Click here to see the January calendar.Click here to see the February calendar.
Click here to see the Worship Teams Schedule.
 PARENT/YOUTH COMMUNICATION & SEXUALITY WORKSHOP Dear friends, I'm very excited about a workshop for youth and their parents being planned for February. The theme is "Communication and Sexuality." Within the context of building healthy communication with one another, the program will examine the physical, spiritual, and emotional dimensions of our sexuality. There are two sessions planned, both on Sunday nights in February: February 13 4 - 7:30 pm February 20 4 - 7:30 pm Dinner will be provided at both sessions. The cost is $5.00 for an individual and $10.00 for a family. It's open to all youth from 6th through 12th grades and their parents. Most of us, youth and parents alike, have questions and concerns about these issues. I'm convinced the church has an important role to play in developing honest and caring communication, especially on such a sensitive subject as sexuality. We have great confidence in the curriculum and the leadership for this two session program, and we hope you can find the time to participate. -Richard CONFIRMATION MEETING: On Sunday January 16th there will be an organizational meeting at 12:30 for all 8th and 9th grade students, their parents who are interested in participating in the confirmation program. Confirmation mentors also need to plan on attending this important meeting. Please call the church office if you did not receive a letter about the program and are interested. |
MISSION NEWS ...How to Donateto the Disaster Relief Effort Presbyterian Disaster Assistance, the relief agency of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) which works ecumenically with such partners as Church World Service - has dispatched $300,000 in emergency assistance from One Great Hour of Sharing funds to agencies providing immediate relief to tsunami victims. PDA officials say they hope to raise $2.5 million in relief funds. To make a donation, contribute through regular church channels; visit the PDA website at www.pcusa.org/pda/; send checks to PC(USA) Individual Remittance Processing, #DR000167, P.O. Box 643700 Pittsburgh, PA 15264-3700 or call Presbytel at 800-872-3283 to donate by telephone. Faith In Action Spaghetti Dinner: Faith in Action will host their annual spaghetti dinner fundraiser on Saturday January 15th from 5:00 pm until 7:30 pm. The meal will be served at St. Thomas Church on the corner of Oak Street and Route 176. The cost is $7.00 for adults and $6.00 for seniors and children under 12 are admitted for $5.00. Operation Prayers and Cookie Lift: Please come to Fellowship Hall on Sunday, January 16, 2005 between services to send a Valentine to our soldiers Blake Curtis (nephew of Phil and Melanie Wesa) and Johnny Torres (nephew of Karl and Raj Dencker). Stamps and felt markers will await your artistic talents! Also, please check a sign-up sheet in the Connecting Link to volunteer to bring items (such as thick socks, Gatorade, gum, beef jerky, baby powder, nuts, cookies, gently read recent magazines) to church on January 16 to be included in the boxes. Thanks, Mary Moltmann. |
WORSHIP ...
It's Never to Early to Think Easter... and FlowersHere it is - the middle of winter and the Worship Team is already planning for Lent and Easter. We are making plans for some new and exciting worship experiences, but we don't want to forget the RCLPC traditions either. One of those traditions is having flowers in the sanctuary for Easter morning. The beautiful tulips, azaleas, and lilies brighten our worship space and help us to celebrate the good news of Christ's resurrection.
We are now looking for someone who could help us coordinate the flowers for Easter. If you are one of those folks who love the beauty of those colorful flowers, could you help us by being our flower coordinator? You would need to put up a sign up for flowers, order the flowers, and then help arrange them for Easter Sunday. If this is something you would like to do, please talk to Dale Prindiville or Lori Thompson.
Sanctuary Flowers for 2005:
The 2005 Flower Chart is posted in the Connecting Link. Sign up for flowers to be used in the sanctuary for worship services next year. Cost: $25. Call the church office if you have any questions.
Ash Wednesday Ushers Needed:
Please call Pierre Berubé, if you are able to serve as an usher for the Ash Wednesday service on Wednesday February 9th at 7:00 pm. Thank you in advance for your willingness to serve.
