FAITH LUTHERAN CHURCH

Transcription

1 FAITH LUTHERAN CHURCH 6567 Glades Pike Somerset, PA Sunday Sunday Church School 10:30 am NON-PROFIT ORG. U.S. POSTAGE PAID Somerset, PA PERMIT NO. 6 Faith s Blessings 6567 Glades Pike Somerset PA (O) From the Pastor: JANUARY 2015 RETURN SERVICE REQUESTED Thank you so much for the privilege of serving with and among you since October 1, It feels like yesterday, yet so much has passed between us and through us since that time. As we are painfully aware, there have been more than a few funerals, leaving us missing some significant and irreplaceable people. And yet, we know that they continue as part of that cloud of witnesses that still guide and strengthen us through the witness of their words and faithful lives among us. There have been weddings, some of which did not take and some of which continue in faithful love. There have been Bible Studies and special worship services, some more memorable than others (like The Animals Tell the Story of Lent!) There have been a lot of sermons, and a lot of dialogs and personal conversations. As I end my service here as your Pastor, here are some of my parting thoughts: We clicked, because I came among you as a non-judging presence, eager to learn to know you and care for you, and to respect you as children of God. At the same time, you received me in the same spirit. You welcomed me, respected me, and made me feel at home, as though I had belonged here forever. Thank you for your gracious acceptance of me. Always remember, each and every one of you is a beloved child of God, welcomed into his eternal Kingdom through the forgiveness of Christ our Lord! When you feel the need to call one another to account, do it in the same spirit of love and forgiveness that God has offered to you! I will pray for you as you search for a new pastor. I do not see your next pastor as my replacement, but as a new presence who will continue to serve by making God s presence known among you. Please do not try to make your next pastor duplicate my ministry. Your next pastor will be as unique as I am. Let that pastor, as you have let me, stretch and pull you in new directions. I will remain a member at Faith, but until our new pastor is called and his or her ministry with us is underway, I will be keeping a low profile. You will need space to move forward. I will not be able to do pastoral services for you (like baptisms, weddings and funerals), because that is no longer my place. I will not be able to advise you about how to determine the right match in a new pastor. That role belongs to the Bishop s office, and they will be there for you! I hope to remain your friend. You will always hold a special place in my heart. Your Friend in Christ, Pr. Ardelle

2 Faith s Blessings Page 2 Faith s Blessings Page 11 New Phone Numbers Paul & Betty Simmons Cliff & Louise Spangler UPDATES AND CHANGES Jackie Kimmel 1-4 Matt Rody 1-5 Dave Delancey 1-7 George Lensbouer, Jr. 1-7 Natalie Custer 1-8 Tanner Friedline 1-8 Brenda Shaffer 1-9 JoAnn Snyder 1-10 Mark Trimpey 1-10 Doug Custer 1-12 Kristen Dill 1-13 Jody Berkebile 1-14 Irma Walker 1-14 Shelby Ream 1-15 Betty Simmons 1-15 Jay Weiss 1-16 Jordan Palumbo 1-17 Randy Zerfoss 1-17 Janet Anderson 1-18 Lexi Trevarrow 1-18 Rebecca Miller 1-21 Marge Walker 1-21 Ardelle Mason 1-23 Austin Latuch 1-25 Sean Raupach 1-25 Max Trevarrow 1-25 Brock Bowers 1-26 Marc Fochtman 1-27 Dave Custer 1-28 Jim Long 1-28 Kaden Klotz 1-30 Bev Thompson 1-30 Elias Tweardy 1-30 WELCA 2014 WELCA meets the 2nd Monday of each month at. We have a average of 15 women at our meetings and we had a very busy We participate in Mary Ellen s Prayer Chain and now have 23 links in our chain. If you would like to place a name on the prayer chain, call Karen Young at In January of each year, we draw a name for our Secret Prayer Partner. We send cards throughout the year and pray for our prayer partner. We reveal who our prayer partner has been at our Christmas Party. We support Betty Rayman s Card Ministry for the church by providing the cards and postage as needed. WELCA also helps stuff the Easter Eggs for the annual Easter Egg Hunt and we also donated to Katie s Fund, which honors the life of Katharina von Bora Luther, by supporting mission needs. We have our covered dish family picnic in August. We also support ALSM. A Thankoffering Sunday was held in November. The women of WELCA were responsible for all aspects of the worship service. The second offering collected that day was designated for the National WELCA Organization. We provided fruit baskets to Faith s shut-ins at Christmas. Our December meeting, a covered dish dinner, was a family Christmas party. In lieu of presents, an offering was collected and WELCA was able to donate $150 towards Camp Sequanota s Capital Fund Appeal. THANKS TO THE SUPERSTARS! THIS GROUP FAITHFULLY HELPS EVERY MONTH WITH THE ASSEMBLY OF THE NEWSLETTERS. Herb & Marian Walker yrs. Gary & Jeanetta Shaffer yrs. Wendell & Nancy Heil yrs. Jim & Shelby Ream yrs. Paul & Betty Simmons yrs. Dave & Audrey Walker yrs. Karl & Deanna Landis yrs. Fred & Kathy Rhoads yrs. By virtue of being a female member of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America, all women who belong to Faith Lutheran, are welcome and encouraged to attend our meetings!

