Dear Brothers and Sisters at Messiah,
We will pray the service of Morning Prayer this coming Sunday, September 27 at 10 am. Rev. Bill Cate from Spring Lake will lead us in worship and proclaim God's Word. Continued thanks for all your help conducting our services in a prudent way that minimizes risk by:
Staying home if you are sick or have underlying medical conditions.
Maintaining minimum 6-foot social distancing by sitting on both sides of the sanctuary, with family groups alternating at the ends of every other pew. "No Seating" signs have been placed to assist with spacing. Family groups should space themselves 6 feet (approximately 3 people) apart from other family groups.
Wearing face coverings (mask, scarf, or bandana), which are recommended though not required. Masks will be available at the Welcome Center.
Giving your offerings electronically or at the sanctuary door.
Watching or listening to our worship service video (livestreamed and archived on YouTube) or audio (recorded and uploaded to our Worship Resources page) if you cannot attend.
Our next online Adult Bible study will be available on Sunday as well! We’ll dig into Psalm 25, where each verse begins with a succeeding letter of the Hebrew alphabet. What are the four prayers David prays in this Psalm? How does "fearing the Lord" rule out being "put to shame" -- and who can bring that about, anyway? Why has the Christian Church used portions of this Psalm for Sundays in Lent? The study will be posted on our YouTube channel Sunday morning by 8:30 am, for viewing at the best time for you. You can get a head start by downloading a study guide from our Bible Studies webpage.
As mentioned last week, LifeLight has resumed on Tuesday mornings at 10:30 am (based on the book of Revelation) and Wednesday evenings at 6 pm (based on the Gospel of Luke). In the next couple of weeks, you can also look forward to:
Confirmation/Pre-Confirmation Class for grades 5-8, starting Monday, September 28th at 6 pm
Sunday School for preschool thru grade 2, starting Sunday, October 4th at 9 am
LifeLight: Ruth/Esther, starting Sunday, October 4th at 9 am
The Parish Service Guild, resuming regular meetings Thursday, October 8th at 12:30 pm. Like the classes listed above, the Guild meeting will be limited to 10 people gathering in person, but online access to the meeting through ZOOM will be available for Guild members as well!
Finally, I'm happy to report that our Call Committee, lay leaders and other members who joined us online had an excellent visit with Rev. Paul Doellinger this past Tuesday night. We thank Pastor Doellinger for traveling to Grand Rapids to spend time with us, and pray God's blessing on him and his family -- both as he continues deliberating our pastoral call, and as his infant daughter is made a child of God in the sacrament of Holy Baptism this coming weekend. May the words "I am baptized into Christ" (from this coming Sunday's final hymn) be in all our hearts and on all our lips throughout the days to come!
Yours in Christ,
Rick Krueger, Parish Assistant
