March, 2016 Fair Share Through March 20 th, 2016

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1 March, 2016 Fair Share Through March 20 th, 2016 Being a part of a Congregational church is a wonderful blessing. Our tradition presents us with great opportunities: We have the ability to govern ourselves and we have the freedom, as a church, to follow Jesus Christ as we see Him revealed in the Scriptures. We are not bound by Bishops, Popes, Creeds, Disciplines, or Confessions. As a church, we truly do have the ability to follow Jesus as we see Him revealed to us in the Bible. As Congregationalists, we can sincerely live the mantra, In necessary things unity; in uncertain things liberty; in all things charity." Being a part of a Congregational church is also a wonderful responsibility. We have the responsibility to actively seek our own spiritual growth. We have the responsibility to learn as much as we can about Jesus, discern for ourselves what it means to follow Him and do everything we can to live that calling. This church is a part of the National Association of Congregational Christian Churches. The key word here is Association. We have chosen to voluntarily associate ourselves with other Congregational churches in the country; believing that un-coerced fellowship, mutual accountability and support, and working together toward common goals hold great value for us and to be sure, they most certainly do. The National Association has no power to govern or dictate to any local church what it can or can t do. It is meant to be a supporting agency for the local church - providing resources, guidance and suggestions when a church has a need or question. I know that it may not be immediately apparent to some people what kind of support the NA offers to our church, so I would like to point out several ways within the last year that the National Association has supported this church. The NA provides worship resources, devotional material, stewardship guides, advice in critical situations, ministerial support, and spiritual renewal. In addition, the NA was essential to this church s pastoral search process last spring. They provided resources and direct assistance to the pastoral search team to guide them through the process. The NA also provided the resources through which I found out about the opening in this church, learned more about the church and came to apply for the position. Not only that, but the NA was also instrumental to me in receiving my Seminary education. They provided financing, mentoring and support throughout my entire Seminary process from application through graduation. I believe it is completely fair to say that without the NA, I would not have ended up at this church. In return for the many services that the NA provides to the local churches, they don t send out bills or dues or mandate apportionments; instead they ask that each church voluntarily give of itself to help support the NA s support of Congregational churches around America. Between now and Sunday, March 20 th, we will be accepting free-will offering s during our worship service to give to the National Association as our Fair Share. If you write a check, just note Fair Share on the memo line. If you give cash, please put it in an envelope and label it Fair Share. As a guideline for giving, the NA has recommended a donation of $13 per person. I invite you to pray over this decision and ask for God s guidance in your generosity. In Christ, Ministers: The People of the Church Pastor: Kevin Clark FCC associates with sister churches in the Wis. Congregational Association & National Association of Congregational Christian Churches

2 ANNIVERSARIES & BIRTHDAYS Birthdays Linda Haeger... 3/8 David M. Beilfuss... 3/9 Jamie Brandemuehl... 3/13 Janine Coley... 3/14 Scott Perkins... 3/16 Ryley Urban... 3/20 Gabrielle Beilfuss... 3/23 Mickey Rath... 3/24 Kemp Wilson... 3/31 Anniversaries Kevin & Ashley Clark... 3/9 If you would like your birthday or anniversary to be included, please drop a note to the church office. Church Council / Staff Moderator Janine Coley Moderator Elect Diane Williams Treasurer Jean Brocker Secretary Beth Petersen Budget & Finance Harlan Petersen Property & Grounds Rae-Ellen Preuss Worship Linda Haeger Congregational Care Linda Garasimowicz Missions Sue Roberts Christian Education T.J. Tritz Staff Organist/Choir Director - Marni Wiggins Office Admin. - Judi Weyer Pastor Kevin Clark Upcoming Events March 1... Men s Breakfast March 2... Lenten Muk. March 6... Annual Church Meeting March 9... Lenten March Children s Christian Theater March Scouts Charter Sunday March Women s Fellowship March Lenten March Linden Ridge Service March Maundy Thursday March Good Friday Services March Easter Breakfast See calendar for details March 6 after Worship 2/21/16 Offering 21, Expenses 14, Over (Short) 6, Attendance Jan Feb. 7? Feb Feb Articles for the April Newsletter are due in the office by 8:00 am on Friday, March 25 Notice: Photographs taken at church events are included in the newsletter, on our website and our Facebook page. If you would prefer not to have your photo posted to any of these forums, please contact the church office. CONTACT US First Congregational Church ~ 231 Roberts Drive ~ Mukwonago, WI Church Office Pastor Kevin Clark Prayer Chain Marni Wiggins CARE Ministry (262) (612) prayer@fccweb.net Organist/Choir Dir. care@fccweb.net office@fccweb.net rev.kevinclark@gmail.com marni@fccweb.net

