This Week March 29, 2017

Dear Folks,

How lovely it is to see the sun shining!!

The Shelton Ecumenical Lenten Service will be held this evening here at HCCUCC.  The Rev. Inkoo Chung will be preaching.  Dinner is at 6 P.M., the service is at 7 P.M.

This Sunday, April 2, is the Fifth Sunday in Lent.  My sermon series on the Lord's Prayer continues with Matthew 6:13.  We will be celebrating Holy Communion.

There are slots available for readers for the Tenebrae service on April 13.  Please consider being a reader.

A sign-up sheet is posted in the alcove for the April 13th Seder Meal reservations. Payment is due at the time of sign-up. Cancellations will be taken up until April 2nd. If you cancel after that, and there is not a fill in, you may have a takeout order, but money will not be refunded. Adults: $15; Children: $10.

Women’s Fellowship will prepare and sell Manhattan and New England Clam Chowder and a variety of homemade breads. To place your order, sign up on the sheet in the alcove or call the church office (203 929-1223). Pick-up will Sunday, April 9^th. The Chowder is $10 per quart. The prices of the homemade breads will vary.

Women's Fellowships is collecting collecting the following items to fill these Church World Service kits until April 5^th. School Kits:~ blunt scissors~ Box 24 crayons (only 24)~ Pencil sharpeners-hand held ~ Spiral notebooks-70 sheets~ 12 inch rulers ~ New Pencils w/erasers~ Large eraser. Hygiene Kits: ~ Combs (wide tooth only) ~ Bath size soap in wrapper~ Nail clippers~ 3” Band-aids~ Washcloths~ Hand towels~ Toothbrushes in original package. Your donations can be left in the CWS box or Women’s Fellowship box in Fellowship Hall. Please see Laura Salvio with any questions.

Our Habitat for Humanity work day is Saturday, April 8th.  Please sign up in the alcove and/or see Bob Moseley for more info.

The absolute deadline for Easter flower orders is April 9th. The order forms can be found on the shelf in the alcove and can be given to Judy Tucker or left in the Flower Chair mail slot above the coat rack.

The 9^th Annual Treasures, Talents and Tastes Auction is on Saturday, May 6^th, 6 p.m. in Fellowship Hall. Please see Linda or Bob Sember for more info or contact them at 203-929-5853.

The First Congregational Church of Stratford presents FRANCE 2017. Eleven Days and Nine Nights— September 26^th – October 6^th. For more information, see the bulletin board in the alcove.

Let us pray.  Through the sunshine and through the rain, through the good and through the bad, O God, you love is constant and sure.  Thank you!  Amen.

In Christ's love,

Rev. Lucille

This Week March 21, 2017

Dear Folks,

Happy Spring!!

Quiet Hour will resume this Wednesday at 10 A.M. in the library.

The Shelton Ecumenical Lenten Service will be held this Wednesday at the Huntington United Methodist Church.  The Rev. Barbara Schaffer will be preaching.  Dinner is at 6 P.M., the service is at 7 P.M.

This Sunday, March 26, is the Fourth Sunday in Lent.  My sermon series on the Lord's Prayer continues with Matthew 6:12.

Husam Qumseya from Bethlehem, Palestine, will be with us on Sunday to give us a word about the Holy Land.  He will be offering items from his homeland for purchase during Fellowship Hour.

There are slot available for readers for the Seder and the Tenebrae service on April 13.  Please consider being a reader.

A sign-up sheet is posted in the alcove for the April 13th Seder Meal reservations. Payment is due at the time of sign-up. Cancellations will be taken up until April 2nd. If you cancel after that, and there is not a fill in, you may have a takeout order, but money will not be refunded. Adults: $15; Children: $10.

Women’s Fellowship will prepare and sell Manhattan and New England Clam Chowder and a variety of homemade breads. To place your order, sign up on the sheet in the alcove or call the church office (203 929-1223). Pick-up will Sunday, April 9^th. The Chowder is $10 per quart. The prices of the homemade breads will vary.

Women's Fellowships is collecting collecting the following items to fill these Church World Service kits until April 5^th. School Kits:~ blunt scissors~ Box 24 crayons (only 24)~ Pencil sharpeners-hand held ~ Spiral notebooks-70 sheets~ 12 inch rulers ~ New Pencils w/erasers~ Large eraser. Hygiene Kits: ~ Combs (wide tooth only) ~ Bath size soap in wrapper~ Nail clippers~ 3” Band-aids~ Washcloths~ Hand towels~ Toothbrushes in original package. Your donations can be left in the CWS box or Women’s Fellowship box in Fellowship Hall. Please see Laura Salvio with any questions.

