Join us Each week in person or online
Sundays at 9:30am.
QUICK LINKS
THIS WEEK AT A GLANCE
Sunday Sermon
Build on rock
Matthew 7:24-27
FEATURED UPDATES
CHURCH PRAYER MEETING!
“Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful.” Colossians 4:2
The Church prayer meetings are on Zoom every Monday night at 7pm!
Zoom ID: 859 848 614
Password: geecc
All are welcomed to this sweet hour of prayer! See you there!
Next steps
Next Steps: Discerning God’s Will for Our Lives, a class for Young Adults (college-aged and 20-somethings, taught by Pastor Dawn and Dr. David Lauber, held in the North Alcove)
Your Family Story: Parenting with Purpose ( This Sunday), taught by Dr. David and Tara Van Dyke, held in Munson Hall)
-Pastor Dawn Lauber, Associate Pastor of Congregational Life
IMPORTANT NEWS FROM THE ARK
a message from the financial team
2022 year-end statements have been mailed to all members and 4th quarter donors this week. If you have any questions or do not receive a statement, please contact Financial Secretary Wendy Miller (giving@gecovenant.org or 630-596-6487).
Also, if you would like a box of numbered donation envelopes for giving via checks or cash, please pick up one on the table in the Higher Grounds coffee area.
BOOK CLUB
Join us on Zoom each Thursday evening, 7:30-8:30pm as we discuss Pastor David Swanson’s “Rediscipling the White Church: From Cheap Diversity to True Solidarity”.
All are welcome!
Pastor Swanson is the Pastor of New Community Covenant Church, a multicultural congregation in Chicago's Bronzeville neighborhood, and speaks around the country on the topics of racial justice and reconciliation.
If you are interested in joining, contact Darren Miller, Mary Crickmore, or the church office.
THE SEASON OF LENT Dwelling in Habakkuk
The season of Lent is the forty days from Ash Wednesday to Holy Week, representing the forty days when Jesus was tested in the wilderness.
Lent is a time of repentance and transformation as we grow deeper in our relationship with Jesus, and prepare for His resurrection on Easter Sunday. We set aside time to praise and worship God, to confess our sins and failures, and to commit to pray and study God’s Word more.
JOIN US FOR LENT AT GLEN ELLYN COVENANT CHURCH
Ash Wednesday Service, February 22, 6:30 PM
Sunday Morning Worship (Habakkuk: Questions, Discomfort, & Trust)
Sunday Evening Prayer, February 26 – March 19, 5 PM
Sunday Evening Soup Suppers, February 26 – March 19, 5:30 PM
Wednesday Evening Small Groups*, March 1 – March 29, 6:30 PM
*In person and online options
Men’s Ministry Update
Covenant Point Men's Retreat: Feb. 24-26, 2023
Each year, Covenant Point hosts a men’s retreat for Covenant Churches in the Midwest. We have had a number of men from our church attending this annual event in years past. Whether there is one, or a dozen men from our church, it has always been a great time of fellowship, worship, and learning. Please check out the link below to learn more (and register if you wish).
2023 Men’s Retreat Covenant Point Bible Camp
7pm Friday, Feb 24 – 10am Sunday, Feb 26
Come for a weekend of fun, fellowship, meaningful conversation, and worship. Invite your friends for the excellent food, good times, and life-giving worship and messages. Recreational opportunities include a broomball tournament, afternoon jam session (bring your own instrument), snowshoeing, cross-country skiing on our groomed trails, sauna and polar bear dip, or games and conversation in the dining hall.
Check-in begins at 7:00 PM on Friday, with our first gathering at 8:00 PM.
MISSIONS FOCUS
Missions Focus
Celebrating 37 Years in Missions
This past Sunday we celebrated with Scott and Mary Crickmore the 37 years they served in missions. They shared a video of their time in Mali and then more information about their careers. Below is their intriguing biographical narrative.
In 1982 when Scott and Mary met on a New York-Paris-Tel Aviv TWA flight, Scott was a B-52 pilot in the Air Force Strategic Air Command nuclear deterrent force, and Mary was on the staff of Young Life in Oklahoma City. A year later they were married by Pastor Liljegren here at Glen Ellyn Covenant Church, where Mary grew up. They began to look for mission opportunities, focusing on unreached people groups. In March of 1985, during the African famine, they went to Mali short term with the Christian Reformed Church to manage transportation and distribution of food aid. They were invited to commit to a long-term ministry to the Fulani people group, who are Muslim herders.
In 1987 Scott and Mary moved into a Fulani village to do incarnational evangelism (identifying with and living like the local people to the extent possible) and development work. During the next 24 years, they lived part time in the village and part time in the capital, and worked on public health, access to veterinary help and animal medicine, literacy, land rights, irrigation, and Bible studies using the texts that were being produced by Wycliffe and the Norwegian Mission Society. They became involved in the Bible translation work for Fulani language variants in six countries using new computer software, and Scott coordinated an annual conference and training for all the Fulani translation teams. In 2006, the New Testament for Malian Fulani was dedicated. By 2025, some of those teams will have complete Bibles.
Since 2005, their roles shifted to more administration and support of nationals and younger missionaries. In response to an invitation from The Seed Company, Scott changed organizations in 2011 to support the funding of Bible translation projects full time. When they retired in November 2022, Scott was a regional director over 10 countries and Mary was a regional director throughout five countries. They both mentored younger people (with more energy!) who have taken over their roles.
Other Items
Information on ongoing needs and opportunities with our missions partners is available from Darren Miller via missions@gecovenant.org and the missions partners’ websites. Let Darren know if you would like to be added to the distribution list for their newsletters. The GE COV Prayer Letter, available via Diane Brown, shares how we may pray for our missionaries. Our missions display case in the church atrium shows highlights of our missionaries and ministry partners.