Sunday, June 30, 2024 bulletin

DANFORTH MENNONITE CHURCH
416-422-2406

 We welcome all guests who have joined us.

 

Danforth Mennonite Church
June 30, 2024  10:30 a.m.
Order of Service

 Words of Welcome and Land Acknowledgement

Call to Worship: VT #854 and Prayer

Hymn: VT #57  Holy Spirit, Come with Power

Announcements

Hymn: VT #91  We Praise Thee, O God

Giving thanks for our gifts

Introduction to the theme 

Hymn:  Lord the light of your Love is shining  (Graham Kendrick)

              https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rce9UHYZwl4

Prayers of the people

Hymn:  VT #365  Lord, I Lift Your Name on High  

Scripture Reading:  John 7: 37-39

Message:  Rivers of Living Water (the telling of ACTS 2)

Hymn of Response: VT #716  God of Grace and God of Glory

Benediction

 

Leading Us in Worship
Message                             John E.
Worship Leader             Dalton J.
Song Leader                     Ed F.
Musicians                          Kathy W. (piano), Ray W. (tuba)
Greeters                            Vic & Mary Jane G.
Zoom Host                       Bonnie W.
A/V Technician              Roger H.

 

Hymn of the month:  VT  #365  Lord, I lift your name on high

Scripture Reading

 John 7: 37-39 (NIV)
37 On the last and greatest day of the festival, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. 38 Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.” 39 By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified.

 

DANFORTH ANNOUNCEMENTS

 

Summer Hours start this weekend.
Our Church service will be
10:30 – 11:30 a.m.

There will be no Adult Class or
Hymn Sing during the summer.

 

 

Worship Schedule reminder

July 7
Message:               Robert J.
Worship leader  Sue S.
Song Leader         Kathy W.
Musicians              Roger H. (piano), Ray W. (tuba)
Greeters                Cindy R., Bethany W.
ZOOM host          Bonnie W.
A/V Tech                Fazal S.

July 14
Message:                 Anthony Y.
Worship leader   Bonnie W.
Song Leader          Bonnie W.
Musicians               Kathy W. (piano), Ray W. (tuba)
Greeters
ZOOM host          Mike D.
A/V Tech                Fazal S.

 

WIDER CHURCH ANNOUNCEMENTS

GTA Mennonite Fellowship Festival
Save the Date
Joint Service and Potluck

at Willowgrove on August 17-18 from 10:30am – 4pm. Swimming, wagon rides, games, and more. For more details please visit willowgrove.ca.

Google Form for Joint Service & Picnic

Sunday, June 16, 2024 bulletin

DANFORTH MENNONITE CHURCH
416-422-2406
 We welcome all guests who have joined us.

 

Danforth Mennonite Church
June 16, 2024  11:00 a.m.
Order of Service

Land Acknowledgement

Welcome

Call to Worship (prayer)

Hymn: VT #365       Lord, I lift your name on high

Announcements

Offering Prayer

Hymn: VT #698     Somebody prayed for me

Congregational Prayer (VT # 987)

Scripture Mark 4: 26-34

Hymn: VT #123     Come, Ye thankful People

Message:  Keeping our seed watered

Hymn of Response: VT #812 Sent forth by God’s Blessing

Benediction

Leading Us in Worship
Message                             Carol O.
Worship Leader             Linda D.
Song Leader                     Dalton J.
Musicians                          Jessica M. (piano), Ray W. (tuba)
Greeters                             John E., Anne R.
Zoom Host                        Bonnie W.
A/V Technician               Murray L.

 Hymn of the month VT #365  Lord, I life your name on high

 

Adult Discussion Group

John will be leading the conversation.

Baby and Bathwater:

Please read the chapter entitled, “A closer look at Ekklesia (church) p27-34.

Ponder:
*Why is it a false idea to say the church was born at Pentecost?

*What are the roots of the word, ekklesia?

*What’s the relationship between the word “Ekklesia” and the 96 images?

*Why are people discouraged about the church?

*Is it possible to be both institutional and elastic?

 

Offering Prayer

 Leader: What will you offer the body of Christ today?

All: Bring all that you have.  Bring all that you are.

Leader: The gifts of silence and the gift of words are welcome.

People: The gifts of leading and the gifts of following are welcome.

