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ANNUAL CONGREGATIONAL MEETING SUNDAY, JANUARY 29, Reports need to be in by Sunday, January 9th
VLC CHOIR
Practice dates for December are: the 8th at VLC 6:45-8:15, the14th VMC 6:45-8:15 THE GLORY OF GOD (WOMEN’S BIBLE STUDY GROUP)
Is looking for a new leader. If you are interested in teaching, leading or facilitating a group please contact the church office. CHRISTMAS CAROL SING ALONG Sat. Jan 7 2012, We will begin with a potluck at 5pm followed by making a joyful noise to the Lord! VASHON ISLAND’S ANNUAL DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. SERVICE on Sunday January 15th, 7pm at Vashon Presbyterian Church. Free Event. The Honorable Steven Gonzalez, State Supreme Court Justice, will be the speaker. Music and refreshments. There will be a goodwill offering for the Interfaith Council to Prevent Homelessness. For information call Emma Amiad 463-4060 INTERFAITH COUNCIL ON HOMELESSNESS (IFCH) MEAL PROGRAM
Vashon Lutheran is providing the Fellowship Hall to host the Friday evening meal for the IFCH Community Meal program. This program has been a success having provided approx. 250 meals a week. The schedule is as follows: Monday: Village Green 5pm; Tuesday: The Presbyterian Church 5:30pm; Wednesday: The Episcopal Church 5:30pm; Thursday: The Presbyterian Church, 5:30pm; Friday: VLC 5:30pm; Saturday, Village Green 5pm; and Sunday brunch: Methodist Church 1-2 pm.
SCHOLZ FAMILY
“Praise God with us for the family legacy that directs us into faithfulness and ministry” Progress report: “Our current monthly income status remains at 90% of our budget without much movement. Pledges totaling $300 per month would return us to full steam ahead” If you would like to know more about this ministry, please visit frontiersusa.org The newsletter and a photo are posted in the fellowship hall. SENIOR SERVICES NEED VOLUNTEER DRIVERS
Senior Services need volunteers to provide transportation for seniors to medical appointments. You use your own vehicle and choose the weekday, time and areas where you would like to volunteer. You do not need a special license & no lifting is required. For more information see the bulletin board in the Fellowship Hall or call Melissa at 206-748-7588. PARKINSON SUPPORT GROUP
A support group for people with Parkinson’s, their families, and care-givers will meet the first Friday of each month from 1-2:30pm at Vashon Lutheran Church. This is an opportunity to share concerns, resources, support, and have discussions. Different topics will be featured each month. The date for the next meeting is Friday, January 6. A chiropractor will be the featured speaker. For more information contact Steve Steffens, 567-5976. A SERVICE of PRAYER and HEALING
We will have the opportunity to quietly gather for prayer and healing in the Lutheran church sanctuary from 6 – 6:30pm the first Sunday of each month. The service will be January 1 at 6pm. Regardless of who you are and what you carry, you are welcome in this place. Come to pray aloud or silently. Come forward to be prayed for through naming your concerns or retaining your silence. Or...simply come to sit for a while and unwind with your own thoughts. No pressure, no intrusion...A simple service without music...without liturgy...in a candle-lit sanctuary where we gather to hear a few readings, pray and be prayed for, and sit and just be. VASHON MAURY COMMUNITY FOOD BANK sent a thank you letter for our November donation of 191.1 lbs. of fresh produce. It makes a difference to the over 10% of our community who seek assistance during the year! The letter is posted in the fellowship hall. COMPASS HOUSING ALLIANCE
Dear Vashon Lutheran, Vashon Island,
We made it through another busy year at Compass Housing Alliance! In addition to operating our existing programs, we welcomed HomeStep into the Compass family, giving us even more resources to house families and individuals. We celebrated
a year of the Veterans Center in Renton. Most recently, we finished up the holiday gift-collecting frenzy that allowed us to give meaningful gifts to hundreds of our clients, both adults and children.
And now we're looking forward to starting a new year in which we will complete construction on Dekko Place housing downtown and begin construction on the Nyer Urness House in Ballard.
As you say goodbye to 2011, please consider making a tax-deductible donation to Compass Housing Alliance. Your gift helps men, women, and children who are homeless or who struggle to maintain their housing daily.
