In Jesus' time, the gospels record one time when he became angry. You see, you had to pay your contribution to the temple with a certain kind of currency. So, your regular everyday currency had to be exchanged for "template currency." And the moneychangers who were doing this were charging unfair fees and reaping excess profits. Jesus was angry. For the temple was not so much an open house anymore. It had become a "business house," and not everyone could afford what was occurring. Jesus' practice was always to include and to welcome. But sometimes religious institutions erect so many hoops for people to jump through that the "house" is anything but open. And this is not how things should be.

The church should be an oasis for people on their journey. Welcoming. Inviting. Open.

On Sunday, September 13, we are having an Open House. The first Sunday after Labor Day is often called Rally Day. We rally ourselves together after summer, renewing acquaintances, and forging ahead with our ministries. For this year's Rally Day, we wish to extend ourselves. We are going to rally our forces and have an Open House. This will be our way of saying to the community that all are welcome and we are here for you.

I hope you will begin to think about who you might target to invite. A schoolmate, work associate, friend, neighbor, relative? Believe it or not, people love to be invited to things. That Sunday, we will have special music and drama. Who might you invite?

One of our missions is to be open and ready to serve all who pass our way. This Rally Day, September 13, let us reach out to those who might enjoy an inspirational, hope-filled morning. Let us follow in Jesus' steps to be intentional in our inviting.

The first thing the disciple Andrew did, after encountering Jesus, was to run and bring his brother Peter to meet Jesus. Andrew did not want Peter to miss meeting Christ. So, let us all be like Andrew, finding and bringing and saying to our friends, "Come and see!"

Pastor Brad

Here I am again writing another letter for our Visitor. It seems that time is moving by too quickly. We couldn't wait for summer to arrive and here we are saying good-bye and hello to fall.

The Church Council has finalized activities for the balance of the year. Our first big event is of course, Rally Day, September 13th! We are going to have special music, a skit by the Sunday school, balloons and our favorite event......A BAKE SALE So, if you have taken a summer vacation from church on Sunday mornings, why not come to the Rally Day Open House. We miss seeing you on Sunday mornings.

Our next event will be a "Sock it to Me" Sunday on September 27th. As many of you know, our support of the Night Ministry is an ongoing mission. They have advised us that white socks are needed year round, so we took their suggestion and decided to have a special Sunday for that purpose. If you are able, please bring a package of new, white athletic socks, adult sizes only, to church on that Sunday. Check out the Back-to-School sales and buy a package for homeless teens who live on the streets of Chicago.

In October, join us at 5:00 p.m. for our annual Oktoberfest, Saturday, October 3rd. We have built up quite a reputation for our great food and fun. Be sure to invite your neighbors and friends and buy your tickets early. Who knows, we may have a sell-out!

Finally, the Council would like to know what your interests are (such as Bible studies, fellowship events and fundraisers) and more importantly how we can reach out to neighbors in our community. If you have any thoughts, please talk to a council member about your ideas. Remember, no idea is too small.

I guess that is all for this month. I hope you enjoy the beginning of fall and hope to see our pews full each Sunday.

God Bless You,

Debbie Wisowaty
Council President