Dear Brothers and Sisters at Messiah,
Halfway through October, the pace of events here is ramping up!
PASTORAL VACANCY/CALL PROCESS UPDATE
A Special Voters meeting will be held on Sunday, October 29th, following Messiah's 10:00 am service. At this meeting, the voters will consider recommendations from our Call Committee and work together with them in calling a pastor to be our next shepherd at Messiah. Messiah members should have received a separate email with further information; contact Dave Ahrens or Ken Martin if you have questions. I ask all of you to continue in fervent prayer that God will work through our call process to send us the pastor He has in mind for us, according to His will and His time.
A reminder that our vacancy pastor, Rev. Jason Peterson of St. Peter’s Lutheran Church in Rockford, is in the office at Messiah on Tuesdays from 8:15 to 11:00 am. You can also contact Pastor Peterson by phone at 734-645-4353 or by email at revjpeterson@yahoo.com.
WORSHIP AND CLASS SCHEDULE
We continue with one Divine Service held at 10:00 am on Sundays, with Bible Class beforehand at 9:00 am. (Watch for an update on Christian Education for our children in the upcoming November newsletter.) Services are scheduled to be livestreamed at
Our website www.messiahgr.org
Our Facebook page www.facebook.com/messiahgr.
Bulletins formatted for use with our livestream are available for downloading and/or printing at home. These are posted at least two days before each service at www.messiahgr.org/worship-resources
Readings and hymns for each service are also listed in the informational note found on the same web pages as our livestreams.
Bible Class is also livestreamed at www.messiahgr.org/adult-bible-class.
Thanks to Pastor James Blain and Pastor Daniel Gruenwald for leading our Divine Services and Sunday Bible Classes during the rest of October. Our weekday classes continue as well:
The fall session of LifeLight: Galatians/Philippians/Colossians continues on Tuesdays at 10:30 am. Dwight Anderson and Shirley Hoese are team-teaching this course. Copies of the study guide are available; learn more about the course by clicking here.
CARES (Caring, Active, Reaching, Encouraging Sisters in Christ) continues on Wednesdays at 9:45 am. CARES will be reading and discussing the book God’s Provision in a Wilderness World by Lindsey Hausch. Click here for a book sample.
WHAT'S NEW, WHAT'S NEXT
Our October newsletterand our weekly announcements have details on these upcoming events:
Fall Clean-Up Day, sponsored by the Board of Trustees, this Saturday, October 21st. We'll be working inside and outside from 8:00 am through 12:00 noon. It's not late to volunteer! Contact Carol Mushong if you have questions.
Trunk or Treat, sponsored by the Board of Outreach, Thursday, October 26th from 6:00 to 7:30 pm. PLEASE NOTE: We still need many volunteers -- especially to bring their car trunks and help with carnival games -- along with donations of candy and light snacks. Check out our display at the Welcome Center; you can sign up to help there or in Bible Class!
Prayer Pals Gathering for all confirmed women Sunday, October 29th at 6:00 pm. Contact Debbie Krueger for more information.
Altar Guild meets Saturday, November 4th at 9:30 am to plan for the upcoming festival seasons of the Church Year. Contact Carol Mushong with any questions.
All Saints Day will be celebrated Sunday, November 5th! If you'd like us to include your late Christian friends and relatives in the commemoration of the faithful departed, fill out and return the slips available at Messiah's Welcome Center by Sunday, October 29th.
And look for information on these events that are new to the calendar, coming soon:
Annual Voters Meeting & Potluck, Sunday, November 19th after the Divine Service.
Joint Thanksgiving Eve Divine Service with St. Peter's Lutheran Church of Rockford, Wednesday, November 22nd at 7:00 pm at Messiah.
Christmas Bazaar & Cookie Walk, sponsored by the Parish Services Guild, Saturday, December 2nd from 9:00 am to 2:00 pm.
Advent Prayer Breakfast Saturday, December 9th at 9:30 am.
LOOKING AHEAD
This past Sunday's Scripture readings already gave hints of the Church Year's approaching end, as we reflected on Jesus' parable of the King's wedding feast from Matthew 21. Over the coming weeks we'll be taking a break from Christ's Holy Week teachings to consider His work in the lives of His faithful -- Martin Luther and the others whose confession sparked the worldwide Lutheran Reformation (on October 29th); and all saints in this world and the next (on November 5th). Through October and into November, may we gather to draw strength from God's Word and Sacraments, joining with "all the company of heaven" to praise Him for His gift of salvation -- by grace, through faith, given in Scripture and found in Jesus Christ alone!
Yours in Him,
Rick Krueger, Parish Assistant
