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Sundays:
8:30 am Worship Service
10:00 am Worship Service
Wednesdays: 3:15 pm Music and Arts Camp
5:00 pm Vacation Bible School
Pastor Michael Millum
3305 Lawrenceville Highway
Lawrenceville, GA 30044
770-381-1293 www.tisgrace.org
July 2019
NEWSLETTER
“Jesus is the image of the invisible God,…for in him the fullness of
God was pleased to dwell” (Colossians 1:15, 19).
Jesus said that all of the law and the prophets could be summed up in the
commandments to love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, strength and
mind, and to love your neighbor as yourself. But how can we love God? How do
we love a being so vast, so powerful and knowing, so beyond our boundaries and
categories that we can scarcely relate to him? How do we love a God who is often
depicted as angry, wrathful, judgmental and violent in the pages of the Bible and
by people who claim to represent God to others? How do we love someone we
cannot see or touch? These are questions I believe many thoughtful people who
want to know God ask themselves.
Loving requires a relationship. And it is not natural for us to love someone
who frightens or intimidates us, or someone to whom we cannot relate. And many
of God’s people, indeed all of us at one time or another, have done God a great
disservice in the way we have chosen to represent God to others, because we
have spent so much of our time judging and condemning others in God’s name,
proclaiming who is in and who is out, who is saved and who is lost.
I of course cannot tell you how you go about loving God; I can only tell you
how I have come to love God. I am able to love God through loving Jesus. The
letter of Colossians quoted above announces that Jesus Christ is the image of the
invisible God, in whom the fullness of God was pleased to dwell. In Jesus God has
a face, and flesh and blood, God has humanity I can relate to and embrace, God
has qualities and character I can admire and aspire to, even if I can’t replicate
them. And he showed us so much of God’s nature that doesn’t come through
consistently in the scriptures. In his words and actions he revealed a God who
embraces all of humanity, even those who are despised and marginalized, taught
us about a God who welcomes home a prodigal, indeed, does not even wait for
the lost to return but goes in search of them in the wilderness, a God who pays all
of the workers in the vineyard the same wage whether they worked only one hour
or an entire day. Jesus embodied God’s incomparable grace and mercy to us in
that while he hung in agony on a cross he forgave his enemies who put him there
and his friends who abandoned him in his trial. He is the image of the invisible
God and I love him for it, and therefore I am able to love the Lord my God.
We love God by loving our neighbors. Of course this is fraught with great
difficulty, because Jesus showed us that our neighbors are not just those who live
close by, who most likely resemble us in many ways. Neighbors are not just the
people who look like us, speak the same language, share the same religious and
political views as we do. We may not respect some of our neighbors, we may
not like them, but we are called upon to love them. And of course we can’t much
of the time. Our capacity to love God and others has many conditions and
limitations. Fortunately, God’s love for us, as made visible in Jesus, knows no
such boundaries.
The law commands that we love God and neighbors as ourselves. The
problem is my love of self, and my love of things, sometimes gets in the way of
loving God and others as I should. But because I am supremely grateful for and
humbled by the love of God for me that I in no way merit, I will ask God to
expand the reach of my love, so that as I continue to grow in the likeness of
Jesus, my love will also grow to include those I cannot now bring myself to love.
This is my prayer, for myself, and for all who endeavor to answer the call
to love Lord God with all our being, and our neighbors as ourselves. Blessings!
Pastor Mike
Music & Arts
Camp
VBS 2019
Please help All Saints Lutheran Church in marking the 25TH ANNIVERSARY
OF THE ORDINATION OF THE REV. KIM ALAN STOVER
All Saints Lutheran Church at 722 Rockbridge Road in Lilburn Georgia will host a service
of celebration and luncheon reception on Sunday, July 28th, 2019. Members of AGLC are
invited to join them for worship, or simply attend the luncheon afterward, starting about
noon, Friends, colleagues and congregants to send cards or letters of congratulations to
Pastor Stover. We will collect and present them to him at the celebration on July 28th
Mail to:
25th Anniversary Committee
All Saints Lutheran Church
722 Rockbridge Road, SW
Lilburn, GA 30047
THRIVENT NIGHT AT THE GWINNETT STRIPERS We hope you can join us for Thrivent Night at the Gwinnett Stripers - rescheduled
for Saturday, July 6! This event is hosted by the Thrivent Member Network -
Southeast Region. Bring your family and friends to cheer on the home team with us!
We'll have time for fellowship and a picnic buffet of ballpark favorites. Our generosity
project will focus on Gwinnett County Habitat for Humanity. Please bring items to bless
families: food/pantry items, laundry and cleaning products or paper goods.
