OCTOBER 2015
Christ Lutheran Church • Highlands Ranch, CO • Gathering † Gifting † Sending
CLC KidsRock! Christmas Musical: “Arrest These Merry Gentlemen!” All kids in Kindergarten through 6th grade are invited to participate in our annual CLC KidsRock! Children’s Christmas Musical! All middle and high school students are also welcome to be Assistant Directors/ Actors, Stage Crew, and Tech Crew. Our musical this year is called “Arrest These Merry Gentlemen!,” a Christmas comedy musical caper for kids, and it has lots of great songs and speaking parts of all sizes. Join Officer Joe Sabbath, his assistant Rookie, some Angels, Wise Men, and Shepherds named Herb, Frank, Vince, and Merv as they try to figure out what exactly is happening in a manger in Bethlehem.
Tryouts for Main Roles (Sanctuary):
If you plan to be involved in the musical, you can sign up on the clipboard located at the Sunday School Sign-In Table, or email Linda Holcombe, CLC Director of Music, at lholcombe@clchr.org. Scripts and CD’s will be available for you to pick up on or after Sunday, October 11th in the CLC Office or from Linda. It is recommended that if you plan to try out for the Main Roles you should plan to pick up a script and CD in advance. No tryouts are necessary for any other roles other than Main Characters.
Christmas Musical Performances
SAVE THE DATE/SAVE YOUR BOOKS! The annual CLC used book sale will be held October 31/November 1 and November 7/8. This is a great time to clean out your great summer reads and replace them with some fantastic fall and winter finds. This is the perfect time to pick up that special gift for Christmas, locate that English class read or add to your collection of a favorite author. If you have books to donate please contact Susan Carroll 303791-4323 or deliver them to CLC. Because of the upcoming Octoberversary events, we are asking that books NOT be brought to CLC before October 12.
Please pick ONE day to tryout, either 10/25 or 10/28, and see Linda Holcombe for a list of all the characters in the show. Sunday, October 25th from 12:15-1:30pm Wednesday, October 28th from 4-5pm
Christmas Musical Rehearsals (Sanctuary): *Sundays November 1, 8, 15, 22, 29 12:15-1:15pm All Cast and 1:15-2pm Main Characters Only *Sunday, December 6 @ 12:15-2pm (All Cast Required Extended Rehearsal) *Saturday, December 12 @ 8:30am-Noon (All Cast Required Final Dress Rehearsal)
Sunday December 13th @ 9:30am and 11am Worship Please contact Linda Holcombe, Director of Music, if you have questions or need information: lholcombe@clchr.org or call 303-791-0803 ext. 109. We hope you can join us for a fantastically fun CLC KidsRock! Christmas Musical!
Worship Team Training CLC will be having an annual Workshop for anyone on a Worship Team, new or old, to review the responsibilities and duties that are expected of each team. John Ringkob will lead the halfhour training sessions in the Youth Room on Saturday, October 17th at 6:00pm after the evening service, or Sunday, October 25th at 12:00pm, after the 11:00 AM service. If you have any questions or need more information, please contact Debbie at dfreeman@clchr.org.
STAFF: Rev. Steve Berke, Interim Pastor pastorsteve@clchr.org Rev. DJ Dent, Associate Pastor pastordent@clchr.org Pastor Don Marxhausen, Visitation Pastor visitation@clchr.org Pastor Zundel Adult University Dianne Yoss Outreach Coordinator outreach@clchr.org Debbie Freeman Volunteer Coordinator dfreeman@clchr.org Gary Knutson Director of Youth & Family gknutson@clchr.org Deb Morgans Director of Preschool dmorgans@clchr.org Mary Behnke Administrative Manager mbehnke@clchr.org Sallie Burns Financial Secretary sburns@clchr.org Linda Holcombe Director of Music lindaholcombe64@gmail.com Nicholas Koltay Administrative Assistant nkoltay@clchr.org Carrie Mallery Principal Pianist Larry Scalfari Pianist Barbara Pierson Director Nursery Ministry Barbara.Pierson@comcast.net Meliha & Predrag Vajzovic Custodians CHURCH COUNCIL: Erika Alpern eajteach@yahoo.com Jeff Bergstrom j-bergstrom@comcast.net Lesley Cantrell we4cantrells@mac.com Sheri Halverson sherilhalverson@gmail.com Pete Koury pmkoury@q.com Beth Ott hunterchief95@comcast.net John Ringkob jer@dascoinc.com Karen Rucker kkosty@excite.com Steve Schaeberle Schaeberle1@comcast.net Bret Sumner bretsumner@hotmail.com Bob Weber B14169k@comcast.net All articles, photos and notices for the next issue of CrossWord are due by the 15th of the month. Send to mbehnke@clchr.org. Editor reserves the right to edit for content and space.
