january the martyr monthly 2017 -...

January THE MARTYR MONTHLY 2017

WORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES AT SSM

Saturday 5:00 PM Sunday 8:00 am & 9:30 am

Sunday School 9:30 am

New Year’s Day Worship Sunday, 01/01 @ 9:30 am

Monday Bible Study: 01/09 @ 1:00 pm Men’s Bible Study: 01/04 & 01/18 @ 9:00 am

Women’s Bible Study: 01/11 & 01/25 @ 10:15 am

Prayer Group Meeting: 01/17 @ 6:00 pm

PASTOR’S PAGE

Dear Faith Family,

“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace, in believing, so that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” Romans 15:13.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! The twelve days of Christmas takes us from December 25 through January 6. After the twelve days of Christmas we celebrate the “Epiphany of our Lord.” Epiphany means “manifestation.” On this day we celebrate the revelation of Christ to the Gentiles, that is to all the nations. On this day tradition shares that three wise men or maji discovered Jesus in Bethlehem and presented gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. The magi followed the guiding star that led them to Jesus.

Star of wonder, star of night, star with royal beauty bright; westward leading, still proceeding, guide us to thy perfect light!

Wouldn't it be great if we had a "guiding star" when we face tough decisions in our life? Wouldn't it be wonderful if a dream told us exactly what to do, as dreams seemed to guide Joseph and the Magi in the first several chapters of Matthew.

We begin a new year soon, a traditional time to make "new year's resolutions." But as a past New York Time's article put it: “It's the day after New Year's--broken resolutions yet? No guilt necessary. After all, it's hard enough to make it through the day, never mind a year, of good intentions. The problem is often with the resolutions themselves: "Stay financially upright. Be loving to your spouse. Eat better. Recycle." Easy to say, but hard to do.

Thankfully, we live by grace, even when we fail; yet as a community we seek divine guidance. We may watch "Dancing with the Stars" on television and follow "stars" of our day. Some may even read the stars to understand their destiny. As a community we gather in worship to reorient ourselves to a world in which God's mercy and grace shines on all people. It is a very different vision than the one we receive through entertainment, news, and politics.

Perhaps a resolution we could make together is this: to make worship a priority for the New Year. May the star of Epiphany shine on us and lead us to all that is yet to be!

Peace, Pastor Brian P.S. Thanks for all the Christmas cards, greetings, and gifts!

2017 January Martyr Monthly—St. Stephen the Martyr

Stewardship: BECAUSE OF

GOD’S GREAT MERCY

RESOLUTIONS As we turn the calendar from December to January and begin another year, we reflect on all that we have done in the last twelve months. Vacations that we have taken, old friends we have visited, household projects that we have completed. We also look forward to what the New Year might hold for us. Often times we make New Year’s Resolutions. Some might pledge to lose weight or get to the gym more often. Some might look to eat healthier or spend more time with friends and family. While all of those are admirable resolutions, perhaps we could take it one step further and ask ourselves what would God ask us to do? Maybe he would ask us to become more involved in our faith community. We could become involved in one of the many outreach committees that St. Stephen supports. We could serve as ushers or greeters. We could pledge to visit the homebound who are not able to make it to church for worship. We could join the choir to sing God’s praises or we could pledge to serve our youth by becoming involved with the Sunday school program. As we reflect on the past year and look forward to the New Year, I ask you to reflect on this one question: What is your New Year’s Resolution……to God? Thank you for your continuing support of our congregation’s stewardship ministry. Pat Burns and your Stewardship Team

STEWARDSHIP

YOUTH & FAMILY

BILL BRAVENER DIRECTOR OF MUSIC/ASSOCIATE IN MINISTRY

My heartfelt thanks to our choirs for the beautiful Advent/Christmas Concert. It was a very special experience.

As of January 1, my title changes from Associate in Ministry to Deacon. The ELCA has combined several existing lay rosters into one with the title of Deacon.

I have been reflecting on what lead me to this point. I was commissioned an Associate in Ministry in 2000, after completing a two year course of study in the Lay School of Ministry sponsored by Wartburg Seminary and the South Central Synod of Wisconsin. I completed the same candidacy process as required for ordained pastors. I did Clinical Pastoral Education at Bethesda Lutheran Home and my internship at Immanuel Lutheran Church; both in Watertown, WI.

I was blessed in this rigorous process and continue to be blessed by serving at SSM.

Happy New Year! See you at worship.

YOUTH SERVICE OPPORTUNITY Once again, we are looking for youth to help set up, serve and clean up for the lunch provided during the annual meeting which will be held on Sunday, Jan. 29th. Please consider helping out for fun or service hours! Sign up is posted at the Youth and Family kiosk.

