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a monthly news publication
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DATES TO
REMEMBER:
January 6
Epiphany
January 12 & 13
Baptismal Weekend (Baptism of our Lord)
January 25 & 26
Women's Retreat
January 27
Pastor Grant's
farewell luncheon
After 11 am
worship service
February 12
Chili Cook-off
February 13
Ash Wednesday Worship Services
(12 & 7 pm)
Wednesdays
in Lent
(Beginning
February 20)
Soup Supper
6:15 pm
Lenten service
7:15 pm
March 24
Palm Sunday
March 31
Easter Sunday
Click here for our online calendar.
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WEEKLY
SCRIPTURE
READINGS:
Epiphany of
Our Lord
1/6/2013
Isaiah 60:1-6,
Psalm 72:1-7, 10-14, Ephesians 3:1-12; Matthew 2:1-12
Baptism of
Our Lord
1/13/2013
Isaiah 43:1-7,
Psalm 29,
Acts 8:14-17,
Luke 3:15-17, 21-22
2 Epiphany
1/20/2013
Isaiah 62:1-5,
Psalm 36:5-10,
1 Corinthians 12:1-11,
John 2:1-11
Nehemiah 8:1-3,
5-6, 8-10,
Psalm 19,
1 Corinthians
12:12-31a,
Luke 4:14-21
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FINANCIAL
November
2012
Fiscal YTD Giving to
Current Fund $529,664.69 Fiscal YTD
Actual Expenses
$546,902.46
Fiscal YTD
Budgeted Expenses
$568,797.80
YTD Building Fund
contributions
$428,716.12
November Only:
Contributions to Designated Funds
not including
Building Fund
$5,899.57
Contributions to Building Fund
$60,186.56
Fiscal YTD
Building Pledges Received
$428,716.12 |
ATTENDANCE
November
2012
Average Per Week:
423
YTD
Average Per Week:
409
November 2011
Average Per Week:
457
2011 YTD
Average Per Week:
431
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From the Pastor
Dear Prince of Peace,
As I have been preparing to move to Columbus and the wild world of college ministry I have been reflecting on the last six years in ministry with you all here at Prince of Peace. I feel blessed to have such a rich bank of good memories from which to draw some final reflections. While there are many things I could share, here are three things I have learned:
1. Less is more -
"And Jesus came and said to them, 'All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age (Matthew 28:18-20).' " In an effort to grow, some churches fall into the temptation to only do the kinds of ministry programs that gather the most people while using the fewest resources in order to feel successful.
One thing I have learned at Prince of Peace is that it is better to use a lot of resources (time, effort, energy) on a few, rather than few resources on many. Less is more. This is what I have learned about discipleship while being here. I can preach on Sunday morning all I want, but it is through walking with, apprenticing, praying for, opening my life to individuals on a weekly basis that seems to make a bigger difference.
I remember a mother of a member in the congregation coming up to me after her son had been in a discipleship huddle for 9 months and said," I've seen a lot of spiritual growth in my son over the last 9 months and he keeps talking about this discipleship huddle. If a huddle can have such a positive impact on my son, I want to be in one too." That will always stick with me because as with anything new (like huddles and missional communities have been) you always question if the energy expended on change is worth it, but after conversations like that one, I realized how important discipleship is to the body of Christ. Invest a lot of yourself in a few people and see what God can do.
2. Acknowledge your weaknesses -
"But he said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.' So, I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me (2 Corinthians 12:9).' "
There is a temptation to appear competent, confident and in control at all times. The truth is, Jesus' power is made perfect in our weakness. When I do not exhibit any weakness or vulnerability, challenge myself to do something beyond my skill level or allow a little chaos into my life, then I can actually block God's power from working through me in its fullness. It is precisely when I am unable and incompetent that I have seen God's power most clearly made manifest in my life. I really appreciate that Prince of Peace has been a church that isn't afraid to try new things and has been for me, a safe place to take risks and be vulnerable.
