Announcements for October 25, 2020
Our mission is to share God’s love with each other, our community, and the world.
The church office hours are Monday – Friday from 9 a.m. to noon. Please observe all safety precautions if you need to come by.
Happy Birthday:
Vera Hall -- October 25
Chuck Lineberger – October 26
Kevin Zarnstorff – October 26
Ann-Joyce Wennig – October 31
This is a friendly reminder that Talbot House Ministries needs your help this month! Please consider making a donation of food items, hygiene products, or bedding to support the needs of the homeless. Financial gifts are also welcome. Checks can be made payable to Grace Lutheran with a notation of “Talbot House”. Also with cold weather approaching, heavy clothing will be needed. Empty pill bottles can be used in the medical department. Thank you for your assistance. Drop off on Sunday, October 25th.
A “Paper Shredding Event” will be held on Saturday, November 14th from 10 a.m. to noon hosted by Brian Heipp at the Thrivent Financial office in Lakeland. Brian invites you to stop by the local office at 1740 E. Edgewood Dr., in Lakeland, shred your documents, and join them for some refreshments. Please bring some non-perishable food items for a local food bank.
Our weekly Wednesday Bible Study via Zoom continues this week. While each week follows the preceding week in sequence, each week is also an independent study so you can join with us at any time. This week we will look at Joshua 3:7-17 and the entrance of the Israelites into the land of promise. You can get the Zoom link at our website.
Evening Prayer on Facebook Live at Grace’s Facebook page continues on Thursdays at 5:30 p.m. Or you can connect to the livestream by going to our website and go to the tab “Livestreams.” https://www.facebook.com/Grace-Evangelical-Lutheran-Church-202908600571/
The pandemic has had an impact on our church’s finances. Thank you for your generous offerings, both through mail-in checks and through Tithely as we continue our ministry and mission. Each offering makes a difference! Thank you.
Please note ALL, there have been some unusual occurrences in some of the email messages purportedly from a council member to others here at Grace. These are included veiled requests for assistance, i.e., “Can you do me a favor?” or “I need a bit of help from you.” Then follows a pitch for gift cards or for money in some other form. Please disregard these. Now, if you or a member of your family needs financial assistance, please contact Pastor Pam either through the office or directly.
As we continue our online worship and plan to expand it in the near future, we have established a fund designated for Worship Technology to cover the cost of additional cameras, light, microphones, sound equipment and software. Please consider a contribution.
Nominations for Council – it’s that time of year again, time for us to fill vacancies on our Council at our annual meeting in January (details about that will be forthcoming). If you are interested in serving or if there is someone you believe has the skills and faithfulness for council service, please let Marty Lewis or Pastor Pam know. Please join us in prayer for this important means of service to the church.
Fellowship Time – because Pastor was on vacation, we canceled our Fellowship Time for October 17th. The next one will be October 31st at 10:30 a.m. – “costumes optional”. Plan on pouring a cuppa and join us for some light-hearted conversation as we connect with one another. In addition to our regular chat on Saturday morning, we will also have some conversation about the Reformation. Pastor Pam will do a brief presentation and discussion and questions will follow. Please join us!
The Covid-19 Task Force has been meeting regularly to consider the resumption of in-person gatherings for worship, fellowship, and meetings. The Task Force is recommending gradual steps forward tailored to our congregational demographics, the incidence of transmission and spread here in Polk County, and the specifics of our physical plant. You will receive correspondence in the coming days regarding a proposal the Task Force made to council which approved it.
Talbot House will have a memorial service outside at their facilities on Sunday, November 1st at 2 p.m. to honor Catharine Z. Burdette, Samuel Santo Porco, Jr., D.M.D., and Kurt Anderson, who were instrumental in the development of Talbot House. They passed away this year and will be greatly missed. A reception will follow at the fellowship hall at Talbot House. RSVP at 863-687-8475, ext. 117.
Prayer List: Alena Baskin, Jenna Baumann, Louis Bloodworth, Julie Dunston, Jean Egelkraut, John Foss, Marcella Fredell, Michael Gilleece, Philip Hammar, JoAnn Herrick, Sandy Hoffland, Beth Hornickle, Johnny Jackson, Meagan King, Betty Leitenberger, Jane Lemley, Ron Mari, Dione de Sá Martins, Maria Mitchell, Theresa Myers, Margaret Neidinger, Susan Peterson, Don Ramey, Tim Simpson, Mary Venable, Ann Joyce Wenning, Greg Wasserman, & Shelby Zarnstorff.
We are working on a special project and if your photo is not in the 2017 Pictorial Directory, would you please take a selfie or have a friend take a picture and then email it to the church office at saraandersonglc@gmail.com. Please try to do it this week. Many thanks.
Altar flowers are given by Jim & Vera Hall for blessings received.
We received a nice note from Talbot House thanking us for our time and support of their ministry.
Daylight Savings Time ends on Sunday, November 1st. Remember to set your clocks back one hour. “Fall back!”
Stay safe! Wear your mask!
Our hand washing melody this week is Happy Birthday (twice).
