Eureka Christian Church

Reflecting Christ's Light from Our Doorsteps to the Ends of the Earth

News

by on

Civil Rights Pilgrimage

Join me this Sunday, December 17 at 1:00 p.m. to learn more about ECC’s up-coming Civil Rights Pilgrimage. I will share more information about the trip, including a proposed itinerary and estimated costs. We will meet in the Fireside Lounge at the church.

Anyone interested in learning more about this trip should come to the meeting.  If you want to be involved in this effort but don’t think you can physically go on the trip, come to the meeting anyway because there are important ways you can be involved at home!  If you would like to join the meeting by Zoom, please me at minister@eurekachristian.org for the link.

I hope to see you there!

Jennie

by on

Joseph’s Story

This Sunday, December 10, we will learn more about Joseph and his role in the Nativity of Christ.

Poor Joseph.  I do believe that he is the most ignored figure in the entire Christmas story.  Usually all the attention is on Mary and the baby Jesus.  Mary wrapping Jesus in swaddling clothes.  Mary laying him in the manger.  Mary holding him softly and tenderly.  Mary, Mary, Mary.  It’s all about Mary!  She even gets her own song. 

Does Joseph have his own song?  No!  I do not think I have ever sung from a hymnal with a Joseph-centered Christmas carol.  The angels have carols.  The shepherds have carols.  The wise men have carols.  The star, for crying out loud, has carols.  Joseph needs a carol! 

We often don’t even notice Joseph in the manger scene—standing quietly, steadfastly there in the background.  We just brush right on past him in our haste to kneel and coo at the babe in the manger.  He doesn’t even get to hold the baby.  How many nativity depictions have you seen with Joseph holding the baby Jesus?  That’s what I thought.  I haven’t seen any either. 

Joseph gets overlooked all the time. Well, not anymore! Now it’s Joseph’s turn to shine.

I’ll see you Sunday.

Jennie

Worship at 8:15 and 10:30 a.m.
On-site at 302 South Main Street       Eureka, Illinois
Online at eurekachristian.org/worship-online or facebook.com/eurekacc/live

by on

Congregational Meeting This Sunday

We will have a brief congregational meeting this Sunday, December 10 at 9:30 a.m. to approve the 2024 budget.  

For those of you who will be joining from home, we will open the livestream as we do for Sunday services at eurekachristian.org/worship-online or facebook.com/eurekacc/live.  You will be able to vote with the link found on the homepage of our website at https://eurekachristian.org/december-congregational-meeting/

by on

Festival Service This Sunday

Join us this Sunday, October 29 for a combined Festival Worship Service beginning at 10:00 a.m.  Sunday School for all ages begins at 9:00 a.m.

As part of our Festival Service celebrations, we will welcome special guest Rev. Rick Hamilton, Interim Regional Minister of the Illinois and Wisconsin Region, and our “B.I.B.L.E. Kids” children and youth will sing one of their new songs, “The Perfect 10,” as special music. 

Following worship, we will have an all-church luncheon in the Parish Hall.  Please bring a salad, side dish, or dessert to share; our Hospitality Team will provide the main course and table service. 

It will be a great day!  We hope you can be part of it! 

by on

Commitment

All month long we have been exploring what it means to be Church, using the metaphor of sanctuary.  We have talked about how we create sanctuary through our acts of hospitality in Jesus’ name; through the creation of trusting and trustworthy community; and through our identity as covenant people, reaching beyond ourselves and out into the world as we embody the mind and heart of Christ.  On Sunday, the last day of this sermon series, it’s commitment time. 

We commit ourselves to this identity and to this work as Christ’s people.

Eureka Christian Church has been committed to this patch of earth in central Illinois for 191 years—to this place and to the people who live here.  We have used the work of our hands, the passion of our hearts, the creativity of our vision, and the resources in our pockets to create sanctuary. 

Safe space. Holy space.

