We are now rolling through the “Holiday Season.” Thanksgiving is behind us, while Christmas and the New Year are just ahead. For many, the days leading up to December 25 will increasingly fill with festive activities. In times past, people focused on preparation for the “Second Coming” over these days. That season of Advent inspired somber reflection and a penitential attitude similar to Lent. Then, suddenly, the purple yielded to white, and the reserved mood gave way to a burst of celebration lasting twelve days, topped off by Three King’s Day (January 6).

During my childhood, my family followed this custom. We didn’t attend parties, exchange gifts, or see movies, etc, until “Christmas.” Also, in keeping with our ancestors, we decorated the house on the 24th, and not a day sooner. Then, after the midnight service, we would place baby Jesus in the manger. Those who could stay awake opened gifts, and eat, while the younger ones would go to bed so that Santa Klaus could come by after he had attended church at the North Pole. (We didn’t go back for a service on the 25th as it was already Christmas morning when we left).

Those days were meaningful and awkward. While many friends were celebrating and having fun throughout December, we were agents of cheer prohibition. Then while the neighbors began cleaning up, we remained resolutely bedecked through the Epiphany. Though this route provided ample opportunities to remember the true meaning of the Nativity, it was not an effective path for connecting people to Jesus.

So the Road to Bethlehem has changed. Even so, it is still good for us to “prepare” for the “Second Coming” of Jesus. For that reason, the last three weeks of the “church year” (early to mid-November) did that. Our focus was on the End Times. In effect the older “Advent Season” is not gone—it’s just earlier. This enables us to center on the meaning of Christmas in harmony with our culture. In so doing, we have the opportunity to give the best gift of all: faith.

Since the season of “Advent” (which means to come) has turned into a time to prepare for the celebration, let’s make the most of it. Look for “The Signs of Christmas: The Advent of a Messiah” as the weeks unfold, and seize every opportunity to wish everyone a Merry Christmas with the hope that someone will ask you why.

This is the sixth newsletter article I have written since I was elected Chair of the Lay Governing Board, and I’m not sure I’m any closer to answering the question I brought up in August: “What does the Lay Governing Board actually do, anyway?” Part of the answer is that we work on long-range planning. By long-range I mean at least five years into the future, although I must admit that sometimes it’s hard to look even one year ahead.

The point of long-range planning is that we look not only at what we at OSLM are doing, but also at why we are doing it. What are we trying to accomplish? What do we need to do in order to accomplish it? How do we set priorities for our limited resources of time, talent, and treasure? What do we want to look like five, ten, or more years down the road? These are the kinds of questions that the LGB wrestles with on a regular basis. We are trying to boil the results of our discussions down to a few short statements called Critical Targets and Goals. In the very near future, we will be sharing these with you, the Stewards of OSLM, in order to get your feedback and to make sure that we’re trying to lead the congregation in the direction you want to go.

One thing we did at our last meeting was to revise OSLM’s Mission Statement. This is a short statement (which appears at the bottom of each newsletter) of what we are trying to do as a congregation. The change we made was to include a clear statement of the reason we are doing these things. It now reads:

“The Mission of Our Savior Lutheran Ministries is to carry out the Great Commission (Matthew 28:19-20; Acts 1:8) by:

• Proclaiming salvation through God’s grace in word and song;
• Building Christian relationships;
• Caring for the people of the community; and
• Equipping God’s people for Life in Christ.”

The reference to the Great Commission was added in order to tie together the other four action statements, and to show that they do not exist for their own sakes, but instead are a means to the goal of going and making disciples, as Christ commanded us.

We give God the glory for:

• Our teachers who went to Yosemite with our 7th graders. They were Fred Brauer and Jill Davis. We also want to thank the parent chaperones for taking a week out of their life to help at Yosemite.
• Our teachers and staff who went to Catalina with our 8th graders. They were: Forrest Adams, Becca Rogers, and Timothy Potthoff. Likewise, we also want to thank the parent chaperones for taking a week out of their life to help at Catalina.
• Our students who brought in over 400 cans of food in the first week of our chapel’s “Kids Can” Challenge. We are asking students to bring cans of food for the local food shelves. The challenge will continue through December. [Anyone who wishes to help may bring cans of food and drop them off at the school office.]
• Our students and their chapel offering who collected $1500 toward the van for our Brazilian missionaries. We still have a way to go. Our goal is $4000!
• Our parents who attended our Parent Teacher Conferences. We are also thankful for our teachers who put in long days during these conferences.
• Debbie Bertolino for her work in the Entertainment book fundraiser (where we raised almost $10,000) and for her organizing the Fall Fun Fest. (She even arranged for good weather this year!)
• Our cheerleaders and their coach – Amanda Newman – for their support of our school and teams.
• The excellent teacher in-services conducted on campus this year. Our presenters were: Dan Webster – “Increasing Your Personal Impact,” Gregory McQuoid – “Bullying in the School,” and Becky Berry & Glenda Fuge – “Sensory Motor Foundations for Learning.”

