A NEW BEGINNING FOR ST. JOHN S

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1 ST. JOHN S EVANGELICAL LUTHERAN CHURCH Rev. Joseph E. McInnis, Lead Pastor Robert McConnell, Music Director and Organist Janis B. Wendel, Administrative Assistant Efren Frausto, Custodian 1235 Wilmette Avenue Wilmette, Illinois phone fax web stjohnswilmette.com churchoffice@stjohnswilmette.com Facebook St. John s Lutheran Church Wilmette, IL APRIL, 2016 St. John s Lutheran Church is a caring place where everyone can live, learn and grow together in Christ. A NEW BEGINNING FOR ST. JOHN S Spring is the season for new beginnings and that s exactly what this season is calling for. It s calling for a new beginning for our church to be launched in conjunction with the completion of Phase I of our building program. The time is right for one and is coming soon! This new beginning calls for a new mission statement, one that makes it clear to us and everyone that outreach is our passion and our top priority. When the renovations are done, we will have something new to invite guests to come and see. And when they do, we need to be ready with some new or newly-renovated programs that will keep them coming back. The first step is to get our friends and neighbors to come and take a look. The second step is to get them to come back. That means having more than just some nice new ministry spaces to look at. We also need to have engaging faith formation programs that have been designed with their needs in mind. For example: A Mommy and Me program that brings mothers with young children together with other mothers with young children. This program is a proven winner in our community, and it s a great way to get new families active in a life of faith formation right from the start. A newly-renovated nursery and child care center. We need a dedicated kiddie space with a wow factor that will make kids and parents eager to come back every Sunday. This is an absolute must if one of our primary goals is to reach out to the young families moving into Wilmette. And of course, we need to post photos of it online, because that s how families church shop now. If we don t have a fabulous new nursery and child care center to tout at the end of Phase I of our building renovations, we will have missed our outreach boat.

2 These are just two ideas in one important area of a more comprehensive outreach strategy that will mark this new beginning for St. John s. There are other areas that we need to address too, including outreach to seniors, empty-nesters, couples and singles. With all this in mind and more, I m calling for a special congregational leadership retreat this spring to begin these conversations. We need a comprehensive outreach strategy and a mission statement to guide us. We all need to be part of this new beginning. We all need to start looking at our church as more than just a place for us to come once a week to re-charge our spiritual batteries. We all need to begin thinking about how we can actively reach out to people in our community. That s why we voted to take on this building project in the first place, and that s why God planted the mustard seed of this church here all those years ago. He planted it that it might grow up into the greatest of all the shrubs and put forth large branches that the families around us may come and make nests in its shade. Now is the time for us to begin thinking, praying and talking about how we can best do that with the resources God has blessed us with. Now is the time for St. John s to begin preparing for a new beginning. Pastor Joe St. John s Church Property Building Project In March, the momentum continued for our building project. The Building Committee is continuing to finalize our architectural contract with Groth Design Group, and we extend our thanks to Julie Seymour for her help in this process. The Committee has begun soliciting bids from three potential construction managers as well. While the bidding process can take some time, we are currently hoping to begin the construction process in the fall. The Finance Committee has ruled out one of three potential lenders, leaving us with two excellent choices for when construction financing is needed. With 75 contributors to the project, and over 1/3 of our total collected, we are off to a good start financially. Our first annual follow-up appeal is scheduled to take place in May. We hope to pick up a few more contributors and gifts to the campaign. The Communications and Outreach Committee did not meet in March, due to some scheduling difficulties, but has begun discussing what our outreach plan would look like for the next few years. Overall, this exciting new chapter in our church s history continues to unfold. We appreciate all of your support and input thus far, and welcome your ongoing questions, comments, and above all, your prayers. Luke Rasmussen Communications and Outreach Committee

3 ADULT FORUM Beginning on April 3rd, we will begin a DVD/discussion series by Marcus Borg and John Dominic Crosson titled "First Light, Jesus and the Kingdom of God." This series was filmed on location throughout Galilee and Jerusalem. Our small group meets at 9:15-10:15 am Sunday mornings in the parlor on the lower level. Join us for some interesting history and discussion / response. CHERRY BLOSSOM TIME It may be time to celebrate cherry blossom time in Washington DC, but it's also time to celebrate and participate in the opportunity to support oppressed olive growers in Palestine. You can do this by purchasing Fair Trade, extra virgin olive oil, available at St. John's, either in the gym or in the church office. A new shipment has just arrived, and invites you to more tasty, healthy eating.