Leader: The gifts of doubt and the gifts of faith are welcome.

People: The gifts of the head and the gifts of the heart are welcome.

Leader: The gifts of planning and the gifts of spontaneity are welcome.

All: May all that we are as individuals.  Come together to strengthen the living body of the church, Christ Incarnate.

 

 

Scripture Reading

Mark 4: 26-34

The Parable of the Growing Seed
26 He also said, “The kingdom of God is as if someone would scatter seed on the ground 27 and would sleep and rise night and day, and the seed would sprout and grow, he does not know how. 28 The earth produces of itself first the stalk, then the head, then the full grain in the head. 29 But when the grain is ripe, at once he goes in with his sickle because the harvest has come.”

The Parable of the Mustard Seed
30 He also said, “With what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable will we use for it? 31 It is like a mustard seed, which, when sown upon the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on earth, 32 yet when it is sown it grows up and becomes the greatest of all shrubs and puts forth large branches, so that the birds of the air can make nests in its shade.”

The Use of Parables
33 With many such parables he spoke the word to them as they were able to hear it; 34 he did not speak to them except in parables, but he explained everything in private to his disciples.

 

Giving Thanks For Summer

Father, Creator of all, thank You for summer!
Thank you for the warmth of the sun
and the increased daylight.
Thank You for the beauty I see all around me
and for the opportunity to be outside and enjoy Your creation.
Thank You for the increased time I have to be with my friends and family,
and for the more casual pace of the summer season.
Draw me closer to You this summer.
Teach me how I can pray
no matter where I am or what I am doing.
Warm my soul with the awareness of Your presence
and light my path with Your Word and Counsel.
As I enjoy Your creation, create in me
a pure heart and a hunger and a thirst for You.

– Author Unknown

 

DANFORTH ANNOUNCEMENTS

 

Summer Hours will
commence June 30.
Our Church service will be
10:30 – 11:30 a.m.
There will be no Adult Class or
Hymn Sing during the summer.

 

Treasurer’s Report: We received $6,422 in offerings in May. Our budget calls for $8,114 each month in offerings. Due mostly to the absence of a paid Pastor we now have a $19,011 operating surplus to the end of May.
 
In May there was $250 donated to the Benevolence Fund and there is now $351 in the fund. Our goal, as stated in the policy, is to have a minimum of $2,000 in the fund for future situations of need.
 
There was an additional $25 donation in memory of Salome H. which has been placed in the Professional Development Fund.
 
We have forwarded $400 from our Food Bank Designated Fund to the Neighbourhood Group who administer the 40 Teesdale Food Bank. Designated food bank donations through DMC are always welcome. We support the 40 Teesdale Food Bank and the Nourish East End Food Bank with these donations.
 
Donations to Danforth Mennonite Church are always welcome through Sunday morning offerings, mailed cheques or email transfers at dmmc2174@gmail.com. Please contact Roger H. if you would like to join the monthly giving program which happens through bank transfers on the 15th of each month. Thank you to all for your generous support for the work of our church.

 

Worship Schedule reminder

June 23
Message:                  Pieter N.
Worship leader    Sue S.
Song Leader           Sue S.
Musicians                Roger H. (piano), Ray W. (tuba)
Greeters                  Vic & Mary Jane G.
ZOOM host           Bonnie W.
A/V Tech                 Don B.

June 30
Message:                  Robert J.
Worship leader    Dalton J.
Song Leader           Ed F.
Musicians                Kathy W. (piano), Ray W. (tuba)
Greeters                  Vic & Mary Jane G.
ZOOM host           Bonnie W.
A/V Tech                 Roger H.

 

Ladies Walking group

This is our last walk for June.  We will take a break during the summer and get together again in September.

On Tuesday, June 18, we will be meeting at 10:30 a.m. at Rosetta McClain Gardens at 5 Glen Everest Road (Kingston Road and Birchmount) for a one-hour stroll through the gardens.

An email will go out on Monday, June 17 to confirm the place and time.

If you need to be picked up or dropped off, please check in with fellow walkers or email Bonnie.

 

WIDER CHURCH ANNOUNCEMENTS

 

In recognition of World Refugee Day and National Indigenous Peoples Day, MCC Ontario’s Migration and Refugee Resettlement and Indigenous Neighbours Programs are collaborating together on an upcoming event on Saturday June 22nd to explore what it means to welcome newcomers in Treaty territory together.

