WHAT'S HAPPENING AT GOOD SHEPHERD CHURCH

Happy Valentine's Day!

Our Preschool is having their class Valentine parties today and tomorrow.  Wish I could be there to hear what they have to say, don't you?  They had a love-ly Valentine Dance last Friday.  Check out the pictures on Facebook if you haven't seen them already.  Definitely a good time was had by all.

Here is What's Happening at Good Shepherd over the next few weeks. . . .

1. TONIGHT-Thur. Feb 14-FLY (Finally Loving Yourself) Lady meets at 7pm at the home of Lydia Faber

2. Fri. Feb 15-Good Shepherd Church & Preschool will be represented at the Provider's Fair at the Rec Center from 9am to 2pm today.  Stop by if you have a chance to.

3. Fri. Feb 15-Crafter's Night will be at church beginning at 6pm.  Bring your project(s) and join them!

4. Fri. Feb 15-Friday Study meets at 7pm at the home of Laura Voruz

5. Sun. Feb 17-Worship at 8 and/or 10am with Connection Café between services.  (Announcements begin at 9:50am for those attending the 10am worship service.)

6. Sun. Feb 17-Sunday School will be held in the office at 9:15am for ages 4 through 5th grade

7. Sun. Feb 17-Sunday Book Study will meet from 4 to 6pm at the Texley's home

8. Mon. Feb 18-President's Day Holiday—No school today

9. Mon. Feb 18-Monday Night Study begins at 7pm at the Suchomel's home

10. Mon. Feb 18-3rd Monday Study at the Sanchez' home begins at 7pm

11. Tues. Feb 19-Planning meeting for the "How to" Community Event in July will be held at church at 6:30pm.  All are welcome to come help plan!  See details below

12. Wed. Feb 20-Lenten Book Study & Worship begins with a light supper at 6pm, Book Study begins at 6:30pm and Worship beginning at 8pm.  All are welcome!

13. Thur. Feb 21-Deadline for submitting March Rod and Staff newsletter information

14. Thur. Feb 21-G2R (Genesis to Revelation) Study meets at the Stoughton's at 7pm

15. Fri. Feb 22-Crafter's Night at church begins at 6pm. All are welcome!

16. Fri. Feb 22-Friday Study meets at 7pm at the home of Laura Voruz

17. Sat. Feb 23-Shepherd's Food Pantry is open from 9:30-11:30am at 2 Belmont Dr. (at Rt. 53).  Help is always welcomed.

18. Sat. Feb 23-A Marriage Equality Phone Bank will be held at church beginning at noon.  Contact Chris Daniels if you would like to help out with this.

Manna order forms for March are on green paper and available now.  Orders need to be placed by March 3rd and will be delivered on (or before) March 10th.  Look over the forms to see what percentage each business gives back to Good Shepherd when you buy their Manna cards.  And, there are no extra charges added to card orders.  Note that Visa $50 gift cards have been added to the list this month!  Call the office if you would like further information about the Manna program.  Orders can be turned in to Carrie Worthington at church or dropped off at the church office.

The annual Preschool Butter Braid fundraiser is happening now!  Buy a Butter Braid Pastry for $12 to serve Easter morning, or bring it to the Connection Café to share!  Check the order forms on the Information Table to discover all of the available delicious flavors.  Delivery will be March 18 from 1-3pm.  For other arrangements, please talk to Pat Hurdle.  Thank you in advance for your support.

Lenten Supper, Study, and Worship starts on Wednesday for each of the Wednesdays in Lent.   We'll begin at 6pm with a light supper, followed by the book study at 6:30pm and worship at 8:00pm.  The book we're studying/ discussing is, "Mosaic: When God Uses All the Pieces."  All are welcome, even if you haven't signed up, as we have ordered extra books!

A Summer Music and Arts Event is in the planning stages!  The date of the event is Saturday, June 29 and the money raised will benefit the victims of Hurricane Sandy, particularly in the New York area, where Pastor Suzanne visited last month.  The location will be determined soon.  We plan to have an art fair, specifically inviting young artists in our community to share their talents.  We also plan on having several bands playing throughout the afternoon, and are hoping to bring a "big" or more-recognizable name for the evening portion of the event, as well as a presentation from victims of the storm.  If you know of any local bands that might be interested in performing, for little to no cost, please contact Pastor Suzanne or Steve Hurdle ASAP.  Our next planning meetings for this event will be on Saturday, March 2 and on April 6 at noon.  If you have non-church friends who might be interested in volunteering at this event, please invite them to attend the meeting(s) too.  We'll need lots of help and welcome all!  We're working on a name for the event so send your ideas to Pastor Suzanne or, better yet, bring them to our next meeting. 

Growth Team - Those who have been attending the Growth Team meetings are invited to join Pastor Suzanne for a presentation from a local radio station on advertising on their station.  The meeting will be on Thursday, February 21 at 6:30pm.  Haven't attended any meetings yet but are interested in participating?  Feel free to join us.  We will be meeting at church.

"How to" Event Planning Meeting - Our first planning meeting for our summer "How To" event will be on Tuesday, February 19 at 6:30pm.  This summer event will take place on Saturday, July 13.  We'll be offering a wide variety of "how to" workshops/tables to assist people in our community.  We also hope to offer a food truck from the Northern Illinois Food Bank.  If you'd like to help with this event, please join us at the meeting.  Thanks!

John Ploense plans Good Shepherd Journeys documentary to showcase some of our recent "Journeys" and is asking for your help.  He would like pictures and/or video footage of recent Good Shepherd events.  If you have any interesting or exciting photos that you feel will help tell our Good Shepherd story, please contact John at 630-759-3603 or email him at tkdjohn1@yahoo.com and he will contact you.

Our first Winter Vendor's Fair, held last Saturday, was a total success and a good time was had by the vendors and shoppers as well.  Thanks go to Carrie for putting this event together!

Recap of last Sunday:  Our theme was, "Shine On."  Using the story of Jesus' Transfiguration and Paul's words from 2 Corinthians 3-4, we talked about how we are called to be a reflection of Jesus, shining his love and grace in the world.  Our challenge was to find one person this week with whom we could share our story of transformation (metamorpho) through the power of God, remembering that it is not about us, it is about what God is doing in and through us.  How's your challenge going?

Preview of this Sunday:  For our first Sunday of Lent, we'll hear the story of Jesus' temptation in the wilderness and also Paul's words about being saved.  It's sure to be another lively discussion.  Be sure to join us.  Remember, if you miss a Sunday, you can get a CD of our 10am service, including the message...for FREE!

One final note—I am attaching information about PRS Research who called the office looking for Romeoville consumers to give their ideas and opinions and will pay $50 for 15-20 minutes of participation.  They are not selling anything and are targeting stay at home moms or anyone 18 to 54 years of age.  I'm not sure if you'd be interested, but this could be a way of earning a few dollars.

I'm wishing you peace, faith, hope, love, joy, and health always.  Happy Valentine's Day!  

Renea Horn Johnson

Pastoral Assistant

Good Shepherd Church