LifeLines April 2015 · April 2015 Lord of Life Lutheran Church 20844 Bonanza Boulevard Elkhorn, NE 68022 402.289.3437 Connect Through Prayer Would you like to be part of a powerful

LifeLines

April 2015

Lord of Life Lutheran Church

20844 Bonanza Boulevard Elkhorn, NE 68022

402.289.3437 www.LordOfLifeElkhorn.org

Connect Through Prayer Would you like to be part of a powerful prayer ministry? If you are not already, we would love to include you in our ranks of prayer warriors. Please list your name and email on the Info Board sign-up in

the Gathering Area (narthex). Whenever you have a prayer need or praise, please share those with us. Prayers for general distribution may be sent to [email protected]; confidential prayers to [email protected].

Pastor's Corner In the South Pacific, about two thousand miles west of Chile, is an island called Easter

Island, because the Dutch discovered it in 1722 on Easter. Easter Island is remarkable because of the unusual large stone monuments shaped in the form of faces dating back many centuries. Easter is an island that tourists visit only occasionally. But for us, Easter is no island. Easter Sunday is no once-a-year holiday excursion, no once-in-a-lifetime event. It is not a celebration that we observe and then forget, like a birthday. It is an ongoing reality because Jesus lives!

It is just when we go back to the old grind that we remember Christ is risen! It is just when we face a seemingly insurmountable problem that we believe Christ is risen! It is just when we stand at the grave of a loved one that we have hope because Christ is risen! It is just when we find our steps heavy, our spirits sagging, and our hearts growing cold that we hear and taste in the Scriptures the goodness of the Lord (read Psalm 34:8).

Once again, just as He did with the disciples after His resurrection (recorded in Luke 24:13-35), Jesus walks with us. He speaks to us in His Word. He opens to us the Scriptures. He opens our eyes to see. Like the two Emmaus disciples, our hearts are warmed. Sad hearts are filled with joy. Troubled hearts are filled with peace. Weak hearts are filled with strength. Doubtful and despairing hearts are filled with hope. Lukewarm hearts are filled with conviction. Cold hearts are burning with faith and hope.

We know and believe that there is no sin Jesus does not forgive, there is no hurt He does not heal, and there is no emptiness He does not fill. He brings our hearts from hopelessness to hearts burning with abounding joy, so that we can say, “Did our hearts not burn within us while He talked to us?”

Live daily in the joy of the resurrected Lord Jesus Christ, no matter what the circumstances are in your life. He is risen! He is risen indeed!

Pastor David Linkugel

You are invited to purchase Easter Lilies to decorate our altar on

Easter Sunday. Order forms are available in the Friendship

Register. You may take your plant/s home after the 10:30 a.m.

worship on Easter Sunday.

Easter Breakfast

Join us for breakfast on Easter morning, prepared by our youth and their parents. We’re serving pancakes, sausage, fruit, and more between 8 and 10 am. Help us raise funds to get to the 2016 National Youth Gathering

Easter Festivities Our annual all-ages Easter festivities begin at 9:00 am, with the Epic Easter Preservice beginning at 8:44 am in the church. We will begin in the church for music and story, and then break out into games and craft stations. The ever-popular Easter Egg Hunt will begin at 9:55 am. Helpers are needed for set-up, monitoring games and crafts, and clean-up. Please talk to Julie, or sign up on the Info Board. Thank you!

Associate Pastor Update

The call committee interviewed four candidates by Skype. After prayerful consideration, the call committee submitted a request for a seminary graduate to be assigned to Lord of Life as an associate pastor and indicated our preferences.

The placement committee at the seminary assigns graduates to the congregations that have requested a seminary graduate. We wait to see if any of the students we indicated as a preference will be assigned to Lord of Life. The assignment of calls for the pastoral ministry is April 28th at Concordia Theological Seminary in Ft. Wayne, IN, and April 29th at Concordia Seminary in St. Louis, MO, so we will know by the end of April the seminary student assigned/called to Lord of Life. The worship services for the assignment of calls are broadcast live from the seminaries’ websites - http://www.ctsfw.edu/ and http://www.csl.edu/ Commencement is May 22nd at both seminaries.

Lutheran Witness

Lord of Life will no longer provide the Lutheran Witness to your home. If you would like to continue to receive the

Lutheran Witness you can subscribe to it online at [email protected] or you may call 800-325-3040 ext. 1414. You are able to choose from an electronic copy, a magazine or both. If you have any questions, feel free to contact the church office.

