As I write, it is early Wednesday morning, The news and social media have been and I imagine will remain filled with speculation about the election. As am I writing, we do not yet know who the next president will be, though most signs point to President Trump remaining in office. Some of us are probably happy with that outcome. Others are sad. And, some are just glad this election season will soon be over.

Personally, I found election day itself to be heartwarming. I love seeing Americans of all sorts go to the polls and have their voices be heard. I love the “I voted” stickers and “I voted” social media posts. I just love the idea that we get to choose our leaders every few years. It is a right many throughout history never had the opportunity to enjoy. It makes me happy seeing people vote.

I am also concerned. Not about who may or may not be in office. As I said Sunday, no matter who wins, God is still in control and I will trust God to watch over us all no matter the outcome. I am concerned because of the coarse, angry, fear based rhetoric that seems to be increasing in our society and among believers. We cannot be a healthy functioning society when we view those who disagree with us as enemies and traitors rather than as the “loyal opposition” as the British put it. We need to learn to think, speak, and act in healthier ways in our public discourse. If you have time, Mitch Albom wrote a piece for the Detroit Free Press on this issue and it captures my concerns better than I have been able to put them into words. You can read it here.

I am hopeful. Not because of the election, because elections are not as important as our world tries to make them to be. As citizens of heaven, our first loyalty, love, and confidence was found in God on Monday and it is still found there today. The outcome of the election has little bearing on God’s kingdom. If God can work through his church when Caesar sat on a throne, he can work through his church today no matter who sits behind the Resolute Desk.

I am hopeful because of an e-mail I received on Monday morning from Yakuv Gurung with Jibit Aisha. As you may recall, we partner with Jibit Aisha to plant indigenous churches in Nepal. Two weeks ago now, they held a training event for their Timothys. (A Timothy for Jibit Aisha is an apprentice church planter.) For three days they learned about evangelism, prayer, spiritual warfare and more. And then, on October 21, these 72 Timothys were sent back out into Nepal to their home villages to share the gospel, start Christian home groups, and eventually churches. Seventy-two church planters equipped and sent to share the gospel in Nepal. This gives me hope.

Our and powerful, the famous and talented, and big events like elections, but the kingdom of God is like a mustard seed. Though it is the smallest of seeds, it grows into the largest of garden plants.

However you may feel after the election this week, may whatever you feel be tempered by this truth: nations rise and empires fall, but our God’s kingdom endures forever.

– Greg

Connect to God
This Sunday we will gather indoors at 9 and 11 am. You can sign-up to attend worship either using the links below or on the front-page of our website beginning on Monday mornings. Following are the links to sign-up for worship this Sunday:
9 am service: https://zionreformed.churchcenter.com/registrations/events/609564
11 am service: https://zionreformed.churchcenter.com/registrations/events/609565

If you are not able to join us in person or would simply prefer to not gather in a large crowd yet, you can still join us for online worship. We will be live streaming both our 9 and 11 am services at zionreformed.online.church and Zion’s Facebook Page. We will also rebroadcast the service on WCET at noon on Friday and 4pm next Sunday.

In Ephesians 2, Paul says that Jesus has broken down the dividing wall that separated people from God and Jews from Gentiles. Over the next three weeks, we will be thinking about what it means for us today that Jesus has broken down the dividing wall between the races. How do we live out this core gospel truth in a culture of racial tensions and a history of racial oppression? Join us as we consider the importance of lament, confession, and repentance in healing the racial divide in our churches and communities.

This Sunday, we also welcome Brenda Dieffenbach from Western Theological Seminary, She will be sharing an update on their work equipping the next generation of pastors and how we can support and pray for the ministry of Western.

Grow in Community
We extend our congratulations to Austen and Olivia (Stegeman) DeHaan who were united in marriage last evening. We also extend our congratulations to Jim and Dar (Grit) Oudbier who will be united in marriage on Friday evening. May God bless them as they begin their lives together.

In the past couple of weeks, over a dozen members of our church have been diagnosed with Covid. Thankfully, most of them have had mild cases and are doing very well. Some, however, have been quite sick for several days. And so, I ask you to both be praying for those who are ill and to continue being vigilant in wearing masks, keeping our distance, and washing our hands when we gather Sunday.

Jim and Barb Overweg share this note with our congregation: “I would like to thank everyone for the cards, thoughts and prayers before, during, and after my recent kidney surgery. I could feel the prayers as I had a peaceful feeling throughout the event. I am slowly gaining strength and am doing alright with Jim’s help.”

Beginning in Advent, we will be reading through the New Testament as a church over the next year. In addition, we will also have some sermon series tied to the readings throughout the year. And, we are encouraging everyone to use the Through the Word app on Apple or Android devices. This app not only has the scripture readings, but also a 9-10 minute teaching on the passage of the day, This could be a great way for our Discipleship Triads to study together or for a small group or family to do devotions together. If you are unsure how to install the app, we have made a short instructional video to show you how to do so on an iPhone. You can find that video here.

After I had finished the first draft of the sermon for this week, I received an invite to watch a discussion on racial reconciliation between Matt Chandler and Bryan Loritts. Then, I found a 5 session Bible study they had created on Ephesians on the topic of race and the gospel. I immediately checked out the study and highly recommend it to any small groups, families or individuals who may want to think more intentionally about how the gospel speaks to the racial challenges in our culture. You can find the study here through our RightNow account.

Meeting as a small group poses some particular challenges during this time of Covid. Between health concerns, deciding if you want a babysitter in your house, or if you even want to meet with several other families in person leave many unsure what to do. Let me offer a couple of suggestions. Some small groups have chosen to meet at church in one of our large education rooms. You can socially distance and still be in physically together. Or, if your group is doing a video study with RightNow Media you can now simul-stream (is that a word) to your whole group. The interface looks a lot like a zoom call with the video in the center of the screen and little videos of all the participants on the side. It is a great way to still study scripture, talk about life, and be sort of together when being all crammed in a small space isn’t an option. If you want to check out our RightNow Media and need to sign-up you can do so here.

Serve the World
Our Hand2Hand ministry is currently serving 52 students in the Grandville school district. If you want to support Hand2Hand or learn more about the ministry, please contact Sheila Johnson (sheilaj2494@yahoo.com) or Shawn Sanders (joshandshawn@hotmail.com).

If you would like to support our Personal Care Pantry, following items (full size – not travel size) are needed and can be dropped off on a Sunday morning or during the week Monday through Thursday:
Laundry Soap    Bar Soap    Dish Soap         Disposable Razors
Shampoo    Conditioner    Toothpaste         Paper Grocery Bags
Deodorant    Tampons     Maxi Pads         Paper towels (1 or 2 pack)    Toilet paper (1-4 pack)
Donations can be placed in the box in the narthex marked “pantry donations”.

If you need help, either with food, personal care items, help grocery shopping, or with financial needs, please contact Chip Harkes, our chair of deacons, and he can help connect you with the appropriate resources at Zion. His e-mail is chip@harkeslandscape.com and his phone number is 616-299-4804.

Administration
We continue to thank God for his provision of all of our needs and for the generous support of our congregation with their time, talent, and treasures. We are especially grateful this week for all those who have adjusted their means of giving to give online, through the mail, and via text.

Fiscal Year to Date Budget: $231,138.16
Fiscal Year to Date Contribution: $195,160.57
Giving Last Week: $7,268.00