Sharing
Sharing
Saint Luke Lutheran Church
9100 Colesville Road
Silver Spring, MD 20910-1694
A publication of Saint Luke Lutheran Church
May 2014
Volume 27, Issue 4
Silver Spring, Maryland
Right where we are
C
The Word
Sunday, May 4
Third Sunday of Easter
Acts 2:14a, 36-41
Psalm 116:1-4, 12-19
1 Peter 1:17-23
Luke 24:13-35
Sunday, May 11
Fourth Sunday of Easter
Acts 2:42-47
Psalm 23
1 Peter 2:19-25
John 10:1-10
Sunday, May 18
Fifth Sunday of Easter
Acts 7:55-60
Psalm 31:1-5, 15-16
1 Peter 2:2-10
John 14:1-14
Sunday, May 25
Sixth Sunday of Easter
Acts 17:22-31
Psalm 66:8-20
1 Peter 3:13-22
John 14:15-21
Lift High the Cross
Spring has arrived at Hallowood
A
big “thank you”
goes out to the
Saint Luke Men’s
Group who held their annual retreat at Hallowood in
March. Led by Ben Zastrow
and Pastor Ray Ranker, they
“forged” new friendships
while forging steel. The cross made of rail- The daffodils are at their peak and on their
road spikes was made by the men’s group way out and the fountain on the pond has
replaced the ice. What a great sight!
and presented to Hallowood.
The new cross has already been used by
several groups at Hallowood during their
worship services. To quote one of the men
at the retreat, “The forge and steel working
area set up is incredible.”
Parish Milestones
ANNIVERSARIES
50 years
Jerry and Claire Rupert—
May 9
Ed and Madeline
Wetzlar—May 30
2
5 years
Jim and Ann Burke—
May 19
DEATH
Ella Kate Hiers—Mar. 29
NEW MEMBER
Stephen Holmquist—
Apr. 19
The redbud next to the
Labyrinth is in full bloom and
beautiful and, as you know, the
flowering white dogwoods will
not be far behind.
hrist is risen! Well, at least that
was going to be plan A. He was
supposed to get rid of those abusive Roman authorities. He was going
to do it and then rule over that earthly
kingdom of God. He had told them he
would rise from the dead in three days.
Well, they looked and saw no sign. The
women said he had risen yet these two
just saw an empty grave. Would they
ever see him again?
The crowds and all the events that
week of Passover, the cross, and treating
him just like a criminal had just been too
much so it was time to head home. Off
to Emmaus they went, one foot in front
of the other, empty hearts filled with
confusion and pain. Jesus was going to
do it, but now there was only a vacant
grave and no sign of him. Would he ever
be with them again?
On Easter Sunday all over the world
places of worship were filled with shouts
of Alleluia and the confident rejoicing
of the presence of the risen Christ. The
next days and weeks of this seven week
celebration (Easter is a week of weeks)
can go right back to the normal routine,
where lives are filled with so many fears
and challenges. Just like those two on
CHRISTIAN EDUCATION NEWS
I
the way home to Emmaus, sometimes
we may only be able to put one foot in
front of the other as we journey down
life’s road. News of natural disasters
is overwhelming, a family member
shares news of a difficult pregnancy, a
marriage is coming apart for long time
friends. Where is the joy of that Easter
celebration? Do we still experience the
risen Christ?
The disciples were walking to Emmaus and a stranger appeared, wondering why they were so down-hearted.
After reviewing the word and much conversation, it was time to stop for Sunday
evening supper, an everyday moment,
no grand retreat or cathedral worship.
Right there in Scripture and in the breaking of bread their jaws dropped. Jesus
was alive! He was there with them! He
didn’t wait for them at the kitchen table
over in Emmaus. He came and met
them right where they were.
