Sunday sojourn: Pentecost Sunday was spent with the good folk of Christ Lutheran, Kokomo, IN. We celebrated the congregation’s 25th anniversary of being formed as a congregation from two other congregations coming together, gave thanks for 25 years of ministry by their excellent musician (and former synod staff member) Tom Dearchs, and burned their mortgage. All as next Sunday will be the last for their Pastor Sharon Walker as she retires. The good folks also prayed for Janet and me as my retirement is on the horizon and gifted us with a beautiful quilt made by the congregation’s quilters and a basket (also made by a member) filled with cards. To top it off the congregation is contributing to the Bill and Janet Gafkjen Endowment Fund for Leadership Development that is being established. Oh, and there was great food and fellowship afterward. As the congregation is in a Pentecost moment, standing on the threshold between what has been and what will be, scripture reminded us that, as for those ancient apostles on the first Pentecost after the death and resurrection of Jesus, God sends the Spirit of Jesus to guide and accompany us across each threshold and into God’s good future.

Words cannot begin to express my gratitude and appreciation for the beautiful cards, gifts, remembrances, and most generous financial gift from the members and friends of Christ Lutheran Church! Thank you so much! It was a glorious day!

--Tom Dearchs

Thank you to the many who helped with set-up, tear-down, dishwashing, etc., for the celebration event this past weekend. It was truly a wonderful weekend and I'm very grateful for all the assistance.

--Dee Ann Daniels

If you weren't at church on Sunday, May 19, 2024, or did not pick up a 25th Anniversary Commemorative mug and would like one, extras are located on the credenza in the Narthex. Please help yourself! A wonderful pen and pad of paper is also located inside the mug!

On Sunday, May 26, we will recognize and bless Stephanie Edwards, a recent graduate of Indiana University, Kokomo. Steph received her Bachelor's Degree in Education. She is one of our fantastic Choral Scholars! Congratulations, Steph!

For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.    Jeremiah 29:11

On Pentecost Sunday, Bishop Bill talked about being at a Pentecost time for our congregation, a liminal moment, on the threshold of seeing what has been and not yet able to see what is ahead. God has been preparing us for this moment for all our lives. The Council has worked through several Thom S. Rainer books to prepare for this liminal moment. These books have included Post Quarantine Church: Six Urgent Challenges and Opportunities That Will Determine the Future of Your Congregation, I Will: Nine Traits of the Outwardly Focused Christian, Becoming a Welcoming Church, I Am A Church Member, and currently-Anatomy of a Revived Church: Seven Findings about How Congregations Avoided Death. Last year we also studied a book by Jeffrey MacDonald, Part-Time is Plenty: Thriving without a Full-Time Clergy. So as you can see, over the past five years God has been preparing this congregation through the Council for this very moment.

This verse from Jeremiah reinforces the fact that God has not abandoned us but instead walks beside us and goes in front of us to prepare the way. There will be a lot of changes for both of us over the next several months. I will continue to hold you all in prayer as we step over the threshold into a ‘new thing’!

The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make His face to shine upon you and be gracious to you; the Lord lift up His countenance upon you and give you peace. -Numbers 6:24-26 (NRSVUE)                                                                               

God’s Peace,

Pastor Sharon

Pastor Sharon Walker

PS I am leaving my copies of these books on the bookshelves in the Luke Room if you would like to read them. They are all a quick read and have thought-provoking questions at the end of each chapter. 

As you know, Pastor Walker is retiring as Pastor of Christ Lutheran Church at the end of May. Her last Sunday with us will be May 26. Following the morning service, we will be having a carry-in luncheon. Please bring your favorite dish to share! Should you wish to make a monetary gift for Pastor Walker, please give your check to Dee Ann Daniels.

We hope you will be present on this day to thank Pastor Walker for her 13 years of service and to wish her well as she enters retirement.

Please click the link below to view/print the Council Notes for May 2024.

The Call Committee met on 8 May and discussed the call process with Pastor Dan Forehand. Some items discussed were pay and benefits, full or part-time call, and procedures to help us in this journey. Other items of note were given to us by Pastor Dan.

