It's been a week of prayerful remembering: Remembering the 2,996 people that lost their lives, and over 50,000 injured, in the 9/11 attacks 19 years ago, Remembering the Birmingham, Alabama racist church bombing that killed 4 Black children 57 years ago on 9/15 (those girls would have been women in their 60s now with rich lives and rich history), Remembering those suffering from wildfires around the nation especially on the West Coast, Remembering the over 190,000 lives lost so far to Covid-19, Remembering the many Black and Brown lives lost as racial tensions continue, Remembering the good people who serve and protect with honor, Remembering...
God hear our cries.
Exhaustion is a chief obstacle to prayer. Most people do not realize their weariness until they have time to sleep and find themselves sleeping many hours. You may have noticed this during the Covid shutdown. It forced us to return to a quieter, slower pace. It brought back sabbath time: time to enjoy each other & our passions and time to be with God.
If you feel weary by the world, draw nearer to God in prayer. If you feel the division and hatred is too much, come closer to God in prayer. If you feel lonely, invite God into your day.
Psalm 118: 5-6 tells us:
"In my distress I prayed to the LORD and the LORD answered me and set me free.
The LORD is for me, so I will have no fear. What can mere people do to me?
Yes, the LORD is for me; he will help me."
~Adapted from Openings: A Daybook of Saints, Psalms, and Prayer
Flooding & Building Policy Update:
We have received word that the church building has been dried out and cleaned following the Labor Day storms! Hallelujah! Thank you again to all those who participated in coordinating the clean-up effort! It is now safe for staff and volunteers to resume "normal" (still following current Covid Building Policies) activities.
Important Note: As of Thursday, September 10, the State of Ohio upgraded Summit County from "Orange Phase" to "Red Phase". Please follow proper GSCC building policies listed for "Red Phase".
Coffee Table Conversation
Join us for our Coffee Table Conversation today, Monday, September 14 at 7:30 pm. We will be continuing our in-depth discussion on the book Pre-Post-Racial America by Sandhya Rani Jha. Discussion will be for chapters 6-9.
Below you will find discussion questions to ponder for the upcoming conversation:
Ch 6: Are there similarities between class bias and race bias? Is there a double penalty for some members of the community who are seen as both? Ch. 7: What does supporting people of different religions when they are persecuted have to do with the Beloved Community? Ch. 8: What does the issue of the school-to-prison pipeline have to do with the Beloved Community? Ch. 9: What conversations have you heard about Native American named sports teams? What do you think about them? Have you heard the thoughts of Native Americans in our community? Why or why not?
Due to a scheduling conflict, Prayer Group and Bible Study are canceled for this week. Normal meetings will resume next Wednesday, September 23.
Welcome Table Auction
Join us! There will be an auction to support the Welcome Table Food Ministry on Friday, September 18, 2020 from 9:30 am - 12 pm. The auction will be held outside, so please bring chairs, masks, and be prepared to follow safe distancing practices. There are many super amazing items that have been donated from various businesses to make this a fantastic success! Please come support our ministry! The auction will be held at 23515 Drake Road, Oakwood Village, Ohio 44146. We hope to see you there!
Items up for Auction:
Paw Patrol E-Cruiser
YardForce Battery Operated Lawn Mower (with bag and batteries)
VTech Touch & Learn Activity Desk Deluxe
Quench MicroWater Complex Face Care Kit
& so much more!
Prayer Service Gatherings Continue
Join us again, on the 4th Sunday of September at 6:15 pm for outside Prayer Service! All are invited to join in-person, with masks and safe distancing, outside the church in the back-lawn area. Please bring your own chair or blanket. For those not able to be together, we are attempting to also view the service via GoToMeeting.
September 27th @ 6:15 pm: Pet Blessing -
Our pets are a blessing to us…join us in blessing them!
Bring your pet (or a photo of your pet) to the front lawn of the church to not only have your personal pet blessed, but all of God’s animal kingdom blessed.
