First Congregational United Church of Christ

08/30/2026

This week in worship, Pastor Sarah delivered a message titled, "Keeping It Simple."

The sermon’s central message itself was simple: Our Christian faith is about love -- loving God and loving our neighbors as ourselves. Our faith includes what we believe and how we live every day and how we treat other people.

Pastor Sarah reflected on Dolly Parton as an example of how genuine, lived-out love can look. Raised in the Smoky Mountains in a poor family, Dolly developed a deep faith and a passion for music. Throughout her life, she used her success and influence to connect people across differences and to help others, through philanthropy and advocacy.

Several aspects of Dolly’s life illustrated this kind of love:

* She connected people who might otherwise be divided: young and old, religious and nonreligious, and people across political and cultural differences.

* She gave generously, believing that when you are in a position to help, you should help. Her philanthropy supported literacy, education, healthcare, disaster relief, and other causes.

* She resisted judgment and emphasized that all people are God’s children and that judging others is not our job.

* She transformed hardship into hope, and her music acknowledged that, while life is difficult, eventually a new morning comes.

* And she began with God, starting her day in prayer, asking God to use her life and let God’s love shine through her.

Pastor Sarah acknowledged that genuine love is difficult. People hurt us, life disappoints us, and we can fall into despair or patterns that make loving others harder. We pray that church can be a place where we practice love together, encourage one another, forgive, pursue justice and reconciliation, and become better at loving over time.

And Pastor Sarah encouraged us to start each day with God, asking God to use our lives, letting ourselves receive God’s love, and then letting that love shine through us toward others.

Our faith doesn't have to be complex in order to be meaningful. We can keep it simple: love God, love people, help when you can, don't be quick to judge, share what you have, hold onto hope through difficult times, and allow love to become visible through your everyday actions.

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SERMON:
"Keeping It Simple," Rev. Dr. Sarah Griffith-Lund

SCRIPTURE:
Romans 12: 9-21

BULLETIN:
https://tinyurl.com/28cc5d4b

WATCH THE FULL SERVICE:
https://www.youtube.com//streams

LISTEN TO DOLLY PARTON'S "LIGHT OF A CLEAR BLUE MORNING":
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=McaD2PG8jOE&list=RDMcaD2PG8jOE&start_radio=1

08/29/2026

https://youtube.com/live/wml4iBimJXg

BULLETIN: https://fcindy.org/mt-content/uploads/2026/08/20260830-b...

08/29/2026

No matter who you are, or where you are on life's journey, you are welcome at First Congregational Church.

We're very excited for you to join us on Sunday morning, August 30! You can participate in person at 7171 N. Pennsylvania Street in Indianapolis. If it works better for you to join us online, you can click over to https://www.youtube.com//streams for the livestream, and you can find Sunday's bulletin at https://tinyurl.com/28cc5d4b .

On Sundays at First Congregational, Adult Education starts at 10:00 a.m. (in-person only). Worship starts at 11:00 a.m., both in person and online. Whether you're with us digitally or "IRL," you should feel free to come as you are!

This week's 10:00 Adult Ed topic: The Importance of Spiritual Pilgrimages. Sally Bassett, Ph.D, was President and CEO of Ambassadair Travel Club, and is Founder of the Peace Through Yoga Foundation. For decades she has led countless people on travels around the world with service at its heart. Sally will be sharing about the importance of spiritual pilgrimages and stepping out of our comfort zones.

In 11:00 worship, Sunday's scripture reading will be Romans 12:9-21, and the Rev. Dr. Sarah Griffith-Lund will deliver a message titled, "Keeping It Simple."

We're looking forward to spending time with you on Sunday morning!

08/28/2026

"What would it look like if the next time your community annoyed or failed you, instead of voting with your feet or your wallet, you leaned in? Thanking it for the collision of egos that might result in working off some of your own warts, and for the crucible that turns you into someone stronger and gentler than you could ever have imagined?"

A dominant theme in the Bible is people wandering after hipper gods-du-jour whenever the going gets hard. And what does God do? God pursues them with stubborn loyalty.

08/25/2026

This past Sunday in worship, Pastor Sarah’s message centered on diversity in unity and the idea that the church is called to embrace the full range of God’s creation.

Reflecting on Paul’s letter to the Romans, she reminded the congregation that each person has unique gifts and that those gifts become more meaningful when they are shared in service to the larger community, as demonstrated through efforts such as the church’s partnership with The Garden. She encouraged the congregation to think of “church” not simply as a noun, but as a verb: something we actively do, offering our individual gifts to God and to each other.

Drawing on the leadership and values of Union Theological Seminary and its former president, Serene Jones, Pastor Sarah explored the ways moral leadership, respect for creation, inquiry, integrity, and courage can guide communities of faith. She noted that true diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility -- adding the important “A” for accessibility -- requires ongoing commitment, compassion, and a willingness to engage honestly with conflict. Disability, she emphasized, is not a bad word, and diversity is not a problem to be solved but a strength to be embraced.

