PARISH LIFE OF OUR LORD S LUTHERAN CHURCH S h a rin g th e jo y of C h rist s lo ve a n d pro m ise o f salvatio n w ith a ll p e o p le.

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1 From the desk of Pr. Amanda PARISH LIFE OF OUR LORD S LUTHERAN CHURCH S h a rin g th e jo y of C h rist s lo ve a n d pro m ise o f salvatio n w ith a ll p e o p le. December 2015 As we enter into the season of Advent, preparing for the coming of Christ in our lives, I invite you into a season of expecting transformation of our hearts, our worlds, our hopes. Transformation is our Advent theme of this year. Each Advent, in the midst of all the hectic schedules, the family drama, the short days, the long recitals, and the kitchen memories, we also take the time to be expectantly joyful about the three basic ways Christ comes into our lives. First, Christ comes in our memory. We expect the celebration of the memory of how Jesus came into the world so very long ago at Christmas. Second, we expect the coming of Christ into our lives right now, transforming us from the inside out as our lives become part of the life of the Body of Christ in the world right now. This brings us healing and wholeness, as well as strength to share this love with others. And third, we expect Christ to come at the end of the ages, to rule over all and to take all things into himself. This year we focus on how each one of those is an expectation of transformation in our lives and our world. As we transform, we can often see a pattern of how we become new. It doesn t matter whether this newness is more akin to the transformation of a tadpole into a frog, a caterpillar into a butterfly, or a snake shedding its skin. All kinds of transformation move in sequence. This year we will follow the sequence by focusing on a different word each week. Begin, Believe, Belong, Become, Be. As we focus on each word, we can take the opportunity to reflect on how God has brought us transformation in the past, focus on how God is transforming us right now, and hope with great expectation about how God will work in the future. As we enter into this time, perhaps there is one specific area of your life you would like to invite God to transform. Could you be intentional in doing what you need to do in order to allow that transformation to unfold in your life? Perhaps you could even ask a trusted spiritual friend to pray for you and be your witness in the process. (I m always available, but it certainly doesn t need to be me!) Where has Jesus being calling you into a deeper relationship with Him, or how have you been nudged by the Holy Spirit to be grace and light in the world? This Advent, may you be blessed in your expectation of a whole new world opening up with the coming of Christ into our lives, and may your be filled with joy as you see the transformation starting to happen even now. Peace to you, Rev. Amanda Esping WEST HEFNER RO AD O KL A HOMA C ITY, O K (4 05) ww w.ol lc.or g o ail.c om

2 ALTERNATIVE GIFT-GIVING IDEAS FOR CHRISTMAS J o in u s a t 9 a m o n S u n d a y m o rn in g s. T h e re is s o m e th in g fo r all a g e s. Adults meet in the conference room. They are beginning a new study series led by Pastor Amanda. The children are continuing to have fun with the Whirl bible stories and activities which follow our common lectionary! They gather at the end of the hallway. Reaching Our City Christmas Gifts for the Elderly Please place your gifts under the Christmas tree in the narthex or in the gift box. A list of suggested items is at the Information Center in the narthex. If you prefer, you may donate money to the church. Mark your contribution ROC Christmas Drive. Poinsettia Sale A sign-up sheet for poinsettias is available on the Information Counter. We have ordered 48 poinsettias at $7.00 each. They are 6 plants which are small but they make great gifts if you want to give them away. You will be able to take them home after the Christmas Eve worship service or after church on Sunday, December 27th. Find ideas and catalogs on the table in the narthex for ways to celebrate Christmas by providing for those in need and honoring your loved ones. Check out the ELCA Good Gifts catalog and Heifer Project catalog. Prayer Beads Workshop Following worship on December 13th, we will meet in the conference room to assemble bead strands for self, members and visitors. After doing beads we will head over to Luby s Cafeteria (Britton & May) to do lunch. We need the following supplies: standard safety pins, keyrings (large or small), wooden beads (9-12mm) in blue, gold, red, natural or unfinished. Thank you for your generosity with your time and materials. Kari Boyce Women of the ELCA Conference 2 - Advent Munch Saturday, December 5, at 11:30 a.m. St. John Lutheran Church 3610 N. Union St., Shawnee, OK Program will be provided by Ascension Lutheran of Del City. Lunch provided by St. John Kitchen Krew. Bring a plate of Christmas Cookies to share. RSVP to Debra at grammiesage@sbcglobal.net

3 Deadline for January newsletter is Monday, December 21. Articles may be ed to the church or placed in the Administrative Assistant s mailbox. Flower Orders may be placed by filling out the form located below the flower chart at the church office. Please leave completed forms in the Administrative Assistant s mailbox. Bulletin Articles must be submitted before 11am Monday morning to be included in the weekly announcements. Christ in Our Home devotion booklets are available at the information counter. _ H A N D S O F M E R C Y Q u ilte rs Quilters will meet December 12 from 9am- 12pm. This will be our only quilting for December. We need lots of sewers for quilt tops. The basket by the front door of the narthex has any number of fabric pieces to sew together. Dust off your sewing machines and let s see what we can do. WELCA Tuesday Circle will meet on December 8th at 7:00 p.m. Hostess is Avery Parr at the home of Kathy Fletcher 5 S. Trailridge Rd., Edmond. A game of Dirty Santa will be played with gifts of $5 to $10. Our Lord s Annual Christmas Dinner will be held Sunday, December 6, 2015, beginning at 5:00 p.m. Be sure and join us for a good Christmas Dinner and some professional entertainment. The evening will begin with punch and a social time followed by dinner at 5:30. The dinner, which will be provided*, includes ham, turkey, dressing, mashed potatoes and gravy, vegetables, and rolls. We ask that you sign up for the dinner and bring your favorite salad or dessert to serve 12. A sign-up sheet is on the table in the narthex. After dinner we will have special entertainment by the Gospel Guitar Guys. We hope you will all attend this special evening at Our Lord s. *We will take donations for the meat and entertainment. Contact Karlene Grosz. WELCA S Annual Cookie Sale will be Sunday, December 20, before and after worship. For those who don t like to bake or need a nice assortment of cookies for Christmas, come check out the cookies; also special items like English Toffee. Yum! Proceeds from the sale help purchase supplies for the Hands of Mercy quilt project. Saturday, December 19, 6:00 p.m. Join us for Movie Night in the conference room. Snacks and soda will be provided. We host a movie night on the third Saturday of each month. S u p p o rt B re a s t C a n c e r R e s e arc h Please save all pink Yoplait lids and place them in the pink sack on the counter in the Narthex. They raise money for breast cancer research. Carolyn Zachritz will make sure they are sent in for you.

