Sharon Lutheran Church: June 2007 Newsletter

We have much to celebrate. It took a while, but we did it! After 10 years, proceeds from the rummage sale plus the amount in the designated fund for air conditioning allowed us to install air conditioning in the Fellowship Hall. What a blessing to have this space more comfortable both for worship and other special events in the heat of the year.

We have much to celebrate. We have increased the number of households who participate in Simply Giving. The amount received in this offering each month has increased from approximately $16,000 to over $24,500. Thank you for blessing the work of God through the ministry of Sharon.

We have much to celebrate. The Second Offering in March resulted in $40,747.01 including the $10,000 gift from our youth. Some of you also accepted the challenge to increase your regular offering. Thank you for blessing the work of God through the ministry of Sharon.

We have much to celebrate. Showers of Blessing raindrops reveal an amazing diversity of blessings experienced by people in this community. The Showers of Blessing financial response was $12,258.56 in the first week (ending 5/13), including a $5,000 gift from the Board of Women. We are excited about the possibilities as people continue to respond. We will bless others with 10% of everything received in our benevolence. Thank you for blessing the work of God through the ministry of Sharon.

We have much to celebrate: a great and gifted staff, outstanding education ministry, amazing youth ministry, wonderful worship and a care for reaching people with the love of God and the story of Jesus. Thank you for sharing your blessings so that we can continue to celebrate!

Sunday Worship: 9:00 a.m. Traditional, 9:00 & 10:30 a.m. Contemporary Service and Wednesday Worship 6:15 p.m.

Thank you for blessing Sharon Lutheran with your response to the Showers of Blessing. Through the sharing of your personal blessings in the raindrop display to the sharing of your additional financial gifts the joy of being blessed is made real.

In the first week, we received $12,258.56 in the Showers of Blessing. This includes a $5,000 gift from the Board of Women. Our goal is to eliminate the operating loan of $130,000 and to establish a financial reserve. This is a challenging goal, one that will result not only in blessing our congregation, but it will result in blessing others. As part of our efforts and as a way of sharing God’s abundant blessing, Sharon Lutheran will give away 10% of whatever amount is received to support our benevolence.

This spring consider the many ways God has blessed you. Think about the many ways God has blessed Sharon Lutheran. How will we share that good news and give thanks?

The blessing of summer travel and good weather often takes people away from the church resulting in a ‘summer slump’ in offerings received. As one way to help Sharon through this time, consider participating in Adopt a Bill. Just take an envelope from the display, enclose the amount indicated and return it in the offering or to the church office. Thank you for blessing the ministry of Sharon with your gifts.

The water cups are in! $ 2777.47 was raised over the 40 days of Lent, Good Friday, Easter Sunday, and Sunday School offering focus. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

The board of Church in Society thanks you for your interest in and generous support of ELCA World Hunger water projects. The board is excited to share just one of the current water projects. You have made a difference in the lives of individuals, families, and entire communities in areas where lack of clean water is a serious concern.

In the northern highlands of Peru, gifts to ELCA World Hunger are supporting a community collaboration to build and maintain an irrigation reservoir to provide water for the local quinoa crops. Before, the farmers could plant only once per year, but thanks to this irrigation project, they will be able to farm year-round, likely tripling their annual food production. Our gifts helped the Peruvian staff of Lutheran World Relief to procure materials and connect the farmers to local construction experts for technical assistance. The farmers themselves were happy to provide the manual labor needed to make their dream a reality.

This past fall, two ELCA staff had the opportunity to visit this community. Elias Fernandez Quispe was one of the community leaders who guided them up and down the rocky mountain path to take a look at the reservoir-in-progress. “Thank you for working together with us. Thank you for being a part of this project with us!” A sense of pride was evident on his face – this was not a hand-out, this was not charity; this was a partnership. Gesturing toward the dry mountain hillside, Elias declared, “We will care for
this investment...like a bank! When you come back to visit, all this land will be green!”

From a mountaintop in Peru to and to so many other places, your gifts to the ELCA World Hunger and Disaster Appeal have made a life-saving difference. Thank you for providing living water and sharing God’s abundance with communities in need. Thank you for your continued support, and for your partnership with the ELCA World Hunger and Disaster Appeal. Peace and blessings to you dear members of Sharon Lutheran as you continue your journey of being life giving water to the world!