Please take a moment to make a donation now. If you've already donated, THANK YOU! We appreciate your continued support of Compass. Happy New Year!
Sincerely,
Lindsey Lund
Communications Coordinator Compass Housing has provided an “in-Kind Donation Policy” which states that they will no longer accept gifts of used blankets, clothing, furniture and children’s toys. This is due to the cost of receiving, sterilizing, storing and distributing these items. They rather are focusing on donations that will make a positive impact on the lives of their clients. Therefore, they continue to accept: sheets (gently used ok and laundered); towels (gently used ok and laundered); Quilts; new socks; new men’s sweatpants and sweatshirts & hygiene supplies. All donors are asked to contact the agency before dropping off any items by calling: 206 357 3108. A full description of their policies is posted on the bulletin board in the fellowship hall. UPDATE ON MARY'S PLACE DONATIONS
Ten families that include over 30 children have been housed the whole month of December because of donations from ELCA congregations and individuals. Some of the families will be able to stay in this housing through January. Why? Because the appeal asked for $10,000 but nearly $20,000 was received. Thanks be to God! Well over 100 people representing at least 25 of our congregations contributed to this appeal.
Here is a "thank you" from the families: Dear ELCA Friends and Family, What a blessing! This is over the top, off the charts amazing! Thank you for throwing us a life line when we needed it most. You have pulled us in from the torrential rains, winds and cold and given us what we couldn't provide for ourselves...safety, warmth, shelter and a place to call home and be together. Tonight, there are 10 families up in a hotel because of the love and generosity you have showered on all of us. Most importantly, you have reached out and reminded us we are not alone. You love us, you care for us and you have come beside us to walk with us on our journey OUT of homelessness. We need your continued prayers as the moms work diligently, calling 30 to 50 shelters every day looking for a bed for themselves and their children. Prayers that they and the children will be able to sustain the rejection, the grief that comes with losing their homes and the struggle of finding more sustainable employment and housing. Thank you for being the saving grace of our world. We could not survive without your love and goodness to us!
Bug hugs!
Marty Hartman for all the women and their children at Mary's Place Pastor Jerry Buss
Director for Evangelical Mission
Assistant to the Bishop CHILDREN’S EVANGELIZATION SOCIETY Seminar in Evangelical Lutheran Church in Russia Project A great opportunity to support, inspire and educate our children’s ministry co-workers with professional training! CES offers a course of 5 seminars on the Bible, methods of preaching to children and practical lessons. We would like to invite co-workers from Perm, Ufa, Ulyanovsk, Saratov, Samara, Volgograd, Astrakhan, Kazan, Moscow and St. Petersburg to take part in the course. We would like to have the 1st and 2nd seminars of the course in February and October 2012. We are ready to provide travel expenses of co-workers with about 40 000 rub ($1300). But we need financial support for accommodations and meals in Kr. Yar, Samara – total 127500 rub ($4200).
Also please pray for the development of the children and youth ministry in ELCR! Contact the church office for more information and help making the donation, (206) 463-9687. CHRISTMAS GREETINGS FROM RUSSIA
Dear sisters and brothers, in St.Luke's Gospel we read: “When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about” (Lk 2:15). The shepherds are setting off right after the announcement of the angels. If you look at the old Christmas canvasses or icons, perhaps, you will notice that all the characters in these pictures are in an intensive movement: shepherds leave their responsibilities at the field and head for Bethlehem, wise kings from the East travel from far away in order to bring the King of Kings expensive royal gifts, the Holy Family is also on the way, first to Bethlehem and then to Egypt. Christmas season is traveling time. Many of us also make a break and go home to visit relatives and friends. Many of us make a break in the everyday routine and do something extraordinary: e.g. create a crêche or decorate a Christmas tree, or come under the windows of neighbors and sing carols there. There is a number of special Christmas things to do, which make us happy, no matter who we are: from a bishop to a toddler. Christmas season is traveling time and also the time when we feel like children again. It is also the time of a deep meditation and the time when we think about the fruits of our labor. We also think about all our achievements in the Evangelical-Lutheran Church of European Russia this year. With God's help we have consolidated our church and worked out a new vision. In this year we have payed more attention to weaker congregations, e.g. to congregations in the Central Deanery – again we observe movement here in spite of a long stagnation period in this church region. We have restored worship services with pastors in Smolensk, we make further plans of restoration of the church building in Yaroslavl and the development of pastoral ministry, next year we are planning the church day of the Central Deanery. There is also a stable development in the Volga region. Quite recently the congregation of Samara has celebrated its 20th anniversary of restoration. This congregation is growing. It has returned back the whole church complex, the congregation collected all important documents and knocked on doors of different authorities for 12 years, in order to achieve that. Youth work and women's ministry of our church are developing in a positive direction. There have been youth seminars in this year, they have been organized by Julia Dobrinina, secretary for youth work of ELC ER, and since this year we have a new coordinator of women's ministry Elena Bondarenko, who conducted the women's seminar of the Northwestern Deanery and together with Pastor Olga Temirbulatova organized a retreat for women pastors and preachers of ELC. There is a movement in our church. There are new events, new ideas, new development. One may see that even in changes of interior of our churches: e.g. a new organ in Kasan, a new altar in Moscow. It is a big joy for us and a reason for gratitude. We thank our Lord, Whose nativity we will celebrate very soon, and we thank all friends of our church, who supported us on most difficult days. Thank you very much for your help! Dear sisters and brothers, we wish you merry Christmas and a happy new year 2012! May God bless you and your families with health, strength, peace, happiness and joy in this holy time!
