Dear Fellow Christians !
On Pentecost Sunday, six of our young people were
celebrating their confirmation. At the beginning of
the worship, the confirmands' choir, led by Iris
Schweiger, sang:
"525600
minutes, 525000 moments so dear, 525600 minutes. How
do you measure a year? In daylights, in sunsets, in
midnights, in cups of coffee, in inches, in miles,
in laughter , in strife, in 525600 minutes. How do
you measure a year in life? How about love? Measure
in love! Seasons of love!"
The celebration service was a moment where we looked
back on more than 1 million minutes, on a two-year
period. 
We had fun together, especially in the camps,
the first time at Camp Edgewood, where we
experienced an exciting Saturday afternoon because
of a thunderstorm (for 2 hours there was no
electricity, but no further harm was done), or the
weekend in Ottawa with visiting the Parliament and
Museum of Civilization, enjoying Winterlude and
Rideau Channel. And we looked ahead, into a future
with major decisions concerning
the lives of our confirmands.
The confirmands were presented with bronze
crosses in the name of the Martin Luther Church, one
having the inscription: "Follow the footprints of
the Lord, they will lead you through troubled
times." That is my heartfelt wish for our youth:
that they understand what Jesus did for us, that
they know his love on the cross and his power in the
resurrection. And that they have courage to follow
Jesus, Jesus, who can show us a good way for our
lives.
And that is clear, they can trust Jesus throughout
all their lives. In a book with many church signs
from across North America, I had discovered some
particularly interesting ones:
"Looking for a lifeguard? Ours walks on
water!" This is so special about Jesus: where others
sink into fear and despondency, he remains the
powerful Lord. If we hold fast to his hand, we are
able to endure hardships.
In this age of SMS, Twitter, and Skype a very
important note: "Prayer is the best wireless
connection."
And another good word: "God takes us as we are and
makes us what we can become". Confirmation is only
one step on a long road. Just like every Sunday
service. We hear God's promise: "You are my beloved
child, I am with you." And God has a goal for us:
"This is what you are destined for - shape your
daily life by God's Word more and more, let your
life be transformed by the Spirit more and more."
Kind regards and God's blessings,
Your Pastor Alexander Mielke
Dear Fellow
Christians !
In the church council, we consider it
important to give you an overview of where we are in our
congregational work and what we want to achieve under
God's guidance.
As you know, every year in the summer
months, the church attendance is significantly lower
than usual, but our running costs do not change,
unfortunately. So this summer too,
as
our congregation is financed solely through collection
and donation, we ask
for your additional financial support by the Special
Collection.
The annual meeting on April 11th had decided to repair
the bricks on church column (West side ), as well as to
repair or renew the roof on Superior Av. building #5. During
the severe storm we had lately M.Zabel and E. Carl
were repairing the damaged part. But this is only
temporary.
These are
projects that we want to run. We are very grateful if
you provide us with your your support for this important
work.
As Church Council, we try to the best of our knowledge
and ability to make right decisions for the well - being
of the congregation. Under God's guidance, we look
ahead with optimism.
For all your support in the past and for all loyalty to
the congregation, I thank you very much in the name of
the council.
We wish you a relaxing summer. May
our heavenly Father guard and keep you.
For
the Church Council of Martin Luther Church
Your
President : Edmund Scholz
Congregational
Picknick in Camp Edgewood
We are looking
forward to a fine day in Camp Edgewood. On June 6,
we will start with a joint family service at 11:00 a.m.
And we will have a program suitable for young and old,
suitable for all the family. End will be around 4:00
p.m.
Please bring your lunch, plate, dishes, cup. Very
welcome!
If you need help with transportation, please contact
Pastor Alexander Mielke (416-567-2487)
On
13 June, we celebrate the 40th anniversary of
our Martin Luther Church Day Care (and the 55th
anniversary of our MLC)! This will a colourful,
lively, happy celebration.
In the Joint Service at 11:00 a.m. Bishop Michael
Pryse will deliver the sermon.
There will be many fun activities for children
(face painting, henna, painting contest, flower
planting, and much more). Magnus & Bruce will play jazz
melodies. A warm welcome to all for the Open House.
We are grateful if you can help as a volunteer –
please have a look at our list, placed in the church!