The 9^th Annual Treasures, Talents and Tastes Auction is on Saturday, May 6^th, 6 p.m. in Fellowship Hall. Please see Linda or Bob Sember for more info or contact them at 203-929-5853.

The deadline for Easter flower orders is April 2. The order forms can be found on the shelf in the alcove and can be given to Judy Tucker or left in the Flower Chair mail slot above the coat rack.

The First Congregational Church of Stratford presents FRANCE 2017. Eleven Days and Nine Nights— September 26^th – October 6^th. For more information, see the bulletin board in the alcove.

Let us pray.  Thank you, O God, for the changing of the seasons, for the variety of life, for the diversity of humanity.  They are are gifts!  Amen.

In Christ's love,

Rev. Lucille

March 20: Building A Community of Respect: Why Words Still Matter

This Week March 14, 2017

Dear Folks,

I hope you are all safe and warm during this winter storm.

Thank you to all who offered their well-wishes on my new kitties.  They made an appearance last night, but are again in hiding today.  Luna is much more social than Lexi!  She let me pet her!

Council has been postponed and rescheduled to next Tuesday, March 21, 7 P.M.

Quiet Hour for tomorrow morning is cancelled. 

The Ecumenical Lenten Service is scheduled for tomorrow evening, Wednesday, March 15 at the First Baptist Church on Leavenworth Road.  The Rev. Eric Cox will be preaching. Dinner is at 6, the service is at 7.  If there is a cancellation, I will let you know.  Please check your email before venturing out!

March 19 is the Third Sunday in Lent.  The scripture reading is Matthew 6:9-13.  The sermon is on Matthew 6:11.

Thank you to everyone who participated and contributed to the Umbrella Bowl to Benefit.  We made close to $600!  And, yes, bowler Gordon Harris was the high scorer!!! Congrats, Gordon!

Enjoy your snow day!.

Let us pray.  O God, no matter what life throws at us, your presence is constant.  May we trust in your strength and love.  Amen.

In Christ's love,

Rev. Lucille

This Week March 8, 2017

Dear Folks,

So, are you enjoying our weather roller coaster?

Quiet Hour begins tomorrow morning, Wednesday, March 8, 10 A.M. in the library.

The Ecumenical Lenten Service tomorrow evening is at Shelton First United Methodist Church, Long Hill Ave. and Rocky Rest Rd.  Dinner is at 6 P.M., the service is at 7 P.M.  The Rev. Ken Smith will be preaching.

My prayer day is Thursday, March 9. If you have any joys or concerns for me to lift up, please let me know.

This coming Saturday is Umbrella's Bowl to Benefit.  We still have room for more bowlers, so, if anyone wants to give it a roll, just let me know, and I will pin down your spot. You will have a ball!  (See what I did there?)

This Sunday is the Second Sunday in Lent.  We will be celebrating Scouting with Troop 28.  The scripture is Matthew 6:9-13.  The sermon is on Matthew 6:10, in my continuing series on the Lord's Prayer.

The Women's Fellowship Corned Beef and Cabbage dinner is this coming Sunday at 5:30.  If you have not gotten your tickets yet, please contact the church office ASAP!

Let us pray.  O God of all, we offer you our thanks and praise,  May our lives be a testament to your never ending love.  Amen.

In Christ's love,

Rev. Lucille

Ash Wednesday 2017

Dear Folks,

"You come from dust, and to dust you shall return."

These are the words that I use as I administer ashes.  At first glance, there is a certain fatalistic morbidness conveyed.  We were born, we are going to die. 

True enough.

But, these words are not uttered in a vacuum.  These words are surrounded by the whole of the Gospel.  In Jesus Christ, we know that the dust from which we were created was brought into being by God.  The breath that was breathed into that dust is God's breath, and that the whole of all that dust is held in God's presence eternally.

Yes, we are dust, but we are God's dust.  Thanks be to God!

May this Lenten season be a time for us to claim our divine dusty-ness and strengthen our relationship with God, others, and ourselves.

Let us pray.  O Holy One, may you sweep us up into your eternal love.  Amen.

In Christ's love,

Rev. Lucille