Sunday, September 12, 2021
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Joys and Concerns
Sundays at 1:00 pm
Our weekly joys and concerns check-in continues today. Please join this Zoom call at 1:00 pm for a time to name something we are grateful for, a concern we have, and to be in prayer together.
Those unable to join by video can call 1-253-215-8782, then enter the code 944-1809-2407#, then # when asked for the password.
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Order of Worship
Prelude
Introit: “A Spirited Fanfare”
Opening Hymn: NCH#538 “Standing at the Future’s Threshold” (vs. 1-3, 5)
Welcome & Announcements
Invocation & Lord's Prayer
Presentation of Bibles
Passing the Peace
Response Song: "No Matter"
Peace Prayer
Pastoral Prayer
Anthem: “O Jesus, I Have Promised”
Scripture: Mark 8:27-37
Sermon: "High Stakes Confessions"
Closing Hymn: NCH#526 “We Are Marching in the Light of God”
Benediction
Postlude
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September 15
Roger Eversole
September 17
Owen Roney
September 19
Hannah Moore
Anne Hughes
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Sunday, September 12
8:30 am Fellowship Hour
9:00 am Education Hour
9:00 am Worship Rehearsal
10:00 am Worship Service
1:00 pm Joys and Concerns (online)
Monday, September 13
Office Closed
Tuesday, September 14
3:00 pm Staff Meeting
5:30 pm Benevolence Committee Meeting
Wednesday, September 15
5:15 pm Wednesday Night Live
Thursday, September 16
12:30 pm - 4:30 pm Open Prayer in Sanctuary
5:30 pm Peace and Justice Committee Meeting
6:30 pm ICMEP Trip Meeting
6:30 pm PFLAG
Saturday, September 18
5:30 pm Rejoice and Renewal Celebration
Sunday, September 19
Heritage Sunday
8:30 am Fellowship Hour
9:00 am Education Hour
9:00 am Worship Rehearsal
10:00 am Worship Service
11:15 am Safe Church Policy Workshop
11:15 am Kitchen Equipment Training
1:00 pm Joys and Concerns (online)
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Sunday, September 12: Chapel Class Returns
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Sunday, September 12 and 19, Rev. Timothy Murphy will be leading a discussion on addressing institutional racism and how it differs from responding to personal and systemic racism. The group will learn about projects Plymouth has been undertaking over the past year to address institutional racism within our structure, and attendees will explore next steps and possibilities of additional projects to be taken on in the future.
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Sunday, September 12: Children's Sunday School Returns
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Sunday School returns today! Our classes meet at 9:00 am every Sunday morning.
Preschool and Elementary students will meet outside as long as the weather permits. In case of bad weather, we will meet upstairs in Room 204. Middle and High School students will meet in Room 205.
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Wednesday Night Live Programming: September 15
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Wednesday Night Live has returned for its regular weekly programming. The schedule and some locations have changed slightly from previous years.
5:15 pm: Children’s Choir (TBD)
- Sanctuary Singers (Sanctuary)
- Bible Study (Chapel)
6:00 pm: Dinner (Folsom Room and/or Shedd Park)
6:45 pm: Plymouth Bell Ensemble (Sanctuary Balcony)
- Small Group Discussion (Amistad)
- Youth UnProgram (Youth Center)
Sign-up sheets are in the Folsom Room to indicate if you will be there for the weekly dinner. Please write your name, number of members of your household, and mark if you are requesting a vegetarian option. Masks will be required indoors except when eating. Plans are fluid based on local COVID cases so watch for e-blasts on any changes of plans. We look forward to seeing you there!
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Saturday, September 18: Rejoice & Renewal Celebration
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“With Thanksgiving for the past, with joy in the present and with hope for the future we celebrate this renewal of Plymouth.” Plymouth Church presents the “Rejoice & Renewal Celebration” on Saturday, September 18 at 5:30 pm at the Mizpah Shrine Center Imperial Room located at 1015 Memorial Way, Fort Wayne, Indiana 46805.
Registration for this event has ended. If you have any questions regarding the event, please contact Monty Millage at mlmillage@gmail.com or (260) 602-7209.
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Sunday, September 19: Safe Church Policy Workshop
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The Safety Committee, Deacons' Worship Board, and Executive Council of Plymouth Church have reviewed and approved a Safe Church Policy to be presented to the congregation for final approval at a future congregational meeting. To introduce the congregation to this proposed policy, there will be several after-church gatherings to review the proposal and ask any questions you may have. The second workshop will take place on Sunday, September 19 at 11:15 am following worship in the Folsom Room.
