Midweek Connection 5.27.20

Here is today's Midweek Connection

https://youtu.be/QAR8CW9VQkc

Turn up your volume during the Bible presentations.

A Prayer For Memorial Day

Thank you to all who have served our country.

Eternal God,
from whom all life comes, to whom all life returns,
we remember all who served our country in the military.
We remember and we give thanks.
We give thanks for sacrifices made and losses endured.
We give thanks for acts of courage, grace and hope.
We give thanks for our brothers and sisters who gave the full measure of devotion.
We give thanks for those we knew well and those we never met.
For the life, goodness, faith, courage, and love that was in each one, we give thanks.
We pray for our brothers and sisters who are recovering from wounds in body, mind, spirit, or soul.
Work healing in them in all the forms that healing takes.
We pray for those who provide care to them.
Show us ways that we can extend care and support.
We pray for families and friends and all who grieve for loved ones who have died.
Meet them in the valley of death's shadow.
Embrace them in the healing warmth of
your comfort, grace and love.
Grant them and all of us the assurance
that nothing in life or in death
can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord,
in whose name we pray.
May the day soon come when swords are beaten into plowshares, war is studied no more, and all peoples and your world will know peace.
May we work for that day.
We pray through Jesus Christ.
Amen.

- Mark Koenig

Pentecost Plans May 31

We are excited to announce plans for our Pentecost worship celebration, which is next Sunday, May 31st (not tomorrow, which is May 24th, in case you are like me and a little lost in time during pandemic season  ). 

First, an update on our worship plans in general. After reviewing the guidance from the Governor’s office, as well as from our individual denomination and congregational leadership, our congregation has decided not to have in-person worship until after Union County enters Phase Two. Exact dates and precautions are still being considered. 

So, we will be recording a Pentecost worship service and sending out the link. 

In addition, we are planning two special worship opportunities for May 31st"

• Blooming Pentecost Cross: the outdoor Easter cross was such a joy, we have decided to bring it out again. On May 31st from 10am-5pm, you are invited to come to the church lawn at the corner of 6th and Washington to place flame-colored flowers or ribbons (red, yellow, orange) on the cross as a symbol of the Holy Spirit fire given to the disciples in Acts 2. 

Please park on the Washington Ave. side of the church if you come to the cross between the hours of 10am-12pm because the PFC will be occupied with the following event: 

• Drive-Through Communion: On May 31st, from 10am-noon in the Presbyterian Friendship Center (PFC) parking lot, Pastors Keith and Laura and Roberta Smythe (of Zion Lutheran and St. Peter's Episcopal) will be distributing the bread and juice of the Lord's Supper to recipients in your vehicles. The pastors will be taking every COVID precaution in giving out the elements.

Please drive your vehicle into the PFC parking lot by way of the Spring Ave. entrance, and turn to the left out onto 6th St. as you exit to facilitate the flow of traffic.

There will be no Zoom Coffee Hour on May 31st (apologies to our long-distance members who have faithfully shown up for those events) because of the communion distribution. 

Pentecost, as with Lent and Eastertide, will be different this year! Yet we are encouraged by the power of the Holy Spirit to help us imagine and learn new ways to worship and be the church far beyond the bounds of any building! 

Worship Info for 5/24/20

Here is the link for tomorrow's Worship service: https://youtu.be/nHFs7WfdijE

Search "St. Peter's Episcopal & Zion Lutheran La Grande Online Worship for May 24th" on YouTube to get there without clicking on this link. 

Pentecost (May 31) information mentioned in the video will be sent in a separate email so as not to cause confusion with this Sunday's service. :) 

Prayer Requests: 

• Prayers for Teresa's continued healing
• Ongoing prayers for Sherry, recovering from lung transplant
• General prayers for those facing or recovering from various kinds of surgery in our congregation
• For Union County as we enter "phase 1" reopening; may all of us make wise decisions about protecting ourselves and others from COVID-19

Zoom Coffee Hour will happen at 10 am on Sunday, link is below. If you don't want to use the direct link, you can log into Zoom and enter 

• Please mute yourself upon entry to the Zoom room.  We will be trying to facilitate the flow of conversation, and muting yourself when you are not talking is helpful. 
• We will allow free-flow conversation later in the meeting, but at first we will invite you to share briefly with each other in relation to this question, "Where have you seen God this week?" We will start and then share the opportunity to speak by mutual invitation.
• We will close no later than 11 am with prayer

If you do not want to join by clicking the link, you can sign into Zoom on your device and then input the Meeting ID and Password below to enter our Zoom meeting room. You can also dial-in on your phone with info below.

Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87261513822?pwd=dDZuRFdmc1pVSmpDUXVHZ2VXZDcyZz09

Meeting ID: 872 6151 3822
Password: 009418
One tap mobile
+12532158782,,87261513822#,,1#,009418# US (Tacoma)
+13462487799,,87261513822#,,1#,009418# US (Houston)

Dial by your location
        +1 253 215 8782 US (Tacoma)
        +1 346 248 7799 US (Houston)
        +1 669 900 9128 US (San Jose)
        +1 301 715 8592 US (Germantown)
        +1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago)
        +1 646 558 8656 US (New York)
Meeting ID: 872 6151 3822
Password: 009418
Find your local number: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kbYGRRWTnU

Midweek Connection 5.20.20

Hi, Friends-Some things to do while stuck inside during a drippy day!

Here is our link for this week's midweek connection:

https://youtu.be/cQ_i2gCSslM

For those hesitant to use an embedded link, go to Youtube and search "FPC La Grande Midweek Connection 5.20.20" and it should take you there.  If for some reason it doesn't, click on one of the other midweek connection videos and proceed to Laura's page.  It will be listed there.

And thank you to everyone who sent in a note or a picture for the Reflections in the Pandemic Newsletter.  

 https://drive.google.com/open?id=1zLILOvOTRK-NqDK7sTGOY4XwiRxi8p2l

A link to the Newsletter is also available on the church's blog

https://fpclagrande.blogspot.com/ 

Worship Info for 5/17/20

Dear Friends, 

Here is the link for tomorrow's online worship service: 

https://youtu.be/carg_ljTkB8 

 

On You-Tube, search "Ecumenical Online Worship Service for May 17, 2020" and this video should come up. 

Prayer Requests: 

• Tara Tucker's mother Peggy, who has been sick 
• Ongoing prayers for Sherry, recovering from lung transplant
• General prayers for those facing or recovering from various kinds of surgery in our congregation
• For Union County as we enter "phase 1" reopening; may all of us make wise decisions about protecting ourselves and others from COVID-19

Zoom Coffee Hour will happen at 10 am on Sunday, link is below. If you don't want to use the direct link, you can log into Zoom and enter 

• Please mute yourself upon entry to the Zoom room.  We will be trying to facilitate the flow of conversation, and muting yourself when you are not talking is helpful. 
• We will allow free-flow conversation later in the meeting, but at first we will invite you to share briefly with each other in relation to this question, "How is it with your soul?" We will start and then share the opportunity to speak by mutual invitation.
• We will close no later than 11 am with prayer

Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87261513822?pwd=dDZuRFdmc1pVSmpDUXVHZ2VXZDcyZz09

Meeting ID: 872 6151 3822
Password: 009418
One tap mobile
+12532158782,,87261513822#,,1#,009418# US (Tacoma)
+13462487799,,87261513822#,,1#,009418# US (Houston)

Dial by your location
        +1 253 215 8782 US (Tacoma)
        +1 346 248 7799 US (Houston)
        +1 669 900 9128 US (San Jose)
        +1 301 715 8592 US (Germantown)
        +1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago)
        +1 646 558 8656 US (New York)
Meeting ID: 872 6151 3822
Password: 009418
Find your local number: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kbYGRRWTnU

In Person Worship Update

Dear Friends-The Worship and Music Committee met today and it was decided to postpone in-person worship until further notice.  Instead of setting a date that we might be able to have corporate worship again, we decided it was better to continue to monitor the situation until such time we can safely meet again in person. We hope and pray that it is soon!   We also discussed the health and safety protocols we will need to have in place when we do have in-person worship again.

We continue to look at ways to keep our faith community connected to each other and to Jesus.  If you have ideas, please reach out to us or Linda Fratzke, Connie Ingerson, or Mary Helen Garoutte.  In this interesting time, we are open to exploring new ways of being church!