News
October 24, 2025
Worship Online with Us
If you are unable to attend our Sunday morning worship services in-person, please join us online. We stream both services Sunday mornings live at 9 and 11 a.m. and both are available to watch later if you can’t watch live. We also have many previous services available to watch if you missed one. Please don’t forget to let us know you are watching with the “I’m Here” button at the top of the page.
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Pastor David’s Corner
Halloween, or “All Hallows’ Eve” refers to Halloween and falls the evening before All Saints’ Day (November 1st). Within the Christian tradition It is a religious vigil that remembers the dead and their contribution to life. It has since become a cultural celebration known for traditions like trick-or-treating and costumes.
But at it’s core, All Hallows Eve captures the gesture of hospitality. Of giving from one’s heart. Children and families walk their neighborhoods visiting from house to house where mostly candy is handed out. I remember the local dentist would hand out toothbrushes and toothpaste, along with a business card. Then there was Mr. Edwards. He would hand small wooden toys that he made by hand in his shop. Each crafted differently as a reminder that we are all different.
This means of generosity from all people, including Mr. Edwards, is a reminder that as we greet people this Halloween that we take a moment to smile and to express a goodness and grace that may only come once a year.
We all bring a contribution to life, and this is the “treat” that comes with no strings attached.
Have a blessed All Hallows Eve.
Pastor David
Congregational Prayer Requests
(Please join us in lifting up the following items in prayer!)
PRAYER QUILT IN THE NARTHEX
A prayer quilt displayed in the narthex this morning is for Adam Ramer. Adam is the nephew to Cheryl Shaver. We invite you to stop, tie a knot, and pray for healing, grace and comfort.
DEATHS
None
PRAYERS FOR OUR SPECIAL CARE
Barbara K. Johnson, Vickie Johnson, Ronda Klein, Betty Luallin, Terry Lutz, Ray McFarland, Marge Needham, Gerry Oliver, Jean Oliver, Bonnie Rheaume.
OTHER
None
PRAYERS FOR OUR CHURCHES
Shepherd of the Hills UMC – Sun City West
Shepherd of the Hills UMC- Phoenix
Spirit of Hope UMC – Peoria
(Got a prayer request? Need someone to pray with? Need support? Our congregational care team is here for you! Please contact the church office to have them forward your request to the congregational care team, fill out the form on our website https://firstchurch.church/prayer-requests/, or reach out to the congregational care team directly by emailing deby@firstchurch.church.)
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Congregational Celebrations and Praises
(Please join us in praising God for these celebrations!)
WEDDING ANNIVERSARIES (Celebrating 50 or more years of marriage)
Jim and Jan Hyde 9/2
Bob and Connie Bailes 9/9
SENIOR MILESTONES (Celebrating 80+ birthdays)
John Reinhold 10/8
Maurie Halle 10/10
Ilah Pickrell 10/23
Sandy Fox 10/26
Rosemary Lutz 10/31
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Who’s Who?
Welcome to “Who’s Who?” – a temporary reoccurring column where we’ll interview our staff and church leaders so you can get to know them a little better and connect on a deeper level.
This week’s spotlight is Russ Morrow, our Business Administrator!
Church Questions
Fun Questions
Spiritual Questions
Weekday School Cherub Choir Performance
Our Weekday School’s Cherub choir will be performing this Sunday at the 9:00am service, so get ready for some cuteness!
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Phoenix Pride Outreach Update
This weekend our church did our annual outreach event with Phoenix Pride. We had a rather big Pride team this year: Me (Sammi), Stella Fleming (we were present on both days), Lorin Burno (day 1), and Sujey Viera (day 1), and Arie Zakaryan (day 2). It was a beautiful and cathartic event, as always, with people sharing their trauma with us, crying, hugging us, and praying with us.
Before the event even started, I had the opportunity of showing God’s love with a fellow vendor who was setting up his booth near us. He shared his struggles with religious trauma and being kicked out of his church and kicked out of his family upon realizing he was gay. I was able to give him a hug, share resources with him to help him reconnect with his faith, and he told me later I inspired him to try and find a church. (He also asked me if I was an angel, which definitely made my eyes water a bit.)
An unexpected joy that has come with consistently showing up for Pride and Rainbow Fest year after year has been people recognizing and remembering us. From the little things like people walking by saying to their friends “omg it’s that church, they’re like a regular church, but cooler,” and the person coming up to us saying “I had hoped you guys would be back- I look for you now at every event!” to the more deep and personal interactions: (I’m still not over the fact that at Rainbow Fest earlier this year a woman who was recently widowed came up to us explaining she and her wife had met us at Pride earlier that year, and as this woman died, she was holding onto the little crocheted heart we gave her, because it was comforting her on her literal deathbed. I don’t think anything else will ever top that for me.)
It was a joy to tell people about our church, about Axios, and about how Jesus loves them no matter what, to help connect people with resources to help them rekindle their faith, and to encourage them towards finding a safe faith community that will meet them where they’re at.