FELLOWSHIP ...
Tuesdays at BordersGREAT DISCUSSION, DELICIOUS COFFEE AND GOOD FRIENDS ...
Come join us in the Borders Cafe in Crystal Lake from 10 to 11:30 am on Tuesdays for a time of lively soul-filling discussion. We are reading "The Yada Yada Prayer Group" by Neta Jackson. Come share your story over a great cup of coffee or tea. (They have an awesome bakery too!) For questions, feel free to contact Sherri Dees, Dale Prindiville, Kim Stewart, Melanie Wesa, or Sheila Mohler.
Men's Breakfast
At 9 am on Saturday, February 5th in Fellowship Hall we will be holding a Men's Breakfast. This is a chance for some great fellowship. There will also be a bible study that will cover the next day's scripture. Sign up in the Connecting Link.
Meet Richard and Emily:
For the next several weeks members of the former PNC will be hosting small group receptions in their homes. This will give you an opportunity to chat with Richard and Emily and get to know each other a little more. Find out what you have in common, share experiences and hopes. There are sign up sheets in the Connecting Link that will currently take us through January. See what day/date is convenient and sign up. You will note there are limits to the number of persons at reception. We want to keep them small. For more information, contact Karl Dencker.
Annual Valentine Dance
Mark your calendars. Plans are in the works for the Valentine Dance on Saturday, February 12th. It will be held once again at the Four Colonies club house in Crystal Lake. More information will be coming soon. Check the Connecting Link for a sign up sheet.
Inquirer's Class
Are you ready to consider membership to RCLPC? If this is something you're thinking about, then you'll want to attend the upcoming Inquirer's classes. We need to know who is interested and what times would work best for you. Please list your preferences in the Connecting Link. Call Tina Stipati or Karen Leuchtmann to answer any questions.
LIBRARY NEWS...
Did you miss reading a new book in the library? Don't miss out this month. To help you find past and present new books a color ribbon will be put in every new book, use it as a bookmark, leave it in the book so the next person can locate the new book. A green ribbon is for the month of December and purple for January.
Just a few new titles for this month ... CHECK IT OUT ... all of them on the New Book Shelf in the Library.
Strobel, Lee: The Case For Christ: a journalist's personal investigation of the evidence for Jesus.
Brouwer, Sigmund: The Carpenter's Cloth; Christs journey to the cross and beyond.
Wilkinson, Bruce: The Prayer of Jabez; breaking through to the blessed life.
Sucher, Dorothy: The Invisible Garden.
Albom, Mitch: The Five People You Meet in Heaven
Jackson, Neta: The Yada Yada Prayer Group Gets Down.
YOUNG ADULT NEW BOOKSLucado, Max: Just Like Jesus.
Called To Be: Devotions by teens for teens.
CHILDREN's NEW BOOKS
Holder, Jennifer: I Can Pray!
Gold, Alice: The Miracles of Jesus
If you have books to donate to the Library or for Miss Piggy's cart leave them in the Library and I will pick them up.
Thank You ~ Joyce Berube
CARING MINISTRY ...
DivorceCare Weekly Seminar and Support GroupBegins January 18, 2005 @ 7:00 pm at Bethany Lutheran Church. DivorceCare is a weekly video seminar featuring some of the nation's foremost experts on divorce and divorce recovery topics. Each seminar is combined with a discussion time to allow group participants to talk about the content of the seminar and about how he or she is dealing with separation and divorce. DivorceCare is a non-denominational and Christ centered program that is open to the public. Please call Rev. Harold Hoekstra at 815-459-2690 if you have any questions.
A Stephen Ministry Message
Every person's life is a journey. We have the opportunity each January to see where we have been, to see how far we have come, and to ponder our future journeys. It is also a time to take stock of our lives and to refresh our dreams as we set out on another year's journey.
We enter each year differently. Sometimes we are enthusiastic and ready to greet the New Year and sometimes we are tired and exhausted and dreading the thought of another long road. We may be stuck in a rut, or facing a challenge or a dead end, or caught up in a way of life that we just can't get out of.