Greetings from Moscow,
Yours in Christ,
Bishop Dietrich Brauer WHY THE FEDERAL BUDGET MATTERS: A REFLECTION ON ENERGY
By Mary Minette, Director for Environmental Policy & Education , ELCA Washington Office
“The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world.” John 1:9
It begins with light.
God calls light out of the darkness at the beginning of the world.
In John, the coming of the light signals the coming of the son of God.
So this month, during the four weeks of Advent, we light candles against the darkness of winter and we wait for the light that is Christ. But light is more than a metaphor for our faith. Without light and the electricity that powers it, our lives would be completely different. Without inexpensive, readily available electricity the global economy could not exist (and all of us would be sitting around in the dark. Also, you wouldn’t be reading this email!).
So what does light have to do with the federal budget? Quite a lot, in fact: government programs profoundly impact where, and how, we get the energy that keeps our lights shining. The federal government provides support to the companies that drill for oil, mine coal, generate nuclear power and build solar panels and wind turbines in dozens of ways. Tax incentives allow oil companies to write off exploration expenses and homeowners to deduct a percentage of what they spend on rooftop solar panels. Government research labs come up with more efficient ways to burn coal that is incorporated into new power plants. Nuclear reactors get built (or not) because the federal government guarantees loans (or not). Government agencies spend money to make ports and inland waterways deep
enough for heavy oil tankers, and crude oil gets shipped to our shores from other parts of the world. Federally-funded dam projects produce low-cost electricity for cities like Las Vegas and Seattle. Federal budget decisions determine which forms of energy get tax incentives or research support or other forms of funding, and in turn influence the shape of our energy infrastructure in countless ways. Most of our electricity is currently generated with fossil fuels, in part due to decades of private investment in fossil fuel power plants, but also because of decades of support via the federal budget. Fossil fuels are inexpensive relative to other forms of energy in part because of these decades of support from federal and state governments that have made their cost of production lower. Newer energy technologies, like solar and wind, also receive support through government-funded research and the tax code. However, fossil fuels still receive the lion’s share of federal support even though the industry is mature and established as compared to the far younger and less developed renewable energy industry. As our elected officials consider how and where to cut the federal budget, energy subsidies are often cited as a place to find savings. Cutting subsidies for the established fossil fuel industry is not likely to impact the future prospects of companies like Exxon Mobil or Peabody Coal; however, without federal subsidies, companies promoting newer forms of energy such as wind and solar might take even longer to become established. One way to light the path to our energy future is to encourage investment in these new ways of generating power. This season of advent reminds us not only to look for light in the darkness but to reflect that light in the world. The Season of Christmas concludes with the celebration of Epiphany, an enlightenment that transformed the world. It will take enlightenment to discern a brighter energy future. But we wait for that future light with hope: “A light shines in the darkness and the darkness did not overcome it”.
