Immanuel United Church of Christ

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Autumn Blessings

9/27/2018

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  As a person that loves warmer temperatures, the bright sun, and all the grandeur of summer, I tend to hold on tenaciously to summer.  But there’s a time when the brisk cool breeze, smell of wood burning in the fireplace, and colors of the autumn leaves, invariably win me over.  I have a cup of hot cider or pumpkin spiced latte, sit back and think to myself, autumn is here, it’s time to enjoy the beauty of the season before the colors fade to winter.   I enjoy the fall festivals and the roadside crafts, and my favorite, a relaxing drive down a country road that winds through fields with famers harvesting crops and forests with trees bundled in fall colors.  
  It reminds me that each season of the year has its special beauty and its own unique blessings.  It also reminds me that each season of life has its special blessings to be enjoyed.  More often than not we tend to look to the past or press to the future and forget to simply be present in the moment and enjoy God’s many blessings.   I invite you to lean into the moment and enjoy the beauty of creation, the warmth of family, and the blessings of hearth and home.  Make every day a special day and give thanks to God for His manifold blessings.  God is good.  All the time.
 
(scripture of the week)
“To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:
a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to reap,
a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to break down and a time to build up, 
a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance, 
a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together;
  a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing, 
a time to gain and a time to lose, a time to keep and a time to cast away, 
a time to rend and a time to sew, a time to keep silence and a time to speak, 
a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace. 
What do workers gain from their toil?  I have seen the burden God has laid on the human race.  He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart; yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end” (Ecclesiastes 3:1-11)
 
(prayer of the week)
Lord, help us to embrace each season of life and live each day to the fullest.  Help us to thank you for the blessings and to lean into your strength for the battles.  Thank you for the gift of life itself, and help us to live each day as a gift given to others and to you, in your name, Amen.
 
Blessings in Christ–Pastor TJ
 
God's grace, unsought and unearned, blows through my life,
and all I need to do is raise my sails
t
o catch the full wind- Catharine of Siena

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Peace in the Storm

9/20/2018

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 One of the most interesting natural phenomena is the eye of the hurricane.  In the middle of the most devastating storm, with deadly winds and pounding waves is the eye of the hurricane, which has blue skies and a peaceful breeze where birds often find shelter.  God has promised that we too, can find a calm peace in the midst of the most turbulent storms of life, if our hearts and lives are centered on Christ.  May God's Spirit fill you with a peace that transcends all understanding and refreshes your heart and life.
 
(Verse of the week)
Jesus said, "Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. (John 14.27)
 
(Prayer of the week)
Almighty God of power and love, thank you for the gift of life and even the challenges of life.  Fill me anew with your Spirit of peace and may I find quiet rest in you even in the midst of the challenges of life.  May your peace so touch me that others will be touched by your presence and peace in me.  Amen.
 
Open your heart to God’s amazing love!—Pastor TJ
 
(quote of the week)
Be the change you want to see in the world--Gandhi
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Reach for the Stars

9/14/2018

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Reach for the stars and keep your feet on the ground -- it is a great adage and a great goal to start off a new fall season.  Paul challenges us to be rooted and established in Christ's love and that relationship will help us grow strong and become fruitful in all we do.  We can keep growing in the love of Christ through all of life, and have confidence that our relationship to God gives us a firm foundation to use our gifts and talents to pursue great dreams that serve others and honor God.  Reach for the stars and keep your feet on the ground --and hold on to the hand of the Lord who loves you and will be with you always.  Open your heart to God's awesome love...and trust God to take you places you never even dreamed of... then fasten your seat belt for all the thrills, adventure, and joy of a lifetime! 
 
(Verse of the week)
I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ. (Ephesians 3.17,18)
 
(Prayer of the week)
Gracious God, thank you for the gift of this day and the gift of life itself.  Thank you for the gifts and talents you have given me.  Help me to keep my life grounded in your love and help me reach for the stars and be all that I can be.  In everything I do may others see your love and grace in me. Amen.       
 
Open your heart to God’s amazing love!–Pastor TJ
 
(quote of the week)
O God, my Father, don't let me die without having really lived and really loved --John Powell

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Jewel

9/6/2018

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You are a jewel!  A treasure of incredible worth!  God has created you a rare and beautiful gem, a treasure beyond belief.  Most jewels are formed under intense pressure; and then require the experienced eye and skillful chisel of the jeweler to bring the beauty to full brilliance through careful, precise chiseling.  Our faith and character are often formed and strengthened under intense pressure.  And like the gems that a jeweler chisels, we too must experience the careful and loving chisel strikes of the Master Jeweler.  Though sometimes painful, it will bring your true beauty and brilliance into the light of God's love and service.  You are more than a diamond in the rough--take heart, you are a jewel in the master's hand.
 
(Verse of the week)
In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials.  These have come so that your faith of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.  1 Peter 1.6,7
 
 (Prayer of the week)
Gracious and loving God, thank you that you care about me and love me. Give me strength to face the challenges of life, and fill me with faith to trust your plan and purpose in all things.  Re-kindle the joy of life in my heart.  And make me a light that others may see your love.   Amen.
 
Have a great week! –Pastor TJ
 
(quote of the week)
God made you as you are in order to use you as He planned --S. C. McAuley

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    Pastor Dr. TJ Jenney
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1526 South 18th Street

Lafayette, IN 47905

Phone 765-474-6496


Worship Services;

Contemporary Service 8:30am 

Coffee & Conversation 9:30am 

Sunday School & Adult Ed 9:45 am

Traditional Worship ​10:45am 
 
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No matter who you are, or where you

are on life's journey, YOU are

welcome here!