Elevation Church, Scottsburg, IN

 January 28, 2024

My husband and I attended this service as guests of family who really like this church and its pastor. Arriving early we followed them to seats up front. It is not a large sanctuary and was fairly full for the first of two services. This Elevation, we learned, has nothing to do with the famed Elevation Worship from North Carolina, and in fact, these Hoosiers had the name first!

Expressive worship began with a long set including the lovely song “We Are Lovers of Your Presence.” Sometimes words gave way to praying in the spirit. A big man next to me was loud and vocal in his praise. Several from the congregation came to the front to give admonitions as the music ended. “Don’t fall into checklist Christianity.”

The morning’s sermon was entitled “The Principle of Multiplication” with text from Luke 9’s narrative of Jesus multiplying bread and fish to feed a hungry crowd. Enthusiastic Pastor Greg Satterly did a good job relating the story. His message was that Christians too must be willing to give. Resources have to be given away before they can multiply, he said. Release them and see what happens.

Proverbs 3:9-10 appeared on the big screen. "Honor the Lord with your wealth . . . then your barns will be filled to overflowing." The first of one’s income should go to God, not to paying bills. The mortgage company and the light company do not have the power to bless your finances, Satterly eagerly explained. God is blessing the bee keeping business of one couple in the church who always give their first fruits. “If you eat their honey, you’ll be healthy!”

The next example was personal. He and his wife go to God first in everything they do, particularly in purchases. At one point he was convicted, Satterly told us, that their mortgage payment should not be twice the money they give to God. So he doubled their tithe for two years and amazing financial blessings followed despite $120,000 in cancer bills. The church continued his salary while he was sick and he received a free piano, reduced cost for a van, and an amazingly low price on a house he'd thought they couldn't afford. God wants to bless.

Ministry time followed with people coming up for prayer.

Good Shepherd Lutheran

 December 31, 2023

At 9 a.m. I decided to hike over to the Good Shepherd Lutheran Church for their 9 o’clock service. So I arrived late but still felt a warm welcome and found a seat near the back of the half-full sanctuary. This was billed as a “Service of Lessons and Carols,” and so it was. “Through Bethlehem’s manger God comes into the chaos, messiness, and vulnerability of the world.” Indeed.

After a time of silent confession, forgiveness, and reflection, we sang the first carol, Angels from the Realms of Glory. There followed various scripture readings related to the birth of Christ, alternating with classic songs marking those events. I arrived somewhere in the middle of the series. Scripture, song; scripture, song. It was lovely.

The congregation was invited to speak out prayer requests. “Go Illini!” was one. :-] A group included in the pastoral petition was the neurodivergent. “Hear us, O God. Your mercy is great.”

During an offering time, a large basket was carried to the baby’s manger on the stage. I smiled seeing that it overflowed with toilet paper and Cheerios—necessities collected for people in need. (Besides a Little Library on the premises, Good Shepherd has a mini food pantry out front. A gentleman I talked to after the serviced told me he often stocks it twice a day.)

After the Lord’s Prayer, I was surprised to be invited to the communion table along with congregational regulars. “All are welcome to  communion at Good Shepherd. Come forward to receive the bread and the wine.” And indeed it was bread and wine (although grape juice and gluten-free wafers were available as well).

Announcements followed and then more singing before we were blessed in conclusion.

I enjoyed talking with a friendly woman on the way out. She explained that this division of Lutherans, yes, has an open communion table. She invited me to the church’s monthly coffee shop next weekend. I might just go.

New Horizon Church

December 3, 2025

 A greeter stood in the cold wind, cheerfully waving as I pulled into the parking lot at New Horizon church. A second greeter opened the door and a third handed me a program as I entered the sanctuary. Pastor Mark Jordan enthusiastically welcomed a fairly full room to the first week of Advent. A family came up to light the white candle.

The stage was festively decorated, lights low. The worship band—guitars, bass, drums, keyboard, and singer; players a little older than usual—enthusiastically engaged us in updated renditions of carols at maximally allowed volume. The holiday season is here! 

Younger kids then went off to their classes and a woman told us about the current missions project, Days for Girls. Hand-made hygiene kits allow girls in impoverished cultures across the globe to stay in school throughout the whole month. Look it up. Impressive!

