Weekly Update from Peoples Church

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A Reflection from Rev. Harris

Dear Church:

Yesterday with Ash Wednesday we began the season of Lent. Lent is a journey through the wilderness a symbolic time of fasting and prayer as we remember our humanity and our dependence upon the grace of God. Lent is not just a time of contrition, fasting, and prayer. The rhythms of Lent are about turning our attention to the ways of God. It is an invitation to see the ways that God is still at work within us and within the world. Brother Roger a Swiss protestant monk once wrote that Lent is an invitation to rediscover little springtimes in our lives. In the midst of so much grief and the wilderness of this pandemic perhaps this year the invitation for us this Lenten season is to focus on not what we need to fast from but what were we need to notice God moving, working, speaking, and encouraging us in our humanity.

With Lenten Prayers,
Rev. Harris

Worship This Weekend!

We invite you to worship with us this weekend the First Sunday of Lent at 10 am on our website Peoples Church UCC, Facebook, and YouTube. Our preacher will be Rev. Mahogany Thomas and our scriptures will be Psalm 25:1-10, Mark 1:9-15.

Musical Snippet for this coming Sunday's worship service:
Every Time I Feel The Spirit
Dr. Charles G Hayes and the Cosmopolitan Church of Prayer Choir

Worship Opportunities February 14-21:

Sunday, February 21:

Adult Bible Class
8:45 am-9:45 am.
Zoom Information:

Meeting ID: 883 9085 7788
Passcode: 438381
One tap mobile
+13017158592,,88390857788#,,,,,,0#,,438381# US (Germantown)
+13126266799,,88390857788#,,,,,,0#,,438381# US (Chicago)

Praise and Worship
A devotional time of testimony and prayer
Call–in-Number 720-740-9739
Access Code 4684874
The Line Opens at 8:55 a.m

Sunday Worship
Service at 10:00 am
https://www.facebook.com/peoplesconguccdc
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCr7e3NBNlOqRVSWru_TR1wQ

Virtual Church School
11:30 am
https://www.eventbrite.com/x/virtual-church-school-joy-and-justice-registration-126139611975

Wellness Ministry Webinar
COVID-19: Get the Facts Vaccine Webinar
1 pm

Join Zoom Meeting

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87455996877?pwd=VjVkZVo4L242b

01MT2NjWWI5d1VGUT09

Meeting ID: 874 5599 6877

Passcode: 965426

Dial by your location

+1 301 715 8592 US (Washington DC)

+1 929 205 6099 US (New York)

Wednesday, February 24:
Wednesday Word Devotional
Conference Call
Every Wednesday 7:00-7:30 a.m.
Conference Call-in-Number
(605) 475-5950
Access Code 8964544#

Wednesday Noon Prayer Service
Call-in Number: (515) 604-9545
Access Code: 659959#

Thursday, February 25:
Bible Study at 6 pm

Sunday, February 28:

10 am: Black History Month Joint Worship Service with First Congregational UCC DC
11:45am: Coffee Hour with First Church
4 pm: Peoples Black History Month program with BoCSA and BOCE

Did you miss worship last Sunday? Want to hear the sermon again? Maybe you want to be reinspired by the music. Watch the rebroadcast anytime on Youtube and Facebook by searching Peoples Congregational UCC D.C.

Bible Study is this evening, Thursday, February 18, 2021, at 6 pm. Join us as Rev. Harris leads our new Lenten study Plenty Good Room by Marilyn E. Thornton. Please join us for an engaging and spiritually uplifting session.

Bible Study Outline:
https://mcusercontent.com/be60f1b0d1d3fbeea70012540/files/08c75c52-1b4d-4ce6-9abc-9a86f206cc08/Plenty_Good_Room__Every_Time_I_Feel_The_Spirit_1_.pdf

Call Information:
(301) 715-8592
Access Code: 992 6852 3678#

Join Bible Study Zoom Meeting
Click on the link below
https://zoom.us/j/99268523678?pwd=NFZrUzNlUXBXczJkMWVxZ1VZclU5UT09

What the Revs. are Reading & Listening to this Week

Rev. Brandon Harris

Reading:
Congregations should see their buildings as assets, not albatrosses by Bishop Jennifer Baskerville-Burrows

The True Hard Work of Love and Relationships by Alain de Botton

Listening:
‘The Black Church: This is Our Story. This is Our Song’ PBS Documentary by Henry Louis Gates Jr.

Rev. Mahogany Thomas

Reading:
Proud Shoes: The Story of an American Family by Pauli Murray

“ ‘The Black Church’ explores the ‘most important institution’ in African American history” by Christina Sturdivant Sani in The Washington Post

Listening:
‘The Black Church: This is Our Story. This is Our Song’ PBS Documentary by Henry Louis Gates Jr.

Announcements

Mark your calendars!
March 7th- 130th Church Anniversary
March 14th- Girl Scout Sunday
March 21st- Heritage Sunday
March 25- Palm Sunday

Founder's Weekend Service:
SAVE THE DATE! Join Peoples Congregational United Church of Christ as we celebrate Founder's Weekend and our 130th Church Anniversary. Our theme for 2021 is "Sankofa: 130 years of loving God and loving neighbor!"
Worship with us on Saturday, March 6th at 6 pm as we welcome the Rev. Dr. Stephen G. Ray Jr. President of Chicago Theological Seminary to our virtual pulpit. Worship with us on Sunday, March 7th at 10 am as we welcome Senator Reverend Raphael G. Warnock, PhD to our virtual pulpit.

Diaconate Food Insecurity Project:
In September 2020, the Diaconate formed a Food Insecurity Committee (FIC) to consider ways to help address the food insecurity issue in the community due to the impact of the pandemic. Since that time, we made donations in November to two local on-going Food Pantries, then we developed a process to provide grocery food cards to those who contact our church seeking assistance. We have provided cards in which the Ministry distributed in December, January, and February. We intend to continue these efforts in the months ahead until our Food Pantry resumes operations. This was possible because of your generous contributions to the Diaconate Board through the years. We thank you for your donations and encourage your continued support by donating to the Diaconate Board using the Tithely app which is located on the church website: www.peopleschurchucc.org or mailing a check to the church made out to Peoples Church Diaconate Board.

COVID -19 CONTACT TRACING FORM UPDATE

Each person visiting the Church, for the first time only, with a scheduled appointment, must complete a Contact Tracing Form during the sign-in process. To expedite your sign-in time, the Contact Tracing Form has been posted on the Church website (peopleschurchucc.org) under Church Forms. The Church Forms Tab can be accessed from the Home Page of the website. The form can be downloaded and printed. Bring the completed form with you when you visit the Church for essential business only. Thanks for your cooperation with this COVID-19 protocol.

MEMBER CHECK-IN CALLS/TECHNOLOGY SURVEY is completed. Nineteen Church volunteers combed through a list of approximately 500 members to confirm contact information and to gauge the effectiveness of Church communications during this period of COVID-19 protocols. The volunteers completed a sheet for each person reached. They were able to confirm contact information with 242 members (47.5 percent of the list). The remainder of the list were invalid numbers and unresponsive, and a few are no longer members. Deceased members numbered 25 (5 percent of the list). If there are members who were not contacted, please be in touch with Pat Ellis at info@peopleschurchucc.org. We want to be sure everyone is counted! Thank you.