November 2013 Parish Life Newsletter Our Mission Statement: The purpose of Our Lord s Lutheran Church is to share the joy of Christ s love and promise of salvation with all people. Parish Life is a monthly newsletter of Our Lord s Lutheran Church, 2900 West Hefner Rd., Oklahoma City, OK 73120. All visitors are welcome to worship with us each Sunday at 10:30 a.m. Worship during June, July, and August is at 10:00 a.m. Communion is observed at each service. Christian Education, Sept.-May, begins at 9:00 a.m. Pastor: Dick Jebsen, Administrative Asst. and Newsletter Editor: Diane Dewing. Church Office: (405) 755-2660, Fax:(405) 755-7139. Office E-mail address: ollc1059@aol.com Church Web Site Address: www.ollc.org Office Hours: (Diane has hours Monday Wednesday) (NOTE: Diane s hours generally are: Monday & Tuesday: 8:30 a.m. 2:30 p.m. Wednesday: 8:30 a.m. 1:15 p.m.) REMINDER: Deadline for bulletin articles/information is Sundays (NOT Wednesdays). September Attendance Set Your Clocks Back 9/1 65 1 hour on November 2nd 9/8 75 9/15 49 9/22 58 9/29 50 Financial Picture Sept. General Fund Information: Current Monthly Budget:....16,898.09 Sept. Receipts:.....13,802.48 Sept. Expenses:....14,928.32 YTD balance:... (1,352.68) (A complete Treasurer s Report is posted on the bulletin board in the West hall.) The Newsletter Deadline for December is November 17 Articles may be e-mailed, faxed or placed in Diane s mailbox at church! Thanksgiving Eve Worship Service November 27, 2013, 7:00 p.m. Join your church family giving thanks to God for His many blessings on the eve of Thanksgiving. If you can, bring your favorite pie to share after service for pie and coffee fellowship.
Can we afford a full time pastor? As members of Our Lord s we need to ask ourselves two questions. The first question is; can we afford not to have a full time pastor? Most church leaders indicate that it is almost impossible to carry out the mission of a church without a full time pastor. This leads us to the second question; can we financially afford a full time pastor? At the June congregation meeting a monthly budget of approximately $16,700 was approved. We have been averaging $16,600 for the fiscal year that ended on June 30, 2013. Then the Summer months took its toll on the budget. July - $12,075, August - $12,638, September $13,802. I believe we can all answer question number one quite easily. I am not sure that we are ready, at this time to answer question number two. Think and pray about it. Ken Carlton, Treasurer United in Marriage Kathleen (Grosz) Parr and Jeffrey Don Fletcher were married on September 28th at their home in Edmond. In attendance were a small gathering of family and close friends including both the bride and grooms parents and siblings. They only ask for prayers. Welcomed Home Richard Charles Spang September 5, 1930 September 18, 2013 HANDS OF MERCY Quilters Quilters will meet Saturday, November 9, and Thursday, November 21, beginning at 9:00 a.m. Tuesday Evening Circle will meet at 7 p.m., November 12, 2014, at the church. Jenny Myers has the program (November issue of Gather magazine Bible Study) and Lois Patrick is hostess. Please attend - previous attendance not required! Wednesday Noon Circle November 13, 2013, 12:00 p.m. Bring a sack lunch HAIL DAMAGE ROOF REPAIR UPDATE As you may be aware, the hail storm of April 26, 2013 damaged the foam roof of the Education Unit and did some damage to the west side of the Sanctuary Roof. As of the week of October 14 th the Education Unit foam roof has been repaired and a sand coating added to help with hail impact. The damage was covered by insurance with a significant deductible. It has been decided to defer replacing the shingles on the west side of the Sanctuary as there is no danger of leaking as the damage was minimal. We hope that we will have some respite from hail damage in the future as this is our third claim in about as many years. We now will turn our attention and resources to additional projects, with the replacement of the sound system having a very high priority. Fred Grosz Resources Committee Liaison
