WORSHIP
Worship With Us Online! Good Shepherd will continue to offer online worship on Sundays and our parking lot Holy Communion on the first and third Sundays from Noon – 1:00 pm.
Please use the following links below to connect online to the Sunday Church Service:
Facebook click here: Facebook
YouTube click here: Youtube
Online Events Information Good Shepherd Lutheran Church will be doing a Streaming Devotional with Pr. Jamie Vannoy every Wednesday at Noon. We will also be including Read Aloud Stories with Don Bennett every weekday, Monday – Friday, at 2:30 pm. Please come, connect, and enjoy.
Please use the following links below to connect:
Facebook click here: Facebook
YouTube click here: Youtube
Staying Connected Living out God’s calling/faith
We thought it would be nice to stay connected by submitting photos or clips/videos of you or your loved one living out God’s calling\faith. It could be something as simple as you reading/studying your bible, to volunteer work, sitting at your computer attending Sunday school or Bible study. Almost anything as long as it is related to your calling/faith.
With Lent right around the corner maybe you could send in a 10-20 second video telling us what discipline you’re practicing for Lent or what Lent means to you. It would be a way for each of us to see each other and hear each other’s voices.
Don will upload all of this to our website, similar to what we did for Advent and our Advent Wreaths. Send information to Donald Bennett don.bennett@goodshepherdkettering.com
Lent Schedule for 2021 Reaching Agreement with God Even in Adversity
Mid-Week Lent Offerings To Support ECLA Disaster Relief for Texas and Louisiana Flooding:
The mid-week lent offerings will be sent to the ELCA Disaster Relief to help support those who have been affected by the recent wide-spread flooding. Lutheran Disaster Response’s coordinator is present, working with community leaders and officials planning the proper responses, most importantly the long-term recovery efforts. Thank you for your support of ECLA Disaster Relief! Information about ELCA Disaster Relief can be accessed at the link below: Texas and Louisiana Flooding
April 2 Good Friday
In-Person & Online
Worship 7:00 pm
April 3 Easter Vigil
In-Person & Online
Worship 7:00 pm
OUTREACH AND SERVICES
Food Pantry News Thanks for your support for many needy families in our area who are serviced by the Neighbor to Neighbor Food Pantry
The food pantry donation bin has been moved back to the narthex; so if you are coming to church on Sunday morning you can bring your donations and place them there. During the week, if you are going by church, you can still place your donations inside the fellowship hall as we have been doing. Monetary donations may still be made by placing a check in the offering or mailing it to the church office payable to Good Shepherd with “food pantry” in the memo line. Recently we have been able to make generous donations to several other area food pantry ministries: Harmony Creek United Church of Christ Food Pantry; Marshall Rd. Church of God Food Pantry; South Community “Caring Hands” Food Pantry.
Volunteers Needed Our church is responsible for preparing and serving a breakfast meal, to guests of First Lutheran Church in Downtown Dayton, on the second and fourth Sundays of each month. We have a group of dedicated volunteers who have been faithfully helping for many years. We are looking for some more to join our team. We can use volunteers to occasionally shop for food, help prepare food (on Saturday and/or Sunday) and deliver the grab-n-go meals on Sunday morning. Please consider volunteering and help feed those less fortunate in Downtown Dayton. Please contact Lisa Connelly at 937-435-6721 for further information. Thank you very much!
CONTINUING EDUCATION
Call for GLSC Scholarship Applications 2021-2022 Academic Year
Applications will be solicited from April 5 – April 19. Anyone who is a member of Good Shepherd pursuing a 2 year degree, 4 year degree, or ELCA rostered leadership is eligible to apply. Those who are interested in applying for scholarships from the Good Shepherd Lutheran Church Scholarship Fund may review the requirements on the church webpage, www.goodshepherdkettering.com.
Applications may be found on the webpage or requested from the church office. Completed applications must be submitted by Monday, April 19.
Amazing Grace Daycamp June 19-23, 2021
Summer is just around the corner. Soon it will be time for Amazing Grace Daycamp. Circle June 19-23 on your calendars! Those are the important dates to remember. We will have a team from Lutheran Memorial Camp to lead the programming. We will need lots of volunteers to help with the campers, serve meals, provide support, and house the LMC staff. Hold this important outreach ministry in your prayers.
An Intergenerational FAMILY project The GSLC Sunday School youth assembled Egg Crates containing discussion guides and 12 plastic eggs filled items to become symbols of Lent and Easter. There was an egg for Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, Easter, and is an egg for Easter Monday. Each day the youth and adults will share an activity, a devotion, and a prayer from that week’s special egg. The materials needed are provided in the eggs. The projects reinforce the concepts of recognizing God’s love for us and encourage sharing the Good News with others.
