Christmas Preparation

Transcription

1 December 2014 Christmas Preparation by Pastor Don Taylor While I am writing this article, the ground is already white for Christmas. WHITE CHRISTMAS, for some people, is their favorite Christmas song. The lyrics, In the little village of Bethlehem there lay a Child one day, are the first line to the song THE BIRTHDAY OF A KING. It is one of my favorites. His birth makes this time of the year so special for all of us. How great it is that God came into our world to give us His Christmas gift of eternal peace and joy. How great it is to share this time of joy with those we love. Most of us will spend a lot of time preparing for Christmas. There are cards to mail and maybe even a family letter to go with it. There are cookies to bake. There s a tree to put up. There are decorations to get out for the outside of the house and the inside. There are parties to attend. There are presents to buy and wrap. It s incredible all that needs to be done to prepare for this time of the year. Then, wouldn t you know it, we are asked to take time other than Sunday to spend time at church during this season. The real preparation for Christmas has always been the anticipation of Advent. Advent means coming. It stands for the coming of Jesus the Christ. Jesus coming has two aspects. First, it is always to celebrate His first coming into the world at Christmas. Second, it is to prepare for His coming again. The people in the Old Testament yearned to see God s promise of the Messiah fulfilled. Long centuries went by and nothing happened. Some people became impatient. They thought He would never come; but God fulfilled His promise at just the right time. The Bible says, But when the time had fully come God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law to redeem those who were under the Law. (Galatians 4:4) Jesus came at just the right time in history to redeem the human race through His life, death, and resurrection. The same will be true when He comes again. The time will fully come for Him to return. No one could guess at the time of Jesus arrival the first time He came, and no one can guess the time when He comes again. Therefore, we prepare in anticipation of Jesus coming again and for Christmas by making our preparation a spiritual one. Spiritual preparation for Jesus coming includes special family times that mark the days in Advent before Christmas. Preparation includes recognizing when we make a special effort to make or buy special gifts for people we love it is a reminder of the special gift God gave us in Jesus our Savior. Our preparation includes joining our fellow saints at worship on Sundays and those special times of celebration. Be prepared for Jesus coming. December SERVICE Saturday, Dec. 6 10A.M. Noon Costumed Characters inside! Stable & Live Animals outside! OPPORTUNITIES Look inside this issue for additional details about these events Children s Nativity Cookies due Dec. 6 VEAP Christmas Tree gifts due Dec. 14 Poinsettia Set-up 9 AM - Dec. 20 Café Cross View Hosts 2015 sign-up Altar Flower Calendar 2015 sign-up

2 PAGE 2 When the song of the angels is stilled, when the star in the sky is gone, when the kings and princes are home, then the work of Christmas begins: to heal those broken in spirit, to feed the hungry, to release the oppressed, to rebuild the nations, to bring peace among all peoples, to make a little music with the heart And to radiate the Light of Christ, every day, in every way, in all that we do and in all that we say. Then the work of Christmas begins. Howard Thurman December 25, 2010 Wishing you a joyful and blessed Christmas throughout the New Year. Cross View Staff Hope is on the Way Advent Series November 30th marked the first week in Advent. Our Advent series for 2014 is entitled Hope is on the Way. Advent is a time of past and future collision in the present. It is a time that is already here (as in Christ has already come) and not yet (Christ is coming again). Come and be a part of the advent celebration, knowing with joy that Hope is on the way! Welcome, Jonathan & Kelsie Zellar! Jonathan Zellar was commissioned as a DCE of the LCMS at Cross View on November 23 in morning worship services. He was also installed as Cross View s Director of Youth and Young Adult Ministries. Please join us in welcoming Jonathan and his wife Kelsie by introducing yourself to them. Kelsie is employed by the Early Childhood Center in the infant room.

