the june 2011 church mouse

The Church Mouse Monthly newsletter for the members & friends of Community Congregational Church of Elburn

The Pastor’s Page…. Every now and then (actually, more frequently), someone comes to me with a lament.

They talk about how they can‘t sing (I‘ve done that one myself!), don‘t have a skill that‘s in great

demand, would never do anything like write ‗the great American novel,‘ and such. Sometimes

folks review their own assets and talents, especially those they give to the church, and cannot find

any glamour or prestige in it.

I have good news for you. While you are focusing on what you can‘t do, you may not

see the gift God has given you: the spirit gift of Helps. ―Helps‖? Yes, Helps. It is one of the gifts

of the Spirit. It is not named specifically like this in the Bible, but there is evidence of it in many

places. Sometimes it comes under the enlisting of ‗administration,‘ sometimes under ‗servant

hood.‘

So, what is the gift of Helps? It is the gift of a) seeing a need, b) responding to the need

directly, and c) responding with enthusiasm and faithfulness. There are many folks who don‘t see

the little daily needs of life to keep things going. There are many who see the needs but don‘t re-

spond. There are many who respond, who may not do so with enthusiasm and faithfulness. Those

with the spiritual gift of Helps do.

If you recognize yourself in this definition, chances are that you never thought of this as

a gift. You simply think, ―Well, that‘s what needs to be done,‖ or ―Well, I like to do that sort of

thing.‖ Exactly. That is part of the characteristic of a spiritual gift: it ‗fits‘ who you are.

You may even wonder why everyone else does not respond like you do. It may be that

they are not so endowed. Here‘s an example: Some of us have the gift of music, either in voice

or instrument. We use this gift to help others worship and enjoy God‘s music world. The rest of

us, while we may sing with the congregation and enjoy music, don‘t have that spiritual gift, so we

are very appreciative of those who do have it and share it with others.

Some other folks are the faithful ones who make sure the coffee pot is on, the thermostat

has been set correctly, the doors have been locked/unlocked, make sure we provide hospitality to

newcomers, offer to supply flowers for the altar on Sunday, write thank you notes to those who

give so freely of themselves, make sure the pews are stocked with needed items, and many other

‗helpful‘ tasks. No one else usually notices all these gifts of helps that go on every day in the life

of the typical church, the typical family, the typical community.

Imagine a church (or any other organization, for that matter) that did not have folks with

the spiritual gift of Helps. Think of all the things that would not get done, all the people who

would not be served, or served cheerfully. So let‘s say a prayer of thanksgiving for all those who

do what I call the ‗interstitial‘ work – that‘s the tasks that get done behind the scenes, on the edg-

es, that makes the other part of what we do possible and pleasurable.

Here are some current needs of our church which are among the gift of Helps:

+ Hosts for fellowship time after worship (starting June 5, we fellowship in Carrie‘s Parlor for the

summer)

+ Donators of flowers for worship altar

+ Liturgists/worship assistants

+ Communion preparers

Keep on doing the things that you have learned and received and heard

and seen in me, and the God of peace will be with you. - Philippians 4:9

Yours in Christ,

Pastor Michelle

June 2011

Church Office Hours:

Monday through Friday

9:00 am to 1:00 pm.

Phone: (630) 365-6544

[email protected]

INTERIM PASTOR

Rev. Michelle Prentice-Leslie

MODERATOR

Sharon Lackey

VICE-MODERATOR

Mary Royer

TREASURER

Barb Holloman

FINANCIAL SECRETARY

Cindy Doede

CHURCH CLERK

Karen Baston

MINISTRY ASSISTANT

Linda Miller

+++

Beginning June 1, please use our

street address when corresponding

with the church:

100 E. Shannon Street

Elburn, IL 60119

The Post Office will forward mail

to us for about 18 months.

+++

Our website is constantly

being updated. Check it out!

www.ccc-elburn.org

June 2011 Community Congregational Church page 2

Musings from the Moderator…

This month we will begin the process of searching for a new pastor. One of the first steps in this journey will be to determine what qualities we are looking for in a minister, what our church needs to find the future that God wants for us. Once the search committee is formed they will be asking for input from the congre-gation. Please give some prayerful consideration to what you feel God is leading us to be so that together we can discern the right answers. See you in worship,

Sharon Lackey, Moderator

Fox Valley Association Spring Meeting Report

Pastor Michelle and Regina Kurth attended the Fox Valley Association (FVA) & Chicago Metropolitan Association (CMA) joint

meeting on May 7, 2011. This was the first time that the two associations have combined their meetings. The meeting was held at

the Westchester Community Church UCC in Westchester. We started with worship in the sanctuary and then we held our associa-

tion business meetings separately. CMA had their meeting in the sanctuary and FVA had their meeting in Fellowship Hall. We

elected the people on the different committees of the FVA. There are always positions available and if you would like to become

involved at the Association level, there are many opportunities and some only meet 3 times per year. Dick Conser talked to us

about the Immigration Reform Resolution. We had reports from the Committee on Ministry, Committee on the Church and Fi-

nancial Report. We had a report from the Moderator and from Jonathan Knight, the Association Conference Minister. We had a

ceremony to install the new Officers and Committee Member. Fox Valley Association also has their own facebook page, Fox

Valley - IL Conf - UCC. We then joined the CMA meeting to welcome the First Congregational Church of Evanston into the

UCC and into CMA.

