We pray for your health and the healing of our nation as the rise of the COVID-19 Delta variant is causing strain on hospitals and healthcare facilities. As schools begin to reopen, we also pray for children who have not reached vaccination age.
 
To maximize protection against the Delta variant, the Iowa Conference COVID-19 Re-entry Team encourages you to follow the Centers for Disease Controls (CDC) guidance for fully vaccinated people. The CDC recommends that "everyone wear a mask in indoor public settings in areas of substantial and high transmission, regardless of vaccination status. This decision was made with the data and science available to the CDC at the time, including a valuable public health partnership resulting in rapid receipt and review of unpublished data.”
 
As most Iowa counties are now in substantial to high rates of COVID-19 transmission, we recommend wearing a mask for worship and indoor activities in our Iowa United Methodist churches. While severe illness is not likely in fully vaccinated persons, there are new documented cases of fully vaccinated persons transmitting the Delta variant of the virus to unvaccinated people who can become gravely ill. Given we still have a substantial number of unvaccinated people in Iowa, including children under the age of 11, the wearing of masks in worship seems a small sacrifice to care for our neighbors and friends at church.
 

Faith Builders Needed for Sunday School

Throughout their years of Sunday School, children develop a foundation of faith that will support them throughout their lives. At Grace, we are in need of adults who are interested in guiding our younger members, as they build that foundation, during Sunday School. As Christians, we are called to share our faith. It is a divine gift to have the opportunity to do so with children and youth. All curriculum is provided, as are all materials needed for each class. If you are feeling the nudge to share your faith, please contact Coreen Witke at 515.255.6400 ext. 230 or at coreenwitke@gracedesmoines.org. Our prayer is that we have a team of teachers that allows personal connections with each student and enough flexibility so that the responsibility for teaching is shared. Take some time to pray about your calling to see where your faith takes you.
 

We invite you to attend the Open Table on Thursdays from 6:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. in Room 201.  As our name implies, we model our group off the belief in the Methodist Church that all are welcome to the communion table, and we likewise welcome ALL including our LGBTQI family, agnostics, and anyone who has been hurt by the church to our weekly discussions.  We are an open-minded and open-hearted group meeting weekly to discuss faith, spirituality, and social justice.  We strive to create a space where contemplation, conversation, and questions are welcome and uncommon hospitality can take root.  We value open dialogue, foster relationships, and seek to create a community where we can both challenge and support each other as we explore what it means to live out our Christian faith.
 
If you are looking to reconnect with others following a year of COVID isolation, if you are interested in wrestling with questions of our common humanity, if you are searching for another way to hear God's voice, or if you just like the idea of sharing light snacks and soda with other flawed humans - please consider joining us for a night!  Come to the table.