Active in Faith January 2018 Monthly publication for members and friends of Faith Lutheran Church 4005 Palm Drive, Punta Gorda, FL 33950 941-639-6309 [email protected] Pastor: Rev. Dana Alan Narring, MDiv Mission and Vision Statement: Empowering All People to Know Jesus Christ! January 1 Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Baptism of Our Lord January 15 Epiphany January 6 January 7 Worship Services Saturday 5:00am Praise and Worship Service (year-round) Sunday 9:30am (ONLY January 7th) New Sunday Service Times Begin January 14th (through Easter Sunday, April 1st) Sunday seasonal worship services will be: 8:00am and 10:30am Communion is celebrated every Sunday: 1st & 3rd — 8:00am 2nd & 4th — 10:30am The Saturday Praise and Worship Service will commune on the same weekend that the 8am Sunday worship service communes. Bible Classes Sunday: 9:10am Pastor Narring leads the Bible study in the Sanctuary between the services. Topics will vary each Sunday. Monday: 10:30am “Women in the Bible” led by Dr. Mary Hilgendorf Thursday: 10:30am The study of Genesis led by Pastor Clyde Kaminska 1 Wandering Editor’s Note We begin another year in the Lord. It is a gift from Him. How will you serve Him this year? There many opportunities at Faith to become involved. To meet others take part in the River Tour, help take down the Christmas decorations, help the Altar Guild, attend a LWML meeting, volunteer to usher and/or read, volunteer to help with the Flea Market, join the choir, and the list goes on. See you around. Naomi Weslock— Editor Explore the Myakka River Thursday, January 18, 2018 Please sign up in the narthex by Jan 8th! Price is $17.00. If more than 20 people sign up there will be a $3 discount. They Accept Cash or Check ONLY!!! Plan to arrive at Snook Haven by 12:15pm and purchase your boarding ticket there. If you’d like to caravan, meet at the church parking lot by 11:00 am. Bring your friends! You may also bring snacks and drinks on to the boat. Snook Haven, 5000 East Venice Ave. Venice, FL Check out their website: www.LoganRiverTours.com. Un-hanging of the greens! Please come and help take down the Christmas decorations in the sanctuary, narthex and Zalman Hall on January 6 at 9:30am. 2 Ken Johnson was recognized on Wednesday, December 6 at the Coast Guard Change of Watch for his 50 years of dedicated service and support to the United States Millie Gehris was honored as the October Coast Guard. Thank 2017 Volunteer of the month by the you for your faithful Cultural Center. She has been a service. dedicated volunteer at the information desk for the past 14 1/2 years. Board of Missions Thank you to all who signed up and went to ring the Salvation Army Bells during December. Here are some of the Bellringers! Pictorial Directory Photographs January 29 Remember, the photo-shoot for our directory is January 29. A sign-up sheet with the times will be posted in the narthex soon. We initially had 20 people sign up. Everyone who already had their picture taken for last year’s directory will also get a new, updated directory for 2018. Times for the picture-taking will be from 12 noon until 6:40 PM. For those people who have signed up to be in the new directory, please select the time you’d prefer. However, I would request that you leave the late afternoon and early evening times for people who are still working. Thank you! Joanna Waterman Missions Chair 3 Thank you for your support by baking cookies and/or shopping at the annual cookie Walk. We netted about $950.00 and $300 will be given to Amigo en Cristo to provide support to people in Immokalee who were affected by Hurricane Irma. The rest of the money will be disbursed at the January meeting. It is time to clean out your closets and garages!!! Save the items you no longer use for the annual Flea Market March 2 on March 2 (3:00-7:00 pm) and March 3 (8:00 am-2:00 pm) and 3. Used stamps of any kind are used to support missions, and empty ink cartridges will help support Peace River Wildlife Sanctuary at Ponce De Leon. There are containers on the LWML counter to place the items. LWML Dates to remember: March 2-3 Flea Market. Set-up starts Feb 26 January 9: 7:00 pm LWML Circle in March 28: 9:00 Fellowship/meeting Zalman Hall April 21: Zone Rally: Lutheran Church of the January 24: 9:00 Fellowship/meeting Cross Speaker: Jean Roehrs April 25: 9:00 Fellowship/meeting February 21: 9:00 Fellowship/meeting Nov. 10: Fall Rally, Lakeside, Venice