The Shepherd’s Voice
Monthly Newsletter of Shepherd of the Valley
Lutheran Church
December
2009
Following
is the internet-friendly version of our monthly newsletter. It’s the same content; just different
formatting and no graphics. If you are
interested in receiving our newsletter via snail-mail, contact the church
office.
Shepherd
of the Valley invites, nurtures, and empowers people to serve and praise God
and proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ!
A NOTE FROM PASTOR TARI
"Keep awake therefore, for you
do not know on what day your Lord is coming." Matthew 24:42
It‘s A
Wonderful Life is a
great Advent movie. For those who
haven‘t seen it, you really should watch it this year. It's a movie about living out greatness in
the details of our lives. The Jimmy
Stewart character has great dreams of changing the world and traveling all
over, but gets stuck in Bedford Falls grinding by and standing up to the rule
of Mr. Potter. It's not a glamorous
life, but when he gets to see what the world would be like without him, he sees
his life made an amazing difference in many other people’s lives.
Advent is about learning to wait and
be faithful in the details of our living. We‘ll hear lots of dramatic stories about the coming of Christ and the
world being set right. We‘ll be told to
keep awake, wait, and pray for that glorious day. That‘s what Christians have been doing for
thousands of years.
Keep awake,
wait, pray. It may not be the most
glamorous image of faith one can imagine, but it dramatically changes the
world. The small choices of our lives;
what we buy with our money, how we spend our time, how we tend our relationships,
and how we stand up to bullies are the choices that make true change in
society.
The waiting
and quiet of Advent in the church is a stark contrast to the brilliant lights
and blaring music all around us. Sometimes we put so much energy into the pre-Christmas season and sales,
by the time the festivities arrive we're deflated and glad they're finally
over. We want to make everything so
special and exciting, only to realize there's a hollowness to more stuff and more food. Faithfulness is not in the glamorous and glitzy; it is in the details
and moments.
This Advent take time to be quiet, take time to do your devotions,
and tend to the details of your life. Be
mindful of how you treat the people and things around you everyday,
be mindful of how you're spending money, be mindful of
the bullies who continue to hurt those around them. Make changes to the details
and you’ll realize too it is a “wonderful life.”
Advent
Devotions are available in the back of church and on SOV's website. They are
designed to guide you through regular worship, prayer, Scripture reading, and
generosity during the season of Advent. Our goal is to have fifteen people
committed to devotions everyday.
Every
Sunday at 9:30 a.m. all ages are welcome to attend Faith Formation at SOV. We gather in the Fellowship Room for a brief
opening of prayer, songs and stories, and then split into our respective age
groups. Listed below are the December
activity station volunteers. If you
would like to volunteer, contact Pastor Tari or Lori
Fredenberg.
(My Life
and Advent)
Mission:
Volunteer?
Games:
Volunteer?
Craft:
Volunteer?
Snack: Thordis Moe
Everyone is
invited to join us between worship services for the youth Christmas Program,
followed by hot chocolate and cookies.
(My Life
and Advent)
Mission:
Volunteer?
Games:
Nadine Marx
Craft: Andy
Peterson
Snack:
Cindy Spanyers
9:30
a.m. One worship service with Christmas
carols & lessons
Many
Thanks...Thank you to everyone who donated personal hygiene items for our November Faith
Formation mission project. We assembled
37 hygiene kits for the folks at Polaris House. We delivered them the day before Thanksgiving, to be distributed at
their annual Thanksgiving meal. In
addition to the kits, our SOV kids made decorations to adorn their tables, and
prayer bookmarks for them to take home. We have already received thanks from a Polaris House member who visits
our food pantry! Polaris House is a
clubhouse that provides a support network for folks with severe mental
illness.
Two SOV yutes were honored recently for their musical talent. Bekah
Peterson and Rachel Sielbach were named to the Southeast Honor Band. Bekah
plays the trombone at JDHS and Rachel plays the clarinet at TMHS. Bekah went on
to receive a first chair award at the All State Honor Music Fest in Anchorage,
spotlighting her as one of the finest young musicians in Alaska. SOV
congratulates Bekah and Rachel and we thank God for the gifts He has given us
through these exceptional young women.
6 p.m.,
Fri., December 4 - Potluck Dinner and Murder Mystery Party at La Casa Kissel
9:30 a.m.,
Sun., December 13 - Christmas Program
6 p.m.,
Fri., December 18--Christmas Party with Potluck Dinner and Chinese Gift
Exchange at La Casa Kissel
December 29
to 31 - Yutes Trek and Overnight to the John Muir
Cabin
Following
is a list of planned topics/activities for December.
Feel free
to invite friends to any and/or all of the events!
