What’s Happening at Trinity – March 2021

What’s Happening at Trinity – March 2021

Mar 3, 2021 | Pastor Jim's Blog, Uncategorized

Easter Worship Services at TLC

April 4 is Easter Sunday, and we will be sharing the joy of the Resurrection with PARKING LOT SERVICES at 8:00 and 10:30 a.m. Bring a lawn chair, your coffee mug, and a mask, and get ready to see friends as we worship outside on Easter Sunday. There will be an Easter Egg Hunt in our outdoor spaces after the 10:30 service.

Plans for In-Person Worship

Plans to reopen for in person worship are underway. We are looking to reopen on April 25 with services at 8:00 and 10:30. All attendees must wear masks. We will create a safe environment as doors and windows will be open and worshipers will physically distance at least six feet apart throughout the morning. Self-serve coffee will be available but no other food will be served. We will not be passing the plate, or using hymnals, as congregational singing is not allowed.

We will be following State and Island County safety regulations with your well-being our first priority. More information will be forthcoming as we monitor the pandemic and prepare to reopen the doors of TLC.

Lenten & Holy Week Video Worship Services

Every Wednesday in Lent you should receive online video devotionals and musical offerings. It is not the same as being together for our popular Lenten Services and soup suppers, but we are making every attempt to journey together toward Holy Week and Easter.

Join us online during Holy Week. We will be sending out the Holden Evening Prayer Service on Maundy Thursday April 1. On Good Friday, April 2, we will send out a reflective service for the day.

Blessed to be a Blessing

Thank You For Your Generous Gifts!

In February this year we donated $10,000 to ELCA Disaster Relief Texas. We also donated $5,000 to Lutheran World Relief as they fight poverty and hunger worldwide. Blessed to be a Blessing! Your generosity makes such giving possible.

Touch the Future with Gifts to the TLC Endowment

The Trinity Lutheran Church Endowment Committee has announced Spring Endowment draws of $195,000.00. The Endowment is the best way for you to TOUCH the Future of Whidbey Island and the World.

Christian Education at Trinity

Down the Hall and Out the Door at Preschool

We were happy to return to preschool in February after our January remote session. Weather continued to add challenges to daily planning, but we were all excited to be back to school. We learned about animal habitats and hibernation (we thought being a bear sounded like a great idea on cold, wet mornings), celebrated Valentine’s Day with lots of love, and became mini meteorologists as we studied properties of ice and snow. We are looking forward to more sunny days in March as we learn about different kinds of seeds and prepare our pea garden for planting.

Adult Education

Adult Education is held via Zoom. Linda Nevermann has been hard at work procuring some wonderful speakers for this season! Adult Ed meets at 9:30 a.m. on Sunday mornings. Call the office, 360-331-5191 or email [email protected], if you would like to be placed on the Adult Ed email list.

Wednesday Bible Study

Wednesday Bible Study with Pastor Eric is held at 10:00 a.m. via Zoom. Call the office, 360-331-5191 or email [email protected], if you would like to be placed on Pastor Eric’s Bible Study email list.

Kids, Youth & Families

Sunday School and Confirmation classes continue to meet on Zoom. Confirmation Class for middle school students meets at 11:00 on the first and third Sundays of each month. Sunday School meets at the same time on the second and fourth Sundays.

With local schools returning to in-person learning, we are moving our 4:00 Tuesday Middle School Youth Group to in-person meetings beginning March 23! We will gather, safely, in our courtyard around our brand-new fire pit! S’mores, anyone?

Watch your email for details, and more upcoming events. If you don’t think you’re on the list, contact Deacon Amy at [email protected]

Of Community Importance

Fourth Annual Community Conversation
FRATELLI TUTTI Conversation: 3 p.m. ZOOM on Mondays, March 15, 22, and 29
Are you feeling discouraged by the pervasive culture of divisiveness? The Greening Congregations Collaborative (Trinity is a member) will be sponsoring a March communitywide conversation about the meaning and practice of solidarity. Discussion will be based on Fratelli Tutti, the most recent exhortation from Pope Francis… very timely and inspiring! To register, contact [email protected] before March 12. For more information contact Ann Posner, [email protected].
Also, click HERE to visit the GCC website.

Church Office and Library

Office and Library Hours

Tuesday through Friday,
9:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.
Come in to say hello and browse the library – we have a great selection of new books and old favorites. We would love to see you! It is helpful if you phone or email for an appointment with a staff member.

Never hesitate to contact the church office with any question! We are here to serve YOU! Call us at 360-331-5191 or email: [email protected].