Where do we expect to meet the risen Lord? Certainly he is there each week
in Word and Sacrament, yet, do we see
him in other moments of daily life? Do
we see him in our loved one’s eyes, or
during a conversation with a friend? Do
we feel his presence in the midst of days
n the most recent Sunday School
Gathering, the children explored
the meaning of Holy Week. Using
short videos, games, acting out parts,
and reading Scripture, they learned
about the importance of Palm Sunday,
Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and
Easter. The children
will meet again for another Sunday School
Gathering on June
8 for the last Sunday
School class of the
year. The theme that
day will be Pentecost.
of pain and challenges? Those travelers
had heavy hearts and
right then Jesus met
them with hope, word,
meal, and peace.
Recently, I traveled to visit with my
family. There was not a waking moment
when my dear aunt didn’t reach out
with care and love, preparing favorite
delicious meals, always ready to shower
care on others. When people are filled
with sacrificial love, isn’t that primary
to the love of the risen Lord? Could it
be that the risen Lord is right in front of
us (in the love of an aunt), walking beside us in moments of daily routine and
occasional surprise?
Right there, in the midst of their
daily journey, was Jesus Christ. He met
them right where they were.
During the remaining weeks of this
Easter season, let us keep the eyes of our
hearts open. There at the table is the one
who gives us strength. There to our side
is the one who fills us with hope. He is
risen and he is present—right where we
are.
He is risen indeed, Alleluia!
+ Pastor Miller
Vacation
Bible
School
(VBS)
will be held June
23-27 from 9:00
a.m.–12:15 p.m. each day for children who
turned 4 by September 1, 2013 through
current 5th graders. The theme this year
is Weird Animals: Where Jesus’ Love is
One-of-a-Kind! The children will experience five New Testament stories and will
learn that Jesus loves us no matter what.
Please pray for the children, teen volunteers, and adult leaders who will be
preparing for and attending VBS this summer. If you have any questions or have
interest in participating in VBS, please
contact Melissa Groen: mgroen@saintluke.us.
T
Choir Camp
2014
his year’s
C h o i r
C a m p
will be in session at
July 21–25
Saint Luke during
Musical Instruments
the week of July 21
25, when we will be
exploring and learning musical instruments.
Choir Camp is a day-long program, from
9:00 a.m. until 4:30 p.m., for students having
completed grades two through five. Visitors
and friends are most welcome! Mornings will
be spent in worship, singing, and learning how
to play a musical instrument. Afternoon field
trips will take students to various places in the
metropolitan DC area related to our theme.
Interested? Call Music Ministry (301-5884363, ext. 245) for a registration form. Adults,
middle school, and high school students are
needed to assist with this program. Please see
Dr. Pannebaker to sign up!
UPCOMING CONCERTS
REFORMATION AND ENSEMBLE BELL CONCERT
Sunday, May 18 • 7:00 p.m. in the Great Hall
This program will feature individual
selections by each choir, and a special piece of
music composed for handbells and two violins.
A free-will offering will be received toward the purchase of the seventh octave of handbells.
CHERUB AND CHORISTER MUSICALS
Friday, May 30 • 7:30 p.m. in the Great Hall
Our youngest choirs present their end-of-year musicals. The Cherubs will sing Creation!, a children’s
musical about the birth of the earth from Adam to
Noah. The Choristers will present The Troubbable
of Zerubbabel, a musical based on one of the lesserknown governors of Judah. We are grateful to all of
the parents who support their child’s participation
in this ministry.Why not plan to attend? Come and
support our youngest singers—and bring a friend
with you!
HANDBELL DESSERT CONCERT
Sunday, June 1 • 7:30 p.m. in the Great Hall
Come and support our youngest ringers and enjoy
a delicious dessert! Featuring our Novice, Genesis,
and Augsburg Bell Choirs (elementary school,
middle school, and high school). A free-will
offering will be received toward the purchase of
the seventh octave of handbells.
From the President’s Desk: CONGREGATION COUNCIL NEWS
A major change will occur at Saint Luke as a result the Special Congregation Meeting held on April 6, 2014. At some point, likely in early September, we will change from three to two Sunday morning worship services
year-round. The details will be announced later.
