A Special New Year's Poem - Flight 2022 Instructions

(This poem was found online by Council President Kent Hamdorf. We were unable to confirm attribution but will credit the author in later publications if we are able to identify them.)

Good morning and welcome to Flight 2022.

We are prepared to take off into the New Year.

Please make sure your Positive Attitude and Gratitude are secured and locked in the upright position. All self-destruct devices: pity, anger, selfishness, pride, and resentment should be turned off at this time.

All negativity, hurt, and discouragement should be put away. Should you lose your Positive Attitude under pressure during this flight, reach up and pull down a prayer. Prayers will automatically be activated by Faith.

Once your Faith is activated, you can assist other passengers who are of little faith.

There will be NO BAGGAGE allowed on this flight.

God, our Captain, has cleared us for take-off.

Destination – Greatness!

Wish you a New Year filled with new HOPE, new JOY, and new BEGINNINGS!

Stay Blessed! And welcome in 2022.

Brief Website Interruptions May Occur This Week

This week, Hope will transition to a new data hosting service for our hope4all.church website.

This transition will help make our website better, faster, and easier to use. However, we have been notified by the hosting service that our website may experience brief interruptions to connectivity on Tuesday, January 4^th, while the site completes its transition.

If you have difficulty accessing the website on January 4^th, please wait a few hours and try again. We do not expect issues to last longer than one day. We apologize for any inconvenience and thank you for your patience.

A Message from the Seasonal Decorating Team

Thank you to everyone who helped decorate both Hope Central Campus and Hope Lake Weir Campus for the Christmas Season. Your help was appreciated. The team also needs your help to take down and store the decorations.

The date to undecorate Hope Central Campus will be January 10^th at 9:00am. We will undecorate Hope Lake Weir Campus on January 13^th at 12:00pm.

Please email Nancy Shephard at [email protected] or text or call at

(269) 598-0445 if you are available to help.

New Sending Hymn for Traditional Services

This coming weekend, we will be singing a new sending hymn at the end of the traditional services called "Jesus, the Light of the World".

This song is catchy and easy to sing, and our Director of Music Ministries Ken Wood has put together a quick tutorial video for anyone who wants to hear it ahead of time.

Click the video above to watch and listen to our newest sending hymn!

Important Info for the End of the Year

Evening Compline Returns to Hope

You're invited to join us this Wednesday, January 5^th at 6:00pm at Hope Central Campus for our weekly Evening Compline service. In the dark months of the year, we change our prayer service from Vespers (evening prayer) to Compline (night prayer).

In this 20-minute prayer service, we will sing, pray, and read from Scriptures. For those unable to attend, you may continue to join us via Livestream.

We will continue to offer Compline each Wednesday evening until Lent.

Everyone Reads - Book Club Event

Please join us for an evening of discussion on Holy Envy: Finding God in the Faith of Others by Barbara Brown Taylor. Taylor is an Episcopal priest and a college professor of Religion.

Enjoy reading her bestseller and join us for fellowship on Monday, January 24^th at 5:00pm in Fellowship Hall at Hope Central Campus. We will be led by members of some of Hope’s book clubs.

All are welcome, even if you have not previously joined us in a book discussion.

A Soup and Salad catered dinner will be served. The cost is $10.00. You may make your reservation using the button below. The deadline for registration is Wednesday, January 19^th.  

Any questions, please contact Anita Dillman at a[email protected]

Faith & Fellowship Now Meeting at All Hope Campuses

Faith & Fellowship South Group will be meeting on the second and fourth Monday of each month at 1:30pm. The group will meet on the second floor of the Magnolia Publix across from the Everglades Rec Center. 

Faith & Fellowship Lake Weir Group will meet on the first and third Monday of each month at 1:00pm at Hope Lake Weir Campus.

Faith & Fellowship Central Group will also continue to meet on Mondays at Hope Central Campus at 9:30am every week.

