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Trinity Lutheran Church

INSIDE THIS ISSUE...

December Events .................... 3

Trinity Youth Group .................. 4

Baptisms .................................. 5

Angel Tree ............................... 6

Bazaar Report ......................... 7

Veterans Honored.................... 8

Endowment Update ................. 9

Financial Peace ..................... 10

Thanksgiving Service ............ 10

DECEMBER 2012 NEWSLETTER

Hasn’t it been wonderful to see so many baptized recently at Trinity! Child and adult alike, when someone is baptized in our faith community we sing, “Jesus loves me this I know for the Bible tells me so.”

As that sweet little song suggests, we rely on the Bible to learn about and experience the love of God in Christ Jesus.

We also rely on the more expe-rienced and well-formed Christians, particularly those in our own house-hold, to learn how to apply the Good News of God’s love and mercy to our life, moment by moment, day by day, from one season to the next, following their moves, taking up their way of life. This is why the service for Baptism

calls on parents, sponsors and the congregation to participate not only in the rite of baptism but in the life-long baptismal journey. Faith is caught more than taught and we rely on those nearest and dearest to us to help us grow spiritually mature.

The leaders of Trinity’s confirmation program understand the importance

TLC’s Faith In Home: developing spiritual traditionsof faith for-mation in the home. This fall we intro-duced Faith in Home events where con-firmands and their families g a t h e r i n homes on a Sunday after-noon to share faith practices.

At each event we enjoy Caring Conversations, partake in Devotions, explore Ritual & Traditions that are unique to each season in the Church year and we plan Service projects. Recently we have discussed ways to practice the presence of God, observ-ing moments of silence and “prayers of quiet”.

In future Faith in Home events we will learn how to do sacred reading (Lec-tio Divina), and help families develop a guide for personal and household soulfulness. Our goal is to teach and encourage faith formation in every home helping our confirmation stu-dents grow to appreciate the loving presence of God in their daily lives.

These Faith in Home events are in

Online Newsletter Trinity Lutheran Church

Last night I met with a new group of families here on Whidbey Island. Carry-ing on the Family Fellowship tradition we lit a candle in an Advent wreath, prayed, singing songs for the season, reenacted the Christmas story of Mary’s visit to Elizabeth, and finished the evening with some yummy cupcakes and ice cream. continued on page 2

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Trinity Lutheran ChurchP.O. Box 97 Freeland, WA 98249Telephone: 1-360-331-5191email: robin@trinityfreeland.orgon the web at: www.trinitylutheranfreeland.orgFacebook: www.facebook.com/trinitylutheranchurchfreeland

DECEMBER 2012Managing Editor - Pastor JimContributors to this issue:Pastor Jerry O’NeillPastor Jim Lindus, Robin Edgeman, Paul Thonn, Kristi Etzell, Ardella Josephson, Laura Canby

keeping with Trinity’s commitment to encourage and support faith forma-tion and the care of the soul in every household. Last year we introduced the use of Taking Faith Home sheets in our Sunday School pro-gram sending them home each Sunday with every child for use dur-ing the week. These sheets are a quick and easy resource, lifting up the lessons we’ve heard read and preached at Sunday worship. We are now distributing these Tak-ing Faith Home sheets to our confirmation families and we are exploring ways we can make them available to every household by this time next year.

In the Faith in Home interviews I have conducted this fall I have asked people about the spiritual practices they observe in their homes. These interviews have revealed a sincere in-

We are nearly up to 300 friends! Many community people access online sermons via our Facebook page: www.facebook.com/trinity-lutheran churchfreeland

Share some of the Good News with your family and friends!

Share TLC on Facebook

terest in being more intentional about sharing faith with loved ones and car-ing for each others’ spiritual wellbe-ing. Most everyone has expressed an interest in receiving simple resources

and easy guidelines with an occasional group experi-ence to learn and receive encouragement from oth-ers. Plans are underway to make such resources avail-able on Trinity’s website and more Faith in Home events will be scheduled not only our confirmation families but other inter-ested households as well.