You re Invited: The Nora Dernoncourt First Tuesdays Concert Series First Lutheran Church 1300 N. Robinson, OKC, OK A free concert featuring Oklahoma City area musicians held at noon, on the First Tuesdays of the month in November, December, and February through May. November 5, 2013 features: Anne McNatt Roberts, soprano Cynthia Cortright, pianist The Jingle Bell Bazaar Saturday, November 2 nd, 9 a.m. 3 p.m. Lord of Life Lutheran Church, 15400 N. Western Ave., Edmond, OK The church will be featuring 30+ local vendors with a variety of handcrafted goods. Stop by and shop for unique gifts, fun accessories, one of a kind home décor, delicious baked goods and much much more!! Holy Trinity Lutheran Church Invites you to their Eleventh Annual Holiday Bazaar! Saturday, November 9, 2013, 9:00 a.m. 4:00 p.m. 308 N. W. 164th Street (15th Street between Santa Fe & Western in Edmond) Vendors with lots of variety! Door Prizes! Continental Style Breakfast, Lunch Menu, Huge Bake Sale Mark your calendar: The Annual Christmas Buffet is December 8. REGIONAL FOOD BANK Our placement at the Regional Food Bank for October 5 was new to our group and we really felt good about it! There were fewer of us this month but we packed back packs for needy kids to take home for the weekend. There were meats, canned fruits, cereals, milks and juices. We packed 9,348 pounds/ 492 cases of back pack fillers - enough for 7,790 equivalent meals. A good time was had by all. Why don't you come join us next time? We ll meet again 9:00 noon on November 2nd. Carolyn Zachritz
Thank yous To all of our brothers and sisters in Christ at Our Lord s Lutheran Church: Thank you all very much for the continuous outpouring of love, care and concern you have graced our family with. Words fall short of expressing how much our church family means to us and will continue to mean to us in the coming days. What a wonderful uplifting memorial service with the inclusion and heartfelt singing of the choir and beautiful music provided by the Fullers. It is truly a blessing to be a part of this congregation. Sincerely, Diane E. Milligan, Dolores M. Spang and the entire Richard C. Spang extended family. THANK YOU THANK YOU Your generosity is greatly appreciated!!! The Kairos ladies picked up 33 boxes of cookies for their workshop this weekend. (that's approx. 90 dozen cookies!!!) A big thanks to all who helped make the Fall Festival a success. It takes many hands to make the food and all the crafts. Without all the help this tradition could not continue. Thanks to: Judy Benhardt, Susan Maxfeild, Sally Zeibell, Linda Scheidt, Debi Morrow, Diane Milligan, Carolee Wende, Jenny Meyers, Karen Foran, Kathy Fletcher, Jeff Fletcher, Judy Spencer, Mark Henkel, Fred Grosz, Cal Benhardt and all who bought the many quilts and crafts that were made again this year. Funds raised were $3,114 to be divided with Habitat and other charities that we support. To be detailed later. Congregational Life Committee Karlene Grosz, Chairman PASTOR S COLUMN At the suggestion of the Church Council, I will share this article adapted from Herold Percy, Good News People which I had at the October council meeting. Pastor Dick MAINTENANCE OR MISSION? 1. In measuring the effectiveness, the maintenance congregation asks, How many pastoral visits are being made? The mission congregation asks, How many disciples are being made? 2. When contemplating some form of change, the maintenance congregation says, If this proves upsetting to any of our members, we won t do it. The mission congregation says, If this will help us reach someone on the outside, we will take the risk and do it. 3. When thinking about change, the majority of members in a maintenance congregation ask, How will this affect me? The majority of members in the mission congregation ask, Will this increase our ability to reach those outside? 4. When thinking of its vision for ministry, the maintenance congregation says, We have to be faithful to our past. The mission congregation says, We have to be faithful to our future. 5. The pastor in the maintenance congregation says to the newcomer, I d like to introduce you to some of our members. In the mission congregation the members say, Wed like to introduce you to our pastor. 6. When confronted with a legitimate pastoral concern, the pastor in the maintenance congregation asks, How can I meet this need? The pastor in the mission congregation asks, How can this need be met? 7. The maintenance congregation seeks to avoid conflict at any cost (but rarely succeeds). The mission congregation understands that conflict is the price of progress, and is willing to pay
