August 31st, 2016

God's Labor Day!

Labor Day is almost here, and we are celebrating early this Sunday with God's Labor Day! What is God's Labor Day? It is an hour (in place of Sunday School ) in which we as a congregation will engage in small mission projects to help change our world. We have several projects to choose from:

Meet Our Neighbors: We will go out in teams into the village to meet our neighbors, visit briefly with them, and invite them to join us for Wednesday at the Port this fall.

School Prayer Walk: We will walk around South River School stopping to pray over classrooms and asking for God's blessing and protection for our teachers and kids.

Cards of Encouragement: We will gather in the social hall to write cards to folks in our community to encourage them and let them know we are thinking of them.

Cup of Blessing: We will put together and pray over cups filled with tokens of blessings that we can give away to those we meet the rest of the day.

What do you need to do to get ready for this special day? Everything will be provided for your mission project. All you have to do is just sign up if you haven't already and show up on Sunday! Please email or call me with which mission you want to be a part of so we can prepare to have enough materials. Plan to wear comfortable shoes and bring an umbrella if needed in the case of rain if you are choosing Meet Our Neighbors or the School Prayer Walk. 

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It Takes a Village...

In Sunday worship, we are currently looking at the importance of community and how we are called to be there for one another.

Sunday's Sermon Snippet:
to Weather a Storm! (Ecclesiastes 4:7-12)
The teacher who wrote the wise words of Ecclesiastes had a relatively pessimistic view of our lives and what he observed of them. Repeatedly he commented on what he saw to be the meaningless pursuits of our lives, the vanities that he compared to chasing after wind. After noting that to eat, drink, and find joy in one's work is a gift from God and one of the only meaningful things in life, he turned his attention to the futility of going at life alone, especially in times of trouble. If one falls and no one is around, there is no one to help them up. One cannot keep warm alone. Two can withstand an oppressor more easily than one standing alone. Simply put, two are better than one. Most of us have faced trials in life in which we have recognized the truth of this - there are times when we can do nothing but turn to the support and love of others to see us through the storms of life. But this wise teacher goes beyond this. In this short bit of wisdom, the teacher does not start with how two are better at weathering the storm than one alone but instead how there is no profit in work for one who works alone. Despite the wisdom that finding joy in one's work is a gift from God, this wisdom points out that such joy is not to be found if we go at our work alone. Even if we were to become exceedingly rich from our solo work, it is meaningless if we do not have those around us with which to share the work. Two are better than one - not just in times of trouble but in the everyday parts of life, not just in the major, devastating storms of life or even in the small daily storms that pass as quickly as they come but even when clear skies prevail. We need each other to weather the storms of life and to enjoy the fair weather in between.

Looking Ahead
Join us this Sunday for God's Labor Day as we live out how "It Takes a Village to Change the World!"

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Leading Our Church

As we prepare for the upcoming year and the ministries we will undertake in Jesus' name, we will be looking to identify leaders of our church for 2017 and beyond! To help our nominating committee in their discernment, please fill out the short survey that can be found online here. You will be asked to complete a short spiritual gifts inventory, share your interests, and let us know if you feel called to any particular ministries or to step back from ministries you are already involved in. This should take only about five minutes but will help our church tremendously. Your input will help us to better match leaders to roles God has gifted them for. Thanks for your help!

Living in Community

Thanks to Teresa for blessing us with your powerful testimony with us in worship on Sunday.
We continue to lift you and your family up in our prayers.

Volunteers needed for Wednesday at the Port:
Servers and cleaners needed - whether you can help one week or many,
you are what makes this ministry possible!
See Sue for more information.

Volunteers needed for Drive-thru Nativity:
If you can assist with organizing our Nativity this December, p​lease talk with Davida.
We will need three volunteers to make this happen.

This Week at Port Church

​Wednesday, August 31
9:30 - 2:00 - Office Hours

​Thursday, September 1
9:30 - 12:00 - Office Hours
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​Sunday, September 4
9:30 am - Worship: "It Takes a Village... to Change the World" 
11:00 am - God's Labor Day

Looking Ahead

Blessing of First Responders in worship on September 11
If you know a police officer, fire fighter, EMT, or other first responder,
invite them to join us so that we can say thank you for their service to our community!

Wednesday at the Port kicks off on September 14!

Chili Cookoff and Silent Auction for Youth Missions, October 15

Charge Conference, October 23​

Drive-thru Nativity - December 9 & 10