grace lutheran church may 2020 may’s...
TRANSCRIPT
Grace Lutheran Church
May’s Grace
MAY 2020
Kids say the darndest things . . . . . "Solomon, one of David's sons, had 300 wives, and 700 porcupines." "Moses led the Hebrews to the Red Sea, where they made unleavened bread, which is bread without any ingredients." "Then Joshua led the Hebrews in the battle of Geritol." "David was a Hebrew king skilled at playing the liar. He fought with the Finkel-steins, a race of people who lived in Biblical times." "The greatest miracle in the Bible is when Joshua told his son to stand still and he obeyed him." "A Christian should have only one spouse. This is called monotony."
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GROWING WITH GRACE PRESCHOOL UPDATE March 2020
Though GWG remains closed due to the shelter in place orders, we remain in constant contact with families and staff. Our staff has been busy uploading videos, reading stories, creating activities, and doing video conferencing with students so that they can see and speak to their classmates and teachers during the quarantine. We want to THANK the congregation for their support in buying grocery gift cards for staff members, it is certainly appreciated during our closure. THANK YOU to our own "essential worker" parents, some of whom have not seen their children since the quarantine started due to the risks of their jobs. THANK YOU to the staff members who are picking up shifts at family homes, so that parents can continue to work in public safety and healthcare fields. We LOVE YOU, and MISS YOU GWG KIDS, but pray that this ordeal has made each of our families stronger! We hope to see you soon, and hear about all of your adventures at home! Happy Late Birthday to Archer, Hannah, Collins, and Sagan!
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Proverbs 29:18 “Where there is no vision, the people perish …”
Dear Friends in Christ, Wow, we made it through Lent, Holy Week and Easter. Christ is Risen. (He is Risen indeed. Alleluia.) It is great to hear once again about our Risen Lord and the eternal hope we have in Him. What joy there is to know that there is more to life than being born, growing up, having a family and then dying. WE HAVE A PURPOSE IN THIS LIFE. JESUS OUR LORD HAS CALLED US TO FOLLOW AND SERVE HIM. AND WHEN WE BELIEVE IN HIM, WE RECEIVE ETERNAL LIFE.
If you were unable to join us, I hope that you had the opportunity to watch a Church Easter pro-gram on television or online or listen to one on the radio. It was an interesting experience to have a car parking lot Easter celebration. We even had a few people who are not members of our church join us. God is able to reach out in innumerable ways. That is what we are to be about! Remember that during Holy Week and through these seven weeks following Easter, Christ’s disciples were quite timid and afraid. They were scared of what the world would throw at them. In a sense, I understand. When society tries to beat you up and you don’t know where the next punch is coming from, a person can become skittish. For decades I have been praying to be called to a church like Grace. One problem that I have experienced in past congregations is that they viewed the church as a business and not as a living entity; the Body of Christ. As a church we are to pay our bills and work with people, but it is not to accumulate money. Yes, we need money to function properly, but not in a business fashion. I have worked with churches who thought that money was a means to an end. The church is a nonprofit organization that is to go beyond itself to change lives, to change the world. There is more to the life of a church than just money. I think in previous years when serving as a minister, God took me through the Refiner’s Fire. After having received a call from Grace, I can see that God was changing me, teaching me to trust in Him more. In these last several weeks I felt God saying, “You have to ‘Walk the Line’; you need to ‘Stay the Course’; you need to “Be Bold for Me and Stand Firm”. Let me explain it another way. God had Moses send twelve spies into the Promised Land. Upon returning the spies reported about the large produce and the lush land, but also, they reported that there were giants in the land who devoured people. Ten of these spies were shaking in their boots; two were not. We don’t know the name of the ten, but we do know the name of the two — Joshua and Caleb. These two men were ready to con-quer the land, but the nation of Israel voted to listen to these ten men rather than God. These ten men and that generation of people weren’t allowed to enter the Promised Land and died. Joshua and Caleb led the new generation into the Promised Land and began to conquer it. They had faith that their God would lead and protect them as they followed Him. I know this virus that the world is facing is wicked and evil and that Satan is rejoicing. But for some reason and I can’t explain it, God wanted us to hold this Easter Worship Celebration despite what was happening. We were not careless and took all the precautions that was needed to stay safe. We didn’t go against the government’s request. We, as Grace Lutheran Church, took a bold stand and worshiped our Risen Lord in the face of the wickedness happening in God’s world. We, as Christians, are to “Stay the Course.” We are to stand firm in the face of evil in this world. As St. Paul says in Romans 8:37, “Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.” Yes, we are. For Christ has Risen … Sincerely, Pastor Bill
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Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul
and with all your mind and with all your strength. (Mark 12:30 NIV)
Birthdays not published on-line.