It's times like these that we need a little help - someone to listen to us and help us find the right road to travel. If you feel like this and want to have a traveling companion, think about having a Stephen Minister. They will be your companion whether on the high road or on the low road. If you would like more information about having a Stephen Minister or know someone who could benefit from having a Stephen Minister, please call Pastor Richard or Dale Prindiville. We would be glad to help.
Important Information About the Prayer Chain
Please send your prayer chain requests to either the church office (office@rclpc.org) or Dale Prindiville. We will then pass on the prayer requests to our Prayer Chain members.
THANK YOUs ...
Our Thanks to All the RCLPC "Elves"Did you notice all the "elves" around RCLPC this Advent season? They were everywhere. Working, planning, designing...there was so much to do... and so much got done. A special thanks to all of our "elves".
* Dick and Cheryl Brincks and Alice Haznedl - for all their work on the Cookie Walk
* Karl Dencker - for organizing the Advent Wreath making and dinner
* Sherri Dees - for organizing the Christmas Caroling
* Mary Moltmann - for arranging the choir cantata to be seen on cable TV
* Phil and Melanie Wesa - for designing and building the beautiful Advent wreath
* Jodi LeFevre, Sally Weller, Lori Thompson, and Melanie Wesa - for designing and installing the wonderful sanctuary decorations
* Cindy Miller, Rick Thompson, and Bill Weller - for helping to install the sanctuary decorations
* John Rupp - for helping to install the sanctuary decorations and for ordering all the Christmas flowers
* Elizabeth Crane - for purchasing the communion elements and finding communion preparers
* To all the folks that prepared communion
* Pierre Berube - for setting up the many ushers and for making the luminaries
* To all the folks that ushered
* Rob and Julia Baser - for setting up the luminaries in front of the church
* Phil Wesa and Jeff Mohler - who cooked a delicious dinner for the Christmas Eve staff
* The Welk family - for the wonderful Christmas message through their puppets
We probably have missed a name or two and if we have we want to thank you too. We also want to thank all of the friends and members of RCLPC that helped to prepare the way for the birth of our Lord, Jesus.
THANKS ...
I would like to thank all the RCLPC singers who came Christmas caroling. I had invited the folks in my building to meet in the foyer and enjoy the carolers. They all enjoyed the evening and even my Lithuanian neighbors sang along. It was a wonderful evening.
~ Edith Pierson
During the past year, maybe you sent a card, maybe you gave me a hug, or just asked me how everything was going, Maybe you helped pick up the church when I couldn't be there or just offered to help out if needed. Maybe your thoughts and prayers were with me and my family. My dad is up and around and my niece is doing ok while she endures her treatments for melanoma.
Please know whatever you did, I really appreciated it. HAPPY HOLIDAYS TO ALL OF YOU!
~ Cindee Robinson
Thanks so very much Rob Baser, on helping with organizing the middle school young people on lighting and putting out the luminaries on Christmas Eve. I know it was very cold and thanks again, for keeping the tradition alive for years to come... I understand that the Church has been doing this for over six decades.. Also many thanks for those who signed up and ushered Christmas eve. Talking about ushers, for those who wish to serve on ushering please contact me via phone or email.
~ Peace and Love in Music, Pierre Berube
BUILDING & GROUNDS CORNER ...
An Angel Visits R.C.L.P.C. on Christmas EveI heard we had a frozen water pipe that burst pouring water from the ceiling outside the nursery on Christmas Eve just before the first of our five services. How could this have happened without most of our members being inconvenienced?
