The Loop / September 3, 2024
Catch Up with the Last series:
This Week’s Announcements:
BECOME // UPCOMING WAYS TO SERVE OUR NEIGHBORS
Our Community Engagement Lay Leader, Cathy Miller, has been hard at work finding meaningful ways for us to love and care for our neighbors in Annapolis this fall. Here are some upcoming opportunities for all of us to share hope, joy, and kindness!
Diaper Drive!
Did you know 1 in 3 families in our county struggle to keep their baby or toddler in clean diapers? The Anne Arundel county Library wants to help… and so do we! All you need to do is bring a package of diapers to church with you on September 22, and we will run donations over to the main library on Monday morning. All sizes are helpful, but sizes 2-4 are in highest demand. This is a real way to make an immediate difference in someone’s life… and I (Kenny) really want us to suprrise and amaze ourselves with this one: my goal is to need 2 cars to get all the diapers donated! [side note: I really wanted to call this event the “Diaper Blow Out,” but I talked myself out of it…]
Blood Drive!
The Anne Arundel Medical Center Bloodmobile will be on site at Mills-Parole on Sunday, October 6! We have pledged 25 units for donation… and although Cathy and I (Kenny) will do our part, we’re going to need your help! Make a plan to come a bit early or stay a little late after service so you can contribute. Donating blood saves lives in our community: it’s hard to imagine a more clear, direct, and meaningful way to love our neighbors than to share our very life with them. Let’s make this event a real priority… and, if it’s successful, we can make it a regular one!
Muffin Monday!
On October 28, we will be taking homemade muffins to the teachers at Mills-Parole Elementary School. This is a simple way to show them that we appreciate the chance to use their space on Sunday mornings, and we are with them in the important jobs they are doing. Please bring muffins to church that Sunday, and we will donate them Monday! Home made and store bought are all fine, and the more muffins we have, the more teachers we can feed!
Gift Cards for Lighthouse
Our friends at the Annapolis Light House (homelessness prevention and support center) have reached out to us directly to ask us to help them restock their supply of gift cards for the clients they serve. Gift cards are a useful way for the staff at Light House to help clients meet their needs in a way that preserves their dignity and choices. They also provide neighbors like us with a practical way to offer our support! We will be collecting gift cards for Light House in November, and more details about stores and amounts will be coming to you then! [Fraud prevention announcement: two weeks ago, many of you were sent texts that purported to be from Kenny asking you to buy gift cards and send pictures of your purchases to a strange phone number. I will never, ever ask you to send gift cards directly to me… and I will never, ever single any of you out for a request like this. When we do things like this, we will always do them publicly, transparently, and as a group! If you ever get a suspicious text from “me,” please call me right away to check… and to give me a chance to protect other congregants from trouble!]
Holiday Shop at Mills-Parole
From December 16-19, Mills-Parole Elementary will be running a shop where students can purchase gifts for their families from a national vendor. This event is run by the school, and it serves as a school fundraiser… but it relies on volunteer support. As this gets closer, we will be sharing sign-ups with you so we can support our friends at the school together!
… that’s it! Let’s extend a huge “thank you” to Cathy for making sure all of us have real and routine opportunities to put our faith in action this Fall!
BELONG // FALL GROUPS: S.A.L.T.!
The SALT (Seeking And Learning Together) small group, co-led by the Beckers and Heagens, is starting back up after summer break with a new series “The Stories We Do Tell.” This is an exploration of the parables of Jesus -- wry, vivid, resonant stories with purpose. Parables were a memorable and relatable way for Christ to convey truths and prompt new thinking, and they remain relevant and powerful today. This group is for adults only, and we meet every Thursday at 7:00 in the South River/Edgewater area. Our first meeting will September 12 at the home of John and Deb Becker, 8 Wilelinor Drive. We are still a fairly new group, so we particularly welcome people who have not yet joined a small group. For information, contact Paul Heagen at 410 353 5061.
BELONG // UPCOMING WOMEN’S EVENTS & WOMEN’S RETREAT!
Our next event is a game & potluck pool party evening at Moniques on Friday, September 13! More details about this coming soon.
Also, save the date for a firepit evening on Friday, October 19 at Jen Luik’s in Centerville. You won’t want to miss it!
Lastly, the Women’s Retreat is coming soon! This November 15-17, you are invited to join other women from our church community for a weekend away at West River Camp. The retreat center is about a half hour away, and there are options for staying at the camp all weekend as well as just visiting for the events during the day. Retreats are an incredible way to make new friends and deepen existing relationships… we really hope you will be there!
The cost this year for the full event is $145. There are scholarships and discounts available if cost is any obstacle: just let us know by sending a message to info@revolutionannapolis, or by talking to Maggie Young or Kenny. If you’re ready to book your spot, CLICK HERE TODAY!
BECOME // “GO THE EXTRA MILE” WITH THE MURPHYS!
Stadia's "Go the Extra Mile" event is coming up soon! Stadia is a church-planting organization that played a huge role in getting Revolution started in 2010, and we have been proud partners with them ever since. One way we support their commitment to making sure "every child has a church" is by joining them for a fun day of raising funds and awareness each fall. This year, the Murphy family have invited us to join them for an awareness walk on September 14, at 11am. The walk will start at their home in North Beach, MD (3719 9th St), proceed to the North Beach boardwalk for ice cream, and then return to their place for hot dogs and hamburgers (approx. 2.4 miles in total). Everyone is welcome, and this is a stroller and dog friendly event! If you would like to learn more (or contribute to the Murphys' goal of raising $2,500 for church planting), you can get in touch with Matt at themattmurphy@gmail.com. You can also learn more about Stadia and the work they do at: www.stadia.org/whychurchplanting. We hope to see you there!