We were also given a flow chart of how the steps in this call process would evolve, of course, we are at the very beginning. There are 12 steps that need to be completed in the call process.

We will be meeting again on 29 May, and we will be working with the Ministry Site Profile (MSP) web page to input our data that we have obtained for this call. All call committee members have gathered information, and it will be presented at that meeting and that information will be input into the website.

Some things to keep in mind are confidentiality, communication, and prayer.

We anticipate this will be a lengthy process in our discussions with Pastor Dan, but we will get there with prayer and perseverance. We will keep you updated after every meeting.

--Kevin Yeager

Call Committee Member

Congregation Council Liason

Call Committee Members:

Jerre Fercho, Kevin Yeager, Pam Yeager, Janet Black, Sandy Grant, Marty Ridoux

The Rev. Paulette Stahlke has been appointed by Bishop Gafkjen to serve as the Pastor of Record for Christ Lutheran Church, effective June 1, 2024.

During the time of pastoral transition, the congregation may be served by a Pastor of Record or an Interim Pastor. The Pastor of Record is appointed by the bishop or synod staff member,

and is normally the pastor of a neighboring ELCA congregation. The Pastor of Record is

required to be in attendance at all council and congregational meetings during the vacancy (as their schedule allows), and is available for such things as hospital calls, crisis situations, funerals, etc.

Thank you, Pastor Stahlke, for saying "yes" to this appointment.

When a Pastor of Record is used, pulpit supply must be secured by the congregation during the transition. Tom Dearchs was tasked by the Congregation Council to secure Pastors/Deacons from the Synod Pulpit Supply List. At this point, most Sundays are covered through the end of 2024.

05/03/2024

Current Checkbook Balance: $30,258.93

Less Committed Expenses Pending: $5,766.94

Less Special Purpose Giving: $21,261.02

Money Available to pay routine bills: $3,130.47

Current Special Purpose Gifts:

Altar Flowers: $635

Fine Arts: $11,163

Food Pantry: $201

Memorial Gifts: $7,220

WELCA: $900

Choral Scholar Fund: $3,250

Bathroom Remodeling: $692

Other Current Fund Availability: $2,223.20 Savings, $10,000 CD

Mission Endowment Fund: $32,544.67 Investments ($21,588 Permanently Restricted)

Wilson Gift Fund Availability: $1,822.79 Wilson Money Market, $4,300.00 Wilson Checking, $153,000 Wilson CD's

(Wilson expenditures are authorized jointly by the Wilson family and the church council.)

Synod Assembly will be held at the Crowne Plaza, Louisville, Kentucky, from June 7-9. Delegates from Christ Lutheran Church are Elaine Newman and Lucas Bowley. Tom Dearchs, who serves on the Synod Assembly Worship Committee, will be assisting with worship related matters at Assembly and will serve as the musician for the Sending Eucharist on Sunday, June 9. Sarah Williams will serve as the Organist at CLC on this Sunday.

If you haven't already, please be sure and check out the bulletin board in the hallway, located between the Narthex and church offices. Pamie Yeager did a fantastic job! A lot of memories are on display. Thanks, Pamie!

Dear President Daniels, and Congregational Council,

Thanks for the invitation to the special celebration of three significant benchmarks in the life of Christ Lutheran Church: burning of its mortgage, 25th Anniversary of Christ Lutheran Church, and 25th Anniversary of Tom Dearchs' music ministry. I appreciate it. However, at my age, I no longer travel long distances.

Please give my personal greetings to past and current members in attendance. I shall never forget my association with St. John's and Christ Lutheran Church.

May peace, love, and joy abide with you and all members on that special occasion, and for the church to continue to impact the Kokomo community with CLC's ministries, especially Tom's ministry of music.

--Walt Doering

Walt Doering

Dear Christ Lutheran family,

Congratulations to you on the occasion of these wonderful achievements. And, how timely to be celebrating on the Festival of Pentecost!

