Elgin Portland United Church Council
Monday September 1st is Labour Day. A national holiday that is more than the last long weekend of summer or perhaps the last summer BBQ. This day is the official recognition and celebration of all workers and the labour union movement.
Canada spells labour with a “u”, not only by tradition but perhaps as recognition that you (u) are an integral component of a functional society.
To all who are returning to education, may the coming year bring you new adventures and exciting insights as you navigate the halls of discovery.
Happy Birthday Marion Steacy. Best wishes for a wonderful day.
Happy Anniversary Takouhi and Gary Dimirdjian-Petro. May your day be filled with wonderful memories and the making of new ones.
- “It’s a great day to be confident” …Ryan Halladay
Woman @ Heart
All are Welcome!
Location: Portland United Church, Highway 15 Portland Ont.
Date: Tuesday September 2nd 2025
Time: 1:00-3:00p.m Women@Heart Program Ambassador,
Presenter Marion Martell, Canadian Women’s Heart Health Centre, University of Ottawa Heart Institute. What everyone needs to know about women and heart disease.
Heart disease is under-studied, under-diagnosed, and under-treated in women. It is the number one killer of women over 35 worldwide, accounting for more deaths every year than all cancers combined. Better understand how to prevent women’s heart disease and ways to develop a heart-healthy lifestyle. We Welcome Men and Women of all ages and All Cultures. All are welcome.
Pillowcases will return on the third Wednesday of the month from 9 to 12. All are welcome!
The Hospital quilting sewers return to a regular schedule on Wednesday, September 10. Mark your calendars for the second Wednesday of every month, from 9 to 2. Bring along a bag lunch (coffee and tea supplied) and share your “Show and Tells” with us. All are welcome.
Devotional Reflection
August 30, 2025
The house is quiet. All the grandchildren have returned home and I, like most grandmothers, am crying, because I miss them. And wondering what I will do with my time!
Making new ideas, filling in my calendar, planning, planning, always planning. Don’t take a breather, Liz. Silly girl! So, I stop and breathe – for a moment.
My computer is sitting idly open on the table. I sit down and start browsing – I’m looking on the TEMU Online Shopping Network. I see some attention-grabbing
sneakers. This is the quotation on the side of a sneaker: ‘God is still writing your story, stop trying to steal the pen.’
I begin to chuckle, and then laugh out loud. I feel that God’s sense of humour really stepped in this morning as I read this quote. Imagine, after a most hectic summer, I still need to be reminded – Don’t rush away your life; God has a plan; let Him work in you! STOP TRYING TO STEAL THE PEN!
I ask myself: Do I really need such a vivid reminder when I believe so strongly that God directs my path? Without a doubt, I do.
Without these gentle reminders, I would be stuck in the quagmire of life – worry, ambition, power. I would be filling in every day with scheduled events, moving too fast to see the beauty around me. The people I encountered would soon fade and I would not have even smiled at them. My friends, whom I appreciate beyond measure, would be wondering what I’m up to when I should be sitting with my feet up, enjoying their company. I could be reading, I could be …. STOP TRYING TO STEAL THE PEN!
Even before I can write another sentence, God reminds me again.
The message is becoming clearer – God has a plan, a good plan, a great plan. Just let it happen, Liz. You’ll be ecstatic. Let Him write the future. And in anticipation of what the future is, just walk and look around you. There is lots to see, lots to do, and places to go – but what they are??? Who knows! God knows and I can rely on this Almighty Creator to make it even better than I could imagine.
You are blessed and loved.
Liz Church, Director of Pastoral Care
Elgin/Portland Pastoral Charge