3 The Season of Giving As 2014 draws to a close we would like to thank everyone who has supported Cross View this past year with their time, talent and financial contributions. We look forward to a strong end to the year and continued support of all our members in As of October 31, 2014, year-to-date expenses exceeded year-to-date receipts by approximately $54,000. We would like to encourage members to complete their commitment for 2014 and also consider an additional gift so that Cross View can finish the year in a breakeven or positive position and have a strong start to If you need a convenient way to make regular offerings, we encourage you to check out our electronic giving options. You may designate the frequency of the electronic giving, e.g., once a week, once a month, or twice a month. As the pace of life speeds up, especially around the holidays you may find electronic giving a most welcome way to make contributions. If you are interested in learning more about this, please contact Melanie McMichael in the church office for more information. CHRISTIAN EDUCATION Christmas Programs, Kidstitute Update CHRISTMAS IS COMING! Family and friends are invited to join us for our children s Christmas programs this year. These are great opportunities to invite someone to visit Cross View. We hope you are able to join us! Sunday, December 7; 9:30 A.M. Young children s program, A Night Like No Other. What would the night of Jesus birth be like? It was like no other! Our students age 3 to 1st grade will present a simple ½ hour presentation. Sunday, December 14; 10:45 A.M. worship Students in grades 2-6 are excited to present, Chris-myth Busters! It s a fun presentation of the Christmas story with a twist.what do we assume as truth but is tradition? But also recognizing that traditions aren t what really make Christmas, it s the celebration of Christ s birth. Join us at the 10:45 A.M. worship on this Sunday to celebrate with us! Rehearsals are during the Sunday School hour and: Sunday, December 7; 1-3 P.M. Saturday, December 13; 10:00 A.M. to noon KIDSTITUTE UPDATE Kidstitute students will go caroling to the Edina Care Center on Wednesday, December 10. Meet at church at 6:15 P.M. to leave by bus at 6:30 P.M. We will return by 8:00 P.M. Students PK to 1st grade need a parent to go along. All students need a permission slip to attend. Questions? Contact Christine Eid at christine@crossview.net. EDUCATION UPDATE Please note that there are no Bible classes on Sunday, December 28. All classes will resume on Sunday, January 4. PAGE Year-End Offerings Deadline Must Be Met This is to remind you that IRS regulations make it very clear that for a contribution to be credited to the 2014 tax year, it must be received on Cross View s premises by December 31 or postmarked no later than midnight on December 31, Dropping it off in January with a December date on the check does not qualify. The church office will be open on December 31 from 9 A.M. to 3:00 P.M. Thank you for your attention to this important detail. EARLY CHILDHOOD CENTER Book Fair, Pajama Drive BOOK FAIR COMING TO CROSS VIEW The Early Childhood Center will be hosting its annual book fair on December 7. Books are important in the early childhood program as a primary element towards our literacy goals. You can help the Early Childhood Center obtain new books in 3 different ways: 1. Browse the fair and make purchases for yourself or for gifts. The ECC will earn points towards additional purchases. 2. Make a purchase for the classroom by choosing a book off the Wish List. 3. Give a donation to All for Books for additional book donations. Plan to attend the fair on Sunday, December 7. GREAT PAJAMA DRIVE Join the Early Childhood Center in collecting new pajamas for children in need especially those living in group homes, shelters, foster care and orphanages. Through the Scholastic Reading Club Great Bedtime Story Pajama Drive, each child will be given a new pair of pajamas with a new book. Be part of the drive to help make a better bedtime for these children. Please bring all new pj s to the Center by December 8th. There is a collection box by the ECC office. VOTERS ASSEMBLY MEETING Sunday, January 4, 2015 at 12:00 noon Please plan to attend!

