E-news for June 20-26, 2021

Dads, we are so grateful for you. Thank you for your devotion to God and to your families! Thank you for being the fixers of flat tires, computers, broken hearts, wifi connections, and everything else!

SERMON SERIES FROM MALACHI

In this four-week sermon series, we are learning of the incredible depths of God’s love for his people. When we approach God with the reverence and adoration that is due Him, this honors God and provides great joy for us. When we offer Him the best of all we have, it brings about a satisfaction that surpasses all other joys this world promises.  

IMPORTANT DATES!

  • Sunday, June 20 – Father’s Day!
  • Saturday, June 26 – Semi-annual Meeting!
  • Sunday, June 27 – Celebrating our Youth!

HELPING HANDS BULLETIN BOARD!

Be sure to check out the “Helping Hands” bulletin board in the Narthex. On it, you will find several opportunities to serve one another in love. Thank you in advance for your willingness to help the Body of Christ! “As each part of the Body does its work, the whole Body grows stronger in love.” –Ephesians 4:16

WOMEN’S RETREAT AT CASCADES CAMP!

After a year like 2020 and living through a pandemic and all that it brought, we are inviting women to come together for a much-needed time of rest and recovery! Please join us for this year’s “Getaway for Women.” It will be held September 17-19 at our lovely campgrounds in Yelm. We are keeping it simple and incorporating many intentional opportunities for support, encouragement and connection, with lots of free time factored in. You won’t want to miss this healing and rejuvenating gathering with other women from all over the Pacific Northwest. There will be a limit of 200 women at ‘The Getaway.’ This allows for social distancing in lodging, meals, and general sessions. We would love to have you join us! [Click Here] to register.

ON THE LIGHTER SIDE…

 Question:  Who was the shortest man in the Bible?

 Answer:  Bildad the Shuhite

A WORD FROM THE COVENANT’S LMDJ TEAM

Honoring Juneteenth—Together we celebrate “Freedom Day”
The U.S. declared its independence on July 4th, 1776, but it wasn’t until the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863 that enslaved Africans were freed. Juneteenth, a holiday commemorating this emancipation, was first celebrated by the African American community in 1865. This year, with great gratitude that it has been declared a national holiday, the Covenant joins with our nation in recognizing and honoring Juneteenth!

In honor of this day, we call for a collective time of prayer for the brokenness in our nation. We call for a time of thanksgiving for the freedoms we have, both as citizens of this nation and as citizens of heaven. And we sing these words of James Weldon Johnson’s song, “Lift Ev’ry Voice and Sing”:

Sing a song full of the faith that the dark past has taught us
Sing a song full of the hope that the present has brought us
Facing the rising sun of our new day begun
Let us march on ’til victory is won.

Until freedom looks the same for all,
The LMDJ (Loving Mercy Doing Justice) Team

DIGGING DEEPER

Fill in the blanks using the words in the box below.

Last Sunday, Pastor Shaun preached on Malachi chapter 1. The name Malachi means ________. The message God gave Malachi for the Israelites was one of rebuke. They were forgetting His faithfulness to them and neglecting to follow His _________ for their lives and conduct. Instead, they were treating their Creator and Sustainer of life with disregard and contempt. When God addresses their lowered standards, He calls the Israelites out for profaning His name and short-changing Him by their _______ and defiled offerings. Pastor Shaun reminded us that, as the Body of Christ, we are called to be the manifestation of His love. It’s only when we are giving and contributing what is our best, and what is worthy, that we experience the sustaining joy, comfort, and unity we were meant to experience as the Body of Christ. God says to the Israelites, “I said I would be your God. If you would look ______, you would see that I have kept my word. You would say, ‘Great is our God!’” Even with this irrefutable proclamation of His immutable love for them, they refused to acknowledge God’s faithfulness. They continued giving diseased, leftover, second-hand offerings that profaned His name and His temple. What about us? How have ___ defiled God? By offering to Him what is unworthy and second-hand. We do this when we respond to needs and opportunities in the Body of Christ with ______: “I don’t feel like it.” “I have other things to do.” “Let someone else.” “I’m too afraid.” “It’s not my gift.” God gave His best, His all, His one and only Son, as a sin offering—so that we could be forgiven and have eternal life! Yet still we short-change Him and profane His name by rendering Him only our spare time and leftovers. God forgive us! When we give what is useless, worthless, defiled, and second-hand, that is what our body becomes! We are called to be the ______ of the world! When we truly acknowledge His amazing love for us, love that gave its all and its best, how can we not respond in kind?

            we             instructions             around            messenger            light           excuses          diseased

PRAISES/PRAYER REQUESTS

1. Praise for all the dads in our lives!

2. Praise that Juneteenth is now recognized as a federal holiday!

3. Continue to pray for safety and wisdom for the first responders in our community.

4. Continue to pray for our nation’s leaders to humble themselves before the Lord and seek His guidance.

                   SERMON SCHEDULE

                                                        June 20: Rev. Shaun Higgins, Malachi 2:1-16

                                                        June 27: Rev. Shaun Higgins, Malachi 2:17-3:1-18

                                                              July 4: Rev. Shaun Higgins, Malachi 4

CHURCH & OFFICE INFORMATION

  • The Church Office is open Tuesday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
  • Office phone number: 206-878-4861 // Office email: office@midwaycovenant.org                     
  • Sunday Morning Worship Service: 10:00 a.m. in the Sanctuary (or online at live.midcov.org)
  • Children’s Sunday School upstairs at 10:30 a.m.
  • Women’s Discipleship Lunch Group: Wednesdays at 11:00 a.m. in the Fellowship Hall
  • Men’s Bible Study Breakfast Group: Thursdays at 8:00 a.m. at Tuscany’s in Des Moines