MEMORIALS In Memory of Sent by
Joe Presher Ken & Karen Rakieski Bill Presher Ken & Karen Rakieski Clara Deloe Ken & Karen Rakieski Jim & Mary Paterniti Hailie Cox Grace Yamamoto Nancy Allen Jim & Sharon Long Tom & Dianne Deloe
Vicki Sander & Amber Mays
May 3 - Jon Ransom May 10 - May 17 - May 24 - May 31 -
With Sympathy
Our Grace family extends sincere sympathy on your recent loss. Willie and Shirley Presher on the loss of Willie’s two broth-ers, Joe and Bill Presher Tom and Dianne Deloe on the loss of Tom’s mother, Clara Deloe. Dave and Jan Swanson on the loss of Dave’s sister, Grace Yamamoto.
June / July Newsletter
The June and July newsletters will be com-bined into ONE newsletter. Please note that the deadline for submitting articles for church activities during that time is May 18th. Thank you!
A BIG thank you to the Bradford Township Volunteer Fire Department for allowing us to borrow their sound system
for our Easter Celebration Service in the parking lot.
Thank you to all the doctors, nurses, police, EMT’s & health care workers for all they have been doing during this diffi-cult time.
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Love Letters
Do you know someone with a serious or terminal illness who may not have the support they need or a church family to support them? The Pastor and the Deacons would like to reach out to them with the love of Christ to help them with their spiritual, emotional and physical needs. Please contact one of the Deacons with the name and address of the person in need so a letter can be sent to them.
Deacons are: Michele Evers, Robb Evers, Mary Paterniti, Jim Roggenbaum, Stacia Roggenbaum, Wally Sander, Barb Steinhauer, Kathy Verbocy and Kay Wheaton.
Council Meeting
The Church Council meeting is normally held on the second Tuesday of each month at 6:30pm in the Social Hall. Please remember that the Congregation is always welcome to attend the monthly Council Meet-ings! There is also a suggestion box in the Welcome Center.
Please remember our shut-ins
The Pastor and the Deacons try to ensure that each person gets visitation and Communion at least once a month. BUT, a card, a phone call or a brief visit brightens the day for our brothers and sisters who can no longer attend services regularly. Cards and a list of our shut-ins are available in the Social Hall.
Sara Christjohn Marsha Denning Debbie Kelly Windsor House 354 Interstate Pkwy. The Pavilion at BRMC Snyder Memorial Health Care Ctr. 362-6429 200 Pleasant St. P.O. Box 680 156 Snyder Memorial Rd. Donna Lannen Judy Signor Marienville, PA 16239 24 Shep Run Rd. Sena-Kean Manor 596-0286 17083 Route 6 Smethport, PA 16749
Deadlines for Weekly Slides, Bulletin Items
Just a reminder that the deadline to have items placed in the weekly bulletin is Wednesday morning and the deadline for slides is Thursday morning. Please write the in-formation up in the manner you would like church secretary Dianne Deloe to print it.
Special Prayer
The Pastor and the Deacons invite you to come to the altar to have your needs or the needs of a loved one addressed in individual prayer. Prayer will be of-fered immediately following each service on the first weekend of every month, but always feel free to ask for prayer at any time.
Stewardship Minute
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“When Judas, who had betrayed Him, saw that He had been condemned,
he felt remorse and returned the thirty pieces of silver. . . .
