The Scriptures for next week are:

Isaiah 64:1-9

 Psalm 80:1-7,17-19

 Mark 13:24-37

"Hanging of the Greens"

On the 29th of November, we will be decorating the church for Christmas. Following a brief time of fellowship after worship, we will begin changing over the front of the Sanctuary and putting out the decorations in the Narthex. When we are finished, there will be a light lunch of soup and sweet treats to celebrate a job well done!

Calling all Singers.........

With the Christmas season fast approaching, we want to put together a choir to sing at least one time during the season. But, in order to plan and make this happen, we need to hear from YOU with your commitment to participate. We would have one rehearsal on Wednesday, December 13 at 5:30 p.m. and sing on Sunday December 17. Please respond by November 30th to Marsha Mower, [email protected]. Thanks!

Mission Giving for November

Our missional giving for November will go to the Lakes Area Food Shelf to help keep the shelves stocked for the holiday season. The food shelf has been a needed resource for our neighbors in a much larger way than we might realize, so every bit that we give to support them is very appreciated.

Please make a note on your gift if you want it designated to the monthly missions, thank you!

November--Pre-Advent, 738 Prayer, for a season of generosity.

Please join with other Grace UMC members in praying these words together at 7:38am and 7:38pm.

There is a bookmark sized handout of this available to tuck into your Bible for devotion times.

We will have a new prayer for the season of Advent.

"Lord, teach our hearts to give freely without counting the cost. Let nothing in this world keep us from reflecting your generosity. Let us trust that when we are generous, you will ensure that our needs are taken care of, for you are our good shepherd. Amen."

Children's Shop Day is happening soon!



There are sign-up sheets to help with set up, shopping, and wrapping. There is a place for you! We could also still use some more gifts, new or gently used items that a child could choose for their family members.

December 1, set up at 330pm.

December 2, kids will shop from 10-1pm.

Congratulations to the recipients of this year's UWF recognition pin for those recognized for their service to the church--Lynn and Paul Lundgren. Well-deserved! Thank you, Lynn and Paul for all of the ways that you give of yourselves to the ministries at Grace.

College Students (and families),

 we have a special gift for students that may be home for Thanksgiving weekend and attend worship on the 29th of November. We hope to see you at church.

--Outreach Team (and youth group)

There are so many ways to get involved and volunteer within the church!

We are in need of help in the tech booth, this is NOT as difficult or technical as you might think! The camera moves with a joystick, and slides advance with the touch of a button. Huge thank-you to Marsha and Gary for their continued work with this critical ministry. Thank you also to Lauris for learning to run the cameras.

It would be VERY helpful for someone else to take care of advancing the slides during the worship service, so that those at the front can fully focus on their roles.

One member has now stepped forward to help run slides, but it would be nice to have a backup for slides and cameras! Speak to Marsha or Jen, if you can help with this.

While we do have two people who help with youth group, we are very open to having other adults that want to hang out and eat pizza with us! Speak with Pastor Jen if you are interested (a "Safe Gatherings" sign-off is required to regularly help with this group).

We are always looking for people willing to help serve communion, usher, and read scripture. If you have other gifts that don't seem to match with the needs mentioned here, take some time to meet with Pastor Jen to find your niche.

We had such a good time painting together last week!

We will be doing this again for sure. As you can see all ages were able to participate. What a talented group we have!

Looking Ahead

The "Women of Grace" will present a Christmas Drama, as part of the December gathering on Thursday December 7th at 11am. This will be followed by a luncheon. The Christmas mission this year is the Freedom Ranch which provides hope and healing for trafficked girls. There will be a sign-up sheet for those that plan to attend, so that the planning for the lunch is made easier.

We will be joining with Our Savior's Lutheran Church for a "Blue Christmas Service--a service of hope and healing". This will be held at OSL on December 20th at 7pm. Pastor Jen and Pastor Stephen will co-lead this service, and Pastor Jen will bring the message. This is a service for anyone who may not be feeling the joy of the season for a variety of reasons. If you know someone in the community who would benefit from this service,

please invite them.

The next Youth Group gathering will be on Wednesday 11/29 at 6pm.

How to view our worship service online



1-go to our website at www.graceumcpequotlakes.org

2-Along the top of the page, you will see a tab of options.

--on the right is a tab that says "Sundays"

--choose the "Grace Church Livestream" option

--this will take you to a collection of our services by date, where you can choose the most recent service, or others that you may have missed; when you have clicked the one that you want to view, you should see an arrow to click to make it play. It may be necessary to adjust your volume, based on your own computer system.

The church office is open Monday through Thursday, 9am until noon. The building and office are closed on Fridays and Saturdays.



Church office phone: 218-568-5755

· Church office (for all general inquiries and administrative/clerical duties)

[email protected]

·      Pastor Jen Matthees – [email protected]

·      Ann Hutchings-Congregational Care Assistant- [email protected]

The weather is changing, and some of you are already heading south!

If you will be leaving, we would love to be able to stay in touch with you over the winter months. As you make your final arrangements to be gone, please drop Ann a note at [email protected] or call the office so we can make a note of how best to stay in touch.

Safe Travels!

If you have something that should be added to this newsletter from your group or mission, please speak with Pastor Jen or email the details to her at [email protected]. The E-Grace is generally completed by noon on Thursdays, so articles need to be received by Thursday 10am at the very latest.



If you wish to connect with me directly and it is not an emergency, please know that I will respond as needed during pretty regular office hours. I am generally in the church on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, from at least 10-1, call the office to be sure, as my weeks may vary. I check my emails frequently throughout the day, and this is the best way to contact me. Friday is my day off as needs allow.

-Pastor Jen

Important note

If you are mailing something to the church, you must use our P.O. Box for the address. We do not receive mail at the church, and if you use the physical church address it will get returned and could delay your notices to us or offerings.

P.O. Box 276

Pequot Lakes, MN 56472