Nativity Scenes - Find and dust off those beautiful nativity sets you have stored away. OSLS students and their families are asked to bring their nativity scenes to share with others during the Advent season. We will display the crčches along the back windows of the church sanctuary. We hope to see many different cultures and countries represented from around the world. No nativity scene will be turned away. If it has special meaning for you, it will be wonderful to share. They will be on display at the back of the sanctuary from November 27th through December 17th for you to enjoy.

Advent Services – Plan to join us for our Pre-Christmas Services on:

• November 29 at 7:00 p.m. “Journey of Hope” led by OSLS students in grades 3-5. We take the journey of watching and waiting for the baby Jesus, who would be the Savior, the Messiah.
• December 6 at 7:00 p.m. “Journey of Love and Miracles” led by OSLS students in grades 6- 8. We marvel as Jesus’ journey as a baby and His mysterious plan of salvation begins on earth.
• December 13 at 7:00 p.m. “Journey of Joy and Victory” led by the OSLS students in grades K-2. With the coming of Christ, our journey becomes one of joy and victory as we respond with adoration and excitement.

If you cannot come to the services in the evening, the services will be repeated at the Thursday morning school chapel beginning at 8:40 a.m.

Preschool Christmas Services for each class will be conducted on:

• December 14 at 11:20 a.m. and 1:15 p.m.
• December 15 at 11:20 a.m.
• December 19 at 11:20 a.m.
• December 20 at 11:20 a.m.

No one can give the message of Christmas like children!

Accreditation Progress – Our Accreditation Team is moving along strongly. We are planning to have the final visitation for accreditation completed in the fall of 2007. It may sound like a long time off, but it is much closer than you might think! As a reminder, our school ESLR’s (Expected School-wide Learning Results) are:

• Kids of the King walk like Jesus.
• Kids of the King are avid learners.
• Kids of the King develop important life skills.
• Kids of the King enhance their lives with enriching activities.

OPEN HOUSES COMING! While you may not be thinking about it quite yet, it is the time for us to begin developing plans for next fall’s (2007) enrollment. We will be conducting several Open Houses for new students, continuing students, area preschools, etc. The first of the open houses will be on February 6! A second Open House is on February 13. If you know students who may be interested in attending OSLS, these open houses may be the best place to get information about our school. We will keep you informed!

We wish all of you a most blessed Christmas!

The musicians of Our Savior will present “GOOD NEWS OF GREAT JOY,” a concert of Advent and Christmas music, on Sunday, December 10, at 4:00 p.m. We pray that you will set aside some time to enjoy this gift of music. December is a hectic month for everyone, but if you allow yourself this time to hear the Christmas story again in music, we know you will be blessed! Enjoy the music of our choirs, bell ringers, and instrumentalists, as we bring you Good News of Great Joy.

Following the concert, enjoy a light hors d’oeuvres reception in the gym. You won’t even need to fix dinner that night!

• Blood Pressure Monitoring will be offered in the Family Room after the worship service on the first and third Sundays of each month.
• Pinochle Club—This group meets on the second Tuesday evening of the month. Everyone is invited to come out for a game of cards on Tuesday, December 12, from 7—9 p.m. in Room 18. Come and join in the fun!
• The Christian Reading Club of Our Savior meets on a monthly basis to share insights and reactions to a monthly reading assignment. The book is The Christmas Quilt: A Novel by Thomas J. Davis. This book is available at www.amazon.com. We’ll meet for our discussion time on Tuesday, December 19, from 7:00 - 8:30 p.m. in Room 8. Call Steve Christopher at 447-1246 ext. 228 for more information.

Upcoming Events

• Advent Services will be held at 7 p.m. in the Sanctuary on Wednesdays, December 6, 13, and 20.
• Crab Feed, Saturday, February 3, 6 p.m. in the gym.
• Women's Retreat, February 23 - 25, 2007 at Villa Maria Del Mar in Santa Cruz.

The youth website is up and running. The website address is www.os lm.net/youth/main.html. There is information for all the youth of OSLM on this webpage. Check it out!

C.L.I.M.B. (9th - 12th grade)

• Youth nights are Thursday nights from 7 - 9 p.m. in the gym at OSLM.
• Thursday, December 21 is our Christmas party from 7 - 9 p.m. at the home of Ken and Laura Gong. There will be a white elephant gift exchange.