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Sunday, September 19: Kitchen Equipment Training
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On September 19, shortly after the worship service, Plymouth's maintenance manager John Hoelderle will be conducting a training on the Plymouth kitchen equipment for anyone who'd like to learn. Please meet in the kitchen after service. If you have questions, please contact John at (260) 423-9424 (ext. 314) or jmh@plymouthfw.org.
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Tuesday, September 21: Women's Book Study
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After an extended break, Plymouth’s Book Study, open to anyone who self-identifies as a woman, will be resuming in a refreshed format this fall. We have decided to choose books related to one of our four covenants (Open and Affirming, Just Peace, Global Missions, and Earthwise). It is expected that most books will be discussed in just one session, which will allow persons to choose when a topic is of special interest to them.
We plan to meet on the third Tuesday of each month, and our first meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, September 21, from 12:00 pm to 1:15 pm, when the book will be Flight Behavior, a novel by Barbara Kingsolver.
We also hope to make plans for future books, so if you are interested in sharing a book – either fiction or non-fiction – we hope that you will be able to come. In any case, if you have a book to recommend but cannot attend, or have any questions, please contact Judith Beineke at jrbeineke@yahoo.co.uk.
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Sunday, September 26: Welcoming Group
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WELCOMING GROUP will meet Sunday, September 26, 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. If you have been attending Plymouth for six months or longer, and your faith journey is leading you to explore becoming a member, this is a one-time required session. Whether you are confident, confused, or curious, our time together is focused on orientation, conversation, interpretation, and exploration. It is an opportunity for you to ask questions and to meet others who are considering affirming their formal relationship with Plymouth Church, UCC. Please contact Rev. Timothy C. Murphy, tcm@plymouthfw.org, or (260) 423-9424, ext. 315, to register. An accurate number is needed for the light lunch that will be provided by Congregational Life Board.
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Due to numerous long standing announcements with various links, Plymouth Church has decided to condense our bulletin by using Linktree. After an announcement has been in the bulletin for two weeks, its link will be moved here, if applicable. Simply click the button below to be taken to a landing page with all of our links.
The following links can be found on our Linktree:
- RIP Medical Debt Campaign
- Chancel Flower Sign Up Form
- Study Connection Volunteer Sign Up
- Plymouth Google Calendar
- Plymouth's Social Medias
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Each year Plymouth gives picture bibles to our Kindergarteners, and full-text NRSV bibles to our 2nd graders. This year we're adding a few 3rd graders, too, who missed out last year. Blessings the kids receiving bibles this year--we hope these old stories encourage your curiosity about God's work in your world today!
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Kindergarten
Miriam Teura Brown
Noah Kill
Tucker Paul Miller
Michaela O’Neal
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2nd Grade
Samuel Broom
Maggie Lynn Miller
Olivia Grace Steele
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3rd Grade
Adrian Broom
Adrian Steele
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Sandy Moliere and Jan Younger are currently in the process of putting up the newly printed name tags. The good news is that we have lots of Plymouth people. However, the stands are crowded and the name tags are often difficult to reach. A plan is in the works to correct this issue but it will take some time to put it in place. In order to create space for new members, as well as fitting in the rest of us, those couples with different last names will both go under the name earliest in the alphabet in most cases. A few unrelated people with the same last name will be on the same hook. We look forward to making this less crowded and easier to for all to find their tags. Until then, we request patience and understanding! Please contact Jan at (260) 637-4367 or Sandy at (260) 485-9862 if you have questions.
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Notifying Plymouth of Hospital Stays
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Due to privacy standards, Parkview and Lutheran Hospitals do not provide lists of congregation members who have been hospitalized to churches. This protects your medical and religious privacy and allows their chaplain staff to better serve the needs of patients and families. However, this also means that Plymouth pastoral staff do not know if you are in the hospital unless you actively reach out to us. If you would like us to call and check in on you or a loved one while in the hospital, please call the church at (260) 423 – 9424. You will be prompted to dial the pastoral care emergency extension and record a brief message. Please leave your name, what hospital you or a loved one are in, and the room number so pastoral staff can contact you. If you don’t have a room number, let us know the hospital, and make sure that you or the patient are listed in the hospital’s directory, if possible.
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Godly Play for All Ages | Wednesdays at 6:45 pm
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Each Sunday, after we hear the scripture in worship, we “play” with the story. As adults, our play often involves using our imagination to picture Biblical times, listening to our pastor mull over the passage, and responding through our quiet thoughts or our songs and prayers.
This year in Sunday school, our kids will also have a chance to “play” with Bible stories. Unlike adults, who often play in their thoughts, kids tend to play in tactile ways. They reenact the Bible stories, they draw pictures of Bible places, they add imaginative bits of their modern life into their play.
