Last Saturday, El Paso, TX and Dayton, OH experienced what has become an all too common occurrence. Thirty-one people, parents and children, siblings and friends, whose lives were cut violently short by hate filled violence. People are having all sorts of conversations about how to prevent future attacks. As usual, there is talk of gun control and mental illness. Very few, however, are talking about how we have all contributed to a culture that allows hateful dehumanizing beliefs to become acceptable enough that some people take the hate filled rhetoric seriously and put it into action. 

We help contribute to this culture when we politely listen to people make racist or sexist jokes and statements or when we treat as normal and acceptable a politician or political commentator talking about people from another party as enemies or traitors. And, when we value ideological purity and radical change more than compromise and the willingness to listen to new information and to make the small incremental changes. Or, when after tragedies like this weekend, we look to blame the other group rather than look at how we may have contributed to a culture of violence and division.

One of the things I have always admired about Jesus is how he could draw these 12 disciples from such hugely varying backgrounds together and get them sold on a common vision of God’s kingdom revealed in Jesus. Among his disciples were people from the priests and from the middle class, from the tax collectors who cooperated with the Roman occupation and zealots who dedicated their lives to preparing for a rebellion against Rome and pretty much everyone in between. I can only imagine the heated arguments they had walking down the road with Jesus as these worldview and values clashed. 

And then, in the early church, they first included Greek speaking Jews who were somewhat suspect for simply having not moved back to the promised land and then later gentiles who did not even follow the most sacred traditions of the Jewish Christians. They included everyone from prostitutes and slaves to retired Roman soldiers to wealthy women and small business owners. And here they all were, stuck together trying to figure out how to love like Jesus did. It’s no wonder it got messy and Paul had to write so many letters to straighten these new little churches out. And yet, they stayed together and created Christian community despite their many differences.

I wonder if a significant part of our witness in such an outraged and divided culture is simply to do life together at church: Republicans and Democrats, old and young, men and women, rich and poor, native born and immigrant, white, Hispanic, black, and Asian. Not all agreeing with each other, but simply loving each other, not in spite of, but because we see the blessing in all our differences as we each reflect differently the glory of our God as his image bearers. This is the image we find in Revelation 7:9 which says:

“After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands.”

I bet that would be appealing to a people who have grown tired of division, tired of the anger, tired of the outrage, and who long for something more.

Connect to God
An angry prophet. A fearsome and hated enemy. An overwhelming storm. And a surprising message of a merciful God to his people. The story of Jonah is one of the most well-known stories in the Bible. It is also one of the most misunderstood. Many people, even those who are not religious, are familiar with Jonah: a rebellious prophet who defies God and is swallowed by a whale. But there’s much more to Jonah’s story than most of us realize. As we continue our study of Jonah, Jonah is doing some thinking in the belly of a fish at the bottom of the sea. Given time to think, Jonah begins to think about the mercy and grace of God and it leads him to a renewed commitment to praise and obey God. When we fathom not only our desperate need, but also all it cost God to save us, we naturally respond in praise and obedience.

This Sunday we also celebrate another great ministry season for Camp Zion and welcome Justin Meyers whom you can read more about a later in the E-news.

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
Betty DeVries has been dealing with vertigo and is undergoing treatment. Prayers for improvement would be appreciated. Continue to pray for those in our congregation who deal with ongoing health issues.

We extend our sympathy to Tim and Judy Mekkes in the death of their brother-in-laws Bruce O’Conner on July 29 and Dan Stachawiak on August 4 and to Rob and Deb Melville in the passing of Deb’s father, Arnold VanDyken on August 7. Please pray for  peace and comfort for the Mekkes and Melville families during this difficult time.

Congratulations to Cory and Ashley Gross who on the birth of their daughter, Avery Nicole, who was born at 9:45AM on August 2. Avery weighed 7lbs 10 oz and was 20 1/2” long.  Mother and baby are both home and doing well.

If you haven’t yet signed up for RightNow Media, a great free resource of Christian videos for kids and adults alike, you can do so here.

Youth and Worship Pastor Jeremy Zoet will be on sabbatical from August 5 to October 1. During this time he will not respond to calls, texts, or emails. In his absence please direct all communication to the following people:

Worship: Sarah McAnally at (810) 434-6841 or feelinsnappy@gmail.com.
Middle School Youth: Rachel Verbrugge at (616) 258-3291 or verbrugge.family@att.net.
High School Youth: Shanda VandePol at (616) 308-0700 or shandavandepol@yahoo.com.
If an emergency arises, contact Pastor Greg at (616) 340-7785.

Serve the World
In this Sunday’s Moment for Missions, Justin Meyers of Al Amana Center in Oman will share how God is working through dialogue with Muslims and Christians. Justin will be available for questions and further discussion in the Narthex following the service. Learn more at www.alamanacentre.org.

On Sunday August 18, Chris Winkler of Wycliffe USA will share a ministry update. If you would like to learn how we as a church or you yourself can further support missionaries, the Zion Missions Team is hosting a discussion led by Chris on “Missionary Care 101” in the sanctuary following the service. If you would like to get involved in Zion Missions, this is a great place to start.

City Chapel continues to meet throughout the summer and recently celebrated the completion of a Vital Worship grant that helped fund their worship leader and some cool art events this past year. Like many churches in not on the lake shore, they have seen their attendance drop a little this summer, but continue to see new people each week. Please continue to pray for Ron and Anna and the entire City Chapel team as they strive to reach the downtown community with the gospel of Jesus.

