Taize Prayer Service During 24-Hour Prayer Vigil

As mentioned below, we will be holding a Taize Prayer Service during the 24-hour prayer vigil this weekend. The Taize Prayer Service will be held from 7:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. on Saturday, September 6, in the chapel. The music will be accompanied by guitar, flute, and keyboard. Music will be interspersed with readings, prayers, and times of silence. Everybody is invited, and visitors are welcome. Please come - the more people we have, the more beautiful the music will be.

A New Year Kicks Off--It's Harvest Time!

Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ,

IT’S HERE!! This weekend, we celebrate our Harvest Festival, and I hope you will be able to join in the activities:

Saturday
9:00 a.m. Prayer Vigil begins in the Chapel
10:00 a.m. Craft Bazaar begins (concludes at 4:00 p.m.)
7:30 p.m. Taize Prayer Service in Chapel (led by Chancel Choir)
9:00 p.m. Campfire and prayers in the Memorial Prayer Labyrinth, and Campout on the church grounds. Those gathering to camp out at the church can help set up tables and chairs in the Fellowship Hall for Sunday’s lunch.

Sunday
9:00 a.m. Prayer Vigil concludes. Light, continental breakfast in the Fellowship Hall, hosted by Christian Education
9:30 a.m. RALLY DAY activities begin in Fellowship Hall, with special guest Ron Remy, ventriloquist
10:30 a.m. WORSHIP IN SANCTUARY, with collection of “Harvest” (with Chancel Choir)
11:45 a.m. Covered-dish lunch in Fellowship Hall (meat and drinks provided)


A Time to Grow
Our congregation has worked faithfully and with great zeal this summer in growing the $50 blessing we received on June 1. While the amount we collect this Sunday is important, especially for the 4 recipients (Jeremiah’s Letter, Christ Lutheran Church, Nuestos Pequenos Hermanos orphanage in the Domincan Republic, and Emmyline Nizeyimana in South Africa), what I am most excited about is what has happened within our congregation this summer. The Holy Spirit has been very active in your lives, and you have responded with joy and hard work. Thank you for your commitment to God and to this community of faith! See you this weekend.

8:15 Sunday Worship
Our early Sunday worship service will resume on Sunday, September 21, 8:15 a.m. in the sanctuary.

In Christ’s peace,
Gary

A Message From Our Pastor: "Time to Grow" Harvest Celebration and Other Matters

Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ,

You can feel the groundswell of excitement growing in this place! We are just three weeks out from our “Time To Grow” Harvest Celebration, and people are talking about how they are growing their $50 blessing, and looking forward to learning how much we will be able to give away! Last Sunday’s Music Missionary Brunch for John Buechele raised over $700, with more donations coming in, and some sent directly to Youth Encounter. Also, Vacation Bible School was a tremendously uplifting experience as people from St. Paul’s and LCOS worked together to creatively proclaim the love of God in Jesus. I am so very proud to serve as your pastor and to tell others of the wonderful people in our congregation!

WORSHIP THEME THIS WEEKEND
This weekend, our lessons lift up God’s love of all people, and call us as a community of faith to work diligently to ensure that everyone is welcome in our midst. At the 9:45 a.m. Sunday service, the Youth will present their experiences from their mission trip to the Dominican Republic. And during the celebration of Holy Communion, we will offer prayers and anointing for healing.

JOHN BUECHELE UPDATE
John heads to Minneapolis this Sunday morning for his commissioning and training with Youth Encounter before he is sent out into the world for his year-long music missionary work. He learned yesterday that he will be serving on the west coast of the U.S., but will keep us informed of his work and journeys.

HARVEST CELEBRATION – Saturday, September 6 – Sunday, September 7
Saturday
9:00 a.m. – 24-Hour Prayer Vigil begins in the Parish House Chapel
10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. – Craft Bazaar at the church – the community is invited to help support our “Time To Grow” ministries
7:00 p.m. – Campfire and “Campout” at the church for anyone wishing to participate
7:30-8:30 p.m. - Taize Prayers in the Chapel, as part of the Prayer Vigil, lead by Ginger Minneman. Everybody invited.
Sunday
9:00 a.m. – 24-Hour Prayer Vigil concludes
9:15 a.m. – Sunday Church School “Rally Day” Activities
10:30 a.m. – Worship
11:45 a.m. – Celebration Luncheon

May the Holy Spirit bless your ministry this week! See you in worship.

In Christ’s peace,
Gary

Taize at the Prayer Vigil

As mentioned in a post below, LCOS will be holding a 24-hour prayer vigil as part of the "Harvest Weekend." The prayer vigil will be held from 9:00 a.m. on Saturday, September 6 through 9:00 a.m. on Sunday, September 7. Individuals and groups will be encouraged to sign up to cover one-hour time slots, so that we can make sure that all the slots are filled. (Multiple people can come at any time.)

