The Lamplighter   of St. Luke’s Lutheran Church

March 2020

39 Jesus said, `Come and see.' They went and saw the place where Jesus was staying.

The time was about four o'clock in the afternoon. They stayed with Jesus the rest of

the day. 40 Andrew was one of those two followers of John who heard John speak

and went after Jesus. He was Simon Peter's brother. 41 The first thing Andrew did

then was to find his brother Simon. He said, `We have found the Messiah. - John

1:39-41

Spring at Saint Luke’s is always one of my favorite times in our church life

together. Each year when the weather grows warmer we have the chance to

spend more time together focusing on our faith life. Beginning with Fat Tues-

day and continuing through Easter we worship in different ways that offer an

opportunity to come and see Jesus in a meaningful way.

This year our weekly worship will center around Martin Luther’s Small Cate-

chism. We will have a chance to explore those central parts of our faith that

are central to who we are as Christians living in a world that is often indifferent

and sometimes downright hostile to our faith.

So come and see. See what God is calling us to. This is a meaningful way to

put your faith into practice. I hope that you will join us on the journey to the

cross and see the love and life of God at work

God’s Peace,

Pastor Jason Schafer

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Contact us: Editor: Elizabeth Vassar Church Office Hours: Monday-Thursday 8:00 am-1:00 pm Office closed on Fridays Phone: 803-364-4093 Fax: 803-364-5150 Email: secretary@stlukesprosperity.com

Sunday Services: Sunday School 9:30 am Worship Service 10:30 am

SERVING GOD THROUGH

SERVING OTHERS

Visit us online at: www.stlukesprosperity.com

World Day of Prayer 2020 You are invited to the World Day of Prayer on Friday, March 6 at Zion United Methodist Church 7:00 p.m. Please mark this on your calendar and plan to attend this event!

  March  1 

Acolytes Will Hawkins & Micah Schafer

Crucifer Elizabeth Hunter

Church Closing Phil Connelly

Greeters Ronald Boozer & Carter Mays

Nursery Vikki Hunter & Teresa Hunter

Lectors Byron Carr

Altar Flowers No flowers for Lent

Altar Guild

Faye Shealy & Deann McManus

Ushers Tim Connelly, Charles Fulmer, Harold McGaha, and Chesley Minick

MARCH SERVICE VOLUNTEERS Colony Lutheran Church will sponsor a church safety class presented by Todd Johnson of the Newberry County Sher‐iff’s Dept. on Thursday, Feb. 27th at 6:30.  A hot dog supper will be provid‐ed in the Fellowship Hall beginning at 5:30.  We are asking anyone that plans to a end to please register by calling Colony at 276‐7151 or Larry Wise at 271‐9840. 

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MARCH SERVICE VOLUNTEERS

  March 8  March 15 

Acolytes Zachary Hunter & Gracen Green Jackson Long & Gage Hunter

Crucifer Andrew Green Baylee Kinard

Church Closing David Eargle Henry Kunkle, Jr.

Greeters Doliene Bedenbaugh & Vicki Maddalena

Nelva Kunkle & Mike Hawkins

Lectors Sandra Boozer Charles Fulmer

Altar Flowers No flowers for Lent No flowers for Lent

Altar Guild

Neal Lester and Laura & Adam Lester Randy & Judy Nobles

Ushers Michael Fulmer, Mickey Fulmer, Bert Lucas, and Russell Hendrix

Joe Boozer, Russell Kunkle, Steven Lake, and Lee Livingston

Nursery Tammy Lester & Jennie Shealy Molly Stevens & Julia Eargle

  March 22  March 29 

Acolytes Carson Cockrell & Braedon Cockrell Carlee Livingston & Kayley Minick

Crucifer Savannah Lever Jerran Long

Church Closing Byron Carr Dean Bedenbaugh

Greeters Linda Kunkle & Jay Salter Harold & Fran McGaha

Nursery Kendra Pugh & Ruthie Boozer Laurie Connelly & Nola Craven

Lectors Ella Schafer Paul Hunter

Altar Flowers No flowers for Lent No flowers for Lent

Altar Guild Mitchel & Harriett Connelly and Wanda Crotwell

Joe & Linda Kunkle

Ushers Reggie Beckham, Andrew Green, Jody Green, and Joey Long

Austin Gardner, Scott Hunter, Kevin Long-shore, and Carter Mays

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Our most sincere sympathy surrounds Alvin Connelly, whose beloved wife, Susan Connelly, died on January 28. Memorial Services were held on Jan 31 at St. Luke’s with Pastor Jason Schafer presiding.