The forthcoming new worship and Christian Education schedule comes
only after a special Task Force survey report about parishioner preferences;
months of Congregation Council review and deliberation; congregation
mailings and a briefing; and a series of six well-attended Town Hall meetings—in January 2014—to solicit congregation input. Ultimately, four options for regular Sunday morning scheduling emerged, but in March, Council did not reach the Constitutionally-mandated two-thirds majority for any
one option. This automatically led to our request that all voting members
of Saint Luke make the selection. Before the April 6 vote, every member of
Saint Luke was mailed the list of options, each with their advantages, disadvantages, and other impacts.
Special Congregation Meeting attendance and participation were excellent. Voting was by ballot except for adoption of the agenda and final
voting on the implementing resolution. Vote A asked whether to retain the
current schedule (three services, with Christian Education classes as they
are now), or whether to adopt a two-worship service model. Vote A results:
For the 3-service model—18; for a 2-service model—169; abstain—1. Based
on Vote A, the congregation was then asked, via Vote B, if they preferred a
model of two worship services (W-W) plus Christian Education taught concurrently with one of those worship hours; or whether they preferred two
worship services plus a Christian Education hour scheduled between those
two (W-CE-W). Vote B results: W-W—94; W-CE-W—78; abstain—7. Since
Vote B favored a W-W model, then Vote C considered whether to schedule
Christian Education classes during the second [i.e., later] worship service or
during the earlier service. Vote C results: later SS—73; earlier SS—70; abstain—33. The congregation then approved a motion authorizing Council
to implement the change. As noted at the Special Congregation Meeting,
during the past 9 months, we on Council received many sincere, well-reasoned comments from members and friends of Saint Luke, representing all
sides of the issue. For these, we’ve been grateful, even as we realized that
deciding on what option seemed best for the church became increasingly
difficult. We prayed for guidance by the Holy Spirit in all our deliberations,
and we pledged our full support for whatever the congregation ultimately
decided. Now we ask every member to do the same.
Of course other important business came before Council during the
past four months, but I’ll mention just a few items. For multiple reasons,
Council unanimously rejected a request by AT&T to build a large cellular phone tower (plus two ancillary structures) on the roof of the Christian
Education wing. Council authorized replacement of the carillon and earlier,
approved improvements to the HVAC system in the Fireside Room. We
also approved the appointment of Pastor Platz as Teaching Pastor in Residence for 2014-2015, just as she’s served during this current 2013-2014 year.
A reminder to all: The annual meeting of the congregation is Sunday,
June 1, at 10:45 am in the nave. How great if we would have the same
member turnout as on April 6. Hope to see you then!
Lastly, at the Special Congregation Meeting, I mentioned something
which caught my eye recently in the waiting room at a doctor’s office. Centered on the otherwise-blank wall were these words by Martin Luther King,
Jr.: Faith is taking the first step, even when you don’t see the whole staircase. How
appropriate, for soon we will be taking that step together. And who could be
better prepared, as people of faith? God is with us. Alleluia!
—Charles S. Helling, President
Bless the Years: a blessed celebration
D
o you know that approximately 70 Saint Luke members are
90 years of age or over? Every
other year, we celebrate the blessing of
this wisdom and faithfulness by having
a Bless the Years celebration, and April
9 saw another such event. Honorees and
families and special guests came from all
directions, even via the van from the Village at Rockville, for Saint Luke’s Special Lenten Service of Holy Communion
and Bless the Years event.
Christian Day School students provided special pre-service music and following worship all were treated to a
delicious lasagna luncheon prepared by
Diane Van Lonkhuyzen and her wonderful team of volunteers. More than 100 attended the luncheon. Gifts of the Spark
Bible Story Book and a little “Lamb of
God” were given to each of the 26 special Bless The Years honorees who came.
