Author Archives: Admin

Scripture describes life as a journey. Our travel through life is described as a “walk.” When anyone goes on a journey (whether it be a day hike or a long-term sojourn), that person needs to make certain preparations. The same is true about our spiritual journey – our journey through life. How do we prepare for our spiritual journey, our spiritual walk? What do we put in our “backpack” for our life’s journey? Check in and tell me what you think?

God is extraordinary! Sometimes it seems like we human beings who are so ordinary just can’t relate to God who is so out-of-the-ordinary. What can we do? We can look for God in the ordinary, that’s what. God is so incredible – so extraordinary, that God seeks to meet us in our ordinary world. Some biblical examples might include Moses, who was just minding his own business, tending the sheep when he saw a burning bush. Or, there’s samuel, who was trying to sleep when he kept hearing God’s voice calling to him. Or, what about Matthew the tax collector? Jesus came up to him one day and said simpley, “Follow me.” That simple statement made all the difference in Matthew’s life. Another God encounter happened when when Jesus spoke to a woman at a well. The woman’s life was messed up, but Jesus shoowed her how she could draw “living water” from the “well of salvation.”
Extraordinary God delights in meeting us in our ordinary lives and life situations. In fact God is doing it to you right now. Look for it! Where is Extraordinary God acting in your ordinary life?

Lent is about to begin with our church hosting the community Ash Wednesday service on the 22nd. The Thursday after that on March 1 begins our mid-week evening Lenten services. We will be reflecting on the book of Jonah, with Jesus’ statement that he would only give the “sign of Jonah” (Matthew 16). Be sure to check out the services, as they will be both fun as well as reflective. The messages will be interactive and light hearted. If you have conflicts on Sundays, this is a good time to come to church. Also, bring a friend!

Join us tomorrow as we listen to our new Interim Pastor David Jennys deliver our message for the 2nd Sunday Advent. Of course if you would like to preview the bulletin for tomorrow … click here; of course we have an insert with announcements and a poem shared by Reverend Jennys … insert, click here.

What is happening this week?

• Don’t forget choir practice this Sunday, Dec 4th, note the time change from 6 pm to 4 pm.
• Remember that the new Community Christian Youth Group is having their first meeting this Sunday, Dec 4th at 6 pm. They will be meeting at ‘The Rock’ in Clay City, located at the corner of Cook & 10th Streets. This first meeting is scheduled to last 2 hours.
• Our Christian Discovery Group will be meeting Tuesday, December 6th for their December Meeting. They will be meeting at Bob & Angie’s Hometown Restaurant, located at 711 Main Street, at 6:30 pm as the share conversation over an evening of dinner and dessert. They also will be collecting donations for a family in need.
• Our monthly fellowship and council meeting is scheduled for Thursday, December 8th. The fellowship meeting will be at 6:30 pm, followed by the monthly council meeting at 7:30 pm.

That is about covers our week, as we prepare for all the Christmas activities within the church, our community, and homes!

God Bless All !

The first thing you might notice today is the difference in the header on our site! I am not sure why but the other header graphic has disappeared, things happen! But what makes it worse is right now I can not find that I made a back up copy! How is that possible I ask myself? It will give me something to do next week, that is recreating the previous header graphic! I did like the other one better than this one, but I did make this one for us too. So maybe I should ask do you like this header or do you like the previous one better?

This Sunday after Thanksgiving, is the first Advent Sunday, so entails a few specialties added to the normal service this Sunday. There are also quite a few announcements, which often come with the holiday season. I will repeat the announcements here, but they can also be found within the ‘Insert’ for the bulletin.

• It is time for decorating again! So come one—come all on Tuesday, November 29th at 7:00 pm to help decorate our church for the Advent Season!!
• November 30th, Wednesday, the Visitation Team will be meeting at the Pizza Gallery in Clay City at 5:00 pm
• The Women’s Fellowship will be going to Bethesda Gardens for lunch & a meeting afterward on Thursday, December 1st. They will be meeting at the church at 11:00am, lunch at noon, Ruth White will have the lesson in the afternoon. If you plan on attending please let Nora Lowdermilk know!
• Monthly Meeting for the Clay County Habitat for Humanity, Thursday, December 1st at the United Methodist Church in Centerpoint, Indiana, meeting time at 7:30 pm
• Community Youth Group Meeting, a new group has started, a Christian Community Youth Group, the group is for youth from grade 4th through 12th that wish to come together in the name of Christ; this new group will have their first meeting Sunday, December 4th at 6:00 pm, meeting at ‘The Rock’ located at the corner of Cook St & 10th St in Clay City, Indiana. This first meeting is scheduled to last 2 hours, dismissing at 8:00 pm.
• Annual Community Christmas Sing is Sunday, Dec 4th, at 6:00 pm; First United Methodist Church Fellowship Hall. Evening includes singing Christmas carols & songs with special music by area individuals & groups. Everyone is invited, bring a favorite Christmas finger food, hot beverages & paper products will be supplied.
• Christian Discovery Group will have their December meeting on Tuesday, December 6th at 6:30; the meeting will be held at Bob and Angie’s Restaurant. In lieu of a gift exchange, they will be taking donations for a family in need.
• Remember that Choir Practice is scheduled for every Sunday at 6:00 pm
• A reminder that our Youth are once again selling calendars and notepads! You can support our Youth by ordering the calendars at $7.00 each and the notepads at $4.00 each; look for the Youth after service in the foyer for the next few Sundays!
• Joann Yegerlehner has been moved to Davis Gardens (Room #102), Terre Haute, Indiana. Please continue to keep her and her family in your prayers.
• The Christian Education team has a variety of advent devotionals for study during this Advent season.  These are in pamphlet file located in the foyer.  There are also calendars, postcards, & activity books for children; larger children books are on the bulletin board ledge. Please one adult & one child’s per family.

