Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church Monthly Newsletter June, 2017 Head of the Church: Jesus Christ Bishop of the ELCA : Elizabeth Eaton Bishop of the SE Iowa Synod: Michael Burk Ministers: All Members of Trinity Church Trinity Lutheran Church Staff Pastor: Gregory L. Davison (gdavison@tlc-elca.org) Office Manager: Jeannine Grady (trinity.mtown@tlc-elca.org) Pastoral Care: Cheri Nason (nason.cheri@gmail.com) Carla Madsen (madsencarla10@gmail.com) Finance : Colin Adams (cadams@tlc-elca.org) Confirmation & Youth: Kris Davison (krisdavison55@gmail.com) Youth Education: Kyla Boswell (youthed@tlc-elca.org) Music Director: Todd Metge (tmetge@tlc-elca.org) Organist: Carol Conrad Custodian: Jesus Lopez Trinity Lutheran Church 1011 S. 3rd Avenue 641-753-7769 www.tlc-elca.org Office Hours Monday -Thursday 8:30 am to 4:00 pm (Closed 12-1) Closed Friday Worship Schedule Saturday 5:30 pm Sunday 9:00 a.m. 1
FROM PR. GREGG... SIGN OF THE CROSS SIGN OF PROMISE Martin Luther recommended that first thing in the morning when rising we should make the sign of the cross, and the last thing in the evening before retiring we should make the sign of the cross. In Luther s devotional practice the sign of the cross was like book ends that held the day together we begin and end remembering and reclaiming God s promise that we are God s beloved children forgiven, bound for heaven, and brothers and sisters to each other. It is my practice to make the sign of the cross but not thoughtlessly. I make the sign of the cross in the morning and evening and sometimes throughout the day especially if I am facing a challenge or difficulty I take a deep breath and make the sign of the cross to assure myself that I am someone whom Christ loved enough to die for and that he is with me in all things. When I enter our sanctuary I sign myself with water from the font in celebration and renewal of my relationship to Christ. The sign of the cross reminds me that when I was baptized God said something like this to me Gregg, you are my beloved, I will always love you; you are marked with the cross of Jesus forever. So, hold to the promise that I will always be with you on the journey of life when life is hard I will bear it with you; when life is joyful I will rejoice with you; when the path is dark I will shed my light; when you fall I will pick you up; when you sin I will forgive you; and when you take your last earthly breath I will receive you. Thank, you God, for the gift of our baptism, grant us grace to cling to your promise but even when we don t we know your promise will cling to us. Help us to daily WALK WET in the promise of your amazing grace. OUR ANNUAL MEETING will be Sunday, June 11, 10:15 a.m. immediately following our 9:00 a.m. worship. I hope you will mark your calendar and plan to participate. We will meet in the parish hall and plan to be adjourned by 11:00 a.m. We will review our ministry over the past year, receive a financial update, & elect parish council members. + Your friend in Christ Pr. Gregg 2
JUNE 2017 LITURGICAL CALENDAR Saturday 5:30 p.m.; Sunday 9:00 a.m. Sunday Fellowship Time: 8:15 a.m. (before early worship) Monday Mass & Meal 5:30 p.m. MONDAY MASS & MEAL 5:30 p.m. Mass 6:00 p.m. Potluck Meal If you are staying for the meal bring some food to share. PREPARE FOR WORSHIP! READ THE LESSONS IN ADVANCE. JUNE 4: Acts 2:1-21; 1 Corinthians 12:3b-13; John 20:19-23 JUNE 11: Genesis 1:1-2:4a; 2 Corinthians 13:11-13; Matthew 28:16-20 JUNE 18: Exodus 19:2-8a; Romans 5:1-8; Matthew 9:35-10:8 JUNE 25: Jeremiah 20:7-13; Romans 6:1b-11; Matthew 10:24-39 HEALING MASS Tuesday, June 6 6:00 p.m. FESTIVAL OF PENTECOST Prayer! Anointing! Communion! EMBERS EUCHARIST JUNE 14, 10:00 A.M. Join our Trinity members and other residents in celebrating the body & blood of Christ. CHILDREN S MASS JUNE 11, 9:00 A.M. This worship is geared toward children and is led by our elementary children. Join us and show support for our kids. June 3 & 4, we celebrate one of the major festivals of the church Pentecost and the gift to the Holy Spirit, empowering the church with a bold witness to the good news of Jesus. At 9:00 a.m. worship children will participate in the procession by waving red streamers and Pr. Gregg s niece, Claire, will be offering a liturgical dance. Please join us for a festive celebration of the Spirit. HOLY TRINITY SUNDAY JUNE 10 & 11 The Trinity expresses the heart of our faith: we have experienced the God of creation made known in Jesus Christ and with us always through the Holy Spirit. JOIN US! MARSHALLTOWN MEN S CHORUS IS SINGING SUNDAY, JUNE 18, 9:00 A.M. 3
BLESSED BY GOD TO BE A BLESSING TO OTHERS Our gifts bear witness to our love for God and for our neighbor! YOUR OFFERINGS AT WORK Your gifts made these good things possible! Yard Service. We have a large church yard and a beautiful one that requires regular mowing and trimming. Thank you for your financial support! Visitation. We have a number of pastoral care visitors who visit and share communion with many members who find it difficult to attend worship. Thank you for your financial support! Pigs with a Purpose. Trinity gave over $900 for pigs that will help people move toward food security and sustainability. The total that our synod gave for this project at the assembly on May 19 was almost $49,000. Thank you for your financial support! DID YOU KNOW...? + Pastoral Care Staff. Cheri Nason & Carla Madsen will soon complete their first year on our staff. Thank you God, for all of our staff! + Outreach. We are beginning to explore how we can reach out to the Half-Way House and Marshall County Jail. Thank you God, for neighbors to love and serve! + Bible Verse of the Month. Each month we have a Bible verse that we begin and end worship with. We also use it at other gatherings. Our June verse is: Owe no one anything, except to love one another; for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law Romans 13:8. Thank you God, for the Scripture! NOW YOU DO...! FINANCIAL REPORT January 1 April 30, 2017 Budget Actual: $86,994.00; Income Actual: $94,080.83; KEEP DESIGNATING THRIVENT CHOICE DOLLARS TO TRINITY Through April 2017 we received $3494.00 If you are a Thrivent Financial Member please continue to designate Thrivent profits to your parish, Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church. If you have questions about how to do this contact Pr. Gregg. These dollars are very important to funding our ministry! To Our Trinity Family and Friends Thank you so much for your generous support of the recent Quilt Raffle to aid CHI (Community Health Initiatives) in Haiti. Congratulations to Mary Bloomquist for being the new caretaker of Second Chance. God s blessings, Dorothy Williamson 4
