Pentecost Sunday, June 5, 2022
This Sunday:
This Sunday, June 5, in our combined Prism service, Rev. Karen Campbell will preach from Acts 2:1-21. During the service, we have the joy of welcoming new members to the congregation and recognizing our young people who will receive the Lord’s Supper for the first time this Sunday. Click Here for bios and pictures of our new members.
After the service, stick around for a summary of feedback from Synod’s Human sexuality report listening circles followed by an all-church picnic.
The 10 am service will be streamed via Zoom.
Sign up for our Newsletter to receive the Zoom links.
Children’s Ministry News:
Summer Age/Grade Levels for Little Lambs and Children’s Worship
3-Year-Olds Through Graduating 1st Graders will be Blessed and Sent to the Children’s Wing. In the summer, we offer 4 classes instead of 5. After the second graders graduate (which happened two weeks ago) we wait until fall to advance all the children to their next-year grade levels. If your 2.5-year-old is already in the habit of attending Little Lambs, they are welcome to continue! If they’ve been enjoying nursery, please continue that routine until the fall, when we advance all the children to match their grade or age level and properly welcome children new to Little Lambs!
Pentecost Crafts & Games for Kids During the Congregational Meeting
2nd-6th Graders Meet in the Youth Room, Ages 0-1st Graders May Remain in Nursery, Little Lambs, or Children’s Worship. This Sunday there is a congregational meeting after worship to share a report on the Listening Circles many in our congregation participated in over the last several months. During the meeting, the children will kick off the Pentecost picnic fun with supervised crafts and games in the Youth Room, the Girls and Boys Club Rooms, and outside near the patio, if weather permits. If you are staying for the congregational meeting, your children in LL, CW, and nursery are encouraged to remain in those spaces until 12:30pm, when they should be picked up in their classrooms or nursery. Please drop off or send you 2nd-6th graders to the Youth Room when the worship service ends, where they will begin with crafts, before moving on to indoor and outdoor games. Please pick up your 2nd-6th graders in the youth room after the service in the youth room. After the congregational meeting all of the Pentecost craft stations and outdoor games will remain open, but unsupervised. So please enjoy the activities or outdoor space with your children.
Summer Subs Needed for Little Lambs and Children’s Worship
Add a Little Joy to Your Summer by Volunteering With Kids! Last Sunday we honored our amazing team of leaders! A great way to show them appreciation is to give them breaks from ministry when needed. If you’re willing to occasionally serve in a Children’s Worship or Little Lambs room this summer, please catch me at church, email me at jo.howe@coscrc.org or texting or calling me at 616-238-1324 to let me know when you might be available. Summer also a great time to shadow a class and decide if you’d to give children’s ministry a try. I’d love to add more Children’s Worship leaders and assistants to the summer or school year rotation. Thanks for considering it!
Welcome to the Table!
This Sunday we celebrate many new families and individual joining the church and several children participating in the Lord’s Supper for the first time. Thanks be to God!
Summer Wednesdays Begin This Week on June 8th, 6-8pm
Picnic on the Patio: A Meal for Everyone, Clubs for Big Kids! We’re trying something new this summer—bring your whole family out for a simple meal on the back patio as we “Picnic on the Patio” on the 2nd, 3rd and 4th Wednesday nights this summer. After dinner 2nd graders through high schoolers will enjoy Girls Club, Boys Club, Wednesday Night Live, and Youth Group activities while you stay for conversation as the little ones play in the yard, or head home and come back to pick up the big kids at 8pm. We hope these Wednesdays will be a chance to build friendships at COS, invite someone new along, and slow down for a mid-week meal together. Since this programming happens after the school year, but before we usually kick off the new season of ministry in the fall, kids who are on the cusp of transitioning to a new group are welcome to decide whether they’ll remain in their current club, or begin attending the group they’ll be part of in the fall.
Church News:
Estimated Giving for the month of May: $117,307.18
Giving for the month of April: $101,750
Monthly budgeted General Fund Giving is: $118,873
Questions about the Listening Circle Feedback or about the COS discernment process about the HSR? This Pentecost Sunday, June 5, the listening circles that have been discussing the HSR (Human Sexuality Report) will present their feedback to Council after the morning service in the sanctuary. The congregation is welcome to attend. Because the time is very limited, time won’t be set aside to take questions or comments from the congregation. However, that doesn’t mean your questions and comments aren’t welcome. You can send your questions and comments here. The questions can be about the feedback or about the ongoing discernment process at COS in response to the HSR.
Council requests elder and deacon nominees for a 3 year term on Council to begin in September of 2022. You may nominate yourself or another member of COS whom you feel has the gifts to serve our congregation on Council. We anticipate the need to fill 5 elder and 5 deacon roles this Fall. Please prayerfully consider whether you or someone you know might be called to serve our congregation in this meaningful way. Send nominations via online poll or by email to Chair of Council, Stacy Steen, Chair of Elders, Rhonda Mejeur, Chair of Deacons, Marc Beversluis, to your Parish elder or deacon or to the Pastors.
Social Seniors continues to meet on Tuesdays at 10:00 via Zoom. All are welcome. For more information, contact Corrie Vos.
Meeting ID: 832 6366 9013
Passcode: COS
COS is looking for a Faith Formation Assistant. This new position would involve 8-10 hours of work per week, assisting the Minister of Faith Formation (Annette Ediger) and/or the Children’s Ministry Coordinator (Jo Howe) with various tasks that will allow our ministries to flourish as vibrant, safe, encouraging and effective ministry spaces. Hours are flexible. This position may require occasional Sunday work but will primarily take place during the work week. For more information, contact Annette Ediger. The goal is to fill this position in June so respond ASAP if interested.
Friendship ESL. Imagine, over 1700 people coming into the church, most with little or no notion of what goes on in the CRC or in any American church. Since last September, 1709 immigrants, newcomers, and refugees came into COS for English and cultural learning. On September 13, ESL begins its 12th year at COS. Tutors needed. A library full of resources turns volunteers into tutors. Most tutors come once a week. Think about it. Friends from around the world, and you are one of their rock stars. Contact Mark Fackler, coordinator.
Anchoring our Life Together: To assist in our preparation for Synod, we are sending out weekly meditations. Our larger purpose is to remind us of what are some of the deepest anchors of our life together, the sturdiest pillars upon which our life together is founded. They provide our community stability and purpose, and are important, so we believe, in reminding ourselves of them again—and yet again. Through our doing so the Spirit can assist us in warding off the spiritual drowsiness and amnesia which can so easily overtake a Christian community. These weekly meditations, leading up to Synod in June, will be posted on the COS website, printed on Sundays, and available in the weekly email newsletter. Additionally, we invite you to read this recent letter from the COS council.