3 Missions Moments Police Appreciation Sunday April 24 8:30 a.m. The Missions Team is excited to sponsor a breakfast in honor of our local police department! The Mukwonago Police Chief, Kevin Schmidt, will be with us this morning and will be giving a testimony on his faith. We will be accepting donations at the breakfast which will go to help fund the new Chaplain program for the department. Be aware! We will be looking for many helping hands for the breakfast! More announcements, further information and signup sheets to come! ParkWalk for Cancer Saturday, May 7, 2016 Sign up to be part of our First Congregational Church of Mukwonago team. We d love to have your participation in the way of being a team member or making a donation to our church team as we raise funds to help those who are dealing with cancer. Pamphlets are on the table in the Narthex. You can register online by March 14th for $20. After March 14 your fee will be $25. If you register via pamphlet, your fee will be $25 before March 14 and $30 after that date. I have an envelope for any registrations and/or donations. The Missions Team will match any registration funds received before March 14 th. Any questions, please ask! Sunday, May 29 Charles Sagay from Mission School of Hope will be with us. Thank you! To those of you who helped with the Simple Hope Food Packathon at the High School on February 20th! We received this note of thanks from Karen Puhl and Pam Schwalbach of Simple Hope: Thank you so much for arranging for so many from First Congregational Church to come and package rice meals for Tanzania. It was wonderful to meet everyone from your church and to chat with you. We are certainly grateful for all of your efforts to support Simple Hope and its mission in Tanzania. We want to thank each person who served, supported financially or prayed for this event. The mission would not To All Members of First Congregational Church, Life's Connection would love to extend our heartfelt thank you from all of us in your support of Haley and her family! You have simply changed her life! We are so happy to report that little boy, Skylar, was born a week ago and is healthy and happy! Haley is recovering and settling into mommy life with a newborn. She is doing well but keep her in prayer as she settles into "new motherhood." Your love and support has really made a difference in her life and it is a pleasure to see God working through all of you. Here are some pictures of her cute baby boy! Enjoy and God bless you and your families! Krys Crawley Fair Share What a Bargain As many of you may know, last fall I began working at a Methodist church in the area. Just to compare the difference between the contribution that they are assessed as their share of the expenses for their state, international and missions work with what we pay as our Fair Share of the work of the NACCC, I did the math. We can be a Fair Share church for a contribution of under $ If we were a Methodist church we would have an assessment of around $7,200. What a bargain!

4 Easter lilies are available for purchase from Blooms and Blooms florist for $13.95 each. Ordering deadline is March 15th. Pick up for any plants bought as gifts will be on March 25th in the afternoon. Checks can be made payable to the church and ordering envelopes can be placed in the offering plate for Judi to collect. March 13 Any questions? Contact Rae-Ellen Preuss

5 From the Kitchen of: Debbie Maske 1 package butterscotch chips melted 1/3 cup butter softened 1 cup chopped nuts 2 cups graham cracker crumbs 1 cup (8 oz) cream cheese softened 1 14 oz sweetened condensed milk 1 tsp vanilla 1 egg Butterscotch Cheesecake Bars Preheat oven to 350 o. Combine butterscotch chips and butter. Stir in graham cracker crumbs and nuts. Press ½ into a greased 9 x 13 pan. In a large bowl beat cream cheese until fluffy. Add sweetened condensed milk, vanilla and egg. Pour over crust. Top with remaining mixture. Bake 25 to 30 minutes. Come join us for our March 15 th meeting at 12:30 pm. We will be sharing Reuben sandwiches. Please let Sue Roberts know if you want a sandwich as she is picking them up on the 15 th. We will be filling small Easter bags for our Church shut-ins. We hope to see you there! We are excited to invite all to our annual Easter Breakfast...Sunday March 27 th from 8:30 to 9:45. This is a breakfast food potluck. Watch for the signup sheet on the communication table. Looking forward to seeing everyone there!! When you come to church for the Easter Brunch, any children coming with you will have an opportunity to participate in an Easter Egg Hunt. The Hunt will begin about 9:15 and should last about minutes.. We will be done well before the start of the Easter service. Children will be hunting for eggs with some candies, so if you would like to contribute toward the purchase of the candy, please give the money to TJ or Erin Tritz. In addition to the candy, books have been purchased to give to each of the children and youth in the congregation. Date Refresh. Ushers Nursery Liturgist Sunday School 3/6 Business Mtg. Group 1 Tom & Sue Kay R Claire H 3/13 Scouts Charter Group 2 Claire H 3/20 Rowntree Group 3 Joanne H 3/27 Easter Brunch Group 1 Joanne H "Worry is like a rocking chair: it keeps you moving but doesn't get you anywhere." Corrie Ten Boom

6 231 ROBERTS DRIVE MUKWONAGO, WISCONSIN «Final_Merge Mailing_Labels» «Address» «City», «State» «Zip» «Newsletter_Delivery_Preference» March, 2016 Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday :00 Men's Breakfast 7:00 Lenten Service 10:00 Kniwits at FCC Mukwonago 6:30 Choir Saturday :00 Bible Study 6:30 Scouts 6:30 Choir 6:30 Quilters 3:00 Girl Scouts 2:00 Childrens 10:00 Worship 7:00 Lenten Service Christian Theater 11:00 Annual Meeting at Caldwell 13 Scouts Charter :00 Bible Study 10:00 Knitwits 7:00 Lenten Service 10:00 Worship 12:30 Women's at Burlington 6:30 Council Meeting 11:00 Front Porch Fellowship 6:30 Choir 6:30 Scouts 20 Palm Sunday Maundy Thursday 25 Good Friday 26 9:00 Bible Study 6:30 Scouts 10:00 Knitwits 7:00 Service 12:00 FCC Rochester 10:00 Worship 6:30 Choir at Honey Creek 7:00 Vernon Lutheran 11:00 Front Porch 1:00 Linden Ridge Articles Due 27 Easter :30 Breakfast 10:00 Knitwits 10:00 Worship The lounge will be used for Christian Counseling: Sundays 2pm 10pm, Mondays 6pm 10pm and Thursdays 6:30 pm 10pm