And as usual the bulletin preview, it might be noted that I have not included the page numbers for the hymns as that still has to be verified …. click here
And of course the insert with announcements and a poem requested by our Interim Pastor David Jennys … click here
I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving !! God Bless!

It is our regular Saturday posting! We have a few announcements, along with a couple of prayer requests.

Tomorrow, Sunday, November 20th, well be a full Sunday schedule! Our own Don Yegerlehner will be providing our sermon entitled “Thanksgiving: Raising Ebenezer Stones”. This Sunday also includes Communion, along with a special remembrance of those we lost this past year. Following service is our annual Thanksgiving Dinner; provided is turkey, ham, mashed potatoes, stuffing, noodles, and rolls. Please bring your appetites along with a salad or vegetable and a dessert; also bring your own table services so that no one ends up with too much clean up time!

Don’t forget that Choir Practice is continuing this Sunday at 6:00 pm at the church.

The Women’s Fellowship is planning a visit to Bethesda Gardens as part of their next monthly meeting, Thursday, December 1st. The plan is to meet at the church at 11:00 am, having lunch at approximately noon, then enjoying the lesson provided by Ruth White. If you plan on attending please let Nora Lowdermilk know!

We have 2 prayer requests this week …

Marla Owens’ daughter, Karen, got hurt at work, she broke her leg which meant an operation on Thursday. Please keep Marla & Karen in your prayers for a speedy recovery!

We also heard yesterday that Joann Yegerlehner has been hospitalized. We have not heard many details, but still keep Joann & her family in your prayers as they face this difficult time.

Join us next Sunday, November 27th as we begin our first Sunday of Advent with our new Interim Pastor David Jennys!

Of course a preview of our happenings for tomorrow:
The bulletin for Sunday, November 20th … click here
The insert for Sunday, November 20th … click here

This post maybe later than I would have wanted, but I have made it! It has been a busy few days, but with a little prayer all has pulled together!

Remember tomorrow is the 13th of November so …..
***** Remember to bring the Samaritan’s Purse Shoe boxes to the church!
***** Also it is the last day to bring items to be included for the Food Pantry Thanksgiving Baskets

Also the Youth Group will still be selling calendars & notepads this Sunday, please look for them in the foyer after service!

Next Sunday, the 20th is our annual congregation Thanksgiving Dinner! The fellowship group provides turkey, ham, mashed potatoes, noodles, stuffing, rolls, and drinks. They ask that we bring salad or vegetable and a dessert to add to the menu selection! Bring your appetite along with a table service to share in the food and fellowship!

This Sunday the 13th our Worship service is with Gina Tollini. Next Sunday the 20th, Worship service and Holy Communion will be with our own Don Yegerlehner.

As usual please enjoy a preview of the bulletin for tomorrow, November 13th by … clicking here
And we do have an insert with announcements that can be viewed by …. clicking here

It is Saturday, November 5th, what a beautiful day outside too! At our house we have been outside doing chores and clean up getting ready for winter, how about everyone else? I still see many farmers out in the fields working on harvest, thank you to each and everyone of the farmers that help keep food in our homes!

So what does this Sunday, November 6th hold for us? Our speaker this Sunday is Reverend David Jennys; the following is the bio information that Reverend Jennys provided us:

Rev. David Jennys lives in Francesville, IN with his wife, Susan. They have two children, a son and daughter, and one son-in-law. David is ordained in The United Methodist Church, but has recently been involved in the United Church of Christ with the interim pastoral ministry. David’s wife is also a pastor, serving two rural United Methodist churches. David participates in endurance sports and has run twelve marathons and two ultra-marathons, and most recently he biked a 100 mile “century.” David likes playing strategy games, he and his wife enjoy spending time reading a wide range of topics, traveling, and interesting conversation.

I am sure he will be an interesting speaker, I know I look forward to hearing his sermon entitled “Honor Thy Name”. Divine Worship starts at 10:30 am, with Sunday Classes starting at 9:30 am.

