Louder Than Words | Pure in Heart
Good Morning, friends!
It’s starting to cool down out there! Grab a warm coffee and maybe a backyard fire or pull up zoom at 11 and let’s worship together! Check out the kids section and video at the bottom of the page. And be sure to review the announcements to see what’s coming up around Echo. The updates this week are plentiful and robust, so don’t miss anything!
As always, thank you for being here and there, and for connecting and worshipping together in any and every way throughout this year!
Finally, if you’ll indulge a quick, slightly literary call to worship: Wherever you find your heart, mind, soul, and body this week… whatever circumstances you come into or up against… let’s now place ourselves before Him. Let’s now open our hearts, eyes, and ears. In these long, complicated days, may we continue to seek and find the truth and goodness of our God in ways that we never would or could have if things had all just stayed the same.
-Dillon
““I wish it need not have happened in my time,” said Frodo.
“So do I,” said Gandalf, “and so do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.””
ANNOUNCEMENTS
Worship services: an update
BIG THANKS to everyone who braved the rain and cool temps to celebrate Echo's 15th anniversary in the park last Sunday. Though our hands and feet were cold, our hearts were warm with joy. It was a blessing to spend time as a church in God's presence, worshiping and communing. We again thank you for being flexible as we navigate 2020. Here's the latest plan:
This Sunday, Oct 25, backyards are meeting and you can join Dillon & Kathy's yard via Zoom at 11am. In November, each yard can determine if they'd like to meet based on weather and health.
Beginning in November, besides the outdoor yard options, Shanté will be hosting a weekly Zoom gathering at 11:00 a.m. Anyone is welcome to join and connect with others, take communion together, and discuss the morning message topic.
Our goal would be to try and meet as a full church on November 22 for a Thanksgiving service. We are planning the parameters for a service in our building. But with current infection rates, this may not be safe to attempt. Stay tuned & we will keep you updated.Please pray for our wisdom as leaders and share any thoughts or ideas you have to stay connected during this season. Again, we are so thankful for your care for one another. All of us being on the same page is a huge blessing to Echo.
Echo's new look
We revealed our new logo and colors on Sunday. The website is updated now and will continue to have tweaks. You'll see several iterations of the logo throughout our site and social pages, all designed by our very own Andrew Springsteen! We love the way he visually interpreted this Scripture:
"Their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world."—Psalm 19:4
That key verse defines the motto of Echo Church:
Resonating the voice of God throughout the city and to the ends of the earth.
And we do that through our values of Creativity, Connectivity, and Commission.
Halloween: a COVID trunk & treat
Trunk-or-treat will be held in the parking lot neighboring the Carr home (2323 Ashland Ave) on the night BEFORE Halloween, Friday October 30 from 6:00–7:00pm. (Stay longer to socialize, but candy time will be this hour.) This event is Echo Church only to avoid the crowds and provide the safest fun.
Safety measures:All Echo Kids and Echo candy givers—come in costumes and please wear masks.We will be socially distanced with cars and people at least six feet apart. We'll have gloves for candy distributers or bring your own.For our older Echo kids, we invite you to both receive and pass out candy.
Volunteers:
We need YOU to shower our Echo Kids with treats. Come hang out and spread joy to our kiddos. Contact Shanté for more information.
Thanksgiving Food Drive
We will partner again this year with City Gospel Mission to donate cans of peaches for their Thanksgiving Exchange. Referred by local churches and community organizers, participants pay $10 to shop for their Thanksgiving groceries. The Exchange empowers shoppers to celebrate Thanksgiving without destroying their tight budgets. City Gospel expects 500 shoppers this year.
Our goal is to donate 100 cans of peaches as church. Thanks for your generosity in past years—let's do it again. Here are options for dropping off your donation:Bring cans to the trunk or treat on October 30Bring cans to your backyard worship gatheringBring cans to the church on November 11 from 6:30 to 7pm or to women's small group that night
Giving
Thanks for continuing to support ministry to our city and to the world. You can Give Online anytime. If you prefer to write checks, mail to: Echo Church, PO Box 6067, Cincinnati OH 45206
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ECHO KIDS
Parents,
This week’s beatitude, ‘Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God,’ puts me in mind of another psalm, brought to the forefront of my mind by a fellow church member a couple weeks ago:
Who may ascend into the hill of the Lord?
And who may stand in His holy place?
He who has clean hands and a pure heart,
Who has not lifted up his soul to falsehood
And has not sworn deceitfully.
Psalm 24:3-4 NASB
We find a parallel with Psalm 24 and Matthew 5. We see in both texts a connection between the presence of God and the condition of the human heart, or the human will. At the time Psalm 24 was written, God’s presence was displayed to Israel in the form of the Ark of the Covenant within the Holy of Holies. Jesus’ coming ushered in a new covenant, where the Spirit of God now dwells within the hearts of those who love Him.
So how might we break down the importance of a pure heart, a heart which genuinely longs to seek relationship with God above earthly things, to the youngest members of our families? Perhaps we can start with that visual of clean hands. See the idea for application below if you’d like to delve deeper into that concept with your child.
Idea for Application:
Invite your child to help you clean something this week. You can even make a game out of it if you’d like. For example, you could put shaving cream on the table, instruct your child to draw pictures in it for a few minutes, and then have them wipe the table clean.
As you clean, take a couple of minutes to talk with your child about purity of the heart and mind using questions similar to these:
Is it easier to see your hands when they’re dirty or clean?
Can you see the table when it’s covered in shaving cream?
Is it easier to see your bedroom floor when it’s covered in toys or when the toys are picked up?
Jesus tells us that when our hearts are clean, we will know God better. Did you know God wants a relationship with you? Isn’t that a pretty awesome thing?
Invite your child to pray with you. Ask God to center your thoughts on Him, so He can help keep your hearts and minds clean. Thank God for being present in your lives and offering you the choice to have a relationship with Him.
-Kendra