WITHIN THE FELLOWSHIP:
- HAPPY BIRTHDAY! Justin Coale, Renee Keeth, Rachel Leidy 14th; David Freed 15th; Jeremy Smith, Lucas VanDerbeek, Megan Walbrandt 16th; Tara DiLenge, John Kroesser, Sallybeth McClaskey, Darlene Schmidt 17th; Steve Landis 18th; Shirley Clemens, Abigail Hall, Terry Leidy, Hannah Niederhaus 19th.
- HAPPY ANNIVERSARY! Bill and Miriam Weigner 16th; Jim and Dotty Lahl 17th; Jim and Lori Pluda 18th; Kevin and Joyce Godshall 19th; Doug and Caren Elliott, Jim and Angela Kinney 20th.
THE SERMON TITLE this morning is The Fall of a City and the Loss of Hope. From A to Z, God’s wrath has been poured out upon Jerusalem and the nation is lost. The Lamenter gives voice to the suffering of the sinful people as they seek out the righteous God. While Christians today do not experience the loss of a national identity in the same way as the Israelites, our lives are often full of loss from death, sin, and unmet expectations. Lamentations serves as a powerful help by bringing our redemption to bear in the course of suffering.
PRAYER CARDS – If you took a prayer card please remember to child’s parents’ mailbox. The children wait excitedly to hear who has their cards! Thank you for undertaking to bring them before the Lord. There are about six prayer cards left on the Welcome Desk. Please be sure to pick one up today!
WHEN SEASONS CHANGE – A ministry for women in our church and community to connect and encourage one another in any stage of widowhood ~ bring a friend! The ministry meets Tuesday, October 26th from 6:30-8:30 in the sanctuary. Contact: Verna 215-237-1370 or Donna 215-593-0378.
WANT TO HELP with the dramatic drama Controlled without acting or going out at night? Consider donating food for the cast! Sign up on the narthex wall and tear off the slip. Mark the item for Controlled and place in the kitchen by the date shown on the top of the sheet. Help is also needed in the kitchen to sell concessions and to provide snacks for the actors throughout the night. See Mary Beth Musselman or call the church office to help.
WE GIVE THANKS for our two wonderful pastors! We’d love to show our gratitude (even though we know they don’t like all of the attention!) for the many ways they bless us during the year…please feel free to join them and your fellow members for a lunch after church service next Sunday.
PATTERNS OF PRAYER take place the first and third Saturdays of each month. We pray in the morning from 10 to 12 in Rm. 117. Participants are welcome to come and go as schedules permit/necessitate. This Saturday is the third Saturday of October, so we’ll be praying and you’re welcome to join as well. If you have any questions or suggestions for prayer, please speak with Patricia Martindell.
A CONGREGATIONAL MEETING will be held right after the Sunday Worship Service next Sunday, October 17th, for the purpose of voting on calling the next Senior Pastor, Rev. Tony Jones.
“CONTROLLED” PRACTICE – Meet today in the Fellowship Hall at 4:00
OBERAMMERGAU TOUR takes place in September 2022. This is the once-a-decade Passion Play in the Bavarian village of Oberammergau. Usually, it is done in the first year of the decade, that is, 2010 or 2020. In 2020 it was shut down by Covid. It is rescheduled for 2022. To reach that picturesque alpine site, we take the long route. We start at Rome and progress up the Italian peninsula visiting famous cities and sites along the way. We cross the Alps and descend into Innsbruck before arriving at Oberammergau. September 16-25, 2022, are the dates to set aside. Cost is $4,598, though there is a $100 discount for those who register before November 1st. Info sheets are available at the narthex hutch. Or, for more information, contact the church office or speak with John Niederhaus.
ADULT SUNDAY SCHOOL OPTIONS:
Issues & Answers – Romans – Fellowship Hall
Pastor Steve’s Bible Class – Gospel of John – Rm. 211
TBA – Does God Exist? Focus on the Family – Rm. 111
CHRISTMAS APPROACHES, well, make that, thinking about Christmas approaches since the Operation Christmas Child boxes are now available for each of us to grab one or two. Martha Wolgemuth has assembled them and placed them at strategic points throughout our facility. Read the article in the October Newsletter for a detailed explanation of how the program works – and it does work! Boxes are due back to the church no later than November 7th.
TO MY AMAZING CHURCH FAMILY – Words cannot express my heartfelt thanks for all the prayers, the cards, phone calls, and meals that were provided for Larry and myself during his hospitalization and passing, and my recovery from covid. You will be in my heart forever. Love Jean
THE RUMMAGE SALE IS THIS WEEK! Please bring any used but usable donations for the Rummage Sale no later than Tuesday and leave them in the gym. Mary Beth Musselman will be in the narthex to help you sign-up for a time slot to work anytime during the set-up on Monday and Tuesday or during the actual sale, Wednesday 9-8 and Thursday 9-6. We especially need men, women, and youth to help Thursday evening starting at 6 p.m. for pack-up. Shop Wednesday for a huge selection or come on Thursday when you can get a paper grocery bag of items for $2.
GOSPEL GLEANING PRAYER POINTERS
- The Literacy Program has concluded. Now the Church Planters are in the process of being trained and sent out to work among the Erukula people. How do we pray for them? Well, we could start out by asking the Lord to convince them that His Word is true and His ways are always right and true. To that end, we might use Psalm 119:128. Here’s what it says: Therefore, I esteem right all Your precepts concerning everything. I hate every false way. As these Church Planters work among the Erukula people they will encounter all sorts of variant ideas and behaviors and traditions. They need to stand strong, convinced that all of the Bible is for all of life. We need to be convinced of that as well. Let’s pray for one another!
- Give thanks to God for His protection for the six participants from Chad as they traveled to the Worship Leaders Training in Garoua, Cameroon. Despite a serious accident, which totaled the transport van and seriously injured others, they sustained only minor injuries and arrived to the training in Cameroon one day late. Please pray forthose who completed the training that they will go on to lead trainings for other worship leaders in their local areas. Also, Pray for the Small Business Directors Training, which begins this coming week in Chad, October 13-20. Ask the Lord to enable these leaders to train and equip many church planters to launch new businesses, which will open doors for the gospel and provide inroads in the least-reached areas of Chad.
GETTYSBURG GET-A-WAYS are being put in place. Two tours are offered this year: 1) The General Survey tour that covers the entire battlefield and all three days of the battle; 2) The Union Fifth Corps at Gettysburg that focuses on this one army unit for the first time. Cost for either tour is $100 p/seat. Lunch, drinks (no coffee, of course!), snacks, and illuminating commentary are provided. Departure time is 5:30am with an anticipated return time of 8:30 or 9pm. Fuller descriptions may be found in the October Newsletter. Call the church office to register for either or both of the tours. Proceeds will go toward the Gospel Gleaning project.