Pastor Steve’s Message Dear Friends: For many households the school schedule really “kicked in” with full force during September. It seems that in our life as church community we truly “picked up the pace” also. The weekends of September each had special themes at our services of Word and Sacrament: Labor Day, Rally Day, Ministry Fair, and Youth-led worship. This made for enjoyable and often rich gatherings. I also had the opportunity to do quite a bit of teaching during the month: three sessions of Confirmation on the three articles of the Apostles’ Creed, and a prebaptism class for four households who came together to prepare to bring their little boys to the fount. A highlight of the month was for me to spend four days in Estes Park at the Rocky Mountain Synod theological conference. This annual gathering of church leaders (rostered as pastors or diaconal ministers or other church staff ) is a great time to renew acquaintances, attend workshops and other presentations, worship with colleagues, and network over common issues of ministry and leadership. One of our speakers was Pastor (and Dr. of Theology) Mitri Raheb, the long-time pastor at Christmas Lutheran Church in Bethlehem. His witness to the gospel in the midst of oppression and occupation is a very important voice in the worldwide church today. [Also, we got to sing hymns with Linda Holcombe’s cousin, guitarist and pianist Jonathan Rundman!] And in the midst of all these happenings, the twelve-member CLC Transition Team met twice during the month of September. The group has done excellent work, leading the congregational self-study (through surveys and interviews), putting together a statement of mission values, and interviewing most all of the paid staff. Now the Transition Team is preparing a preliminary report to the church council for its October 6 meeting. They have put together a basic “job description” for a lead pastor role (while also doing some additional discussion of various pastoral team models) and are working on a rough draft of the MSP. (The MSP, or Mission Site Profile, is a document that the church develops to share with the synod staff and with pastoral candidates.) The church council will receive this report, continue to dialogue with the Transition Team about its implications, spend time in prayerful reflection about the church’s needs and ongoing mission, and then initiate steps toward selecting a call committee and defining their tasks. Continue to pray for your church leaders, staff, and congregation as we seek God’s guidance for the next years of Christ Lutheran Church. Peace to you, Steve Berke Intentional Interim Pastor
THE POWER OF PRAYERFUL HEALING I am sure that all of us believe in the power of prayer. We have had experiences that required healing of mind, body, and spirit. But do we really believe in the supernatural healing powers of our Lord? I can tell you firsthand about being healed and pain being instantly removed through fervent prayer. After my accident, I awoke one night with pain in my elbow. I asked God to remove the pain and it was gone right then! I have felt healing prayers from friends and family. This has been a painful experience, not just physical pain. God saw fit to minimize that pain so I could tolerate it. God’s healing powers are there for the asking. My earliest prayer was to have expedited healing and recovery. This may sound strange to you. But, this prayer came to mind. I wanted to return to normalcy as soon as I could. I didn’t feel this was a selfish prayer because it was so clear in my mind what to pray for. Let’s not underestimate God. He is omnipotent and tells us to ask in His name. God always answers prayers, but we don’t always get the result that we want or the timing that we want. That does not diminish the effectiveness of the prayer. Just keep praying and you will experience God’s love and the answer that He has provided that is best for you. I submit to you that throughout this entire pain process that I felt pain, but not at its maximum level. In the emergency room, I prayed my life verse over and over.