“Godly Play” is a system of storytelling and playful response. It’s been used at Plymouth in the past, but it’s been a while, and the best way to understand the process is to see it in action. So on Wednesdays beginning Sept 8, all ages are invited to a Godly Play Sampler. While we will follow the same structure as our childrens’ sessions, these Wednesday settings are set up for all ages. We won’t ask adults to role-play that they are children -- along with the story props and play dough there will be space for adults to reflect through quiet space, journaling, and discussion.
If you could use a mid-week space to reflect playfully on scripture, or if you are curious about this year’s Sunday school program, join us for one or more of these sampler sessions.
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New T-Shirts Now Available
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Our new Plymouth t-shirts have arrived! You may get your shirts after worship in the Folsom Room today. The options are navy with green lettering or purple with gold lettering; we think you’ll agree that they are colorful and represent us well. There is no set price. Suggested donations are $5 for children’s sizes and $10 for adult sizes, to help offset the cost, but this as a “pay what you can” situation. Whether you are able to donate at the suggested level or a little more or less, it is important to us that anyone who wants a t-shirt can have one. After all, wherever you are on life’s journey, you are welcome here.
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Christmas Wreath Orders - Standish Women's Organization
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Merry Christmas! Wait! It’s only late summer, but orders need to be placed for wreaths now. St. Joe Tree Farm is graciously working with Standish Circle to keep the tradition of selling wreaths for you to order and receive in time for the Christmas holidays. The profits are used to assist the Christmas family that Standish/Knit & Kibitz adopts each year. Unfortunately, swags and roping will not be available this year as the greenery comes from Oregon and Washington where fires and extreme heat have really damaged, if not wiped out, the crops. The pickup will be at Plymouth and handled in a noncontact manner. Wreath pick up will be Sunday, November 21 at the porte-cochere entrance before and after church.
Orders and payment must be received by today. To complete an order form, either click the button below to print off the form and return it to the Plymouth office or pick up an order form at the front office on Sunday mornings. Checks should be made payable to Plymouth Church and include a notation stating "Standish Wreaths" on the memo line.
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Now that events and meetings are returning to the building, it is important that you contact Tina Puitz, Office Manager, to make sure the time, date and room for your event is available. You may also be asked to complete a building use form. By contacting the office, your event will be entered onto the calendar and your meeting space will be ready when you arrive. Even if your event is returning after the long break due to the pandemic, you must still contact Tina. Also, if you will be selling anything or money will be coming to the office, please coordinate with Tina so office preparations can be made. Contact Tina at 260-423-9424 or tmp@plymouthfw.org. Thank you.
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Open Prayer in Sanctuary on Thursdays
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Due to numerous requests, Plymouth has decided to open our sanctuary on Thursdays from 12:30 pm to 4:30 pm for a time of personal prayer. Please enter through the Berry Street Office entrance and check in with our receptionist. Contact our receptionist Jake Slone at (260) 423-9424 or jss@plymouthfw.org with any questions.
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Seeking CPR/Defibrillator Instructor
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The Safety Committee, a sub committee of the Deacons Board, needs a CPR/Defibrillator instructor that has access to the necessary training equipment to provide recertification training for those employees, safety committee members and volunteers who took the course two years ago. We hope to find someone in the congregation with that ability. This event would be available for our new employees as well as any new volunteers. Anyone interested should contact Tom Braun at (260) 403-0384 or tmbraun1@frontier.com.
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Seeking New Technology Volunteers
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The sanctuary will soon receive a much-needed upgrade to its audio and video equipment, allowing for a wonderful expansion of Plymouth’s digital ministry. We need some folks to learn to operate the new equipment and to assist with recording the worship services. Ideally, there will be several willing volunteers, so the duty remains light. John Escosa has been faithfully serving in this capacity for quite some time, and it will be good to expand the team!
Advanced tech skills are not required. Possessing these traits will be useful:
- Technology competent: Having a basic understanding of audio/video equipment operation (such as what happens when one adjusts controls on a stereo, radio, or television)
- Observant: Capable of anticipating a sequence of events and being prepared to make necessary adjustments to controls
- Discerning: Able to listen and watch for changes in the appearance of an image or the sound in the room
- Willing to take direction from participants in worship who are not technologically proficient
Anyone interested in joining or learning more about the specifics of the technology team is encouraged to attend the equipment training session which will be conducted once the equipment installation is complete. Please email either John Escosa at gtrplr2@aol.com or Cammy Sutter at cammysutter@gmail.com to be notified when the training will occur.
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If you have a need to visit the office, we’d love to see you! Our office is open from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. Appointments are no longer necessary to visit the office during these days. On Fridays, our office will be open from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm by appointment only. Contact the office at (260) 423-9424 or office@plymouthfw.org with any questions.
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