BELONG // FALL GROUPS: A NEW “OUTDOOR GROUP”!
Announcing: a new Outdoors group for the Fall! It's a group for fellowship out in God's creation or related in some way to nature (e.g., hike/walk, pick-your-own produce at farms, outdoor sports games, etc.). Emily Heller and Allison McNerney are co-leading this group, and it is open to the whole church. There will be an event every month, and you can sign up for the group on CCB and let Allison or Emily know if you want to be added to the group in the GroupMe app. Our first event will be a hike on September 29th after church. Meet for a bite to eat first if desired, and then enjoy a beautiful hike as we transition from summer to fall!
BELONG // MONTHLY MEN’S BREAKFAST
Join us for breakfast every third Wednesday! The next meeting will be on the morning of September 18. There's no agenda… just a chance to hang out and chat with other guys from Revolution. If you're available and interested, contact Steve Phillips (stephenphillips667@hotmail.com) for details!
BECOME // KIDS VOLUNTEERS NEEDED!
The RevKids learning environment is a critically important part of our Sunday service: making sure every child can learn about Jesus in a safe, supportive, and encouraging way helps families feel welcome, kids feel special, and our church feel alive! To do this, we rely on volunteers who serve once/monthly. Will you consider helping out? If so, please get in touch with Ivy Connelly (ivy.connelly@gmail.com) or Jane Wenger (wenger.je@gmail.com) to learn more!
BELIEVE // PRAYER TEAM
This past summer, we began holding “Prayer Sundays” on every second Sunday of the month. For our gatherings on these weeks, we still sing songs, receive Communion, and have teaching… but we also create space to learn about and practice prayer together. As part of these services, we’ve been introducing you to the members of the Prayer Team at Revolution… and we have also started sharing a Prayer Request QR code in our bulletins. Here’s what that link does: it takes you to an anonymous form where you can share what’s on your heart and, if you feel comfortable, let the Prayer Team know who you are and if you would like them to follow up with you. All requests are seen exclusively by this team, and they are committed to praying routinely for any and every request.
As Christians, we know prayer matters: it’s how we share what’s on our heart with our God… and also one of the tools God uses to speak to and lead us. It is a privilege to be able to pray for one another, and we welcome the chance to walk alongside you in this way!
Also, if QR codes aren’t your thing, you can also email the prayer team directly anytime at: prayer@revolutionannapolis.com!
BELIEVE // COFFEE, ANYONE?
Do you have questions? Doubts? Would you just like to talk through things with someone? Kenny is also always up for that, too! Just send him an email (kenny@revolutionannapolis.com) or text (803.727.8500).
BECOME // SUPPORTING REVOLUTION CHURCH
At Revolution, we believe that our church needs to be a witness to God’s bottomless love and an example of what it means to wrestle and grow with our faith together. Following Jesus isn’t easy! But even in our doubts, if we take the things we are struggling to believe and put them into practice together, we learn to ask better questions and live in ways that are more beneficial for others.
If you want to join us in this mission, you can be a part in a few different ways:
First, you can commit to presence: it is our sincere hope as a church that you find real purpose and meaning in being a part of our services and groups at Revolution. They exist for you! But have you ever thought about what you have to offer those gatherings in return? Your unique perspective, hopes, experiences, and struggles are part of the bigger story of our church. You have an important part to play here, and that part begins by making faithful presence a priority!
Second, you can commit to generosity: we want to imitate God’s generosity by looking for ways we can share what we have been given with others to bring hope, justice, and safety to our neighbors. One way you can practice that generosity is by supporting our ministry here at Revolution financially: we are a non-profit organization committed to maintaining a Christian ministry in Annapolis, forgiving the debts of our neighbors, and financially supporting both church plants and existing churches in our area. Your gifts help keep this commitment going! But we also want to make sure you know that giving is important no matter where you do it: find a non-profit, charity, or aid organization whose cause you support and make a plan to be faithful and generous towards them! God can do more with our resources than we can… and giving is one of the practical ways we put our trust in what He can do.
Third, you can commit to service: here at Revolution, we are in need of all sorts of volunteers to keep our ministry going. If you are available to help out on any of our Sunday morning teams, or with any of our groups or other outreach ministries during the week, we need you! This is a great way to contribute to the church… and to make new friends.
The city of Annapolis needs help, too! If you are able, make time in your week to participate in a routine act of service for our community. There are multiple food pantries we support, all of whom need help, as well as opportunities to work with kids in need of tutoring, care for unhoused residents in our city who need assistance, and serve as an advocate for a variety of justice-seeking non-profits working to make Annapolis a more equitable place to live. For help a place to serve, just talk with Kenny (kenny@revolutionannapolis.com) or our Community Engagement Lay Leader, Cathy Miller (cathygrowinghealthy@gmail.com).
BELONG // STAY IN THE LOOP ALL WEEK LONG!
Want to make sure you never miss an announcement? Make sure to follow Revolution on Facebook and Instagram (@revolutionannapolis)!
