Weekly E-News, 9-13-2020

From Pastor Derek…. Stress. Anxiety. Fear. These words capture well the state of mind of many of us in America today. We have witnessed a volatile stock market, record-high unemployment, a global pandemic, increased political tension, as well as more stressful race relations. All of these things work together to

Weekly E-News, 8-2-2020

In-person worship continues this Sunday, Aug. 9th,  at 9 a.m., 10 a.m., and 11 a.m. More than 200 folks participated in worship this past Sunday, by either attending one of our three services or by tuning in to the Live Stream. A live streaming of the 9 a.m. worship service will again

July-August Spire

  Click here to view the July-August Spire

Weekly E-News, 7-19-2020

Happy Thursday, friends!  Yes. I know. It’s Thursday and not Wednesday. This is the result of me being gone for a couple weeks. I can’t effectively manage my time when I return! Sorry for getting this out a day late! When I was growing up, we moved a lot…like over

Weekly E-News, 7-12-2020

Click here to read about all our high school graduates and the plans they are making as they continue their education. FROM THE MEMORIALS COMMITTEE:We are pleased to announce the following class of 2020 High School Students who have been awarded the Barkett Memorial Scholarship: Luke CalderEmily HannaBaleigh GrothTatum MillerKatelyn StoverBen Sutter This year’s Adelyne and

Weekly E-News, 6-28-2020

  Happy Wednesday, Church! And, Happy Independence Day (in advance). It’s a great thing to celebrate our freedom and independence, isn’t it? When I was thinking about the 4th of July, I was drawn to the New Colossus, which is the title of the poem inscribed on the Statue of Liberty. Not like the brazen

Regathering Plan and E-news, 6-21-2020

Happy Wednesday, friends! I am so excited to tell you that the Elders (working with the staff, Trustees, and Deacons) have set a tentative date for us to regather in person for worship. Please read the letter and plan below, and watch out for it in your mailboxes at home,

Weekly E-News, 6-14-2020

Happy Wednesday, friends! This coming Sunday (6/21), I will have preached as many sermons online than I have in person here at The Church in Aurora. I have literally spent 50% of my time, virtually pastoring the church. I have to tell you, in a million years, that?s not how

Weekly E-news, 6-7-2020

One of my favorite devotionals is from a study I led a couple of times: Emotionally Healthy Spirituality. The devotion lays out two devotions (morning & evening). It provides a scripture passage, a devotional thought, and a prayer. I was going through the devotional recently, because I am leading this

Weekly E-News, 5-31-2020

A link to the June SPIRE is here. In it you will find reflections on prayer from Reed Fuller, a monthly report from our Acting Moderator- Laura Holman, committee reports, and other church activity and member news. It begins with a reprint of Pastor Derek’s May 20 Enews article on being