FOR THE WEEK OF DECEMBER 8th, 2019
Please notify the church office (435-649-2233) or office@shepherdofthemountains.org of substitutions prior to the bulletin insert deadline of Wednesday at NOON. Thank you!
Please view the Worship Schedule and other events happening this week on our calendar.
Message from our Pastor, Steve Leiser
Our Lord has chosen to dwell in our hearts. I cannot speak for you, but that is amazing. After all, we are not angels by any means. Sometimes our behaviors can be the lowest of the low. And our Lord still dwells in our hearts. Knowing this, how can we not express our humility in the light of God’s love for us. I continue to pray that the joy of our Lord will continue to be revealed to us. May we continue to go forth sharing God’s love. In Christ’s name may we continue to forth in peace proclaiming Christ’s salvation is for everyone. Everyone.
Christ’s Peace, Pastor Steve
Worship Servants for this Sunday… Third Sunday of Advent
December 15th, 8:30 am ~ Traditional Worship
Assisting Minister: Peggy Cain
Acolyte: Teagan Hoffman
Lighting of the Advent Wreath: The Mugridge Family
Communion Assistants: Monte Hurt, Cheryl Thomson and Reva Rauk
Sunday School: Erin Thomas and Teri Pyros
Reader: Danny Williams
Music: Mary Antinori
Altar Guild Support: Pam Evans
Bread: Lopansri Family
Fellowship: Cheryl and Randy Thomson
Greeter: Reva Rauk
Usher: John Knudson
December 15th, 10:30 am ~ Contemporary Worship
Assisting Minister: Joe Donnell
Acolyte: Reagan and Lachland Abbott
Lighting of the Advent Wreath: Steve and Ann Hoffman Family
Communion Assistant: Kris Vipond
Sunday School: Erin Thomas
Reader: Jordanelle Mugridge
Music: The Praise Band
Altar Guild Support: Pam Evans
Bread: Lopansri Family
Fellowship: Karen Broussard
Greeter: Kris Vipond
Usher: Dave Vecchi
Counters: Kim Raymer and Dave Vecchi
Altar Flowers: The DeFord Family
Reoccurring Meetings
Bluegrass – 5:30 pm every Thursday
Praise Band – 7:00 pm every Wednesday
AA – 7:00 pm every Wednesday (co-ed), 7:00 pm every Thursday (men only)
Alzheimer’s Support Group – Meets 1:00 pm – 3rd Wednesday of every month
Information deadlines:
Worship Servants: SECOND MONDAY of the month – for the next month please !
Committees:
Council – 6:30 pm, 2nd Monday of the month – (01/13/2020)
Education/Youth – 9:45 am, 2nd Sunday of the month (TBA)
Executive Committee – 12:00 pm varies (TBA)
Fellowship – 9:30 am, 2nd Sunday of the month (1/12/2020)
Finance – 5:30 pm, 4th Monday of the 1st month of the quarter (TBA)
Property – 6:30 pm, 4th Monday of the month (No Property Meeting in December)
Social Ministries – 9:30 am, 2nd Sunday of the month (1/12/2020)
Bereavement Team – TBD
Stewardship – 7:00 pm, 1st Monday of the month (TBA)
Shepherd Connections – 9:30 am 2nd Sunday of the month (1/12/2020)
Worship/Music – 11:30 am, 1st Sunday of the month (1/5/2020)
Lectionary Bible Readings
Lectionary Bible Readings for Sunday, December 15, 2019: Third Sunday of Advent – Isaiah 35:1-10, Psalm 146:5-10, James 5:7-10, Matthew 11:2-11
~ PLANNING AHEAD… Announcements ~
Please view the Worship Schedule and other events happening this week on our calendar
GOOD GIFTS FOR GOD’S GLOBAL BARNYARD – Give the gift that is hard to wrap – an ANIMAL this Christmas season! Help us reach our goal of $500 to purchase a COW for a village in another country. Place your contribution in the “Barn Box” on the display table, cash or check. Make sure to put in the memo field “ELCA Good Gifts”.
CHRYSALIS / SUB-for-SANTA HOLIDAY PARTY will be held on THIS Saturday, December 14th from 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm. Come join your friends to help ring in the Christmas spirit with food, fun, music by The Bluegrass Band and a special visit from Santa! Set up for the Party will be Saturday at 10:00 am at the church if you would like to help get things festive for the Chrysalis Party.
ONE MORE CLASS OF ADULT EDUCATION – TRINITY: The Soul of Creation with Richard Rohr and Cynthia Bourgeault: Join us on Sunday mornings between services to watch presentations on the relational aspects of the Trinity and creation and to discuss these understandings with others. December 15th from 9:40 am – 10:25 am in the conference room. Contact Peggy Cain 435-655-0596 with questions.