4 PAGE 4 InC Christmas Open House Gathering Sunday, December 13th, 7:00 PM 9917 Windsor Terrace, Eden Prairie, MN Hosts: Wallers, Schmiels, Volbrechts InC means InChrist, InCommunity, InC InC InC Save the date: FMSC with YAMS! Saturday, January 24 5:00 P.M. dinner 6:45 PM service FMSC Socialize during dinner at Houlihan s in Chanhassen and then serve at Feed My Starving Children, packing life-saving meals for children all over the world. Children age 5+ are welcome to attend with an adult ratio of 1:1. Contact Megan or Patrick Rooney with questions. YAMS Bowling The YAMS bowling outing at Park Tavern in October was a great success! We enjoyed great friends, fun bowling and delicious pizza. Christmas Potluck/ Game Night On Friday December 12, Cross View Cards and Games will celebrate the Christmas season with a potluck meal followed by cards and/or board games. This event will begin at 6:30 P.M. in the Fellowship Hall. After the meal you will have the opportunity to connect with Cross View members and friends (adults of all ages) for several hours of fun and fellowship by playing cards and games of your choice (e.g. Bridge, 500, Cribbage, Tic, Whist, Rummikub, Golf, Dominoes, Scrabble, Pinochle, Hand and Foot). Sign up at the Connection Center. Questions? Contact: Marlys Meintsma , Mel Davis , or Carla Schumacher More Hosts Needed to Serve Café Cross View Café Cross View has been a very successful way for members and visitors to interact with each other over a treat and a cup of coffee between services. For many years, dedicated people have provided treats and prepared coffee. Over these years some new providers have joined in hosting while others have opted out. This is an invitation to anyone who would like to become one of these dedicated servers to join in this very important fellowship venture. Let Steve Koepcke, Coordinator, know of your willingness to serve by placing your name on the signup sheet at the Connection Center. He will contact you with more details regarding scheduling and preparation instructions. If you have any questions regarding this service opportunity or would like to volunteer directly, please contact Steve either by phone at (952) or at skoepcke@earthlink.net. Your service contribution will be greatly appreciated by everyone who stops by on Sunday morning. Please join us in this fellowship adventure!

5 OUTREACH AND MISSIONS Serving Urban Homeworks, Trinity First, Children s Nativity, VEAP URBAN HOMEWORKS HANDS-ON PROJECT On Saturday, November 15, an intrepid group of Cross View volunteers braved one of the coldest mornings to date to go to North Minneapolis and help rehab a house for Urban Homeworks. The house had been damaged by the tornado that came through in 2011 and had sat vacant since then. It was exciting to work on a home nearing completion; a family on the waiting list may be moving in as early as Christmas! The Cross View team performed finishing types of work such as: completing interior window trim, caulking windows and doors, installing door knobs, closet shelves and rods, kitchen cabinet hardware, waterproof painting the basement, and prepping stairs for carpet. Cody Menning, UHW staff, wrote, Thanks for putting together such a great crew. It was great to reconnect with familiar faces and meet more members of the Cross View community. In this season of Thanksgiving, I am continually grateful for the amazing people who will spend a chilly Saturday on site with us, bravely learning new skills and attempting tricky work. Members of our team included Bob Schmidt, Marian Kratzke, David Mayer, Lindsay Pulbert, John Olson, Mike Reed, Jim Dibble, Megan Rooney, Crystal Lau, Colin Lau, Gordon and Susan Charles, and Carl Roeske. Special thanks to Richard Sunderland who delivered a delicious lunch prepared by the loving hands of Delphine. THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE PAGE 5 TRINITY 1ST THANKSGIVING A SUCCESS Thank you to everyone who served at Trinity First Thanksgiving on Tuesday, November 25. We served over 300 meals! Cross View members generously gave of their time and resources to serve families and neighbors of Trinity First School in the Franklin Street Neighborhood of south Minneapolis. It was a fun evening of activities, conversation, delicious food and making new friends. CHILDREN S NATIVITY SERVICE OPPORTUNITIES SATURDAY, DEC. 6, 10 AM - NOON Volunteers are needed to help in a variety of areas at Children s Nativity. Come and join in the fun! Enjoy the Christmas story through the eyes of children! Help with: registration, refreshments, crafts, set-up or clean-up. Please sign-up at the Connection Center! VEAP CHRISTMAS TOY COLLECTION Put extra joy in your holiday shopping by adding a gift or two for a child from a low income family in our communities. VEAP expects to help more than 5000 children have a happier Christmas in The goal is to provide each child a new toy ($10 to $20 value), a book, and two winter wear items plus a game for each household. All items must be new and unused, and leave them unwrapped please. Gift cards from local retailers ($15 value) are also needed. Cross View s collection for the VEAP Christmas Toy Store will continue through December 14th. For more information and a suggested list of age appropriate desired gifts see the poster near the small Christmas tree by the Fireside room. Take an ornament from the Christmas tree as a reminder for your shopping!

