Inside Immanuel Weekly
"WE SHARE GOD'S GIFT OF LOVE WITH ALL"
May 24, 2020
Seventh Sunday of Easter
Worship Online Through Immanuel's
(Click on the above link to access)
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Dear disciples of Jesus at Immanuel Lutheran,
Today, May 21st, is Ascension Day in the church year, the day commemorating Jesus ascending to heaven 40 days after his resurrection. We will hear one of the accounts of this story in worship this Sunday (Acts 1:6-14). Knowing his departure would be especially hard on the disciples, Jesus reassures them with the promise that they would not be left alone. The Spirit would soon come.
In the Gospel this week, Jesus prays “that they may be one” (John 17:11), as they wait for the Spirit to come. As they stay together, and stay close to God, they support one another in their grief while being strengthened for their mission.
In her
Blessing for Ascension Day,
poet Jan Richardson’s words that were written seven years ago, take on added meaning for us this year, encouraging us to stay connected and turn toward one another as we too await the Holy Spirit.
May we be one,
Pastor Gretchen
Stay
A Blessing for Ascension Day
I know how your mind
rushes ahead
trying to fathom
what could follow this.
What will you do,
where will you go,
how will you live?
You will want to
outrun the grief.
You will want
to keep turning toward
the horizon,
watching for what was lost
to come back,
to return to you
and never leave again.
For now
hear me when I say
all you need to do
is to still yourself
is to turn toward one another
is to stay.
Wait
and see what comes
to fill
the gaping hole
in your chest.
Wait with your hands open
to receive what could never come
except to what is empty
and hollow.
You cannot know it now,
cannot even imagine,
what lies ahead,
but I tell you
the day is coming
when breath will
fill your lungs
as it never has before
and with your own ears
you will hear words
coming to you new
and startling.
You will dream dreams
and you will see the world
ablaze with blessing.
Wait for it.
Still yourself.
Stay.
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O God of glory, your Son Jesus Christ suffered for us and ascended to your right hand. Unite us with Christ and each other in suffering and in joy, that all the world may be drawn into your bountiful presence, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
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Come-As-You-Are Coffee Hour
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Sunday, May 24th from 9:30 to 10:30am.
We look forward to seeing you "drop in" anytime between 9:30 and 10:30 this week!
If you tried to join the Coffee Hour last week "it was Zoom's fault!" They were experienceing technical issues which have been resolved.
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Join Zoom Meeting
Meeting ID: 878 3832 6700
Password: 876800
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Online Small Group Discussion:
50 Years of Ordained Women
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2020 marks the 50th anniversary of the ordination of women in the Lutheran church in our country. What led up to this momentous change in the church? How did the Spirit move from "what would prevent us?" to "why we must"? What have been the struggles and the joys of women's leadership within our Lutheran expression of Christianity? Come and explore these questions and bring your own questions and observations in this 5-session series beginning on
Wednesday June 3 continuing through July 1 at 7:00pm on Zoom.
You are welcome to attend one or all of the sesssions. The group will be facilitated by women clergy in the Treasure Valley using a resource from our ELCA. Please RSVP to Pastor Gretchen Bingea (
pastor@ilcboise.org
).
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Linden House Update by Les Gieselman
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If you recall, last week I introduced you to Linden House and asked several questions for you to ponder. I also promised to provide answers to those questions and begin an ongoing discussion about Linden House. Rather than publish a long and detailed article about this Immanuel property, I plan to share that information with you in shorter, easy to read articles.
Linden House is a 3-bedroom, 2 story plus basement house located at 815 N. 7
th
Street, adjacent to the south side of Augustana Chapel. Church lore suggests that it is called the Linden House because of the Linden trees that were planted on the street in front of the house. In the photo below (taken from 7
th
street and looking west), Linden House is in the center, Augustana Chapel is to the right and the alley leading to the back side of Immanuel is to the left.
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During the construction of Augustana Chapel in 1914, Rev. C.E. Olsson outlined to the congregation the need for a more adequate parsonage (the parsonage at that time was a four-room frame house due west of Augustana Chapel) and the completion of the new church. Pastor Olsson loaned the congregation $3,000 for construction of a parsonage (to become Linden House.) The house served as the parsonage for the church for several decades.
That’s all for this week. Please check future issues of
Inside Immanuel Weekly
for ongoing information about Linden House.
Les Gieselman, President
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You are invited to join Lutheran women across the church every Tuesday at noon in prayer. Use the simple approach by reflecting on God’s word, offering prayers and reflecting on your self-care and the care of others. For more information please visit the
WELCA site
.
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Children & Youth Ministry by Mary Riedl
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ALL Ages
Flat Jesus is a reminder that God is always with us. The youth invite the entire congregation to join us in sharing photos of what you are up to - with Flat Jesus by your side!
