The foundation of our vision is strengthening Christ in us. It is the strength of Christ in us that enables us to share Christ among us and show Christ around us. It is through mak-ing the time to strengthen Christ in us that we grow spiritually. In our culture, fall marks the beginning of the school

year and is seen as a time of learning. What is God teaching you in your spiritual life right now? We will be offering a survey about options for

offering one-time adult education classes, seek-

ing your input on topics, timing, format, and such. Here is a link to the sur-vey: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/PPF5M53. There are also copies of the survey available at the Commit-ment Center. We will also be changing the library books on the rack near the Commitment Center to books about prayer and spirituality. Check them out and borrow one to enrich your spiritual life.

Living Into Our Vision

Upcoming (month) Events:

Sun, Aug 6 Change for Change

Sun, Aug 13 Advent House

Communion

Sun, Aug 20 Personal Needs

Wed, Aug 23 OFFICE CLOSED

Workshop in Hastings

Fri, Aug 25 Friday Night Fun SUBMERGE

Sat, Aug 26 Property Painting Party

Sat, Sep 2 MSU Concessions

Sun, Sep 3 Change for Change

Mon, Sep 4 OFFICE CLOSED

Labor Day

Sat, Sep 9 MSU Concession

Presbytery in Mason

Sun, Sep 10 Advent House Communion

Fellowship Meal

Fri, Sep 15 Friday Night Fun

Sat, Sep 16 Property Painting Party

Sun, Sep 17 Personal Needs

Sat, Sep 23 MSU Concessions

Sun, Sep 24 Taizé Prayer Worship

Sat, Sep 30 MSU Concessions

Words From Wendy

Fall Worship

2

Church Opportunities

“Let Us Pray”

2

Children’s Ministry

Cause To Rejoice

3

Fellowship Meal

MSU Concessions

Mission Project

4

Thank You, Delta

Friday Night Fun

4

Calendars 5-6

Birthdays

Servants

Office News

7

Inside this issue:

Th

e A

mb

as

sa

do

r

DE

LT

A

PR

EB

YT

ER

IA

N

CH

UR

CH

Volume 19, Issue 6

AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2017

Have You Ever Wondered?

Have You Ever Won-dered what prompted the Reformation? There were a variety of issues, and the invention of the print-ing press made it possible to communicate in ways that were not possible before. Martin Luther did not set out to form a new denomination. He was concerned about prac-tices within the church that were contrary to Scripture, such as the sale of indulgences. To

finance building projects, the church was selling indulgences, which prom-ised forgiveness for sins. On October 31, Luther nailed 95 Theses to the church door. His efforts to reform and correct the Roman Catholic church failed (at least initially—though the Protes-tant Reformation did prompt a counter-Reformation which

brought change to the Catholic Church). He was excommunicated from the church several years after he voiced his concerns, and became the father of the Protestant Reforma-tion.

the Church in the past and where God is leading us in the future. The series will end on November 5 as we receive new members and make our commitments to the future of the church with our pledges for financial support in 2018.

This fall marks the 500th anniver-sary of the beginning of the Protes-tant Reformation. To mark this anni-versary, I will begin a sermon series on September 24th that explores some of the themes of the Reforma-tion. We will explore how God has led

I always look forward to fall. It’s wonderful to see people returning from vacation and time spent up north. I look forward to starting the

program year and seeing how new ideas work. This year, as we cele-brate the 500th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation, I’m looking forward to exploring Reformation themes in worship. I’m also looking forward to seeing if moving to adult education that only meets once on a topic will make it easier for people to participate. I’m looking forward to new mem-bers. We will have sessions after church on October 22 and 29 for

people who are interested in learning more about what it means to be a member of Delta Presbyterian Church. We will be receiving new members on Sunday, November 5. We are introducing new curriculum for both Sunday School and Friday Night Fun. This will be our second year with the older group in Friday Night Fun. I’m looking forward to meeting new participants and spend-ing time with some wonderful children and volunteers once a month.

a season of spiritual growth for all of us. Also include the following people in your prayers: week of August 6: Jack & Sue Keys, Dennis & Annette Knapp, Bob & Luci Kull; week of Au-gust 13: Roger & Holly LaPratt, Mary Ann Martin; week of August 20: Mark & Cory McElwee, Sharon McPherson, Richard & Mary Mead; week of Au-gust 27: Mary Meier, Gloria Miller, Elizabeth Nichols; week of Septem-

Pray for Delta as we begin a new program year. Pray for our leaders and those

who will be involved in our children’s ministries. Pray that this fall would be

ber 3: Bob & Ginny Noble, Jan Oud-bier, Maryanne Oren, Kathy Peters; week of September 10: Dean Pope, Lena Pratt, Wendy Pratt, Ginny Probst; week of September 17: Gary & Bonnie Reemsnyder, Read & Sharon Ross, Jerry Rueckert; week of September 24: Anne Ryan, Mike & Cindy Schilling, Paul & Jo Seppala.