It is my conviction that there are a whole lot of people all around us who do not know sanctuary.  Lord, prepare us to be sanctuary.  If you care about this mission too, then please join me in supporting it.  I believe in what we do together, and I support it with my financial resources.  Because I want to make sure that the most vulnerable in our midst have a place—a safe place—where they can encounter and know the love of God. 

If you have never made a pledge to the work of our church before, I would like to invite you to consider it this year. To make a commitment to this work we do together.  Because it is valuable work; it is needed work.  You can fill out and return an Estimate of Giving card to the church or set up on-line giving.

And if you think, “What I have to give couldn’t possibly make a difference,” let me just say:  little is much when it comes to God.  Don’t forget that we are a people of the five loaves and two fish that fed a crowd of 5000.  We are a people of the widow’s mite and the mustard seed.  God consistently takes our small offerings and multiplies them, magnifies them. 

For little is much when it comes to the work of God.

I’ll see you Sunday.

Jennie

Worship at 10:00 a.m.
On-site at 302 South Main Street       Eureka, Illinois
Online at eurekachristian.org/worship-online or facebook.com/eurekacc/live

by on

Consecration Sunday Is October 29

Consecration Sunday is October 29.  We will gather for a combined Festival Worship Service at 10:00 a.m. followed by an all-church luncheon in the Parish Hall.  Our Hospitality Team is providing the main course for the meal; please bring a salad, side, or dessert to share. 

Consecration Sunday is the time when we dedicate ourselves to the work of our church in the coming year and make commitments as to how we will support this work financially.  If you plan to give to the work of our church in 2024, please fill out an Estimate of Giving card and bring it with you to worship on October 29 or return it to the church office at your earliest convenience.  If you have been joining us online, there is a way to set up giving through our website. The Church Board uses these Estimates of Giving to finalize a budget that faithfully balances our envisioned ministries with the financial resources we have available.

In 2024, our proposed budget is $378,942.  The Board developed a pie chart that breaks down this budget into our six ministry areas.  In developing this chart, they assessed how our staff allocates their time and how our building is used for ministry. 

While our 2024 proposal represents a slight decrease from this year’s budget, that doesn’t mean we are cutting back on our ministries.  In fact, we have plans to add two staff positions—a Minister of Pastoral Care and Support and an IT/Social Media Internship.  Meanwhile,

  • Our youth group is planning to go on a mission trip next summer to learn about “Justice 101” in Kansas City, Missouri;
  • Our children will learn the stories of our faith through our B.I.B.L.E. Kids Sunday School program and Godly Play and are already looking forward to Discovery Day Camp next summer;
  • Our men’s and women’s ministries are thriving;
  • And we will continue to support local, denominational, and global efforts to lessen the suffering and struggles of others through our Outreach Ministries.

We are an active congregation with lots to share and much to do as we seek to be Church out in the world.  Join us!

by on

Christians and Illegal Immigration

What does God want us to do about the illegal aliens who are risking life and limb to travel to the U.S.?

The recent surge of people seeking to enter the United States whether legally or not has created much “soul-searching” among Christians. Some believe we should close our borders and refuse to allow immigrants to enter. Others — as the question indicates — want to find a response that would be faithful to our Christian beliefs.

The Old Testament — in several places — admonishes the Israelites to remember that they were once strangers in a strange land, and therefore they should treat resident aliens with kindness and generosity (see Leviticus 19:10, 33-34; 23:22; Deuteronomy 14:29). And the prophet Ezekiel even envisioned a time when the aliens would become citizens.

When we turn to the New Testament, the passage that comes immediately to mind is Matthew’s account of the “last judgment” which reads, in part:

Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you … for I was hungry and you gave me food. I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me … (Matthew 25:34b-35; emphasis added).

On the whole, it seems to me the Biblical record is clear: we should treat the migrants with love and seek to do all that we can to make their lives here as bearable and sustainable as we can.

