Rev. Dr. Russ Peterman to help lead the Ministry Life Choices Initiative

Lexington Theological Seminary, located in Lexington, KY, and the oldest Disciples seminary, partners with the Pension Fund of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) to support LTS M. Div. graduates in their first 1-5 years of fulltime congregational ministry through a project called Ministry Life Choices Initiative (MLCI).  It is the mission of MLCI to find ways to mediate the effects of clergy burnout, helping and encouraging pastors to be healthy in mind, body and spirit, and to seek ways to support them in their efforts at such health.

Starting in January, the initiative will be entering an exciting new phase with the launch of its first clergy peer group. Six recent LTS alums have agreed to journey together through life and ministry for 18 months beginning in January of 2016. These clergy will begin their time together with a 24-hour retreat in Lexington in January, and then continue meeting monthly via LTS Online. 

Rev. Dr. Russ Peterman, Senior Minister

Our pastor, the Rev. Dr. Russ Peterman, has been chosen to serve as the facilitator of this peer group.

Julie Richardson, MLCI coordinator, explains that Russ was chosen for this role because of his “pastoral presence, keen sense of relationship, and wisdom from his years of ministry,” assets that will help guide these new graduates through an 18-month journey together. 

Richardson recently wrote to the church leadership, saying, “This project, will, of course, take up some of Russ' time. And so I want to extend my gratitude to you all, in advance, for supporting this crucial pastoral service he is offering the wider church. I am profoundly grateful for the leadership I know he will provide. He is, as you know, one of our wider church's finest pastors.”

This is a wonderful opportunity and honor for Russ, as well as a terrific testament to the quality of Russ' leadership.  We trust that he will be an outstanding mentor and facilitator for this new program, and we will proudly support him in this endeavor.

Senior Adult Ministry tours the historic Galindo House

A group of folks from our Senior Adult Ministry enjoyed a marvelous tour of the historic Galindo House in all its Holiday Splendor on December 8.   The tour was let by Concord Historical Society Volunteer, Chuck Gabrysika.  Thanks to Historical Society Member, Gloria Mattson, for making the arrangements for this tour.

Join us on Christmas Eve

First Christian Church will offer two Christmas Eve services this year.  

The 5:30p service will be especially family oriented, with our children and youth presenting a Christmas pageant entitled, "One Night in Bethlehem."  Any one of any age who would like to participate will be invited join in.  Simple costumes will be available.  NO REHEARSAL will be required, and ALL are welcome.  Communion will be served.

Our 7:00p service will be our candlelight communion service.  This is always one of our most memorable and moving services of the year.  The service will end with candlelight and the singing of Silent Night.  A special offering will be collected for the Helping Hands fund. 

Christmas Eve is a wonderful opportunity to invite friends and family to First Christian Church!

FCC to Host Operation Santa Claus

For one glorious Saturday in December, 120 military families will be treated to a day of fun, relaxation, and a show of appreciation for their service and sacrifice.

On Saturday December 12th, these military families will be treated to a day of food, Santa, Claus, and presents by a group of volunteers who have worked for an entire year to plan this event.  Each child will get to see Santa, and stuff a Christmas sock with candy and small toys, before entering Santa’s Workshop to pick out a brand new toy. Then it is on to the Build–A–Bear Station, and a trip to see the face painter.  There are arcade games to play and a marvelous buffet lunch complete with a carving station.  Last but not least, the kids can head for the sledding hill that is covered in real snow!  

By the end of the day, that begins at 6:00 AM and goes ‘til 8:00 PM, your body is tired but your spirt is soaring.  For you have experienced the joy of a child yelling “It’s just what I wanted” as they select their toy or experience snow and sledding for the first time.  You see a little girl hugging her new Teddy Bear, while her sister gets her face painted.  In the midst of all this happiness you will have a parent thank you and say, “Without this event we would not have had Christmas, we just couldn’t afford it this year”. Three years ago, a women mentioned, “This is the first time my son has smiled since his father deployed to Afghanistan”.  But in truth, the thanks belongs to these families who have chosen to defend our country.   

