Newsletter March 20, 2022

Ezekiel 33:7-20, 1 Corinthians 10:1-13, Luke 13:1-9

Third Sunday of Lent

Church Service – March 20, 2022

New Sermon Series: Lent: Reflection, Repentance, Renewal

As we prepare for Easter during the season of Lent, we take time to reflect on ourselves, repent of those ways in which we have failed, and receive the renewal of life that comes through Jesus. Based on a series of readings from the Gospel of Luke, we will experience the life change that comes from these three ideals.

How to Stay Connected Until You’re Ready to Come Back

We know it’s hard to feel connected sometimes with everything that is going on. We are working hard here at Holy Cross to keep our church family thriving as much as possible while still being responsible with our decisions about the health of our congregation and the community. Here are some ways to stay plugged in to HCLM:

Prepare for Sunday Services – worship song set lists, scripture readings, and questions for deeper thinking will be posted throughout the week on Facebook and Instagram
Praying for You – We have always believed in the power of prayer. If there is something weighing on your mind or want to submit a prayer, let us know through our prayer request form or e-mail prayer@hclm.org.
Online or In Person Services – Sunday at 8:00am for traditional service or 10:00am for contemporary
Holy Cross Lake Mary Podcast – Check out and subscribe to our new podcast on iTunes or Spotify. You can also simply ask Alexa to “play the Holy Cross Lake Mary Podcast”

Tithes & Offerings

We give because we recognize that God has blessed us immensely and so we honor Him by giving back to Him out of our tithes and offerings. You can give online at hclm.org/give or mail to church address at 780 N Sun Drive, Lake Mary, FL 32746.

Sunday Morning Seating Arrangements

We ask that members of households to sit together while remaining socially distant from other households with 2-3 seats between families. Thanks for keeping others safe.

Upcoming Events and Activities

March 23- Lenten Bible Study & Soup Supper

Soup Supper begins at 6PM followed by the Lenten study led by Pastor Matt at 6:30 PM in the community center.

March 23- First Communion Class

During the Season of Lent, Pastor Chris will host this class for 4th and 5th grade students and prepare them to receive their First Communion at the Maundy Thursday service on April 14th. Click here for more information and to register.

March 24- Family Game Night

Game Night will be held March 24th in the Community Center 6 to 8pm. Contact Carolyn Zacharias @ carolyn.r.zacharias@gmail.com

April 11, Cookbook Crew (NEW L-TEAM)

Do you like to eat? Do you find yourself in a recipe rut? Are you curious what others are putting on their tables each evening? Come join us in fellowship as we have fun sharing some of our favorites. We will have a monthly theme and wish for you to bring your favorite written recipe that fits the theme. You will leave full of ideas and hopefully inspired to try out a new dish. Sharing does not have to be overwhelming…contact Diane Culpepper with questions!

Theme for April 11: 30 Minute Meal

RSVP desired but not necessary. Diane Culpepper 407.430.5324. Meeting in the new coffee shop @ 6pm.

Dream Builders

The Dream Builders team is back at it – raising funds and helping to build with Habitat for Humanity – Seminole Apopka’s Women Build project. The Women Build project means one house goes up built at least 85% by women! The Dream Builders team holds meetings together to plan group fundraisers and socialize. We will spend at least one day on a Habitat Build in Sanford during April. Open to women 16 and up! Please text Sara Russell 773-710-6871 or send an email to sarahoyer@gmail.com if you’d like to particpate.

St. Luke’s Concert Series

Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra- Friday, April 29 @ 7 PM

Youth & Children’s Ministry

March 20- Kids Church!!!

Kids K-5 Join Children’s Director Emily at 10AM in the Children’s Center!

March 20-Youth Ministry

Join Youth Director Blake during the 9AM Education Hour

Youth Group March 23rd

Join Youth Director Blake and Pastor Chris.

LCMS National Youth Gathering! – Next summer the LCMS (Lutheran Church Missouri Synod) is holding their National Youth Gathering in Houston Texas! This is a youth conference that our synod puts on in a different city every three years. For the first time in a long time, we will be sending a group to attend! This conference is for those currently in 8th grade to those in 12th grade. If this is something that you or your student(s) are interested in, please let me know! For more info click here

***Upcoming High School Spring Retreat– We have a date! The Winter Retreat is now the Spring Retreat, April 1-3 at Lake Yale. If you have already registered and this date does not work, please reach out to Youth Director Blake.

L-Team News and Calendar

If you are interested in starting an L-Team or your existing L-Team has resumed, please reach out to the office or one of the pastors.

Ongoing L-Teams:

Sunday

Adult Bible Study 9am
Student Ministry 9am
Sunday School 9am – upstairs in the Children’s Center with Emily
A Fighting Chance 11:30 AM- The Studio with Will Zacharias
Jiu Jitsu Club 12:10 PM- The Studio with Will Zacharias

Monday

Men’s Bible Study 7am (Pastor Chris)
Men’s Ministry 7:30pm

Ladies Book Club (4th Monday only) 7pm

Cookbook Crew (Meets once a month. Days may vary) 6pm *New

Wednesday

Wednesday Morning Bible Study 10:30am
Worship Team Practice 6:45pm

Thursday

Ladies Bible Study by LWML 6:30pm (Sharon Shyrock or Chris Jennison)

Christine Jennison(jennisons2000@aol.com)

or Sharon Shyrock (ssshyrock@yahoo.com).

Game Night (Third Thursday only) 6PM *NEW

Volunteer Spotlight: Oasis Helpers

For the past several years, Holy Cross has had a faithful group of servants helping the homeless with services to ease their lives. Laundry, showers, access to charging stations and more allow for a little respite from the despair of homelessness. The Oasis is located at The Sharing Center in Longwood. See Pastor Matt to find out about this and other volunteer opportunities.