The Egg Crates will still be available for pick up at GSLC in the Narthex. Please ask when you enter for worship.
Griefshare This ministry features biblical, Christ-centered teaching on topics associated with the death of a loved one. The DVD seminar features nationally respected grief experts and real-life stories of people, followed by a small group discussion about the weekly topic and personal grief experiences. The final session has been postponed. Further information will be shared when the session is rescheduled.
Further information and registration is available at www.griefshare.org or by calling the GSLC office (937-298-0136).
Topic: GriefShare – From Mourning to Joy (13 sessions)
Facilitators: Kathy Seim and Pam Bauser
Time: Sundays
1:00 pm – 3:00 pm
Place: comfort of your home
Lifelong Learning Learn more about God’s Word for us. Join us ONLINE to learn together.
Our ADULT Lifelong Learning Classes are ONLINE! Everyone is welcome! Use the links below to join in the conversations. Take this opportunity to “zoom” in and discover the quality adult education we have at GSLC. Our Bible studies are open to ALL near and far. If you haven’t checked any of these out, please consider this invitation to join us now.
Our YOUTH classes (Kindergarten – 6th grade) are now IN PERSON meeting in the chapel. Times are 9:00 – 10:00 a.m. Karin Linch and Sandy Rosholt are the teachers for our youth classes.
CATECHISM is being offered online this year. Catechism is for our 6th, 7th, and 8th graders in preparation for confirmation, affirming the baptismal promises. If you have an interest in our studies of the Bible, Luther’s Small Catechism, and Lutheran heritage, please contact the church office for more information. Pastor Jamie and Don Bennett teach our catechism classes.
SATURDAY MORNING BREAKFAST BIBLE STUDY DISCUSSION
This study has been cancelled for the next several weeks. More information on restarting will be available after Easter.
SUNDAY MORNING ADULT BIBLE STUDY
Topic: ACTS of the Apostles: a Biblical study on The Book of ACTS!
The study of ACTS is complete.
The next session begins April 11, the Sunday after Easter.
COMING NEXT: Hungering for Justice: Luther and the Economy
Economic downturns. Economic recovery. Economic sustainability. Economic pressures. Economics are increasingly part of our daily news cycles. Does God care about our economic woes?
This study from the ELCA World Hunger division allows us to look closely at Biblical teachings on Household Economy, An Economy of Grace, An Economy of Vocation, A Just Economy, and A Sustainable Economy.
Facilitator: Roger Scott
Time: 9:00 am – 10:00 am
Place: comfort of your home – connect online!
THURSDAY MORNING BIBLE STUDY for Men
This study has been cancelled for the next several weeks. More information on restarting will be available after Easter.
Financial Peace University Stop and think about this for a second. Imagine what the people of God, could do for the Kingdom of God, if they were debt free. What would you be able to do if you were debt free? Imagine what it would feel like to be able to give freely and generously toward needs you feel passionate about, whenever God leads you to. Financial Peace University will walk you through the process that will get you there and make it incredibly practical in your daily life. And if you know anything about Dave Ramsey you know it’s going to be a lot of fun!
The first class is always free if you want to see what it is all about! To learn more about the class, visit the Financial Peace University website at www.daveramsey.com or register for the class (coming soon).
Also come to the free class preview coming in March to find out more. You’ll be glad you did! Classes will begin in the first part of March, further details coming soon. If you have any questions, contact Martin Pierce at 287-4021 or Kathy Seim at 294-1145.
MISCELLANEOUS
Offerings for last week: $4,056.05
The amount reported applies to contributions used towards the annual ministry plan which requires contributions of $5,243 every week.
Calling for all Graduates Graduation Weekend – May 23, 2021
Each spring Good Shepherd honors our graduates from high school, college, and graduate programs. This year our graduate recognition will be the weekend of May 23. We need your help identifying this year’s graduates. Please submit the names of those members of your family who are graduating this spring to the church office as soon as possible. This will help us plan for the event. Please indicate the graduate’s full name, the name of school, and the degree earned, including the field of study. Thank you for helping us gather this information! It is a blessing to honor those graduates who are special to our congregation.