You are invited to come and see this amazing day as FCC joins with Tesoro Golden Eagle Refinery, the Gold Star Parents and the Blue Star Mothers of Contra Costa County, the Vietnam Veterans of Diablo Valley and Englander Catering in showing our appreciation and support for our Troops and their families.  This will be the sixth consecutive year that we have hosted this incredible event.

Several volunteers are needed for the days of Dec 11-12.  If you want to help on either or both days, with this wonderful event to support the troops, please contact Bill Bush. 

Support the Church when you shop online at smile.amazon.com

Doing some online shopping on this Cyber Monday? You can now support First Christian Church, Concord by using AmazonSmile. Simply click on the link below each time you shop and a portion of your sale will be donated back to the church!

https://smile.amazon.com/ch/94-1231013

Please note, this is not just today, but ANY TIME you shop.  When you shop at smile.amazon.com, you’ll find the exact same low prices, vast selection and convenient shopping experience as Amazon.com, with the added bonus that Amazon will donate a portion of the purchase price to the church. 

To shop at AmazonSmile simply go to smile.amazon.com from the web browser on your computer or mobile device. You may also want to add a bookmark to smile.amazon.com to make it even easier to return and start your shopping at AmazonSmile.

Rev. Dr. David Vásquez-Levy to preach Dec. 6

We are incredibly blessed to welcome as our guest preacher on December 6, Rev. Dr. David Vásquez-Levy, who serves as the President of Pacific School of Religion in Berkeley.  

A committed pastor, a nationally recognized immigration leader, and a sought after speaker, Vásquez-Levy leads at the intersection of faith, higher education, and social change. Vásquez-Levy regularly contributes a faith perspective to the national conversation on immigration and is the author of various publications that explore migration stories in sacred texts and in people's lives. He has lived in four countries and taught courses and led international study and service trips across the globe. Vásquez-Levy holds a Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science from Texas Lutheran University and a Master of Divinity and Doctor of Ministry in Preaching degrees from the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago. 

David will preach as part of our Advent Sermon series, Breath of Heaven, focusing on Mary and her struggle to find courage bring the holy child into the world. 

He will also be teaching the adult Sunday School class at 9 a.m. in the Discovery Room, focusing on immigration issues in light of current events in Syria and Mexico. 

In addition, after worship he’ll be meeting with church leadership for a conversation of leadership and the future of the church. 

Please join us on December 6 to welcome David!  You will be blessed and inspired by his energy, vision and intelligence. 

Advent Sermon Series

Advent Sermon Series:
Breath of Heaven

As we begin the season of Advent we'll be starting a new sermon series in which we'll look at the story of Christmas with a new angle of vision.

In both Hebrew and Greek, breath is synonymous with Spirit.  It is the Spirit of God that helped each of the characters in the Christmas story face difficult moments.  It is that same spirit that gives us courage to make it through life today.

Nov 29    
Elizabeth
Luke 1: 5-25

Dec 6        
Mary            
David Vásquez-Levy, preaching
Luke 1:26-45
Hebrews 11: 1, 8-13

Dec 13        
Joseph
Matthew 18-25

Dec 20        
Wise men
Matthew 2: 1-12

New Sermon Series

New Sermon Series

What If?

Three Questions to Transform Your Relationships

A few years ago Russ did a sermon series called, What If?  It was based upon a blog post written by Donald Miller entitled The Single Most Powerful Question You Can Ask. He started out by explaining that novelists, to write an interesting story, must ask themselves What if?

What if a boy and a runaway slave floated down the Mississippi? for instance.

Throughout the story, the writer must continue to ask the question any time the plot stalls. What if they found themselves in the middle of a feud? What if they met up with some con men? What if Tom Sawyer showed up?

Miller's assertion is that, as with plotting a story, asking What if? is just the thing to add excitement to your real life. Things gotten stagnant? Advance your own plot. Ask yourself What if?

In that original series, we looked at how asking the What If? question can impact our faith, and even our church.  This time around we’ll look at three What If? questions that may help transform our relationships and move them forward in hopeful, exciting ways.

