09/02/2026
Dear Treasured Members of Our Church Family,
May God's peace grace your week, and may kindness guide your days now and always, Amen!
Friends, the good news of the Gospel is that God does not demand that you have your life completely put together before He enters it. He isn't waiting for you to perform perfection. Jesus meets us right in the middle of our wilderness. Preparing the way of the Lord simply means: Laying down the pride that builds mountains. Letting His love fill the deep valleys of our hurt.” -Rev. Sara’s sermon
This past Sunday, August 30th, Rev. Sara preached on Elizabeth, using Isaiah 40:3-5 and Luke 1:39-45 as the scriptures. Her sermon was titled “Preparing the Way.” When Elizabeth’s baby in her womb leapt for joy when cousin Mary, also pregnant, came to visit, Elizabeth knew she was in the presence of her Lord. Isaiah calls us to prepare the way. Elizabeth shows us how. John the Baptist completes the picture. And now — it’s our turn. We apologize for not being able to livestream worship Sunday due to technical difficulties!
Join us this Sunday, September 6th for regular worship at 9:30am online and in-person. Rev. Sara is out of town and Doris Jasperson will be preaching. You won’t want to miss it!
THANK YOU! To all who came to the Church Work Day on Saturday August 29th. The church looks beautiful and we are so grateful to get some church projects done.
Now Hiring!: Personnel announced on Sunday that we are hiring an Office Administrator for 20 hours a week. If you are interested, please apply on Indeed. Be on the lookout for the link once it goes live. Please note we are only accepting applications through Indeed. Here’s an overview of the position: Our church is seeking a reliable office administrator to keep our daily operations running smoothly. You will manage both incoming and going communications. Maintain church records and calendars prepare weekly bulletins and slideshow presentations, and assist the pastor, various committees and the congregation. The link to apply on Indeed will be available next week.
Rev. Sara Away: Rev. Sara will be away Thursday, September 3rd to Tuesday, September 8th. She will be back in DC to visit her family and celebrate her mom’s birthday! Any pastoral care concerns and needs during that time are to be directed to the Deacons.
Changes to the e-Bell: Starting the week of September 13th, the e-Bell will start being sent out on Wednesdays at 9am. If you want to put something in the e-Bell, the deadline will be Tuesdays by 11am. Otherwise, it will go in the next week.
Choir Returns: Choir practice starts back on Wednesday, September 2nd at 6pm in the Sanctuary. Anyone who is interested in singing is invited to join! Rehearsals are always Wednesdays at 6pm. The choir will sing on Sunday, September 13th.
Out of the Darkness Walk September 26th: Join Rev. Sara as part of the United Presbyterian Team for the Out of the Darkness walk at UWEC-BC campus. We have a sponsor for our team, we just need folks who want to walk/run with us! To register, click here! We’d love to have a great team walking that day.
World Communion Sunday: World Communion Sunday is October 4th this year. We are inviting folks of all ages to wear clothing items that represent different countries of the world. We will also decorate the sanctuary with cloths from around the world to celebrate the beauty of the whole world sharing in Communion together on the same day.
Where in Rice Lake is Rev. Sara? This will be on hiatus until the Spring!
Sunday School Kickoff: Sunday School will return Sunday, September 20th for grades K-6th. We will meet after worship on September 13th (Rally Day) to introduce our Sunday School teachers, Courtney Dvorak and Mylee Waldron, eat pizza and get started on the Sunday School and Youth Group year! Then, at 11:30am, we are asking parents to transport their families to 6FourAccord (on SS, south of Rice Lake, north of Cameron.) The church will pay the cost for a reindeer encounter for the youth and children, so please let Christian Ed know if your youth/child will participate. All families of the church, young and old, are invited to join us for an afternoon of fun!
Youth Group: Youth Group (grades 5-8 for Middle School; grades 9-12 for High School) returns Wednesday, September 16th at 7-8:15pm! Join us for a special treat as we start the youth group year. If your family did not get a blue laminated schedule, please let us know. Our High School Youth Leader this year is Jenny Hastreiter and the Middle School Youth Team this year is Rev. Sara, Heidi Weber, and Rohini Dhand. Here are the future dates of youth group to put on your calendars! (7-8:15pm each time):
September 30th: Cooking dinner for ReGroup (more details to come)
October 7th and 21st
November 4th and 18th
December 2nd and 16th
Worship Leaders: We are in need of worship leaders for the rest of 2026. If you are interested, there is a sign up sheet on a clipboard in the Narthex so please sign up if you’re available. If you would like to be a worship leader but you have questions/concerns, Rev. Sara andSamantha Sikorski are available to help.
