Happening This Sunday
New Member class meets at 9am! We meet in the church living room (near the church office) for an opportunity to consider the importance of membership and to continue to learn more about our congregation. Please come! Email Chris Klein at chris.klein@coscrc.org with questions.
GPS, 9am in room 3: For two Sundays, May 12 and 19, Todd Cioffi, director of the Calvin Prison Initiative (CPI), will provide an overview of mass incarceration in the US and the role of higher education in transforming our prisoners. More specifically, Todd will provide an overview of CPI, which is a partnership between Calvin College and Calvin Theological Seminary. The Calvin program offers up to 100 prisoners an opportunity to earn a B.A. in Faith and Community Leadership at the Richard Handlon Prison in Ionia, MI. The program is currently in its fourth year and is having a significant impact on the transformation of Handlon Prison. Come and hear what God is doing through the CPI program, which will include testimonies from a former CPI student and current Handlon Prison administrator.
Next Sunday
New Member class meets next Sunday at 9am in the church living room.
A Children and Communion class will be offered on Sunday, May 19th, following worship: Meeting in the Living Room at 11:45am, the Children and Communion Class is for children who may wish to participate in the Lord’s Supper at a later date (A parent should attend with their child.). This is an age-appropriate class about the meaning of communion and the commitment of (possible) future participation in the Lord’s Supper. To sign up, please send an email to andrea.saul@coscrc.org
Youth News
High School – Last 2 weeks of our program year!
Sun., May 12, 9am Sunday School: Donuts and Discussion about next year’s plan for Sunday school. Be there!
Sun., May 19, 9am Sunday School: Last Class! Strawberry French Toast Casserole, slide show of our year together, and discussing plans for the summer. Hope to see you there!
Small Groups are encouraged to meet the week of May 19.
June 24 -27, 6-8pm: VBS! Sign up in the café to be a VBS Volunteer
Church News
The number-one reason blood donors say they give is that they “want to help others.” You can definitely help others by donating blood. On average, 1 out of every 7 people entering the hospital will need blood. Come to our drive here tomorrow, 5/13, 2-7pm. You will be someone’s hero! Check the online schedule – versiti.org/michigan – or the scheduling poster in the café for an available appointment time. Many thanks!
The COS Prisoners in Christ team is hosting a free, open-to-the-public training at COS (in the ESL classroom) about “The World As It Is vs. The World As It Should Be” on Monday, May 13, from 7-8:30 p.m. with Paul Turner, a lead organizer for the National Industrial Areas Foundation (IAF) and consultant to Grand Rapids Micah Center leaders. If interested in more information, contact Carol Rienstra, 616-724-6772 or Anneke Kapteyn, 616-308-5784.
The May ARTery Gallery Opening Event featuring Artist Janis Carpenter is tomorrow night (Monday, May 13) at 7pm.
The Micah Center and some local congregations invite all interested persons to a presentation by Ernesto Cortés, Jr., co-chair of the national Industrial Areas Foundation (IAF), and executive director of the West/Southwest IAF, on Thursday evening, May 30th at 7 p.m. at St. Francis Xavier Gymnasium, 250 Brown St. SE, (north of Burton, west of Madison). The IAF provides leadership training and civics education to poor and moderate-income people across the US and UK.
The Meijer Simply Give Spring campaign will begin on May 12 through June 22, 2019. You are encouraged to purchase $10 Meijer Simply Give donation cards at the Cascade Meijer during this time period, which will ensure that the COS food pantry receives credit for the donation. In addition, Meijer will add Double Match Days, which will be announced as soon as we know the exact dates. For every $10.00 Simply Give card purchase at Cascade Meijer, Meijer will match this with $20.00, (during the Double Match Days) so the COS food pantry will benefit with a $30.00 gift! If you buy a 30.00 Meijer Simply Give card, it will turn into a $90.00 gift to the COS food pantry. Ellen Westrate will collect monies from those who cannot easily go to the Cascade Meijer and will be purchasing these cards on your behalf on Double Match day. Please give your name and money in an envelope to Ellen. COS serves about 100 families a month in our church and our community through our pantry.
General Fund Giving Report – Our giving for 5/5, including weekly online giving, totaled $19,248. In addition our monthly ACH runs this week bringing total giving to $34,150. 2018-19 Monthly budgeted receipts were expected to be $119,028. This requires our general fund giving to be $29,757 each week. Our April receipts were $96,147.
Church of the Servant is seeking part-time Children’s Ministry Coordinator. We wish Andrea Saul and her family God’s richest blessings as they move to North Carolina where Garrett will serve as the pastor of a church. Her departure leaves us with a vacancy that should be filled soon. If you have a desire to nurture the faith of young children, please consider applying for this position. The Children’s Ministry Coordinator (CMC) will work with the Minister of Faith Formation to provide visionary leadership and oversight of the faith formation ministries that directly serve the children of the congregation ages 2½-years-old through 6th grade. The CMC equips and encourages children’s ministry volunteers and the wholecongregation* to instruct and nurture the faith of children at COS to the end that we all become and make faithful disciples of Jesus. (*At COS, congregation includes 2 worshiping bodies: 10am service in main worship space, and 10am Basic English Service in Fellowship Space.) This position is requires 15-17 hours/week for 46-48 weeks/year. A complete job description is available by clicking coscrc.org/jobs Applications are being accepted through May 27. Please submit resume and cover letter to annette.ediger@coscrc.org
Registration is open for the June 20-22 Understanding Racism Workshop. This workshop experience is designed to explore the deep racial complexity of the United States and begin to explore paths for reconciliation. Our goal is to gain insight in understanding systemic racism through the eyes of faith and Scripture. We encourage all leaders and members at Church of the Servant to attend one of these workshops. This effort helps us to become focused and work together to address one of our country’s greatest troubles. Register online at CORRnow.org.