Merry Christmas...continues!

 

 Happy 2^nd Day of Christmas! (and Happy Birthday Pastor Shelly!)  As these 12 days of Christmas unfold, in the middle of all the comings and goings of the season, may you take time to "behold" and reflect on the Christ child and the meaning of God coming to be with us.  For this is the real and lasting source of Light, Love and a Peace that passes all understanding. 

 

Then, as 2011 comes to a close this coming weekend, (New Year's Eve, Saturday and New Year's Day, Sunday) come and worship at any of our regular worship services: Saturday 6pm, Sunday 8:30 and 11am.  (Sunday School will resume on January 8).  What better way to end one year and begin another than gathered around God's Word and Sacraments and sing

 

“For lo!  The days are hast’ning on, by prophets seen of old, when with the evercircling years shall come the time foretold, when peace shall over all the earth its ancient splendors fling, and all the world give back the song which now the angels sing.”  

 

May that peace be yours in these 12 days of Christmas and into the New Year!

 

See you in church.    Pastor A.C. 'Jack' Diehl III +      www.oursaviorelca.com 

"Occupy Church"

 

A big thank you to all who contributed to make worship so special this past weekend!   First, to our guitarist Ron Sample who led the music at our Saturday service, and to Sarah Lanyi, a member of our Youth Group who was “Mary” at both the Saturday and 8:30am Sunday services. That was a wonderful, meaningful portrayal.  Also, a big thank you to our Sunday School children and families and to Karen Diehl and Jennifer Hall leading and accompanying the children as they once again told us the Christmas story,  God’s plan to “occupy earth” through the Christ Child, to bring us Light, Love and God’s Peace that passes all understanding.  An added dimension which made the weekend all the more special was that little William Charles Nesper, who was baptized at our Saturday service, was our baby Jesus for the children’s program on Sunday.  So grateful for everyone’s participation.

 

Now, looking ahead, we will have two Christmas Eve Candlelight Communion services at 6pm and 9pm.  On Christmas Day there will be one service with Holy Communion at 11am followed by our Home Alone Christmas Dinner at noon.  If you would like to join us for that dinner you can reply to this email or call the church office at 772-567-2253 and we’ll save you a place.  This is our gift to the community.   Also, we need pies!   If you can donate a pie for our dinner, please bring pies by the church office on Wednesday or Thursday between the hours of 9am and 3pm  or around 3pm Friday, when the crew will be gathered to set up for the dinner.  If you’d like to help with the set up, you can stay and help with that as well!  Many hands make light work.  Many thanks. 

 

As I mentioned above, and as I mentioned in church this past weekend, the message of Christmas is that when God looked at the world he made and loves and saw things going wrong  (the abuse of power and wealth at the expense of the vulnerable, and the lack of love) God had a plan to turn that around that I like to call:  “Occupy Earth”.  That’s what Christmas was; God coming among us to set up camp among us by becoming one of us, so that we could become like him.  This is the wonderful, Life giving event which the world celebrates each year at this time.  One of the ways we can become a part of God’s plan to “occupy earth” is to “occupy church”!  While God can and does touch our lives and speak to us in many ways, when we “occupy church” we gather to hear that story again, to thank and praise God, to lay before God our needs in prayer, to receive God in the bread and wine.  By “occupying church” we are a witness to a world floundering in the darkness of God’s Life giving Light, and a support to those who gather to worship with us.  And what better time of the year than now to invite that friend or neighbor or family member to come and “occupy church” with you and to share in the celebration of Christmas!

 

Finally, our “Tree of Life” in the north end of the new lobby continues to grow.  Not all “leaves” are on the tree yet.  More are still in the works.  If your “leaf” isn’t there yet, it is still at the engraver or we don’t yet have your information.  But it is “growing” and unfolding as we speak.   Thanks to those of you who continue to help it grow.  It is definitely a living, growing tree and it’s never too late to add a leaf. 

 

See you in church!      Pastor Jack Diehl +       www.oursaviorelca.com

 

 

 

 

Basking in the Light

Dear People of Our Savior,  What a wonderful celebration yesterday for our 50^th Anniversary and Dedication of our expanded building!  This morning at the Men's Breakfast Don Poust (one of our ushers yesterday) said they started to lose track after counting over 400 people in attendance.  It was wonderful having so many members plus friends and many of the workers who worked on our project, along with the Bishop and Bishop's assistant, all in attendance.  Even with the rain, the celebration continued in the Fellowship Hall and under the tent with a nice luncheon and lots of great conversation, laughs and remembrances.  And speaking of remembrances, at the end of this email is a letter of congratulations and some wonderful memories from "Vicar Dave", now Pastor Dave Keck from Hickory NC.  Pastor Keck was our first "Vicar" or "Intern" in 1994-1995, from Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary.  Since we didn't get to read his whole letter at our celebration, I thought you'd enjoy reading it all here.

