August 2018 | Volume 8 | Issue 8

Our Mission
Gathered by Christ. Growing in Faith. Sent to Serve. Empowered to Witness.

We are pleased to present the August edition of our monthly e-newsletter.
We hope this publication is an informative supplement to the information found on our website. Submissions can be sent to office@lcr-yardley.org .
Pastor's Note

 Dear Christian Friends,
 
An article I read in the “Christian Century” made mention that the average volunteer’s efforts are worth $25.64 an hour. That really got me thinking….
 
We have just finished our “renowned” yard sale with an amazing amount of work done by so many people I can not even count them all. I do believe that Kathy Heuer kept a record though! Once I hear how many volunteer hours were offered by Resurrection people, I’ll let you know what those hours were worth. My estimate is that you will be amazed at what our volunteers gave in offering their time and talents.
 
As you know, this was my first experience with the Resurrection yard sale. I had a blast! Not only was the yard sale extremely well coordinated by Kathy Heuer and her crew, but, the fellowship itself was, to me, as important as the money raised for missions and the church. 
 
It was during the time of preparation that I got to know many members of the congregation much better than before. What a blessing it was to experience Rich Estey’s hard work and humor, Annmarie McNeill’s delicious German butter cake, see Carol Blauth and Marge Green in action at the check out, work in the kitchen with Susan Lawrence (we really sold donuts and hotdogs when Megan Paton and Juliet manned the kitchen), watch Caroline Estey clean and polish the wooden furniture, hear Bob Heitman and fellow furniture haulers Tors Ahlman, Fred Heuer and Hank Merritt laughing as they worked, and how uncomplaining Kay McCorkle was as she polished silver and washed dirty china. Lois Lohse and Betty Berner displayed the “fine and antiques items” with finesse. Valda Wohlheuter and Judy King enjoyed helping folks (myself included) find “new” clothes and even invited friends to help them in the Ladies’ Boutique: Awesome evangelism, ladies! The men’s clothes staffed by the Hamers and Nellie Plummer did well too! Eileen Heitman and Judy King had fun selling toys to kids and grandparents alike. Susan Fiscarelli and Donna DiCesare have quite a flare for displaying jewelry. No one can beat Cheryl in decorating Housewares. Thanks, Sandy Rook for organizing the bake sale. Ann Auerweck and Marilyn Davis had fun with the most adorable children’s clothing. Jim Wohlhueter managed the “Bookstore” with finesse. Mark Stuckley’s expertise helped with pricing. Anita Chinnici was a floater (meaning, she did everything anyone asked of her!) And, of course, Berni Beury was her usual delightful, organized self in the “Holiday” section.
 
There was an influx of others who arrived to help pack up the leftovers and prepare them for transport to Good Stuff - thanks to Christina and Jecoff, Clyde Beury, Alan Chinnici, Ronnie Gropper, Tors Ahlman and Bob Heitman, and those whom I missed!
 
It is the volunteers of a congregation who do the hard work of ministry and reap the benefits of fellowship. To you all I say, “Thank you for sharing your time and good will!” May God continue to bless those who offer of themselves in Christ’s name.

Pastor Kristina
WORSHIP SCHEDULE
On Sundays, we will have one blended service during summer months

Sunday, August 12th
10:00 AM Service of Holy Communion

Sunday, August 19th
10:00 AM Service of Holy Communion

Wednesday, August 22nd
6:00 PM Picnic on Church Lawn
7:00 PM Worship Service with Holy Communion on Church Lawn

Sunday, August 26th
10:00 AM Service of Holy Communion
 
Please CLICK HERE  to view LCR's August Events Calendar.
WEDNESDAY ADULT BIBLE STUDY

Please note that LCR's Wednesday morning Bible Study continues to meet throughout the summer months. Join us on Wednesdays at 9:00am as we discover and examine the readings for the following Sunday's service.
SUNDAY SCRIPTURE STUDY

Join Pastor Kristina on Sundays through August 19th from 8:30am - 9:30am for Scripture Study as it relates to Jesus and Politics. For more information, or if you’d like to join, please see Pastor Kristina or contact the church office at (215) 493-2018 or via email at office@lcr-yardley.org.
Outreach Update

Summer 2018 in Yardley, PA is half over – can you imagine?!

