Our first and foremost charge as Christians is to take the Gospel of Jesus Christ to heart and allow the Holy Spirit to work within us, helping to lead others to the truth. It is this primary goal which must influence all other decisions and investments for the church.

The church council’s strategy for this year focuses on three primary goals: to grow our church, nurture our members, and bring the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the unchurched.

To do this, we note several objectives, but will emphasize the following five in the particular:

• Continue in mission consistent with the doctrine and practice of the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod (Responsible Board: Worship)
• Provide quality Christian education at an affordable price (Responsible Board: Day School)
• Reach out into the community to serve those in need (Responsible Board: Special Ministries)
• Develop the church’s sense of community and family through Jesus Christ (Responsible Board: Deacons)
• Evolve and establish intra-denominational relationships, with particular focus on those churches within Norfolk (Responsible Board: LWML)

In addition to the above, we will also further work towards improving the following objectives:

• Develop our fellowship program (Responsible Board: Special Ministries)
• Improve how we reach out to visitors (Responsible Board: Deacons and Outreach)
• Provide greater resources for the youth group (Responsible Board: Youth and Budget Committee)
• Encourage additional giving (Responsible Board: Stewardship)
• Further develop plans for facility maintenance and renovation (Responsible Board: Trustees)
• Improve our web site and communication techniques (Responsible Board: Executive Board/Council)

The reality is that while there is a board “responsible” for each of these, it’s actually what is asked of us by God to each and everyone of us. We are all called to serve in different ways and purposes – but we all can be good “stewards” for the church with the gifts God has so enriched us with in time, treasure, and talent.

Over the coming weeks, you will see how each of these objectives develops with tangible and measurable plans. And, as these plans are developed, we welcome your help. If you see something you are interested in helping with today, please email president@trinitylutherannorfolk.org.

Here is the latest from church council:

1) Congratulations to Meg Faller and Patty Hoeft.  They have agreed to serve as the vice president and treasurer, respectively.  Their service, enthusiasm and dedication to Christ and His church is greatly appreciated.

2) We are seeking two capable members to step forward to conduct an independent review of the church’s financial records.  If you are interested in performing this vital service, please contact the church office.  We’d like to complete this audit by the end of February.

3) Financial statements for 2008 will be complete by the end of January.  If not, please contact the church office immediately.

4) Meg Faller, vice president, and Arne Kristo, chairman of the Board of Deacons, have agreed to serve on the nominating committee for odd-year elections, along with Pastor.  They will complete forming the committee with two additional voters.  This year, the following offices are up for election / re-election:

• Financial Secretary
• Recording Secretary
• Third Trustee
• Director of Worship
• Director of Outreach
• Director of Stewardship
• Director of Special Ministries

If you are interested in serving in any of these positions, or continuing to serve in these positions, please contact Meg, Arne, or Pastor.  We need to know by March so that the list can be published in the April Trinitarian.

5) Send me your email address!  A great way that we can communicate with one another about what’s going on with the church and our families is via email.

For example, if there is something you wish to share with the larger congregation, perhaps a prayer request, you can send that request to the church office and that request will be shared with the congregation.  Additionally, if we are having an event or meeting, we can keep you up to date with a quick note.  I hope you’ll consider participating, as this is yet another way that we can share the Holy Spirit together.

6) The by-laws have been amended so that the budgets for the Church and School will be presented in May from now on.  Between then and now, we will have an open-door budget meeting to discuss the budget committee’s proposals, and any questions or concerns you might have.

The preliminary proposed budget shows that we will have a $17K deficit in 2009-10.  The budget committee will work diligently over the next couple months to bring the budget into balance.

Despite the difficult economic times our nation faces, we must consider our gifts to Trinity.

Please continue your faithful contributions to the Lord’s church.  Additionally, if you are moved by the Holy Spirit to do so, please consider adding to your generous gift by a small percentage per week.

Regardless, you can be rest assured that your council will work hard and make deliberate and tough decisions that are necessary to effectively continue spreading the gospel to all God’s people.

Earlier this fall, Bill Sneath was afforded an excellent employment opportunity in New York; unfortunately, this new position takes Bill away from Trinity for the next few years, which means he has resigned his position as Vice President.  So, while we are all thrilled for Bill and the new adventure on which he has embarked, it is certainly bittersweet for us to see him go.

That being said, I have empowered the nominating committee to find a suitable nominee for the position and am anticipating that the position will be filled within the next few weeks before Christmas.

The Council also took action at the last meeting to commence our yearly budgeting process.  In doing so, it was suggested to move the final voters approval for church and school budgets to May, vice January.  This will permit a more thorough review and audit of our needs, as well as provide more time for the congregation to meet and participate in the decision making.

Finally, I’m happy to say that we received an excellent quote to remove asbestos and replace tiles throughout the school and church.  This project, to be discussed, and hopefully approved, by voters at the Nov. 30 voters meeting, is the first phase of our tile replacement plan.  This first phase will be accomplished during the school shutdown over the holidays.

I hope the blessings of the season are abundant for all of you as we celebrate the birth of our Lord.  In many ways, it is also the rebirth and renewal of our church too, so I look forward to the joys and wonders to be found this new year and our continued life together in Christ.

I wanted to take this opportunity to outline quickly some issues that have been brought to the council and a few of the items that we are currently working on.

First, I’m pleased to announce that our biennial calendar was approved at the last voters meeting. It is posted to our web site and is available from the church office. I wanted to thank all those who participated in developing and approving the calendar. Having tangible dates to work towards goes a long way at furthering the church’s mission.

