Trinity Weekly, March 3, 2017

Your Weekly News & Updates

Notes from Pastor Zehnder

Welcome to New Members!

A heartfelt welcome to Susan Adams, Amanda and Kent Bond, Adam Morris and Maegan Carroll, Raquel Irons, Crystal Jones, Sarah Lauzon, Jennifer MacMillan and Zachary Muzika. These will be received into the official membership of Trinity this coming Sunday at the 11 AM service! The Apostle Paul speaks of the various gifts that God brings to the Body of Christ through each one of her members. We are grateful that these brothers and sisters desire to partner with us and bless us with their presence and participation. "Please, Holy Spirit, continue to strengthen and grow the Church everywhere. Today we thank you for these who join with us. Bless them with all us, we pray. Amen."

Gideons Presentation

The weekend at all four services, Bill Ruffier, fellow member and Gideon speaker, will tell us the story of Gideons and the incredible ministry the accomplish as they place Bibles everywhere in our country and around the world. A door offering will be received after each service. Give generously to this fine ministry. We thank Bill for his faithful ministry here at Trinity and as a Gideon!

Trinity Resurrection

Trinity Resurrection is making a difference. To this d ate $49,974 has been given. The purpose of TR is to bring relief to our present financial stresses and to put us on solid ground for the future. While this is a "low key" process our people are responding generously. Please do what you can, dear members and friends of Trinity.

The Prayer Vigil Continues.

The Prayer Vigil continued this past Monday evening. A small group of faithful prayed fervently for many things: families in need, those who are in physical distress of some king, for Trinity Church and School, for God's blessing on the Call Process. The list was and is endless. Watch for the next scheduled Prayer Vigil and join in. If you unable to come to the Sanctuary, then pray at home and in your heart.

The Lenten Season

Ash Wednesday, March 1, marked the beginning of our Lenten sojourn, click here to read all about Ash Wednesday at Trinity. We observed the solemn Imposition of Ashes, and received the Word and Sacrament of Holy Communion. We were blessed. Each Wednesday in Lent through April 5 we will have devotional services at 12:10 and 7PM. These services will place an emphasis on reading the Scriptures together and sharing hearts and thoughts. The theme for each of these services: Invocabit, Reminiscere, Laetare, Oculi, Judica come from the Middle Ages. You will find them totally timely for this century as well. Be curious - and amazed at the Grace of God which comes from these ancient Latin Lenten usages! See you there.

At the noon mid-week service on March 8 we will witness and celebrate the Baptism of Keegan Charles Bond, son of new members, Amanda and Kent.

-Pastor Z

From Leadership Council

Trinity Resurrection

Trinity Family, Several weeks ago I reached out to you with a request to join fellow members and staff in a time of prayer to seek guidance and faithfulness as we move forward with Ministry at Trinity Downtown. When Leadership Council gathered to assess our financial shortcomings we determined that the Trinity Resurrection campaign was imperative; it has grown to so much more. When we gathered in corporate prayer, members and staff reached out to pray for one another, to seek guidance for Trinity in the Senior Pastor call process, to seek financial guidance, and to give thanks for all of the good things that happen on a daily basis at Trinity Downtown. We are and will continue to face challenges; however, we are facing them directly and with gratitude for all that has been given to each of us and our Trinity family. Through this past Sunday, giving for Trinity Resurrection has reached $49,974. We on the Leadership Council are grateful for your faithful giving for Trinity.

Senior Pastor Call Process Update

I would also like to inform you that the Senior Pastor Call process is moving forward with the opportunity for members to submit nominations to the call committee. Moreover, the call committee is prepared and ready to move on with a slight change in structure. All members will continue to serve, including Mike Hoffmann, Rocky Smothers, Bruce Hahn, Jenn Blackwood, Bonnie Roby, Mike Kunze, Ted Lange, and Stephanie Landis. An additional member has been added to the committee, Tim Norris, who will serve as the chair.

