NEWS BLOG

7 Healthy Spiritual Practices

Cultivating our faith life is an important part of wellness. Here are a few ways to gain new perspective of yourself, others, and God throughout this new year of 2018.
1. Try praying at different times during the day. You may notice that you pray differently at different times of the day.
2. Laughter and rejoicing need to be a part of our faith life. Think of something funny that has happened, and thank God for giving us humor in our lives.
3. Loving yourself is the first step in “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Spend a few minutes writing about what it means to love yourself. Remember that God loves you.

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Keeping Lent at Peace

At 7:00 pm on February 14, Ash Wednesday, we begin our holy journey through the season of Lent with worship with imposition of ashes. Wednesdays, February 21 through March 21, we will worship with Holden Evening Prayer at 7:00
pm, preceded by a potluck dinner at 6:00 pm. As part of our worship services, Judy Olson will be directing short dramas around themes from the life of Martin Luther and the theology of the Reformation.


Kitchen Clean-Up for Lent

Let’s Get Ready! It’s almost time for Lent and our kitchen is in need of some TLC. Besides a good scrubbing, there is a need for more organizing. Saturday, February 3, we will be cleaning ovens, refrigerator, floors, and whatever else is needed. Please join us at 9:00 a.m. if you are able. With many hands it should not take long. There will be coffee and snacks (but please don’t make a mess). Contact Ernie Klatt or Jan Massa with any questions.



Pancake Breakfast, February 11

Peace’s traditional Transfiguration Sunday Breakfast will take place during Community Connections (9:45am) in the Education Building. Tickets for the breakfast are $6 for adults, $3 for children with a max of $20 for family. The money raised will go to our Camp Scholarship Fund.



Reconciling in Christ Celebration

This Sunday, January 28,  join Peace Lutheran for a rainbow breakfast celebration at 9:30 AM of our LGBTQ siblings. We’ll mark the occasion by officially announcing our membership in www.reconcilingworks.org, which advocates for the full welcome, inclusion, and equity of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) Lutherans in all aspects of the life of their Church, congregations, and community. All…all…all…all are welcome!


Youth Group Super Bowl Sandwiches

The Peace Lutheran Youth Group is fundraising for the National Youth Gathering this summer and could use your support. The youth group is making ‘Super Bowl Subs’ on February 4th, and you can order one for yourself or a loved one for $8 in the church narthex on the Sundays leading up to the Super Bowl. Thank you for helping us get to Houston!


Sign-Up for Fellowship Treats

Are you tired of boring snacks at church? Do you love to bake but don’t know what to do with all the goods you produce? Do you want to showcase your baking during fellowship? Then our new fellowship program is for you! You can now sign up for a Sunday to bring all the fellowship snacks. Bring whatever you’d like (nut and peanut free, please)! If you’d like to sign up here for an upcoming Sunday to bake/prepare the fellowship food, or contact Katie Van Gulick. Thanks and happy baking!


Communications Manager Position Open

Peace Lutheran Church is seeking to hire a part-time Communications Manager. The ideal candidate
is excellent with written communication, organized, detail-oriented, and has some graphic-design or web-design experience or knowledge. This position requires passion for the life of the church and an understanding of (or eagerness to learn about) liturgical worship. This position has the flexibility to allow some work from home, preferably with at least 4 hours in the office most weeks on Thursdays or Fridays.

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Monthly 3rd Friday Dinner Group

You are invited to join a rather large and diverse group of Peace friends and family for a monthly dinner. If you are interested in receiving an email about when and where we are going, please send an email to gerri.west@peaceaustin.org. You will be added to the list and can choose whether to attend or not on a monthly basis. You don’t need to be a Peace member to join the group. We usually meet at a local restaurant at 7 PM on the 3rd Friday for fun-filled conversation, dining and fellowship.  Occasionally, we meet at a local home for a Potluck Dinner or we meet on a Saturday afternoon. On January 19, we’re either eating at Almarah (Mediterranean) or Carrabba’s (Italian). It will be finanlized by January 13, so sign up and list your preference if you want to attend. We’re looking forward to seeing you! 