3. Set others up for success and expect them to do greater things
than you -
"Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son (John 14:12-13)." There is always the temptation to take the spotlight onto oneself. Perhaps this is my greatest temptation. It is an easy temptation to fall into each week when I am up in front of a congregation preaching or leading worship. Additionally, when working with others more skilled than myself, it is easy to want to grab the spotlight away from others and keep it on myself. The thing about Jesus is that he always pointed to others. He gave credit to God the Father. He told the disciples that they would do greater things than he. Jesus didn't have an ego with which to contend. He was secure in his identity and wanted to see the church succeed in fulfilling the great commission.
My time here at Prince of Peace has been a wonderful blessing. While I am excited for the new thing God is going to do, I am still grieved to move from here and all of you. You have been my friends, my extended family, my ministry partners and my brothers and sisters in Christ. This is not goodbye, but until we meet
again. I hope that you will give me a call if you are driving through Columbus so that we can stay connected. I would appreciate some familiar faces as we begin the daunting task of telling students about Jesus, raising monetary support and building congregational partnerships and working with the homeless who live around the campus ministry. My email and phone will stay the same for the foreseeable future (granteck@gmail.com, 513-376-1222 (cell)). When we get settled in Columbus we will make sure to update all of you with our new contact information.
Thank you for your support as we are sent to a new ministry context. May God bless you and keep you in His grace.
In Christ,
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A Key to Newsletter Articles
We are called to live balanced lives of discipleship. UP in relationship to God, IN in relationship with each other and OUT in witness and service to our community and world.
The articles in this newsletter are coded to show which ones are about UP, IN, and OUT. The image above shows you how we will be coding each article.
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  Serving in Worship
Sign-upsSign-up after January 1 online for February - April serving opportunities
Please sign-up online to serve in worship by January 20th.
After January 20, the worship coordinators will be developing a schedule for the quarter, filling the remaining openings. When you sign-up in advance, you are able to find the dates / times that work for best for your schedule.
If you'd like help signing up, there will be someone available at the Welcome Center the weekend of Jan 12 & 13.
Click here to sign up online after January 1
for February - April serving opportunities.
Contact Karen Skarda at 683-4244 to get signed up directly.
Thank you for your faithful service!
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Upcoming Serving in WorshipTraining Sessions
All are welcome!
Sunday, January 13 (6:30 -7:30 pm):
Usher Training & Refresher
Perfect for families or couples to serve together
Saturday, January 26 (6:00 - 6:20 pm)
Altar Care Training & Refresher
Prep for communion / care for communion glasses
Serve after worship (in the background)
Sunday, January 27 (9:00 - 9:20 am or 10:30 - 10:50 am)
Altar Care Training & Refresher
Prep for communion / care for communion glasses
Serve after worship (in the background)
Training is available for Communion Assistants, Lectors, Crucifers, Acolytes and Assisting Ministers on a one-to-one or class basis as needed. Simply let Karen Skarda or Marti Kelley know of your interest.
Contact Karen Skarda (kskarda@popluther.org) or Marti Kelley (kelmar46@yahoo.com ) if you are interested in attending.
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Summer Youth Trip
Informational Meeting
Parent Meeting - January 13
Immediately following the 11 o'clock service
in the Sanctuary
Life has a way of throwing in detours for us along the way. Whether it looks like a not-so-good grade on that test, landing that after-school job you thought you'd never get, discovering a passion for serving the homeless, having an argument with a BFF, or questioning what life will look like after high school - how we handle those detours is what matters most. That's what the D-Tour is all about this summer. It's a discipleship tour - it's not a week of service, it's a way of life. Dig into the practices of encouragement, invitation, prayer, study, worship, giving and service. Sunday June 23 - Friday June 28, Baltimore, Maryland (Includes a week of serving at partner organizations like foodbanks, halfway houses, soup kitchens, kids camps, and more. We'll also schedule a visit to DC where we will learn about the ELCA's commitment to advocacy, visit the National Cathedral, and Holocaust Museum.) Questions: Contact Mary Ellen Helms at mehelms@popluther.org
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Families from connect4 invite you to join us
for our Kids Against Hunger Day
February 9, 9 am - 12 pm
We'll work at the factory packing meals for those in need.
