CROSS ROADS NEWSLETTER ELEVA LUTHERAN CHURCH 50553 South 2nd Street Eleva, WI 54738 715-287-4231 Pastor Bob Castro November 2017
CROSS+ROADS NEWSLETTER November 2017 ELEVA LUTHERAN CHURCH elevalc@triwest.net Webpage elevalc.org Office 715-287-4231 Hours: 8-1 Monday Thursday Dial-up Worship 715-287-4137 Pastor Bob Home: 715-287-3351 Pastor Bob Cell: 920-382-6424 Pastor Bob Email bcastro@tcc.coop Or lauva1956@gmail.com Council President Jon Zander 608-606-1213 Vice President Kris Monson 715-695-3676 Secretary Mary Berg 715-287-4239 Trustees: Dianne Nichols Paul Olsen JoAnn Adams Bill Smith Dick Evenson Deacons: Sandy Wathke Inez Semingson John Nelson Jesse Franck Jodi Mai ELCW President Vonnie Olson Sunday School Superintendent Kelly Tollefson-Oium From the lion s den O sing to the LORD a new song; sing to the LORD, all the earth. 2 Sing to the LORD, bless his name; tell of his salvation from day to day. 3 Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous works among all the peoples. Psalm 96: 1-3 Dear Friends in Christ and Fellow Ministers, A few weeks ago I had the chance to share with our Sunday School children following their special music in church. I shared that Martin Luther held singing in worship second only to sound theology (teaching about God) in the life of the Church. John Calvin, Father of the Presbyterian Church, famously stated, The one who sings prays twice. We are very intentional about arranging music sung in worship to be shared in a way that is sing-able. Some of the songs that New Sounds, Messengers or Ad Hoc share may have verses that are a bit complicated at times. But we make sure that the refrain / chorus is very accessible and sing-able. One of the statements I made to our children is something I think I ll be repeating often: Worship is what friendship looks like when your friend is God. We work very hard to make our worship engaging (which is not the same as entertaining). The goal of worship is relatively straightforward, but deeply profound: to encounter God in a special way. That is why we work so hard on making worship engaging to engage with God in our worship. Singing is a big part of that. You may notice that Messengers are singing songs over again with some regularity. This is intentional. We want to increase your comfort level with newer songs, so that you will be more and more encouraged to join in singing with us. Except for special music, we are not up there to perform. We are committed to leading you in worship singing. (Even with special music our goal is to sing to, point to, and give glory to God.) So all of us in the music program at ELC hope and pray that you will be encouraged to sing along with us as we lift our worship up to God. Yours and His, but not in that order, Pastor Bob 2
A SERIES OF SERMON SERIES A sermon series is a way to build interest as the theme progresses over several Sundays. In the past at ELC I have done a sermon series on the seven Living Faith Practices: pray, worship, study, invite, encourage, serve, give. I also did a sermon series on the parts of our worship service last winter. This past summer I did a sermon series on the Reformation in Prague, Czech Republic; Wittenberg Germany; and London, England as we approach the 500th Anniversary of The German Reformation. On October 29th, Reformation Sunday, I will begin the first of three Sunday sermon series. From October 29th through November I will be preaching on the Martin Luther s Five Solas : Scripture alone; Faith alone; Grace alone; for God s glory alone; and Christ alone. Then, beginning the very next Sunday for Advent, I will be preaching a sermon series on the meaning of the four Advent candles: Hope, Love, Joy and Peace. Following Christmas, in January, I will be sharing a sermon series on the FAITH5 devotion system for family devotions before bedtime: share, read, talk, pray, bless. These are the three Sunday morning sermon series. With the beginning of Lent on Ash Wednesday, we will be doing a series for our Wednesday evening services on angels of the Bible: Angels from the Realms of Glory. I hope that you will find these series interesting, engaging and enlightening. Pastor Bob All these people are facing challenges in the their life. Your prayers