Nov 8                      
What If We Are All in this Together?
Mark 9: 33-37

Nov 15                   
What If Relationships are Meant to Be Enjoyed, Not Fixed?
Ruth 1: 16-17

Nov 22                   
What If YOU are a Gift to Others the Way They are a Gift to You?
Psalm 139: 13-1

Winter Nights Shelter

Providing shelter for our community's homeless in Fellowship Hall.

The Winter Nights Family Shelter program provides a clean, safe and warm facility for homeless seniors and families with young children. The program is sponsored by the Interfaith Council of Contra Costa County. Approximately 50 local churches host the families on a rotating schedule during the colder months. 

We will be co-hosting the shelter with Lafayette United Methodist church again this year.  We will be responsible for providing dinner on the nights of Nov. 14-17 and breakfast on Nov 14-15.  

Many volunteers are needed.  No experience is necessary.

Preparing a meal for our Winter Nights residents.

To sign up to help, or for more information, please contact Diane Maltester or sign up at the Outreach Ministry table on Sunday mornings.  

Relief request for Lake County

Week of Compassion Relief request for Lake County

On October 6, Vy Nguyen, Minister of Week of Compassion and Rev. Dr. LaTaunya Bynum, Regional Minister for CCNC-N visited with Shannon Kimbell-Auth, pastor of United Christian Parish in Lakeport, a congregation of the Disciples, United Methodist, and Presbyterian (USA) churches. Reverend Kimbell-Auth talked to us about the congregation's response to people who have been impacted by the fires in Lake County.

While there will be opportunities for hands on help beginning in a few months. Right now the immediate need is for funds to help with the ongoing costs of displacement such as providing necessary supplies, replacing lost documents, providing temporary housing, and other needs.

Every need is different and your financial support can help to bring relief to someone's life.

You can double the effectiveness of your donation in the following way:

From now until the end of the month, for every gift Disciples churches in this region make toward fire relief in Lake County, Week of Compassion will match it up to $10,000. If you would like to make a donation, write a check to First Christian Church, Concord with Lake County Fire Relief in the memo line and drop it in the offering plate on Sunday or mail it to the church (3039 Willow Pass Road, Concord, CA94519) and we will write one check at the end of the month to the region.

Check the Week of Compassion website for updates on relief efforts. Week of Compassion is the relief, refugee and development mission fund of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in the United States and Canada. It seeks to equip and empower disciples to alleviate the suffering of others through disaster response, humanitarian aid, sustainable development and the promotion of mission opportunities.

Rev. Dr. Russ Peterman selected to serve

Rev. Dr. Russ Peterman selected to serve on the General Board of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)

Recently our Senior Minister, Rev. Dr. Russ Peterman, was selected to serve on the General Board of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) as the regional representative from the Christian Church in Northern California/Nevada.  This will be a 2-year term.

The General Board of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) is a deliberative body that works to coordinate efforts to strengthen congregational life for mission and ministry. For more information about the General Board, please read The Design of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ).

Blessing of the Animals

We had an incredible turnout on Sunday, Oct 4 for our annual Blessing of the Animals & Service of Remembrance. 

It was a wonderful chance to give thanks for the special animals in your life. Our cats and dogs, reptiles and horses, fish and birds grace our homes are are among God's greatest gifts in our lives. 

A great time was had by all as we gathered together to bless and remember our favorite furry and feathered friends!

We also collected unopened bags or cans of dog and cat food that have been donated to A.R.F. (Animal Rescue Foundation) who will make sure it gets to low income pet owners.

New Sermon series begins

Starting Sunday, October 18, Russ will be starting a new sermon series called "Measuring What Matters."  Over the course of three weeks he'll be inviting us to see stewardship as discipleship, and something much bigger than just how we handle our money and fund the church budget.

October 18
Compassion 
Jeremiah 23: 1-6

October 25
Generosity
Proverbs 22: 1-2, 8-9, 22-23

November 1
Provision
1 Kings 17: 8-16