January 1 Sandy Keefover January 2 Kenneth Inks Scott Boettcher Ryan Tessendorf January 3 Chuck Sahs January 4 Tina Rutten Taylor Vopalensky Edie Aerni Darin Hall January 5 Amber Miller Joel Epley Kelly Frenzen Brenda Groothuis River (Klay) Thomas January 6 Sylvia Coffey Lynn Guilliatt Conrad Saltzgaber January 7 Chris Wisehart Dave Thomas Natalie Higginbotham Ginger Westfall Larry Rezec January 8 Marilyn Barton

Jean Britt Dominick Behnken January 9 Linda Price Taylon Traub-Way Lorraine Wenske Brynn Sloma Norm Hoppmann Betty Hitz Caleb Nicolay January 10 Amber Trosper Pete Balerud January 11 Carol Willoughby Sam Rodriguez January 12 Michelle Hernan-dez Chelsea Aldrich Joyce Holtkamp January 14 Joey Long Morgan Campbell January 16 Alyssa Hartman Arlene Wilke Kristy Hoover January 17 Kate Beckman

January 18 Shane Hess Gage Traub Caitlin Campbell January 20 Kathy Redel Cherie Stadler Brock Miller January 21 Dale Euchner January 22 Karen Weber Susan Wilke Kyle Anderson Trever Maschmeier January 24 Gayle Meints Colson Nicolas Cullan Gustafson Wes Bergland January 25 Gail Henke Andy Luce January 26 Dylan Lauridsen Leona Kant Jody Helms Teri Ronkar January 27 Warren Hellbusch

Kaylee Lehr-Hirschbrunner Dana Dankert January 28 Peyton Halvorsen Cory Olson January 29 Tami Whitmore Bob Emerson Bob Werner January 30 Tammy Gross January 31 Evan Micek

JANUARY

Happy

Birthday! Have a great day today & may the year

ahead be full of many

Blessings!

2720 28th St • Columbus, Nebraska 68601(402)564-8311

www.peacecolumbus.org FaceBook: Peace Lutheran Church

Instagram: @peace.columbus

Connections JANUARY 2021

What Will the New Year Bring?

“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.” Hebrews 13:8

Dear Friends in Christ, A New Year brings renewed optimism – especially this year! After the train-wreck that was 2020, next year HAS to be better, doesn’t it? Well, no. Even with the vaccine rolling out, they say that it won’t be until the second half of 2021 before things begin to get back to normal. Washington D.C. is more divided than ever. The economy seems to be teetering on the brink. Protests will continue. Illness, accidents, and death will all continue to wreak havoc in our lives. And these are just the things that we know!

I know what you’re thinking. “Wow, Pastor, isn’t the beginning of the year supposed to be filled with optimism and hope?” Well, here’s the good part! Even though the world around us may continue to struggle (as it will until Christ returns), we have hope in our Savior. As the verse above states, Jesus will not change! He will still love us, forgive us, and lead us by His Spirit. In the midst of the chaos surrounding us, we have hope because of Him.

And that hope flows from us to those around us. As the church we have a wonderful opportunity to share our source of hope that the world desperately needs. Yes, in this world there will continue to be trials and struggles, but Jesus overcame the world! Our optimism is not based upon things of this world which will change, but on the One who will not change!

So what are the plans for Peace for 2021? Plenty!

First of all, we will continue build on our Vision Statement of ‘A Family Encouraged, a Community Embraced, Everyone Saved!’ as we move into the new year. The church board has been working on a Vision Plan that will lead us towards the next ten years (see article in the newsletter). As part of that plan, we will be moving forward on a staffing plan to help fill in the needs we have to help us fulfill God’s vision for Peace.

January we will kick off a new sermon and Bible study series call “Revealed!” We will be looking at Mark 1 and the early ministry of Jesus as He is revealed to be more than just a normal man. ReFuel is starting up again on January 6th after a COVID hiatus of about a month and a half. It will be wonderful to have the church building bustling with activity on Wednesdays once again!

