May 23, 2021 Newsletter

Bless the Lord, O my soul. Hallelujah!

~Psalm 104.35b

Why New Translations?

~Submitted by Pastor Howard 

What was so bad about the Revised Standard Version?  It seemed fine to me when I was growing up with it.  (The King James Version seemed fine to my parents when they were growing up with the KJV.)

One reason new English translations of the Bible keep appearing is that English keeps changing.  In 1989, when the New Revised Standard Version was published, the word “awesome” meant “inspiring awe.”  In 2015, I saw the Grand Canyon for the first time, and I couldn’t move for a couple of minutes, and my throat got tight, and I had to wipe away tears.  But I wouldn’t have said it was awesome.  By 2015, we were using “awesome” to describe a reasonably good milkshake.  The other day I was registering for something, and the man with the form and the pen asked for my address.  I told him.  “Awesome,” he said.

Psalm 47 begins,

Clap your hands, all you peoples;
shout to God with loud songs of joy.
For the Lord, the Most High, is awesome,
a great king over all the earth.

Do we really want to say God is like a competently executed double play, or a photograph that didn’t cut off the top of the head of its subject?

How shall we describe God in the next translation?  I hope not as “amazing,” which by now means almost as little as “awesome” does, or as “incredible,” which is well on the way to not meaning much.

We’ll keep trying, and the improvements will be better, for a while, but we will never have a Bible that measures up to God.  How could anything measure up to God?

Spotted in the church parking lot last Wednesday evening! So cool!

Food for Toledo Update

by Mary Schneider

161 pounds of food was collected between April 27 – May 10 and taken to Aldersgate United Methodist Church. Aldersgate is amazed at the generosity of Grace and is very appreciative of us. Grace is still the only church donating food to their food pantry despite their efforts to involve others in their cause. Pastor Katie told me that there is an immediate need for canned fruit, jelly/jam/preserves, and cereal. I will be at church on Monday, May 24 from 9 a.m. – 12 noon for food donations but will be taking off Memorial Day, May 31.  Again, thank you to everyone for donations!

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

From the Call Committee – our Ministry Site Profile was uploaded to the ELCA website on Wednesday, May 12^th.  This is another milestone in our journey to call a new pastor to Grace. Unfortunately, now we play the waiting game. The Call  Committee will not sit idle, though.  We will be meeting continuously to develop interview questions and performing mock interviews. 

Again, the Call Committee would like to request the congregation’s participation in this next step. If anyone has any specific questions they would like us to ask a    potential pastor, please send them our way. One may do this by either emailing the Grace office: office@gracelutherantoledo.org, emailing me:                                  flyinryan99@yahoo.com, or talking to a member of the Call Committee or Transition Team.  We are eager to hear from you.

Please remember, once the interview process does start – like any interview  process – this must be kept confidential. The monthly update will continue even if there isn’t much to report for next month. We feel keeping the congregation up to date as much as possible is another key component to this process. We thank you for your support and prayers and look forward to seeing you all in church or the community.

Kindest Regards,

Ryan Moore

Financial Facts – April 2021

                                                                             Submitted by David Charvat

Through the month of April Grace has received $74,500 in contributions and other revenues (building rent) in our Current fund which covers day to day operations.  Our year-to-date expenses have been $75,700.   Compared to last year revenue is up 13% while expenses have only increased 6%.  While we should celebrate the increased contributions over last year we must recognize that     during 2020 Grace along with the entire country was “locked down” and we were unable to worship in person for a portion of the year.  

Our small deficit of expenses over revenues is certainly manageable.  As we move forward with opening Grace to more and more “normal” activities we must recognize that our expenses will increase as we get back to doing those things that are things we have enjoyed so much in the past.  Additionally, as we look   forward to interviewing and calling our next Pastor, we must be willing to financially support our next Pastor along with new and expanded ministries that will come along. 

God has provided us with all we have, let’s all rejoice in sharing our financial     resources with Him through regular contributions to Grace.