Sun.,
December 6 - Class on Moses
Sat.,
December 12 - 11 a.m. Church Decorating
Sun., December 13,
Thanks to
everyone who has participated in our most recent outrageously wonderful
community outreach opportunities. The
list of thanks includes:
THANKS...to
everyone who donated hygiene items for Polaris House. We assembled and delivered 37 hygiene kits
filled with shampoo, soap, washcloths, toothpaste, toothbrushes, disposable
razors, shaving cream, deodorant, and lip balm!
THANKS...for
helping to pluck Tom Turkey and donating food for the AWARE Shelter
baskets. Your generous food donations
filled FIVE baskets, which in turn provided a complete Thanksgiving meal for
FIVE families!
THANKS...to
the crew who helped families with home repairs. On November 28 a large crew of workers from SOV winterized and did much
needed repair on two trailers. Those homes
are warmer and safer thanks to your efforts!
THANKS...to
everyone for their continuous support of our community food pantry and our
monthly Glory Hole meatloaf meal. Both
are much appreciated ministries.
Now...let's take a deep breath, roll up our
sleeves, and keep up the good and faithful works!
"The
King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least
of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'
Matthew
25:39-41
Birthdays:
02 Mac
Oliver
02 Nicole
Fenumiai
07 Collin
Sielbach
12 Ellen
Campbell
14 Tyler
Campbell
24
David Nestler
27 Cameron
Marx
29 Brittany
Fenumiai
29 Logan
Balstad
13 Keith
Berggren
13 Debbie
Berggren
14 Matthew
Kern
16 Bobbi Varness
19 Jennifer
Kern
24 Nicole
Fenumiai
25 Thordis Moe
30 Collin
Sielbach
30 Lane
Buck
30 Willie
Anderson
30 Joyce
Shaffer
30 Bob Varness
22 Drew
& Susan Sielbach
Did we miss
your special day(s)? Please let us
know!
Call the
church office at 789-4093 or email sov@alaska.net.
Following
is the first of several "SOV histories" that will be printed in the
newsletter. Others will follow in the
months leading to our 25th anniversary in May. Thanks to Elfrida Nord for writing these for
us.
In May
1984, a letter of call was sent to E. David Spencer by Rev. Milton Hunt of
Resurrection Lutheran Church. Pastor E.
David Spencer, his wife Mildred, and son Todd arrived in August 1984. The next
months were spent knocking on doors in the vicinity.
On November
18, 1984, 125 persons were present at Floyd Dryden Middle School for the first
service of a proposed new Mission congregation in the Valley. At this service
the name Shepherd of the Valley was chosen.
May 5, 1985
was selected as the official Day of Organization with 41 families represented
as charter members.
Discussion
on whether to build our own center for ministry started in December 1985 with a
unanimous positive vote "Yes" at our current location. After a couple
months of volunteers clearing the land we held a groundbreaking ceremony on May
17, 1987. The foundation was poured on June 10 and on June 18 seventy folks
from Minnesota and Montana came to assist in a "church raising"
in 6 days. It took a lot more than 6 days to complete the work! The first
worship service at our new "Center for Ministry" was held December
13, 1987.
The
building was dedicated on April 10, 1988 with Bishop Donald Parsons, of the
newly formed Alaska Synod of ELCA. Much volunteer labor continued, especially
outside to get trees planted, a lawn, parking lots, etc.
On May 27,
1989 the Spencer's left for Royal Oak Michigan and Rev. Jim Patton became our
interim pastor. In December 1989, a letter of call was responded to by Pastor
Larry Rorem. The Rorem's - Larry, Laura, Tanya, Matt and Angie - arrived
January 22, 1990 and our first worship service together was January 28, 1990.
SOV NEWS
Your
Monthly Reminder...DON'T FORGET THE PANTRY
Our pantry
is always in need of food and volunteers. A sign-up sheet for volunteers is located on the round table at
church. Please continue to include the
pantry on your shopping list and in your prayers.
CHURCH
FAMILY PHOTOS
Your photos
are needed for the bulletin board and for the church directory. We would like to have all photos to SOV by
the end of the year. Please see Dean
Rasmussen to get your photo taken, or send your own to sov@alaska.net. We would LOVE to get an updated PHOTO
directory to everybody for our 25th anniversary celebration in May.
Our 25th
anniversary is only five months away! Special events and other goodies are in the works (like a photo
directory, see above paragraph). Watch
for details on how you can get involved in planning all or part of the
celebration. SOV charter member Elfrida Nord is going to provide us with brief
"histories" and special memories of SOV, beginning in this
newsletter. If you have anything to add,
please send it to the church and we will forward it to Elfrida.
The women's
fellowship group is taking off the month of December, but events will resume in
January. Please keep Saturday, January
16 open for a WF event - perhaps another game night? Stay tuned for details!
