In less than a week, millions and millions of friends and families in our country will sit down together for the Thanksgiving feast.  To give thanks to God for the harvest and for God’s abundant blessings has been a part of our faith tradition for thousands of years. Deuteronomy 26:1-11 is the classic Thanksgiving text. I hope that you and your friends and families will have a blessed feast and that you will be nurtured by love, friendships, traditions and food, all four.

This year at Ark and Dove we have been celebrating generosity with our autumn Harvesting Generosity campaign. Out first week has gone very well with over 40 households sending in their pledges and a large percentage of them with increases. That is about 25% of our congregation, so our work continues. Our Session deeply desires to continue and expand our ministries in 2022 and they need pledges in order to conduct effective planning. Please bring, or send, your pledge card to the church this week. To live generous lives is to offer God Thanksgiving.

If you have not yet read your Harvesting Generosity Brochure, please search for the large white envelope that came from church and read the content and pray about your part in supporting our ministry. Alternatively, you can go to the Ark and Dove Website, navigate to the giving tab and scroll down to 2022 Harvesting Generosity or click here. There are great testimonies to read and video’s to watch. Maybe you could do that right now?

Happy Thanksgiving.

Peace of Christ,

This Sunday we will be highlighting an important ministry of Ark and Dove. The Stephen Ministry is a group of caregivers in our congregation who have been trained to accompany people through the difficulties of life. They are studied and practiced in a unique form of care. Not pastors, counselors, therapists, social workers, or advice givers, they are perhaps best described as partners. Stephen Ministers are skilled partners, uniquely able to listen and simply be with a person going through difficulties great and small.

Laurie Barrow, the leader of our Stephen Ministers, describes these caregivers as the "after people," as in the people who are there after the diagnosis, after the papers are signed, after the funeral, after the baby is home, after the grief group has concluded, and after the friends and family members stop being so attentive. I would add that Stephen Ministers are "after the last 20 months people." They are ready to be there for those of us who have suffered loss in this pandemic, lost friends and family over political strife, or lost a sense of optimism and even hope through these months. Stephen Ministers are ready to partner with us, walk alongside, and be there in the necessary silence. They keep things in confidence too.

I hope that you will take a Stephen Minister up on their special ministry. You did not have to go through a major life crisis to qualify. It is my assumption that, after these last several months, we could all use someone who can really listen and love as a Stephen Minister can. Please contact me, Pastor Tim, or Laurie Barrow (barrowfl@aol.com) and we will partner you up with a minister.

God of grace: when we are weary, we can unload our burdens upon you. Let us not be so confident to carry what we cannot on our own. Instead, let us be courageous enough to cast our cares upon you so that we can care for those with heavier burdens. Amen.

PRAYERS OF HEALING AND SUPPORT for Belinda Edwards; Karen Stokes; Ezra; Sarah and Bojan; Betty Small; a friend of Bob Fuller; Shirley & Bob Fuller's daughter-in-law, Mary; the Unger family; Ellen Makar's friend Mike Mitchell; Debbie and Bruce Arey's niece, Sarah; Calvin Latham; Brianna Lapp; Anne Hirschy's relative Isaiah and cousin Gordon; Diane Makar; Tina Anthis’ father, Steve Bissel; Dennis; Lourde's Cordero's brother; Gabriele Mecca; Charlotte Davie; Hiley Green; Adell Gaurin; Dotty Kaufman; Jai’Quain, Nicole Chidlow’s baby; Carol Saylor; Ray Bussey's mother, Doris; Liz Olson; Margaret Floyd; Russ Hester; Vaughn Brown; Patty and Steve Plander; Arlyce Lohr; Krista Klohr; Michelle Schoonmaker; Dick Paronto; Richard and Edie Budd; Cindy Schafer; Cheryl Walcutt’s sister Judy and mother; Christy Hipchen’s Uncle Frank and grandmother, Ann Chubon; Amy Hagemann’s sister, Susan Pratt; Mary Benson’s sister; Amy Carskadon Lifsey’s father-in-law, Bill Lifsey Sr.; Karen Dodson’s cousin, Miles, and Miles’ family; Tricia Gray’s grandfather, Paul; Helen Wilkens' mother, Jane Reinert; Christina Nelson’s grandmother, Patricia Dole; Judy Cooper’s daughter, Jessica Quigley; Paul Doughty’s mother, Ruth Doughty; Camille Dubois’ parents and the Dubois family; Debbie Saylor’s sister, Christine; a member of the Tardiff family; Dionne Whitby's daughter, and niece, Jannah; Dotty Kaufman’s daughter-in-law, Carol, granddaughter, Sarah, and grandson Nathan; Kathy Miller’s sister, Beth Krauth, and brother-in-law, Jeff Miller; Lewis Shorter and Lewis Shorter’s niece, Jennifer Schwandt-Gayle; Bob Fuller’s brother, Joe Fuller; Dot Forloine’s granddaughter Melisa Tucker Saatthoff, and her great-grandson Luke; Debbie Arey’s sister, Denise; Debbie and Bruce Arey’s daughter, Allison; Linda Taylor’s mother, Izola; Kennon Bauman’s uncle, Dan Johnston; Amy Goldberg’s grandmother, Ruth Cooper; Christy Yeager’s mother, Linda Jordan; Linda Jordan’s niece, Bonnie; Diane Johnson's Uncle Ed, Aunt Janet, and cousin Richard; Shelley Franklin's father; Amanda Wehage’s sister and father, Dave; Laurie Barrow’s nephew, Gunther Kurtz; Sabonna Keeney’s mother; Bernabe and Griselda Solano, and Griselda's sister, Irma; Laura Doughty’s brother-in-law, Carl Hahn; Laura Willoughby's father, Norman; Ann Hirschy’s aunt, Cindy, and brother; Kelly Burnett’s nephew, Justin; Lou Kareha’s cousin, Thomas Kochis; Cheryl and Doug Walcutt’s grandchild, Gray Adacutt; Erika Sealing's grandmother, Margaret Schade; Lourdes Cordero's brother Jose, granddaughter, and friends, Fred and Arelene Jones; Mike and Charlotte Davie’s friend, Dave Page; Linda Lewis’ friend, Carol Fudge; Rob Yeager’s friends, Greta Daughtrey and Peter Brown; and Maren McGillivray-Stubbs’ best friend’s father, Gentry Sims.

THE LOVE AND PRAYERS OF THE CONGREGATION go out to the Anthis and Bissell families upon the death of Tina Anthis' father, Steve Bissell.

THE LOVE AND PRAYERS OF THE CONGREGATION go out to the Pino familie upon the death of Irene, the matriarch of the family.

THE LOVE AND PRAYERS OF THE CONGREGATION go out to Chuck Herbert and his family upon the death of Noel, Chuck's son.

THE LOVE AND PRAYERS OF THE CONGREGATION go out to the Lowry family and friends upon the death of Molly Lowry.

THE LOVE AND PRAYERS OF THE CONGREGATION go out to the Lewis and Jeffers families upon the death of Linda's aunt Donna.