Page 2

Fall Worship

Words From Wendy

“Let Us Pray”

T HE A MB ASS A DOR

Strengthening Christ in Us

Taizé Prayer Service

The first Taizé Prayer Service of the fall season will be on Sunday,

September 24, 6:30 pm. Come and join us in a meditative service of prayer, scripture, and music.

An Exercise in Yoga

Under the expert guidance of Jane Thomas, Delta offers Yoga classes for all levels of experience. The class is on Mondays, 9:30-10:30 am in the church’s multipurpose room. (Please

use the lower level entrance at the back of the building.) Wear comfort-able clothing and bring an exercise (yoga) mat. A towel or blanket is op-tional. There is no cost to this class.

Church Opportunities

V OLU ME 1 9, ISSU E 6

We rejoice in the beauty of our Prayer Trails, and in the work Jack Keys puts into maintaining them. We rejoice in the success of our community gardens, and thank Doug Dykstra for his work coordinating and maintaining them. We rejoice in the continuation of Friday Night Fun for the older kids over the summer, and for the ministry of our youth worker, Cheyenne Sto-rey. We are grateful for the volunteers who have given Friday evenings to work with her this summer. We rejoice in your faithful financial support of Christ’s ministry through Delta. At this time, giving is ahead of where we were last year at this time.

We rejoice in the leadership from several different churches in the plan-ning and implementing of our monthly Taizé Prayer Worship services. Sarah Dymond (Delta) and Maureen Hall (St. John’s Student Parish & Trinity) plan the services, and Andrew Gates (Bretton Woods), Carol Carlson (Immanuel Community Reform), and Ellen Jackson (Delta) help provide the music. We rejoice in our new curriculum for Sunday School and Friday Night Fun. The program, called Dig In, has many different components and can be customized each week to fit the children’s interests and teachers’ strengths. We rejoice in new ideas and new ways of learning and growing. We will be experimenting with one session adult education this fall. Make sure you fill out the survey. It is available online https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/PPF5M53 or at the Commitment Center. What gives you cause to rejoice at

Delta? Let the office know and we’ll

include it next month.

Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, Rejoice! Philippians 4:4 God continues to work in and through us, and even as the pace has slowed for summer, there is much for which we can give thanks and praise to God. We rejoice in the work Terri West-moreland and Art Kelley have put into updating the library software. We thank them for the hours they have spent on this project. We rejoice in the members willing to preach while Wendy is away. Thank you to Jack Keys, Art Kelley, Kyle Dymond, and Frank Jackson. We rejoice in the congregation’s continuing dedication to mission. We collected 21 personal needs bags in May, and are now collecting school supplies that will be distributed to local schools. We rejoice in good communication and problem solving at the June joint Session/Deacon meeting. We rejoice that this summer we’ve been able to worship in the sanctu-ary—our critter problems are nothing but a memory now.

Prayground. The idea came from a Lutheran Church in Minnesota. They established an area in the front of their sanctuary and off to one side where young children would find things to keep them entertained through the service. This concept seemed to work last year, and since it can be a challenge to find childcare volunteers in the summer and we never know how many children we will have, we brought it back. There will be a new craft at the Prayground each week.

Teaching Sunday School-fall We are blessed with some wonderful chil-dren here at Delta. A wonderful way to share Christ with them and to strengthen Christ in you is to volun-

teer to teach Sunday School this fall. We are ordering new curriculum, which is more flexible and we hope will be easier to use and more engag-ing over last year’s curriculum. There will be a sign-up sheet on the Com-mitment Center.

Child Care Provider position avail-able Lauren Graham, our childcare provider for the last year and a half, has graduated and taken a teaching position in Grand Rapids. We will be searching for a new childcare pro-vider, and hope to have someone in place by the end of September. Pray that we will find the right person to care for our youngest children. Until we find someone, Cheyenne and our youth will be supervising the nursery.

Page 3

Cause to Rejoice

Children’s Ministry

Sharing Christ Among Us

collection box out and ready to col-lect. We would like to “Thank” every-one for your tremendous support in our effort to “Show Christ around Us”.

School Supplies. August & Septem-ber are the months we begin our “School Supply” collection. School supplies are starting to appear on local store shelves; we will have our

Our fall program will kick off on Sunday, September 10. To celebrate the beginning of the fall program, we are having our traditional fellowship meal. We will be grilling hamburgers and hot dogs (provided by Deacons)

and we are asking the congregation to bring relishes, side dishes and des-serts. The sign-up sheet is at the Commitment Center.

potty trained) through 4th grade. The older program led by Cheyenne is for 5

th through 9

th graders. If you know of

a family that might benefit from this ministry, please send contact infor-mation to office@deltapresby.org and we will send them a personal invita-tion.

