Link. The. From the Pastor: St. Paul s Evangelical Lutheran Church January Dear Friends in Christ:

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1 The Link St. Paul s Evangelical Lutheran Church January 2017 From the Pastor: Dear Friends in Christ: It is a new year. Really, we all know that January 1 st is just an arbitrary date. There is nothing intrinsically significant about this particular day it is in reality the same as any other day. Years, months and days mark the passage of time. They are a way we order our lives to the rhythms and cycles of the world in which we live. It is a New Year! Traditionally we look to new opportunities. We make resolutions. We want to make changes. We promise we will change. We talk and act as if it all depends upon us, our efforts and our good intentions the strength of our resolve. We know, too well from experience, that change does not happen on its own or merely because of our good intentions. There is more. remember forever, we are living the gift of time which God gives to us and all people. The use of that time is our gift to God. What are the things you do in your stewardship of time that gives God glory and honor? How are you making a difference in God s world with the things you do, the tasks you undertake, and the time you use? It is God s time. As we move into the New Year, may God give you blessings and guidance in your life, in your faith and in your serving. In God s love, Pastor Paul It is God s Year; God s Month; God s Week; God s Day; God s Hour; God s Minute; God s Second. The time we have and the time we mark are all gifts from God. Whether in the ordinary activities and tasks of our lives or in special moments we 1

2 Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 In January s Link From the Pastor January at a glance Church Information Pastoral Acts Attendance News from the Church Office Council Meeting Minutes First Communion Class St. Paul s Annual Meeting Volunteer Ministry of the Month Dorcas Rachel Circle Unhanging of the Greens January at a Glance Meetings Tuesday January 10 th 7:00 p.m. Church Council Meeting Thursday January 12 th 9:45 a.m. Dorcas Rachel Circle Friday, January 13 th 4:00 p.m. Worship & Music Meeting Sunday January 22 nd (after 9:30 Service) Annual Congregational Meeting Thursday January 26 th 7:00 p.m. Property & Maintenance Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 GFL-LYO Games Night RAIHN Women of the ELCA Mission of the ELCA 150 th Anniversary Weekend Senior High Winter Retreat Thank you! Hands4Hope Planning Ahead December Calendar Lay Ministry Calendar Sundays January 1st. First Sunday after Christmas One Service of Lessons, Carols & Holy Communion at 9:30 a.m. January 8 th. Baptism of Our Lord January 15 th. Second Sunday after Epiphany First Communion Parent Meeting, Pick up Annual Report January 22 nd. Third Sunday after Epiphany One service at 9:30 a.m. Annual Meeting after Service January 29 th. Fourth Sunday after Epiphany 2

3 Advent Wreath Lighting Thank you to all who lead the Advent Wreath Lighting portion of our Sunday Worship during the four Sundays in Advent. We value the involvement of members of the congregation in various aspects of worship leadership. New Members Class Planned Pastor Shoop is planning a Pastor s Class for New Members. Classes will be Sunday, February 5 and 12, during the Sunday School hour (9:45 10:30 AM). This class is for persons who desire to become members of St. Paul s and/or learn more about the teaching of the Christian Church and its Lutheran expression. Pastor gives an overview of the witness of the Bible to God s love in Jesus and the faith of God s people. The teachings and history of the Lutheran Church are reviewed. The mission and ministry of St. Paul s is also discussed. At the conclusion of the Class, those desiring are received into membership at a Sunday morning Worship Service. If you would like to attend the Pastor s Class for New Members, please speak with Pastor Shoop. HAVE YOU RETURNED YOUR COMMITMENT CARD? Your help is needed in providing for the ministry of your congregation in the coming year. St. Paul s relies upon your offerings financial, time and talent in order to undertake the ministry we have laid before ourselves. If you have not yet rreturned a Commitment Card for 2017, please do so as soon as possible. Your indication of support helps the congregational leaders know what resources upon which they can rely. And, it aids members of the congregation in approaching their stewardship through regular, disciplined giving. Additional copies of the Commitment Card are available in the church office or by contacting the church office ( or stpauls@stpaulspittsford.org). Your commitments enable our ministry to be strong and healthy as we proclaim God s Good News in Jesus and let God s light shine through our lives. RE-AFFIRMATION OF BAPTISM SERVICE Sunday, January 8 8:30 & 11 AM On Sunday, January 8, we celebrate The First Sunday after the Epiphany, The Baptism of Our Lord. Our worship services on this day focus on the gift of baptism. A Re- Affirmation of Baptism is planned as part of our worship. Members and friends will want to be present to participate in this service as we mark the beginning of a new year, reminding ourselves and grounding ourselves in the gift of Baptism. In baptism, we become one of God s people. God brings us into a very special relationship filled with God s love and presence. The Re-Affirmation of Baptism brings us an opportunity to give thanks to God for the love God gives and recommit ourselves to a life dedicated to God s ways. The Re-Affirmation of Baptism portions of the service include an affirmation of our 3