4 SUNDAY SCHOOL Alleluia! The Lord Has Risen! Our biggest change to the Sunday School program this year was our Funday School format. The kids really enjoy relating our Bible story to a craft or maybe even a game or two. We have the older kids back in a classroom setting and it is my understanding that both students and teachers are having a good time. Believe it or not, at the time of this newsletter we will have about eight Sundays left for this year. Shortly after the Funday School year comes to a close, I would like to have a parents meeting and brainstorm on how we could build off of this new format and continue to make church a positive experience in the lives of kids in our St. John s family. I would like to have a couple service Sundays this summer. The kids would work on a service project during church service and we would come back and join our families for Communion. If you have a suggestion for a project please let me know. Please mark your calendars for VBS! We will once again be participating in Wilmette Ecumenical VBS Camp. This year, VBS will be held at Winnetka Covenant Church, 1200 Hibbard Rd. Wilmette (the corner of Illinois and Hibbard). VBS will be held the week of June 20 th!! Yes, it is early this year. Please think about participating. It is a lot of fun for the kids to gather for activities and fellowship with their school friends. More information to follow. Praise the Lord, Laura Witt Funday School Leader TASTE OF FAMILY PROMISE! Dinner & Celebration! Food from the Many Family Promise Congregations SUNDAY, APRIL 17, :00 P.M. Northfield Community Church 400 Wagner Rd. Northfield Entertainment Raffles Surprises Meet & Catch Up with Current & Former Guests Donations accepted at the door. All proceeds to help families return to stability Those bringing food to share, please arrive by 4:30 p.m.

5 MARK YOUR CALENDARS NOW!! ST. JOHN S ANNUAL CHURCH PICNIC!! Sunday, May 22, 2016 Noon Harms Woods, Grove #5, Skokie (Parking lot is located by Harms Rd. & Old Orchard Rd. Don t miss this fantastic old-fashioned church picnic, complete with GREAT FUN! DELICIOUS FOOD! AWESOME FELLOWSHIP! Hamburgers, hot dogs, water and lemonade will be provided. Please bring a side dish, salad or dessert to pass. Games for young and old alike!

6 WOMEN OF ST. JOHN S ALL women in the congregation are included in the Women of St. John's group. There are no dues, meetings or other requirements for membership. Our primary goal is fellowship. April showers bring Barbara! Join us Monday, April 18 at 10 a.m. for a Barbara Rinella dramatization of Circling the Sun by Paula McLain Coffee, Tea & Pastries $20 -Tickets available on Sundays & in the church office Book Club No excuse for not joining us for the next book club because we are reading Circling the Sun by Paula McLain. Stay tuned for the date. Happy Hour We are so happy it s spring that we are celebrating with a happy hour! Watch for the announcement of date & time Quilting Ever wonder what goes on at quilting for Lutheran World Relief? No mystery just good conversation while we push needles & tie knots. Join us Thursdays 4/14 & 4/28 anytime between 10 a.m. 2 p.m.

7 You are invited to Holy Family Ministries annual dinner and auction, Reach for the Stars. The benefit will take place on Saturday, April 23 rd at 6:00 p.m. at Skokie Country Club (500 Washington Avenue, Glencoe). Through the generosity of friends like you, we raise funds to support the almost 500 children who excel academically, grow spiritually and expand their life experiences through Holy Family programs. Enjoy the fellowship of new and long-time friends, along with good food, live and silent auctions, and a chance to meet Holy Family students. It s a party-with-a-purpose and sure to be an inspirational evening! NORTH SHORE INTERFAITH LEADERSHIP AWARD On April 17 at 1:00 P.M., local high school students will be recognized for their service to God and their faith community at the seventh annual North Shore Interfaith Leadership Awards. The ceremony will be held in Foundation Hall at the Baha i Temple on Sheridan Road. While St. Johns does not have any high school youth being recognized this year, you are encouraged to attend in support of those young people who are actively involved in their faith community. May God bless them as they continue to work to make this world a better place for everyone! RUMMAGE We can now post and sell your donated items online - cars, furniture, electronics, appliances, tools, jewelry, furs, stamps, coins, etc. Of course, newer and gently used items sell best. If you have an item you would like to donate to the church for an online sale, please or call the church office for more information. All Items sold in April and May will benefit Lutheran Campus Ministry at Northwestern University. All donations are tax deductible at time of sale.