Coming Soon – likely in June, Grace’s Congregational Meeting

With the announcement that risks associated with the spread of Covid have been  reduced to the level that things like mask wearing and social distancing will be of lesser importance in mitigating risk, Grace looks forward to being able to hold our Annual Congregational meeting live and in person this year. 

I don’t want to announce a “Save the Date” date and time for the meeting as the Nominating Committee is busy with the important work of identifying and asking individuals to stand for election for Church Council.  Once that work is done we will be able to schedule the meeting.

In addition to electing Council members the Congregational Meeting will be an opportunity for you to meet and hear from the Call Committee on their on-going work to find our next Pastor. 

Look for more information in the coming weeks.

~Submitted by David Charvat

Life isn’t about finding yourself.

Life is about creating yourself.

(George Bernard Shaw)

Help Wanted 

Ushers needed for 9:30am service. No experience necessary. Must be able to smile and want to help  people. No resume, cover letter or interview required. Contact the church office if you are willing to help.

Grace Lutheran Church is looking for members to help with the streaming of our services. No experience necessary. The job will consist of setting up equipment and sitting in the service with a tablet. Training will be offered. We are looking for several members to do this. If you are willing to help contact Mary Schneider at 419.262.0730. 

Church Council Meeting Update from 5/11/21

1. Continue study /discussion of Field Guide for Missional Congregation.
2. Reviewed and approved Pastor’s report.
3. Treasurer’s report reviewed and approved.
4. Membership changes approved for transfer of Marsha Schroeder, Jean and Dan Holzscheiter.
5. Approval for transfer of Cindy Matthews to Grace.
6. Major expenditures reviewed including update to phone system (old system was starting to drop calls and system brains were failing). Approval given to assist Youth Group with funds for van rental for mission trip. Approval given for equipment to live stream both services.
7. Discussion and approval given to assist David O’ Obrien’s Diakonia study costs. This is to assist lay leaders in understanding faith and assist them in their ministries.
8. Discussion regarding upcoming Church Council nominations. Interested members should contact Chris Csurgo or Beth Charvat. In process of planning Congregational Meeting for June.
9. Plans to lift some Covid restrictions based on decreasing numbers and changing guidelines discussed. Changes to include elimination of Contact Tracing, return of chairs and benches to hallways, and removal of roping on chairs in back of Sanctuary. An update regarding changes to be noted in next week’s Newsletter.

Women at the Well will be meeting on Tuesday, May 25 at 7 p.m. in Fellowship Hall.  A devotion, a short meeting, and fellowship will be the focus of the meeting as well as a short discussion on the following questions:

1. What new activities are you involved in now that you weren’t before the pandemic, or familiar activities you’re approaching in a new way, or something you’ve habitually said “no” to that you’re now saying “yes” to?
2. What silver linings are appearing for you as a result of the pandemic—unexpected positive consequences?
3. Have you experienced any bursts, however modest, in your creativity or inventiveness as a result of the pandemic?
4. Do you have any reasons why you might not want the pandemic to end? Things you might be afraid of losing that you’ve gained as a result of it?

All women of Grace are invited to attend.   A snack will be provided, bring your own drink. If you have questions, please contact Mary Schneider at 419.262.0730. 

Behind the scenes at Grace … by Gretchen

1. Have you noticed all the orange spray paint on the parking lot? No, it is not graffiti but the spots (holes) being marked for repair. Thanks Property          Committee!!
2. Wow are the trees by the office loaded with propellers – with the next wind we are going to be blasted with them. There is a story out there that when a tree or trees are distressed, they put out what ever version of a seed they have in huge amounts!! Not sure what is stressing our trees other then the squirrels running up and down or the noise from the expressway or maybe the lack of water this spring?? If we have a “tree whisperer” in the congregation please let me know what they are saying.
3. YAHOO! YEA! We are retuning to some more normal things! Chairs are being returned outside the office and the benches in the hallway. We are “unleashing” the chairs at the back of the sanctuary. We will no longer do Contact Tracing – it was a great way to greet people so please continue that. The ushers will resume passing the offering plate during service this next Sunday. We still need to limit congregating in large groups and maintain physical distancing for now.