What a joy to see our congregation link with

every household to grow and deepen our lives in Christ! As we enter a new Church year and prepare to celebrate the birth of Christ may we all pause and ponder the wonder of God desir-ing to enter every heart and home this season and throughout the New Year!

In God’s love,Pastor Jerry

Our 4th & 5th grade students make Advent Wreaths in December to take home and use to enhance their holiday traditions.

Welcome New MembersPlease welcome these new TLC

members from October’s New Members Class.

• Amy & Phil Ayers

• Sheri & Jim Kelly & daughters, MacKenna, Skye & Jordan

• Lael Ross

• Sherry & Rick Smith

If you are interetsed in attending January’s class taught by Pastors Dennis and Eric, please call the church office.

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TLC’s Holiday Event Schedule

TLC Christmas Concert at 6 p.m. in the Sanctuary

Join the congregation in a festive evening of Christmas caroling, and the Trinity Bell Choirs as they play a variety of delightful Christmas pieces. There will also be some solos inter-spersed throughout the evening. Let’s make this delightful evening even better by making it a potluck dessert social. Bring your favorite des-sert to share and we’ll enjoy the music, food and fellowship before heading home by 8:00 at the latest. Invite a friend and we’ll see you for a concert, caroling and calories!

Dec. 9

Dec. 24

Dec. 13

Dec. 16

WELCA Christmas Luncheon on Thursday, Dec. 13 at 11 a.m. in the Old Building, Grigware Hall

Join your WELCA sisters to cel-ebrate this Christmas season and our Bazaar success at our annual Christ-mas Luncheon. We’ll supply the turkey and ham and you supply favorite side dishes and deserts. Please sign up in the narthex to bring something to share.

Christmas Eve Worship

5 p.m. (Children’s Service & Skit)

8 p.m. and 10 p.m. (Traditional Worship, carols, candlelight, and Communion)

Annual Sunday School Children’s Christmas Pageantat the 11 a.m. service

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Trinity Youth Group NEWS:Over the course of the past few

months, I’ve been approached by many of you expressing your gratitude for all that’s happening with the youth at TLC. It is indeed a team effort, supported by the pastors, parents and peo-ple of the parish. Without you, my job as coordina-tor would be, well, worrisome!

In September, we kicked off the Confirmation Pro-gram and continued with a format which includes confirmands and their parent(s)/grandparent(s). Held on a number of Sunday nights throughout the year, Pastor Jerry starts us out with praise and worship.

Pastor Jerry or Pastor Jim lead the lesson, with parents also remaining for the teaching. Our focus this year is the Ten Commandments and instruction has been creative, informative and even humorous at times. Parents are dismissed the last 10 minutes and then we all gather for a meal in the gym.

What a great way to connect our middle school families to the teachings of Confirmation and link it to our com-mitment to teaching faith in our homes.

Faith In Home events are also part of this year’s Confirmation Program.

TRINITY YOUTH GROUP DECEMBER CALENDAR of EVENTS:

SATURDAY, Dec. 15 CAROLING and BOARD

GAMES at Maple Ridge—all middle and high school youth bring a plate of Christmas cookies and meet at TLC at 1 p.m. to carpool to Maple Ridge to sing Christmas carols and share cookies with the residents. Wear festive hats and holiday colors!

FRIDAY & SATURDAY Dec. 28 & 29 FAMILY SLEDDING EXTRAV-AGANZA—we will trek to Luth-erwood again for a night of fun & sleeping, followed by a great break-fast and a drive to Mt. Baker for sled-ding! Cost is only $15 per person and registration forms are available outside the youth room door.

Pastor Jerry speaks about these gather-ings in his article this month. Consider how your family already practices faith on a daily basis and/or which rituals you are teaching in your home.

This fall, the High School youth have participated in a couple of activities at TLC, with more planned for the New Year. Several youth have also made Young Life Club part of their Mon-day evening—the spirit is alive & well on South Whidbey!