If you already purchased tickets, they are still valid for July 6, and can be picked
up at the Thrivent check in table. If you're unable to join us, you may use your
tickets at a future home game. Please email us at [email protected] if
you cannot join us. We’re looking forward to seeing you there!
Saturday, July 6, 2019; 5:00 p.m.
Coolray Field 2500 Buford Dr, Lawrenceville, GA
LAWRENCEVILLE CO-OP This week we are celebrating our 1 year Anniversary in the building. We have felt all the
prayers and support while we made this transition. Looking forward to what God has in
store for this next year.
We had been blessed with many donations in the last month but our reserves are getting
low. With summer in full swing (families can come twice a month with school-aged
children), our shelves are starting to look empty. Last week was one of our busiest
weeks. We are in need of many items to keep up with the increased demand. Please let
your members know that we are in NEED. If anyone can do a last minute Food Drive,
that would be wonderful.
Most Needed Items
Sweet Potatoes/Yams
Whole Corn and Cream Corn
Greens
Soups (Chicken, Vegetable, Tomato and Beef)
Tuna, Chicken
Chili
Crackers, Oatmeal
Spaghetti Sauce
Peaches
Dish Soap, Laundry Detergent
Shampoo, Bar Soap
Toothpaste
Feminine Needs
Weekly Totals
145 Households Seeking Help
32 New Clients
14 Clients Seeking Shelter (6 assist)
$3528.87 Financial Assistance
Reminder: We will be Closed July 4th - 7th for Independence Day
Weekly Ministries at Amazing Grace: Prayer Discernment Group, meets on the 2nd & the 4th Mondays of the
month in the Sanctuary @ 7 pm
Piano Class, meets on every Friday @ 5:00 pm in the Fellowship Hall in
the Fall
Good Old Guys Group, meets every Tuesday at the Bethesda Park
Senior Center @ 11 am
Pastor-led Bible Study, meets on the 1st, 3rd & 4th Tuesdays of the
month in the Fellowship Hall @ 6:30 pm
Alleluia Girls Bible Study, will resume every Wednesday starting on
September 29 @ 9:30 am
Homework Help, meets every Wednesday in the Fellowship Hall @ 5:30
pm
Men's Barnabas Reunion Group, meets every Thursday in the Youth
Room @ 7 pm
NA Group, meets every Thursday in the Fellowship Hall @ 7:30 pm
Men's Breakfast, meets every Friday @ the IHOP on Hwy 29 @ 8:00 am
Name Birthday
Amanda Lee 7/4
Rudy Beilfuss 7/7
Michael Angles 7/8
Edward Irwin 7/10
John Ferguson 7/20
Debra Linke 7/20
Arlene Usry 7/31
Amazing Grace Lutheran Church
Council Minutes
June 11 2019 @ 7:00PM
In Attendance: Trish Ladd-Thomas, Jimmy Herchek, Liz Linke, Pas-
tor Mike, Bob Lee, Bob Schwartz, Debi Linke, Sandee Page, Bob MacKinnon, Joe Murray, Lee Bennett
Absent:
Guests: Lisa Larsen-Moss, Robin Clavijo, Vickie Speddon, Debbie Teal
Opening devotional: Lee Bennett
Secretary’s Report: The May minutes were approved via email consensus on May 28 2019. There are
no updates or corrections to the minutes.
Combined Treasurer and Financial Administrator’s Report for May
May 2019 Regular Giving was $18,139.00 which is $3,779.00 over budget. Expenses were
$17,859.79, which was $1,347.95 over budget. Giving continues to grow in 2019; we had a surprisingly
strong month for giving and we exceeded budget by several thousand dollars. On the down side we had
another big unexpected air conditioning breakdown though that cost over $1300 to repair. Other than
that it was a really great month!
May 2019 YTD Income was $4,496.27 less than May 2018 YTD Income.
May 2019 YTD Expenses were $3,069.18 more than May 2018 YTD Expenses.
2019 Year to Date Giving/Income is $7,143.57 over budget.
2019 Year to Date Expenses are $521.28 over budget.
Dedicated Accounts – We have a balance of $39,514.11 in various accounts, which includes
receipts of $1,459.34 and expenses of $1,489.02 for May 2019 in dedicated accounts.
May 2019 cash on hand is $98,305.07 which includes $39,514.11 in Dedicated funds; therefore, not in
reserve/not liquid for general expenses.
