August 30 - September 6, 2024

Below are the weekly programs. You can find brief descriptions of these weekly programs on our website. Clickable links are in blue and italicized.

SUNDAY Morning Worship, 10 am in person and via Zoom

https://zoom.us/j/97010988439 Password: betogether

SUNDAY, 11:30 a.m. Bible Study in person and on Zoom

https://zoom.us/j/262314649 NO Bible Study Sept. 1 and Sept. 15

MONDAY - FRIDAY, 8 am Morning Devotion

https://zoom.us/j/94276813637

Below are the upcoming non-weekly events on the calendar happening at McFarland UCC for about the next month. All events are on the McFarland UCC calendar with Zoom links and additional information in the details/description area. Click the event on the McFarland UCC calendar to see the details.

Thursday, August 29, NO in person office hours

Saturday, August 31, 1:30 - 3:00 pm, Healing Prayer Team Meeting, (In person & Online), Multipurpose Room

Sunday, September 1, 5:30 - 7:00 pm, NO Teen Youth Monthly Meeting.

Tuesday, September 3, 6:30 - 8:00 pm, Racial Justice Care Team Monthly Meeting, (In person & Online), Multipurpose Room

Wednesday, September 4, 6:00 - 7:30 pm, Outreach Funds Quarterly Committee Meeting, (In person & Online), Multipurpose Room

Thursday, September 5, 6:00 - 8:00 pm, SaLT Monthly Meeting - Rescheduled from 9/12, (In person & Online), Multipurpose Room

Saturday, September 7, 9:00 - 11:00 pm, Befrienders Orientation, (In person & Online), Multipurpose Room

Sunday, September 8, 9:00 - 9:45 am, Choir Practice, Sanctuary

Sunday, September 8, 10:00 am, Worship, Birthday and Communion Sunday

Sunday, September 8, Monthly Younger Youth Monthly Meeting

Wednesday, September 11, 6:30 - 7:30 pm, Healing Prayer Service (In person & Online), Sanctuary

Wednesday, September 11, 7:30 - 9:00 pm, Befrienders Training Meeting, (In person & Online), Multipurpose Room

Thursday, September 12, 6:00 - 8:00 pm, Finding Common Ground and Changing Hearts and Minds, Sanctuary

Sunday, September 15, 10:00 am Outdoor Worship Service

Tuesday, August 17, 6:30 - 8:00 pm, Creation Care Team Bi-Monthly Meeting, (In person & Online), Multipurpose Room

Wednesday, September 18, 6:30 - 8:30 pm, Befrienders Training Meeting, (In person & Online), Multipurpose Room

Prayer Requests? Contact Jean Duchrow or Lavon Geasland.

Thank you to this weekend's volunteers!

Greeters/Ushers: Bruce & Jayne Fischer

Hospitality Hosts: Jean Blackmore & Lynne Toseff

Sign up as Greeter/Usher Questions? Contact Becky Cohen

Sign up as Hospitality Host Questions? Contact Joan Jacobsen

The Befrienders will be holding another set of classes after Labor Day with the orientation on September 7, and then weekly Wednesday classes from September 11 - October 23 (skipping one Wednesday) at 6:30 – 8:00 pm. For the weeks when the Healing Prayer Service takes place from 6:30-7:30 pm (attendance is encouraged), class will be shorter and begin after the service. The classes are on Zoom for those unable to attend in person. 

These classes are on a two-year rotation so a different set of classes will be presented this year.  Some of the newly commissioned Befrienders will be participating in this new set of classes but new members are welcome to join as well. 

Questions? Want to sign up? Contact Jean Duchrow 608-335-3772 or email.

Sing!

The MUCC choir will resume rehearsals on Sunday, September 8 (please note the corrected date here). We rehearse every Sunday at 9:00 am, and we sing at about one worship service per month. We welcome back previous singers and always welcome new ones! You do not need to have any experience or the ability to read music. The only requirement is enthusiasm! If you have any questions, speak with or email Tom Ludwig.

Pre-registration requested by 9/11, but not required, so sufficient materials may be available.

Questions? Contact Amy Cavi, Becky Cohen, or Kathy Schwenn.

Sound Bath - Chakra Balance and Affirmations

Sunday, September 15, 3-5 pm in Fellowship Area

Judy Taber and Araceli Wehr have a connection with Karen Jedele and helped coordinate this opportunity.