“I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” - Philippians 4:13 As I was attended to by various medical personnel, I felt pain but felt God’s presence. My husband Mike was with me and his caring looks, love and concern for me were instrumental in getting me through this ordeal. Maximize your belief in the God who is always with you, in the good times and the bad times. Expect Him to be more than a loving Father. He is the Great Physician whose healing power and love know no limits or boundaries. - Bev Brady
Pastor DJ’s Message Are There Other Reformers We Should Remember or Celebrate? Since it’s October, and at the end of the month we celebrate All Saints Eve (aka Halloween) this seemed like an appropriate question to answer in my queue. While we don’t have a formal canonization process for saints, like in the Roman Catholic Church, we do still nonetheless have a series of dates for individuals that we commemorate. If you find yourself wandering the church and wanting to learn something but aren’t quite sure what, try and find an LBW or ELW (our worship hymnals) in either the Sonrise Room or the Sacristy. Inside there is a full list of names and dates of saints who had a particular impact and, included in this list, reformers who had a significant impact on the life of the church. I’m sure this question came about because we have in our congregational name and identity “Lutheran” named after Martin Luther who was really the world’s first celebrity. However, 100 years before Luther would take center stage, there was another reformer that gets name dropped in theological circles but not frequently elsewhere. Jan Hus, whose feast day is July 6th in case anyone is interested, did not have the impact Luther had for a number of reasons, most notably because Hus was burned at the stake after his trial. Hus’ attempt at reformation did pave the way for many Lutheran doctrines. He wasn’t the only one to do so but publicly challenged the doctrine of the infallibility of the clergy and the pope, citing the universal state of sin ala Romans 5. Likewise he wrote with others against the doctrine of transubstantiation (that the bread and wine literally changed to the body and blood of Jesus). Hus’ legacy can probably be best seen in the Moravian Church. They were established from the movements of Hus’ time and still exist today, although they are not one of the larger denominations in the United States. However, if you run into a Moravian any time soon, you will have much in common as they share a similar approach to scripture, a similar witness to the world, and the same core belief that we are justified by grace through faith. So next July 6th (or even on the 4th) give thanks for another “founding father” who died for the cause of religious freedom, Brother Jan Hus. Peace, Pastor DJ
Thank you 30th Anniversary Advertisers and Donors!
King Soopers Milestone Reached!
NEWS from the
PRESCHOOL
CLC has been offering reloadable King Soopers Scrip cards since 2009. We have now received more than $20,000 in rebates from King Soopers!
Hello and welcome to the Fall season at the preschool! We have such a busy month planned with a Chapel visits; “The Good Samaritan.” Our Storyteller will visit and we will have music time with Ms. Linda, CLC’s Music Director. Dads can come and play one Saturday on our Superdad Saturday! Parent’s Night Out continues to be a great success and teachers will attend a Christian conference. Also, our yearly and exciting Butterbraid fundraiser begins on the 5th and ends on the 23rd. We will have order forms upstairs for the congregation to order and we so appreciate the support we have received over the years. They are good to have on hand for the holiday season! The children will have a Halloween parade and party at the end of the month. They look so adorable in their costumes!
We wish everyone a colorful fall season! Ms. Deb and Ms. Blair
If you do your grocery shopping at King Soopers, please consider purchasing one of these $25 cards and reloading it when you shop. CLC receives $250+ every month when we have $5,000 in reloads. You may either reload your card at the Customer Service Center, or simply hand it to the cashier prior to checking out with your groceries. You may put as much, or as little, on the card as you wish, and then swipe the card to pay for the groceries. This is an easy way to support CLC and our many programs. Thanks for making the King Soopers Scrip program such a success at CLC!