THE COMBINED REPORT IS APPROVED BY CONSENSUS VOTE
PASTOR’S REPORT FOR May – JUNE 2019
Statistics:
1. Home Visits = 8
2. Hospital Visits = 7
3. Homebound/nursing home = 5
4. Worship Services/preaching = 4
5. Synod Meetings = 2 (2019 Synod Assembly, Magi Conference)
6. Church Meetings = 5
7. Youth Events = 1
8. Vacation Days = 1 Sunday. I have used two of my Sundays for the year.
9. Baptisms = 0
10. Funerals = 0
11. Weddings = 0
12. A youth lock–in was held at the church May 17 and 18. In one respect this was the most successful
youth event of the entire year for us, as at one point we had 13 youth in attendance, though only 11
spent the night. It began on Friday evening with outdoor group games and activities, and a cook-out
on the little used grill out front. As it turned dark the group played manhunt with flash lights indoors
and outdoors, a nod to past youth groups as this was a favorite game to play. The group watched a
movie together in the basement. They were treated to a movie from the 1970s by Pastor Mike called,
“Meatballs” starring Bill Murray. They actually seemed to enjoy it. The group hung out and played
board games and other amusements until about 12:30 a.m. Then everyone (chaperones included)
bedded down in the sanctuary. After a restful night’s sleep—NOT—the group got up and had a
devotional time with Pastor Mike, in which we talked about milestones, like school letting out and
looking forward to summer and high school graduations. Nicole Speddon was recognized as the
group’s only graduate and was presented with an autographed stuffed animal signed by everyone in
the group. The group cooked breakfast together, pancakes and bacon and sausage. The event came
to an end by 11:00 a.m. The event was enjoyed by all who participated!
13. A major focus of the last month has been preparing for VBS and Music and Arts Camp. Lois Simon
and I finally got together to discuss strategy, where we talked about age levels and what we
realistically think we can accomplish this year with music and arts. Frankly, we waited too long to
begin planning for the program we wanted to run. With so many demands associated with Easter,
and all of Lois’ other commitments, we only met to plan a week after Easter, and that didn’t provide
enough lead time to prepare publicity and utilize the school to help distribute information as we
planned. However, with the help of Ana Reyes spreading the word and passing out literature in her
community, and Pastor Mike taking the time to drive through the community on Sunny Acres next
door to the church passing out flyers and registration forms, we have spread the word as much as we
can at this point. We have 17 registrations to date, and will register additional participants on
Wednesday when the camp begins. We are offering art classes (taught by yours truly), piano taught
by Lois Simon, and guitar lessons taught by Deby Brady. Arts and music will meet from 3 – 5 p.m. on
Wednesdays, until July 17. I would be remiss if I didn’t add that offering guitar this year was only
made possible by all the folks at AGLC who allowed us to borrow guitars, including members of the
good ‘ol guys who contributed money to buy a few beginner guitars to be used. So indeed this has
been a congregational effort. Pray for us, as this is in many ways a new undertaking, and we are sure
to learn a lot from it. Our thinking is that in the future is (1) we will get started earlier with
preparations for the camp, and (2) we will schedule it completely separately from VBS, perhaps
during one week in the summer, and have the camp meet every day that week for a period of time in
the morning or evening.
14. VBS begins Wednesday, June 12 from 5:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Judie Lee has planned the themes and
Bible stories for each of the evenings around the overall theme of “God is the Greatest Superhero
Ever.” Still not entirely sure what my role is except that I will be teaching on the passage “The whole
armor of God” from Ephesians on the last night. We have had a good response from people
volunteering to help, so we anticipate that we should have enough adult supervision for the 30 -35
children we anticipate will be participating. Summer is going to be busy around AGLC, but it should
be exciting also, as it will provide us with some opportunities for outreach, and it will see some follow
through on some of the mission planning and visioning we have done together.
15. In keeping with my “Company Is Coming” plug to straighten up the basement and narthex. I have
set aside some hours in my day and have been going downstairs where I have cleaned and organized
the Sunday school closet, and the book shelf. I also discarded a great deal of stuff that has not been
used at all during the time I have been here at AGLC. All the Sunday school sheets and coloring
material are now gathered into one box, scissors, glue, paint all in one place, craft supplies, crayons,
pencils, markers have their own containers. I removed all the homework help related materials in
anticipation of myself or someone else going through and organizing the homework help closet. Some
may not consider this an appropriate pastoral endeavor, but I was simply trying to lead by example,
and I am hoping the result will be that we will all begin to take a little more pride in our facility as we
hope to welcome visitors among us!
16. After a great deal of effort, I thought I had pinned down a presenter for the church hall meeting I was
planning on the last Sunday of the month. Unfortunately, Karen Stephenson, the person I had
sought out to speak to our congregation on outreach to persons with no church of faith background,
has been involved in the process to receive another call, and has accepted one, outside of the Atlanta
area. It turns out that after agreeing to be with us on June 30, she learned that she is to begin her
new call on that date and won’t be able to be with us after all. She referred me to her assistant at the
Atlanta Bar Church, but he also is not available on that date. I will be in conversation with him, but
at this point, we are into summer, and I am wondering if it wouldn’t be better to wait until fall.
17. Tricia Powell and I attended Synod Assembly May 30 – June 1, where the Assembly elected a new
bishop, Kevin Strickland to succeed Julian Gordy who will retire at the end of August. The Assembly
sessions were quite long this year as it took five ballots to elect a bishop. But there were wonderful
worship opportunities, as well as workshops. Bishop Gordy invited one of his colleagues to present a
Bible study on three passages from Ephesians. The final candidates for Bishop gave some interesting
insight into where we are as a synod. Kevin Strickland, our Bishop elect, is gay and partnered,
though I’m certain he doesn’t wish to be defined by this. The second of the final three candidates was
a African American woman from Montgomery, AL, and the third of the three final candidates was also
a woman. These three might not seem like obvious choices to some in our congregation or synod,
but if we trust that the Holy Spirit was involved with the selection of Bishop in our Synod, then as has
so often been the case biblically, God does not necessarily call the obvious persons for a job. Let us
pray for Kevin, that God will use his unique gifts and leadership to move our synod and our
congregations to be in step with God’s will for us! Let us also pray for Julian Gordy as he retires,
having served our synod well and faithfully for 12 years!
18. Thank Yous: To the congregation for the recognition of the 30th Anniversary of my ordination. This
was surprising for me, mostly because each year at Synod Assembly, the Synod recognizes
anniversaries, and I expected to hear my name mentioned along with the others who were
acknowledged for 30 years of ordained ministry, but my name was overlooked. I chaulked it up to
being new to the synod, and didn’t concern myself with it further. So if the synod failed to recognize
the anniversary, I never expected AGLC to be aware of it. But the celebration was nice and I thank
the congregation very much! I also want to offer thanks to Lois Simon, who has put a great deal of
energy into preparing for the Arts and Music Camp, in spite of a very busy life, personally and
professionally outside of AGLC. She has certainly gone way above and beyond her role as a member
of the staff for this undertaking. I thank her for caring so much about the congregation’s outreach. I
also want to say thank you again to Roger Nagy for all the hard physical labor he has provided
cutting down all the thorny, vine-like vegetation around the trees on our property. He also received
some assistance from Art Scott, Bob Kohler, and Bob MacKinnon.
COMMISSION REPORTS
Nurture – Debi Linke/Vickie Speddon
No report submitted.
Discipleship – Sandee Page/Bob MacKinnon
• VBS starts tomorrow (6/12). The overall theme is “God is the Greatest Superhero Ever.”
• Sunday School teachers met 5/20 after the semi-annual meeting to discuss the previous year as well
as ideas for next year. Sunday school is scheduled to resume 9/22, with Rally Day the week before on
9/15.
Outreach – Bob MacKinnon/Wayne Linke
• 2 dates for a Habitat Build, one in July & one in September. Hoping to sign us up for the July date
since we have God’s Work Our Hands in September. We’ve pledged $600 which allows us to take 5
volunteers to the build.
Worship & Music – Bob Schwartz/Debbie Teal
• The month of May was all about the continued enthusiasm as the “Sundays after Easter”.
• We even enjoyed Cinco de Mayo … Lutheran Style.
• The children’s choir, under the leadership of Robin Clavijo, pleased us again with a wonderful song on
Mother’s day at 11:00.
• The Summer Schedule of 8:30 and 10:00 started May 26th.
• We continually need more volunteers for Hospitality, Acolytes, Readers, Children Messengers,
PowerPoint Operators, Worship Assistants, etc. We can also always use more singers in our choir and
soloists or small groups, especially during the summer schedule months.
Property – Lee Bennett
• Replaced office heat pump compressor. Please note that we got the parts at cost, labor donated and I
provided the replacement refrigerant.
• Fellowship hall A/C was not cooling. Found stuck main contractor in condensing unit. Cleaned and
tested with no further problems noted.
• Met with cleaning contractor and got quote for church cleaning. Will present details at the next
council meeting.
COMMISSION REPORTS ARE APPROVED BY CONSENSUS VOTE
Old Business
• Pest Control Update? Bob Lee has not been able to find information on our current contract, either on
our end or from the pest control company. He has stopped paying because the company isn’t giving him
any information. He has a proposed new contract that was forwarded to him from Pastor for $150 a year;
he is going to call and confirm that the price quoted is accurate; if it is then we will move forward with
the new contract.