UPDATED CHURCH DIRECTORY – If you would like a copy, please let the office know.
LIVING LUTHERAN MAGAZINE – Pick up your DECEMBER copy in front of the church office. Note: If you were receiving Living Lutheran delivered to your home, you will have noticed that we discontinued the subscription for home delivery. We now only have 10 copies available for pick up. If you have any questions about this, please contact the office at 435-649-2233.
INFO REGARDING RETIREMENT and DISTRIBUTIONS ” ON TURNING 70 1/2 YEARS OLD” – The year you turn 70 ½ is a magical time – at least for the IRS. It is the year which you must begin withdrawing money from your tax-deferred retirement accounts (i.e. 401K’s and regular IRA’s). The IRS even stipulates how much you must withdraw (and therefore pay taxes on) from this year going forward. This amount is your “Required Minimum Distribution” or RMD. The most recent tax cut act greatly increased the Standard Deduction. The thought was that it would simplify most people’s tax returns as far fewer tax payers would need to itemize. Since the standard deduction was so much larger our charitable deductions would not be deductible or looked at another way, they were already included in the standard deduction.
However, there is still a provision in the tax code that allows those 70½ and older to have their cake and eat it too. If you are 70½ or older and you have a regular IRA (does not apply to 401K’s) you are allowed to make a charitable donation directly from your IRA. This is called a Qualified Charitable Distribution or “QCD”. The sweet part of a QCD is that the distribution is not included in “taxable income” but does count towards your RMD mentioned above. I know there are a lot of 3-letter acronyms involved here. Just know that if you are 70½ or older you should talk to your financial advisor or IRA custodian about QCD’s. ~ Info supplied by Dave Vecchi.
~ YOUTH ~
HEY THERE YOUTH – WE NEED YOUR INFORMATION AND THE NEXT MEETING – Please see the page on the Youth board to provide Pastor Steve and the office with your email address and cell phone number, so that we can text you updates. Also, we will be having our next Youth Meeting on December 15th at 11:30 am to continue our planning mission for the youth here at SOTM. ALL ARE WELCOME TO ATTEND and give us your input. Thank you !
ELEMENTARY SUNDAY SCHOOL – The congregation of SOTM offers Sunday School for our children. Classes are offered during our 8:30 am and 10:30 am worship services. Erin Thomas supervises these classes held in our class room wing or conference room. With great joy we again look forward to being with our children on Sunday mornings. Please encourage your children to attend Sunday School! Encourage them to invite their friends! Invite your friends! We look forward to seeing you on Sunday mornings this September and throughout the coming church year! ~ Pastor Steve
YOUTH EXTRACURRICULAR ACTIVITIES – Do your kids participate in extracurricular activities, sports, dance, music, plays? Please let us know as many people of the congregation would like to support the youth and cheer them on at their events. There is a sign up on the YOUTH board, so let us know what your kiddos are up to this winter and spring.
~ COMMUNITY EVENTS ~
MUSICIAN SHOWCASE AT DEJORIA – Join Walt Evans for this Singer / Songwriter event on Friday, DECEMBER 20th from 6 pm to 9 pm at the State Road Tavern inside of the Dejoria Center in Kamas, Utah. For more info see Events kiosk in narthex.
MARK YOUR CALENDAR for the ANNUAL CHRYSALIS / SUB for SANTA PARTY – We will once again host the Chrysalis Party at Shepherd of the Mountains on SATURDAY, DECEMBER 14th at 7:00 pm. See flyer on the Events kiosk for more information.
WINDRIDER SEEKS FAMILIES TO HOST FILM STUDENTS DURING SUNDANCE 2020 – The Windrider Host Family Program: The Windrider Forum (www.windriderforum.info) is a unique cultural and ecumenical immersion experience at the Sundance Film Festival that brings undergraduate, graduate students, professors, filmmakers, pastors and community leaders together to engage in a dialogue about some of the most challenging issues facing our culture today as portrayed through the Cinematic Arts. We identify ways to bridge the divisiveness that often exists when these conversations take place. We equip and encourage participants to find meaningful ways to tell stories of hope, reconciliation and redemption. From Windrider’s modest beginnings in 2005, we have grown to become the largest student group at Sundance, more than 250 students from over 20 different Christian colleges and universities throughout the country. Recognizing this fact, The Sundance Film Festival asked in 2019, to become an official partner of the Windrider Forum at Sundance.
All of our guests are adults. There are college students, professors and seminarians. They are encouraged to arrive on Sunday, January 26, 2020 and stay until Saturday, Feb. 1st or Sunday Feb. 2, 2020. They follow a very tight schedule with class beginning at 8:30 am and then spend the rest of the day viewing films, sometimes until later in to the night. They are asked to provide their own transportation. (If the host home is close to a bus line, public transport will be used, if not, they will use a rental car or carpool).
