GraceVine. December 2011

Transcription

1 December 2011 GraceVine Everybody loves a baby. They are cute and cuddly. They do amazing and surprising things. We like to hold them and cuddle them and love them. There are few encounters more engaging than those with a baby. For all of us a baby is a treasure, and where our faith is concerned, the Baby whose birth we celebrate once more is the greatest treasure of all. The Son of God coming from heaven s throne to be born in a barn to become our Savior. His cries were accompanied by the moos of cows, the bahs of sheep and the sounds of a donkey. That s how far down God came for us. Isn t that something! That far down. And he would go lower. All the way down to dying on the cross. All the way down to the tomb. And then - rise again triumphant. That s how much God loves you! A newborn baby arrives. Our lives will never be the same because of Christmas and the incarnation. Blessed Christmas as we welcome the newborn Savior into our hearts and homes! The Wishes and Prayers of the Grace Lutheran Staff for you and your Families. Published by Grace Lutheran Church E.L.C.A. 501 Valley Park Drive Libertyville, Illinois 847/ Fax 847/ gracelutheranil@att.net Website: gracelutheran libertyville.org

2 Staff Gordon Cavers Pastor Cheryl Horgan Administrative Assistant Phyllis Cavers Director of Contemporary Worship Ministries Jeff McClurg Director of Family Life and Children s Ministries LuAnn Schon......Director of Communications Wendy Haase Choir Director, Organist Choir Accompanist Beth Zupkus Director, Terrific Twos gwg-terrific2@att.net Sarah McAuliffe... Director, Tremendous Threes and Fabulous Fours gwg-trem3fab4@att.net 847/ Eva Balogh Maintenance Engineer Council Brynn Schander ( ) President, Worship Life Gary Ringham ( ) Vice President, Building & Property Mike Quist, ( ) Secretary, Growth in Faith Judy Bridges ( ) Treasurer, Financial Management Renee Denault ( ) Outreach Sue Dolan ( ) Social Ministry Ted Bleck, ( ) Congregational Life Staff Church Office & Cheryl Horgan: gracelutheranil@att.net Pastor Gordon: pastorgordoncavers@att.net Phyllis Cavers: phylliscavers@att.net Jeff McClurg: jeffamcclurg@att.net LuAnn Schon: luann.schon@att.net Website/Newsletter Jo Hansen Website LuAnn Schon Newsletter Jeri Traub, LuAnn Schon, Connie Skoug, and Jeff McClurg Photography Kay & Bill Kietzer Mailing Do you have articles to share with the congregation? Please drop the GraceVine staff a line! Articles for the next issue are due on/before the 15th of each month. You can place your submissions for the GraceVine in LuAnn Schon s mail box in the church office, fax it to church at , or items to the church office at gracelutheranil@att.net. Photographs are most welcome. Questions? For the newsletter, call LuAnn Schon at 847/ , and for the web site, call Jo Hansen at 847/ Please remember, not everything submitted may make it into the newsletter. Thanks for helping make the GraceVine and Web Site informative and interesting! 2 The Church Office will be closed on November 24th and 25th. Sunday, November 26th there will be one service at 10:00 a.m.