Both associations then adjourned to Fellowship Hall to hear speaker Dr. Deborah L Plummer. She is the author of Racing Across

the Lines. The book is about how everyone needs to make a concerted effort to reach across different races. She talked about how

you need to keep your heritage but yet be friends with everyone. She talked about how you may be friends with someone at work

of a different race, but how often do you socialize with that person outside of work? You may consider them your friend, but are

you really friends? Would you call that person at 3:00 in the morning for help if needed? There was quite a bit of discussion after

she spoke.

The Illinois Conference will be held June 3-4 at the Doubletree Hotel in Oak Brook. It would be great if some of our congregation

could attend one or both of the days

Beginning in June 2011, please address all mail

to the church using our street address:


Elburn, IL 60119

The Post Office will continue to forward mail to us for about 18 months.


Congratulations to our Confirmand Everyone is invited to celebrate in the confirmation of Ryan Siebert on Sunday, June 12 at 9:30am during worship.

Ryan has been diligent in his studies with Pastor Michelle, as well as being an active and energetic part of the Youth Group. He has worked at Feed My Starving Children and helped with cleaning and yardwork for members of the congrega-tion to earn money for the Youth Mission Trip to Bridger, South Dakota later this month.

Ryan is the son of Jenni Gould Siebert and Scott Siebert, and the brother of Alex and Kristen. We are all so glad to welcome Ryan as a member of Commu-nity Congregational Church!

Volunteers Needed for 2011 If you have looked at the bulletin board in the Narthex, you will

notice that there are many opportunities to serve the church during

or after worship on Sundays. Won‘t you consider participating in

worship in one of the following ways:

Altar Flowers Honor the birthday, anniversary or memory of a loved one.

Worship Assistant Assist Pastor Michelle by leading prayers and reading

scriptures.

Fellowship Make the coffee & tea water, and provide a simple ta-

ble of refreshments, such as fruit, cheese & crackers,

cookies or coffee cake. A team effort makes this a lot easier.

Communion Prep & Serve Provide bread, wine and grape juice, set up the trays, and

help Pastor Michelle serve Communion the first Sunday

of the month. See the office for details.

Illinois Conference Women’s Retreat

October 7-8, 2011 Pilgrim Park Camp

Princeton, IL Details about costs, program and the fun oppor-tunities will be available on the bulletin board in the Narthex as soon as we get them. Reserve the date and help spread the word!

Pie Making has Begun! The church kitchen is once again the site of

hard work, fellowship and fun, as the Pie La-

dies prepare for Elburn Days. The rhubarb

pies are done! Now on to the blueberry, cherry, apple and

peach! Chief Sweetie Pie Stevie Bateman says that more

willing hands are needed.

Don‘t know beans about pie? Just come to the kitchen

at 9am on Mondays and Wednesdays and the experts

will be glad to teach you. There are stand-up AND sit-

down jobs to be had.

What‘s missing from ch ch?

U R

We hope to see U soon! :o)

Congratulations We offer our congratulations to Koty Le-

Maire and Mark Merfeld on their graduation

from Kaneland High School.

More congratulations go to Rolf Koos on

his graduation from Augustana College. Anna

Koos has completed her veterinary studies at University of

Wisconsin/Madison and was awarded her DVM.

Our church families have so much to be thankful for in

the achievements of our young people. Best wishes to Ko-

ty, Mark, Rolf and Anna. May your futures be bright and

blessed and full of adventures of the best kind.!


Vacation Bible School

We have our team assembled, our curriculum planned,

and our banner up. We need to fill in a few ―one time‖

spots. I will be asking people to fill in as Bible charac-

ters for one day and help as a costume organizer for one

day. No previous experience necessary.

Later in June……on our apron, in the Narthex….. you

will find a list of food items that can be donated. The

box below the apron is there for you to leave your non-

perishable donations.

We need volunteers to help us make decorations on June

29th ( 5- 7pm) and set up the evening of July 10th (6:30 –

8pm).

Thank you to everyone who has volunteered to help!

Your time and commitment to our children is greatly ap-

preciated!

See Theresa Biddle if you want to be a part of VBS. All

of our talents and time will make this VBS the best one

ever! I am sure God is smiling. Our work is demonstrat-

ing our love for Him.