HUNGER TASK FORCE SERVICE OPPORTUNITY Everyone enjoyed themselves at our November event, so we are scheduling another time for our group. We are planning for March or April - stay tuned for the date!

During our three hours on Nov. 29th, we assembled 480 food boxes for low income seniors in the area. Thank you to the 20+ volunteers who came to help!

Our next SSM FAMILY MINISTRIES gathering is scheduled for Saturday, Jan. 21st (note the date change). This is a great time for parents, teens, and younger students to get to know each other and share ideas for upcoming ministry events. All are welcome. We will gather at 5:45 p.m. in the SSM Fellowship Hall and share a potluck dinner at 6:00, followed by a meeting and social time for the kids.


PIECE MAKERS QUILTING GROUP The SSM Quilters resume monthly gatherings on Monday, Jan. 16, 2017 at 6:15 p.m. and every third Monday of the month through Sept. 2017. Even if you are not an experienced sewer, there are things to do that require no sewing at all. Come and join us…..we need your help; men, youth and women alike. For additional information, call Betty Kroll (414) 421-1802 or Marge Muroni at (414) 423-1316. This year’s Quilting Bee will be held on July 24, 2017. Mark your calendar now!

WOMEN’S BIBLE STUDY Jan. 11th is the first Bible Study of the New Year. Starting time is 10:15 a.m. on the second and fourth Wednesday of each month. Come and join us as we study God’s Word. Bring a friend!

Loose Ends Luncheon Jan. 11, 2017 is the date of this month’s luncheon at Red Lobster on South 76th Street, being organized by Dolores Dowling. Sign-up on the sheet provided on the kiosk. Pease contact Dolores or Karen Hoffman with any questions!

Thank You The 2016 Bake & Craft Sale was again a success. The Steering Committee thanks everyone who participated in any way…..the organization and selling, those who made donations of bakery and/or crafts, thanks to those who made purchases and to those who bid on the Theme Baskets. The Steering Committee will be meeting soon to determine how the funds will be disbursed. This information will appear in a future issue of The Martyr Monthly.

MARK YOUR CALENDARS FOR THESE UPCOMING EVENTS

March 25, 2017 Greater Milwaukee Women of the ELCA Spring Cluster Meeting St. Stephen the Martyr Lutheran Church, Greendale We hope to have a great attendance from SSM Women

May 17-18, 2017 Wartburg Seminary Women of the ELCA Gather Bible Study Dubuque, Iowa

July 11 – 16, 2017 Tenth Triennial Gathering, Minneapolis, Minnesota

July 24, 2017 Women of the ELCA Quilting Bee at St. Stephen the Martyr.

Sept. 23 – 24, 2017 (Tentative Date) Thankoffering Weekend at SSM.

Oct. 14, 2017 Greater Milwaukee Synod, Women of the ELCA Convention at Ascension Lutheran Church, Milwaukee, WI

December 2 – 3, 2017 Women of the ELCA SSM Loose Ends Bake & Craft Sale

HUMAN CONCERNS

The Human Concerns Committee wants to give a great BIG THANK YOU to the members of our congregation for their generosity in giving Christmas gifts to the children and elderly at the Bay View Community Center. It is so appreciated by those families who have so little. There is a great need for warm winter clothing at Unity and the homeless at Tippecanoe. Warm sweaters, coats, hats and gloves are needed. If you have any Donations-they can be left in the coat room. The Church Council moved to disperse funds from the Thrivent Choice Program. An amount of $4300.00 was given to Human Concerns to divide up as we saw fit. The following is a breakdown of the division of that money: Unity Soup Kitchen $1000 MBASSNY $1000 ($500 Church Roof, $500 Education) Santa Fe - Food Pantry $ 500 Fischer House (Veterans) $ 250 Meru Coffee Truck $ 400 ELCA Feed Refugee Family (1 Month - Outside USA) $ 200 LSS - Resettle Refugees $ 200 Divine Intervention Tipicanoe - Winter needs for homeless $ 500 Hunger Task Force $ 250 For anyone who is not sure exactly how our Special Offering Envelopes work, here is some information regarding how they are used: Several Church Holidays, like Christmas, have a Special Offering envelope. The money collected in these envelopes goes to designated charities or our Church Partners. The Special Offering envelope should be used along with your regular envelope. If you choose to use only one envelope, please designate the amount for the Special Offering and the amount for your weekly offering. God's blessings to all at St Stephen's for a blessed New Year. ...The Human Concerns Committee

