Church - Newsletter June 2012 September 2012

Transcription

1 St. George s Lutheran Church 410 College Street Toronto, Ontario M5T 1S8 Tel: Katharina Moeller, Pastor 2393 Gareth Road, Mississauga, Ontario L5B 1Z4 Tel/Fax: Church - Newsletter June 2012 September Devotion Your love, O LORD, reaches to the heavens, your faithfulness to the skies. Psalm 36:5 Dear members and friends of St. George's congregation! Many people look to the sky every day. They are interested to see what kind of day it will be and what kind of weather we can expect for the next while. We like to see blue sky but also enjoy clouds in their different forms and appearances. Some of us are very interested in seeing the dark clouds, when rain or a thunderstorm is approaching. Many of us will be impressed again by wonderful sunsets and the large number of stars on a clear night sky during this summer. The sky is something far away, which touches us in different ways. The sky surrounds us, changes daily and attracts us again and again. When we face the sky we look up to see the great things around us. Your love, O LORD, reaches to the heavens, your faithfulness to the skies. When this Psalm was written, people thought that the distance to the sky was the farthest distance possible. They thought that our planet was like a disk. They compared the love, grace and faithfulness of God to the largest imaginable distance and wanted to express that the love of God never ends. They felt very grateful towards God, and expressed this with the broadest words that they could find. Today we live in a different time. We know that our planet is a globe, surrounded by the sun and moon and uncountable stars and planets. We are amazed by God s creation, which is so much larger than people can ever imagine. We have the same problem as the people in the past: we can t describe God s love and everything that he provides for us. 1

2 Today we live in God s love and are grateful that he loves each one of us. Wherever we are, God is with us. He is close to us when we travel during this summer but also when we stay at home. He protects us everywhere and provides his love and his blessings over and over again. It is a wonderful task to discover all the amazing things in our world, in God s creation. When we look up to the skies, we should be thankful for everything that God provides for us. His creation is so awesome and adorable. Let us praise God and make our thankfulness visible by caring for his creation as well as for other people with love. Often we do not talk enough about the good things and about everything that makes us happy and thankful, gives us hope, joy and new strength. We know that God is close to us and answers our prayers. It would be encouraging to share this with one another. In this way we would learn from each other how much God loves all people. It would help us to be thankful and to overcome our problems and hardships in life. God is closer to us than we can imagine and helps us to find new ways or solutions to questions of life. Let us think about the love of God, when we look up to the sky, when we see the wide horizon and the huge mountains or admire the little flower. God provides so many awesome things for us. Our gratefulness towards God should be a constant attitude in our lives. We should praise God daily for all the good we receive with our own words and through everything that we do. We ask for his blessings so that we can share his love and peace with one another and care for his awesome creation. Let us pray with modern words of Psalm 36: God, your love and faithfulness is bountiful; it reaches beyond eternity and is universal and immeasurable. God, your love is everywhere, like the sun, that always shines for all of us. God, your faithfulness and grace are beyond our imagination. We thank you for including all of us in your love and mercy. Grant us your peace. AMEN 2

3 2. A Word from the Church Council President Dear members and friends of St. George s congregation! Together we are the church. I am grateful for the contributions of all our members and friends, you make St. George s a wonderful congregation. It takes a special kind of person to see an opportunity to do something good for others and then volunteer to make it happen. Over the years, here at St. George s, we have been blessed with many such individuals. Longstanding members can name many people who through their efforts have made and continue to make St. George s the congregation it is today. I speaking of people who, roll up their sleeves and make things happen. Thank you to all these people! I want to highlight three recent projects that through the enthusiasm and willingness of one person to get things started have enriched our congregation. As many of you know there was substantial water damage caused to the ceiling and wall on the right hand side of the sanctuary, so much so that a part of the ceiling actually came down. Micheal Hänisch, a guest in our congregation who arrived a few months ago, stepped up to say, that he could help repair the damage. Three more volunteers were quickly found and together they have done a fine job of the repair! In time for Easter, this year, Mareike Oellers organized a group of volunteers to decorate our hall and bake some special Easter goodies for our coffee time. Mareike selected all the projects and came prepared with all the instructions, supplies and ingredients. The volunteers meet on the Saturday afternoon and worked enthusiastically. Everyone left tired, but had a wonderful time. On Easter Sunday, the congregation was pleasantly surprised by the wonderful aroma of fresh baking and the treats that awaited them. We had previously spoken about participating in Doors Open Toronto and finally this year, through the efforts of Christine Duffield we will actually be part of the event. Christine and Kathryn Duffield have been busy researching and preparing for this special weekend for quite a while. We can thank them and the other volunteers for helping make our church more visible. We look forward to welcoming our neighbours and people from across the GTA into our church on May 26 and 27. If there is something that you could do or organize for our congregation, or if there is something you could assist with, please do not hesitate to come forward with your offer of leadership or support. I think it would be wonderful to have more groups, large and small, working together, having a good time and doing good! With warm wishes, Erna Brusch 3

4 3. Announcements and Information You are invited to our upcoming Services and events: Our English Sunday Services are held at 10 am. German Sunday Services are held at 11am. June 3rd, 2012 June 10th, 2012 Church Picnic starting with the worship service at 11am More information and driving instructions can be found below. June 17th, 2012 Father s Day 10 am English Service with Holy Communion, 11am German Service June 24th, 2012 with Pastor Heike Block-Mielke 10 am English Service, 11am German Service with Holy Communion July 1st, 2012 July 8th, am bilingual service for the whole congregation July 15th, :30 am Worship Service in First Lutheran Church 116 Bond St., Toronto, Ont. M5B1X8 There will be NO services in our church! July 22nd, am English Service with Holy Communion, 11am German Service July 29th, 2012 with Holy Communion August 5th, 2012 August 12th, am bilingual service for the whole congregation We have invited the congregation of First Lutheran Church to join us for this service. August 19th, am English Service with Holy Communion, 11am German Service August 29th, am English Service 11am German Service with Holy Communion 4