Happy Birthday

Best wishes to these members and friends who are celebrating June birthdays.

June 6 Judy Taylor June 16 Dave Royer June 20 Bob Milcik June 23 Patty Milcik June 24 Suzy Ray June 25 Mike Biddle June 26 Jessica VanDevelde

Happy Anniversary

Congratulations to these celebrating June wedding anniversaries:

June 1 Fred & Linda Miller 36 years June 14 Fred & Joann Johnson 32 years June 16 Duke & Cheryl Krauspe 32 years June 17 Richard & Karen Mack 49 years June 22 Dean & Bonnie Anderson 48 years June 26 John & Lauren Biddle 1 year

If you know of birthdays or anniversaries that are missing from the calendar or listed incorrectly, please call the office so they may be added/corrected. Thank you.

Sunday School News

………from Theresa Biddle

We have concluded our Sunday School pro-

gram for this school year. We will start up

again in September. We had a blast at the park on May 22.

The friendships we have created and the love for God that

we share will carry us through the tough times we face grow-

ing up.

The next opportunity we have to meet new friends and share

the Good News of Jesus Christ is during Vacation Bible

School in July. Vacation Bible School is July 11 – 15 from

9:00 – 12:00. More information and a registration form can

be found on our web site by clicking on the Vacation Bible

School tab on the home page. Forms can be found on the

main bulletin board in our main hallway too!

Join us for Bible Fun and Friendship at Shake It Up Café!

Women’s Fellowship!

All women of the church are wel-come to attend the next meeting of the Women’s Fellowship Friday, June 10 at 1:00pm in Schneider Hall. Bring a friend! This isn’t an actual “church” meeting, just a gathering of friends for coffee, treats, laughter and conversation. There’s always a seat for you around the table. Because we all enjoyed the “healthier” menu from April, everyone is encouraged to bring some sort of salad or healthy side dish: fruit, veggies, hearty bread, light des-sert. Last month, we had about 14 people around the ta-ble, so plan accordingly and join in the fun and fellow-ship!


Just from Jessie…… Sunday School ended May 15 for the summer and resumes September 11. We will continue to meet

Wednesdays throughout the summer tentatively 6-8pm. There is a possibility we will meet at an earlier

time throughout summer but will be announced when that is determined.

Praise God! We have reached our fundraising goal for our mission trip!! Thank you to all who donated money. We

would still love to do odd jobs for you to earn extra money for youth group next year. Please see Jessie or any of the

students if you have any jobs you'd like us to do for you.

Please join us Sunday, June 12 for both Confirmation and Mission Trip Commissioning. We leave for Bridger, South

Dakota Saturday, June 18 and return Sunday, June 26. We are appreciate your prayers in the following ways: safety,

guidance, Holy Spirit's presence, being Jesus' hands and feet, a good attitude despite conditions, relationship with resi-

dents of Bridger, renewed relationship with Jesus...fun!

Remember VBS is July 11-15.

"For we know that in all things God works for the good of those

who love Him, and are called according to His purpose." Romans 8:28

For His glory,

Jessie

The Elburn Days Rummage Sale Returns! As many of you know, the church is making some changes for

Elburn Days 2011. The biggest change is that we won‘t have a

tent at Lion‘s Park. We will be doing all the things we usually

do—selling food and beverages, including our famous pie—but

right here at the church! Along with this change, we are bring-

ing back the Rummage Sale. Leah Miller has volunteered to co-

ordinate the sale and is asking for your help. When you do your

spring cleaning and sorting, remember that the church can use

your gently used cast-offs for our sale. We will accept donations

of clothing, household items, sporting goods and small furniture

items beginning RIGHT NOW! Bring your things to the ta-

bles on the west side of Schneider Hall during regular office

hours. (9-1p M-F)

Questions? Want to volunteer to help with pricing and sorting?

Contact the church office or Leah Miller.

Elburn Days Changes! This year, we have opted NOT to have

our tent at Lion‘s Park and will offer all

our food at the north parking lot of the

church. The days that we will serve food

have also changed:

THURSDAY— Coffee & pie beginning at 8a

Food sales 11a-6p

Rummage Sale 8a-6p

FRIDAY— Coffee & pie beginning at 8a

Food sales 11a-8p

Rummage Sale 8a-8p

SATURDAY— Coffee & pie 8a-1p

Rummage Sale 8a-1p

Now that you know the changes, mark your

calendars and then sign up to help! (Thank

you in advance!)

