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1/6/2019   Join us this Epiphany Sunday
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641-236-3111
4th Avenue and Broad Street
PO Box 322
Grinnell, Iowa 50112
www.grinnellucc.org
January 6, 2019
Join us this Epiphany Sunday
Worship
at 10:30 am

Rev. Jessica Margrave Schirm
Isaiah 60:1-6; Matthew 2:1-12
Claim Your Poinsettia
If you donated a poinsettia and would like to take it home, please collect it after worship this Sunday, January 6. Thank you for brightening our worship space this Christmas season!
Fed at Christ's Table,
We Feed Others

Beginning with the first Sunday in January, this Sunday the 6th, we will be collecting our non-perishable donations for MICA during the worship service. Instead of dropping them off in the grocery cart, please bring them into the pew with you when you are seated.  The children and youth will collect them from you during the last hymn and take them to the grocery cart near the chancel.  We will be doing this every Communion Sunday, which is typically the first Sunday of the month, going forward.  If, for some reason, you won't be present on Communion Sunday, donations can be dropped in the grocery cart any time during the month.  This is a way of intentionally helping the hungry and poor in and around our community, and it is a tangible act of thanksgiving for the extravagant welcome we receive at Christ’s table during communion.  The cold winter months can be especially hard for those in need, so please be as generous as you can.
Assistance for Our Neighbors
Thanks to generous donors, Grinnell UCC raised $1,240 for the employees at El Molcajete, the Mexican restaurant that was destroyed by fire. Combined with other churches, a total of $3,500 in cash was given to them right before the holidays, and more funds are on the way.
Grinnell UCC Mystery Guest Dinner Parties
Check out the January Newsletter to learn about this fun community-building activity. Sign up using the forms in your newsletter and return to the church office no later than January 31. Copies of the forms are also available in the Narthex, or from the Church Office. Questions? Please call or email Erin – erin@grinnellucc.org
Care for Creation News
On November 27, 2018, the United Church of Christ leaders responded to a climate change report that gave a detailed analysis of the dire effect of climate change on every facet of life in the United States.  "Climate change is transforming where and how we live and presents growing challenges to human health and quality of life, the economy, and the natural systems that support us," the report reads in part.  The Rev. James Antal, Special Advisor on Climate Change to the UCC, said the findings prompt immediate action: "The time has come for people of faith to embrace climate change as a moral issue.”   Try to include the three R's in your new year's resolutions this year:  Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle.   --Jo Entwisle
OWL Elementary
We will offer the early elementary curriculum of Our Whole Lives (OWL) class this winter and spring. This positive, comprehensive, and age-appropriate program promotes sexual health and is informed by the guidelines of the Sexuality Information and Education Council of the US. We will offer the class for either kindergarten and 1st-graders, or 1st- and 2nd-graders, depending on the level of interest in our community. If you have friends or family with children that age, please invite them to contact Erin and to attend a Parent information session following worship on Sunday, January 13. We will hold a second info session in early February.
Annual Meeting of the Congregation Coming Up
The Annual Meeting will be held in Friendship Hall on January 27 following worship and a light lunch. Everyone is invited and encouraged to attend. Child care will be provided for the duration of the meeting. Church leaders, please have submissions for the Annual Report to elizabeth@grinnellucc.org by January 15.
Children / Youth Library
We are so excited to see that our library books are being read! You are welcome and encouraged to borrow them for at-home use; however, please return them within a week or two so that other families may also use them. 
Outreach Volunteers Needed
On January 22, Grinnell UCC is sponsoring the Community Meal at Davis School.  If you are interested in volunteering to help at this event, contact Elizabeth Hansen at 641-990-8166.       
Celebrating Kindness
From January 25-February 3, Grinnell will celebrate 10 Days of Kindness! There will be numerous community events aimed at encouraging and recognizing kindness. A full calendar of events will be published in the Herald Register and you’ll begin to see posters and flyers around town. As part of this community-wide initiative, we are (co)hosting two events:
1) Together with the Grinnell Ministerial Association, we are presenting musical artist Mari Harris who will perform a family-friendly evening program on Friday, February 1 at the Grinnell College Golf Course and Country Club. More details forthcoming – please save the date!
2) Then on Sunday, February 3, the DeMasi Brothers perform here in our sanctuary at 1pm. “Twin brothers Joseph and John DeMasi are contemporary folk singers, songwriters and recording artists whose songs are imbued with their Unitarian Universalist beliefs of love, inclusion, tolerance, understanding and worth and dignity for all. With Joseph on guitar and John on guitar and fiddle, the DeMasi Brothers bring a unique musical experience full of wit, humor, intellect and poignancy.” The performance will be preceded by fellowship and finger foods in the Parlor.

Weekly Calendar

Sunday January 6
Epiphany
  • Sunday School 9:15 am
  • Worship at 10:30 am
Wednesday January 9
  • Choir Rehearsal 6:45 pm
Thursday January 10
  • Bible Study 9:30 am
Sunday January 13
The Baptism of Christ
  • Sunday School 9:15 am
  • Worship 10:30 am
Worship Participants
Worship Host       JoAnn Britton
Liturgist           Karen Edwards
Greeters         Dan Rodriguez
Ushers       Nancy E. Brown
Chancel               Karen Edwards
Mayflower Driver    Rick Ramsey
Sound System      Shane Estes
Bulletin Cover       Edd Scheer
Nursery           Jodi Brandenburg
In Our Prayers 
We hold to the heart of our congregation and lift up to the embrace of God all who are in need of prayer.  To contribute prayer concerns to the whole church, please contact the church office.

We pray for health & strength for Jim Ahrens, Bill Arms, Verlene Mitchell, Jack Ulrickson, Phyllis Wood, and Ruby Zimsen-Campe.  
Pastoral Care
Anytime someone enters the hospital or Mayflower Health Center, or in any case of trauma, distress, or death, please do not assume that word has reached the church. Contact the church office by email or phone to share information with the pastor. Jessica can also be reached on her mobile phone at 319-883-1375.
Copyright © 2018 Grinnell United Church of Christ, All rights reserved.

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Grinnell United Church of Christ
902 Broad Street
Grinnell, IA 50112

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Grinnell United Church of Christ · 902 Broad St · Grinnell, IA 50112 · USA

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