4 faith in God, a renewal of the commitments made at Confirmation, and a lifting up in prayer of the mission and ministry to which God calls us. A special opportunity is offered for worshipers to remember their own baptisms. The baptismal font will stand in front of the chancel. As worshipers come forward for Holy Communion, enter or leave worship, they have an opportunity to place their hand in the water in the baptismal bowl and make the sign of the cross in remembrance of their baptisms. Remember it is plain, ordinary water used with God s Word and by God s command which was used at your baptism. Martin Luther wrote in the Small Catechism What does baptism mean for daily living? It means that our sinful self, with all its evil deeds and desires, should be drowned through daily repentance; and that day after day a new self should arise to live with God in righteousness and purity forever. The Re-Affirmation of Baptism Service on Sunday, January 8 will help us to heighten our awareness of living our Baptisms each day during this new year. PASTORAL ACTS Baptisms: December 4 th Funeral: November 22 nd Annie & Bobby Dodge Wilma Goehle ATTENDANCE WE COUNT BECAUSE YOU COUNT Early Late Total Nursery Nov Dec Average Sunday attendance through November Average Sunday attendance through November Average Sunday attendance through November News From the Church Office We would like to give a special thank you to all who helped to decorate and get the Church in order for the Christmas Season. What an amazing congregation we have here at St. Paul s! The way that everyone pulls together and looks out for the needs of the Church is both heart-warming and inspiring. Special thanks to: All of the familes that took part in our Advent Wreath lighting during Sunday Services. Mara Bernt & Dick Poduska for heading up the Hanging of the Greens Team! Barb & Harlan Granger for assembling our beautiful living advent wreath Our LYO group for assembling luminaries for Christmas Eve services. 4

5 Eileen Whitaker and all of our Lay Ministry volunteers throughout this extremely busy holiday season. Shari MacFarlane and her grandson for putting out poinsettia offering envelopes for us. All of the special hands and warm hearts that made this past season so beautiful! Thank you! Thoughts for the New Year Christ in Our Homes Devotionals for January, February & March are available for pick up from the Foyer We are very eager to be Environmentally Green and to recycle as much paper as possible. You are encouraged to take home your weekly bulletin insert as a reminder of all the events and news of the week. However, if you choose not to do so, please leave your copy at the back of the sanctuary after the service. This way they will get recycled. If you were not able to attend worship and would like a copy of the bulletin please let me know within a week after Sunday s Service and I will be happy to mail a copy to you. After this the leftovers are recycled. A Few Reminders End of Year Financial Information: The last day for making a cash or check donation is on Wednesday, December 28th. Anything arriving after this date will be deposited in January. If you would like to make your 2017 pledge using Simply Giving, please fill out a form located by the name tags in the Foyer or from the Office. Please return form the Office when completed. Items for the Sunday bulletin insert must be received by Wednesday morning at 9:00 am. Items for the Sunday bulletin must be received by Thursday morning at 9:00 a.m. If you notice we are low on supplies for communion, flower delivery, office or cleaning, please let me know. Coffee hour and other kitchen needs should be written on the yellow order form in the kitchen. Names on our thoughts and prayers list in the bulletin are kept on for one month. If longer is necessary please renew at the beginning of each month. The altar flower and bulletin sponsorship charts are in the hallway by the nursery. Altar flowers are $15 per vase and bulletins are $10. When you sign up please fill out a form. Office Volunteers are needed on Thursday January 12 th to collate the Annual Report and on Tuesday January 24 th to assemble the February Link. Please sign up in the Volunteer Work area (outside of Pastor s office) if you are able to help. Articles for the February edition of the Link must be received by 9:00 a.m. Monday January 16 th. Michelle Josephson, Church Admin. Asst. 5