Mark your calendars now for the
fall Saint Luke Day Special Service
of Holy Communion to be held on
Wednesday, October 15. Thank you to
all the families who accompanied the
guests and who helped make this day
special for all. Caring Ministries sponsored this event and many of those vol-
First row, left to right: Mary Osterndorf, Tom Liddiard, Clayton Marsh, Thoma Petersen,
Joe Smith, Marge Shaffer, Jim Shaffer, Nora Berard
Second row: Juanita Chamberlain, Lil Rasmussen, Dot Zeis, Carl Stewart, Margie
Speicher, Dick Ahlberg, Barbara Mizell, Helen Midboe, Walt Belter, Hank Besmen,
Marge Besmen, Marilyn Bresnahan, Roberta Marsh
Last row: Ken Dehart, Phil Lundeberg, Marge Bruffy, Eula Kasper, Selmer Norland.
unteers came also. Thanks
to them, and thank you for
your prayers of thanksgiving for all our senior saints.
Enjoy the photos of the event!
Saint Luke Road Show
B
ieber Hall was abuzz on Friday, March 25,
with comments such as, “What did you
bring?” “What did he say about it?” “Do you
have a valuable treasure there?” Saint Luke Fellowship hosted the “Saint Luke Road Show.” Special
guest Tom Weschler from Weschler’s Antiques in
D.C. helped us to learn more about each antique.
Members of the Lutheran Church of St. Andrew,
Christ Congregational, and other congregations
came in addition to those from Saint Luke that frequent Fellowship events. We were especially happy
to welcome some Saint Luke members who hadn’t
been to one of our functions. Yes, we are Saint
Luke Fellowship, and all are invited! On May 2, we
traveled to the Franciscan Monastery in D.C. On
May 16, we will host an interpretive speaker, and
on May 30, we’ll travel to Fort McHenry and then
have lunch in Little Italy. Flyers for the events are
in the “Happenings” kiosk or you can contact Kim
deGroot at kimdeg@aol.com or Ruth Manchester
at rmanchester@saintluke.us.
T
Choir Camp
2014
his year’s
C h o i r
C a m p
will be in session at
July 21–25
Saint Luke during
Musical Instruments
the week of July 21
25, when we will be
exploring and learning musical instruments.
Choir Camp is a day-long program, from
9:00 a.m. until 4:30 p.m., for students having
completed grades two through five. Visitors
and friends are most welcome! Mornings will
be spent in worship, singing, and learning how
to play a musical instrument. Afternoon field
trips will take students to various places in the
metropolitan DC area related to our theme.
Interested? Call Music Ministry (301-5884363, ext. 245) for a registration form. Adults,
middle school, and high school students are
needed to assist with this program. Please see
Dr. Pannebaker to sign up!
UPCOMING CONCERTS
REFORMATION AND ENSEMBLE BELL CONCERT
Sunday, May 18 • 7:00 p.m. in the Great Hall
This program will feature individual
selections by each choir, and a special piece of
music composed for handbells and two violins.
A free-will offering will be received toward the purchase of the seventh octave of handbells.
CHERUB AND CHORISTER MUSICALS
Friday, May 30 • 7:30 p.m. in the Great Hall
Our youngest choirs present their end-of-year musicals. The Cherubs will sing Creation!, a children’s
musical about the birth of the earth from Adam to
Noah. The Choristers will present The Troubbable
of Zerubbabel, a musical based on one of the lesserknown governors of Judah. We are grateful to all of
the parents who support their child’s participation
in this ministry.Why not plan to attend? Come and
support our youngest singers—and bring a friend
with you!
HANDBELL DESSERT CONCERT
Sunday, June 1 • 7:30 p.m. in the Great Hall
Come and support our youngest ringers and enjoy
a delicious dessert! Featuring our Novice, Genesis,
and Augsburg Bell Choirs (elementary school,
middle school, and high school). A free-will
offering will be received toward the purchase of
the seventh octave of handbells.