Touching the Future

Touching the Future

Feb 10, 2021 | Pastor Jim's Blog, Uncategorized

Today’s Word from Pastor Jim Lindus…

It was eight years ago that my friend Terry Otey died at the age of 66. Terry was not a member of TLC; he attended a few funerals here, and sometimes he would stop in during the week to drink a cup of coffee and offer up some sermon suggestions. Terry talked to me about his desire to touch the future through the lives of young people. He wanted to assist hard-working students who needed a break to get some help to be launched in life. Terry wanted to give back; blessed to be a blessing, he wanted to touch the future.

In the years since his sudden death, the TLC Endowment Committee has managed the money that Terry left behind. In the past nine years some 75 scholarships have been awarded. The students who will receive the Terry Otey TLC Scholarships this year were in elementary school when Terry died.

Touching the future; nine years after his death, the church will award $100,000 to students in the name of a man who understood that he had been blessed to be a blessing to others. And next year, 2022, another $100,000, and in 2023 another $100,000, and so Terry’s final gift will continue to touch students and touch the future for decades to come.

The Trinity Lutheran Endowment was founded nearly thirty years ago thanks to the vision of Steve Schrecengost. Steve and Terry are both gone now. But together they are touching the future. I would encourage you to join them, to learn from their example, to touch the future with your estate gift.

To find out more email me at [email protected] or contact Rich Bacigalupi, Endowment Chair, at [email protected]

Blessed to be a Blessing!
Pastor Jim

Juneuary

Juneuary

Jun 26, 2020 | Pastor Jim's Blog, Uncategorized

Today’s Word from Rev. David Bieniek…  

Growing up in Texas, I had never heard of Juneuary. In fact, in Texas June seldom had anything in common with January. It was usually the first month that temperatures would hit greater than 100 degrees! Here in the Pacific Northwest, Juneuary may last well into July. We moved here at the end of June ten years ago. We were excited to be invited to a Fourth of July party. We showed up in shorts and t-shirts; it was summer at the beach, but soon we were huddled under blankets close to a fire. That is when we learned that summer does not start here until July 5th!

It seems to me that this year, Juneuary has been mercifully lenient with us, several nice days – even some sunny days from time to time. But summer is still hiding out most of the time. I feel like that is how our world is going these days. Glimmers of hope but generally gloomy, cool, and sometimes wet, may reflect both our weather and the state of our culture.

Juneuary teaches us many things about life, about patience, and about growth. Juneuary, like its namesake, January, is a period when nature is taking her time. In late winter, bulbs are beginning to awaken, buds begin to appear on trees, and animals begin to wake up from their winter slumbers. Juneuary is also a season of preparation. Spring has sprung, but the cool moist days allow young animals to graze and meander, flowers can grow tall in the heavy dew even while they soak up the filtered sunlight, and our bodies slowly adjust to longer days and mornings that begin with loud birdsong as baby birds clamor for abundant morning worms.

Yes Juneuary, this year especially, can also teach us. It teaches us to slow down, to count blessings, to appreciate new life, to marvel as the sun peaks out, and to celebrate the longer days. It is also a reminder to us that better days are coming. We just have to keep the faith. Soon after the fireworks of 4th of July, summer begins. And it won’t be long before we might be griping about how hot it is.

How do you get through Juneuary? How do you get through the days when the sun is still out until late, but it’s too chilly to dance in its sunset? How do you stay focused on that July 5th summer that is still coming? How do you hold out?

Remember that our God walks with us through all the seasons of life, not just the difficult or happy ones. Our God is a God of transition. Jesus taught us that God looks for lost things – a lost coin, one lost sheep, a lost child. Juneuary may seem like a lost season, but it is one full of promise and delight. Enjoy it while it is still here!

Rev. Dave Bieniek

To make a donation to Trinity, follow this link: https://trinitylutheranfreeland.org/give/

 
Life in Limbo

Life in Limbo

Jun 15, 2020 | Pastor Jim's Blog, Uncategorized

Today’s Word from Pastor Jim…  

I have not really given you much attention. I probably have not looked at you since the first week of April, but you are still hanging there in my office. I glanced at you by accident this morning, and a wave of sadness came over me. When I put you up, we were both optimistic and enthusiastic. Now you are just hanging there. It should have been your year to shine, yet there you hang, a sad and lonely 2020 calendar. You are all marked up with weddings, vow renewals, graduations, a pastor’s conference, baptisms, meetings, TLC travel pilgrimages and family events. It made me sad to look at you this morning, and to consider what life would have looked like without this pandemic. From March 13th to June 13th the scrawling of a big red sharpie covers the events, hopes, and dreams with the word CANCELLED.

On New Year’s Eve 2019, as we toasted one year and anticipated the next, we never could have imagined that the theme of 2020 would be “Cancelled.”

Our journey in limbo began in March. Near the end of May, there was a glimmer of hope for us; Covid-19 numbers were going down, the Governor was easing restrictions, and Island County seemed to be mostly free from this virus. Memorial Day Weekend arrived in all its pandemic glory, and then George Floyd was killed on the streets of Minneapolis. A heavy burden fell upon our hearts. The sins of our nation’s history came around for a visit, and the winds of change demanded our attention.

