CrossRoadsMONTHLY NEWSLETTER

JANUARY 2020

PRINCE OF PEACECHURCH AND SCHOOL

We are the heart, hands, and feet of Jesus — in the heart of Orlando.

JANUARY 20202

3 8 PASTOR’S FEATURE

GRACE UPON GRACE

CONTENTS JANUARY 2020

MINISTRIES4 Preschool

5 Food Pantry

6 Affinity Groups

8 Sunday School

9 Youth Ministry

OTHER9 Upcoming Events

10 Our Life Together

11 Board of Directors

11 Online Church Directory

This newsletter is published monthly as a service to members and friends of: Prince of Peace Lutheran Church & Preschool 1515 S Semoran Blvd. Orlando, Florida 32807

Contact Us: Worship on Sundays:Church (407) 277-3945 8:15 am - TraditionalPreschool (407) 275-6703 10:45 am - ContemporaryFax (407) 380-1802 11:00 am - Servicio en españolEmail staff@poporlando.com

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The average monthly cost to produce, print, and distribute the CrossRoads is $100.

JANUARY 2020 3

“He must become greater; I must become less.” John 3:30

We’re not just beginning a new year…it’s a whole new decade. Doesn’t that sound remarkable? (And, does that make this the “roaring twenties”?)

I’ve been thinking about what will be different this year, as well as what will be different in the next decade. What will I do to become a better person, a better husband, a better dad, a better pastor and leader? In other words, what things can I focus on now that will make a world of difference 1 year, 5 years, 10 years from now? (By the way, what are you focusing on? Health? Habits? Attitudes? Actions?)

I’ve always been struck, though (and maybe this is true only of me), as soon as my focus shifts more and more to the things I want to change about myself, I tend to either become hyper-focused on what is not right with me (and perhaps what progress I’m failing to make), or I get caught up in what I’m getting right and perhaps begin fawning over that. While those are two extremes, doesn’t looking at the periphery make it a little more challenging to find what centers you, what grounds you?

In our spiritual life at Prince of Peace/Príncipe de Paz, we begin this new year and new decade wanting to be more grounded, centered on “nobody but Jesus,” you might say. In Him is perfect love, perfect acceptance from our Father above; and if it is time for a change, there is perfect power in Jesus as the Spirit of God works in our lives. Our grounding is in the only One who is capable of taking our brokenness and making us whole: We stay centered in Jesus.

I believe that as we are more and more grounded in Jesus, we not only become more mindful of who He is, but we come to a greater understanding of who we are as His followers. Then transformation happens. Then passion for Christ reignites. Then a witness and a testimony begin.

Then we see more clearly what it is all about: Jesus becomes greater, and I become less. Then by God’s grace we begin (as the Christian band Casting Crowns has put it) “living for the world to see nobody but Jesus.”

“Nobody but Jesus”

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KATHY HUDSON

November’s Prince of Peace/Principe de Paz Food Pantry was held on Saturday, November 23. The Food Pantry event was partnered with the Fall Clothing Distribution. Last year, November’s Food Pantry served 360 families, so we were prepared for a larger than usual crowd. We were able to give out fresh peppers and tomatoes, canned goods, pasta along with 2 lb hams and other frozen meat, bread and desserts. When we closed our doors, we had only 1 pound of frozen ground beef remaining in our freezer and had almost tied last years distribution!! We were blessed to have served 357 families for a total of 1,573 individuals! We had 45 wonderful volunteers —29 of which were runners who take out the groceries to waiting cars, and the remaining helped with the actual food distribution. We were happy to report that the volunteers included 5 High School Youths from Colonial High School and 1 of our own PoP Youth!!

If you are interested in volunteering with the Food Pantry, there are several ways to do so! You can help pre-package the food during the weeks prior to the distribution day, help on the actual day of distribution—either as a runner or handing out the groceries. You can donate food items such as chunky soups, pasta, cans of tuna, jars of peanut butter, or donate money to help support this wonderful outreach ministry!