World Communion Sunday
Do you bake bread or enjoy a special bread? World Communion Sunday will be celebrated on Sunday, October 4. We would love to have pictures emailed to the church office by Sunday, September 27, of your bread. Pictures of you baking it or just the bread on your table to be used in a slide show during our worship service.
We would also like to widen our outreach of World Communion Sunday to the community! If you are able to bake small loaves of bread of any kind and wrap them individually, we would love to give them to our families that pick up food through our Welcome Table Ministry that afternoon. They can be dropped off at the church on Sunday, October 4 between 9 & 9:30 am or between 11 & 11:30 am. If you have any questions please contact the church office.
If you have a prayer request for the Pastors and/or to be held in prayer by members of our community, please fill out a Prayer Request form. You can also find the form on the homepage AND the "contact us" section of our website.
Live Stream Worship Continues
For the protection of our faith & larger community as the Coronavirus pandemic continues, worship will continue to be offered via live stream or dial-in until otherwise announced. Please join us on: YouTube or go to the Good Shepherd Christian Church website and click the "Live Stream" button.
Make sure you click the "like" and "subscribe" buttons under the live stream video to help us improve the access to our YouTube channel! Thanks.
For easy audio dial-in access using only your home phone, without a computer:
Call this TOLL FREE number: 1-866-899-4679
When prompted dial this access code: 668-689-701
We also have DVD’s of weekly worship. If you are interested in receiving a weekly DVD, please contact the church office.
In-person gatherings for this week:
There are no in-person gatherings scheduled for Sept 14 through Sept 20.
Virtual gatherings for this week:
Coffee Table Conversation will meet today, Sept 14 @ 7:30 pm (see above announcement for information)
Meet & Greet with Pastor Nina is Sept 15 @ 6:30 pm
Prayer Group and Bible studied are canceled this week.
Worship Sept 20 @ 10 am
Meet & Greet with Pastor Nina is Sept 20 @ 11 am
To use GoToMeeting:
To join us from your computer, tablet, or smartphone please click here or go to https://www.gotomeet.me/GSCCOH
If you do not have access to a computer, tablet, or smartphone, you may also dial-in using your phone. To join us using this method please call this toll-free number 1-866-899-4679, and when prompted, dial this access code: 668-689-701.
New to GoToMeeting? Get the app: Click here: GoToMeeting or visit https://global.gotomeeting.com/install/668689701
Welcome Table Food Ministry
Community meals are the 1st and 3rd Sundays of the month! We now distribute dinners through a drive-thru format, placing bagged meals directly into the guest's trunk so we protect our guests and volunteers through social distancing. Please be respectful and adhere to social-distancing policies while using this service. We will also have bags of shelf-stable food available for pick-up at GSCC on Wednesdays from 11:30 am - 12:00 pm. Please email us here or here for assistance.
Welcome Table Volunteer Opportunities
If you would like to volunteer your time with the Welcome Table Ministry, there are multiple opportunities to do this. Below are the links to the sign-up forms.
Birthdays:
Sophia Belli - September 14
Kevin Kuntz - September 15
Robin Tami - September 18
Judy Sublett - September 19
Anniversaries:
Gary & Sharon Pugh - September 14
*This section will be a permanent addition to our biweekly updates and will be updated every week.*
Monthly Newsletter Information
Due to the "day to day planning" nature of our lives right now, all of us at Good Shepherd Christian Church have agreed that we would be able to better serve you by keeping you updated more often! This is why we are temporarily suspending the monthly newsletter to be replaced by these biweekly "mini newsletters". If there is anything you would like to share with the congregation, we would be happy to share it for you in these updates! The "minis" will be sent out every Monday and Thursday afternoon. If there is something you would like to add please submit those requests by 9am Monday (for Mondays "mini") and 9am Thursday (for Thursdays "mini"). Those submissions may be sent to office.gscc@gmail.com. As always, you may also visit our website for more information at www.goodshepherdchristianchurch.org.
If you have questions, or difficulty with this email, please contact Pastor Jill at sfpastor.gscc@gmail.com
YardForce Battery Operated Lawn Mower (with bag and batteries)
Quench MicroWater Complex Face Care Kit