6 St. Paul s Lutheran Church Council Meeting Church Council gathered for an extended meeting on December 19 with members of Mutual Ministry in attendance. Pastor Malfati and Vicar Nickoloff led a presentation regarding the results of the Congregational Vitality Assessment which indicate we are in good health as we continue the search process for a new pastor. First Communion Classes Property and Maintenance obtained a price quote from Messner's to replace the carpeting in the sanctuary with a selection of similar color and type. The motion was approved and passed. Mutual Ministry has found an excellent candidate to fill our open nursery position. A job offer will be extended to her with a trial period beginning on January 8. In Pastor Shoop's monthly report, he shares that he will be meeting with parents of youth ready to participate in Holy Communion on Sunday, January 29 during the Sunday School hour. He will also be holding a class for new members on February 5 and 12 during the Sunday School hour as well. Council's next meeting will be on January 10, 2017 MISSION STATEMENT St. Paul s is a welcoming Christian family. We are created by God, saved by Jesus Christ, God s Son, and inspired by the Holy Spirit. Through joyous worship and Mission Commitment, St. Paul s furthers the word of God s Saving Grace. First Communion Classes for youth will be held soon in the new year. A Parents Meeting will take place on Sunday, January 29 during the Sunday School hour in the Dorcas Room to discuss the class content and schedule. (Parents: Please bring your calendars!) The First Communion Class prepares youth of the congregation to being able to receive Holy Communion. The youth look at passages in Scripture that help build an understanding of what Holy Communion is. There are activities that help the youth grow in appreciation for the gifts God gives in Holy Communion. And, time is devoted to the how-to of receiving Holy Communion. The youth will bake the bread used on First Communion Sunday. Pastor Shoop leads these classes. Please see Pastor Shoop with any questions and to confirm attendance. 6

7 St Paul s Volunteer Ministry of the Month Each month we will take a little LINK space to highlight a ministry in need of help. This month s ministry is Closing. Don t forget to mark your calendars for Sunday, January 22nd for one service starting at 9:30am. There will be a brief break after the Service for you to grab a cup of coffee, tea, or water with some goodies, so you can bring back into the sanctuary for our Annual Meeting. Please come, your input is important. Folks who are interested in providing a plate of cookies or baked goods, please bring the day of. If you have any questions, or would like to let us know that you re providing an item, please contact Mara Berndt at mberndt49@gmail.com Nativity Scene in Main Foyer (Help needed in repairs) We are in need of a nurse to help take care of our Joseph. He is in need of some serious repairs and we were wondering if anyone might know of someone that might be able to help us restore our beloved Joseph. If you have anyone in mind please feel free to call the church main office, or Michelle at michelle@stpaulspittsford.org and or Mara at mara@stpaulspittsford.org What is this ministry? This volunteer locks all doors and turns off all lights after the 11:00 service. The sound system, which is located on the choir loft, also needs to be turned off. How long does it take? This ministry requires a person to walk throughout the church after the 11:00 service. It takes about 10 minutes to shut everything down and lock everything up. Why do we need more volunteers? Pastor Hedin used to close the church every Sunday. Since his departure, the Whitaker family has taken over this ministry. When the Whitakers aren t there, we need other families to help close the church. Call or Eileen Whitaker to discuss how you can help! or eileenwhitaker@rochester.rr.com 7