We’ll hear impactful stories from newcomers and their sponsorship group. We’ll listen to and learn from an Indigenous elder who will share about the Dish With One Spoon, and how land and resources can be shared to the mutual benefit of all the inhabitants together.

We’ll hear updates on current initiatives within both MCC’s Migration & Resettlement and the Indigenous Neighbours programs. We’ll celebrate stories of arrival, peacebuilding, reconciliation, welcome and inclusion here in Ontario.

The event is on Saturday June 22 from 10:00-12:00 noon followed by a light lunch at Toronto United Mennonite Mennonite Church at 1774 Queen Street East, 3rd Floor, Toronto, Ontario. 

Seo Vang Ma, of the Ma family sponsored through Welcome the Stranger-GTA and First Hmong Mennonite Church will be sharing their family story of the journey to Canada. I have been asked to share how we (WTS) sponsor refugees/newcomers.

Please go on the MCCO website to register or use the link below.

https://mcc.org/events/welcoming-newcomers-treaty-territory-together

Thank you
Andrew R.-M.

 

Mennonite Church Canada Annual General Meeting
Saturday, June 22, 12:00-1:30 p.m. Central time
Online – Zoom

Join our nationwide community of faith for Mennonite Church Canada’s Annual General Meeting. Along with our business agenda, we will hear updates from our program directors, enjoy worship and reflect together as Joint Council members share what God has showed them over the past year. All are welcome. Agenda, information packet, audited financial statements, and registration portal coming soon.

 

Save the Date
Joint Service and Potluck
at Willowgrove on August 17-18
from 10:30am – 4pm.

Swimming, wagon rides, games, and more. For more details please visit willowgrove.ca.

Google Form for Joint Service & Picnic

Leah R.-K. will be offering a workshop titled: 
Tending Hope: supporting parents & caregivers
to talk about climate change

This is an interactive workshop to help people who love and care about the young people in their lives to have courageous and hopeful conversations about climate change.

Drawing on her book Tending Tomorrow: Courageous Change for People and Planet, Leah will provide practical examples and resources. Participants will also be encouraged to reflect on their own faith and wisdom traditions to think about what has sustained them to live in hope during times of adversity, and how they can share this with the young people in their lives.

https://www.willowgrove.ca/events/climate-change-workshop

Thank you!
Rebecca B.
Rentals & Festivals Coordinator
Willowgrove Inc.

 

Between the River and the Sea:
A Lunch and Learn Conversation
with Jeff H.
June 25, 2024
12-1 p.m.
Community Room, 50 Kent Ave., Kitchener

Join the MCEC Palestine Israel Network Working Group as they welcome Jeff H., an Israeli anthropologist working to address injustice against Palestinian people. Jeff will speak for 30 minutes, leaving time for discussion.

Jeff is a founding member of the Palestinian-led One Democratic State Campaign (ODSC), will present the ODSC’s program for replacing Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory with a democratic state of equal rights for all – including the returning refugees. This, he argues, is the only substantially just way forward, but it is strewn with complex and difficult issues we will discuss.

More Information

The constituency-based MCEC Palestine Israel Network Working Group serves the MCEC constituency by promoting awareness and education on specific issues and topics. The information and links are those of the Working Group and do not necessarily represent MCEC as a whole.

 

In summary, upcoming events

At Danforth

June
18  Ladies walking group
25 Ladies walking group – last walk until Sept.
30  Summer hours – service at 10:30 a.m.
August
17/18 Willowgrove joint service

Wider Church

June
22  Mennonite Church Canada AGM
22  Welcome Newcomers (at TUMC)
25  Between the River and the Sea

Community corner

June
19, 22,23  Carmen (Kathy is in the opera)

 

 

Sunday, June 9, 2024 bulletin

DANFORTH MENNONITE CHURCH
416-422-2406

We welcome all guests who have joined us.