From the President’s Desk: CONGREGATION COUNCIL NEWS
A major change will occur at Saint Luke as a result the Special Congregation Meeting held on April 6, 2014. At some point, likely in early September, we will change from three to two Sunday morning worship services
year-round. The details will be announced later.
The forthcoming new worship and Christian Education schedule comes
only after a special Task Force survey report about parishioner preferences;
months of Congregation Council review and deliberation; congregation
mailings and a briefing; and a series of six well-attended Town Hall meetings—in January 2014—to solicit congregation input. Ultimately, four options for regular Sunday morning scheduling emerged, but in March, Council did not reach the Constitutionally-mandated two-thirds majority for any
one option. This automatically led to our request that all voting members
of Saint Luke make the selection. Before the April 6 vote, every member of
Saint Luke was mailed the list of options, each with their advantages, disadvantages, and other impacts.
Special Congregation Meeting attendance and participation were excellent. Voting was by ballot except for adoption of the agenda and final
voting on the implementing resolution. Vote A asked whether to retain the
current schedule (three services, with Christian Education classes as they
are now), or whether to adopt a two-worship service model. Vote A results:
For the 3-service model—18; for a 2-service model—169; abstain—1. Based
on Vote A, the congregation was then asked, via Vote B, if they preferred a
model of two worship services (W-W) plus Christian Education taught concurrently with one of those worship hours; or whether they preferred two
worship services plus a Christian Education hour scheduled between those
two (W-CE-W). Vote B results: W-W—94; W-CE-W—78; abstain—7. Since
Vote B favored a W-W model, then Vote C considered whether to schedule
Christian Education classes during the second [i.e., later] worship service or
during the earlier service. Vote C results: later SS—73; earlier SS—70; abstain—33. The congregation then approved a motion authorizing Council
to implement the change. As noted at the Special Congregation Meeting,
during the past 9 months, we on Council received many sincere, well-reasoned comments from members and friends of Saint Luke, representing all
sides of the issue. For these, we’ve been grateful, even as we realized that
deciding on what option seemed best for the church became increasingly
difficult. We prayed for guidance by the Holy Spirit in all our deliberations,
and we pledged our full support for whatever the congregation ultimately
decided. Now we ask every member to do the same.
Of course other important business came before Council during the
past four months, but I’ll mention just a few items. For multiple reasons,
Council unanimously rejected a request by AT&T to build a large cellular phone tower (plus two ancillary structures) on the roof of the Christian
Education wing. Council authorized replacement of the carillon and earlier,
approved improvements to the HVAC system in the Fireside Room. We
also approved the appointment of Pastor Platz as Teaching Pastor in Residence for 2014-2015, just as she’s served during this current 2013-2014 year.
A reminder to all: The annual meeting of the congregation is Sunday,
June 1, at 10:45 am in the nave. How great if we would have the same
member turnout as on April 6. Hope to see you then!
Lastly, at the Special Congregation Meeting, I mentioned something
which caught my eye recently in the waiting room at a doctor’s office. Centered on the otherwise-blank wall were these words by Martin Luther King,
Jr.: Faith is taking the first step, even when you don’t see the whole staircase. How
appropriate, for soon we will be taking that step together. And who could be
better prepared, as people of faith? God is with us. Alleluia!
—Charles S. Helling, President
Bless the Years: a blessed celebration
D
o you know that approximately 70 Saint Luke members are
90 years of age or over? Every
other year, we celebrate the blessing of
this wisdom and faithfulness by having
a Bless the Years celebration, and April
9 saw another such event. Honorees and
families and special guests came from all
directions, even via the van from the Village at Rockville, for Saint Luke’s Special Lenten Service of Holy Communion
and Bless the Years event.
Christian Day School students provided special pre-service music and following worship all were treated to a
delicious lasagna luncheon prepared by
Diane Van Lonkhuyzen and her wonderful team of volunteers. More than 100 attended the luncheon. Gifts of the Spark
Bible Story Book and a little “Lamb of
God” were given to each of the 26 special Bless The Years honorees who came.