Administrative Details
Mark your calendars, our next Leaders Meeting will be on Sunday, August 25 from 5-7 pm. This will be a great night of food, worship, ministry specific training, and great time with friends. In addition, we will be conducting our annual training about our child protection policies this night. If you volunteer with children or teens in any capacity in our church, you are strongly encouraged to attend this meeting. You cannot serve in these roles without going through this training and a background check. We look forward to seeing you there. In addition, Rob Holland from Lifeline Community Church will be with us to share some stories of what God is doing through your support of Lifeline to change lives in Wyoming.

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: $110,918.20
Fiscal Year to date contributions: $  93,941.04

Last night, I was at church during Praise Team practice getting some reading and administrative tasks done when the office is a little quieter than in the day. I caught last few minutes of practice in the sanctuary and saw a Camp Zion staff member, Luke Austin, sitting at a table diligently writing. School’s not in session. No one writes letters any more. I wondered what he might be doing. So I asked.

For about an hour, he had been writing notes to Camp Zion participants letting them know how much he enjoyed being with them this summer, the strengths he saw in them, and offering words encouragement to them as they prepare to go back to school in a couple of weeks. I don’t know how many kids to whom he was writing notes, but it was not insubstantial. This took some time and thought. He was using the influence God had given him through his role at camp to bless, love, and encourage these kids and to also give them a glimpse of God’s love for them as well.

This sort of attention to others, diligence in the unseen activities of life, and encouraging spirit don’t happen in a vacuum. It is both taught and caught, Taught by parents and teachers and other adults in students lives in formal lessons and casual conversations. And, it is also caught when it is modeled by those same people in a young adults life.

I love Luke’s response when I asked him how he decided to do this. Had he been told? Had it seen others do it? And he said, “I guess it’s because of my parents. I probably don’t give them enough credit for how they have influenced me.”

When I think about the future in our church, this is what gets me excited. We want to create environments and opportunities not only for students, but also for us as adults, to grow in our ability and practices to be a positive influence for Christ in our workplaces, neighborhoods, schools, and homes. How might you intentionally use the influence you have to bless others today through a kind word or a helping hand in the name of Jesus? (To be clear, if people know you are a Christian, everything you do is in Jesus’ name whether you want it to be or not.)

I wonder what God could do with 300 people who, like Luke, used the influence they have to bless others and point them to Jesus.

Connect to God
This Sunday we celebrate all God has been doing in and through our Middle and High School students through their mission trips to Chicago, IL and Lincoln, NE this summer. Students will share testimonies and Pastor Jeremy will be delivering the message on John 4:27-42. In this text, we see the power of the Samaritan woman’s story as it brings others to faith in Christ. Is it time for Zion to put an emphasis on sharing our stories with each other and others? Today we propose that It’s Story Time.

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
We extend out sympathy to Myra Renkema and family in the passing Loren Renkema on Monday. The funeral service for Loren will be held at Zion on Friday at 11 am. Please holy Myra in your prayers during this difficult time of loss.

Join us Thursday morning, August 8, from 9:30 to 11:30 for a playdate at our park. There will be light refreshments, a bounce house, and more. Come join us and invite a neighbor, too!

Following worship this Sunday, those two supported a high school student going on the mission trip as a shareholder are invited to a meal with the students. There will be time during dessert to talk with your student about their experience on mission trip. We look forward to seeing all our shareholders and students on Sunday.

Youth and Worship Pastor Jeremy Zoet will be on sabbatical from August 5 to October 1. During this time he will not respond to calls, texts, or emails. In his absence please direct all communication to the following people:

Worship: Sarah McAnally at (810) 434-6841 or feelinsnappy@gmail.com.
Middle School Youth: Rachel Verbrugge at (616) 258-3291 or verbrugge.family@att.net.
High School Youth: Shanda VandePol at (616) 308-0700 or shandavandepol@yahoo.com.
If an emergency arises, contact Pastor Greg at (616) 340-7785.

Serve the World

We continue to collect donations for School Supply Santa through this Sunday, August 4. You can learn more about what is needed in the announcement at the end of this e-mail.

Today, we concluded another great ministry season for Camp Zion. Just this week, one of our campers shared with a staff member that they think they are starting to believe in God because of what they learned at camp. Their parents don’t believe, but they are beginning to and they wanted to go to church. So, this Sunday, for the first time, they went to church with a friend and they thought it was really interesting and fun. Each year, we see campers make these first steps of faith, start reading a Bible for the first time, learning to pray, and more.

Week of Hope, the mission groups we host each summer, also conclude their ministry season this week. They have seen teens make first time decisions to follow Jesus, take new steps of obedience, and deepen their walk with God. Please pray for safe travels for Alison and Caitlin as they will be driving back to Loveland, CO this weekend for their end of summer debrief.

Administrative Details
Mark your calendars, our next Leaders Meeting will be on Sunday, August 25 from 5-7 pm. This will be a great night of food, worship, ministry specific training, and great time with friends. In addition, we will be conducting our annual training about our child protection policies this night. If you volunteer with children or teens in any capacity in our church, you are strongly encouraged to attend this meeting. You cannot serve in these roles without going through this training and a background check. We look forward to seeing you there.

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: $99,826.38
Fiscal Year to date contributions: $84,621.04