3 Faith s Blessings Page 10 Faith s Blessings Page 3 COUNCIL MINUTES Call Committee In order to call a new Pastor, a Call Committee needs to be in place. The following persons have expressed an interest in serving on this committee: Tomalee Will David Miller Sandy Pyle Richard Walker Brenda Maust Lee Shaffer Audrey Walker We are still looking for a high school aged person to be on the committee and anyone else who would like to help. If you are interested, please let any council member of the office know. Calling a New Pastor The Call Committee s first responsibility is to complete the Ministry Site Profile, which will describe for prospective pastors who and what we are at Faith. The Bishop s Office (through the service of Pr. Paula Schmidt, Assistant to the Bishop) will match congregational and pastoral profiles. They will recommend a candidate to the Call Committee. After reviewing the profile, the Call Committee will decide whether or not to interview the candidate. If the Call Committee feels, after an interview, that this pastor could be a match they will go to a neutral site to hear the candidate lead worship and preach. If the candidate still looks like a match, the Call Committee will recommend him/her to the Council. The Council reviews the recommendations and will schedule an interview. If the interview goes well, the Council will recommend the candidate to the congregation. The pastor will be invited to meet the congregation, lead worship and preach here. That will be followed by a congregational meeting and vote, which could result in a call. There is a process for calling a pastor, but it will only work if bathed in a lot of prayer! Pray for the Spirit s guidance at every step! Faith Council met November 13 with 10 members and Pr. Ardelle present. Ryan Maust opened the meeting with devotions. October council minutes were 1st, 2nd and approved. The Treasurer s report was also 1st, 2nd and approved. Pastor s report was also approved. It has been noted that the computers in the offices need updated, this issue is being looked into. Committee Reports Finance Social Worship Education Property Youth Tally sheet was reviewed Octoberfest dinner went very well. Nov. 30 the evening Advent dinners begin During Advent we will use Now the Feast. There are a lot of services coming up for the holiday season. Pastor is working on Christmas Eve and Chrismon services Adult Sunday School needs new materials to study, ideas have been brought up but no final decision has been made. Teachers are also needed to teach the adult class and there are 2 new students beginning confirmation The pavilion has been winterized. The Ark needs inspected and some repairs are needed. The heat also needs to be inspected in the offices Jacob Maust is going to the National Youth Gathering. More info. will be coming in January and it has been asked that our congregation support the Friedens youth in fundraising for this event (continued pg. 4)

4 Faith s Blessings Page 4 Faith s Blessings Page 9 COUNCIL MINUTES (cont. from page 3) Old Business There are 5 kids tags and 1 food bag from the Salvation Army up for grabs. Council nominees are Dave Walker, Sandy Pyle and David Pyle. The parsonage lease has been extended for 6 months; the new lease is signed and in the office. Mark and Levi Friedline will plow this winter. Attorney William Carroll s letter has been returned-it has been noted numerous phone calls have been made about the issue of the deed for the Mizpah church property. New Business Regarding the 2015 Ministry Proposal; note budget change when a new pastor is called, it can be adjusted in the future. Brenda has asked if she could forgo a raise and asked for an additional week of vacation. A motion was made with amendments to operating costs and salaries staying the same this year, but Brenda will get her additional week. Congregational meeting agenda has been made-an addition of explanation of the call process will be included. Second offering suggestions for 2015 have been made, some dates have been filled. It was also mentioned that maybe Memorial Funds could be used to purchase new computers and a projector. Good of the Order Next council meeting Dec. 11 with Dave Pugh having devotions. Motion made and 2nd to adjourn. Closed with the Lord s Prayer. Brittany Will Secretary Council Elections At our Congregational Meeting on December 14, the following were elected to serve on Council: David Walker Sandy Pyle David Pyle Shirley Weimer Continuing to serve are: Ryan Maust David Pugh Carl Schrock Katey Hill Jeanetta Shaffer Tomalee Will Mark Friedline and Audrey Walker New Officers will be elected on January 8. Please give your Council your full support in this year of transition. Thank you to those who have completed their terms; Dave Walker Steve Will Cindy Miller and Brittany Will January 2nd Offering The second offering for January (to be collected Jan. 11) has been designated for In Touch Hospice. The concept of hospice shows a concern for the total patent and their family which makes hospice care very different from traditional forms of health care. In Touch Hospice is a nonprofit organization dedicated to bringing comfort into the home at this most distressing time. The Hospice House is located at 1474 N. Center Avenue in Somerset. Some of the services they provide include, but are not limited to: regular visits by nurses trained in the hospice 24 hours a day; provision for the patient s personal care needs; medications related to terminal illness; any durable medical equipment and supplies needed to ensure comfort and quality of life; visitation by a social worker to assist with meeting the patient and family s psychosocial and emotional needs. For more information on the Hospice House, you can call Thank you for your support of this outreach project!

