Good Tidings - Shepherd of the Hill Lutheran

Shepherd of the Hill Lutheran Church
Good Tidings
By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another. (John 13:35)
Always act out of kindness and love. (1 Corinthians 16:14)
Bear one another’s burdens and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. (Galatians 6:2)
May 2016
Special points of interest:
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
 Council Highlights
 Upcoming Events
 VBS-Registration
Inside this issue:
Pr. Jon’s Article
1
Preschool News
2
Council Highlights
March 2016 Financial Report
Youth Ministry
3
Upcoming Events
4
VBS
5
Kids Page
6
May Calendar
7
Volunteer Calendar 8
Council Members
9
Ministry Team
E-mails
Birthdays and
Anniversaries
Service Information
10
Bible Study Groups
A while back I saw someone whom I hadn’t seen for many, many months. Up until the summer of 2015, he had regularly attended worship and one of our small groups. When he went
missing for a few weeks I had every intention of reaching out to him, but one thing led to another and first one month passed, then two, then six. Even the intention was forgotten. When,
after these many months, he showed up again, I greeted him warmly, told him that he had been
missed, and asked how he was. He then proceeded to share with me that his wife (whom I had
met a number of times) had been gravely ill since last summer. At present she was back in the
hospital, recovering from major surgery.
Sometimes people fall off of the pages of our lives. Once in a great while it is because they are
angry or disillusioned with us, but the overwhelming majority of the time it is because something else has happened: an illness, a change in job status, or a relationship problem. When
they fail to show up one week we may take note and vow to call. But often, one thing leads to
another and soon a month has past, then two, then six. In small congregations, an absence is
more likely to be noticed and someone is more likely to reach out. As a congregation grows,
however, it is harder to keep track of people. The irony is that the very people who are in need
of support are not receiving it because they have escaped our notice.
In a couple of months, the leadership of SOTH will be proposing a new ministry to help facilitate better care for each other in our moments of need. While we are working on creating the
structure of this new ministry, there are things we can do to improve our care for one another.
1. Take notice of who normally sits near you in worship or attends the small group that you
attend. We Lutherans (the same as the Catholics, Methodists, and – I’m sure – Jehovah’s
Witnesses) are creatures of habit and we tend to attend the same services and sit in the
same general areas.
2. If someone is not there for a couple of consecutive weeks, ask about them. If you know
them, call them. If you don’t know them, ask the others who sit near you. If they don’t
know them, ask your pastor. Perhaps they are attending a different service or have moved
out of the area.
3. Do not judge. The purpose of the call is not to make someone feel guilty for missing worship. Be genuinely curious and caring. “Hey, I haven’t seen you for a couple of weeks, is
everything OK? I was concerned about you.” God might be using you to be a lifeline to
someone who is going through a rough time.
4. Ask how you can pray for them. “How can I pray for you? Is there anything I can do for
you? How might we be of help?” Offer to pray for them over the phone.
5. Ask permission to tell the pastor or the prayer chain. “Would it be OK to tell the pastor
and others so that they could pray for you as well?”
The opposite of love is not hate, it is indifference. While one person cannot be responsible to
reach out to everyone, he or she can be responsible for those around them. That is the beginning of strengthening a community which “bears one another’s burdens.”
www.shepherdofthehill.com
Pastor Jon
The month of May is a very busy time of year at SOTH. The students will be very busy working on special
projects for their parents. The students in the four year old program will be walking to Berkot’s for a tour of
the grocery store. They will enjoy their hands on experience and even get to do a little taste testing and
shopping while they are there. They are also busy practicing songs for Graduation and finishing their journals. The children in the three year old program have also been working hard on their end of the year projects. They will so enjoy several outdoor activities, weather permitting. The all school picnic will be held on
Friday, May 27th and the Graduation ceremony for the students in the four year old program will be held on
Wednesday evening, June 1st at 6:30 p.m.
Our students are amazing! After searching for pennies in their car and dimes under the couch, the students
raised $118.61 for the TLC Animal Shelter. They are all very grateful for the help they received from the students at SOTH preschool. On May 11th and 12th, the students will be riding their bikes to raise money for
St. Jude Children’s Hospital. Registration is open for the 2016/2017 school year. There are openings in both
the three and four year old programs. If you or a family you may know are interested, please contact the office at 815-838-0708 for more information.
Thank you for your continued support and prayers for our preschool.
God Bless,
The SOTH Staff
April Meeting Highlights

President Kirk shared a letter from the Northern
Illinois Synod thanking us for our 2015 donation
($14,954).