Stay tuned to the announcements
and the OUT bulletin board for more information.
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Giving Shoppe Kudos
You all were awesome in your response to the Giving Tree. All the tags were taken by the second Sunday. Amazing! All your gifts were delivered to the Masonic Lodge.
179 families shopped for their Christmas presents.
179 families consisted of: 257 adults, 226 children, and 44 Seniors.
A total of 400 volunteers donated their time to make the Shoppe possible. Peggy Goodwin has graciously led this effort for the past 5 or so years. Other people on the committee are: Lisa Gritton, Anne Parker, Karen Waple, and Sigrid Kluender from Prince of Peace as well as Linda Bergholz, Terri Carter, Laurie Gordon, Lollie Kasulones, Carol Rope, Debbie Sweeney, Lisa Waddell and Janet Zorko. The Charles Brigham, Jr. Masonic Lodge has loaned us their building for the past 5 yrs. Dr. Jim Levan is one of their members.
Accept our thanks for a job well done.
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Our next women's retreat is
Friday, January 25 & Saturday, January 26th, 2013
at King's Domain Camp, Conference & Retreat Center.
Sign-up begins January 6 on the UP bulletin board.
We are excited to have Pastor Alice Connor, from the Edge, Lutheran Campus Ministry, UC as our presenter on the topic "Women and Spirituality." Mark your calendar and watch for details after Christmas!
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Sign up to shovel the snow!
We need your help shoveling snow from our walkways this winter.
You DO NOT need to shovel the parking lot!
If you are willing to be on call in case of a snow storm and come to the rescue by shoveling our walkways, please sign up on the IN bulletin board, for a week that works for you.
Your help is very much appreciated!
The church has a snow blower and shovels to assist you.
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Luncheon at The Polo Grille
Thursday, January 17th at 11:30 am
Please join us for lunch at The Polo Grille.
All seniors are welcome!
Menu includes:
Salads, Burgers, Soup and Sandwich Combinations.
Sign-up sheet will be on the senior bulletin board
or call Pastor Ken.
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 A Look at What's Happening in
Missional Communities:
 More Than Paws
Have you ever considered that your pet can be used as an instrument to communicate God's love? Have you ever taken your pet's paws and prayed that they would be used to help other people? The first Sunday in December that's exactly what Cheryl Cowell did before she took her dog Angel to Cincinnati Children's Hospital's Ronald McDonald House. Angel is a therapy dog. For more information about this go to : TDI-dog.org
It was a very joyous experience for all. Angel brought light to a twelve year old from Saudi Arabia. A nine month old girl from Hong Kong had her first experience with real dog. Positive connections with parents were made. Siblings enjoyed the diversion of the dogs and attention from other caring adults.
January Events:
January 6 and 20, 4 pm:
Meet at Schappacher Dog Park in Deerfield Township.
January 27 after 11 am service at POP:
We will enjoy lunch together and say goodbye to Pastor Grant in the PLC. Please join us!
More Than Paws is led by Scott and Marylu Torrison.
For further information, please contact us at
Other scheduled events and details are regularily sent out via e-mail and member mailboxes.
We can also be reached by phone at
513-774-0617 (H) or 513-477-3264 (C).
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Families Matter From Shirley Lathrop, a longtime member of Roselawn Lutheran to Families Matter and Connect 4 and other POP folks who joined us:
Thank you Prince of Peace for our wonderful Halloween trunk or treat. The kids had a great time. I'm sure it's the talk of the neighborhood today. The kids will have told their friends the fun they had. We should have given prizes for the spookiest trunk!
It's so nice to have you 'at our backs. We are all getting a little (and a lot) creaky. You all still have the enthusiasm it needs.
Know how much you enrich ALL of our lives. There is such a good community struggling to survive, this sort of thing makes it better. Without you all we couldn't offer what we do that is needed so desperately.