F.I.S.H. (7th - 8th grade)

For your information: The Junior High Youth has a new name: "F.I.S.H." F.I.S.H. stands for Forever I'm Serving Him. We are called to serve God in all aspects of life. It is very fitting to have this as a name to proclaim that this is what we are doing. When we have fun, we are still serving Him. When we read the Bible, we are serving Him. When we help others, we are serving Him. We are all called to be His F.I.S.H., so come out and serve Him. From now on, when you are looking for Junior High Youth information, look for F.I.S.H.

Friday, December 15 is the F.I.S.H. Christmas party from 7 - 9 p.m. at the Scharnitzke home. There will be food, music, games, and good times. There will be a white elephant gift exchange. (If you do not know what this is, ask your parents or contact Timothy Potthoff.)

We have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him. Matthew 2:2b

During this time of year, I think of the Wise men seeking Christ. God sent a star for them to follow. When we come to a crossroad in life, and as we search for the right path to take, God will give us signs to follow. Often times the signs are subtle, and we need to take time to look for them; other times, He “hits us with a ton of bricks,” hoping that we will not miss them. This holiday season, our prayer is that you take the time to look for the signs God has placed in your path. It may be people showing you the way, it may mean opening up His word and looking hard for where He wants us to go, and it could be that He wants us on our knees asking for direction. Whichever way God has you moving this holiday season, remember that in all things to give God the glory. Trust Him, and He will surely guide you as he guided the Wise men so long ago.

ECDC has had a wonderful time celebrating the holidays. We gathered together in the Big Room for our annual Thanksgiving Day Feast. Everyone had a great time! We gave thanks for the yummy food and sang a fun song in remembrance of the first Thanksgiving. Steve Christopher led us in chapel, teaching us what it means to be thankful. We created wonderful hats and necklaces to wear for our feast, and we made creative turkeys using our hands. We made and ate some tasty bread as we learned how to make bread, and that it always tastes better if we work together, just like Chicken Little did. As we watched the leaves fall to the ground and raked them up, we learned about Fall and all the colors God has made.

We are excitingly awaiting Christmas and all the fun that comes with celebrating Jesus’ Birthday. We pray that your Christmas is a happy one filled with joy!

A crew of helpers is needed to get the sanctuary ready for Christmas. If you have been around OSLM for the past few years, you may remember the Christmas trees and poinsettias in the chancel area. In order to enhance our worship space again this year, we are asking you to consider lending a hand on the decorating crew. Young people and adults are welcome – we will be working on two Saturdays – December 9 and December 16 – from 8:30 a.m. to noon. If you can help out for one hour or all morning, please join us! It’s a big job, but with many people working, things go quickly. Thanks!

Christa Even
For the Liturgical Arts Group

If you can spare a few hours on Friday, December 22, help spread some Christmas joy as we carol to those in Our Savior’s fellowship who are homebound or who may need a little extra care this Christmas season! Anyone is welcome – singles, families, teen-agers.

Meet at the gym at 5:30 p.m. for a light supper; we’ll leave promptly at 6:00 p.m. We usually split into several groups and stop at homes and care facilities. Typically, we are back to church between 7:30 and 8:00 p.m. Bring goodies to share if you like – otherwise, just come and share your voice and time! Questions? Call Christa Even at 447-1246, ext. 231.

Please click here for the Preliminary Financial Report for October and also the Preliminary Fiscal Year Report for July 2006 to June 2007.

The mission pledge is current and all expenses have been paid.

General Giving for October is DOWN 6.8% from the budget projection but the good news is that it is UP 2.2% YTD.

Balances in our checking and savings accounts total $388,200, which includes $87,693 in the Building Up – Reaching Out fund. The Church’s portion of the mortgage as well as architectural fees are being paid out of this fund.

Monthly pledges needed to make the mortgage payment are $22,000. In October, we received $32,450.

The Thrivent Matching Funds program will generate $1980 for the benefit of the Ministry Center for the month of October.

For families with children ages 2 to 12: join us on Sunday, December 3 in the gym from 3 - 5 p.m. for a Family Advent Event. We will be frosting cookies, creating Christmas decorations, and hearing the Christmas story. This promises to be a wonderful family event, helping you to get your heart and mind ready for the birth of our Savior.

We have submitted the loan application to our lender and are waiting to hear. Our contractor is still looking for ways to save money without compromising the project. When anything significant happens, we will make an announcement. (Maybe something will happen before you read this.) In the meantime, keep praying.