Danforth Mennonite Church
June 9, 2024  11:00 a.m.
Order of Service

Land Acknowledgement

Welcome

Call to Worship

Hymn VT #182   I sing the mighty power of God

Announcements

Offering

Hymn:   VT #365   Lord, I lift your name on high

Congregational Prayer (VT #996)

Scripture:  Genesis 1:1-31    John 1: 1-14

Hymn:  VT #177 All things bright and Beautiful

Message: Eco-Spirituality in Action

Hymn of Response: VT #436   Oh Lord, my God

Benediction

 

Leading Us in Worship
Message                             Michael V. D.
Worship Leader             Linda D.
Song Leader                     Kathy W.
Musicians                          Jessica M. (piano), Ray W. (tuba)
Greeters                             Dalton & Carol J.
Zoom Host                        Bonnie W.
A/V Technician               Mike D.

Hymn of the month:  VT #365  Lord, I lift your name on high

Our speaker

Michael V. D. is an Anglican Deacon from the Church of St. Aidan on Queen St. East. He is a member of St. Aidan’s Eco-Spirituality group, the Anglican Social Justice and Advocacy Committee and a member of the Faith and Climate Action Coalition, a multi-faith group which is working to address climate change from a faith perspective. He has a decades-long commitment to environmental and climate advocacy recently involving keeping the Greenbelt free from development. He is currently working with Faith and Climate Action to persuade the Royal Bank of Canada to stop its huge investments in fossil fuel developments. (He has been pleased to work with Murray L. on many projects involving advocacy and climate action.)

Adult Discussion Group

Judi will be leading the conversation.

Baby and Bathwater:

Please read the Chapter entitled, 96 Images – but Who’s Counting (p21-24).

Call to Worship

Leader: In the beginning when it was very quiet, the Word was with God.

All: And the Word was God.

Leader: In the beginning when it was very dark, God said, “Let there be light”,

All: And there was light.

Leader: When the time was right, God sent the Son.

All: Christ came among us and was one of us.

Scripture Reading

Genesis 1:1-31 (NRSVUE)

Six Days of Creation and the Sabbath
When God began to create the heavens and the earth, the earth was complete chaos, and darkness covered the face of the deep, while a wind from God swept over the face of the waters. Then God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. And God saw that the light was good, and God separated the light from the darkness. God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day.

And God said, “Let there be a dome in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters.” So God made the dome and separated the waters that were under the dome from the waters that were above the dome. And it was so. God called the dome Sky. And there was evening and there was morning, the second day.

And God said, “Let the waters under the sky be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear.” And it was so. 10 God called the dry land Earth, and the waters that were gathered together he called Seas. And God saw that it was good. 11 Then God said, “Let the earth put forth vegetation: plants yielding seed and fruit trees of every kind on earth that bear fruit with the seed in it.” And it was so. 12 The earth brought forth vegetation: plants yielding seed of every kind and trees of every kind bearing fruit with the seed in it. And God saw that it was good. 13 And there was evening and there was morning, the third day.

14 And God said, “Let there be lights in the dome of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them be for signs and for seasons and for days and years, 15 and let them be lights in the dome of the sky to give light upon the earth.” And it was so. 16 God made the two great lights—the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night—and the stars. 17 God set them in the dome of the sky to give light upon the earth, 18 to rule over the day and over the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good. 19 And there was evening and there was morning, the fourth day.

20 And God said, “Let the waters bring forth swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the dome of the sky.” 21 So God created the great sea monsters and every living creature that moves, of every kind, with which the waters swarm and every winged bird of every kind. And God saw that it was good. 22 God blessed them, saying, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.” 23 And there was evening and there was morning, the fifth day.

24 And God said, “Let the earth bring forth living creatures of every kind: cattle and creeping things and wild animals of the earth of every kind.” And it was so. 25 God made the wild animals of the earth of every kind and the cattle of every kind and everything that creeps upon the ground of every kind. And God saw that it was good.

26 Then God said, “Let us make humans in our image, according to our likeness, and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air and over the cattle and over all the wild animals of the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth.”

27 So God created humans in his image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.

28 God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air and over every living thing that moves upon the earth.” 29 God said, “See, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is upon the face of all the earth and every tree with seed in its fruit; you shall have them for food. 30 And to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the air and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food.” And it was so. 31 God saw everything that he had made, and indeed, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.

John 1: 1-14 (NRSVUE)

The Word became flesh
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overtake it.

There was a man sent from God whose name was John. He came as a witness to testify to the light, so that all might believe through him. He himself was not the light, but he came to testify to the light. The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world.