5 Faith s Blessings Page 6 Faith s Blessings Page 7 January 2015 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 2nd offering is for IN TOUCH HOSPICE HOUSE FAITH LUTHERAN CHURCH 2014 TREASURER'S REPORT 2014 Previous November Totals Month INCOME Current 11, , , Benevolence 1, , Missionary Support , Building/Maint , Misc. In/Out 1, , TOTAL INCOME 14, , , Christmas 2 Adult Baptism 5 Committee Night 6 7 7:30 pm 8 Council EXPENSES Proposal Total Ministries , , Operating , , Lord s Bapt. 2nd off (In Touch Hospice House) 18 Epiphany 2 12 WELCA Adult chimes 7:30 m Royal Ringers 7:30 pm Payroll Taxes , , Total Payroll 7, , , Outreach Benevolence , , World Hunger Missionary Support , , nd Offering , Other , , Food Pantry Chamber Dues Total Outreach 1, , , Maintenance , , Misc. In/Out , TOTAL EXPENSES 11, , , Epiphany Adult chimes 7:30 pm ASSETS General Checking $3, Savings (Pastors Disc. Fund) $1, Somerset Trust CD (60 mo.) $5, Franklin Templeton Mutual Fund $15, FNB CD (9 mo. Flex) $4, Memorial Funds $13, Camp Scholarship $8,841.31

6 Faith s Blessings Page 8 Faith s Blessings Page 5 Christmas Continues! January 4 is the Second Sunday of Christmas. In the church, we do not pack away our Christmas stuff on December 26, like the secular world does. We celebrate Christmas until Epiphany Day, which is sort of a reprise and extension of the Christmas season. Epiphany Day (January 6) is the day we traditionally remember the coming of the wise men to visit the baby Jesus. Remember, these figures from the Far East are not Jews! Their presence indicates that the gift of the Word Incarnate is not for just one segment of God s created world, but for all people of all times and all places. May we follow the example of the wise men, and go out of our way to find the Christ among us. May we bring the best we have to offer: not only our earthly things like gold, frankincense and myrrh, but our spiritual gifts and talents as well. As we heard so often in the last days of Pentecost and the first days of Advent, we serve Christ best when we serve the least and the lost among us. Baptism of Our Lord January 11 is the First Sunday after Epiphany, observed as the Baptism of Our Lord Sunday. How quickly we move from the child Jesus to the grown Jesus, sent and commissioned to carry out his ministry among us. In our own Baptisms, we are also commissioned and sent to be Christ s presence in our world and in our community. It is a new year. How will we serve? Who will we serve? Where is Christ leading us? Operation Christmas Child For 2015, we will continue to collect items each month. The item for January will be toothbrushes and toothpaste. Please note that we learned that the toothbrushes MUST be in original packaging. If multiple packs are donated, they cannot be divided; but we will still use them! Thanks to everyone who donated this past year and we have set a new goal of 75 boxes for In Ministry in January We thank the following people for their ministry assistance this month. January 4 Altar Guild Mabel Revello and Acolyte Nicole Keller Janet Anderson Assisting Minister Jane Ohler Reader Audrey Walker Greeters Dave & Audrey Walker Bulletins Steven Latuch Council Person Dave Walker Cups Elmer Plum & Adam Latuch January 11 Altar Guild Karen Walker Acolyte Dylila Plum Assisting Minister Darren Walker Reader Richard Walker Greeters Shirley Weimer and Bulletins Jack Loeffert Lori Dill Cups Jack Loeffert & Dakota Weyant January 18 Altar Guild Mabel Revello and Acolyte Keri Friedline Janet Anderson Assisting Minister Brenda Maust Reader Denny Young Greeters Denny & Karen Young Bulletins Jeb Friedline Cups Tanner & Ava Friedline JANUARY 25 Altar Guild Karen Walker Acolyte Alexandra Swank Assisting Minister Katey Hill Reader Sandy Pyle Greeters David & Sandy Pyle Bulletins Katelynn Swank Cups Joe & Katelynn Swank