A Monthly Publication of Atascocita Lutheran Church

FEBRUARY 2016 - Volume 22 - Number 2

Sunday Worship

9:30 am - Holy Communion with a mix of traditional and contemporary music

These forty days called Lent are like no other. It is our opportune time to

return to the God who rescues; to receive the gifts of God’s grace; to believe

with the heart and confess with the mouth the wonder of God’s love in Jesus;

and to resist temptation at every turn.

Wednesday, February 10 6:00 pm Soup Supper in the Fellowship Hall 7:00 pm Ash Wednesday Worship Service

Every Wednesday during Lent (Feb 17—March 16)

6:00 pm Soup Supper 7:00 pm Lent Worship Services

Thursday, March 24 7:00 pm Maundy Thursday Worship Service

Friday, March 25 7:00 pm Good Friday Worship Service

Upcoming Events

Feb 5

Girl Scouts

Feb 10

Lent Soup Supper

Ash Wednesday

Service

Feb 11

Cub Scouts

Feb 13

Women’s Bunco

Feb 14

Share the Luvs

Feb 15

Office Closed

Feb 17

Lent Soup Supper

Lent Service

Feb 18

Diners Group

Boy Scouts

Feb 19

Girl Scouts

Feb 20

Mens Breakfast

Basket Group

Womens Bunco

Feb 24

Lent Soup Supper

Lent Service

Thinking about this past year for our church, and trying to summarize 2015 as succinctly as possible, I kept going back to a rather generic word that gets used all the time in a variety of situations. That would be the word “good”. It was a good year for us, and hopefully for many of you individually as well. That isn’t to say that my previous year with you was bad, that isn’t the case at all, it is simply that this year stood out to me as being quite good.

If there is even a period where it may appear as if God is not blessing us as a church body or as individuals, to the degree that we would prefer, does that mean that we have been somehow overlooked? I don’t necessarily think that is the case.

It’s just that there are times when one stops and looks at all that God has done in our lives, and blessing is abundantly clear. On the other hand, it may seem as if nothing new has occurred in recent memory. There is a danger, though, in reflecting upon recent gains. Blessing was never intended by God to be reduced or limited to the first person pronoun “I” or within a given time frame. God’s blessings are continual and long lasting. Some may simply be more apparent in the moment than others. May we all recognize God’s blessings throughout 2016.

Pastor Timothy Holt

11 DAYS BEST OF FRANCE

AUGUST 1 – 11, 2016

HOSTED BY REV. MARK & LINNEA HOLMER

REV. TIM & KAIA HOLT

Visiting Nice, Monte Carlo, Lyon, Chateaux Country,

Chartres, Mont St. Michel, Bayeux, Normandy, Rouen & Paris

Only $3859 PER PERSON FROM CHICAGO

(Air/land tour price is $3199 plus $660 govt. taxes/airline surcharges)

TOUR INCLUDES: Roundtrip Air from Chicago, First Class/Select Hotels,

Most Meals, Comprehensive Sightseeing, Professional Tour Escort and more!!

FOR A BROCHURE & MORE INFORMATION CONTACT

Rev. Mark & Linnea Holmer:

Tel: (515) 295-9537 or Email: linnea@netamumail.com

Rev. Tim & Kaia Holt: Tel: (832) 850-6944 or Email: kaiasue18@sbcglobal.net

Share the Luvs on February 14

Please join us after worship on February 14 to visit with the Holts and welcome little Max to our

ALC family. In lieu of a baby shower, we invite anyone who wishes to provide diapers for the Holts

as their diaper consumption has now doubled. All brands and sizes are welcome as Max is currently

in newborns, but will be working his way through other sizes soon enough. Eli is currently wearing

size 4, but will also be movin’ on up in the not-too-distant future.

HAAM is also in desperate need of diapers – sizes 4, 5, 6 and Pull-Ups – so we are collecting diapers

for HAAM as well. If you are able, please put a package of diapers in the HAAM collection box in

the Fellowship Hall any time over the next few weeks.

Be sure to stop by on February 14 to wish the Holts well and enjoy a light lunch, courtesy of an

Action Grant from Thrivent Financial. Any remaining grant money will be used to purchase diapers

for HAAM, so we will continue to ‘Share the Luvs.’

The Lenten season begins on Ash Wednesday,

February 10. As we have done in the past, we

will offer a soup and sandwich supper

every Wednesday evening from 6:00—6:45 pm

February 10 through March 16. The mid-week

Lenten service will follow at 7pm. We rely on

volunteers to bring soup, lunch meat, cheese,

bread and dessert each week. If you can

provide any of these items, please sign up on

the sheets in the Fellowship Hall. Everyone is

invited to join us a for a delicious meal and

great fellowship.

For more information contact Joy Berthold at

joy.m.berthold@jpmorgan.com.

Why do we do Math and Numbers at Chrysalis School?

