Dear Brothers and Sisters,
We kicked off the new year of ministry this past Sunday! Moving from our previous Called to Flourish vision into the new Path to Discipleship, we want to maintain the momentum in the church to take the various components of discipleship deep into who we are as a church.
Attached are two documents toward this end. The Fall Ministry Events details several events over the next few months involving our church, including some events to help reach out to the community. The Path to Discipleship summarizes the new vision, including the three main components: Reach, Connect, and Flourish. We aim to Reach out to those in our community, Connect them to the life of our church, and hope that they would Flourish in Christ as both believers and members. Our ministry events will accomplish at least one of these elements, and many will accomplish two or all three of them! We trust that the Lord will show us as a church how best to be fruitful in the next stage of our life together as a community.
Pastor Rhett will continue our mini-series on the Path to Discipleship this Sunday with selections from 2 Chronicles 34-35 during King Josiah’s reforms of the kingdom of Judah. From this text we see a renewed fervor among God’s people to follow His law and show forth His glory to the surrounding nations. Let us see the glory of Christ crucified, resurrected, and ascended and show our community our great Lord.
Click here to access the livestream of this Sunday’s worship service (9:30am).
Fall Bible Studies Begin Soon
Tuesday Evening Women’s Bible Study (7:00 pm) will be studying the Gospel of John using the book That You May Believe by Kathleen Nielson. The study will be meeting at Amy Paglia’s home starting Sept 16th. Please contact Katie Wetherington or Amy Paglia if you plan to attend.
Wednesday Morning Women’s Bible Study will be reading Finding Freedom in Christ: An 8-Week Study of Galatians by Portia Collins (10:00am; Room 3/4).
Men’s Saturday Morning Bible Study (8:00 am) will be studying the book Forgive by Timothy Keller. The study meets at 8:00am at Larry LaBelle’s Home, except for Sept 27, Oct 4, and Oct 11 when it will meet in room 1 at the church.
Men’s Tuesday Night Bible Study (Begins September 16)
Want to “dig deep” into the Bible but don’t know what to do? Come to our Tuesday night men’s Bible study to find out! We’ll meet at 6:30pm on Tuesdays beginning September 16th at Sweet Reserve in Winfield. Together we will work through two 4-week studies in the Gospels to show us how to dig into Scripture. Invite a friend, neighbor, or co-worker! Talk to Jonathan for more information.
Ian Smith Memorial Service (Saturday, September 13)
Ian Smith, Liz Davenport’s father, went to be with the Lord on Sunday evening. His memorial service will be at Western Springs Baptist Church (4475 Wolf Rd, Western Springs, IL 60558). His visitation will be at 10am, and the service begins at 11am.
Evalyn Tyler Memorial Service (Saturday, September 20)
On Saturday, September 20 at 1:00pm a memorial service for Evalyn Tyler will be held in the Worship Center. There will not be a visitation before the service. Following the service, all are invited to a luncheon in the Mission Center. We will have a sign-up sheet for sides and desserts this Sunday.
Choir Starting Soon!
The choir will be starting up soon! The first rehearsal will be Wednesday, September 24 at 6:30pm. If you are a singer and are interested in joining, please email Jenn Wright.
Sunday Morning Volunteers Needed
Nursery, kitchen, communion set up, video or sound tech, and more! Being a volunteer requires a commitment of only a couple of times a year. If you would like to serve on Sunday mornings, please get in touch with Katie Wetherington in the church office. Thank you to all who faithfully serve each Sunday.
Prayer Requests and Praises
Vivian Wissing: Praise God for a successful neck surgery; pray for a quick and complete recovery.
Ian Smith: Pray for Liz Davenport’s family as they mourn the passing of Ian Smith, Liz’ father.
Pat Elam: Praise God for many years of wonderful ministry to those recovering from addictions and behavioral concerns. Pray for Pat as she is on hospice care for lung cancer; specifically, that she would hold fast to the Lord in this stage of her life. Pray also for the board of Eleeo as they transition to the next phase of ministry.
Family of Evalyn Tyler: Pray for strength and comfort for the family of Evalyn Tyler, who went to be with the Lord on August 28.
With joy,
Jonathan Keller