8 A MESSAGE FROM THE COUNCIL PRESIDENT Progress continues with our many priorities in Council, and we ask for your prayers and support during this busy time. Pastor Joe had the opportunity to interview a promising candidate for our pastoral intern. Pray that we find a mutually beneficial arrangement for both St. John s and the candidate. The Building and Finance committees have met and we are moving toward a contract and loan application. The first anniversary of the campaign is approaching and donations are tracking as expected THANK YOU for your support! The new benevolence funding method had its first big boost at Easter. While totals are not in as of my writing, I m optimistic that between the Easter breakfast and service offerings, we ll be well on our way to meeting our $30,000 goal. Benevolence Update: As of February, we collected $756 in giving and $620 for in-kind giving for a total of $1,376 (5% of total). Giving includes: $620- Brother Dano s Sandwich Ministry sandwiches. $360 - the kids noisy offering to SINFA. $239 - the confirmation class SouperBowl of Caring. $109 Lenten supper offerings to LSSI. $48 Family Promise giving. Way to go! Kristen Danielsen COUNCIL HIGHLIGHTS Here are highlights from the March 8, 2016 Council meeting: o Electricity usage for February and March is approximately one-third of last year. o As of the end of February, envelope offerings were at 87% of budget, and we are at 88% of the budgeted total revenue ($38,947). o Expenses were at 96% of budget ($50,465).With the apartment, our current deficit is $10,539. This includes having paid a $5,500 real estate tax bill for the apartment. o The Building Committee is soliciting bids from 3 construction managers. o Pastor Joe conducted an in-person interview with Eric Schaefer on March 7. Mutually positive feelings followed the meeting. The candidate expressed a desire to work with youth and family, and is also very savvy with technology. o Ticket sales for the Easter Breakfast are going well. o The Nominating Committee is working on putting together a slate of candidates for Council for the next term. The Annual meeting with Council elections is June 12, 2016.

9 Have We Always Done It That Way? This is reprinted from one of the weekly stewardship s written by Adam Copeland, the Director of the Center for Stewardship Leaders at Luther Seminary. It may be a surprise to many readers that early American churches received funds in two ways that, today, would be non-starters in most congregations. From the country s founding until the early 1800s or so, many congregations were supported by taxes. In his book, In Pursuit of The Almighty s Dollar, James Hudnut-Beumler refers to this move towards religious disestablishment as the largest instance of privatization in all of American history; it moved a large part of the traditional public sector into the private marketplace in a relatively short period of years. Now that churches were no longer supported by tax dollars, church leaders turned towards other regular forms of income. Renting or selling pews was common, a practice in which families would pay an annual fee to use a particular pew. The more expensive ones were often found near the heater. Free pews were available in the back or balcony, setting up a clear hierarchy of membership. Churches also held suppers, socials, and raffles to raise funds for their work and ministry. By the late 1800s, searching for news ways to support the church and its mission, many pastors explicitly taught tithing to their members, though the practice never fully caught on. Hudnut-Beumler describes their approach: tithing was attractive as a source of funding to the degree that clergy could convince themselves and others that it was a spiritual law, as unappealable as the laws motion, force, and gravity. Clergy often emphasized that these funds would go to support Christian missionaries. Giving to the church was understood as a moral duty prescribed by scripture. Such an emphasis on giving spawned interesting practices. For example, the son of a Methodis t pastor recalled that prominent members of his father s congregation would elect to give their pledge not to the treasurer, but straight to the pastor. That way the pastor would know that they were faithful givers. The pastor always carried an account book for this purpose. In the early 1900s, congregations embraced a new technology: the offering envelope! As church publishing companies race to produce enough envelopes to supply the growing demand, pastors welcomed the opportunity to move towards unified giving. If all the funds to the church were received in one envelope, the congregation could build a more reliable annual common budget. Soon, the envelope technology shifted again, and the church welcomed a two-pocket, duplex envelope system in which members could put funds to the local church in one pocket of the envelope, and funds for missions, world missions, and benevolences in the other. The Reverend Samuel Stein, pastor of Zion Lutheran Church in Springfield, Ohio praised these new envelopes for they allowed people to give fifty-two times a year rather than saving up for an annual gift. Further, the envelopes supported regular giving, by which Pastor Stein explained, regularity here means good order. Another church, in 1924, announced about their monthly duplex envelope system: Thus the habit of regular, joyous giving is formed and the givers are conscious that they are real members of the church and not occasional visitors, who come and go as their comfort and desire may dictate. Alas, I don t have space here to write about the changes in the way pastors preached about money, or note shifts in how congregations addressed money in worship and collected the offering itself. But I hope appreciating even this brief history might open us to exploring how we are funding the church -- and God s broader mission -- today. Next week, I ll turn specifically to electronic giving, a technology unimaginable to the church of the early 1900s, but essential to our church leadership of the early 2000s. Cindi Rachowicz, Treasurer