As I begin this page, I am struck by one thought: man, the summer season sure went by quickly around here! In terms of actual church programming, the summer season may be a quieter time, but it isn’t a quiet time in terms of preparation for the upcoming months. Various committees and ministries have been quite active during these summer months and this has been one of the most active summers that I can remember during my time here at Salem.
Among some of the things that we’ve been doing this summer:
Our confirmation program has made some changes in the material that we’re presenting to the confirmands and we’re presenting more opportunities for worship and service.
The Mission and Stewardship Committee has spent much time looking at the mission of the church and how it presents that mission to the congregation. One of our mission emphases will be local: our neighborhood school, Fairview, and its community. We had a drive to help furnish school supplies this summer and other opportunities will present themselves to us in the weeks and months ahead.
Our Church and Ministry Committee has worked on ways of better connecting members of the congregation with one another, and has developed a questionnaire (included in this newsletter) which may help us to meet that goal.
Our adult Bible study on healing this summer has sparked interest in beginning a healing ministry at Salem. A ministry of healing prayer and special services of healing may well be the outgrowth of this summer’s study.
September will find us returning to our regular schedule of programming and the ministry that accompanies it. New things will be appearing on the horizon in the months ahead, so stay tuned to things as they develop.
One final note before I close out this front page: the Lectionary takes us through the Epistle of James from August 30th through September 27th. Since I’ve not spent a great deal of time with the themes of that letter during my ministry with you, I am going to turn those weeks into a sermon series on James. I believe that the Epistle of James has a great deal to say to us.
In the meanwhile, enjoy the waning days of summer.
Your servant in Christ,
Rev. Jim Hoppert
