On Sunday, June 14, 2020 Zion will gather as an online community for Sunday worship and fellowship. We invite you to join us! Link to Livestream/Recording on Facebook (link goes live at 8:59 AM Sunday)
9:00 a.m.: Service of the Word led by Pastor Andrea Myers will be streamed live on Zion's Facebook page. An online bulletin with readings and responses is available to download below.
9:30 a.m. (or imediately after worship): Musical offering by Sheldon Meyer, Zion's regular organist. He will be going live on his own Facebook page and we will share it to the Zion page as well.
10:00 a.m. Join us for a virtual coffee hour! Click on the link below with a device that has a camera. (If you've never joined a Zoom meeting before, you'll want to download the Zoom Client app before the start of the gathering.) You’ll be asked to allow the program to use “computer audio” – please agree. We look forward to seeing and hearing from you!
Meeting ID: 662 798 543 Password: 028537
Or Call: 1 312 626 6799 and provide the Meeting ID and password listed above.
This Week's Announcements:
In-Person worship services continue to be suspended until further notice. Worship services are being streamed via Facebook so that we can gather as a virtual community for prayer, reflection, and praise. A new “Re-Gathering Task Force” is developing a comprehensive COVID-19 Preparedness Plan for Zion and, in collaboration with the Worship, Music, and Adult Education Team, making plans to resume in-person worship services this summer. Details will be announced following the June 17 Congregation Council meeting. These plans are being developed under the guidance and recommendations of our synod, the ELCA, and state public health officials. The members of our Worship, Music, & Adult Education team are Mackenzie Jones, Mary Goodrich, and Janet Becker. The members of the Re-Gathering Task Force are: Dan Lowis, Matt Strum, Mike Bottin, Mackenzie Jones, and Pastor Andrea. Please contact any of these individuals if you have questions.
Send Zion your mask photos! One of the ways our community is loving and serving our neighbors is with masks - wearing them, making them, donating for them, delivering them. Please send Zion your mask pictures so they can be included in a future worship service! Email to pastor@zionluthlakecrystal.org or text to Pastor Andrea: 507-402-1114.
Sign up today for the new Zion News email list and receive periodic updates about worship and life at Zion Lutheran! A signup form is located on the church website. Email will allow us to share more frequent updates with our church family, which is especially important as the present health crisis continues to impact our ministry.
June caring coins will be collected the entire month of June. The June recipient is Crossroads Campus Ministry. Please mark ‘caring coins’ on your checks.
Help! We are looking for the church key that is typically kept in the church kitchen. Please check to see if you might have it and get it returned to the church. Thank you!
Upcoming Community Prayer Events:
Monday, June 15: Prayer March for Justice (7:00 pm at Marston Park). Local pastors will be leading a time of prayer and walk through our community. For details see “Prayer March for Justice” event on Facebook. Prayers will be offered for justice and safety, for elected leaders and first responders, for individuals and businesses harmed by unrest, and for greater opportunity for all. The event will be non-partisan and is not a protest. Participants will be socially distanced and are asked to wear masks if they are able.
Wednesday, June 17: Community-wide 12 hour Prayer and Candlelight Vigil (hosted by Cornerstone UMC). This will be a time to pray for our community during this time of Pandemic and Social Justice Reform. 9:00 am-9:00 pm: personal prayer and reflection in the prayer garden. 9:00 pm: candlelight vigil in the parking lot (bring your own candle and light). Participants will be socially distanced and are asked to wear masks if they are able.
Thank you for your faithful financial support of Zion’s ministries during this challenging time. It’s been wonderful to see how many of you have continued to share your offerings as you’d planned for 2020. Offering can be mailed to the Church Office (PO Box 236, Lake Crystal) or dropped off at the church. Please consider our eGiving options for making one-time or recurring donations electronically. Details available at: https://www.zionluthlakecrystal.org/giving.
Church Office Update: In order to limit traffic in the Church Office Suite and protect Zion staff, please use the table in the Narthex for picking up or dropping off items for the office. (A box is available on the table for collecting offerings or other messages.) A new “After Hours Drop Box” has also been installed next to the main entrance, to allow members to deliver notes, offerings, or return keys. Visitors in the church building are expected to wear masks or other face coverings. New summer office hours begin Monday: 8-2:30 pm Mon, Wed and Thursday, 8-noon Tuesday, and closed on Fridays.
In-Person Zion activities for small groups may now resume, and the Congregation Council has approved the following guidelines so that these groups can meet safely.
No more than 10 people, including leaders, will meet in the building at any time.
Only certain places of the building should be occupied (for cleaning purposes): Narthex, Fellowship Hall, New Bathrooms.
Groups should contact the church office (507-276-2849) to reserve the building.
Visitors will register at the front door with sign in and sign out.
Social distancing must be observed (6+ feet).
Wearing masked is expected.
No singing or unison speaking/praying (Lord’s Prayer).
No communal food or beverages, and no use of the kitchen (may bring your own, but no sharing). Zion groups should observe these guidelines whether they're meeting in the building or elsewhere. Phone or video conferencing options should continue to be used when appropriate, particularly for individuals over 65 and those with underlying health conditions (such as heart or lung disease or diabetes) who are at greater risk of severe illness or death from Covid-19. If your group would like assistance with setting up a Zoom video conference, please reach out to Pastor Andrea.
News and updates are being shared primarily through the church website and Facebook and, when appropriate, by mail. The June newsletter will be mailed June 30.
Invitation to Ecumenical Prayer: From Pentecost Sunday through the first Sunday in September, Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton and her Episcopal counterpart Presiding Bishop Michael Curry welcome congregations and individuals to regularly pray “A Prayer for the Power of the Spirit Among the People of God.” This prayer – crafted by a team of Lutheran and Episcopal prayer leaders in light of the COVID-19 pandemic – will connect us in common prayer and revive us for common mission, wherever and however we may be gathered.
Pastor Andrea is available for conversation and prayer! Please reach out to her by phone or text at 507-402-1114. She’s also happy to schedule one-on-one pastoral visits via Zoom video conferencing.
The Monday “Dwelling on the Word” study is now meeting online via Zoom. Newcomers are always welcome to join in this time of prayer, reflection and conversation centered around the gospel reading for the upcoming Sunday. To join us on Monday at 11:00, please go to: https://zoom.us/j/322134420.
The US census is hiring! Go to “2020census.gov/jobs” if you are interested. Pay in Blue Earth County is $17/hour. Call 720-606-9047 with questions.