Linking Church and Family

Copies of the devotional resource, "This Season at Home," are available in the Narthex. This is a great way to ponder the Bible as a family all through the week. The Scripture references are from the Revised Common Lectionary, which means that it uses the same texts as in morning worship and Sunday school. "This Season at Home" is a wonderful way to link church and home, and to open up discussions about faith. This week's Bible story (Exodus 16:2-21), is on the Israelites complaint about being hungry in the desert. God answered their hunger pangs by sending them manna, which are flakes that literally mean, "what is it?" As Dee mentioned in her sermon, it could have been insect excrement! "This Season at Home" reads,

Besides serving as food, manna was also a teaching tool from God. God wanted to teach the people of Israel to take only what they needed so that everyone would have enough. And by resting on the Sabbath, God also encouraged the people to enjoy their relationship with the One who was setting them free. What lessons can you continue to learn from this story about manna?

Sunday School Begins!

This year's teachers are looking forward to nurturing and journeying with your children this year at Eagle Harbor Church! You may have questions about what Church school will look like this fall, so here is an overview:

After exiting the Sanctuary following Children's Time, children ages preschool through fourth grade will gather in the classroom at the end of the hall for singing and a story. Then the older kids will go to the adjacent classroom for an activity, and the younger children will stay in the room for their activity. The children will re-join for the last few minutes for a closing time together. The teachers for this multiage class are Deborah Allen, Jenean Brady, Allison McDonald, and Denise Melton-Todd.

Our middle school class will be taught by Dick Goff and Stephen Soderland. Those in high school will be excused after the sermon, with a time to check in with each other and discuss the sermon. This group will meet in Dee's office and will be facilitated by Susan Sivitz and Kevin Block.

We hope you can come to our Sunday school celebration on September 14. We will have the opportunity to bless our teachers and children in the service. Then the preschool and elementary school children will be decorating tote bags that they will use throughout the year to hold their song books and other supplies. Following the service, everyone is invited to enjoy some good food in the fellowship hall. There will be registration forms for parents to fill out, curriculum to peruse, and devotional materials to take home.

We are blessed to have many volunteers who are able to teach this year. Yet we can always use extra help, so please let me know if you feel drawn to a particular area of service. Possibilities include assisting teachers in the classroom, organizing/purchasing supplies, helping out with mission or Advent/Christmas activities. One of our greatest needs is to find volunteers who can rotate being “hall/bathroom monitor” during Sunday school time, to ensure that children get safely back and forth to their classrooms. Please let me know if you can serve in this role, whether regularly or occasionally.

Hope to see you soon!

Blessings,

Pastor Emily

Welcome to the Blog

Hello all! I have finally entered the blogosphere! I am happy to welcome you to this resource and conversation space for parents at Eagle Harbor Congregational Church. As the new school year, and Sunday school year begins, I hope to use this blog as one way of increasing communication with families about happenings at church. I would also love to provide a space where parents can listen to each other, share resources and ask questions. Please post with your thoughts and check back soon!

Peace out,

Emily