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4 The Women s Bible Study resumes on January 10th. We are taking a leap of faith and just using a book this time no video. We hope people won t feel like they haven t missed a big part of the study if they miss a night. The book we are using is Preparing My Heart for Easter by Ann Marie Stewart. This allows extra time in case of inclement weather to finish before Passion Week. Save the Date! The Women of Grace will have another meeting on Saturday, January 28th at 9:30 a.m. We will plan next s years events and see if there are any new ideas out there. We had a great 2011.Let s keep it up in Please plan on joining us. We are collecting for our Annual Giving Tree. Gift cards will benefit C.O.O.L. Transitional Housing in Waukegan and other families in need. In 2008 when we started collecting gift cards, we collected $650. Just last year we collected $1000 in gift cards. We would like to make this our most successful Giving Tree yet! We are asking that gift cards be donated in the amounts of $15, $25 or $30 to Jewel, Walmart or Target. Gift cards need to be collected no later than Sunday, December 18th. Please drop off gift cards in The Giving Tree box in the office. If you have any questions, please contact Leigh Beisner at 224/ Please help local families in need this Christmas! Thanks! 4 4 Congregational Christmas Card Bring your favorite family photo to share with the congregation along with your holiday greetings. Photos will be on display until the week of January 3rd and may be picked up any time after that. Please include your name on the back of the photo. Our Grace Family... We welcome to the Grace Family of Faith through Holy Baptism: Magdelynn Grace, daughter of Christine and Gregory Neddenriep on November 27th. Sponsors were Adam and Dianne Hazel. We express our sympathies to the Heidner Family in the death of Jim s sister, Judy, who passed away Tuesday, November 1st. Please remember the family in prayer. Habitat for Humanity Review 2011 Special thanks to our Grace Lutheran Habitat for Humanity work crews. We had a Saturday work day in May, August, September and October. Work included building walls, putting in forms for foundation footings and sidewalks, painting and working at the Habitat ReStore building. Our church donated $250 dollars to the Thrivent Builds Habitat program and $250 to "Bike for Homes", which was also contributed to Habitat for Humanity Lake County. The ground breaking ceremony for the Thrivent Builds home was Nov. 5th in Zion."

5 From Beth Zupkus, Director, Terrific Twos GIFTS By Ellie Gieser What shall we give the children - Christmas is almost here - Toys and games and playthings As we do every year? Yes, for the magic of toyland Is part of the Yuletide lore To gladden the heart of childhood, But I shall do something more. I shall give them more patience, A more sympathic ear, A little more time for laughter, Or to tenderly dry a tear. I shall take time to teach them The joy of doing some task, I ll try to find time to answer More of the questions they ask. Time to read books together And take long walks in the sun, Time for a bedtime story After the day is done. I shall give these to my children, Weaving a close tie, Knitting our lives together With gifts that money can t buy. A Word from the Tremendous Threes... Our November themes were Leaves & Thanksgiving. The entire Preschool Staff is thankful for the children and families in the program and for the support of the Staff and Congregation of Grace! Throughout the month we made watercolor leaves, birdfeeders, Indian corn, and turkeys for our bulletin board, and turkey oven mitts for our families. We enjoyed Miss. Jean s first visit from Discover Science and she taught us about color mixing. Mr. Jeff spoke about being thankful at Chapel to all of the classes. The children brought food to make 7 Thanksgiving baskets for the COOL Food Pantry. Brown (Café) was our color of the month so we painted with chocolate pudding and we made corn muffins on Cooking Day. Our December themes are gingerbread and Christmas. It is a festive and fun month. Our color is green( verde), our author is Jan Brett, and our virtue is generosity. We will decorate gingerbread houses, do a mitten craft, do a handprint reindeer craft, and make a special surprise gift for our families. We will learn the Christmas story and have a birthday party for Baby Jesus. A Word from the Fabulous Fours... Our Fours finished their Space Unit in the beginning of November. The children made their own constellations and brought home their Space Journal to show their families. In the middle of November we started our exciting Cultures Unit! Our first stop was Africa. We made African masks and sang songs. We also ate a traditional meal, Fou Fou, during Circle Time. Yum! During our visit to Africa, Miss. Jean from Discover Science blasted us back to space to discuss gravity. The children worked on balancing activities. What fun! After Thanksgiving Break, we will continue Cultures and travel to China. We will decorate Oriental fans, enjoy a special snack of rice and tea, and practice counting in Japanese. We will practice using chopsticks during a fun math activity. Next Stop... Mexico! It will be an experience to make a pinata and learn about the Poinsettia. At the end of our week in Mexico, we will have a fiesta. Ole! We will make quesadillas and drink delicious Mexican hot chocolate. During our last week of Cultures, we will learn the true meaning of Christmas in the United States and have a birthday party for Baby Jesus. Wishing everyone a blessed and Merry Christmas from Growing With Grace Preschool. Animal Adventures... We are exploring Forest Animals this semester! Each week we learn about a different forest animal. The animals we are learning about during half of the semester are: owls, bears, turkeys, woodpeckers, and reindeer. We are working hard on our Forest Animal books that we will bring home at the end of the semester. Each week is filled with exciting activities about the animal of the week. Some highlights are: going on a bear hunt, investigating owl pellets, making bird feeders, sorting/ counting (gummy) bears, making reindeer food, and making a special turkey craft. We are excited to have a camp out using a tent, sleeping bags, and making s mores. Please consider getting involved in the Preschool ministries! We would welcome your time & talents in the class room! Contact me if you are interested in becoming involved with these precious children- 847/ Thank you! Sarah McAuliffe Director, Tremendous Threes and Fabulous Fours 5 Growing in our Faith...