Mite Box Sunday

Lord of Life’s Women’s Ministry designates the first Sunday of every month as

Mite Box Sunday. Now you can give your mites (offerings) to support the work of the Lutheran Women's Missionary League (LWML). Mites are collected in mite boxes to support the mission projects approved by the LWML membership in convention every two years. Lutheran women have stepped out in faith, setting goals and trusting God to move the hearts of His people to give generously to LWML to proclaim the Gospel. The national Mite Box Goal for 2013-2015 is $1,830,000 – that’s a lot of pennies, nickels, dimes, and quarters! Look for the LWML Mite Box in the entry and add your mites.

GodConnects

Pastor’s Sunday

Bible Study

Whether you have questions about Christ or want to deepen your faith in

Him, GodConnects will explore what the Bible says about our God, and how His love gives direction and meaning to your life today and forever. This class is designed for those who are interested in learning or reviewing the foundations of the Christian faith. Attendance at the class may lead to

membership in our church, but there are no obligations. Everyone is invited! GodConnects is a video series explaining the Christian faith in a way that makes it easy to invite a friend,

family member, or church guest. Plain language and helpful illustrations present God’s work of salvation in a concise manner. This series is ideal for those with questions about sin, judgment, redemption, Jesus, the believer’s life, and more. GodConnects is an excellent resource for amplifying and sharing key concepts of the Christian faith. Who has God put in your life that needs to hear His message? This 12-session study meets in the Fellowship Hall on Sunday mornings from 9:15 to 10:15 a.m.

Friday Faith Food Fellowship

The Friday Faith Food Fellowship Bible study meets every Friday at Valentino’s, 5022 S. 108th St. We gather at noon for

lunch and have a Bible study led by Pastor from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. You are invited to join us as we study Joshua.

Meal Preparation Needed!

The Board for Human Care is updating the list of people who are willing to prepare meals for other members who are in need. If you would like to be added to the list to provide a meal, please contact Karen Ohlmann ([email protected]). You will be contacted when the need arises.

We conclude our Lenten observance with Holy Week worship on Maundy Thursday and Good Friday. The season of Lent is a time for us to face together the brokenness of our lives and our world, and then turn that brokenness over to Christ so that we can be restored by Him through the cross. Each service focuses on certain event in the Lenten story and takes a good, hard look at a broken element from that particular story. Coming to an understanding of how each of these broken elements in these services leads to restoration in Christ is key to understanding what it ultimately means to live today as new creations in Christ.

April 2 – Maundy Thursday “Broken Sanctuary” Luke 22:39-48

April 3 – Good Friday “Broken Curtain” Matthew 27:51

New Member Sponsors

Would you like to be a new member sponsor? Sponsors help new members feel comfortable integrating with the congregation. A person or family who have been members for a few years act as

resources for those new to the church. Tell Pastor if you’re interested.

Kids4Christ Mission Project This semester’s special project is to collect the

pull tabs from aluminum cans for the Ronald

McDonald House in Omaha. The money from

recycling tabs pays their electric bill each

month.

You can help! Simply remove the tab off your

cans and drop them in the wide-mouth

container in the church entry.

Thrivent Members We need

your help in making our Elkhorn

Days event a continued success!

Thrivent Financial now offers

Community Impact Cards, in varying denominations, to members who apply and are

approved for Thrivent Action Team projects. These cards can be used to fund a variety of

activities for our 3rd Annual Family Fun Festival hosted here on Sunday, June 7th. All

we need is your interest in helping us out as a Thrivent Financial member, we’ll take care

of the rest! Please contact Susan Lynch with the Evangelism Board at

[email protected] or 402-676-4740 for more details.

Christ in the Passover

Wednesday - April 1st

Jesus' Last Supper was actually a Jewish Passover. Avi Snyder of Jews for Jesus will re-create the traditional Passover service and explain how it foreshadowed Jesus' death and resurrection in a presentation called "Christ in the Passover" at Lord of Life

Lutheran Church on Wednesday, April 1st at 7:00 p.m. Avi Snyder will set a table with items traditionally used at the Passover meal and detail

their spiritual significance. He will also explain the connection between the events of the first Passover in Egypt and the redemption that Jesus accomplished, as well as the deep bond between the ancient Passover feast and the Christian communion celebration today. Invite your friends to join you for this special presentation.