Mark your calendars now for the
fall Saint Luke Day Special Service
of Holy Communion to be held on
Wednesday, October 15. Thank you to
all the families who accompanied the
guests and who helped make this day
special for all. Caring Ministries sponsored this event and many of those vol-
First row, left to right: Mary Osterndorf, Tom Liddiard, Clayton Marsh, Thoma Petersen,
Joe Smith, Marge Shaffer, Jim Shaffer, Nora Berard
Second row: Juanita Chamberlain, Lil Rasmussen, Dot Zeis, Carl Stewart, Margie
Speicher, Dick Ahlberg, Barbara Mizell, Helen Midboe, Walt Belter, Hank Besmen,
Marge Besmen, Marilyn Bresnahan, Roberta Marsh
Last row: Ken Dehart, Phil Lundeberg, Marge Bruffy, Eula Kasper, Selmer Norland.
unteers came also. Thanks
to them, and thank you for
your prayers of thanksgiving for all our senior saints.
Enjoy the photos of the event!
Saint Luke Road Show
B
ieber Hall was abuzz on Friday, March 25,
with comments such as, “What did you
bring?” “What did he say about it?” “Do you
have a valuable treasure there?” Saint Luke Fellowship hosted the “Saint Luke Road Show.” Special
guest Tom Weschler from Weschler’s Antiques in
D.C. helped us to learn more about each antique.
Members of the Lutheran Church of St. Andrew,
Christ Congregational, and other congregations
came in addition to those from Saint Luke that frequent Fellowship events. We were especially happy
to welcome some Saint Luke members who hadn’t
been to one of our functions. Yes, we are Saint
Luke Fellowship, and all are invited! On May 2, we
traveled to the Franciscan Monastery in D.C. On
May 16, we will host an interpretive speaker, and
on May 30, we’ll travel to Fort McHenry and then
have lunch in Little Italy. Flyers for the events are
in the “Happenings” kiosk or you can contact Kim
deGroot at kimdeg@aol.com or Ruth Manchester
at rmanchester@saintluke.us.
Sharing
Sharing
Saint Luke Lutheran Church
9100 Colesville Road
Silver Spring, MD 20910-1694
A publication of Saint Luke Lutheran Church
May 2014
Volume 27, Issue 4
Silver Spring, Maryland
Right where we are
C
The Word
Sunday, May 4
Third Sunday of Easter
Acts 2:14a, 36-41
Psalm 116:1-4, 12-19
1 Peter 1:17-23
Luke 24:13-35
Sunday, May 11
Fourth Sunday of Easter
Acts 2:42-47
Psalm 23
1 Peter 2:19-25
John 10:1-10
Sunday, May 18
Fifth Sunday of Easter
Acts 7:55-60
Psalm 31:1-5, 15-16
1 Peter 2:2-10
John 14:1-14
Sunday, May 25
Sixth Sunday of Easter
Acts 17:22-31
Psalm 66:8-20
1 Peter 3:13-22
John 14:15-21
Lift High the Cross
Spring has arrived at Hallowood
A
big “thank you”
goes out to the
Saint Luke Men’s
Group who held their annual retreat at Hallowood in
March. Led by Ben Zastrow
and Pastor Ray Ranker, they
“forged” new friendships
while forging steel. The cross made of rail- The daffodils are at their peak and on their
road spikes was made by the men’s group way out and the fountain on the pond has
replaced the ice. What a great sight!
and presented to Hallowood.
The new cross has already been used by
several groups at Hallowood during their
worship services. To quote one of the men
at the retreat, “The forge and steel working
area set up is incredible.”
