Events and Calendar

Holy Week and Easter Worship

Join us for worship as we travel to the cross, and then to the empty tomb, with Jesus on the Way of Love.
Maundy Thursday – Join us for a special Zoom worship service with Hope Presbyterian Church in Detroit. Log in at 7 pm on April 1 for the service, which will focus on the five senses as we read about the anointing of Jesus, the foot washing, the last supper, and the garden.
Good Friday – Our online service will focus on Psalms of Lament as we read the difficult story of Jesus’ death on Good Friday. Special music and readings from Mark’s gospel will also guide us. Service will be available to watch anytime on Good Friday or after.
Easter – A glorious pre-recorded service will be available beginning Easter morning, including a virtual choir anthem in partnership with Hope Presbyterian Church. We will also have two outdoor services at 9 am and 11 am on the Hendrie Lawn, where we will enjoy a flowering of the cross. If you can, pick up some flowers to bring with you that we will insert into a large cross for a beautiful display during the service. Come to uncover the Alleluias and praise God together!

​

March 7 Pick-Up and Drop-Off

On Sunday, March 7 from 11 am to 1 pm, you can drive your car in front of the Christian Ed lobby entrance at the church, and a member will come out to do a contactless pick-up from your trunk, or grab items through your car window. No need to call ahead, members will be waiting for you during this time.

Drop-off:

• Offerings

• Food donations for Souper Bowl of Caring

• Completed March H.O.M.E. Bag (Books for kindergartners in Pontiac)

• Paperback books for Operation Paperback

Pick-up:

• Way of Love Lenten Kit

• March H.O.M.E. Bags

​

Travel the Way of Love this Lent

From Ash Wednesday on February 17, until Easter on April 4, we are invited to focus on traveling the Way of Love. This is a set of practices that embody what it means to follow Jesus Christ. Conceived by Bishop Michael Curry in the Episcopal Church, this notion reminds us that disciples are people who live their lives in a certain way, patterned after Jesus. These seven practices are simple, yet deep. We will Turn, Learn, Worship, Pray, Bless, Rest, and Go. We will focus on one practice each Sunday in Lent, ending with Pray on Good Friday.

​

If you want to go deeper with the Way of Love this Lent, consider purchasing this small devotional, Living the Way of Love: A 40 Day Devotional by Mary Bea Sullivan.  It includes a short reading for each day during the season. Each devotion highlights one of the seven practices from the Way of Love.

​

Lenten Evening Reflection Services

Lenten Reflection services are under way and will continue to appear on Thursdays through March 25. The services are available to view any time after they debut on Thursdays at 6 pm. Lenten Reflection services are available on the church website, Facebook or Vimeo. Join us in a brief time of scripture, poetry and reflection.

​

March H.O.M.E. “Helping Out, Mission Edition”

March is designated as National Reading Month and is a time when everyone is encouraged to read daily. March Into Reading will be the theme of the March H.O.M.E. bags. We will collect books to be distributed to individual kindergartners at the Arts and Technology Academy of Pontiac. We would like each family/person who picks up a bag to purchase two paperback books suitable for a kindergarten age child. There are 65 kindergartners at the school and we would like to have a book for each of them. The school does not have a designated library space but each room has a book collection. If we collect more than 65 books, we will donate the rest to the individual classroom collections. Each bag you pick up will contain the H.O.M.E. sheet. On the back will be a list of suggested titles, but do not feel limited to that list. Your family may have favorites, or you may have some, too. Please feel free to select those! There will also be bookmarks to decorate and a special treat baked by Cassie Coates for you to enjoy.
If you have a gently used book, for any age reader, that you would like to donate, include that with the two new paperbacks and the bookmarks when you return your bags to church. The used books will be placed in Little Free Libraries around town.

​

2021 Book of the Month Challenge

This month, we’re half-way through our studies! Have you read a book and attended one of the monthly discussions yet? Remember, Pastor Emma is challenging every member of the congregation to participate in at least one of the monthly book studies through June. Can’t wait to chat with you there!

March 2021: Raising White Kids, by Jennifer Harvey
A challenging book that asks parents (and grandparents and all those who love kids) to take an honest look about how we can nurture children to be anti-racist, and how we can adjust our practices when they are unintentionally doing otherwise.
Monday, March 22 at 7:30 pm on Zoom. Look in your email for the Zoom link.

​

Lenten Retreat March 5-6 — Lost and Found: Crossing the Threshold from Last Year to This

March marks the time when we will have been ‘at’ our pandemic lifestyle for one year. At our retreat, we’ll reflect prayerfully on the changes that have taken place in our lives this past year. We’ll listen for the Spirit of God to give us wisdom and insight about where we have been, where we are headed, and what we wish to bring with us into this next year. How has this last year informed the dream of God in our lives?

We’ll gather on zoom for opening and closing worship services on Friday and Saturday evenings, and for a workshop during the day on Saturday. Participants will receive suggested activities to structure your retreat time when we are not in session on Zoom, or you can simply devote the time to rest and refreshment. The retreat is appropriate for high school youth, college students, and adults of all ages!

Friday, March 5 at 7 pm to Saturday, March 6 at 8 pm

• Opening Worship

• Workshops: Select the method that helps you best reflect and grow

• Finding our Values through Art, or Finding Our Values through Reflection and Conversation

• Closing Intergenerational Worship

Please Click Here to sign up for the retreat by March 1

Our retreat leader is Beth Scibienski who is an imaginative thinker and an entrepreneurial Pastor with the PCUSA. Her leadership style is deeply rooted in relationship and collaborative action. As a Pastor, she led the creation of a Wellness Center and the merging of two churches. She also helped design a new versatile building for worship and community outreach. She is a twice published author: a memoir on faith and loss, and a collaborative work on creative church initiatives. She is an Executive Leadership and Team Effectiveness Coach. She has two sons, two daughters-in-law, and two grandchildren. For fun she cooks, crochets, and plays with her Bernedoodle, Sam. Questions? Contact Pastor Emma.

​

Kirkman Scholarships for Higher Education

Are you discerning a personal higher education? Church members who are high school seniors and older are eligible to apply for a one-time scholarship through the Kirkman Scholarship Fund. This fund allows us to award members who are seeking higher education. Most forms of higher education are eligible for scholarships. They are not limited to colleges and universities. It is not necessary to name your place of learning at the time you apply. Award checks will be mailed to the school later in the year.
Applications are available on the church website. If you would like more information or would like an application emailed to you, please contact Joelle Jarrait.

​