Join Now! Prayer Messaging Ministry

The elders are setting up a prayer texting ministry for those of us on the go who want to be praying for our family in Christ and beyond. It will be a texting stream, through our cell phones, that anyone can join. Prayers can go out by anyone and be prayed on instantly by everyone included on this text stream.

We will be taking names and numbers of those interested through the end of September. This gives us time to reach everyone and give the option of joining. The text line will start on October 1st,. If you are interested in joining this ministry, please contact Renae Earl with your name and cell number.

Raffle & Treasure Sale

The Disciples Women's group is holding its annual Raffle & Treasure Sale in the Youth Building from 9am – 12pm (excluding the church service) on Sunday, December 5th & Sunday, December 12th. They are selling raffle tickets for a beautiful handmade quilt. This quilt was a joint effort by the ladies in the group. Tickets are $5 each or 5 for $20. Disciples Women do many things to help the church and its projects. If you have like-new items (no clothes) you would care to donate, please drop them by the church or deliver them to the Youth Building on December 4th between 10am & 12pm.

Donations for the North Concord Shelter

North Concord Shelter:
We have a box in the office for donations. You can still donate water bottles and they have also requested small sewing kits, lotions, deodorant, razors as well as water bottles.

Shoe Fundraiser

Friends Feeding Friends:
They are having a shoe fundraiser! We all can help by donating gently used adult and children’s shoes. All shoes will be refurbished and given to those in need in the U.S. and around the world. Shoes may be dropped off at Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, 4000 Clayton Rd., Concord. (No slippers or shoes with cleats) For more information and restrictions see their Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/pages/category/Nonprofit-Organization/Friends-Feeding-Friends-1653613718073972/).

Spirit of Giving

Hope Solutions:
The Spirit of Giving project 2022 is here. We will be supporting four families with two holiday gifts and a grocery card for each family member. All four families are single moms. One mother has a special needs child, and the other families are working to create a safe, stable life for their children after leaving damaging relationships or displacement.

We need a total of 13, $25 Grocery Outlet, Foodmaxx or Safeway cards for the families this year. To find out about the families wishes please visit our sign-up Genius link:
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c0f4aafa628a6fcc61-spirit. You may also donate any amount to Outreach, Spirit of Giving project. All donations are due in the church office by Thursday, December 2nd.

November 2021 Outreach News!

Hope Solutions
The Spirit of Giving project has begun. We will be supporting four families with two Holiday Gifts and a grocery card for each family member. All four families are single moms. One mother has a special needs child, and the other families are working to create a safe, happy, and stable life for their children after leaving damaging relationships or displacement.

We will need a total of 13 $25 Food Maxx or Safeway Cards for the families this year. You may donate these funds to Outreach, Spirit of Giving project or you can pick up the cards yourself. For details on the gifts needed for each family, please contact Diane Maltester.

North Concord Shelter
We delivered our first Shelter meal since COVID! Janet Hecker along with her team, Mike, and Matt Hecker, prepared a wonderful ham, mashed potatoes, and beans. We received a fantastic review from the residents! The residents also appreciated all the water bottles that everyone donated. Thank you!

You can still donate water bottles and they have also requested small sewing kits, lotions, deodorant and razors as well as water bottles. We have a box in the office so you can drop off your donations or you can call us, and we will pick up your donation.

Crossroads
We will prepare the turkey for their Holiday Luncheon on November 19th. If you would like to help heat and deliver them to the High School, let us know!

ICCCC
2021 Annual Meeting and Celebration will be on-line this year on November 14th beginning at 7pm. Please join and learn about programs such as ICARE, where teams from different faiths work together on community projects. This year we participated in two of these events, the collection of food for the homeless with Christ the King and the White Pony Volunteer Day.

Click here to register, then the link will be emailed to you. You will be the first to hear about the new ICHANGE mentoring program for youth.

Ten Ways to Support Our Church

October is the month in which we focus on the ways in which we can support the mission and ministry of our church through our tithes and offerings, as well as through our time and talent. Here are ten ways we can support our church.

1. Attend Regularly (on Zoom and, when we are able, in person)
2. Give Generously (to our church, the Region, and General Church Offerings)
3. Love Radically
4. Bring Others Consistently (We love visitors!)
5. Volunteer Joyfully
6. Share Jesus Willingly
7. Fellowship Purposefully
8. Show Up Energetically
9. Pray Fervently
10. Encourage Faithfully

Opportunities to Give

North Concord Shelter

The North Concord Shelter has requested reusable water bottles. Let’s start collecting our unused reusable water bottles or find some on sale. We have a box in the office so you can drop off your donations or you can call us and we will pick up your donation.

