ZION E-NEWS (10-3-24)

AS WE GATHER in person for Worship each Sunday at 9:30am the service can also be viewed on our website at zionreformed.online.church and streaming on our YouTube channel.

FOR THE next couple of months, there will be road construction on 36th Street between Kenowa and Canal. While you can drive on 36th currently, the driveways into Zion are affected. Please plan to enter the parking lot from the north side, off Fair Meadow.

SUNDAY WE celebrate the sacrament of communion together. We invite you to take some time to reflect and prepare your hearts as we come to this beautiful table of grace. In response to God’s gift of grace to us, we will give an offering for Zion’s benevolence fund. Benevolence funds are used in a variety of ways to come alongside people in our Zion family and in our local community.

PRAYER REQUEST: Continue to pray for those in our congregation who deal with ongoing health issues.

DISCOVER ZION CLASS: Would you like to learn more about Zion? Pastor Marcia will be leading a Discover Zion class on Sunday morning, November 3rd after the worship service. Brunch will be served. This is a great place to hear about Zion’s mission and vision, meet the ministry staff, and find out ways to get connected further in our community. If you are interested in becoming a member at Zion, we will share what membership looks like here as well. To RSVP, please email Pastor Marcia at mpratt@zionreformed.org.

CHURCH-WIDE BIBLE MEMORY: Led by our children, who regularly memorize Scripture for “Say It” days, we will be working together on a church-wide Bible memory challenge this fall. Our text is Philippians 2:1-4 from the New International Version: “Therefore if you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any common sharing in the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind. Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.”

MORNING OF SERVICE: As part of our intergenerational learning opportunity on Serving with Dignity this fall, we will be hosting a church-wide Morning of Service on Sunday, October 27th. We will begin in the sanctuary at our normal service time of 9:30 AM, and will open our time together with a song, meditation, and prayer. We will then spend the rest of the morning serving together!  EVERYONE is welcome to join us for the Morning of Service, even if you are not signed up for the Serving with Dignity class. We will have options available for all ages and abilities. You can register here for the Morning Of Service. And for those who sign up, you will receive a new Zion t-shirt to wear that day!

CHECK OUT our scarecrow entry for the Grandville Fall Fest! Our scarecrow is on the north side of Chicago Drive between Franklin and Division (post 7N) through Thursday, October 10.
If you are at the Festival on October 5 make sure to vote for Zion’s scarecrow at the voting table in the corridor from 11 am – 3 pm. One vote per person for the entire voting window. The 1st, 2nd, & 3rd place Scarecrows will be announced in the corridor at 3:15 pm on Saturday.

***Post a picture with our scarecrow and tag Zion on social media for a chance to win a $25.00 gift card to the restaurant of your choice!  The winner will be announced on Sunday, October 13!  Here is a sneak peek of the “almost finished” scarecrow! Thanks to the Deiter family for all their creative energy!

OUR NEIGHBORS at Western Michigan Comprehensive Treatment Center have invited our church to participate in a Trunk or Treat that they are sponsoring on Saturday, October 26th from 11 am – 1 pm and we are considering being involved in this – if you would be interested in helping to do a trunk, or volunteering to hand out treats by a trunk, or donate treats to hand out, please let Angie Walker know by October 13th.

ZION’S YOUTH GROUPS  will be joining the rest of the congregation at the Serving with Dignity Class on Sundays from 4:00 pm – 5:30 pm, with dinner to follow (this means no traditional middle school or high school youth group meetings, rather, we are shifting all 6th-12th graders to this full congregation course).

FIRST REFORMED CHURCH in Grandville invites you to a Women’s Conference called Flourish-Refresh, Restore, Thrive on Oct 19 from 9am-noon at the church. The event includes a charcuterie food table, workshops, some fun activities, and various resources. Workshop Topics include: Self Care, Parenting Adult Children, Difficult Conversations, Faith Formation for Children & Families, and Aging Faithfully. Registration is open (just $5 a ticket at the door). Registration link: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/4090E4EA9A82AA3F58-51393951-flourish

DONATIONS of the following items (full size – not travel size) are needed for the Personal Care Pantry and can be placed in the box in the narthex marked “pantry donations”.  Laundry Soap,  Bar Soap,   Dish Soap,  Disposable Razors,  Shampoo,  Conditioner,  Toothpaste,  Paper grocery bags, Deodorant, Tampons, Maxi Pads, Paper towels (1 or 2 pack) and  Toilet paper (1-4 pack).

IF YOU need help, either with food, personal care items, or financial needs, please contact Austen DeHaan, our chair of deacons, and he can help connect you with the appropriate resources at Zion. His e-mail is austin331@gmail.com and his phone number is (269) 762-9748

WE CONTINUE to thank God for his provision of all of our needs and the generous support of our congregation with their time, talent, and resources.

2024/25 YTD Budget:  $207,325.62
2024/25 YTD Contributions:  $163,970.14
Giving Last Week:  $10,517.73