Rick McManis reported that the Children’s Easter
Event was a big success. Over 115 children attended … more than expected. “Close to 300
people in all filled the SOTH halls.”

The Property Committee is facing two major issues at this time … roof repair and air conditioning. Our insurance with Church Mutual may pay
for some of the costs of necessary roof repairs. Council approved a motion that air conditioning repairs be completed by Triangle Environmental for an expected price of $1,827.12.
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Good Tidings
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Greetings,
Over the past year our youth ministries have been encouraging families to start
the habit of coming together for 10-15 minutes every night to practice Faith5 a
strategy for family faith formation developed by Dr. Rich Melheim. As we conclude our first year of Sunday school in which we have utilized this as a focus of
our program we continue to be pleased with the results. We continue to encourage
all our families with children of all ages to practice faith5 every night. The steps of
faith five are:
1. Share a high and a low
2. Read a Bible verse or story
3. Talk about the verse and how it might relate to the high and low
4. Pray for each other’s high and low
5. Bless one another and remind each other they are children of God.
For more information on Faith5 check out their website www.faith5.org
This year we have used 20 volunteers to make Sunday school possible, we thank God for each and every
one of them and the gifts they bring to our children. We have begun to look for volunteers for next year. We
will have three trimesters for Sunday school. Our Trimesters will be as follows:

