​Here is the link to the YouTube video of this morning's worship on the parsonage lawn: 
<https://youtu.be/1mjgJOR6TvU>.

The service focused on farewell to Co-Pastor Rosie Epp as she retires. 

​Please find today's bulletin and announcements as a combined .pdf file attachment. For now, this will continue to be sent to all on our "larger" prayer chain e-mail list, as we are not placing bulletins in mailboxes (those left over after Sunday morning worship will be placed on the table by the bulletin board). The weekly ABS supplement is attached.

As the congregational determined last week, we will begin worship at 9:00 A.M. this Sunday. Should adverse weather develop, we would plan to send out an e-mail cancellation notice by about 7:30 AM on Sunday (if not before).
As noted previously, we will be video recording some or all of the worship service; once that is processed and posted, we will send an e-mail with a link to the YouTube video, so that those absent might still worship with us (even if a bit delayed). We hope such posting can occur by late Sunday, but on occasion it may not occur until Monday. 

Please revisit the communication distributed on June 10 concerning our protocols for regrouping. On Sunday, remember to bring:
• lawn chairs or a blanket
• comfortable clothing suitable for the weather (perhaps including a sun hat)
• water bottles (for all in your family)
• sun screen and insect repellent, if desired
• a Bible
• your own hymnbook and supplements, if you wish to follow along with the musicians
• your own pencil or pen, in case you need to jot down a note (we will not provide any writing instruments)
• your offering

I look forward to worshiping our God together in several days, albeit, in a different setting; the service will include our "farewell" to co-pastor Rosie Epp as she retires. 

​Here is the link to the YouTube video of this morning's worship on the parsonage lawn: 
<https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OkA00DjnLJo&feature=youtu.be>. The video is reasonably complete.

Note well: the decision was made corporately this morning to begin subsequent Sunday morning worship at 9:00 AM, so long as we meet outdoors on the parsonage lawn; this will begin next week (June 28). As previously noted, if inclement weather looms, we will cancel.

There are 2 brief prayer notes to share with the congregation:
• Doug Brewer's spinal procedure went well several days ago, offering consider relief from the pain he's been experiencing (his legs are a bit wobbly for now, however).
• Martha Wedel experienced chest pain Friday and was admitted to Newton Medical Center late that day; on Saturday it was determined she'd had a mild-to-moderate heart attack. A heart catheterization is planned early this coming week. There is a small chance she'll be moved to Via Christi/St. Francis in Wichita; but she may well be released back to Kansas Christian Home by midweek. No visitors (other than Nancy) are allowed at present. 

​Zion Mennonite Church, PO Box 68, Elbing, KS 67041
(316) 799-2017   zionelbing@gmail.com
 
Last Week at Zion Mennonite Church
Offering: May 31: Mennonite Church USA                              $155
      May receipts for Local Fund ($18,455 of which is PPP)            $34,929.27
 
This Week at Zion Mennonite Church
SS classes gather virtually        9 a.m.-12 Noon., 8:30 p.m., June 7
Governing Council meets (via Zoom?)                      7 p.m., June 8
Deacons meet                                                               9 a.m., June 9
Zion Zoom gathering for fellowship (link below) 7-8 p.m., June 10
Mowing church & parsonage: Reynold & Russell Entz            Before next Sun.
Mowing cemetery: Andrew Wedel                                       Before next Sun.
Offering: Zion Scholarship Fund (usual SS picnic offering)                Next Sun.
 
Calendar of Upcoming Zion Events
 (?) Zion summer Business Meeting                    9:45 a.m., June 21
Worship includes farewell for Rosie Epp                            June 28
Worship includes installation of Karen Andres                    July 5
Zion swim / picnic @ East Lake                     c.4–6:30 p.m., July 26
Pastors Ray and Rosie’s Schedules: One of them is at the church office some mornings, although irregularly now. You may reach them at by mail to PO Box 393, North Newton, KS 67117, or:
      Pastor Ray: (316) 217-2012; text to same; <rreimer76@gmail.com>.
      Pastor Rosie: (316) 217-7338; text to same; <rosieepp@gmail.com>.
If they don’t answer the phone, please leave voice messages and they’ll get back to you soon.
 