Thank you, Pastor Jim, for leading us in a remembrance for Rob Knight and those most impacted by the 11-11-11

fatal car crash on the island.

Also, five young men and 3 young women participated in a 4 week course o n F i n a n c i a l Peace for Teens, following the Dave Ramsey model. Call me crazy, but I be-lieve the 8 of them

might be recruited for the Finance Committee!

December events include: Youth Planning Meeting: Sunday, De-cember 9 after the 9:30 a.m. service. Meet in the office area and bring your ideas for activities, mission trips, etc. to help us plan an amazing 2013!

Caroling & Board Games at Maple Ridge. Youth should bring a plate of cookies and meet us at TLC on Saturday, December 15th at 1:00 to carpool to Maple Ridge.

Family Sledding Extravaganza: Friday, Dec. 28th-Saturday, Dec. 29th we will trek to Lutherwood again for a night of fun & sleeping, followed by a great breakfast and a drive to Mt. Baker for sledding! Cost is only $15 per person and registration forms are available outside the youth room door.

Visit the youth website at www.trinityouthgroup.com/TLC/or www.facebook.com/pages/Trinity-Freeland-Youth-Group or email me at simple-sis01@yahoo.com or call me at 360-678-0559.

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A Bountiful November of Baptisms

Left and above: Joel Davison – son of Holly & Brent, grandson of Richard & Sandie Husom and family at the Nov. 11 baptism.

Above: Tina Anders - Kay and Bill Miller’s niece was baptized Nov. 25.

Left: Jemma and Jace, children of Megan and Matt Kukuk and grandchildren of Paul and Sue with the Kukuk clan on Nov. 25.

Right: Brooklyn Simmons – daughter of Jeff and Marilyn Sim-mons with family looking on at the Nov. 18 baptism.

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ANGELS AMONG US - Narthex Tree – Bring in Your Angels!

Our holiday tree in the narthex is decorated with angels that are special to each of you. Bring in your favorite angel ornament with the name of the person you wish to honor. Your angel can be “in memory of” a loved one who has passed or “in honor of” acknowledging someone who has shown you a great kindness this year. The tree will be full of the angels who have touched our lives. A basket with tags and details is on the table in the narthex. Questions? Contact Julie Humling at 321-1432. Bring in your angels this week!

Thank you to Verna Lawsen and her ‘elves’ for putting up the Christmas decorations at church to-day. The Sanctuary looks especially beautiful.

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The total amount collected was $11,330 which will be distributed to local charities.

Many thanks to all the people that helped organize the Bazaar, to every-one that brought in great items to be sold, the great group of gals who put in many hours over a six month period pricing items, the fun group that came to make LEFSE, baked pies and cook-ies, made jam, the group of ladies that made the famous SCRUBBIES, those that helped arrange the various areas, and the guys that hauled tables and

WELCA Bazaar Another Great Success Thanks To You!

Enjoy the beautiful wildlife images of Ron Norman

many boxes of items from building to building.

In addition, we were pleased and thankful for the many people who helped pack items up on Sunday which were then picked up by Senior Thrift.

The leftover books were picked up by Clinton Library and Good Cheer, thanks to Dave McNeely. THANK YOU! You are appreciated very much!

Submitted by Ardella Josephson, Bazaar Coordinator

Our God has a creative spirit as evi-denced in nature. Ever study up close the designs and colors of birds’ wings? Just walk about the lobby at Trinity this month and be dazzled by nature on display through the photography of Ron Norman.

A heartfelt note of gratitude to Ron for sharing his photographic talent with us this month.

These images are for sale and for each image sold Ron will donate $50 to Trinity.

Talk to Ron or call the church office if you are interested in purchasing a photograph.

Ron also has a website and a blog where he posts some of his recent photographs at http://ronnormanpho-tography.com.

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Veterans were honored at all three services on Nov. 11

On Veterans’ Day, TLC veterans at the 8 a.m. service were called forward to be honored, thanked and prayed for...

