Pentecost Season, Week of Sunday, August 16, 2020
On Sunday, August 16, we will continue to worship in homes, individually, but still as one body as we seek to be prisms of God’s light in liturgy and in life. This week Pastor Gary Burge will bring us a message based on the scriptures of Genesis 45:1-15 and Romans 11:1-2a, 29-36. Each week we will add a new post that includes a house church liturgy, messages from the pastors, resources for leaders, and media to accompany worship. Resources, videos, and liturgies can be found on the Church of the Servant website at coscrc.org/category/housechurch
The past two Sundays have been a wonderful start our 4-week series of outdoor worship services in the COS Courtyard.
This coming Sunday, please join our third outdoor service at 6 pm. These outdoor services will be held in addition to our 10 am Sunday morning Zoom services. This will be a 30-minute Vesper-inspired service in the courtyard on August 16 at 6 pm. Pastor Karen Campbell will lead us in a meditation on Ruth 3. Sign up for the service here.
Some notes about the service:
- To encourage social distancing and safety, the service is limited to 100 participants.
- There will be no corporate singing and no communion – but we do invite people to participate in the spoken liturgy.
- Children are welcome but bear in mind there are no specific children’s programming. We do have worship activity sheets available.
- Masks will be required during the service as well as when entering and exiting the area.
- Please bring your own chair. Umbrellas are recommended for shade.
Church News
Financial Update – Last week’s offering and online giving (including monthly ACH): $35,362.73 (3 Sundays left)
Current Total Giving for the month of August $51,143.24
Our monthly General Fund budget is $119,028.
Dark Times: Deep Grace Join us on Facebook live in the COS Facebook group each Wednesday at 8.30 pm as we read psalms of lament and pray in creative ways together. The time together includes songs, art, and words of lament as we navigate these difficult times with a sense of deep grace. You can view previous Dark Times Deep Grace videos online here.
From CORR: At the beginning of 2020, CORR was stepping into a new curriculum – new content and a new mode of delivery. We were excited to be able to share this with you and the feedback from the first workshops done in 2020 was very positive. Then, we had to cancel April’s workshop…and then June’s…in the hopes that we would be able to convene in person workshops again soon. Yet, it’s clear now that is likely not going to happen for awhile. The trainers have been working hard to shape the curriculum into a format that can be delivered virtually. We are happy to say that this has been accomplished and we are ready to offer it to you!
Read the full message, with information on upcoming workshops here.
To encourage Psalm-singing, Church of the Servant invites congregational songwriters to submit a Psalm-based song to its 2020 COS New Psalm Contest. The first place winner will receive a $500 award; the second place winner will receive a $200 award. There is no entry fee and the contest is open to all. Submissions must be emailed or postmarked by October 1, 2020. The winning songs will be premiered in worship on January 31, 2021. This contest is made possible by a generous donation in memory of Ben Fackler, who loved all things musical. Learn more at: https://www.churchoftheservantcrc.org/2020-cos-new-psalm-contest/
Prayer and requests
Justice Highlight for the week: The COS Anti-Racism & Reconciliation team met together, outdoors and safely distanced, on Tuesday, August 11. We praised God for answers to our prayers: the successful implementation of a first online CORR (Congregations Organized for Racial Reconciliation) Understanding Racism Workshop and the Grand Rapids Police Department’s draft of a 3-year strategic plan to transform policing that includes “collaborating with community leaders and past offenders” and “greater involvement in restorative justice programs.”