During the hour from 7:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. on Saturday evening, you are invited to participate in the singing of Taize music, along with readings and prayers. This hour will be lead by our Director of Music, Ginger Minneman. Musicians are currently being lined up, and will include flute, guitar, and piano. Afterward, the group may go out to eat - we'll plan that in a little while when we know better how many people may be attending. Please join us. As always, visitors are welcome!

A Message From Our Pastor

Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ,

Abundance and scarcity – we live with those images on a daily basis, and they are images that are lifted up in our appointed lessons for worship this weekend. At the communion table, we are fed with the endless abundance of the Bread of Life, and we are called to give away ourselves as bread for the hungry.

VACATION BIBLE SCHOOL IS HERE!

That's right – Monday to Friday, August 4-8, 5:30 – 8:15 p.m. Our facility will be transformed into a "rainforest" as children, youth, and adults come together to learn that as God's people, we are called to Share, Give, Grow, Love, and Praise. Stewardship for all of God's creation is an important theme of this year's VBS, and on Wednesday, the children will be planting a tree on the church grounds. Don't forget to sign up for the Adult Class – "What Does It Mean To Be A Lutheran?" – taught by Pastor Bob Miller and myself. Where else could you drop real eggs off the sanctuary balcony?

NEEDED FOR VBS:

• Potted plants and greenery (live or fake)
• Bean bags (for games – to throw)
• Be sure to mark your names on the items you loan VBS

MISSIONARY BRUNCH – AUGUST 10

Following worship on Sunday, August 10, we will hold a special "missionary brunch" in the fellowship hall to raise money for John Buechele, as he prepares to embark on a year-long music ministry "gig". John has accepted a call to play guitar with "Captive Free", the musical group from Youth Encounter (youth ministry organization) that brings the good news of God in Jesus to youth all across the country. Like most missionaries, John has to raise funds for his living/travel expenses ($10,000), and we are one of many congregations in the Southern Ohio Synod which are raising funds for John. Plan to join us on August 10; John will be on hand, and hopes to have with him so me fellow musicians who will share their gifts with us during the brunch. This event is a Thrivent Financial for Lutherans "matching funds" event.

"TIME TO GROW" UPDATE

In just over a month, we will be gathering the harvest of our "Time To Grow" ministry project, and it is fun to experience the excitement among those of you who are participating. Suzanne Bruns reported Sunday that she has baked 34 pecan pies so far – and she's still going! Rising eighth grade student Tristin Smith is hitting the pavement in the community, selling lemonade, icee-pops, and washing cars – and her $50 blessing is growing like Spanish Moss! And on Saturday, August 9, Tristin and Alexa Coon are holding a car wash at the church (1-4 p.m.) to grow their blessing.

"TIME TO GROW" UPDATE

And there's news about our Harvest Celebration, which will be held on Saturday and Sunday, September 9-10:

• 24-hour prayer vigil in the chapel from 9 a.m. Saturday – 9 a.m. Sunday
• Sign up on the poster in the narthex for a 30 minute slot and pray that God bless our harvest and those who will receive it
• Holy Terrors overnight camp out at the church
• Rally Day festivities with guest entertainer, at 9:15 a.m.
• ONE weekend worship service at 10:30 a.m. on Sunday, September 7
• "Harvest Celebration" luncheon following worship in the fellowship hall

Be bold this week, and share with someone else how God has helped you get to where you are today! See you in worship this weekend.

In Christ's peace,

Gary

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Prayer Vigil for Peace Set for the Weekend of Epiphany; Including Taize Music, Prayers and Readings

At the end of what can often be a hectic holiday season, join us at the Lutheran Church of our Savior for an event focusing on the peace that only God can bring about in our lives and world. As part of our "God's Peace Flowing Through Us" initiative, we will be holding a prayer vigil for peace during the weekend of Epiphany. The vigil will be held on Saturday, January 5 in the chapel from noon through 9:00 p.m. All members of the Dayton area community are invited to attend.

During the hour from 7:30 p.m. through 8:30 p.m., our Director of Music Ginger Minneman and a group of instrumentalists will lead those present in singing Taize music, interspersed with prayers and readings. If you haven't experienced music and prayers in this kind of setting, perform a Google search on the word "Taize," and you'll find lots of information about it. The chapel will be lit by candlelight.

We'll have a sign-up sheet in the narthex for several weeks before the vigil so that people can volunteer to participate during particular time slots. We're doing this just to make sure that someone will be taking part in the prayer vigil during its entire time. People should feel to come at any time during the vigil, however. At the prayer vigil in September, there were often many people praying at the same time. Visitors are welcome.

FYI, the regular Saturday 5:30 p.m. evening service will be held in the main sanctuary on January 5 - the prayer vigil and Taize music and prayers are in addition to our regular weekend worship schedule.