A side benefit of all this was some amazing networking with vendors as well! I was able to connect with so many incredible companies, small businesses, organizations, nonprofits, and even a couple other churches as well, many of whom expressed interest in partnering with us for future projects, outreach events, marketing opportunities, and more. This event will definitely create some very exciting connections and opportunities for us in the future.
I want to say thank you to all who support our presence at Pride and Rainbow Fest each year. Everything gets very hectic on my end of things as I get into frenzied planning mode, people donate their time to make it happen, and the church has been generous with its resources to help support these projects. And every year, after the dust settles, (both metaphorically and literally- the Pride Festival grounds are *insanely* dusty and I usually end up having trouble breathing for days after. Lol.), I walk away being shocked at everything we accomplished, and more importantly everything GOD accomplished. The presence, the impact, and the opportunity to change lives that He has allowed us to participate in every year is earth shattering, and it really is an honor to share in that work. Thank you all for your prayers, your support, and everything else. Our church really is out here changing lives.
Love, Sammi
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Lura Turner Homes Workship Day
WeekDay School Updates from Beckie:
“Weekday School has had a busy 2 months getting to know new friends and teachers. We had an apple/grape theme, we made apple crisp, painted with apples and are drying raisins to make grapes.
Upcoming Blood Drive
Ordering Christmas Greens
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Fall Festival
You’re invited to our church’s fall festival October 26th at 4:30pm. It’ll be a fun time filled with games, food, candy, and even bounce houses and dunk tanks! This is a wonderful outreach opportunity for our church, so please invite your friends and neighbors!
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Trunk or Treat is Almost Here — We Need YOUR Help!
Mark your calendars for Sunday, October 26! Starting Monday, October 6, you can drop off candy at the front office during the week or bring it on Sundays to the candy donation buckets in the narthex.
We also need volunteers to help run games, supervise bounce houses, and staff the dunk tank (if you’d like to be dunked, see Jessica!). To volunteer, please contact Jessica or Julie, or use the sign-up link on the Church Center app.
Note: We are no longer using SignUpGenius. If you need help accessing Church Center, see Jessica!
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Elder Fraud Prevention Presentation
Our church’s Foundation invites you to a seminar on Elder Fraud here at the church. It’s been arranged for a representative from the Arizona Attorney General’s office to present on this important topic at 10:00am November 1st. We will be taking reservations due to space limitations. Please contact the church office at (602) 263-5013 to RSVP. You won’t want to miss this event!
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New Christmas Decorations Donation Link
As many of you heard on Sunday, our church is raising money for new Christmas decorations for the sanctuary. If you are interested in donating, you can do so using this donation link https://secure.myvanco.com/L-Z2EJ/campaign/C-15ZY4 or however you’d typically donate to the church. (Just make sure you indicate the donation is for the Christmas decorations if using other means). Thank you for your generosity in supporting this project, and we can’t wait to see what the sanctuary looks like with the beautiful new decor.
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First Church Business Directory Updates
Here is an updated first church business directory.
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Giving Report
Here is an updated giving report from Carrick Sears. Thank you to everyone for your continued support.
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Sunday Social Hour
Please join us for our First Sunday Social Hour Gathering every first Sunday of the month between services at 10 a.m. in Wesley Lounge. The next one will be November 2. We look forward to seeing you!
Axios Unaltered (LGBTQ+ Small Group)
Axios Unaltered is our resident queer small group that meets every week here at the church for a time of discussion, Bible study, and prayer, as well as service projects to support the community. If you are LGBTQ+, please join us on Tuesdays at 7 p.m. to connect with other like-minded individuals and grow in your faith. Contact Sammi Burkhart, visit axiosunaltered.com, or search @axiosunaltered on social media for more information.
Community Yoga Classes
First Church offers two weekly yoga classes to our community. Classes meet Tuesdays, 9:30 – 10:30 a.m., and Thursdays, 4:30 – 5:30 p.m. The cost is $12 per class or four classes for $40. Email the church office for more information: info@firstchurch.church.
Afternoon Book Group
The Afternoon Book Group meets on the fourth Tuesday of most months at 1:30 p.m. in the library. We welcome all who love to read and discuss and travel the world through books.
The next meeting is scheduled for October 28th. The book for September is James by Percival Everett.
Visit our website https://FirstChurch.church and click on the “Give” button at the top of the home page, or scan the QR code at the bottom of this message with your mobile device for a quick and easy link to the giving page. You can set up a recurring frequency or give when you want to by making a one-time gift using your checking or savings bank account.
You may also give electronically using your bank’s bill pay service.
Another way to give electronically is Text-to-Give with your debit or credit card.
- Enter (888) 303-7535 in your cell phone text messaging program and a dollar amount without including a “$” sign as the message (example: type 20 to give twenty dollars).
- You will receive a reply with a link to enter your contact and debit or credit card information.
- After you complete the registration, you will receive a verification text as well as a receipt by email.
- For future giving, simply send a text message with the amount you wish to give. That’s it!
Check Your Spam and Junk
Sometimes email from our Church’s domain, “.church” isn’t recognized by all email providers. Please check your spam and junk mail folders periodically to see if something from First Church or other senders to your address might be filtered out of your inbox.
