Worship this Sunday at 9:30 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. | |
A Note from Our Office Staff | |
If you have been around the halls of Birmingham First this week you may have noticed that many of our staff members are out of the office. This wide-spread absence is due to a virus that has sicked a good percentage of us. We ask for your patience and prayers as we do our best to work from home to keep the church moving, as we also try to rest and heal. Thank you. | |
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Dear Friends,
Sunday, October 29, is the last day of our 2024 Generosity Campaign. Members and friends of Birmingham and Berkley First will be asked to turn in their Estimate of Giving cards as part of worship. The cards estimate how much each of us is committing to the work of ministry in 2024. They will be consecrated in worship as we reflect on the sermon, Impact: The Response, based on Romans 12:1-2. This sermon draws from the Apostle Paul’s admonition to the first Christians in Rome not to be conformed to the secular culture of their times, but to be transformed by the renewing of their minds to know and to do what is pleasing in the sight of God. This call to inner transformation is the same for Christians today. So much in our secular cultures demand our loyalty, but loyalty to secular opportunities without commitment to the will of God only leads people to inevitable destruction.
Come and let us consider anew what God requires of us and how we might respond. Our theme is a rallying call to seek first the Kingdom of God and its righteousness. It is a call to keeping first things first. It is a transformational beckoning to rise above pettiness and to embrace the glory of God which reaches from the highest mountain into the lowest valley. And it is an invitation to a paradigmatic shift that realigns our discipleship with the higher calling of God.
You are invited to this celebration of the grace of God that falls afresh on a new generation of faithful disciples who are willing to bear their crosses in this world so that the will of God is done on Earth as it is in Heaven. Worship this Sunday at 9:30 a.m. in-person or online, and at 11:00 a.m. in-person. Following a Children’s Moment at 9:30 a.m. children are invited to the CLC for a multi-age Sunday Fun Day. Nursery Care is available at 9:30 a.m. & 11:00 a.m.
I look forward to worshipping with you this Sunday.
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The Rev. Dr. Charles S. G. Boayue, Jr.
Senior Pastor
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Click a button below to watch worship online Sunday at 9:30 a.m. | |
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Mission Candle
The Mission Candle is dedicated to the glory of God and in loving memory of Dick and Kate Hameister by their children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren.
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Sympathies
Our prayers of sympathy and support are shared with Dean and Linda Klepaczyk and family on the death of Dean’s brother, Tom Klepaczyk on October 22.
Our prayers of sympathy and support are shared with Mike and Amy Bouque and family on the death of Mike’s mother, Jacqueline on October 16. A service will be held at a later time.
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Special Sunday School Gathering | |
This Sunday is the fifth Sunday of October. The 9:30 a.m. worship service begins with Family Worship. After the Children's Moment, all of the children will be transitioning to the CLC for a Sunday Fun Day for a multi-age fun Halloween experience. Nursery care is available at both worship services. |
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We can look back, look forward, and anchor ourselves in the present trusting in the constancy of God’s goodness. As the popular song by Bethel Music puts it, “All my life You have been faithful, and all my life You have been so, so good. With every breath that I am able, I will sing of the goodness of God.” This Sunday, we will celebrate God’s goodness with an ingathering of food for the Berkley Cares Food Pantry, the distribution of stockings for Brightmoor, and the culmination of our IMPACT Generosity Campaign. Bring your completed Estimate of Giving cards into worship or set up your recurring giving through the Berkley First website.
Worship Sunday at 10:00 a.m. at Berkley First in-person or online via livestream, Facebook, YouTube, or BerkleyFirst.org.
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Watch Worship from Sunday, October 22
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Watch a recording of worship from last Sunday by clicking one of the buttons below. | |
IMPACT: Generosity Campaign | |
If your address is on file with the church office, you should have received a booklet and an Estimate of Giving (EOG) card in the mail this past week. If you did not receive the mailing, there are copies available at the church. Please note that you can set up a recurring donation for 2024, and download a booklet and EOG card by clicking the button below. If you have any questions, please reach out to Director of Finance and Operations, Frank Turco at [email protected] or by phone at 248-646-1200 ext. 3133. | |
Meet up with us for dinner on Sunday, October 29 at 6:00 p.m. in Fellowship Hall with a full meal prepared by Chef Greg Ervin. Donations will be accepted as you are able. All are invited to attend. | |
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This is a fundraiser for Hunger Ministry but also a terrific community outreach event. Help is needed with sales on Sunday, October 29. Really cool orange pumpkin shirts are available for those who help with sales! Click the button below to sign up. Questions? Contact Bob Feldmaier, [email protected].
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Get Your Pumpkin at the Patch | |
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Come on out to the Pumpkin Patch at Birmingham First
for the best pumpkins in Michigan.