Please tell the children who collected all those wonderful books that they will be put to good use. Most of the children in Roselawn don't know what it is to OWN a book. I heard, 'I can keep it! WOW!' 'Really mine!' The ones we have left have SO many possibilities. THANK YOU!
Sincerely,
Shirley . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . As we look toward the new year, we will continue to serve dinners the first Wednesday of the month (except January) and breakfast the third Saturday of the month. A story to share from December 15th: Following breakfast, we were pleased to join children from the community at Roselawn Lutheran Church for an impromptu story of the Nativity with the children as the cast. As the Christmas story was narrated by Haley McCrory, the children entered the nativity scene. Their smiles lit up the room! Many thanks to Sheryl Melvin for directing the cast. Our hope is to continue building relationships with the children of the community with emphasis on mentoring the boys.  If you are interested in joining us, we'd love to have you. Please call Eugene and Terri Rutz at 733-0825. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
connect4 Our New Year's Resolution is to spend more time connecting kids, parents, God, and others!January 1: No connect4 gathering
January 12, 4 pm: GODS Time at POP Service Project: making and sharing pet toys for the SPCA/Circle Tail January 15, 6pm: connect4 gathering at the Eilerts' January 25: Final Friday February 22: Mark your calendars for the first ever connect4 Talent Show! We need entries and audience members! Come join us! Questions: contact Suzanne Eilert (eilerts@cinci.rr.com) or Mary Ellen Helms (MEHelms@popluther.org ) for more information.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Supper Club We serve families that utilize the LIFE Food Pantry and other Loveland agencies by coordinating a monthly meal in the Paris LIfe Center. In addition to the meal, The Supper Club deepens friendships in a Christ-centered community. We will be serving our monthly meal to the community on January 29 from 5:45 - 6:45 pm in the PLC. Upcoming dates: February 12 & 26, 5:45 - 6:45 pm: Serve a meal in the PLC Please join us! Bring your family and friends! Questions? Contact: Danette and Scott Miller at diller1@cinci.rr.com Rosann and Chad McLelland at rmclelland@cinci.rr.com Jody and Joel Petersen at jody.petersen@chca-oh.org ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ZOE ZOE missional community launched in October 2012 and is reaching out to young adults with various challenges. All congregational members and friends with a passion for an inclusive faith community are welcome to attend events and develop relationships within our newly formed community. In December, ZOE kicked off their activities by joining with More Than Paws for the annual Pucks & Pups Cyclones Hockey game. Highlights included a "weiner dog" parade and an opportunity for pictures with Santa. All celebrated a Cyclones win which happened in an overtime shootout. On December 22, ZOE gathered for a Christmas celebration and birthday party for participants with December birthdays. Consider experiencing ZOE social and service events in the New Year and enjoy fellowship with young adults. January Events: Join us January and go to the monthly CinCity premier reptile show held at Kings Island Resort & Conference Center
located at 5691 Kings Island Dr. in Mason.
Learn more about all of God's creatures including the handling and caring for reptiles and amphibians. There will be thousands of exotic creatures to discover.
Meet at Kings Island Conference Center at 2 pm & plan to stay til closing at 4 pm. After the show, we will enjoy dinner and fellowship at a local restaurant to be determined.
For transportation needs contact ZOE leaders:
Marti Lemond at 777-0042 or Linda Paduk at 314-2717.
January 29:
ZOE will join The Supper Club serving a meal to local residents. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- January Zumba� Fitness Classes and Vamonos! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
New Year, New Resolutions...
Just getting going and start moving!
Zumba� Fitness classes
Monday and Thursday Evenings in the PLC
All Welcome! (ages 12 and up)
Mondays and Thursdays 6:30 pm No class on Monday, January 21 (Martin Luther King holiday) If Loveland cancels events for weather, Zumba is cancelled too!
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Vamonos!
Get Moving!