Congregational Announcements
A group subscription for Zion Mennonite Church to the new publication Anabaptist World (merging The Mennonite and  Mennonite World Review) is being prepared. The subscription cost of $39/copy will be paid by Zion. If you would like to be part of this group subscription, please respond to the online survey at <https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfr45cguXfI59R3j9TC3-JfNsCnoy1SN4eUNQD19l25NCImiA/viewform?usp=sf_link>, or contact Jeanne Schmidt by June 15.
A recurring Zoom meeting for fellowship has been scheduled, open to any Zion members and friends that are interested—the equivalent of a drop in/out coffee fellowship—simply to chitchat, see each other’s faces and hear each other’s voices, perhaps catch up on some news. This will occur for some weeks on Wednesdays from 7-8 p.m. The new Zoom “invitation” (valid through June) is as follows: 
         Hyperlink: <https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85760755714?pwd=T0h3U2tTb09SZEpNWEE3NXlIZkk3UT09
>
         (or) meeting ID: 857 6075 5714, and meeting password: 264264
Sun., July 26: The Outreach Board is planning a congregational swim / picnic at Harvey County East Lake, at the beach near the west end of the dam. Arrive at 4 p.m. (or whenever you desire) for “socially-distanced swimming” and / or fellowship; we’ll plan on eating around 5:30 p.m. To try to promote safe hygiene we won’t have a potluck; bring your own sack lunch / family picnic meal. No shelter house is being reserved. If a pavilion is open, we’ll utilize that; otherwise, we’ll find some shade under a tree. Bring your swim suits and towels, lawn chairs or blankets, sunscreen, insect repellent, etc. 
Be part of the socially distanced Western District Conference Annual Assembly online on Aug. 1. (Note: This will replace previous plans for an in-person gathering in Texas). Webinars, worship, Danny Carroll (our keynote speaker), and some time to talk together will all be part of this grand experiment. What can the times we’re living in help us to discover about mission? About God’s love for the exile? We hope it will be possible for small groups to host Assembly watch parties together. If not, we’ll be together in Spirit and over digital media. If you would like to serve as a Zion delegate at this event, please indicate your willingness to the church office, which will pass information along to the Gifts Discernment Group prior to our summer business meeting.
Nurture / Faith Formation resources (most Menno Media digital resources are no longer “free”). However, the following items are still available:
      • Supplement to the Adult Bible Study for this week:


      • Weekly “Faith Talk” note for families utilizing the Shine curriculum:
Numbers 22–24: “Baalam, the donkey, and the angel”
Here are some ways to nurture faith at home based on this week’s story.* (1) Read Numbers 22:15–17. Have you ever wanted something bad to happen to someone else? (2) Say or write words of blessing to each other. (3) Celebrate God’s gift of animals! Talk about how animals can bring joy to our lives.
Did you know? The Peaceful Valley Donkey Rescue group has rescued over 16,000 donkeys. Search online to learn more.
Prayer for the week: God, you speak to us in many ways: through our friends, family, coworkers, and all creation. Help us to pay attention. Amen.
*Preschool children have a “For families” page in the Early Childhood leaflet for the story “Elijah and the widow.”
 
Other Organizations
 Mennonite Church USA released a statement on racial injustice, calling for all congregations to “continue to pray for, seek out and lend our voices and bodies to God’s healing, justice and peace.” Read the full statement at:<http://mennoniteusa.org/news/mc_usa-statement-on-racial-injustice/
>. Executive Director Glen Guyton also wrote a poignant open letter to the denomination: <http://mennoniteusa.org/menno-snapshots/more-costly-peacemaking/>. A meditation from AMBS President David Boshart, considering the irony of George Floyd’s last words “I can’t breathe” in the very week we celebrated Pentecost—when God unleashed Divine Breath into the world with boundless power—is available at <https://ambs.us12.list-manage.com/track/click?u=e0e5e997256c6c06bbb4f4944&id=72b3448543&e=4d67030768>.

 The July/August 2020 edition of Western District Conference’s Garden publication is available on-line at <https://mennowdc.org/wdc-garden-june-july-august-2020/
>; be sure to read about the upcoming virtual Assembly, planned for Aug. 1-2.