NOTES FROM THE STAFF

in 2021!

From the Peace Staff

OPPORTUNITIES TO GROW

Other Ways to Worship Join us for worship on Peace Facebook

page, YouTube, or www.peacecolumbus.org.

You can still tune into FM 98.7 and listen

from the comfort of your car to any of the

services.

LIVESTREAM Look for the livestream

link about 5 minutes

before WORSHIP on our

Facebook page on Saturdays at 6:00

pm and Sunday’s 10:30 am OR con-

nect to the livestream on

www.peacecolumbus.org.

What does it look like when God's active love for us is lived

out in love for others? Love doesn't stop at thoughts and feel-

ings; love takes action. Yes, by God's grace, Love Does. Join us

for an engaging adult study during Refuel, Wednesdays, 6 - 7

pm in the chapel, starting back up in January. Each of five

sessions explores a different aspect of God's active love. Vid-

eo & study guides provided. Optional book for purchase.

Questions? Contact Deb Burma: 402-860-0260.

Love Does. Adult study during Refuel

Wednesdays

6:00 - 7:00 pm

If any one would like to receive

The Lord’s Supper and can’t get out,

contact the church office to set up an

appointment. 402-564-8311

Do you EVEN know what I put on the inside of you?! God

Thank you for the Christmas

box. What a nice surprise! The

Christmas box I received was

an expression of the concern

for me. Thank you one & all.

This helped make Christmas for

me a joyous celebration of our

Savior’s birth. ~ Pastor Smith

NOTES FROM THE STAFF

CHURCH BOARD CONTACT INFORMATION

Deb Anderson (402) 910-8999

crean001@gmail.com Cori Fullner (402) 270-4078

cjfullner@columbushosp.org Joe Hopwood (402) 270-2449

hopwoodja@gmail.com Eric Lantis (402) 276-4839

eric.lantis@fcsamerica.com Timothy Matas (402) 730-2146

timothymatas@mac.com Dean Plummer (402) 910-4191

djplummer76@gmail.com Andy Stadler (402) 910-1508

astadler@neb.rr.com

PEACE STAFF CONTACT INFORMATION

Church Office: Elaine Schmid

402-564-8311 • church@peacecolumbus.org

Lead Pastor: Rev. Cory W. Burma

402-860-0433 • cburma@peacecolumbus.org

Business Manager: Linda Schmidt

business@peacecolumbus.org

Communications Coordinator: Tracy Buzynski

communications@peacecolumbus.org

Daycare Director: Lisa Thomas

firststeps@peacecolumbus.org

DCE Intern: Cami Hamer

chamer@peacecolumbus.org

WORSHIP SERVICE SCHEDULE The following is the schedule

for worship services. Saturday 4:00 PM Sanctuary – Livestreamed

Open only to those 65 and over and with underlying health problems in the Sanctuary

Saturday 6:00 PM Drive-in & Inside Options Sunday 8:00 AM

Sanctuary Sunday 10:30 AM Sanctuary – Livestreamed

Please understand that these are subject to change at any time.

Worship for November In-person worship: 1037 Average per week: 208

On-line views: 754 Average per week: 151

Be the HOPE, JOY or PEACE To Someone Who Needs It

Another exciting thing that is coming up is new ‘Worship throughout the Week’ packets that Cami is putting together that helps a family take what they have heard in worship, and talk about it throughout the week. To begin, it will just be geared for families with children, but we hope in the future to expand it to adult only families as well.

These are just a few of the reasons I am excited for 2021, as we have the opportunity, in all circumstances, to encourage one another and to embrace our community in the love and hope of our Savior Jesus! In His Peace,

NOTES FROM THE STAFF

November Financials

FOR THE BATTLE BELONGS TO YOU LORD!

