Pentecost Season, August 21, 2022
This Sunday:
This Sunday, August 21, Rev. Karen Campbell will preach from Jeremiah 1:4-10 and Hebrews 12:18-29 in the large service. Albert Strydhorst will preach from 2 Peter 3:3-14 in the All Nations Worship Service in Room 4. This Sunday we have the joy of ordaining new elders and deacons to serve on council.
The 10 am large service will be streamed via Zoom.
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Church News:
Art Changeover – Help needed this Sunday. This Sunday, following the worship services, we invite anyone available to help with our next art changeover. As we move into Creation Season, we will be meeting to assemble origami birds that will be hung in the large worship space. You don’t have to know origami to join – we will have teachers to help us out. The more volunteers we have, the quicker we’ll go!
Liturgical Dance Opportunity – Creation Season begins Sunday, August 28 and dancers – returning or new – are invited to join the opening and closing song. Rehearsal will be held Thursday, Aug 25, at 6:30PM.
COS Duty Rosters: Sharing in Hospitality and Care! At COS we have a long tradition of sharing in weekly duties related to worship and welcome. Our duty rosters include Coffee Duty, Nursery Duty, and Communion Elements Duty. Currently Ellen Westrate is taking care of our communion elements to limit Covid exposure (thanks Ellen!), so that roster is inactive. The rest of us, with a few exceptions for health/safety, will be assigned to coffee or nursery duty on occasion. Please look for an email next week with the new three-month duty roaster schedule—you might be on it! If you find you’re scheduled at a time you’re unavailable, please swap assignments with someone else on the schedule. You’ll receive an email reminder a week before you’re scheduled to serve.
Spiritual Trauma Healing Group: As a community of believers, we lament the reality of spiritual trauma. Certain texts in Scripture can be twisted to cause harm, and a victim’s connection to God can be compromised. If you would benefit from a small, therapist-led group, there are two ways to take a step toward healing: 1. call or email Josh Baron, the therapist who will lead the group this Fall or 2. get in touch with Ben Videtich for further details. Going straight to Josh allows for total anonymity, as he is removed from the COS community. Touching base with Ben, if you’re comfortable with it, allows for more information before a screening email and call with Josh. We leave it to you to decide which feels right. Josh is a warm and welcoming person who holds an authentic faith, and has facilitated healing groups over his 16 years of experience as a therapist. The group will meet six Tuesdays in a row at 6-7:30pm beginning October 4th, ending November 8th, at Josh’s office – near Burton and East Beltline.
Tutors and drivers are needed for Refugee Youth Tutoring program! The Refugee Youth Tutoring program provides tutoring/mentoring for our middle-school and high-school students of refugee background. No experience necessary, just the willingness and commitment to spend an hour each week with one of our students. You’ll help with homework, practice conversational English, and use the provided materials to help build your student’s skills in reading, writing, and math. Sessions take place in person at COS on Mondays, from 4:30 to 6:00. No prep necessary, and training is provided.
If tutoring isn’t for you but you’d like to get to know some wonderful teenagers, we also need drivers! If you could drive a couple students either to or from COS on Mondays, it would be a huge help. Contact Kate Snow to learn more.
It is time to begin thinking about 2023 giving envelopes. We ask that you fill out a form which you can find in your COS mailbox (or this online form) if you would like to continue/begin receiving giving envelopes in 2023. Please plan to mail the form to COS or drop off to COS office by September 20th. If you have any questions, please contact Angelica Zahrt, Treasurer by email aj.zahrt@coscrc.org or by phone 616-956-7611 ext 29.
From Monica Smith, new Church Administrator: Thank you for the warm welcome to COS. Over the next few months, I hope to meet more of you in-person. My first week on staff as Church Administrator went well. Currently, I plan to be in the church office M-Th 8:00am-3:00pm, as meetings and activities allow. My church email address is monica.smith@coscrc.org. ~Monica
2022 marks the thirteenth year of the New Psalm Contest at Church of the Servant, but the history of encouraging new songwriters is as old as the church, which celebrates its 50th anniversary this year. We look forward to continuing the tradition of encouraging new songs for the church through this contest. We have enjoyed the quality and diversity of entries over the past twelve years, and we would be delighted if you would take part or spread the news to those who might have a new Psalm to share for this year’s contest. Submissions must be emailed or postmarked by October 1, 2022. The winning songs will be premiered in worship on February 12, 2023. Learn more on the COS website.
50th anniversary Celebration. This year, Church of the Servant is blessed to celebrate its 50-year anniversary. In anticipation of this milestone, we encourage you to save Sept. 17-18 for our anniversary celebration. We will hold a celebration on Saturday, Sept. 17 from 4:30-8 pm at COS. The evening will include dinner as well as programming that looks back at our 50 years as a congregation and looks forward to God’s future of the church.
On Sunday, Sept. 18, we will gather for worship at 10 am followed by an all-church meal outside. More details and formal invitations will follow. For now, we encourage you to save the dates as we look forward to celebrating with our COS friends. Learn more at coscrc.org/fiftyyears
There is still time to enter a piece of artwork in the 50th Anniversary Celebration show at COS. The theme is Tree of Life. It can be any medium. If you have questions or have an unusual piece in mind like 3D or somesuch, please be in touch with Betsy Ratzsch. Deadline for delivery of the work is the week ending with Sept 9. All are welcome to enter a piece. Please plan to have it ready to hang. call with question:Betsy Ratzsch 616-682-9930. Thanks!
As the summer winds down, we should not neglect to thank the Creation Care Team, and especially Hope Bradley, who watered and weeded them so faithfully, for the beautiful expanse of native flowers that have graced our entrance area this year. What joy they have given to us all! If you’re interested about what native plants have been added to the entrance area, find this map on the CCT page of the COS website.
Understanding Racism Workshop. To our brothers and sisters in Christ, CORE (Community Organizing for Racial Equity) announces our next workshop: November 10 (evening), 11 and 12. These Understanding Racism workshops are open to everyone in our congregation. It is our hope and prayer that COS people continue in this work of understanding racism, becoming an ever brighter light in the community as to what God-led antiracism looks like. Our times are always fraught with racial tension. By attending a workshop and joining in the ongoing task of dismantling racism as a Christ follower, we can do good work together. These workshops will be held at Church of the Servant. Registration costs are covered by our COS budget. Please prayerfully consider attending. Register at COREnow.org
Housing, Childcare, Mental Health, Transportation, Immigrant & Refugee Well-Being and Public Safety. Are you interested in these local issues from a policy and program perspective? There is exciting, cooperative work going on by a new organization – TOGETHER WEST MICHIGAN. Local churches, non-profits, businesses, and other groups are working together on each of these areas, and looking for interested people to be part of volunteer teams. COS would love to have some members involved with these research and action teams. For more information, contact Marc Beversluis, Carol Rienstra, or Lori Wiersma, or check out their web site: www.organizewmi.com