Happenings

NEWS & EVENTS

Christmas Senior Lunch

Thursday, December 14, noon

Join us for a Christmas Senior Lunch and invite a friend! Sylvia Trimmier and Ryan Poole will provide us with special Christmas music and lunch will be provided from Crossings Deli. Call the church office to register by December 8th and specify if you would like a ham or turkey sandwich or chef salad. Cost of lunch is $10.

Advent Outdoor Worship and Communion

Sunday, December 3rd, 5:00pm

Please come, bring and friend, and worship with us in the Church’s renovated Courtyard (near the Kid’s Garden) at 5:00pm next Sunday evening.  Dress is casual, and worship will be brief.  Communion will be celebrated, and together we will mark this season of waiting and longing for God to come. If it rains, we'll meet in the Fellowship Hall.  Come and wait with us!

Spring 2024 Faith Formation Offerings

The education ministry is excited to release the available spring 2024 faith formation opportunities. Click here to see all of the options. Grow your faith with your church family this spring! If you have questions, please email edblack@flpc.org.

Introducing B365!

B365 refers to FLPC's year-long study of Magrey Devega‘s The Bible Year: A Journey Through Scripture in 365 Days beginning January 2024. If you’re looking to increase your Scripture knowledge, join one of these small groups (or start your own)! Each group will meet for 8 weeks and then determine how it will continue to support each other through the year. Visit flpc.org/b365 to learn more and register.

Elf Tree

November 19 - December 10

Stop by and visit our Elf Trees to help a child with Christmas. These Christmas trees are filled with names of Richland School District Two students from seven schools who have been identified by school social workers as needing help with Christmas. Many of these families are living in hotels. The gifts are due back by December 10 in order to get the gifts distributed to the families before school gets out. Gifts do not have to be wrapped (you are welcome to wrap them if you want) but please contain the gifts that go together and make sure the Elf tag is on the gifts. Contact Tom Leclair, if you have questions or would like to help with this project.

Men's Prayer Breakfast

Ongoing

There are two opportunities for men of the church to meet weekly for devotion, discussion and breakfast. Tuesday mornings, 7:30, Fellowship Hall at church and Thursday mornings 6:30 at Bruegger's Bagels, Forest Dr.

Women's Retreat

February 24-25, 2024, Camp Fellowship

All women ages 18+ are invited to an overnight retreat at Camp Fellowship on February 24-25, 2024. This year's retreat will have a new Saturday to Sunday format. We will start on Saturday with lunch, and the retreat will finish by 11:30 am on Sunday morning. Ellen Skidmore will be our retreat speaker.
Cost of the retreat is $100 and includes lunch on Saturday and breakfast on Sunday. There will be a sign-up to bring a food item for Saturday night's dinner. Contact Adriane Radeker or Ginny Jones with questions. Go here for registration and more information. Need-based scholarships for discounted registration rates are available. Sign up today, guests welcome!

Congregational Retreat - Come Away: Listening for God and Finding Community

April 12-14, 2024, Montreat, NC

If you feel overwhelmed by life and far from God; if you are tired of the yelling and fighting and long for quiet peace; if you feel lonely and disconnected and want to be seen and heard...
Come away with us to Montreat for a weekend! In the beautiful setting of the Montreat Conference Center, we will listen to Scripture and to each other in search of connection, peace, and community. Please go here for more information and registration. Questions, please contact Jodi Beckham.

OA Meeting

Overeaters Anonymous meets for one hour at 7:30 am on Fridays in the Community Room.

All are welcome.

FLPC PODCASTS!!?

The FLPC Education Ministry has made it possible for FLPC to begin to experiment with podcasts to get the Good News out into the world beyond our walls.  Ed and Ellen are working on two separate podcasts!  See below for descriptions and how to find them. We hope you will listen and subscribe to these two podcasts! Let us know what you think. Stay tuned!

TRANSFORMING FAITH

FLPC’s podcast is where we are invited to talk frankly about what needs to change in us, in the Church and in the world, even as we follow and worship a God who doesn’t change.  We say that our Church’s purpose is “transforming head, heart, and hands in the service of Jesus Christ!”  What does this transformation look like?  On Spotify.com or Google Podcasts, search for “Forest Lake Presbyterian Church” or “Transforming Faith.”  Or click this link:  https://open.spotify.com/show/2M8f8qPl5voN2YWA2tTEVn

ABRAHAM’S TABLE

Ellen Skidmore, Rabbi Jonathan Case, and Imam Omar Shaheed have joined forces to continue our tradition of interfaith conversations in creating a second podcast series.  The Christian, Jewish, and Muslim faith all share Abraham as a father of our faith, and we invite you to a lively and respectful interfaith discussion. We do not always agree, but we all love God, and we recognize that every human being is made in God’s image.  Join us as we talk about issues that affect our everyday lives.  From spiritual disciplines and Scriptural instructions for living, to discussions of immigration and mental health, please join us at Abraham’s Table.  On Spotify.com or Apple Podcasts search for “Abraham’s Table”.   Or click this link:  https://open.spotify.com/show/6GOlaVIBFa0z6JfAfKH1N8

Now Collecting:

Non-perishable Food - We have an ongoing collection of non-perishable food for Rehoboth United Methodist Food Pantry. Pasta, mac and cheese are always needed, but any meal/pantry staple is greatly appreciated. There is a collection box downstairs at church.

Recycling - Our Environmental Stewardship team keeps this church focused on the ways we can take care of God's Creation. We accept dental hygiene items to be recycled. Please make sure they are clean: used toothbrushes, empty dental floss containers, empty toothpaste tubes, toothbrush and toothpaste outer packaging. These items will be recycled through Terracycle, and Environmental Stewardship will be paid a small stipend for these products.

We also recycle ink jet cartridges (no toner cartridges please) and clean solo cups ( #6 rigid plastic cups only). All of these are items that are not recyclable in your curbside recycling program. These items can be left at church in the recycling closet found downstairs on the right before the library.

Café Justo Coffee

You can order Café Justo coffee locally! This coffee cooperative is supported by our mission partner, Frontera de Cristo. Café Justo is a Grower owned Coffee Cooperative based in southern Chiapas Mexico, formed to address the poverty and migration from Mexico to the U.S.A. By supporting this coffee cooperative, you bring more money to the coffee farmers of Mexico - even more than Fair Trade!

Christmas special - Give the gift of coffee! Buy 10 bags get one free and a free reusable gift bag comes with your purchase!

Coffee can be purchase locally from Rowena Nylund.  This organic coffee is available in whole bean or ground and your choice of Arabica Decaf, 100% Arabica mild roast, 50% Arabica 50% Robusta, 100% Robusta (strongest), and 50% Arabica Decaf and 50% Arabica. If you want to reduce your caffeine intake, try the half decaf and half Arabica!

The coffee is $11 per bag for the 100% and $12 per bag for 50/50 and decaf. Gift certificates are also available.