Memorial Committee We are in need of a chairperson for the Memorial Committee if you are interested feel free to call the church office and talk to Pr Jamie at (937) 298-0136. Attached below is more of a description of the responsibilities of the committee and the chairperson as you discern serving in this way. Click here: Memorial Committee Description
Electronic Giving
Don’t forget to send in your weekly tithe/offering to the church at 901 East Stroop Rd, Kettering, OH 45429 or go to our online Electronic Giving:
Electronic Giving Good Shepherd Lutheran Church is now offering the option of electronic giving for regular offerings and special offerings. Giving is done using the company Tithe.ly which is the only one endorsed by the ELCA. There are three ways to give:
1. Via smartphone using the Tithe.ly app (download via the App Store or Google Play)
2. Online at Tithe.ly
3. Via the GSLC Website which has a link to the Tithe.ly website to give directly to GSLC
The process to create an account and give is simple because it is tied to a debit or credit card. There is also a processing fee of less than 3% that you can choose to cover if desired. Benefits of Electronic Giving:
1. Ability to give from anywhere including other countries – you only need an internet connection via smartphone or computer.
2. Ability to give 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
3. Ability to choose from a variety of options where your gift goes.
4. Can give more than one gift at a time with the “Add Gift” option.
Questions: Contact Martin Pierce (937) 287-4021 or Denise Wilson (513) 913-0133.
CHURCH PROGRAM DONATIONS
AmazonSmile In 2018, we received $15.95 in donations from AmazonSmile. In 2019 we received $19.64. Would you like to help go over those amounts for 2020? It’s easy to do. Go to our website for Youth Donations, Good Shepherd Youth Donations, scroll down and you will see a little graphic labeled amazonsmile. Click on that and follow the directions. Once you’ve done that, instead of going to amazon.com to make an online purchase, go to smile.amazon.com and for every purchase you make, we will get 0.5% of that price donated to us. It’s still Amazon, with all the features of the normal site, we just get a small cut. Over time those 0.5% donations add up. Please consider supporting us in this way. The proceeds go to help with youth events. If you have any questions, please contact Don Bennett.
GSLC Lutheran Youth Corps (LYC) Gift Card Program Did you know there is a way that you can financially support Good Shepherd at no cost to you? Through the LYC, you can order gift cards from a variety of merchants and restaurants at face value and a portion of each purchase is donated to the church to support youth programs and the First Lutheran Breakfasts. Although the percentage donated to the church may seem small, a few percent of our collective purchases can add up to a significant donation to Good Shepherd over time. Order forms are available in the Narthex. Orders placed on the weekend are normally available for pick up the following week, with the exception of some holiday periods and weeks where we do not reach the minimum threshold for placing an order. Please contact Don Bennett if you have any questions. What a great way to be faithful stewards of our resources!
A PLACE FOR NEWS
ELCA NEWS:
ELCA Disability Ministry God’s work. Our hands. Click here.
Lutheran World Relief Sustainable Development. Click here.
ELCA Global Links. Click here.
ELCA World Hunger Links. Click here.
Easter Message 2021
I try to imagine what it must have been like on that first Easter morning when there wasn’t the knowledge of the resurrection. When, instead, it was all about death and disappointment. And I imagine Mary Magdalene coming to the tomb in order to care for Jesus’ body, to prepare it for burial. The story was over. The hope was gone. And then someone shows up in the garden, and Mary can’t recognize him. Thinking that he’s the gardener, she says, “Sir, tell me where you’ve taken the body so that I may bring it back here.” Imagine a woman, literally, thinking that she could carry the deadweight of a man. All of that grief, the heaviness of that physically as well as spiritually, and just then Jesus speaks her name.
“Mary,” he says, and her eyes are open. And she can see Jesus because she has been seen by Jesus. Her name has been called by the risen Lord, and now she is part of the resurrection story that happens for all of us in baptism. Jesus has called all of us by name and knows every one of us. And we too now are part of the resurrection story. Her mourning was turned into dancing. I’m going to leave you with this hymn from our newest worship resource, All Creation Sings, about the transformation of Mary’s grief into joy.
Happy Easter, dear Church.
The Rev. Elizabeth A. Eaton, Presiding Bishop
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
View the message via youtube click here.
COMMUNITY EVENTS AND NOTICES
Vaccines Available You can now go to vaccinespotter.org to search around on each pharmacy’s website, in your area, and it will show you any available appointments for COVID19 vaccines. Click on your state and available appointments will be in green.
Vaccines Available You can now go to the Kettering Health Network website where you can submit your name to be contacted for a vaccine appointment when your age group comes up.
Click here: Kettering Health if you are interested. When you click the Kettering Health link you will go to their coronavirus information page, at the bottom there will be a link to schedule your appointment. Right now it’s just for 80+ but in the following weeks the age groups of 75+, 70+, 65+ etc. appointments will be available as per the governor’s guidelines.