Now, at the risk of missing anyone, let me here send out some BIG THANK YOUs to the following for this past weekend: 

Worship: Our musicians: Deacon Carol Olsen for directing our women's choir; Bobbi Johnson, cantor and all the other choir members; Dr. Ray Adams, organist; Sara Diehl Fletcher, oboist; Karen Diehl and Debbie Mozodlowski, handbells; Ron Sample, guitarist and leader for the other guitarists and Youth Group singing during the offering; Michael Hyde, our resident bagpiper who piped us in and then piped us back out of worship…awesome.  Also thanks to Bob Kapp, John and Pat VanDeusen, head ushers and their crew of ushers; to Katie Lindner, Linda Goodson and their Altar Guild crew who came in during the week to scrub down and clean all the pews and other woodwork in the church including the floors, and all others who added to a wonderful worship experience.

Anniversary Celebration:  As mentioned above, after worship, the celebration continued in the Fellowship Hall and under the big tent with a luncheon.  But first, along with that, a lot of folks hung around in the church before and after the luncheon watching the great 50^th anniversary photo history which was Zac Barringer's Eagle Scout project.  How fun was that!  Thanks, Zac!  We're looking into getting it accessible on our website, and will let you know  Along with that, a big thanks to Michael Heinze and his Outreach Team who manned the tables where people could sign the posters if they were baptized, married, or confirmed here or if they had a memorial service for a loved one here at Our Savior. These posters will be available in the narthex for the next few weeks.  In fact, this coming Saturday we'll add the name of Wil Nesper to the Baptized list, as he the first baby baptized in our new narthex (but baptized at the same baptismal font that his Mom was baptized at over 20 years ago)!  Then, the next morning, he will be baby Jesus in our Sunday School Christmas program!  J  How's that for a special weekend for that family and all of us here at Our Savior!

But back to the luncheon, a huge thank you to the Bolinger family (Adam, Suzanne and Brittany) and to Linda Aiken for spearheading that whole event from the big picture to the smallest details.  Very, very nice and very impressive on all counts!  And thanks to their crew at the event, especially the whole Dritenbas family, all 5 of them, and Silas Weeks, who helped set up, serve and cleanup.  What great helpers and what a great spirit they all brought with them.

A big thank you also to Marianne Luethje and her crew (Carole Olsen, Gail Parker and Helena Pierson) for the 50^th Anniversary Historical Booklet.  Whew.  What a job that was!   This is the best, most comprehensive history of Our Savior ever!  If you'd like one of the booklets, contact the church office. 

For a list of all the contractors and workers on our building expansion, that was in this past weekend's worship bulletin.  What a great job everyone did, and what a wonderful experience this was for all of us.  It was a lot of work, but when we see the results that we have, that makes it all worthwhile. 

Finally, I want to thank our whole staff (Pastor Shelly, Bonnie, Jimmy, Gretchen, Eleanor, Marilyn, Mo, Carol, and all our great office volunteers, "folding ladies" and "money honeys" for all the extra work that went along with the building program and the anniversary celebration.  This was all on top of the normal work of a congregation and the search for a new director of music!  It's been an extraordinary several months.  The fact that we are all still standing, enjoying each other's company and continuing to do what we are doing says that truly God's Light is shining on us...and we pray through us…in these holy, special days.   

Now, looking ahead, this coming weekend, Dec. 17-18 will be the 4^th weekend in Advent and the last weekend before Christmas.  At the 11am service on Sunday the Sunday School children will be "telling us" the Christmas story.  The following weekend, our Christmas schedule is as follows:  Christmas Eve, Saturday Dec. 24, Candlelight Communion Services at 6pm and 9pm; Christmas Day, Sunday Dec. 25, Christmas Service, with communion at 11am followed by our Home Alone Christmas Dinner at noon.  Call the church office, or just reply to this email and we'll save a place for you.

For other information about life at Our Savior, please visit our website at www.oursaviorelca.com.  In these last two weeks of Advent, may the Light of the coming Christ Child shine upon you and through you in all of your comings and goings.   Now, below is the letter from "Vicar Dave".

Dear Pastor Diehl and Our Savior Lutheran Church,

 The peace of Christ be with you and Happy Anniversary! You are in my prayers as you celebrate 50 years of ministry, proclaiming the Gospel in Word and deed; 50 years of worshiping our Savior Jesus Christ; administering the Holy Sacraments of Baptism and Communion; singing to God above anthems, hymns of joy, grateful love, praise, blessing, hope and faith; 50 years of teaching the Bible, the old, old story of Jesus and his love; 50 years of welcoming the stranger and the snowbird; 50 years of building community, a family in the name of Our Savior; 50 years of serving the community; 50 years of raising children, youth, adults in faith; 50 years worth of marriages, funerals, Christmas Eve and Easter Sunrise services; 50 years of being GRACED by God; 50 years of confession and forgiveness by command and mercy of Jesus; 50 years of blessings outpoured by the Holy Spirit; 50 years of being led by the Spirit; 50 years of laughter, tears, celebrations, sorrows; 50 years of being stewards of the mysteries of God.

