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Cross CURRENTS

Issue 10.9

December 2015

A monthly publication to keep you informed about the ministry of Living Water and the opportunities

for you to grow your relationships with the Lord and each other.

Christmas has become more than a day Chris-

tians celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. An en-

tire season has developed around Christmas.

Stores start the Christmas hype at the end of

October. Ads for Black Friday Christmas shop-

ping overwhelm TV, paper, magazine, and in-

ternet advertising. Outside lights and decora-

tions start going up before the weather turns

cold. The red and green Christmas clothing

along with a few Christmas sweaters, that

should have stayed buried, make their annual

pilgrimage out of the closet. Christmas music

of every kind fills the radio airwaves. And let’s

not forget about all the little parties and get-

togethers that start to fill the calendar. It may

be politically correct to call it the “HOLIDAYS,”

but everyone knows it is really

the Christmas season.

Christmas has become so

much more that what is really

is, and it is easy to get

wrapped up in the holiday fes-

tivities. Many of the traditions

that go along with the Christ-

mas season are wonderful.

Getting together with friends

and family is wonderful way to

strengthen your relationships

with the people who are most

important to you. Sending out Christmas cards

and letters help keep us connected with peo-

ple in our lives. Buying presents is a beautiful

reminder that God has given us the best pre-

sent of all. Lights and decorations bring atten-

tion to the special day and create a unique

atmosphere for the grand celebration of the

birth of Christ. Songs of joy, hope, and love are

always nice. And a few extra treats reserved

to the holiday season are an added bonus

(along with the extra pounds they tend to bring

with them).

All those Christmas extras are nice, but they

can be a distraction from the truths that Christ-

mas is so special. God loves us so much he

sent his Son to be our Savior,

he became a child so he

might bear the sins of the

world and he set aside his

throne of glory to hang on a

cross to bring eternal life to a

sinner like me.

So enjoy all the traditions of

Christmas but don’t forget the

one thing that makes Christ-

mas such a special celebra-

tion: – God’s love for you.

THIS MONTHS ISSUE

P.2

P.3

Community Assistance, Jesus Cares

Senior Moments, Upcoming Concerts

P.4

P.5

Living Water Christmas Events

Stephen Ministry, Upcoming Worship

A Traditional Christmas

Page 2

Community Assistance

(You Are Seen) Yes, you are seen. On November 2nd , 8 of our members went out on a day blessed with great

weather, to do fall yard work at a member’s home and a non-member’s home in the community of

Rochester. Our area communities told us years ago, that this type of help was needed by our

elderly and disabled. It was a wonderful day to work, cleaning up yards of their homes along with

our Pastor. To help our Pastor, not by preaching His Word, but by helping others in need.

As I was working near the road, a lady slowly walked by, looking around at all of us wearing our

bright yellow T-shirts with large letters on the back that says “Community Assistance Volunteer” and

on the front the name of our church. She saw what we were doing and a big smile came across her

face. Yes, you are seen by people walking by, cars driving by and by residents that live nearby.

I would like to thank all the workers, Pastor Lindeman, Bob & Julie McGill, Duane and Ida Pfaff,

Doreen Bartholomew, Joyce Grimmer and Pearl Viehweg. Because you were seen, God willing, we

will see those that saw us coming in the doors of our church someday. This is what it’s all about.

Bob Leverenz (Outreach Chairman)

Jesus Cares’

We start off our ministry with some sad news, one

of our beloved student, Jude, was called home

to heaven at the beginning of the sum-

mer. While we mourn his earthly passing, we are

comforted to know that he stands strong beside

our Savior, Jesus. Please keep Jude’s family and

friends and the Affinity Home in your prayers.

We began our studies with David & Goliath in

October and then Daniel in the Lions Den in No-

vember. In both lessons students learned that

even though we are afraid sometimes, God is

always there for us! We enjoyed making various

craft project learned some new songs. Students

truly enjoy sharing their faith!

Our next class will be Monday, December 21st.

Please feel free in joining us in church at 6:45pm

as we sing Christmas carols!

Jesus Cares Students

Share Their Faith Each month we will be interviewing one of our

students from the Jesus Cares Program – this

month is Wendy who resides at the Affinity Home.

What do you like to do? “Look at books.”

What is your favorite activity at Jesus Cares? “Crafts”

What have you learned at Jesus Cares? “Praying”

What has Jesus done for us? “Heaven”

If you are interested in volunteering with us, or just

see what we are all about, please contact Tracy

De Angelis 414-427-6431 or pzabgr@wi.rr.com.

Page 3

Senior Moments

We hosted the Packer Tailgate Party in the Fellowship Hall in November. We

enjoyed great food, fun and fellowship, despite a not-so-great outcome of

the game against the Carolina Panthers. Hopefully this will become an annu-

al event.

Everyone who ordered a "Senior Moments" t-shirt should have received it by now. We did order a

few extra, so if you would like one, please speak to Julie McGill. The cost is $8.00.

Our next activity will be a Bunko Party/Potluck on Saturday, January 30th at 3:00 p.m. in the Fellow-

ship Hall. We are inviting everyone in the congregation to join us - you don't have to be a senior for

this!

Every member of Living Water who is 50 or older may join our group. We will have at least six activi-

ties throughout the year, including service events. We're looking forward to hosting a Lenten Supper

in March.

Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary Concert Join the Seminary Chorus on December 13th at

3:00 and 7:00 PM for their annual concert,

“Christmas at the Seminary.” Over 50 voices will

share the story of Jesus’ birth in songs, carols, and

hymns. They will be accompanied by multiple

instrumentalists. The 3:00 PM (central) service will

be streamed live at http://livestream.com/

WLSLive.

Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary is located at 11831

N Seminary Dr, Mequon WI 53092. This concert will

be held in the auditorium and a free-will offering

will be gathered. Open seating is available on a

first-come, first-seated basis.

WLHS Sacred Christmas Concert The annual Sacred Christmas Concert will take

place on Sunday, December 13, at 7:00 p.m. in

the WLHS auditorium. The concert will feature the

A Cappella, Cantorei, and Freshman Choirs of

WLHS, Inspiration, Jubilation Handbell Choir, Wis-

consin Lutheran Children’s Choir, and numerous

instrumentalists. Admission is free, and a freewill

offering will be taken during the concert.

WELS Marriage Enrichment Weekend

January 29th-31st How is your marriage? Would you like it to be-

come richer? God designed marriage between

one man and one woman and only he can

make your marriage richer than you ever imag-

ined. Join us for a marriage enrichment weekend

January 29th-31st, 2016 at the Green Lake Con-

ference Center. The cost is $285 per couple and

includes lodging and all meals. Spend your

weekend learning how to build on your strengths

and conquer weaknesses, improve communica-

tion, move through conflict, grow in intimacy and

improve your financial relationship – all in the light

of God’s grace. The result? A richer marriage.

Space is limited, so register early. See the poster

or brochure in the narthex for more information.

Visit www.wels.net/adult-discipleship for more in-

formation and to register.

Page 4

Christmas Parade

Saturday December 5th Living Water will be par-

ticipating in the 17th Annual Waterford Winter

Wonderland Parade. We invite you to come

walk with us! The parade will step-off at 5:30PM

from the Associated Bank at 217 N. Milwaukee

Street, and move west up Main Street until it ar-

rives at the Waterford Public Library, 101 N. River

Street. Please sign up in the narthex.

Ladies Advent By Candlelight Ladies, the Christmas season will soon be upon us

with it's busyness of shopping, decorating, and

preparations. Sunday December 6th at 6:00 PM

we invite you to take a couple hours to quiet

your heart and put your focus on the real reason

for the season. Advent by Candlelight - it's a spe-

cial evening of inspiration, renewal and quiet,

joyful reflection. Come be refreshed.

Christmas for Kids Saturday December 12th from 10:00 AM to 2:00

PM we will be offering a Christmas for Kids (a 1-

day Christmas VBS) open to all children from ag-

es 3-12, teaching them the true meaning of

Christmas. This is a FREE event, however, in order

to make it a success we will need the help of

many people. There will be crafts, Bible story,

movie, music, gift shop and lunch will be served.

Please contact Sherry Dahl at (262) 271-4948. We

are looking forward to an exciting time with the

kids.

Items needed for Christmas for Kids: An activity

that children do at Christmas for Kids is to pick

out and wrap small gifts for their moms and dads.

We are looking for donations of items for this ac-

tivity. Examples are: socks, sports items, coffee,

cologne, candles, lotions, scarves/gloves, candy,

etc. There is a container in the narthex.