4 D e c e m b e r C h u rc h F a m ily in S e rvic e Assisting Ministers (D. Gillson) 6 Jenny Myers 13 Chris Henkel 20 Wayne Craney 24 Sally Ziebell 27 Deborah Gillson Cantors (Bill Fuller) 6 Deborah Gillson 13 Wayne Craney 20 Chris Henkel 24 Deborah Gillson 27 Deborah Gillson Greeters (Dee Sundholm) 6 Amanda Green, Anna & Gene Naukam 13 Jacob Edingfield/Lynn Little 20 Diane Milligan, Linda Scheidt, Karen Foran 27 Carmen Craney, Toni & Evie Henson Money Counters (Diane Milligan) 6 Tom Ziebell & Debbie Gudgel 13 Fred & Karlene Grosz 20 Dolores Spang & Diane Milligan 27 Cal & Judy Benhardt Flowers ($22.00 per bouquet) 6 Naukum / Edingfield 13 Bletsch / Van Remmen / Edingfield 20 Joseph / Joseph 27 Wende / Wende Flower Pick Up Deborah Gillson Altar Guild Jenny Myers & Linda Scheidt Ushers Fred Grosz & Bob Smith 2 Arthur McAnally 4 Chuck Wende 9 Martha Hodges 12 Debbie Gudgel 15 Christine Henkel 17 Bill Little 18 Ella Dockins 20 Cannon McMahan Tom Ziebell 23 Ginnie Hankey 28 Rohan Little 29 Evie Henson Flower: Birthstone: Chrysanthemum Topaz 13 Marc & Christine Henkel 19 Bill & Lois Joseph Jennifer Myers & Patrick Mason 22 Chuck & Carolee Wende 24 Lou Bletsch & Holly Van Remmen These are the known birthdays and anniversaries for the month of December. If there is an error, or if your special day is not listed, please let us know. We don t want to leave anyone out! Drop us a line: ourlordsokc@gmail.com or Directory Changes/Corrections Jacob Edingfield 4025 NW 60th St. Oklahoma City, OK Home Phone: Karen Foran NW 111th St. Yukon, OK Phone numbers remain the same. Pastor Amanda Esping Cell Phone:

5 We had a faithful group of volunteers at our regular November shift at the Regional Food Bank. For a change, we bagged frozen blueberries, a very healthy addition to everyone s diet. Oklahoma has one of the lowest rankings in the country for eating fruits and vegetables, so this was a welcome addition to foods available to the needy. The Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma is a very good steward of funds provided to them, a mere 4% of donated dollars. This is largely due to relying on volunteer support. So you see it is a very worthy cause and everyone s help is appreciated. Our faithful OLLC volunteers were: Wayne Craney, Carmen Craney, Patrick Craney, Dick Morrow, Judy Spencer, Lloyd Scheidt, Don Zachritz, Carolyn Zachritz, Fred Grosz, Lou Ann Bletsch, Holly Van Remmen, John Tassey, Wayne Karst, Larry Eberhardt, Wendi Ainswort h, and Loree McMahan. Our next scheduled date is Saturday, December 5th, 9am- 12pm. Due to the New Year s Holiday, the Food Bank has changed our January stint to Saturday, January 9th, from 9am to 12pm. Carolyn Zachritz SAVE THE DATE: CHILI COOKOFF Our annual Chili Cookoff is scheduled for Sunday, January 17. Brush up on your chili recipes and get them ready for our big competition. All proceeds from the free-will offering will benefit Prison Ministry. Project Updates The lighting project and installation of outlets in the altar area have been completed. So far, comments on the lighting have all been positive and the added outlets in the altar area will be appreciated by those who will be putting up the Christmas greenery and tree. Thanks to all who helped with this project and especially to the Collings and Zachritz families for their generous financial support. John Tassey, Ron Maxfield and Fred Grosz trimmed many of the Bradford pear trees and disposed of the trimmings. This should help reduce possible damage in case of snow or ice storms and also increases visibility of the church sign and the church facilities. They also replaced a deadbolt lock on the shed and fixed the damaged entry door. A new drinking water fountain has been ordered and should be installed by the time you read this. A contractor has been contacted to provide a bid to repair the rusted out air ducts under the sanctuary. When and if satisfactory bids are acquired, a proposal will be presented to Church Council. The leaking roof in the Bilingual school room (old Sanctuary) is still an issue, but is being addressed. Last chance for you to submit a claim for some surplus tables, chairs, a piano, and copy machine. It is intended to advertise them in Craig s List very soon. Resources Committee Men s Group Next meeting is Thursday, December 3rd, at 6:30 p.m. All men are welcome to attend. A good time will be had by all!

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