6 From your Treasurer YEAR TO DATE As Of October 31, 2011 ACTUAL BUDGET DIFFERENCE LAST YEAR Cash Income $332,298 $354,059 -$21,761 $313,967 Expenses $342,629 $354,089 -$11,460 $331,506 Net Income -$ 10,331 -$ 10,301 Income exceeds last year-to-date by $18,331; Expenses are $11,123 over last year-to-date. During this Holiday Season our thoughts turn to our blessings. Grace Lutheran Church has been blessed with a wonderful Staff, a Church building in which to worship and give thanks, and best of all, all of our Church Members. Thank you all for your contributions of time, talents, and financial support. All of this makes Grace Lutheran Church a blessing to all who come here. As we prepare our 2012 Budget we ask that you keep us in your financial plans for next year. God Bless you all, YOUR FINANCE TEAM Worship Volunteers for December 2011 Worship Volunteers: If you are unable to serve on your specified date, please contact the church office at 847/ with your replacement. Reminder: Lectors and Communion Assistants: Please be sure to check in with the Pastor 15 minutes before worship time for any special instructions. Ushers Greeters Nursery Lectors Communion Assistants Welcome Team 12/4 8:30 a.m. Traditional Worship with Communion Mel Gustafson, Ray Erdmann, Gail Mack and Kay Kietzer Ray and Suzanne Erdmann John Bruick John and Nancy Bruick 12/4 10:00 a.m. Contemporary Worship with Communion Jim Kemp, Ken and Carol Kulas, Don and Dill Petz and Mike Marabella Vic and Christina Scholz Nancy Hopma Jonathan Vold Jonathon Vold Robert Schon Renee Denault 12/11 One Service Only! 10:00 a.m. Children s Program Jim Kemp, Ken and Carol Kulas, Don and Dill Petz and Mike Marabella Jim and Wendy Kemp Lori Marabella Pam Morton Brynn Schander 12/18 8:30 a.m. Traditional Worship With Communion Mel Gustafson, Ray Erdmann, Gail Mack and Kay Kietzer Jan Narby Jean Whiting Karen Kobeck Karen Kobeck Diane Phillips 12/18 10:00 a.m. Contemporary Worship with Communion Jim Kemp, Ken and Carol Kulas, Don and Dill Petz and Mike Marabella Carole Rasmussen Mary Peron Jen Smith Carole Rasmussen Carole Rasmussen Craig Conte Brynn Schander Christmas Eve 12/24 4:30 p.m. Family Candlelight Volunteers Needed.. TBA Don Peterson Christmas Eve 12/24 11:00 p.m. Candlelight Worship Service w/communion Volunteers Needed.. Carole Karlenzig TBA Roberta Ringham Christmas Day One Service Only 10:00 a.m. Traditional Mel Gustafson, Ray Erdmann, Gail Mack and Kay Kietzer Chris Scholz Jodi Wirt Renee Denault New Years Day One Service Only 10:00 a.m. 6 John Bruick, Dennis Sahr, Mike Dolan and Ron Muller Carol Karlenzig Karen Semler Jeri Traub Bernice Eskridge Kim Nunez 5