We were very fortunate Christmas Eve. After the water started flowing from the ruptured pipe, water was shut off to the entire building and all washrooms closed just before 5 services were to take place. As always, people just stepped in to help. Members were mopping the floor and signs made and posted on all the washrooms within minutes of the pipe bursting. Then "our angel" stepped in. A visitor to our church named Dan saw what was happening, had plumbing tools in his vehicle and immediately offered his assistance. During the first service Dan cut the ruptured pipe, and helped to install and solder a new cap on the water line. As the first service was ending, the water was turned back on, signs removed from washrooms, and everything was back to normal. Our visitor never made it to the Sanctuary on Christmas Eve. We would like to formally thank Dan and invite him back but don't know his last name or where he lives. Could anyone who knows "Angel Dan" please contact the church office?
Treasurer Passes the Baton
Alan Esche, RCLPC's Treasurer for six plus years, is stepping down as Treasurer this month, although he will still be involved with the finances of the church.
Al's dedication and hard work has seen us through some tumultuous times. "While the last several years have not been normal and challenging with Doug and Gloria retiring and the multiple pastor changes, I am hoping the next few years will settle down a bit to establish a new comfort zone," says Al..
Al started out helping Lee Ekstrom as a counter. When Gary Salaman moved out west, Al took over as Treasurer. Now David Woodruff will take on the role.
"I could not have done the treasurer position without the outstanding help of Lee Eckstrom as Financial Secretary," Al reports. "Also the Stewardship committee that continues to handle the pledge drive and the details, the Assistant Treasurer David who performs the payroll function and the Church Secretary (Tricia Frerman) who pays the bills."
Handling the church's finances is a big job, and volunteers are always needed.
Alan advises that the new Finance Team improve communications and help everyone to fulfill the financial ministry of the church. We know that with Al on the team, we'll be there. Thank you, Al Esche, for your steady guidance, long hours and commitment to God's work.
Office Schedule -
Just a reminder that all articles and information for Sunday bulletins and announcements need to be in the office by Noon on Wednesdays.
The next Spirit will be sent out January 26th. Articles will be due by NOON on Friday January 21st.
NATIVE AMERICAN CONNECTION ...
In reading a recent edition of the Lakota Journal newspaper, an editorial by Randolph Runs After attracted my attention. He is an environmental health specialist for the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe and was reflecting on winter and the Christmas season. It gives us some insight into life on a Reservation and we believe you will find that much of the thinking can be adapted for our own lives in 2005, as well."Doing the squirrel imitation preparing our respective abodes with duct tape and plastic on the windows and getting wood, propane and 'commods' ready for when those first few blizzards hit, our attention to winter preparations heightens as the air gets cold and crisp.
We can't grow that extra outside layer of fur like our tasunkas can but our lives can become sad obituaries if we don't remember to put an extra blanket or two in the rez car, get the car fluids including anti-freeze up to par. A little sack of sand or kitty litter in the trunk with booster cables and a bright colored bandana or rag for hanging on the aerial for attention if we get stuck can be helpful along with a candle, coffee can, candy bars and a cell phone. Hitting the ditch in a snowstorm is as common as hitting deer as are Reservation cell phone 'dead zones'.
Many times I've heard the phrase, 'Thanksgiving's a white man's holiday'. Well, look at it as this way. Disregard the Pilgrim-Squanto imagery and celebrate how you can drive to the store without worrying about a suicide bomber taking you with him. Celebrate our continued existence as tribal nations who've weathered the storms, politically, socially, economically and physically. Celebrate that despite how our in-fighting frequently beats us down, a further continued educated membership will give us the tools to change our respective tribal deficiencies and change our future for the better.
Celebrate that we continue to have our spirituality that brought us on this earth from the otherside camp to learn to overcome our obstacles, barriers, and the biggest hurdle - ourselves. Celebrate that although we sometimes don't have much on the reservation, there are people all over the world who would give anything for a tenth of what we do have.
Lastly, celebrate that as long as your heart has a beat in it there's always a chance for telling those who mean something to you that you've always appreciated their existence. Li'la Was'te." Please remember the White Buffalo Calf Woman's Shelter in your prayers and giving in 2005.
Joy Martin, Alice Haznedl, Ann Legg, Janet Pearce, Ginger Robinson, Rod Russell, MJ Towne, Gloria Thorson.