News and Events

Looking Ahead to Summer - Mark your calendars for VBS 2010!!! We have a theme & date: BAOBAB BLAST - JULY 12-16, 2010. Children 3yrs - 5th grade are invited to join us under the Baobab Tree, on the African Savannah, for a week of learning & growing with God. We'll have evening sessions Monday - Friday and all are invited to the Sunday morning celebration. We'll learn about Trust, Love, Follow, Care & Share. It'll be a super week of fun, faith-building & fellowship for the whole family. Join us - invite your friends & neighbors! Registration begins in April - watch for forms distributed during Sunday School & online.

Lastly, we need volunteers!! A fun & rewarding experience is guaranteed! Can you help make Baobab Blast happen? If you'd like more info. or can help prepare for our Great Get-Together, please contact Sheila Smith Scheidecker at 610-590-2306.

The online form is coming soon!

How do we see and taste the Lord today? All adults who are longing for a glimpse and a taste of the goodness of God are invited to join Pastor Krais for 5 evenings in July. We'll explore ways to look for God in our busy world so that we may develop a deeper intimacy with our Lord and Savior.

Join us on Monday, July 12 - Friday, July 16 from 6:30-8:30 pm; (during Baobab VBS for children). Child care is available for children too young to participate in VBS. Participants must pre-register by calling the office at 610-948-3684 or emailing Pastor Krais at jkrais.gracelutrn@verizon.net.

Are you concerned about a family member and their health? Do you wonder who to talk to and what services might be available to help? Join us for the Caregivers Forum on the 3rd Monday of each month, for answers. Guest speakers will include a social worker, doctor, lawyer, hospice worker, adult day care supervisor, visiting nurse & more. Please register by calling the church office 610-948-3684. See you on April 19th, when our speaker will be John Nowak from Veteran's Affairs.

We will be celebrating the Rite of Confirmation, which is the affirmation of their baptism, on Pentecost, May 23rd at the 10:45 worship service. Our confirmands are: Charles Edward Fisher, Kelly Danielle Groff, Austin John Gunson, Andrew Richard Lewis, Matthew James Mannino, Caroline Maria McKenna, Justin Michael Murphy, Tyler Joel Murphy, Corey Reed Rantz, Madison Mae Schott, Nicholas Edward Stanek, Mason Alexander Tracewell & Kaitlyn Suzanne Vukovich. Thank you to our 8th grade teachers Mrs. Janet Neff, Mrs. Ellen LaPlace, and our 7th grade teachers Mrs. Kathy Delaney, Mr. Bud Meredith & Mrs. Tina Meredith for their faithful teaching and preparation of these young people. Please continue to pray for the continued faith growth of our confirmands!

Sponsorship Openings are a great way of remembering a loved one or of honoring a special person or date in your life. They appear in the Ledger and renew automatically each year, on the closest Sunday to your original date, unless you inform the office otherwise. Flowers or bulletins are $20/sponsorship and the coffee, window or lamp illumination is $10/sponsorship. Call the Office (610-948-3684), for more info. For the second quarter of 2010 there are a couple of sponsorships available in May.

Caring Crafters meet Wednesdays 9AM-11AM, in the All Purpose Room. Join us each week, as we continue with crafts & weekly prayer for our congregation. We usually continue our social interaction by going to lunch. All are welcome to join us. Call Sue Perry 610-495-8587.

Please be courteous and DO NOT PARK in front of the handicap sidewalk cut out outside the Welcome Center. If you park there, people who need to access the ramp can't get to it.

Thank you to Jan Slack who will help to manage our monthly prayer list. You'll be hearing more soon about how you can join Jan in praying and also keeping our list up to date!

The Grace Evangelism team will be bringing worship to the outdoors and to the Royersford and Spring City com- munities. We'd love to have some friendly faces from Grace to help greet people and join in the worship! If you'd like to help, please contact Kathy Mills or Pastor Krais. If you'd like to just worship, meet us in the large pavilion on the 22nd!

In honor of the women of Grace Lutheran Church, on Mother's Day, May 9th, a donation of $50 will be made to the ELCA Haitian earthquake relief fund. God bless our women!