We are living in a painful season of limbo. It is nearly impossible to make plans or to predict the direction of the path that is before us. Will there be a second wave? Will the public schools open in the fall? Will college students be able to return to campuses? Will the Trinity Preschool be open this fall? When can we worship together, and what will that worship look like? Will the unemployed be able to find work again?

Living in limbo is not easy. The disruptive nature of this season, combined with the uncertainty of the months ahead, is taking a toll on all of us. We are nearly 100 days into this crisis. If misery loves company, then we may find some comfort in the fact that everyone is suffering. I have heard the anguished cries of those who live alone, how they long for social interaction, for relief from the cabin fever that plagues them. I have heard, too, the anguished cries of those who are spending every day with the ones they love. Loving them and living with them 24-hours a day has put a tremendous strain on family relationships.

Living in limbo is not easy. We grow weary as the red sharpies cancel dates on the calendar. The daily news cycle is depressing. Our essential workers are underpaid and under-appreciated. They show up every day, wearing masks, risking infection, doing their duty, and now experiencing abuse from frustrated customers. We are weary, and going forward, the only certainty is uncertainty.

I thank you all for your cards, emails, well wishes, and patience in this unprecedented time in our shared history. It is good to maintain connections in a time of isolation. At some point, the masks will come off, we will hug and laugh and worship together again. There is very little about this limbo that I am enjoying, but I thank God that we are going through it together.

When will it end? To quote Little Orphan Annie, “The sun’ll come out tomorrow, bet your bottom dollar that tomorrow there’ll be sun!” May tomorrow come soon.

We are one day closer!

Much love,
Pastor Jim

To make a donation to Trinity, follow this link: https://trinitylutheranfreeland.org/give/

We Are Not Alone

We Are Not Alone

May 19, 2020 | Pastor Jim's Blog, Uncategorized

TLC’s reach is vast. This creative artistic piece was done by one of our TLC College students using themes from sermons. We hope that you will all enjoy the creativity, the images and words of comfort and hope.

Where Are You?

Where Are You?

Mar 30, 2020 | Pastor Jim's Blog, Uncategorized

Today’s Word from Pastor Jim

“All who believed were together and had all things in common, they would sell their possessions and goods and distribute the proceeds to all as any had need.” The Second Chapter of Acts.

Last week I asked a very simple question: “What day is it?” It is so disorienting to wake up each morning to Groundhog Day. I want to thank those of you who continue to email me each morning to tell me what day it is. The question this morning is equally simple with a surprising twist: “Where are you this week?” I am guessing that the answer for most of us is “home.” The Governor has mandated that we stay home and your pastor has asked you to love your neighbor by staying home. In this most surreal spring, love looks like an empty church.

“Where are you this week?” You may be home, but you are also on the road, reaching out, doing good, helping distressed neighbors. When this crisis broke, we/you/TLC sent $2,000 to Good Cheer Food Bank. This past week we sent $2,000 to Camp Lutherwood as they struggle to keep their doors open. 2020 has been a financial disaster for families, businesses, and your Church. However, this is not a time for us to hoard money or let fear rule the day. 2020 has been a financial disaster, but we/you/TLC has already given away 45% of our yearly commitment to benevolences. $45,000 is out there working, and though you are stuck at home, you are also out there assisting your neighbors in crisis.

Where are you this week? Consider this: 2020 has been a financial disaster for the TLC Endowment, and yet this week they/we/you released $25,000 to help our neighbors in this time of uncertainty. Already, $15,000 has been passed on to Good Cheer. You are at Good Cheer this week helping your neighbors, even as you stay at home.

Where are you this week? The High School Graduating class of 2020 is sitting home, missing out on dances, sports, and the glow of their achievement. The TLC Endowment has pledged its full support of our students. We will once again award more than $100,000 in scholarships. You are there! Your gifts to TLC make it possible for us to assist neighbors, students, church members and strangers in a time of crisis.

I would encourage everyone to stay safe by staying at home. You are there and on the front lines at the same time. Thank God for the blessings that come to us each day in a thousand different ways. Blessed to be a blessing!

One day closer to May 17th—One day closer to the end of this crisis.

My love to you!

Pastor Jim

 

 

A Note From your TLC Fun Committee: It’s Trivia Monday!
Follow this link to see our first round of trivia questions from our trivia master Kevin Lungren: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1INiunMZM7Unta3sbx4yuIviikahf9EU3iobKbyHFa6E/edit?usp=sharing

You can play on your own or on a team. It is really between you and God. Score yourself on the JM (Just Me) or GA (Google Assisted) scales. Look for a special video tomorrow from our trivia master with the correct answers.

To Donate to TLC, follow this link: https://trinitylutheranfreeland.org/give