A NOTICE ABOUT
THE SUMMER CAMP IN CAMP LUTHERLYN AT BEAUTIFUL GOLDEN
LAKE JULY 24th till 30th, 2010
Dear Congregational members and
friends of Martin Luther Church !
Summer camp is fast
approaching and I urge you to submit your forms and
payment without delay. If you are still considering
going or sending your children, please let me know of
your intentions. I will be accepting campers till the
start of camp as long as there is space available and I
have enough counselors to properly care for your child.
Some important
details about camp:
The registration
form is required for everyone attending camp, including
parents. The bus form is required if you are taking the
bus to/from camp. Where payment for the above is
required, please make a cheque payable to MLC. NEW this
year is the Multimedia Release Form, please attach with
registration. You will find copies of all in the Church,
or at our website
www.martinluther.ca
Events happening
at camp:
I would like to
remind parents to refrain from sending their kids to
camp with hand-held gaming devices, and encourage them
to bring an active imagination!
This year I would
like to work with the theme "A bugs life in the Bible".
I would like to explore this topic, perhaps starting
with Adam & Eve and the snake! The plague, when Moses
leads out of Egypt also comes to mind. For the
simplicity of this topic, we will call any of these
creatures a "bug".
Don't forget to
dress as a "bug" for our dress-up dinner, kudos to
someone who dresses up as a praying mantis! Hopefully we
don't find flies under our plates like last year!
.....let alone
dirt-cup worms.............for
dessert...........mmmm........dirt-cup worms........
So dig thru your
costumes and decorations and find something fun to bring
to camp.
Bus ride to
camp:
I would like to
take this opportunity to thank Bruno and Trott Transit
for their unbeatable pricing for the bus to/from camp
this year. The bus is a safe, fun, and convenient means
of sending the kids to camp. Without this special
pricing we couldn’t even dream of offering this to
parents. Please arrive at the Church at 1pm, for a 1:45
DEPART on SATURDAY July 24th. We will meet
at the cul-de-sac on Superior Ave. (in front of the MLC
daycare) south of Lakeshore. We plan to return on
Friday July 30th at 6:30pm.
Final remarks:
Remember, camp
starts SATURDAY evening July 24th! For those of you
driving up, please plan to arrive anytime after 7pm.
Lutherlyn camp is such a wonderful time of fellowship
and Christian spirit (as many of you know).
Please keep us in
your prayers for the week that we are at camp.
Yours very truly,
Dan Sommerfeld (aka Dan Sommercamp!)
P.S.Please forward this to friends that may not be on
the mailing list, but are going to camp.
Contact Dan
Sommerfeld at 905 274-6602
New in the church council
Unfortunately, Gordon Weber moved
to Midland and could not continue to participate in the
church council. We thank
John Knopp for being willing to join our team!
In gratitude to Mrs. Marion
Holtorf for their donations for church windows as well
as two information boards, a small plaque has been
placed in the entrance hall, also in memory of Reinhardt
Carstens, for whom a memorial service at the MLK had
been held in the year 2004.
Please
mark your calendar !
Congregational Bus Trip for Young and Old
with
Grand River Boat Cruise
on
Saturday, September 25
Now in church council (from left to right): Keith Rabey,
secretary; Ernst Carl; Sylvia Kunde; Dan Sommerfeld;
Martin Haefele; Doris Cheda; John Knopp; Irene Zielke;
Anna Lisa Wienecke, treasurer; Iris Schweiger, vice
president; Larissa Mattwich.Unfortunately not on this
photo: President Edmund Scholz (who was in Germany at
this point of time) and Pastor Alexander Mielke (who was
taking this photo).
Stay
in Germany of Pastor Alexander Mielke, according to the
contract with EKD
This summer we will be in Toronto
and the MLC for three years already. According to the
contract between EKD, MLC and Eastern Synod, the EKD
(Evangelical Church in Germany) finances a stay in
Germany for me and my family (with a length of 8 weeks,
following this contract). So I will be in Germany, and
during this time attend an EKD-Overseas-Conference, as
well as continuing education courses. Furthermore this
vacation, of course, presents a good opportunity to
visit family and friends. I am very pleased that Pastor
Gerhard Hille will be available as substitute pastor for
the greater part of this time. He is the father of Anna
Lisa Wienecke and, therefore, quite familiar with the
MLC, and I think it is optimal to have permanent
substitute pastor to turn to in matters of church
services and pastoral care. Through a continuing
education course in preaching, which he has attended in
Chicago for some time now, he is also well acquainted
with the English language. A heartfelt Thank-You to
Pastor Hille for his readiness to help! He also will be
responsible for bible study and devotions at the summer
camp.