Contra Costa Interfaith Coalition

They need furniture, mostly small items such as small tables, end tables, twin beds, and dressers. Please contact the church office to be put in touch with this important organization.

Award for Winter Nights!

JustFaith is a national Christian organization, headquartered in Louisville, KY, that promotes the values of social justice. This year they are celebrating their 20 Anniversary and have had over 65,000 people participate in their programs. As part of their celebration, they established the Mary and Gary Becker Social Justice Award to be given to a program/person who exemplifies the principles of social justice in an extraordinary way.

This inaugural award was given to our local Winter Nights program and its founder, Gwen Watson! Many of our member faith communities have participated in this program over the years and Gwen Watson is a longtime member of I4C (Interfaith Council of Contra Costa County) and past Director of SOJA (Social Justice Alliance). The award includes a contribution of $4,000 to the program and the continuation of its work.

Congratulations to Gwen and everyone connected with Winter Nights! This is a prestigious and well-deserved recognition.

Leaders of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) speak on anti-Asian violence

On March 18, our denomination posted this statement about anti-Asian violence, which we fully support.

A Call for Justice

Terri Hord Owens, the General Minister and President of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) denomination, calls churches to work for justice.

Rev. Dr. Leslie Taylor Called to be Transitional Minister!

The Search Committee has proposed and the Admin and Ministry Councils have approved the call of Rev. Dr. Leslie Taylor to be our Transitional Minister! She will start on April 1, and will continue as our Transitional Minister until we have called our new Senior Minister. Leslie will be delivering sermons and otherwise participating in worship each Sunday, leading other special worship services (such as our Maundy Thursday service), as well as providing urgent pastoral care.

Leslie has been an ordained minister in the United Church of Christ since 1988, and served in the national setting of the UCC for nearly 10 years. After leaving the national setting, she became bi-vocational and served congregations as the installed pastor, interim pastor and transitional pastor while working at different times as the Director of a Women’s Resource Center, and the Director of a Childcare center. She spent 10 years as the Director of Student Services and the United Church of Christ and Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) Minister in Residence at Methodist Theological School in Ohio. After moving to California, she served as the Co-Director of Admissions, Events, and Recruitment at Pacific School of Religion. Currently, she is working as a Coach in Training (for churches and people in transition) and also enjoys officiating at weddings. She is the partner of our Regional Minister, Rev. Dr. LaTaunya Bynum.

FCC Concord Calls Interim Minister

We are so happy to welcome to our pulpit on January 7, our new Intentional Interim Minister, Rev. Dr. David Ernat. David is the first college graduate of a large “blue collar” primarily Polish family. He was born in Moline, IL and worked his way west through grocery store, construction, factory, corporate and not for profit jobs. He gained college degrees in Law Enforcement Administration, Law and Theology (BS, JD and M. Div.).

David is honored to be the spouse of Barbara Fortin and father to Pearl Jennie Ernat.  David and Barbara live in Chico, CA and Barbara works for California State University at Chico. Pearl lives in Columbus, OH and works for RG Barry Corporation (known for making “Dearfoams” slippers).

David is an ordained Lutheran (Evangelical Lutheran Church in America -- they are Open and Affirming) Pastor who has served in “regular call” congregational ministries (WI and OH). He has directed social service agencies focused on AIDS/HIV; adoptions; mental health; and state public policy (MD, WI, ID). For about 15 years, he served churches as a certified Intentional Interim Pastor/Minister working in Lutheran, and one Presbyterian, congregations (WI, ID and CA).

David is pleased to be able to serve First Christian Church Concord, as an Intentional Interim Minister. He will be working approximately 3/4 time and looks forward to joining this chapter of the journey of life with our congregation during this exciting “in-between” time! 

Winter Nights Shelter to begin

Once again we are co-hosting the Winter Nights Shelter with the Lafayette United Methodist Church, 955 Moraga Rd in Lafayette.  

We provide dinner meals each night and two breakfasts on the weekend for the program on November 1st through the 5th.

Our Outreach Team Leaders are in place for the meals. We need volunteers to help prepare and serve the meal. No experience necessary! Just show up! You need to be there around 5pm to help prepare the meal and we serve at 6:30pm. After dinner the clients prepare their lunch for the next day. We just set out the food and clean up and we are done! This is a very rewarding program and a special way you can help our community.

For more information about the Winter Nights Shelter visithttps://cccwinternights.org/ or to volunteer please contact Diane Maltester at dmclarinet@comcast.net

Senior Adult Ministry Group on tour in China

Fourteen people from our Senior Adult Ministry have arrived in Beijing! They will begin today a two week tour starting and ending in Shanghai. The group leader is our own TJ Cheng. Other participants from our congregation are Ellie McDougal, Mark Cornelius, Sandy Cornelius, Philip Noel, Quin Wang and former members Bob Lester and Rome Lester.