All are welcome to gather with Vamonos!, a missional community that is focused on staying healthy so we can do the things that God wants us to do! Come to Zumba Fitness classes to get moving and connect with others from Vamonos!. We gather monthly in addition to Zumba fitness to connect together (food / faith / fun) and serve in mission. Gathering and service nights on:
Saturday, January 26, 9 am - 10 am:
Come join us for a morning of yoga on Saturday, January 26 from 9 am - 10 am in the Atrium at POP. Bring a yoga mat if you have one.
Tuesday, January 29: Have fun doing Yoga (no experience needed) and be a kid at heart as we teach yoga to the children at "The Supper Club".
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Questions for Zumba Fitness or Vamonos!,
Please contact Karen Skarda (312-9498) or karenskarda@gmail.com
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POP Kids Update
a ministry of Prince of Peace
What's happening in January:
I'm still smiling and filled with the joy of Christmas as we completed two of our three POP Kids Christmas programs today (one more tomorrow!). Robin Stevenson used her amazing talents and wrote a delightful program about angels. The children's sweet voices sang songs of the joy of the birth of Jesus, all with an angel theme. They also rocked it out with an adorable dance. They at least left school for Christmas break knowing that we are filled with peace and hope since Christmas is the celebration of our Savior's birth...praying that it sustains them through consumer Christmas!
We are on Christmas break from Dec. 17 - Jan. 1.
It's that time again! Registration for the 2013-2014 school year. If you have or know a 2-1/2 year old to 5 year old, POP Kids is a loving, Christian preschool that will ultimately prepare children for kindergarten. I love the newsletter format so you can see just a snap shot of the fun things we do. However, a tour is the best way to see first-hand what we do on a daily basis.
Please call 683-1600, e-mail (popkids@fuse.net)
or check or web site www.popkidsschool.com.
Registration ends Thursday, January 17.
May the celebration of the birth of Jesus fill your home and bless you in the coming year! Angie Seiller Program Manager |
The card making group will meet on
January 3, 2013 at 10 am.
We will be making Valentines for the senior clients of the LIFE Food Pantry. Supplies are furnished and no experience is needed.
Men are welcome, too!
Come and have a great time!
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POP Corks will meet at the home of Debbie Heidrich
on Saturday, January 19 at 7 pm.
This group consists of wine enthusiasts who welcome anyone (21 or over) to participate in a delightful evening of fellowship and wine tasting. The gathering allows us to meet and get to know other church members, who perhaps attend a different worship service, in a relaxed setting. Each couple brings a bottle of wine (usually in the $10-20 range) to taste and an appetizer or dessert to share.
The theme this month will be "Wine & Music".
Your challenge is to find a bottle of wine somehow related to the theme...maybe a musical term or instrument in the name or from a vineyard owned by a musician. (And, if that proves to be too much of a challenge, bring a wine that makes you want to sing or dance!) The sign-up sheet and directions will be posted on the "IN" bulletin board.
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Pieces for Peace
Please join us for our
Annual Sew-A-Thon!
Saturday, January 26, 2013, 10 am - 3 pm
We will meet in room #6 to work on quilts for the upcoming year! Bring your machine, basic sewing supplies or just come and help...
OR Join us for our monthly meetings:
We meet the 2nd & 4th Monday of each month
in room #6 at 7 pm.
Thanks to everyone for their continued support,
the fabric, thread and batting are always welcome!!
No sewing experience is needed! REALLY!
Join us for any of our events!
We make quilts for those in need.
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The building plan by the Single Point architects (the design/build entity of VSWC architects) has been accepted by the City of Loveland, certainly a big step, and now the architects are preparing building permit applications.
The design and drawings were submitted for bids to a number of contractors in mid-December, with the deadline of December 28 for submitting bids. Following our evaluation, we will choose the contractors who give the best bids, which is not necessarily the low bidder because one or another may propose better ways to do the construction. Hopefully the bids will come in at the budget the congregation previously agreed upon, but if higher, we'll have to do some cutting, and if lower, some scope items previously cut may be added.
Once we have this number, we will submit it in the formal application to the Mission Investment Fund of the ELCA, which will provide the mortgage financing, and then they will give us a formal commitment letter.