could help them. Remember that a card of thinking about you could brighten their day as well. The Family and Friends of Lori Mai. The Family and Friends of Gertrude Tryggestad. The Family and Friends of Gary Monson. Our members in nursing homes: Clarence Rasmussen, and Doris Sather in Strum; Marian Rudy in Syverson Rehab in Eau Claire, Aldene Opland in Chippewa Falls, and Elaine Welge in Heritage Assisted living. -Those with special concerns: Robert Tollefson, Sr., JoAnn Strong, LaVerne Franson, Shawn Peterson; Stanley (Stubby) Gunderson, Paulette Tollefson, Chad Castro, Danielle Melgaard, Kathy Spangberg, Vonnie Olson, Alton and Joyce Hageness, Mariah Steffenson, Catherine Palmer, Wilma Knutson, Heather Darner, Cristi Peterson, Aldene Opland, Julie Eide, Michael Tryggestad, Duaine Semingson, Jeri Opland, Richard Pederson, Brian Bertrang, James and Shirley Alsip, Olivia Bolstad, Elaine Welge, Nyky Black. If you or a member of your family would like to be on the Prayer Concerns list, please call Vonnie Olson at 715-287-4223 the Church Office at 715-2874231 3
ARE YOU INTESTED IN LEARNING TO PLAY GUITAR? Did you know that our new guitar player, Adam Thoms, teaches guitar lessons at Morgan Music in Eau Claire? If you have been considering taking up guitar, you can contact Morgan Music and arrange with lessons through Adam. Rya Ols and Ka sandra Kun we e j ned Hol matr m Saturda, Octobe 21, 2017. We pra God will les e pa h a e start e li e to e e a u band and wi e! C n ratulati n r e C n egati of Eleva Lu era C ur h. Saylor Rose Kostner was baptized on Sunday, October 15, 2017.Saylor is the daughter of Richard and Jessica Kostner. Her sponsors are Heather and Dave Glidden. Devlyn Elmer Knudtson was baptized on Sunday, October 15, 2017. Devlyn is the son of Jessie Knudtson and Natisha Nelson. His sponsors are Shane and Sarah Knudtson, Dana Kensmore, and Kate Below. Edmond Eli Lueloff was baptized on Sunday, October 22, 2017. Edmond is the son of Michael and Rebecca Lueloff. His sponsor is Kimberly Pospychalla. Xander Jon Larson was baptized on Sunday, October 29, 2017. Xander is the son of Aaron and Jennifer Larson. His sponsors are Jon Wright, Sarah Larson, and Jill Moore. What a wonderful treasure to have FOUR new members in one month come to Eleva Lutheran. We ask that God will bless these children and their families and that they will come back to hear the word of the Lord for a lifetime. We would also like to thank Clara Walde!! She makes all our baptismal hankies to dry the heads of the babies. Such an awesome job Clara!! CELEBRATION CORNER By Pastor Bob This is something new I m adding to our newsletter. It is a place where we can list celebrations such as milestones or accomplishments. This is your section. Feel free to call or email Nancy with your celebration information, and she will put it here in the newsletter. We celebrate Mr. and Mrs. Ryan Olson, Saylor Kostner, Devlyn Kundtson, Edmond Lueloff, and Xander Larson 4
Eleva Lutheran s Community Dinner will be Sunday, November 5 from 5 to 6. As we begin our fall dinners, we have placed a sign-up sheet on the bulletin board across from Pastor s office to provide a convenient opportunity for you to volunteer to help with the dinners. This is a great chance for families to work together on a project, but also for individuals who have been asking how they can get involved. We have planned out the menus for the year, so you can make donations of specific food items as well as sign up to pre/serve/clean up. Thank you in advance for continuing to support the Community Dinners. Thank you to Jodi, Ryan, and Justin Mai for their help in October! We heard that Ryan and Justin are great help in the kitchen!! Also Thank you to Tami Zander and Jody Sandberg for dessert. Please join us in November Turkey, Mashed Potatoes, dressing, Rutabagas, green peas, rolls, dessert, milk, and coffee. Desserts will be from Judy Matchey and Mary Berg. Diane and Gary Hillestad will be volunteering as kitchen staff. Community Dinner Committee ELEVA LUTHERAN S FIRST ALL CONGREGATIONAL SUNDAY SCHOOL!! It was a great success! Many many people of all ages turned out for the first all congregation Sunday school event. We started in the church by singing with the kids