What’s Happening at Good Shepherd
Life Choices Baby Bottle Drive Please be sure to return your baby bottles by February 26. Thank you all so much for your help raising funds for this worth cause.
Shrove Tuesday Pancake Supper and Mardi Gras Celebration on Tuesday February 28th, from 5-7PM, Good Shepherd will once again host this event. Pancakes, sausage, fresh fruit, and homemade applesauce will be served. There will be face-painting, mask-making, and Jeremy the Illusionist (5:30) who will present the gospel in a unique way. At 6:30 there will be prayer and a solemn burning of last year’s palms as we prepare for Ash Wednesday. There is no charge, but love offerings will be accepted.
Please sign-up to 1) bring fresh fruit (grapes/strawberries) or homemade applesauce 2) help make pancakes 3) help serve 4) help children make masks 5) face-paint 6) clean-up. Please consider attending this outreach event with family and friends! It’s a great meal, great fun, and a great way to reach out to our neighbors!
Concert coming to Good Shepherd On Thursday March 9th of this year at 7pm Good Shepherd will be hosting a free concert by the Northwestern College Symphonic Band. We hope to use this event as an outreach to the community. Northwestern College is a strong Christian college (Jason Carlton’s alma mater) and the concert will include some brief testimonies by the musicians. And the music is excellent. The orchestra includes about 53 student members and we are looking for volunteers who would be willing to open their homes for Thursday evening, providing breakfast on Friday morning and perhaps a sack lunch for their departure. If you are willing and interested in supporting this outreach and opening your home, please contact the church office at 607-723-8032.
Scheduling Reminder If you need to make an appointment with Pastor Matt, please be sure to contact Stephanie directly at gs.binghamton@gmail.com.
Often when people come to speak with Matt after the service on Sunday, he’s already been working for over nine hours, and doesn’t always remember to put it into the calendar. This can cause double bookings, or forgotten appointments. Please keep in mind that the office is closed on Mondays and Fridays, but you can always leave a message. Thank you so much for your understanding.
Update and Announcements If you have an item you’d like to have announced on Sunday morning, or included in the update, please be sure to forward the item to Stephanie by Wednesday afternoon, and specify if you’d like it announced or just listed in the updates. It will then be edited and forwarded to Anne/Ife to announce on Sunday and/or added to the paper and digital update.
New Members and Attenders Class If you’ve decided to become an official member of Good Shepherd, or would just like more information about Good Shepherd, and what we believe, a new members class session started on January 29th after the 10:30 service in the youth room. If you missed the first class, but would like to catch up, there is a link to a recording on the http://www.goodshepherdbinghamton.org/ website where you can listen in. Please call or email Stephanie at the church office for more information or to let us know if you’d like to attend the remainder of the sessions. Meetings typically last around an hour.
Ongoing Ministries
Children’s bulletins are available to help your children follow all parts of the service today. Please pick one up from an usher.
Bread and Wine If you are interested in joining a group of moms for a monthly supper and discussion of women in the bible, please contact Liz Hull.
Health and Wellness Our bodies are “the tents” that the Lord has given us to house our souls. Begin to take care of the body which God Has given you. Check your blood pressure, blood sugar, and weight every Sunday in the Parish Hall 9-10AM. Please see Dolly Shaller or Carmen Swoffer-Penna for more details.
Member Food Pantry If you have looked into our Member Food Pantry recently, you will see that we have an abundance of cereal, crackers, cookies, peanut butter and jam, apple and cranberry sauce, and some veggies like peas and green beans. Thank you so much for your generosity, these items are all well stocked.
Items Needed: Canned meats and Tuna Fish, Assorted Salad Dressings, and cooking oils such as Vegetable, and Canola oils; Ketchup, mayonnaise, relish, pickles and olives, Stews, one box meals other than mac and cheese, Bread Crumbs, Canned fruits, Coffee, Tea, cocoa, powdered milk, Canned corn, creamed corn, carrots, beets and asparagus or anything else you care to bring.
Note: Please don’t bring flour or sugar, or leave any open packages of pasta or rice in the pantry, as it attracts mice.
Last Week
Last Week in Christian Ed we had the first of several Q & A sessions. This one was called ‘Q & A: Young Earth v. Old Earth Creationism, Evolution, and Intelligent Design’, and can be listened to or downloaded here.
Last Week’s Sermon was called ‘Our Sympathetic High Priest’, and was based on Hebrews 4:14-16. It can be listened to or downloaded here.
Mission Group Discussion Questions
Read Hebrews 4:14-16
1) What was the role of the high priest for the nation of Israel? [Look ahead to ch. 5, v. 1 for a
quick answer]
- How did Jesus accomplish the role of a high priest?
- Why is Jesus described in verse 14 as “a great high priest”?
- What makes him great and distinguishes him from every other high priest?
2) What is the “confession” onto which we are told to “hold fast”?
- What does it mean to “hold fast”?
- What are some things onto which people hold fast?
- Why is our confession worth holding fast to?
3) Why is Jesus able to sympathize with our weaknesses?
- What does it mean that he was tempted in “every respect”?
- How can he possibly understand my personal struggles and suffering?
4) In light of what Christ has done for us as the great High Priest, how are we encouraged to
approach God?
- Why can we come with confidence instead of fear?
- What is received by those who come?
Tuesday Morning Bible Study ‘Introduction to Exodus‘ had technical difficulties, but we should be broadcasting again next week.
Preventing Grace Podcast Did you know that Matt and Anne have a podcast? They talk about everything from church polity to rustic breads. In this week’s episode, ‘The Superbowl Valentine Episode’, Matt and Anne discuss discuss Superbowl 51, Commercials, and Give Advice About Valentine’s Day.
You can catch up on all of the older podcast episodes here.
This Week
This week in Christian Ed we’ll be having another Q and A session. Please forward all of your questions to Father Matt.
This Week’s Sermon is based on Hebrews 5:1-5.
For every high priest chosen from among men is appointed to act on behalf of men in relation to God, to offer gifts and sacrifices for sins. He can deal gently with the ignorant and wayward, since he himself is beset with weakness. Because of this he is obligated to offer sacrifice for his own sins just as he does for those of the people. And no one takes this honor for himself, but only when called by God, just as Aaron was.
So also Christ did not exalt himself to be made a high priest, but was appointed by him who said to him,
“You are my Son,
today I have begotten you”;
Team Romans is working on the altar this Sunday.
Shepherd’s Bowl Team 1 will be working this week (2/16).
Altar Guild Karen Berman is serving this Sunday.
The readings for this week are: Deuteronomy 30:15-20 and Hebrews 5:1-5.
The PDF Bulletin for this Sunday’s 10:30 service can be downloaded here.
Have an item for the Update or an Announcement?
Email the secretary at:
gs.binghamton@gmail.com
by Monday night.