• Updated Directory - Debbie Teal believes that when we did our last directory we paid for an editable
file of the contact info section of the directory that can be updated and reissued. She will be in contact
with the photo company to inquire as to how we go about doing that.
• Further business on facilities usage and groups that wish to use our church: Jimmy and Joe have a
plan set but it is not ready for a vote/approval. They have created an application for using the facility. If
the application is accepted byAGLC then we will go back to the applicant with a contract. Jimmy & Joe
brought some points to the council for consideration, i.e., sanctuary usage, kitchen usage, key distribu-
tion. They will come back next month with the policy, application, and contract for council approval.
• Cleaning Service update: Lee has spoken with George from Quality Plus Janitorial Services and has a
bid, he is looking to get at least one more bid before making a decision.
• AFFIRM Update: Madelyn & Nicole are both ready to go and will be leaving for AFFIRM on Sunday,
both youth’s registration fees have been paid in full thanks to the generosity of members buying goodies
at the bake sale!
• HR committee - needs two more people. Parry and Sandee are going off. Pam R and Vickie S remain.
Any updates on new members? Sandee has said that she will stay on until she can be replaced. From Li-
sa, Parry will help out as needed until his replacement is appointed. Terms are 2 years. Please be think-
ing & praying about who might be a good fit for the HR committee.
New Business
• Council Retreat - we are going to postpone having a council retreat until the fall, the retreat will be
discussed more at future council meetings.
Follow up from May’s Exec session: Robin was excused and the council went into executive session.
Thank You’s
• To Eduardo Hernandez and Jennifer Hernandez for preaching on April 29.
• To Rev Ruth Hamilton, the guest Pastor on May 26
• To John Rhilinger as the guest worship leader on June 2.
• Thank you to Lee Bennett for his expertise and connections to get our A/C unit up and running again
for much less money than it could have cost!
• Roger Nagy and his crew for all their hard work to clear out all the underbrush, vines, etc. around the
church property.
• See item 16 in pastor’s report for his thank you’s
• Thank you to everyone who donated guitars and money for the Arts & Music camp!
• Thank you to everyone who helped organize and brought food stuffs for the potluck (SURPRISE!) in
honor or Pastor Mike’s 30th anniversary of his ordination.
• Thank you Elaine Schwartz for representing our church as the scriptwriter for Synod Assembly
• Thank you to Pastor & Trish for attending the Synod Assembly during a hectic election year
Prayer & Devotion for July: Sandee Page
Closing Prayer & Benediction
CONSENSUS TO ADJOURN
Respectfully submitted by Liz Linke.
Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 1 6:30 pm
Peachtree Trombone
Consort
2 11 am Good
Old Guys Meet
3 NO Ministry 4 Happy 4th of
July
5 8:00 am
Men’s Group
6 Fundraiser
for
Lutheridge
2019 @ 7
am to 5 pm
7 8:30 Worship
Service; 10 am
Worship Service
8 6:30 pm
Peachtree
Trombone
Consort; 7:00 pm
Prayer Discernment
Group
9 9:30 am Visita-
tion Ministry;
11 am Good Old
Guys Meet; 7:00
pm Council
Meeting
10 9:30 am Alle-
luia Girls; 3:00 pm
Music and Arts;
5:00 pm VBS; 7:30
Choir Practice
11 7 pm Men’s
Barnabas Group;
7:30 pm NA Group
12
8:00 am Men’s
Group
13
14 8:30 Worship
Service; 10 am
Worship Service
15
6:30 pm Peachtree
Trombone
Consort
16
11 am Good Old
Guys Meet
17 9:30 am
Alleluia Girls; 3:00
pm
Music and Arts;
5:00 pm VBS; 7:30
Choir Practice
18
7 pm Men’s
Barnabas Group;
7:30 pm NA Group
19
8:00 am Men’s
Group
20
21 8:30
Worship Service;
10 am
Worship Service
22 6:30 pm Peachtree
Trombone
Consort; 7:00 pm
Prayer Discernment
Group
23 11 am Good
Old Guys Meet
24 9:30 am
Alleluia Girls; 3:00
pm Music and Arts;
5:00 pm VBS; 7:30
Choir Practice
25 7 pm Men’s
Barnabas Group;
7:30 pm NA Group
26 8:00 am Men’s
Group
27
28 8:30 Worship
Service; 10 am
Worship Service
29 6:30 pm
Peachtree
Trombone
Consort
30 11 am Good Old
Guys Meet
31 9:30 am
Alleluia Girls; 3:00
pm Music and Arts;
5:00 pm VBS; 7:30
Choir Practice