10 He was in the world, and the world came into being through him, yet the world did not know him. 11 He came to what was his own, and his own people did not accept him. 12 But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God, 13 who were born, not of blood or of the will of the flesh or of the will of man, but of God.

14 And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth.

DANFORTH ANNOUNCEMENTS

Ladies Walking group

We will not be walking on June 11.

Summer Hours will
commence June 30.
Our Church service will be
10:30 – 11:30 a.m.
There will be no Adult Class or
Hymn Sing during the summer.

Reminder:  Correction to DMC Directory
Barb’s unit # is 131

Treasurer’s Report: We received $6,422 in offerings in May. Our budget calls for $8,114 each month in offerings. Due mostly to the absence of a paid Pastor we now have a $19,011 operating surplus to the end of May.
 
In May there was $250 donated to the Benevolence Fund and there is now $351 in the fund. Our goal, as stated in the policy, is to have a minimum of $2,000 in the fund for future situations of need.
 
There was an additional $25 donation in memory of Salome H. which has been placed in the Professional Development Fund.
 
We have forwarded $400 from our Food Bank Designated Fund to the Neighbourhood Group who administer the 40 Teesdale Food Bank. Designated food bank donations through DMC are always welcome. We support the 40 Teesdale Food Bank and the Nourish East End Food Bank with these donations.
 
Donations to Danforth Mennonite Church are always welcome through Sunday morning offerings, mailed cheques or email transfers at dmmc2174@gmail.com. Please contact Roger H. if you would like to join the monthly giving program which happens through bank transfers on the 15th of each month. Thank you to all for your generous support for the work of our church.

Worship Schedule reminder

June 16
Message:                Carol O.
Worship leader   Linda D.
Song Leader          Dalton J.
Musicians              Jessica M. (piano), Ray W. (tuba)
Greeters                John E., Anne R.
ZOOM host          Bonnie W.
A/V Tech                Murray L.

June 23
Message:                 Pieter N.
Worship leader   Sue S.
Song Leader          Sue S.
Musicians               Roger H. (piano), Ray W. (tuba)
Greeters                 Vic & Mary Jane G.
ZOOM host          Bonnie W.
A/V Tech                Don B.

WIDER CHURCH ANNOUNCEMENTS

Save the Date
Joint Service and Potluck

at Willowgrove on August 17-18 from 10:30am – 4pm.
Swimming, wagon rides, games, and more. For more details
please visit willowgrove.ca.

Google Form for Joint Service & Picnic

Leah R.-K. will be offering a workshop titled: 
Tending Hope: supporting parents & caregivers
to talk about climate change

This is an interactive workshop to help people who love and care about the young people in their lives to have courageous and hopeful conversations about climate change.

Drawing on her book Tending Tomorrow: Courageous Change for People and Planet, Leah will provide practical examples and resources. Participants will also be encouraged to reflect on their own faith and wisdom traditions to think about what has sustained them to live in hope during times of adversity, and how they can share this with the young people in their lives.

https://www.willowgrove.ca/events/climate-change-workshop

Between the River and the Sea: A Lunch and Learn Conversation
with Jeff H.
June 25, 2024
12-1 p.m.
Community Room, 50 Kent Ave., Kitchener

Join the MCEC Palestine Israel Network Working Group as they welcome Jeff H., an Israeli anthropologist working to address injustice against Palestinian people. Jeff will speak for 30 minutes, leaving time for discussion.

Jeff is a founding member of the Palestinian-led One Democratic State Campaign (ODSC), will present the ODSC’s program for replacing Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory with a democratic state of equal rights for all – including the returning refugees. This, he argues, is the only substantially just way forward, but it is strewn with complex and difficult issues we will discuss.

More Information

The constituency-based MCEC Palestine Israel Network Working Group serves the MCEC constituency by promoting awareness and education on specific issues and topics. The information and links are those of the Working Group and do not necessarily represent MCEC as a whole.

Mennonite Church Canada Annual General Meeting
Saturday, June 22, 12:00-1:30 p.m. Central time
Online – Zoom

Join our nationwide community of faith for Mennonite Church Canada’s Annual General Meeting. Along with our business agenda, we will hear updates from our program directors, enjoy worship and reflect together as Joint Council members share what God has showed them over the past year. All are welcome. Agenda, information packet, audited financial statements, and registration portal coming soon.