Friday Night Fun-SUBMERGE. For the first time EVER Friday Night Fun is continuing through the summer! The summer program is available to those who will enter 5th grade this fall through those who will enter 9th grade this fall. Friday Night Fun is held from 6-9 pm. Please be sure to register

Friday Night Fun will be back Sept. 15. We have new curricu-lum, new

ideas, and room for more children in this Vacation Bible School style pro-gram. It runs from 6:00 to 9:00 pm one Friday a month. The younger group is for children 3 years old (and

your child by the Wednesday prior to Friday Night Fun. To sign up, please call 517-321-3569. The final date of the summer program is August 25. The school year program resumes September 15.

FNF Christmas Stockings. The cli-ents of Advent House last year loved the personal Christmas Stockings that the children of Friday Night Fun assembled. Again this year, we will be collecting small items (like lip balm and travel-sized personal needs items) for slipper socks to stuff on November 17. We are also in need of slipper socks in all sizes and colors.

Page 4

Mission Project for August-September

Fellowship Meal-September 10

Friday Night Fun

T HE A MB ASS A DOR

Showing Christ Around Us

For over 35 years, Delta Presbyte-rian Church has run a Conces-

sions Booth at the MSU home football

MSU Concessions

games. We need 20-24 volunteers for each game to successfully operate the booth. The sign-up poster is now at the Commitment Center. Everyone who would like to help must submit a background check form to MSU be-fore the football season starts. Forms

are available at the Commitment Center or online at: https://eatatstate.com/content/volunteer-application-and-background-check-authorization-form

Thanks for the Garden Plot. We appreciate you and the Church sharing the Joy of Gardening and Life. Tom and Dora Lee

Thank you, Delta

V OLU ME 1 9, ISSU E 6

Page 5

August 2017 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat

1

2

10 am Property

3

4

Girl Scouts overnight

5

6

9th Sunday after Pentecost Change for Change 10 am Worship

7

9:30 am Yoga 3 pm Mad Hatters 6:30 pm Spiritual Life

8

Ambassador Deadline

9

9:30 am Quilting 10 am La Leche

10 11

12

13

10th Sunday after Pentecost Advent House 10 am Worship/Communion

14

9:30 am Yoga 3 pm Mad Hatters 6 pm Resources 7 pm Mission FNF Planning

15

5:30 pm LAP new member meeting 6:30 pm La Leche

16

17 18 19

20

11th Sunday after Pentecost Personal Needs 10 am Worship

21

9:30 am Yoga 3 pm Mad Hatters 6:30 pm Deacons 7 pm OCD Support

22

7pm Prebytery/Board of Pensions Meeting

23

9:30 am Quilting 10 am La Leche OFFICE CLOSED for Workshop in Hastings

24 25

6 pm FNF SUBMERGE

26

Property Painting Party

27

12th Sunday after Pentecost 10 am Worship

28

9:30 am Yoga 3 pm Mad Hatters 6:30 pm Session

29 30

31

Page 6

T HE A MB ASS A DOR

September 2017 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat

1 2

12 pm MSU vs Bowling Green Concessions

3

13th Sunday after Pentecost Change for Change 10 am Worship

4

Labor Day OFFICE CLOSED

5

6:30 pm Spiritual Life

6

9:30 am Quilting 10 am Property Ellen Vacation

7

6:15 pm Bellievers 7:30 pm Celebra-tion Choir

8 9

3:30 pm MSU vs Western Concessions Presbytery in Mason

10

14th Sunday after Pentecost Advent House Fall Kickoff 10 am Worship/Communion 11:15 am Fellow-ship Meal Ellen Vacation

11

9:30 am Yoga 3 pm Mad Hatters 6 pm Resources 6 pm Girl Scouts

12 13

9:30 am Quilting 10 am La Leche

14

6:15 pm Bellievers 7:30 pm Celebra-tion Choir

15

6 pm Friday Night Fun

16

Property Painting Party

17

15th Sunday after Pentecost Personal Needs 10 am Worship Nominating Committee

18

9:30 am Yoga 3 pm Mad Hatters 6:30 pm Deacons 7 pm OCD Support

19

6:30 pm La Leche Ambassador Deadline

20

9:30 am Quilting

21

6:15 pm Bellievers 7:30 pm Celebra-tion Choir

22 23

8 pm MSU vs Notre Dame Concessions

24

16th Sunday after Pentecost 10 am Worship 6:30 pm Taizé

25

9:30 am Yoga 3 pm Mad Hatters 6:30 pm Session

26 27

9:30 am Quilting 10 am La Leche

28

6:15 pm Bellievers 7:30 pm Celebra-tion Choir

29 30

MSU vs Iowa Concessions

V OLU ME 1 9, ISSU E 6

Door Greeters Aug 6 Brocks Aug 13 Schillings Aug 20 Fricks Aug 27 Knapps

Welcome Visitor Greeters Aug 6 Kris Fry Aug 13 Jan Small Aug 20 David Brock Aug 27 Terri Westmoreland

Lay Leaders Aug 6 Kathy Peters Aug 13 Sue Keys Aug 20 Joe Frick Aug 27 Meredith Jackson

Sep 3 Art Kelley Sep 10 Kathy Peters Sep 17 Frank Jackson Sep 24 Cory McElwee

Aug 1 Sharon Ross

Aug 4 Treven Fech

Aug 7 Art Kelley

Aug 11 Gloria Miller Dennis Knapp Zack Benezette

Aug 12 Kerri Buchanan

Aug 18 Ken Wright

Aug 19 Ed Troshak

Aug 25 Janet Johnston Callum Wright

Aug 27 Jillien Bishop

Sep 1 Bob Benezette

Sep 5 Jackie Bishop Roger LaPratt

Sep 10 Jack VanCourt

Sep 11 John Elsinga Bob Noble

Sep 13 Jillian Dymond

Sep 14 Beau Benezette

Sep 21 Jan Buchanan

Sep 22 Maureen Dykstra

Sep 30 Ock DeRose Jeff Jackson

August 22, we will be hosting a

workshop for the presbytery and the Board of Pensions about the pension plan for church pastors, treasurers, and administrators.

On September 11, the Girl

Scouts will use our parking lot for a recruiting event.

We anticipate the return of an

Arts and Spirit group once a month on Wednesday mornings.

We continue to show Christ around us by allowing a number of different groups to use our building.

The first weekend in August the

Girl Scouts had an overnight here at the church, with some of the girls sleeping in tents in the back.

August 15, Lansing Area Patch-

ers will have an orientation for new members here at the church. They also meet here monthly during the school year.

In October, Community Mental

Health will be using our building for a staff training event.

Also in October, 1st Presbyterian

Church, Holt, will be using the church again for a two-day lead-ership retreat. (They liked our facilities so well last year, they want to come back.)

Page 7

Servants

Birthdays

Building Use

Office News

This newsletter is for both August and September. The deadline for the October newsletter will be September 19.

In keeping with our priority of Strengthening Communications, several of us will be attending a workshop on communica-tions featuring communication staff members from the General Assembly offices in Louisville on Wednesday, August 23.

The office will be closed on that day.

Wendy will be camping Labor Day weekend, leaving Thursday afternoon (Aug. 31) and returning Monday afternoon (Sept. 4).

Frank and Ellen will be attending a big reunion in Nebraska the second week in September, so she will be on vacation September 6-13. Call the office before you stop by, as there may be times when no one is in.

________________________________

Sunday, September 3 13th Sunday after Pentecost Change for Change Guest Preacher: Joe Frick

Sunday, September 10 14th Sunday after Pentecost Advent House Fall Kickoff Fellowship Meal Communion Psalm 149 Romans 13:8-14 Challenged

Sunday, September 17 15th Sunday after Pentecost Personal Needs Romans 14:1-12 Matthew 18:21-35

Tolerance and Forgiveness

Sunday, September 24 16th Sunday after Pentecost Romans 3:21-26 Hebrews 11:1-7 Reformed: Faith Alone

6:30 pm Taizé Prayer Service

Sunday, August 6 9th Sunday after Pentecost Change for Change Psalm 105:1-11, 45b Matthew 14:13-21 Faith to Share

Sunday, August 13 10th Sunday after Pentecost Advent House Communion Romans 10:5-15 Matthew 14:22-33 Faith to Walk

Sunday, August 20 11th Sunday after Pentecost Personal Needs Psalm 133 Matthew 15:10-20 Out of the Heart

Sunday, August 27 12th Sunday after Pentecost Romans 12:1-8 Matthew 16:13-20 Transformed

Looking Ahead in Worship

The Ambassador

Delta Presbyterian Church 6100 W. Michigan Ave. Lansing MI 48917 Phone: 517-321-3569 E-mail: office@deltapresby.org AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2017

CHURCH STAFF Pastor: Wendy S. Pratt Admin. Asst.: Ellen Jackson Clerk of Session: Sue Settle Treasurer: Joe Frick Accompanist: Frederick Alhaddad Adult Choir Dir.: Mark McElwee Handbell Choir Dir.: Sarah Dymond Website Coordinator: Kyle Dymond Kids Hope USA Program Dir.: Jane Thomas Asst. Kids Hope USA Dir.: Cindy Schilling Youth Leader,: Cheyenne Storey

“We are ambassadors for Christ, God making His appeal through us.” II Cor 5:20 .

We’re on the Web! www.deltapresby.org