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Traditionally, Lent is a time of intense preparation for those who will be baptized at Easter. Candidates take a close look at scripture, faith, service, and generosity as they anticipate their new life in Christ. This Lent, we will dive into the waters of baptism as we remember who we are as God’s covenant people and as we explore the baptismal promises that we make when we Affirm our Baptism:  At each of our Midweek Worship Services, we will consider these promises. Furthermore, throughout Lent, there will be ways that you can put these promises into practice. Come Easter morning, we will begin worship by Affirming our Baptism. As we celebrate all that Christ has done for us through his life, death, and resurrection, we will promise to continue in the covenant God made first with us when we were baptized. Dive in with us this Lent!
Baptismal Promise & Practice Live among God’s faithful people
Additional Information: Lent: Service Schedule Lent: Hear the Word of God Lent: Service Project
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Baptismal Promise in Practice:
Serve all people, following the example of Jesus This Lent we will gather supplies for and assemble “Blessing Bags” to be distributed to people who are homeless in Milwaukee through the Street Angels Group. Blessing Bag Donations February 26 Granola bars, individual nut or trail mix packets March 4 Travel-sized toothpaste March 11 Gum, Peanut Butter Crackers, or Flavored Water Packets March 18 Men’s socks March 25 Small Beef Sticks or Protein Bars * You can bring items in at any point! The weeks are just suggestions. Throughout Lent, we will also take donations of drawstring backpacks. Service Project Dates
Lenten Worship Calendar
February 26—Ash Wednesday, Dinner at 6pm, Worship at 7pm March 4— Dinner at 6pm, hosted by Adult Literacy Center. They will be serving a pasta bar. Worship at 7pm: “Live Among God’s faithful people” March 11—Dinner at 6pm, hosted by Lydia Circle (all donations to American Cancer Society. Join them for a baked potato bar. Worship at 7pm: “Hear the word of God and share in the Lord’s supper” March 18—Dinner at 6pm, hosted by Outreach in support of All Peoples Church. Yummy Sloppy Joe's are on the menu. Worship at 7pm: “Proclaim the good news of God in Christ through word and deed” March 25— Dinner at 6pm, host by Handbells. They will be serving Sub Sandwiches with salad. Worship at 7pm: “To strive for justice and peace in all the earth” April 1— Dinner at 6pm, hosted by HYPE. Worship at 7pm: “To serve all people following the example of Jesus” Instead of talking about serving, we will serve! We will assemble our Blessing Bags as an act of service. Holy Week April 5—Palm Sunday, Worship at 8 & 10:30am April 9—Maundy Thursday, Special Worship Combined with Dinner, 6pm April 10—Good Friday, Worship at 7pm April 12—Easter Sunday, Worship at 6:30, 8:00 & 10:30am Additional Information: Lent: Living Our Baptism Lent: Hear the Word of God Lent: Service Project The New Testament in 40 days Sometimes, we may think that the Bible is best left in the hands of trained professionals. We might be intimidated by weird names, strange places, ancient times, and foreign rituals. Let’s see what we learn if we read together. You are invited to dive in and read the New Testament during the 40 days of Lent. See how each Gospel writer tells the story of Jesus. Learn about the first Christians. Gain wisdom for this life of faith as you hear Paul’s words spoken to communities in conflict or struggle. Each day includes about 200 verses of the New Testament. Chapter numbers are given after the names of longer books. If no chapter numbers are given, then the whole book should be read. Most daily selections can be read in 20-30 minutes. Sunday you can take a break or catch-up on your reading. The King James version is not particularly reader friendly. Instead, try the NRSV (the version we use in worship), the NIV, or The Message (very contemporary language). If you want more information on a particular book, check out enterthebible.org. Give it a try! Any amount of Bible reading is better than none. Consider taking notes on your answers to these questions:
 Grace is starting a new fundraiser called Scrip. Scrip is a fundraiser that doesn’t require you to sell anything. If we get a good number of Grace members involved in this program it could raise thousands of dollars each year for our church. Scrip is easy and convenient to use. All you do is purchase gift cards to over 700 retailers where you already shop and pay with the gift card instead of cash or credit. Participating retailers include grocery stores (Meijer, Pick ‘n Save, Sendik’s, Piggly Wiggly) gas stations, restaurants, department stores (Target, Walmart, and Kohl’s) and specialty shops like Starbuck’s, Home Depot, Cabela’s and hundreds more. Just by using Scrip to pay for your normal weekly purchases, you can easily raise $300 or more per year. Every gift card has a rebate percentage associated with it ranging from 1.5-20%. These are set by the individual merchants. When you buy a card at face value the Great Lakes Scrip Center gives the rebate percentage directly to Grace. All purchases can be made online when you link your bank account and sign up for Presto Pay. There is a fifteen cent convenience fee for each transaction. Checks can also be used if this is more comfortable for you. Gift cards come in three forms: 1) physical gift card 2) physical gift card that can be reloaded online for future purchases 3) e-gift card called ScripNow which you instantly receive via email For retailers who participate in the ScripNow program you can order, pay for and use the gift card all from your phone by using the mobile scrip app called “myscripwallet”. This is especially convenient because you could decide in the store that you want the scrip and get it right then and there, meaning you don’t even have to plan ahead! This is a great way to give money to Grace without changing your budget. All you need to do is change how you pay when shopping at stores where you already shop! To get started you need to make an account at www.shopwithscrip.com and sign up with our organization code that you can obtain by contacting the church office. To get the mobile version visit myscripwallet.com from your phone and log into your account. Script orders will be placed on the third Sunday of the month. Physical gift cards will be available for pick up at church the following Sunday. If you don’t make it to church that week, they will also be available for pick up in the church office after that. Contact Chantal Murack, cmurack@uwalumni.com, with any questions. It’s time to put your shopping dollars to work for the benefit of our church home and the Good News of Jesus!
