What’s Happening at Good Shepherd
Trunk N Treat Anglican Church of the Good Shepherd (360 Conklin Avenue) will again host Trunk ‘N Treat from 4 to 7PM on October 31st. There will be hot chocolate, donuts, cider, games, antique cars, a Binghamton Fire Engine, and trunks of treats. BJ will share the gospel as she performs with comedy, face-painting, and lots of balloons!!! Please help by contributing small donuts/donut holes/ treats (preferably some healthy ones) to distribute at this fun family-friendly event which helps us to reach out to so many who may never otherwise enter the doors. Also pray for God’s blessing on the children and families who come!
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.
And Jesus said to her, “Give me a drink”… There are bottles of water in the church refrigerator which are available to offer to anyone who is in the vicinity of the church. These are not for members of COGS, but are for those outside our walls. Please use this gesture to show others that we care.
Mission Groups Mission groups have returned to their regular meeting times. If you are already part of a Mission Group, check the location and schedule of your meetings with your Mission Group Leader, and in the Week at a Glance section of this morning’s update. See Ben Murphy if you haven’t joined a Mission Group yet and need help finding one!
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.
Ongoing Ministries
“And as for your little ones…”
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 When I looked in the member food pantry today, I found that the shelves were practically bare. If someone needed to use it, there wouldn’t be much to find! Please help to stock it with nutritious foods to help those in our community that can’t always provide for themselves, so that they can feed their families properly.
Needs: Canned meats and tuna, peaut butter and jam or jelly, one box meals, soups and stews, canned veggies and fruits, pasta and pasta sauce, cereal (other than corn flakes), kids foods, and anything else you’d like to bring.
*Please refrain from donating flours or sugars.
Last Week
Last Week in Adult Christian Education: This was the eleventh class session of our Christian education course on the 39 Articles. We discussed Articles 18 and 19 dealing first with whether those who faithfully practice other religions can be saved apart from faith in Jesus Christ and then we moved on to distinguish between Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, and Reformed understandings of the nature of the Church. You can listen in here: Articles 18-19: Can Anyone Be Saved Through Other Religions?
Last Week’s Sermon: was called ‘Area Man Surprised to Find Himself in Hell part 2‘, and was based on Luke 16:19-30. You can listen to or download it here.
Mission Group Discussion Questions
Luke 16:24-31
Main Idea(s):
- The chance to repent and receive Christ’s mercy is limited to this lifetime.
- The Old Testament is sufficient to reveal God’s holiness and standard of righteousness, our sin and inability to achieve that righteousness, God’s plan to supply an atoning sacrifice and impart righteousness, and our need to repent and trust fully in his provided mercy and forgiveness.
Read Luke 16:19-31 (These questions focus on verses 24 through 31)
1) Who is the audience of this parable?
- How does Luke 16:14-15 provide evidence for this?
- With whom in the parable did Jesus intend for the Pharisees to identify?
- How did Jesus intend for the Pharisees to respond to this parable?
2) In verse 24, what did the man in torment demand from Abraham?
- Why was he not shown mercy?
- God desires to show mercy. Why didn’t the man seek God for it?
- What do verses 25 and 26 imply about the urgency of repentance?
- How should believers be aware of this urgency when interacting with non-believers?
3) What do verses 28-31 imply about scripture, specifically the Old Testament?
- To where should one go to experience God?
- Why won’t someone coming back from the dead convince non-believers of their need to repent?
- Of what importance is the Bible for believers trying to reach others for God’s kingdom?
Tuesday Morning Bible Study: This Tuesday’s Bible Study was called ‘The Vanity of Wisdom and Work ‘.
The grave is the end for both the wise and foolish person. Whatever you strive to build in this life, you will leave to those after you and, eventually, your work will be forgotten. These are the cheerful thoughts of “The Preacher” in Ecclesiastes 2. How ought we to live and toward what ought we to strive if all will eventually rot away? This is the question that occupies the bulk of the Book of Ecclesiastes and it is a crucial one. You can view it here, or watch it below.
Missed a study? You can catch up on the last month of the Tuesday morning Bible studies you might have missed here.
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,‘Those Voices in My Head’ Matt and Anne discuss how one might hear God’s voice and follow God’s will…without following impressions, feelings and intuitions.
You can catch up on all of the older episodes here.
This Week
Team Galations is working on the altar this Sunday with John King.
Shepherd’s Bowl Team 4 is serving this Thursday (10/13) with Anne Kennedy.
Altar Guild Steph Warner is serving this Sunday.
Nursery Emma Kennedy is serving this Sunday.
The readings for this Sunday are: Ruth 1:1-19a and 2 Timothy 2:1-15.
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.