Let’s celebrate and give thanks! As a result of many gifts given over the past ten years and the wonderful support of the Sharon Rummage Sale, air conditioning of the Fellowship Hall is about to become a reality. Now when things heat up, we can stay cool. Thank you for blessing this church with your contribution to this designated fund.

Thermostat Controls. Summer is here and we are all thankful for the warm weather. With the warm weather comes the urge to adjust the thermostat controls at Sharon Lutheran. We ask that you refrain from adjusting the controls. We have the thermostats set to what is best for our building and our budget. Thank you.

Please join us in celebrating a Babies Shower for Kim & Dave Adams. They are expecting twins this fall. It is our joy and honor to celebrate with them.

Please mark your calendar for Wed. July 26th 7:15 – 8:30 p.m. in the Fellowship Hall. This is an open house baby shower and all are welcome. A lite supper, dessert, and punch will be served.

We are asking for financial gifts to be made as opposed to individual gifts. This will help with the number of duplicate gifts. It is also our hope to collect funds to purchase a larger gift like a crib or Baby’s R US gift card.

Please forward your financial gift to Rachael in the Education office. Checks can be made payable to Sharon Lutheran Education. Please be sure to memo your donation “Babies Shower”. All individuals who send a gift will be named in the card.

If you are interested in helping directly with the planning and severing of the shower, please contact Rachael at the church office, 772-3122, ext. 208.

Simply Giving is an electronic service that transfers your Sunday offering from your bank account into Sharon Lutheran’s bank account. Your signature and bank information is all that is needed to begin a new enrollment or to make a change in an authorized amount. No more waiting for envelopes. No more missed offerings. You may use the form in this newsletter or contact Joan in the church office.

Christian Education: Vicki Ronkowski, Director

Church Properties: Stan Vistad, Director

Evangelism: Teresa Dahlstrom, Director

Youth: Marsha Vistad, Director

Lay Ministry: Alice Senechal, Director

Sponsoring fundraiser at Grand Cities Art Fest on June 9 & 10. Sign up to help.

Evangelical Lutheran Worship (New ELCA Worship Book) will be secured for Sanctuary through memorial gifts & honoring gifts.

Parish Fellowship: Barry Branvold, Director

Bike Ride on Sunday, June 24th @ 3:00 p.m.

Annual Church Picnic set for July 1, 2007

Always looking for people to serve coffee & donuts. SIgn-up sheet in South Hall

A Project of the Board of Church in Society. As in past years, this project is an opportunity for us to bring in items from our gardens. They are available for people to take home in exchange for a monetary donation. The donated money will be given to a hunger project. This year we would like to begin earlier in the season and include all types of products. Consider bringing: Seeds, flower bulbs, leftover bedding plants, rhubarb, radishes & other early produce. Flowers such as lilacs, cut flowers from your gardens. Herbs such as parsley, chives, etc. Berries, spinach, lettuce and other regular vegetable garden produce. Vases for cut flowers. Thank you from your Board of Church in Society.

As we all find time to enjoy God’s creation during the summer months, it is important to remember how we are blessed, and to give thanks to God for those blessings.

The first four months of the year have been good for Sharon Lutheran financially, as we have been able to meet our financial obligations and build up a small cash reserve for the summer months. This should be celebrated, as we are in a far better place financially than we were at this time last year. In addition, we now have air conditioning in fellowship hall, so come and worship on Wednesday evenings and enjoy! This has been made possible by designated gifts over the last 10 years, and it is great to see these gifts utilized.

As we go through the summer, I ask you to remember your pledge and financial commitment to Sharon Lutheran, as our regular giving is vital to our ministry. Come worship on Wednesday; drop a check in the mail, or sign up for Simply Giving (my favorite!). Thank you all for your continued support and prayers of our ministry.

There is new and easy way to raise money for Sharon Lutheran just by searching the Internet with GoodSearch.com. Last year, search engines generated close to $6 billion in revenue from advertisers. With GoodSearch part of this advertising revenue will now be directed to Sharon.

We hope that not only will you use GoodSearch as your main search engine from here on out, but will also pass this message on to your friends and family. The more people who use this, the more money will go to support our ministry.

GoodSearch donates half its revenue, about a penny per search, to the charities selected by its users. The pennies quickly add up. For example, if 1,000 people searched just twice a day, we would receive an estimated $7,300 per year.