We wish to thank all those for their generous donations to the Compassion Project. Handed out in Downtown Orlando on December 23 to those in need: 26 really full bags were handed out containing new socks, hat, scarf, flashlight, hygiene kit, fleece blanket, candy bar, fresh fruit (special thanks to our Young at Heart group), letter of Christmas greeting from our church, and a list of community resources available here in Orlando. - SJ

Loaves & Fishesmonthly updates from the prince of peace food pantry

Compassion Project

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KATHY MCCARTIN

We were able to finish the year with our annual Christmas potluck party in the Family Life Center on December 11. A special thank you is given to our Preschool for coming to sing songs of the season to us. They were awesome.

This year we shared our blessings with SeniorsFirst by donating 56 fleece blankets to their holiday drive. Thank you all who donated to this worthy outreach.

And last but not least, we want to thank all who participated in our Peanut fund raiser. We have over $400 to distribute toward missions. We will be listing out our missions and contributions next month. We will also be touring Luther Haven and having lunch for our January meeting, so watch for the announcement in the bulletin.

Thank You!The staff at Prince of Peace/Príncipe de Paz Church and Preschool express our heartfelt thanks to all those who contributed to the staff Christmas gift this year. Your grace and generosity are so much appreciated.

We also want to thank all those who helped prepare God’s house for our celebration of Christ’s birth, and all who made that celebration phenomenal. Thank you to all those who helped decorate, putting up trees, lights, Chrismons; all those who helped plan, print, and our “Holy Folders”; all those who shopped for Angel Tree gifts and wrapped or helped distribute those; the crew that helped deep clean our Sanctuary on the day before Christmas Eve; those who assembled the candles or strung yarn lanyards for glow sticks for Silent Night; our worship servants, including ushers, Communion Assistants, Scripture readers, choirs, musicians, acolytes; and so many more. Each of you truly make our Christmas special for everyone God draws to worship Jesus, born in Bethlehem.

JOANNE HAHN

Wow! What a December we had! Our Christmas sale was very well received by our congregation. We have great, willing workers, wonderful bakers, and the best buyers. Some women that don’t even attend LWML baked for us this year. Thank you. We made about 80 cookie plates with 22 cookies on every plate. Some cookies were large, others really small. But all very delicious, I’ll bet. We made 24 dog treats with a tennis ball on each container. Those sold out quickly and we needed more. Next year we’ll make 36! We made 40 soups, either chili or farmhouse soup. Almost all were sold after all services. It seemed like men were the “great buyers”. So again, thanks to all. Remember all money will be donated to missions. I’ll give you an exact figure of the sales in another month or two.

I wasn’t able to get a total on mites for last month.

Our Christmas party was December 18, before this article was due. I’m looking forward to having lot of fun with those friendly women at PoP LWML. If you didn’t come to the party, why not come to the January meeting at 10:30 on Wednesday, January 15. We will be making baskets for the staff of the preschool. Come help us.

One of our missions we support each month is Mission Outreach for at risk young women in Africa through Lutheran Hour Ministries for $100,000. Women in Kenya and Cameroom living in extreme poverty and violence, hunger, limited education receive the word of God from Lutheran Hour Ministries (LHM). Through ministry centers, the LHM reaches out by sharing hope and faith in Jesus, changing the lives of these women both physically and spiritually. Please pray for them.

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LU BURCHFIELD

HAPPY NEW YEAR! Did you make any new resolutions for 2020? The Angels are inspired to do more and recruit more in the year 2020. We are motivated by the large turnout at our 2nd Annual Winterfest and how many people purchased so many hand-crafted items for Christmas giving. All remaining appropriate items were donated to a charitable organization and the local Palmer Hospitals.

We will be receiving this month the total items crafted and donated to the Winnie and Arnold Palmer Hospitals and will have the numbers to publish in February. With Needles and Threads partnering with us we supply both hospitals with many, many items which represent many, many hours of dedicated volunteers who gather every other Thursday in the POP boardroom to turn in their finished items. We also donate many items to Lutheran Haven, POP Preschool, Baptisms. We supply shawls and lap robes to those going through an illness or death in the family. Should you like to learn more about this beautiful ministry, please join us some first or third Thursday, 10 am in the boardroom. You’ll be inspired by what we do!

LU BURCHFIELD

HAPPY 2020 TO YOU! We are excited to start another year of fellowship of retired friends who enjoy a monthly outing at great restaurants in the surrounding Orlando area. We’re hoping to increase our numbers so if you have enjoyed the time spent with other diners, invite a friend; if you are reading this and have not had the experience yet…come on! Join us at one of the restaurants listed below.

