Join us for worship on Sunday, October 23, at 10:15 a.m.

WE LIVE STREAM OUR WORSHIP SERVICES AT 10:15 ON SUNDAY MORNING. You can join us online in real time at https://vimeo.com/event/1424751. This streaming address is the same each week.

The video of Sunday’s worship service will be posted after worship at https://vimeo.com/channels/1547852.

You can view and download the bulletin here.

In last Sunday’s sermon I said that one sign of a healthy congregation is that the congregation is in earnest dialogue about what is important. As it turns out, the health of our congregation was shown in an email exchange that centered around a yard sign.

There is a question on the November ballot about amending the Iowa Constitution to require any gun laws in the state to be evaluated by “strict scrutiny”—what a UI law professor called “the toughest test, the most skeptical test that you can ask of a restriction.” It means any state laws that are seen as restricting gun rights would be more likely to be struck down by a court.

I think this is an unwise amendment, agreeing with Linn County Attorney Nick Maybanks, who calls this “a wolf in sheep’s clothing” because it could make it harder for lawmakers to pass gun control laws in the future. Maybanks says: “This amendment is not about freedom. It’s about more senseless violence. This amendment is not about embracing any rights. It’s about seizing power from future generations.”

You might disagree—and that’s perfectly acceptable.

Some in our congregation strongly oppose the amendment and earlier this month a member of one of our boards suggested that we put a sign in our small churchyard to express our disapproval.

That’s when the “earnest dialogue” began…

Scripture Lessons: Isaiah 2:1-5; II Corinthians 1:18-21

Sermon: “Saying No, Saying Yes”

Bill Lovin preaching

ANTHEM       “Bless the Lord, O My Soul”         David Hurd

No matter who you are or where you are on life’s journey, you are welcome here.