Interim Grace Notes for March 8, 2024
Kristen Will Provide Call Process Update on Sunday
Kristen Lindsay, chair of the Grace Call Committee, will provide a brief update on the call process before worship on Sunday. Thanks to the Call Committee which has been working hard and prayerfully in fulfilling the task that the congregation has entrusted them with, the recommendation of a candidate to call as the next senior pastor at Grace.
Don't Forget to Change Your Clocks!
This weekend brings the once a year horrible no-good experience of losing an hour of sleep Saturday night. I will have it a little bit easier than last year since we went to the new Sunday schedule, but still... So don't forget to "Sprint Ahead," and advance your clocks an hour on Saturday night, and when you get adjusted you'll be glad you have a bit more after supper daylight to enjoy.
Substitute Organist Service (SOS) Now Plays the Organ!
In last week's update, I announced that "Organ MIDI Connection Will Be Made Soon." Soon came on Tuesday afternoon, when I met Greg Jess at the organ, and we got Lynea from Church Music Solutions (CMS), creators and sustainers of the SOS app, on the line to walk us through the final stages of linking our organ with the SOS app. This was a bit more difficult than just opening the app and playing the digital tracks through the sound system. First, Lynea needed to "map" the Grace organ, so the commands from the app will play the right keys and stops on our organ. This was done by Lynea through Greg's laptop, which was connected to the Grace organ. Then we needed to install a new "beta" SOS app that had this "map" as one of the options. Finally we had to make sure that bluetooth was connected, so that we don't need a wired connection. After we did all these things, Lynea sent some organ tracks to our new SOS app, we downloaded them, and hit "Play." And sure enough, the organ started playing.
We likely won't need to use this new connection until some Saturdays in May and June when Hyo will be taking some weekends off to spend time with family, and will be available anytime we need a substitute organist. Many thanks to Greg who connected loose wires in the MIDI interface, and Lynea and all the people at CMS who have made this all possible!
LIFT Midweek Lent Series "Making Change" Continues
The third of our 5-week Lenten series services were held on Wednesday. Pr. Paul brought the message at Grace with the theme "Change of Heart". I had the week off for preaching, so I presided at Grace. This coming Wednesday, March 13, Maureen brings the message "Change of Plans" to Grace. Remember that supper beginning at 5:00 pm precedes 6:30 worship at Grace. The menu for this week is: pasta with meat sauce, salad, Dessert. Sounds yummy to me. Hope to see you there!
Choir Resumes Rehearsals
The Chancel Choir resumed rehearsals on Wednesday evening after the Midweek Lenten service under the direction of Susan Barker, our recently hired Sunday organist who has also been contracted to serve as the Chancel Choir director. The numbers were a bit sparse for the first rehearsal - some have other commitments for now, are regaining their health, or returning from points farther south, but plan to rejoin the choir. We are hoping to have choir anthems on Good Friday and on Easter Sunday.
Stewardship Team Meets
Stewardship held their monthly meeting on Wednesday. Heather joined our meeting, as she has been participating in the Stewardship for All Seasons Learning Track on Recruiting and Retaining Volunteers. These once a month Zoom meetings (from January throught April) have provided some good ideas and plans for volunteer ministry at Grace. You can watch recordings of the January Zoom HERE (Passcode: @W9$jd4V) and the February Zoom HERE (Passcode: BHW4*@V%).
Worship Team Meets
Worship met on Tuesday for their monthly meeting. Our main agenda was to make sure that everything is in order for our Holy Week and Easter services. Good Friday worship (6:30 pm) will return to the Tenebrae format, a service of readings, hymns, special music, and extinguishing of candles and progressive turning out of lights, leaving the worship space dark at the end of the service, representing the darkness of the tomb where Jesus was laid after his body was taken down from the cross.
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