What’s great is that you use GoodSearch just as you would any search engine. Again, it’s powered by Yahoo!, so you get proven, high quality results.

Just go to www.goodsearch.com and enter Sharon Lutheran as the charity you want to support. The more people who use this site, the more money we’ll earn so please spread the word!

This support group is designed to offer hope, healing, and a safe place to explore your feelings and work through the grief of losing a loved one or friend through suicide.

The group meets the 3rd Thursday of each month from 7:00-8:30pm at Sharon Lutheran Church.

S.A.S.S. is sponsored by T.E.A.R.S. (Together we Educate About the Realities of Suicide) And Altru Health Systems.

Some members have expressed an interest in obtaining the ELCA's new worship bood, Evangelical Lutheran Worship, for the sanctuary, and in designating memorial gifts toward that purpose. Based on that member interest, the Board of Lay Ministry decided to move toward a goal of ordering the new books in time for Rally Sunday worship.

The price of Evangeilical Lutheran Worship is $20. If you would like to make a memorial gift, or a gift in honor of a living person, for purchase of one or more books, please complete the form below and return it to the church office along with yourgift. Checks should be payable to Sharon Lutheran Church. If you wish, your memorial gift or honorary gift will be identified in a bookplate inside the front cover of each book your gift purchases.

Evangelical Lutheran Worship is one product of the ELCA's Renewing Worship project. Evangelical Worship is designed to take the place of both Lutheran Book of Worship (green book) and With One Voice (blue book), so that only one cranberry red book will be in the pews. Evangelical Lutheran Worship includes many of the hymns from LBW and WOV, as well as some new hymns. It includes two of the communion liturgies from LBW, as swell as several new litergies. It includes all the Psalms, and Luther's Small Catechism. Evangelical Lutheran Worship was designed to be a centerpiece of a diverse, faithful, and grace-filled family of resources which emphasizes: Keeping worship centrl in an ever-changing world, Reaching out beyond the church with gifts of grace, Supporting all congregations and worhipping communities, regardless of size, location, or style, and Honoring our Lutheran heritage whil continuing to grow together in Christ.

Other worship resources will continue to unfold around Evangelical Lutheran Worship, continuing to enrich our worship experiences.

We plan to place an order for Evangelical Lutheran Worship around August 1, 2007, so we ask that memorial and honorary gifts be made before that date. If you have any questions, talk to any of the pastors, or to any member of the Board of Lay Ministry.

This gift is made in memory of _______________________, or in honor of __________.

Please identify my gift in a bookplate inside the worship book(s): Yes ____ No ____

A choir specifically designed for Kindergartners, 1st and 2nd graders. Bright Lights members learn basic music fundamentals and begin the art of creating a beautiful singing tone. Their choir experience will be in an atmosphere where they are recognized as a loved child of God and an important part of our church family. Bright Lights rehearses on Wednesdays from 4:45 - 5:15 p.m. and sings approximately one Sunday and/or Wednesday per month.

A musical experience for third, fourth and fifth graders. This group focuses on expanding their knowledge of music fundamentals, begin part-singing and explore the use of "hands-on" instrumental accompaniments. Shine! members utilize their musical gifts in a variety of ways throughout the year! Shine! rehearses on Wednesdays from 5:15 - 5:45 p.m. and sings approximately one Sunday and/or Wednesday a per month.

By Grace is for middle school kids and serves as a unique opportunity for youth to create and build relationships with their peers and their church through the arts. By Grace provides experience for musical and spiritual growth, as well as a regular opportunity for service. By Grace determines when rehearsals occur and perform approximately every six weeks. Check bulletin board for rehearsal date and time.

Too much talking, not enough, it’s about time, when is it going to stop... the comments are varied and they all concern one thing... the topic of money and the ministry of Sharon. Here are three different areas we are trying to address:

Regular, sustained giving – As people of faith, Scripture teaches us to give regularly, proportionately and first to God (first fruits). Participating in Simply Giving provides that opportunity. Your offering can be made to Sharon Lutheran through an electronic transfer of funds. Weekly, once or twice a month you can offer first to God. It is a wonderful way to grow in consistent faithful offering and it is a blessing to the church in its reliability. Forms are available at the church or contact the office.

While the Second Offering in March was initiated to increase the revenue received in the first quarter, the invitation was made for households to increase their regular offering. For those who made this decision, thank you. If you were able to participate in the Second Offering (and over 230 households did) prayerfully consider increasing your regular giving as a continued second offering in support of God’s work at Sharon.