Next was something new to me:  a full church membership covenant ceremony. Actually, this is being done over three Sundays, in three groups, not everyone at once. Fiftyish people of the 150 or so in attendance went to the front with their membership covenant pages to affirm, in several steps, aspects of the Apostles Creed. “As we take upon ourselves vows of membership at NH, we are responding to God’s calling to enter a covenant relationship with Christ’s Church, New Horizon Church, the Global Methodist Church and one another.”

After offering baskets were passed, the Star Wars intro played on a big screen. “The Epic Tale.” Then followed “Jesus Christ” in the same format with Galatians 4:4-7 replacing the Star Wars opening crawl up the screen. Our message from that text emphasized that Christ was sent when the fullness of time had come. God knew from the beginning he’d have to come to redeem us. We can appreciate his timing in Kingdom life whether we are currently in joy or still waiting in pain. Be on the lookout for God, especially when something surprising happens. “It takes particular vision to see what God has done.”

The service ended with communion. Congregants went to tables, took a piece of broken bread and dipped it in the cup of juice. (Individual servings were also available.) We were then dismissed and I went back out into the windy morning.

Copper Creek Church

 October 15

An environmental group called Faith in Place hosted its annual Green Team Summit at various faith groups around the Midwest this past week. Faith in Place defines itself as “People of diverse faiths and spiritualities leading the environmental movement to create healthy, just, and sustainable communities for all.” The Champaign-Urbana group met at Copper Creek Church which sits on ten acres, four of which are dedicated to Prairie Savanna. Cool! So after attending a Green Team session there, I decided on a Sunday visit.

The church set itself off as distinctive from the first notes of the worship team led by a couple of talented soul singers:  Ain’t No Mountain High Enough was followed by Signed, Sealed, Delivered and then We Are Family! Huh? Am I in church? Pastor Scott introduced himself and explained that this was the last message of this year’s Soundtrack series. This week, Motown. The series has been presenting music from secular artists and taking a deeper look “into their lyrics through the lens of scripture.”  (A check of the website shows they focused on Hamilton a few weeks ago.)

Announcements followed, with mention of an upcoming jazz festival featuring the music of Ella Fitzgerald. Offering baskets were at the doors.

Then the worship songs. The decibel level was pretty loud for my comfort, but the sound was great:  keyboard, guitar (or maybe a bass?), drums and a saxophone! One prayer song featured the line, "wasn’t holding you up, so there's nothing I can do to let you down."

At this point there were maybe 50 to 60 people in the auditorium which obviously could hold three or four times more, but this was the early service. There’s another at 10:30 which is also the hour for kids church. There's a youth group too. Each weekend kicks off with a Thursday evening service.

Taking Stand by Me as musical theme, this sermon asked whether romantic love songs could be appropriate for our worship of God. They can be sung as prayer, right? Consider Romans 8.38-39, Psalm 51, I John4.7-8, 16, and 12, especially verse 12. Let’s move beyond romantic love, with its “valentines and unicorns,” to sacrificing love, the love of Jesus. And let's not look just at our need for the Father to stand by us, but at our need to stand by a friend. Consider the flipped line, “When you’re in trouble, won’t you stand by me?” “Love anyway . . . despite the fact that we can all be jerks at times. 

The service concluded with everyone invited to the communion table:  the gift of God for the people of God. Congregants walked up to take a piece of the broken bread and dip it in the cup before we sang the doxology.

Given that the church name offers no clue, I asked a woman as I went out, what denomination this is, expecting it to be non-denominational. But, nope, it’s Presbyterian. That surprised me. Copper Creek, part of the PCUSA, is open and affirming, “. . . here to create a home for those who have given up on church,” says the website. “If you’ve got questions and doubts, we do too.” How many churches would admit to that?

New Covenant Fellowship

 September 17, 2023

This month's visit was to New Covenant Fellowship on the south side of downtown Champaign. They choose to think of themselves as multi-denominational rather than nondenominational. I parked on the street and helped an older woman get to the door. As she headed in another direction, a sign pointed me upstairs to the sanctuary, a big room with drop ceilings and natural light from windows to the street. Rows of padded stacking chairs were interspersed with rockers and small tables of greenery. The chairs faced a well-lit stage decorated with a big mural of interlocking hands. A man and woman behind the wooden podium welcomed everyone as I took a seat. Then guitars, keyboard, drum set and vocalists led us into praise.

After the singing, I moved up a couple of rows to sit in a rocking chair beside an old friend whom I had recognized from behind. Another couple took the platform and shared a bit about Rosh Hashanah. Did you know the Jewish New Year celebration is this week? We were soon to learn more about it as Pastor Renée Antrosio, in a casual top, jeans, and sneakers, took the stage for her message. Sitting at a small table she wished us “Shana Tovah!”