their favorite Sunday school songs. Then everyone went to the Fellowship Hall where first the Luther Rose was made from paper and then was made in an eatable state!! I am not sure which one everyone liked the best!! Afterward the Luther Rose was proudly displaced on everyone tables and the eatable rose was indeed ate, we all gathered for a German dinner of brats, German potato salad, and German chocolate cake! All this was in celebration of our 500th Reformation anniversary. We thank the education committee for all their efforts in making this happen!! Great Job! We thank the Men s group for paying for the delicious dinner and serving everyone! 5
Thoughts on the Elevator by Dick Evenson Our elevator recently was inspected for safety and it passed. That is the good news. The bad news is that it is about 35 years old and they quit making them 20 years ago. Think of it as driving a Studebaker: it may run fine now but if it breaks down, you have a problem. Parts are not being made anymore. Things have changed over the years and the least expensive replacement would have entry doors operated by a push button on the wall. These doors have become almost standard on public buildings. The lift itself has no doors, but is designed with very close tolerances for safety. The lift we have would not meet current codes, but is grandfathered in. If we keep the lift in the same location, we are allowed to install a replacement without architect and engineering fees and hopefully with minor structural changes. If we move to another location in the church the cost of the lift stays the same, but we would need an architect and incur construction costs as well. Some lifts have interior gates or doors, some look like a hotel elevator. moving the lift to the narthex has been discussed many times and it is possible, but all of these would be more expensive. I asked the elevator people fro an estimate on the cost of installing an elevator which could accommodate a casket. They declined. I then asked if it could be done for a quarter of a million and they said no. Understanding that the lift companies cant give us a bid until we know what we want, they were willing to provide rough estimates so that we can make some decisions. They agreed that $35,000.00 is probably the least for replacement: a similar lift with gates or doors $45,000.00, and a lift that looks and operates like a hotel elevator, $65,000.00. As I said, the lift we have is legal and working. We need to plan for the day when that is not the case. Dear Friends in Christ, Our next regular meeting will be at the church on Thursday, November 9th at 1:00 p.m. Sue Rotvold and Arva Kvam are our hostesses so be prepared for something really special. We will approve the budget for the next year. Steve Nelson of Thrivent Financial will make a short presentation. We have benefited from several of their programs so please come to hear more. We will have our prayer meeting at 12:00 noon. Please join us! There are many bowls and cake pans on the back cupboard waiting to be claimed. Please take a look if one of them might belong to you. There are Our Daily Bread devotional books on the rack in the south entrance of the narthex. Feel free to pick one up. The ELCW pays for these fine books so that anyone can enjoy them. We have been asked to furnish desserts for the men s Harvest Dinner on November 12. I guess we can do that!! Someone was so nice as to cast an anonymous vote to keep the same officers for next year! Thanks a lot!! HA. We do enjoy the privileges of serving in this capacity so will do our best to do our job. The frost will be on the pumpkin soon, so bundle up! Your servant in Him Vonnie Olson 6