 UPDATE: As of July 1st, Registration is Full. Please contact the church office if you would like to be added to the waiting list. Mark your calendars for Vacation Bible School at Grace! Our “To Mars & Beyond” VBS runs August 5-9 from 9:00-noon each day. Grace’s Vacation Bible School is open to students entering 3K-6th grade in the fall. At VBS we’ll explore where God’s power can take us through creative crafts, catchy music, interactive games, science projects and exciting Bible stories. Space is limited, so register early! Promo Video Palm Sunday
Palm Sunday was the day when Jesus entered into Jerusalem. It was the first day of the last week of his life. Palm Sunday shows Jesus being hailed as king by his disciples. By the end of the week the crowds would be calling for his death. Palm Sunday shows us the strength and dedication to God which Jesus demonstrated. Our Palm Sunday worship will be held on April 14. We will celebrate and remember this day with palm branches, Holy Communion and hearing this ancient story once again. Maundy Thursday To non-Christians, Holy Communion might seem rather silly. We gather to hear some words, eat a bit of bread and drink a sip of wine. But to us, this silly activity has the greatest importance. It ties us to Jesus’ ultimate act, just as when Jesus first did this he tied it to the ancient festival of the Passover. This meal ties us to Jesus and to believers of all ages. We believe it holds up Christ’s promise of forgiveness, salvation and his eternal presence. Join us for our Maundy Thursday meal at 7:00 p.m. on April 18. Good Friday Jesus life came to an end on the cross, and we gather to give witness to his sacrifice, to remember and to pray. Our solemn worship begins at 7pm and ends in silence, as we wait for the tomb to be opened and empty again on Easter Morning. Easter Sunday Jesus is Risen, and the world is changed! We celebrate with lots of special music, with joyful singing, spring flowers and a celebration of everlasting life! 6:30 Sunrise Service: Holy Communion & Handbells 8:00 Traditional Service: Holy Communion, Jubilation Choir & Handbells 10:30 Celebration Service: Holy Communion & Praise Team  You are invited to Food and Fellowship at 6pm before each Lenten service that follows at 7pm. Grace groups host by preparing and serving the meals. The menu is different each week. Peanut butter and jelly will be served each week also.
The groups use this meal as an opportunity to support their organizations activities and charitable causes. Watch for the donation baskets and what the donations will be used for. Please give what your able for their work. Wednesday March 6: Hosted by 7th Grade Confirmation Class. They will be serving Potato Soup & Ham Sandwiches. Free will offering will be used toward confirmation camp. Wednesday, March 13: Hosted by Family Promise. They will be having a soup buffet, grilled cheese and egg sandwiches Wednesday, March 20: hosted by Sunday School for Foster Closet of Kenosha. We will be having a Mac and Cheese bar and hot dogs. Wednesday, March 27: Hosted by Lydia Circle. They are hosting a Baked Potato Bar. Wednesday, April 3: Hosted by Outreach. We will be eating Sloppy Joe's. Wednesday, April 10: Hosted by Adult Literacy. That evening they will be having a pasta bar. The next two days could be the coldest days in Milwaukee's recorded history. Because of that we are going to close the church office on Wednesday and Thursday and cancel all activities at church.
This means that we will not have confirmation classes for the seventh and eighth graders on Wednesday evening. The card group will not meet on Thursday afternoon. We will also cancel the Thursday evening worship and the Thursday evening Bible study. Please stay inside; stay warm and safe. Things should warm up again starting on Friday. In case of emergency you can contact the pastors at home (Pastor Paul at 262-377-4087 and Pastor Heidi at 262-327-2575). |
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