Spreading the Gospel of Christ Please continue to fill your mite boxes, bring them to Faith and deposit them in the large Mite Box located on the LWML counter in the narthex. There are mite boxes on the LWML counter if you need one. 4 Letter from our Adopt-a-Student: Sam Fink God’s peace to you this advent season! I pray that this letter finds you well, as we anticipate our celebration of Jesus’ birth, even while we hope and wait for His second coming one day. Having spent the Thanksgiving holiday here in Orchard Park with our vicarage congregation, we’ve had constant reminders of the many blessings God has bestowed upon us in this year. Not least among those blessings are you’re prayers and financial support. Truly, our lives and confidence during this seminary journey would be different without the encouragement and affirmation we receive through your assistance and prayers. Thank you. Things are going very well here in western New York. This week we are expecting our first winter storm, which we understand to be a rite of passage in the Buffalo area. Emmylou and Eli are eagerly awaiting opportunities to sled and make snow angels, things their parents have described from our own childhoods. Abel continues to grow, and now he’s getting ready to eat real food and crawl – as always, we can’t believe how fast it’s gone. After a break during our hectic summer, Kelsey is writing again for the Concordia Publishing House blog. She loves to write about lessons she learns in life, and how the Word of God helps her to live out her faith in many different situations. Sam likes it too, finding great inspiration in her motivation to share the promises of Jesus with the world around us. Sam is busy organizing adult education, as well as preaching and preparing for a large charity event hosted by the vicar each January – the “Frozen Chozen” 5k Walk and Run. This event will benefit a local ministry which seeks to end family homelessness. Below is a photo from our recent outing to select and cut down a Christmas tree – something we’re hoping will be a new family Christmas tradition. We pray yours is as special as ours has already been. In Christ, Sam and Kelsey, Emmylou, Eli and Abel Fink 5 Such a Special THANK YOU to my Helpmates for the past year's activities, work, help and ideas. What cooperation. I could not have asked for a better team!! The Fellowship Committee will be meeting on January 8th to make tentative plans for events from January thru May. Arrangements have been made for Thursday, Jan. 18th for a Myakka River Boat Tour!!! The cost is $17 for an hour-plus tour. If We Have At Least 20 people sign-up we’ll receive a $3 discount. The boat is covered and holds 30 people. It has high-backed chairs for your comfort and also has a restroom. Although they have a restaurant at the dock, you may bring your own snacks and beverages on the boat. There also will be banjo players from 11am . Plan to purchase your tickets at Snook Haven by 12:15pm. Snook Haven, 5000 East Venice Ave. Venice, FL Please Note . Snook Haven only accepts Cash or Check for your boarding ticket purchase You may wish to caravan from Church - we’ll be leaving at 11 a.m. (it’s about a 1 hour ride). MAY WE ALL HAVE A HAPPY, HEALTHY AND BLESSED 2018!! Betty Pio Fellowship Chair Christmas Dinner Christmas music filled the hall as Cary Price played the organ. The committee led by Betty Pio out- did themselves with elegant place settings and a delicious meal of prime rib, chicken piccata pre- pared by Kathy Paradise’s Event Elements. Kathy is a graduate of VoTech. Everybody’s favorite was the chocolate bread pudding. We recognized Don Pannozzo’s mother, Pierina Pannozzo’s, re- cent 100th birthday. Everyone enjoyed the friendly fellowship and meeting old and new friends. 6 Advent Suppers Advent suppers were enjoyed on December 6, 13 and 20. Fellowship served first with four soups, LWML served five soups and the Elders served five chili/soups. It was fun being able to try several servings of soup/chili. There were a variety of delicious desserts. These suppers provided opportunities to meet others in the church. Thank you to all the cooks. Armed Forces and Cell Phone Donations The Board of Missions collects personal items (see info on narthex table) for our Armed Forces and also welcomes your donations of used cell phones. Please place them in the boxes in the Narthex. Our prayer list is on the glass table in the Narthex.