7 December 2011 at Grace Lutheran Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday 4 NAME TAG SUNDAY 8:30 am Traditional Worship With Communion 10:00 am Contemporary Worship Gathering With Communion & Children s Ministries 2:00 pm Scouts #271 (Fellowship Hall) 7:00 pm Confirmation 5 6:30 pm Boy Scout Troop 71 (Fellowship Hall, Café Grace, ROCK Room, Chapel) The C.O.O.L. FOOD Pantry Item for December : BABY ITEMS (Diapers, Wipes, etc.) 6 11:00 am GLC Staff Meeting 12:30 pm Service Workshop 6:30 pm Winchester Bingo 7 11:30 am Libertyville Women s Club 5:00 pm PADS 7:00 pm Bookmarks 1 7:00 pm Women of Grace An Evening of Light (Café Grace) 7:00 pm CHATT 8 7:15 pm Outreach :00 am Sanctuary Decorating 10 8:30 am Men s/ Kid s Pancake Breakfast 9:30 am Promiseland Rehearsal 10:00 am Cookie Walk 11 ONE SERVICE ONLY 10:00 am Children s Christmas Program Luncheon to follow 7:00 pm Confirmation 12 6:30 pm Boy Scout Troop 71 (Fellowship Hall, Café Grace, ROCK Room, Chapel) Newsletter Deadline 13 11:00 am GLC Staff Meeting 1:00 pm Afternoon Bible Discussion :30 am OWLS 5:30 pm Daisy Scouts (Fell. Hall) 7:00 pm CHATT 7:00 pm GABBRS :30 am-11:15 am Brass Ensemble Rehearsal in the Sanctuary 18 8:30 am Traditional Worship With Communion 10:00 am Contemporary Worship Gathering With Communion & Children s Ministries 7:00 pm Confirmation 19 6:30 pm Boy Scout Troop 71 (Fellowship Hall, Café Grace, ROCK Room, Chapel) 7:00 pm Council 20 11:00 am GLC Staff Meeting 12:30 pm Service Workshop 21 NO (thru ) WINTER BREAK OFFICE CLOSED 24 CHRISTMAS EVE 4:30 pm Family Candlelight 11:00 pm CandlelightWorship Service with Communion 25 CHRISTMAS DAY ONE SERVICE ONLY 10:00 am Traditional 26 OFFICE CLOSED OFFICE CLOSED 31 NEW YEAR S EVE Children s Ministries NO CONFIRMATION (resumes ) 6 Grace Lutheran Church 501 Valley Park Drive, Libertyville IL, 847/ gracelutheranil@att.net Web-site: 7

8 501 Valley Park Drive, Libertyville, IL / Winter Weather Sometimes winter weather may cause events at church to be cancelled. Please check your for notifications and closings. A phone tree has been established for those without to receive these notifications. Worship Schedule for December at Grace Lutheran Church 12/4 8:30 a.m. Traditional Worship with Holy Communion 12/4 10:00 a.m. Contemporary Worship Gathering with Holy Communion Nursery and Children s Ministries 12/11 10:00 a.m. One Service Only! Children s Christmas Program With Nursery No Children s Ministries 12/18 8:30 a.m. Traditional Worship with Holy Communion 12/18 10:00 a.m. Contemporary Worship Gathering with Holy Communion Nursery and Children s Ministries 12/24 4:30 p.m. Christmas Eve Family Candlelight 12/24 11:00 p.m. Christmas Eve Candlelight with Communion 12/25 10:00 a.m. Christmas Day One Service Only! Traditional and Children s Ministries 1/1/ :00 a.m. New Year s Day One Service Only! Traditional Worship with Holy Communion Nursery and Children s Ministries