In summary, upcoming events

 At Danforth

June
8  Men’s breakfast
11  Service for Gregory G.
11 Ladies walking group – CANCELLED
18  Ladies walking group
25 Ladies walking group – last walk until Sept.
30  Summer hours – service at 10:30 a.m.

August
17/18 Willowgrove joint service

Wider Church

June
22  Mennonite Church Canada AGM
25  Between the River and the Sea

Community corner

June
9  Pax Christi Chorale

Sunday, June 2, 2024 bulletin

DANFORTH MENNONITE CHURCH
416-422-2406
We welcome all guests who have joined us.

 

Danforth Mennonite Church
June 2, 2024  11:00 a.m.
Order of Service

Land Acknowledgement

Welcome/Introduction

Call to Worship

Opening prayer

Opening Hymn  VT #495 Morning has Broken

Announcements

Offering & Offertory Prayer

Hymn of the Month VT #365 Lord, I lift your name on high

Prayer Time

Scriptures:  Matthew 13:31-35, Psalm 78:1-3

Hymn:  VT #670 In the Bulb There is a Flower

Message:    Stories in need of protagonists

Closing hymn: VT #793 VT Siyahamba (We are Marching)

Benediction

 

Leading Us in Worship
Message                         Johnny W.
Worship Leader         Sue S.
Song Leader                 Ed F.
Musicians                      Bonnie W. (piano),  Ray W. (tuba)
Greeters                        Leslie S., Tessa R.
Zoom Host                   Mike D.
A/V Technician          Fazal S.

Hymn of the month:  VT #365  Lord, I lift your name on high

It’s hymn sing Sunday.
Please join us at 10:00 a.m. in the sanctuary to sing some new and some old favorites.
 

Our Speaker…
Johnny W. grew up rurally, in Stouffville ON, working his first jobs choring and baling at Willowgrove’s Farm, and later working as a counsellor with Glenbrook Day Camp, and an Outdoor Education instructor in the Field Trip program.

He attended Conrad Grebel where he met his now partner Leah H. – an MVSer who attended Danforth while working at Habitat for Humanity. After graduating from the University of Waterloo in Theatre and History in 2009, Johnny founded Theatre of the Beat, a Canadian touring theatre company that works to catalyze conversations on social justice. His first ever theatre production – This Prison; or He Came Through the Floor – being hosted in this very sanctuary as a fundraiser for the MVS program. In 2019, Johnny stepped down from his work with Theatre of the Beat to accept the position of Executive Director at Willowgrove, coming full circle.

Since returning to Willowgrove, Johnny’s creative work has taken a bit of a back burner, as he now oversees several charitable programs as including a nature school, outdoor education centre, a market garden, overnight camp, and day camp, and seasonal events which span across two properties, totalling 375 acres.

But that doesn’t mean he isn’t steeped in stories. Today, he’s going to reflect on one of Willowgrove’s programs in particular – one that is known for its stories. A very special place called Fraser Lake Camp.

 

Call to Worship

Leader: God calls us in the wind and whisper;

People: In the spirit the laughter of children and the chirping of crickets.

Leader:  God beckons u through the brilliance of stars in the night sky,

People:  The dance of sunshine on waves, and the glowing embers in a campfire.

Leader:  May we open our hearts to God’s call – to God’s Presence

May we draw near to God’s warmth and to one another,

People:  United with all creatures,  to celebrate community and praise  God.

Written by Eleanor Epp-Stobbe (Used with permission)

 

Scripture Reading

Matthew 13: 31-35 (CEB)

Parable of the mustard seed
31 He told another parable to them: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that someone took and planted in his field. 32 It’s the smallest of all seeds. But when it’s grown, it’s the largest of all vegetable plants. It becomes a tree so that the birds in the sky come and nest in its branches.”

Parable of the yeast
33 He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast, which a woman took and hid in a bushel of wheat flour until the yeast had worked its way through all the dough.”

Purpose of parables to the crowds
34 Jesus said all these things to the crowds in parables, and he spoke to them only in parables. 35This was to fulfill what the prophet spoke:
I’ll speak in parables;
        I’ll declare what has been hidden since the beginning of the world.

Psalm 78:1-3 (CEB)

1Listen, my people, to my teaching;
tilt your ears toward the words of my mouth.
2 I will open my mouth with a proverb.
I’ll declare riddles from days long gone—
       ones that we’ve heard and learned about,
ones that our ancestors told us.