Once having this letter, the congregation will be asked to vote again on the actual amount of the building project and the mortgage itself. This will happen in late January, date to be announced. Sound complicated? Yep, sure is, and it makes your home loan loan look simple in comparison, but once we have all this done, we will be good to go.
Start of construction is slated for early February, but we're backing off a bit from the Groundhog Day timing, and of course it will also be affected by wintertime weather and the timing of the contractors chosen. Formal ceremonial groundbreaking is also not yet scheduled but should come about the time the bulldozers fire up to do the the actual groundbreaking.
The first sign of construction will be erection of a construction fence to safeguard the area. It will take the parking area near the music room out of service, plus cover most of the grassy area behind the church and the plot of the house on Durango Drive formerly occupied by Pastor Grant and Tammy, which will be torn down. The whole area will be graded to give a driveway behind the building for access, a dropoff for small children, plus a major new parking lot and two stormwater retention basins akin to the one we already have along Durango, and a covered sidewalk connecting the new parking lot with the three new classrooms and Sanctuary.
Once the fence goes in, some of us will have to change our parking and entry patterns during the construction time, which is slated to be 14 months.
You're wondering about The Rock? The cross in the Chancel will be mounted in a large rock, rising up at the front of the Sanctuary. Why a rock? Think of Peter's confession and Jesus' reply "On this rock I will build my Church", the rock of Golgotha, building your house on a rock, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Bethlehem build on a rock, and of course it's reflected in all those hymns. At 6000 pounds and rather round, it will need a separate foundation to hold the weight, but it's not the potato-shaped rock that we first considered. The existing sanctuary cross will be reused in the new Narthex. The new Narthex will have two large skylights added to replace the windows to be lost, and the stained-glass windows on each side will be reused in the new Sanctuary. The tile floor in our present Narthex will be expanded to wrap around the new coffee bar.
And the trees... Sadly, we will lose most of the large maple and other trees in the rear of the building, but retain two blue spruces and three trees along the property line, and will replant trees as part of the landscape plan. Some of the greens used for Christmas decoration around the church came from these trees. Also in the spirit of good stewardship, I hope those of you interested in firewood can salvage some if it becomes available for a day or two and can be done without interrupting the construction work. If interested, please let me know and I'll contact you if and when the opportunity arises.
We are certainly appreciative of your Building Fund giving to date, both your weekly or monthly offerings and the lump sums. That allows the church to pay for upfront expenses such as architect's fees before the mortgage is all processed and in place.
Rich Peters, Chairman, Building Committee |
Farewell luncheon
for Pastor Grant and family
January 27
Look for an invitation in your mailbox in early January.
Chili Cook-off
Tuesday, February 12
Ash Wednesday Worship Services 12 & 7 pm February 13
Lent Soup Suppers
Wednesdays, February 13, 20, 27
March 6,13 & 20
Supper at 6:15 pm & Worship at 7:15 pm
Join us for a great time of fellowship followed by prayer.
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Adult mission trip to
the Navajo Lutheran Mission in Arizona
March 23-30, 2013
I would like to invite you to travel with members of Ascension Lutheran Church and friends from our community to Arizona this spring, March 23-30, 2013 for a week long mission trip to support an ELCA mission that includes a school, a clinic and a church in the Navajo Nation. We have much to offer, as do they.
Here is a link to a video site of the mission so that you can see a bit of what their world is about! Click here to view the link.
Once we have an idea of who can join us we can focus what we will do when we get there. Every one of us has a skill that can be used.
Personally, I am not the handiest guy but I can clean, and sing and usually follow directions.
Please respond to this article with your contact information and we will get in touch with everyone in the near future.
'Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.'
Joel Mortensen
Contact Joel Mortensen: joelmortensen@gmail.com.
Also, contact Debbie Heidrich: debbie.heidrich@gmail.com
POP council representative from the Community and Global Ministries Committee.
