Faith In Action Week!

October is just around the corner, and so is our week of Faith in Action! Here are a few more details: 

We begin on Sunday, October 14, with our interactive Children’s Sabbath Worship Service at 9:30 a.m. Our theme is “Sharing the Bread of Life.” We invite everyone (even if you attend worship at 8:15 a.m. or 11 a.m.) to bring a loaf of your favorite bread, either homemade or store-bought. During the 9:30 service, the children’s and youth choirs will carry the loaves to the Communion Table where they will be blessed and incorporated into the worship service. Youth and adult members of our Faith Build Team will then take the bread to our Faith Build site in Aurora where they will host a Bread Banquet for the local community. This is a great opportunity to put our “faith into action” and connect with our local communities in need. Contact Gaye Lynn Loufek for more information (gayelynn.loufek@peopleofgrace.org).

Space at the Bread Banquet is limited, but there is another great opportunity for service that same day: the CROP Hunger Walk! All are invited to join us in this annual fundraiser to end hunger in Naperville and around the world. Registration opens at 12:30 p.m. at Grace UMC (that’s easy!) and the walk steps off at 1:30 p.m. There are shorter and longer walks—whichever works for you. And if you’re not up to walking, please support our walkers with monetary donations or come and help pack “Hunger Bags” to distribute to the hungry in our area. We’ve invited our neighboring Methodist churches to join us for refreshments and fellowship in the Fireside Room before and after the walk, so come and mingle with some fellow Methodists!

Then, on Saturday, October 20, join us for two great service opportunities. We have 25 slots reserved for volunteers at Feed My Starving Children in Aurora from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Or join us in the Activity Center at Grace UMC to pack “Birthday Bags” for Loaves and Fishes from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m. Contact Kathy Kiefer (ksnc22@gmail.com) about Feed My Starving Children, Creating Birthday Bags, and donating needed materials! 

Wrap up the evening with a special Saturday Evening Worship Service beginning at 5 p.m. in the Sanctuary. Come and sing, pray, and listen the message in song and word while reflecting on the week’s activities. This time for worship and renewal will also be live-streamed on our website for all who can’t attend. 

Visit Faith In Action for more information on each project, ways to donate, and to sign up to serve.

Sunday, October 21, is Marathon Sunday. Due to street closures, the Saturday Evening Service will be the only worship service of the weekend. But wait, there’s more! We invite everyone to join us Sunday morning to represent Grace and support the runners from our Aid Station at the corner of 75th Street and Clyde Drive. The volunteer shift at our spot is from 5 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. We need help setting up, preparing the water and Gatorade tables, handing out the drinks, and then cleaning up. Contact Barbara McCarthy (barbmccarthy@icloud.com) or Jenn Wills (jenn_wills@ wowway.com), our Grace Co-Captains for the event, for more information. To become an official volunteer go to our site: Grace Water/Aid Station. The password is:GRACE.