Feed My Starving Children



Feed My Starving Children (FMSC) is a Christian, nonprofit organization dedicated to feeding every hungry child. FMSC works with food distribution partners that stay with communities for the long haul, empowering them to move from relief to development.

A child dies every 10 seconds from malnutrition, with 3 million children dying from hunger every year. FMSC meals are developed by food science and nutrition professionals to supplement nutritional needs and reduce problems with malnutrition. Nutrition allows children to grow, thrive and develop to their full potential. Each day, FMSC's partners distribute meals in schools, orphanages, clinics and feeding programs around the world, many of these are in developing countries.

La Casa de Cristo is again hosting a mobile pack event in the Gathering Place on December 14th and 15th, with a 3-hour slot on Friday, December 13th for setting up. The time slots on Saturday and Sunday are for 2 hours each (which include receiving instructions, packing the dry ingredients in plastic bags with your team, and clean-up). We have so much fun as a team, packing to uplifting music, working together to fill as many meals as possible, and making lasting memories. Last December we packed 132,192 meals for starving children around the world! This was La Casa de Cristo's sixth packing event and to date we have packed a whopping 1,391,690 meals! It is so amazing to see how God is working to feed His children!

If you missed out last year, please consider participating this year. Bring friends and family, fraternity brothers or sorority sisters, and form your group. Dress alike and make a fun day of it! Sign up here.

"He upholds the cause of the oppressed and gives food to the hungry." - Psalm 146:7

Carillon de Cristo

On Nov. 24th, the Carillon de Cristo handbell ensemble will be ringing for the next time in service--but with a few new additions! Not only will we have the largest number of people ever (18, if all goes according to plan!) but we will be debuting our new acquisition: low chimes with the range known as C2-B2; they are 11 notes, all malleted. They're not very loud--just profound--and they will make a warm, round effect under the other bells.

Although we will use them for the prelude too, you'll experience them most during the "Musical Interlude" time on a piece called "Holy, Holy, Holy," which will also feature spoken narration. The sound of these chimes is optimal from 30 or more feet away (as opposed to close up), so after the 9:15 service, feel free to come up and enjoy a brief sound demonstration of these chimes all by themselves!

Dr. Jeremy Peterman

The Harmonizing Power of Music in Faith Communities

Music has always been a cornerstone of my faith journey, weaving itself into the fabric of community in ways I never anticipated. I remember the first time I played the organ in a little church. It was a little tiny church with folding chairs that we would turn the chairs around for our once a month fellowship dinner. These fellowship dinners were not well organized, often having three dishes of green jello and one dish of scalloped potatoes, The next month we would have four different iterations of scalloped potatoes and nothing else! These dinners were filled with heart, laughter and a wonderful sense of community. I was surrounded by people united in faith that let a 15 year-old play the organ for the worship service. I felt an immediate sense of belonging. Each note resonated with the stories and struggles of those around me, creating a bond that transcended our individual experiences. It was in those moments of grace in that tiny church that I discovered the power of shared faith and collective expression.

In times of joy and sorrow, music has provided a sanctuary for my soul and a language that speaks directly to the heart. I recall a particularly moving service when the congregation sang a hymn that resonated in my very soul. As the music enveloped me, I found myself moved to tears and I was uplifted through the words and music. It’s incredible how music can transform a space, allowing us to express our deepest emotions and connect with one another in profound ways. Through every chord and lyric, I’ve witnessed how music not only enhances our worship but also strengthens the ties that bind us together in faith.

We will be having our annual Messiah Sing Along on Friday, December 6th at 7:00pm. Speaking of being moved by music, I remember my mom standing proudly during the singing of the Hallelujah Chorus, tears streaming down her face...a memory I hold dear.

Jennifer Sheldon

Director of Music

🎼 Get to Know Your Choir

Merridith Hackley

Psalm 98:4 Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all the earth: make a loud noise, and rejoice, and sing praise.



I was born in Minot, North Dakota...cold country! When I was five, my parents moved my older sister, brother and I to sunny California, settling in Pomona, about 30 miles east of Los Angeles. I grew up in the L.A. County School system. It was great back then. I took lessons for 3 years on my mother’s Hammond Spinet organ when I was 9 years old. I mostly learned songs from musicals and popular songs of the 40’s and 50’s. I sometimes played the dulcimer when we sang folk, American traditional and spiritual songs in elementary school. I learned to sew from my seamstress mother. Back then girls wore dresses to school, never denim jeans. I think when mini skirts became a trend in the late sixties, school officials decided jeans were better than mini skirts!

I grew up listening to my parents sing and harmonize hymns, sitting in the pews in the Missouri Synod church. That’s when I really grew to appreciate precious Christian hymns and harmony. As a freshman in high school, I joined the school choir where I sang with the group for four years during high school. As in my younger days, I sing alto in La Casa de Cristo’s Sanctuary Choir.