 Find the June 2020 issue of the New Hope Shelter newsletter here:

 

Offender Victim Ministries is encouraging its constituency to contact congressional representatives to request compassionate release for low risk prisoners. See details at this MCC link: <https://mcc.org/stories/call-compassionate-release?fbclid=IwAR1hxcnlwncrGxDNOd196BWtU7QIKeo03upIoJx5R26amGlprEp9LY-t-dQ
>.
WDC Resource Library Summer Reading Programs: June 1–Aug. 15.
         • Adults–This year you’re invited to read any title in our collection and submit a brief review.  Each review will be a ticket into our prize drawings for books, giftcards, and more.  Reviews may be submitted at <https://forms.gle/r4kpXQBQqZPuGjiw8
>, posted on the WDC Resource Library FaceBook page, or given to Library Director, Jennie Wintermote.
         • Children—Download a reading log at <https://drive.google.com/open?id=1rW8pLb6fgWQFjJgi5XpKX65icSv369Va> and mark off a box for each book you read (picture books) or every 15 pages (for chapter books) or contact the library for a copy.  Turn in your reading log after August 15 for fun prizes. (Turn in by mailing, dropping off, or sending a picture of your log to <crlib@mennowdc.org>). We would appreciate it if you register your child(ren) at <https://forms.gle/mgPPft74HBDs9ZMu6
> so we can have enough prizes ready!
Children ages 3-8, come take a dip in the ocean through Summer Story Hour at WDC Resource Library! Virtually join Library Director Jennie Wintermote and volunteer Marjie Warkentine for “Oceans of Fun” with 8 weekly sessions June 15-Aug. 3. Sign up today at <https://forms.gle/61539e9zGnE7u98y5
>. The first 15 children who sign up will receive a list of supplies they will need for each project. Join us for “oceans” of stories and fun!
June 16, 1 p.m. CST: You’re invited to join a webinar pertaining to MCC’s migration work in Mexico, Honduras and Guatemala/El Salvador to discuss questions such as: How are MCC workers and partners in Latin America being affected by COVID-19? How are U.S. policies and protocols affecting the spread of the virus among the vulnerable population? How are organizations and faith communities responding? And how can each of us get involved and support their work during this time? Learn how to join this conversation at <mcc.org/immigration-webinar-series
>.
June 16, 6:30 p.m.: Everence will hold an interactive webinar on “Social Security and retirement income,” addressing SS strategies (including when to begin taking benefits) risks that can impact your retirement savings, and strategies to help your income last throughout retirement; there will be plenty of time for questions. Register by contacting 316-283-3800, 877-467-7294, or <darlene.buller@everence.com>. Following registration, info will be sent on how to access the webinar event.
June 17, 6 p.m. CST: You’re invited to join MCC for a webinar featuring Paul Shetler Fast, MCC's global health coordinator. Learn how COVID-19 is threatening the developing world and how MCC is responding. MCC’s monthly webinar series, featuring a wide variety of stories from MCC projects from around the world, explores how MCC is responding to COVID-19. Experts in the field will give us a behind-the-scenes experience, sharing their own stories. Come with your questions! Register for upcoming webinars and browse through past recordings at <mcccanada.ca/mcc-webinar-series
>. 
June 19, 9 a.m.: Registration is open for the 6th annual Bethel athletics golf tournament. Details at <http://www.bethelthreshers.com/SIDHelp/splashPage/16.php
>.
MCC is in need of specific items for men’s Prisoner Care Kits (new items only, please): • bottle of lotion (maximum 4 oz); • tube of toothpaste (minimum 6 oz); • deodorant (minimum 2.25 oz). Please deposit them under the table by the bulletin board at church by July 19, and a volunteer will deliver them to the North Newton MCC workroom (which is slowly reopening).
At present, Bethel College is planning for in-person classes for its Fall 2020 semester; contingencies are also being developed.
 