January 9, Olive Garden Italian Restaurant, 3111 E Colonial Drive, Orlando 11:30 am

February 13, Boston Fish House, Aloma Square Shopping Center, Winter Park, 11:30 am

March 12, Perkins Restaurant and Bakery, 6425 University Blvd, Winter Park, 11:30 am

April 9, Cheese Cake Factory, Winter Park Village, 520 N Orlando Ave, Winter Park, 11:30 am

May 14, Longhorn Steakhouse, 3101 E Colonial Drive, Orlando, 11:30 am

June 11, Bahama Breeze, 1200 N Alafaya Trail, Waterford Lakes, 11:30 am

So, mark your calendars and plan on joining us for some of the best food, best servers and the best friends. This is your chance to get to know each other better!

out toLUNCH

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The Joy of Grace upon Grace

TOM ZEHNDER

When we first talked about our Grace Upon Grace theme, I prayed that it would create anticipation and excitement, and that it would lead all of us to experience a sense of pure joy. Our recent sermon series on Joy has served as a beautiful reminder of that prayer.

Well my friends, we can all rejoice, because God has poured out His grace in abundance on Prince of Peace/Principe de Paz through our stewardship campaign.

You may recall that last year we received 84 commitment cards, totaling pledges of $396,016. Our congregation – like our gracious God – has remained faithful to those pledges and, to date, we’ve collected 97% of them. God has truly blessed us with his Grace.

This year we received 123 commitment cards, an overall 46% increase in participation. The total pledged was $504,238, a 27% increase over last year’s total. That is Grace Upon Grace!

We compared the pledges of folks who had submitted cards both for 2019 and for 2020, and that analysis revealed exciting results. We had one giver who had pledged $10 last year. This year that same giver pledged $520! 37 of the 123 pledgers increased their commitment in 2020 over that in 2019, and 12 of those givers increased their pledges by 50% or more.

Overall, we ended up with an average increase in 2020 pledges of 139.64%. That’s an annual average dollar increase of over $500 per giver, and a total increase among those same givers of over $34,000. And that is Grace upon Grace.

We have so much good work to do here at Prince of Peace/Principe de Paz. God has blessed all of us in abundance with the time, the talents, and the treasures we need to do that great work (2 Corinthians 9:8).

So let’s press on folks! And as we honor our 2020 commitments and continue to respond to God’s plan for us, may God continue to bless and keep us all in his Grace upon Grace!

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In Youth Ministry, January is always an exciting time because it is time for ROCK THE UNIVERSE at Universal Studios. Prince of Peace Youth will attend on Friday, January 24th when such acts as: Newsboys, Switchfoot, Tenth Avenue North, The Afters, Tauren Wells and Tedashii ( My favorite Japeanese Christian Rapper or all time!) Ticket information will be sent to Youth families soon!

Registration is still open for the Youth Summer Mission Trip to Charleston, SC on July 11-18. Please contact me ASAP to register for this amazing service opportunity.

Youth Spirit Nights return this month- this time at Broadway Ristorante and Pizzeria! Broadway has been a sponsor of Winterfest, Youth ministry events and other activities at Prince of Peace and we are happy to have our Spirit Night there. They are located just across Semoran from the church. It will be on Tuesday, January 14th from 5:00-9:00 pm for both dine in and carry out. Sorry- alcohol sales are not included. Just tell your server that you are with the Prince of Peace Spirit Night and our Youth will receive a percentage of your sale.

ERIC GERKEN

How is your vision? When things start to get blurry we know that it is time to get our vision checked. For our comfort and safety, we want to make sure that we can see clearly. People tend to take actually being able to see what they are doing and where they are going seriously.

This year at Prince of Peace, we will be focused on ( see what I did there?) helping people to see Jesus clearly in 2020. While we can never know our God completely this side of Heaven, we can draw nearer to him and take a closer look at what he says about himself.

One major way we want to do this for families is with our DIG IN Sunday School. DIG IN helps kids interact with Bible stories to help them understand who God is and what he has done for us. We use kid friendly methods like videos, crafts, games and play acting. It is designed for kids Age 4-Grade 5. In this New Year, we pray that your family will seek out a closer relationship with God for your child with Dig In.

