Give thanks to the Lord for he is good, his loving devotion endures forever.
– Psalm 107:1

Though it has been an unusually year of lock downs, masks, social distancing, and more anxiety than normal, it is also true that our God has been good to us. We have woken up each day. We have enjoyed food to sustain us. The sun continues to rise and set. Rain falls in its season and we enjoyed an unusually warm fall. And through it all, God has remained faithful and present in our lives.

As I was thinking over this past year, I wrote down a list of all things for which I am thankful, following are a few highlights:
1. My parents celebrated through 50th wedding anniversary this summer. I am thankful for their great example of fidelity and love for one another.
2. Our family enjoyed two weeks in the mountains this summer and it always does good for my soul to be in Colorado.
3. On a related note, I am thankful for our trailer that allowed us to spend two weeks out west.
4. Ethan started driving and Noah completed driver’s ed this year. I am thankful for my four kids who continue to grow into adults I want to spend time with and for no accidents or speeding tickets in our first year of teenage drivers.
5. We went on lots and lots of walks this spring and early summer. I am thankful for all the great parks in Ottawa County.
6. Teachers. I cannot imagine the flexibility teaching has required this year. I am so thankful for all the hard working teachers who have adapted and learned new skills to teach the children and teens in our community.
7. My discipleship triad. I have been in two triads this year and both challenged and encouraged me and kept me focused on listening to and follow Jesus.
8. Our staff. It has been an odd year to work for a church. Much of what we do has been centered on large group gatherings. Our staff at times have live don our phones calling and reaching out to people, tried new ways to meet virtually and outside at a distance, and worked hard to focus on all we could do rather than on what we could not do at any given moment. They are a joy to work with.
9. You. In a year of constant change and general low-grade anxiety in our culture, you have been gracious with each other, supportive in times of crisis, and faithful to God and to the community of Zion.
10. Jesus whose love and grace continues to be the foundation of my life.

Happy thanksgiving!

– Greg

Connect to God
Join us tonight at 6:30 for our Thanksgiving Eve service at zionreformed.online.church. While we are not meeting physically together, we have put together a great compilation of Zion members thanking God for all sorts of blessings this past year. We look forward to seeing you at 6:30 tonight!

This Sunday we will gather online at 9 and 11 am. You can find the services either on our Facebook page or at zionreformed.online.church. We will also rebroadcast the service on WCET at noon on Friday and 4pm next Sunday.
Most of us are familiar with the events of the first Christmas, The manger, The shepherd watching sheep. The angels singing. The wise men. The little baby wrapped in cloths lying in the manner. But what if this birth is not just any birth, but the one event on which all of history turns and that can transform our lives. Join us this advent season as we meet Jesus who comes to us as the Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, and Prince of Peace.

Grow in Community
Beginning this Monday, we will be reading through the New Testament as a church over the next year. We are encouraging everyone to use the Through the Word app on Apple or Android devices. This app not only has the scripture readings, but also a 9-10 minute teaching on the passage of the day. This could be a great way for our Discipleship Triads to study together or for a small group or family to do devotions together. If you are unsure how to install the app, we have made a short instructional video to show you how to do so on an iPhone. You can find that video here.

The reading schedule for this week is below:
Monday: Matthew 1
Tuesday: Matthew 2
Wednesday: Matthew 3
Thursday: Matthew 4
Friday: Matthew 5

You can also find the reading schedule on our website under the Ministries tab.

Beginning in January, Sheila Johnson will be leading a book discussion on the book The Color of Compromise by Jemar Tisby. If you are interested in thinking together about racial divisions in our culture and the role of the church, this would be a great place to be a part of that conversation. If you are interested in this book discussion, please contact Sheila at sheilaj2494@yahoo.com.

Serve the World
Our Thanksgiving offering this year will be used to support:
1. The Wyoming Family Network
2. The Pregnancy Resource Center
3. Jibit Aisha
Donations can be made via mail or online at our website. At the website, you can choose to donate to the general fund or to our thanksgiving offering. Thank you in advance for your generous support of these ministries.

If you need help, either with food, personal care items, help grocery shopping, or with financial needs, please contact Chip Harkes, our chair of deacons, and he can help connect you with the appropriate resources at Zion. His e-mail is chip@harkeslandscape.com and his phone number is 616-299-4804.