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THANK YOU
FROM THE POP STAFF
The POP staff would like to thank the congregation for their gracious monetary gift this Christmas. We are delighted in our call to serve with you, side by side as workers in the kingdom of God. We look forward to 2013 and beyond, waiting with great anticipation, to see what incredible things God continues to have planned for POP. God's blessings to you all in 2013!
We always thank God for all of you and pray for you constantly.
(1 Thessalonians 1:2)
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The staff at Prince of Peace Lutheran Church are now using their new popluther email addresses. (See the list below.) You may send all future emails to the new addresses.
Lead Pastor: Pastor: Grant Eckhart - pgeckhart@popluther.org Director of Senior Ministries: Ken Soderlund - prken@popluther.org
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Click here to download a pdf of the prayer list
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Closing Thoughts from our President
While the light of Christ's birth surrounds us at the Christmas season, darkness is close by. As I write to you, our country is reeling from the loss of such innocent life in Connecticut. It would be easy to sink into the darkness of such an event but I believe God is calling us to take action and to reach out to those in need so that all may find the peace that only our Lord and Savior can bring. This newsletter is filled with the kind of work that needs to be done to bring light, peace and understanding into the world. I hope that you will take some time to prayerfully consider how best to use your time and talents to further God's call for you and Prince of Peace as we usher in a new year.
We will be celebrating Pastor Grant's ministry at Prince of Peace and supporting his move to OSU and campus ministry on Sunday, January 27th immediately following the 11AM worship service. All are welcome to attend. More information will follow in the weekly worship folders later this month. We will celebrate all that Pastor Grant, Tammy and Grayson have met to this congregation and pray that God will embrace them and provide for their every need as they heed his call to do ministry that will surely be a positive influence on our young adults and the future of our world!
A Call Committee was approved by council at their December meeting. I am pleased to announce that Steve Riedell will chair this committee and the following folks will be serving: Rosie Brough, Ben DeVol (youth rep), Pastor Jonathan Eilert, Eric Green (council rep), Mary Ellen Helms (staff rep), Leahn Meyer, Jody Petersen, Ruth Sherbon, Barry Stufft and Todd Wichmann. The first meeting of the call committee will be held in January with the first order of business being to put a job description together for the associate pastor position. The committee needs to look at the skills the congregation needs the Associate Pastor to possess both now and as we look to the future.
Our Communications team of Karen Vance, Karen Skarda and Cary Rohrer will be working to put a congregational profile together which is another essential piece that is required by the Southern Ohio Synod for potential candidates to review. The profile gives candidates a glimpse of what Prince of Peace has been about historically and currently.
There is much behind the scenes work continuing with our building project. All contractual bids are to be in by the close of December (I am writing this the week before Christmas and can tell you that this time frame is on track). The Building committee will be carefully reviewing everything one last time now that we have real project costs in hand and then we will be working the final details with MIF (Mission Investment Fund) for our loan. We will be coming back to you (the congregation) to ask for a final vote on the loan amount in a few weeks. Weather and contractor availability will play into when the actual first mounds of dirt will get moved but I am hopeful that we will have a groundbreaking celebration shortly after the final congregational meeting on the project.
January is filled with many opportunities for you to get involved in the life of Prince of Peace! Please consider how best to put your time and talents to good use. I hope that other women of the congregation will join me at the Women's Retreat on January 25th and 26th. If you have a strong back, we really need you to help us with any snow shoveling that comes our way this winter too! Our missional communities are a wonderful way to build relationships with others. Thank you for the multitude of ways you have served this congregation in 2012. Your gifts of time, talent and treasure are greatly appreciated by the leadership at POP and our Lord! I pray that 2013 will be a year of good health and prosperity for you and your family. Happy New Year!
May God's peace and light shine brightly within you and yours,
Kathy Weimer
Church Council President
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REMINDER!
All news articles for next month's newsletter are due to Cary Rohrer by the 15th. Email stories and photos to crohrer@popluther.org or drop it in my mailbox or by my office.
Contact info for our church:
Prince of Peace Lutheran Church
101 South Lebanon Rd.
Loveland, OH 45140
513.683.4244
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