Preschoolers do math every day. They just might not know it. They ask

questions like, “how many pieces of candy may I have?” They count the number of jumps it takes to get to the playground gate. They see that if you line up a red block and a blue block again and again, it

creates a pattern.

As with most everything they learn, it is the hands-on experience they encounter in their everyday lives that helps them

learn important math concepts.

At Chrysalis School, we know that when we do number identification and

patterning and sorting and counting and one-to-one correspondence it not only

lays a foundation of learning that other teachers will be able to build on but also

gives the children the confidence to work with numbers and math.

Registration for 2016 - 2017 School Year

We are pleased to announce our registration for the 2016 - 2017 school year! The 2016 school year will be our 18th year of quality preschool programming serving preschool aged children from our congregation and the surrounding area. We offer a Three Year Old class and a Four Year Old class. Registration packets will be available on our website, www.thechrysalisschool.org, beginning January 19th, and in the preschool office. Registration for church members and current students and their siblings will begin February 2nd. Open registration will begin February 10th at 9am in the Fellowship Hall.

Please visit the school's website at www.thechrysalisschool.org for more

information.

For tours contact Renee Wallace at 281-852-6002

or thechrysalisschool@yahoo.com

ALC Adopts a Chaplain!

Captain Johnathan Court, our new

adoptee, is replacing Joe as chaplain

for the troops in Taji on the outskirts of

Baghdad.

Johnathan has a wife, Alyssa, and

young daughter, Grace, who are

originally from California, but

currently stationed at Fort Bliss,

Texas.

We will continue to collect items and

send them on to Johnathan to disburse

to the troops he serves at several bases

in Iraq.

Please place your donations in the box

in the fellowship hall and show your

support for our military men and

women who are sacrificing so much

for us.

And please keep Johnathan, his family

and our troops around the world in

your prayers. Thank you!

MOST NEEDED ITEMS

Energy bars Beef jerky

Crystal Light power mix Gold Bond Powder

Hotel size toiletries Chapstick

Feminine products Sunscreen

Shoe insoles Music CDs

Magazines/Books Board games

Individually wrapped candies (no chocolate)

Join the Diners Group on Thursday, February 18 at

7pm at The Red Lobster in Humble (20414 Hwy 59

North). There is always lots of great food and

plenty of fun!

On February 27, Water to Thrive, will be holding their Pump

Run 5K and Kids K on the Austin campus of Concordia

Lutheran.

The Pump Run, a signature event of Water to Thrive, raises

money to help fund water projects in rural African

communities that need a reliable source of clean, safe water.

It’s a family-friendly run with opportunities for teams and

individuals alike to chase down a personal best. If you’re not up for a full -out run, make it a walk for

water to honor our beneficiaries in rural Africa who walk this far every day to get jerry cans full of

dirty water for their families. You can even run with your dog, if your dog keeps you on a leash.

For supporters who can't make it, they are also holding a Virtual Pump Run! Once you've registered, get out

in your neighborhood and log in 3.1 miles during the week of February 21-27. Proceeds from the race help

fund Water to Thrive's mission to build wells and change lives in rural African communities. Be a part of it, on

the course or behind the scenes, and help run for their lives!

To register for any of the runs, go to https://runsignup.com/Race/TX/Austin/PumpRun.

The St. Olaf Choir, with 75 mixed voices,

has continued to set a standard of choral

excellence and remained at the forefront of choral

artistry. The choir's mission is to provide music

of the highest quality that lifts people's hearts and

spirits, incorporating a diversity of voices and

cultural traditions into the chorus of the Christian

faith.

The ensemble's annual tour is coming to our area

with performances in San Antonio, Austin,

Dallas, and Houston on February 9.

Get your tickets today by logging onto

Under the direction of Dr. Douglas Boyer, the

Texas Lutheran Choir, Women's

Choir, and Kantorei Chamber

Choir will perform in venues across Texas.

All performances are free and open to the

public. No tickets are required.

April 7 at 7:30 pm at Kinsmen in Houston

April 8 at 7:30 pm at St. Peter in Halletsville

13 Johne & Homer Dowell

20 Brandy & Vernon Harris

21 Joy & David Berthold

27 Steve & Cheryl Howard

2 Landon Anderson

2 Tommy Cook

2 Madison Sather

5 Hunter Benavidez

6 Kadence Nichols

6 Kourtney Nichols

7 Steven Galloway

7 Liam Kern

7 Kendall Swendsen

9 Alexander Heinrich

11 Aiden Leone

11 Easton Venegas

14 Zach Landers

15 Michael Poxon

18 Tyler Holt

18 Bart Noble

19 Amelia Noble

24 Justin Leone

26 Luther Mitchell

27 Steve Howard

Sign up in the narthex to give altar flowers. Our

church florist will make a beautiful arrangement.

Cost is $50.

Monday - Thursday: 9-3

Friday: 9-12

Pastor Tim’s Sabbath

For emergencies, you can reach

Pastor Tim at (832) 850-6944

Go to www.alutheranchurch.org