Conflict and disagreement are inevitable when a community truly welcomes different perspectives. Rather than avoiding them, we can learn from them and consider how even conflict might become an offering to God as we discern where God is leading us. Unity does not require uniformity; instead, diversity in unity is part of God’s vision and can be one of the church’s greatest strengths.

The congregation was ultimately invited to continue dreaming together, to build a truly welcoming “big tent,” and to live out these values with courage, compassion, and a shared commitment to community.

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SERMON: "Diversity in Unity," Rev. Dr. Sarah Griffith-Lund

SCRIPTURE: Romans 12:1-8

SUNDAY'S BULLETIN:
https://mcusercontent.com/7a2e4c501545b6d78729a64a1/files/59ac6062-54cb-38a5-8851-b7a356d48297/20260823_bulletin.docx.pdf

WATCH THE FULL SERVICE: https://www.youtube.com//streams

08/21/2026

https://youtube.com/live/9FSnb_cZ4Xg

BULLETIN: https://fcindy.org/mt-content/uploads/2026/08/20260823-b...

08/21/2026

No matter who you are, or where you are on life's journey, you are welcome at First Congregational Church.

We hope you'll join us on Sunday morning, August 23! You can participate in person at 7171 N. Pennsylvania Street in Indianapolis, or to find us online, you can click over to https://www.youtube.com//streams .

On Sundays at First Congregational, Adult Education starts at 10:00 a.m. (in-person only). Worship starts at 11:00 a.m., both in person and online. Whether you're with us digitally or "IRL," come as you are!

This week's Adult Ed topic: WHAT’S A DEATH DOULA? Our special guest Abby Vincent from Joy’s House will share about her work as a Death Doula. Bring your questions and experiences.

Sunday's scripture reading will be Romans 12:1-8, and the Rev. Dr. Sarah Griffith-Lund will deliver a message titled, "Diversity in Unity."

We can't wait to be with you on Sunday morning!

08/16/2026

This week in worship, Pastor Sarah reflected on her family's move to Indianapolis and their appreciation for the city's parks and other public spaces, especially those around water, like the White River and the Central Canal.

Over the past several days, severe storms and the resulting flooding have made the White River very dangerous, leading to at least five deaths and untold property damage. Pastor Sarah shared about the efforts of the UCC to provide disaster relief -- especially on a long-term basis, as compared to other organizations providing equally important immediate support with food, clothing, and other essentials for those in need.

Pastor Sarah set out three ways we can be the human hand of God, sharing love with those who have been impacted by the floods:

1. We can DONATE, especially to the United Church of Christ's disaster ministries.

2. We can PRAY, for those whose homes and families and lives have been affected by the floods and for those who are serving them in this great time of need.

3. We can LISTEN to our neighbors to learn how they have been impacted, and we can show love based on their specific experience and their specific needs.

In anticipation of how others might characterize the storms and flooding in the coming days, Pastor Sarah reminded us that the natural disaster is not punishment sent by God. Those being impacted by the flooding are not being punished; they are loved by God.

Pastor Sarah also shared about plans for the Indiana-Kentucky Conference UCC and the Heartland (Ohio) Conference to unify as one conference. Groups have met for years to discern the future, then landed unanimously on one decision: that God is leading us to unity, to create one Church for Ohio, Indiana, and Kentucky. It will take time to determine what this will look like, but we have an opportunity to discern what this call to unity might mean for us at First Congregational. How else might God be calling us to come together in unity with others, in service of a more hopeful future?

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SERMON: "Living Together in Unity," Rev. Dr. Sarah Griffith-Lund

SCRIPTURE: Psalm 133

SUNDAY'S BULLETIN:https://mcusercontent.com/7a2e4c501545b6d78729a64a1/files/843ca40f-f4f7-26d6-1b3a-40b0565d2b4f/20260816_bulletin.pdf

WATCH THE FULL SERVICE: https://www.youtube.com//streams

LEARN MORE FROM TODAY'S SERVICE ABOUT THE VISION FOR UNIFYING THE INDIANA/KENTUCKY CONFERENCE UCC WITH THE HEARTLAND (OHIO) CONFERENCE: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VnqgBUo80Qg&t=2544s

DONATE TO UCC DISASTER MINISTRIES: https://support.ucc.org/global-HOPE #

08/16/2026

Compassionate God of blessings, we pray for those who have been devastated by recent natural disasters.

We remember those who have lost their lives so suddenly.

We hold in our hearts the families forever changed by grief and loss.

Bring them consolation and comfort.

Surround them with our prayer for strength.

Bless those who have survived and heal their memories of trauma and devastation.

May they have the courage to face the long road of rebuilding ahead.

We ask your blessing on all those who have lost their homes, their livelihoods, their security and their hope.

Bless the work of relief agencies and those providing emergency assistance.

May their work be guided by the grace and strength that comes from You alone.

Help us to respond with generosity in prayer, in assistance, in aid to the best of our abilities.

Keep our hearts focused on the needs of those affected, even after the crisis is over.

We ask this in Jesus' name.

08/16/2026

https://youtube.com/live/VnqgBUo80Qg

BULLETIN: https://fcindy.org/mt-content/uploads/2026/08/20260816-b...