Third Lutheran

Church

31 Livingston St.

Rhinebeck, NY

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Pastor’s 2007 report to Third Evangelical Lutheran Church

 

If it is true that all bad news is reported and that good news goes un-noticed this would be a blank page.  I want to thank and congratulate Third Lutheran and all of the members for filling the year and this report with good news. 

 

Most of the members who were taken into membership in the fall of 2006 were well integrated into Third.  The members received in February and September are gifts that we all continue to embrace. The year was a year of growth in membership and attendance.  When we took our survey for natural growth development we scored well in the area of celebrative worship.  From my observation I am certain that if taken today our score would be increased. Carl and the entire evangelism committee working with natural church growth have kept the issues of natural church growth to the fore. Youth participation in worship has increased. We now have two young people serving on the altar.  The Sunday school students again did an outstanding job in both the Christmas and Easter dramatic presentations.

 

Celebration has followed celebration at Third Lutheran. All the committees have functioned well and the activities have been congregational and community successes. The vacation Bible school program headed by Joanne and Kristin and supported by nearly every able bodied member established a level of community participation that surpassed expectations. The September chicken BBQ was an experience in working together and a meal which will be remembered. The fall festival was far more than the sale of “Junk for Jesus”, it was an event.  We turned down a fifty dollar offer for an old wardrobe that did not look like much and at the orders of Kay hauled it to her house, set it on the lawn and I think Kay sold it for four hundred dollars.  People from the community and even from New York City came and sat at the tables visiting and eating hot dogs served up by Neal, Henry, and Ernie.

 

The spring and Christmas musicals put on by the inspiration of Kara and the perspiration of several other hard working women to include Kim and Elaine was a community celebration of the ability of young musicians and the appreciation of talent and effort by those of us who applauded.  The father of one of the participants asked, “Who brought and prepared all this food?”  Following the December program an informal musical program continued. What a celebration.

 

We also celebrated the overcoming of all sorts of problems.  The roof leaked. It was fixed.  The carpet on the stairs and the downstairs floors looked bad and smelled worse. The downstairs hall and Sunday school rooms were painted.  A chair rail was added to the hall and new carpet was laid down in the hall. A crew of men and Sandy, who swings a mean paint brush, made a difference.

The steam radiators fell off the wall in the social hall and the furnace had to be

replaced.  There was no end of work for the property committee headed by

Charlie.  The tenacity of President Monica, Treasurer Gary and every member of

The congregational council made things happen.

 

The wonderful celebration of the ordinary is to be commended. Breakfasts, coffee and food at all the receptions, the care of the altar, the ordering of the flowers and preparing of the nave for the seasons of the church year; you have done a lot of heavy lifting this year. But the most wonderful celebration of all is that we continue to meet in the name of Father, Son and Holy Spirit to celebrate the gift of faith and receive the forgiveness of sin and the body and blood of Christ.