Elimination of operating loan and establishment of reserve fund – This is the intent of Showers of Blessing. If we can eliminate the short term loan of approximately $130,000 we will have an additional $3,000 for ministry each month. The establishment of a reserve fund will help when the offerings received are less than anticipated. This routinely happens in the summer months and could be alleviated through the use of Simply Giving.

Capital Campaign – Plans for a capital campaign are not on the calendar, but a capital campaign is likely in the future. This financial appeal would address reducing long term debt (mortgage), and other important things such as an elevator, an appropriate sound system and furnishings for the sanctuary and other facility needs. The possibility of developing new ministries/outreach and supporting any additional staff would also be a part of planning for this campaign.

Staff and leaders of Sharon have been working hard to be responsible stewards of all the resources of this congregation. We appreciate the care and concern that has been shown by many as we are moving to become a stronger and healthier community of faith. The challenges are many, but the blessings are greater. Thank you for your continued support as together we grow in faith, love and obedience to the will of God.

Your past support of Sharon Lutheran is appreciated and has enabled us to grow in mission through worship, education and service. However, serious financial challenges will compromise the ministry and programs of our church. Ministry in every area is at risk because of the need to further reduce expenses to meet anticipated income. Because all program costs have already been adjusted, reductions in personnel expenses, including eliminating positions, is being considered. Ministry at Sharon Lutheran cannot continue at current levels without increased financial resources. Please prayerfully consider your financial commitment to Sharon Lutheran.

Our financial situation is critical. Below you will find the actual figures for revenue and expense for the year to date through February 2007. The amounts for last year are noted as well.

Current financial information is posted on the bulletin board outside the church office. If you have any questions, please contact Joan in the church office.

The Sacrament of Baptism marks a significant moment in the life of an individual as well as the family and the congregation as God joins us to Christ and declares us to be children of God. Sharon Lutheran Church highlights this sacrament in some very specific ways. One is by offering a “Welcome to Baptism” orientation on the first Sunday of each month at 2:30 PM. This one-hour class, led by a pastor, offers information on the theology and practical aspects of baptism for the family anticipating a baptism.

The second method of highlighting the sacrament is by focusing on baptism the second Sunday and the following Wednesday of each month. Baptisms may be scheduled at any of the services that day, and adequate time and emphasis will be devoted to the sacrament. Occasionally, because of family circumstances, a baptism may be scheduled at another church service during the month, but the encouragement is to plan ahead, in consultation with the pastors and church office, to schedule the baptism celebration on the second Sunday (or following Wednesday) of the month. If you have questions, please feel free to contact the pastors or church office.

To prepare for the celebration of Baptism. These important helps are offered on the first Sunday of each month from 2:30 – 3:30 p.m. for those anticipating a baptism (scheduled or not yet scheduled).

“Welcome to Baptism” is designed to answer common questions about baptism including:

"Welcome to Baptism” will be led by Sharon Lutheran pastors. If a baptism in your family has already happened, those involved are also welcome to participate.

Baptisms:

05-13-07 HENRY OLIVER HAUGEN; Jennifer & Zach Haugen

05-13-07 JUSTIN JOHN RICHARDS; Mary & John Richards

05-13-07 ANDREW GERHARD MOE Jennifer & James Moe

05-13-07 ZOEY LYNAE MOHN; Brianne Mohn

05-20-07 DAMIEN JAXON WOLF; Rebecca & Adam Scherer

05-20-07 OLIVIA RAE GREFSHEIM; Andrea & Ray Grefsheim

Weddings:

04-21-07 Matt Ahmann & DeeAnn Peterson

05-04-07 Benjamin Riepl & Jessica Lee

05-05-07 Jonathan Kearns & Nichole Symington

05-12-07 Sheldon Anhorn & Jennifer Anderson

Funerals

Air Conditioning Fund

In Memory of:

Beulah Kjera, Kathy Johnson’s mother, by Grace LaRocque; Our departed family and friends, by Dennis & Cheryl Erickson; Claren and Nathan Olson, by Alvina & Clifford Jacobson.

General Fund

In Memory of:

Ernest and Gladys Schubert, by Fern & Ardell Bunde; Elaine Haroldson, by Karen & Rich Axvig