... as were veterans at the 9:30 a.m. service...

... and the 11 a.m. service.

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The Endowment Committee had a productive meeting with the Church Council on November 11.

The Council re-affirmed and ap-proved a change to the By Laws and accepted a report showing the unused funds in the Endowment Fund as of the year 2011. The Council was noti-fied of $5,000 from the Fund which is available for distribution and the Council is in the process of selecting recipients for the distribution. The $5,000 is being taken out of dividends (in excess of $6,000) paid by the invest-ment agencies through the end of the third quarter.

The total value of the Endowment

Trinity Endowment UpdateFund dropped a small amount to $343,561.20 as of October 31 but is still 11% above the value on January 1. Capital gains year-to-date were $25,381.71.

The Endowment Committee is ac-tively preparing for a banner day on Endowment Sunday which is sched-uled for February 10, 2013. There will be a speaker at each of the three ser-vices and a table in the gym to provide information and to meet members of the Endowment Committee. The special attraction at the table will be several boxes of chocolates. Be sure to mark this day on your calendar! Paul Thonn, Endowment Committee Chair

Please pick up your TLC winter volunteer schedule in the gym

Even though he has moved off island, Dick Schluter did as he always has and provided birthday cake for the congregation for his 99th birthday.

A giant card was signed by TLC members for Dick. We miss you, Dick.

WELCA Christmas LuncheonGIRLS, LADIES & WOMEN OF TRINITY!!!

We will gather in Grigware Hall in the old building at 11 a.m. for a festive holiday lunch of turkey and ham.Please sign up in the narthex to bring something to share.

We hope to see ALL of you there!

Kathy Borson, WELCA President

Ladies, please save the date!! Come join your fellow WELCA sisters to cele-brate this Christ-mas season and our Bazaar suc-cess at our annual Christmas Luncheon on Thursday, December 13.

Come Volunteer at TLCEach Sunday morning over 50 TLC

members greet us at the front door, hand us bulletins, light candles, read scriptures, assist the Pastors, serve communion, serve coffee and cookies, and teach the youngest in our parish.

How about you? Are you ready to join the group of dedicated volunteers at TLC? It is a great way to meet new people and is guaranteed to enrich your life. Everyone is welcome (Our oldest volunteer is 91 years old this year and the youngest will be 10!) and training is available for all volunteer positions.

Volunteer schedules for December through February are ready for pick up and have been sent out via email. If you would like to volunteer or know specific dates you will not be available please call me at the church, 331-5191, or email me, lana@trinityfreeland.org.

Lana Johnson, Volunteer Coordinator

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Thanksgiving Eve service focused on God’s call to service

Register now for a January Financial Peace Class

This year’s Thanksgiving Eve service was filled with the sweet spirit of Thanksgiving and was nearly a full-house. It featured choir music and presentations by soon to be ordained Pastor Annette Andrews-Lux, and the second by Pastor Elizabeth Felt -- both former TLC members.

Pastor Annette will be ordained on Saturday, Jan. 19 at 3 p.m. at TLC at a special service followed by a potluck.

Give yourself the gift of Financial Peace in 2013 by attending TLC’s Financial Peace University taught by Cathy Darracot beginning Sunday, January 13 and continuing for 9 weeks.

Through video teaching, class dis-cussions and interactive small group activities, FPU presents biblical, practi-cal steps to get from where you are to where you’ve dreamed you could be.

This plan will show you how to get rid of debt, manage your money, spend and save wisely, and much more!

It has already helped dozens of TLC families. Call the church office at (360) 331-5191 to register.

The $100 fee covers a lifetime mem-bership, with many additional benefits and savings. See www.daveramsey.com for more information about the benefits.

Thanks to OWLS chefs, helpers and coordinators

The OWLS lunchen closed the year in style -- with 100 pounds of prime rib roasts cooked to perfection by George Mason, who surprised attend-ees with a special homemade wood Christmas ornament.

Thank you to Robyn Wozab and George Mason and several others for continuing the luncheons after Pastor George died. For the time being, this concludes the luncheons.