Print out the flat Jesus, color it in, attach it to a popsicle stick (or anything similar if you have it - a spoon, straw, a stick from outside, etc). There are lots of things you can do with flat Jesus - because Jesus is always with us. We would love to see photos in our private facebook group (or you can email them to me to share) of what you, your children and flat Jesus get up to!
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May 31 - Children’s Church Pentecost Party!
9:30am. We are joining with other Treasure Valley churches in the area to host a quick (less than 30 minutes) Zoom with kids age K - 3rd grade and their families. It should be fun, quick, and end before the Treasure Valley Pentecost service. We hope to see you all there.
June 5 - First Fridays 6:30pm
For kids entering 4-6 Grade! We will be sharing pics of what we’ve been up to with our Flat Jesus! Take selfies, videos, or share what you’ve been doing and have fun connecting with other kids.
June 7 - Sunday School Zoom
- Our church hosts a Zoom for Sunday School the first Sunday of each month at 11:00am.
Childcare/Help with Schooling
- Kate Lovan Oden has graciously offered help to those who may be in need of temporary childcare and/or for those that may need a little extra help during this time of schooling at home. If you need help, you can email her at
katelovan@gmail.com
.
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Last Sunday's Worship Service is available on
Please click on the link above to view
the Sunday worship service
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Thank you to the dessert makers that have signed up for May! We have opened up the calendar for June and would appreciate your participation. We continue to serve between 100-120 to go meals every week.
We are asking for 2 people per week, each making about 60 servings. Also, if you volunteer, please note that that some of our guests don’t have access to good dental hygiene, so softer is better like pans of brownies, soft cookies or cake. Our food fellowship volunteers can portion it out if you want to bring in pans of dessert.
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An online devotional has been created by ELCA leaders and pastors from the Treasure Valley. Check it out at
tvprays.org
.
You may simply visit the site daily or sign up to receive it in your email inbox.
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Thank you to those who are continuing to support Immanuel financially. We realize some of you may be struggling financially right now and are unable to give. Your Immanuel family understands and prays that you can continue to take care of your family. If you are able, please contribute online through the church website by clicking on the "Online GIVING" button below.
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You may also give via U.S. mail, or place your envelope in the mail drop slot to the right of the glass double doors we use to enter the Thomas Chapel, Library, Office area and Hospitality Room. Or y
ou can scan this barcode-like QR code image with a smartphone's QR decoder, it will instantly connect you to the mobile version of the Immanuel web page. It provides a quick and easy way to access the web page.
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Birthdays & Anniversaries
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Annabelle R, May 29
Cindy and Ken H, May 25, 24 years
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Important Items of Interest
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- For President Les Gieselman's weekly message please click HERE.
- During this time of physical separation, we want to ensure no one feels isolated. you may have a volunteer from the new ILC Connects task force contact you to see how you are doing or to just chat via phone, email and/or text. The communication can be as short or long as you want to help us stay connected during the COVID19 shutdown.
- Click on the link: members.instantchurchdirectory.com/ to log into the Online Member Directory. Let's use the directory to reach out and check in with one another while we are physically apart.
- Immanuel's prayer chain offers each of you an opportunity to stay connected to others in our congregation through the power of prayer. This is especially important during this difficult time of social distancing. We miss each other and the sense of comfort we receive from seeing others in worship. Please feel free to contact us by emailing prayers@ilcboise.org and share any prayer requests you may have.
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Protect Idaho Kids "PIKnic at the Park"
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Protect Idaho Kids Foundation (PIK) will be launching “PIKnic at the Park” to feed food insecure children for free each Sunday during the Summer while complying with social distancing and Covid-19 health practices. Masks will be required for everyone and will be provided as needed. The city will be asked to provide police supervision to assure that social distancing is observed. The program will run for 10 weeks each Sunday from June 28 to August 30.
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To help or for more information please click
HERE
or visit the
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Inside Immanuel Weekly is published/emailed every Friday (occasionally on Thursday.)
The deadline for submitting articles is Wednesday by 5pm.
Friday May 22
1:30pm, "Inspired" Book Group, via Zoom
Sunday May 24
Worship, via YouTube
9:30am, Come as you are coffee Hour, via Zoom
Monday May 25
Office closed for Memorial Day
Tuesday May 26
10:30am, Bible Study, via Zoom
5:00pm, Food Fellowship, Immanuel Courtyard
Wednesday May 27
3:45pm, ILC Connect, via Zoom
Sunday May 31 - Day of Pentecost
9:30am, Come as you are Coffee Hour, via Zoom
10:00am, Treasure Valley ELCA combined congregations Pentecost worship. Live premier via YouTube
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