Worship Service Times

9:00 AM - Chapel

10:00 AM - Sunday School

11:00 AM - Sanctuary & Livestream

Baby & Toddler Nursery is available during both worship services

Podcast Raleigh Court Herald-November Issue

Church Office Hours

Monday-Thursday 8:30 AM-4:30 PM

Friday 8:30 AM-1:00 PM

Online Directory

See that none of you repays evil for evil, but always seek to do good to one another and to all. Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

1 Thessalonians 5: 15-18

Paul’s instructions for the church in Thessalonica, reminded me Duke Divinity Professor Kate Bowler’s monthly “ins and outs” list that she offers her followers. Her November 2026 list of “ins” includes: “Being thankful and completely exhausted.” With the tiny print under reading “these conditions are allowed to coexist. Someone please tell the holiday-industrial complex.” Another: Gratitude and complaining. I can be thankful for my life and still have some notes.

Her “Outs” read: Hosting the Thanksgiving Olympics: the rolls are store-bought. The centerpiece is a candle. Everyone will survive. Postponing joy until everything improves: At this rate we’ll be waiting until 2087. Eat the cookie now.

Paul’s advice could be read similarly for the church community: Outs: repaying evil for evil. Ins: Doing good to one another, rejoicing always, praying without ceasing, giving thanks in all circumstances.

While this advice was given centuries apart, Kate points to the wisdom Paul taught long ago - there is room to be thankful and to rejoice even now. We don’t have to hold off on such things until everything is right for that moment may not ever come. We do this not so we can prove we’re a great Christian but so that even amidst that which is wrong we’re able to notice that God is with us.

Paul writes that these “ins” are God’s will for us. God’s will for us, is to know a life of wholeness with God and with one another in which we notice what God is doing, a life in which we are in constant conversation with God through prayer about the good and the awful and the ordinary. Its these actions, rejoicing, praying, and thanksgiving that transform us to live in the wholeness God longs for us even now.

So which of Paul’s “ins” might you take up these next few weeks? What feels like the next step as you grow into bearing the fruit of the Spirit in your life?

God,

Help me.

Help me to be open: to your presence, your will, and your love.

Lessen my preoccupation with getting everything just so.

Instead enable me to rejoice always, to be in conversation with you without end,

And to give thanks for your goodness around me that is visible today.

Amen. 

-The Rev. Isabella Fagiani, Associate Pastor

Youth Dinner Volunteers

Do you like cooking for a crowd? We could use your help cooking a meal for our Youth Group. Cook below to see dates open for dinner. 

Savvy Seniors

Tuesday, November 17, 10:00 AM — 12:00 PM

Hey there, Savvy Seniors...Missing you! Let's play games on Tuesday, November 17 at 10:00-12. Please bring a snack to share and YOUR IDEAS to help us plan for 2027 Savvy Seniors events. Sign up in the Welcome Center, please. Looking forward to seeing everyone. Beth and Karen

Presbyterian Women

Saturday, November 14 2:00 PM

Join the Presbyterian Women of RCPC to bake a focaccia wreath with Lisa Goad. Saturday, November 14 at 2:00 PM in the RCPC Fellowship Hall & Kitchen. Please bring $5 per person to cover supplies and a 9 inch by 9 inch or larger baking dish or sheet ban to bake and transport your focaccia wreath. Sign up in the Gathering Area by November 10, or by emailing katelyntucker09@gmail.com.

Sermon Series: Help, Thanks, Wow: Learning to Pray

November 8 - 22 

Many people confess, "I don't know how to pray." It feels like some secret knowledge, a discipline we just can't keep, a magical thinking that really makes no difference. We want to debunk those objections. Using Ann Lamott's book Help, Thanks, Wow, we will see how easy it is to pray, how we can pray in various ways, and how prayer changes us and alters our engagement with the world. Copies of the book are available at RCPC for a $5 donation.

Hearing Assist Technology

The church is adding a hearing assist technology called Auracast for the Sanctuary. We will have a few dedicated units to be used during the service. Many of our members have hearing aids that have that technology built in.

Because there are so many different companies making hearing aids and OTC options, we need to know what device our members are using and if the units include Auracast. We will have a postcard-sized paper for you to complete available at the AV "booth" during Sunday's services or at the receptionist desk. You can return them to the same location. We will need to schedule individual appointments to get you connected.

Advent Devotional Book

Available for $20, or $15 each when you buy 2 or more.

Witness to the Light: Advent and Christmastide at Raleigh Court Presbyterian Church is a daily devotional celebrating the story of Christ's birth as it's been told here at RCPC. Drawn from over six decades of sermons and devotionals, the readings invite you to reflect on the witness we've received and hope to pass on. Whether you've been part of RCPC for four months or forty years, join us in the coming season as we bear witness to the Light! Huge thanks to Hannah Anderson and her daughter Phoebe for assembling the book.

Music Day Camp with special guest Karol Kimmel

Saturday, November 14, 9:00 AM—12:00 PM for grades Pre-K—5 Grade

Karol recently retired from full-time church work, serving the last 26 years at All Saints’ Episcopal, Atlanta, GA, with a graded choir program, PreK-12th, of choral and handbell ensembles. She presents at conferences, directs honor and festival choirs nationwide, and is co-director and faculty member for Lutheridge Music Week in Arden, NC. She has taught pre-school music and elementary chorus and sung in professional choirs. Karol holds a degree in music education (organ) from Lenoir-Rhyne University in NC, and has certification in Kindermusic and Orff. 