Vision Plan

Income Actuals Budget

Offerings $40,930 $54,321

Other $18 $708

Total Income $40,948 $55,029

Expenses

Personnel $15,926 $27,210

Ministry $15,641 $18,217

Facil./Adm. $6,220 $6,804

Total Expenses $37,787 $52,231

Net Gain/(Loss) $3,161 $2,798

First Steps

Actuals Budget

Income $18,327 $20,771

Expenses $20,316 $19,314

Net Gain/(Loss) $(1,989) $1,457

Combined Net

Gain/(Loss) $1,172 $4,255

YTD Church $(185)

YTD Daycare $500

Ytd Overall $315

For the past few months, the Church Board has been working on a Vision Plan, taking our Vision Statement developed last winter and determining how God wants us to get to that desired state of “a family en-couraged, a community embraced, everyone saved!” We began by developing a Vivid Vision of where we see God leading us in the next 10 years. We then moved on to the Background Vision, developing four ideas that will set the direction for the next three years. The first draft of these ideas are listed following the Vivid Vision. Starting in January, we will be revising the background vision ideas, and moving on to the midground vision (1 year), what we will be focusing on in the next year to best guide us to meet the back-ground vision.

OPPORTUNITIES TO GROW OPPORTUNITIES TO CONNECT

Comfort Dog Ministry What's happening...

OPPORTUNITIES TO CCONNECT

The Peace Lutheran Comfort Dog Team and Claudia would like to wish all members of the congregation a Blessed New Year. Claudia would like to take this oppor-tunity to thank all members who have welcomed and helped me in my training at Peace. Everyone has been so friendly and cordial during my time in Columbus. I am anticipating that I will be leaving Peace sometime in Jan-uary and returning to Northbrook, IL to complete my training. When this occurs my sister, Eden will arrive to be your full-time Comfort Dog. Our next Comfort Dog meeting is Tuesday, January 12th at 7:00 pm Blessings, Warren and Mary Hellbusch and Claudia

The Platte County Food Pantry was very ap-

preciative of our November food ingathering!

Your generosity of over 748 items will make

an impact on those whom they serve who

are in need in our community. We were also

were able to participate in the Nebraska

Thrivent Member Network "Give Thanks and

Give Back November Food Shelf Challenge".

Thrivent will direct a donation in the amount

of $500 to the Platte County Food Pantry

as a generosity multiplier. Thank you for living generously during this

holiday season and for giving from your hearts!

By Joyce Peterson

A h a h a

Summary: As a church built on the solid foundation of our unchanging Savior, Jesus Christ, Peace Lutheran Church will continually be renovating our congregation over the next ten years. We will continue to tear down walls to spiritual growth and to remodel the ways we make disciples as we better encourage all ages of the hope we have in Christ. At the same time we will focus on opening the doors of our church to our community with acts of love and words of hope so that Peace is seen as a spiritual and physical place of refuge in the storms of life. This renovation will address the ‘mechanical’ workings of the church, those very important but usu-ally internal areas that need to be updated as the congregation, community, and culture change. This renovation will examine discipleship, administration, and properties. They may include minor adjustments, major overhauls, or even complete removals or replacements. These will enable Peace to successfully em-brace our community to reach out with the Love and Hope of Christ. This renovation will continue by reviewing the ‘functional’ com-ponents of Peace. This includes reviewing all the current pro-grams and ministries of the church to see how (or if) they can be adapted to address a need in our community. Some ministries might need a small touch up with little or no change. Other pro-grams may require more extensive updating to be more outward focused on the community. Still other ministries no longer serv-ing their intended purpose, may be removed. And other minis-tries addressing a need in our congregation and community may be added. During this 10 year journey as a family in Christ, Peace will be poised to encourage our families and embrace our community. We will be worshiping over 700 people each week. Each ministry will have an outward focus, with a strong outreach focus on our new neighbors. Our desire is to baptize at least 50 people includ-

NOTES FROM THE STAFF

Start the year with joy and laughter, with gratitude for

God’s Blessings & with Courage for the Journey!

