Faith Community United Church of Christ
of Bensenville, Illinois
Faith Community United Church of Christ Bensenville
192 S. Center Street, Bensenville, Illinois 60106
(630) 766-1141
Email: faithcommunityucc@sbcglobal.net
Office Hours Monday–Thursday 8am–2pm Friday 8am -Noon
Sunday Worship Service 10:00am
Welcome Rev. Greg Sabetta
As We Say Goodbye to Pastor Philip Price
On January 15, we bid a fond farewell to our Interim Pastor, Phil Price. We expressed our deep gratitude for his 2 ½ years of leading us while we were in search of a Permanent Pastor.
We greatly appreciate Phil’s guidance in becoming an Open and Affirming Church and his ability to accept our strengths and forgive our weaknesses. We wish him well as he continues his Interim Ministry with St. Paul United Church of Christ in Downers Grove.
Faith Community In Action
Christmas Pageant
Vacation Bible School
To see more pictures
go to Calendar, Past Events.
We Are OPEN! We Are Safe! WE MISS YOU!
Faith Community’s doors are open for in-person “LIVE” worship. We know that some of you have enjoyed watching us on Facebook live and Zoom. Would you consider joining us on Sunday mornings at 10:00 a.m. in the church?
Matthew 18:20. “For when two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them.”
GOD IS GOOD – ALL THE TIME!
LIVE WORSHIP IS ALIVE AND WELL!
COME AND BE INSPIRED BY THE HOLY SPIRIT!
MASKS ARE OPTIONAL! ********************************************************************
The members of Faith Community UCC greet you, and thank you for visiting our Faith Community United Church of Christ website. FCUCC is a congregation of caring and loving people who together are committed to be the embodiment of Christ’s loving and compassionate ministry in the Bensenville community and beyond. This is a church where all are welcomed to share with us in experiencing (or discovering for the first time) what it is to be a faithful follower of Jesus the Christ. While we know that we are not perfect, we do try to be loving and welcoming to everyone who joins us in striving to find a better relationship with Jesus, each other and our world.
Whether you are just visiting the Bensenville area or are exploring our village churches in search of a new faith community to call your home, we hope that you will consider Faith Community United Church of Christ. You are always invited to drop in and experience our worship celebration with us on Sunday morning, and to learn more about what FCUCC has to offer you.
March 2023 Lectionary & Worship Schedule
***10:00 am In Person Worship and Virtual Worship on Zoom and FB Live***
3/05 – Second Sunday in Lent/Communion
Worship & S.S., 10am
John 3:1-17
3/12 – Third Sunday in Lent
Worship, 10am
John 4:5-42
3/19 – Fourth Sunday in Lent/Food Pantry Sunday
Worship & S.S., 10am
OGHS Special Mission Offering received
John 9:1-41
3/26 – Fifth Sunday in Lent
Worship & S.S., 10am
John 11:1-45
****Special message about in person worship ***
1.) On Sunday morning masks will be optional. Please be respectful of other’s choices.
2.) Communion will be served and held in front of each person rather than passing. Communion ‘packets’ will also be available in the Narthex, if preferred.
3.) Live singing is back! Join us in ‘lifting our joyful voices in song!’
4.) Please continue to use good health practices while you are in church.
E-Giving at Faith Community
We have an exciting new way of giving at Faith Community. You can now set up your offerings to be made directly to the church from your checking or savings account, eliminating the need to write a check. Offerings can be made at any time and to whatever ministry of the church that you choose (i.e., General Fund, Building Fund, Christmas, Easter, church missions). You can set up your offerings weekly, monthly, or at any interval you choose. You can set up an account today by clicking here.
Our partner in e-giving is Vanco Services. Vanco is the financial technology company that has been chosen by the United Church of Christ. It provides secure electronic giving to more than 10,000 churches. Your information provided to Vanco Services is safe and is kept strictly confidential.
Vanco is integrated with our church software, and your offerings are automatically recorded in your giving record. It eliminates the need for our church office to manually record your offerings.
If you have any questions, please call the church office at 630-766-1141
Greetings from Rev. Greg Sabetta, Pastor
Early church reformer John Calvin said that we’re all ministers and the pastor’s function is to restore God’s people to ministry. As we embark our new ministry together, I look forward to meeting you and finding ways to engage our mutual ministry, to be a force for good, and to be God’s hands of compassion and healing in our community and in our world. Together we can continue to do great things!
Here’s where you’ll find us
Faith Community United Church of Christ
192 South Center Street
Bensenville, IL 60106
Phone: 630-766-1141
Email: faithcommunityucc@sbcglobal.net
Mission Moments for 2023
“Restored” ~ John 9:1-41 ~ March 2023
March 19, 2023 ~ One Great Hour of Sharing Offering
John 9:1-41
For many churches, generations of givers have placed their tithe to the church in a basket or plate that is passed during worship. Usually taking place toward the end of the worship service, the receiving of the offering in this way was both practical and also symbolic of the gifts that each congregation member has to offer. In the past couple of years, spurred by pandemic changes, many congregations have made a shift from receiving the offering in person to receiving it online or virtually. This shift in giving is the tip of the iceberg, a symbol of all the changes that have visited all churches in these unprecedented times.
In today’s story, Jesus’ healing of a man blind from birth is met with skepticism and uncertainty by those who have known the man. They are not prepared for this change and may feel ill equipped to handle it. Like the townspeople, you may feel unready for change. And yet, you have been living with and adapting through change as it happens both without and within.
In your lifetime, there has been nearly unfathomable change in the world. Borders have opened and closed, names of countries have changed, allies have banded together to make war on other nations, and then turned on one another, and the English language has added hundreds of new words to the dictionary. (Before 2020, had you ever heard or used the word “superspreader” before?)
And that doesn’t even count the individual changes that you have adapted to in your lifetime. You have weathered and even thrived through changes in self-understanding, knowledge, relationships, emotional landscape, climate, education, fortune, health, travels, travails, employment status, living arrangements, and multiple television remotes with their array of mysterious black on black buttons.
You may push back against change or wish it would not come so fast, but in fact your whole life has been preparing you for the changes we are experiencing now. Whether your giving is the “old” way in a passed plate, or a “new” way through a computer terminal, you have everything you need to weather the changes around you.
One Great Hour of Sharing® is one of four special mission offerings of the United Church of Christ. This Lenten Offering supports the disaster, refugee, and development ministries of the United Church of Christ within Wider Church Ministries. https://www.ucc.org/giving/ways-to-give/our-churchs-wider-mission/one-great-hour-of-sharing/
“Restoring Beauty” ~ Matthew 5:13-20 ~ February 2023
February 5, 2023 ~ Fifth Sunday after Epiphany
“There are very few real emergencies. This doesn’t mean truly terrible things don’t happen. But if we can do things like breathe, delay gratification, feel our feelings in real time, keep ourselves from too much impulsivity, and reach for the right practice or people, we can survive—we can emerge-and-see—through disaster. And with spiritual hindsight, many of our disasters might turn out to be Holy Spirit portals: the way God gets in.
Life as it stands will keep trying to shake us up or smash our boat onto the rocks. This is not because God is a jerk. It’s because Nature throws novel viruses and earthquakes and worse into our path. It’s also because humans are inventive and wonderful, but then we dream up things that ruin lives, like crystal meth, hypercapitalism, and high-waisted jeans (not a good look for anyone).
If we think we are safe, we are wrong. Nothing can insulate us from loss. But safe was never the point. There are fates worse than death—like not ever really living.
If you are lucky, you are currently between emergencies. Maybe you’ve had a rare chance to get off the roller coaster entirely. Your legs have just stopped shaking, and you think, “I’m never doing that again.” You are sitting in the sun, eating something delicious and terrible for you: fried dough, a corn dog, a caramel apple that will pull out your crown. Enjoy the moment. It’s not going to last.
And if you are in the middle of a fast-moving or slow-motion emergency—a sick toddler, a wayward teen, a relationship at a crossroads, a dance with addiction, a mental health crisis—only time will tell if it really was a true emergency. Because with the right kind of attention, ruptures can reveal us, emerge us, and help us evolve faster than any virus.”