The host family provides lodging but is not expected to provide meals, however a light breakfast and coffee in the morning is greatly appreciated. Although you may not see much of your guests during the week, we are confident you will enjoy meeting your guests, hearing about their backgrounds, and their experience at Windrider Forum at Sundance. The Windrider forum would not be able to offer such a unique experience and opportunity to students and their professors without the generosity of Park City’s local churches and partners.
Host Families are being extended a personal invitation for the following events:
January 27, 2020 (5-9 pm) Opening Night for the Windrider Short Film Showcase and buffet dinner. This will take place at the LDS Stake Center, 2300 Monitor Drive, Park City. There will be a Q and A to follow with filmmakers of the award winning shorts.
Jan 28-31, 2020 (Tues-Fri, 8:45-11:45 am) If interested, please join our Windrider students and professors at one or more of their morning sessions at the LDS Stake Center.
Mary Cass or Will Stoller-Lee from the Windrider team, will be in contact in January, regarding the lodging assignments for volunteer host homes.
We appreciate your prayers and generosity for the success of Windrider at Sundance 2020!
Dawn Kenton – (435) 729-9215 – dawnkenton1@gmail.com
Jill Sobol – (217) 620-7108 – jesobol@gmail.com
Donna Joss – (708) 955-5245 – dmkjoss@gmail.com
~ONGOING AT SHEPHERD OF THE MOUNTAINS~
SHEPHERD OF THE MOUNTAINS LAUNCHES NEW ON-LINE GIVING PLATFORM – TITHE.LY – We now have an On-line giving button on our web page to make it more convenient for members and visitors to contribute to SOTM. The donor has the option to cover the processing fees for the church or if they decide not to, SOTM will cover the administration fees that are processed through Tithe.ly. To give on line – click on this link to set up your profile to contribute: GIVE TODAY This is a simple way to give if you don’t have cash or a checkbook on you at one of our worship services. Thank you for your supporting Shepherd of the Mountains Lutheran Church!
AMAZON SMILE – Help donate to Shepherd of the Mountains Lutheran Church with every purchase you make on Amazon, click on link: AMAZON~SMILE
IT TAKES A VILLAGE TO GIVE THE GIFT OF TIME AND TALENT – Can you give us your time one Sunday a month?
The wonderful people that serve SOTM every Sunday would like to have new folks help and serve with any of the positions on a Sunday. If you know you can help assist at communion, be a reader, host fellowship, be a greeter or if your child would like to be an acolyte for a Sunday Service, please let the office know. It is a small commitment to give the church your time on “One Sunday a Month” and we are so appreciative to those that can step up and give us the gift of your Time, Talent and Treasure.
Please let us know if you can help with the following:
Acolyte – see Pastor Steve
Altar Guild / Bread Baker – see Pam Evans
Communion Assistant for either service – see the office
Greeter at either service – see Pam Evans or the office
Host a Fellowship – see Ann Hoffman or the office
Scripture Reader at either service – see Val Thurnell or the office
Ushering at either service – see Randy Thomson
Rocky Mountain Synod Information – The information is on the ELCA bulletin board and here is a link:
http://conta.cc/2z3Naap
Recycling Update – Thank You to all of you who are recycling at SOM. It’s a big job to take these items to the Recycle Center and if you would like to help in this wonderful “Save our Earth” mission, please contact Mary Antinori (801-243-9635) to help her out. Also, please remember that if cardboard is contaminated with food particles, it can not be recycled. SHEPHERD OF THE MOUNTAINS HAS JOINED RECYCLE UTAH’S GREEN BUSINESS PROGRAM– This program is a resource that helps us operate in a more sustainable manner through education and goal setting. We’ve identified three goals for 2019: 1) increase recycling and awareness in the building, 2) explore lighting efficiency options in the building and parking lot and 3) evaluate our energy usage throughout the building. Additional information on the program can be found at www.recycleutah.org/green-business-program. Please contact Julie Cooper, Mickey Palomaki or Mary Antinori to join our team or get the scoop on what we’re doing to achieve our goals.
Food Pantry – Thank you everyone for your food donations, which we deliver to the Christian Center of Park City Food Pantry monthly. Please know that their need for food is constant and greatly appreciated. Please drop off your non-perishable food donations in the basket in the narthex. Thank you!
Fun PROJECT Friday – Every other Friday from 9 AM to 11 AM here at Shepherd of the Mountains. Next Property Project is “To Be Determined” .
Eyeglasses for Lions Club – Always in need for Prescription Glasses and Sunglasses. Please donate to the wooden box by the office.
Box Tops – Shining Stars school is collecting box tops. If you are not saving yours for another cause, they would be happy to take them. There will be a collection box in the narthex.
