A Message from the Pastor..... Click here to read the Sermons
Dear Friends of First Church,
When we think about the month of May, we naturally think of Mother’s Day, of upcoming graduation exercises, and not least, of Memorial Day weekend—the unofficial beginning to summer. And although those dates are already circled on our calendars, we have a number of other events going on here at First Church that you might want to take special note of. First, there’s Saturday, May 3, when the various churches throughout the Cedar Valley demonstrate their common witness by reaching out with "random acts of kindness" in the annual Love Cedar Valley Day. Last year, we were actively involved in this endeavor and we will be even more so this year. There are a number of opportunities all of us can participate in which serve as a profound witness of God’s love in our community, whether it is visiting some of the local nursing homes, offering hot lunches at Walnut Court, distributing May baskets, painting at Cedar Valley Preschool, etc. As we discovered last year, it is also a FUN time for us.
On Sunday, May 4, we are having an All-Spring After-Church potluck in Fellowship Hall following worship. Please bring a dish to share. Afterwards, the drawing will be held for the beautiful quilt donated by Rita Campbell, the proceeds of which will help send our bell choir to the Area VII Regional handbell Festival in Sioux Falls, South Dakota in June. If you haven’t purchased your raffle tickets yet, there’s still time!
On Saturday morning, May 10, we are having our annual Spring Cleanup in and around the church. Let’s all come out and show our Presbyterian Pride as we make our worship facility look beautiful and ready for the summer. Doughnuts and assorted beverages will be on hand. At 6:00 p.m. that same evening, everyone is invited to a potluck dinner (with a Mexican theme) in Calvin Hall to be followed by an evening of card playing and socializing.
On Sunday, May 18, I’ll be preaching a special sermon to prepare us all for an exciting after-church event. There will be a luncheon held with a lecture to follow in Fellowship Hall featuring Dr. John Haught, one of the most respected church theologians in America. Dr. Haught is Senior Fellow of Science and Religion at the Woodstock Theological Center at Georgetown University and he has been a prominent voice in the science and religion dialogue. He will be discussing "God and the New Atheism," the theme of his latest book. This is free and open to the community. He will also spend some time taking your questions. This is certainly one FPC event you will not want to miss so plan on attending and bring a friend! That evening, Dr. Haught will speak at the Canterbury Forum—a monthly discussion group concerning the relationship of faith, religion and society—that meets at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church at 2410 Melrose Dr., in Cedar Falls. The event begins at 7:30 p.m. and is also free and open to the public. The title of his lecture there will be "God and Evolution."
Beginning on Thursday, May 29, we will once again sponsor a food booth for "My Waterloo Days." A sign-up board has been created in the church hallway for everyone to sign up. This involves a lot of work but, as we have seen in the past, it is a great time for the church to come together as well as one more way to put the name of our church out there before the community. There are lots of time slots available on different days so be sure to sign up and reap the joy!
As you can see, this will continue to be a very busy time around our church, but as we’ve learned over the years, the church that PLAYS together, does indeed STAY together.
Blessings,
Dave