New Centerville Lutheran Parish

Parish Newsletter - January 2012

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Announcements

REMINDER: Joint Council Update – Due to inclement weather and holiday schedules, the first meeting of the Joint Parish Council has been moved to Tuesday, January 10th @Samuels. Because of the rescheduling, there will be no potluck at this time – we will reschedule that meal for later in the year.
New council members please plan to join us for this first meeting and please note that normally Council meetings are held on the first Tuesday evening of every month.

Adult Choir @M
Please remember that for the next couple of months (pending further notice), the Adult Choir for Messiah will be practicing on Wednesdays at 1pm. Please join us if you’re able – new members welcome at any time.

Southeast Asia: strong monsoons rains cause massive flooding
Four tropical storms and heavy monsoon rains since July have caused widespread flooding throughout Southeast Asia, including in Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, Laos, Burma and the Philippines, resulting in over 900 deaths and affecting an estimated 9 million people. See www.elca.org/disaster.

Order the new 2012 Global Mission Map Brochure now!
Filled with a panorama of photos and stories from across the globe, an overview of mission rooted in relationship. Learn how your gifts and offerings are turned into effective ministry around the world. Perfect for Epiphany and annual meetings. To order 10 or fewer copies, call 800-638-3522 800-638-3522 or email ris@elca.org. To order more than 10, see http://resources.elca.org/Products-Global_Mission.html.

Chinese Christmas: an opportunity for evangelism
The Rev. Dorcas Wang, ELCA missionary in China, reflects on the secular nature of Chinese society. She observes how Chinese congregations use Christmas as an opportunity to reach out to non-believers. Read the entire story at www.elca.org/handinhand; click either the copy-ready bulletin insert or the Winter 2011-12 issue of the Hand in Hand newsletter.

Senegal: ending an era of service
Viking and Marissa Dietrich's call to missionary service in Senegal was driven by the opportunity to use Christian witness in a Muslim context as a means of fostering community and peaceful relations. They recently reflected on their years of service; watch a short video at http://blogs.elca.org/handinhand. (While you're there, check out the next story too.)

Japan: young (very young!) missionaries and Christmas
"Our 9-year-old, Emilie, came home from school today with quite an amazing story of witness. She was chatting with a couple of friends about Christmas, saying “Well, you know it’s not all about presents and Santa Claus, right?” Her friends looked at her with astonishment, and asked in their local dialect, “Eh? No way! Well then, what is it?” Read the rest of this story at http://blogs.elca.org/handinhand. (While you're there, check out the previous story too.)

Prayer List Names -- Reminder
Please be advised that Pastor Will is pleased to receive names of loved ones to include in his prayers as well as put on the parish prayer list. But to assist his memory and to ensure that your loved one is included in prayer as soon as possible, it is also helpful if you would please call the church office and leave their name on the church voice mail or send it to us in an email as a reminder. (926-2215 or nclutheran@zoominternet.net. )
Thank you for your assistance in these highly important spiritual matters.

COMING SOON: First Communion Class –Why do we eat Bread and drink Wine in church?
Pastor Will is looking at offering a First Communion class in March for children who are of an advanced pre-school, kindergarten, or elementary school ages. This class will focus on helping children understand the meaning of communion and why we eat Bread and Wine in church every other Sunday. All parents who have children who they would like to participate in this class, please contact Pastor Will before Feb. 1st and let him know of your interest so he can have some idea of how many might come. In addition, a parent or parents are asked to attend this class with their children.

Right now he is looking at having class on the following dates Sat. March 3rd, Sat. March 24th, and Sat. March 31st
At one of the following times: 11:30am til 12:30pm OR 1pm – 2pm.
Please let Pastor Will know (by phone call, email, or chat) if you are interested and which class time you would prefer. Due to the availability of resources in his study, he is holding the class at Messiah.

Communion FOR YOUNGER CHILDREN – if you have younger children who are curious about communion, please be aware that Pastor Elisa and our sister parish are holding an introductory communion class for young preschoolers on February 11th and 18th at Mt. Calvary at 10am. Each class will be about 30-45 mins in length.

Operation Christmas Child Update: We have received word about the destination of some of our shoeboxes. They ended up in Ecuador and Iraq.

THE RETURN OF CONFIRMATION
            Confirmation class resumes this Sunday, January 8th at 5:15pm. Please note that with the calendar change, we also have a location change for our class. Since we are working in partnership with the Lavansville-Bakersville Parish, our class will be meeting at Mt. Zion in Bakersville for the reminder of the confirmation year.
            Schedule for January
            Jan. 8th – Class, 5:15pm @Mt. Zion, Bakersville
            Jan. 15th – Class, 5:15pm @MZ
            Jan. 22nd – Class, 5:15pm, @MZ
            Jan. 29th – Class, 5:15pm, @MZ

Snow Camp Info – Snow Camp Forms were sent to each confirmand prior to Christmas. They are due back into the office by January 15th. If there is anyone (confirmand or otherwise) who would like to to go to Snow Camp and did not receive forms, please let PastorWill know as soon as possible.

Baptism of Our Lord is on January 8th, 2012 and the Children’s Sunday School will meet at 10:15am @ Messiah to Celebrate.
The children will participate in the Children’s Sermon and Communion. We hope you can join the group.

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