WHAT'S HAPPENING AT GOOD SHEPHERD CHURCH

Top 'o the day to you!

Have you recovered from the time change yet? I sure haven't!
Wednesday is the first day of spring (according to the calendar), but
I haven't seen any real signs of it yet. Maybe next week??

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

1. TONIGHT-Thur. March 14-FLY (Finally Loving Yourself) Lady meeting
at 7pm at Lydia Faber's

2. Fri. March 15-Friday Bible Study beginning at 7pm at Laura Voruz' home

3. Sat. March 16-Preschool Book Fair and Open House from 10am to 2pm
at the Preschool

4. Sun. March 17-Worship at 8 and/or 10am (announcements begin at
9:50am) with Connection Café between services

5. Sun. March 17-Sunday School for ages 4 to 5th grade meets in church
office at 9:15am

6. Mon. March 18-Butter Braid Preschool fundraiser pickup between 1 and 3pm

7. Mon. March 18-Reports for Council meeting are due in the office

8. Mon. March 18-Monday Bible Study at 7pm at the Suchomel home

9. Mon. March 18-3rd Monday Study meets at 7pm at the Sanchez home

10. Tue. March 19-Shepherd's Pantry quarterly meeting at 7pm at the
Pantry, 2 Belmont Dr.

11. Wed. March 20-Light dinner at 6pm, Lenten Mosaic Book Study at
6:30pm followed by Worship Service at 8pm

12. Thur. March 21-Church Council meets at 6:30pm

13. Thur. March 21-G2R (Genesis to Revelation) Study meets at 7pm at
the Stoughton's home

14. Fri. March 22-Crafter's Night at 6pm at the church

15. Fri. March 22-Friday Bible Study meets at the home of Laura Voruz at 7pm

16. Sat. March 23-Shepherd's Food Pantry is open from 9:30 to 11:30am
at 2 Belmont Dr. (at Rt.53)

17. Sat. March 23-"How to" Planning Meeting at 12:30pm at church

18. Sun. March 24-Palm Sunday Worship at 9am followed by a potluck brunch

19. Sat. March 24-Sunday Book Study will meet at 4pm

Preschool Book Fair and Open House is this Saturday from 10am to 2pm
and is open to everyone! Come tour the preschool, check over the
books that are available for all ages, and meet Clifford the big red
dog. The Open House begins preschool enrollment for the 2013-2014
school year. Invite any neighbors or friends who might be interested
in getting information on what our program has to offer for 3 and 4
year olds, or simply might like to bring their children or
grandchildren to meet Clifford and check out the book selection. All
are welcome!

Last of 2013 Lenten Midweek offerings - Next Wednesday, March 20, will
be our final midweek Lenten supper, study, and worship. Ellen and
Pastor will provide a light supper (soup/salad). You are welcome to
bring a dessert or a side dish to share. If you still have your bag
of tiles, PLEASE bring them back on Sunday, as we'll need them next
week. Thanks. Supper at 6p; study at 6:30p; worship at 8p.

"How To" Planning Meeting - We are gearing up for the second of our
summer outreach events, our "How To" event on July 13. Our next
planning meeting is next Saturday, March 23 at 12:30pm at church.
Lots of volunteers will be needed for this event, so come, help us
plan and be a part of serving our community.

Palm Sunday Worship and Brunch - Join us as we begin Holy Week with a
special one-service Sunday next Sunday, March 24, at 9am, followed by
a potluck brunch. To clarify, by potluck we mean - please bring a
breakfast/brunch dish to share. We will have a way to keep food warm
but, please let Lori Haack know so we can plan ahead. Muffins,
breads, light salads (jellos), fruit, cheese and crackers, egg
casseroles, etc. are all welcome! Be creative...we know we have some
AWESOME chefs out there (yes you, Tim)! Be with us as we come
together as one church community to start our walk to the cross with
Jesus in Holy Week.

Recap from last Sunday: Using the story of the Prodigal Son from Luke
15, we talked about what prodigal means (recklessly and wastefully
extravagant), who we are in the story, and why the story is important
today. We also read Paul's words from 2 Corinthians, about being
Christ's ambassadors and how God uses us to bring people back to him
and how we are to stop evaluating people from a human point of view
and start seeing people as God does. Pastor challenged us to re-read
the story of the Prodigal Son and think about what character we most
relate to - the Father, who shows reckless, extravagant grace and
love; the son, who returns in repentance, seeking forgiveness; the
older brother, full of anger and unable to see beyond his jealousy.

Preview of this Sunday: This week, we'll "witness" the story of Mary
anointing Jesus and "watch" the reaction from the disciples. We'll
also think about how God makes us right with Him through faith and why
it is important to look in our windshields more and our rear-view
mirrors less. Come, be a part of the conversation. All are welcome!

I'm wishing you peace, faith, hope, love, joy, and health always.
Have a Happy St. Patrick's Day, when everyone is a wee bit Irish!

Renea Horn Johnson
Pastoral Assistant
Good Shepherd Church