This is a perfect time to join Faith & Fellowship! All are welcome, including non-Hope members, so please invite your friends to join the fun. The Zoom link is active on Mondays at 9:30am every week, so those who cannot attend in person can use the link below to join the conversations online. Meeting ID: 952 5901 4615. Join by phone: (929) 205-6099. ID: 95259014615# 

Global Mission Breakfast, Hosted by the Women of Hope

January 13^th, 2022 - 9:00am at Hope Central Campus

Hope Lutheran Church will welcome Pastor Katie Carroll, Chair of the Global Mission Table of the Florida-Bahamas Synod, for Global Mission Weekend on January 15^th and 16^th.

To celebrate her visit, the Women of Hope are hosting a breakfast in partnership with the Men of Hope and Mission Outreach Ministry on the Thursday before Global Mission Weekend. 

Enjoy breakfast with a special presentation from Pastor Katie on January 13^th at 9:00am at Hope Central Campus. The cost will be $7.00 per person.

Menu will include Herbalicious breakfast egg casserole, ham and cheese breakfast sliders, Applewood smoked bacon, roasted breakfast potatoes, fresh fruit, assorted pastries, coffee, and juice.

This is an opportunity for all Hope members and friends to learn more about Global Missions. The 18-member Florida-Bahamas Synod Global Mission Table guides the Synod's five companion relationships in Cuba, Haiti, Jamaica, Guyana, and Suriname. Join in learning more about God's mission throughout the world.

Help us welcome Pastor Katie and enjoy a delicious breakfast together. Everyone is invited, including both men and women, so bring your neighbors and friends. 

Questions? Please contact Margaret Furlong at [email protected] or (352) 430-5092, or Marion McClarin Blomberg at [email protected] or (352) 751-4338.

The Twelve Days of Christmas Donation Plan

Though Christmas Day has passed, the church continues to celebrate the Christmas season! Our Hope Food Pantry would like to remind everyone of this thoughtful guide for giving. Based on the Twelves Day of Christmas, this guide spaces needed donations throughout the month to make giving a donation more manageable.

Prayer Study 

On January 6^th, 2022, the Prayer Study class will continue our study of prayer with an investigation of Embodied Spirituality.

Brothers and sisters, we need to be mindful of the Hope mission that always includes prayer. Remember we have the examples of Jesus praying throughout the gospel accounts, we have the gift of the Lord’s prayer from Him, and we have His request that we spread the ‘Good News' of the Gospel to others in and with prayer. We additionally have Paul's admonitions from his letters for us to pray unceasingly. Let's sincerely begin together! 

If you have any questions or are interested in joining the class, please contact Pastor John at [email protected] or 352-425-2776. 

The class meets Thursday mornings at 11:00 in room 203. You can also join via zoom. 

Heritage Series Course To Be Offered in January

Heritage Series Winter 2022 - "Your Church: Where we came from & how do we do it."

This 6 class course provides background information for members to enable them to understand our heritage, beliefs, and how we are organized to fulfill our mission. The course will share current information about Hope Lutheran Church as well as provide a solid background of our church history including how the Bible was developed, our Jewish Heritage, and how Christianity evolved.

The attendees background may include other denominations and we do not assume a strong Lutheran knowledge.

The class will run on Wednesday nights from 6:15pm to 7:15pm starting beginning Wednesday, January 12^th and concluding Wednesday, February 16^th. You can confirm your intention to attend by calling Dave Withers at (352) 233-7533) or by email at [email protected].

Worship Attendance for December 26, 2021

Central Campus:

4:00pm = No Service

6:00pm = No Service

8:00am = 60

10:00am = 125

Lake Weir Campus:

10:00am = 45

Everglades Rec Center:

8:00am = 35

10:00am = 55

This Week's Flowers Given By...

Ann Bergandi, in memory or in honor of anyone

Carol & Wayne Dieffenbach, in honor of their 63^rd wedding anniversary