To God you shall return

The traditional Ash Wednesday words “Remember that you are dust and to dust you shall return” might seem depressing. But in our often death-denying culture, some might find it refreshing to hear the frank statement that we can do nothing to save ourselves, physically or spiritually — that, no matter how we try to avoid sin, we can’t untangle ourselves from self-interest. How liberating, then, to know we don’t have to! God loves us as we are and sent Jesus to break sin’s power over us. A pastor described Ash Wednesday as the point you can pinch in the middle of a long piece of rib-bon, such that when you lift it high, the two ends — one symbolizing our baptism and the other, our funeral — meet and touch. We come from dust and will return to dust, but we also come from God

Calvin Morris Daisy Morris Larry Morris Jane Pitts Linda Pitts Adam Roberts Shelvie Shealy

Jacob Bundrick Sherry Dominick Janna Felker Ricky Jones* Peggy Killian Margaret Koon Shirley McRacken Bobby Morris

Jeff Singley Jake Slice Elsie Todd* Cathy Wilbanks Steve Williams* *Family/Friends Prayer requests will be listed

Nursing Home

Carol Brandt (Saluda Nursing Center) Pastor Henry Brandt (Clinton Presbyterian Com-munity)

Jacob Bundrick (Lowman Home) Myra Sue Chapman (Louisa Health & Rehab, VA)

Alberta Dominick (White Oak Manor) Faye Long (Springfield Place)

Barry Sebaugh (Springfield Place) Billie Shealy (Springfield Place)

Alma Staub (LMC Extended Care, Lexington)

All care givers and others who have experienced pain, disappointment, anger, and grief in this congrega-tion and elsewhere, our prayers are with you all.

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2 Beth Fulmer

3 Catelyn Connelly

5 Camden Hallman

6 Sheila Beckham

7 Luke Williams

8 Gina Mays

9 John W. Pugh Sophia Hunter

10 John S. Pugh

12 Julie Coats Ben Hammett

13 Payton Gardner

14 Karen Cumalander

15 Barbara Hendrix

1 Cooper Barnett 17 Carla Livingston Patsy Morris Evan Pitts Travis Slice

18 Jake Slice

20 Tamela Cohen

21 Dean Bedenbaugh Reggie Beckham David Cousins Elliott Weaver

22 Scott Gardner

24 Dale Bratton

26 Aiden Gunwall

27 Ryan Koon

28 Philip Hunter Zayne Loner

29 Ashlyn Gunwall

30 Kathy Peel

31 Kara Sheppard Janna Felker

14 Larry and Emily Lake

15 Jay and Wendy Connelly

19 Luke and Cheryl Lucas

31 Paul and Teresa Hunter

Happy Anniversary!

Happy Birthday!

Faith journey A family was heading on vacation: two little ones were nestled in car seats; the van was packed. As Dad locked the house and Mom secured the garage, an adult neighbor the kids knew walked up and

spoke through an open window. “Where are you going?” The kids shrugged. “Well, what road are you taking?” the friend asked with a knowing smile. Of course, they had no idea. “Do you know where

you’ll eat today, or where you’ll spend the night?” Blank stares. Then the friend asked, “Who are you traveling with?” The children broke into grins and shouted, “Mommy and Daddy!”

On the journey of faith, we don’t know precisely where we’re headed or how all our needs will be met. But we know who we’re traveling with: our loving God who is fully aware of the twists and turns

ahead; the loving Parent who promises to care for us wherever we go.

Living sacrifices

To search our souls, to meditate, will not suffice for Lent. To share the cross, to sacrifice; these are the things God meant.

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On February 8, our LMM braved the chilly temperatures to step out and clean up Stoney Hill Road. They did an excellent job and their hard work is still showing. 1st Row—Dave Cole, Russell Kunkle, Randy Gobel, Enoch Boozer, Harold McGaha 2nd Row—Joe Kunkle, David Millsaps, Joe Boozer, George Hawkins, Bruce Shealy, Ronald Booz-er, Jay Salters Not pictured: Janelle Frick, Emily Lake, Larry Lake, Ralph Bedenbaugh, Rosemary Bedenbaugh, Claudia Holton, Randy Holton, Pay Day, Keith Kunkle, Anthony Matthews, Jared Woolstenhulme and Tracy Woolstenhulme

Newberry Relay for Life I am putting a team together for Relay for Life for St. Luke’s. It will be held at Newberry College on April 25 from 3pm to 9 pm. I will be outside in front of the church every Sunday in March to take donations and to answer questions. I would love for you to come by at this time and sign up to help. If you are a survivor, you can call 1-800-227-2345 or go online to www.relayforlife.org/newberrysc to regis-ter. You can also sign up to be a team member either way. I also will be selling their shirts for this year. Feel free to call me at 924-4407. If I don’t answer please leave a message and I will get back to you. I am looking forward to working with each of you. Thank you, Linda Bratton

8th Grade students at MCMS have an opportunity to visit the nation’s capital with their teachers and classmates from April 1-4. The cost of the trip is $475 per student and the school is reaching out to local congregations looking for people willing to sponsor stu-dents—in part or in whole—so that all 8th graders that would like to attend will be able to. Donations can be made directly to MCMS, and if you have any questions or concerns, you may contact Ms. Deedee Westwood at 803-364-3634 for more information.

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Thanks to all who made soup (37 crock pots of soup!) and to all those who stayed to eat and share in fellowship during the Super Bowl of Caring. $661.00 was donated to help end world hunger!

New Horizons will meet Saturday, March 21 at 3:00 p.m. in the Fellowship Hall. Big Creek Quartet will entertain us with their fine gospel music. Let’s give them a big welcome. We’ll enjoy a catered meal from Crisp Catering in Whitmire. Tickets are $8.50. Please tell us you are coming by Sunday, March 16.

The new corbels that adorn the altar area of the church are given to the glory of God and for the enhancement of worship services by St. Luke’s Congregational Council. They were hand made and hand carved by Luther Long of Newberry. Mr. Long began working on them last fall and has over 200 hours of work invested in them! The pieces were custom made for us and were designed to compliment the original woodwork of the church. The oak used for the corbels was taken from a 150 year old tree. We are incredibly thankful to Mr. Long for sharing his God-given tal-ent with us and fulfilling the requests of Council in such a beautiful way. We also wish to recognize and thank St. Luke’s member, Eliza-beth Bratton, for providing all necessary dimensions to ensure the cor-bels would be the proper proportions for our altar. Our hope is that these corbels will serve to draw our eyes to the altar, the cross, and the stained glass window above them as we remember the sacrifice given for each of us as children of God.

A SPECIAL CONGRATULA-TIONS to Andrew Green and Marc Hunter for earning the rank of Eagle Scout! The cere-mony was Feb 9 here at St. Luke’s.

Braden Cockrell received “A” Honor Roll and the Rebel-ution Award for the Second 9 weeks during MCMS’s awards program January 14, 2020. Braden was recognized by Duke University’s Talent Identifi-cation Program (TIP), this was specifically for 4ththrough 6thgrades, for his commendable academic achieve-ments. Carson Cockrell was selected as Student of the Second Quarter for Newberry County Career Center in Ag Science & Technology for the Workplace. Carson also received Most Improved Student for First Quarter in Ag Science & Technology for the Workplace. Janna Felker, MS, APRN, FNP-BC successfully passed the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) certification and is now a board-certified Family Nurse Practitioner. Janna has accepted a job with OnSite Healthcare and Wellness and will be working at Brushy Creek Post Acute Rehab.

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Sunday  Monday  Tuesday  Wednesd

1  2  3  4 

LMM 8:00 a.m. Bible Study—12 noon Communion Helpers 9:30 am Essie Hawkins 10:00 am Seeking God’s Face through Prayer, Praise & Worship—Going Deep-er 5:30 p.m.

LENTEN SERVICELight Supper 6:0Worship Service

8  9  10  11 

Congregation Council 6:00 pm    

GALS 10:00 am Bible Study 12 noon LMM 7:30 pm Thomas Suber 7:00 pm

Seeking God’s Face through Prayer, Praise & Worship—Going Deep-er 5:30 p.m.

 LENTEN SERVICELight Supper 6:0Worship Service  

15  16  17  18 

Barbara Richardson Circle 6:00 pm 

Bible Study 12 noon LENTEN SERVICELight Supper 6:0Worship Service

22  23  24  25 

   

Bible Study 12 noon Newsletter Information Due

LENTEN SERVICELight Supper 6:0Worship Service  

 

29  30  31   

Blood Drive Bible Study 12 noon

       

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nesday  Thursday  Friday  Saturday 

5  6  7 

VICE r 6:00 pm vice 7:00 pm

World Day of Prayer 7:00 pm Zion United Methodist Church

12  13  14 

VICE r 6:00 pm vice 7:00 pm

19  20  21 

VICE r 6:00 pm vice 7:00 pm

MCMS Spaghetti Dinner New Horizons 3:00 pm

26  27  28 

VICE r 6:00 pm vice 7:00 pm

SCLC&R SCLC&R

     

     

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Lenten Meals and Services each Wednesday— March 4, March 11, March 18, March 25, April 1 Meal: 6:00 p.m. Worship 7:00 p.m. Our Hosts for the Lenten Meals: Feb 25: 7:00 p.m. Lutheran Men in Mission March 4: 6:00 p.m. LCY March 11: 6:00 p.m. Essie Hawkins Circle March 18: 6:00 p.m. Barbara Richardson Circle March 25: 6:00 p.m. Thomas Suber Circle April 1: 6:00 p.m. The Occasional Choir

Holy Week Schedule April 5 Palm Sunday Service, 10:30 a.m. with blessing of the palms and procession April 9 Maundy Thursday Services at 12:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. April 10 Good Friday Tenebrae service at 7:00 p.m. April 12 Sunrise service at 7:00 a.m. with breakfast following Sunday School at 9:30 a.m. Easter service at 10:30 a.m.

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Easter Egg Hunt at St. Luke’s All children through 5th grade are invited to our annual Easter Egg Hunt on Saturday, April 11 from 11:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.  A light lunch will be served. Each child should bring three plas c eggs.  All youth and helpers, please arrive by 10:15 am.

“Seek a relationship when you pray, not answers. You won’t always find answers, but you will always find Jesus.” —Father Mike Schmitz

“If the lungs of prayer and the Word of God do not nourish the breath of spiritual life, we risk suffocating in the midst of a thousand daily cares. Prayer is the breath of the soul and of life.” —Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI

The LMM collected 18 bags containing 128 items for the Manna House last month. Please keep the do-nations coming in. All items are welcomed and your contribution can go a long way for a family in cri-sis.

Congratulations to Sheila Beckham for being the recipient of the Women of the ELCA Life-time Membership. Sheila has proven time and again her dedication to the church, the congre-gation and most especially to God. Sheila is the perfect person to be given such an honor and we congratulate her.

March 15, 2020 5-7 pm Wiles Chapel at New-berry College Free and open to all! This event is a celebration of music as a kick-off to Religious Diversity Week at Newberry College. It is sponsored by the Muller Center of Newberry College and the community- based group "Coming Together" (which seeks understanding and relationships across the whole community). Participants come from churches throughout Newberry County. This community event was first held in March, 2019 and it was AMAZING. There were 300+ people in Wiles Chapel. There were classical, gospel, jazz, hand bells, instrumentalists, praise bands, dancers, and more, young and old, black, white, latino. There was so much energy and unity in the room ... truly God's Pres-ence was visible. Please encourage your family, friends, neighbors, and strangers to come. There is no publicity. The invitation is extended by word-of-mouth. St. Mark's Catholic Church Hispanic Praise Band will close the evening. They brought down the house last year. John and Rita Boozer

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“Love” for God and for Friends was visible as New Horizons members and friends gathered to enjoy an afternoon of fellowship on February 15th. Thanks to Emily and Larry Lake for decorating the Fellow-ship Hall with hearts and candy and to Faye Shealy for decorating the windows with daffodils. What a combination—Valentine’s Day and spring flowers—a beautiful sight! After Catherine welcomed everyone, Peggy Boozer led the group in devotions. After the scripture read-ing of Psalm 126, she read inspiring poems about “emotions”. Only humans cry; remember Jesus wept. We all experience tears of joy and tears of sadness and we all understand that Jesus loves us through all of our emotions. What a joy to welcome St. Luke’s own photographer Mitchel Connelly! He has been taking pictures at our church for many years. It was a pleasure having him share some of these memories of ourselves, friends, former members and loved ones who have passed away. Mitchel started his presentation with pictures of the first and second graders from O’Neal, Prosperity, and Stoney Hill schools in the early 50’s. So cute! Recognizing those friends was challenging—so glad Mitchel had the students’ names. It was fun recalling many of St. Luke’s events. Some examples are Homecomings, Baptisms, former pastors, Golden Age, New Horizon, Bible School, Junior Choir, Sunday School teachers, Christmas programs, new members, ect. Many pictures showed how much we all enjoy meals together at church events. Remember the 175th anniversary celebration? The crown had to go to Stoney Hill School for the meal. Now, we are so thankful to enjoy many events with meals in our awesome New Fellowship Hall. There was no way for Mitchel to show all of his collection of pictures. Maybe because everyone had to talk and reminisce about each picture! Loving memories! He’ll just have to come again. We certainly appreciated Mitchel and Harriett entertaining us. Margaret Koon, Linda Kunkle, Harold McGaha, and Jeanette Vaughn all had February birthdays, so we sang Happy Birthday and wished them happiness. All were present except Mrs. Margaret, who was truly missed but was in Abbeville Hospital. The group sent her, along with Edith Hite and Faye Long, thinking of you cards. After our blessing by Byron Carr, everyone enjoyed a meal of delicious soups, cornbread and desserts, provided by the members of the New Horizon committee. St. Luke’s Church is a wonderful place for friends to gather. The love of a church family is a blessing.

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Dear Friends at St. Luke’s, Thank you for the many birthday and Christmas gifts, and for all of the calls, cards and visits. I truly appreciate being a member of such a car-ing church family, and pray that we are all blessed by our loving Father in the coming year. In His Love, Henry Brandt

Dear Family and Friends, I want to thank you all for remembering me during the Christmas season. The many cards, calls, gifts and visits that I received from you remind me of how wonderful it is to be a part of a loving congregation like St. Luke’s. Love, Carol Brandt

To My Church family, A thank you to all of you for the calls, food, and helping hands. Thanks to Pastor Jason for being with us at the hospital. You all mean a lot to us. Thank you, Faye Hawkins

The Essie Hawkins Circle would like to say “thank you” to the anonymous gift. It is greatly appreciated!

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General Funds: JANUARY 2020

Income Needed to Cover Budget Year to Date: $ 23,378.61 (** assuming 1/12 of budget spent each month**) Budget Received to Date General Fund $ 17,379.21 Operating Expense Only Fund $ 2,250.20 Total Budget Received to Date: $ 19,629.41 Disbursed to Date General Fund $ 17,288.39 Operating Expense Only $ 1,411.40 Total Budget Disbursed to Date: $18,699.79 Balance General Fund 12/31/2019 $ 93,425.02 Balance General Fund $ 93,515.84

Worship Trends Attendance General Fund Operating Operating Expense Only

Jan 26 5,207.35 510.00

Feb 2 3,747.00 820.00

Feb 9 4,566.00 420.00

Feb 16 4,512.00 650.00

Feb 23 TBA TBA

February 1st Sunday offering for capital projects: $743.00

Offering needed weekly to meet 2020 budget: $5,395.06

For simplicity, please do not combine donations to multiple funds (I.e. General and Fellowship Hall) on the same check. Write a separate check for each fund and remember to include your offering number on each check as they get separated in processing. We are grateful for your ongoing support!

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