After HS graduation, I attended college and received an A.S. Degree in Radiologic Technology. In 1972, I married Russ, my high school sweetheart. We were blessed with two lovely daughters, Krista and Katie. In 1985, I received a Vocational Education Certificate in Radiologic Technology from UCLA, giving me accreditation to teach at Community College level.

Although I never accepted a formal teaching position, I did enjoy teaching new students attending Rad. Tech. programs that trained in the medical centers where I was employed 40 years as a Diagnostic Radiologic Technologist, Mammographer and Cardiovascular Technologist. I retired in 2010.

My family first moved to Scottsdale in 1986. Around 1987, my family began attending La Casa de Cristo at its original location on Thunderbird. I sang in the choir lead by Virginia Verrette. My family moved to Wichita, KS, for eight years. When we returned to Scottsdale in 1998, it took me several years before I rejoined the La Casa choir on Bell Rd. I would say I have been joyfully singing praises with our Sanctuary Choir since 2005.

Several years ago my friends, Heidi and Mona, started a hymn-sing group with me, called “Then Sings My Soul”, where we met once per month to sing hymns from song books. We sang at assisted living communities on Easter and Christmas. It was great fun while it lasted! Presently, I volunteer a few hours per week in La Casa de Cristo’s Music Department. It is a joy and so inspiring to be around Jennifer, Jim, Jeremy and the A/V staff. I have always loved singing, especially hymns. Like many folk songs, they tell a story.

It’s good to be reminded of the blessed hope we have in our Lord, Jesus Christ. Singing songs of praise, thanksgiving and hope is what lifts me up. Sometimes when days are long or life gets tough, I can attend rehearsal on a Wednesday evening or sing at church Sunday mornings and forget life’s troubles or worries, knowing that our God has made everything and is in charge of all things. I am reminded of what my purpose is in this world, to be the salt and light, and share the hope Jesus Christ has given to each believer.

“Next to the Word of God, music deserves the highest praise.” ~ Martin Luther

I’ve come to understand that, for most women, the ‘holiday months’ are overflowing with hopes and excitement, extended to-do lists, complicated schedules, lofty expectations, and the best description that I can list is~ MUCHNESS! Yet this ‘muchness’ often sings a duet with an unspoken mourning of loss for some, and an undercurrent of disappointment for most others… it culminates in exhaustion as we gaze downward upon it all.

Is that you? 



It doesn’t have to be.



Our Father, God, longs for something different for us. He longs for our stillness of soul to slow rather than ramp up. He longs for us to love well rather than run ragged. He longs for YOU to seek His face beaming upon yours to reflect His radiance in your countenance, for the world to behold! He longs for you to gaze heavenward~ to gaze upon High!  When we choose to look up, into the Scriptures, He then makes space in our lives to honor loss and to faithfully endure, through perseverance. He indwells.

His banner of LOVE is hung above your precious life; are you looking up? (Song of Solomon 2:4)

I invite you to give yourself a gift this holiday season (or ask a loved one for this). The gift is an investment in your relationship with the LORD. It is the decision to invest in, and register for, the 2025 Women’s Refresh Weekend, So Loved, which is lovingly being prayed for and prepared for YOU, January 31-February 2nd! Click here for details.

Your heavenly Father invites you to choose differently this holiday season. ‘Follow God’s example, therefore, as dearly loved children and walk in the way of love, …’ Eph 5:1-2a

Because you ARE So Loved!

With love,

XOXOX

Paula Webb

Director of Women's Ministry

“Every good and perfect gift is from God.”

James 1:17

This month in La Casa Kids, our series is called “Special Delivery-No Postage Required” for our Kindergarten-5th grade kids. Jesus said, “It is more blessed to give than to receive.” (Acts 20:35) However, sometimes generosity doesn’t come naturally to us. We want the newest and best things, or we want everyone to notice what we have. When we really enjoy the things we have, sometimes that makes it harder for us to be willing to share with others. However, with the help of God’s Spirit, we can learn that HOW we give is more important than even WHAT we give. It’s about our hearts.

As we go into the holiday season, it is easy to get wrapped up in ALL the things. Do I have the most beautifully decorated house? Am I checking the box for all the memories with my kids? Did I remember to do everything on my to-do list? We often focus on our own lives and forget the real focus of giving our hearts, just as Jesus did. 

Instead of looking inward, let us look at those around us and love our neighbors just as Jesus commands. It can be as simple as taking the trash cans in for a neighbor, writing a note of encouragement and leaving it on their door or even sending a text to someone to tell them you are thinking of them. 

As we challenge our kids to give to others, I pray you will walk with us on this journey to show His love to those around us. 

Staci Medina

Director of Children's Ministry



“Give thanks in all circumstances.”