Administration
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:  $262,657.00
Fiscal Year to Date Contribution: $221,161.35
Giving Last Week: $11,163.84
Thanksgiving Offering: $1,900.00

Dear Congregation,

Your Consistory met last night to discuss how to respond to the latest orders from the MDHHS. Just as schools have been adjusting to these guidelines for the next three weeks, we are thinking through how we can both follow these guidelines and continue to worship our God, care for one another, and love our community well.

After considering recommendations from our staff, we decided to cancel all youth and children’s programming and to hold worship only online for the next 3 weeks. Further, we will not be allowing any use of our building by members or outside groups for special events during the next three weeks. We will continue to use the building for both Hand2Hand and the Personal Care Pantry.

I know this is sad news for many of us. It is for those of us on Consistory, too. We want to be clear that we are choosing to meet online because we think this is the best way to love our neighbors during this time. We want to do our part to help slow the spread of Covid-19 so that:

1. The doctors and nurses and all who work in our healthcare system will not be overwhelmed and will be able to care well for those who are sick.

2. Students can go to school in person because we know the strain virtual learning puts on families, students and teachers.

3. Nursing homes and assisted living centers allow visitors because we know the pain and suffering cause by the isolation experienced by many of the older people in our community.

I know this may feel like discouraging news to many in our congregation. Honestly, it is discouraging to me, too. And, we also know there is light at the end of this tunnel. Two possible effective vaccines appear to be on the way. But even more importantly, our God is with us. I woke up early this morning with the old hymn “His Eye is on the Sparrow” running through my head. It is a beautiful hymn that speaks of the presence of our God in times of suffering, depression, and loneliness. Even then, it reminds us, our God is still with us and he watches over us.

God is watching over you today. He is watching over Zion. He watches over our community and our country. We can trust in his care. He will carry us through.

– Greg

Thanksgiving is just around the corner. Lately, it feels like I am always just a few weeks behind the calendar mentally. It may be because our church education year started later due to Covid or because everything routine is just a little different then before Covid. Or maybe, time just slips by faster because I am getting older. Whatever the cause, Thanksgiving is drawing near and I had not give it any real thought.

But this week, our family has been starting to put some plans in place to celebrate the holiday with Rachel’s family. Her family is scattered around the midwest and so this is the year we usually celebrate Thanksmas (Christmas and Thanksgiving all on there same weekend). However, because we live far apart, none of us are in each others “Covid bubbles.” As cases have been rising rapidly the past couple of weeks, we are now trying to figure out how we can be together safely. (One family member works for a hospital and spends all day telling people to not gather in large groups, so even meeting at all is up in the air.) We have talked about renting an outdoor heater and simply meeting for pie in a garage, rotating who spends time with Rachel’s parents to limit the group size, or maybe even not meeting at all. No matter how we choose to celebrate, one thing is clear, it will not be a normal Thanksmas holiday.

And then, yesterday, I retreat I was helping lead with a friend at a local church was postponed due to the rising covid cases. I had been really looking forward to this weekend. We were going to help the leaders of this church dream about their future, imagine where God might be calling them, and it would have been with Pastor Rick’s son Jon VanderWall. And I really like spending time with Jon. I am feeling the losses of Covid again. It is hard when those events and moment we look forward to have to be changed.

We all have losses to grieve. Some much much bigger than changed holiday plans. I have moments when I want to ignore Covid and the guidance from health professionals and pretend it is no big deal so that we can all avoid the grief of not being together.

But then I remember the medical professionals in our church. I think of Ken Johnson in my office on a Sunday between services holding a meeting to figure out how to care for all the Covid patients at Spectrum. Or, Jacki Knott coming home from a shift in the ICU and needing to take a shower before she can even give her kids a hug. Amy Mott almost completing isolating since March so she can be healthy enough to care for her patients. Not to mention the overworked and just plain tired nurses. When I remember all of them, all those cancelled plans and  simply wearing a mask, washing our hands, and keeping our distance don’t seem like such a big deal.

It has been a hard year for many people. Finances are stretched for some due to lost jobs. Parenting is harder with kids being online or quarantined. Others worry for their health. Some are overworked and others wish they could find a job. Marriages are strained. But we are going to get through this. Maybe the light at the end of our tunnel will be the vaccines in the news this week. Maybe it will be something else. But, we will get through this. We will make it to the other side.

As we are temporarily cancelling our 11 am service, I have received several encouraging e-mails from our congregation. I want first to thank you for the ways you have been spoken so supportive of both our staff and the church during these months. And, secondly, to let you know how much you and the community of Zion means to us as well. There remains no better place to serve than right here at Zion.