8 Food for Thought: A giving church is a living church. Beliefs don t make a good person behavior does. Don t give up. Moses was once a basket case. Un-Hanging of the Greens DORCAS RACHEL CIRCLE Date: Thursday, January 12, 2017 Time: 9:45 a.m. Fellowship 10:00 a.m. Meeting Place: Dorcas Room Program: Family Recollection (Favorite recipe, story or photo to share) Julie Huse Devotions: Ellen Bluhm Hostesses: Dorothy Borglum Laura Patchen Pittsford Food Cupboard paper goods will be placed in Dorothy Borglum s car parked by the parking lot double red doors. Please note: If the January meeting is cancelled due to weather, the February meeting will convene. Otherwise: February is a Snow Day - - no meeting Pick a day you can come in to help un-decorate St. Paul's Church. (Even if you only have an hour) It's just that easy! Sign-up Sheet is in the Main Foyer, feel free to sign up for more than one day :) Days to pick from: (or just write down time slot you can come during that day) Wednesday, January 9am-11am and 2pm-6pm Thursday, January 2pm-6pm Friday, January 9am-1pm Saturday, January 7 at 9am-11am Looking forward to seeing you there! If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Mara Berndt at mara@stpaulspittsford.org 8

9 GFL-LYO Games Night Minute to Win It Join us on Friday, January 6 at 7:30 pm At Reformation Lutheran Church 111 N. Chestnut Street Rochester For an evening of fun and games, fellowship and faith! Open to all in grades 6-12 and their friends! Contact Tiffany Laird (tiffanylaird@me.com) or Alisa Piccirilli (alisapic@rochester.rr.com) if you have to attend or help out. RAIHN Rochester Area Interfaith Hospitality Network Volunteer Training is being held on the following days in 2017: Tuesday, January 24th at Artisan Church,1235 S. Avenue,Rochester and Wed, February 8th at St Louis Catholic, 64 S. Main St.,Pittsford We would be happy to have you join us. If you have any questions contact: Jen Canning at Jennifercanning@urgrad.rochester.edu or Roberta Fitzsimmons at fitzsimmons@rochester.rr.com Our next rotation is February 26 to March 5, 2017 Women of St. Paul s ELCA Upcoming Events of 2017 WELCA Ingathering will begin in February. The Ingathering box will be placed in the Dorcas room. This year s Ingathering will be: FAMILY SOCKS & UNDERWEAR In September, our 2017 collection will be donated to Willow (battered women). Genesee Finger Lakes Conference Women of the ELCA Spring Communion Brunch: - Program and Communion Service will be given by Pastor Keith Campbell - Potluck Luncheon will follow the Communion Service - No perishable food items will be collected for Our Redeemer Food Cupboard - Date & Location TBA Women of the ELCA Triennial Convention Date: July 11 15, 2017 Minneapolis, MN 9

10 Mission of the E.L.C.A. Seafarer s International House Harbor of Hospitality REMEMBER TO SAVE THE WEEKEND: Knitters needed. Seafarers International House is a Harbor of Hospitality. It serves seafarers and immigrants with pastoral care, hospitality, social assistance, advocacy and prayer in the U.S. Ports: Baltimore, Philadephia, New Jersey, New York, Connecticut and Rhode Island. Chaplains from these ports visited over 22,400 seafarers last year. Often the chaplains greet the seafarers with a useful kit, a satchel containing clothes, candy, canned meats and knitted hats to keep them warm on the open seas. Women of the ELCA are knitting hats for Seafarers and sending them to the Seafarer s International House to be distributed ALL YEAR LONG! St. Paul s sent 7 wool hats in November! That is wonderful! Thank you so much. The next collection of knitted hats will be sent in April A box is available for your donation in the Dorcas Room. So KNIT UP A STORM!! Thank you, Shari MacFarlane St. Paul s Lutheran 150th Anniversary Weekend July 29-30th, :30 am - Holy Communion and Celebration of St. Paul s 150th Anniversary 11:45 am - Celebration Brunch/Lunch (Location: Woodcliff Lodge - details/pricing to follow) All are invited! Anyone interested in working on this special day please join us for our monthly meetings at St Paul s. Questions or interested? Please contact: Mara Berndt mara@stpaulspittsford.org Or Trish Blake-Jones trishblakejones@icloud.com 10

