From the Pastor's Desk

First, Happy Valentine's Day! While there are a number of legends about St. Valentine, through them all he is remembered as one who valued human love and marriage. One of the legends is that while the Emperor of Rome made it illegal for soldiers to marry (he thought the men would make better warriors if they weren't married) Valentine, a priest at the time, would secretly perform weddings for soldiers who wanted to be married. And eventually Valentine was imprisoned, and some legends say even killed for doing that. But since then, he has been remembered as one who recognized the power and wonder of human love. So, today, we too remember and celebrate that with those we love.




Here are a few things coming up in the both near and more distant future for us here at Our Savior:



About this time of the year we often have a class for all youngsters to begin receiving Holy Communion for the first time. If you have a child, or know of one, who isn't yet receiving Holy Communion, please let Pastor Shelly or me know and we'll make arrangements to have a class for both the parents and the children who would like to become a part of the communing members.



Habitat for Humanity is going to be having a special "Faith Build" in March, where a number of congregations from our community will join efforts to build a home in one month. Work will happen every day and volunteers and funds will be gathered from a number of congregations in Vero Beach. If you'd like to be a part of this in any way, contact the church office or Don Poust, one of our key Habitat volunteers.



This Wednesday our third of three "New Member" orientation classes meets at 6:30, following supper (which begins at 6pm). Anyone interested in becoming a member of Our Savior, or just in learning more about our congregation, is welcome to attend.



Our "Building Team" is coming together nicely and will soon be getting more and more information out about our building proposal. Please watch for this information and how you can be a part of it. Our goal is to have enough up front gifts and a financial plan together for the building to begin after Easter and be finished in time for our 50th Anniversary celebration next December. You will be hearing more very soon!



As this week now unfolds, may the love that we share on this Valentine's Day with those special people in our lives be a reflection of that great love that comes first from God and who gives us clean hearts and new and right spirits.



Peace, Joy and Love + Pastor Jack Diehl www.oursaviorelca.com