We continue with open nominations for a Senior Pastor through April 20 while FL-GA District President, Rev. Greg Walton, works on putting together a new call list for Trinity. You will find nomination forms in the Narthex. Please continue to keep this process in your prayers.

Regular voters Meeting

Please plan to join us Sunday, March 12 after the 11am worship service.

From Your Elders

A Call To Prayer

Please commit to praying once a day for Trinity Downtown, as your schedule permits, through Easter. Trinity is facing two important issues we'd like to ask you to include in your prayers: the call of a Senior Pastor and a serious financial situation; and as always, we join together in prayer to cover the petitions of our entire Trinity family and those we're connected to in addition to those prayers for Trinity. Daily reminders are going out on Facebook each morning at 6am and you are welcome to share your own prayer requests in comments and show you're praying for others who have posted by "liking" their prayer request comment. Let's come together in prayer as we seek God's wisdom and guidance in these matters all other concerns on your hearts.

The Elders Ministry Team Cares For You

Brothers and Sisters in Christ, the Elders strive to have a personal relationship with the members of Trinity Lutheran Church. In order to achieve such a relationship with members, each elder is assigned a list of congregational members to shepherd. Shepherding may include periodic contact with members, prayer with/for members needing special prayers, and serving as a contact person for members. To insure elder lists of approximately the same numbers, member lists have been established as follows:

Members Names Elder Phone

Aber - Behrmann Don Behrmann 407-415-3333

Bell - Brown, Scott Ulysses Floyd 407-295-3254

Brown, Ted - Connery Jim Curtis 407-952-6533

Copenhaver - Eggert Clay Bourgeois 407-729-3150

Ellis - Gillenwater Rusty Stephens 407-894-1913

Giordina - Henkel Rocky Smothers 407-496-8506

Hicks - Karnes Steve Kerestes (1)352-284-3968

Kasch - Lange Mike Kunze 407-273-1968

Lanier - Meadows Lo Phillips 407-644-9843

Mehr - Opshal Brendan O'[Brien 321-663-3326

Osbourne - Rawlings Tony Ramiz 407-325-5094

*Raymond - Schroeder Ken Boggs 407-888-8379

Schumacher - Starr Gary Schumacher 407-803-3100

Stentz - Torres Tom Finger 407-765-9483

Trapp - Wessler Bob Trapp (call Mike Kunze)

Wheeler - Zweig Chris Gerou 407-452-9877

*updated

The elder assigned to your spiritual care will contact you soon to introduce himself. You may visit the Elders Ministry Team webpage if you'd like to learn more about Elders ministry and see photos of our elders. Initial contact should be made within the next couple of months. If you have not heard from your elder and have a need, please feel free to contact them or your Senior Elder, Mike Kunze. Finally, I would encourage everyone to complete a blue Attendance Card for each service you attend. It is important we have accurate attendance information to better serve you.

Thank you, and God Bless.

All The News

Be Our Guest: Spaghetti Lunch

TYM (Trinity's Youth Ministry) invites you to Be Our Guest on Sunday, March 19th to thank you, our church family, for your support! Spaghetti lunch served in Fellowship Hall at 1pm. Please RSVP to Jenn.blackwood@trinitydowntown.com for your ticket!

Trinity's Comfort Dog Ministry

Don't forget about our Comfort Dog - whomever he or she may be! We have added a page to our website at TrinityDowntown.com/ComfortDog for you to get information and to make a donation if you so choose. Please pray about being a part of this ministry. There are several areas to choose from; donor, prayer partner, handlers, visit team, schedulers, fundraising, advertising, photography to name a few. Please email Top Dog Wendy Havens if you are interested: Comfortdog@trinitydowntown.com

The Great Easter Surprise

On Saturday, April 8 at 10am children and families are invited to THE GREAT EASTER SURPRISE! Come out and enjoy a variety of stations around the campus, with surprises, crafts, and food, all related to our Celebration of Easter and the Good News of Joy, Mercy, and Forgiveness that we receive in Jesus' Resurrection! Do YOU have a heart for these types of activities? We're are looking for willing volunteers for prep, set up, serve as station leaders and helpers. Look for the Sign-up sheet in the church Narthex, or contact Outreach Ministry Team volunteer Gladys Dittmer at odittmer892@gmail.com. Thank you!