But it seems to me that we must do more than that. Our welcoming love and care for the migrants must be accompanied by an effort to attain justice and draw closer to the biblical concept of shalom.

Andrew Whitehead in a book entitled American Idolatry writes: “Part of our loving the poor, the widow, the orphan, and the immigrant is recognizing our own complicity in the systems of injustice that create and perpetuate their marginalization and suffering.”

Whitehead reminds us that we need to do what we can to bring greater justice, economic stability, and safety to the migrants’ homelands and thereby reduce the need or desirability of migration.

by on

How can the congregation better support our leadership?

You all do all the managing, planning and preparation for the service to keep us in good spiritual health.  What can we, the congregation, do for you, the leadership, to keep you well?

“Where two or more are gathered in my name, I’m right there in the midst of them.”  It’s a truly awesome thing we do, when we gather to worship!  There are many of us.  We preach, teach, pray, make us aware of outreach, play instruments, sing, operate sound equipment, prepare communion, serve communion, prepare bulletins, greet, count the offering, and open and close the buildings.  We keep the buildings clean and in good shape, and we keep the grounds looking beautiful.  We do all of this so that we can gather in God’s name! 

What can we do to keep the leadership well?  We can show love.   Many of us are already doing that.  Take credit!  Most of us are familiar with Gary Chapman’s book, The Five Love Languages, 1992.  We each have a particular way of showing love, so use the “love language” that is natural for you! Here are some ideas:

          *Words of Affirmation.  Was something meaningful to you in worship? Tell it.  Say it.  Write it.

          *Acts of Service.  Many, many of you are contributing to worship itself.  Some contribute their time and energy in cleaning, mowing, and repairing.  And, there’s always planning and teaching.

          *Quality Time.  Be totally present when you’re interacting.

          *Physical Touch.  There are always hugs, pats on the back, hand squeezes.

          *Gifts.  You already do this.   There are gifts from the garden.  Baked dishes.  A flower or two.  Small things that show your appreciation.

A final note:  If and when you might have some constructive observation or criticism, take a hint from Dale Carnegie—yesteryear’s How to Win Friends and Influence People—make a sandwich:  Wrap your criticism/observation/beef in between words of affirmation.  It goes down better that way!

by on

Food Drive Ends Sunday

Inspired by the Prophet Amos and his commitment to those in need, we have been collecting food throughout the month of September.

This Sunday, October 1 is the last Sunday for our food drive. Please bring your non-perishable food items with you to worship and add them to our overflowing collection! (If you cannot be in worship on Sunday, please feel free to drop off your donations any time the church is open.)

We will dedicated these gifts in worship on Sunday and then take them to the Eureka Food Pantry next week.

Thank you for being part of this effort!

by on

Sunday School for Children and Youth

Announcing B.I.B.L.E. Kids Sunday School at Eureka Christian Church! 

The Fall Quarter of B.I.B.L.E. Kids, our children and youth Sunday School program, begins this Sunday, October 1!

All children and youth ages 4 and up are invited to come to the “B.I.B.L.E. Kids” Clubhouse most Sunday mornings from 9:30-10:15 in October, January, and March for fellowship, learning, singing, crafts, games, and all-around fun!  (The Clubhouse can be found upstairs in the Education Building.) 

If you have your own Bible, please bring it!  If you don’t have a Bible of your own yet, we will have plenty of extras in the Clubhouse. 

Sometimes, we will be all together as one group; other times, we will split off into younger and older age groups. 

Plans for October include:
October 1                    Building the B.I.B.L.E Kids Clubhouse
October 8                    The Books of the Bible
October 15                  The Ten Commandments Part 1 (Torah)
October 22                  The Ten Commandments Part 2 (Torah)
October 29*                B.I.B.L.E. Kids begins at 9:00 a.m. today due to the 10:00 a.m. Festival Service

Friends and visiting family are always welcome.