Well...I can! Council and the Outreach Team have been studying our bibles...(Acts in particular!!)...along with participating in Vacation Bible School in June, the Yard Sale in July and Worship every Sunday. It has been an exciting, fun filled and very BUSY summer so far. We thank the Lord for the blessings of energy, enthusiasm and the Spirit for the refreshing feeling that accomplishment delivers!

So...what have we been doing you might ask...?

We have been focused on HOW LCR can do what Jesus has called us to do:
-        Be fishers of people
-        Make disciples for God 
-        Witness to the power of God’s grace with our faith

HOW can we use Resurrection’s time, talents and treasures...figuring this out is taking some time and energy.   Your patience as we work through it is a wonderful gift and I personally appreciate this gift and the promise it means for Resurrection Yardley. 

As Pastor Hahn shared with us at the Congregational Meeting June 10 th there are several options and paths which we have asked ourselves to pursue...to discern the best path for LCR we are:
-        Completing an exercise called fractaling which means to analyze and parse into smaller and commonly usable pieces (my words – check wiki for a more formal definition(s)).

This will help us figure out HOW to:
-        Enable paths for everyone at LCR to support the church in small yet impactful actions
-        Find ways to invite all Resurrection members to build relationships amongst each other

We, as I write for the Outreach Team and the Council, appreciate that change is hard, and we do not want to introduce change just to DO something. I acknowledge that many people are giving their time and talents and some in the congregation have also contributed their money to support this work. I am very thankful and appreciate the devotion these actions reflect.

So that you know we appreciate these gifts...we are prudently reflecting, refracting and considering options and most importantly we are trusting in God to guide us. We are searching our bibles and hearts to understand God’s purpose for Resurrection Yardley.

We are richly blessed at the Lutheran Church of the Resurrection in Yardley. Thanks Be To God! With each of your blessings and support we will continue to move forward in faith and God’s Grace.

Elizabeth M. Young
Council President

God's Work Our Hands Day

Save the date! On Sunday, September 9th, we will gather once more for God's Work Our Hands Day. This is the day when ELCA Lutherans across the country take the “church” out of the building and into the world for a focused day of service. Prior to venturing out and doing God’s work with our hands (and voices, minds, feet and bodies) we will gather for one worship service at 10:00am. Watch for project signup sheets and choose a project that is of interest to you!  If you have an idea for a project, please contact Diane Casey, Serving Hearts Coordinator, via email at (215) 595-5623 or via email at Dcasey16@comcast.net.

Interfaith Food Alliance News

The Interfaith Food Alliance continues to collect cleaning supplies throughout the month of August as their featured item. Your help in providing school supplies to the children of Morrisville who are served by The Family Backpack Center would also be appreciated. Please leave your donations in the appropriate bin located in the narthex/lobby area. Lists of needed items are available at the bin or can be found in the link below. Combination locks and head phones are in greatly needed. Thank you for your sharing and caring hearts!


 LCR Youth News

Eight youth and four adults had a blast playing Glow Golf at Double Eagle Golf last Friday, August 3rd. There were holes in one, a free game won, lost balls and plenty of laughs! Our next event will be our Youth Car Wash on Sunday, August 19th, following our 10:00am worship service. Your free will offerings will help support our Youth Ministry Programs.
 
Also, we have only two spots left for our Annual Youth Beach Retreat taking place Friday, September 28th through Sunday September 30th. The retreat is open to youth in grades 6 – 12 and will take place at the retreat home of Lonnie Miller in Lavallette, NJ. A sign-up sheet can be found on the Youth Bulletin Board or you may email Pastor Kristina at pastorkva@gmail.com for details.

 Isn’t it time you joined the fun and fellowship?