Anyone who would like to sing with Our Savior Choir for Christmas Eve or Christmas Day is invited to come to rehearsals on Thursdays, December 14 and December 21. From 7:00 to 7:45 p.m., we will rehearse Christmas Eve music, and from 7:45 to 8:30 p.m., we will prepare for Christmas Day. We welcome anyone who is Junior High age or older.

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans will make your donations to the Ministry building fund GROW—and all that’s required is a simple little form.

If you’re already supporting the Ministry Center building fund AND are a Thrivent member (or are willing to become a Thrivent Associate for a mere $10), your donations to the building fund can grow by 50%; that is, Thrivent will give OSLS $1 for every $2 you donate to the SCHOOL portion of our building fund (up to a total of $300 per person each calendar year).

Thrivent is a NON-PROFIT organization. To maintain that status, the IRS lets them distribute their earnings to Lutheran schools and service organizations by supplementing the gifts made by individual contributors. Thus far, this calendar year, Thrivent has given over $14 million to Lutheran schools/service organizations through the GivingPlus program. They’re hoping to gift another $10 million before the end of ’06. Let’s help them reach their goal while we support our own—completion of our Ministry Center!

Information about this program is available from Joe Ryno in the church office (447- 1246, ext. 221) and you can learn more about the simple process that will allow God to multiply your gifts to His Ministry at OSLM.

In August, Congress enacted the massive Pension Protection Act of 2006. While primarily a pension reform law, the Act contains a number of provisions pertaining to public charities and charitable contributions. One of the provisions offers charitable- minded individuals an opportunity to make gifts from their IRAs and exclude the amount of their gifts from gross income. This is available only for 2006 and 2007, and no charitable income tax deduction is allowed. To qualify:

• The donor must be 70˝ years of age or older
• The transfers must go directly from a traditional or Roth IRA to a tax-exempt church or charity
• Gifts cannot exceed $100,000 per taxpayer per year
• Gifts must be outright

Please contact your financial advisor for more information regarding this wonderful opportunity to utilize your IRA more creatively.

February 23-25, 2006 is the Women's Retreat weekend, a time when the women of Our Savior will travel to Santa Cruz to unwind, enjoy the peace and beauty of the ocean, have fun and fellowship with other women of faith, and spend some much needed time in worship and prayer. If you’re looking for a break from the demands of a hectic personal and/or professional life, perhaps a weekend away is just what you need!

Connie Schramm from St. John’s Lutheran School, in Orange, CA, will be our guest speaker.

This year, we’ll be staying at the Villa Maria del Mar retreat center. You may view the retreat center online at www.villamari adelmar.org. Most of the accommodations will house two women per room, but there are a limited number of single rooms available that will be given out on a first come, first served basis. The cost of the weekend is $215, which includes two nights lodging and six meals.

To reserve your spot, look for the reservation table after worship services on Sundays in the gym, or call Kathy Newman at 447-1246, ext. 420. Reservations will be taken throughout December until our limited space is filled, so sign up soon! Please consider joining us for relaxing, fun-filled weekend!

Our Savior Lutheran Ministries is a Christian Community--

• Rooted in Grace
• Growing in Faith
• Serving with Joy

Worship Schedule

• Sunday Worship and Communion: 9:00 a.m.
• Sunday School for all ages: 10:30 a.m.

Critical Targets and Goals

To accomplish our mission and ministry here at Our Savior:

• Pastor: A new Senior Pastor has been installed by October 1, 2006.
• Worship Attendance: The average weekly worship attendance for 2006-07 is 15% greater than for 2005-06.
• Community Awareness: OSLM is making use of all relevant means of communication to make the people of the greater Livermore area aware of our ministries and activities.
• Ministry Center: The Ministry Center is completed by September 1, 2007. Plans have been developed for the full use of all campus facilities to advance the Mission of OSLM.
• New Member Assimilation: At least 75% of new Communicant Members received during 2006- 07 become involved in some group or activity at OSLM.
• Ministries to the 18 - 35 (Young Adult) Age Group: Ministries and activities specifically intended for the 18-35 age group are in place and functioning well. The number of Communicant Members in this age group has increased by 30% during 2006-07.
• Ministries to Unchurched School Families: Ministries and activities specifically intended for unchurched school families are in place and functioning well. These include at least three new approaches for targeted witness to this group.

Mission Statement

Our Savior Lutheran Ministries’ Mission is to carry out the Great Commission (Matthew 28:19-20; Acts 1:8) by:

• Proclaiming salvation through God’s grace in word and song;
• Building Christian relationships;
• Caring for the people of the community; and
• Equipping God’s people for Life in Christ.