I've been wondering a lot lately, why "evangelism" is such a difficult word. Perhaps if the translation from the Greek was "we're going to harass you until you believe what we believe", then I would understand! The word "evangelism" however simply means "good news". How wonderful is that?!?

I think that sometimes, my own hesitation in sharing my faith with strangers is because I've gotten that translation a little mixed up. Sometimes, I fear that people are going to feel "harassed" or "bothered" by my faith sharing, and then the opportunity has suddenly passed. I've noticed, though, that when I remember that what I'm sharing is truly "good news", then it becomes a joy to tell others about God's goodness in the world.

Good news is something that brings great joy to the one who shares and the one who receives. Who do you know who might be longing to hear some good news in their life? Who do you think might need to hear a word of hope, love, or grace? Maybe the better question is, "Who doesn't need that"?

The Evangelism committee has recently begun to grow with new faces, fresh ideas, and energy that can only come from the work of the Holy Spirit. If you'd like to see how the Spirit is moving in this group, talk to Kathy Mills, our Evangelism Chair, and hear what's hap- pening and how you can get involved! We've got some good news- REALLY good news- and we're excited about sharing it!

PRISM is taught by Mr. Richard Harshaw and will cover topics of interest to the class. Often, the focus is on current issues in today's world.

The Rainbow class is taught by Mr. Jesse James and studies scripture closely to create deeper understanding of God's Word for today's world. Both of those classes meet in the parsonage.

Faith Journeys will return to the topic of "Embracing Your Inner Lutheran", as we learn about the "who, what, when, and why" of being Lutheran. Come and join us in the choir room (room 4- lower level of church) on Sunday mornings at 9:30 – everyone is welcome!

HOLD THE DATES- Meetings May 23, June 27 after second service... 12:00-2:00. Lunch served.

Jr. High S.U.P.P.E.R. Club meets the 2nd & 4th Thursdays of every month, 6:30-8:00pm, in the Parsonage, unless there's a holiday. We ask parents to sign up for meals on the sign-up sheet at the back of the church. S.U.P.P.E.R Club leaders: Cindy LeVan, Connie Tracewell & Sue Vukovich.

May 22nd - Our year-end event, following our theme of "What Ride" - we'll be traveling to Dorney Park! Tickets are $24. Final count & money are due no later than May 2! We'll leave the church around 8am and will return around 8:30pm. This event is open to all members of the congregation - the more the merrier!!

Next Summer our youth will be participating in a Servant Trip to Virginia through Youthworks Inc. We will spend a week completing home repairs and hosting Kids Club for children on the Eastern Shore. As part of our fundraising efforts we will once again offer our "Rent a Kid" program.

Congregation members & friends pay $20 to "Rent" a youth for 4 hours. Suggested tasks include: leaf raking, window washing, closet cleaning, boat waxing, or taking down Christmas decorations. List of current participating youth and coupons can be picked up on the table in the Narthex. ???, contact Beth Way or Joy Fraunfelter.

Become a "fan", keep up with dates, events, info for activities & pics of our youth in action.

If any of our college students need volunteer projects to do, to qualify for their Grace Lutheran scholarships, see Ken Slack

Please feel free to call the church office with your more long-term prayer concerns, for the Prayer Chain list. The weekly Ledger prayers will be kept to the new, more short term and immediate prayer needs of the church and the community.

Prayer Chain lists will be available on the windowsill, in the back of the Narthex. It is our goal to have a new list available for the first weekend of each month. We hope you will use the Prayer Chain list as a way to enhance your daily devotions and personal prayer life and as a way to stay connected to the needs of the other members of our church family. Please feel free to call the office at 610-948-3684, with your prayer requests.

Sunday, June 13th , 2010

1:00 pm Start / Registration at 12:30 pm.

FIRST TO PAY...FIRST TO PLAY

Blackwood Golf Course - Douglassville, PA $85/person includes green fees, cart, dinner, beverages & prizes Questions? Contact Steve Fodor @ 610-705-3536

Make Checks payable to:
Grace Lutheran Church
Attn: Steve Fodor
594 Church Street, 1st Floor
Royersford, Pa. 19468

Contact Steve Fodor 610-705-3536 or Rob Daily 610-948-4660 with any questions or to make reservations.