MEMORIAL COMMITTEE NEWS The Memorial Committee did not meet in December due to bad weather. We did want everyone to know that Weather Tight Inc. installed the new office window in November. It has added light, a better view of the front entrance, and energy efficiency. The office is warmer and hopefully will be cooler in Summer. Glenna appreciates the improvement in the office. We had a new sign put up at the entrance to the lower parking lot giving information on the Prayer Garden and additional parking. We added another sign adjacent to the lower level church doors that gives the name of our church and directions for entrances into the church, the church office, and Sunday School rooms. The Prayer Garden location is also shown on the sign. On the reverse side of this sign is the stained glass design from behind the altar in the church. On the back of the sign exiting the lower level you will see: Go in peace - Serve the Lord. The signs were paid for with Memorial funds and designed and installed by Mark Winters. Mark also donated the backs of the signs. Thank you Mark. We felt the signs were needed for visitors to our church who park in the lower parking lot and need to know how to get into the building. As the community starts to use the Prayer Garden they will need to know the name of the church as well as directions into the church. Funeral participants were walking up the hill to enter the church because they didn’t know what doors to use. The Prayer Garden was prepared for winter. A wreath is spotlighted on the back wall and two trees have strings of lights. It really shows off our garden. Thank you to all who helped in the Memorial Committee projects this past year. In 2017 we are looking into a new Christmas tree for the narthex. The lights no longer work on the old tree. We also need new communion tables for the sanctuary as they are falling apart. If you know of a project, obtain a Memorial Committee request sheet from Glenna in the office and fill it out. The committee will consider the request. We are still looking for additional committee members who would like to help. We meet 4 times a year – March, June, September, and December. Talk to any committee member if you are interested or need more information - Sandy Petricek, chair, Dick Kroll, Faith O’Connell, Julie Herman, Nancy Hoffman, and Carol Birk.


OPPORTUNITY CORNER

TRAINING OPPORTUNITIES

During the month of February, 2017 (exact days to be determined) we will be providing training for the following volunteer positions…

Acolyte Assisting Minister Communion Server Communion Set-up

Lector (Reader) Usher

Please prayerfully consider sharing your God given gifts and time. All positions are available for all worship services

(Saturday at 5:00 pm, Sunday at 8:00 am and 9:30 am).

If there are any questions, please contact Pastor Brian or myself (Char).

God’s Peace and Blessings in 2017! Char

The solution to last month’s puzzle….

“DO NOT BE CONFORMED TO THIS WORLD BUT BE TRANSFORMED BY THE RENEWING OF YOUR MINDS SO THAT YOU MAY DISCERN WHAT IS THE WILL OF GOD - WHAT IS GOOD AND ACCEPTABLE AND PERFECT.

FOR BY THE GRACE GIVEN TO ME I SAY TO EVERYONE AMONG YOU NOT TO THINK OF YOURSELF MORE HIGHLY THAN YOU OUGHT TO THINK BUT TO THINK WITH SOBER JUDGMENT EACH ACCORDING TO THE

MEASURE OF FAITH THAT GOD HAS ASSIGNED. FOR AS IN ONE BODY WE HAVE MANY MEMBERS AND NOT ALL THE MEMBERS HAVE THE

SAME FUNCTION. SO WE, WHO ARE MANY ARE ONE BODY IN CHRIST AND INDIVIDUALLY WE ARE MEMBERS ONE OF ANOTHER. WE HAVE

GIFTS THAT DIFFER ACCORDING TO THE GRACE GIVEN TO US…”

NEWS & NOTES

SERVICE OPPORTUNITIES

HELP! HELP! HELP! After January 1st, it will be time to make out the new usher schedules for our three worship services to include the months of February through the end of May.

This notice is to inform the congregation that volunteers are needed to help usher at the Saturday 5PM and the two Sunday services.

To be an usher, no experience is necessary as we will train you, on the job. Duties include greeting people and handing out worship bulletins, taking the collection, guiding people to Holy Communion, and occasional other duties at special services.

Anyone is welcome to volunteer. Men, women, teens, and especially new members of our church are urged to serve in SSM's usher corps. You will be assigned to work on a team with experienced people and each team serves about one time per month.

If interested, contact Bob Rasmussen at (414) 421-5170 or place a note in Bob's church mailbox. It would be best if this could be done by January 15th so the teams can be formed and schedules distributed before February.


BOOK DISCUSSION GROUP… Our next book group discussion will be over the book entitled “Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City.” This is a sociological account of the current housing

crisis in the U.S. for low-income renters. Desmond, an asso-ciate professor of sociology at Harvard, explores the impact of eviction on six poverty-stricken families in Milwaukee and the families of two renters. The book reveals the concentrated suffering of people repeatedly faced with the loss of their homes. ---- The Milwaukee Library System has a large number of copies available. Make sure to reserve one for yourself.