HOURS OF OPERATION:
Monday-Friday from 3:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.
Saturdays from 1:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.
Sunday from 10:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.
PUMPKIN PRICES:
(We accept cash or credit)
Medium Sizes: $10; Large Sizes: $15
DECORATIVE PUMPKINS:
Small: $8; Large: $15
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Every year, MCHS (Methodist Children’s Home Society) delivers the Christmas spirit to nearly 250 children. This year Birmingham and Berkley First has 75 Wish Lists to fulfill. Once again, we need your help to make this possible. Please consider adopting a foster child’s Wish List.
At the Birmingham First Campus, please visit our table in Fellowship Hall on October 29 and November 5, to pick up a list. For more information click the button below.
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Food Drive - Return Bags This Sunday | |
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Hunger Ministry and Missions will be collecting food/supplies in paper grocery bags which were handed out after the service on Sunday, October 22. Please return your bag filled with donations on Sunday, October 29 in Fellowship Hall. To download a list of needed supplies, click the button below.
Remember to label your bag with the college of your choice. Which college will be represented with the most bags?
If you cannot be in attendance on Sunday, October 29 you may drop off items in bins outside the CLC entrance.
Volunteers are needed to sort donations on October 29 and help with distribution on October 30. To sign up click the button below.
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IMPACT Faith: Discipleship Series | |
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Did you ever wonder how the church went from gathering in houses to what we have now? In this class we will look at the history of the church from its birth at Pentecost to present day including the Protestant Reformation, the birth of Methodism, and more. Join Rev. Susie Hierholzer for this 5-week experience that will impact your faith in a positive way. Click the button below to register or for more information.
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On Thursday, November 9 at 7:00 p.m. in Fellowship Hall, the Church & Society Ministry, as part of its ongoing Gun Safety/Gun Violence Reduction Project, will present “How safe are our schools?” The purpose is to raise our awareness of the prevalence of gun violence in our schools and the danger it presents to our children.
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During November, middle school and high school students will be participating in our annual missions event, Month of 1,000 Blessings. We’ll be raking leaves, assembling hygiene kits, and making sandwiches for The NOAH Project and Hope Warming Shelter.
Sign up to donate items to help our students in their efforts by clicking the button below. Please place your donations in the bins outside the CLC by November 6.
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Join us on Saturday, November 11 for a day of exploring the music of Stacey Gibbs with the composer himself! Singers are invited to participate in the festival chorus which rehearses Saturday morning and afternoon, culminating in a performance Saturday evening. Registration is now open. For more information, or to register, click the button below. | | |
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Children & Family Ministry are asking for donations for their Brightmoor Thanksgiving Meal Mission. Please donate by November 19. You can find out more information by clicking the link below.
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Advent by Candlelight will be Monday, November 27 at 7:00 p.m.
We are looking forward to the community of women at Birmingham and Berkley First (along with their friends) to enter into this year’s Advent season by starting with Advent by Candlelight!
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Unite 3 on 3 is back in the CLC for another great season of fun, faith and basketball. Don't wait to sign up your K-4th grade (5th grade for girls) player! Spots fill fast! Sign up begins Wednesday, November 1 on the Birmingham First website. Questions? Reach out to Beth Torrey at [email protected]. | | |
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NOVEMBER PICKLEBALL FULL
All Pickleball offerings for November have been filled.
Registration for December offerings will open the first full week of November. Watch Steeple Notes for more details.
Thank you for helping to make Pickleball a success!
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Fall Clean Up - Done and Dusted | |
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Thanks to all who were able to come on Saturday (perfect weather!) and even a few days ahead to get the fall clean up done. To my surprise, when we arrived at 8:40 a.m., almost all the hostas were already cut back. Turned out it was Ron Noyd who got his part done a few days ahead, knowing he would be out of town. Yes, you can come up anytime and do your thing! Larry Garlinghouse and crew had done the rest, making our job on Saturday way easier. There was still plenty to be done.
Thanks to the Scouts and some very dedicated Scout parents who were willing to bag up piles of hosta and daylily leaves, dig out some ailing shrubs and a dead tree, get on their bellies to retrieve wild vines growing under and on top of the arborvitae hedge and tear ivy off the brick - all for hot chocolate and donuts.
Others working Saturday were Bob Sutherland, Tom Murphy, Dan Ulep, Doug Carvell, Nancy McNab and Toni Segitz.
There are a few random things to do up there yet, but we are pretty well set until spring. I hope when the nominations committee comes calling, you will say yes to being on the landscape team.
Thanks for all your work this season!
Jane Carvell
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THANK YOU FOR ALL OF YOUR HARD WORK! | | | | |