What wonderful and thankful memories I have of my years among you, and I will be thinking of you on the 19th. Thank you for the weekly e-mails as I enjoy reading about your amazing ministry, and praying with and for you also.

God Bless you and keep you in His love.

--Kris Conyers

Kris Conyers

Thank you to Nancy Macaluso and her wonderful helpers for a very nice reception following the concert on Sunday. I appreciate all you do.

--Tom Dearchs

Memorial Day weekend is arriving but I have no real special pantry deals to report this week. I did purchase 12 cans of Progresso soup for 99 cents each at Kroger this week so our soup supply is pretty complete. We need pasta sauce laundry detergent and canned meats such as tuna and chicken. Have a pleasant holiday weekend but let's also remember our neighbors that can't afford the cookouts we enjoy.

--Nancy Macaluso

Click the link below for detailed information about our current Restroom Remodeling Project. Printed copies of the document are located on the credenza in the Narthex.

Have you considered the online giving option? Here are some of the advantages:

Advantages of Vanco Electronic Giving:

1. No paper envelopes and checks to be processed.
2. Giving is much more private.
3. Minimizes Sunday morning counting and bank trips.
4. Florida snowbirds don’t have to send physical checks in the mail.
5. Credit/Debit cards are a second option to direct bank-to-bank transactions if desired.
6. Specialized giving such as ‘Furnace Fund’ can be easily set up to avoid the hassle of separate checks or cash for miscellaneous giving.
7. You have complete control of starting/stopping/changing as you wish.
8. A history of your giving is directly available through the Vanco app without having to check with the Financial Secretary.
9. Money is transferred to our church checking account in a matter of 1-2 days rather than a week or two after the fact.

If you are ready to make the change from paper, please speak with Jerre Fercho or Bob Howell. They will be happy to talk with you about the advantages and get you set up! 

We thank everyone for what has been given to date and appreciate all efforts made to stay current.



Thank you!

President: Dee Ann Daniels (2024)

e: deeanndaniels@mac.com | c: (574) 702-1921

Vice President: Jill Howell (2025)

e: jillhowell56@gmail.com | c: (765) 860-7949

Secretary: Amy Russell (2025)

e: amy_russell_55@hotmail.com | c: (765) 480-4241

Lenore Kane (2026)

e: lenoreskan@outlok.com | c: (765) 513-7736

Rudy Obermeyer (2025)

e: rudyobermeyer@yahoo.com | c: (765) 480-5871

Mona Swinehart (2026)

e: monaswineh@aol.com | c: (765) 480-9464

Kevin Yeager (2026)

e: kevin.yeager@comcast.net | c: (765) 244-1017

Financial Secretary: Bob Howell (appointed)

e: mhowell55@gmail.com | c: (765) 860-8446

Treasurer: Peter Kane (appointed)

e: peterfkane@outlook.com | c: (765) 513-5075

Rev. Sharon Walker (ex officio)

e: clcpastor@outlook.com | c: (765) 427-4618

The Church Council Members and Parish Staff would be happy to talk with you at any time regarding Christ Lutheran Church and its mission in the world.

Christ Speaks, We Listen, We Share

Please click the purple-colored button below for the Worship Assistant Schedule for May. If you are unable to serve, please obtain a substitute and notify the church office. Thanks!

The 2024 flower chart has arrived and is hanging in the Narthex. The flower cost is $22.50 per vase or two for $45. You will notice that there has been a $5 increase in cost beginning in 2024. Like everything else, the cost has gone up a little. Please sign-up today. Eternal Candles remain at $18 per month.

Event Scheduling | Weekly eNews

A 2024 calendar is located on the counter in the Office Work Room. Please list events, meetings, etc., on this calendar so that scheduling of events can take place and conflicts do not occur. You will notice a "red" checkmark beside the events to indicate that they have been transferred to Tom's calendar as well as the churchwide calendar. Thank you for your assistance.

Christ Lutheran Church

3401 S. Dixon Road

Kokomo, IN 46902

Phone: 765.453.6183

Pastor's Cell: 765.427.4618

christlutherankokomo.org

Christ Speaks

We Listen

We Share