Parish Milestones
ANNIVERSARIES
50 years
Jerry and Claire Rupert—
May 9
Ed and Madeline
Wetzlar—May 30
2
5 years
Jim and Ann Burke—
May 19
DEATH
Ella Kate Hiers—Mar. 29
NEW MEMBER
Stephen Holmquist—
Apr. 19
The redbud next to the
Labyrinth is in full bloom and
beautiful and, as you know, the
flowering white dogwoods will
not be far behind.
hrist is risen! Well, at least that
was going to be plan A. He was
supposed to get rid of those abusive Roman authorities. He was going
to do it and then rule over that earthly
kingdom of God. He had told them he
would rise from the dead in three days.
Well, they looked and saw no sign. The
women said he had risen yet these two
just saw an empty grave. Would they
ever see him again?
The crowds and all the events that
week of Passover, the cross, and treating
him just like a criminal had just been too
much so it was time to head home. Off
to Emmaus they went, one foot in front
of the other, empty hearts filled with
confusion and pain. Jesus was going to
do it, but now there was only a vacant
grave and no sign of him. Would he ever
be with them again?
On Easter Sunday all over the world
places of worship were filled with shouts
of Alleluia and the confident rejoicing
of the presence of the risen Christ. The
next days and weeks of this seven week
celebration (Easter is a week of weeks)
can go right back to the normal routine,
where lives are filled with so many fears
and challenges. Just like those two on
CHRISTIAN EDUCATION NEWS
I
the way home to Emmaus, sometimes
we may only be able to put one foot in
front of the other as we journey down
life’s road. News of natural disasters
is overwhelming, a family member
shares news of a difficult pregnancy, a
marriage is coming apart for long time
friends. Where is the joy of that Easter
celebration? Do we still experience the
risen Christ?
The disciples were walking to Emmaus and a stranger appeared, wondering why they were so down-hearted.
After reviewing the word and much conversation, it was time to stop for Sunday
evening supper, an everyday moment,
no grand retreat or cathedral worship.
Right there in Scripture and in the breaking of bread their jaws dropped. Jesus
was alive! He was there with them! He
didn’t wait for them at the kitchen table
over in Emmaus. He came and met
them right where they were.
Where do we expect to meet the risen Lord? Certainly he is there each week
in Word and Sacrament, yet, do we see
him in other moments of daily life? Do
we see him in our loved one’s eyes, or
during a conversation with a friend? Do
we feel his presence in the midst of days
n the most recent Sunday School
Gathering, the children explored
the meaning of Holy Week. Using
short videos, games, acting out parts,
and reading Scripture, they learned
about the importance of Palm Sunday,
Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and
Easter. The children
will meet again for another Sunday School
Gathering on June
8 for the last Sunday
School class of the
year. The theme that
day will be Pentecost.
of pain and challenges? Those travelers
had heavy hearts and
right then Jesus met
them with hope, word,
meal, and peace.
Recently, I traveled to visit with my
family. There was not a waking moment
when my dear aunt didn’t reach out
with care and love, preparing favorite
delicious meals, always ready to shower
care on others. When people are filled
with sacrificial love, isn’t that primary
to the love of the risen Lord? Could it
be that the risen Lord is right in front of
us (in the love of an aunt), walking beside us in moments of daily routine and
occasional surprise?
Right there, in the midst of their
daily journey, was Jesus Christ. He met
them right where they were.
During the remaining weeks of this
Easter season, let us keep the eyes of our
hearts open. There at the table is the one
who gives us strength. There to our side
is the one who fills us with hope. He is
risen and he is present—right where we
are.
He is risen indeed, Alleluia!
+ Pastor Miller
Vacation
Bible
School
(VBS)
will be held June
23-27 from 9:00
a.m.–12:15 p.m. each day for children who
turned 4 by September 1, 2013 through
current 5th graders. The theme this year
is Weird Animals: Where Jesus’ Love is
One-of-a-Kind! The children will experience five New Testament stories and will
learn that Jesus loves us no matter what.
Please pray for the children, teen volunteers, and adult leaders who will be
preparing for and attending VBS this summer. If you have any questions or have
interest in participating in VBS, please
contact Melissa Groen: mgroen@saintluke.us.