THE FALL HARVEST DINNER IS SET FOR NOVEMBER 12, 2017 LUTEFISK/LEFSE/MEATBALLS AND ALL THE TRIMMINGS Lutefisk and Meatballs Dinner: Adults ~ $14.00 Meatball Dinner: Adults ~ $10.00 Children 6 thru 12 ~ $5.00 Five and Under ~ Free This dinner is brought to you by the Men s Group of Eleva Lutheran. This is their one fund raiser for the year that gives campership monies to our young students that go to Luther Park in the summer! This year they have given to campers, given to the Christmas from the Heart, given to the quilters to help them spread their mission work in the United States, bought children s Bibles for our young students, and paid for the food at the German dinner on October 29, 2017. We have got a fantastic Men s Group and we thank them so much for their dedication and support. ****************************** Now, we have a new flavor of the month!! It goes right along with our Fall Dinner menu!! Is anyone up to the taste test??? I believe all Norwegians start their 3 month old babies on this product...how else could they develop a taste for this treat Just kidding, but you gotta admit to a German, its kinda funny! 7
Youth group fundraiser The Sunday school children will be having a bake-less bake sale on Sunday November 12th during our Harvest dinner at church. Instead of selling bake goods, they will be accepting monetary donations to contribute towards their youth group activities. This enables the children to participate in fun, eventful activities throughout the year at no charge or with minimal cost to them. Anybody who wishes to contribute may drop their donations off in the Sunday school office, or in a donation box that will be placed in the entry during the Harvest dinner. The Sunday school children enjoy being able to do fun things throughout the year and Thank you for your support in helping this happen for them! Kelly Tollefson-Oium Sunday school Superintendent Eleva Lutheran Church Partners In Praise and New Sounds "Now, O God, we thank You and praise Your glorious name. 1 Chronicles 29: 13 The first couple of months of choir practice have gone exceptionally well. We could use some additional singers especially Sopranos. If you are available this is the perfect time of year to join because we are starting to work on our Christmas music. Members of Partners in Praise and the Klinge Kor have been busy preparing for the Thanksgiving Eve service which will be held at Immanuel Lutheran on November 22.. Partners In Praise will sing, Give God Thanks. We will also sing with the mass choir. As Thanksgiving quickly approaches, I am especially thankful for all of the wonderful people who share their musical talent with us at Eleva Lutheran. Thank you for all of your hard work and dedication to sharing the Gospel message through your music. Mark your calendars for the Little Christmas Eve service which will be held on December 23rd at 7:00 pm. Jody Sandberg 8
Betty Johnson, Stewardship Secretary THANK YOU to Rich and Debbie Wright for the quilting material that was from Richard s mother, Lenore Heinemann to our quilting group. It is so much appreciated. We packed up our quilts and kits and the confirmation kids helped pack them into Dick Evenson s camper for storage. I later learned that Sue Rotvold had been talking with Nancy Hansen about our quilts and had been discussing a place in Florida that needed them so desperately. They are going to the LeeConlee Home for abused women in Putman County Flordia. Nancy s sister-in-law is the Executive director in charge at the home. Because of the hurricane and because they operate on limited funds, Nancy contacted them and asked if these quilts of ours could be something that they could use. To quote Shandra Riffey, Nancy! That is incredible. I cannot thank you enough. What a generous act of giving from your women s group. Please know I am floored and humbled. Hugs Shandra. So, on Wednesday, October 25, Sue and Dave Rotvold, Nancy and Guy Hansen, Mae Benedict, Dick Evenson, and I got together and put 7 large boxes together to send to Florida. They did not need the school kits but got 12 personal care kits as well as some wonderful hand knitted sweaters with matching caps made by our own Gen Pedersen. Sue Rotvold used a $250.00 debit card given to her from Thrivent Financial to be used on our mission operation! We thank Thrivent Financial for seeing the goodness in this project. The money was used to buy the sturdy boxes, tape and the postage to ship the quilts via Fed-Ex. We do thank you Sue for arranging to obtain the $250.00 making this whole thing possible. Our sewing day will be Tuesday, November 28, at 9 - l p.m. with a potluck lunch. Stay tuned for next months update on the arrival of the quilts in Florida!!! Dave Rotvold, Sue Rotvold, Mae Benedict, Betty Johnson, Guy Hansen, and Nancy Hansen...the packing crew. Dave Evenson, not pictured was the Camper Express that brought all the quilts to the church! Never mind the noise in car! Tee hee Packing, packing, and packing! We threatened to Put Betty Johnson in a box and ship her to Florida! Well she was cold! Seven boxes to Fed-Ex Office.. Thanks to Ky Kvam our Fed-Ex specialist for his help obtaining an account of our own to ship at a great rate! 9
