Church Updates: August 27, 2026
Here is what's happening this week!
8/27/20263 min read
New Worship Series Examines Fruits of the Spirit
This past Sunday, August 23, our pastors began a new worship series, “Oh, the Places You’ll Grow.” This comes on the heels of our vacation Bible camp in which children studied the fruits of the Spirit. These fruits, listed in Galatians 5:22-23, are: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.
As Pastor Duane Coates explained last Sunday, these are the fruits that disciples produce when they are growing from the seed of Jesus Christ planted in their souls. He said, “As we grow in faith, others should see in us certain fruits.”
In this first sermon, Pastor Duane unpacked peace and patience.
He defined true peace as a deep-seated feeling of mutual trust and respect in relationships that benefit everyone. “When we are at peace, we feel cared for, nourished, and safe inside those relationships, which we recognize as divine gifts.”
He defined patience as “the holy attribute of hopeful waiting.” Holy means set apart for a Godly purpose. Hope, he said, means to put faith in the expectation of some future pleasant experience or action. So, patience is a gift of God that is different from secular culture, that we polish with the practice of waiting on God to reveal something better in the future and having faith that God will provide it.
Through the next four weeks, the pastors will unpack the remaining fruits. For instance, this week, the sermon will cover gentleness and self-control. Please come and check it out.
Choir Returns to Traditional Service
Chancel choir will begin rehearsals on Wednesday, Sept. 9 at 7 p.m. in the sanctuary, under the direction of Dr. Doug Olson. The choir will sing each of the 11 a.m. services, starting on Sept. 13 and running through May. All those who want to sing traditional music in a classical style are welcome, even if you haven’t sung with us before or haven’t sung in a while. There are no auditions, and we have room for more singers. Snowbirds are welcome to join us during the months that they are here.
Cornerstone: September 8
We will be serving at Cornerstone on September 8 and are looking for volunteers to help serve, cook, and organize. We will have a list of ingredients needed for the meal if you are interested in donating. If you are wanting to serve, have questions, or would like to learn more, contact Pastor Cindy.
4 heads of lettuce
6 tomatoes
4-6 cucumbers
2 large bags of shredded carrots
1 Large Ranch dressing
1 large watermelon
1 large cantaloupe
1 package of red grapes
1 package of green grapes
1 or 2 packages of strawberries
1 honeydew melon
10 french bread
Noodles
16 oz sour cream
12 cans of cream of mushroom soup
12 cans of cream of celery soup
12 packages of dry onion soup mix
Cookies
Bars
Monthly Mission Offering
We will hold a meeting between services on August 30 to learn how you can be involved in MMO or if you are just curious about the program!
Mom's Morning Out is an outreach ministry within our very own church walls. During the school year we welcome between 80 and 90 kids of all ages on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9:00am to noon. This affordable childcare program offers parents a chance to run errands and get a break. The teachers within the program are stay-at-home moms who are able to make an income while being able to bring their children. We strive to make it more than just a daycare program, but a community for fellowship and building relationships. We meet a lot of families from Ellsworth Air Force Base, as well as other areas in the Black Hills. We will be adding chapel times into the schedule this fall and always welcome volunteers, who can pass a background check! This is a huge opportunity for our church to build connections with families outside of Sunday-morning programs. If you are interested in learning more about our program reach out to Hannah O’Donnell, MMO Director.
Job Opportunity
Rapid City First United Methodist Church is seeking a detail-oriented problem-solver with some financial experience and/or education to share duties with our existing coordinator. The person would work with contributions, pay bills, account for expenditures, balance checkbook, execute payroll functions, issue annual tax forms, and assist in compiling annual budget among other financial and accounting duties. This is a part-time position of 8-10 hours per week.