Good year to you and may your name be sealed in the Book of Life. "May your new year be sweet as we celebrate the birthday of the world and the goodness of creation." The world suffers as a result of individual and collective sin, yet we can rejoice despite our lack of agency against evil. God's language is driven by curiosity and questions. We can repent, pray and participate in acts of mercy and justice. May we remember our origin created in God's image.

As the musicians began again, people left their seats to pick up elements of Communion. My friend whispered that I was welcome to take them with others kneeling at a table in the back or take them as I wished by myself.

A woman in the worship band shared a meaningful story from her life. And we sang again, surprisingly and happily this:                                                                                                          He comes to make his blessings flow,                                                      Far as the curse is found! 

Joy to the world!

A gentleman gave the benediction after making some announcements and we were dismissed with encouragement to meet at Hessel Park for a picnic lunch.

First Presbyterian Church, Urbana

 September 3, 2023

Today First Presbyterian Church in Urbana is on my radar (after I missed a visit opportunity in August). This congregation has an Earth Care Team and is working to reduce their carbon footprint. Kudos! Their Twice as Nice thrift shop in Urbana is one evidence of this commitment. In honor of the Feast of St Francis, they host an upcoming Blessing of the Animals service. A wellness committee and two Parish Nurses are available. And some students in Africa receive support from this Urbana church. These are a few highlights from the bulletin and website.

The front of the sanctuary is a beautiful wall of stained glass. It's easy to gaze transfixed at the intricacies of the pattern. Chimes sound and we start through the multi-page order of service on the dot of time. Welcome, prelude, call to worship, prayers, scripture reading. The music is lovely; the atmosphere welcoming; the setting, impressive. But, as with so many other post-Covid churches, many pews are empty. I wondered how so few persons are able to keep up the expense of such a nice building. Then the choir began to sing. To my surprise, I realized there must be another dozen or so congregants out of sight in a rear balcony! Ah—more than I thought. That’s encouraging. The singing was beautiful and stirring—a version of Be Thou My Vision that I’d never heard before.

The pastor is away "for the second portion of his sabbatical,” the bulletin says. A retired guest speaker took the pulpit this morning. She earnestly explained Paul’s encouragements for loving action in Romans 12. They're descriptive, not prescriptive. Biblically speaking, being prophetic does not necessarily mean telling the future. Another song and then we heard the gifted choir again as an offering basket was made available.

Prayer was offered for those losing jobs at the closing of both Dart and Volition, for farmers dealing with draught in the West, for lives disrupted by recent fires and hurricane, for our earth. 

In conclusion, all were invited to partake of communion:  the body of Christ broken for you. Amen.

Quaker Friends Meeting

 

July 16, 2023 

So it’s true:  Quakers gather and simply wait quietly. Whereas free earplugs are a helpful bonus during worship at my church, this service was silent—no music, no teaching, no scripture reading, only listening for the voice of God. 

Grounds of the Urbana Quaker Meetinghouse are lovely, with flowers blooming, most strikingly a pink hibiscus at the entrance. After being welcomed, I tip-toed to a seat in the quiet of a big circle in the meeting room. There, nearly twenty of us sat on upright chairs for about an hour. Plenty of big windows make it easy to gaze out at nature. A familiar verse from Micah 6 came to mind:  With what shall I come before the Lord and bow down before the exalted God? Sacrifices? Gifts of oil? My firstborn? No. What is required is acting in justice, loving mercy, and walking humbly with our God. What do these things look like in my life?

When the hour was nearly up, a woman broke the silence and told her thoughts as she passed the county jail coming to the meeting. A gentleman then spoke for about ten minutes, pouring out his pain from a previous interaction. Everyone listened respectfully as he shared with both laughter and tears. Another short period of quiet followed and then the person appointed to lead today asked that each of us tell our name, any announcements for the group, and whatever else we might feel led to say. One woman asked that we “hold in the light” a member who is dying. I said I was visiting as an exploration project and that I’d enjoyed the quiet in comparison with the usual Sunday morning. That got a few laughs. When we’d been around the circle, all were invited to stay for the eats and monthly business meeting to follow.

A friendly man with a long grey ponytail was interested to hear what other kinds of churches I’d visited, and he welcomed me back anytime. Going to the car past the hibiscus I felt at peace.