And he went away and hanged himself.”
(Matthew 27:3)
What’s It Worth? by Larry Burkett
When we celebrate the resurrection of our Lord, we should turn our thoughts to the one who betrayed Him.
How much is your faith worth? I’m convinced that Judas, who sold out the Lord, didn’t realize what the outcome would be. Judas was the one Christ had assigned the responsibility of managing all the finances for the disciples. It wasn’t that Judas didn’t hear the Lord’s message—I believe that he even loved Him—he obviously loved money more than he loved Jesus.
When he was approached by the Jews and offered money to betray Jesus, the first thing he should have done was to refuse them and tell the disciples, but he listened to them—much like Eve listened to the serpent in the Garden of Eden. He heard a tempt-ing proposition and was trapped by his own weaknesses.
Judas sold out the Lord for what might have been as little as maybe five weeks of wages—not much when you consider what happened. I really don’t know if Judas thought they would kill Jesus or what he would have done if he had known.
What is your faith worth today? Would you sell out the Savior for money? Do you ever sell out your faith to save a little on your income tax? Would you sell it out for the time or things you steal from your employer?
Don’t be too critical of Judas until you examine your own life in the light of God’s Word. Ask the Lord to help you with a bit of self-examination.
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Church Office Hours:
Monday thru Friday ‐ 7:30am to 1:30pm
Parents & Grandparents of 2020 Graduates
Are you the proud parent or grandparent of a high school or college senior? If so, we would like to include them in our June/July Newsletter featuring our graduates.
We need the student’s name, school, future college or occupation and a picture if available. Please email the infor-mation to [email protected]. Thank you!
We must have this information no later than May 18th
GIFTS OF GRACE GIFT CARD PROGRAM (to Benefit Growing with Grace Preschool)
Orders with payment must be submitted by 11:00am on the FIRST SUNDAY of each month
NEXT GIFT CARD ORDER: SUNDAY, MAY 3RD
Questions? Contact Jackie Streb
Gift card orders with payment can be dropped off at the church office on Monday, Wednesday, or Friday, 7:30 a.m. to noon. The orders can be put into the safe (on the wall outside Dianne’s office), or handed to Dianne or Pastor. All orders with pay-ment must be in the church safe by 11:00 a.m. on Sunday, May 3rd, whether there is an in-church service or not. The order will be placed on May 3rd.
Grace Memorials / Altar Flowers Prayerfully consider donating to the Grace Memorial fund when you wish to make a memorial donation. When you donate to the Memorial Fund, a card is sent to the family of the person that you are remembering. Also, you may sign up for Altar Flowers on the chart posted in the Social Hall. This can be in memory of a loved one or friend or to commemorate a special event. To make a donation you may use one of the envelopes in the Welcome Center and place in the collection plate, the safe or call Sharon Long at 368-6711 or the Church Office at 362-3244.
Grace Lutheran
Church
CURRENT AND UPCOMING EVENTS
AT GRACE LUTHERAN CHURCH
The Grace Lutheran Church Newsletter is pub-lished monthly. Submissions for newsletters can be left for the newsletter team in the church office. The deadline for submissions is the 15th of each month. If you have any questions or comments about the newsletter, please e-mail them to: [email protected] or leave them in the church office.
Join Us For Worship!
Friday 6:30pm Crosswalk
Youth Worship
Sunday 10:00am Blended
Adult Education
9:00am
We’re On The Web!
www.agraceplace.org
Like us on Facebook: Grace Lutheran Ministries &
Growing with Grace Christian Preschool
Rev. Bill Waterman Pastor
79 Mechanic Street
Bradford, PA 16701 (814) 362-3244
Fax ((814) 362-6085
Community Life Center (814) 362-1236
Growing with Grace Christian Preschool
(814) 362-(GROW) 4769
[email protected] www.agraceplace.org
Join Us For Worship!
Friday
6:30pm Crosswalk Youth Worship at the CLC
Sunday
10:00am Blended
Adult Education 9:00am