6 PAGE 6 In a Voters Assembly meeting on June 1, Cross View s members voted to adopt an amended and restated constitution that, effective October 1, would change the form of governance at Cross View, replacing the six church boards with a policy-based structure that will utilize Ministry Action Teams (MATs) to carry out the ministries of our church. One of the objectives of the revised bylaws was to clear up the gray area of authority within the organization that caused confusion and sometimes frustration. The lines of authority are now clearly as follows: Jesus Voters Church Council Senior Pastor Director-Level Staff Ministry Action Teams After a transition period over the summer months, on September 28 the congregation elected members to serve on the Church Council based on the recommendation of a Nominating Committee. I will do my best to respond to your election of me as president of the congregation, and I ask for your prayers that God will provide me with guidance and wisdom to serve you and our Lord well. The new Church Council members were commissioned into office by Pastor Steve at the beginning of our first meeting on October 23. One of the first items to address in our first meeting was to approve our Church Council Policies document, which was drafted in September by a group of out-going Church Council members Church Council Update and nominees for the new Church Council. This document includes our Desired Outcomes (describing goals and objectives), Senior Pastor Limitation (establishing the boundaries within which the Senior Pastor and his staff can operate), Church Council Senior Pastor Relationship, and the Governance Process (enumerating duties, conduct, and the annual schedule of governance activities). Another primary objective in drafting the amended constitution was to move the Church Council away from being managers/approvers by granting certain authority (within described boundaries) to the Senior Pastor and his staff and, therefore, freeing up the Church Council to focus more on governing and visioning towards the future. After just two months, I am very excited to see this objective already becoming a reality! I am honored to be serving alongside a truly exceptional group of leaders eager to share ideas for Cross View s future! There is so much to discuss that we have scheduled a strategic planning retreat at the end of January to focus heavily on the future. But we are already tackling things now that have been easy to overlook in the past; for example, we are conducting an insurance review to make sure we have the right kinds and right level of coverage. I am committed to providing you with consistent communication from the Church Council through articles in the Clarion, written by either me or other members of the Church Council. If you have any questions, please let me know. In service to Him, Gregg Poppe CROSSWAYS INTERNATIONAL CALLING A Letter from Harry & Chloris Wendt Chloris and I wish to thank the members of Cross View for their many cards and letters, phone calls, visits, and assistance. Indeed, life has not been easy for us during recent weeks---but there is hope. We will be moving to Friendship Village early in December. Our new address will be Friendship Village, Apt. 209, 8102 Highwood Drive, Bloomington, MN, Our new phone number will be It will be good to live in a single-level apartment rather than in a multi-level townhouse. Early on Sunday morning, October 19, I was smitten with severe pain in my left knee. After my doctor sent me to the emergency ward at Abbott-Northwestern Hospital, they informed me that I had a serious infection in the knee, which required surgery. After five days in that hospital and twelve days in Friendship Village Rehab, it was home again. I continue to receive daily visits from Allina Home Care for antibiotics infusion and physical and occupational therapy. God bless you and thank you, dear members of Cross View our family this side of the Pacific Ocean! Harry and Chloris Wendt Christmas Decoration Volunteers Needed Decorations for the Christmas season are installed only with the help of volunteers! Yet to do in this season: Saturday, December 20, 9 AM: Arrange poinsettias Saturday, January 10, 9 AM: Take-down/ clean-up If you are able to help one or more of these times, please contact RebeccaWaller: Rebecca@crossview.net Altar Flower Sign-Up Altar flowers are given to Cross View to beautify our worship space. You may designate a particular occasion or remembrance in the bulletin for which you have given the flowers. A flower sign-up is posted on the bulletin board in the lobby. Flowers may be ordered through Cross View s regular florist (contact Sarah Solberg in the church office) or provided by you personally. More than one arrangement can be specified per Sunday.