Wendy’s Wonderful Wednesday Workout – Every Wednesday, 7:00 am – strength, core and balance. Right here at SOM. Just $5 per class.
Women’s Bible Study – We meet every other Tuesday. The next meeting is Tuesday, December 17th at 9:30 am at the church. If you have questions, please contact the office for more information. We look forward to seeing you.
Book Club – Will be held on TUESDAY, DECEMBER 17th at 7:00 pm at Jim and Mary Antinori’s home. The book is “Overstory” by Richard Powers.
Solar System Performance for: October 10, 2019 to November 9, 2019 ~
Now that the days are shorter and the temperatures cooler, the panels were able to make a major contribution to reducing our energy costs but we did not completely offset higher usage of the Church and our tenants. During the period, 29 days, the solar system generated 1,198 kWh of energy. The energy produced by the solar panels offset 50% of moderate but somewhat higher power usage (2,242 kWh) by the Church and its tenants. In the process, we sold back 563 kWh to Rocky Mountain Power. This was the greater power we generated during daylight hours exceeding the power usage of the Church during the same hours. During the period, we drew 1,607 kWh from the grid but we sold back 563 kWh; we drew 1,004 kWh from power we had banked earlier. We were charged for 0 kWh so our out of pocket cost was only the $10 basic charge for being connected to the grid. We only have 726 kWh remaining in the bank. It will be important to control our power use and keep the panels clear of ice and snow in the coming months. ~ Tim Fehr
Property Coordinator – Annie Lamb is serving in this position. Her email is annie.1974@live.com. She is now coordinating all the various groups that use our building. If you have an event and you would like to use the building, she is the person you contact or contact the church office.
Sunday Servants – There are many opportunities to serve during our worship services. We need additional volunteers. Worship takes 20-25 people to assist every Sunday. If you would like to assist, here is the list of the people who do the scheduling:
Assisting Ministers, Communion Assistants and Readers – Val Thurnell vthurnell@gmail.com
Altar Guild, Bread Bakers and Greeters – Pam Evans evansstrayhome@aol.com
Counters – Jim Hier jimheir@gmail.com
Keyboard – Stephanie Hurt saamhurt@allwest.net
Fellowship – Ann Hoffman sagahoffman@msn.com
Ushers – Randy Thomson thomson@xmission.com
Acolytes – Pastor Steve steveleiser@comcast.net
Musical Talents – We invite you to share your musical talents during worship at 8:30. If you would like to provide special music (vocal or instrumental solos and groups) during the offertory, please talk with Mary Antinori (435-649-6877) or Pastor Steve.
The Praise Band is looking for musicians for the 10:30 am service. Practice is Tuesday evenings at 7:00 pm. Join us for practice and see how you like it! Contact Jennifer Leiser (801-631-9981) for more information.
In Our Prayers –
We ask your continued prayers for Healing and Wholeness for:
Mildred, The Hamilton Family, Paul S, Kira, Dylan, Josh L, Our Friend Lisa, Ed Mentzer, Don , Kerry, Jim VanderLinden, Kimberly Gosell, Thomas Ryan, Dylan Wilcox, Heather F., Raymer Family, Barbara Lubin, Jill L., Aunt Lou, Clayton, Chuck Lamb Sr., Mathew McClure, Val Thurnell, Robert Howell, Sam, Howard, Mark, Hazel, Bonni Futch, Mary Jane Schmidt, Julie Stranges, Jacob, Bev, Pat Rusk, Jessica, Lizzie and Family, Jeff, Doug Gibson, Marlene, Russ Malcomson, Margueritte Malcomson, Annette, Sheila, Bob, Brandon, Vera Palomaki, Avery, Michael, Kathy, Marge, Rob, Jan, Cindy, Todd, Andy Washington, Mugridge Family.
SOM Prayer Chain
We are updating our prayer chain. We have kept everyone on the list that has been added in the last 3 months. We will rotate names off the prayer chain after a month unless we receive a request to keep a name on. Please contact JJ Ehlers, jrhehlers@sisna.com or call her at 435-647-0977, to add a name to the chain. Thank you!
Housekeeping
The date of the E-pistle is figured from “the first day of the week,” the day of Resurrection–Sunday.
The deadline for Sunday Bulletin Announcements is NOON of the previous Wednesday. Please send them to the Church Office.
The weekly E-pistle is an internet ministry of the congregation of Shepherd of the Mountains Lutheran Church. All announcements or subscriber list additions/subtractions should be sent to the Office Administrator, at office@shepherdofthemountains.org. Deadline is Wednesday at 12:00 noon.
Please note our church office hours are: Monday – Friday, 9 AM to 2 PM. Friday’s may be a modified schedule in the office. Thank you !