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September, 2020 Christ Church Comments

Christ

Evangelical

Lutheran Church

225 E. Elm Avenue

Monroe, MI 48162

734.241.4554

Pastor:

davidhively@gmail.com

New - Website:

christmonroe.com

Facebook:

Christ Lutheran Church—Monroe, MI

Secretary: Karen

secretaryonelm@sbcglobal.net

Youth and Ed.: Kristen

CLCYouth225@gmail.com

Newsletter: cgardetto7@comcast.net

I’ve been drinking coffee since I discovered its magical

energy giving properties in college. In those days I

would add a bunch of milk and sugar, so much so that

my boss would often remark that I wasn’t actually

drinking coffee anymore, but coffee

flavored milk. Over the years my tastes

have evolved. Now there is almost

never any milk or creamer (except in

the fall - I love some pumpkin spice),

but still a little sweetener. For the last

few years that coffee went straight

from the brewer into a travel mug to

be consumed during my morning

commute. But when the commuting stopped a few

months back so did the coffee. That morning ritual was

interrupted and the caffeine need was fed other ways.

I’ve recently started making myself a cup of coffee in a

mug every morning. I doubt that my doctor or dentist

are pleased with this development but it is important to

me. Its importance doesn’t come from the caffeine, that

I can get in other ways. What is important to me is the

ritual: the smell, the warm cup in my hands, the hiss of

the coffee maker as it spits out the last few drops.

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There’s something grounding about

beginning the day in the same way that

sets the rest of the day up for success.

One of the things that’s been so diffi-

cult about this COVID era is that it

has separated us from so many of our

rituals. Some of these are easy to call

to mind: worship looks different than

it used to, graduations and birthday

parties have had a different flavor to

them all summer, even funerals and

our rituals around death and dying

have had to change. But there’s other

things too - the Hall of Fame game

that signals the beginning of the foot-

ball season, the county fair, a trip to

the movie theater for a summer block-

buster and a ludicrously large tub of

popcorn.

All of this has led to what some have

called time soup, that disoriented feel-

ing that makes it hard to remember

what day it is or how many days have

passed since certain events. It can also

lead to isolation, depression, anxiety,

and despair. We need rituals, both sa-

cred and secular, to help us mark time,

and ground us in the world.

With that in mind, I’d like to offer a

few ideas if you find yourself, as I did,

needing a few rituals to ground you in

the midst of uncertain times:

Pause for prayer before meals. If

you already do this one, consider ei-

ther learning a new prayer or sitting

in silent gratitude for a few mo-

ments.

Set an alarm for a time near the

end of the day. When the alarm

goes off, stop what you are doing,

take out a pen and notebook and

write down something for the day

that you are grateful for and some-

place where you could use God’s

help.

Schedule a time during the week to

check in with a family member

or friend who you haven’t been

able to see often enough lately.

If they are up for it, consider making

it a weekly event on your calendar.

Mark off some time in your

calendar for Sabbath. This can be

at a certain time during the day, or a

certain day during the week. The

important part is that you make the

time separate and restful. Even

twenty minutes that are set apart

from the rest of the day can make a

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Peace,

Pastor David

HAVE YOU HAD A CHANGE OF ADDRESS? Please notify the church office with the details of your new address,

if you have moved, or have a new phone number, or are vacationing for an extended period of time. This

helps save postage on returned mail. All church contact information is found on page one.

Make time for worship. Come to CLC on Saturday or Sunday. Watch the Worship

Playlist on Sunday morning or Wayne’s World on Wednesday. Play a favorite hymn or

worship song and turn up the volume. Give thanks to God as you watch a sunrise or

sunset. However you do it, take a few moments to praise, and to remember that God

is sovereign over all things.

One final note, rituals are made for us, not us for rituals. Don’t let whatever you take

on become a burden - one more thing on your to do list. Keep experimenting until

you find something that you enjoy, that brings you life, and that helps you find joy in

this world that God has made.

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Youth and Education News

Youth Group Kick-Off

September 11

6:00 p.m.

Go-Karts Plus (14999 LaPlaisance Rd)

Youth in Middle and High School, we are getting

together for fun! Go Karting, Mini Golf & Batting

Cages are all available. We will also have a pizza

picnic dinner and brain storm activity ideas for the

year. Friends (and parents) are welcome. Please

bring $10 per person to offset the cost of the event.

First (And Hopefully Last) Annual Social Distance Games!

Sunday, October 18

3:00 p.m.