Save the Date: Fellowship Outing & Youth Choir Performance at the Roanoke Rail Yard Dawgs

Saturday, December 19 - Puck Drop at 7:05 PM, Berglund Center

Plan to join your RCPC church family at the December 19 Roanoke Rail Yard Dawgs game as we support the RCPC Youth Choir as they sing the National Anthem before that evening’s game. The game is also the annual Teddy Bear Toss, so tickets will go fast. Purchase your Family & Friends ticket online at gofevo.com/event/Raleighcourt2 for $15.68/each and grab a parking pass for $10. Youth Choir tickets are provided. For questions, contact Dillon Swanson (dillon@rcpres.org). 

Mission Partner Support

Each month, we designate all cash and coin to one of our local mission partners. For the month of November, we are supporting the Sudanese/South Sudanese Mission Group. You can place your money in the offering plate or make an online gift, noting that it is for Mission and making a note for Sudanese in the text box. As of November 1, we have collected $585.21 for the Sudanese/South Sudanese Mission Group.

Drumstick Dash

Move Your Feet So Others Can Eat. Please join our Raleigh Court Team and sign up for the annual Drumstick Dash. https://www.drumstickdash.net/

Enter the following code for a 15% discount:

DashwithLeigh-Anne

Hunger Mission Packing Volunteers

There are only SIX more days in 2026 to pack food for Lincoln Terrace Elementary student backpacks and it is not too soon to volunteer for packing that begins again in January. We pack food most every Thursday mornings in the Gathering Area. Check out the SignUp Genius (below) for details about ways to volunteer. If SignUp Genius is not for you, volunteers are welcome to walk in on Thursdays to pack from 10:00 - 11:00 AM. If you have questions or would like more information, please reach out to Paula Derbyshire at 540.309.8816. Thank you! Many hands make for light work.

Bearing Fruit with Roanoke Justice Ministries

The Justice, Equity, and Belonging Committee is still holding House Meetings. If you weren’t able to attend one yet you can still contact us and find out what we are doing from now until next July to determine what issues Roanoke Justice Ministries (RJM) will address that many residents in our city face every day, whether it is affordable housing, help for our schools, accessibility to enough food, mental health care, or violent crime. The work of the Justice Ministry is grounded in scripture such as Micha 6:8 which says “He has told you, O Mortal, what is good, and what the Lord requires of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?” Biblically, Justice means holding the King and Pharaoh accountable for the fair treatment of all people. How can we use the gifts God has given us to bear fruit for those who are in need in our city? Contact Carol Prichard at 603-504-4754, Jordan Nallen at 540-352-8837, or Mark Derbyshire at 540-529-8815 if you have questions or would like to attend a meeting.

There are ways you can bear fruit with us that do not require a huge time commitment but would help many residents of our city. October 26th was the House Meeting Report Back Team Assembly where the representatives of all 20 churches involved narrowed down the many concerns shared in our House Meetings to these three items: Affordable Housing, Mental Health Care, and Education.

You can still sign up to be a member of the Justice Ministry Network. Your commitment would include attending 4 meetings between now and the end of June:

November 16th (6:30 pm) is the Covenant Assembly where we will narrow down to the one item we will be working on our first year. This provides the opportunity to participate in issue research to help us be prepared for the Nehemiah Action.

March 15, 2027 (6:30 pm) is the Rally where we will prepare for the Nehemiah Action. Read Nehemiah 5:1-13 where he tells us how to do justice in a community. Many people will be needed to make the Nehemiah Action a success since there is power in numbers.

April 12, 2027 (6:30 pm) is the Nehemiah Action and each congregation is asked to turn out their average worship attendance at least once a year for Justice – Vision 52/1 which for RCPC is 250 individuals. Our Network Members will be asked to bring at least 3 people to the Nehemiah Action. If you are interested in attending the Nehemiah Action please contact us!

June 7, 2027 (6:30 pm) is the Celebration of what we have accomplished.

Prayer Requests

Marvin & Roena Barbre, Dawn Blakeman, Gloria Brumley (mother of Trish Brumley), Ben Bower (brother of Susan Kessler), Camilla Cabaniss, Wayne Carter (friend of Ruth Marple), Beverly Day & family (friend of Camilla & Johnsey Cabaniss), Jay Ellison, Nate Ellison (son of Jay & Polly Ellison), Margie Hale, Carolyn Hampton (Mary Hampton’s sister-in-law), Mary Hampton, Elise Hansard, Debra Harris, Declan Hoffman and family (neighbors of Brad and Darlene Kennedy, and John and Charlotte Engleby), Mary Hopkins (great-aunt of Tyler Person), Susan Lindstrom, Blakely Lockhart (granddaughter of Barbara Lashley), Randy Remington (friend of Betty Remington), Kim Richards, Shirley Scruggs (sister of Susan Davis), Campbell Tims (granddaughter of Kay Tims), Jerry & Janis Wertz, and all caregivers.

Our sincere thoughts and prayers are with Harry Leidich’s family following his passing on Saturday, October 31, and with Jerry Garrett’s family following his passing on Wednesday, November 4.

(Prayers request as of Friday, October 30. Names in bold indicate an addition to the prayer list this week.)

WEEKLY SCHEDULE FOR GROUPS

• RCPC Preschool: Monday-Friday, 9:00 AM-12:00 PM
• Centering Prayer at St. Elizabeth’s Episcopal Church: Monday, 10:00 AM
• Cub Scouts: Monday, 6:30 PM
• Troop 2: Monday, 7:00 PM
• Roanoke Valley Choral Society: Monday, 7:00 PM
• AA-Primary Purpose: Tuesday & Thursday, 10:30 AM
• Tai Chi: Tuesday & Thursday, 5:30 PM
• Al-Anon: Friday, 11:45 AM

The Herald - Deadline for Articles: 10th of each month

This Week @ RCPC - Deadline for Articles: Wednesday of each week

Send submissions for The Herald and This Week @ RCPC to Julie Satterwhite 

Video Board in the Gathering Area - Send Information to Carole Banks