Local Announcements: 

Sabbath Services for October 5th, 2023: This week's Sabbath will be held at the Freedom Hall  (349 W Birchwood St, Morton, IL 61550) @ 12:30pm. The services will also be webcast on our local congregational website​ (link for local webcast) as well as offered via audio only for those who would like to call in (701.791.9819). These connections typically go live about 15-minutes prior to the start of services.
          Song Leader: Mr. Glenn Radebaugh
          Sermonette: Mr. Bill Conway
          Sermon: Mr. Dan Apartian

Upcoming Events:
          Oct 5th: Sabbath services, 12:30pm @ Freedom Hall
          Oct 5th: Memorial for Ben & Wanda Gentry, 3:00pm @ Freedom Hall
          Oct 12th: Day of Atonement, 1:30pm @ Freedom Hall
          Oct 17th-24th: Feast of Tabernacles & 8th Day, (No local services)
          Oct 26th: No local services

Video Message from the Chairman of the COE: Council of Elders Chairman, Tim Pebworth, has prepared a four-minute video for us to view on YouTube in advance of the upcoming Holy Days: https://youtu.be/6TbWdCN0eBA

Memorial Service for Ben & Wanda Gentry: This Saturday, on October 5th, there will be a memorial service for Ben and Wanda Gentry. The memorial service will begin after services at 3:00pm at the Morton Freedom Hall followed by a shared meal.

Hall Set-up for the Memorial: Due to the need for increased seating for the Gentrys’ memorial, the hall will be set up differently from normal. The room will be oriented towards the fireplace with all padded chairs at the front. We ask that no chairs be moved during our use for the Sabbath service so that we will not need to reset anything for the memorial. After services, we ask all who sit on a padded chair to remove their belongings to allow for these chairs to be used for the Gentrys’ family during the memorial service.

Picnic Photo Album: If you are interested in reliving our summer barbeque, see the scrap book on the info table.

Central Illinois Bible Study: Our next monthly Bible Study will be on the Sabbath of November 23rd. We will wrap up our study of the Book of Obadiah about 15-minutes after services. If you are not able to join us in person, here are a few ways that you can join our Bible Study:
          - Here is the link to access our Bible Study via our local webcast.
          - Here is the phone number to call for an audio-only connection: 701.791.9819

Congregational Directory: If you have not yet signed onto the online congregational directory, created your account, or would like some help with getting your contact information and/or picture uploaded, please feel free to reach out and ask Nathan Ekama, Dan Apartian, or Patrick & Sandy Kurtas for a hand.

Health & Safety Protocols: We ask that any who exhibit symptoms of illness practice the biblical principle of quarantine.

Home Office Announcements:

Feast of Tabernacles Webcast & Phone Connection Info: The Panama City Beach, Florida (Central Time) and Klamath Fall, Oregon (Pacific Time) Feast sites will offer LIVE webcasts of their services.
          - Here is a link for the Panama City Beach webcast
          - Here is a link for the Klamath Falls webcast
The live webcasts of the Feast services will start Wednesday evening October 16, 2024 and end on Thursday, October 24, 2024. On the weekly Sabbath of October 19th there will be a live webcast of services at 2:00 PM Central from Panama City Beach, Florida. United Church of God president, Rick Shabi will be giving the sermon. The entire service, including hymns and special music will be streamed.
If you are unable to access the internet for the webcasts, below are direct phone lines that you can call to tune into an audio service:
          - Panama City Beach phone service: 660.770.1303 (Access code: 396900# NOTE:long distance rates may apply)
          - Klamath Falls phone service: 503.967.3849 (No access code)

Daily Bible Reading Program: We’d like to announce a special daily bible reading program for all. God encourages us all to read His Word that we would hear and learn (Deuteronomy 31:12). As His people, united by His Spirit and led by our Savior, Jesus Christ, all of us around the world will read the book of Deuteronomy together as we prepare for the Feast. 
Here is a link from the home page of UCG.org to the chapter to be read that day, along with the commentary from our own United Church of God Bible Commentary (https://www.ucg.org/members/news/daily-bible-reading-the-book-of-deuteronomy).
This is a wonderful opportunity for daily Bible reading and study. If you have a family, be sure to read the chapter and commentary together, and discuss it with your mate and children, following the teachings of Deuteronomy 6. Let’s take advantage of this unifying activity as the entire Church throughout the world reads and meditates on the same passages each day.  
May God bless us as we draw near to Him and focus on His Word in preparation for the upcoming Holy Days.

Teen Instagram Account: We are using the existing Compass Check account to share encouraging and fun spiritually uplifting content, including Q&A’s, updates on local events and special sneak peeks of ongoing projects. We would also encourage feedback of content you would like to see. This project is specifically for our youth, and we want to hear from you! Make sure to follow us at compasscheck on Instagram (instagram.com/compasscheck) and DM us for any more info, suggestions and questions.

Light of Hope Helpline: The United Church of God is providing a new service available to its ministry and members. Light of Hope is a helpline supported by Church members who are licensed social workers, counselors and other clinical professionals.
They will provide mental health and addiction resources to those in need including individual, couple, family and teen consultation. These specialists will also assist in connecting people in need with appropriate resources in their communities while keeping all information confidential.
The Light of Hope helpline is available at any time. When you call, it will initially record your message so that one of our professionals can respond within 24 hours. This service is also provided in several different languages including Spanish, French and German.
Light of Hope also plans to develop online materials on a variety of topics such as depression, anxiety, stress management, suicidal thoughts, communication skills, problem solving strategies, teen issues, parenting issues, etc.
The helpline number is (888) 241-6211.

Prayer Updates: The home office has created a web page where church members may access recent church-wide prayer requests at any time. The address is register.ucg.org/intranet/PrayerRequests and the password for the page may be obtained from your pastor.

Job Opportunities: Details about any of the current job postings for the Church may be reviewed at ucg.org/members/news/current-job-openings.

Beyond Today: Beyond Today airs locally in Illinois (Springfield/Decatur/Champaign) on WICD 15 ABC, Sundays at 10:00 a.m..
          **BT content is also available via our YouTube channel and via Roku and other smart devices.**

Online UCG Radio from Australia for the whole world: The online radio station for United Church of God is now streaming 7 days a week, 24 hours a day. You can listen to booklet and magazine readings, Bible readings, Bible Q&As, sermons, Bible class lectures, podcasts, the BT Daily series, music and more! A radio schedule in PDF can be downloaded which will show you upcoming programs. You can reach it easily on your computer at https://www.ucg.org.au/radio or from the UCG Streaming Radio app that allows you to listen on your mobile device. Simply search your app store for "UCG Radio" to install the free app.