We will meet to discuss the book on Saturday, February 25, at 3:45 pm and conclude just before the 5pm service.

ALUMINUM CAN COLLECTION REPORT - 2016

With the year 2016 coming to an end, it is a convenient time to report on our church ministry to help area food pantries with gifts of money earned from the sale of aluminum cans.

For this past year, 356 lbs. of cans were sold; yielding $154. The money earned was divided between Central City and Bay View Community Center food pantries.

A sincere "thank you" goes out to all "Martyrites" and friends who gave their cans to SSM's recycling ministry. Can collection will resume in the Spring.

Bob Rasmussen - Can Coordinator

MORE NEWS & NOTES

There are large print bulletins available on the Usher’s table at every service, with hymns included. Please pick up or ask for a copy, if it will enhance your worship experience!

2017 Stewardship Envelopes have been placed in your church mailbox. Please pick them up the next time you are at SSM….Have a blessed 2017, as you remember that “Every generous act of giving, with every perfect gift, is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.” James 1:17

Congratulations to Pam Maschke on her election to the Greater Milwaukee Synodical Women’s Organization Board of Directors, as the Congregation/Cluster Liaison.

www.ssmelca.org is a great way to stay current with the church calendar and weekly announcements...Check out the “Resources” tab for up-to-date information. Thanks to Joe Konop and Dick Kroll for their faithfulness in keeping the website current!

We now have a Facebook page that is open to all. It is a great way to communicate about church related activities with one another…

A note of thanks from Glenna….I cannot do more than say a heartfelt thanks for your generosity during the holiday season. Thanks to each one who wished me a Merry Christmas, sent a card, prayed for my family, or sent a special treat/gift to the office.


WELCOME NEW SSM MEMBERS

NEW MEMBERS NOT PICTURED

Kevin Ernst

Richard and Carol Kucharski

Gary and Jackie Lentz

CONDENSED MINUTES OF COUNCIL MEETING

ST. STEPHEN THE MARTYR LUTHERAN CHURCH

President Eric Sanders called the meeting to order at 7:06 p.m.

Council members present were: P. Burns, J. Covert, B. Daleness, M. Kling, J. Konop, L. Lisiecki, T. Lisiecki, N. Mineau,, J. Muroni, F. O’Connell, E. Sanders, J. Schultz and A. Woerpel. Pastor Brian was also in attendance. Pastor Brian led devotions. APPROVALS: The November minutes were approved. FINANCIAL SECRETARY’S REPORT: November giving was up considerably due to two large donations from parishioners. TREASURER'S REPORT: Checking account balance is in good shape. Bills are being paid. A mortgage principal payment of $30,000 was made thanks to a large donation made for that purpose by a member of the congregation. Treasurer’s report was approved. PASTOR'S TIME: New Members will be welcomed at services this weekend. There is a wedding on December 17. There will be two services on Christmas Eve and one service on Christmas Day and New Year’s Day. OLD BUSINESS: Constitution review – New ELCA constitution is available. Will start to review it soon. Columbarium – A member of the congregation is willing to donate to a fund for a columbarium at SSM. Research is continuing. Cell tower – There is a Planning Commission meeting regarding the cell tower on January 11 and a Village Board meeting on January 17. The church does not need to be represented but a few church members may attend. Annual Meeting - Meeting will be January 29. Reports need to be given to Glenna by January 6 to be included in the annual report. Council Retreat – Will be held February 10 and 11 at St. Al’s. So far topics include Alternate Giving and Staffing.

CONDENSED MINUTES OF COUNCIL MEETING


NEW BUSINESS: Budget – J. Covert presented the most recent version of the budget. There are still some changes to be made. Council approved a budget not to exceed $328,000.00. Disbursement to Benevolence/Outreach - N. Mineau provided an itemized list of where the Human Concerns committee chose to disburse the $4300.00.00 after Council approved that amount to be used from Thrivent Choice Funds for Outreach. She thanked the Council for their decision to disburse this money to the community. COMMITTEE REPORTS: YOUTH & FAMILY: A group of 25 people worked at the Hunger Task Force to package food for families. December 16 is the Lock In. MUSIC & WORSHIP: Christmas decorations are going up. The tree will be delivered December 12. It will be set up after the Children’s program. PROPERTY: Wreaths and Nativity Scene are up outside. STEWARDSHIP: P. Burns reported that so far the number of pledges is down from last year but the dollar amount of the pledges is up. There will be no Mega Meeting in January. Next Council Meeting will be Tuesday, January 10. The meeting adjourned at 8:55 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Bonnie Daleness, Council Secretary

january the martyr monthly 2017 -...

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