1 Thessalonians 5:16

Notice the verse says “in” all circumstances, not “for” all circumstances.

Here we are in November, so I decided to write about being thankful. When I was younger, I never realized how being thankful makes you a more joyous person.

Billy Graham put it this way, “Grumbling and gratitude are, for the child of God, in conflict. Be grateful and you won’t grumble. Grumble and you won’t be grateful.”

I recently talked to the Middle School Group about the lies we tell ourselves or the lies we live. For example, “we are what we have.” More specifically we are what we wear, or drive, or where we can afford to eat.

We also talked about the lie: “we are what people think of us.”

As humans, we tend to overlook what we do have and look over the fence, so to speak, and want what they have over there.

When that human nature starts to creep up in me, I practice this discipline: I stop and look around and thank God for 10 things I have right in front of me. When you do this, you stop and realize how blessed you are.

I have also learned to live more simply. Quite a few years back I challenged myself to stop buying anything new for a full year. I was going to be giving a message to the youth group about sacrificing things, Starbucks, new clothes, etc. and give to the needy.

I thought, 'practice what you preach.' By the time the year was up, I did not miss the new clothes every season, I learned to be more grateful and live more simply.

My friends and family did not love me any less, because of it. I learned to give up the lie that I was what I owned and I was what people thought of me. I learned to be more grateful and “give thanks IN ALL circumstances.”

Even when we are traveling through a big storm of life, we need to be grateful we have God’s hand to hold on to, to give us the strength to come out the other side.

Let us all try to remember to be grateful for all of God’s provisions and strength through November and then all through 2025.

Suzan Scudder, Director of Middle School Ministry

Welcome to November. What do you think of when you realize it’s November? Perhaps you are thinking about Thanksgiving, preparing for Christmas, enjoying the weather change, or reminiscing about this season in other parts of the country. Whatever impression you have of the season, think for a minute about how you could artistically express that. How would you depict God’s creation on paper, canvas, or wood?

In 1874, some gifted artists took on that mission for themselves. Click here if you want to take a little break and learn how these artists pioneered the Impressionist Movement. May this video for the National Gallery of Art bring you a new perspective through which you will see the beauty of God’s creation.

Feeling inspired after watching the attached video? Join us for Love of Learning at 1pm on Tuesday, November 12 in room B, where Pat Rospenda will tell us about her artistic endeavors. Each registered participant will be given a wood slice ornament, supplies, and some guidance to make your own masterpiece. Please register here so we have supplies for everyone.

Blessings,

Donna Bosley



Depression may feel like something you may want to hide or even pretend is not there. It may be the last thing you want friends and family asking about. But giving your mental health proper care and attention may be a healthy path toward helping you get better.

Being honest with yourself about how you’re feeling may help you navigate true depression or even certain days when you may feel down. Having open conversations may be one way to help decrease the stigma around depression, encouraging more people to speak up when depression happens to themselves or loved ones.

According to the National Institute of Mental Health, the two most common types of depression are:

               Major depression: This is having symptoms of depression most of the day, every day, for at least 2 weeks. Symptoms may keep you from daily activities, like sleeping, eating, working and enjoying life. An episode of major depression may happen once in a lifetime or several times.

               Persistent depressive disorder: This is having symptoms of depression that lasts much longer, typically for at least 2 years. With this type, you might have episodes of major depression along with less severe symptoms: things like loss of interest in activities, low energy, or poor concentration.

Life events may also determine how, when or if other forms of depression develop. Types are perinatal/postpartum depression, seasonal affective disorder (when the seasons change), or depression with psychosis.

Depression is more than just an occasional feeling of “being down”. Keep in mind the symptoms of depression may need to be present for most of the day, every day, for at least 2 weeks. If that sounds like you, schedule a visit and tell your doctor how you’re feeling. Your doctor may do some basic screening and ask questions to learn more about your symptoms. From there, you might be referred to a mental health specialist. Many people often think of therapy as a way to fix something that’s broken. The truth is, many people may see a therapist as a way to proactively manage stress and help to stay on top of their mental well-being. Remember, this is your health journey and you can feel empowered to ask questions and help shape a care plan that is comfortable for you.

Consider these ideas that may help you with feeling more content and less anxious:

·        Being around people you love can help improve your mood.

·        Stay active. Exercising reduces stress, anxiety and feelings of depression. When you exercise, your body releases endorphins, which gives your brain feelings of happiness.

·        Eat for a better mood. Diet impacts how we feel physically, mentally and emotionally.

·        Meditate. This helps to manage stress and improve our mental clarity.

·        Talk to a therapist. Be proactive in handling stress.

Life does not have to be hard. Take the steps necessary to promote good mental health.

Blessings...

Jean Knowling, R.N.

Parish Nurse