The Merkels’ Yard (2130 Vivian Rd)

Middle and High School Youth, join us for an afternoon of games and fun! It will be a

blast… just not too close! We will be having an “awards” dinner after the games.

BOX CITY!

Youth, put Friday, November 6 on your calendars

for our annual Box City to raise awareness of

homelessness in our community. We have been

working on a plan to once again host this important

event, and hope to be able to go ahead with it.

Watch the newsletters and Facebook for more

information to come.

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Faith Formation

RALLY DAY!

Sunday, September 13

10:30 a.m.

We will be having an in-person Rally Day Celebration in the church parking lot to

kick off our Sunday School Season. Please bring chairs or blankets… we will be

sitting in family groups (socially distanced). Please come join the fun!

Monthly Family Faith Formation

We will have in-person Family Faith Formation on the third Sunday of each month

starting on October 18. These gatherings will be outside as long as weather permits

(bring chairs or blankets to sit on) or in the Parish Hall. Come share in a Bible

lesson and activity as a family.

Faith Formation Weekly Journals

Every Sunday School student will receive a “journal” with weekly activities related to

the scripture lesson for that Sunday. This will be in lieu of weekly Sunday School

classes. We will hopefully begin to meet again before this Sunday School season is

over, but we wanted to give our kids something to work on until that time.

Confirmation Classes

Pastor David will convene confirmation classes starting on Sunday, September 13

at 7:00 p.m. These classes will take place in our Parish Hall. Starting in October,

classes will be held on the first Sunday of the month (October 4, November 1,

December 6, etc.) at 7:00 p.m.

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Thank you to everyone who helped with this year’s on-line VBS,

“On Earth As In Heaven”. We had 37 participants take part, and

many who helped with creating video content for this unusual event.

We look forward to having an in-person VBS next year, but we did a

GREAT job pulling together during this unusual summer!

Vacation

B

ib

le Sch

ool

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Cookbooks for Sale

$10 each

Christ Lutheran Church’s

75th Anniversary

Committee created this

cookbook filled with

delicious recipes

submitted by members of

the congregation.

Please contact Dede Ward

at 810-265-6520 to

purchase. She also will

deliver!

Copies also are available

following the worship

services.

Makes a

thoughtful gift!

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Marilyn’s Nurses Notes

for Healthy Living

WALKING, the free exercise

Many people have had to resort to walking for exercise during this time of uncer-tainty in place of gym workouts and group sports. We can do this outside and still keep a distance of six feet from others wearing a mask if you have to pass more closely to others. Even if you are still staying at home you can walk around the yard and your home in order to keep from being too sedentary helping to reduce ad-verse health effects. This is the easiest and saf-est way to stay fit. A brisk walk (3 ½ to 4 miles per hour) burns as many calories as running at a

moderate pace and confers similar health benefits. Even slow walks and short walks may provide some benefit. Below, I list a few of the many benefits we can enjoy from this “freeing” exercise.

Metabolic benefits include reducing the risk of developing high blood pressure, diabetes, high cholesterol, and heart disease.

Reduced risk of heart failure demonstrated by several observational studies .

Healthier arteries because a sedentary lifestyle often reduces the ability of arteries to relax and contract, which decreases the blood flow and may increase long-term cardiovascular risk.

Better blood sugar control by increased daily walking.

Low back pain can be reduced by walking, im-proving the quality of life in people with chron-ic low back pain.

Improved knee osteoarthritis. People with this condition often avoid exercise thinking that it will make it worse but it can be one of the best treatments.

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CURRENT FINANCIAL INFORMATION

July 2020 Year to Date 2020

Actual Budget Actual Budget

Operating Income: $12,349 $17,358 $ 108,477 $116,660

Operating Expense: $13,610 $15,338 $ 109,888 $120,823

Surplus [Deficit]: [$ 1,261] $ 2,020 [$ 1,411] [$ 4,163]

The new website address for Christ Lutheran Church is:

christmonroe.com

Enhanced brain function can also be a benefit helping in the

ability to plan and prioritize and often creativity is increased

because of the physical and psychological mechanisms

opened by the exercise.

Walking is a great option because of the simplicity. You need

no special equipment or clothing. You can do it almost any

time and alone or with family and friends. Other types of

exercise may yield additional benefits.

Let us get moving!

Marilyn

Marilyn Sanderlin, BSN

Source: U of CA, Berkeley, Wellness Letter, July 2020

September

Scripture

Readers

September 6

Pat Sargent

September 13

Ben Garman

September 20

Geof Oetjens

September 27