Orchard Ridge United Church of Christ

On Sunday, October 7, the Rev. Gail O’Neal, Associate Conference Minister for the Wisconsin Conference UCC, was invited to preach a stewardship sermon. Listen to it here.

By Jim Hale

Longtime member of Orchard Ridge UCC, Jim Hale, has been a lifelong naturalist and writer. We will periodically feature stories from his writing for The Friends of the Arboretum.

Original printing was in 2000

A great outdoor experience in late October and November is to suddenly hear the mellow calls of a migrating flock of tundra swans. Pushed by a north wind high in the sky, sometimes above the clouds, a long string of these great birds conversing in their musical “woo hoo oo” notes is a sight and sound to cherish. Continue Reading »

The Big Secret of Giving
Stewardship Theme Materials for 2007

[Stewardship materials will be sent this week, including a brochure, a pledge card and a return envelope. We encourage you to consider your pledge prayerfully for 2008. Stewardship Sunday is November 11th. We invite all who can to return their pledge by that date.]

The theme of our Stewardship season at ORUCC is “the big secret of giving.” It is based on Paul’s words in Philippians 4:12-13

12 I know what it is to have little, and I know what it is to have plenty. In any and all circumstances I have learned the secret of being well-fed and of going hungry, of having plenty and of being in need.
13 I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

Consider these stories from around the United Church of Christ throughout the world:

• • It was a surprise party when the church that built its own addition with all congregational labor – eighteen months of Saturdays – had so much fun they wanted to keep doing things together.
• It was a surprise party when the church that decided to space-share with an Indonesian congregation learned “Silent Night” sounds like angels when it’s sung half in English, half in Bahassa.

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Stewardship Sermon preached by Winton Boyd October 14, 2007
Psalm 119:105ff; Exodus 3

(Biblical texts at the end of the sermon)
Every Monday, during the summer months, I drive out to the Vermont Valley CSA farm in Vermont township west of Madison. It is an area with many hills and valleys, streams and rivers. One of the landmarks that signals I am just about at the farm is an otherwise unremarkable hillside.

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Thanksgiving Service Project for Preschool-6th Grade Children

Three Sunday School classes (preschool all the way through 6th grade) will be involved in a service project for Thanksgiving. We would like to have children donate food items so that we can put together a Thanksgiving grocery bag full of items for a Thanksgiving meal for families.
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