​Building Healthy Community

Make & Take Meals​

​Are you a single person who gets tired of eating the same thing everyday? Or, making a recipe that takes all week to finish? Did you know that socialization and doing things for others, enhances our sense of well-being/happiness? Please join Cindy Gust at her home for healthy food preparation and meal exchange. This first exchange will be on Jan.14th at 2 pm. Cindy will have 7 stations where people can prepare their recipes. Once cooked, the food will be packaged and each person will take home 7 different meals for the week! Please bring recipe, the required food to prepare, and containers for packaging the recipe. This is limited to 7 people. Please call Cindy Gust by Friday, January 12 to reserve your spot.


Important Opportunities in the Community Coming Up!

There are a number of events coming up in the wider Lutheran community well worth your consideration. If you are interested in attending and in need of financial support to make your participation possible, please feel free to contact Pastor Carolyn. We don’t want money to be the barrier that prevents anyone from doing the ministry to which they are called!
 

Saturday, February 3

Senior Fest

(Christ Lutheran in Georgetown)

Keynote speaker will be Rev. Dr. Gerald Kieschnick speaking on “Being Lutheran in 2018,” and a wide variety of workshop sessions will be available. Early registration is $25 (through January 28). More information at: https://txlcms.org/event/central-texas-senior-fest/.

 


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MLK Day of Service

“Not everybody can be famous but everybody can be great because greatness is determined by service…You only need a heart full of grace and a soul generated by love.”
—Martin Luther King Jr.
 

As we near the annual celebration of the life of Martin Luther King Jr. we would like to honor him with a day of service. This year we have looked internally to members of our own congregation who could use some help. This may include:
1. housework,
2. maintenance, or
3. yard work.

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Support Peace With Amazon Smile

 
***Shop for everyone on your gift list this holiday and throughout the year and Amazon donates to Peace Lutheran Church. All you have to do is start by clicking here: smile.amazon.com/ch/74-1898677


Faith Community Health Ministries

 New Ministry to Start at Peace

I am excited and blessed at the opportunity to begin a health ministry at Peace Lutheran Church. I come to Peace as a member of the Evangelical Lutheran Parish Nurse Association and the Texas Health Ministries Network. You can read about Parish nursing in past editions of Living Lutheran or at http://elpna.org. To start this ministry, we will begin by offering Blood Pressure screenings on the second Sunday of the month, in the Narthex, starting at 9:45 am.

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December Events

Thursday 12.7

12:00 pm – Preschool Christmas Sing-Along
 

Friday, 12.8

7:00 pm — Christmas Movie Classics: Die Hard (rated R)
 

Saturday, 12.16

3:30 pm – Sunday School Program Practice
4:30 pm – Cookies & Hot Chocolate Happy Hour (with Caroling Warm Up)
5:15 pm – Depart for Christmas Caroling at Avalon Memory Care

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Hill Country Christmas Bureau Giving Tree

 
Hill Country Christmas Bureau is a non-profit organization that provides gifts for children, teens, adults and elderly in our community who without your generosity would NOT have a gift to open. Please prayerfully consider taking a card from the Giving Tree to help bring a smile to a face this Christmas.  Place the unwrapped gift under the Giving Tree by end of day Sunday, December 10.  Merry Christmas!


The True Meaning of the Christmas Tree

Performance: Sunday, December 17 at 9:45 AM.

Rehearsal: Saturday December 16 at 3:30 PM, followed by cocoa and caroling.

This year’s Christmas program will take place on Sunday December 17th, during the Sunday school hour. We will be performing a play called “The True Meaning of the Christmas Tree.” Everyone is invited to participate, whether they be kindergartners, highschoolers, or adults!

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We’re Reconciling in Christ… Now What?

Last March, members of Peace Lutheran Church adopted a Welcome Statement that specifically calls out our desire to welcome people “of diverse sexual orientations and gender identities…including those who are gay, lesbian, and bisexual; and those who are transgender, non-binary, and gender nonconforming.” On the last Sunday in January, we’ll celebrate our commitment. Let’s begin with a conversation about how we got here, what it means and where we are going with this new outreach effort. Join us at 10 a.m. on December 10, January 7, and January 21.