Trinity Lutheran School - Church Member Tuition Discounts

If you are registering a child/children for school next year in grades K-8, please consider Trinity Lutheran School! The Trinity Lutheran Church member tuition discount for the 2017-2018 school year has been increased to $1,000 per year, per member child. What a wonderful opportunity to give your child/children a Christian education as well as a sound academic education. If you are interested, you can visit the TLS website at school.trinitydowntown.com , or school or church office for more information. The deadline for submitting an application for member discounts is March 31 , 2017. I hope you will take advantage of this opportunity and watch your child grow academically and spiritually. -Trinity Downtown Scholarship Committee.

Children's Consignment Sale

Saturday, March 11 from 8am to 3pm the Greater Orlando Moms of Twins and Triplets (GOMOTT) will be having a children's consignment sale here at Trinity in the gym. $1 door entry. Say hello to your Trinity reps at the Trinity information table and be sure to tell any shopping parents asking about Trinity how much you love being part of the Trinity family! More information at https://www.facebook.com/GomottChildrensConsignmentSale

Urgent Midweek Prayer Requests

If you have an urgent prayer request that can't wait until you fill out a yellow prayer card during worship, please submit it via email to Pray@TrinityDowntown.com . While submitting a yellow card during worship is still the preferred way to share prayer requests, sometimes a prayer need can't wait until Sunday. Your prayer request (first name and basic details of the prayer requested) will be shared with a team of committed weekday prayer warriors and will also be added to Trinity's regular printed prayer list for the congregation. All prayers are kept on the printed list for a period of three weeks, so please resubmit long term prayer needs regularly so that they stay on the printed list. Thank you.

Invest with LCEF and Save Trinity money!

If you haven't already, please consider opening an LCEF savings account. The more investors mean the higher the rebate check will be next year. Savings account investments start as low as $25 for children under 18 and $100 for adults. If your child is new to Trinity Lutheran School in either the CDC or K-8 programs Trinity will donate $25 to start the account. Adult investment accounts with LCEF benefit Trinity in the same way the Youth Investor accounts do, so parents and church members, you can participate as well! You can apply online at LCEF.org . For more information, please contact Bruce Hahn at 407-701-3234 or email bruce@mm-c.com .

Please let us know!
Please let your Trinity family know of any scheduled surgery or hospital stay. In addition to scheduled procedures, please give the church office a call to let us know about extended illness, unplanned hospital stays, or even the birth of a child. You can call the office at any time and leave a message-no need to wait until business hours (407-488-1919 x100). During business hours, that information can then be forwarded to the appropriate caregivers. For an emergency that requires the care of a Pastor after hours or over the weekend, there is an option on our auto-attendant to dial 9 for immediate assistance (listen to the entire message). We want to be sure to know when you need us-whether to pray with you before a scheduled procedure, sit with you during a loved one's procedure, pray for you while you recover, visit you in the hospital/at home or to share praise and thanksgiving prayers for good news/results. Just let us know. Thank you.

Important Dates

Through April 5 Lenten Worship: Wednesdays 12:10 and 7pm

March 5 11am New Member Welcome during worship, reception following

March 12 Regular Voters Meeting, 12:15 Sanctuary

March 19 Spaghetti Lunch sponsored by TYM 1pm Fellowship Hall

April 1 Meet the Neighbors Walk 10am

April 8 The Great Easter Surprise 10am

Holy Week

April 9 Palm Sunday

April 13 Maundy Thursday & First Communion

April 14 Good Friday (offices and school programs closed)

April 15 Easter Vigil 6pm