Remodel Ministries for Outreach Remodel all ministries to focus on meeting the needs not just of our congregation, but of our community

as well.

Transform Discipleship Transform how we make disciples from pri-marily a knowledge focus to be a

holistic focus that leads to action.

Reshape Communication Reshape our communications to reach all generations within our congregation and out to our com-munity utilizing various communica-tion streams. Renovate Property Review and Renovate the property of Peace to be a welcoming pres-ence that enables our ministries to thrive.

Vivid Vision

NEW Sermon Series: Revealed!

Mark’s Gospel is unique from the others. There is no Christmas account, and begins with the baptism of Jesus and quickly moves into His early ministry with no hints or backstory to help us know who this Je-sus is. Yet in the first chapter of Mark, we see an urgency of Jesus as He reveals Him-self to be more than just another Hebrew teacher.

Our sermon series “Revealed!” starts the weekend of the baptism of Jesus (January 9-10) and runs through Transfiguration weekend on February 13-14.

• Jan 9-10 •

Revealed! Jesus the Loved Son

• Jan 16-17 •

Revealed! Jesus the Promise Fulfilled

• Jan 23-24 •

Revealed! Jesus the Teacher

• Jan 30-31 •

Revealed! Jesus the Healer

• Feb 6-7 •

Revealed! Jesus the Influencer

• Feb 13-14 •

Revealed! Jesus Transformed

OPPORTUNITIES TO WORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES TO GROW

High School LARGE Group

Large Group WED, January 13th

Meet (first) Wednesday of the Month

@ 7:15-8:30 pm

Wednesdays 6:00 -7:00 pm. Check-in and screening begins at 5:45pm.

Parents must check their children in. NO drop offs please.

• January 6th - A Miraculous Catch of Fish, based on Luke 5:1-11 • January 13th - Wise and Foolish Builder, based on Matthew 7:24-27 • January 20th - Jesus Eats With Sinners at Matthew's House, based on Matthew 9:9-13 • January 27th - Jesus Heals a Lame Man by a Pool, based on John 5:1-18

High School SMALL Group

Meet Wednesdays (the rest of the month) at small group leader’s home:

@ 7:15-8:30 pm

If you need the address for your small group leader, call the church office at 402-564-8311.

Updates will be posted on FACEBOOK or follow us on Instagram@peace.columbus

Middle School Youth Group

Jan 10 • 6:30 – 8:00 pm Fellowship Hall

7th & 8th Grade Confirmation

Meet WED @ 6:00 --7:00 pm Sanctuary

OPPORTUNITIES TO GROW

Worship Throughout the

Week — A Family Resource By Cami Hamer, DCE Intern

Did you enjoy the Christmas at Home

boxes and want something like it for

your family to do regularly? Beginning

the weekend of January 10th, we will

have a new resource available for families! Our “Worship Throughout the Week” resource will

contain three devotions following our readings and theme from worship. These devotions will

contain pieces that will involve the whole family and will have different pieces that fit your

family from ages 2 to high schoolers. “What if we don’t finish all three devotions during the

week?” No problem! We want these devotions to be a time where your family can relax in the

Word rather than being stressed about having to get them done. We are providing three devo-

tions a week so that your family can decide which days work best for you to do them together!

“So how long will these devotions take?” Each devotion will only be about 10 to 15 minutes

depending on your family and the discussions that take place! Some recommended times for

the devotions are at dinner time, after dinner, at bed time, or on your drive to school (if it’s

longer than two minutes of course).

To sign up for the Worship Throughout the Week Resource, go to

peacecolumbus.org/familyworship

If you have any questions, contact DCE Intern Cami Hamer by

email at chamer@peacecolumbus.org or by

calling the church office at 402-564-8311.

OPPORTUNITIES TO WORSHIP

Breakfast Bible Study Zoom Meeting

– Join in the Bible Study by Stan Emerson

Tuesday Mornings at 7:00 am in the Chapel.

