“Beginnings” is our September theme
“Things falling apart is a kind of testing and also a kind of healing. We think that the point is to pass the test or to overcome the problem, but the truth is that things don’t really get solved. They come together and they fall apart. Then they come together again and fall apart again. It’s just like that. The healing comes from letting there be room for all of this to happen: room for grief, for relief, for misery, for joy. When we think that something is going to bring us pleasure, we don’t know what’s really going to happen. When we think something is going to give us misery, we don’t know. Letting there be room for not knowing is the most important thing of all. We try to do what we think is going to help. But we don’t know. We never know if we’re going to fall flat or sit up tall. When there’s a big disappointment, we don’t know if that’s the end of the story.
It may be just the beginning of a great adventure.”
–Pema Chödrön, from her book When Things Fall Apart
(highly recommended by your Wednesday Chimes editor!)
Next Service
October 4 at 11:00 am
“Broken Hearts and Mosaic Healing”
Led by: Rev. Dr. Matthew Johnson
When our hearts break – at the grief in our own life, at the state of the world, about losses and tragedies – we sometimes want to make the pieces the same as they were. But it doesn’t work. What if healing is making a mosaic with those beautiful colors and powerful shapes? What if the breaking is one thing but the healing is many things?
In person at UUCEL or live on Facebook.
The Rev. Dr. Matthew Johnson is a Congregational Life Consultant for the MidAmerica Region of the UUA, working primarily with pastoral size congregations across the Midwest, including ours. He’s also a third-generation Unitarian Universalist, a parent of two teenagers, a big nerd, and a lover of our faith. He has served for more than 20 years in parish ministry in congregations in MN, WI, CO, and IL. He’s been to all 50 states, and walked pilgrimages in Israel, Transylvania, New England, Ireland, and 560 miles of the Camino de Santiago in Spain.
Announcements
Lunch With the Minister: October’s Lunch with the Minister gathering is Friday, October 9 at noon. Come and join Rev. Dan for good food and great conversation at Knight’s Steakhouse on Horton Road!
Blessings of the Animals & Bring a Friend to Church Day! On Sunday, October 11, Rev. Dan will be leading a Blessing of the Animals service. Everyone is encouraged to bring their furry, feathered, or scaly friends to receive a special blessing. Dogs must remain on a leash at all times. There will also be a brief ritual of remembrance for beloved pets who have crossed the Rainbow Bridge over the past year. You are welcome to bring a special token, such as a toy, a collar, or photo in remembrance of animal friend to honor them in the ritual.
Also, don’t forget that October 11 is also Bring a Friend to Church Day! Please invite a friend (or more!) to join us that Sunday. Let them see just how great this congregation is!
Books & Puzzles Sale: A special sale for books and puzzles will be held in the schoolhouse after service on Nov 8 & 15. Please bring your donations for the sale to the schoolhouse after service on October 18 or 25. See Elissa Alden & Debbie Hartsuff with any questions.
Fall Soup Dinner & Fundraiser: Come one, come all! Join in the fun and buy, buy, buy! On October 30 from 5:00pm to 7:30pm, we will be having a Fun Fall Soup Dinner & Fall Basket Auction Fundraiser featuring a bake sale. There will be a variety of soups and other treats to choose from along with coffee and bottled water. Donation of $10 is requested per person for the dinner. Feel free to come in costume – you just might win a “Best of” prize! Bidding on the baskets begins on October 4th and lasts until the event.
What we need:
– Fall-themed cupcakes and/or cookies donated to be part of the meal
– Fall Baskets donated for the auction (we have some but need more by Oct 4th!)
– Homemade treats for the Bake Sale (have them priced and ready to sell!)
Please contact Ferne Kerr-Arnold with questions and to let her know what you can donate! hootiekerr77@gmail.com or 517-795-6265
Love at the Center Book Group: Rev. Dan and Ann Green will be leading a congregational reading of the book “Love at the Center”, edited by UUA president Sofia Betancourt. This book is a collection of insightful, short essays by various UU ministers about the centrality of love in our UU values, faith, and identity. The way it works is that everyone will be encouraged to purchase the book, read selected essays, then come together to discuss the readings. The first meeting will be held on Zoom on Monday, October 19 at 6:30pm. The selected essays for the first meeting are chapters 3, 5, and 14. The book can be ordered here: https://uuabookstore.org/products/love-at-the-center Please contact Rev. Dan or Ann if you are interested or have questions.
Tax Deductible Donations: If you are currently donating to UUCEL, you may be interested in knowing that for the 2026 tax year, you can deduct up to $1000 ($2000 if filing jointly) for cash donations even if you don’t itemize. This benefit is for donations to charitable organizations only, which includes churches. You may want to consider increasing your donation now to maximize your benefit before the end of the calendar year. You will receive a statement from the church in January showing your 2026 donation total, if you would like to know how much you’ve donated in 2026 so far, email, call or text Laurie Campbell (517-414-1467, dandlcampbell@comcast.net). Use the IRS link to read more about it: https://www.irs.gov/taxtopics/tc506
Reminders
Jackson County Immigrant Coalition: Many members of the congregation have expressed interest in joining the JCIC. Due to the nature of the coalition’s work with vulnerable people, the first step to getting involved is to fill out a secure vetting form. Please visit the JCIC linktree to access that form: https://linktr.ee/Jackson_County_For_Immigrants (the form is the second link from the top). Feel free to explore the other helpful links on the page.
Worship Committee seeks speakers: Do you have an idea for a service, or a willingness to take us on your spiritual journey? Or do you know someone in the community who would? Please contact Darrin Palmer or another member of the Worship Committee. They are happy to help create a Sunday Service!
Social Mission Designee:
The Social Mission Designee for our 2nd Quarter is Grow Jackson. Please give by using the donate button on our website or by contributing with a check with Grow Jackson in the memo line.
Minister’s Schedule:
- September 30 – Off
- October 1-2 – UUCEL
- October 3 – Off
- October 4-7 – UUA/UUMA Event
Rev. Dan is available for 1:1 emergency pastoral care regardless of his days off. If you are in need of immediate pastoral care, please contact him right away. Please refrain from texting Rev. Dan after normal work hours unless it is a critical issue that needs immediate attention; if not, email him the next workday. If you need an immediate response to an email on a day off, type “URGENT’ in the subject line.
Please submit items for this weekly email by Tuesday afternoon at WednesdayChimes@gmail.com. Please include the date(s) you would like the announcement published in the subject line of your email.
Sunday Announcements
Please submit items to be announced on Sunday to the Worship Committee at uuliberty@gmail.com
Joys and Sorrows
Please submit items for inclusion in our Sunday service to the Worship Committee at uuliberty@gmail.com