Here a greeting from Pastor
Gerhard Hille:
Dear members of the
Martin-Luther-Church,
Pastor Mielke has asked me to serve as a substitute
pastor during his stay in Germany this summer. I was
very pleased and have accepted this invitation with a
thankful heart. So I'm going to live in the
parsonage from July 11 to August 11 and be available
for you in all pastoral matters.
May it be a blessed
time!
A big thank you to Pastor Heike
Block-Mielke who is conducting the church services on
June 20 and 27. To
Pastor Christian Schweter who will be available for
pastoral contacts during the second half of June. To
Pastor Joachim Knaack, who will be available for
pastoral contacts July 1-9 and hold services on
July 4 and 25.
With any
concern, you can also contact our president Edmund
Scholz (phone 905-625-0548) and our vice President Iris
Schweiger (phone 905-625-9174).
Unfortunately Klaus Schneeberger
resigned from his position as our main organist.
In July, he and Katie
are going to celebrate their wedding, and their new
house is pretty far away from our church. We very
sincerely thank Klaus for all the faithful and good
service he has done for us (a special treat was when
Katie accompanied him with the violin!). We wish them
God's blessings and good guidance and hope that Klaus
and Katie sometimes still find the way to us in the MLC.
From late June to early August, Linda Marcinkus will
play the organ at MLC. As a pianist at the
concerts of Edelweiss Choir and Harfentoene, she is
already well known to us. Thank you and welcome, Linda,
in the MLC!
Please note the ad for
the position of an organist on our homepage
www.martinluther.ca
In 5 Superior an apartment
is for rent. If you are interested, please contact
Edmund Scholz or Iris Schweiger.
(A very big thank you to the
hardworking volunteers who have done so much for
renovation and painting!)
Here We Need Your Help !
Flowers on the altar
make our church beautiful for the Sunday. Flower
donations which can be made in memory of loved ones are
very much appreciated. PLease sign up in the the list
which you find in the entrance hall, for a Sunday which
is still free and convenient for you. For coordination
it might be helpful if you leave your phone number on a
card.
Please also have a look at the Coffee Duty List –
thank you for helping on a Sunday!
On Pentecost
Sunday, May 23, we celebrated the confirmation of:
Christine Rabey,
Nicole Schwarz, Tonya Horn, Sonja Schweiger, Ben Schwarz
and Rhys Buceta (on the photo from left to right,
together with Pastor Alexander Mielke).
On Friday, June 4, 6:30 p.m., we
will have a confirmation class reunion in the
church. This is an
opportunity for looking back at the class and the
celebration together. Tanya is going to present
photos of their gigantic Asian trip. Other
interested youth are very welcome too!
I cordially
invite to a new confirmation course.
It leads to confirmation on Pentecost Sunday in 2012,
May 27. By meeting every second week, the burden of
transport for parents is not as heavy. Children are
welcome to be registered also at a younger age, even
shortly before they reach the age of 12. A first
meeting will be on Friday, September 17, 6:30 p.m.
in the church. Please tell others in your family or
among friends about this!
Many donations had been given for our Brazilian sister
congregation. In May, we
were able to send
$ 2,785.20 to Guarulhos, for the
children project in Cabuçu (especially the purchase of
musical instruments as well as assistance for the
renovation of the local parish building).
Here a photo of the women's
group of Guarulhos.
For the following wedding anniversaries, our best wishes
and God's blessings:
Jacob and Hilda Schaeffer, 50th wedding anniversary
John and Anna Schmidt, 60th wedding anniversary
Eugen and Ursula Pahnke, 50th wedding anniversary
Kurt and Julie Pieckenhagen, 50th wedding anniversary
God is love, and those who abide
in love abide in God, and God abides in them.
1 John 4:16
The
cooks and otherwise to the Mother's Day Luncheon
dedicated men.