Fall September 11th- November 20th

Winter December 4th- February 16th

Spring March 5th through May 21st
We are looking for volunteers who would like to help grow our children spiritually through leading them in
their small group time. If you are interested in helping with Sunday school email Mike at
[email protected]
Our summer ministry for middle school and high school youth is set to kick off in June. F5 (Faith Friends
Fellowship Food Fun) will meet Wednesdays from 9:00am to 5:00pm. Each week we will have a fun activity, a
service project, Bible study and lunch. This summer’s events will include service projects at Feed My Starving
Children, FISH Food Pantry, and Lockport Resource Center. Fun activities include bowling, roller skating, outdoors activities and swimming. F5 will meet the following days during the summer 6/15, 6/29, 7/6, 7/20, 8/3,
and 8/10. Permission slips can be found outside the youth ministry office and are due the Sunday before the
event.
VBS is just around the corner. This year’s theme is Bible Barnyard and will be the week of July 18-22 from
9am to noon. We are still looking for group leaders and youth volunteers if you are interested please contact
Kris Glowczynski or Mike Markwell. Registration will be available in the next few weeks.
Mike Markwell
Youth Ministry Coordinator
[email protected]
Office: (815) 838-0708
Cell: (815) 370-0075
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SAVE THE DATE
Games, Food, Family Fellowship, Food Drive,
Movie on the Hill and so much more!
Watch for more information
Shepherd of the Hill is once again participating in a group outing to a Joliet
Slammers Game! The date is Sunday, July 17, 2016, and game time is 1:05
pm. The Chancel Choir will be performing the National Anthem before the start
of the game, and we will be receiving a special group recognition. In appreciation of our 50th anniversary celebration two ticket options are available to members this year, and allows for special fellowship opportunities with each choice:
1) $10 tickets for general admission, with $5 of each ticket going right back to
SOTH. We will be seated as a group (usually behind home plate) with this alternative. 2) Reserved seating in one of the upper level suites. This ticket price is $25 each, and includes access to a climate control suite; a private, outdoor stadium box; a personal suite attendant; suite level lounge
access; suite level restrooms; and suite level concessions. Food itself is not included in this price. Please contact Dave Helfert at (815) 886-1947 or [email protected] for more information and to order tickets for
either option. A sign-up sheet will be available on the table in the narthex for ticket reservations through Sunday, June 26th.
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Which books of the Bible include an account of Jesus’ ascension?
A. Luke and Acts
B. Matthew and Luke
C. Mark and John
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Executive Committee Members
Steve Kirk ……………...President
Dave Helfert…………… Vice President
Tom Gustafson. ……….. Secretary
Debra Crosse…………... Treasurer
Council Member
Ken Franz
Rick McManis
Nell Pieper
Fern Kinder
Phil Sleezer
Council Meets the 3rd Tuesday of the
Month at 6:30PM
SOTH Ministry Team
E-mail address
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
2 Danny Gaddis Jr.
3 Allison Lewis, Aidan
Siewert, Christian Taphorn
5 Abbeygail Baltudis, Clara
Larson, Joshua Nielsen
6 David Helfert, Hannah
Johnson
7 Susan Lewis, Marilyn
Yudt
9 Virginia Buikema, Nick
Lata, Daniel Likins, An drew Mack
11
Donna Grabenhofer, Tom Gustafson
12
Michelle Heintzelman, Dennis Wellsandt
13
Corinne Johnson, Fern Kinder, Troy Siewert
14
Donald Lawler, Annelise Lewis
15
Nancy Baumgart
17
Roberto Caneva
18
Cody Gerrity, Robert Nielsen
19
Jack Anians
20
Emily Mack, Doris Rebholz, Chloe Siezega, Chloe
Szczepanski
21 Adam Steffgen
24 William Bunting, James Calderaro, Andrew Calla
ghan, Susan Forbes, Donald Huhnke,
Michelle Nielsen
25 Ronald Helfert
26 Carole Garrett, Sheila Naylor, Jan Rauworth
27 Judy Matarelli, Kelly Siewert
28 Ava Bobek, Heather Meurer
29 Jane Gerrity
30 Clair Naylor
31 Caitlyn Krueger
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
5/9
Paul & Lisa Krueger
5/14 Paul & Christine Toso
5/15 Lilly & Mindaugas Mazeika, Richard & Lisa McManis
5/29 Darrin & Sarah Houdek
5/30 Richard & Mary Ann Anderson
5/31 John & Diane Bramlet
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Shepherd of the Hill Lutheran Church
SERVICE
SCHEDULE
925 E. 9th St.
Lockport, IL 60441
Saturday
5:00 PM
Phone: 815-838-0708
Fax: 815-838-2701
Email: [email protected]
Web page: www.shepherdofthehill.com
Sunday
9:00AM and 10:35AM
Mission
"To Know Jesus And To Make Jesus Known"
Sunday School
10:30AM
Vision
"Transforming Lives, Families And Our
Community Through Jesus Christ"
Childcare Available
(September –May)
Good Tidings
"God Is the Fountain"
God is the fountain whence
ten thousand blessings flow;
to him my life, my health and friends,
and every good, I owe.
The comforts he affords
are neither few nor small;
he is the source of fresh delights,
my portion and my all.
He fills my heart with joy,
my lips attunes for praise;
and to his glory I’ll devote
the remnant of my days.
Sunday
10:35-11:35am
Wednesday
9:30-10:30am
—Benjamin Beddome
Thursday
6:00-7:00pm
How to Contact Good Tidings
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the team or drop it in the Communications Chairperson's drop
box in the Church office. Articles may also be emailed to the
[email protected]. In order
for the article to appear in the
next month’s newsletter, it needs
to be into the drop box by the
20th of each Month. Articles
submitted after that date will
Good Tidings10
appear in the next issue, assuming the articles are not date sensitive. Remember that we depend on your input in order to be
able to have information to publish
—A.W. Pink
Bible Quiz Answer: A (See Luke 24:51 and Acts 1:9.)
Good Tidings is the responsibility of Communications Ministry
and assembled by team members,
volunteers and Church Staff. We
depend on input from the other
ministries, staff, and members of
the congregation. If you wish to
have an article published in Good
Tidings, please submit your article or information to someone on
“Nothing is too
great and nothing
is too small to
commit into the
hands of the Lord.”