 On Sunday, December 11, the congregation that I serve will be celebrating too. We began a capital campaign at the end of 2007 to pay off existing debt as well as to renovate and restore our sanctuary (pews, lighting, flooring, audio/visual, heat/ac) and other building work. In addition we have tithed all the offerings that have been given and shared them semi-annually with several local ministries as well as some Lutheran ministries.� We moved out of our sanctuary in June 2011 for the work to commence. We move back in the sanctuary this Sunday, December 11 and rededicate it to the glory of God. Thus I am not able to be present with you on your 50^th celebration.

 I treasure the time I enjoyed at Our Savior and the blessings that you graced me with during my internship as �Vicar Dave� in 1994-1995. I learned a great deal from Pastor Jack and from ministry with Our Savior. Some of those remembrances are: the crucifix hanging above the front of the sanctuary; Evelyn Anderson gracefully giving the church and this new vicar her home for the year!; a sudden tornado north of town and Pastor Jack�s whisking me away in his red Tracker to go visit victims; youth group gatherings every Sunday afternoon for games, Bible study, or beach time; hospital visits; key limes; Friday night dinners with Don and Lela Poust and Wil and Sylvia Coudriet; the hospitality of so many Our Savior members who invited me and my wife into your homes or out for a meal; peanut butter pie; fishing early one Friday morning with Pastor Jack; the wonderful stories of faith and traditions I heard from Lutherans of German, Scandinavian, New York, Minnesota, Michigan, Pennsylvania descent; Easter sunrise service at the columbarium; council meetings; the Gardening Angels; getting to preach on Sunday, December 25, Christmas Day like I will do again this year; Pastor Jack always being so wonderfully excited to welcome newcomers and old friends to worship; the choir in their blue robes and the festival of love songs near Valentine�s Day; Pastor Jack playing the accordion; Pastor Jack praying with me and for me; newsletter articles �From Pastor Jack�s Desk� and �Off the Vicar�s Wall�; my Honda Civic�s engine troubles; the River Rat Ramble; manatees; early-bird specials; Pastor Jack�s fantastic family: Karen, Sara, Andrew, Katie, and Anna; sunset walks on the beach with my bride Nina (we now have a 14 year old daughter Rachel and 11 year old son Robert); and there are many more special memories and mementoes of my one short year with you out of your 50 years.

 Keep on being Our Savior�s people! Almighty God bless you now and forever.

Week of Advent 2

From: Our Savior Lutheran Church
Sent: Monday, December 05, 2011 9:49 AM
To: Our Savior Lutheran Church
Subject: Week of Advent 2

 

For months, this is the week that we have been preparing for!  This coming Sunday, December 11 there will be only one service at 10am at which time we will dedicate our new addition and celebrate the 50^th Anniversary of Our Savior Lutheran Church here in this community.  A lunch at noon follows for all who have previously sent in their reservations.  But even if you haven’t made a reservation for lunch, still plan on coming to the service at 10am and being a part of that celebration.  (There will still be a service on Saturday evening at 6pm also.)

 

Following the dedication/celebration service, and before the luncheon, there will be places throughout the church with posters for people to sign who have been baptized, confirmed and/or married at Our Savior, plus a place to light a candle and remember a loved one who’s memorial service was held here at Our Savior.  During this “tour the sanctuary” time a pictorial walk through our 50 years will be scrolling on the wall over the hymn board in the sanctuary.  This was an Eagle Scout Project by Zac Barringer as a part of our 50^th Anniversary Celebration. 

 

In our new lobby, Swarovski Crystal Crosses will still be available, donated by the Swarovski family with 100 % of the proceeds to go to our building fund.  Plus, our commemorative 50^th Anniversary ornaments will be available, designed by Arun Wijetilleke (the designer for the ever popular “Garden Club” ornaments, and yes, Dr. Wije’s wife J ).  The crosses and ornaments both make wonderful Christmas Gifts and also help support the building project here at Our Savior. 

 

Apart from these activities, here are a couple of other items:   

 

This Wednesday we will have our “last supper” at 6pm til after the holidays.  Stuffed Cabbage is on the menu.  The suppers will resume Wednesday January 4.

 

This coming Saturday, December 10, a “Painting Party” will be held at the Big Brothers Big Sisters new home at  1860 18^th Ave., just west of the Freshman Learning Center.  Painting begins around 9am.  All equipment and paint will be provided.  Many hands make light work.  Call Allan Klotsche if you can help or if you have any questions: 234-0441.

 

If you’d like to provide a poinsettia for Christmas at Our Savior today is the deadline!  The cost is $10.  You can email us today (or tomorrow) with information re: it being in memory or in honor of someone.  We’ll just trust you to get the money in next time you’re in church.  J  The proceeds go to help support our scholarship fund.

 

For other happenings and our upcoming Christmas Schedule of services, stay tuned or check out our web site at:  www.oursaviorelca.com.  

 

Finally, in the middle of all the comings and goings of this season, remember Pastor Shelly’s sermon from yesterday and be a sign of God’s peace in the middle of the “crazies”.    That may be one of the best witnesses to the coming “Prince of Peace” that we can offer…a peaceful presence with our families, friends and out among strangers.   Come, Lord Jesus, and give us that peace, especially in these days. 

 

See you in church!    Pastor Jack Diehl +