August Shared Meal

Back by popular demand, we will be serving "Breakfast for Dinner" at our August Shared Meal for those experiencing homelessness and food insecurity. Please join us as we share not only food, but also hospitality with our guests. Please consider dropping off a dish if you are unable to attend; a sign up sheet is located on the ramp leading to fellowship hall. The meal will take place at LCR on Sunday, August 19th. Set up begins at 2:30pm, with the meal being served at 4:00pm. All are invited and welcome!

DWSN Update
AUGUST EVENT

Join us for a fun night of fellowship and a hibachi dinner on Friday, August 17th from 6:30pm - 8:00pm. We will be dining at Mt. Fuji restaurant located at 459 Second Street Pike in Southampton, PA. The cost will be $25 per person (to be paid that evening). Dinner includes soup, salad, two appetizer shrimp, your choice of two meats per person (chicken, shrimp, steak, salmon or red snapper), rice or noodles and vegetables, soda or tea plus tip. If you will be joining us for dinner you must RSVP no later than this Friday, August 10th, no exceptions. Please call (215) 493-2018 or email lcrdwsn@verizon.net   to RSVP.

DWSN SERVICE PROJECT

As part of DWSN we try to encourage and incorporate service projects throughout the year. On Friday, September 21st, the disciples will be bringing in items and assembling breakfast bags, that will be distributed to the members of the Welcome Church in Philadelphia at the end of September. We would appreciate your cooperation by donating items for the bags or taking part in the assembly. We are collecting granola bars, boxes of raisins, juice boxes, small water bottles and fruit cups. Please place your donations in the bin marked DWSN Collection. Collection will run from now through the night of our event. To see our group in action and help with assembly of the bags, plan to join us from 7:00pm - 8:30pm on September 21st. All are welcome!
A Mother's Mutterings by Christie Paton

I Don’t Understand My Child

That’s right. Daniel is 14 years old and I don’t understand him. Not “I don’t understand” like, what caused you to make that decision? … but “I don’t understand” like, I literally, have no idea what he is talking about.

When Daniel was 6 years old, I watched what happened on break at soccer camp. The lot of them sat on their soccer balls, and spontaneously, one of them would tell a joke. (I didn’t understand 6-year-old humor either, so I never got the joke but all the other boys did.) They would all laugh, then clap and cheer 1-2-3-4-5-6-7, then race down about 20 yards, turn and race back and re-seat themselves on their soccer balls, and another boy would tell a joke and the cycle would start all over again. I didn’t get it, but they were having a great time. But, apparently, things haven’t changed too much since then. 

I can get through daily conversations with Daniel of “Hey Dude” and “Yeah Bro” without asking questions, as long as the conversation consists of only those two phrases – AND, you’ll be impressed, I can do either one of those phrases. But, I can’t carry on much further without saying “What the HECK are you talking about?!?” I’m concerned that he cannot carry on a conversation with a human being, but I suppose if the only people you ever talk to are other 14-year-olds, it doesn’t really matter, as they all speak the same language. On the plus side, I have learned a lot. 

Fourteen-year-olds are strange, that’s all I’ve got to say. When I ask Daniel to do something, he does not reply verbally like a normal person, but he silently dabs (go ahead, look it up) to indicate his assent. Whatever, dude.

Some of his more recently overheard conversations with his compadres have included:
  • General Grievous can T-Pose and Do It To ‘em at the same time!
  • Hec’m
  • You know what they say – peanut butter and jel-LEE!
  • J – You’ve got to do this SBC; it’s so lit.
  • I need a right winger
  • Mom, you need to take the “L” - a strange dance always follows this one
  • Rip

If you understood that, congratulations – you’re a 14-year-old!

AHTN Ice Cream Fundraiser
 
Please support Advocates for the Homeless and Those in Need (AHTN) by buying ice cream and raffle tickets with great prizes! The fundraiser takes place at JoJo's Ice Cream & Water Ice located at 8801 New Falls Road in Levittown on Tuesday, August 14th, from 6:00-8:00 pm. For more information, please see the flyer posted on the board or visit www.AHTN.org , or e-mail at office@ahtn.org .

LUTHERAN CHURCH OF THE RESURRECTION
(215) 493-2018