Reflections
            Love one another, with self-emptying love. That is Jesus’ message, what he calls us to do as his followers. But this love isn’t a sweet, sentimental, romantic sort of love. Jesus preferred the company of the lowly and despised over the rich and powerful. He crossed lines of ritual purity to deal with the unclean – with lepers, the possessed, those left out of society. He sat down to eat with tax collectors and sinners, showing them a love that was anything but socially acceptable.
            Self-emptying love remains a scandal today, and it’s so difficult for us to perform. But it’s a pillar of the kingdom of God. Our test for entry into heaven’s reign is whether we fed Jesus in the hungry, clothed him in the naked, welcomed him in the outcast. The Spirit that touched the Lord’s followers with fire at Pentecost led them to cross all cultural barriers by speaking the universal language of love, which is the life of God.
            When we really pay attention to Jesus, we show this kind of self-emptying love. It’s the true meaning of WWJD (What Would Jesus Do).

Birthday’s this week:
            Sharon Kruse, August 22
            Dennis Lowell, August 22
            Andrea Hickey, August 23
            Roger LaVoy, August 24
            Sydney Moore, August 26
            Karen White, August 26
            Hailey Buhl, August 28
            Dan Meehling, August 28

Anniversary’s this week:
            Wade and Claire Jennings, August 27

Congratulations to Dawn and Dan Wyse on the birth of grandson #3, William Foster Cooper, born Sunday, August 15 to Kimberly and Jon Cooper.

On the “Prayer Wall”: Marie Tam. Marvin Labert. Jerry Barnes. Martha Dopkowski. Charles Newman. Betsy Buckles. Steffen Family. John Wittkop. Richard Hoffman. John Demming. Kara Kerr. Julie Schwartz. Dorothy Mitchell. Wanda Snyder. Steve Miller. [Please check the prayer wall each week.]
            Prayer requests from Sunday, August 22: Mary Lou Cooley expressed thanks for prayers. Marie Tam. Barb Ost thanked everyone for prayers, cards and calls; she will be undergoing more tests. Joan Coldwell’s sister, Dorothy. Janet Schuler. Diana Brown’s mother had surgery on Friday. Beverly McCully. Congratulations to our tri-athletes: Mary Sandefur, Amy Hempel, Valerie Wittkop. Barb Fisher, Diane Goodridge’s grandmother. Donna Adams requested prayers for niece, Kimberly; also, she and Roger will be rebuilding their home on their property, following the tornado. Wendy Hoffman announced that Seth is back in the US following tour of duty overseas.

CALENDER OF ACTIVITIES
Thursday      7:00   Knitting group – at the parsonage

COMING EVENTS:
Monday, August 30 – Worship Committee, 6:30 p.m. at Massingill’s
Wednesday, September 1 – Breakfast at the Dundee Senior Center, 7 to 9 a.m.
Wednesday, September 1 – Care and Share distribution, 4 p.m. at Dundee
Thursday, September 2 – Care and Share distribution, 4:00 p.m., London Township
Sunday, September 12 – Sunday School begins, 9:00 a.m.

Sunday, August 29:           Learning From Our Mistakes
            Jeremiah 2: 4-13; Luke 14: 7-14; Psalm 81
Israel already had the one and only true God – a proven, reliable and quality brand – yet they wanted to trade in their relationship with God for something they thought was better.  We often think the same thing – we think we know better, going it alone, never seeking God’s guidance, ignoring God’s directions.

Blessings for your week,