First-Plymouth Congregational Church sits on the corner of 20th and D Streets in Lincoln, Nebraska, an architectural icon and one of the city's oldest congregations. Organized in 1866 as First Congregational Church - the first church body in the town then called Lancaster - it merged with Plymouth Congregational Church in 1923 and built the current sanctuary, dedicated in 1931. Today, First-Plymouth is a United Church of Christ congregation that describes its mission as increasing "the love of God and neighbor" through worship, music, learning, care, and justice work, welcoming around 40 in-person and online worship services each month.
Five Guiding Principles: Christian, Open-Minded, Spiritual, Evolving, Diverse
Senior Minister Jim Keck has summarized the congregation's identity in five guiding principles. Christian means perceiving in Jesus the divine qualities of love, peace, joy, and justice, and exploring the Bible for its spiritual wisdom without wielding it as proof of being right. Open-minded treats faith as a quest rather than a clutched certainty, rising above the conservative-liberal split. Spiritual holds that God is a spirit of love that can be felt and known, and that faith rolls up its sleeves to feed the hungry, care for the sick, and house the homeless. Evolving means rooting without getting stuck, eagerly experimenting with new ways of being faithful. Diverse celebrates differences of sexual orientation, ethnicity, class, mental abilities, physical capabilities, personalities, and backgrounds, trusting that those differences strengthen community. The principles are offered as a description, not a creed.
A Week Built Around Six Worship Services
Worship is the heart of First-Plymouth, and the church offers something almost every day of the week. On Saturday at 5:30 p.m., the Chapel service provides a casual, come-as-you-are gathering focused on the church's mission. Sunday morning opens with an 8:15 a.m. service in Pilgrim Hall, followed by 9:00 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. services in the Sanctuary at 20th and D, with the 10:30 also livestreamed on YouTube and Vimeo. A recorded digital version of the 9:00 service is available online. The 11:57 a.m. service, also in the Sanctuary and livestreamed, brings a slightly different rhythm and is the setting for sermon series like Bad Religion, where Dr. Keck explores what faithful, healthy religion looks like.
Across town, FP South meets at 9:30 a.m. on Sundays at Roper and Sons South Chapel, near S. 40th and Yankee Hill. A new addition to the schedule is Wednesday Night Live, a 5:30 p.m. midweek service in the Sanctuary designed for those whose Sunday mornings are crowded out by work, travel, sports, or other commitments. The intergenerational service runs roughly thirty minutes and lets families, couples, singles, young adults, and retirees pause in the middle of the week. It is preceded by a 4:45 p.m. dinner in Pilgrim Hall, catered by Greggo's for a suggested five-dollar donation, as supplies last. Saturday evenings occasionally close with Compline, described as "ancient worship for the modern soul," sung in the Sanctuary.
Wednesday Night Live: A Midweek Hub for All Ages
Wednesday Night Live, often shortened to WNL, is more than a service. From 4:45 to 7:30 p.m., the building hums with activity. Dinner opens the evening, followed by worship in the Sanctuary. Children in kindergarten through fifth grade rotate through a Worship Arts curriculum of choir, handbells, and drumming under the direction of Jeremy Roberts, while preschool childcare is offered for ages three to five. Middle schoolers in seventh and eighth grade meet for Confirmation, building a foundation of faith and exploring what they believe. A new sixth-grade youth group launched to help young students find their place in God's story. Plymouth Choir rehearses at 7:15 p.m. After worship, adults gather for a rotating slate of classes and discussions: prayer workshops with Pastor KJ Langlais, "Deconstructing Christianity" with Pastor Juan Carlos Huertas, time-management sessions, parent-connect gatherings, yoga in the Chapel, carillon and bell-tower tours, and quarterly membership classes led by Dr. Keck. The Hope House ministry also uses the WNL hour to host community conversations about housing and homelessness in Lincoln.
Children, Youth, and Young Adults
Children and youth programming is robust and intentional. On Sunday mornings, kids begin worship with their families before heading to FP Littles and Kids, age-appropriate small groups offered during the 9:00, 9:30 (FP South), and 10:30 services. Programming centers on LOVE - helping kids experience God's love, feel connected, and grow spiritually - through large-group worship, Bible storytelling, small-group crafts, and discussion. Check-in stations in Mayflower Hall provide a safe environment for infants through twelfth graders. On Wednesday nights, FP Kids Studio offers hands-on learning through art, drama, music, and service projects.
Youth ministry is led by Tori Malizzi and Shelby Swartz. Middle schoolers participate in confirmation classes combining learning, discussion, service, and retreats; high schoolers gather for youth group activities on Sunday evenings that focus on faith, friendship, and community involvement. Youth also serve on committees (Welcome, Service, and Leadership), sing in Youth Singers and Youth Orchestra, and attend summer service trips to Rapid City and Grand Island as well as Performing Arts Camp and Family Camp at Kamp Kaleo. The Under-30 / Young Adult group meets for brunches, fall parties, coffee gatherings, and volunteering, and gathers during WNL for a College-Age Bible Study from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. TeamMates, the school-based mentoring program begun by Tom and Nancy Osborne in 1991, has long been supported by First-Plymouth; members are encouraged to list First-Plymouth as their affiliated organization.
Music That Reaches Far Beyond Lincoln
Music is a defining ministry. Tom Trenney serves as Minister of Music, with Jeremy Roberts as Associate Minister of Music for Children and Youth and Marissa Mark as Music Coordinator. The Plymouth Choir rehearses weekly. The chancel and balcony together house a two-manual Schoenstein pipe organ installed in 1996, and the church is home to an Abendmusik concert series that has grown into its own nationally recognized program. Abendmusik enables talented local performers to collaborate with well-known ensembles, composers, conductors, and soloists, and it travels beyond Lincoln with performances and educational events throughout Nebraska. The music ministry reaches a global audience through the church's YouTube channel, attracting millions of views.
Bible Studies, Discussion Groups, and Lifelong Learning
The church offers an unusually deep lineup of weekly studies and discussion groups. Not Your Ordinary Bible Study meets Thursdays at noon in the Choir Room with Dr. Keck, using the Bible as a launchpad into far-ranging topics. Theology on Tap gathers at Ironhorse Bar on the second Monday of fall months for conversation with Pastor JC. Morning Prayer is a self-led group that meets online via Zoom at 8:00 a.m. Monday through Friday. Sunday offerings include the Academic Bible Study in the Tower Room and the Sunday Morning Group in Calvert Parlor, which discusses current events, theology, and comparative religions. A Course in Miracles meets Monday evenings on Zoom. Women's groups include the Women's Circle 3 Bible Study on the second Wednesday of the month, led by Pastor KJ, and the Early Bird Discussion for Women on the first and third Friday mornings. Men's groups include the Men's Lunch & Conversation with Dr. Keck, the Early Risers, and the Early Birds. A Monthly Book Discussion meets on the third Tuesday. The Climate Action Team (CAT) is one of several interest-based groups that meet regularly.
Pastoral Care, Stephen Ministry, Spiritual Direction, and Recovery
First-Plymouth describes itself as a "loving, caring congregation." Pastoral care is organized through several layers. Spiritual Care Teams of trained lay ministers provide hospital visits, home visits, assisted-living and skilled-nursing visits, medical transportation, and phone connection. The Stephen Ministry program pairs trained lay ministers with people working through difficult life passages such as divorce, grief, job loss, or illness; the meetings are confidential and free, and ministers range in age from thirty-something to eighty-something. Spiritual Direction is offered by Rev. Kathryn Campbell and Jeanne Johnson, both trained at established programs (Shalem Institute and Creighton University respectively), providing confidential companioning that focuses on the movement of the Holy in everyday life. The Faith in Recovery ministry serves people struggling with alcohol, addictions, anxiety, depression, and other mental health issues, with trained volunteers walking alongside those in need and connecting them to resources such as CenterPointe, Alcoholics Anonymous, Narcotics Anonymous, Overeaters Anonymous, Lutheran Family Services, the Wellbeing Initiative, Voices of Hope, and the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. Animal Ministry provides resources and support to people and their animal companions, including an annual pet blessing, an annual pet memorial service, and grief support around animal illness or death.