What is a Sound Bath?

A sound bath is a meditative experience where participants lie down or sit comfortably while sounds and vibrations from various instruments are played. These instruments can include singing bowls, gongs, chimes, drums, and other harmonic tools. The term "bath" implies that the participants are immersed in the sounds, allowing the vibrations to wash over them, promoting relaxation, stress reduction, and sometimes even spiritual or emotional healing. The intention is to create a therapeutic environment where individuals can let go of tension, quiet the mind, and enter a state of deep relaxation or meditation.

Bill Stoneman, the current McFarland Community Garden Coordinator, expressed the following in the email with this invitation, "We appreciate our opportunity to garden on your church’s grounds and we look forward to seeing you on the 15^th."

PLEASE Help: Request extended

There haven't been many photos submitted so the deadline is being extended to September 15. We need you help! Our goal is to update our bulletin board in the fellowship area and our website with fresh photos of our vibrant community! Find recent photos or take photos and submit them to Ginger, our administrative assistant, via email or her office mailbox. If photos are provided, it will be assumed that you grant us permission to have and use the photo. If the photo contains an image of a minor, a parent/guardian will be asked to sign a Minor Photo Release Form.

Let's showcase our "A Church With Heart" spirit!

We Can Help Kids in Uganda By Providing Clean Wells

On Saturday, September 21, the Walk-4-Water event at the McFarland boardwalk will raise funds to provide desperately needed wells in Uganda.

Ron Vandeberg from McFarland Lutheran Church – and one of the organizers of Walk-4-Water – says, “This is how I was moved during a mission trip in March 2024 to Uganda. It all started when Hillary Malo, director of Water and Sanitary Hygiene for Hope-4-Kids in Uganda, said, ‘Thank you for providing us with so many wells. You have saved hundreds of lives.’  

Wow! I had often thought in terms of the number of dollars given to the cause of drilling wells; not so much about the number of lives saved by providing clean, safe water. When considering that nearly 50% of children die before age 5 due to dirty drinking water in those villages, it's easy to see how the 11 wells we have provided so far have saved hundreds of lives."

Here is a link to a video clip that shows the water situation in one rural village, fortunately now supplied with a well due to a donation by the Brandom family from California.

Our next Walk-4-Water fundraising event is September 21 in McFarland at McDaniel Park. You can get more information about the villages that will get wells, register for the walk, or donate towards drilling 2 more wells by going to this link.

And we have some exciting news. From now until September 8, a family that wishes to remain anonymous is providing a dollar-for-dollar match of all donations up to $10,500. If we raise $10,500 for one well, another complete well will be provided. A silent auction will also be part of the event. More clean water means more lives are saved, and more Wow for your dollar!

Please consider donating to save the lives of children who otherwise have no choice but to drink contaminated water.  

Thank you so much. And for an interesting experience, consider going on our next mission trip to Uganda. The date of the trip is not set, but perhaps March 2025.

Weekly Creation Care Tips

Reduce/Reuse/Recycle

This week’s Tip: Refuse: According to the EPA, containers and packaging make up a major portion of municipal solid waste (MSW), amounting to 82.2 million tons of generation in 2018 (28.1 percent of total generation). Be a smart shopper, choose products without excessive packaging. Buy food that is offered in bulk: pick up individual peppers without plastic wrap on them; choose the large jar of applesauce that you can scoop out individual servings into a reusable container for the kiddo’s lunch; grab the cardboard box of pencils rather than the ones encased in plastic; when needing a new garden tool select the one with the least packaging around it; only buying 1-2 items, refuse the bag. As we increase our awareness of how items are packaged/made, the more impact we can make with our purchasing power.

Pastor Bryan Away Until Sept. 3

Tom Ludwig to preach 9/1 - Thank you Tom!

Pastoral Care during Pastor Bryan's vacation will be provided by the Befrienders Care Team. Please contact one of the following for pastoral support:

• Jean Duchrow jeanduchrow56@gmail.com (608-335-3773)
• Lavon Geasland lgeasland@yahoo.com (608-298-7094)

In case of more extreme emergencies, Pastor Kris Gorton of Memorial UCC in Fitchburg will also be available (608-438-6307).