CHECKING/SAVINGS SEPTEMBER 2017 Here are the facts and nothing but the facts: General account: Deposits: $ 10,712.05 Expenses: $ 10,829.60 Missions account Deposits: $ 322.57 Expenses: $ 704.17 (There are many openings. Remember a loved one today...sign up.) Balances of all accounts: Building: $ Pastors Youth Fund: Local Missions Fund: Seminary Fund: Halvorson Perpetual: Memorial Fund: Altar Guild Fund: Latvia Mission Fund: M G Organ Fund Genesis Youth 7,287.98 630.57 1,407.06 3.56 632.86 1,851.94 396.86 780.48 2,354.31 232.29 3,026.89 Loan with united bank is $ 24,985.00. Jon Zander will be placing an order for Eleva Lutheran Sweatshirts and Tee Shirts soon. If you would like one, please contact Jon or the Office to place your order! Sweatshirts are: $15.00, Tee Shirts are 10.00, Hoodies are 20.00. 10
Eleva Lutheran Church council minutes The October 2, 2017 meeting of the Eleva Lutheran Church Council was called to order at 6:30 p.m. by President Jon Zander. Present: President Jon Zander, Vice-President Kris Monson, Secretary Mary Berg. Trustees: JoAnn Adams and Bill Smith Deacons: Sandy Wathke, Inez Semingson, John Nelson, Jessica Franck and Jodi Mai ELCW President: Vonnie Olson Church Secretary: Nancy Hansen Jon Zander read opening devotions. Nancy Hansen advised she made a correction regarding her PTO time to the September 11, 2017 council meeting minutes. Inez Semingson made a motion to approve the corrected September 11, 2017 council meeting minutes. Motion seconded by Jessica Franck. Motion carried. The council reviewed the treasurer s report. At the beginning of the summer our outstanding loan amount was $11,200.00. It was necessary to borrow an additional $13,800.00 during the summer months to meet our monthly expenses and our outstanding loan is now maxed out at $25,000.00. Bill Smith made a motion, seconded by Sandy Wathke, to approve the treasurer s report. Motion carried. PASTOR S REPORT: Pastor Castro is not able to attend the council meeting this month because of the Alpha Course schedule. Jon Zander read Pastor Castro s report. He is planning both a youth movie night and movie night for adults in early November. Anita Castro and Becky Lueloff have invited Josh Pedersen and Nick Thompson to come to their 6 th and 7th grade Sunday School class to share their experience on the mission trip to Latvia. Pastor Castro had the opportunity to appear as part of the Our Savior s Reformation Celebration in Whitehall as Martin Luther. REPORTS: Vonnie Olson reported that the ELCW had an outing at Hansen s Hold-up, their election of officers will be this month and there is also an upcoming Dairyland conference workshop. ELCM will be meeting at Andy Pedersen s in October and will be discussing the lutefisk dinner for Sunday, November 12, 2017. Jessica Franck reported on the plans for Reformation Sunday, October 29, 2017. The Thanksgiving Service is scheduled to be held at Immanuel Lutheran in Strum this year. OLD BUSINESS: Per the request at the 2017 annual meeting, the Eleva Lutheran Endowment Trust Fund investment has been reviewed. The previous investment rate was.30% and has been changed to 1.51% for 3 years at United Bank. NEW BUSINESS: Inez Semingson made a motion to purchase additional storage capacity for Sound Cloud at the cost of $63.00 per year from the Undesignated Memorial Fund account. This will allow 5 to 6 services to be posted on the Eleva Lutheran worship service app. Motion seconded by Kris Monson. Motion carried. Providing a family/child friendly worship area within the church s sanctuary has been recommended as part of the Comprehensive Ministry Review and Cross Generational project. After discussion, Bill Smith made a motion to remove 3 back half (1/2) west side church pews to provide a family/child friendly worship area on a trial basis by