Save the Date

FREE

Vacation Bible School Age 3 - 5th grade

June 21 - 25 (Sunday - Thursday) 6:15-8:30 p.m.

Come Discover the Wonder of God's World!

Scrip News Scrip – an easy, super-simple ongoing fundraiser where businesses reward our church whenever you purchase their gift cards through us. You receive your card at face value, and the church earns a rebate just for your purchase. How to Get – Order dates are the 1st and 3rd Sundays of every month.

1. Online - www.ShopWithScrip.com 2. Paper Order Form – in the Gathering Area kiosk. Remember, we also have

local HyVee and No Frills available. 3. On Site – Check out the (limited) selection in the black labeled binder kept

at the tech booth on Sunday mornings, and in the office during the week. 4. ScripNow online – Print cards immediately or reload existing cards. A new

feature now lets you purchase cards to give as gifts! Go to ShopWithScrip.com and select the ScripNow option when shopping.

If you have any questions, or would like an additional Scrip informational packet, please contact Julie.

April Order Date April 19th

Shop With Scrip is the easiest way to shop – in the convenience of your

home, with no hasting buying pressures. If you haven’t yet, register at

www.shopwithscrip.com. Lord of Life’s enrollment code is

9194FD1128994. You place your order online, and then bring your payment to church, or use Presto-

Pay. This is a secure connection that debits your bank account.

Video & Sound Tech The next sound and video tech schedule is currently being filled. If you would like to serve with this ministry area, please contact Julie by April 10th and we will get you trained and apprenticed!

Worship Team Musicians Needed

We’d love to have a full band for our

worship team: guitarist, bass player, and

drummer. Can you help us out? Are you a

living room musician, or is your instrument

sitting in the back of a closet just yearning

to be played again? We don’t expect

professional-level ability – but more

importantly, a heart for worship. Please speak to Julie or any worship team

member for more information.

Thank you for supporting the Christian Outreach Program - Elkhorn (COPE) during 2014 through donating and volunteering. We were able to provide 7,500 services and support nearly 4,000 individuals through our various programs.

COPE has logged 2,439 Volunteer Hours

Lent Food Bank Collection The Board for Human Care is collecting canned food items and trash

bags (kitchen size) for the food bank and COPE during Lent. Our goal is to collect 250 canned food

items. Items can be placed in baskets in the entry. Ongoing Angel Drive You may also support COPE financially through the Angel Drive. The funds raised are used to provide families who are experiencing temporary hardship with assistance and educational programming so families are stable. Your generous support provided over 7,500 services for individuals/families right here in our community. Please mail check to COPE, 3434 N. 204th Street, Elkhorn, NE 68022.

Volunteer Opportunities Consider ways to use your talents to help those in our community. COPE has volunteer opportunities sorting clothes, helping with training classes, bread and food pantry pick-up. Even occasional help is welcome. For more information, please contact COPE at 402-616-2330 or [email protected]

Save the Date COPE Annual Golf Outing

Friday May 8th Pacific Springs Golf Course

Life Line Screening Event - April 10th Do you know how to recognize the warning signs of a stroke? It is important to seek medical treatment immediately. If you or someone you know is experiencing any of the below symptoms, call 911 right away:

Sudden Numbness Difficulty Speaking

Severe Dizziness Loss of Coordination Sudden Loss of Vision Sudden Intense Headache

Brief Loss of Consciousness Protect your health by finding out your risk of having a stroke by participating in the Life Line Screening that will be here at Lord of Life Lutheran Church on Friday, April 10, 2015. Through ultrasound we evaluate the carotid arteries for the buildup of fatty plaque, which is the leading cause of stroke. Register today for the Stroke, Vascular & Heart Rhythm package, which includes four screenings: carotid artery, abdominal aortic aneurysm, peripheral arterial disease and atrial fibrillation. All five screenings take 60-90 minutes to complete. To register and receive a $10 discount off any package priced above $129, call 1-888-653-6441 or visit www.lifelinescreening.com/community-partners.

Lord of Life’s Mission

We are “Reaching out with love to create new and abundant lives in Christ.”

Church News – Unblock GetResponse

We are using our enews provider, Get Response, for more frequent communications. If you have not been receiving general news announcements and Scrip reminders, please check your spam folder, and add “GetResponse.com” to your safe senders’ list.