Neighborhood Cook-out planning meeting Sunday August 25, 2019
Hello Everyone!
It’s time to gather together and do some planning! Our 6th annual Neighborhood Cookout is coming right up on Sunday, September 8th. It will be a big day — God’s Work/Our Hands Sunday for Lutherans throughout the US and Rally Day at Grace Church. If you are available, please join Tom and me in Fellowship Hall after the 10:30 a.m. service. We will have a light lunch and then a brief meeting. I think this will be the only meeting we need before the Cookout takes place. There are now sign-up sheets in the Narthex. Mike Bertrand will be coming to the Cookout again with his delicious pulled pork sandwiches. Teams of Grace members will go out on Labor Day Weekend once again to hang the door hanger invitations. One topic I anticipate we will need to talk about is whether there should be any “tweaking” of the Cookout layout to compensate for the construction site so close to the parking lot. But even as we are “under construction”, I can’t wait for this year’s Cookout to happen! What a special opportunity it will be to connect with our neighbors! If you are able to attend the planning meeting, please contact me, Barbara Andersen at twanderson@comcast.net
Save the Date! “God’s work. Our hands” – Sunday, September 8, 2019
This day is an opportunity to celebrate who we are as the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America – one church, freed in Christ to serve and love our neighbor.Service activities offer an opportunity for us to explore one of our most basic convictions as Lutherans: that all of life in Jesus Christ – every act of service, in every daily calling, in every corner of life – flows freely from a living, daring confidence in God’s grace. We work every day to make your community a better place. Let us continue doing this work together in 2019!
Grace Neighborhood Cook-Out : Our Sixth Annual Neighborhood Cookout in our parking lot, September 8th beginning at 12 noon.
We need everybody to pitch in and share God’s love with our neighbors and each other! How can you help? There are so many ways…donate food or drinks, help with games, volunteer at a table, or just come to hang out and be sociable. God calls us to action and this is one way we can respond. Sign-ups are in the Narthex and by the Chapel or call the church office at 717-397-2748.
Rally Day Sunday, September 8, 2019
Rally day is the Sunday we “rally” everyone back to our fall education schedule. We begin another school year of excellent Children and Youth (pre-school – grade 12) Christian Education Programs from 9:00 – 10:15 a.m. Parents please come to your child’s classroom to meet their teachers and to fill out emergency contact forms. Children will be singing at the 10:30 service that morning. Bring your backpack for a blessing! We hope all our Sunday School families will join us in the parking lot for our 6th Annual Neighborhood Cookout immediately following the late service.
Stories Jesus Told by Greg Carey begins Sunday, September 15, 2019
Join Angie Smith and Doug Halter and learn how to read, interpret, and understand the parables of Jesus.We love stories. That’s why we go to movies, read books, and listen to friends recount an experience. That’s also why teachers use the technique of storytelling to make a difficult concept easier for us to process. Jesus told stories, or parables, for that very reason—and to help us understand how God wants us to live life. Sometimes, however, stories like the Good Samaritan and the Prodigal Son can be interpreted in more than one way. Even Bible scholars are divided on their meanings. In Stories Jesus Told, you’ll explore six of Jesus’ parables to learn how to read, interpret, and live them in your daily life.
Greg Carey has taught at Lancaster Seminary since 1999, having previously taught at Rhodes College and Winthrop University. His publications include numerous studies on the Book of Revelation and ancient apocalyptic literature, rhetorical analysis of the New Testament, and investigations of early Christian self-definition. He is the author of five books, including The Gospel According to Luke: All Flesh Shall See God’s Salvation and Sinners: Jesus and His Earliest Followers.
Copies of the book can be purchased through the church office for $15. If you would like a book please contact Angie Smith, 717-397-2748 or graceelcaapd@gmail.com. Please order books by September 1, 2019.
Mark your calendars for the October Sunday Social!
Pastor Verkouw, Kathryn Verkouw, and Vicki Mumma will travel to Puerto Rico on October 30th for a nine day mission trip to assist in the clean up and restoration of homes damaged by hurricane Maria.
On Sunday October 6 at our Sunday Social there will be a brief presentation and a delicious lunch featuring Puerto Rican fare! A free will offering will be taken to help offset the cost of the trip. We hope you will join us and support this worthwhile cause!
Pastor, Kath, & Vicki
Donate through GoFundMe or make checks payable to Grace Lutheran Church (memo Puerto Rico)
Stewardship Snippets
August 25, 2019 (Time after Pentecost—Lectionary 21, Proper 16, Year C) Luke 13:12 – When Jesus saw her, he called her over and said, “Woman, you are set free from your ailment.”
We don’t know the exact diagnosis of the crippled woman, yet we know Jesus heals her and sets her free. Jesus desires to free us from all our dis-eases: crippling debt, misplaced priorities, mass consumerism, and all the related disordering of our lives caused by believing “the lie of more.” Are you ready and willing to be healed?
Lutheran World Relief
Remember – the Lutheran World Relief Ingathering, will take place October 5/6. Loose items and the specified-size bath towels will be collected from now until the Ingathering. You can put your items in the Narthex or at the closet in Fellowship Hall or bring them to the church office. If you care to donate instead of bringing items, checks can be written to the church and marked “Grace Church – Lutheran World Relief Ingathering.” Barbara Slotter @ 342-2654 or Linda Fackler @717-449-5574
Thank You!
I want to offer special thanks and express my heartfelt gratitude to Bob & Peg Hull for their unfaltering dedication to ensuring that Grace members receive the Grace News throughout the year. For 20+ years, every Tuesday, the Hulls would come to the church office to prepare the Grace News mailing and deliver it to the post office. The time has come for them to retire—please be sure to thank them for this gift of service to Grace Church. I will miss sharing time with them on Tuesdays. Love you both!
Vicki
gracelutheranchurch.com 