7 Wild Truth for Wild Times Confirmation Retreat On November 7-8, eighteen of Cross View s 7th and 8th grade students traveled to Camp Omega for a special retreat. The theme of the retreat was Wild Truth for Wild Times. Students participated in four Bible studies that engaged, inspired, and equipped them to live out the truth of God s Word in their everyday lives. In addition to the Bible studies, there was plenty of time to have fun and to build relationships within the group. Students played Ga-Ga Ball in the Ga-Ga Pit. It was very fun. They also played a spirited game of capture the flag. There was even time to engage in some archery. Please keep these young people in your prayers as they continue to grow in strength and in courage as fully-devoted followers of Jesus Christ. Women s Ministry Please join women of Cross View for an evening of wonderful food and fellowship at Advent Reflections on Sunday, December 7th from 6:30-8:00 P.M. Sign up at the Connection Center! Please bring an appetizer or dessert one that is a tradition in your family for our Vintage Christmas celebration! PAGE 7 WOMEN S BOOK CLUB Cross View s Women s Book Club is reading The Christmas Promise by Donna VanLiere for our meeting on Monday, December 15th. We will meet at the home of Kathi Etchison at 1:00 P.M. for book discussion and fellowship. As always, we invite newcomers to this casual afternoon. PRAYER SHAWLS Do you have a loved one that is in need of comfort from the loss of a loved one or suffering from an illness? Women s ministry has several dedicated women that make prayer shawls to provide comfort for those in need. These prayer shawls are available for distribution the 1st Sunday of each month at a table in the narthex. You can also call Linda Baule at to arrange getting one at other times during the month. Cookie and Cider Donations Needed Please consider donating cookies or apple cider to serve to those that attend Cross View s Children s Nativity on Saturday, Dec. 6th. It takes 80 dozen cookies and 10 gallons of cider to serve the attendees. SIGN UP at the Connection Center and either drop donations off at church during the first week in December, or the morning of the event by 9:30 AM. Thanks for helping make this community outreach a success! Sarah Garner in Recital Thursday, Jan. 8, 12:30 PM At 12:30 P.M. on Thursday, January 8th, Sarah Garner will perform a 30- minute organ recital at St. Barnabas Lutheran Church in Plymouth. The Lunchtime Organ Recital Series is hosted by the St. Barnabas Center for the Arts and will be performed in the Sanctuary on their 19-rank J.F. Nordlie pipe organ. The Epiphany of our Lord and the New Year will set the tone for the recital with Buxtehude s sparkling fantasia on How Brightly Shines the Morning Star and Wilbur Held s haunting variations on The Old Year as Passed Away. Closing the program will be a chant-improvisation on an antiphon by Hildegaard of Bingen and the majestic and fiery Fantaisie: Ephiphania Domini by the great French-improvisateur Charles Tournemire. St. Barnabas is located at Old Rockford Road in Plymouth.

8 Cross View December pm - InC Social Event

9 Cross View Lutheran Church 6645 McCauley Trail West Edina, MN Return Service Requested NON-PROFIT US POSTAGE PAID TWIN CITIES, MN PERMIT NO December 2014 SCHEDULE Sunday Worship: 8:15 am (Traditional) & 10:45 am (Contemporary) Sunday Christian Education, 9:30 am Office Hours: Tues.-Fri., 9:00 am - 4:30 pm; Closed Monday Developing fully devoted followers of Jesus Christ along life s journey Rev. Steve Wheeler, Pastor ext 203, steve@crossview.net Rev. Don Taylor, Interim Associate Pastor Jan Stockman-Sater, Early Childhood Ministries ext 222, jan@crossview.net Christine Eid, Children s Ministry ext 215, christine@crossview.net Jonathan Zellar, Youth & Young Adults MInistries ext 207, jonathan@crossview.net Melanie McMichael, Finance & Administration ext 204, melanie@crossview.net Rebecca Waller, Music & Fine Arts Ministries ext 210, rebecca@crossview.net Jason Paulson, Contemporary Music jason@crossview.net Sarah Garner, Organist sgarner@crossview.net Sarah Solberg, Parish Secretary ext 200, sarah@crossview.net Gregg Poppe, President Rev. Dr. Harry Wendt, Crossways International Todd & Kim Roeske, Evangelistic Missionaries in Alaska Mark Peske, Serving Among the Ojibwe, Bemidji, MN Stephen & Krista, Missionaries in Asia The Clarion is published monthly by Cross View Lutheran Church, 6645 McCauley Trail West, Edina, MN, (Office), (FAX), (ECC). Items for inclusion may be dropped off in the church office or sent via to rebecca@crossview.net. Holiday Church Office Hours Thursday, December 25 closed Friday, December 26 closed Wednesday, January 31, 9 A.M. 3 P.M. Thursday, January 1 - closed