Friday, April 19, 2024
1 The Lord is my shepherd;
I shall not want.
2 He makes me lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside still waters.
3 He restores my soul.
He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.
4 Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil, for you are with me;
your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
5 You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies;
you anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.
6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
all the days of my life,
and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.
Psalm 23:1-6
Sunday Worship Services
The Fourth Sunday of Easter – Traditional Service
Acts 4:1-12
1 John 3:16-24
John 10:11-18
The ZOOM meeting ID for all hybrid services is: 485 087 170.
Access the room using a smartphone, tablet or computer using this link: https://zoom.us/j/485087170
You may also “listen” to the service without video by calling: +1 669 900 6833.
Guest Musician this Sunday
Lars Johannesson on flute will be joining Ann Thiermann on Organ and on the new Steinway piano this Sunday. You don't want to miss this.
Fridge Repair
A special thank you to Reuben who made a referral to a repairman for the fridge. We are thankful to God that the cost was under $1,100.
M&M Meeting
Looking ahead to Study Hall in June and Summer BBQs, we need to set a date for a Mission and Ministry Meeting in late April/Early May. We need to set dates for the Summer BBQ and look at having the Summer Local Artists Show (Possibly on August 3-4?) Let pastor know what day/time works best, in person/on zoom?
Thursday Morning Bible Study
Thursday at 9:30am.
Zoom meeting ID: 450 934 553
Call the office at (831)423-8330 for passcode.
You may also “listen” to the service without video by calling:
+1 669 900 6833.
Access the room using a smartphone, tablet or computer using this link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/450934553?pwd=VW13cmxaWU9TeW02c2JGMnZVRDNJQT09
Praise Team Practice
Praise Team Practice Thursday, 4/25 6:00pm
Board Brief January - March 2024
The Messiah Board of Directors sends out a Board Brief to the congregation every quarter. This is to help keep everyone informed on what we are doing for our church. We encourage you to ask questions, come to board meetings (generally held the second Tuesday of every month) and help us know we are meeting the congregation’s needs.
Worship Life
- Since the beginning of the year our average church attendance has been 21 people in person and 14 people on zoom. Our Organist, Ann Thiermann, continues to bring in talented musicians to accompany her for our Traditional Services. We were also fortunate to have Jorg Reddin from Germany, as a guest organist in February. The praise team is leading worship on the Fourth Sunday of the Month and would welcome anyone who would like to be included in bringing music to the congregation.
Chinese Ministry
- Pastor Freeman Li, of the Mandarin Mission, has been attending Staff meetings with Gretchen (Preschool Director) Melody (Administrative Assistant) and Pastor Rice. This has been a good start on improving communications with the activities on campus.
Building Projects and Maintenance
- We continue to wait for the Closure of the Langum Estate to repair the Preschool roof. We are hoping it can be repaired when students are not in session for the summer program and before the Fall session begins.
- The Sanctuary sky light will be repaired at the same time the valley leak is repaired.
- We are still getting someone coming in and doing donuts in the parking lot. Pastor Rice is checking with Santana to put the speed bumps in. We are hopeful he will do it for last year’s proposed bid of $5,000.00. We are hoping this can be paid from the Parking Lot Dedicated account.
- We have downsized the dumpster from a four-yard dumpster to a two-yard dumpster. This will save us $3,600 a year. When we have larger events, it will cost $300 for each extra pick up. With the dumpster being smaller, we hope to move it easier. After a few weeks if it seems hard to move, we may ask Santana Paving to give us a bid for a pad near the laundry room door. Hopefully that won’t be necessary.
Mission and Ministry
- The Easter Egg Hunt was held March 16 and was a wonderful event. There were over 78 adults and children attending and everyone showed so much happiness the entire time. The weather was beautiful and so many families were very thankful we held this event. It is exciting to know that 20% of the families attending were preschool families. The other 80% were from the neighborhood. It makes us feel so blessed to share our MLC community with others who live nearby.
- UCSC Study Hall has been a struggle. We have not had the attendance we had before COVID. We will be taking suggestions of ways we may be able to build back the attendance we once had.
MLC Preschool
Gretchen Thigpen is very happy with the West Lake Playdates held on the 2nd Saturday of each month. They have been a huge success and last month 60 people attended. The parents can visit with each other, and the children get to see their teachers in a place other than school. Gretchen has been holding off setting the summer school schedule until she gets dates of when the roof repairs can be made. The ideal time would be when the preschool is normally closed July to August.
Treasurer’s Notes
The Board Treasurer, Julie Young, reports that we have been able to pay all bills and have a little left over each month since the beginning of the new year.
Lutheran Church Extension Fund---Real Estate Solutions
LCEF is a group of Lutheran businessmen, pastors, educators, and realtors, who help struggling Missouri Synod churches discover ways to use their property to help keep their churches open during low attendance times.
The Board met with a group from LCEF to ask questions on, “how this works”. It was positive and exciting to see a future for our fiscally challenged church. They will be doing a feasibility study paid for by Lutheran Housing. The Board is very eager to share with you what we know and what we will find out during this study. We are working on how we can bring this news to you. Your feedback is extremely important to the Board on the various ideas that will come up during the study. Keep the future of our church in your prayers as we ask God to guide us during this process. We need your participation as we go forward together.
UCSC Student Seeks Housing
Student looking for a place (studio, room, apartment etc) as of September 2024. She will be a Sophomore at UCSC in Biology and did not make the housing lottery. Her parents are both teachers in Chico, CA. Pastor and Donna knew them when they lived in Artois. Donna worked with her mother at the flower shop in Chico.
Agnus Day
Some things are better than expected.
MLC Birthdays & Anniversaries
Eunice & Donna
Preschool Update
Enjoying the colors of Spring!
Please let Gretchen or the office know if you are available.
To give a donation via the Preschool’s Amazon Wish List, please click the blue button:
General Fund Donation
If you would like to donate to support the ministry of Messiah Lutheran Church, mail your offering to Messiah Lutheran Church, 801 High Street, Santa Cruz CA 95060, or you can make a General Fund d40%onation by clicking below. Please email melody@messiah-lutheran.us a note of each online donation that you make so we can include it in your offering statement.
