Tag: Connections (page 2 of 2)

Thanksgiving, song, and wondering – notes from our pastors

Hey Friends,

I’m writing to you all today as I prepare for Sunday’s sermon. If this year were like any other year, I’d be prepping for a service that is one of my favorites of the year—our Friendship service. In that service we remember the year that was for our Friendship Ministry and show hospitality to all of our friends as they join us. This year, unfortunately, we won’t be having that service. And it got me thinking about all the special things we miss in our shared worshiping life together.

I have missed our Roots service where our middle school students and leaders share and lead worship. I have missed our GEMS and Cadet services that are such a blessing. I have also missed how our Sunday rhythm begins with faith formation in house groups, Big House Sunday, or, for our children, our Kid Connection. I have missed how that faith formation disciples us and shapes us. And, I have missed coming into worship with all of you.

So, I wanted to take an opportunity to do a couple of things. First, as we think about all our programs, whether that’s Friendship, Kid Connection, Nursery, House Groups, or any other program that you can think of, take some time and pray for those ministries. We don’t know when we will be able to gather again, but even when we are apart, those ministries need our prayers.

Second, take some time and thank the many volunteers that make all these programs succeed. There are so many people to be thankful for. I am thankful that just today some cards came in the mail for some of my children. They love getting mail and were thrilled to receive a note from a teacher in Kid Connection or ROOTS. Maybe you’re thankful for a house group facilitator or a Friendship leader. Whoever it is, let’s express some of that thankfulness today.

Grace and Peace to you.

Pastor Ryan

AACRC worship music on YouTube

Pastor Noah has been hard at work producing songs from individual recordings sent to him by our very own worship team members as part of Sunday worship, as well as editing video musings from our pastors.

Did you know you can access the entire playlist of worship team songs on our church YouTube page, “Ann Arbor CRC“?

Enjoy the playlist of worship songs:

The Sabbath: A Biblical Perspective (episode 2)

We are excited to share Episode 2 of our Sabbath Project. In this episode, Pastor Ryan builds on the first video from Travis West to show how our concept of time and work have been disrupted by Covid-19. And, how the sabbath can be an invitation think about time and work differently and accept the divine invitation to rest.

 

 

Connections – May 1

Hi friends,
As we continue to shelter in place, we miss being able to meet in person, but are so grateful to our pastors for thoughtful worship, musicians for fun videos, staff for keeping us up-to-date, elders for reaching out, and so much more. Please enjoy these excerpts from our weekly Connections email newsletter from May 1.
Blessings,
Jen

WORSHIP WITH US

In-Home Worship

Sunday, May 3
Pastor Noah Livingston
Matthew 28:16-20
Liturgy
Songs & Pastor Noah’s Message (YouTube)

Pastor Noah’s sermon will premiere on YouTube at 9:00am. Allow yourself about 20 minutes prior to this start time to move through the liturgy if you want to catch the sermon when it premieres.

Children and Worship: New This Week! Our Children and Worship program leader, Kerry DeKraker, has put together a video with a lesson for those younger members of our community who typically continue with worship together in a different space on Sundays. Check it out HERE!

Children’s bulletin: If your children would like to participate and engage by using the new children’s bulletin, it is attached HERE.

GROW WITH US

Weekly Bible Study: You are invited to join the weekly bible study on Thursdays at 10am. The pastoral staff will be leading this bible study over Zoom. We’d love to have you join us when you can!  Join Zoom Meeting

SERVE WITH US

Ministry Highlight–Sheltering in AACRC

Thank you, AACRC!  Our church continues to provide shelter for several gentlemen from the Delonis Center and has committed to continuing this through the duration of the “shelter in place” order. To read more about how God has been working at AACRC through this opportunity to provide hospitality for those in need, check out this blog post and a video of thanks from some of the men sheltering at AACRC.

Continue our tithes and offerings

The AACRC supports many organizations and missionaries that are being directly affected by this pandemic and it is through our offerings and tithes that we can continue to support ourselves and the ministries we are in partnership with. Thank you for continuing to support the good work of God through the Ann Arbor Christian Reformed Church. Ways to donate:

Hope Clinic

Hope Clinic continues to collect donations for a number of items. The greatest need right now is for groceries, toilet paper and personal care items, and masks. Click HERE for their complete list of needs.

An Update from Mission Partners, Joel & Jeannie Huyser

We want to see Jesus
“In some ways life has changed for Jeannie and I since we returned from a visit to Nicaragua on March 18.  For one thing I (Joel) will no longer be traveling for the foreseeable future.  And, yes, like everyone else we are being cautious and are concerned for family members that have lost employment.  But inother ways life has not changed…”  Read the entire update

Connections – April 24

Hi friends,
Hope this finds you and yours doing well, and finding ways to bless others. Enjoy these excerpts from our weekly Connections electronic newsletter for April 24.
Blessings,
Jen

WORSHIP WITH US

After his resurrection but before his ascension, Jesus spent 40 days walking this earth. The New Testament writers show the risen Jesus eating, teaching, assuring, and embracing. And while Christ’s embodied, post-resurrection presence has fascinated the church for millennia, it holds particular power during this time of social distancing. What does it mean that Jesus can both walk through walls and still be physically touched? What can we learn from a resurrected body that still eats food? What comfort might we find in his promise to be with the disciples, even to the very end of the age?

Join us for the next few weeks as we explore the implications of Christ’s bodily resurrection, and how the Holy Spirit enlivens our embodied reality right here and now—even while we grapple with new challenges to being an embodied people and an embodied church.

In-Home Worship

Sunday, April 26
Pastor Ryan Boes
Luke 24:13-35
Pastor Ryan’s sermon will premiere on YouTube at 9:00am. Allow yourself about 20 minutes prior to this start time to move through the liturgy if you want to catch the sermon when it premieres.

Liturgy
Songs & Pastor Ryan’s Message (YouTube)

**Current worship liturgy, and previous Sunday liturgies, is found every week on the AACRC homepage and previous liturgies can be found on the sermons page.

If your children would like to participate and engage by using the new children’s bulletin, it is attached HERE.

Please join us on Sunday @ 9:30am for a Zoom Virtual Fellowship Hall!

AACRC is inviting you to a Fellowship time via a Zoom meeting. We hope you will be able to join us as we greet each other and share how we are doing.

Join Zoom Meeting

 

A Note from Council:

Sisters and brothers in Christ,

Seven weeks. On Sunday it will have been seven weeks since we last gathered at 1717 Broadway. We miss worshiping in-person together. We miss sharing coffee together. We miss the tangible community that happens when we gather in-person.

On behalf of council, I want to thank each one of you for your faithful giving over these last weeks. At the onset of the stay-at-home order, the finance team shared a number of scenarios with council, each of which, assumed a significant reduction in giving. March and April (so far) giving has far exceeded those projections. Thanks to some cautionary measures and your faithful giving we reduced our deficit to spending during the month of March. If you’d like a detailed financial statement, please reach out to our Treasurer Charlie Aagenas.

This past week we received news that the federal Payroll Protection Program (PPP) loan that the church applied for was approved and funded. We anticipate that this loan will become largely forgivable when it comes due in early 2021. These funds will be used to reinstate the church staff who had taken a voluntary furlough in the early days of the COVID-19 crisis. We value each one of our staff members and their contributions to the programming and life of our church. We are grateful for the sacrifice they were willing to make for the good of the church and we are excited to welcome them back (from a distance of six feet, of course!).

Since we have been blessed, we also rejoice in our ability to be a blessing. The PPP loan frees up monetary resources which will allow the church to meet our third quarter obligations to our missionaries and mission partners, many of whom find themselves ministering to people on the front lines of the pandemic. This support will help them to continue to be the hands and feet of God in our part of the world. We will continue to closely monitor our financial situation in conjunction with the Finance Team and be ready to re-evaluate decisions as we obtain more information.

We are also thankful for the ways we continue to be a church even though we are apart. We love the stories about grocery runs, birthdays celebrated, House Groups meetings, and the care of our most vulnerable. We appreciate the work of the pastors and the worship team for making worship accessible from our homes each week. We are excited about the new Thursday morning Bible study (via Zoom) and encourage everyone who is available to join us! We are grateful for the volunteers who continue to support and care for our guests from the rotating shelter program.

We look forward to being together again. In the meantime, may God bless each one of you.

Jaime Ventura, For the Council Leadership Team

GROW WITH US

Weekly Bible Study: You are invited to join the weekly bible study on Thursdays at 10am. The pastoral staff will be leading this bible study over Zoom. We’d love to have you join us when you can!

Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82452880071?pwd=SThyR3FoMlRkTWZBVEpkSHBvU2ZKZz09
Meeting ID: 824 5288 0071
Password: 1717

A thankfulness activity suggestion, shared by our Children’s Ministry Coordinator, Mary Admiraal:

I received the Faith Formation newsletter today; a wonderful resource from the denominational office.  The title of this article, “I Wonder If God Is here” caught my attention because, truth be told, our family has wrestled with this question over the last six weeks.  However, I think Mimi Larson’s suggestion “…to look for God in the midst of this hard and terrifying time by keeping a list of the things we are thankful for…” will help my family recognize that God IS always with us.  We have our sticky notes ready and we’ve chosen a special place in our home to post our list so we see it often.  How about you?  If you are participating, please consider sharing your ” thanksgiving thoughts” with the community of faith by sending your pictures to office@aacrc.org.

SERVE WITH US

Continue our tithes and offerings: The AACRC supports many organizations and missionaries that are being directly affected by this pandemic and it is through our offerings and tithes that we can continue to support ourselves and the ministries we are in partnership with. Thank you for continuing to support the good work of God through the Ann Arbor Christian Reformed Church. Ways to donate:

Rotating Shelter:  Our church continues to provide shelter for several gentlemen (currently 13) from the Delonis Center. We are committed to continuing this through the duration of the “shelter in place” order.  Rachel Bush has compiled a list of ways we can support these men while they are staying at our church. Contact Rachel if you would like to help with any of these items:

  • Volunteer to stay overnight
  • Volunteer to stay during daytime hours
  • Provide monetary donations for groceries
  • Sign up to provide snack bags (More days added!): HERE
  • Donated used men’s clothing and shoes
  • Cook meals or desserts from home
  • Lend DVDs of movies (comedy or action–be sure to label)

Connections – April 17

Hi friends,
Enjoy these excerpts from our weekly Connections electronic newsletter for Friday April 17, 2020.
Jen

WORSHIP WITH US

After his resurrection but before his ascension, Jesus spent 40 days walking this earth. The New Testament writers show the risen Jesus eating, teaching, assuring, and embracing. And while Christ’s embodied, post-resurrection presence has fascinated the church for millennia, it holds particular power during this time of social distancing. What does it mean that Jesus can both walk through walls and still be physically touched? What can we learn from a resurrected body that still eats food? What comfort might we find in his promise to be with the disciples, even to the very end of the age?

Join us for the next few weeks as we explore the implications of Christ’s bodily resurrection, and how the Holy Spirit enlivens our embodied reality right here and now—even while we grapple with new challenges to being an embodied people and an embodied church.

In-Home Worship

Sunday, April 19
Pastor Ryan Boes
John 20:19-31

Pastor Ryan’s sermon will premiere on YouTube at 9:00am. Allow yourself about 20 minutes prior to this start time to move through the liturgy if you want to catch the sermon when it premieres.

Liturgy
Songs & Pastor Ryan’s Message (YouTube)

**This worship liturgy, and previous Sunday liturgies, can also be found on the homepage of our church website and on the sermons page.

If your children would like to participate and engage by using the new children’s bulletin, it is attached HERE.

Please join us on Sunday @ 9:30 am for a virtual Fellowship Hall!

AACRC is inviting you to a Fellowship time via a Zoom meeting. Link in Connections email or from your elder. We hope you will be able to join us as we greet each other and share how we are doing.

GROW WITH US

New! Weekly Bible Study: Starting next week Thursday (April 23) at 10 am, the pastoral staff will be leading a bible study over Zoom. Watch for an invitation to the study to come from your elder via email.

SERVE WITH US

1. Continue our tithes and offerings: The AACRC supports many organizations and missionaries that are being directly affected by this pandemic and it is through our offerings and tithes that we can continue to support ourselves and the ministries we are in partnership with. Thank you for continuing to support the good work of God through the Ann Arbor Christian Reformed Church. Ways to donate:

2. Rotating Shelter:  Our church continues to provide shelter for several gentlemen from the Delonis Center.  Rachel Bush has compiled a list of ways we can support these men while they are staying at our church. Contact Rachel if you would like to help with any of these items:

  • Volunteer to stay overnight
  • Volunteer to stay during daytime hours
  • Provide monetary donations for groceries
  • Sign up to provide snack bags: HERE
  • Donated used men’s clothing and shoes
  • Cook meals or desserts from home
  • Lend DVDs of movies (comedy or action–be sure to label)

Updates from Some of Our Ministry Partners:

An Update on the Habitat Build:

All volunteer activities are cancelled at the Habitat build site through the end of April. We will have a meeting on April 27 or 28 to plan how to move forward. We will attempt to reschedule the build dates we have missed due to coronavirus cancellations. There will be new guidelines in place when that happens—smaller build crews, and everyone will bring their own lunches, among them.

Update from Family Life Services during COVID 19:

Family Life Services  is “closed but functioning as best as we can.” We have been able to refer pregnancy tests and ultrasounds to our Medical Director at his office. Our administrative staff is answering the phone and referring needs to the staff. Our nurse and counseling staff are working by phone from home attending to the needs of clients.

We are operating a “drive through” program on Tuesdays and Thursdays to supply material goods (diapers, formula, wipes, thermometers, etc.) to clients who depend on our support. In fact, in the first three weeks, we were able to supply over 4500 diapers to 75 families.

We did have to postpone our March 13th Gala fundraiser – a major source of our income. We’re looking at how to reschedule or replace that event at some future time. In the meantime, we have fewer funds available than we had planned and we still have building, staff, and other normal expenses.

How can you help?

  • Certainly any funding you could share would be great. (You can give through church via My Well Giving online at: www.mywell.org/give/aacrc)
  • We also need material goods – everything from thermometers to the cherished size 6 diapers! Check out the complete list of needs HERE.
  • FLS is looking for someone to help with lawn and grounds maintenance during this crisis.  The lawn is not that big, but if you might know of someone who would be willing to volunteer to help our ministry in that manner, we would be very grateful.

Church office is currently closed–email, mail, and voicemail are checked regularly
Contact Information:  734-665-0105, office@aacrc.org

Connections – April 10

Hi friends,
Enjoy these excerpts from our Connections electronic newsletter from Friday April 10, 2020. (Sorry this is getting posted a little bit late.) Special thanks to Pastors Kristen, Ryan, and Noah for helping us mark Holy Week with morning devotions, a Maundy Thursday liturgy, live-streamed good Friday service, and thoughtful Easter reflections during this unusual time. (Easter links below)
Christ is Risen!
Jen

In-Home Worship for Easter Sunday–April 12

Pastor Ryan Boes
“Kingdom and Cross: Resurrection”
Matthew 28:1-10

Sunday’s Easter sermon by Pastor Ryan will premiere live on YouTube at 9:00am. If you start the liturgy around 8:40 you should find yourself at the sermon right around 9:00.
Liturgy
Songs & Pastor Ryan’s Message (YouTube)

If your children would like to participate and engage by using the new children’s bulletin, it is attached HERE.

 

Council Briefs

Council came together this past Monday evening at our regularly scheduled time via online conference.

After Pastor Ryan led us in devotions, Leslie Doorlag gave us an update on the rotating homeless shelter we have been hosting. The gentlemen staying at our facility currently have few options and are a severely vulnerable population. Other rotating shelters hosts have canceled out of the schedule, and the COVID-19 situation also has severely limited the places where they can stay during the daytime. For this reason, the deacons have decided to extend the program through the end of April.

The men are very grateful and happy with the situation and are expressing their gratitude in tangible ways by helping around the inside and outside of church.   We as a congregation may have not been able to assemble and worship at the building on Sundays recently, but God is definitely present there in others and is being glorified.

As some of you may have seen in the news, the federal government is offering a Payroll Protection Plan to small businesses (profit and non-profit) in the form of a loan to pay employees. With the approval of council on Monday, our church is applying for a loan to be used primarily towards payroll. The church administration will be using the funds under specific conditions so that most if not all the loan will be forgiven as per the program criteria. At the time of this publication, the application is still in process.

