Fifth Sunday of Easter
April 29, 2018
Holy Communion at 8:30 and 11am


Prayer of the Day
O God, you give us your Son as the vine apart from whom we cannot live. Nourish our life in his resurrection, that we may bear the fruit of love and know the fullness of your joy, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
 
Scripture readings
Acts 8:26-40
Psalm 22:25-31
1 John 4:7-21
John 15:1-8

Sermon 
"Why Not?"
Acts 8:26-40; John 15:1-8
Raising children means fielding questions. One of the most common questions in our household is, “Why not?” What do you mean I can’t ride my bike without a helmet, or skip the vegetable course, or stay up until midnight? Why not? Usually, we have answers. But occasionally our children stump us, and we’re forced to yield. As the gospel began to spread outward from Jerusalem, Philip the Evangelist and the Ethiopian Eunuch are brought together by the Spirit. Their statuses — racial, religious, sexual, socioeconomic — would have kept them apart were it not for the gospel. But hearing the gospel proclaimed by Philip, the Eunuch sees water and asks, “What is to prevent me from being baptized?” His “Why not?” question cuts through centuries of inverted boundaries and brings them both to the only source of true life: the risen Lord, Jesus Christ.


Hymns

In our prayers we remember Lutheran Child and Family Services. 

Education hour at 9:45am

Sunday School, Pre-Confirmation and Confirmation classes meet  in their usual classrooms.  Teen Talk meets in the Youth Room. 

Download the 2017-2018 Sunday School and Confirmation Schedule.

Adult Education

April 29
The Hand, the Brain and God, Part 2

Grace member Jim Kerns continues an exploration of how the profound interconnections of the human hand and brain act as a mirror of the soul with respect to our body language (gestures), mood, and expression of empathy.

The Sunday morning Bible study group meets in the lower-level conference room.

The Grace Church Library is open and staffed on Sundays from 8:15 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Look for books related to Adult Ed topics as well as many other subjects. The library is also open for self-service during the week.