Happy Birthday Cindy Chavez 1-Oct Jack Mahalik 1-Oct Chuck McGavern 1-Oct Rylie Mundell 1-Oct Paul Betthauser 2-Oct Nathan Marxhausen 2-Oct Lynn Prescott 2-Oct Neb Bailey 3-Oct Kenny Jensen 3-Oct Greg Kleen 3-Oct Linda Pace 3-Oct Barbara Pierson 3-Oct Annie Roth 3-Oct Priscilla Raddatz 4-Oct Tim Stohs 4-Oct Chris Dull 5-Oct Delilah June Fisbeck 5-Oct Alex Hinz 5-Oct Lila Inmann 5-Oct Julia Hegele 6-Oct Celeste Leibbrandt 6-Oct Scott Lichty 6-Oct Maddy McCullor 6-Oct Steve Mitchell 6-Oct
Bryan Warren 6-Oct Richard Dethlefs 7-Oct Al Kravitz 7-Oct Tessa Polodna 7-Oct Brodie Dilges 8-Oct Nicholas Koltay 8-Oct Donald Perko 9-Oct Jenny Radtke 9-Oct Marvin Althoff 10-Oct Chad Freitag 10-Oct Gary Knutson 10-Oct Marilyn Kolseth 10-Oct Amy Pierce 10-Oct Dick Swanson 10-Oct Chase Bigelow 11-Oct Hailey Johnson 11-Oct Thomas Kinsella 1-Oct Dan Kramer 11-Oct Mike Lee 11-Oct Sophie Mickus 11-Oct Travis Saxton 11-Oct Barb Bremer 12-Oct Sharon Burbank 12-Oct Mark Mitchum 12-Oct
Rusty Porterfield 12-Oct Megan Silverman 12-Oct Mike Morton 13-Oct Kati Polodna 13-Oct Curt Rowe 13-Oct Darin Weitzel 13-Oct Joanne Edmunds 14-Oct Cyndi Perry 14-Oct Don Alpern 15-Oct Cheryl Beck 15-Oct Steven Gutsch 15-Oct Jessica Lytle 15-Oct Kelly O'Hearn 15-Oct Michael Porter 15-Oct Tressa Stohs 15-Oct Mario Flores 16-Oct Michael Hansen 16-Oct Jack Connolly 17-Oct Reece Evans 7-Oct Bruce Klein 17-Oct Lindsay Ross 17-Oct Mikayla Devin 18-Oct Jon Hegre 18-Oct Gail Lasater 18-Oct Luke Peretti 18-Oct Joyce Woody 18-Oct
Lillianna Flores 19-Oct Mark Bauer 20-Oct Chad Liley 20-Oct Barb Sande 20-Oct Warren Arnold 21-Oct Audrey Larsen 21-Oct Steve Heutmaker 22-Oct Isabella Lembke 23-Oct Dean Macko 23-Oct Leah Ringkob 23-Oct Jeff Snauwaert 23-Oct Colin Brown 24-Oct Taylor Holter 24-Oct Carlos Martinez 24-Oct Madison Riley 24-Oct McKenna Riley 24-Oct Kathy Bigelow 25-Oct Josh Garcia 25-Oct Erik Johnson 25-Oct Reilly McGavern 25-Oct Nicole Moses 25-Oct Bob Mulverhill 25-Oct Carter Parks 25-Oct Madison Bachelder 26-Oct
Sallie Burns 26-Oct Sarah Fisbeck 26-Oct Eric Hemenway 26-Oct Linda Nix 26-Oct Lesley Cantrell 27-Oct Nadia Carroll 27-Oct Sam Hughes 27-Oct Don Marxhausen 27-Oct Lara Rockwell 27-Oct Darrell Woody 27-Oct Anthony Dimercurio 28-Oct Conrad Freeman 28-Oct Charlie Larsen 28-Oct Owen Waldenmyer 28-Oct Jason Gray 29-Oct Katie Lyneis 29-Oct Zachary Tiedgen 29-Oct Susan Carroll 30-Oct Brooke Libner 30-Oct Hollie Dieffenbaugher 31-Oct Sergio Mena Casa 31-Oct Carol O'Hearn 31-Oct Kyoko Okada 31-Oct
SAVE THE DATES!
Happy 30th Anniversary CLC!
Pet Blessing
Thank you all for participating in all our 30th Anniversary events this past year. The success of these events ( especially our “Oktoberversary” Celebration) and the success of CLC is because of our amazing congregation. Together we have created a culture that is nurturing, welcoming, giving, supportive, and devoted.
October 18 at 12:15-1:45pm
Blood Drive
Bonfils will be here on October 25. Look for clipboards to sign up and support this worthy cause.
Thank you all for contributions and participation. CLC Rocks!
Lutheran Family Services Cultural Food Bags CLC has agreed to adopt 50 immigrant families in need of a cultural Thanksgiving Dinner. More information and food collection begin late October.
New Member Class November15
OCTOBER SUNDAY
MONDAY
TUESDAY
WEDNESDAY
THURSDAY
FRIDAY
8a Preschool 1 8a Preschool 9a Adult University 5:30p Preschool Parent's 4:30p Douglas County Singers Night Out 7p Beth Moore Bible Study 7p Celebration Choir
5 8a Preschool
6 8a Preschool
7 8a Preschool 8 8a No Preschool Teacher Inservice 9a Mops Mtg. 9a Adult University 12p OWLS Luncheon 5:30p Carillon Ringers 1p PAT Meeting 7p Confirmation Learning Event 4:30p Douglas County Singers 7p Beth Moore Bible Study 7p Celebration Choir 7p Cub Scout Leader Mtg.
8a Worship/CC 9:30a 1st Bible class 9:30a Worship/SS 11a Worship/CC 7p AA Meeting
4 6:30a Men's Breakfast
8a BAPTISM - Arnold 8a Worship/CC 9:30a Worship/SS 11a Worship/CC 7p AA Meeting
11 6:30a Men's Breakfast
12 8a Preschool Fall Break
13 8a Preschool Fall Break
14 8a Preschool Fall Break
8a Worship/CC 9:30a 1st Bible Class 9:30a Worship/SS 11a Worship/CC 12:30p Pet Blessing 7p AA Meeting
18 6:30a Men's Breakfast
19 8a Preschool
20 8a Preschool
21 8a Preschool
27 8a Preschool
28 8a Preschool
Group 8a Preschool 9:30a Beth Moore Bible Study 7p Boy Scouts 7p Personnel Mtg.