Right: George prepared three prime rib roasts for the final December OWLS luncheon.

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The story behind a beloved Christmas classicNo doubt you have seen at least one

or two the many movies that have been based upon Charles Dickens’ Classic: ‘A Christmas Carol’ but do you know the story behind the story which has pricked the social and personal consciences of generations of readers and viewers?

On an early October evening in 1843, Charles Dickens stepped from the brick-and-stone portico of his home near Regent’s Park in London. The cool air of dusk was a relief from the day’s unseasonal humidity, as the author began his nightly walk through what he called “the black streets” of the city.

A handsome man with flowing brown hair and normally sparkling eyes, Dickens was deeply troubled. The 31-year-old father of four had thought he was at the peak of his career. The Pickwick Papers, Oliver Twist and Nicholas Nickleby had all been popular; and Mar-tin Chuzzlewit, which he considered his finest novel yet, was being published in monthly installments. But now, the celebrated writer was facing serious financial problems.

Some months earlier, his publisher had revealed that sales of the new nov-el were not what had been expected, and it might be necessary to sharply reduce Dickens’s monthly advances against future sales.

The news had stunned the author. It seemed his talent was being ques-tioned. Memories of his childhood poverty resurfaced. Dickens was supporting a large, extended family, and his expenses were already nearly more than he could handle. His father and brothers were pleading for loans. His wife, Kate, was expecting their fifth child.

All summer long, Dickens worried about his mounting bills, especially

the large mortgage that he owed on his house. He spent time at a seaside resort, where he had trouble sleep-ing and walked the cliffs for hours. He knew that he needed an idea that would earn him a large sum of money, and he needed the idea quickly. But in his depression, Dickens was finding it difficult to write. After returning to London, he hoped that resuming his nightly walks would help spark his imagination.

The yellow glow from the flickering gas lamps lit his way through London’s better neighborhoods. Then gradually, as he neared the Thames River, only the dull light from tenement windows illuminated the streets, now litter-strewn and lined with open sewers. The elegant ladies and well-dressed gentlemen of Dickens’s neighborhood were replaced by bawdy streetwalkers, pickpockets, footpads and beggars.

The dismal scene reminded him of the nightmare that often troubled his sleep: A 12-year-old boy sits at a work-table piled high with pots of black boot paste. For 12 hours a day, six days a week, he attaches labels on the endless stream of pots to earn the six shillings that will keep him alive.

The boy in the dream looks through the rotting warehouse floor into the cellar, where swarms of rats scurry about. Then he raises his eyes to the dirt-streaked window, dripping with condensation from London’s wintry weather. The light is fading now, along with the boy’s young hopes. His father is in debtors’ prison, and the youngster is receiving only an hour of school lessons during his dinner break at the warehouse. He feels helpless, aban-doned. There may never be celebration, joy or hope again...

This was no scene from the author’s imagination. It was a period from his early life. Fortunately, Dicken’s father had inherited some money, enabling him to pay off his debts and get out of prison -- and his young son escaped a dreary fate.

Now the fear of being unable to pay his own debts haunted Dickens. Weari-ly, he started home from his long walk, no closer to an idea for the “cheerful, glowing” tale he wanted to tell than he’d been when he started out.

However, as he neared home, he felt the sudden flash of inspiration. What about a Christmas story! He would write one for the very people he passed on the black streets of London. People who lived and struggled with the same fears and longings he had known, people who hungered for a bit of cheer and hope.

But Christmas was less than three months away! How could he manage so great a task in so brief a time? The

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book would have to be short, certainly not a full novel. It would have to be finished by the end of November to be printed and distributed in time for Christmas sales. For speed, he struck on the idea of adapting a Christmas-goblin story from a chapter in The Pickwick Papers.

He would fill the story with the scenes and characters his readers loved. There would be a small, sickly child; his honest but ineffectual father; and, at the center of the piece, a selfish villain, an old man with a pointed nose and shriveled cheeks.