5 September 2nd, 2012 September 9th, am bilingual service for the whole congregation Sunday school starts again September 16th, am English Service with Holy Communion, 11am German Service September 23rd, 2012 September 30th, am English Service, 11am German Service with Holy Communion October 7th, 2012 Thanksgiving 4. Church Picnic This year s church picnic will take place on Sunday June 10 th on Mrs. Brandt s farm near Nobleton. At 11am we will be starting with our bilingual worship service. Afterwards will have time to eat together, share stories, play and sing etc., There will be a sign-up list in the church where you can indicate if you need a ride or if you have room in your car to offer a ride. We would be grateful if you would bring a cake or salad. We thank Mrs. Brandt for letting us come again! Directions to the Church Picnic Hwy 27N to Nobleton (Nobleton is about 1.5km north of the intersection of Hwy27 and Hwy 7) in Nobleton make a right (west) hand turn on to King Road after about 2km turn left (north) on to the 8 th Concession after about 600m turn right (west) into Noblehill Farm. 5. Vacation coverage Pastor Christian Schweter of First Lutheran Church will be providing vacation coverage from June 23 rd to July 14 th For urgent matters please call him: (416) Summer Invitations This summer there will be two joint services with the congregation of First Lutheran Church (on July 15 th at First Lutheran Church and on August 12 th in our church). It is important to get to know one another better and have conversations with one another. On July 15 th there will be no services in our church! 7. Women s Group (conducted in German) The Women s group meets every second Tuesday of the month at 11am in our St. George s Church. On Tuesday June 12 th, we will meet at the Mandarin (Queensway and Kipling) for our last meeting before the summer break, after which we will meet again on September 11 th. Everyone, even men (!) are warmly invited. We are pleased to welcome all who come. 5

6 8. Sunday School There will be no Sunday school during the summer. We thank all the Sunday school teachers, who have taken on this important task during this school year! We will begin again on Sunday September 9 th, 2011 during the bilingual service. We wish all children a wonderful vacation! 9. Confirmation Class In the beginning of May we started a confirmation class with a new group of students. We welcome Annick Read, Victoria Toffoli, Veronica Toffoli and Quincy Goertz! The Confirmation will take place on Pentecost Sunday in It is still possible for new confirmands to join the group. To register please contact Pastor Moeller as soon as possible. 10. Bible Study Religious Studies After the summer we will continue with our Bible study (in German). Please let me know if you are interested in participating. It would also be possible to offer a new course in English. 11. Doors Open Toronto May 26 and 27, 2012, our church will participate in Doors Open Toronto for the first time. On the web-site you can see the 135 buildings that will be open in Toronto this year. In total over one million people are expected to visit the buildings. We thank everyone, who worked to prepare, in various ways, for this weekend or helped during the event. In particular we want to thank Christine und Kathryn Duffield for their extensive work for this project! We ask for God s blessings for these two days, for good encounters and inspiring new experiences. 12. Building Fund by Erna Brusch The building fund has been launched and I want to thank everyone who has already contributed. The ceiling in the sanctuary has now been repaired, and thanks to our volunteers, Michael Hänisch, Burkhard Möller, Peter Read and Marcel Oestreich at substantially less cost than if we had paid someone to do the work. We are very happy for the great job that they did. We still have many urgent repairs to undertake, so we look to your continued support. To make a contribution to the fund: place an envelope in the offering plate and write Building Fund on it, or send your contribution by mail and write Building Fund on your cheque. Thank you for helping us keep our church in good repair! 6

7 13. Joy and Sorrow in our Congregation The members of the Church Council have decided to accept the following people as new members of our congregation: Pastor Karin Achelstetter Mrs Ursel Luer Ms Mareike Oellers* Mrs Anne Samide Mrs Angela Sengypta Ms Lilian Zaplin We would like to extend a warm welcome to these new members and hope that they may feel God s blessing and happiness as members of our congregation! May God strengthen our community, to make us feel as comfortable as family and may he guide us on our path into the future. (*Mareike was welcomed as a new member on April 4 th as she is currently on semester break) 14. Request Please call me, if you would like to be visited, to receive Holy Communion, or when you are in hospital. Please let me know, if you have time to regularly telephone or visit a congregational member. Please don t forget, to let us know when you move. We want to be in touch and stay in touch with one another. Please also let me know, if you want us to pray for you or a family member during Sunday services. I wish you and your family a wonderful and relaxing summer. May God protect you wherever you go, so that we will be healthy and happy when we see each other again! Sincerely, Your Pastor, 15. Blessing for travellers Go with God s Blessing. May He protectively hold his hand over you, care for your health and your life and open your eyes and ears to the wonders of the world. May He give you time, to dwell upon, where your soul would like to linger. May He give you leisure time, to look, which does your eyes well. May He give you bridges, where the path looks like it ends and people, who offer you a peaceful harbour. May the Lord bless those who accompany you and those you meet. May He keep conflict and evil away from you. May He make your heart happy, your view wide and your feet strong. May the Lord protect you and give us a happy reunion. AMEN By Gerhard Engelsberger (translated by Erna Brusch) 7

8 16. Children s Page We wish all of you a great summer and a wonderful and relaxing time. Have fun finding the way through the elephant and enjoy your way through summer and vacation time! 8