Please hold this group in your prayers!

FCC to Welcome XPLOR Resident

In 2014, the National Benevolent Association, the health and social services general ministry of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), created a program designed to help young adults unleash their own potential, while positively impacting their community.  The program is called XPLOR and it is a faith-based, 10-month, congregationally-hosted residency program designed for 21-30 year olds looking to explore lives of care and service.  Several houses have been set up around the country to provide opportunities for these residents to live simply in community and engage in direct service and justice work.

The Residency program offers residents an extended, residential experience during which deep spiritual reflection, communal living and hands-on service will help them explore God’s call on their lives.

Each resident is placed in Community Engagement Site, a non-profit organization that provides direct services to the community, working 30 hours a week doing hands-on ministry.

This program also “embeds” young adults within a Host Congregation that is already committed to accompanying their neighbors and already has a passion for coming alongside young adults as they consider the deep connections between the life of faith and the work of justice.  That’s where FCC, Concord comes in. 

For the second year in a row, we have been invited to serve as one of these Host Congregations to one of these residents.  While this person will not be on staff, our role is to provide this individual with a church home and welcoming community; to provide her with a place to worship, study and be a part of a faith community.  Our role will be to take this person “under our wings” and help her find her strengths.

Starting on September 10, we will be welcoming Claire Cooley into our church community. Claire grew up in Albuquerque, NM, as a member of Monte Vista Christian Church, but moved to Eureka College in Eureka, IL, where she graduated in May, majoring in history and political science. While there, she served as both Student Body President and Vice President and participated in numerous mission trips, including Ecuador, Ghana, Togo, and Romania. She has worked at the Barrett Foundation supporting homeless women and children in their time of need.

She enjoys camping, exploring the outdoors, cooking, and reading.

Because Claire has worked effectively in non-profits that serve homeless women and children, adults with mental disabilities, and the homeless, her XPLOR internship will be with St. Mary's Center, Oakland, in their programs that focus on the needs of homeless seniors.

We hope you will help us welcome Claire and make her feel welcomed and included, just as you would any other new member in our congregation.

Save the Date: An Evening in Tuscany

Save the date
for great food & fellowship!

Come one, come all to this fun event!

So much to do that night:

• Enjoy a delicious 4-course, family-style Italian dinner prepared by chef Janet Hecker
• Grab a gift card from the ever-popular Lucky Letter Wall
• Bid during our Silent and Live Auctions
• Sign up for fabulous member-hosted events to be held later in the year

This event will provide much-needed funds for our church ministries.  This is our primary fundraiser to help First Christian Church “make ends meet” during the last quarter of 2017.

Doors open at 5:30 p.m. for fellowship, sign-up event and auction bidding, and to buy your Lucky Letter!  Dinner seating will begin at 6pm in Fellowship Hall.

Tickets go on sale Sunday, September 10

$35 for adults
$20 for teens ages 13-17
$10 for children ages 4-12
($25 maximum for 3 or more children)

Be sure to get your tickets early!

Help Needed in our Media Ministry

We are looking for folks to help our with our media ministry during worship on Sunday mornings, serving as back-up for our Sound/Video Tech.  This person would run the sound board and manage the slides on the screen.  Certainly we would provide the necessary training for this position!  If this is a way you could serve the church, please contact  Russ Peterman or Scott Carlisle with interest or questions.

Baptism & Belonging Class to Begin

The Baptism & Belonging Class, prepares young people who are interested in becoming “full” members of the church by being baptized, or who just want to find out about the church and grow in their faith. 

The class will meet on Sunday mornings during the Sunday School hour (9a – 9:45a), September 10-October 29, and will be taught by Russ Peterman.  Those who are interested will then be baptized during the worship service on Sunday, November 5. 

Traditionally this class has been open to anyone in the 5th grade or older. Kids younger than that who are interested in participating need to have their parents meet with Russ prior to the class. 

While the Disciples traditionally baptize “believers,” we frequently have young people come to our churches that were baptized as infants, and are looking for a confirmation-like class.  We have, in the past, adjusted slightly the curriculum of this class to accommodate folks who are looking for more of a confirmation experience, and then formerly recognize them in worship.  It is our tradition as Disciples to recognize all baptisms – both by immersion and by sprinkling. 

If you have questions, or would like to sign up for the Baptism and Belonging Class, please contact the church office, 925/685-7503. Or, if you are an adult and interested in being baptized, please be in touch with Russ and we’ll create our own class and adapt it to your needs.

 “Therefore we have been buried with him by baptism into death, so that… we too might walk in newness of life.”  -- Romans 6:4