the price. It understands that it cannot take everyone with it. This causes some grief, but it does not keep it from doing what needs to be done. 8. The leadership style in the maintenance congregation is primarily managerial, where leaders try to keep everything in order and running smoothly. The leadership style in a mission congregation is primarily transformational, casting a vision of what can be, and marching off the map in order to bring the vision into reality. 9. The maintenance congregation is concerned with their congregation, its organizations and structure, its constitutions and committees. The mission congregation is concerned with the culture, with understanding how secular people think and what makes them tick. It tries to determine their needs and their points of accessibility to the Gospel. 10. When thinking about growth, the maintenance congregation asks, How many Lutherans live within a twenty-minute drive of this church? The mission congregation asks, How many unchurched people live within a twenty-minute drive of this church? 11. The maintenance congregation looks at the community and asks, How can we get these people to support our congregation? The mission congregation asks, How can the Church support these people? 12. The maintenance congregation thinks about how to save their congregation. The mission congregation thinks about how to reach the world. Continue to the next page for Church Family in Service and Birthdays and Anniversaries.
Church Family in Service Worship @ 10:30 a.m. Chr. Edu. 9:00 a.m. Assisting Ministers (D. Gillson) Nov. 3 Jenny Myers 10 Fred Grosz 17 Chris Henkel 24 Lois Patrick Cantors (Bill Fuller) Nov. 3 Jim Collings 10 Dick Morrow 17 Lois Carlton 24 Chris Henkel Greeters (Dee Sundholm) Nov. 3 Amanda Green 10 Jacob Edingfield 17 Diane Milligan 24 Connie & Len Erikson Money Counters Nov. 3 Cal & Judy Benhardt 10 Wayne & Karen Karst 17 Dick & Gloria O Brien 24 Ron & Susan Maxfield Birthdays and Anniversaries Nov. 10 Carolee Wende 11 Woodie & Helen Kennamer Bob Smith 18 Joel Ziebell 19 Ken & Lois Carlton 27 Dick O Brien Flower: Chrysanthemum Birthstone: Topaz These are the known birthdays and anniversaries for the month of November. If there is an error or omission, please contact the church office so our records can be corrected Flowers ($22.00 per bouquet) Nov. 3 Sundholm (2) 10 Morrow / 17 Carlton / 24 O Brien (2) Flower Pick Up for Nov.: Susan Maxfield Altar Guild: Judy Spencer & Judy Benhardt Head Ushers: Diane Milligan & Ron Maxfield
November 2013 CALENDAR Sundays: Christian Education at 9:00 a.m. and Worship at 10:30 Nov. 10 7:00 p.m. Church Council Nov. 17 Newsletter Deadline (December issue) Mondays: Nov. 11 Tuesdays: Nov. 5 Nov. 12 Wednesdays: Nov. 13 Nov. 27 Thursdays: Nov. 7 Nov. 7 Nov. 21 Nov. 28 Fridays: Nov. 8 Saturdays: Nov. 2 Nov. 9 Alanon at 10:30 a.m. (Conf. Room) Parish Hall reserved 10:00 a.m. 1:00 p.m. & 5:00-7:00 p.m. Veterans Day Office Closed 8 Women Praying @ 8:15 a.m. AA at 7 p.m. (Conf. Room) Election Polling Place Tuesday Evening Circle 6:30 p.m. Choir Rehearsal Wednesday Noon Circle 7:00 p.m. Thanksgiving Eve Worship & Pie Social 5:00 p.m. S.T.O.P (start taking off pounds) tba. Men s Group Wedding Rehearsal Quilt Work Day at 9:00 a.m. noon. Newsletter Assembly Thanksgiving Day Happy Thanksgiving Office Closed Wedding and Reception Regional Food Bank 9:00 a.m. Quilt Work Day Room 2B in the education wing is reserved for Bilingual Family classes/activities.