Announcements & Updates

Soup Supper will continue Wednesday 3/23 at 6:00PM in the Community Center. Soups will be prepared by the ladies of LWML. Please bring sandwiches to share or just for yourself. Lenten Bible Study will follow at 6:30PM.

Youth Group or Early Communion 3/23.

We are sending students to the National Youth Gathering! Once a month they will be providing baked goodies after service. Please consider supporting them as they raise funds for their trip! 3/20 will be the next bake sale.

There are some exciting things happening at youth group, and one of the most exciting things is that our youth group is growing! With growth, we are in need of small group adult leaders for both middle school and high school students. Being a small group leader is an incredible way to get involved in our church community as well as getting to know students who are the future of the Church! If you or somebody you know may be interested in being a part of what happens at Holy Cross on Wednesday nights, please let Blake know!

Metal Collection Notes:

Aluminum cans and any other non-serviceable metals can be recycled. Two collection points are available: the blue box in the courtyard and the other is behind the dumpster inside the enclosure. All aluminum cans and any metal objects no longer serviceable are gladly accepted.

All donations are greatly appreciated for this worthy cause. Thank you! Contact Warren Jennison @321-377-8524 with any questions/comments about the ministry. All profits go to the youth.

Thrivent Scholarships

Thrivent Charitable Community Scholarship – Two $5,000 scholarships
The Thrivent Charitable Community Scholarship was established in 2013 to benefit students who are members of churches and students of schools that have an active endowment fund at Thrivent Charitable. Applicants must be high school graduating seniors seeking a four-year undergraduate degree at an accredited college or university. Through this scholarship award, we hope to provide educational opportunities to two individuals who demonstrate financial need, high academic achievement, and a commitment to sharing their blessings with the world. This scholarship program is through a Field of Interest Fund, made possible by Thrivent Charitable donors to benefit our shared community.

WomenLead Scholarship – Two $3,000 scholarships
WomenLead recognizes the need for diverse leadership in ministry, nonprofits and civic organizations, and seeks to accelerate the extraordinary leadership of women to lead change using their talents to educate, advocate, and activate. The Chris Andersen WomenLead Scholarship was established in 2017. Two educational scholarships in the amount of $3,000 will be awarded to women of Christian faith seeking a Master or Doctoral level degree that will prepare them to serve in public service, non-profit leadership and/or in Christian ministry. Women of diverse backgrounds (race/ethnicity, age, faith) eager to lead through bold action, innovative vision and faith-inspired passion are encouraged to apply.

Applications for these scholarships are due on April 29, 2022. More information is available on our website. If you have any questions about the scholarships or the application process, please don’t hesitate to contact our team at TCScholarships@thrivent.com or call (800) 365-4172.

Set Apart to Serve-LCMS

Do you know any young man who would make a great pastor? How about someone who would be a great Lutheran school teacher, deaconess or DCE? Jesus gives His church people who work full time in service to the Gospel. He told us to pray for such workers. The LCMS continues to pray, and has begun Set Apart to Serve (SAS), an intentional effort to encourage young people to consider church work as their career. Your opinion can help improve SAS. Please fill out a brief survey at lcms.org/set–apart-to-serve–survey by March 15, and let us know how you think SAS can be beneficial to your congregation. Thank you.

Communion is available in our in person services (1st and 3rd Sunday at 8am and 2nd & 4th Sunday at 10am). For those who are not able to get to a service or are not yet comfortable attending in person services, please contact the office or one of the pastors and we will be happy to make other arrangements.

Prayers of Thanksgiving

We are thankful to celebrate so many birthdays with our church family this month. Happy Birthday and many blessings to Bill Baessler, Chris Jennison, Sharon Shyrock, and Hannah Hench

Kaitlin McGavock- Celebrating her wedding to Josh Parsons on March 19th. Congratulations to the newlyweds.

Prayers of Comfort

Prayers of comfort for the Judy and the Minoff family on the passing of Jim Minoff. The Celebration of life service will be 3/26@2PM at Holy Cross

Prayers of the Church

Barb Rueh – pray for successful upcoming knee replacement surgery and rehab

Walter Meyers – Prayer for peace and family healing

Pray for all those suffering from coronavirus

General Prayers

We pray today for our nation and our world. We ask that God would be with all of our leaders and elected officials; we pray that He would bring peace to the world, an end to violence and especially watch over Christians that are facing persecution.

Prayers for Healing from Cancer


Laken Binkley	Jerry Hoffman	John Myron
Gary Brown	Marlin Houser	Bradford Plog
Becky Burrell	Alan Kimball	Ivis Rodriquez
Kyle Corbett	Elizabeth Koob	Wayne Scheussler
Deb Fadool	Rick Lembrich	Karen Schlue
Tosha Feldmann	Lori Luedtke	Debbie Shaffer
Michael Francis	Charaline Luna	Gina Shaffer
Pat Goodwine	Jean Mactye	Sue Stark
Diane Gross	Rick Mann	Scott Williams
Jerry Gross	Kathy Morgan	Georgene Walden
Todd Haynes	Eric Johnson	Mary Lee Soyars

“Casting a light to help those who are lost find their way in Christ”

Sunday Services at 8:00am, and 10:00am in the Worship Center

and Online on Facebook and YouTube/hclm

Pastor Matt Wallis (mwallis@hclm.org)

Pastor Chris Johnson (chrisj@hclm.org)

www.hclm.org Facebook: facebook.com/lakemarychurch