Call the church office at 402-564-8311 for

Zoom call information.

Saturday Bible Class Meets Saturdays @ 4:45 pm

Peace Chapel

Beginning Monday, January 4th, Peace’s daily video Bible study will focus on the book of Genesis, looking at one chapter a day for ten weeks. You will be invited to read the chapter before watching the video, and then watch Pastor Burma share at least one important item from the chapter. These daily studies tend

to be 5-10 minutes long and are intended to help the Peace family better know and understand the word of God. To watch the video, subscribe to peacecolum-bus on YouTube, go to peacecolumbus.org, or follow us on Facebook To join us, follow Peace on Facebook (the videos come out every weekday at 5:00 am) or subscribe to peacecolumbus on YouTube, OR you find the link at peacecolumbus.org. Pick up a NEW STUDY GUIDE of our DAILY READINGS that go along with the videos. Follow the DAILY VIDEOS, “These Things Are Written,” by Pastor Burma.

Starting on January 10th, at 9:15am, in the Fellowship Hall, we will be starting an in depth Bible study into Mark 1, expanding on the theme of the sermon with a focus on apply-ing what we see to our daily lives. This study is open to anyone 7th grade and older and to all levels of Bible knowledge. Never been in a formal Bible study? Give this one a try!

Revealed! The Bible Study

These Things Are Written takes on Genesis

in 10 weeks

SUN TUE WED

3 4 5 6

10 11 12 13

17 18 19 20

24 25 26 27

31

Refuel Check In 5:45 pm

Refuel & Confirmation 6

Bible Study 6:00 pm

HS Small Group 7:15WED

NES

DA

YS

Morning Bible Study 7:00 am

Church Board Meeting

7:00 pm

Worship 8:00 am Bible Study 9:15 am Worship 10:30 am

Communion will be served at all services on

the 1st and 3rd weekends.

Morning Bible Study

7:00 am

Comfort Dog Meeting 7:00 pm

Morning Bible Study 7:00 am

Columbus Circuit Pastors Meeting 9:30 am

See Refuel Above

Worship 8:00 am Bible Study 9:15 am Worship 10:30 am

Worship 8:00 am Bible Study 9:15 am Worship 10:30 am

Middle School Youth Group 6:30

Worship 8:00 am Bible Study 9:15 am Worship 10:30 am

Sunday Night Bible Study 7:00 pm

See Refuel Above

Connections Deadline

See Refuel Above

High School

LARGE Group 7:15

Compassionate Friends

7:00 pm

Morning Bible Study

7:00 am

Men’s Connect 6:30 Off Site

Worship 8:00 am Bible Study 9:15 am Worship 10:30 am

SUN MON TUE WED

See Refuel Above

WED THU FRI SAT

1 2

7 8 9

14 15 16

21 22 23

28 29 30

Ruth Circle

Bells of Peace 6:30 pm

Refuel Check In 5:45 pm

Refuel & Confirmation 6-7 pm

Bible Study 6:00 pm

HS Small Group 7:15-8:30 pm

Bells of Peace 6:30 pm

Women’s Connect 7:00 pm

Off site Friends 7:00 pm

See Refuel Above

Worship 4:00 pm

(for 65 + or health issues

Bible Class 4:45 pm

Worship 6:00 pm

See Refuel Above2:00 pm

Connections Deadline

See Refuel Above

High School

LARGE Group 7:15-8:30

Friends 7:00 pm

Friends 7:00 pm

Worship 4:00 pm

(for 65 + or health issues

Bible Class 4:45 pm

Worship 6:00 pm

Worship 4:00 pm

(for 65 + or health issues

Bible Class 4:45 pm

Worship 6:00 pm

Worship 4:00 pm

(for 65 + or health issues

Bible Class 4:45 pm

Worship 6:00 pm

Worship 4:00 pm

(for 65 + or health issues

Bible Class 4:45 pm

Worship 6:00 pm

WED THU FRI SAT

See Refuel Above