Greetings Topeka First UMC,
I hope that it's been a great week! This is a very exciting time in the life of our church! The Holy Spirit is moving and leading us to be a bridge to God, one another, and the community.
In addition to the Men's Group meeting at 8 am at The Pad, tomorrow is the 3rd annual Downtown Community Block Party. Thank you to everyone who has already contributed to this event, financially and/or through volunteering. Please invite your friends and family to this free event! The whole evening is designed to be a relationship building event with the whole community. I'm excited to see the bridges that God will build with our church family to those in our community!
Before I get to worship this week, thank you once again to the youth mission team! It was so moving to hear so many wonderful stories and to hear about how God was moving among us on the mission trip! This Sunday in worship, our theme is the "The Power of Prayer." In our faith lives, prayer is the intersection between our lives and God's presence. When we need God the most, prayer is where we go to experience God's presence as we take our next steps in faith. Prayer was at the heart of the whole mission trip. I'm excited for Sunday to tell you about how prayer carried us through the week! We will also celebrate Holy Communion this Sunday during all three services.
This Sunday at 9:30 am in Fellowship Hall, Max & Millie Foster will share their travel adventures through 7 Civil War Battlefields, The USS Yorktown and USS Laffy, the Creation Museum and Ark Encounter, and the 9/11 United 93 Crash Site Memorial. Max is a great storyteller and this will be a great time for fellowship and fun!
All students, teachers, administrators, paras, school emplyees, be sure to bring your backpack or school bag during all 3 services Sunday. We'll be blessing the bags and sending you with a prayer for the upcoming school year!
Next week, construction begins! It is hard to believe we have gone from discussing a capital campaign in February, raising funds for projects in March, April, and May, to beginning construction in August. Next week begins phase one of construction. The inside portions of our building project in the Klasse Chapel, Celebration Room, Fellowship Hall, and Sanctuary, will begin, with all work being completed by October 15. As part of our weekly note, we will update you along the way on how everything is going and let you know of any modifications we might need to make for Sunday mornings.
Finally, coming up on Sunday, August 24, there are two events happening after the 10:45 am service. The first is Pizza with the Pastor in room 100. If you are considering joining Topeka First, I invite you to come and join me for lunch as we discuss our church, what it means to be United Methodist, as well as baptism and church membership. If you are new to Topeka First, I really hope you will join me! If you haven't already, please let Shawna know you'll be attending!
The second event is a training for the Lunch Buddies program which will begin in September at Scott Dual Language Magnet School. The time commitment each week is 30 minutes. The focus of Lunch Buddies is this: Show up. Listen. Love. Then, go home and pray. You will be paired up with a child who could benefit from a stable, Christian adult presence in their life. Please let Shawna know you are able to be a Lunch Buddy and come to the training on the 24th. The training is provided by The Bridge of Topeka and is required if you want to be a Lunch Buddy.
See you Saturday and Sunday,
Pastor Brad
