Celebrating graduates at RFUMC

Ravenswood Fellowship United Methodist Church The Weekly Newsletter Message from Pastor Erin While many of us grapple with the extreme changes Covid-19 has brought upon our lives, students underwent some significant changes to their expectations of what life looks like. Many still have not seen or spent time with their peers. Their graduations exchanged pomp and circumstance for an online viewing party and maybe a cake at home with their family. On top of that, students are anticipating the loss of work, cancelled job offers, looming debt, and an uncertain future. It is a difficult time to be a student or someone emerging from the world of education as a graduate. And yet, these smart, capable people survived. Many of them graduated despite all the odds and will go on to do wonderful things. It is right that we honor their resilience and hard work this year and all the years of their life. Help us celebrate the graduates (we have three from RFUMC!) tomorrow by learning to use the reactions feature on Zoom. With it you can "applaud" the graduates without unmuting yourself. Be there to help us celebrate for their accomplishments and pray for their future. Oh, and the church? Many of us went up to the church building for our All-Church Work Day today. We cleared things away and worked in the garden. So, much gardening! I didn't take as many pictures as I should have, but, I have to say, our building looks beautiful! Thanks to all of you for your hard work, your dedication, and giving of your time and body to the body of Christ. When we work together for our community, all kinds of different people with different levels of skill, working towards the beautification of our space, we are the embodiment of God's love (1 Corinthians 12-13). Our space is on it's way to being well prepared to welcome you all back to worship and (more importantly!) welcoming new people who are in search of the hope we've found in Jesus. Thanks be to God. And thanks be to all of you for the giving of your time, body, and finances. It all makes our church the body of Christ and an emblem of love for others to witness.  Read about the Phases for Re-Opening here. We are still in Phase Two. Is that document too long? Read the summary version here.  SEE YOU NEXT WEEK The Trustees of RFUMC are meeting after worship on Sunday. We will resume post-worship fellowship in Zoom Breakout Rooms next week! Community Info & Links Follow us on Facebook. See all the updates about what we are up to, photos of our progress for re-opening, and learn about other ways to get involved. Don't have Facebook? You can still check out the page here! Do have Facebook? Leave a comment or review. Engagement on the page is one of the best ways new people can find us. Coffee Hour with Pastor Erin. Miss talking with your friends from church? Need to get all the latest news and hear how everyone else's life is going? Join Pastor Erin (and other RFUMC folks) for coffee hour on Tuesdays at 1 PM at this link or call at 312.626.6799 (Meeting ID 896 3613 2612). Pastor Erin will bring a thoughtful question for us to ponder and discuss.  Craft Group. Learn and practice making paper cranes! If you want fellow project makers during this quarantine, please email Yuko Darcy at yukochcago@gmail.com or join the Craft Group on Wednesday at 5 PM at this Zoom link. Young Adult Virtual Happy Hour. Calling all 20-30-somethings! Tired after a long day of staring at screen? Join us for another hour of staring at a screen but this time with a delicious drink in your hand and good company. Log on and hang out with your fellow RFUMC young adults. Email us for the contact info. Walking Group. Every week people walk together in our church gym for health and community. But while our building in closed the Walking Group takes their community online. And maybe now you can join their Zoom call to check in, support one another, and pray for each other. 8:30 AM on Wednesdays and Fridays. Go to this link here or dial in at 312.626.6799 (Meeting ID: 771 188 446). Young People's Bible Study. Ages 12-18 are invited to join the Zoom discussion of Jesus stories at 9 AM on Sunday mornings. Join the Zoom call here (Meeting ID: 732 784 767). Giving Back Mutual Aid Networks. As individuals struggle to respond to the public health crisis of COVID-19, the Mutual Aid Networks of Lakeview, Andersonville, and Lincoln Square/Ravenswood are hosting a fundraiser to directly help our neighbors with groceries and supplies. Consider contributing here.  Giving to RFUMC. Of course, we continue to share our finances to support God's work in our faith community. Support the ministry of Ravenswood Fellowship UMC online and by the mail. Your financial support helps us transform lives and make disciples. Go to our PayPal page here or mail in your gift to 4511 N Hermitage Chicago, IL 60640. Give on PayPal Worship Looks Different Below are some continued learnings for helping you grow confident and participate in our worship experience. And please remember, our building is closed! Worship. Join Zoom worship by going to this link at 10:30 AM on Sunday: https://zoom.us/j/806489040. Or call in at 1-312-626-6799 (Meeting ID: 806 489 040).  Want prayer? During our Prayers of the People, we will read your prayer requests. Submit your prayer requests here.  Download. Get your bulletin here.  Having trouble? Try logging off and logging back on to Zoom during the video. Or simply log off and call in.  Missed last week? Check out the Facebook Live video on our page here.  Our mailing address is: 4511 North Hermitage Ave. Chicago, IL 60640 Contact us at: ravfelumc@yahoo.com (773) 561-2610 Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list.

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