September 7 Announcements
Rally Day: Plan to come this Sunday, September 10 when we will celebrate Rally Day! Bring your favorite main dish, side dish or dessert to share at a potluck following worship. During the potluck there will be information tables for everyone to explore how they might get involved at Bethany in the upcoming program year. So that we might all worship together at the 10am service on Rally Day, there will be no 5pm service on Saturday, September 9. Can you help us set up? We will be meeting at 10am on Saturday, September 9 to set up tables for the potluck. Many hands make light work!
Worship this Fall: Our worship for the next few weeks will center around the theme of the Season of Creation. Each week will focus on a different aspect of Creation. The themes include: 9/10 – Mountain Sunday; 9/17 – Wildfire Sunday; 9/24 – Oceans Sunday; 10/1 – Humanity Sunday; and 10/8 – The Blessing of the Animals. We will continue to have Holden Evening Prayer one Saturday a month. In September, Holden Evening Prayer will be celebrated on September 16 and in October it will be celebrated on October 14.
Faith Formation: Sunday School begins next week, Sunday, September 17! In September and throughout November, our Sunday school lessons and children's messages will be based on the theme, "Compassion: Learning to Love Like God." During worship, we'll hear stories of God's compassion and along with the whole congregation, we'll learn a sentence of scripture to commit to memory. The fun continues after the children's message in Sunday school where kids will engage with the story more deeply and participate in activities and crafts, too. Kids of all ages are welcome to join us in Sunday school--please register your children by taking a Sunday school registration sheet available on Rally Day or electronically by emailing Pastor Erin at . Note that on the first Sunday of the month, there will be NO Sunday school so that all of our church family can worship together.
Thanks to some pretty awesome teenagers, Pre-K care (aka "nursery"), will be available to families with young children (18mos+) beginning on September 17 on the upper level of the education building. Our children's corner of the sanctuary--stocked with toys and books--is always available for children during worship.
Our first Adult Education forum of the 2023-24 season will be on September 17 in the sanctuary following worship. In keeping with the theme of the Season of Creation, we'll hear from two speakers from the Interfaith Council's New Climate Circle, Stefani Galladay and John Kydd. Stefani and John will share the Climate Circle's Work, facilitate discussion among us, and give us ideas on how we can participate in ensuring the preservation of God's good creation. Please come, everyone is welcome! Teenagers and young adults are warmly welcome and encouraged to attend!
Bible Study Next Week: The Women’s Bible Study & Book group will meet on Monday, September 11 at 9:30am. The Men’s Bible Study group will meet on Tuesday, September 12 at 8:00am. See the fall Life Together newsletter for more details.
September Impact Gathering – Filling the LWR School Kits: Mark your calendars for our first Impact gathering of the season, Sunday, September 17 from 4:00-5:30pm in Fellowship Hall. To kick off the back-to-school season, we'll be filling backpacks for Lutheran World Relief and enjoying each other's company over a pizza party made possible through a Thrivent Action Team grant. Thanks to the generosity of the congregation and others who donated school supplies, we will be able to fill 75 book bags for kids around the world! And a special thanks to Alice and Bruce McCain for organizing the details, including the donation drive, inviting Impact to be involved, and facilitating a Thrivent grant. Join us for this fun, community-and-compassion building event; everyone is welcome! And if you're a student, bring your own backpack for a special blessing. Can't wait to see you there!
Evan Stoll Funeral: A funeral for Evan Stoll will take place on Saturday, September 23 at 1:00pm. Please keep Helen and the Stoll family in your prayers during this tender time.
Receiving New Members: Bethany will be receiving new members on Sunday, September 24. Please let Pastor Paul or Pastor Erin know if you are interested in being received as members that morning.
Bethany Endowment Fund Grants: The Bethany Endowment Committee is now accepting grant applications until October 15 for the 2023 distribution cycle. Application forms are available on the table in the narthex. They can also be downloaded from our website. Completed applications can be dropped off in the office or sent by email as an attachment.
CROP Walk 2023: Please mark your calendars for the CROP Walk to End Hunger, which this year takes place on Sunday, October 1 at 2:00pm. Pastor Paul wants all to note that this year there is neither a Seahawks or a Packers football game that day (and the Mariners World Series game will most likely be in the evening). So come and walk with us or donate to Bethany’s team. Every step and every donation help to end hunger. To join the team or donate visit: https://events.crophungerwalk.org/2023/team/bethany-lutheran-2
Altar Flowers: The altar flowers this weekend are given by Linnea Chu in memory of Franklin’s birthday.
Prayers are Requested: for Jan Thrun who will be undergoing a cardioversion procedure to address her irregular heart rhythm on Friday.
Thank You to this weekend's Worship Assistants:
Altar Duty: Vickie Bech
No Saturday 5:00pm Service
Sunday 10:00am – Greeters/Ushers: Eve & Mike Curtis; Lay Reader: Barbara Deines; Communion Assistant: Barbara Deines; Hospitality Host: Rally Day Potluck!
Next weekend's Worship Assistants:
Altar Duty: Gail Christensen
Saturday 5:00pm – Greeter/Usher: Jim Rohrscheib; Lay Reader: Jennie Harris: Hospitality Host: Jennie Harris
Sunday 10:00am – Greeters/Ushers: Alice & Bruce McCain; Lay Reader: Linnea Chu; Communion Assistant: Linnea Chu; Hospitality Host