December 1st. Motion seconded by Sandy Wathke. Motion carried. John Nelson volunteered to get a group together to work on this project. The church council recently held a workshop to begin creating a vision statement for Eleva Lutheran. A copy of the draft vision statement was provided to the council members and will continue to be worked on. The electrical repairs at the parsonage are being worked on. The vacant council trustee position of Harvey Barneson was discussed. Jon Zander requested names of possible replacements. OPEN DISCUSSION: Mary Berg requested the council to be thinking about possible events for the upcoming 125 th anniversary of Eleva Lutheran in 2018. A possible change to a more reading appropriate Bible for the 3 rd grade Sunday School class was discussed. Jon Zander will take care of ordering the reviewed and Pastor approved Bibles appropriate for early readers. A motion was made, seconded and carried to adjourn at 8:10 p.m. Motion carried. We closed with The Lord s Prayer. Our next council meeting is scheduled for November 6, 2017 at 6:30 p.m. with Jodi Mai giving devotions. Respectfully Submitted, Mary Berg Mary Berg, Church Council Secretary 11
CROSS+ROADS COMMUNIQUE 2017 November 5: All Saints Day November 5: Free Community Dinner. Serving 5-6 p.m. November 12: Fall Harvest Dinner 10:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. November 22: Thanksgiving Eve Service at Immanuel Strum 7:00 p.m. November 26: Christ the King Sunday December 23: Little Christmas Eve Service 7:00 p.m. December 24: Christmas Eve Service 4:00 p.m. (No 9:00 a.m. service) December 25: Christmas Day Service 9:00 a.m. If you have an event to list in the Cross+Roads Communique` please call Nancy at the Church Office at 715-287-4231 prior to the Cross+Roads deadline. Thank you! Pastor Bob s Email bcastro@tcc.coop The Eleva Lutheran Prayer Chain is available for anyone that would like to have a prayer said in strong faith with our Eleva Women. Please call Vonnie Olson at 715-287-4223 to make your request. Prayer is a powerful thing and these ladies have been serving Eleva Lutheran for many years with thousands of prayers. Keep the Prayer Patrol working for our families. They do such a great job. Thank you. MISSION STATEMENT "We are a community of believers called and inspired by Christ's love, sharing God's gifts through worship, teaching, service, and fellowship. We seek with joy God's vision of uniting all people in Christ through faith." 12
NOVEMBER 2017 Sun 5 ALL SAINTS DAY Holy Communion Service 9:00 am Choir Sunday School 10:15 am Mon 6 Church Council Meeting 6:30 p.m. Community Dinner 5-6 p.m. 12 Messengers Play Worship Service 9:00 a.m. Choir Sunday School 10:15 am FALL HARVEST DINNER 10:30 1:00 13 26 Christ the King Worship Service 9:00 Messengers Play Holy Communion No Sunday School 7 Pastors Text Study 9:30 a.m. Workout class 6:30 to 7:30 Fellowship hall 14 Pastors Text Study 9:30 a.m. Men s Group 6:30 Workout class 6:30 to 7:30 Fellowship hall Lutefisk and Meatballs 19 Choir will sing Worship Service 9:00 Sunday School 10:15 am Tue 20 Cross+Roads Deadline New Sounds Practice 6:30 p.m. 21 Pastors Text Study 9:30 a.m. Osseo 27 28 Pastors Text Study 9:30 a.m. Osseo Workout class 6:30 to 7:30 Fellowship hall Workout class 6:30 to 7:30 Fellowship hall Wed Thu 1 No Klinge Kor Practice No Choir Practice Confirmation 8th 3:45 pm Confirmation 9th 7:00 2 8 Klinge Kor Practice 6:15 Choir 7:30 p.m. 9 ELCW 1:00 p.m. Meeting - Sue Rotvold and Arva Kvam Serving Confirmation 8th 3:45 pm Confirmation 9th 7:00 pm Fri 3 SAT 4 Knitting Group at 10:00 a.m. Library. Movie Night for Adults 6 p.m. at the parsonage. Step Group 7:00 p.m. 10 11 Youth Movie Night. 6 p.m. at the parsonage. Step Group 7:00 p.m. 16 17 Charity Circle 1:00 pm at Connie Pedersen s Home. Lydia Circle at Chris Smith s home 7:00 Step Group 7:00 p.m. 18 Strum Food Pantry 2-5 p.m. 22 Choir practice 6:00 pm at Strum Immanuel Lutheran Thanksgiving Worship 7:00 p.m. 23 24 25 Office Closed Offic Office Closed 29 Klinge Kor Practice 6:15 Choir 7:30 p.m. Confirmation 8th 3:45 pm Confirmation 9th 7:00 30 15 Klinge Kor Practice 6:15 Choir 7:30 p.m. at Immanuel Lutheran Strum Confirmation 8th 3:45 pm Step Group 7:00 p.m. Grace and Trust...