As long as the Covid numbers continue their decline this will be continued – if there is a spike, please be aware that we may need to reinstate some of these precautions.  

Thanks to our people of Grace for being so diligent in following the guidelines – it has worked for our building to be open to services and you should all be commended for doing a great job!!

4. Don’t forget to start building your iron level! The Interfaith Blood Drive is coming! The schedules are on the Red Cross website and there are choice picks (times) for Saturday June 26 and Sunday June 27 still open. So be early and get your choice time!
5. Cranes and buildings and excavators are coming! Are we adding onto the building or putting a bridge across Monroe Street??? Yes and no – no new building or bridge but Vacation Bible School helps to build bridges with children in the congregation and the community and the message of God. The theme is      construction so watch for buildings inside the church!
6. Along those lines if you have any toy trucks, excavators that could be borrowed to promote VBS please let Gretchen know.
7. We looked a little like Greenfield Village this last Wednesday night. The Model T club had all sorts of vintage cars in the parking lot. They were beautiful -which I am sure is not the correct term for cars, but they were.
8. Our menagerie has grown by at least one – a very small baby bunny was seen outside Brenner Hall this last Sunday! Hopefully, it has a huge appetite and will take care of the dandelions!
9. Remember: Grace is not the building but the people (and maybe some of our menagerie ) carrying out God’s mission (maybe we could stretch a little and for the menagerie to take care of our weeds?).

Healthy People! Healthy Parish! 

Bones!

Answers to last week’s quiz!

1. False -the flashlight next to your bed needs batteries. They need to be checked when the time changes. This is so important to have a light that works especially if we have a power outage.
2. False -Walking with your hands in your pockets does not help with balance. So put the gloves on next winter.
3. False- Garbage cans and any type of walking assistance do not mix well. Ask a neighbor to help push your garbage can out. And believe it or not if you miss one week of garbage pickup it probably is not going to be horrible -might be a little stinky but won’t be a disaster.

Osteoporosis …

You have had your Dexa scan, and your T-score is off. A T-score of -1 to -2.5      indicates that there is beginning bone loss or osteopenia. Or your T-score is below -2.5 which indicates that you have osteoporosis.  Or you have had a fracture or broken bone and the doctor says you have osteoporosis or osteopenia.

What do you do?

1. Talk with your family doctor about the results and what you can do to treat and prevent.
2. Increase your calcium and vitamin D foods.
3. Your doctor will often add calcium and vitamin D pills.
4. If you are able, start walking and doing exercises that put weight on your bones.
5. Do muscle strengthening exercises – if you don’t have any weights and have not exercised in a while – put a can of soup or vegetables in a sock and start lifting -you can gradually add more cans, or a heavier weight can (think 12 oz can stewed tomatoes and then a 28 oz can)
6. A class like Tai Chi can help with balance which is so important in preventing falls.
7. Fall proof your house (more to come on this)
8. If you smoke quit.
9. If you drink alcohol decrease to less, than 3 drinks a day.
10. Get your bone density test every 2 years to know how you are doing. Most insurance companies cover the cost when done every 2 years.

There are other types of prescription medications used to treat osteoporosis. Talk with your doctor about these medications.

Quiz!

1. I am 65 years old and female – do I need 1000 mg, 1200mg or 1500 mg of Calcium per day?
2. I don’t like to take pills all day – only when I get up in the morning, so I am going to take all of my calcium in the morning. (is this a good practice – yes or no).
3. I am 16 – does eating calcium and vitamin D foods and getting exercise help me with building strong bones or does it not make any difference?

The talent for being happy is appreciating and liking what you have, instead of what you don’t have.

(Woody Allen)

This is the day the Lord has made.

Let us rejoice and be glad in it!

~Psalm 118:24