LUTHERAN WORLD RELIEF RESPONDS TO DEVASTATING FLOODS IN THE PHILIPPINES
Baltimore, December 17, 2011 — Lutheran World Relief is responding to devastating flooding caused by a tropical storm on the island of Mindanao in the southern Philippines Friday night. At least 430 people are reported dead, many more are missing, and tens of thousands are affected. The flooding has destroyed homes and crops, including many in areas where LWR has worked for years.
"The storm had a direct hit on LWR's project area," said Joanne Fairley, LWR's regional director for Asia and the Middle East. "Seaweed farmers were about to harvest for the season, bringing in much needed cash for Christmas. This has been totally destroyed. Many have also lost their homes. The devastation is extensive." Cash donations are most the most effective way to help those in need. LWR needs to raise $250,000 to respond to this emergency. Donations are accepted online at lwr.org/donate; by phone at 800.597.5972, or by mail at Lutheran World Relief, P.O. Box 1706 Baltimore, MD 21298-9832, USA.
Gifts will be used to respond to the Philippines Floods until needs there are met. Gifts received after that time will be used where needs are greatest. Pease visit lwr.org/PhilippinesFloods for more information about LWR's response as it becomes available.
WHO IS LWR? Lutheran World Relief, an international nonprofit organization, works to end poverty and injustice by empowering some of the world's most impoverished communities to help themselves. With partners in 35 countries, LWR seeks to promote sustainable development with justice and dignity by helping communities bring about change for healthy, safe and secure lives; engage in Fair Trade; promote peace and reconciliation; and respond to emergencies. LWR is headquartered in Baltimore, Md. and has worked in international development and relief since 1945. Lutheran World Relief is a ministry of U.S. Lutherans, serving communities living in poverty overseas. Contact: Emily Sollie, 410-230-2802 (office); 443-220-3269 (cell);
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
EAST AFRICAN DROUGHT
You can help with a gift and prayers. LWR is accepting donations to its East Africa Drought fund to support immediate and long-term relief efforts. LWR accepts donations online, at lwr.org , or by phone at 800.597.5972.
CONSIDERATION OF OTHERS
Please refrain from wearing fragrances to worship services or church events. Many persons suffer from allergies. REFRESMENTS AND FLOWERS
We need people to sign-up for refreshments and flowers for Sundays. Please see the list in the Fellowship Hall. STAFF AND COUNCIL MEMBERS
STAFF
Rev. Bjoern E. Meinhardt
Rev. Jeffrey Larson, PhD (Counseling)
Secretary Cheryl Prescott
Church Office: 463-2655 CHURCH COUNCIL
President: Jack Lincoln
Vice-President: Doug Helgeson
Secretary: Mary McFarlin
Treasurer: Elaine Lester
Property Manager: Patte Wagner
Stewardship: June Langland
Member at Large: Laura Goth HAPPY BIRTHDAY
Jonnelle Steen Jan. 3
Francesca Steen Jan. 3
Penelope Cleland Jan. 9
Brian Hess Jan. 11
Evan Hills Jan. 13
Kathleen Odekirk Jan.16
Blanche Heien Jan. 16
Robin Hess Jan. 18
Matt Gaspers Jan. 18
Doris Myers Jan. 19
Natalie Beauregard Jan. 19
Patricia Erickson Jan.21
Neil Jungemann Jan. 28
Linda Van Stone Jan 29 HAPPY ANNIVERSARY
Reynold & Diana Hokenson Jan. 16 VASHON THRIFTWAY 1% COMMUNITY DONATION PROGRAM
Remember to save your Vashon Thriftway receipts to be used for our missions program. Thriftway will donate 1% of the total to VLC. Remember the rules:
• Cash register receipts must be from Vashon Thriftway.
• Cash register receipts must be for purchases made by members of Vashon Lutheran Church.
• Receipts turned in cannot be more than one year old.
• Purchasers must sign each receipt, and indicate their phone number.
• Receipts may be placed in the indicated receptacle in the Fellowship Hall.
Thanks for helping
Stewardship Chair THRIVENT FINANCIAL
Vashon Lutheran Church is now registered for Thrivent Choice. This program allows Thrivent members to direct their contributions to the programs they choose. Last year the program distributed 26 million charitable dollars to 18,000 congregations and organizations. To direct your Thrivent dollars go to the Thrivent Choice website at Thrivent.com/thriventchoice/resources or call 1-800-847-4836 and say “Thrivent Choice”. Articles for The Mouse are due by the 20th |