As the mild days of October gave way to a cool November, the manu-script grew, page by page, and the story took life. The basic plot was simple enough for children to understand, but evoked themes that would conjure up warm memories and emotions in an adult’s heart: After retiring alone to his cold, barren apartment on Christ-mas Eve, Ebenezer Scrooge, a miserly London businessman, is visited by the spirit of his dead partner, Jacob Marley. Doomed by his greed and insensitivity to his fellow man when alive, Marley’s ghost wanders the world in chains forged of his own indifference. He warns Scrooge that he must change, or suffer the same fate. The ghosts of Christmas Past, Christmas Present and Christmas Yet to Come appear and show Scrooge poignant scenes from his life and what will occur if he doesn’t mend his ways. Filled with re-morse, Scrooge renounces his former selfishness and becomes a kind, gener-ous, loving person who has learned the true spirit of Christmas.

Gradually, in the course of his writ-ing, something surprising happened to Dickens. What had begun as a desper-ate, calculated plan to rescue himself from debt -- “a little scheme,” as he described it -- soon began to work

a change in the author. As he wrote about the kind of Christmas he loved -- joyous family parties with clusters of mistletoe hanging from the ceiling; cheerful carols, games, dances and gifts; delicious feasts of roast goose, plum pudding, fresh breads, all enjoyed in front of a blazing Yule log -- the joy of the season he cherished began to alleviate his depression.

A Christmas Carol captured his heart and soul. It became a labor of love. Each morning, Dickens grew excited and impatient to begin the day’s work. “I was very much affected by the little book,” he later wrote a newspaper-man, and was “reluctant to lay it aside for a moment.” A friend and Dickens’s future biographer, John Forster, took note of the “strange mastery” the story held over the author. Dickens told a professor in America how, when writing, he “wept, and laughed, and wept again.” Dickens even took charge of the design of the book, deciding on a gold-stamped cover, a red-and-green title page with colored endpapers, and four hand-colored etchings and four engraved woodcuts. To make the book affordable to the widest audience pos-sible, he priced it at only five shillings.

At last, on December 2, he was finished, and the manuscript went to the printers. On December 17, the author’s copies were delivered, and Dickens was delighted. He had never doubted that A Christmas Carol would be popular. But neither he nor his pub-lisher was ready for the overwhelming response that came. The first edition of 6000 copies sold out by Christmas Eve, and as the little book’s heart-warming message spread, Dickens later recalled, he received “by every post, all manner of strangers writing all manner of letters about their homes and hearths, and how the Carol is read aloud there, and kept on a very little shelf by itself.”

Novelist William Makepeace Thac-keray said of the Carol: “It seems to me a national benefit, and to every man or woman who reads it a per-sonal kindness.”

Although Dickens would write many other well-received and financially profitable books -- David Copperfield, A Tale of Two Cities, Great Expectations -- nothing would ever quite equal the soul-satisfying joy he derived from his universally loved little novel. In time, some would call him the Apostle of Christmas. And, at his death in 1870, a poor child in London was heard to ask: “Dickens dead? Then will Father Christmas die too?”

In a very real sense, Dickens popu-larized many aspects of the Christmas we celebrate today, including great family gatherings, seasonal drinks and dishes and gift giving. Even our lan-guage has been enriched by the tale. Who has not known a “Scrooge,” or uttered “Bah! Humbug!” when feel-ing irritated or disbelieving. And the phrase “Merry Christmas!” gained wider usage after the story appeared.

In the midst of self-doubt and confu-sion, a man sometimes does his best work. From the storm of tribulation comes a gift. For Charles Dickens, a little Christmas novel brought new-found faith in himself and in the re-demptive joy of the season.Written by Thomas J. Burns and first printed in the Reader’s Digest, December 1989 issue

“In the midst of self-doubt and confusion, a man sometimes does his best work. From the storm of tribulation comes a gift. For Charles Dickens, a little Christmas novel brought new-found faith in himself and in the redemptive joy of the season.”