If you are struggling, hit rough patch in life, or just need someone to listen, please don’t hesitate to reach out. We are here for each other. That’s what t means to be church.

– Greg

Connect to God
This Sunday we will gather indoors at 9am. You can sign-up to worship using the link below or on the front-page of our website beginning on Monday mornings. Following is the link to sign-up for worship this Sunday:
9 am service: https://zionreformed.churchcenter.com/registrations/events/623353

If you are not able to join us in person or would simply prefer to not gather in a large crowd yet, you can still join us for online worship. We will be live streaming both our 9 and 11 am services at zionreformed.online.church and Zion’s Facebook Page. We will also rebroadcast the service on WCET at noon on Friday and 4pm next Sunday.

In Ephesians 2, Paul says that Jesus has broken down the dividing wall that separated people from God and Jews from Gentiles. Over the next three weeks, we will be thinking about what it means for us today that Jesus has broken down the dividing wall between the races. How do we live out this core gospel truth in a culture of racial tensions and a history of racial oppression? Join us as we consider the importance of lament, confession, and repentance in healing the racial divide in our churches and communities.

When we gather for worship on November 22, we plan to celebrate communion together. In light of this celebration, the elders urge you to take the next week to examine your life. Where you see sin, take ht time to repent and where possible make amends to those you have hurt. If you have been hurt by someone, do the hard work to forgive or maybe even begin to forgive. may we all do the work to reconcile with one another so that we can come to the table as the truly united body of Christ.

Our Thanksgiving worship service this year will be held on Wednesday, November 25 at 6:30 pm. Please note this time change from our traditional Thursday morning service. The service will be live streams at 6:30 at zionreformed.online.church.

Grow in Community
Oliver Aernouts had his appendix removed earlier this week and is currently at home recovering and doing well. He hopes to return to school early next week.

Beginning in Advent, we will be reading through the New Testament as a church over the next year. In addition, we will also have some sermon series tied to the readings throughout the year. And, we are encouraging everyone to use the Through the Word app on Apple or Android devices. This app not only has the scripture readings, but also a 9-10 minute teaching on the passage of the day, This could be a great way for our Discipleship Triads to study together or for a small group or family to do devotions together. If you are unsure how to install the app, we have made a short instructional video to show you how to do so on an iPhone. You can find that video here.

Beginning in January, Sheila Johnson will be leading a book discussion on the book The Color of Compromise by Jemar Tesby. If you are interested in thinking together about racial divisions in our culture and the role of the church, this would be a great place to be a part of that conversation. If you are interested in this book discussion, please contact Sheila at sheilaj2494@yahoo.com.

Meeting as a small group poses some particular challenges during this time of Covid. Between health concerns, deciding if you want a babysitter in your house, or if you even want to meet with several other families in person leave many unsure what to do. Let me offer a couple of suggestions. Some small groups have chosen to meet at church in one of our large education rooms. You can socially distance and still be in physically together. Or, if your group is doing a video study with RightNow Media you can now simul-stream (is that a word) to your whole group. The interface looks a lot like a zoom call with the video in the center of the screen and little videos of all the participants on the side. It is a great way to still study scripture, talk about life, and be sort of together when being all crammed in a small space isn’t an option. If you want to check out our RightNow Media and need to sign-up you can do so here.

Serve the World
Thank you for donating your cans to support Matthew Radcliff in his effort to raise money for Hand2Hand. He raised a total of $213.00 to help feed kids who, without this program, would go hungry. Great idea and great job Matthew!

Our Thanksgiving offering this year will be used to support:
1. The Wyoming Family Network
2. The Pregnancy Resource Center
3. Jibit Aisha
Donations can be made through our offering boxes at church (make sure they are clearly labeled for the Thanksgiving offering) or online at our website. At the website, you can choose to donate to the general fund or to our thanksgiving offering.

If you need help, either with food, personal care items, help grocery shopping, or with financial needs, please contact Chip Harkes, our chair of deacons, and he can help connect you with the appropriate resources at Zion. His e-mail is chip@harkeslandscape.com and his phone number is 616-299-4804.

Administration
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. We are especially grateful this week for all those who have adjusted their means of giving to give online, through the mail, and via text.

Fiscal Year to Date Budget: $241,644.44
Fiscal Year to Date Contribution: $201,080.41
Giving Last Week: $5,529.84