That being said, here are several dates to highlight in the near future:

• October 26-28 Reformation Weekend
• November 9 Consecration Sunday
• November 22 Norfolk Holiday Parade
• November 26 Thanksgiving Eve Service
• December 5 Chrismon and Christmas Tree Decorating

All of these events, in their own unique way, represent our continued involvement in the community and service to Christ and one another. I encourage everyone to learn more about these events, and most importantly, participate. Personally, I always enjoy the fellowship and fun of these events — whether it’s a beer at the Oktoberfest or a hot cocoa when decorating the trees — I always know I’m in good company and having a good time. Contact Anne Combes (tlc@trinitylutherannorfolk.org, (757) 489-2551) at the church office if you would like more details.

Second, the next big agenda item is the budget. We’ll begin laying the groundwork here at our next council meeting in October. If you would like to help in any way, or are interested in learning more about the budget process, please don’t hesitate to drop me an email at president@trinitylutherannorfolk.org. One element of the budget discussion will be upcoming major building projects.

Third, our web site has been overhauled. The site will be used to frequently pass information, thoughts and interesting tidbits about our various ministries, the school, and church life in general. I expect the site take a much more central role in how we communicate as a church. Pastor’s sermons are also posted there as audio files. I encourage you to check it often and share the link with others. (http://trinitylutherannorfolk.org) I’m not joking — you’re going to get information on the web site that you won’t get in the Trinitarian or the bulletin, so be sure to look there.

Fourth, I want to know more about what you think regarding Trinity. I want to know what we can do better and what we are doing well. The most important mission of any church is to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Are we doing that effectively? Let me know your thoughts. You can email me anytime.

At the last voters’ meeting, the church’s biennial calendar was approved. Here is the calendar in its entirety:

2008
March 23 – Easter
May 11 – Pentecost
July 27 – Council Installation
July 30 – offsite/mission renewal/yearly planning finalized
August 1- 3 – Richmond Ablaze Convention
August 10 – Voters Meeting: Mission Renewal
August 22-23 – Youth Ball Game and Lock-in
August 24 – Teachers Installation
August 26 – TLS First-day of school
September 1 – Labor Day
September 7 – Youth Adopt-a-Spot Clean-Up
September 9 – School Orientation, 7 pm
September 13 – LWML Meeting with White Elephant Auction
September 19 – National Treasure 2 Movie and Scavenger Hunt
September 26-28 – LWML Retreat
October 5 – Youth Lunch Bunch and Bowling
October 11 – Golf tournament
LWML Fall Rally at Christ Lutheran
October 18 – LWML Tailgate Bazaar
October 24-26 – Reformation Weekend
- Bach Festival, Trinity Special Scholarship Fund (reception by LWML)
- Oktoberfest, LCT
- Reformation Day, LWML desserts
October 25 – Youth Haymaze at Triple R Ranch
October 29 – Council Meeting: Budget Initiated (nominating committee meet for odd-year offices)
November 4 – Election Day
November 9 – Consecration Sunday
November 21-22 – Youth Lock-In
November 22 – Holiday Parade
November 23 – LWML Holiday Happenings
November 26 – Thanksgiving Worship 7pm
November 27 – Thanksgiving Day
December 5 – Church/Chrismon Decorating
December 6 – LWML Christmas Luncheon
December 14 – Christmas Caroling
and Youth Lunch Bunch and Angel Tree Shopping
December 17 – Council Meeting: Finalize Budget
December 18 – German Service
December 19 – Last day of school for TLS
Sunday, Dec. 21 – Fourth Sunday in Advent
Wednesday, Dec. 24 – Christmas Eve/Lighting of Christmas Trees (7pm and 11pm)
Thursday, Dec. 25 – Christmas (10am)
December 31-New Years Eve (7pm)

2009
January 5 – TLS resumes
Jan. 11 – Voters Meeting: Budget
and Youth Lunch Fundraiser
Jan. 25 – TLS Open House
February 1 – Youth Super Bowl Sunday Caring Fundraiser and Party
February 18 – Council Meeting-Nominating Committee Report
February 24 – Pancake Supper
February 25 – Ash Wednesday
March 2-6 – Lutheran Schools Week
March 6-8 – Youth High School Retreat
March 20-22 – Youth Middle School Retreat
March 25 – Council Meeting
April 5 – Palm Sunday/Youth Lunch Bunch and Rock Gym
April 12 – Easter
April 13-17 – TLS Easter Break
April 26 – Youth Adopt-a-Spot Clean-Up
April 29 – Council Meeting
May 10 – Issue ballots for odd-year offices
May 16 – Youth Group Day at the Park
May 21 – Ascension Day
May 30 – Trinity’s 89th Birthday (May 30, 1920 – Trinity chartered)
May 31 – Pentecost
June 2 – TLS Fifth Grade Graduation
June 5 – Last day of school for TLS
June 7 – Holy Trinity
June 12 – Youth Group Welcome Summer!
June 15 – Summer Camp begins
June 24 – Council Meeting Yearly Program Initiated
Saturday, July 4 – Independence Day
July 29 – Council Meeting/Offsite/Mission Renewal/Approve Yearly Program for voters
August 9: Voters Meeting – Mission Renewal
Monday, September 7 – Labor Day
October 28: Council Meeting – Initiate Budget/Select Nominating Committee
October 30 – Nov 1 – Reformation Weekend
November 8 – Voters Meeting: Approve of nominating committee
November 25 – Thanksgiving Eve Worship Service 7pm
November 26 – Thanksgiving
December 20 – Fourth Sunday in Advent
December 24 – Christmas Eve (Service 7pm and 11pm)
December 25 – Christmas (Service 10 am)
December 31 – New Year’s Eve (Service 7pm)