Ushering Teams for June

June 5—Team #3 Captain: Merfeld Family

June 12—Team #4 Captain: Pangborn Family

June 19—Team #5 Captain: Jessie & Youth Group

June 26—Team #1 Captain: Karen Baston


June 5 ~ Seventh Sunday of Easter 8:20 a.m. Bible Study

9:30 a.m. Worship with Holy Communion

10:30 a.m. Fellowship

5:00 p.m. Hope Anglican Worship Service

June 12 ~ Pentecost Sunday 8:20 a.m. Bible Study

9:30 a.m. Worship



June 19 ~ Trinity Sunday 8:20 a.m. Bible Study

9:30 a.m. Worship



June 26 ~ Second Sunday after Pentecost 8:20 a.m. Bible Study

9:30 a.m. Worship with Reverse Offering



Summer Worship Schedule begins

Sunday, June 5 No Sunday School

Bible Study 8:20a

Worship at 9:30a

Fellowship at 10:30a

Traveling Librarians Offer Books

for Homebound Readers Is it difficult or impossible to get to the library

because of temporary or long-term physical limi-

tations? Do you live within the Town & Country

Public Library District boundaries? If you an-

swer ―yes‖ to both of those questions, then the

Traveling Librarian Team is for you.

Contact the Town & Country Public Library at 630-365-2244

and ask for Teri or Susan. They will be happy to talk to you about

your reading needs and will select, deliver and pick up your

choice of library materials. This isn‘t just books, either. The li-

brary offers a variety of magazines, books on tape and movies,

too. This is right-to-your-door library service, and you‘ll love get-

ting to know Teri and Susan.

Seen on a church sign:

Honk if you love Jesus! Text while driving if you want to meet Him.

PLEASE CALL!!

If you are in the hospital and would like a visit from Pastor Michelle, call the church office at 630.365-6544 or Pastor Michelle herself at (630) 267-7555. Remember, be-cause of the new privacy laws, we do not always know when you are hospitalized. PLEASE let us know or have someone call for you.

Thank You!

Next time you see Anastasia Kurth, be sure to thank her

for all her hard work on her stenciling project down in

Schneider Hall. She went through the process of design-

ing, asking permission, and creating a lovely piece

above the pass-through in Schneider Hall. Thank you,

Anastasia, for this thoughtful gift.

June 2011 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat

1

11a Seniors Bible

Study at Meadows

4p Midweek Bible

Class

5:15p Confirmation

6p Youth Group

2

3

11a Knitting

6p Den 11 Scouts

4

4p Wedding—

Carolyn Jakes &

Brett Palmer

Kaneland H.S.

Graduation at NIU

5

Team 3 ushers

8:20a Bible Study

9:30a Worship with

Holy Communion

10:30a Fellowship

Congregational Mtg.

3p Scout Meeting

5p Hope Anglican

6

7

9a Crafty Crafters

7p Ministries

Meetings

7:30p Scouts

8

11a Seniors Bible

Study at Meadows

4p Midweek Bible

Class

5:15p Confirmation

6p Youth Group

9

6p AMEN Group

6p Girl Scouts

7p Church Council

10

11a Knitting

1p Women‘s

Fellowship in

Schneider Hall

6p Den 11 Scouts

11

10-2p Lazarus

House Open House

12

CONFIRMATION

Team 4 ushers

8:20a Bible Study

9:30a Worship

10:30a Fellowship

5p Hope Anglican

13

14

9a Crafty Crafters

7:30p Scouts

15

11a Seniors Bible

Study at Meadows

4p Midweek Bible

Class

6p Youth Group

16

17

11a Knitting

18

19 Team 5 ushers

8:20a Bible Study

9:30a Worship

10:30a Fellowship

5p Hope Anglican

20

630p Elburn Days

Meeting

21 9a Crafty Crafters

7:30p Scouts

22 11a Seniors Bible

Study at Meadows

4p Midweek Bible

Class

6p Youth Group

23

24

11a Knitting

MOUSE Deadline

25

26

Team 1 ushers

8:20a Bible Study

9:30a Worship

10:30a Fellowship

5p Hope Anglican

27

28

9a Crafty Crafters

7:30p Scouts

29

30

Prayer Reminder:

Remember to keep Pastor Michelle, Jessie

and the Youth Group in your prayers as they

travel to Bridger, South Dakota for their Mis-

sion Trip at the Indian reservation.

They will be gone June 18-26.

Mission Statement

The Community Congregational United Church of Christ

of Elburn is called by God

to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ

to our community and beyond by serving as

His heart, hands and feet through worship, prayer, Christian education and

mission ministries.

Community Congregational Church 100 E. Shannon Street Elburn, Illinois 60119

June 2011

ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED

God is still speaking,

MAILING LABEL

Beginning June 1, please use our

street address when mailing anything

to the church office:


Elburn, IL 60119

Member of the Elburn Chamber of Commerce

This year,

SHAKE IT UP!

for VBS

July 11-15, 2011 9:00—11:45am Register on the web: www.ccc-elburn.org

the june 2011 church mouse

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spiritual gift

gift of music

spirit gift

gift god

typical church

typical community

current needs

typical family