Worship Resources: for June 7, 2020
 (Scans of recommended hymns/songs are attached, should you wish to sing along, and do not have hymnal/supplement books at home). You are invited to light a candle as you worship to remind you that Christ is the light of the world, the center of our faith.
Gathering Hymn                      “This is the day the Lord has made”                             HWB #642
<https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RMn090Xne3I
>; piano accompaniment by Andrew Remillard
 
Call to Worship                                                                                                                 Ps. 92.1-4
      Leader: It is good to give thanks to the Lord, to sing praises to your name, O Most High;
      All: to declare your steadfast love in the morning and your faithfulness by night,
      L:   to the music of the lute and the harp, to the melody of the lyre.
      All: For you, O Lord, have made me glad by your work;
            at the works of your hands I sing for joy!
 
Prelude(s)                                                       {video}                                       Alyssa Klingenberg
Children’s Time                                             {video}                                                      Rosie Epp
 
Scripture                                                    Genesis 2.1-3
Meditation                                   “A COVID sabbatical” {video}                               Ray Reimer
Response Hymn                      “Gentle Shepherd, come and lead us”                           HWB #352
<https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N7Cj1VtHlbA
>; Heritage Singers, in St. Nicholas church, Znojmo, Czech Republic
 
Offering                                                       Local Fund
Thanks to those who’ve mailed in donations or dropped them by the church; when preparing checks, please make to “Zion Mennonite Church,” and then indicate the designation in the memo line.
      Offertory                                                   {video}                                                    Drew Entz
 
Sharing (Please communicate to the pastors any sharing you’d like distributed in the future).
• Thelma Wedel celebrates her 87th birthday this coming Thursday!
• Rosie Epp, mourning the death of her brother Waldeen (“Wally”) Epp on May 30 in Rushville, IL; an obituary is available at <http://worthingtonfh.com/obituaries.html#Waldeen%20Epp
>.
• Remember Lara Scott, as she resumed service via her MVS term at a Chicago-area food bank this last week.
• Pray for the WDC Executive Board as it meets this week to offer vision and leadership to the conference in the midst of challenging times.
• Mennonite Mission Network requests prayer for Juliet Kilpin and Peaceful Borders, an Anabaptist organization in the United Kingdom that advocates for refugees. Pray for resources for refugee-led support groups (Hopetowns) that bear witness to suffering and injustice and provide the basics: food, water, shelter, and a cellphone charger.
Video Sharing: (We are posting a link to several short video clips from Zion families, offering prayer requests, greetings, perspective on their recent activities, challenges and celebrations, etc.).
Prayer of Lament                                            {video}                                                      Rosie Epp
 
Sending Hymn                          “We shall walk through the valley”                            HWB #412
<https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tN0jPVxidfA
>; a brief clip of a verse from this hymn sung at the Mennonite Church USA convention in Pittsburgh, PA in 2011.
 
Benediction                                                                                                     Adapted from WW2, #155
May there be love and understanding in our hearts and in our world.
May peace and friendship offer rest from life's storms.
May we be released from our deep fears and our fruitless guilt.
And may we have the courage to speak truth against violence and suffering. Amen.

​Here are video links to accompany the worship resource suggestions distributed on Friday. 
1) Prelude: Another of our younger attendees offers a piano prelude: <https://youtu.be/w2UXIInlYY0
>
2) Children's time: Pastor Rosie Epp shares a book about how a smoky night brings people together: <https://youtu.be/-FOY_xS5H_4
>
3) Meditation: Pastor Ray offers reflections on Genesis 2, encouraging us to consider this time as a sabbatical: <https://youtu.be/_wQjjzNYWvw
>
4) Offertory: Another of our younger attendees offers a piano offertory: <https://youtu.be/WiODujeg3Ng
>
5) Sharing: Another couple Zion families reflect upon their lives of late: <https://youtu.be/lYkjR2nsj8A
>
6) Sharing, re recycling: Dave A offers further details about how he recycles: <https://youtu.be/2UvHUkp5jLk
>
7) Prayer of lament: Pastor Rosie Epp offers a prayer of lament regarding recent experiences of violence and racial injustice: <https://youtu.be/erlEOYgYaFY
> 
In addition, since announcements and worship resources were distributed on Friday, the following "letter on racial justice" was received from Western District Conference, offered by Conference Minister Heidi Regier Kreider and Moderator Ray Reimer: