The HeartBeat

A Message from Pastor Jeff

Then God said, “Let us make human ones in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.”—Genesis 1:26

In the first chapter of Genesis, the creation story is filled with images of God’s creative power bringing order out of chaos, speaking the universe into creation, and making good things. There is a lush, free, and generous quality to the story where God delights in everything God makes. God then made the human ones, and, as it says in the text above, set them as “rulers” over all that God had made. It has been suggested that a better translation of the Hebrew word translated here “ruler” might be “steward” or “caretaker.” God gives the earth and all that is in it into our care. Placing the human ones as “stewards” implies a relationship between God, creation, and the human ones that becomes the content and context of human history. Our place in creation is neither powerless pawn nor absolute dictator—rather we are “stewards of the gift.”

It is within this context that we speak of stewardship in our congregation. Financial gifts which help the body of Christ live God’s mission are one facet of a complex and wonderful web that began when God made us and then chose us to be God’s people. Care for the earth, for the environment, and for each other are all important facets of living as “stewards of the gift.”

This fall, we will concentrate on living out our call to be generous stewards of money. But money is not our focus. Mission is our focus. As you consider how you and your family will support the missional work of Lutheran Church of Honolulu and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, I ask you to pray, talk, and think about the many ways the people of our congregation are fed and then go on to feed others in our community and around the world. I ask you to pray about how our congregation might be even more faithful to God’s mission and how you might grow in your financial support of the mission of Lutheran Church of Honolulu.

God is up to some powerful things here, and yet we are far from fully realizing the many ways we can share in God’s mission in the world. That knowledge makes me very excited about being a generous financial steward to our congregation. I am not giving to support an institution; I am giving my money and my time so that God’s mission can grow through your ministry. I am giving so that God’s love might be known through the world.

So we are asking you for a number of things. First, please pray for our congregational leaders, for our mission, for me as your pastor, and for our staff and the greater church. Second, help us shape our ministry by becoming involved in leadership and service. Third, make a commitment to ministry by pledging a financial gift to the ministry at LCH. Finally, join with us in thankful rejoicing that God has entrusted God’s world to our keeping.

Peace,
Pastor Jeff Lilley
pr.jeff@lchwelcome.org

New Administrator

We welcome Kanani Rosehill as our new administrative assistant. Kanani joins us with 16 years of experience with Foodland and brings a wealth of education and experience to our office. She will be an integral part of our ministry team as LCH grows!

It is with a sad heart that we say farewell to Coleen Howard who has served as administrative assistant at LCH for a little over two years. Join us for a farewell on Sunday, September 28th, after each service.

Top of Page

LCH September Council Meeting Highlights

Mary Fastenau, Council Secretary

The LCH Council met on September 16, 2008. Here is a brief recap of the items discussed.

• Finances. The plate and member offerings remained strong in August and were at 90% of their budgeted amount. This, combined with lower expenses for the month, created a strong balance sheet for August. However, year-to-date, the deficit is at $4,856.20.
• Parking for Punahou students. Contributing to the strong August numbers was the fact that the parking lot is filled with students who are under contract for their parking. All of the parking spaces are rented, and there are several students on a waiting list.
• Themes for 2008. The Council reviewed the three themes for 2008: sustainability, leadership, and outreach. The assignment for the October meeting is to come back with ideas on what the church would ask of an evangelism committee. The committee is currently not active.

Top of Page

The theme of our 2009 Stewardship campaign is “Slow and Steady Step-Up”—a theme in harmony with the centerpiece of our LCH Mission Statement: worshipping, growing, serving. Throughout this campaign, we will be encouraging each of you, like our inspiring stewardship symbol, the honu, to consider a slow and steady step-up in your gifts of time, talents, and treasure for 2009.

Our goal this year is for every member and friend of LCH to make a written pledge—no matter what the amount. More than anything else, when we make a pledge we are entering into a committed relationship with God that answers the call to be faithful stewards. Pledging means we are putting our treasure where we want our hearts to be. At the same time, your commitment will help to provide wonderful worship experiences, service to our local and global neighbors, and opportunities to grow in faith through meaningful study of scripture.

We hope you have received an invitation and replied “yes” to join the LCH Honu ‘Ohana for one of several brief stewardship gatherings on Sunday, October 5 or 12, at 9:30 am or noon or Thursday, October 9, at 8:15 pm. All gatherings will be held at LCH. If you did not receive an invitation, would still like to RSVP, or would like more information, please email: <honu@lchwelcome.org> or call the Church Office at 941-2566.

Come join us to see what the honu are up to!

Top of Page

Give Aloha!

Thanks to everyone who has contributed to LCH through Foodland’s Give Aloha Program. If you would like to have your contribution recognized on your LCH giving report, please give a copy of your receipt to the church office or put it in the offering plate. You are welcome to identify your contribution for the general fund or for a particular purpose (such as capital improvements). Please remember that for tax purposes, you should list your contribution as having been made to Give Aloha and not LCH.

Top of Page

As part of the renovation of the Music Storage Room, Jim Sullivan donated and installed glass blocks to create attractive windows on both sides of the room. Mahalo, Jim!

New shelving was installed in the Music Storage Room on September 8. These beautiful new shelves will soon be filled with the extensive LCH music library.

Top of Page

Pau Hana Friday

Pau Hana Friday is alive and well at LCH. We will gather at Ala Moana Beach Park #28A on Friday, October 3, beginning at 4:30 pm with dinner served at 6:00 pm. Main dish and sides will be provided, but bring desserts and sides if you like!

Stay for the Hilton Hawaiian Village fireworks at 8:30 pm. They’re awesome!

Top of Page

Calabash for Christine Dolfo

Please help Christine Dolfo (sister of Beverly Shelton and Ivan Kaeo) pay medical expenses for her breast cancer surgery and chemotherapy. Make checks payable to LCH and note Christine Dolfo on the memo line.

Top of Page

Angel Network Ingathering

LCHers are generous! The September in-gathering for Angel Network was wonderful. A shopping cart with saimin, canned tuna, Spam, canned fruit, and personal care items was collected for Angel Network located at Calvary by the Sea Lutheran Church. Thank you for your support. In-gatherings are scheduled for the first Sunday of every month, so your next opportunity to participate is October 5.

Top of Page

Leadership Roundtable

Sunday, October 5, at 10:30 am (and on the first Sunday of every month), the chairperson or another representative of each committee will meet in the Pastor’s office with Pastor Jeff Lilley and the Council President Brian Weis. This is to enhance communications between all committees. See you all there!

Top of Page

In Stitches for the Fall

The LCH craft group, In Stitches, will continue to meet throughout the fall on the second and fourth Saturdays of the month from 9:00 to 11:00 am in the Boardroom. We work on projects for the church or on our own crafts.

It is a great time for fellowship and fun. The next few meetings are October 11 and 25 and November 8 and 22.

Top of Page

Food for Thought

Food for Thought will meet for a potluck supper and discussion at the home of Irmgard Hörmann on Saturday, October 18, at 6:30 pm. All are welcome.

For directions or information, please contact Kathryn Klingebiel through the Church Office (941-2566).

Top of Page

A Busy Saturday at LCH: Pastor Fritz leads the Process Though Forum

Top of Page

Writers’ Workshop

Writers’ Workshop will meet on Monday, October 20, 7:00-8:30 pm in the Boardroom (or the Rainbow Room) at LCH. The Fall 2008 schedule also includes meetings on November 17 and December 15.

For more information, please contact Kathryn Klingebiel through the Church Office (941-2566).

Top of Page

LutherFest 2008

Michael Burnett

Saturday, October, 25, the LCH ‘ohana will observe our annual LutherFest Celebration. You won’t want to miss any of the fun.

5:30–6:30 pm Social Hour—Enjoy pupus, non-alcoholic punch, coffee and tea, as well as beer and LCH-label wine for sale in the Wine and Beer Garden.

6:00 pm Red Jello Contest—Yes, there will be another Jello Contest! Entries must be in by 6:00 pm. Watch for categories to be announced soon. Dust off your prize-winning family recipes and prepare for the competition.

6:30–7:30 pm Potluck Dinner—Main dish of our famous IHS meatloaf provided by the church. Enjoy this delicacy that is faithfully prepared and served by dedicated LCH volunteers every month at IHS. Please bring the following to complement the meatloaf:

7:30–8:00 pm Program—Jello contest winners will be announced, along with other surprise entertainment.

Please check the weekly Announcement Sheet for updates.

Top of Page

Are you able to donate two hours on the last Wednesday of each month?

HeartBeat Team Leader and Team Member(s) Needed

With the departure of Team Leader Biz Person, LCH needs a volunteer to lead the HeartBeat mailing team. Other team members are also wanted. It will take approximately two hours of your time on the last Wednesday of each month. Both training and written procedure are available. While the team has been meeting at 9:00 am, there is flexibility to meet later during the day if that is convenient for all members of the team.

Call the church office at 941-2566 if you can donate your talents to this special communication activity.

Top of Page

What’s New on the LCH Website?

Bill Potter, Webmaster

Around the middle of September, the revision to the Spiritual Resources pages went live. This page was one of the skimpier parts of the website, so we are happy to have more resources available to LCHers and others who may visit the site.

The first part of the expanded Spiritual Resources page includes a variety of prayer resources. There are a few links to the Prayer Center of the ELCA website, as well as a daily feed of ELCA Prayer Ventures. You may want to consider adding these individuals and ministries to your personal prayer lists. In addition, we have a page with links to Morning Prayer, Evening Prayer, and Compline services updated on a daily basis. I would have preferred links to Lutheran versions of these services, but since none exist, we have links to Episcopal and Anglican versions.

The next section is Bible resources, and this is made up of links to materials on the ELCA website and on the Book of Faith website maintained by Augsburg Fortress. Since the first of these sites is being revised and the other is under development, additional links will be added on our page as they become available. There is also a “Today’s Bible Reading” feed from the ELCA.

The last substantial section contains theological resources. Again, there are a number of links to the ELCA website, as well as links to all of Pastor Fritz’s articles available on the Star-Bulletin website.

In addition to work on the Spiritual Resources page, I have added pictures to the slideshow showing work on the music storage room and another one of the Mary Magdalene wine tasting and bottling to provide wine for LutherFest. I’m thankful for pictures from several different photographers. If you have pictures of LCH events or people that you would like to contribute to the website, please pass them along. You will be given credit on the page where the pictures are used unless you would rather remain anonymous.

Top of Page

A Busy Saturday at LCH: The Archives Work Group sorting and processing materials from the LCH archives. Helping out in September were Marlise Tellander, Jim Cartwright, Chuck Huxel, and Jean-Paul Klingebiel.

Top of Page

Aloha from the Schmidts

Aloha all!!

Or I guess it’s “Hey ya’ll!!” now. We are now officially in NC, having moved into base housing this past Wednesday, receiving our household goods on Thursday and unpacking for a while to come. So glad to order a sweet tea and not get any fruit in it (although I did enjoy the plantation ice tea) and Bojangle’s biscuits—’nuff said!!!

Our new address and home phone are available through the Church Office. My hotmail and usmc.mil email addresses are both still good. I will probably keep the Hawaii cell phone number for a couple more months, so that will still be good for a bit.

Selena and I are both working and the kids are already in school, so life is moving along. Give us a holler if you are in the area—the house is always open!

Peace to you all,
Stephen, Selena and kids

Top of Page

Attendance and Offering for Sunday, September 28, 2008, were not available at the time of publication.

Top of Page

Keep in Your Prayers...

Amalie	Hanna	Ken
Anita	Hugo	Linda
CJ	James	Lorie
Christine	Janae	Paige
Dan	Jerry	Pat
Emelda	Jim	Rosemary
Gary	Joe	Shane
	Kathy

Top of Page

October Birthdays

Date	Name
10/03	John Purtzer
10/05	Akiyo Takamune
10/05	Ingrid Weeks
10/07	Lois Watanabe
10/08	Joe Suske
10/09	Dot Hutchins
10/10	Paul Benco
10/12	Jacob W.
10/14	Patricia Lilley
10/14	Stephen Miller
10/17	Karen Roberts-Ogawa
10/19	Sieglinde S.
10/19	Sophia S.
10/19	Kathrine Mahina W.
10/24	Katherine Crosier
10/25	Lynn Juvinall
10/26	Campbell Mansfield
10/26	Rafael S.
10/28	Randy Castello
10/28	Jan Flachsbart

Top of Page

Top of Page

Heart Beat Deadline

Next Heart Beat Deadline is Tuesday, October 21!

Top of Page

Heavenly Humor

Will Rogers’ insights on politics still timely

The great American humorist Will Rogers kept people of both parties laughing through the political campaigns of the 1920s and the Great Depression. Everybody loved him.

His comments in his newspaper columns and in his radio talks are as timely today as they were then. In an Oct. 2, 1922 newspaper column, Rogers observed:

“After listening to the World Series (on radio), I figure on account of it being Sunday I could leave it turned on and not have to listen to some politicians.

“But what do I get? Four preachers, all at different places. What was they doing? Saving the sinner? No. Two of ’em was saving the Republicans and the other two was saving the Democrats. The old sinner won’t get much consideration till after Nov. 4.”

Here are some other Will Rogers’ observations:

“I’m fond of the candidate for public office who, during a fierce campaign, penned this note to his opponent: ‘Dear Sir: Let us make a deal—if you promise to stop telling lies about me, I will promise to stop telling the truth about you.’”

“It’s unfortunate that contestants in political campaigns don’t behave with as much dignity as the contestants in livestock shows.”

“The mind is a wonderful thing. It starts working the minute you are born, and only stops when you get up to make a speech.”

“There should be a moratorium called on candidates’ speeches. From now on, they are just talking themselves out of votes.”

“I love a dog. He does nothing for political reasons.”

“Congressmen and fellows like me are alike in some ways, I guess. But when I make a joke, it’s a joke. When they make a joke, it’s a law.”

Top of Page

Top of Page

Copyright © 2008 Lutheran Church of Honolulu
Comments welcome at webmaster@lchwelcome.org