Group 8a Preschool Fall Break No School 9:30a Mission Quilters 6p Boy Scouts Venture Crew 7p Boy Scouts
Group 8a Preschool 9:30a Beth Moore Bible Study 7p Boy Scouts 7p Legacy & Endowment Mtg.
Reformation Sunday 25 6:30a Men's Breakfast 26 8a Worship/CC Group 8:30a Bonfils Blood Drive 8a Preschool 9:30a 1st Bible Class 9:30a Beth Moore Bible Study 9:30a Worship/SS 9:30a Mission Quilters 11a Worship/CC 6p Boy Scouts Venture Crew 12:15p CLC KidsRock! 7p Boy Scouts Musical Tryouts 7p AA Meeting
10:45a Preschool storyteller 11:15a Staff Mtg. 12p Preschool Sports Camp 1:30p Christmas Planning Mtg 5p Crossroads Band 6:30p Praise Team 7p Blaze-Sr. High
No School 11:15a Staff Mtg. 5p Crossroads Band 6:30p Praise Team 7p Blaze-Sr. High 7p Council Mtg.
No School 10a Mops Steering Mtg. 5:30p Carillon Ringers
11a Preschool Chapel 11:15a Staff Mtg. 12p Preschool Sports Camp 1p Visiting Nurse Assoc. 2p Preschool Chapel 5p Crossroads Band 6:30p Praise Team 7p Blaze-Sr. High 8a Preschool 11:15a Staff Mtg. 5p Crossroads Band 6:30p Praise Team 7p Blaze-Sr. High
No School 9a Adult University 7p Beth Moore Bible Study 7p Celebration Choir
9a Mops Mtg. 11a Preschool Chapel 2p Preschool Chapel 5:30p Carillon Ringers 7p Confirmation Small Group
4p CLC KidsRock! Musical Tryouts 5:30p Carillon Ringers 6p Confirmation Guide Huddle 7p Confirmation Learning Event
15 8a Preschool Fall Break
No School 6:30p CLC Bridge Group
SATURDAY 2 Oktoberversary 9a Chicks w/Sticks 9a Preschool Superdad Saturday 5p Worship/CC 6p 30th Anniv. child care
3
9 5p Worship/CC
10
16 5p Worship/CC
17
22 8a Preschool 23 7a General Maintenance 24 9a Adult University 10a Preschool Jump Bunch 5p Worship/CC 4:30p Douglas County Singers 5:30p Preschool Parent's 6p Halloween Party 7p Beth Moore Bible Study Night Out 7p Celebration Choir
29 Book Sale 9a Adult University 8a Preschool 4:30p Douglas County Singers 5:30p DC Singers Halloween Party 7p Celebration Choir
30 Book Sale
5p Worship/CC
31
Followers of Jesus Christ
8997 S. Broadway Highlands Ranch, CO 80129 Change Service Requested
There’s a place for you! Outreach Ministries
Harrington Elementary School in Denver – various projects Outreach Uganda Urban Peak Teen Shelter Alcoholics Anonymous Bonfils Blood Drive Sky Ranch Lutheran Camp Lutheran Family Services projects Grant Avenue Street Reach Pueblo De Dios (in CA) Projects ELCA World Hunger Military Ministry Chicks with Sticks Mission Quilters
Music
CLC Kids Rock! Youth Worship Weekend Band Celebration Carillon Ringers Crossroads Douglas County Singers Praise Team Carillon Ringers
Preschool
Church Community Ministries Altar Guild New Mothers Ministry Worship Teams First Impressions Team Ushers and Greeters Bulletin “Folders” Readers Decorating Team Assisting Ministers Mowing & Snow Removal Kitchen Team Recycling Team Maintenance Team Sweet Bread Ministry Sign Team Chefs for Christ Sanctuary Care Card Ministry Prayer Tree
Fun and Fellowship
OWLS – Senior group meets monthly for fellowship Shepherds Dinner Group Men’s Book Club Women’s Book Club Advance! Men’s Group Women’s Bunko
Youth & Family Ministries
Baptism Classes First Bible Classes First Communion Classes Summer Vacation Bible School Confirmation Classes (7th & 8th graders) Sunday School Dynamite Youth Group (4th, 5th & 6th graders) BLAZE (Senior High School Youth Group) Mission Trips Family Nights
Education and Fellowship
Adult Education Classes (held during 9:30 service and Thursdays at 9:00am) Men’s Breakfast Group – bible study group meets every Monday morning Women of Joy – a Christian book club that meets twice monthly for fellowship and service Rejoice Circle – women’s bible study, meets twice monthly