Zion E-News (12-13-2018)
If you read nothing else in this e-mail you should read this and pray for this man and his church. Seriously. Read it. Pray.
Connect to God
In a world filled with war and violence, with oppression and corruption… in a world where more and more people are giving up on even the idea of God, we may be tempted to wonder if God has given up on us. As Karen Armstrong asks in her book The History of God, we may wonder, “Does God have a future?” But John reminds us God has not given up on this world. God has not abandoned it. God sees the darkness, but he sends his son to be the light for everyone. The world may not recognize him, many may not receive him, but this Advent we ask ourselves, “Have we received this word made flesh, the light that is coming, Jesus?”
If you would like a copy of the worship service, you can receive a complete copy by contacting Tom Verbrugge or you can find the weekly messages on our website.
Grow in Community
Congratulations to Chip and Becky Harkes who welcomed Evelyn Rebecca into the world at 3 am this morning. Evelyn is 8lbs 1oz and 20.5 inches long. Mother and baby are both doing well.
Dave Geenen is recovering from knee surgery this past Tuesday. Please pray for continued healing and increased mobility.
Robie Dunn underwent back surgery this afternoon, Please hold both he and Sandie in your prayers as he begins his recovery.
Tom and Marcia Verbrugge request prayers for their grandson, Conrad Burton, who has been diagnosed acute lymphoblastic leukemia after three years of remission.
David and Marlene Maier request prayers for their son-in-law, Mark Bremer, who has been diagnosed with colon cancer. Please pray the cancer is contained and that an upcoming surgery to determine the extent of the cancer and the best course of treatment.
In early January, we will be starting a new women’s exercise class on Monday nights. It will be a great time to both get some exercise and connect with other women at Zion. If you are interested in learning more, you can sign up on the Connection Card on Sunday.
Serve the World
Christmas is a key season for churches new and old to reach out and welcome new people into their community. Join me in praying not only for our church to practice gracious hospitality this season, but also for City Chapel during its first Christmas season and for Lifeline Community Church that both our church plants may boldly share our hope in the newborn king this season.
Administrative Details
As many of you may know, in September our Consistory went on a retreat together to discern God’s call for Zion in the next several years. We will be sharing this vision in more detail early next year, but the core of our vision is a desire to raise up Christian leaders in order to plant new churches in the Grandville and Georgetown Township communities.
As part of this visioning process, we also have been assessing our ongoing needs at Zion in order to continue welcoming new people into our congregation. We are working on everything from assessing our outreach ministries to creating leadership development resources and assessing our building use. Currently, the Consistory is interviewing potential architects to help us better use the footprint of our building to more effectively welcome more people to our church. We are asking specifically for help in rightsizing our children and youth spaces and improving the traffic flow in the building on Sundays with some more welcoming gathering areas.
As you think about your upcoming end-of-year giving, please consider giving to our new Church Remodel Fund. Going forward, we will involve the congregation in both the design and decision process of any remodel, but wanted to share this opportunity to financially support this effort as we begin dreaming of how we can use our facility even better to reach people for God.
We continue to thank God for his provision of all of our needs and for the generous support of our congregation with their time, talent, and treasures.
Fiscal Year to date budget: $304,505.60
Fiscal Year to date contributions: $293,063.52