Annual Meeting

Sunday December 13th there will be an open fo-

rum followed by our annual voters assembly

meeting. The main items of business are the

budget and elections. The Church Council has

wrestled over the budget trying to keep our ex-

penses in line with our projected expenses. A

congregational information packet will be out on

December 6th. We ask you to please look over

these materials and pray for God’s wisdom as

we seek to use all of his resources to the best of

our ability.

Carol Sing-A-Long Service Wednesday December 16th at 7:00 PM you, your

friends, and family are invited to join in an old-

fashioned Christmas carol sing-a-long. This is a

great outreach opportunity to invite people who

might otherwise feel uncomfortable attending a

traditional worship service. We’ll be singing your

favorite carols and have some cookies and hot

chocolate afterwards! We ask that each family

bring a small plate of cookies to share for the fel-

lowship afterwards.

Poinsettias If you are interested in purchasing a red poinset-

tia for our Christmas services please sign up in the

narthex. The cost is $12.00. The envelopes for

payment are right next to the sign up sheet. You

can place the payment in the wooden chest

outside the church office.

Giving Tree This year we will be working with Friends of Jesus

to provide gifts for some of the needy families in

our community as well as the inner city. Approxi-

mately 200 gifts will be going to Christ/St. Peters,

Milwaukee as part of their outreach efforts. You

are asked to purchase a $12 (or more) gift (toys,

games, books, etc., but NO CLOTHING). Bring

your wrapped gifts to church by December 13th

and include one of the gift labels on your gift

designating it for a boy or girl with a short de-

scription of the gift. You can find the labels in the

narthex.

Invite Someone to Christmas Christmas is an excellent time to reach out and

share your faith with others. Consider inviting

someone to Living Water for Christmas. You will

find post card invitations to all of our Christmas

services in the narthex.

Page 5

Ushers Ushers play a vital role in our Sunday morning

worship. We are retooling our usher teams and

are seeking people to serve as ushers for the up-

coming year. If you are interested in serving as

an usher, please sign-up in the narthex. (Please

note that any confirmed member of Living Water

can serve as an usher.)

Offering Envelopes The 2016 offering envelopes will be available on

December 6th in the narthex. While we encour-

age you to take your envelopes home, please

remember to continue using your 2015 offering

envelopes throughout the month of December.

Envelope number change from year to year, and

we would like to record all of the offerings for the

year accurately.

Christmas Shopping with SCRIP Get ready for your Christmas shopping with

SCRIP. You can use the gift cards you purchase

through SCRIP to make your purchases or use

them as gifts. There is a huge selection of popular

stores and services from which to choose. A com-

plete list can be found in the narthex. SCRIP is a

great way to plan your holiday spending as well

as support Christian Education! All the proceeds

from the SCRIP Program go to the tuition Assis-

tance Fund. Orders are due on December 1st.

Stephen Ministry We are currently explor-

ing the idea of starting a

Stephen Ministry. This min-

istry provides the training,

tools, and support that

will help our congrega-

tion train a team of lay caregivers—called Ste-

phen Ministers—who would then provide one-to-

one, Christian care to people experiencing grief,

divorce, job loss, hospitalization, and other life

difficulties.

Thousands of congregations of all types and sizes

are using Stephen Ministry. It works in so many dif-

ferent situations because all congregations—

including ours—share two common characteris-

tics:

First, there are people who are hurting and who

would benefit from one-to-one, Christ-centered

care—many more people than pastors alone

can care for.

Second, there are laypeople with the gifts and

potential to provide that care—if they are

trained and empowered to do so. Stephen Minis-

try brings these two groups of people together in

a powerful way.

In the next two months you will be hearing more

details about how this ministry works and how it

can benefit our congregation, our members, and

our community.

Endowment Fund $38,232 is the balance in the Living Water’s En-

dowment Fund. Since its inception the endow-

ment Fund has gained gain over $6,000 in inter-

est. Even with the turbulent financial market the

fund has been able to grow steadily. An endow-

ment fund was established to provide an ongo-

ing source for funding ministry. Donations to the

Living Water Endowment Fund are not to be an

alternative place to give your regular offerings.

Most donations to this fund are made in celebra-

tion of a special occasion included are part of a

will or memorial. If you would like to know more

about our Endowment Fund, please speak to

Katie Wollermann who currently heads our

Planned Giving Committee.

Upcoming Worship Schedule

December 2 Advent Midweek Service 7:00 PM

The season of Advent is all about preparing our

hearts for Christmas. The special midweek service

is a time for us to seek peace and rest in the mid-

dle of the busy world around us. Join us as we re-

focus our attention on the what we are really

preparing for this Christmas.

