process.
Mission co-worker, Mark Hare, whose ministry in Paypaye lies outside the immediate earthquake zone writes, “Port-au-Prince has been deeply wounded. The whole country will be deeply affected… Now is the time to face what has happened and to act, act out of hope and not out of despair. I don’t have any idea what that will mean. But our God is up to the task. Pray for us, that we will also be up to the task.”
Yes, our God is up to the task. Pray that all of us will also be up to the task. Thank you, again. Your gifts are truly making a difference.
Faithfully yours,
Randy Ackley, Coordinator,
Presbyterian Disaster Assistance
Food Pantry Needs Your Help
Volunteers are needed, so please see the signup sheet in the Connecting Link. Give us whatever time you can spare. We serve once a month from 10am to 2pm. Please note that all Wednesday hours have been extended to 10am - 2pm due to the growing number of families in need. Each month we set a new record for the number of people being served. The growth rate is slowing, but the numbers still expand. We appreciate any help. Thank you. Call me if you have any questions. Nancy Vazzano.
Home of the Sparrow Easter Basket Donations
Spring is just around the corner... or so we hope!! It is time for our church wide mission project of collecting donations for Easter Baskets for families of Home of the Sparrow. The Sunday school classes will be helping to put the baskets together and fill eggs on Palm Sunday, so donations are needed by Sunday, March 21st.
The following items will be needed: baskets, plastic eggs, candy, snacks (no nuts please), small toys, reading and coloring books, small stuffed animals, card games, puzzles, socks, crayons, markers, pens, etc. There are presently 18 moms, that we are asking $10.00 gift cards for or donations so that we may purchase additional cards. In addition to gift cards, the moms could use lotions, bath gels, etc.
There are 34 children and their ages are as follows: 1 child 5 months old (boy), 5 children ages 1-3 (2 girls & 3 boys), 14 children ages 5-10 (8 girls, 6 boys), 10 children ages 11-16 (6 boys, 4 girls). In addition, there are 4 boys who are 18 years old.
Thank you so much for your consideration in helping with this very important mission project. Donations can be dropped off in the box across from the office. Any questions, please feel free to contact either of us. Thanks.
Native American Trip Planned
A mission-in-reverse trip into the culture and spirituality of American Indians is scheduled for June 21-26th through a trip to Rosebud and Pine Ridge American Indian Reservations in South Dakota. If you are a first-timer, there will be three classes and homework that is necessary to prepare yourself for this experience. We need to know your serious intentions by the end of March to include you in the trip and allow the proper time for advance study. For more information, contact Joy Martin
A Note from the Welcoming Team
For the past several years, Amy Collins has coordinated the Breadbasket Ministry. She has decided to retire. The Welcoming Team of the Deacons would like to recognize Amy’s contribution to RCLPC and its mission. Thank you, Amy, for your time and effort.
We would also like to welcome Sarah Jane Campbell to the Breadbasket Ministry as its coordinator. Thank you, Sarah Jane, for helping to continue this important part of RCLPC’s outreach efforts.
|
 Presbytery Mission Trip
Presbytery Wide Mission Trip to New Orleans Area...April 26-30—Sign Up Now! This will be the 4th year that Blackhawk Presbytery has coordinated a mission trip to Slidell, LA to work in the New Orleans area. Please get in touch with Rev. Anita Stuart-Steva at 815.335.2609 or anita.middlecreekchurch@gmail.com.
Celebrate Life Photo Contest
Click here to see flyer and registration form. 
PADS Help Needed
We will still be assembling PADS lunches on Friday, March 26, Sunday, April 11, and Friday, April 23. The assemblers made 85 lunches during the month of February. The need is great and your assistance is much appreciated. Please consider this mission and sign up in the Connecting Link.
|
The Bread Basket Ministry needs your help this spring!
As you may know, when visitors worship with us and provide a local delivery address, we acknowledge their visit with a note and a tasty baked treat during the week following worship! Many of our new members have had this first sweet "taste" of RCLPC hospitality. There is a new signup sheet for March-June in the Connecting Link. Volunteers are needed right away!
Please consider signing up for one or two weeks to continue this welcoming tradition! And please include your email address! We like to track who has received a delivery, so please plan to call or email back to Sarah Jane when the delivery has been made. Any questions, call Sarah Jane Campbell.
20th Anniversary Celebration
of Fairhaven School
in Alexandria, Egypt
Please stop and enjoy the beautiful collage of pictures from Egypt and Crystal Lake in honor of the 20th anniversary of Fairhaven School that is hanging in the Gathering Place. The three students that we sponsor at the school are included in the collage. Doug and Maggie Crane will be taking the banner with them to Egypt and presenting it to Fairhaven at their celebration on March 30th.
And, ... there still is time to make airline reservations to join in this special event. It definitely would be a once in a lifetime opportunity!!!
|
A Gift for Fairhaven School
In addition to the wall hanging that will travel to Egypt on behalf of RCLPC, the school needs a treadmill and exercise bicycle for the students.
If you would like to donate toward such a purchase, please place your gift in the ark next to the wall hanging in the Gathering Place outside the church office.
~ Mission Outreach Ministry |
| Financial Report from Stewardship Team |
| February Budget | February Actual |
| Total Revenues | $26,746 | $25,997 |
| Total Expenses | $33,606 | $19,375 | Rev. - Exp. | ($6,859) | $6,621 |
|
| YTD Budget | YTD Actual |
| Total Revenues | $51,492 | $50,256 |
| Total Expenses | $67,812 | $48,459 |
| Rev. - Exp. | ($16,319) | $1,797 |
Days of Prayer and Action for Colombia
Churches across the nation will be observing Days of Prayer and Action for Colombia in March and April. At RCLPC over the past several years we have hosted a number of Colombian church leaders and, most recently, Alice Winters, a Presbyterian mission worker in Colombia for over 30 years. The pastors shared their experiences of being threatened by the paramilitary and of having to move from their homes within Colombia or, in the case of Rev. Milton Mejia and his family, leave altogether for several years. Nearly 4 million Colombians are internally displaced.
You are invited to an Open House at the home of Ann Legg on
Saturday, March 27, from 3 to 8pm.
Please RSVP to Ann Legg.
Please come even if you can stay for only a short time. Each guest will have the opportunity to frame a portrait of a displaced Colombian with a message to President Obama, calling for policy changes to alleviate rather than exacerbate the crisis. Later, all the portraits will be sent to Washington, D.C. and presented to representatives of the Obama Administration.
McHenry County Transit Plan: New Resource and Service Update
Faith in Action of McHenry County has produced an update to their publication, Transportation Services: A Guide for Seniors. Information about obtaining copies is available on Faith in Action’s website at www.fiamchenrycounty.org. Please share information about this useful guide!
The County’s pilot transit program, in partnership with Pace Suburban Bus; the Cities of Crystal Lake, McHenry, and Woodstock; the Townships of Dorr and McHenry; and Pioneer Center for Human Services, has been running since February 13, 2010. Daily ride totals on the new service have ranged from twelve to almost thirty trips per day – serving people who didn’t have this transportation option before. Please visit www.co.mchenry.il.us/departments/dot/Pages/PaceService.aspx for more details about the service.
Sarah J. Lutz, AICP, Transportation Planner
McHenry County Division of Transportation
16111 Nelson Rd, Woodstock, IL 60098
sjlutz@co.mchenry.il.us | 815.334.4985
[ back to the top ]
|
|
