The 45th Annual Chapel Choir Tour will take place March 26-April 2, 2016 and you can help us cover some expenses by Getting On Board to Broadway and “sponsoring a bus seat” for $25. The cost of transportation is one of the largest line items in the tour budget, so offsetting some of the cost through seat sponsorships will help reduce the individual tour fee for choir members.
In observance of the New Year, the church office will be closed on Thursday, December 31 starting at 12:00 p.m. and all day on Friday, January 1. If you need assistance during this time, please contact Pastor Jim at 630.788.3310.
Please note that on Sunday, December 27, we will hold one service at 10:00 a.m. Pastor Greta will preach on Luke 2:41-55, Jesus: Teenager.
Help us to brighten the sanctuary this Christmas by purchasing a beautiful poinsettia!
For many, especially those who have lost a loved one, or are in other times of struggle, the Christmas Season is difficult. A special Service of Christmas Peace will be held on Sunday, December 6, at 8:15am in the Chapel.
This service will include time for reflection, remembering those we hold in our hearts and hearing the promise of comfort, hope and peace that Christmas proclaims.
All are welcome.
Happy Thanksgiving!
As we enter this season of harvest and gratitude, we are reminded of the importance and power of giving thanks every day of the year. Christians are called to “give thanks in all circumstances,” (I Thessalonians 5:8) and so experience the gifts of God that we might otherwise overlook. Thankfulness is a choice we can make that opens our lives toward greater contentment and joy, and opens our eyes to see our neighbors with God’s love.
On Thanksgiving Day we are invited to reclaim the story of a meal long ago, shared in love and thankfulness among people who grew from feared strangers to trusted friends, that began our nation’s Thanksgiving tradition. And we are invited to remember those who in this day are in need of food, shelter, compassion, and justice.
One of the ways we as a church show God’s love for our neighbors is through our Thanksgiving offering. The Thanksgiving offering goes specifically to ministries of local outreach and social justice. Our gifts are directed through our congregation’s Mission, Justice, and Community Work Area (combining the former Mission and Church and Society Work Areas); and will be used to reach out to lives, speak out about needs, and work to bring improved circumstances to others through the organizations described on the reverse side of this letter.
If you haven't received a Thanksgiving offering envelope, they are available in the church office.
May your Thanksgiving be blessed with God’s abundant love.
Pastors Jim and Greta McDonald
Mission, Justice and Community Work Area
Alice Parker is a living musical legend whose work teaching congregations to sing and music directors to arrange and interpret has inspired thousands around the world. Alice’s arrangements and recordings with the Robert Shaw Chorale served to popularize choral music in our country. The program will feature ensembles and choir, and congregational singing.
This Sunday at all three services, we will welcome Deacon Wes Dorr and lay leader Sabrina Bermingham from the United Church of Rogers Park, our sister church in Chicago with which we have an on-going connection of supportive giving and annual mission trips. We have an additional connection in that former DGFUMC member Rev. Catiana McKay has been the pastor at Rogers Park since 2007.
Below please find the November 2015 edition of the UMW newsletter, The Inner Circle.
Please join us this Sunday at both the 9:30 and 11:00 a.m. worship services as we dedicate our new sanctuary grand piano. Be ready for some spectacular piano highlights! From solos to duets, you won't want to miss out hearing how both ebony and ivory tickle your musical musings!
DGFUMC is pleased to provide the Hearing Loop System for use on the main floor of the Sanctuary.
A hearing loop is a wire that circles a room and is connected to a sound system. The loop transmits the sound electromagnetically. The electromagnetic signal is then picked up by the t-coil in a hearing aid or cochlear implant.
According to the E.P.A., Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle is very beneficial to our environment. Some of the benefits include saving energy, saving money, reducing the amount of waste sent to our landfills, and allowing products to be used to their fullest extent.
What you may be surprised to learn is that items such as pencils, counter-tops, bicycles, cookware, jackets, carpeting, bridges, and textiles can be made from recycled items.