We also would like to thank those who have been faithful in giving during this time. Use of the My Well Giving app and My Well online system for giving has increased significantly lately, and we are grateful for those using that tool or sending in financial gifts in other ways. We continue to ask you to be faithful in your giving to your church and its ministry.

Blessings,
Bill VanderMolen on behalf of Council AACRC

Holy Week and other updates – April 3

Worship With Us

Palm Sunday

Worship Liturgy for In-Home Worship on Sunday, April 3

Pastor Ryan Boes
I Samuel 16:1-13Matthew 21:1-11

We are doing something special for Palm Sunday! The sermon video will go live in a YouTube premier at 8:30am. This means that you can log on at that time and chat with others in real time as the sermon unfolds! If you begin the order of service at 8:10, you will find yourself at the sermon section at about the right time. See you Sunday!

Liturgy
Songs & Pastor Ryan’s Message (YouTube)

If your children would like to participate and engage by using the new children’s bulletin for Lent, it is attached HERE. We would love to see their work and possibly share it on our website and social media pages. If that’s okay with you, email us pictures to the church office.

Upcoming Services for Holy Week: 

Holy Week: While we cannot gather in person this year for Holy Week devotions, the pastors will host Holy Week devotions by video chat at 7am every morning. Look for an email from your elder with the Zoom link.

For Maundy Thursday, we will be following an at-home liturgy, similar to our Sunday morning services during coronatide. Because of the importance of being physically gathered to celebrate the Lord’s Supper, this year we will focus on Christ’s washing of the disciples’ feet with a Liturgy of Washing.

Good Friday: We invite you to join us on Friday at 2:30pm on Facebook for a live worship stream to mark the last moments of Christ on the Cross. Through scripture, prayer, and mediation, we will remember and reflect on the crucifixion. The video of the worship will be uploaded so those unable to make it at 2:30pm can watch it later.

Grow With Us

God’s Big Easter Story: A Holy Week Journey for Families  provides your family with a simple, meaningful way to grow in faith together as your children recall recent faith formation lesson and remember the events leading up to Jesus’ death and celebrate Jesus’ resurrection.  Don’t forget to check out the Easy Extra Ideas at the end of the resource and send us your pictures of a LEGO creation that depicts the story of the day, your resurrection garden, mixing/baking/eating Hot Cross Buns, your Easter banner, or your family singing and signing an Easter song…

Serve With Us

  1. Continue our tithes and offerings: The AACRC supports many organizations and missionaries that are being directly affected by this pandemic and it is through our offerings and tithes that we can continue to support ourselves and the ministries we are in partnership with. You can donate by mailing in a check, through My Well Giving online at www.mywell.org/give/aacrc, or by downloading the My Well Giving app. Thank you for continuing to support the good work of God through the Ann Arbor Christian Reformed Church.
  2. Care for one another: COVID-19 affects those over 60 and those with health concerns most critically. Therefore, some have needed to distance themselves from others in this time. We’re looking for people willing to make a grocery run, pick up a prescription, or run an essential errand for those who are most at risk. You can sign up to be a helper by adding your name to the list found in your Connections electronic newsletter. If you have a need you would like assistance with, please contact a pastor or your elder.
  3. UPDATE–Rotating Shelter: Our church building is continuing to be used to house 15 men from the Shelter Association of Washtenaw County while the health department works to secure hotel rooms for them. Rachel Bush is facilitating the ways in which AACRC can help. She has put together a SIGN UP for food donations. You will find directions in the sign-up for dropping off donations. If you would prefer to provide a financial donation, contact Rachel Bush for details. Finally, please pray. These men value your prayers and have felt your support throughout this uncertain time. Thank you for your continued generosity and flexibility! 
  4. Hope Clinic: Hope Clinic is committed to staying open during this time. Please consider their requests HERE. (Hope has two immediate needs: masks for the Dental Clinic and hand sanitizer for entrances, waiting rooms and the food program.) and drop off the items or volunteer your time to help those most affected by stoppages of school and work. If you are unable to personally get out but would like to make a cash donation, that is also welcome at this time!
  5. Finally, the Red Cross is in need of blood as many blood drives have been cancelled. If you feel up to it, please contact the Red Cross and please consider donating blood to help with the shortage.

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