What else is going on this next week?
** The Wabash Valley Meeting is being held at the Bethany UCC, in West Terre Haute at 3:00 pm, Sunday, November 6th.
** Our Choir Practice begins this Sunday, November 6th, at 6:00 pm at our church; practice is scheduled for every Sunday at 6:00 pm until Christmas service.
** There is a special Memorial Grieving Service being held for the community at Hope Baptist Church, Clay City, at 6:00 pm, Sunday November 6th.
** Christian Discovery’s November meeting is being held Monday, November 7th at 7:30 pm; Cathy Collins will be hosting this month’s meeting within her home. If anyone needs directions, please contact someone within the Discovery group, or email the church at ClayCityFirstUCC @ gmail.com (remember no spaces)
** Thursday, November 10th is the day scheduled for the monthly Fellowship Meeting at 6:30 pm; and the monthly Council Meeting at 7:30 pm
** Next Sunday, November 13th we have the opportunity to hear Gina Tollini again as she will be the guest speaker for Divine Worship at 10:30 am.
** Next Sunday, November 13th is the final day to bring in items for the community Thanksgiving Food Baskets, please bring the following items: boxes of instant potatoes, packets of gravy mix, bags of noodles, cans of broth, cans of green beans, boxes of stuffing mix, sweet potatoes, cans of cranberry sauce, cans of pumpkin pie mix, cans of evaporated milk, pie crust mix, whip topping
** Next Sunday, November 13th is also the final day for the Samaritan’s Purse Shoe boxes, so please remember to bring your filled shoe boxes to church by this date. Also don’t forget to include the $7 for postage to mail the boxes to the children.

If you would like a review our bulletin for this Sunday, November 6th …. Click Here
And we have the announcements ….. Click Here
And the extra music for the bulletin … Click Here

Don’t Forget to set your clock back tonight !! Day Light Savings Time ends tonight, so if you want to be on time for church remember to adjust those clocks before you go to bed tonight !!

God Bless …. And hope to see you this Sunday !!!

I guess I got so excited about our Angela Lilly Trio that I became remiss on the next week’s posting! Maybe I need a little finger wag for myself!

The Angela Lilly Trio visited our church on the 23rd of October! And what a wonderful time it was, their voices and music were divine to listen to. Here is a small video of the group together if you would like to hear some more from them:

If you visit them at YouTube you can also hear some more of the wonderfully talented Grayson!

On October 29th we had our Trunk-or-Treat program for the local community of Clay City. Every year our church hosts the Trunk-or-treat program for the community, with our vehicles parked in the Burkle Ford lot (we thank Bob Burkle for the use of his lot!) Enjoy a couple of pictures of us entertaining the children! There are more pictures located within our photos of Facebook!

Ruth greeting the kids

We had a great turnout!

Enjoy the rest of the pictures at our Facebook Album!

Our Service Sunday, October 30th was Michelle Dyar, she was a great joy to listen too and we wish her a speedy recovery on that foot!

Today is November 1st, so the new newsletter is out! Enjoy the Olive Branch for November, by clicking here!

Our speaker for the next Sunday, November 6th is David Jennys; there will be more about David Jennys in our next post, along with the bulletin upload for those that want that sneak-peak!

Enjoy your week! Blessings to all!!

October is half way over! What does that mean? It means that we are deep into planning Trunk-or-Treat! Remember that Trunk-or-Treat is set for October 29th, Saturday evening at 6:30 pm at Burkle Ford. Besides needing Trunks we also need people to serve refreshments, pass out goodies from the church, greet people, and bake treats! If you can participate in any way please see the bulletin board in the foyer of the church to sign up!

Don’t forget that next Sunday is our Musical Sunday Service with special guest ‘The Angela Lilly Trio‘. We will NOT have Sunday Classes next week because this Special Worship Service will begin early at 10:00 am. So bring your ears and your voices for this special service! Invite friends and family to this special event!!

Mark your calendar for our Fall Festival, scheduled for October 30th! After Worship Service the 30th join us in the Shelter House as we have an ole-fashion weenier roast! The festival committee will provide the hot dogs, buns, drinks, and table service; please bring a finger food, like chips, cookies, etc to share with everyone attending.

A little about some visiting ministers / speakers! Our visiting minister for October 30th is, Michelle Dyar. Michelle is a graduate of Christian Theological Seminary and served as Director of Religious education at First Congregational UCC Indianapolis for 5 years. Michelle is currently working toward ordination with the United Church of Christ. Michelle is married to Eric and they have one son Carter.

Our visiting minister for this Sunday, October 16th is Chris Lee. Prior to getting involved in ministry, Chris received degrees in psychology and social studies education from Indiana State University. He later studied ministry for 3 1/2 years and worked for Youth for Christ from 1998-2001. Chris has spent a great deal of time working with youth, teaching them the word of God and its application for their lives. Chris became an ordained minister in December 2006. He has served Carbon Baptist Church as associate and youth pastor for the past five years. Chris lives with his wife, Michelle, and son, Tyler, in Saline City.

To review the bulletin for October 16th, 2011 … click here …. and the insert / announcements … click here

Enjoy!! And God Bless !!