11 Lake Chautauqua Lutheran Center 5013 Rt. 430 Bemus Point, NY SENIOR HIGH WINTER RETREAT January 6-8, 2017 You are invited to spend the weekend at LCLC learning about your relationship with God and having an awesome time with new and old friends. Grab a friend, bring your sleds and winter gear and get ready for a great LCLC experience. The retreat begins with registration at 7:00pm. Friday night and ends with closing worship at 10:30am. Sunday. Your families are welcome and encouraged to join us for worship. $95/person (Includes a $25 non-refundable deposit) Includes programming, great meals, delicious snacks, and lodging in the Retreat Center. Registration deadline is December 26 th th -8 th Grade Winter Retreat March 3-5, 2017 A taste of summer in the middle of winter. Bible studies, sledding, campfires, games, singing, great food and great friends. Don t miss out on this great time. $95/person (Includes a $25 non-refundable deposit) Includes programming, great meals, delicious snacks, and lodging in the Retreat Center and Redeemer Lodge. Registration deadline is February 27, Many boxes full of food were donated to the Eastern Service Workers Association for their Thanksgiving baskets. Hats, mittens and small stuffed animals were donated to Hands4Hope Funds were raised by Friends of Music through our Annual Wreath Sale Pie sales allowed us to donate $1000 to Habitat for Humanity Knitted caps were made for Seafarers by Women of the ELCA Many shoe boxes were filled and delivered for Operation Christmas Child Over two boxes of Halloween candy bags were donated to Pittsford Food Cupboard Sales from the Rada Knife Sale were donated to Willow for battered women Eleven volunteers assisted at St. John s Home Volunteers donated their time and talents to RAIHN 42 Thanksgiving turkeys were purchased and donated to the Pittsford Food Cupboard LYO raised over $425 for ESWA through their Pie Sale. Sixteen youth volunteered. 11

12 HANDS4HOPE STREET MINISTRY THANK YOU to all who contributed to the collection of gloves and small stuffed animals! You have no idea how some of these children will embrace these items with love and gratefulness. Hands 4 Hope is a new social ministry at St Paul's that we thought would be nice to help out when we can. These are just small things we can do for this organization that goes out in any type of weather to help the needy. Here is a little more about them: If you have a facebook page please feel free to check them out. It's another well needed organization to help out when we can. Again, thank you for helping them out! You have made a difference in a person s life with your donation. If you have any questions, please feel free to touch base with Mara Berndt at mara@stpaulspittsford.org Hands 4 Hope - Orleans is a street ministry serving the community by offering food and the Hope of Jesus Christ on the streets of Orleans County. Our mission is to serve as God's "Hands" in the streets, "Sharing" the love and grace of Jesus Christ to reflect His Glory. We provide nutritional food for the body as well as spiritual food for the soul, to let everyone know that they are loved. We serve on Saturdays from 10:30am- 11:30am in various towns throughout the county. The first Saturday we start in Medina - Star/Orient Street, second Saturday of the month we are in Holley - Holley Square/Holley Hotel area, third Saturday of the month we are in Albion (east) - Lydun Drive Neighborhood and on the last Saturday of the month we are in Albion (central) - Beaver/S Liberty Street Neighborhood. We will be holding a clothing drive from January 15 th through January 29 th here at St. Paul s. The clothing will go directly to Hands4Hope to provide for those who are less fortunate during this cold winter season. Please bring your clothing donations to the Dorcas Room and place them in the box marked Hands4Hope Thank you! Please contact Mara Berndt or Michelle Josephson with questions. 12

13 Planning Ahead 2017 Dates to Save January 1 st One service at 9:30 a.m. January 22 nd January 29 th January 29 th February 27 th March 1 st March 12 th April 8 th April 9 th April 16 th May 14 th June 18 th Annual Meeting. One service at 9:30 a.m. LYO Church Cleaning First Communion Parent s Meeting Italian Café Ash Wednesday DST begins Palm Cross Making Palm Sunday Easter Sunday Mother s Day Brunch Fathers Day 13