December 20 Children's Christmas Service

December 24 5:00 PM Christmas Eve Service

December 25 9:00 AM Christmas Day Service

Page 6

Living Water STATISTICS AND NUMBERS

Offerings (Year to date as of November 24)

Total Given $209,121 $9,825 $213,746

Needed $247,759

Difference -$38,638.96

November Attendance Sun. Mon. Total

11/1 115 15 130

11/8 118 23 141

11/15 97 32 129

11/22 89 20 109

Membership Statistics 58 Baptized

259 Communicants

316.0 Total

118 Family Units

142 Average Attendance

Year to Date Membership Changes

Transfers In 3

Profession of Faith 1

Adult Confirmation 2

Transfers Out -32

Released -27

Confirmation 7

Death -2

Net Gain/Loss -50

Tim Lois – That the Lord would grant healing and

strength as Tim deals with back issues.

Tim Jordan – That the Lord would bless his neck

physical therapy and give healing and strength as he

deals with back issues.

Tia Moldenhauer – That the Lord would grant strength,

encouragement, and comfort to Tia and her family in

her time of trouble.

Ray Crain and the family of Doris Crain – May the Lord

bring comfort and assurance to Doris’ family as she

now rests eternally with her Lord.

Jim Rubach’s Family - May God reassure Jim’s family

with the comfort of the resurrection as his mother was

called to her eternal home this past month.

Jesus Cares – That God would continue to bless our

ministry to the developmentally disabled in our com-

munity as we seek to reach out with the gospel to our

entire community.

Christmas For Kids – May God bless our congregation

with volunteers to promote and run this special pro-

gram, and may he bless out effort to bring the good

news of Jesus to the families of our community.

My Son, My Savior – May the Lord bless is outreach

campaign developed by our synod (WELS) to tell the

good news through video.

Living Water – May the Lord work in the hearts of every

member of our congregation to grow in faith, renew

the zeal for ministry, and create strong bonds of love

and friendship between our members.

If you would like to be added to our prayer group list,

please fill out one of the pew cards in church and put

it in the offering basket as it is passed, or simply hand

the card to one of the ushers or pastor as you leave

church. You can also send your prayer requests by

email to: prayer@Living Water Lutheran.com.

Prayer LIST

Membership Changes

11/3/15 Doris Crain Death

11/10/15 Sharon Webb Transfer Out—St. Joh’s Mukwonago

11/17/15 Gordie and Kathy Mayer Transfer Out - Victory of the Lamb

Page 7

Page 8

2015 Church Council Here is a list of people to contact if you

have any questions or suggestions re-

garding anything happening in our

ministry. Also, if you send a single e-mail

to council@livingwaterlutheran.com, it

will reach all members of our Church

Council.

6525 Milwaukee Avenue

Wind Lake, WI 53185

www.LivingWaterLutheran.com

Worship Information Sunday Worship Service - 9:00 AM

Sunday Education Time - 10:30 AM

Monday Worship Service - 7:00 PM

John Wiederhold - President

Marty Goelz - Secretary

Jim Mertz - Treasurer

Craig Scherbarth - Financial Sec.

Bill Bartholomew &

Dennis Banaszak - Elders

Bob Leverenz - Outreach

Larry Nielsen - Trustees

Jeremiah Vangen - Education

Contact Us Pastor: Loren Lindeman

Church Office: 262.895.3700

Pastor’s Cell Phone: 262.758.1361

E-mail: PastorLindeman@wi.rr.com

Website: www.LivingWaterLutheran.com

Upcoming Sermon Series

God finally delivers on his promise. He sends his Son to be our savior. All those years of waiting

have made the people anxious for the day of God’s deliverance, but when Jesus finally arrives to

carry out the plan of salvation, not everyone is buying into his plan or the man doing all the work.

As we work our way through the gospels we will see how vital each part of the plan is vital and

there is no one but Jesus who could have done it all.

12/27 - The Man with the Plan / The Birth of a King

01/03 - The Man with the Plan / Jesus’ Ministry Begins

01/10 - The Man with the Plan / No Ordinary Man

01/17 – The Man with the Plan / Jesus the Son of God

01/24 – The Man with the Plan / The Hour of Darkness

01/31 – The Man with the Plan / The Resurrection