This Sunday’s Gospel • Matthew 16:13-20 When Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” And they said....[continue reading]. Lectionary scriptures are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible. Virtual worship continues this Sunday, August 23.

Worship Services on YouTube How are you accessing the weekly worship services? Have you subscribed to the GHTC YouTube channel or are you watching on your smartphone or tablet? To stay up-to-date, be sure to like and follow the church on Facebook.

Zoom Coffee Hour Every Other Sunday From the interest expressed in last Sunday's Zoom Coffee Hour, these are being scheduled for every other week, with the next one to be held on Sunday August 30. Be sure to join your GHTC friends through Zoom then at 10:00 a.m. Just click the link and set a reminder on your calendar…you can worship online before or after, whichever is most convenient for you! Watch for more details as we plan to offer time for both social visiting and educational programming.

Digital Blessing of the Backpacks this Sunday at 2:00 p.m. This Sunday (8/23) our annual Blessing of the Backpacks will happen live via Zoom at 2:00 p.m. Students of all ages (and their parents/guardians) are invited to take part in the brief liturgy as we ask God to bless backpacks, tablets, computers, other tools for learning this year and, of course, the students themselves. See the announcement from last week for details and the Zoom link, and let Aaron Davis know if you have any questions.

Regarding Regathering Church services, even when masks and distancing are used, are still proving to be one of the largest vectors for the spread of Covid-19. Following our diocesan guidelines, which aim to protect the most vulnerable among us, Richmond has not yet met the required safety metrics of a sustained two-week reduction in both infections and deaths. Only when our community has experienced those declines will we be able to set a date for regathering for worship or other activities. Our action plan has been submitted to the diocese for approval. Once we have a date for returning to in-person worship we will provide a video introduction to all of the new policies and procedures meant to keep you safe. Staff continue to work remotely and we will keep you updated through the church website.

Happy Birthday, CirclesRVA! So many things have happened over the last two years--yet CirclesRVA is celebrating on Tuesday, August 25, with a virtual ceremony via Zoom. Thanks to the support of Grace and Holy Trinity, CirclesRVA is thriving. Learn more about how people are moving out of poverty and read about the leaders (and allies) online.

Welcome Back VCU Students! ECM at VCU is looking different this year thanks to COVID-19. Our activities are going virtual so we encourage you to connect through social media (Instagram and Facebook) or on our website. We wish all VCU students a good first week back to classes!

GHTC Saturday Virtual Summer Music Camp - Bongos! By Saturday morning, you can tune in to YouTube here and join in as Julia Terhune leads little ones in making bongos. This week's lesson primer: The drum might seem different than a lot of other instruments, it does not really make notes like others do. But the drum is one of the most important instruments of all because it keeps the beat that the whole song follows! Just because something is different or does not stand out as much as other things does not mean it is bad or less important. In fact, if there were no differences in things then the world would be a lot less beautiful. This goes for instruments, places, ways of living, and people too!

Parish Youth Organizing Canned Food Drive GHTC youth, through the leadership of Luke Thomas, are organizing a canned food drive in support of FeedMore. Donations can be dropped off at any of the locations listed below. Thanks for your help! Dykshorn Family: 125 North 25th Street, Richmond, VA. Turn into alley beside the house. Located inside the back gate.  Alexander Family: 9008 Rio Grande Road, Henrico, VA. Located next to the mailbox. Smithson Family: 3706 Lenox Forest Drive, Midlothian, VA. Located on the front porch. John H. Thomas PC: 536 Granite Avenue, Richmond, VA. Located on the front porch.

Forward Day-By-Day Do you read this devotional? If so, you can request a copy be mailed to you or access it online. The latest edition begins with readings for August.

Red Door Roadside Continues Every Friday we continue to feed hungry people with nutritious brown bag lunches. Although our volunteer needs have changed, we still need YOU to help us! Contact Kim Reinholz to assist in this ministry.