In January, the Youth Sunday Morning Class is experiencing the script of the musical “Godspell”. Under the leadership of volunteer leader Nina Rojas, students will explore Scripture and the script to experience the Gospels through the eyes of the disciples. This will be a fun and insightful way to see Jesus more clearly in 2020.

JANUARY 202010

Saturday, February 15, 2020 in the Family Life CenterThe Prince of Peace Concert Series is excited to welcome back Re-Creation USA, Inc. as part of the 2019-2020 series! Their all-new show, Color Me America, is a grand celebration highlighting the most popular American songs of all time. It features dynamic, vibrant vocals; high-energy dance and choreography; lavish, original costuming; and a grand patriotic finale!

Doors open at 6:30 pm. This event will be held in the Family Life Center. Admission is free — donations are gratefully encouraged.

For more information on the 2019-2020 Prince of Peace Concert Series visit our website.

Helping Others—Spreading Hope(Your gift to the “Pastors’ Discretionary Fund” can help!)

Through the ministries of Prince of Peace people most certainly experience “the heart, hands, and feet of Jesus—in the heart of Orlando.”

One way in which people experience this hope in real and tangible ways is through the “Pastors’ Discretionary Fund.” This fund is the pipeline to provide assistance to individuals and families who come through our doors with acute, and sometimes critical needs that are currently unmet in their lives.

Helping these families and individuals in real, tangible ways gives us an avenue to demonstrate we care as we listen compassionately; opportunity to pray with those God leads to our door; and most importantly, occasion to share the Good News of the hope God gives us only through Christ.

In the community we serve, the need is great, and the opportunities to demonstrate and speak of God’s love are limitless. Your special gift (that is, above-and-beyond your regular gifts and offerings) to the “Pastors’ Discretionary Fund” can help meet the acute, critical needs of some, even as our staff comes alongside to help individuals and families discover resources and strategies that can guide them to greater independence in the long term.

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Pictures for the Prince of Peace/ Príncipe de Paz member directory will be taken January 29 - February 1, 2020 in the Family Life Center.

We need 100% participation from you! Have your portrait taken and receive a free 8x10 of your portrait session and a free church directory.

There are three easy ways to schedule:

1. www.poporlando.com/memberdirectory

2. Call the office at 407.277.3945

3. Signup onsite each Sunday between services

4. If you are interested in volunteering, contact Meridith Swanson at communications@poporlando.com.

BOD Present: Lindee Owens, Bob Zamsky, Rick Ackerman, Tom Zehnder, Katie Abercrombie, Kurt Bickel, Jen Hoge, Kathy Hudson, Jim Nocks, Andres Velez, Rev Ken Green (ex-officio)

Staff Present: Julianne Wiegand

Congregation Members Present: Jim Ingersoll, Chair-Finance Committee

Welcome Meeting called to order at 7:04 pm

• Approval of Today’s Agenda Lindee M/S/C to approve

• Approval of Minutes - Oct. meeting Lindee M/S/C to approve

Devotion Tom Z.

Discussion Topics• Budget 2020: PK to f/u with Financial Secretary

regarding envelopes for members who give online. Budget presented with Aspirational Income of $22,004. This breaks down to $13 per month per giving unit. To increase District support by 10% over proposed budget and to also increase Aspirational Income by same amount.

• Winterfest: Kurt provided an update on plans for Winterfest

• Senior Pastor report: PK spoke about our Vision statement and about living it out as one Prince of Peace/Principe de Paz. Our combined services this year brought a “bump” in attendance. Grace upon Grace Stewardship Emphasis: We have received 140 pledge cards so far this year compared to 74 last year.

• Third Income Source: Kurt presented a Financial Work Plan for 2019 to 2020 for various potential programs to create a 3rd source of income. Motion to form an advisory sub-committee of the board to develop our Work Plan and determine next steps.

Next Meeting - January 27, 2020

Adjourn - Prayer• M/S/C to adjourn at 8:56 pm

Respectfully submitted by Rick Ackerman, Secretary, BOD

Board of Directors Minutes November 18, 2019

ChurCh DireCtory Photos

1515 S Semoran Blvd. Orlando, FL 32807(407) 277-3945 • www.poporlando.com

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