MONTHLY CHIDLREN S MASS Sunday, June 11, 9:00 a.m. Our elementary and younger children will lead worship. How good it is to have our children at this age involved in worship leadership. Plan to be here to participate and support our children. If your child would like to help on May 14, please contact Pr. Gregg. ANIMATE: WOMEN OF THE BIBLE & THEIR STORIES ANIMATE is a program of adult spiritual formation. Animate meets most Mondays 10:00 a.m. and is led by Pr. Gregg. We do a variety of faith based programs and conversations. We are doing a reading course; the book title is: Fierce: Women of the Bible and Their Stories of Violence, Mercy, Bravery, Wisdom, Sex, and Salvation. June FAITH ON TAP Friday, June 2, 6:30 p.m. Meeting at the home of Curt & Linda Hoff 705 Joan Court At Faith on Tap Pr. Gregg leads a brief lesson and facilitates a guided conversation. We also share good fellowship that builds relationships. Pr. Gregg sends a question out in Monday Musings and the first person to answer correctly gets a free beer. Everybody brings what they want to drink and a snack to share. Hope to see you at the Hoff s on June 2. WOMEN S APPRECIATION NIGHT MEN NEEDED TO HELP!!! A Women s Appreciation Night is being planned. We want to honor our women with dinner, entertainment, etc. We need plenty of men to get involved in making this happen! Please contact Pr. Gregg or Dean Vaughn (deanv@safemoneysmartmoney.com) that you will help. Planning meeting will be held soon to set a date. MENTAL HEALTH FIRST AID FOR CHILDREN/YOUTH Our pastoral care staff has made arrangements to offer Mental Health First Aid for Children/Youth this fall here at Trinity. It will be offered on Saturday, October 21! Those of you who attended the one for adults last fall now how beneficial it was. This is for adults who are concerned about children/youth. Registration will take place in August. 5
June 2017, LSI Bulletin/Newsletter Article and Story Happy Father s Day! At Lutheran Services in Iowa (LSI), we strive to build up and empower Iowa kids and families. For us, Father s Day is a time to celebrate all the fathers and male role models we see every day. In our Early Childhood fatherhood program, young men are learning to become dads. They re becoming confident and active in their child s life, and they are creating loving, bright futures for their families. Many of the boys and young men that LSI serves in our residential programs have never had a positive male role model in their lives. But our volunteer mentors are there to help guide them. At a gathering of mentors and mentees, a few of these children introduced their mentors to each other. When a boy from Beloit spoke, you could hear the quiet pride in his voice. This is Josh, he said simply. And he s the mentor I ve always wanted. You are making all of this possible through your support of LSI. Thank you for responding to the love of Jesus Christ through compassionate service! Our Mission: Lutheran Services in Iowa responds to the love of Jesus Christ through compassionate service. LSI is an affiliated social ministry partner of the Iowa congregations of the ELCA (Evangelical Lutheran Church in America) and a member of LSA (Lutheran Services in America). We proudly serve people of all ages, abilities, religions, sexes, gender identities, national origins, ethnicities, races, and sexual orientations. Learn more at www.lsiowa.org and www.facebook.com/lsi.iowa. Breaking Barriers After years of living in fear, surrounded by violence in his home country of Burundi, Firmin wanted to create a better life for the family he and his wife, Emma, dreamed of. They fled to Tanzania, where they lived in a refugee camp for 13 years. While there, Firmin worked as a principal in the camp s school and he and Emma welcomed two baby boys, Dan and Joshua. But when the Tanzanian government closed the camp, he and his family were sent to live in the U.S. as refugees. When he arrived in the U.S., Firmin came to LSI s Refugee Community Services to attend English classes and become familiar with his new home. Firmin and Emma have spent the last 10 years raising their family in Des Moines, and Firmin is finding ways to give back and support more Iowa kids and families. During the school year, Firmin can be found in the halls and classrooms of public schools across the Des Moines district. He is one of several bilingual outreach community workers in the schools, translating for families who speak Swahili, Kirundi, Kinyarwanda, Kinyamulenge, and French. In his free time, Firmin works as a direct support caregiver in the Des Moines area, and he spends his weekends as a pastor at a local church. He loves that he can help ease the congregation s daily stresses and lingering trauma through prayer and worship. 6
Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 4 11 Annual Meeting following worship 18 25 5 6:30 p.m. Safety Team Meeting 12 19 26 6 6:00 p.m. Healing Mass 13 5:30 p.m. Staff Meeting 6:30 p.m. Parish Council June 2017 1 2 6:30 p.m. Faith on Tap Curt & Linda Hoff home 3 7 8 9 10 14 10:00 a.m. Embers Eucharist 15 16 17 20 21 22 23 24 3:30 pm Randall- Nymeyer Wedding 27 28 29 30 7