 

DANFORTH ANNOUNCEMENTS

 

We need to replenish our
Little Library.  Drop off your books in the cart in the lower lobby.  Please – no oversize books.
thanks

 

 

Ladies Walking group

As a group, we have not been to this park in the past.

On Tuesday, June 4 at 10:30 am (weather permitting), we will meet at Cedar Ridge Park at 225 Confederation Drive.  For those living near the church, take Kingston Road east.  Turn left onto Scarborough Golf Club Road, going north to Confederation Drive.  Turn right onto Confederation Drive.  Follow to Tingle Cres. on the right for the parking lot.  It’s approximately 26 minutes from the church.

An email will go out on Monday June 3 to confirm the place and time.

If you need to be picked up or dropped off, please check in with fellow walkers or email Bonnie.

 

Summer Hours will
commence June 30.
Our Church service will be
10:30 – 11:30 a.m.
There will be no Adult Class or
Hymn Sing during the summer.

 

 

Worship Schedule reminder

June 9
Message:               Michael V. D.
Worship leader  Linda D.
Song Leader         Kathy W.
Musicians              Jessica M. (piano), Ray W. (tuba)
Greeters                John E., Leslie S.
ZOOM host          Bonnie W.
A/V Tech                Mike D.

June 16
Message:                Carol O.
Worship leader   Linda D.
Song Leader          Dalton J.
Musicians              Jessica M. (piano), Ray W. (tuba)
Greeters                 John E., Anne R.
ZOOM host          Bonnie W.
A/V Tech                 Fazal S.

 

WIDER CHURCH ANNOUNCEMENTS

 

Save the Date
Joint Service and Potluck

at Willowgrove on August 17-18 from 10:30am – 4pm.

Swimming, wagon rides, games, and more.
For more details please visit willowgrove.ca.

Google Form for Joint Service & Picnic

Leah R-K. will be offering a workshop titled: 
Tending Hope: supporting parents & caregivers
to talk about climate change

This is an interactive workshop to help people who love and care about the young people in their lives to have courageous and hopeful conversations about climate change.

Drawing on her book Tending Tomorrow: Courageous Change for People and Planet, Leah will provide practical examples and resources. Participants will also be encouraged to reflect on their own faith and wisdom traditions to think about what has sustained them to live in hope during times of adversity, and how they can share this with the young people in their lives.

https://www.willowgrove.ca/events/climate-change-workshop

Between the River and the Sea:  A Lunch and Learn Conversation

with Jeff Halper
June 25, 2024
12-1 p.m.
Community Room, 50 Kent Ave., Kitchener

Join the MCEC Palestine Israel Network Working Group as they welcome Jeff Halper, an Israeli anthropologist working to address injustice against Palestinian people. Jeff will speak for 30 minutes, leaving time for discussion.

Jeff is a founding member of the Palestinian-led One Democratic State Campaign (ODSC), will present the ODSC’s program for replacing Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory with a democratic state of equal rights for all – including the returning refugees. This, he argues, is the only substantially just way forward, but it is strewn with complex and difficult issues we will discuss.

More Information

The constituency-based MCEC Palestine Israel Network Working Group serves the MCEC constituency by promoting awareness and education on specific issues and topics. The information and links are those of the Working Group and do not necessarily represent MCEC as a whole.

 

 

Mennonite Church Canada Annual General Meeting
Saturday, June 22, 12:00-1:30 p.m. Central time
Online – Zoom

Join our nationwide community of faith for Mennonite Church Canada’s Annual General Meeting. Along with our business agenda, we will hear updates from our program directors, enjoy worship and reflect together as Joint Council members share what God has showed them over the past year. All are welcome. Agenda, information packet, audited financial statements, and registration portal coming soon.

 

In summary, upcoming events

At Danforth
June
4  Ladies walking group – Cedar Ridge Park
8  Men’s breakfast
11 Ladies walking group
18  Ladies walking group
25 Ladies walking group – last walk until Sept.
30  Summer hours – service at 10:30 a.m.

August
17/18 Willowgrove joint service

Wider Church
June 
2  TCMC Fundraising Event

Community corner
June
1 Spring Festival
9  Pax Christi Chorale