Outreach and Social Justice: Hope House, Little Pantry, Meals, and Service Trips
The Board of Christian Outreach and its JustNeighbors Ministry coordinate a wide range of local, national, and international engagement. Locally, First-Plymouth partners with Matt Talbot Kitchen and Outreach (meals served on the second Saturday), Gathering Place (free hot meals served on the last Tuesday), Clinic With a Heart (volunteers serve on the first Thursday), Habitat for Humanity, the Lincoln Food Bank Backpack Program, and Friendship Home. A Free Little Pantry sits outside the building and empties within a day of being filled. The Hope House, a ministry of accompaniment with neighbors experiencing housing insecurity, hosts panel discussions during WNL about housing and homelessness in Lincoln.
Nationally, the church partners with Westminster Presbyterian Church on disaster relief trips, sends volunteers to Kamp Kaleo in Burwell for camps serving developmentally challenged adults, and travels to the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota through RE-MEMBER to learn about the Oglala Lakota people and assist with construction projects. International partnerships include building homes in Guatemala through ConstruCasa and a two-decade-long relationship with the Evangelical-Presbyterian Church in Ghana, through which First-Plymouth has helped build a medical clinic, nurses' quarters, and children's library, and dug a well. Peace and Justice ministries include Bread for the World and Plymouth Pride, the congregation's LGBTQIA+ ministry, which hosts movie nights and is open to all. The Indigenous Working Group sponsors education on Native history, the Doctrine of Discovery, and tribal boarding schools.
Sustainable Living and Climate Action
The Sustainable Living Ministry works to build awareness of creation care, foster sustainable lifestyles, and motivate environmental stewardship. From May through September, the God's Garden Produce Table in the outdoor patio lets members share extra produce, flowers, plants, jams, or honey with a free-will offering. Recycling and composting bins are placed throughout the building; all tableware is compostable. Dish Disciples volunteers wash dishes on Sunday mornings and Wednesday nights to reduce disposables. Electronic Recycling events are held in the east parking lot. The ministry also maintains the grounds with a Gardening Committee.
The Building: Architecture, Artistry, Weddings, and the Columbarium
The current building was dedicated on April 5, 1931, after the merged congregation outgrew earlier spaces. Additions followed in 1965 (chapel, east wing, renovated worship area, new pipe organ), 1988 (renovated kitchens, memorial garden and columbarium, expanded carillon, and a fully equipped television studio), and 1994 (a three-level, sixteen-thousand-square-foot wing on the northwest end with a new 20th Street entrance, an elevator, accessible restrooms, classrooms, offices, and space for the music ministry). In 1996, a new Schoenstein pipe organ was installed. The building is considered an architectural icon, and the congregation has invested in commissioned art and detailed artistry as part of its mission.
First-Plymouth hosts weddings, baptisms, and funerals, and the columbarium in the memorial garden provides interment options for members. The building is also available for community use through a building calendar. The 9:00 a.m., 10:30 a.m., and 11:57 a.m. Sunday services; the Wednesday 5:30 p.m. service; and many choir and instrumental performances are livestreamed online and archived for later viewing. Recordings are accessible on YouTube and Vimeo.
Getting Connected, Giving, and Becoming a Member
Becoming a member begins with an informational class offered periodically, including during Wednesday Night Live. Newcomers can connect through the Welcome Team, a rotating group of ushers, greeters, and First-Welcome members who assist at every service. Pledges and one-time gifts can be made online through the church's Realm platform, with no fees and the option to direct the gift as desired. Planned giving options include bequests, retirement plan beneficiary designations, life insurance, payable-on-death accounts, qualified charitable distributions from IRAs, donor advised funds through the Lincoln Community Foundation, and gifts of appreciated stock. Pastoral staff are available for pastoral support through a Care Connection request form. A church app keeps the Herald newsletter, weekly Word, events calendar, and giving tools in one place. The congregation's mission - to "increase the love of God and neighbor" - is offered as both invitation and aspiration, free to be lived into in one's own way.