This is an excerpt from How to Begin When Your World is Ending: A Spiritual Field Guide to Joy Despite Everything copyright © 2022 Molly Phinney Baskette admin. Broadleaf Books. Used by permission. All rights reserved. How to Begin When Your World is Ending is available at broadleafbooks.com or wherever you purchase your books.
“Cosmic Praise” ~ Psalm 148 ~ January 2023
Some people make resolutions at this time of year. Others prayerfully select a word or phrase to guide them into the days ahead. Still others prefer to find renewal every day, not setting aside only the first of the year as a day to intentionally promise a fresh start to God or self. Whichever camp you fall into, take your cue from Psalm 148, and begin with PRAISE.
In difficult times (and for many of us these mid- and post-pandemic days are definitely difficult times) praise can feel unnecessary or even inappropriate. Praise – the outward expression of gratitude – can seem like an extra we can’t afford. But scientists today affirm what people of faith have known for centuries. Praise is not just good for God, it’s good for you, as studies continue to show that gratitude felt and expressed lowers stress and increases overall happiness. Here are some ways to make your New Year praise-full
¨ Find and maintain a regular prayer practice.
¨ Notice God in the glory of creation, whether your vista of nature is a vast desert landscape, a stand of towering trees, a small city park, or simply the sun rising and setting.
¨ Make praise a part of your giving to your United Church of Christ congregation. (Haven’t pledged what you plan to give this year to your church? It’s never too late!)
¨ Bring your praise to social media, which too often trades in snark and unhealthy competition. How can you notice what is praise-worthy and uplift that instead?
¨ Look for ways that family members or friends shine God’s light in the world through their own acts of praise. Make sure to notice and thank them.
¨ Keep a gratitude journal, writing down what you are grateful for each evening or morning.
Faith Community United Church of Christ
is a congregation of Fox Valley Association
of the Illinois Conference
of the United Church of Christ.
Resource Links
Bensenville/Wood Dale Food Pantry
192 S. Center St., Bensenville, IL 60106
Phone: (630)766-9382
Like us on Facebook
For more than fifty years our community has cared about our people without sufficient food on their table. What began as an ecumenical ministry of our faith communities has grown to be supported by the entire community – churches, local businesses, individuals, grocery stores, corporations, school districts, social organizations, civic organizations, etc. In 2019 we established our own 501(c)3 as a community-wide, non-profit organization and our Board of Directors as well as our volunteers reflect this community-wide support.
The Food Pantry is normally open from 8:00 – 10:00 am on Saturdays serving around 200 people a week with 15-20 volunteers working five days a week to collect, organize, and distribute food. Clients are able to select their own food as in a grocery store. Clients self-identify that they are in need of food – support is not based on income levels.
With the COVID-19 pandemic and shelter-in-place decree, the Food Pantry is now open 8:00-10:00 am on Saturdays only – serving around 500 people a week with 8-10 volunteers working five days a week to collect, package in bags/boxes, and load food into our clients’ vehicles. The limited number of volunteers is to safeguard the health of our dedicated volunteers even as it increases their workload. Personal protection equipment (masks, gloves) is worn by all volunteers. Clients are given pre-packaged bags of dry-goods, produce, dairy, meat, bread/desserts, and (when available) personal-hygiene products and household cleansers.
In addition to the community support offered at the Food Pantry primary location on Center St., 50 to 80 bags/boxes each are prepared regularly for distribution at Castle Towers (Section 8 Housing), Fenton High School, Wood Dale Jr. High School, and District #2 schools.
Financial donations to The Food Pantry allow for purchases through Northern Illinois Food Bank where each dollar donated translates to food/products costing approximately $8.00 at retail stores. Donations can be made via checks or e-giving, please see address and website above.
The Food Pantry is currently in need of the following items: canned vegetables, bleach, laundry detergent, toilet paper, body soap, toothpaste, adult diapers, and feminine hygiene products. Donations may be dropped-off any weekday 8:30-11:00 am.