Our church
secretary Bianca Reese has a new job that does not allow her to be at the
church during the day. She will continue
to do the secretarial duties. Her office
hours are 6 to 8:30 p.m. on Tuesdays.
On behalf
of the congregation, the fellowship committee sent ten care packages to our
college youth, to encourage them and remind them they are in our thoughts.
The
committee also heads up the prayer shawl ministry. Over twenty prayer shawls have been given to
people who needed a hug from God.
Please keep
knitting or crocheting prayer shawls! This is a popular ministry - please help us keep supply up to meet
demand. And as always, feel free to pick
up a shawl and deliver it to someone who needs one, to remind them they are
loved!
Following
is a list of three online addresses that lead to websites filled with
alternative gift ideas. This list is by
no means comprehensive, but it might spur our imaginations and help us be more
intentional about the gifts we choose (think excessive generosity, as opposed
to excessive plastic and packaging).
During
Advent we will be using a liturgy that uses Christmas tunes for the Kyrie,
Gloria, and other responses.
Advent is
traditionally a time of increased devotion and focus on faith to prepare for
the coming of Jesus. You are encouraged
to pick up and read a specially made devotional at church that will help you
work on spiritual discipline during this season.
We will
have communion candlelight Christmas Eve Worship Services at 7 and 11 p.m.,
Thursday, December 24. Please invite
your family and friends to this special service.
There will
be one worship service at 9:30 a.m., Sunday, December 27. The worship will
feature the singing of carols and the reading of lessons. If you are willing to read, please talk to
Pastor Tari (or leave a note in the church
office). At worship you will also be
able to request favorite hymns you may have missed singing!
Epiphany is
the season after Christmas where Jesus' true identity as Messiah is
revealed. We will begin a new and lively
liturgy for this season. To make us all
more familiar with it, please pick up a CD in the back of the church and start
listening now. Not every song is
included on the CD, but it will help us get to know some of the music.
Different
people choose hymns every month. There
is a wide variety of people choosing them. If you are interested in helping select hymns for 2010, please talk to
Pastor Tari or Alice Gates.
This
exciting Bible study will continue at 7 p.m., Tuesdays, December 1, 8, and
15. A thirty-minute video fills us in
on the sordid details of those "oldie but goody" Sunday School stories. Please join us for this great chance to learn more about the wild people
of
We began
the journey of Advent on November 29. The first Sunday of Advent is the beginning of the church year and we
switch from our focus on the Gospel of Mark and onto Luke.
Luke is the
first part of two books. Acts is the
second. They are both dedicated to a Theophilus, though no one is sure who this person is. Nowhere is Luke identified as the
author.
The next
gathering will be 6 p.m., Sunday, December 6 at Mi Casa Restaurant. The topic for the evening is pagans and
heretics. Please join us for lively
conversation!
Join us and
help decorate our church home for Christmas, 11 a.m., Saturday, December
12. There will be lights to hang and
trees to trim. Please bring a potluck brunch dish to share. Hope to see you there!
EVERYONE is
invited to the youth Christmas Program, 9:30 a.m., Sunday, December 13 (between
first and second worship services, during the regular Faith Formation
time). The program, presented by youth of all ages,
will be followed by time for fellowship with hot chocolate and cookies. If you can provide cookies, please talk to
Pastor Tari.
It's time
to share some joyful noise. Come caroling with us at 3 p.m., Sunday, December 13. We will meet at church and car pool to the
various caroling sites. If you know of
someone who would appreciate a visit by our carolers, please talk to Pastor Tari or Karen Stumpf.
We will
cook and serve our monthly meatloaf at the Glory Hole on Wednesday, December
16. Cooking begins at 1 p.m.; we serve
the meal at 6 p.m. The sign-up sheet for
donations of food and/or time is located on the round table at church.
A special
Christmas tree for the AWARE Shelter will soon be hanging on the bulletin board
at church, just waiting for you to grab an ornament (or gift) or two. Each ornament lists a food item needed for us
to fill Christmas baskets for five families; the gifts under the tree list gift
items the family members would greatly appreciate. Food and gift items will be due to church the
week of Christmas. Please watch for more
exact details. Questions? Talk to Teresa Kissel or Roger
Birk.
The Juneau
Cooperative Church Council Advent Luncheon is Noon, Thursday, December 17 at
Resurrection Lutheran Church. Shepherd
of the Valley is responsible for providing soup for 25 people. If you are willing to help, please contact
the church office. Join us for singing,
fellowship, and good food.
Meet at the
church at 4 p.m., Sunday, December 27 for a flashlight hike at the
glacier. It's a great way to care for
your body, especially after all the holiday goodies, and have an exciting
adventure at the same time!
Editor: Becky Corson Production/Distribution: Alice Gates